Having the Time of My Life

Having the Time of My Life falls into the tradition of autobiographies like Ernest Borgnine's Ernie, Alan M. Dershowitz's Chutzpah, and James Michener's The World is My Home. These memoirs share a conversational and personable tone. Chapel's enthusiasm for the past is catching, and he speaks in a good-natured voice. With a wink and an elbow into the reader's ribs, he tells stories and reveals information about people, places, and events from his and America's past. Though Chapel's writing seems on the surface quite plain, there is a musical vein running through the body of his memoir. Chapel's autobiography is filled with letters, photos, and original song lyrics that exude love-the love of family and lifelong friends, the unrequited romantic love a young man feels for a girl, the mature love a man has for his wife of many years, and the love of a country one has served loyally. Above all, a deep love for life abounds within the pages of this memoir. Anyone interested in reading about American culture after the World War II will enjoy Having the Time of My Life. It represents an important perspective and a piece of national heritage that will one day disappear. Readers will undoubtedly recognize the wisdom Chapel gracefully shares through his words. - Lee Gooden