Here’s a book title I’d normally run from so fast there’d be a wind storm in my wake. "Monoculture" brings to mind dry, academic prose proclaiming huge, important concepts that would put me to sleep, or to quick shame for my inability to grasp them. And yet, when approached by the book’s publisher, I agreed to read it, driven to accept her request by a strong instinct. The result? A satisfying surprise.
Month: June 2011
Murder again in the Yorkshire Dales
Here's a great detective mystery, #2 in the Inspector Alan Banks series written by Peter Robinson. I'm reading the books chronologically, as they were written, so I can come to know the detective over time as he evolves. However, you don't have to read the first Banks mystery, "Gallows View", to enjoy the highly entertaining second, "A Dedicated Man." Here's a quick look at the plot.
A father’s decline, a son’s devotion
In the 1930s and 1940s, Joe Thorndike worked as an editor in Henry Luce's publishing empire, including as managing editor of Life magazine. In the 1950s he went on to be one of the founders of American Heritage and Horizon magazines. The last year of his life, 2005, he struggled with Alzheimer's while living in his Cape Cod home. His son John took care of him and wrote this memoir.
“Ex Libris: The Art of Bookplates”
Yale University Press has published a book showcasing bookplates housed at the British Museum. Here's a description of it, plus links to a slide show, for a preview.
Last year’s beach read, this year’s movie
David Nicholls' "One Day" has captured readers worldwide since its initial 2009 publication in the U.K. With the movie coming out in August, I decided to hurry up and read the book. It's a guaranteed good read, but whether or not the movie can pull off the "one day" magical premise of the storyline remains in question.
A therapy of summer morning
"Give Over, Graymalkin" is Gaylord Brewer's eighth collection of poetry, but it's the first I've read of his work. Here's a glimpse into Brewer's new poems that take us to India, Spain and France, and also celebrate the "dead metaphors" of life.
The story of “Jasper Jones”
Craig Silvey's novel is part murder mystery part coming-of-age story. The book's been winning awards and even got short-listed for the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. But is it for teens or adults?
The Longest Chapter 