C's bookshelf: read en-US Mon, 10 Mar 2025 17:36:35 -0700 60 C's bookshelf: read 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference]]> 2612 The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just as a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a fashion trend, the popularity of a new product, or a drop in the crime rate. This widely acclaimed bestseller, in which Malcolm Gladwell explores and brilliantly illuminates the tipping point phenomenon, is already changing the way people throughout the world think about selling products and disseminating ideas.]]> 301 Malcolm Gladwell 0316346624 C 3
To help us think more deeply about the consequences of the problem, consider the following fact: If you were born after 1975 and tried to ride a bicycle from Iceland to Darfur, the chances of colliding with a British nanny increased 13% based on the number of Blossom reruns you watched as a child. Whether or not your parents are divorced is immaterial, as is the amount of padding in your seat. Social Scientists had a term for this late 20th century phenomenon: "Whoa!"

Meanwhile, in Canada (if that's your real name), a young, mild-mannered boy named Malcolm recognized the unique power of combining individual letters into meaning-units called “words.�

He quit his job making ice sculptures out of rusted fenders and moved south of the border to America (the nation, not the toy store).

His timing was impeccable. At the end of the 90s, America had just entered a period of reckless behavior wherein, with little prompting, Americans would try to arrange words into "sentences" and, if sufficiently coked-up, slap those sentences into "paragraphs."

Conservatives like Pat Buchanan were furious. Senator Bob Dole went on Meet the Press and blamed his erectile dysfunction on syntax. The era ended suddenly on December 31st, 1999, when, according to a budding bow-tie fanatic named Bill Nye, both the year AND the century had run their course.

Feeling threatened, Gladwell went on national television to declare "writing" is the radical, counterintuitive explanation for the existence of what he called "books" but what conservatives called "syphilis".

The strategy worked: He signed a contract with the biggest publishing house in America, which then promptly issued his first minor masterpiece: "Writing: How Letters, Sentences, Paragraphs, and Chapters Add Up To The Thing That Came Before the Colon." From that point on, it was all gin and roses (until Slash and Hypen left the band).]]> 4.01 2002 The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
author: Malcolm Gladwell
name: C
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2002
rating: 3
read at: 2015/01/31
date added: 2025/03/10
shelves: psuedo-scientific-hogwash, 11th-grade-lit
review:
To understand "The Tipping Point," one must understand what led to its creation: In the year 2000 A.D. (Anal Dominos), there were 5.5 billion people living on the planet Earth. Many of them were considered human beings, but a few were thought to be celery. The difference between the two categories bewildered the top dog breeders of the day.

To help us think more deeply about the consequences of the problem, consider the following fact: If you were born after 1975 and tried to ride a bicycle from Iceland to Darfur, the chances of colliding with a British nanny increased 13% based on the number of Blossom reruns you watched as a child. Whether or not your parents are divorced is immaterial, as is the amount of padding in your seat. Social Scientists had a term for this late 20th century phenomenon: "Whoa!"

Meanwhile, in Canada (if that's your real name), a young, mild-mannered boy named Malcolm recognized the unique power of combining individual letters into meaning-units called “words.�

He quit his job making ice sculptures out of rusted fenders and moved south of the border to America (the nation, not the toy store).

His timing was impeccable. At the end of the 90s, America had just entered a period of reckless behavior wherein, with little prompting, Americans would try to arrange words into "sentences" and, if sufficiently coked-up, slap those sentences into "paragraphs."

Conservatives like Pat Buchanan were furious. Senator Bob Dole went on Meet the Press and blamed his erectile dysfunction on syntax. The era ended suddenly on December 31st, 1999, when, according to a budding bow-tie fanatic named Bill Nye, both the year AND the century had run their course.

Feeling threatened, Gladwell went on national television to declare "writing" is the radical, counterintuitive explanation for the existence of what he called "books" but what conservatives called "syphilis".

The strategy worked: He signed a contract with the biggest publishing house in America, which then promptly issued his first minor masterpiece: "Writing: How Letters, Sentences, Paragraphs, and Chapters Add Up To The Thing That Came Before the Colon." From that point on, it was all gin and roses (until Slash and Hypen left the band).
]]> The Count of Monte Cristo 7126 The epic tale of wrongful imprisonment, adventure and revenge, in its definitive translation

Thrown in prison for a crime he has not committed, Edmond Dantès is confined to the grim fortress of If. There he learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to use the treasure to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. Dumas� epic tale of suffering and retribution, inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, was a huge popular success when it was first serialized in the 1840s.

Translated with an Introduction by Robin Buss

An alternative cover edition for this ISBN can be found here]]> 1276 Alexandre Dumas 0140449264 C 3
Meanwhile, I looked like the kind of man who wore thick glasses and rolls his own cigarettes and grew up reading Catcher in the Rye. But did I say anything to him? Like, watch where you’re going, bozo? No, I did not.
]]> 4.29 1846 The Count of Monte Cristo
author: Alexandre Dumas
name: C
average rating: 4.29
book published: 1846
rating: 3
read at: 2019/01/15
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves:
review:
After I finished this book—while crossing the Manhattan bridge on the Brooklyn bound Q train—I hugged to my chest and began to cry, not tears of joy, but tears of pain because a man dressed like Patrick Bateman stepped on my surgically repaired big toe with his Italian loafers. He looked like the kind of man who wears expensive LL Bean vests on the weekend and drinks craft IPA beers and played lacrosse growing up in Rye.

Meanwhile, I looked like the kind of man who wore thick glasses and rolls his own cigarettes and grew up reading Catcher in the Rye. But did I say anything to him? Like, watch where you’re going, bozo? No, I did not.

]]> There There 36692478 Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780525520375.

Tommy Orange's wondrous and shattering novel follows twelve characters from Native communities: all traveling to the Big Oakland Powwow, all connected to one another in ways they may not yet realize.

Among them is Jacquie Red Feather, newly sober and trying to make it back to the family she left behind. Dene Oxendene, pulling his life together after his uncle's death and working at the powwow to honor his memory. Fourteen-year-old Orvil, coming to perform traditional dance for the very first time. Together, this chorus of voices tells of the plight of the urban Native American--grappling with a complex and painful history, with an inheritance of beauty and spirituality, with communion and sacrifice and heroism.

Hailed as an instant classic, There There is at once poignant and unflinching, utterly contemporary and truly unforgettable.]]> 294 Tommy Orange C 4 Over the past few weeks, I’ve led a weekly seminar called the Covid-19 Great Books Discussion. Open to anyone, we tackle challenging texts—college seminar-level material—to keep our minds sharp and engage in meaningful conversations about life. What began as a way to pass time during the pandemic has become an intellectual lifeline.

So far, we’ve explored Emerson’s Self-Reliance, Jung’s The Stages of Life, and McKibben’s The End of Nature. As I connect these works, I’m struck by how they all converge on a central idea: the moral and spiritual superiority of what Carl Jung calls the “natural man,� Daniel Quinn refers to as the “Leavers,� and scholars often describe as Indigenous cultures. These writers illuminate the turning point when humanity transitioned from living off the land to dominating it through agriculture—a shift that marked, depending on perspective, either progress or downfall.

The Divide: Takers vs. Leavers
Daniel Quinn, in Ishmael, defines two archetypes: the “Takers,� who believe the world was made for their use, and the “Leavers,� who see themselves as part of the world’s natural balance. According to Quinn, the Biblical story of Adam and Eve symbolizes the moment humanity took life and death into its own hands, abandoning harmony for control. Agriculture, in this view, isn’t a triumph but a tragedy—a departure from living in sync with nature.

Jung echoes this perspective, describing the choice to eat from the Tree of Knowledge as the “sacrifice of the natural man.� For Jung, the natural man focuses on survival and instinct, while the civilized man is burdened by existential angst and artificial concerns—questions like whether to buy a vacation home in Vermont. Civilization, Jung suggests, comes with a heavy price: the alienation from nature and from ourselves.

Emerson, too, critiques civilization, reserving his sharpest words for “society.� He sees it as a force that cuts us off from nature, the source of all truth and wisdom. Instinct, he argues, is our most reliable guide, yet we’ve abandoned it in favor of social conventions and hollow comforts.

The End of Nature
Bill McKibben, in The End of Nature, argues that humanity hasn’t just disrupted nature—we’ve ended it. Through genetic engineering and other technologies, we’ve turned the natural world into a product. Once a rabbit or a cloud can be manufactured like a can of Coke, their intrinsic value disappears. McKibben suggests that by taking control of nature, we’ve destroyed its essence—and with it, the spiritual connection that once defined our place in the world.

A Leaver Perspective: Tommy Orange
While Emerson, Jung, and McKibben write from the Taker perspective, Tommy Orange offers the perspective of those forced to adopt the Taker way of life. His novel There There examines the scars of Native Americans—descendants of Leaver cultures who have been uprooted and assimilated. Through a series of character portraits set in Oakland, California, Orange portrays the identity confusion, historical trauma, and cultural dislocation that define the contemporary Native experience.

Orange’s characters bear the weight of a violent history. Their culture, bodies, and lands have been mutilated and commodified, leaving them with faint echoes of a better way of life. By inhabiting their consciousness and “walking a mile in their moccasins,� readers come to feel the deep pain of a people confined to reservations, casinos, and cities—far from the natural world that once sustained them.

Final Reflections
We, the so-called civilized, are the malevolent zookeepers of history, while Indigenous peoples are like Ishmael: wise, perceptive, and imprisoned. As we plow fields, build cities, and engineer ecosystems, we must confront the possibility that we’ve lost more than we’ve gained. These authors compel us to ask: What does it mean to live in harmony with nature? And can we ever reclaim the instincts, wisdom, and humility we’ve sacrificed on the altar of progress?]]> 3.98 2018 There There
author: Tommy Orange
name: C
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at: 2020/04/15
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves:
review:
Reflections on the Covid-19 Great Books Discussion
Over the past few weeks, I’ve led a weekly seminar called the Covid-19 Great Books Discussion. Open to anyone, we tackle challenging texts—college seminar-level material—to keep our minds sharp and engage in meaningful conversations about life. What began as a way to pass time during the pandemic has become an intellectual lifeline.

So far, we’ve explored Emerson’s Self-Reliance, Jung’s The Stages of Life, and McKibben’s The End of Nature. As I connect these works, I’m struck by how they all converge on a central idea: the moral and spiritual superiority of what Carl Jung calls the “natural man,� Daniel Quinn refers to as the “Leavers,� and scholars often describe as Indigenous cultures. These writers illuminate the turning point when humanity transitioned from living off the land to dominating it through agriculture—a shift that marked, depending on perspective, either progress or downfall.

The Divide: Takers vs. Leavers
Daniel Quinn, in Ishmael, defines two archetypes: the “Takers,� who believe the world was made for their use, and the “Leavers,� who see themselves as part of the world’s natural balance. According to Quinn, the Biblical story of Adam and Eve symbolizes the moment humanity took life and death into its own hands, abandoning harmony for control. Agriculture, in this view, isn’t a triumph but a tragedy—a departure from living in sync with nature.

Jung echoes this perspective, describing the choice to eat from the Tree of Knowledge as the “sacrifice of the natural man.� For Jung, the natural man focuses on survival and instinct, while the civilized man is burdened by existential angst and artificial concerns—questions like whether to buy a vacation home in Vermont. Civilization, Jung suggests, comes with a heavy price: the alienation from nature and from ourselves.

Emerson, too, critiques civilization, reserving his sharpest words for “society.� He sees it as a force that cuts us off from nature, the source of all truth and wisdom. Instinct, he argues, is our most reliable guide, yet we’ve abandoned it in favor of social conventions and hollow comforts.

The End of Nature
Bill McKibben, in The End of Nature, argues that humanity hasn’t just disrupted nature—we’ve ended it. Through genetic engineering and other technologies, we’ve turned the natural world into a product. Once a rabbit or a cloud can be manufactured like a can of Coke, their intrinsic value disappears. McKibben suggests that by taking control of nature, we’ve destroyed its essence—and with it, the spiritual connection that once defined our place in the world.

A Leaver Perspective: Tommy Orange
While Emerson, Jung, and McKibben write from the Taker perspective, Tommy Orange offers the perspective of those forced to adopt the Taker way of life. His novel There There examines the scars of Native Americans—descendants of Leaver cultures who have been uprooted and assimilated. Through a series of character portraits set in Oakland, California, Orange portrays the identity confusion, historical trauma, and cultural dislocation that define the contemporary Native experience.

Orange’s characters bear the weight of a violent history. Their culture, bodies, and lands have been mutilated and commodified, leaving them with faint echoes of a better way of life. By inhabiting their consciousness and “walking a mile in their moccasins,� readers come to feel the deep pain of a people confined to reservations, casinos, and cities—far from the natural world that once sustained them.

