Wrap-ups of Non-Fiction Five and Armchair Traveler Challenges

I've decided to wrap up both the Non-Fiction Five and Armchair Traveler Challenges because I'm now focusing on the Cozy Mystery and RIP II.

Non-Fiction Five Wrap-up

The Non-Fiction Five Challenge involved reading 5 non-fiction books in five months. I read quite a bit of non-fiction anyway, so my goal was to try to read specific books that have been lingering on my shelves. The results were average. I read some from my list, but I still didn't manage to finish the ones I considered most important. It was a nice try, though! Here's what I read from May onward:

1. A Spoonful of Humor - Henry L. Lefevre - anecdotes written by an octogenarian
2. Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo - Capt. Ted N. Lawson - WWII memoir
3. Prescription for Adventure: Bush Pilot Doctor - Naomi Gaede-Penner - memoir of a doctor who lived in Alaska
4. The Year of Magical Thinking - Joan Didion - a memoir of loss
5. Held at a Distance - Rebecca Haile - memoir of a woman who returned to her birth country to visit
6. If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name - Heather Lende - stories from a small town in Alaska
7. Blowing My Cover - Lindsay Moran - CIA Agent's memoir
8. Angels of a Lower Flight - *author's name removed, due to bad hits* - memoir of a former Pl*yb*y model who formed an organization to help children in Haiti
9. God is My Co-Pilot - Col. Robt. L. Scott - WWII memoir
10. Raising Ourselves - Velma Wallis - memoir of an Alaskan childhood

There seem to be some strong patterns in my non-fiction reading. Last year, we traveled to Alaska and I don't think anyone can leave Alaska without wanting to return, even if only by way of armchair traveling. It's a spectacular place with incredibly friendly residents. My son's swim club coach is from Juneau and he tells wonderful stories. While Bush Pilot Doctor was a bit disappointing because I wasn't expecting so many hunting stories (the medical stories are more interesting to me; hunting stories tend to turn my stomach a bit), I really enjoyed reading all three of the books set in Alaska. If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name was my personal favorite. Heather Lende writes in a way that makes you wish she lived next door.

Memoirs are a biggie, as you can see. I've sat in on discussions in which readers bemoan the fact that memoirs are often "self-indulgent". I found that was true in at least two cases: Held at a Distance and Blowing My Cover were both whiny and self-indulgent, although they were both interesting. I enjoyed the history in Held at a Distance and the inside look at CIA training in Blowing My Cover. Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo was one of the most negative WWII memoirs I've read, but still fascinating. Joan Didion's surprise at her husband's sudden death from a cardiac problem known as the "widow maker" brought home the fact that even if your loved one lives with a dangerous heart condition for years, you can never really be prepared for someone to drop dead. And, Angels of a Lower Flight is an amazing tale of redemption that also serves as a lesson in how a person who has been through horrific experiences can turn her negatives into positives via the fearlessness her own suffering has created.

God is My Co-Pilot and A Spoonful of Humor were both written by men I would say probably were known as rascals, at some point in time. Both authors made me count my blessings that my boys were tame, by comparison, and both made me laugh a time or two. God is My Co-Pilot made my eyes glaze over, at times, but only because I didn't know the area he was describing and couldn't find a decent map, so the details of the geography he described went over my head. Since I finished the book, I've managed to locate a book of WWII that contains the maps I needed and describes the battles and region that Col. Scott described, so I'm definitely hanging onto it for a reread. The second half of the book was gripping.

Many thanks to Joy for hosting the Non-Fiction Five!

