"Shorn: Toys to Men" by Dennis Milam Bensie

"Shorn: Toys to Men"
by Dennis Milam Bensie
published 2010
by Coffeetown Press
265 pgs.

Here in Robinson, Illinois we are hometown to two fairly well known authors, James Jones ("From Here to Eternity" et. al.) and Jennifer Rardin (th Jaz Parks series of urban fantasy books) and now Dennis Milam Bensie. This time however Dennis does not paint a dreamy small town atmosphere. With his experiences Robinson, which is probably not unlike many other small towns, seems like a place where the different are not welcome and your babysitter may hurt you.

In his memoirs, "Shorn..." Dennis is brutally honest as he exposes his deepest darkest secrets to reveal his true self. There are times in the book that you can't decide whether he is going to turn out to be a serial killer or just a very confused individual. "Shorn" takes you through Dennis' life as he reveals disturbing influences on his life that leads to developing a mental disorder that causes him to be aroused by cutting men's hair. This arousal leads him through many dangerous turns in life from luring a man into his home and whacking him with a frying pan to cruising the streets finding street hustlers that will allow him to pay them to shave their heads.

I believe that it is Murphy's Law that states, "If something can go wrong, it will." That seems to carry through to Dennis' life as he's growing up in small town, USA. As he grows up he writes that he never felt like he belonged and it seemed he was right. His father was a typical blue collar, former military man that did not want his son growing up "to be a sissy." Dennis liked to play with dolls and wanted to grow his hair long. His dad would have none of that, if Dennis would act up the threat of a haircut would be issued. When Dennis wanted to play with dolls, he was not allowed to do so in front of his dad. Dennis' grandmother was the first to give him a freedom of sorts and would allow him paper dolls. He later discover's Barbie and the possibilities become unlimited. But he also discovers that he can exert power over the Barbie by cutting her hair, but cutting the doll's hair soon renders the doll hairless. Dennis turns to a life of crime by shoplifting Barbie's from the town's various stores. There is even one humorous story where he returns to a store dressed as a girl (remember this is when he is just a child) to fool the sales clerk. Humorous but sad.

During his youth he is molested by some teen boys who were supposed to be his babysitters and is constantly teased for being different by being called a fag and many other derogatory terms of the time. He grows up thinking he is supposed to be manly but doesn't fit in that skin. In college he marries a girl but knows he is gay, but does what he is "supposed" to do.
College also leads to his divorce and discovering that others are gay. But his discovery of the gay lifestyle leads him to anonymous sex in the various "cruising" areas, which will later lead to cruising for men with long hair that will feed his fetish/paraphilia.

During the reading of this book there were times when I wasn't so sure about the outcome, if I had not been in contact with the author, I would have thought I was reading a book that was leading to what was the development of a serial killer. Luckily Dennis finds help and through therapy and medication Dennis is able to get a firmer grasp on his life. The adventure he leads the reader through does leave one wondering.

Dennis' life cleary illustrates how many things combine to create a human life and what path one takes will determine how that life will be. Dennis is now a successful and talented costumer and wigmaker in Seattle, not cured but in more control.

"The Audacity of Hope" by Barack Obama (pub. 2006)

Anytime a politician writes a book and they haven't run for president yet, you know they will be. Well that's just what happened with Senator Barack Obama. This book was published in 2006 and can serve as a great tool to get to know the 2008 Presidential candidate.

The book talks about his run for Senator in Illinois and the people he met and the beliefs he stands for. In other words this book Is a good insight into what platform this candidate will stand on once elected. In the book he talks about “sensitive” topics like religion, racism, U.S. foreign policy and family.

I found it a great get to know the candidate book, in fact, so much so that I think all candidates should write such a book before running. That way when elected we can say, "well right here in black and white you said you stood for this...do you plan on making yourself a liar or can we believe you?"

The book is written in first person narrative. At times it feels as though you are sitting down and reading a letter from a friend with some very humble statments, such as while he's helping to propose Iran get rid of nuclear weapon capabilities he calls his wife to discuss the positive steps and his wife tells him to bring home ant traps, she's found ants coming into the kitchen and bathroom. While other times the passages feel as though you are reading a campaign speech. The good part about it is, that the moments of "speech" are heartfelt and do not use "political rhetoric" but in terms any American can grasp and, whether on the same side of the issue or not, can empathize with the Senator.

Empathy, that's a major issue in this book. Senator Obama mentions that many of todays youth and even many adults lack that same skill when it comes to everyday life. He mentions this throughout the book and in retrospect I can see his empathic skills are much needed in America's leadership, and has been lacking for about, oh, say maybe 8 years or so.
Okay personal jokes/jabs aside. I will say this today's culture has a serious Empathy Deficit Disorder. Really look around you, the rudeness in today's society can be directly attributed to lack of Empathy. For example, that guy/gal walking down the street or sitting next to you in the restaurant or theater yelling into his cell phone, do you think he/she cares that it is rude to others around? If he/she could empathize with others, they would probably be less rude. And that is just a minor example. Well I think the Senator from Illinois has hit this nail on the head.

Can our country use a little leadership with Empathy?

With topics like Faith, Race, Family, and of course Politics discussed in this book, I think that any person, Republican or Democrat would benefit in reading this book. If nothing else at least knowing what a certain candidate stands for.

A side note here; I don't care what email you received but nowhere in this book does Senator Obama claim to be a Muslim, so please stop sending that d**n spam email telling me that he is.