"1941. Right now, not very far from here the German war machine is rolling up the map of Europe. Country after country, falling like dominos. Nothing can stop it, nothing until one tiny, damp little island says "no". No, not here. A mouse in front of a lion ..." This was said by Christopher Eccleston, as the Ninth Doctor, in the BBC show Doctor Who. The episode was 'The Empty Child' written by Steven Moffat. It was such a good line that I missed the next few minutes of the show as I thought about it.

Full Dark House is from the Peculiar Crimes Unit series by Christopher Fowler. Set during the Blitz, it's the book where the characters are introduced. They are young, doing a hard job in a hard time. They are short staffed, and the higher ups are hoping to close the PCU, this odd branch of the police where all the bazaar cases are sent, so they are looking for any excuse to do so. The descriptions of the ongoing, seemingly unending bombing raids are compelling. It didn't take long for Londoners to recognize which planes were overhead by the sound of their engines.

And then came 1945 ... the Germans had a new weapon, unmanned, flying at supersonic speed, the bombing of London continued. London 1945: Life in the Debris of War, by Maureen Waller tells about that year. Rationing and long queues had been part of life for years. When the war ended, they actually got worse for a while. Many of the children returning home found the gray, dusty, and destroyed London and an unfamiliar parent a hard adjustment after years in a foster home. Add to that a husband/father who had been at war suddenly being a part of that family made it even harder. A rather grim read, given the circumstances, but well done and very interesting.

For a modern day look at war torn London try London's War: a Traveler's Guide to World War II by Sayre Van Young. The author has put together 20 walking tours through central London. She explains the damage, how many times a place was bombed and then, of course, what it looks like now. I especially liked that she included lists of CDs of popular music of the time, fiction books set in that era, and what the entertainment would have been like. There were lots of little bits of trivia, too, such as whether or not the figures at Madame Tussaud Wax Museums wear underwear and what happened to the animals at the zoo. Even as a non-traveler I enjoyed this book.

The more I read about London and England in WWII, the more impressed I become.

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Some books are too big to be 'q' or 'oversize. They are called 'folio' book, and this one probably qualifies as a one, at least it's too big to fit on any of my shelves! Vision's of the Universe is a glorious book! With paintings by Kazuaki Iwasaki, text by Isaac Asimov, and a preface by Carl Sagan, it's hard to go wrong. The description from the book itself is the best "... beauty informed by science." This is a wonderful journey through the solar system and beyond.

It's 1971, just one day before Mariner 9 arrived at Mars. A group of "distinguished panelists" gathered to discuss this momentous event. Those panelists were: Ray Bradbury, Arthur C. Clarke, Bruce Murray, Carl Sagan, and Walter Sullivan. Combined with pictures from Mariner 9, Mars and the Mind of Man was the result of that gathering. As you read this, imagine what is was like when this was all new!

Time-Life used to publish 'libraries' of books on such subjects as Science, Nature, History and so on. Fortunately for me, my folks subscribed to some of them and the Life Science Library was a favorite. Planets, by Carl Sagan, Jonathan Norton Leonard and the editors of Time-Life Books is the one still on my shelf. Each chapter (they range from discovering the solar system to some of the nearby planets to what lies beyond) comes with a wonderful picture essay. Since it was published in 1966 much has changed, but it was an excellent read in it's day.

Remember the PBS show 'Cosmos'? The original one with Carl Sagan? It's the reason I bought a color TV (the first in my family)(!) When the companion book came out I was there to get one. I've read Cosmos, by Carl Sagan, many times, and have even sort of followed along as I watch the old series.

In times past folks went on a Grand Tour of the world. It was considered a rite of passage and included England, France, Italy and so on. What if folks still did this, only now it was a tour of the universe? For now, it has to be an arm chair tour, but The Grand Tour: a Traveler's Guide to the Solar System, by Ron Miller and William K. Hartmann is the way to go.

"We are, all of us, descended from astronomers." -- Carl Sagan

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An extra post this week. :-) Most of my reading friends know this story, and encouraged me to post it. It is sort of the origin of my blog. There are no book recommendations here, so if this is not of interest to you, stop now and check back on my regular days. ;-)

There once was a Bookshare gathering at a place of employment. It was made of up 'eclectics' both in participants, and in choice of reading material. It was a group that made their own choices, and while not avoiding popular reading, was willing to try ... well, almost anything .... just because it looked interesting. Once a month stacks of books would be shared (rather than reviewed). Readers would swap and/or exchange the titles and leave with new (at least to them) books to read. Old books, current books, fiction, non-fiction, biographies, books for children, tween reads, 'how to' books .... the diversity was wonderful.

