I actually had two non-fiction books I was reading at the same time. Every morning, with my second cup of tea, I'd read a section from each of them. They ended up going well together! Both were about road trips, both very nostalgic in nature. Don't rush either book, they are worth the time.

The amount of work that went into The Great American Retro Road Trip: a Celebration of Roadside Americana, by Rolando Pujol is mind boggling! To start with is the road trip ... coast to coast and north to south, including much of Route 66. There are pictures, thousands of them, of roadside curiosities (giant lumberjacks) to neon signs advertising a business from across the decades. Then there was organizing and putting them all into this glorious romp for armchair travelers, as well as those who have driven some of these roads themselves. Many of the businesses, cafes, and gas stations are still open, some even owned by the same family. Others have a new owner and business, but kept the old historic neon signs (thankfully). Some are abandoned, sadly, and of course, some are gone. Loved the pictures and the history ... just an amazing book!

Welcome Home: Travels in Small-Town Canada, by Stuart McLean was written in the late 1980's. He sought out small towns that, say, had no ATM machine, a bowling alley where the pins were still set up by a human, schools that taught all grades from kindergarten to high school. You will learn about forestry, and herding cattle (and fences). Local businesses where you go get your own cup of coffee, as many as you want, with a bowl near the spoons for you to pay (owner never had a problem doing that). There is a town with a possible, very possible, link with royalty (albeit illegitimate). There is a hockey town ... small, but fierce in determination to keep it's hockey rink. You meet the locals, folks who have lived in the area all their lives as well as folks who have left and returned. Charming and sweet, it will make you smile.

Reading Hermit With Dog