In times past a computer was a person, one who was good with numbers (obviously!) and many of them worked for the government. First it was to build better and faster planes quickly in WWII. Then it was to build planes that could break the sound barrier. Then it was to build rockets that could, eventually, leave orbit and take man to the moon and back. (John Glenn requested that a human computer check the figures for his flight ... he didn't completely trust the 'machine computer' yet). The little known fact was that these computers were women. And many were black. HIdden Figures: the American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race, by Margot Lee Shetterly is their story. It's impressive, and depressing at the same time (think of the time period ...) Read it!

Are you a Sherlock Holmes fan? Or know someone who is? Then I think you will really enjoy the book from DK titled The Sherlock Holmes Book. (David Stuart Davies appears as the consultant editor and may show as the author in some library collections). Like the other books I've read from DK on Doctor Who and Star Trek, it's full of pictures, character and plot descriptions, and, in this case, a synopsis of each book or story. At the end is a chapter about some of the many other versions, from comics, to parodies, plays, animated features, tv series and so forth. Most interesting! Thanks go to Kiwi for sharing this book. :-)

Just when I was ready to give up on ever seeing this book, it appeared! The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook (revised): 40 ways to cook crickets, grasshoppers, ants, water bugs, spiders, centipedes, and their kin, by David George Gordon was both fascinating and a bit repulsive at the same time. (I thought about using that word, after all, most folks are much more adventurous eaters than I am!). What was fun was the author's (who is the bug chef) enthusiasm for his topic. :-) He includes tips on where to get the various bugs, what wine to use, and so forth. Would you eat a bug?

Here's a cookbook about books! Cara Nicoletti is a reader who has always noticed the food in the books she reads. It often takes her on a quest to learn more about them, how they are prepared, etc. She shares both in Voracious: a Hungry Reader Cooks Her Way Through Great Books. How many of these books have you read? Did you notice the food (I didn't). ;-)

Reading Hermit With Dog