Final Reflections
We, the so-called civilized, are the malevolent zookeepers of history, while Indigenous peoples are like Ishmael: wise, perceptive, and imprisoned. As we plow fields, build cities, and engineer ecosystems, we must confront the possibility that we’ve lost more than we’ve gained. These authors compel us to ask: What does it mean to live in harmony with nature? And can we ever reclaim the instincts, wisdom, and humility we’ve sacrificed on the altar of progress?
]]> <![CDATA[Civilization and Its Discontents]]> 357636 127 Sigmund Freud 0393301583 C 4
Later, sitting behind the wheel of your Hybrid, you shudder. Where did that come from, you wonder. The answer: you're an animal, buddy. That handsomely tailored Oxford button-down only goes so far to hide the truth: you're a bloodthirsty, sex-crazed, status-seeking ape. Go on, if you dare, look inside yourself. You'll see the truth. Just try to keep your clothes on.]]> 3.79 1930 Civilization and Its Discontents
author: Sigmund Freud
name: C
average rating: 3.79
book published: 1930
rating: 4
read at: 2009/10/15
date added: 2024/10/15
shelves:
review:
This book helps explain one of life’s enduring phenomena: rage. It explains why standing behind that scruffy, ponytailed, mustachioed gentleman in the checkout lane (let’s call him “Gerard,� for good measure), can trigger paroxysms of homicidal fury. Something deep and ancient roils inside as you do a quick comparison: Gerard, with his sensationally attractive girlfriend in tow, (let’s call her “Melanie�); and you, with just you. You stand there fronting a twitching half-smile that conceals the throbbing urge to rip the man-bun off his head. Alas, the spell is broken: you need to pay the cashier for those artisanal cucumbers, the ones you read about on that message board dedicated to “wellness.�

Later, sitting behind the wheel of your Hybrid, you shudder. Where did that come from, you wonder. The answer: you're an animal, buddy. That handsomely tailored Oxford button-down only goes so far to hide the truth: you're a bloodthirsty, sex-crazed, status-seeking ape. Go on, if you dare, look inside yourself. You'll see the truth. Just try to keep your clothes on.
]]> <![CDATA[The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation: An Easy-to-Use Guide with Clear Rules, Real-World Examples, and Reproducible Quizzes]]> 55402767 The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation is a concise, entertaining workbook and guide to English grammar, punctuation, and usage. This user-friendly resource includes simple explanations of grammar, punctuation, and usage; scores of helpful examples; dozens of reproducible worksheets; and pre- and post-tests to help teach grammar to students of all ages. Appropriate for virtually any age range, this authoritative guide makes learning English grammar and usage simple and fun. This updated Twelfth Edition reflects the latest updates to English usage and grammar and features:

Clear and concise, easy-to-follow, offering "just the facts" Fully updated to reflect the latest rules in grammar and usage along with new quizzes Ideal for students from seventh grade through adulthood in the US and abroad For anyone who wants to understand the major rules and subtle guidelines of English grammar and usage, The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation offers comprehensive, straightforward instruction.]]> 272 Lester Kaufman 1119653029 C 0 to-read 4.04 The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation: An Easy-to-Use Guide with Clear Rules, Real-World Examples, and Reproducible Quizzes
author: Lester Kaufman
name: C
average rating: 4.04
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/08/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Last Temptation of Christ 18303838 The internationally renowned novel about the life and death of Jesus Christ.

Hailed as a masterpiece by critics worldwide, The Last Temptation of Christ is a monumental reinterpretation of the Gospels that brilliantly fleshes out Christ’s Passion. This literary rendering of the life of Jesus Christ has courted controversy since its publication by depicting a Christ far more human than the one seen in the Bible. He is a figure who is gloriously divine but earthy and human, a man like any other—subject to fear, doubt, and pain.

In elegant, thoughtful prose Nikos Kazantzakis, one of the greats of modern literature, follows this Jesus as he struggles to live out God’s will for him, powerfully suggesting that it was Christ’s ultimate triumph over his flawed humanity, when he gave up the temptation to run from the cross and willingly laid down his life for mankind, that truly made him the venerable redeemer of men.

“Spiritual dynamite.� �San Francisco Chronicle

“A searing, soaring, shocking novel.� �Time ]]> 513 Nikos Kazantzakis 1439144583 C 5
Each summer we visited the homeland of noted spiritual leaders like Gandhi, Buddha, and Lil' Nas X. That summer, we selected Nazareth in honor of Jesus but one of our tribe, Chuck, was allergic to cat dander and Israeli cucumbers so we did the next best thing: we visited the homeland of Dan McCafferty the founder of the band Nazareth. Love hurts, my chickadees, love hurts.

We had a good time that summer. We had a good collective. We brought something special to the ancient land of William Wallace and Ivanhoe. The problem was Fern. No amount of traveling sacred bummery could disguise the fact that she was beautiful like a sunrise or a good steak. On top of that, she was the only woman in our collective. We, on the hand, were a sorry lot, with our raggedy clothes, matted hair and body lice. We thirsted for enlightenment but we were starved for love.

Love tore us apart faster than you can say Joy Division. Chuck first fell for Fern, but it wasn’t long before Gilbert and Timmy did, too. They were all moon-eyed and tongue-tied. One traveling sacred bum would give her first dibs on the dumpster scones and the other would sneak her the choicest cuts of roadkill Haggis. We had a strict anti-fraternizing policy (thanks HR!) so this kind of thing was forbidden, but spiritual enlightenment is no match for the heart.

Eventually, I, too, fell for Fern.

One night, while the group was asleep in a Tesco parking lot, Fern and I found ourselves alone. She noticed my copy of Kazantzakis' novel poking out of my plastic satchel. "Cool title; any good?" Yes, I said, it was good. I told her the novel had a mysterious pull on me, as if it were channeling the same pentecostal spirit that flowed through apostles. The novel seemed to pulsate and breathe. It was so real, it resurrected the passion of Christ.

We paused for second while the Tesco customers finished loading up groceries in the boot of their car. Normal folks, people with families and friends and good jeans. We exchanged pleasantries with them—people were always keen to exchange pleasantries with the Sacred Bums, mostly to see if they could sniff out our intentions. Once they were gone, Fern confessed that she was tired of bumming around, that she missed her childhood home in Liberty Springs, Arkansas. She grew up in a double-wide trailer with a kitchen nook and two bedrooms. She missed her cat Doodles. There was more to be said, I'm sure, and the night could have ended with a tender kiss, but we'll never know because I got bashed in the head by a runaway grocery cart.

When I woke up, everyone was sleeping. Immediately, I was hit with a thunderbolt of certainty. And a thunderbolt of electricity. Up I got and home did trot as fast I could caper. I found my most valuable possession: a Topps Bill Buckner rookie card worth hundreds of dollars. With my windfall I bought a double-wide trailer home in Liberty Springs, Arkansas. Fern's childhood home. Her parents were kind enough to move into a nursing home at my lawyer’s request. With a little help from the internet I located the Traveling Sacred Bums in Glasgow, Scotland. I brought Fern back with me to Liberty Springs. Fern and I got hitched; we had two kids, Chip and Betty, and two chocolate labs named Hershey and Squirt.

It's a good life, I know. Sometimes it feels like a dream, or a dream within a dream. I wonder if I'm awake or if somehow I'm asleep and dreaming my life. We'll never know, will we?]]> 4.23 1955 The Last Temptation of Christ
author: Nikos Kazantzakis
name: C
average rating: 4.23
book published: 1955
rating: 5
read at: 2021/01/18
date added: 2024/06/15
shelves:
review:
I finished this book in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was the summer I joined the Traveling Sacred Bums, an anarchist collective devoted to spiritual enlightenment and voluntary poverty. Our mission was to go completely off the grid. We never spent money—we bartered—and to feed ourselves we opted for dumpster diving and eating fresh roadkill.

Each summer we visited the homeland of noted spiritual leaders like Gandhi, Buddha, and Lil' Nas X. That summer, we selected Nazareth in honor of Jesus but one of our tribe, Chuck, was allergic to cat dander and Israeli cucumbers so we did the next best thing: we visited the homeland of Dan McCafferty the founder of the band Nazareth. Love hurts, my chickadees, love hurts.

We had a good time that summer. We had a good collective. We brought something special to the ancient land of William Wallace and Ivanhoe. The problem was Fern. No amount of traveling sacred bummery could disguise the fact that she was beautiful like a sunrise or a good steak. On top of that, she was the only woman in our collective. We, on the hand, were a sorry lot, with our raggedy clothes, matted hair and body lice. We thirsted for enlightenment but we were starved for love.

Love tore us apart faster than you can say Joy Division. Chuck first fell for Fern, but it wasn’t long before Gilbert and Timmy did, too. They were all moon-eyed and tongue-tied. One traveling sacred bum would give her first dibs on the dumpster scones and the other would sneak her the choicest cuts of roadkill Haggis. We had a strict anti-fraternizing policy (thanks HR!) so this kind of thing was forbidden, but spiritual enlightenment is no match for the heart.

Eventually, I, too, fell for Fern.

One night, while the group was asleep in a Tesco parking lot, Fern and I found ourselves alone. She noticed my copy of Kazantzakis' novel poking out of my plastic satchel. "Cool title; any good?" Yes, I said, it was good. I told her the novel had a mysterious pull on me, as if it were channeling the same pentecostal spirit that flowed through apostles. The novel seemed to pulsate and breathe. It was so real, it resurrected the passion of Christ.

We paused for second while the Tesco customers finished loading up groceries in the boot of their car. Normal folks, people with families and friends and good jeans. We exchanged pleasantries with them—people were always keen to exchange pleasantries with the Sacred Bums, mostly to see if they could sniff out our intentions. Once they were gone, Fern confessed that she was tired of bumming around, that she missed her childhood home in Liberty Springs, Arkansas. She grew up in a double-wide trailer with a kitchen nook and two bedrooms. She missed her cat Doodles. There was more to be said, I'm sure, and the night could have ended with a tender kiss, but we'll never know because I got bashed in the head by a runaway grocery cart.

When I woke up, everyone was sleeping. Immediately, I was hit with a thunderbolt of certainty. And a thunderbolt of electricity. Up I got and home did trot as fast I could caper. I found my most valuable possession: a Topps Bill Buckner rookie card worth hundreds of dollars. With my windfall I bought a double-wide trailer home in Liberty Springs, Arkansas. Fern's childhood home. Her parents were kind enough to move into a nursing home at my lawyer’s request. With a little help from the internet I located the Traveling Sacred Bums in Glasgow, Scotland. I brought Fern back with me to Liberty Springs. Fern and I got hitched; we had two kids, Chip and Betty, and two chocolate labs named Hershey and Squirt.

It's a good life, I know. Sometimes it feels like a dream, or a dream within a dream. I wonder if I'm awake or if somehow I'm asleep and dreaming my life. We'll never know, will we?
]]> <![CDATA[The Clash of Civilizations?: The Debate]]> 96210
In the summer of 1993 Foreign Affairs published an article entitled "The Clash of Civilization?" by Samuel Huntington.
No article, according to the editors of that distinguished journal, had generated more discussion since George Kennan´s "X" article on containment in the 1940s. Now, Huntigton expands on his article, explores further the issues he raised then, and develops many new penetrating and controversial analyses. In the article, he posed the question whether conflicts between civilizations would dominate the future of world politics. In the book, he gives his answer, showing not only how clashes between civilizations are the greatest threat to world peace but also how an international order based on civilizations is the best safeguard against war.]]> 68 Samuel P. Huntington 0876091648 C 5 3.59 1993 The Clash of Civilizations?: The Debate
author: Samuel P. Huntington
name: C
average rating: 3.59
book published: 1993
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves:
review:

]]> The Liars' Club 14241 The Liars� Club took the world by storm and raised the art of the memoir to an entirely new level, bringing about a dramatic revival of the form. Karr’s comic childhood in an east Texas oil town brings us characters as darkly hilarious as any of J. D. Salinger’s—a hard-drinking daddy, a sister who can talk down the sheriff at age twelve, and an oft-married mother whose accumulated secrets threaten to destroy them all. This unsentimental and profoundly moving account of an apocalyptic childhood is as “funny, lively, and un-put-downable� (USA Today) today as it ever was.]]> 352 Mary Karr 0143035746 C 0 to-read 3.94 1995 The Liars' Club
author: Mary Karr
name: C
average rating: 3.94
book published: 1995
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Keeping Things Whole: Readings in Environmental Science]]> 522632 208 Crispin Tickell 1880323907 C 5 4.00 2004 Keeping Things Whole: Readings in Environmental Science
author: Crispin Tickell
name: C
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2004
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Nature of Life: Readings in Biology]]> 522635 291 Great Books Foundation 1880323869 C 5 3.57 2001 The Nature of Life: Readings in Biology
author: Great Books Foundation
name: C
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2001
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[What's the Matter?: Readings in Physics]]> 6193748
* Thirty-one selections from scientists including Galileo, Newton, Einstein, Feynman, and Hawking

* Introductory essays and a thematic guide

* Stimulating discussion questions for each selection

* Annotated bibliographies and suggestions for further reading

EDITORIAL REVIEW

"Any science tacher at any level would find the book a most treasured addition to his or her collection." --Richard Frazier, associate professor, Central Missouri University, from "NSTA Recommends," National Science Teachers Association's website

"For learning what physics is about, I strongly recommend What's the Matter? Readings in Physics." --John Hubisz, Department of Physics, North Carolina State University, from The Physics Teacher, published by the American Association of Physics Teachers]]> 560 Alan Lightman 1880323915 C 5 4.67 2006 What's the Matter?: Readings in Physics
author: Alan Lightman
name: C
average rating: 4.67
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves:
review:

]]> A Place to Stand 46660 272 Jimmy Santiago Baca 0802139086 C 0 to-read 4.18 2001 A Place to Stand
author: Jimmy Santiago Baca
name: C
average rating: 4.18
book published: 2001
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Writing the Memoir 121856 Writing the Memoir came out in early 1997 it has sold roughly 80,000 copies and is consistently praised as "the best book on memoir out there." It is thought-provoking, explanatory, and practical: each chapter ends with writing exercises. It covers everything from questions of truth and ethics to questions of craft and the crucial retrospective voice. An appendix provides information on legal issues.

Judith Barrington, an award-winning memoir writer and acclaimed writing teacher, is attuned to the forces, both external and internal, that work to stop a writer; her tone is respectful of the difficulties and encouraging of taking risks. Her nimble prose, her deep belief in the importance of this genre, and her delight in the rich array of memoirists writing today make this book more than the typical "how-to" creative writing book. In this second edition the author has added new material and reflects on issues raised since Writing the Memoir was written, early in the memoir boom.