We didn't always agree, sometimes there were books that some liked and others didn't, but that was fine and it made our gatherings more interesting. Often times, too, this would encourage one of us to read something we normally would not.

Then, 'new blood' came on the scene .... generic in thinking and with a fondness for books mentioned on popular talk shows. (And while this is not a bad thing, it shouldn't be the only type of books shared. Or so we thought). The original group was shunned, made to feel uncomfortable, dismissed, and we are now scattered far and wide.

We had such fun! It is my hope that this blog might capture some of that old feeling and be of interest to the Lost Group as well as to others.

Happy Reading!

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I must be a glutton for frustration because I am going to try again to place an image in my blog. However, if it works, I will not be trying to add images to earlier posts, that's where I got into trouble before. ;-)

It is likely that most, if not all, of us have read some of those books and stories designated as 'classics' at some point. To my great delight I have learned that of those folks I've asked, we all liked some of them, and often they were not the same ones! There have been some fun conversations over pizza as to what we liked and why. These are some of my favorites.

The Odyssey of Homer: a Modern Translation, by Richmond Lattimore. This was the translation of choice by one of the best professors I had. I'll admit, I've only reread it twice since college, but the memory of that wonderful class has kept this book on my shelf for decades.

Red Mule, by Jesse Stuart. Tractors are replacing mules, for everyone but a local known as Red Mule that is, and a young boy known as Scrappie, who will prove that mules can do things that tractors cannot. (I had to try and word this carefully, so as not to give anything away)!

"The Gift of the Magi" is a well-known Christmas story (and will show up on the holiday post I'm planning), but O. Henry wrote hundreds of short stories, many with a delightful or unexpected twist at the end. My collection is The Best Short Stories of O. Henry, selected and with an introduction by Bennett A. Cerf and Van H. Cartmell. The Last Leaf, about a very special leaf, is a favorite.

And, so the classics are not taken too seriously, there is The Classics Reclassified, by Richard Armour and nostalgically illustrated by Campbell Grant. Seven classic tales are given a new and humorous spin in this clever collection. Not as useful as Cliff Notes, perhaps, but such fun! Be sure to read the dedication.

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November 18, 2014.  This post also vanished as I tried to add a cover image.  For now I think I'll just leave them out! 

I plan on trying again to include a cover image with this blog. I'm thinking of an image of just one of the books, which should prevent the text from going all wonky and creating an appearance I don't like. If that works, I hope to work my way through my posted blogs and adding one image to each of them. We'll see! :-)

The reader who recommended The Midwife's Apprentice, by Karen Cushman has sadly passed on, but she sent many wonderful reads my way and this was one of them. This is a teen read about an orphan taken in and trained by a midwife. It's set in Medieval England and has excellent period descriptions. Life is hard and childbirth often resulted in death. The midwife tried to make births easier and safer.

Before the PBS series "Call the Midwife" came the book Call the Midwife: a Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times by Jennifer Worth. The midwives live in a convent in the slums of London's East End. (Where the worst of the bombings had been). The young women who make this choice are trained by the nuns to provide health care services for pregnant women. Most babies were delivered at home, often in a cold water flat, sometimes with just candles for light. Jennifer Worth continues the telling of her years as a midwife in Call the Midwife: Shadows of the Workhouse, and Call the Midwife: Farewell to the East End. (Set in the early 1950s).

The Midwife of Hope River: a Novel of an American Midwife, by Patricia Harman, is set in Appalachia during the Depression. Patience Murphy moves to an area of extreme poverty to help out those who are least likely to get any sort of help. She is there for her own reasons, too, since there are a few secrets in her past she'd like to keep hidden. As with other small communities, everyone ends up helping each other.

And finally, if you have (or are) enjoying the PBS series, be sure to take a look at The Life and Times of Call the Midwife: the official Companion to Seasons One and Two, by Heidi Thomas. More than just about how the actors were chosen, there's a bit of history here, too, from folks who lived in the area, or worked with the midwives in the 1950's. The area has long been rebuilt so it's all had to be reconstructed for the show. Some of it is CGI, some of it is not. The chapter on how the 'look' of the era was reproduced was most interesting. It's not as easy as you might think!

