It seems my recent posts have brought on a wave of nostalgia. While just a skosh too young to have shared Bill Bryson's childhood years, charmingly retold in The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: a Memoir, I'm close enough to understand exactly what he is writing about. Childhood was simpler then. Kids could, and were, sent 'outside to play' in the morning and often times not expected to come back inside until supper time. A blanket over a table made a wonderful cave. A card board box offered hours of entertainment.

Chevrolet Summers, Dairy Queen Nights by Bob Greene is a collection of the author's syndicated newspaper column about being a baby boomer. They will make you laugh and cry, some will anger you, some are thought provoking, such as the one about Woody Hayes. All I knew about this man was that he was a football coach, sometimes was rude and foul mouthed. I did not think very highly of him. My views of him changed when I read how he regularly visited service men in hospitals, and/or visited their parents, all without any sort of publicity.

Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression by Mildred Armstrong Kalisa. Everyone had chores, from the youngest child to the oldest adult. Everything, and I do mean everything, was used up (including the lining from the inside of eggs!) For some things (such as skin products), you made your own, or did without. You recycled, reused, or re-purposed. It was a hard life and yet, according to the author, no one felt deprived. There was a strong sense of family and of community.

Remember Wunda Wunda? Stan Boreson and No Mo? Or JP Patches? For those of us who remember the earlier days of TV (although not quite the earliest), when the picture was black and white and shows were live, there's Puget Sounds: a Nostalgic Review of Radio and TV in the Great Northwest by David Richardson. While this wonderful book also includes the then new stations on both radio and tv as well as news, sports and music shows, it is the children's shows I remember most clearly.

I almost didn't include Going Home to the Fifties by Bill Yenne as I'm pretty sure the Fifties weren't this good! It is, however, classified as an interior design book and not history, and for this reason it was an interesting read, and look, as there are many pictures. I do remember much of what the author writes about, but overall I found it just a bit too schmaltzy for me. And, alas, there was no bibliography, which I'm sure would have been interesting.

And lastly, Mud Pies and Other Recipes by Marjorie Winslow with illustrations by Erik Blegvad. My all time favorite cookbook! Even though I didn't like to cook (still don't) and never played with dolls, I followed most of the recipes. Designed for a time when kids played outside (and not just in organized sports, etc.), with what was found in a yard, on the beach, in the woods. I found it even more charming when I read it as an adult as I had more appreciation as to how clever and whimsical it is.

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I love a good mystery (there will be more recommendations as my posts continue) and these fit in nicely with my love of CSI shows. It starts with a wonderful new series by Washington author Bernadette Pajer. There are three books out now, with a fourth coming in September. They take place at the turn of the last century, in Seattle, and the University of Washington. The descriptions of a frontier Seattle are sure to bring a smile to any of us who have been to present day Seattle. :-) A Spark of Death starts the series. While the Snoqualimie Falls Power Plant is up and running and providing electricity for much of the city, to most folks, it is still a dangerous idea. The main character, Professor Benjamin Bradshaw of the new Electrical Engineering department is unlucky enough to find the dead body of a colleague and because of the manner of death becomes the primary suspect.

The second book, Fatal Induction, has one of my favorite opening lines of all time: "The first indication that Professor Benjamin Bradshaw's life was about to plunge again into chaos appeared in the form of a flatulent horse eating Mrs. Prouty's beans over the garden fence." Having had horses in the backyard for many years, I will say that the author knows of what she writes! Fortunately for me, however, my life never 'plunged into chaos' due to said flatulent equine.

Capacity for Murder takes us to the Healing Sands Sanitarium just northwest of Hoquiam. An electrotherapeutic session has gone terribly wrong and Professor Bradshaw once again finds himself helping find the murderer.

Pajer's books have the seal of approval from the Washington Academy of Science.

It seemed obvious to move on to The Age of Edison: Electric Light and the Invention of Modern America by Ernest Freeberg. It is an easy to read history of the electric light and how it's use grew. It was not always popular (especially with the gas companies) as early on, the bulbs did not last long, and hastily strung power lines would come down in the mildest of winds. Electricity would eventually change the way we lived, making sidewalks safer, allowing factories to have work shifts 24 hours a day, and creating a whole style of advertising. I especially loved the description of a 'blast from the past' sort of exhibit fondly looking back on a room from a colonial era house softly lit and warmed by the fire.