"No student of memoir writing could fail to learn from this wise, pragmatic, and confiding book. One hears on every page the voice of an intelligent and responsive teacher, with years of thinking about memoir behind her."--Vivian Gornick

Judith Barrington is the author of Lifesaving: A Memoir and numerous individual memoirs which have been published in literary magazines and anthologies. She is the author of three volumes of poetry: Trying to Be an Honest Woman, History and Geography, and Horses and the Human Soul (forthcoming in 2002). She has taught creative writing for the past twenty years.]]> 224 Judith Barrington 0933377509 C 0 to-read 4.03 1996 Writing the Memoir
author: Judith Barrington
name: C
average rating: 4.03
book published: 1996
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Cast-Iron Cooking: Recipes & Tips for Getting the Most out of Your Cast-Iron Cookware]]> 25787103 96 Rachael Narins 1612126766 C 0 to-read 3.60 2016 Cast-Iron Cooking: Recipes & Tips for Getting the Most out of Your Cast-Iron Cookware
author: Rachael Narins
name: C
average rating: 3.60
book published: 2016
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> Bonsai (101 Essential Tips) 835004 Harry Tomlinson is one of Europe's leading bonsai artists and instructors. He has exhibited and judged bonsai all over the world. He is also the author of several books including DK's The Complete Book of Bonsai.

]]> 72 Harry Tomlinson 0789496879 C 0 to-read 3.64 1996 Bonsai (101 Essential Tips)
author: Harry Tomlinson
name: C
average rating: 3.64
book published: 1996
rating: 0
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]]> <![CDATA[A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (Illustrated)]]> 25238583 A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is a novel of sexual awakening, religious rebellion and the essential search for voice and meaning that every nascent artist must face in order to fully come into themselves.]]> 218 James Joyce C 0 to-read 4.08 1916 A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (Illustrated)
author: James Joyce
name: C
average rating: 4.08
book published: 1916
rating: 0
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]]> Tropic of Cancer 19199202 Henry Miller’s famously banned book is “a matter-of-fact celebration of chucking one’s dreary life and following your heart to Paris� (Richard Price). Now hailed as an American classic,Tropic of Cancer, Henry Miller’s masterpiece, was banned as obscene in this country for twenty-seven years after its first publication in Paris in 1934. Only a historic court ruling that changed American censorship standards, ushering in a new era of freedom and frankness in modern literature, permitted the publication of this first volume of Miller’s famed mixture of memoir and fiction, which chronicles with unapologetic gusto the bawdy adventures of a young expatriate writer, his friends, and the characters they meet in Paris in the 1930s.Tropic of Canceris now considered, as Norman Mailer said, “one of the ten or twenty great novels of our century.”]]> 194 Henry Miller C 5 3.32 1934 Tropic of Cancer
author: Henry Miller
name: C
average rating: 3.32
book published: 1934
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Einstein: His Life and Universe]]> 6602781
Based on newly released personal letters of Einstein, this book explores how an imaginative, impertinent patent clerk -- a struggling father in a difficult marriage who couldn't get a teaching job or a doctorate -- became the mind reader of the creator of the cosmos, the locksmith of the mysteries of the atom and the universe. His success came from questioning conventional wisdom and marveling at mysteries that struck others as mundane. This led him to embrace a morality and politics based on respect for free minds, free spirits, and free individuals.

These traits are just as vital for this new century of globalization, in which our success will depend on our creativity, as they were for the beginning of the last century, when Einstein helped usher in the modern age.]]> 706 Walter Isaacson 1416539328 C 5 4.31 2007 Einstein: His Life and Universe
author: Walter Isaacson
name: C
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2007
rating: 5
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]]> Based on a True Story 39092794 258 Norm Macdonald C 3 4.00 2016 Based on a True Story
author: Norm Macdonald
name: C
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2016
rating: 3
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]]> <![CDATA[Junior Great Books-Series 8, Leader's Guide]]> 122567423 0 unknown author 1880323362 C 5 5.00 Junior Great Books-Series 8, Leader's Guide
author: unknown author
name: C
average rating: 5.00
book published:
rating: 5
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]]> The White Album 421 The White Album records indelibly the upheavals and aftermaths of the 1960s. Examining key events, figures, and trends of the era—including Charles Manson, the Black Panthers, and the shopping mall—through the lens of her own spiritual confusion, Joan Didion helped to define mass culture as we now understand it. Written with a commanding sureness of tone and linguistic precision, The White Album is a central text of American reportage and a classic of American autobiography.]]> 224 Joan Didion 0374532079 C 0 to-read 4.06 1979 The White Album
author: Joan Didion
name: C
average rating: 4.06
book published: 1979
rating: 0
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]]> <![CDATA[Scenes from Shakespeare: Fifteen Cuttings for the Classroom]]> 428633 140 William Shakespeare 0916260909 C 4 3.67 1993 Scenes from Shakespeare: Fifteen Cuttings for the Classroom
author: William Shakespeare
name: C
average rating: 3.67
book published: 1993
rating: 4
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]]> <![CDATA[Shakespeare for Two: A Comprehensive Collection of Two-Person Scenes]]> 1287655 288 Douglas Newell 0325008892 C 4 4.00 2006 Shakespeare for Two: A Comprehensive Collection of Two-Person Scenes
author: Douglas Newell
name: C
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2006
rating: 4
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]]> <![CDATA[Lost Highway: Journeys and Arrivals of American Musicians]]> 99411 of American roots music--country, rockabilly, and the blues--spotlights the artists who created a distinctly American sound, including Ernest Tubb, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Elvis Presley, Merle Haggard, and Sleepy LaBeef. In incisive portraits based on searching interviews with these legendary performers, Peter Guralnick captures the boundless passion that drove these men to music-making and that kept them determinedly, and sometimes almost desperately, on the road.]]> 368 Peter Guralnick 0316332747 C 0 to-read 4.21 1979 Lost Highway: Journeys and Arrivals of American Musicians
author: Peter Guralnick
name: C
average rating: 4.21
book published: 1979
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> A Man Called Ove 33382997 294 Fredrik Backman 2080402056 C 2 4.41 2012 A Man Called Ove
author: Fredrik Backman
name: C
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2012
rating: 2
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]]> Metamorphoses 116504 120 Mary Zimmerman 0810119803 C 5 4.07 2002 Metamorphoses
author: Mary Zimmerman
name: C
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2002
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Contemporary Scenes for Student Actors]]> 783027
Includes scenes from plays by
· Woody Allen
· Maxwell Anderson
· Jean Anouilh
· Simon Gray
· John Guare
· Lillian Hellman
· Albert Innaurato
· David Mamet
· Mark Medoff
· Arthur Miller
· Miguel Pinero
· David Rabe
· Sam Shepard
· Tennessee Williams
· And many more!]]> 446 Michael Schulman 0140481532 C 5 3.53 1980 Contemporary Scenes for Student Actors
author: Michael Schulman
name: C
average rating: 3.53
book published: 1980
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Fractured Fairy Tales for Student Actors: A Collection of Contemporary Fairy Tale Scenes]]> 17153480 120 Jan Peterson Ewen 1566081920 C 0 to-read 4.20 2013 Fractured Fairy Tales for Student Actors: A Collection of Contemporary Fairy Tale Scenes
author: Jan Peterson Ewen
name: C
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2013
rating: 0
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]]> The naked and the Dead 140202754 novel 557 Norman Mailer C 3 3.00 1948 The naked and the Dead
author: Norman Mailer
name: C
average rating: 3.00
book published: 1948
rating: 3
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]]> The Story of B (Ishmael, #2) 214579
Father Jared Osborne has received an extraordinary assignment from his superiors: Investigate an itinerant preacher stirring up deep trouble in central Europe. His followers all him B, but his enemies say he’s something else: the Antichrist. However, the man Osborne tracks across a landscape of bars, cabarets, and seedy meeting halls is no blasphemous monster—though an earlier era would undoubtedly have rushed him to the burning stake. For B claims to be enunciating a gospel written not on any stone or parchment but in our very genes, opening up a spiritual direction for humanity that would have been unimaginable to any of the prophets or saviors of traditional religion. Pressed by his superiors for a judgment, Osborne is driven to penetrate B’s inner circle, where he soon finds himself an anguished collaborator in the dismantling of his own religious foundations. More than a masterful novel of adventure and suspense, The Story of B is a rich source of compelling ideas from an author who challenges us to rethink our most cherished beliefs.]]> 352 Daniel Quinn 0553379011 C 0 to-read 4.14 1996 The Story of B (Ishmael, #2)
author: Daniel Quinn
name: C
average rating: 4.14
book published: 1996
rating: 0
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]]> What a Writer Needs 16285468 In engaging, anecdotal prose, Ralph Fletcher provides a wealth of specific, practical strategies for challenging and extending student writing.

]]> 224 Donald Murray 0325046662 C 0 to-read 4.31 1992 What a Writer Needs
author: Donald Murray
name: C
average rating: 4.31
book published: 1992
rating: 0
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]]> <![CDATA[Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide]]> 298477 176 Ralph Fletcher 0325003629 C 0 to-read 4.12 2001 Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide
author: Ralph Fletcher
name: C
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2001
rating: 0
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]]> London Fields 401248
First published in 1989, LONDON FIELDS is set ten years into a dark future, against a backdrop of environmental and social decay and the looming threat of global cataclysm. As the dreaded millennium approaches, Nicola Six, a “black hole� of sex and self-loathing, attempts to orchestrate her own extinction, choosing her thirty-fifth birthday, November 5, 1999, as the date of her murder. Whom to manipulate into killing her is the question; her choice wavers between violent lowlife Keith Talent, who is obsessed with winning a darts tournament, and a dimly romantic banker named Guy Clinch. When Samson Young—a writer suffering from a long bout of writer’s block—stumbles upon these three, he believes he has found a story that will write itself. A highly unusual mystery with an unexpected twist at the end, LONDON FIELDS is also a corrosively funny narrative of pyrotechnic complexity and scalding moral vision.

(Book Jacket Status: Jacketed)]]> 470 Martin Amis 0679730346 C 2 3.67 1989 London Fields
author: Martin Amis
name: C
average rating: 3.67
book published: 1989
rating: 2
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]]> <![CDATA[What to Do When You're Having Two: The Twins Survival Guide from Pregnancy Through the First Year]]> 17707629 The creator of Twiniversity delivers an essential update to her must-have manual to having twins, now with expanded info on twin pregnancy and tandem breastfeeding, and advice on the best gear to help save your sanity.

With almost two times as many sets of twins today as there were forty years ago, What to Do When You're Having Two has quickly become the definitive resource for expectant and new parents of multiples.

A mom of fraternal twins and a world-renowned expert on parenting multiples, author Natalie Diaz launched Twiniversity, the world's leading global resource for twin parenting information and support online. Now, with her expanded edition of What to Do, she includes new information on breastfeeding, gear, sleep, and having two when you already have one, as well as:

� creating your twin birth plan,
� maintaining a realistic sleep schedule,
� managing tandem breastfeeding,
� stocking up on what you'll need (and knowing what high-tech products are now available and what's a waste of money), and
� building a special bond with each of your twins.

Accessible, informative, and humorous, What to Do When You're Having Two is the must-have manual for every parent of twins.]]> 336 Natalie Diaz 1583335153 C 4 3.84 2013 What to Do When You're Having Two: The Twins Survival Guide from Pregnancy Through the First Year
author: Natalie Diaz
name: C
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2013
rating: 4
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]]> Flaubert's Parrot 2176 Flaubert's Parrot deals with Flaubert, parrots, bears and railways; with our sense of the past and our sense of abroad; with France and England, life and art, sex and death, George Sand and Louise Colet, aesthetics and redcurrant jam; and with its enigmatic narrator, a retired English doctor, whose life and secrets are slowly revealed.

A compelling weave of fiction and imaginatively ordered fact, Flaubert's Parrot is by turns moving and entertaining, witty and scholarly, and a tour de force of seductive originality]]> 190 Julian Barnes 0679731369 C 3 3.67 1984 Flaubert's Parrot
author: Julian Barnes
name: C
average rating: 3.67
book published: 1984
rating: 3
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]]> <![CDATA[We Are Never Meeting in Real Life.]]> 33381433 We Are Never Meeting in Real Life., "bitches gotta eat" blogger and comedian Samantha Irby turns the serio-comic essay into an art form. Whether talking about how her difficult childhood has led to a problem in making "adult" budgets, explaining why she should be the new Bachelorette--she's "35-ish, but could easily pass for 60-something"--detailing a disastrous pilgrimage-slash-romantic-vacation to Nashville to scatter her estranged father's ashes, sharing awkward sexual encounters, or dispensing advice on how to navigate friendships with former drinking buddies who are now suburban moms--hang in there for the Costco loot--she's as deft at poking fun at the ghosts of her past self as she is at capturing powerful emotional truths.

Chapter titles:

My Bachelorette application --
A blues for Fred --
The miracle porker --
Do you guys pay your fucking bills or what? --
You don't have to be grateful for sex --
A Christmas carol --
Happy birthday --
A case for remaining indoors --
A total attack of the heart --
A civil union --
Mavis --
Fuck it, bitch. Stay fat --
Nashville hot chicken --
I'm in love and it's boring --
A bomb, probably --
The real housewife of Kalamazoo --
Thirteen questions to ask before getting married --
Yo, I need a job --
Feelings are a mistake --
We are never meeting in real life]]> 275 Samantha Irby 1101912197 C 3 3.90 2017 We Are Never Meeting in Real Life.
author: Samantha Irby
name: C
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2017
rating: 3
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]]> My Struggle: Book 3 22501022 My Struggle: Book 3 gives us Knausgaard’s vivid, technicolor recollections of childhood, his emerging self-understanding, and the multilayered nature of time’s passing, memory, and existence.]]> 451 Karl Ove Knausgård 0374534160 C 3 4.29 2009 My Struggle: Book 3
author: Karl Ove Knausgård
name: C
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2009
rating: 3
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]]> <![CDATA[The Wonderful Things You Will Be]]> 23742842
From brave and bold to creative and clever, Emily Winfield Martin's rhythmic rhyme expresses all the loving things that parents think of when they look at their children.With beautiful, lush illustrations and a stunning gatefold that opens at the end, this is a book that families will love reading over and over.