The Armchair Traveler Challenge goes on through December, but, as I've probably mentioned before (when I attempted to "un-challenge" myself), I'm really only able to balance about two challenges at a time. As I began reading with this challenge in mind, I realized that almost every book fits the description. Whether one goes armchair traveling to St. Louis (not too far) or Australia (the other side of the world, from our perspective), every book is an imaginative escape to somewhere. I read six before I ceased to link up to my reviews and mention location:

1. If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name - Heather Lende (Alaska)
2. Susannah Morrow - Megan Chase (Salem, Massachusetts)
3. While I Live - John Marsden (Australia)
4. Angels of a Lower Flight - *author's name removed* (Haiti)
5. The Ocean in the Closet - Yuko Taniguchi (San Francisco/Japan)
6. Consider This, Senora - Harriet Doerr (Mexico)

I also traveled to China when I read February Flowers, but it was a trudge to read and I disliked it so much that I didn't even bother to review it. Ticket to Tomorrow by Carol Cox took me to the Chicago World's Fair in the late 19th century - travel to both a unique time and place.

Some other titles, along with the places I armchair-traveled by reading them:

1. The Case of the Missing Books - Ian Samson (Northern Ireland)
2. Voyage - Adele Geras (inside a ship crossing the Atlantic Ocean)
3. Fever 1793 - Laurie Halse Anderson (Philadelphia, 1793, during a yellow fever epidemic)
4. Monkey Love - Brenda Scott Royce (New York City)
5. God is My Co-Pilot - Col. Robt. L. Scott (United States, Burma and the region around the Himalayas, where he flew transports and later fought as a fighter pilot)
6. Lottery - Patricia Wood (the state of Washington)

Only one book really didn't qualify: Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin. It was set in the "afterlife", not really a definable time or place. Even Alas, Babylon was a great traveling experience - to small-town Florida in the 1950's.

Thanks to Lesley for hosting this challenge, which helped encourage me to pay attention to where I'm traveling, whenever I crack open a new book.

I just finished Lottery by Patricia Wood, late last night and am currently reading She Got Up Off the Couch by Haven Kimmel.

If I have time, I'll tell you my freaky news, later on - maybe a Freaky Friday post - but I make no guarantees. I'm currently playing phone tag and on the verge of screaming, so I'll shut up. Hope everyone has a delightful weekend.

Bookfool, who prefers Mondays

God is My Co-Pilot by Col. Robert L. Scott

God is My Co-Pilot by Col. Robert L. Scott (later, Brigadier Gen. Scott)
Copyright 1943 - my copy printed 1971
Ballantine Books
206 pages

For almost another hour we sat there glaring at one another, expecting every second that the jagged top of one of the Himalayas was coming through the clouds and into the cockpit. Try that some time while you are making two hundred miles an hour, when you can't see your wing tips--and just see if your hairs don't get grayer and grayer. Mine did.

God is My Co-Pilot is the memoir of a WWII Army combat pilot who served in Indo-China. Really, the above quote's a pretty funny quote, considering the fact that the author lived to the age of 97. His longevity certainly wasn't affected by his hair-raising (and graying) adventures. You can read a slightly outdated bio, here.

The book starts out in what I'm slowly figuring out is the typical pilot memoir format - a little of his childhood history, followed by training and then details of his experience during the war. This particular pilot was quite a rascal, even as a child. He fashioned his own hang-glider with canvas stolen from a church tent at the age of 12, jumped off a "high Colonial home in Macon, Georgia" and plummeted 67 feet, into a rose bush. Unfazed, he went on to buy his own airplane and talk a neighbor into teaching him how to fly - until the neighbor crashed Scott's plane and was killed. Whew! Glad he wasn't my kid!

After the initial bits about his childhood and training, including quite a few troublesome antics, "Scotty" ended up training pilots and transporting mail in the United States. He was a very determined man, though, and eventually ended up in a group that was scheduled to perform a secret mission. The Japanese were winning the war on the Pacific/Indo-China front, at the time, and disaster led to the cancellation of the mission. Instead, he and his fellow pilots ended up stationed in India, transporting parts across "the Hump" - the Himalayas. Eventually, though, Col. Scott managed to finagle himself a fighter plane and went off on missions against the enemy completely alone.

