Be Sweet: A Conditional Love Story

Roy Blount doesn't like being 55. But then, does anyone? Hindsight being 20/20, we're sure to notice the mammoth pile of quirks, foibles, and just plain oddball behavior--not to mention downright nastiness--each of us has accumulated at the midlife point. If there's an observer you'd want to have there with you to sort out the good you've done (or at least the funny bits) and make all those bittersweet memories melt on your tongue, Blount may be the one.

In Be Sweet, his hilarious yet deeply moving personal memoir, Blount holds up the recollections of his life for all to see, like an archaeologist uncovering something precious and rare, exposing his soul to the air. "There are various ways of being shameless in the world," he says. "One is to write a memoir." And this life's story, told in a subtle and self-effacing style, is shamelessly funny.

While exploring the maddening subtext of his relationship with his mother, Blount has written "a conditional love story," and shaped a wonderfully entertaining memoir filled with poignant truths and brilliant reflections. Be Sweet may leave you laughing, but you'll likely feel a little something welling in the corner of your eye, and find yourself looking at your own life with a smile on your face. --George Laney