The Wonderful Things You Will Be has a loving and truthful message that will endure for lifetimes and makes a great giftto the ones you lovefor any occasion.]]> 36 Emily Winfield Martin 0385376715 C 5 4.43 2015 The Wonderful Things You Will Be
author: Emily Winfield Martin
name: C
average rating: 4.43
book published: 2015
rating: 5
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]]> I Love My Mommy Because... 1581242
" I love my mommy because she gives me great big hugs."

This book begins with a heartwarming scene between a human parent and child, but moves on to loving care in many animal families."She listens when I talk," says a mewing kitten. "She tucks me in," says a joey kangaroo. Children will love reading about how baby animals spend time with their moms, and mammas everywhere will love celebrating Mother's Day—or any occassion!—with this adorable gift from their little ones.]]> 22 Laurel Porter-Gaylord 0525472479 C 3 4.32 1991 I Love My Mommy Because...
author: Laurel Porter-Gaylord
name: C
average rating: 4.32
book published: 1991
rating: 3
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]]> <![CDATA[Curriculum Development in the Postmodern Era: Teaching and Learning in an Age of Accountability]]> 13717069 376 Patrick Slattery 0415808561 C 5 3.86 1995 Curriculum Development in the Postmodern Era: Teaching and Learning in an Age of Accountability
author: Patrick Slattery
name: C
average rating: 3.86
book published: 1995
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Releasing the Imagination: Essays on Education, the Arts, and Social Change]]> 414774 � Choice "Maxine Greene, with her customary eloquence, makes an impassioned argument for using the arts as a tool for opening minds and for breaking down the barriers to imagining the realities of worlds other than our own familiar cultures.... There is a strong rhythm to the thoughts, the arguments, and the entire sequence of essays presented here."
� American Journal of Education "Releasing the Imagination gives us a vivid portrait of the possibilities of human experience and education's role in its realization. It is a welcome corrective to current pressures for educational conformity."
� Elliot W. Eisner , professor of education and art, Stanford University "Releasing the Imagination challenges all the cant and cliché littering the field of education today. It breaks through the routine, the frozen, the numbing, the unexamined; it shocks the reader into new awareness."
� William Ayers , associate professor, College of Education, University of Illinois, Chicago]]> 240 Maxine Greene 0787952915 C 4 4.15 1995 Releasing the Imagination: Essays on Education, the Arts, and Social Change
author: Maxine Greene
name: C
average rating: 4.15
book published: 1995
rating: 4
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]]> <![CDATA[ABCs of Art (Sabrina Hahn's Art & Concepts for Kids)]]> 45032696
A fun way to inspire children’s imagination and creativity!”—Serena Williams

“Art connects us all on the deepest level and this book will inspire young minds.”—Ken Griffin, founder & CEO of Citadel, trustee of the Art Institute of Chicago, and trustee of the Whitney Museum of American Art

Learn the alphabet through fine art!

Spark your child’s creativity and curiosity with this delightfully curated alphabet book featuring some of the world’s most iconic paintings.

In this collection, your child will discover artwork by Leonardo da Vinci, Vincent van Gogh, Mary Cassatt, and many others. Help them locate the earring in Vermeer's Girl with the Pearl Earring , teach them different colors while examining Monet's Water Lilies , and count the pieces of fruit in Cezanne's The Basket of Apples.

With a fun rhyming scheme andlarge, colorful text, ABCs of Art will inspire your budding art lovers as they learn the alphabet and new words by finding objects in paintings. Then, as your child grows, you can read the playful poems aloud together and answer the interactive questions that accompany each painting.]]> 64 Sabrina Hahn 1510749381 C 2 4.56 2019 ABCs of Art (Sabrina Hahn's Art & Concepts for Kids)
author: Sabrina Hahn
name: C
average rating: 4.56
book published: 2019
rating: 2
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]]> <![CDATA[Modern Art Baby: A Visual Contrast Book]]> 57654215 26 Michelle Jardines C 5 5.00 Modern Art Baby: A Visual Contrast Book
author: Michelle Jardines
name: C
average rating: 5.00
book published:
rating: 5
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]]> Pantone: Colors: A Board Book 13362934
“Your kiddos will be tickled pink by Pantone’s extraordinary primer.� � Daily Candy

“Beautifully designed from cover to cover.� � Booklist

This artful introduction to the world of color goes above and beyond by presenting nine basic colors and 20 different shades of each basic color. Young readers will learn to identify colors in a variety of dark, light, and mid-tones, and will start identifying their favorite and least favorite shades. With a child-friendly design and sturdy packaging, Colors is a visual feast for the eyes, perfect for expanding young children’s color comprehension and visual development.

In 1963, PANTONE revolutionized the printing industry with the colorful PANTONE MATCHING SYSTEM®, an innovative tool allowing for the faithful selection, articulation, and reproduction of consistent, accurate color anywhere in the world. Today, PANTONE serves not only as the premier color authority in trends, but as a consumer brand in apparel, housewares, accessories, arts and crafts, stationery and office supplies, home furnishings, and apps, offering products inspired by their signature chip design.

An iconic name in graphic design, fashion, publishing, and more, Pantone offers consumer products inspired by the signature Pantone chip design. Collect all the Abrams Pantone books to infuse your child’s bookshelf with a rainbow of bold colors and patterns!

Colors
Color Puzzles
Color Cards
Box of Color]]> 20 Pantone 1419701800 C 3 4.27 2012 Pantone: Colors: A Board Book
author: Pantone
name: C
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2012
rating: 3
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]]> Art for Baby 6387948 12 Paul Morrison 0763644242 C 5 4.14 2008 Art for Baby
author: Paul Morrison
name: C
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2008
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Spots and Dots (Art-Baby) by Picthall, Chez (unknown Edition) [Boardbook(2007)]]]> 136929157 0 Chez Picthall C 4 4.00 2005 Spots and Dots (Art-Baby) by Picthall, Chez (unknown Edition) [Boardbook(2007)]
author: Chez Picthall
name: C
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2005
rating: 4
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]]> <![CDATA[Poetry/Three Dimensions 2 Se (Many Voices Literature)]]> 2490354 Clark, Carol, Draper, Alison 124 Carol Clark 0789170221 C 4 4.00 2001 Poetry/Three Dimensions 2 Se (Many Voices Literature)
author: Carol Clark
name: C
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2001
rating: 4
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]]> <![CDATA[The Artisan Teaching Model for Instructional Leadership: Working Together to Transform Your School]]> 31163127 140 Kenneth Baum 1416622519 C 4 4.40 The Artisan Teaching Model for Instructional Leadership: Working Together to Transform Your School
author: Kenneth Baum
name: C
average rating: 4.40
book published:
rating: 4
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]]> <![CDATA[Fix-It and Forget-It Mediterranean Diet Cookbook: 7-Ingredient Healthy Instant Pot and Slow Cooker Meals]]> 50890854
The Mediterranean Diet is renowned for its health benefits including lowering cholesterol, improving heart health, anti-inflammatory properties, weight loss, increased energy, and more! But coming up with family-friendly healthy meals that don’t require a lot of preparation time can be tricky. Here are 127 recipes that only require a handful of ingredients, are quick to prep in your slow cooker, Instant Pot, or other multicooker, and will keep the whole family satisfied!

Whether you're looking for tasty breakfasts, easy lunches, healthy dinners, delicious desserts, or even snacks, you'll find something to fuel your body and make your mouth happy.

Find recipes such Whether you're new to the Mediterranean Diet or a long-term advocate, you'll find plenty in these pages to inspire you!

]]> 248 Hope Comerford 1680996258 C 0 to-read 3.08 Fix-It and Forget-It Mediterranean Diet Cookbook: 7-Ingredient Healthy Instant Pot and Slow Cooker Meals
author: Hope Comerford
name: C
average rating: 3.08
book published:
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[Place-Based Education: Connecting Classrooms and Communities (Nature Literacy)]]> 24514330 147 David Sobel 1935713051 C 0 to-read 3.83 2004 Place-Based Education: Connecting Classrooms and Communities (Nature Literacy)
author: David Sobel
name: C
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2004
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> Masters of Atlantis 52290 Codex Pappus said to be the sacred Gnomonic text. He expands the noble brotherhood, survives scandalous schism, bids for governor of Indiana, and sees Gnomons gather in East Texas mobile home. This is an America of misfits and con men, oddballs and innocents.]]> 248 Charles Portis 1585670219 C 1 3.72 1985 Masters of Atlantis
author: Charles Portis
name: C
average rating: 3.72
book published: 1985
rating: 1
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]]> Burn This 1067942 Burn This first appeared at the Mark Taper Forum in Los angeles in 1987 to near-universal praise. Set in the bohemian art world of downtown New York, this vivid and challenging drama explores the spiritual and emotional isolation of Anna and Pale, two outcasts who meet in the wake of the accidental death by drowning of a mutual friend. Their determined struggle toward emotional honesty and liberation--by no means guaranteed at the play's ambiguous end--exemplifies the strength, humor, and complexity of all of Lanford Wilson's work and confirms his standing as one of America's greatest living playwrights.

Lanford Wilson was born in Lebanon, Missouri, in 1938 and attended the University of Chicago. A founding member of the Circle Repertory Company in New York, he has seen many of his plays produced in theaters all over the United States and abroad. He is the recipient of many awards, including a Drama Desk Vernon Rice Award, the Pulitzer Prize, and two Obies.]]> 99 Lanford Wilson 0374521581 C 3 3.92 1987 Burn This
author: Lanford Wilson
name: C
average rating: 3.92
book published: 1987
rating: 3
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[Easy Wok Cookbook: 88 Simple Chinese Recipes for Stir-frying, Steaming and More]]> 55183999 Chinese food in a flash--88 easy, tasty wok recipes that sizzle

It's time to toss the takeout menu and start stir-frying like a seasoned master chef. The Easy Wok Cookbook gives you everything you need to get started, including dozens of delicious Chinese dishes, simple instructions, troubleshooting tips and tricks, and more.

From flavorful Kung Pao Chicken to crispy Sesame Beef, this authentic Chinese wok cookbook is sure to tantalize your taste buds without breaking your budget--or your patience. Rock your wok with confidence at home with expert tips, including a step-by-step guide to achieving stir-fry success. Welcome to your new Asian-inspired cooking adventure!

The Easy Wok Cookbook has it all:



88 Classic and creative recipes--Discover how to stir-fry, steam, and simmer a delectable mix of traditional Chinese foods, American Chinese takeout favorites, and Chinese fusion dishes.

Doable dishes--Save time and money with these easy wok cookbook recipes that can be made in under 30 minutes, under $10, or with 5 ingredients or less.

Essential extras--Learn what to look for when choosing a new wok, cleaning and seasoning your wok, and what ingredients to keep stocked in your pantry for effortless wok meals any night of the week.
Take the guesswork out of what's for dinner and enjoy sizzlin' success with the Easy Wok Cookbook.]]> 200 Terri Dien 1641526947 C 4 4.14 Easy Wok Cookbook: 88 Simple Chinese Recipes for Stir-frying, Steaming and More
author: Terri Dien
name: C
average rating: 4.14
book published:
rating: 4
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[Critical Encounters in Secondary English: Teaching Literacy Theory to Adolescents]]> 24324502 272 Deborah Appleman 0807756237 C 0 to-read 4.12 2000 Critical Encounters in Secondary English: Teaching Literacy Theory to Adolescents
author: Deborah Appleman
name: C
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2000
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: to-read
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]]> <![CDATA[Mother Goose Treasury: A Beautiful Collection of Favorite Nursery Rhymes for Children (Hardcover Storybook Treasury)]]> 42791917 192 Cottage Door Press 1680524615 C 5 4.64 Mother Goose Treasury: A Beautiful Collection of Favorite Nursery Rhymes for Children (Hardcover Storybook Treasury)
author: Cottage Door Press
name: C
average rating: 4.64
book published:
rating: 5
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[Set: Dream Animals / Day Dreamers]]> 29579747
Ideal for bedtime and daytime reading, the books in this irresistible Emily Winfield Martin boxed set� Dream Animals and Day Dreamers —celebrate the imaginations of children who dream.

Dream Animals convinces children to close their eyes and discover who their dream animal might be—and what dream it might take them to. Day Dreamers shows readers that letting their imaginations run free will lead them into fantastical day dreams.

With whimsical rhymes and gorgeous illustration, this boxed set is perfect for baby shower gifts and for discovering all kinds of dreams!]]> 0 Emily Winfield Martin 1524714437 C 5 4.82 Set: Dream Animals / Day Dreamers
author: Emily Winfield Martin
name: C
average rating: 4.82
book published:
rating: 5
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[An Oresteia: Agamemnon by Aiskhylos, Elektra by Sophokles, Orestes by Euripides]]> 7812408

In An Oresteia, the classicist Anne Carson combines three different versions of the tragedy of the house of Atreus � A iskhylos� Agamemnon, Sophokles� Elektra and Euripides� Orestes. After the murder of her daughter Iphigeneia by her husband, Agamemnon, Klytaimestra exacts a mother’s revenge, murdering Agamemnon and his mistress, Kassandra. Displeased with Klytaimestra’s actions, Apollo calls on her son, Orestes, to avenge his father’s death with the help of his sister Elektra. In the end, Orestes is driven mad by the Furies for his bloody betrayal of family. Condemned to death by the people of Argos, he and Elektra must justify their actions � or flout society, justice and the gods.

Carson’s translation combines contemporary language with the traditional structures and rhetoric of Greek tragedy, opening up this ancient tale of vengeance to a modern audience and revealing the essential wit and morbidity of the original plays.

