The E.N.D., short for "The Energy Never Dies," is packed with upbeat dance numbers - "Rock That Body," "Party All the Time" and "Out of My Head" are all self-explanatory and will likely blast out of a radio at scheduled times for the rest of the year, along with the new single "I Gotta Feeling," which plays like a simplified "Ray of Light."
- Glenn Gamboa, Newsday
Books
A Short History of Women ** (2 stars)
By Kate Walbert. 237 Pages. Released by Scribner. $24.
This book is for any woman who has ever struggled to find her own voice; to make sense of being a mother, wife, daughter and lover. But it is not only for women.
The novel portrays the female experience through five generations of women.
Walbert begins her novel in England in 1914 as Dorothy Trevor Townsend, a suffragette, is starving herself in the name of her cause. The story begins through the eyes of Evelyn Charlotte Townsend, Dorothy's daughter.
"Mum starved herself for suffrage, Grandmother claiming it was just like Mum to take a cause too far. Mum said she had no choice."
Evie, a girl of superior intellect, later immigrates to America and starts a science career. She never communicates with her brother Thomas, a gifted musician, who was sent to the U.S. earlier. His daughter, also named Dorothy, marries, has children, loses a son and starts anti-war protests, which go nowhere. She leaves her husband and blogs. Her daughter, Liz, gets drunk during a play date in New York, in 2007. Her sister Caroline, who lives in Bedford, N.Y., discovers her mother's blog.
This is a character-driven work, and by the end of the novel the characters take on a life of their own. But until then, sorting through the various eras and women gets confusing at times. The chapters jump from the end of the 19th century to the 21st century, and some of the women have the same first name or last name.
Walbert's writing is rich. It reflects each period with such vividness, the reader is transported back. It never feels cliche or unreal. It brings the reader into the character's world and mindset.
- Lisa Orkin Emmanuel, Associated Press