The point at which the author began describing his missions is about halfway through the book and that's where it really began to become gripping. Later moved closer to Japanese occupied Indo-China, Scott became a leader in General Chennault's fighting forces, the Flying Tigers. The tales of adventure during his time in this elite group of fighter pilots are absolutely amazing and definitely made it worth hanging in there with this book. Still, there were some yawn moments. He described his missions, particularly the geography, in painstaking detail. And, I'm an American - or a United Stater, or whatever we're supposed to call ourselves, now - so I don't really know my geography all that well. A good atlas would have been much appreciated. As it was, I eventually used Google Earth a bit and discovered, darn it, that Google Earth is not as great as I imagined. I finally trained myself to skim over the details that went over my head and continue to enjoy the meaty parts of the book. I'm going to hang onto this one for a future reread, though, and next time I'll have maps handy.

The book was written in 1943, when the war had not yet ended. Although my copy was published in 1971, it doesn't appear to have been edited or altered to reflect the fact that the war was long since over. I think that was incredibly sensible on the part of his editors as it gives the reader a genuine sense of immersion in the time and place. In fact, there are even some rather shocking racial slurs; and, his hatred for the enemy is almost tangible. I have no doubt that a 2007 printing of this book would be altered in places.

Back to the story . . . when the author was sent to India, the Allies were in bad shape. They had suffered major defeats, there were few airplanes or supplies and they were fighting a losing, mostly-defensive war. So his anger is somewhat understandable. At the same time, I found it rather difficult to read about his joy when he bombed trucks or boats and then strafed the soldiers who tried to escape. I've read about WWII from many angles, now, and the one thing that really jumps out at me is that everyone is essentially the same. We're all just humans. The horror of those being shot at and bombed on the ground or plummeting in a burning plane is universal. So, at times the book can be a little disturbing.

4/5 - sometimes gripping, sometimes a little dull but an excellent read, in general

Still reading:
Haunted Castles of the World - for the RIP II
Dying in Style - for the Cozy Challenge

Soon, soon - I will get that sidebar updated to reflect the latest challenges, oh, yes I will.

Photographed - a would-be car thief, trying to open the Honda door:


Thanks to all for the birthday wishes. I decided to call any book that entered my home, this week, a birthday present. That made the birthday appear to be a serious windfall, as I got received two books won in a blog contest, bought two, received 5 from Paperback Swap (two of which I'd had on my wish list for over a year - I'm almost out of points!), and happened across an ARC-giveaway at the library. I'll post a list or photos of my acquisitions, later.

Last night was a doozy. We emptied the linen closet, searching for a bedspread for eldest son's new bed, refolded and piled everything on the futon . . . and then I fell asleep on top of the piles when I realized my reading was disturbing the hubster's sleep and climbed on top to finish up God is My Co-Pilot. Since I'm known to have Princess-and-the-Pea problems (a fold in a pillowcase will literally keep me awake all night, if I can't figure out how to get it out of my way), it's shocking that I actually slept on piles of blankets, regardless of how neatly they were folded. And, here's the kicker - the bedspread we offered the kid was "too girly", after all that work digging through the linens. Apparently, I haven't taught him the "When you're broke, you accept what you're offered" adage well.

Gotta go,

Bookfool, who shows no other signs of royalty

If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name by Heather Lende and a whole lotta linky stuff

While he talked, I looked through the open door at two eagles circling in the warm breeze high above the water. Although I've seen thousands, the sight of an eagle in flight still moves me in a way I can't explain. It's like a prayer. In Tlingit legend, all animals, rivers, and even places have spirits, just like people. Tlingits believe that human and natural spirits are not separate but intertwined and that those spirits move throughout time and space. A child who is named for a grandmother is so closely linked to the elder's soul that she is even called "Grandma" by her parents. In the same way, an old man's "uncle" can be an infant.

I fanned myself with the funeral program and wondered if eagles and spirits and mountains and maybe even strange lights and meteors are God's way of getting our attention. Do we feel God's presence because we are looking for him, or do we feel it because he is looking for us?

The minute I closed If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name, I thought, "Oh, man, this one's going to be hard to review." It's not so much that there's anything complex about the book. The fact is, I enjoyed it so much that I'm not certain I can do it justice.

