"Buffalo Unbound, A Celebration" by Laura Pedersen a book review and how to win a copy of the book

"Buffalo Unbound, A Celebration"
by Laura Pedersen
Published by Fulcrum Books
2010
216 pages

At the end of this review I'll tell you how you can win a copy of this book and and Laura Pedersen's memoirs of growing up in Buffalo, "Buffalo Gal."

Laura Pedersen columnist, trader, humorist and author loves her native city of Buffalo, New York. In her memoirs of growing up in Buffalo, "Buffalo Gal" she told humorous stories of growing up during a time in Buffalo when times were tough. In 2009 "Forbes" magazine ranked Buffalo as one of the top ten most miserable cities in which to live and then had the gall to repeat the insult in 2010. Pedersen didn't stand for this and has written a humorous and at times heartfelt book to retaliate and portray Buffalo, NY as a top-tier city and "The City of Good Neighbors."

Pedersen takes the reader on a wonderful journey through the history of Buffalo from the times when the Iroquois Indians ruled the land to now where the city is thriving with locally made candies, food festivals, multicultural events, theatre and stunning architecture drive away the reminders of great blizzards past.

Each chapter/essay in this book covers something about Buffalo that I found fascinating, whether it was the history or descriptions of the beautiful and even some strange sights. Buffalo is always changing with the times. Laura Pedersen could always throw in some comment that leaves you smiling. Her humor really makes this book one that cannot be put down.

The Buffalo Chamber of Commerce had better have a thank you basket handy for Laura, because every section had me wanting to move to Buffalo and set down roots. My only reservation, was the snow and cold. Pedersen even covers the "Blizzard of '77" and a few other tragedies such as the "Cleveland Hill Fire," when an elementary school burned down killing many children, but the bright side, if there can be one in such a tragedy, is that this New York tragedy created the need for schools nation wide to organize fire drills.

If you like architecture then you already know of Frank Lloyd Wright, but did you know of the many Buffalo area buildings he designed? Architecture is covered as well as sculpture, and other arts, so it seems Buffalo has a bit of something for everyone.

This book is a fun read that not only teaches a little history, but entertains with the not quite dry wit of Laura Pedersen and creates the urge to shuffle off to Buffalo. But there's still that snow thing...maybe if a radio station in the Buffalo area needs an employee and will pay to move me there, for that I would love to see the sights written about in this book, maybe I'll have to plan a vacation to Buffalo, after all Niagara Falls is close by.

Now let's talk about how you can win a copy of this book. All you have to do is comment on this posting and you'll be entered in a random drawing to win not only this book, "Buffalo Unbound," but also Pedersen's memoirs, "Buffalo Gal." Comment and make sure you leave a way for me to contact you. If you don't feel comfortable leaving your email address then email me gil (at) gilwilson (dot) com and let me know you commented. Drawing to be held Friday, October 22, 2010.

Also check out Laura Pedersen's website for more information about her and her other books.
http://www.laurapedersenbooks.com

"Stranger Than Fiction: True Stories" by Chuck Palahniuk

"Stranger Than Fiction: True Stories"
by Chuck Palahniuk
Published by Anchor Books 2004


After a long run with reading some serious hardcore science fiction and fantasy novels I had to take a break and read some non-fiction. This tells you what genre my next book review will fall under. Anyway, I decided to ease into the Non-fiction by reading this book by one of my favorite authors, Chuck Palahniuk. Chuck is the author of some pretty strange pieces of fiction, many of you know of "Fight Club" and maybe "Choke" both of which were made into pretty decent film adaptations. The reason I consider this book easing into the non-fiction genre is that,well, to put it bluntly, reality in Chuck Palahniuk's world can be surreal.

This book is a collection of essays, stories, and interviews written for various magazines and newspapers. Some of the pieces had also been previously published on the internet. The stories cover 3 main categories: "People Together", articles about people who find unique ways of achieving togetherness; "Portraits", interviews and short essays mostly about famous individuals; and "Personal", autobiographical pieces. The introduction to the book is Mr. Palahniuk talking about the world of writing and what it takes to be a fiction writer, very interesting, indeed. The book then breaks into the first story, "Testy Festy," which covers the immoral and deviant behavior that happens at the Rock Creek Lodge Testicle Festival in rural Montana. From the opening line of that story I thought, uh oh, what have I gotten myself into? Well he is merely reporting the goings on of this raucous festival and it is definitely "Stranger than Fiction."

There are several stories in this collection that range from the bohemian activities of the Testicle Festival to celebrity interviews with Juliette Lewis and Marilyn Manson to some autobiographical essays in which the reader learns more details behind the murder of his father by the father's girlfriend's psychopathic ex-boyfriend.

Some of the stories are very funny and some are quite poignant. One of the funnier ones is his coverage of the Lind Combine Demolition Derby in Lind, Washington. Rednecks crashing combines seems like it would be fun. One of the stories is "The People Can" where chuck is reporting on the life of the crew on board the submarine USS Louisiana. Being an ex-Navy man myself I found the civilian insight on this story very interesting. One of the saddest stories is when he tells of his life as an assembly-line drivetrain installer by day, hospice volunteer driver by night.

So if you are a Chuck Palahniuk fan you will find this collection of true stories very interesting told from his point of view. If you have yet latched on to the writings of Palahniuk check this one out, it will prepare you for the world that is in Chuck Palahnuik's novels.