]]> 272 Anne Carson 086547916X C 5 4.43 2009 An Oresteia: Agamemnon by Aiskhylos, Elektra by Sophokles, Orestes by Euripides
author: Anne Carson
name: C
average rating: 4.43
book published: 2009
rating: 5
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> Stoner 166997
John Williams’s luminous and deeply moving novel is a work of quiet perfection. William Stoner emerges from it not only as an archetypal American, but as an unlikely existential hero, standing, like a figure in a painting by Edward Hopper, in stark relief against an unforgiving world.]]> 292 John Williams 1590171993 C 4 4.35 1965 Stoner
author: John Williams
name: C
average rating: 4.35
book published: 1965
rating: 4
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]]> <![CDATA[Love Poems for People with Children]]> 44641821
With the same brilliant wit and hilarious realism that made Love Poems for Married People such a hit, John Kenney is back with a brand new collection of poems, this time taking on the greatest "joy" in children. Kenney covers it all, from newborns, toddlers, and sleep deprivation, to the terrible twos, terrible tweens, and terrible teens. A parent's love is unconditional, but sometimes that button can't help but be pushed. Between back to school shopping, summer vacations that never end, the awkwardness of puberty, the inevitable post-college moving back in, and more, a parent's job is never done, whether they like it or not.]]> 112 John Kenney 0593085248 C 5 3.96 2019 Love Poems for People with Children
author: John Kenney
name: C
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2019
rating: 5
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[Reckless Daughter: A Portrait of Joni Mitchell]]> 37941626 "She was like a storm." —Leonard Cohen

Joni Mitchell may be the most influential female recording artist and composer of the late twentieth century. In Reckless Daughter, the music critic David Yaffe tells the remarkable, heart-wrenching story of how the blond girl with the guitar became a superstar of folk music in the 1960s, a key figure in the Laurel Canyon music scene of the 1970s, and the songwriter who spoke resonantly to, and for, audiences across the country.

A Canadian prairie girl, a free-spirited artist, Mitchell never wanted to be a pop star. She was nothing more than “a painter derailed by circumstances," she would explain. And yet, she went on to become a talented self-taught musician and a brilliant bandleader, releasing album after album, each distinctly experimental, challenging, and revealing. Her lyrics captivated listeners with their perceptive language and naked emotion, born out of Mitchell's life, loves, complaints, and prophecies. As an artist whose work deftly balances narrative and musical complexity, she has been admired by such legendary lyricists as Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen and beloved by such groundbreaking jazz musicians as Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter, and Herbie Hancock. Her hits—from “Big Yellow Taxi" to “Both Sides, Now" to “A Case of You"—endure as timeless favorites, and her influence on the generations of singer-songwriters who would follow her, from her devoted fan Prince to Björk, is undeniable.

In this intimate biography, drawing on dozens of unprecedented in-person interviews with Mitchell, her childhood friends, and a cast of famous characters, Yaffe reveals the backstory behind the famous songs—from Mitchell's youth in Canada, her bout with polio at age nine, and her early marriage and the child she gave up for adoption, through the love affairs that inspired masterpieces, and up to the present—and shows us why Mitchell has so enthralled her listeners, her lovers, and her friends. Reckless Daughter is the story of an artist and an era that have left an indelible mark on American music.]]> 448 David Yaffe 0374538069 C 3 3.95 2017 Reckless Daughter: A Portrait of Joni Mitchell
author: David Yaffe
name: C
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2017
rating: 3
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[James Taylor: Long Ago and Far Away: His Life and Music]]> 9146758 ]]> 464 Timothy White 1849387737 C 3 3.50 2001 James Taylor: Long Ago and Far Away: His Life and Music
author: Timothy White
name: C
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2001
rating: 3
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[The Bad Seed (The Bad Seed, #1)]]> 32711716 Mas um dia decide que não quer mais ser malvada e escolhe ser feliz. Porém, não é fácil tornar-se melhor quando nos habituámos a ser maus. Mas ela resolve tentar, um dia de cada vez� O que será que acontece quando tentamos mudar a imagem que construímos de nós mesmos?
Este livro mostra-nos até onde nos levam as consequências das nossas escolhas e de como podemos mudar para melhor. É uma história divertida e comovente que nos relembra o poder notável e transformador da força de vontade e da aceitação de nós mesmos."]]> 34 Jory John 006246776X C 4 4.16 2017 The Bad Seed (The Bad Seed, #1)
author: Jory John
name: C
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2017
rating: 4
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> The Door in the Wall 72543
At last, a message comes--Robin is to meet his father at Castle Lindsay. The journey is dangerous, and the castle is located near the hostile Welsh border. Perched high in the hills, the castle appears invincible. But it is not. Under the cover of a thick fog the Welsh attack the castle. And Robin is the only one who can save it...]]> 128 Marguerite de Angeli 0440227798 C 0 to-read 3.77 1949 The Door in the Wall
author: Marguerite de Angeli
name: C
average rating: 3.77
book published: 1949
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[Famous-Five Enid Blyton Complete Collection 21 Books Box Bundle Set]]> 40528678
The Famous Five Library Books 1 - 21 Collection Box Set by Enid

Title in this

Five on Treasure Island
Five Go Adventuring Again
Five Run Away Together
Five Go to Smuggler's Top
Five Go Off in A Caravan
Five On Kirrin Island Again
Five Go Off to Camp
Five Get Into Trouble
Five Fall Into Adventure
Five On A Hike Together
Five Have A Wonderful Time
Five Go Down to the Sea
Five Go to Mystery Moor
Five Have Plenty of Fun
Five on A Secret Trail
Five Go to Billycock Hill
Five Get Into A Fix
Five On Finniston Farm
Five Go to Demon's Rocks
Five Have A Mystery to Solve
Five Are Together Again]]> 0 Enid Blyton 9123491507 C 0 to-read 4.59 Famous-Five Enid Blyton Complete Collection 21 Books Box Bundle Set
author: Enid Blyton
name: C
average rating: 4.59
book published:
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: to-read
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]]> <![CDATA[Who Shot Sports: A Photographic History, 1843 to the Present]]> 27209221
Here, in more than 280 spectacular images—more than 130 in full color—are great action photographs; portraits of athletes, famous and unknown; athletes off the field and behind the scenes; athletes practicing, working out, the daily relentless effort of training and achieving physical perfection.

Buckland writes that sports photographers have always been central to the technical advancement of photography, that they have designed longer lenses, faster shutters, motor drives, underwater casings, and remote controls, allowing us to see what we could never see—and hold on to—with the naked eye.

Here are photographs by such masters as Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Capa, Danny Lyon, Walker Evans, Annie Leibovitz, and 160 more, names not necessarily known to the public but whose photographic work is considered iconic . . . Here are photographs of Willie Mays . . . Carl Lewis . . . Ian Botham . . . Kobe Bryant . . . Magic Johnson . . . Muhammad Ali . . . Serena Williams . . . Bobby Orr . . . Stirling Moss . . . Jesse Owens . . . Mark Spitz . . . Roger Federer . . . Jackie Robinson.

Here is the work of the great sports photographers Neil Leifer, Walter Iooss Jr., Bob Martin, Al Bello, Robert Riger, and Heinz Kleutmeier of Sports Illustrated, who was the first to put a camera at the bottom of an Olympic swimming pool and photograph swimmers from below . . . Here are pictures by Charles Hoff, the New York Daily News photographer of the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, whose images of the 1936 Berlin Olympics still inspire shock and awe . . . and those of Ernst Haas, whose innovative color pictures of bullfighting of the 1950s remain poetic evocations of a bloody sport . . .

To make the selections for Who Shot Sports, Buckland, a former curator of the Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain and Benjamin Menschel Distinguished Visiting Professor at Cooper Union, has drawn upon the work of more than fifty archives, from the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, to Sports Illustrated, Condé Nast, Getty Images, the National Baseball Hall of Fame, L’Équipe, The New York Times , and the archives of the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne.

Here are classic and unknown sports images that capture the uncapturable, that allow us to experience “kinetic beauty,� and that give us the essence and meaning—the transcendent power—of sports.]]> 344 Gail Buckland 0385352239 C 2 3.52 2016 Who Shot Sports: A Photographic History, 1843 to the Present
author: Gail Buckland
name: C
average rating: 3.52
book published: 2016
rating: 2
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> The Celestine Prophecy 37955620
You have never read a book like this before--a book that comes along once in a lifetime to change lives forever.

In the rain forests of Peru, an ancient manuscript has been discovered. Within its pages are 9 key insights into life itself -- insights each human being is predicted to grasp sequentially; one insight, then another, as we move toward a completely spiritual culture on Earth.

Drawing on ancient wisdom, it tells you how to make connections among the events happening in your life right now and lets you see what is going to happen to you in the years to come. The story it tells is a gripping one of adventure and discovery, but it is also a guidebook that has the power to crystallize your perceptions of why you are where you are in life and to direct your steps with a new energy and optimism as you head into tomorrow.

Praise for The Celestine Prophecy
"A gripping adventure story filled with intrigue, suspense, and spiritual revelations." - Commonwealth Journal

"A spiritual classic...a book to read and reread, to cherish, and to give to friends." - Joan Borysenko, PhD, author of Fire in the Soul

"In his inimitable style of great storytelling, Redfield opens us up to a world of insight, inspiration, synchronicity, and power." - Deepak Chopra]]> 288 James Redfield 153873026X C 1 4.01 1993 The Celestine Prophecy
author: James Redfield
name: C
average rating: 4.01
book published: 1993
rating: 1
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]]> Humans of New York 17287009 A beautiful, heartfelt, funny and inspiring collection of photographs capturing the spirit of a city

In the summer of 2010, photographer Brandon Stanton set out on an ambitious project: to single-handedly create a photographic census of New York City. Armed with his camera, he began crisscrossing the city, covering thousands of miles on foot, all in an attempt to capture New Yorkers and their stories. The result of these efforts was a vibrant blog he called "Humans of New York," in which his photos were featured alongside quotes and anecdotes.

Humans of New York is the book inspired by the Internet sensation. With four hundred color photos, including exclusive portraits and all-new stories, Humans of New York is a stunning collection of images that showcases the outsized personalities of New York.

Surprising and moving, Humans of New York is a celebration of individuality and a tribute to the spirit of the city.]]> 304 Brandon Stanton 1250038820 C 5 4.49 2013 Humans of New York
author: Brandon Stanton
name: C
average rating: 4.49
book published: 2013
rating: 5
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> Let’s Play! 26075973 A brilliant new companion book from the creator of PRESS HERE and MIX IT UP!
It's only a yellow dot...but what a dot it is! Readers won't be able to resist this jaunty, adventurous dot, nor its invitation to play along. Thus begins a spectacular ride of color, motion, shape, and imagination, filled with the artistry and delight that we know and love so well from Press Here and Mix It Up! But on this journey, prepare to leap headlong into a completely new dimension: emotion. Connecting not only to the mind but also to the heart, this dot expresses an extraordinary sense of humor, fear, joy, and more as it pushes, lurches, wiggles, and slides its way through—and even off!—the pages of this glorious companion to Press Here and Mix It Up!]]> 60 Hervé Tullet 1452154775 C 0 3.94 2016 Let’s Play!
author: Hervé Tullet
name: C
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2016
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[Lives of the Saints: For Every Day in the Year]]> 244823 464 Alban Butler 0895555301 C 0 to-read 4.24 1750 Lives of the Saints: For Every Day in the Year
author: Alban Butler
name: C
average rating: 4.24
book published: 1750
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[THE First Days of School: How to Be an Effective Teacher, 5th Edition (Book & DVD)]]> 39966105
Includes DVD "You Have Changed My Life"]]> 331 Harry K. Wong 0976423383 C 0 to-read 4.10 1991 THE First Days of School: How to Be an Effective Teacher, 5th Edition (Book & DVD)
author: Harry K. Wong
name: C
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1991
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: to-read
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]]> <![CDATA[Complete Cajun Cookbook: 100 Home-Cooked Bayou Classics]]> 60572751
Cajun food has deep roots in home-style country cooking and the rich heritage of Cajun culture, which combine to create unique flavors you can't find anywhere else. The Complete Cajun Cookbook makes it simple to capture those flavors in your own kitchen, with detailed instructions for mastering regional cooking techniques and a comprehensive collection of beloved recipes.

What differentiates this book from other New Orleans

Bring home the vibrant flavors of New Orleans with this top choice in Louisiana cookbooks.]]> 202 1638079137 C 0 to-read 4.00 Complete Cajun Cookbook: 100 Home-Cooked Bayou Classics
author: Brette McWhorter Sember Attorney at Law
name: C
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: to-read
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]]> <![CDATA[The Likeness (Dublin Murder Squad, #2)]]> 5941114 466 Tana French 0143115626 C 0 4.06 2008 The Likeness (Dublin Murder Squad, #2)
author: Tana French
name: C
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2008
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: 21st-century-novel, crime-detective
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Faithful Place (Dublin Murder Squad, #3)]]> 7093952
But on the winter night when they were supposed to leave, Rosie didn't show. Frank took it for granted that she'd given him the brush-off--probably because of his alcoholic father, nutcase mother, and generally dysfunctional family. He never went home again.

Neither did Rosie. Everyone thought she had gone to England on her own and was over there living a shiny new life. Then, twenty-two years later, Rosie's suitcase shows up behind a fireplace in a derelict house on Faithful Place, and Frank is going home whether he likes it or not.

Getting sucked in is a lot easier than getting out again. Frank finds himself straight back in the dark tangle of relationships he left behind. The cops working the case want him out of the way, in case loyalty to his family and community makes him a liability. Faithful Place wants him out because he’s a detective now, and the Place has never liked cops. Frank just wants to find out what happened to Rosie Daly-and he’s willing to do whatever it takes, to himself or anyone else, to get the job done.]]> 400 Tana French 0670021873 C 0 3.98 2010 Faithful Place (Dublin Murder Squad, #3)
author: Tana French
name: C
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2010
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: crime-detective, 21st-century-novel
review:

]]> None of This Is True 62334530
A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for her series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life.

Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep making the podcast. Slowly she starts to realise that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it, Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life—and into her home.

But, as quickly as she arrived, Josie disappears. Only then does Alix discover that Josie has left a terrible and terrifying legacy in her wake, and that Alix has become the subject of her own true crime podcast, with her life and her family’s lives under mortal threat.

Who is Josie Fair? And what has she done?]]> 390 Lisa Jewell 1982179007 C 0 crime-detective 4.08 2023 None of This Is True
author: Lisa Jewell
name: C
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: crime-detective
review:

]]> Little Fires Everywhere 34273236
In Shaker Heights, a placid, progressive suburb of Cleveland, everything is meticulously planned � from the layout of the winding roads, to the colours of the houses, to the successful lives its residents will go on to lead. And no one embodies this spirit more than Elena Richardson, whose guiding principle is playing by the rules.

Enter Mia Warren � an enigmatic artist and single mother � who arrives in this idyllic bubble with her teenage daughter Pearl, and rents a house from the Richardsons. Soon Mia and Pearl become more than just tenants: all four Richardson children are drawn to the mother–daughter pair. But Mia carries with her a mysterious past, and a disregard for the rules that threatens to upend this carefully ordered community.

When old family friends attempt to adopt a Chinese-American baby, a custody battle erupts that dramatically divides the town � and puts Mia and Elena on opposing sides. Suspicious of Mia and her motives, Elena is determined to uncover the secrets in Mia's past. But her obsession will come at an unexpected and devastating cost . . .]]> 338 Celeste Ng 0735224293 C 0 21st-century-novel 4.05 2017 Little Fires Everywhere
author: Celeste Ng
name: C
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: 21st-century-novel
review:

]]> <![CDATA[In the Woods (Dublin Murder Squad, #1)]]> 2459785
Twenty years later, the found boy, Rob Ryan, is a detective on the Dublin Murder Squad and keeps his past a secret. But when a 12-year-old girl is found murdered in the same woods, he and Detective Cassie Maddox (his partner and closest friend) find themselves investigating a case chillingly similar to the previous unsolved mystery. Now, with only snippets of long-buried memories to guide him, Ryan has the chance to uncover both the mystery of the case before him and that of his own shadowy past.

A gorgeously written novel that marks the debut of an astonishing new voice in psychological suspense.]]> 448 Tana French C 4 3.82 2007 In the Woods (Dublin Murder Squad, #1)
author: Tana French
name: C
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at: 2024/02/25
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: 21st-century-novel, irish, crime-detective
review:

]]> Fates and Furies 24612118
At age twenty-two, Lotto and Mathilde are tall, glamorous, madly in love, and destined for greatness. A decade later, their marriage is still the envy of their friends, but with an electric thrill we understand that things are even more complicated and remarkable than they have seemed.]]> 390 Lauren Groff 1594634475 C 0 currently-reading 3.55 2015 Fates and Furies
author: Lauren Groff
name: C
average rating: 3.55
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> Robinson Crusoe 2932 320 Daniel Defoe C 0 travel-narrative 3.69 1719 Robinson Crusoe
author: Daniel Defoe
name: C
average rating: 3.69
book published: 1719
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: travel-narrative
review:

]]> Les Misérables 24280 1463 Victor Hugo 0451525264 C 0 4.19 1862 Les Misérables
author: Victor Hugo
name: C
average rating: 4.19
book published: 1862
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: currently-reading, 19th-century-novels
review:

]]> Lit 6340016
Mary Karr’s bestselling, unforgettable sequel to her beloved memoirs The Liars� Club and Cherry—and one of the most critically acclaimed books of the year—Lit is about getting drunk and getting sober; becoming a mother by letting go of a mother; learning to write by learning to live.

The Boston Globe calls Lit a book that “reminds us not only how compelling personal stories can be, but how, in the hands of a master, they can transmute into the highest art." The New York Times Book Review calls it “a master class on the art of the memoir� in its Top 10 Books of 2009 Citation. Michiko Kakutani calls it “a book that lassos you, hogties your emotions and won’t let you go� in her New York Times review. And Susan Cheever states, simply, that Lit is “the best book about being a woman in America I have read in years."

In addition to the New York Times, Lit was named a Best Book of 2009 by the New Yorker (Reviewer Favorite), Entertainment Weekly (Top 10), Time (Top 10), the Washington Post, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Chicago Tribune, the Christian Science Monitor, Slate, the St. Louis Post Dispatch, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, and the Seattle Times.]]> 386 Mary Karr 0060596988 C 4 3.92 2009 Lit
author: Mary Karr
name: C
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2009
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
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]]> <![CDATA[The Same But Different: How Twins Can Live, Love, and Learn to Be Individuals]]> 18351052
Written for twins, their families, and significant others, this book

- Instructs twins how to have an honest, authentic relationship

- Explains why twins may feel disappointed about friendships that don't match the twin connection

- Teaches twins how to work through their guilt about wanting more space

- Discusses why some twins are afraid they might never love anyone else as much as they love their twin

- Reveals how influential twin connections are in choosing a spouse, a profession, and a place to live

- Offers tips and strategies to navigate the issues of separation, individuality, and codependence

- Provides insight and understanding to families and significant others coping with twin struggles]]> 179 Joan A. Friedman 0989346439 C 0 to-read 3.69 2014 The Same But Different: How Twins Can Live, Love, and Learn to Be Individuals
author: Joan A. Friedman
name: C
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2014
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[No Two Alike: Human Nature and Human Individuality]]> 1099821 344 Judith Rich Harris 0393329712 C 0 to-read 4.08 2006 No Two Alike: Human Nature and Human Individuality
author: Judith Rich Harris
name: C
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Classic Lebanese Cuisine: 170 Fresh And Healthy Mediterranean Favorites]]> 7195660 256 Kamal Al-Faqih 0762752785 C 5 4.42 2009 Classic Lebanese Cuisine: 170 Fresh And Healthy Mediterranean Favorites
author: Kamal Al-Faqih
name: C
average rating: 4.42
book published: 2009
rating: 5
read at: 2024/06/03
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley]]> 55176 Careless Love is the full, true, and mesmerizing story of Elvis Presley's last two decades, in the long-awaited second volume of Peter Guralnick's masterful two-part biography.

Last Train to Memphis, the first part of Guralnick's two-volume life of Elvis Presley, was acclaimed by the New York Times as "a triumph of biographical art." This concluding volume recounts the second half of Elvis' life in rich and previously unimagined detail, and confirms Guralnick's status as one of the great biographers of our time.

Beginning with Presley's army service in Germany in 1958 and ending with his death in Memphis in 1977, Careless Love chronicles the unravelling of the dream that once shone so brightly, homing in on the complex playing-out of Elvis' relationship with his Machiavellian manager, Colonel Tom Parker. It's a breathtaking revelatory drama that for the first time places the events of a too-often mistold tale in a fresh, believable, and understandable context.

Elvis' changes during these years form a tragic mystery that Careless Love unlocks for the first time. This is the quintessential American story, encompassing elements of race, class, wealth, sex, music, religion, and personal transformation. Written with grace, sensitivity, and passion, Careless Love is a unique contribution to our understanding of American popular culture and the nature of success, giving us true insight at last into one of the most misunderstood public figures of our times.]]> 768 Peter Guralnick 0316332976 C 5 4.37 1999 Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley
author: Peter Guralnick
name: C
average rating: 4.37
book published: 1999
rating: 5
read at: 2019/07/01
date added: 2024/03/09
shelves:
review:
It turns out that Elvis Presley, the guy who was on the final train to Memphis, ended up becoming quite the singing sensation. Back then, in the 1960s and 70s, if you were a singing sensation, the music industry gave you drugs. Loads of them. The drugs were a reward, like pellets of cheese given to obedient lab mice, or as a Pavlovian incentive to keep singing,as your voice was a golden goose. Eventually many of the singing sensations of the 1960s and 70s became quite dependent on the drugs. They cared only about the drugs, and forgot about everything else, including the music. That's how Elvis got careless with his love and his gift.
]]> My Ántonia 23171304 130 Willa Cather 048611483X C 5
Together we motored through the Left Bank, through Montemarte, and through K-Marte. Parisians stopped to stare, befuddled by the sight of two oddly paired men, one large and rotund and wearing a keffiyeh wrapped around his neck; the other wearing floral printed scuba gear. Suddenly, Gustavo said to me, "Mi amigo, the night is young; we must find some good wine and some good women to share it with; but first tell me, is that a copy of My Antonia I see in your satchel?"

Indeed it was.

"Te gusta, mi amigo?" Yes, Gustavo, mi gusto. "Te gusta Cather's clean, hard prose? The delicate melancholy of Antonia; the aching nostalgia of Jim Burden; the ferocious longing to feed the hidden corazon of man?" Si, Gustavo, si! I give it cinco estrellas!

And then he embraced me and disappeared into the night, looking for his good wine and good women.

That was 25 years ago. Today I am the manager of a Aldi's in Saskatchewan. I drive a 2013 Ford Taurus and drink a six pack of anything that isn't Bud Light and watch re-runs of the Office on my phone while I pretend to work on my car in the garage while my wife watches Love is Blind in the den and my teenage son Dwight holes up in his bedroom and plays Fortnite with his pimply faced friends into the wee hours of the night. It's not a bad life. A lot of people have it worse than me. But it's also a little lonely and there are many nights when I think about Gustavo. Mi Gustavo.]]> 4.01 1918 My Ántonia
author: Willa Cather
name: C
average rating: 4.01
book published: 1918
rating: 5
read at: 2023/02/28
date added: 2024/01/12
shelves:
review:
I finished this book as I sat on the banks of the Seine, the summer I visited Paris, when I was 18, right before I left home for school, right before I started the rest of my life. I wasn't normally someone who fancied a ride on the back of a Schwinn two-seater, but there was nothing left for me to say once I saw Gustavo. I had to take a chance on him; on his smoldering looks, his smoldering cigarette dangling from his lips, his smoldering shoes engulfed in flames. "We Spaniards must stick together," he said, and slapped me across the face as a reminder of where I came from: Saskatchewan.

Together we motored through the Left Bank, through Montemarte, and through K-Marte. Parisians stopped to stare, befuddled by the sight of two oddly paired men, one large and rotund and wearing a keffiyeh wrapped around his neck; the other wearing floral printed scuba gear. Suddenly, Gustavo said to me, "Mi amigo, the night is young; we must find some good wine and some good women to share it with; but first tell me, is that a copy of My Antonia I see in your satchel?"

Indeed it was.

"Te gusta, mi amigo?" Yes, Gustavo, mi gusto. "Te gusta Cather's clean, hard prose? The delicate melancholy of Antonia; the aching nostalgia of Jim Burden; the ferocious longing to feed the hidden corazon of man?" Si, Gustavo, si! I give it cinco estrellas!

And then he embraced me and disappeared into the night, looking for his good wine and good women.

That was 25 years ago. Today I am the manager of a Aldi's in Saskatchewan. I drive a 2013 Ford Taurus and drink a six pack of anything that isn't Bud Light and watch re-runs of the Office on my phone while I pretend to work on my car in the garage while my wife watches Love is Blind in the den and my teenage son Dwight holes up in his bedroom and plays Fortnite with his pimply faced friends into the wee hours of the night. It's not a bad life. A lot of people have it worse than me. But it's also a little lonely and there are many nights when I think about Gustavo. Mi Gustavo.
]]> <![CDATA[The Beach House (South Carolina Sunsets, #1)]]> 49896791
Faced with a new reality, she decides to rebuild her life on an island off the coast of South Carolina and learn to make it on her own.

The only thing she isn't expecting is to be thrown together with her estranged sister, the flower child wanna-be, yoga teaching bane of her existence. She also doesn't expect to meet a handsome stranger who will help her transform the money pit she accidentally bought into the home of her dreams.

As she starts to create a life she loves, her husband causes a wrench in her plans once again. Will she be forced to help the man who broke her heart? Or will she finally break away and live life on her terms?

You're going to love The Beach House and its quirky cast of characters, including Dixie, the epitome of Southern charm and wit, who runs the local bookstore called Down Yonder!]]> 176 Rachel Hanna C 2
I bought this book and read it because I was hoping to understand what it feels like to be someone who reads romance novels. Because on an existential level we are we what read and for a long time I only read, for the most part, what would we classified as "literature" (pronounced with a posh English accent), and well, I started to question that. What does it say about me that that is what I confined my reading to? Does it mean I'm a snob? That I'm pretentious? I was a high school English teacher for a long time so maybe this was borne out of a desire to maintain professional duties or to live up to the Platonic ideal of what we think an English teacher should be. Because who reads books for pleasure these days anyway? And who reads literature? Not many. So the fact that I do reinforces a long held belief that I'm an odd duck. And that odd-duck-ness is why I like to read literature. Self-help for the alienated weirdos.

I thought to myself, let's venture out from our literature ghetto, let's take it easy for a change. Let's lighten-up! Who knows, perhaps I could discover this previously untapped source of pleasure that would distract me from life's cares, the endless procession of drudgery and setbacks. There are literally millions of romance novels out there in the world beckoning us as we wait in line to pay for our groceries, so obviously humanity can't get enough of them. They go down easy and fast, like Shamrock shakes from McDonalds or drug addicts looking to score some dope.

I picked this particular romance for a few different reasons, reasons that I would like to share so that it might be understood why I was ultimately so very disappointed. Let it be known that I approached reading this novel with an open mind and an open heart. I did not go into this novel with the condescending attitude of someone who wears tight jeans and sports an ironically outdated handlebar mustache and lives in Bushwick.