If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name is a memoir written by tiny Haines, Alaska's obituary writer, columnist and radio commentator. She has a family of 6 (5 children, 1 husband) and volunteers for just about everything. She's spiritual, reflective, outdoorsy and loves where her family lives. Because she writes obituaries and spends a lot of time interviewing the survivors, a great deal of the writing in her book is wrapped around various deaths. But, it's not morbid or depressing in any way, although the stories are often touching (as in, "Pass me the Kleenex, would you, babe?"). Instead, Lende brings the characters of Haines to life and ponders what it all means - life and death, beauty and God, family and friends and how they all interact in a tiny town where you can skirt around people but they'll still know all about you and probably what you're up to while you're avoiding them.

The result is a quiet book of anecdotal reflection very much like Anne Lamott's writing, with the kind of wacky set of characters you only meet in small towns. I laughed and cried while I read it; in the end, as I closed the book I was snuffling and wiping away tears when the youngster walked into my bedroom. I told him about the ending and he nodded. He knew exactly why I was really crying - why the end of the book hit me in that way - and he was nice about it, even though he thinks I'm a complete sap. Okay, he knows I'm a complete sap.

Just before her planned book tour in 2005, Heather Lende was literally run over by a truck while biking. She's still alive, thank goodness, and writing another book. I would have been really heartbroken if there had been a tragic ending after reading about life in small-town Alaska through such a remarkable, warm-hearted person's eyes. You can read all about her, here. Or go to the home page of Heather's website. But, I'd recommend that you read the book. It's beautiful. I wish she lived next door to me.

5/5 - huge thumbs up

In other news: The spouse has just written me an email: "Okay, Sydney is on the short list of places to visit." Geez. Didn't I tell him that? I distinctly recall saying he could just take me along and drop me off in Sydney because it's one of the coolest places on the planet, judging by everything I've read about it. He has been longing for my camera the entire time he's been in Australia. And, I'm not so sure I shouldn't have just sent it with him. I did get some cool lizard, moth, little green leaf-imitator and bird photos. But, Australia is apparently rather exotic. He has sent me photos of spectacular sunsets, funky birds, and a very toothy crocodile. I feel kind of bad for hogging the good camera. Here's the crocodile:


With my camera, he could have gotten photos that a crocodile dentist would appreciate.

Meanwhile, I'm taking photos of exciting things like bluejays:


But, hey. Nice action, eh? Just one more day till we fetch the spouse from the airport!!

I'm still stalled at #44 in my "100 Things About Me" post. I'm not sure there are 56 more things worth mentioning. In fact, I keep looking at my list and thinking, "I should delete that one. And, that one."

Sitting here typing and a message has just come in . . . Yippee!!! Wahoo!! Another terrific Estella's Revenge ezine is online!! I've got two reviews in this one:

What I Believe by Norma Fox Mazer and
Held at a Distance by Rebecca Haile

My interviews with Colleen Gleason and Simon Van Booy have been delayed partly because Andi said she already had plenty, partly because I fell down on the job, and a little bit because I couldn't get in touch with anyone when I finally decided to scramble and get my act together. So, if I disappear and only two people hear from me (namely, Colleen and Simon) for a few days, it's because I have never missed a deadline in my life and I just blew it. Can I cry husband-on-the-other-side-of-the-world stress?

Recently Walked in the Door:

Fugitive Pieces - Anne Michaels
Hotel Du Lac - Anita Brookner
Blowing My Cover: My Life as a CIA Spy - Lindsay Moran
Hurricane - Karen Harper (thanks to the wonderful, generous Book Fairy Barbara)
The Secret Life of Lobsters - Trevor Corson
The Ocean in the Closet - Yuko Taniguchi

It was already on my Non-Fiction Five Challenge pile, but I just moved The Writing Life by Annie Dillard to the top, thanks to the fact that Heather Lende mentioned it in If You Lived Here, etc. I figure if she enjoys Annie Dillard, I will. You'll be the first to know the verdict.

Is it just me, or does it seem like I'm always being spotted by these guys and glared at?