There is another series set in about this same time frame that deserves a mention ... the Murdoch Mysteries by Canadian author Maureen Jennings. Set in 1895, in Toronto, Detective William Murdoch uses the newest methods to track the killers. Things such as finger marks, studying the scene for footprints, and even a bit of profiling. The first title is Except the Dying. The series has been made into a wonderful TV series, 'The Murdoch Mysteries' (airing in the U.S. as 'The Artful Detective'). There have been a few changes between book and film, but I have enjoyed both.

One thing for sure, electricity has sure been a blessing for those of us who love to read far into the night.

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I often wander through the tween and teen read shelves at Village Books. The Green Glass Sea, by Ellen Klages was 'the find' one day. This is a tween read about a young girl living in a city that didn't exist while her father worked on a top secret project that no one was supposed to talk about. (It's known only as 'the gadget'). It is 1943 and Dewey Kerrigan has been put on a train heading west to join her father, not knowing exactly where it is she is going. As a 'sciency' kid (she's 11, and a girl) she finds she is actually quite happy in this environment as there are many interesting people who will talk to her. It is a great blend of real and imaginary characters. I've enjoyed it every time I've read it so I think other adults will too.

Written for slightly older readers, Bomb: the Race to Build and Steal the World's Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinken tells more of the story of the atomic bomb. It involves the British and American scientists working on 'the gadget', Soviet spies infiltrating these facilities, and, from Norway, a commando force sneaking behind enemy lines in an effort to damage or destroy a German heavy-water manufacturing site. It's an exciting read, and again, one I think will appeal to adults as well as the targeted reading age.

The Girls of Atomic City: the Untold Story of the Women Who Helped Win World War II, by Denise Kierman was written for adults. In Oak Ridge, Tennessee a large 'secret' city was constructed. Thousands of people, many of them young women, worked on 'The Project' that would end World War II. They were not supposed to talk about their work (and could be dismissed for doing so), and often times only knew what they did, but not what happened at the next step. It was both an inspiring and troubling book about a nearly forgotten part of U.S. History.

I remember the duck and cover drills. And wondering what good it was to get under a desk ....

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Recently there was a total lunar eclipse but good old traditional PNW weather seemed to conspire against us as it clouded up about 10 pm that night but was clear again at 7 in the morning. We have another chance to see an eclipse in October (a full and a partial, actually), but I'm not holding out much hope as October can be a cloudy month. The Ohio relatives missed it as well ... they had snow. Again.

You Will Go to the Moon by Mae and Ira Freeman, illustrated by Robert Patterson. I loved this book as a child and was thrilled when I was given my very own copy from a friend who was thoughtful enough to keep an eye on used book sales for many years. It was updated after the moon landing, but I prefer this original version when the illustrations were possibilities rather than drawings based on the real thing. :-)

Footprints on the Moon by the writers and editors of the Associated Press, manuscript by John Barbour. The Russians are first into space (or at least orbit) with Sputnik, NACA becomes NASA, Kennedy challenges the US to send a man safely to the moon and back, rockets blow up, seven men are chosen to be the first test subjects (who knew what would happen to the human body when it was exposed to weightlessness, the high 'g's' of launch and re-entry ... remember, everything was new at this time) ...and finally, the success of Apollo 11 ... it's all here. And with beautiful photographs, too.

We Seven, by the Astronauts Themselves. Men who knew the risks and were still willing to be strapped into a small capsule on what could be an exploding bomb. The story they tell is full of adventure, facts, opinions and beliefs, and of what they each endured on their quest to reach the moon. As alike as they were different, each of these test pilots were handpicked by NASA. They had to be a certain height, and a certain weight. They needed to be calm, cool, and level headed in tense situations. They needed an engineering (or something similar) background. The requirements went on and on, but the result was the best of the best.