I chose this novel carefully because I wanted to love it. I chose it because the title was the Beach House and and I love the beach, am easily swept up in the romance of the sand and the sea despite, or perhaps because, the fact of my being born and bred in the hinterlands, and have often fantasized about owning my own beach house, especially during those warm summer nights when my wife and I would stroll along the boardwalk of the Jersey Shore.

And I was drawn to the setting-- Outerbanks of the South Carolina--a place I've never visited in person but I have encountered them (it?)on the Netflix series of the same name. And I was drawn to the the plot, which the jacket indicated was about a woman starting her life over because she had the rug pulled out from underneath her, and what was left to do but pull up her big-boy pants and rebuild. And who doesn't romanticize starting over? I for on have started over at least two or three times and each time was thrilling, at least for a little while,

But alas, it didn’t pan out for me, I didn't get out of it what I sought. That says more about me than the novel or the legions of romance novel aficionados. I'm just not suited to the genre and the genre is not suited to me. It's no one's fault really. Sometimes the magic isn't there and the best thing to do is shrug and move on. Maybe I'll try another one another day. Maybe the right one just hasn't come along yet.

In the end, I have to conclude that yes, I am an odd duck, and that's why I like to read the classics. But maybe I'm the way I am because I have read the great books. Maybe they changed me in ways I'm only beginning to understand.

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You are following this discussion (instant email). Edit]]> 4.05 2019 The Beach House (South Carolina Sunsets, #1)
author: Rachel Hanna
name: C
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2019
rating: 2
read at: 2021/02/05
date added: 2024/01/08
shelves:
review:
You never know what book will induce an existential crisis, but this one did. Not the book, per se, but the experience of reading it.

I bought this book and read it because I was hoping to understand what it feels like to be someone who reads romance novels. Because on an existential level we are we what read and for a long time I only read, for the most part, what would we classified as "literature" (pronounced with a posh English accent), and well, I started to question that. What does it say about me that that is what I confined my reading to? Does it mean I'm a snob? That I'm pretentious? I was a high school English teacher for a long time so maybe this was borne out of a desire to maintain professional duties or to live up to the Platonic ideal of what we think an English teacher should be. Because who reads books for pleasure these days anyway? And who reads literature? Not many. So the fact that I do reinforces a long held belief that I'm an odd duck. And that odd-duck-ness is why I like to read literature. Self-help for the alienated weirdos.

I thought to myself, let's venture out from our literature ghetto, let's take it easy for a change. Let's lighten-up! Who knows, perhaps I could discover this previously untapped source of pleasure that would distract me from life's cares, the endless procession of drudgery and setbacks. There are literally millions of romance novels out there in the world beckoning us as we wait in line to pay for our groceries, so obviously humanity can't get enough of them. They go down easy and fast, like Shamrock shakes from McDonalds or drug addicts looking to score some dope.

I picked this particular romance for a few different reasons, reasons that I would like to share so that it might be understood why I was ultimately so very disappointed. Let it be known that I approached reading this novel with an open mind and an open heart. I did not go into this novel with the condescending attitude of someone who wears tight jeans and sports an ironically outdated handlebar mustache and lives in Bushwick.

I chose this novel carefully because I wanted to love it. I chose it because the title was the Beach House and and I love the beach, am easily swept up in the romance of the sand and the sea despite, or perhaps because, the fact of my being born and bred in the hinterlands, and have often fantasized about owning my own beach house, especially during those warm summer nights when my wife and I would stroll along the boardwalk of the Jersey Shore.

And I was drawn to the setting-- Outerbanks of the South Carolina--a place I've never visited in person but I have encountered them (it?)on the Netflix series of the same name. And I was drawn to the the plot, which the jacket indicated was about a woman starting her life over because she had the rug pulled out from underneath her, and what was left to do but pull up her big-boy pants and rebuild. And who doesn't romanticize starting over? I for on have started over at least two or three times and each time was thrilling, at least for a little while,

But alas, it didn’t pan out for me, I didn't get out of it what I sought. That says more about me than the novel or the legions of romance novel aficionados. I'm just not suited to the genre and the genre is not suited to me. It's no one's fault really. Sometimes the magic isn't there and the best thing to do is shrug and move on. Maybe I'll try another one another day. Maybe the right one just hasn't come along yet.

In the end, I have to conclude that yes, I am an odd duck, and that's why I like to read the classics. But maybe I'm the way I am because I have read the great books. Maybe they changed me in ways I'm only beginning to understand.

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You are following this discussion (instant email). Edit
]]> Shōgun (Asian Saga, #1) 52382796
Powerful and engrossing, capturing both the rich pageantry and stark realities of life in feudal Japan, Shōgun is a critically acclaimed powerhouse of a book. Heart-stopping, edge-of-your-seat action melds seamlessly with intricate historical detail and raw human emotion. Endlessly compelling, this sweeping saga captivated the world to become not only one of the best-selling novels of all time but also one of the highest-rated television miniseries, as well as inspiring a nationwide surge of interest in the culture of Japan. Shakespearean in both scope and depth, Shōgun is, as the New York Times put it, "...not only something you read--you live it." Provocative, absorbing, and endlessly fascinating, there is only one: Shōgun.]]> 1152 James Clavell 1982603844 C 5
When I was younger I romanticized neurotics like Woody Allen and chose to see neuroticism as a sign of advanced cognitive development. If you were happy it’s because you were stupid. I’m older now; I have a career and a family. I’ve been to my fair share of weddings and funerals; I’ve lived some life. These days, I admire stoicism. I see stoicism as the ultimate form of adulthood. I see it as the ultimate way to handle life’s challenges. We can’t control what happens to us but we can control our responses. We can learn to take it in stride.

�..

A year ago, I read two books, back to back, that happened to be very similar: Little Big Man by Thomas Berger and Shogun by James Clavell. Both are about white men who find themselves unexpectedly embedded in an alien culture and must alter their values and attitudes in order to survive. In LBM, the main character is abducted and adopted by Cheyenne Indians at the age of 10 and spends the rest of his childhood morphing into a plains Indian. In Shogun, the main character is an English pilot for a Portuguese merchant ship that shipwrecks on the coast of Okinawa in the early 16th century. Through luck, pluck, and sheer determination he adapts to Japanese samurai culture, even attaining the rank of samurai himself.

What we learn is how similar the Cheyenne of the 19th century are to the Japanese of the 16th century. Both are warrior cultures that place a premium on mental fortitude, filial piety, and courage in the face of danger. Both disdain the infantile emotional attitudes exhibited by the West. Both cultures embrace the inevitability of death.

The name “Cheyenne,� we learn, means The Real Humans. To be a real person is to accept our fate, not to fight it or bemoan it. Reading these books made me want to be a real person.]]> 4.42 1975 Shōgun (Asian Saga, #1)
author: James Clavell
name: C
average rating: 4.42
book published: 1975
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/01/07
shelves:
review:
I am neurotic. I overthink, lose my cool, and talk too much. There’s a moment from Death of a Salesman in Act I when Willy is castigating himself and he says to Linda, I talk too much. Whenever I hear that line I wince with recognition.

When I was younger I romanticized neurotics like Woody Allen and chose to see neuroticism as a sign of advanced cognitive development. If you were happy it’s because you were stupid. I’m older now; I have a career and a family. I’ve been to my fair share of weddings and funerals; I’ve lived some life. These days, I admire stoicism. I see stoicism as the ultimate form of adulthood. I see it as the ultimate way to handle life’s challenges. We can’t control what happens to us but we can control our responses. We can learn to take it in stride.

�..

A year ago, I read two books, back to back, that happened to be very similar: Little Big Man by Thomas Berger and Shogun by James Clavell. Both are about white men who find themselves unexpectedly embedded in an alien culture and must alter their values and attitudes in order to survive. In LBM, the main character is abducted and adopted by Cheyenne Indians at the age of 10 and spends the rest of his childhood morphing into a plains Indian. In Shogun, the main character is an English pilot for a Portuguese merchant ship that shipwrecks on the coast of Okinawa in the early 16th century. Through luck, pluck, and sheer determination he adapts to Japanese samurai culture, even attaining the rank of samurai himself.

What we learn is how similar the Cheyenne of the 19th century are to the Japanese of the 16th century. Both are warrior cultures that place a premium on mental fortitude, filial piety, and courage in the face of danger. Both disdain the infantile emotional attitudes exhibited by the West. Both cultures embrace the inevitability of death.

The name “Cheyenne,� we learn, means The Real Humans. To be a real person is to accept our fate, not to fight it or bemoan it. Reading these books made me want to be a real person.
]]> Little Big Man 50667
So starts the story of Jack Crabb, the 111-year old narrator of Thomas Berger's masterpiece of American fiction. As a "human being", as the Cheyenne called their own, he won the name Little Big Man. He dressed in skins, feasted on dog, loved four wives and saw his people butchered by the horse soldiers of General Custer, the man he had sworn to kill.

As a white man, Crabb hunted buffalo, tangled with Wyatt Earp, cheated Wild Bill Hickok and survived the Battle of Little Bighorn. Part-farcical, part-historical, the picaresque adventures of this witty, wily mythomaniac claimed the Wild West as the stuff of serious literature.

]]> 422 Thomas Berger 1860466419 C 4
When I was younger I romanticized neurotics like Woody Allen and chose to see neuroticism as a sign of advanced cognitive development. If you were happy it’s because you were stupid. I’m older now; I have a career and a family. I’ve been to my fair share of weddings and funerals; I’ve lived some life. These days, I admire stoicism. I see stoicism as the ultimate form of adulthood. I see it as the ultimate way to handle life’s challenges. We can’t control what happens to us but we can control our responses. We can learn to take it in stride.

�..

A year ago, I read two books, back to back, that happened to be very similar, Little Big Man by Thomas Berger and Shogun by James Clavell. Both are about white men who find themselves unexpectedly embedded in an alien culture and must alter their values and attitudes in order to survive. In LBM, the main character is abducted and adopted by Cheyenne Indians at the age of 10 and spends the rest of his childhood morphing into a plains Indian. In Shogun, the main character is an English pilot for a
Portuguese merchant ship that shipwrecks on the coast of Okinawa in the early 16th century. Through luck, pluck, and sheer determination he adapts to Japanese samurai culture, even attaining the rank of samurai himself. What we learn is how similar the Cheyenne of the 19th century are to the Japanese of the 16th century. Both are warrior cultures that place a premium on mental fortitude, filial piety, and courage in the face of danger. Both disdain the infantile emotional attitudes exhibited by the West. Both cultures embrace the inevitability of death.

The name “Cheyenne,� we learn, means The Real Humans. To be a real person is to accept our fate, not to fight it or bemoan it. Reading these books made me want to be a real person.]]> 4.25 1964 Little Big Man
author: Thomas Berger
name: C
average rating: 4.25
book published: 1964
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/01/07
shelves:
review:
I am neurotic. I overthink, lose my cool, and talk too much. There’s a moment from Death of s Salesman in Act I when Willy is castigating himself and he says to Linda, I talk too much. Whenever I hear that line I wince with recognition.

When I was younger I romanticized neurotics like Woody Allen and chose to see neuroticism as a sign of advanced cognitive development. If you were happy it’s because you were stupid. I’m older now; I have a career and a family. I’ve been to my fair share of weddings and funerals; I’ve lived some life. These days, I admire stoicism. I see stoicism as the ultimate form of adulthood. I see it as the ultimate way to handle life’s challenges. We can’t control what happens to us but we can control our responses. We can learn to take it in stride.

�..

A year ago, I read two books, back to back, that happened to be very similar, Little Big Man by Thomas Berger and Shogun by James Clavell. Both are about white men who find themselves unexpectedly embedded in an alien culture and must alter their values and attitudes in order to survive. In LBM, the main character is abducted and adopted by Cheyenne Indians at the age of 10 and spends the rest of his childhood morphing into a plains Indian. In Shogun, the main character is an English pilot for a
Portuguese merchant ship that shipwrecks on the coast of Okinawa in the early 16th century. Through luck, pluck, and sheer determination he adapts to Japanese samurai culture, even attaining the rank of samurai himself. What we learn is how similar the Cheyenne of the 19th century are to the Japanese of the 16th century. Both are warrior cultures that place a premium on mental fortitude, filial piety, and courage in the face of danger. Both disdain the infantile emotional attitudes exhibited by the West. Both cultures embrace the inevitability of death.

The name “Cheyenne,� we learn, means The Real Humans. To be a real person is to accept our fate, not to fight it or bemoan it. Reading these books made me want to be a real person.
]]> Equus (Penguin Plays) 334286 112 Peter Shaffer 0140260706 C 5
Really excellent play. One of the best to come out of the 20th century tradition of dramatic texts about horses and teenage boys.

Someone once said the 20th century is the age of anxiety. This text speaks to that anxiety. The anxiety that we've lost something irreplaceably magical about the natural world when struck a deal with the devil to be civilized. As a teacher I could relate to the anxieties of Dysart. He fears psychology has turned him into something resembling the ancient priests of Greece who sacrificed children to the gods. ]]> 3.91 1973 Equus (Penguin Plays)
author: Peter Shaffer
name: C
average rating: 3.91
book published: 1973
rating: 5
read at: 2020/04/13
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves:
review:
I assigned this text to my 12th grade drama class, the first text we read as part of the move to Virtual Remote Learning brought on by the end of the world.

Really excellent play. One of the best to come out of the 20th century tradition of dramatic texts about horses and teenage boys.

