Here, again, are some recent reads (and one old favorite) that fit with some of my earlier book trails:

A book that would go well with The Victorian Internet and Telegram! from my June 17th blog is Hello, Everybody!: the Dawn of American Radio, by Anthony Rudel. Early on it was easy to build a radio set and broadcast over a small area. On air hours were sporadic and it took a while to establish some guide lines. Success came with political speeches, boxing, and sermons. Farmers liked weather reports. The first 'we interrupt this program' bulletin concerned a fire. Oh, and early radio had something to do with goats, but you'll have to read the book to find out why. ;-)

I don't know if I'm an optimistic cynic, or a cynical optimist, but I've never been good with all the positive thinking, visualize success, etc. type books (seminars, mugs, posters) that are so popular. I'm much better off if I expect the worst but hope for the best. The Antidote: Happiness For People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking, by Oliver Burkeman was recommended by Char. The author believes this need to be upbeat and positive all the time is actually making us miserable. A better way to be happy is to accept negative feelings, understand that there will be failures, that uncertainty is part of life. It sure made sense to me!

I do a lot of reading about dogs. This book came on a recommendation from Constant Reader: Shaggy Muses: the Dogs Who Inspired Virginia Woolf, Emily Dickinson, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Edith Wharton, and Emily Bronte, by Maureen Adams. A move, a job change, and the loss of a dog sent the author (a former teacher) back to school to become a psychologist, and was the inspiration for this book. From lap dogs to large dogs, here are the canine companions that kept these women feeling safe, kept them company, and often influenced their writing.

From my 'horse shelf' a book that didn't seem to fit well with my earlier equine blogs: There Was a Horse: Folktales From Many Lands, selected by Phyllis R. Fenner, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz. I really did read everything I could find on horses as a kid! Magic, horses, adventures from around the world ... this could be an early chapter book for a young reader, or something for you to read to a youngster.

Keep on reading!

Reading Hermit With Dog