Carrying the Fire: an Astronaut's Journey by Michael Collins. Michael Collins went to the moon as part of Apollo 11 but was the astronaut who stayed with the ship that was in orbit around the moon. This is a personal memoir of the test pilot with the Air Force who became an astronaut. He tells of his training, often with a sense of humor, and of the wonder of seeing the Earth from the far side of the Moon. It's been many years since I read this book now, but I remember it was hard for me to put down.

This 'trail' lay dormant until I found The Astronauts Wives Club: a True Story by Lily Koppel. I remember seeing the pictures of the wives in Life magazine but never gave them much more thought. This book tells the 'rest of the story' .... how they were expected to look, act, what they were to cook for their husbands and so on. Being in the public eye is not easy and I found the book both sad and heroic.

Where were you when man landed on the moon?

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In the ongoing 'winter that will not end', email from my Ohio family this morning included a photo of their back deck and yard .... covered with several inches of snow ... Out here it clouded over just long enough to miss the lunar eclipse as it was overcast last night at midnight, but clear this morning. Argh!

It's back to the dogs again for this post:

Paws to Consider: Choosing the Right Dog for You and Your Family by Brian Kilcommons and Sarah Wilson. If you are looking for a pure bred dog, this is the book to read! It is an excellent guide to selecting the best dog for you ... which breeds are good with small children, high energy dogs, low energy dogs, dogs for the allergic, etc. do that you can find the breed most compatible with your lifestyle. It also mentions medical and behavioral problems typical to particular breeds.

Keep in mind, though, that mixed breeds can be wonderful ... all my dogs have come from shelters and I have never regretted having a 'mutt'. If you are not planning on breeding or showing, consider the humble mixed breed dog.

Dog Spirit: Hounds, Howlings, and Hocus-Pocus by Patricia Telesco. a history of the various roles dogs played in religious and magical ways in civilizations around the world. This is a metaphysical history of the dog and a great read. Learn about dog totems, dog astrology, dog ghosts and more. My favorite chapter was the one explaining why certain breeds were put on earth: for me, it was the Husky, here to offer comfort in a time of sorrow.

Dog Owner's Manual: Important Stuff You Should Know About Your Pet, by Buster (as told to David E. Carter. Here is advice every dog owner should know straight from the horse's, er, dog's mouth. Buster explains dog fantasies, how dogs would rule the world and more. Profanity is in the ear of the listener (spoiler alert!!) ... for dogs, a four letter word is BATH! The Dog Owner's Manual is a wonderful chuckle of a read.

How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend: a Training Manual for Dog Owners by the Monks of New Skete. Just a quick mention here as I have the original version. There is a new, more up-to-date version with newer training methods, etc. now out that I'm told is every bit as good as this one was, so, look for that one, not this one! The Monks dvd is also excellent.

Nubs: the True Story of a Mutt, a Marine and a Miracle by Major Brian Dennis, Kirby Larson, and Mary Nethery. Have a hankie ready when you read this book. (Not to worry, it has a happy ending). When Nubs and Brian met in Iraq, Nubs had found his human ... he would track the Major across the desert to be with him again. When the order came down that the dog could not stay on base, arrangements were made to send Nubs state side.

I am a huge fan of shelter rescue dogs. If you are looking for a dog, check your local Humane Society Shelter, or, if you prefer a pure bred, with the rescue group for your favorite breed.

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Recently the weather forecast has been the kind that always made me chuckle. One day is 'partly sunny' while the next is 'partly cloudy'. It's a subtle difference, to be sure, but the partly sunny is a bit more optimistic. :-)

Today's 'trail' seems to be one of women ... while all these books could fit in with another trail I've done, or am considering for the future, they seemed to fit together so nicely, I just had to put them all together.

I love artichokes! I have several 'artichoke friends' so was delighted to find the sweet little book She Taught Me to Eat Artichokes: the Discovery of the Heart of Friendship by Mary Kay Shanley with illustrations by Paul Micich. It is the story of a developing friendship, and like an artichoke, is something to enjoy slowly.

Women Who Read Are Dangerous, a collection of art work showing women with books, collected by Stefan Bollmann and with a foreword by Karen Joy Fowler. Basically this is a coffee table type book, but with a theme of women in past ages who (gasp) read!