Okay, off to do the laundry, gather the recyclables, tidy the house and read. Hope you all have a peachy day!

Bookfool, anxious to have a husband back in the house (and not merely because he cooks)

Prescription for Adventure: Bush Pilot Doctor by Naomi Gaede-Penner

Prescription for Adventure by Naomi Gaede-Penner
Copyright 1994
Change Points
Nonfiction - 247 pages

Prescription for Adventure is a book that I happened to see prominently displayed in several stores in their "local interest" section or amongst the tourist items, while I was in Alaska last year. Because I had limited luggage space and wanted to avoid carrying anything overly heavy, I bought a few books but decided to pass on Prescription for Adventure and just wrote the title down. The irrational assumption was that I'd find a copy online either at one of the larger bookstores or at a swap site. I was so wrong. Not only was the book not available at any of the swap or discount sites, but at the time I could only find used copies at exhorbitant prices. I don't know if the book was just out of stock, everywhere, but it took me quite a while to acquire a copy.

Prescription for Adventure is subtitled "Bush Pilot Doctor" because it's the story of the author's father, a doctor who moved his family from Kansas to Alaska in the 1950s to set up practice. Dr. Elmer Gaede originally had hoped to move to South America and thought of his work as a physician as an opportunity to profess his faith; in other words, his intent was not just doctoring but mission work. Oddly, there were plenty of missionaries in Alaska and, once he launches into the story with the family arriving in Anchorage, there is little mention of his faith apart from the occasional comment about God being with someone or prayers for God to help him when something went wrong and he or a patient was in imminent danger (followed by comments about how he was certain that God did, indeed, save his life or that of a patient).

Upon arrival in Alaska, Gaede realized the area was even wilder and more remote than he had imagined. In order to reach many of the small native villages, the only option was to fly. With that in mind, Gaede purchased a float plane and began taking flying lessons. Eventually, as he built confidence, Gaede began to travel on hunting expeditions and to various small towns where a doctor was needed. Because the weather is unpredictable and often dangerous in Alaska, Dr. Gaede had some harrowing adventures.

I enjoyed reading about the more exciting of Dr. Gaede's journeys, for medical emergencies and sometimes for pleasure. What I didn't like about Prescription for Adventure was that the stories often seemed to just end, without a reasonable explanation or conclusion. It's annoying when you're reading along and questions develop, as you read. Questions are what develop the tension, even in nonfiction, and then reading the answers satisfies that hunger for information. Many times, I felt like my questions about a patient or an experience (for example, "Wait! What happened to the woman who had a miscarriage? Did he send her to the hospital? How did her family find out she miscarried while they were away at work and school?") were either glossed over or completely overlooked.

It was also a little unexpected to find that much of the book was devoted to Dr. Gaede's hunting adventures (which I found a little on the offensive side, as he seemed bent on acquiring trophies) and that when he moved his family to Alaska, he told his wife Ruby that he knew she'd adapt and then just left her to deal with the family while he was off exploring. I found that pretty irritating.

Otherwise, the book was grammatically clunky but enjoyable reading. I particularly enjoyed reading about the indigenous natives in remote Alaska; their kindness, generosity, creativity and ingenuity was, I thought, very impressive. And, I do love reading about the tenacity required to settle in Alaska. Not just anyone can drive the family car up from Kansas and start a new life. Alaska's environment is harsh and drives the vast majority of adventurers back home within a year or two. You have to admire anyone who forges a new life and succeeds in spite of storms, the need to ration, and the lack of modern amenities.

3.5/5 - Average writing but definitely worth a read

*Update*

I decided 3/5 = 60% and 60% is a D (I'm thinking in such terms because of Bellezza's comment about the rating of her blog). Since I consider the book average, not below average, I've upgraded it to 3.5/5. I would have liked to take a red pen to the book and whip it into a little shape (old habits die hard) but the book doesn't deserve a "D" rating merely because it's a little awkwardly written. I checked and it is currently available used via Amazon or half.com.