Someone once said the 20th century is the age of anxiety. This text speaks to that anxiety. The anxiety that we've lost something irreplaceably magical about the natural world when struck a deal with the devil to be civilized. As a teacher I could relate to the anxieties of Dysart. He fears psychology has turned him into something resembling the ancient priests of Greece who sacrificed children to the gods.
]]> <![CDATA[How to Change Your Mind: The New Science of Psychedelics]]> 36613747 Could psychedelic drugs change our worldview? One of America's most admired writers takes us on a mind-altering journey to the frontiers of human consciousness

When LSD was first discovered in the 1940s, it seemed to researchers, scientists and doctors as if the world might be on the cusp of psychological revolution. It promised to shed light on the deep mysteries of consciousness, as well as offer relief to addicts and the mentally ill. But in the 1960s, with the vicious backlash against the counter-culture, all further research was banned. In recent years, however, work has quietly begun again on the amazing potential of LSD, psilocybin and DMT. Could these drugs in fact improve the lives of many people? Diving deep into this extraordinary world and putting himself forward as a guinea-pig, Michael Pollan has written a remarkable history of psychedelics and a compelling portrait of the new generation of scientists fascinated by the implications of these drugs. How to Change Your Mind is a report from what could very well be the future of human consciousness.]]> 480 Michael Pollan 0241294223 C 3 4.25 2018 How to Change Your Mind: The New Science of Psychedelics
author: Michael Pollan
name: C
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2018
rating: 3
read at: 2020/06/01
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves:
review:
For some reason I skipped the chapter on neuroscience.
]]> <![CDATA[Cornell '77: The Music, the Myth, and the Magnificence of the Grateful Dead's Concert at Barton Hall]]> 32895307
Many Deadheads claim that the quality of the live recording of the show made by Betty Cantor-Jackson (a member of the crew) elevated its importance. Once those recordings � referred to as "Betty Boards" � began to circulate among Deadheads, the reputation of the Cornell '77 show grew exponentially. That aura grew with time and, in the community of Deadheads and audiophiles, the show at Barton Hall acquired legendary status.

Rooted in dozens of interviews � including a conversation with Betty Cantor-Jackson about her recording � and accompanied by a dazzling selection of never-before-seen concert photographs, Cornell �77 is about far more than just a single Grateful Dead concert. It is a social and cultural history of one of America’s most enduring and iconic musical acts, their devoted fans, and a group of Cornell students whose passion for music drove them to bring the Dead to Barton Hall. Peter Conners has intimate knowledge of the fan culture surrounding the Dead, and his expertise brings the show to life. He leads readers through a song-by-song analysis of the performance, from “New Minglewood Blues� to “One More Saturday Night,� and conveys why, forty years later, Cornell �77 is still considered a touchstone in the history of the band.]]> 232 Peter Conners 150170432X C 3 4.02 2017 Cornell '77: The Music, the Myth, and the Magnificence of the Grateful Dead's Concert at Barton Hall
author: Peter Conners
name: C
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2017
rating: 3
read at: 2020/11/14
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves:
review:
Cornell 77 is a transcendent concert. The book is prosaic.
]]> David Copperfield 8874378 Now a major film directed by Armando Iannucci, starring Dev Patel, Tilda Swinton, Hugh Laurie, Peter Capaldi and Ben Whishaw'The greatest achievement of the greatest of all novelists' Leo TolstoyIn David Copperfield - the novel he described as his 'favourite child' - Dickens drew on his own experiences to create one of his most moving and enduringly popular works, filled with tragedy and comedy in equal measure. It is the story of a young man's adventures on his journey from an unhappy childhood to the discovery of his vocation as a novelist. Among the gloriously vivid cast of characters he encounters are his tyrannical stepfather, Mr Murdstone; his brilliant but unworthy school-friend Steerforth; his formidable aunt, Betsey Trotwood; the eternally humble yet treacherous Uriah Heep; frivolous, enchanting Dora; and the magnificently impecunious Micawber, one of literature's great comic creations. Edited with an Introduction and Notes by Jeremy Tambling]]> 1095 Charles Dickens C 5 4.57 1850 David Copperfield
author: Charles Dickens
name: C
average rating: 4.57
book published: 1850
rating: 5
read at: 2020/11/03
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Biggest Bluff: How I Learned to Pay Attention, Master Myself, and Win]]> 51375432 How a New York Times bestselling author and New Yorker contributor parlayed a strong grasp of the science of human decision-making and a woeful ignorance of cards into a life-changing run as a professional poker player, under the wing of a legend of the game

It's true that Maria Konnikova had never actually played poker before and didn't even know the rules when she approached Erik Seidel, Poker Hall of Fame inductee and winner of tens of millions of dollars in earnings, and convinced him to be her mentor. But she knew her man: a famously thoughtful and broad-minded player, he was intrigued by her pitch that she wasn't interested in making money so much as learning about life. She had faced a stretch of personal bad luck, and her reflections on the role of chance had led her to a giant of game theory, who pointed her to poker as the ultimate master class in learning to distinguish between what can be controlled and what can't. And she certainly brought something to the table, including a Ph.D. in psychology and an acclaimed and growing body of work on human behavior and how to hack it. So Seidel was in, and soon she was down the rabbit hole with him, into the wild, fiercely competitive, overwhelmingly masculine world of high-stakes Texas Hold'em, their initial end point the following year's World Series of Poker.

But then something extraordinary happened. Under Seidel's guidance, Konnikova did have many epiphanies about life that derived from her new pursuit, including how to better read, not just her opponents but far more importantly herself; how to identify what tilted her into an emotional state that got in the way of good decisions; and how to get to a place where she could accept luck for what it was, and what it wasn't. But she also began to win. And win. In a little over a year, she began making earnest money from tournaments, ultimately totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars. She won a major title, got a sponsor, and got used to being on television, and to headlines like "How one writer's book deal turned her into a professional poker player." She even learned to like Las Vegas.

But in the end, Maria Konnikova is a writer and student of human behavior, and ultimately the point was to render her incredible journey into a container for its invaluable lessons. The biggest bluff of all, she learned, is that skill is enough. Bad cards will come our way, but keeping our focus on how we play them and not on the outcome will keep us moving through many a dark patch, until the luck once again breaks our way.]]> 368 Maria Konnikova 0525522638 C 3 4.25 2020 The Biggest Bluff: How I Learned to Pay Attention, Master Myself, and Win
author: Maria Konnikova
name: C
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2020
rating: 3
read at: 2020/11/14
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves:
review:
Poker is not gambling. But it is a mirror in which we can see the reflection of our soul.
]]> <![CDATA[Homer Kelley's Golfing Machine: The Curious Quest That Solved Golf]]> 19327038 The remarkable true story of a lone genius whose quest to unlock the science behind the perfect swing changed golf forever In 1939, Homer Kelley played golf for the first time and scored 116. Frustrated, he did not play again for six months; when he did he carded a 77. Determined to understand why he was able to shave nearly 40 strokes off his score, Kelley spent three decades of trial and error to unlock the answer and to recapture that one wonderful day when golf was easy and enjoyable. In 1969, Kelley self- published his findings in The Golfing The Computer Age Approach to Golfing Perfection. The bestselling instruction books of the day required golfers to conform their swings to the author's ideals, but Homer Kelley configured swings to fit every golfer. He found an enthusiastic disciple in a Seattle teaching pro named Ben Doyle, who in turn found an eager student in 13-year-old prodigy Bobby Clampett. Clampett's initial success in amateur golf shined a bright spotlight on Homer Kelley and The Golfing Machine, but when the young star suffered a painfully public collapse and faltered as a pro, critics were quick to blast Kelley and his complex and controversial ideas. With exclusive access to Homer Kelley's archives, author Scott Gummer paints a fascinating picture of the man behind the machine, the ultimate outsider who changed the game once and for all of us.]]> 298 Scott Gummer 1101052597 C 2 3.69 2009 Homer Kelley's Golfing Machine: The Curious Quest That Solved Golf
author: Scott Gummer
name: C
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2009
rating: 2
read at: 2020/11/14
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves:
review:

]]> The Last Samurai 30317598
Helen DeWitt’s 2000 debut, The Last Samurai, was “destined to become a cult classic� (Miramax). The enterprising publisher sold the rights in twenty countries, so “Why not just, ‘destined to become a classic?’� (Garth Risk Hallberg) And why must cultists tell the uninitiated it has nothing to do with Tom Cruise?

Sibylla, an American-at-Oxford turned loose on London, finds herself trapped as a single mother after a misguided one-night stand. High-minded principles of child-rearing work disastrously well. J. S. Mill (taught Greek at three) and Yo Yo Ma (Bach at two) claimed the methods would work with any child; when these succeed with the boy Ludo, he causes havoc at school and is home again in a month. (Is he a prodigy, a genius? Readers looking over Ludo’s shoulder find themselves easily reading Greek and more.) Lacking male role models for a fatherless boy, Sibylla turns to endless replays of Kurosawa’s masterpiece Seven Samurai. But Ludo is obsessed with the one thing he wants and doesn’t his father’s name. At eleven, inspired by his own take on the classic film, he sets out on a secret quest for the father he never knew. He’ll be punched, sliced, and threatened with retribution. He may not live to see twelve. Or he may find a real samurai and save a mother who thinks boredom a fate worse than death.]]> 548 Helen DeWitt 0811225518 C 5 4.07 2000 The Last Samurai
author: Helen DeWitt
name: C
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2000
rating: 5
read at: 2021/01/18
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves:
review:

]]> The Good Lord Bird 18519534
Over the ensuing months, Henry, whom Brown nicknames Little Onion, conceals his true identity to stay alive. Eventually Brown sweeps him into the historic raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859--one of the great catalysts for the Civil War. An absorbing mixture of history and imagination, and told with McBride's meticulous eye for detail and character,The Good Lord Birdis both a rousing adventure and a moving exploration of identity and survival.]]> 433 James McBride 1101616180 C 3 4.17 2013 The Good Lord Bird
author: James McBride
name: C
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2013
rating: 3
read at: 2020/12/17
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Perfume: The Story of a Murderer]]> 22078596 Perfume is a hauntingly powerful tale of murder and sensual depravity.Translated from the German by John E. Woods.]]> 276 Patrick Süskind 0804152977 C 4 3.83 1985 Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
author: Patrick Süskind
name: C
average rating: 3.83
book published: 1985
rating: 4
read at: 2020/12/06
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves:
review:

]]> Our Town 205476 Our Town was first produced and published in 1938 to wide acclaim. This Pulitzer Prize-winning drama of life in the small village of Grover's Corners, an allegorical representation of all life, has become a classic. It is Thornton Wilder's most renowned and most frequently performed play.]]> 181 Thornton Wilder 0060512636 C 5
STAGE MANAGER: "No. Saints and poets maybe...they do some.�
� Thornton Wilder, Our Town

This play means more to me every year. Act III gets me more "in the feels" every time I re-read it. When I get to the climax, I am reminded of Pozzo's speech from Act II of Godot, when he bemoans Vladimir's inability to appreciate the daunting brevity of life and fickleness of fate.

You know, when I was younger, and more romantic, I believed great literature would be a comfort to me in my old age, but now, in my middle years, I find the opposite to be true: great literature is unbearable to read because it makes more acutely aware of what awaits (death) and what I've lost (youth) and that realization takes me further into the bag, the same one that swallowed up Ivan.

Here's that brief speech of Pozzo's, by the way.

POZZO:
(suddenly furious.) Have you not done tormenting me with your accursed time! It's abominable! When! When! One day, is that not enough for you, one day he went dumb, one day I went blind, one day we'll go deaf, one day we were born, one day we shall die, the same day, the same second, is that not enough for you? (Calmer.) They give birth astride of a grave, the light gleams an instant, then it's night once more. (He jerks the rope.) On!
Exeunt Pozzo and Lucky.]]> 3.72 1938 Our Town
author: Thornton Wilder
name: C
average rating: 3.72
book published: 1938
rating: 5
read at: 2018/03/21
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves:
review:
EMILY: "Does anyone ever realize life while they live it...every, every minute?"

STAGE MANAGER: "No. Saints and poets maybe...they do some.�
� Thornton Wilder, Our Town

This play means more to me every year. Act III gets me more "in the feels" every time I re-read it. When I get to the climax, I am reminded of Pozzo's speech from Act II of Godot, when he bemoans Vladimir's inability to appreciate the daunting brevity of life and fickleness of fate.

You know, when I was younger, and more romantic, I believed great literature would be a comfort to me in my old age, but now, in my middle years, I find the opposite to be true: great literature is unbearable to read because it makes more acutely aware of what awaits (death) and what I've lost (youth) and that realization takes me further into the bag, the same one that swallowed up Ivan.

Here's that brief speech of Pozzo's, by the way.

POZZO:
(suddenly furious.) Have you not done tormenting me with your accursed time! It's abominable! When! When! One day, is that not enough for you, one day he went dumb, one day I went blind, one day we'll go deaf, one day we were born, one day we shall die, the same day, the same second, is that not enough for you? (Calmer.) They give birth astride of a grave, the light gleams an instant, then it's night once more. (He jerks the rope.) On!
Exeunt Pozzo and Lucky.
]]> <![CDATA[Deadwood (Vintage Contemporaries)]]> 19182098 386 Pete Dexter 0804151911 C 4 4.14 1986 Deadwood (Vintage Contemporaries)
author: Pete Dexter
name: C
average rating: 4.14
book published: 1986
rating: 4
read at: 2022/02/27
date added: 2024/01/04
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Importance of Being Earnest]]> 92303
Cecily Cardew and Gwendolen Fairfax are both in love with the same mythical suitor. Jack Worthing has wooed Gwendolen as Ernest while Algernon has also posed as Ernest to win the heart of Jack's ward, Cecily. When all four arrive at Jack's country home on the same weekend the "rivals" to fight for Ernest's undivided attention and the "Ernests" to claim their beloveds pandemonium breaks loose. Only a senile nursemaid and an old, discarded hand-bag can save the day!

This Prestwick House Literary Touchstone Edition includes a glossary and reader's notes to help the modern reader appreciate Wilde's wry wit and elaborate plot twists.]]> 89 Oscar Wilde 158049580X C 5 4.17 1895 The Importance of Being Earnest
author: Oscar Wilde
name: C
average rating: 4.17
book published: 1895
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/01/03
shelves:
review:

]]>