Imagine librarians on horseback! Down Cut Shin Creek: the Pack Horse Librarians of Kentucky by Kathi Appelt and Jeanne Cannella Schmitzer. This was one of those 'perfect little gems' of a gift from a good friend. In 1935 President Roosevelt created the Works Progress Administration (part of the New Deal initiative). Designed to get people working again, one of the most interesting programs was the Pack Horse Library Project of Eastern Kentucky.

For the wage of 28 dollars a month, the librarians, mostly women, carried books, magazines, and even recipes to remote homes in the mountains of Kentucky, all year long, in all kinds of weather. This book was carefully researched and is filled with wonderful photographs from the period. Now, go back to an earlier trail and re-read She'll Be Comin' 'Round the Mountain by Philemon Sturges, illustrated by Ashely Wolff to complete this trail. ;-)

Everyone knows Marni Nixon...even if they think they don't. (Well, maybe I should say 'everyone of a certain age' ...) One of the best-known and best-loved singing voices in the world, Nixon dubbed the voices of Natalie Wood in "West Side Story", Audrey Hepburn in "My Fair Lady", and Deborah Kerr in "The King and I". (She played a nun in the movie "Sound of Music" because, of course, Julie Andrews needed no help!)

I Could Have Sung All Night: My Story, by Marni Nixon with Stephen Cole is her story of working behind the scenes on some of the most popular movie versions of musicals of all time.

Nothing Daunted: the Unexpected Education of Two Society Girls in the West, by Dorothy Wickendan. Two society women, Dorothy Woodruff and Rosamond Underwood, having been on the 'grand tour' of Europe in 1910 and other 'expected' activities found themselves bored with society life. They accepted jobs in Colorado teaching the children of the homesteaders. It was a hard, difficult life but one they came to love.

The author is the grand-daughter of Dorothy Woodruff. She used letters from her grandmother, interviewed the descendants of the students she taught, researched the now vanished communities, and traveled to the area to gather the information she used in this book.

The Bone Lady: Life as a Forensic Anthropologist by Mary H. Manhein. True stories from a forensic anthropologist who lives and works in Louisiana but covers cases in Texas, Arkansas and Mississippi as well. She explains how bones are used in identification of race, gender, and age. Many times this leads to a name so that a grieving family is finally able to bury a loved one who has been missing for many years. Some of the cases were not resolved, lending a sense of sadness and mystery to the book.

Here's to the Women: 100 Songs About American Women compiled by Hilda E. Wenner and Elizabeth Freilicher (with a forward by Pete Seeger). A collection of traditional and contemporary songs by and about women, including ballads, children's songs, work songs ... from times past to more modern times. It was nice to see a small biography of native Washingtonian Linda Allen, as well as some of her songs. The introduction is well worth reading (go ahead, skip directly to all the songs, just be sure to come back and read it)!

Enjoy!

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Still doing lots of drops in my eyes. I have a follow up appointment today and then again in two weeks after which I hope to be able to be fitted for my new glasses. :-)

Continuing on with my 'twisty-turny' book trail here:

The book about world toilets made me think of traveling, something my mother enjoyed. How does one behave in a foreign country? When do you shake hands? Pay for a meal? Make eye contact or not? Going Dutch in Beijing: How to Behave Properly When Far From Home by Mark McCrum answers these questions. Whether you travel for real, or from your armchair, this is a fun book.

Smart Packing For Today's Traveler by Susan Foster is a book my Mom could have written. The author discusses how to pack for different kinds of weather, mix and match clothing that make many outfits from just a few pieces, what meds to take (and which might cause a problem), what medical information to carry. Mom was excellent at doing this.

This brought me to my kind a travel ... on my horse, in the mountains. Joe Back wrote and illustrated what is probably the best book on horse packing: Horses, Hitches, and Rocky Trails. Amateurs and professionals love this book ... I know, because I did, and so did our seasoned, experienced guide on a trip into the Pasayten Wilderness.;-) It includes everything from packing the horse (balance here is very important), to setting up a good camp, and making repairs along the trail.