I finished Pressed Pennies by Steven Manchester, this morning. It's a review book for Estella's Revenge, so I'll post a link when the June Estella has been published.

Hubby cooked all day, Saturday, and was massively disappointed with both the shopping experience ("They don't have this! They don't have that!" . . . "Duh," says the wife) and the quality of food. This is, of course, something I've been complaining about since we returned from Michigan, where the apples are firm and juicy, the blueberries expensive but not coated with mold, the pumpkins fat and pretty on the vine for children to pick on field trips. But, okay, he cooked all day and some of it was pretty good. Still . . . the ingredients were not like this:

If we had tomatoes that perfect, I'd be out chopping in the kitchen all the time, myself. On a side note, our tomato plants are not producing, this year, and I haven't got the foggiest idea why. Usually, we have tomatoes out the wazoo. They've bloomed, but then no little tomatoes have appeared. Hmm.

School is almost out! Guess what that means for me? I get to get up an hour earlier to drag the kiddo to swim practice 5 days a week. Do you sense the enthusiasm?

Speaking of whom . . . I must dash off to fetch the teenager. Happy Monday!

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo by Capt. Ted W. Lawson

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo - 50th anniversary printing (2002)
Pocket Star Books
Nonfiction (Military memoir)
274 pages

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo is the memoir of a U.S. Army pilot who took part in the "Doolittle Raid," a secret mission to attack the heart of Japan and boost the morale of U.S. residents after the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor and a string of Allied defeats in the Pacific. There's an excellent article about the mission at Wikipedia, which I highly recommend, as well as a brief article about the author, Capt. Ted Lawson. In general, the mission involved the bombing of key military targets in five different Japanese cities and the army planes, heavily modified, were launched from the aircraft carrier USS Hornet. Captain Lawson was among those who bombed known targets in Tokyo and describes the months of planning, training, memorizing of maps and photos, work on the planes and time spent on the aircraft carrier.

The mission itself was quite brief, as the title indicates, and a success from a strictly military standpoint. But, the escape of each plane to China was a difficult one, and the plan to launch within a specific distance of Japan was thwarted when the Hornet was spotted nearly 200 miles before the carrier had reached the pilots' intended launch site.

Lawson describes the entire story of the mission, beginning with how and why he ended up flying an army bomber (the Ruptured Duck) and volunteering for a dangerous mission so secret that even the pilots didn't know where they were headed until they reached the aircraft carrier. The story is gripping and harrowing. I flipped through it in the store and read a bit of a spoiler about Lawson's injuries, but if you look at any website with his name in it you'll find the information is readily available and it doesn't spoil the reading in any way.

I think I may have heard reference to the raid, but it's not a story I had any working knowledge about. Lawson's writing is what I would call direct - not written with the flair of Audie Murphy's To Hell and Back, which I reviewed here, certainly more simplistic, but with plenty of impact. I enjoyed it and, as always, found it amazing reading about the horrors experienced during a time of war. I did think that Lawson's story was told with a whiny tone, by comparison with Murphy's, but it's still well worth reading and a very good, definitely gripping account.

4/5

Non-Fiction Five and other stuff

Getting down to the wire with less than two weeks till May and I've decided to give in and join Joy's Non-Fiction Five Challenge. I've finished 2 out of 4 of my Spring Thing books and only need to read two more chunksters to make myself feel fulfilled for the Chunkster Challenge (one, Earthly Joys, is in progress). Plus, I went through my cabinets to see what non-fiction I haven't gotten around to reading and oh. my. gosh. I do read quite a bit of non-fiction but I have a lot of books I have put off, haven't gotten to, am dying to read, etc. So, hey, why not? The required reading number is a mere one book per month from May to September and maybe the challenge will help me knock out a few of the older books or get to some I've been anxious to read but have put off. So, here we go:

1. Moon Shot: The Inside Story of America's Race to the Moon by Alan Shepard and Deke Slayton - This one's been sitting on the shelf for so long I couldn't even begin to guess when or where I got it, but a good hint is that the copyright date is 1994. Ahem.

