Just so we're clear, I'm not the rigidly strict killjoy my last post might have made me appear. While I am an organized person who thoroughly enjoys an order to my life, I'm also remarkably flexible. If I wasn't both, I'd go crazy. (And so would my children.)
Now that we're all on the same page, let's get on with the book report, shall we?
26. The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary by Simon Winchester
Ever since I read Winchester's other book, The Professor and the Madman (which was absolutely fascinating), I've been interested the history of the OED. The Meaning of Everything talks about the making of that great dictionary from start to finish, focusing especially on James Murray's time as editor. I thought the book was fascinating, though I could have done without Winchester's long and overly complicated sentences.
27. I Am a Mother by Jane Clayson Johnson
I've had this one on my shelf for a while, and I packed it in my bag for something to read during my hospital stay after Caleb's birth. Yes, it was a totally appropriate book to read for the circumstances. And yes, I chose that one on purpose. I'd read excerpts of this book shortly after its publication in a couple different magazines and enjoyed Johnson's stance on motherhood enough to be interested in reading the rest of what she had to say. For a quick read of the type that one would feel comfortable quoting in a talk for church, it was good.
28. Morality for Beautiful Girls by Alexander McCall Smith
29. The Kalahari Typing School for Men by Alexander McCall Smith
30. The Full Cupboard of Life by Alexander McCall Smith
The rest of my five books this round are more installments in the Number 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. I tell you, these books just keep getting better and better. All the hype for this series is completely well-deserved. The writing is poetic and the storytelling is uplifting, the characters are believable and the situations they find themselves in are humorous, and his descriptions of and devotion to Botswana are lovely and genuine. Don't be too surprised if my next five books are all from this series. I'm hooked.
4 comments:
Thanks for the recommendations! I always check here first if I am looking for something to read. I need to get back into the Number 1 Ladies Detective Agency series. They are SO good! I just can't remember which one I read last.
Um...you were able to READ in the hospital after you had Caleb? It was all I could do to stay awake long enough to eat something! Kudos to you! :)
I too am impressed that you READ while in the hospital. After Frankie was born I stayed up all night watching some History channel bio of Hitler. It scared the crap out of me!
I honestly didn't think it was that strange to be reading during the down time of my hospital stay. Well, huh. Seriously, though...I didn't have TV in my room (only because I didn't want to pay for it), and I had trouble sleeping. The book kept me from going stir crazy.
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