All this reading about babies caused me to get my copy of Rise Up Singing: the Group Singing Songbook, edited by Peter Blood and Annie Patterson off the shelf. (It was in my blog of February 15, 2014) and hum my way through my favorite lullabies.

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November 15, 2013  (I'm not sure how this got deleted ...)

My mother had an ear for language. I do not! However, I do love reading about language, words and so forth.

How to Speak Brit: the Quintessential Guide to the King's English, Cockney Slang, and Other Flummoxing British Phrases, by Christopher J. Moore. What a fun read! Some of the terms were familiar (probably from all the years of watching PBS), others were entirely new. There is a definition and brief history of each word or phrase.

The title caught my eye first: Trip of the Tongue while the subtitle of Cross-Country Travels in Search of America's Languages convinced me to give the book a try. Author Elizabeth Little is a linguist. In her book, she travels across the country and back again searching for those areas where a language is dying out (or not, in some cases). Of particular interest to me was the chapter on Washington and some of the Native American languages found here. Oh, and it seems that the Twilight Saga books and movies have been a good thing for Quileute. :-)

My favorite book on the Canadian language, Canajun, Eh? by Mark M. Orkin is, sadly, no longer available. Fortunately, How to Be a Canadian, by Will Ferguson and Ian Ferguson has a chapter dealing with how to talk like a Canadian. This is a silly and irreverent book, but the authors (brothers) are Canadian so felt they could get away with it. :-) I'm probably finding this book as funny as I do because I live close to the border, and have cousins in Canada as well as a good friend from grad school. Anyway, it made me laugh out loud many times. Be sure to carefully read the chapter on how the government works!

It seems humans have been swearing for a long time. Some of it is good (think oath of office), other swearing was meant to shock, or cause a reaction, or ease the pain of hammering your thumb. The words have changed, of course, as has what is considered to be 'bad' language. Holy Sh*t: a Brief History of Swearing, by Melissa Mohr is a journey about these words. From ancient Rome to present day (2013) she explains the origin of swear words, when they were popular, and why they were bad. In Victorian times the word 'leg' was considered obscene ('limb' was used instead), and even 'trousers' was iffy (not so much what they were, but what they covered). (Ladies, this is where you blush). ;-)

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A new friend gave me good reasons for including an image of at least some of the books I recommend in my blog. I started with updating the October 4, 2014 blog as those covers were mine so if I made a mistake of some sort, it would affect only me. ;-) Several frustrating hours later with results I didn't like, I removed the cover pictures. Then, I deleted the blog and started over as the spacing was all wonky and looked dreadful. Obviously, I have much to learn! :-)

I love the song "Sunrise, Sunset" and how the seasons follow each other 'laden with happiness and tears'. (It's from the musical Fiddler on the Roof, by Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock). I found myself humming it as I worked on this blog.

In an effort to create jobs during the Depression the government started the WPA: the Works Progress Administration. Part of this was "America Eats" which was designed to gather recipes, traditions and so forth from across the country. It was a project that was never completed, at least until Mark Kurlansky came along. The Food of a Younger Land, edited and illustrated by Mr. Kurlansky is a collection from those unused records. The book is divided by region, each with it's own unique celebrations, music, and food. One of my favorite books!

Burnt Toast Makes You Sing Good: a Memoir of Food & Love From an American Midwest Family, by Kathleen Flinn. In researching her ancestors, the author discovers she is related to a bootlegger, a bigamist, a midwife ... and that a common bond down the years is that many of them liked to cook (as does she). The family recipes and memories (happy and sad) make this a most pleasant read.

A delightful and charming read came from Tall Reader (both as a recommendation, and as the actual book). Single Woman Homesteader, is a memoir by Leona Dixon Cox. Born in 1902 in Sonoma County, California, Leona is the 'outdoorsy one' of twins. The skills she learns (and loves) will serve her well in the Depression. From the one room school house, to building a small cabin up in the mountains (where she and her dad lived during the Depression), to learning to ride a motorcycle later in life after one leg was amputated, to learning to use a computer in her 70's, this is a wonderful read.

I had no idea just how much happened in the summer of 1927! Wow! There's Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, Lindberg's flight, a terrible flood, a school bombing (the worst in history), boxing, Coolidge chooses not to run for president, Prohibition, murders and convictions, and much much more and it's all woven nicely together in One Summer: America 1927, by Bill Bryson. (Whew! I do believe that might considered a run on sentence) :-)

It's Veteran's Day today. To all of you past, and present, thank you.

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