A Face to Write On About

Look at the star of our new checks. Are they not perfect? And, they cost the same as the the stupid ugly ones from the bank. AWE$OME! 

Book Review: The Red Leather Diary by Lily Koppel

Title: The Red Leather Diary
Series: Standalone
Author: Lily Koppel
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Published: 10/13/2009
Publisher: Harper Collins
Genre(s): Biography

DESCRIPTION

Rescued from a Dumpster on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, a discarded diary brings to life the glamorous, forgotten world of an extraordinary young woman.

For more than half a century, the red leather diary lay silent, languishing inside a steamer trunk, its worn cover crumbling into little flakes. When a cleaning sweep of a New York City apartment building brings this lost treasure to light, both the diary and its owner are given a second life.

Recovered by Lily Koppel, a young writer working at the New York Times, the journal paints a vivid picture of 1930s New York—horseback riding in Central Park, summer excursions to the Catskills, and an obsession with a famous avant-garde actress. From 1929 to 1934, not a single day's entry is skipped.

Opening the tarnished brass lock, Koppel embarks on a journey into the past, traveling to a New York in which women of privilege meet for tea at Schrafft's, dance at the Hotel Pennsylvania, and toast the night at El Morocco. As she turns the diary's brittle pages, Koppel is captivated by the headstrong young woman whose intimate thoughts and emotions fill the pale blue lines. Who was this lovely ingénue who adored the works of Baudelaire and Jane Austen, who was sexually curious beyond her years, who traveled to Rome, Paris, and London?

Compelled by the hopes and heartaches captured in the pages, Koppel sets out to find the diary's owner, her only clue the inscription on the frontispiece—"This book belongs to . . . Florence Wolfson." A chance phone call from a private investigator leads Koppel to Florence, a ninety-year-old woman living with her husband of sixty-seven years. Reunited with her diary, Florence ventures back to the girl she once was, rediscovering a lost self that burned with artistic fervor.

Joining intimate interviews with original diary entries, Koppel reveals the world of a New York teenager obsessed with the state of her soul and her appearance, and muses on the serendipitous chain of events that returned the lost journal to its owner. Evocative and entrancing, The Red Leather Diary re-creates the romance and glitter, sophistication and promise, of 1930s New York, bringing to life the true story of a precocious young woman who dared to follow her dreams.

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 MY THOUGHTS

A recommendation by a friend in 2008 had me adding this book to my "want-to-read" list. It took me awhile, but I finally got a copy. The rescue of the diary and the premise of the book made it seem like a book worth reading. However, I found it too much like a book filled with captions. I kept looking for more depth to Florence's life and the places she lived her life. I felt that the surface was barely scratched. Where was the emotion? Not until the author meets Florence in 2006 did I sense some real emotion. (The mention of the closing of Claremont Riding Academy did strike a chord with me.) I expected to see something in Florence's words or the author's writing as to why Florence married Nat. To me it seemed like an eeny-meeny-miny-mo kind of thing. They did, however, remain together for 67 years and her dedication to him was very touching. The one thing I truly related to was that she seemed to love riding horses. I certainly don't regret reading it.

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A Shred of Sense

 

When Lizzie is frightened by something and decides to retreat to her bed upstairs, there is no getting her back downstairs by calling her or offering her treats. Nope, that doesn’t work. If we want her to come running all one of us has to do is…are you ready for it?

Use the shredder or printer. Occasionally, she is so disgruntled by the noise that she lets out with a bark. Lizzie, bark?!

Minutes ago we called her. She wouldn’t come. Husband tells Daughter to shred something, and voila, she raced downstairs ready to issue her complaint.

She gets over it quickly, though. She’s already sound asleep on the sofa.

(The title in no way means we think that Lizzie has no sense. We love her and all of her quirks.)

Lizzie in the Snow - Round One (Video)

The first snow in almost two years and the first since adopting Lizzie. It appears she likes the stuff!

Lizzie Go Lightly

 

Having a couch potato (“spud puppy”) for a companion is rather nice when you’re sick and can’t do all that much. I have been dealing with a nasty case of bronchitis for many weeks, and Miss Lizzie has been most excellent company for me. What did she gain from all of her excellent skills? I’ll tell you—4-1/2 pounds and a urinary tract infection. The poor girl!

She is finished with the treatment for her UTI. Clavamox for 11 days and DL-methionine (urinary acidifier) for 14. Dosing her with her meds was E-A-S-Y. Clavamox in a spoonful of soynut butter…YUM! Urinary acidifier in a salmon flavored pill pocket…double YUM! Gone, lickety split, and she wanted more please (she is very polite.) Twice a day wasn’t enough as far as she was concerned. She LOVED getting her pills.

The other issue. Ahem, the slight weight gain, well, that’s been addressed with a change in diet (from adult to lite) and resuming our morning walks. Hopefully, we’ll both be feeling a little lighter before too long.

We took her on another long trip and sleepover at the beginning of the month. She handled it even better than the previous two in July and November. I think the main reason is that she was the only dog in the house for the majority of our stay. What a good girl, Lizzie!