2. The Messies Manual by Sandra Felton - I started this one and was actually finding it tremendously helpful when I set it aside. Probably, I was just trying to balance too many books at once; I do that and then set things down and eventually return to them. It has some useful information on clearing out the clutter. I definitely need to finish it and, possibly, also pray for a miracle.

3. Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn - This one was purchased on the recommendation of Nevada Barr. I attended a "Spirituality in Writing" workshop which she led in Jackson, Mississippi a few years back and, at the time, scratched down quite a number of book titles, wrote an article about the workshop, got it published, bought a few of the books mentioned and then . . . well, you know the story. There it sits. Gotta get to it.

4. If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name by Heather Lende - A book about small-town life in Alaska, which just looks fun. Fun is good.

5. Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo by Capt. Ted W. Lawson - Purchased recently, but I want an excuse to slip in a war memoir.

I seldom actually stick to challenge lists because I'm moody and impulsive, so here are some alternates - warning, huge list (and not really complete - I reserve the right to be flighty):

Prescription for Adventure: Bush Pilot Doctor - Naomi Gaede-Penner - about Naomi's doctor dad's adventures in Alaska.
Marley and Me - John Grogan - about a naughty but lovable dog.
The Writing Life - Annie Dillard
The Five Love Languages - Gary Chapman - recommended by two bloggers and likely to get shoved higher up the list.
Night Fighter - C. F. Rawnsley - a WWII memoir
South: The Endurance Expedition - Ernest Shackleton
Soldier Life in the Union and Confederate Armies - Ed. by Philip Van Doren Stern
Sleeping with Cats - Marge Piercy - a writer's memoir
Dispatches - Michael Herr - Vietnam war memoir
Extra Virgin - Annie Hawes - travel memoir that takes place in Italy
The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary - Simon Winchester
C'est La Vie: An American Woman Begins a New Life in Paris and - Voila! - Almost Becomes French - Suzy Gershman
Loving God - Charles Colson - Supposedly a Christian classic on faith
Three Weeks with My Brother - Nicholas & Micah Sparks - can't stand his fiction, but I heard this memoir sort of explains his rough life (which possibly led to his choice to write tragedies)

Think that's enough to choose from? I could go on, but I think I'll stick with that list, for now.

Strange things were afoot; or, rather, abox - I completely forgot to mention that we had a moment's pause when we unloaded the large cardboard box holding our 10 red beans and rice dinners. In the bottom was a packing slip. The word "biohazard" on that packing slip jumped out at me. Eeks. As it turned out, when I stopped to read the packing list carefully, I discovered the box previously contained red biohazard kickbucket liners. Whew! This is what you get for having a doctor mom as one of the swim club parents: a bracing biohazard moment.

Temporarily set aside: Of The Farm by John Updike. It's only 160 pages long and I know I could get through it quickly if I'd just concentrate. But, focusing on one book is not my strong point and I'm not sure I'm in the mood to shove myself through something that isn't thrilling me. So, instead, I'm going to get back to reading The Secret lives of People in Love by Simon Van Booy and then move on to Rises the Night by Colleen Gleason (fellow blogger chick we all love), both advanced reader copies that I really need to review soon, anyway.

Just about finished with: Firefly, the complete series. And, I am just so utterly perplexed as to why the series was canceled after only 11 episodes. And bummed. I just don't get it. The actors were terrific, the characters nicely diverse with plenty of secrets that could have been slowly uncovered, the premise excellent, the action and humor endlessly fun. I loved the fact that only two of the actors were familiar to me; the same faces get a little tiresome, after a time and every one of them is (or, rather, was) utterly convincing in their chosen roles. The female characters were all intelligent, skilled, fascinating individuals. This may be justification for my continued lack of television viewing and discontinued satellite service. As soon as I finish watching the series, I'll view the movie, Serenity, and then probably go into mourning for a time.

I'd resume satellite service if they'd just bring the Firefly series back. Honest. Any network executives reading this?

Off to read or sneak in that last Firefly episode. Nighty-night!