Horse Camping by George Hatley with photographs by Lewis Portnoy is filled with all kinds of useful information and is a great read for the novice. It covers everything from the horses, to the gear, to what to wear, to cooking in camp and more. Best of all, Mr. Hatley lived in Washington and many of the photos are in areas that look familiar. And of course, for me, the fact that Hatley's choice of horse is the Appaloosa suits me just fine! Both books advocate minimum trace camping.

Get out and hike, ride, canoe, camp ... take only pictures, leave only footprints.

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This is a rather twisty-turny book trail involving a lot of books so I may divide it into two posts. While in grad school I took a class in Historic Preservation in which I wrote a paper on barns. Included, of course, was Eric Sloane's classic book An Age of Barns. Illustrated by the author this is 'the' book about barns. Look for the original edition, the reprints don't have the beautiful color illustrations.

There were other barn books in my paper, but the two I most liked are no longer available and I cannot find information (beyond the title) on them. Pfft!

Farms had lots of outbuildings, including the outhouse. While not part of my paper, I wandered into this subject with Outhouses: Flushing Out America's Hidden Treasures by Londie Garcia Padella (photography) and Becky Prudent (text). What a hoot! Great pictures, wonderful descriptions ... check out the regional differences in outhouses! Next was Nature Calls: the History, Lore, and Charm of Outhouses by Dottie Boots. This book might make the reader miss the outhouse. (Okay, okay, maybe not). Here you will find stories about outhouses from around the world. You will learn about outhouse design (including a two-storey model). The ubiquitous crescent moon symbol will be explained. The author was the winner of the 1996 Crescent Moon Award, given to the author who has done the most to "preserve and promote, with dignity, the outhouse."

Several years later I came across Toilets of the World by Mora E. Gregory and Sian James. Who knew there was so much diversity in the simple toilet ... from the traditional outhouse to solid gold commodes, urinals that sway, public toilets that rise up from the street for a busy weekend, one with a face that moves forward to kiss the knees of women ... even one that is totally transparent until a switch is flipped.

A few years ago I was browsing the shelves at Village Books and found Out of Patience by Brian Merkel. A tween read and great fun! The town of Patience has a curse, a curse from more than a century ago when Jeremiah Waters installed the first flush toilet. Embarrassed by his father (aren't most 12 year olds?) who wants to open the American Toilet Museum, the main character longs to get out this small town.

Time for another round of drops in my eyes so I'll stop this 'trail' for now.

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I am eagerly awaiting the end of the drops in my eyes and the eye exam that will put me back in whatever sort of glasses I will now need. The surgery is the easiest part of this, it's the waiting period (for your eyes to stabilize and heal) that's the pits!

I love the imagination and creativity of alphabet books! One of my very favorites is Anno's Alphabet: an Adventure in Imagination by Mitsumase Anno. Each letter looks as if it was carved from wood, with an Escher-esque twist. Check the borders carefully, each of the items there starts with the featured letter.

As regular readers of my blog know, I have family in Ohio. When the kids were little, I sent them O is for Orca: a Pacific Northwest Alphabet Book, by Andrea Herman and illustrated with the wonderful photos of Art Wolfe. There are images of the geography, people, animals (marine and land) of Alaska, British Columbia, Washington and Oregon depicting what makes each of them unique.

The Shemsu Alphabet is an alphabet inspired by a remarkable shelter rescue dog. While designed for children, it has the added benefit of being well received by folks in an assisted care facility for those with Alzheimer's, because, as I learned from one resident, "I don't have to remember 'A' to enjoy 'T'!" (This book may be found at lulu.com)

I'll be up front here ... I am NOT a sports fan. Not at all .... and yet .... here I am, recommending Z is for Zamboni: a Hockey Alphabet! Matt Napier provides the text (in rhyme) explaining the game with illustrations by Melanie Rose. My friends who are sports fans (some play hockey) also gave this book high marks.

Take a look at the Alphabet Book section next time you are in a book store, there is an amazing variety of subjects with equally amazing artwork. (Often from artists and photographers whose coffee table books are very expensive).

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