"If you can't be pretty, you might as well cause trouble" – Florence King
Posted in Recommendations, books on Dec 11th, 2009
This time of year, I always get in the mood to re-read Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind In The Willows. A pleasant story about the adventures of a group of sociable woodland animals (and especially their triumphs over the hostilities of winter weather) goes over a treat when the dags are getting shorter and colder. I [...]
Posted in You have got to be kidding me!, books, grumbles gripes and pointless bitching on Dec 7th, 2009
I started writing this review (such as it is) before I finished reading the book, but most of the original objections stand. I did finally slog my way through to the conclusion, and while the protagonist (for want of a a better word) does become somewhat less detestable and hateful, the story doesn’t improve significantly. [...]
Posted in books on Sep 23rd, 2009
If you want my opinion (and if you don’t why are you reading my blog?!) I think that Sinclair Lewis is probably the most insightful author ever to come out of the USA. Probably four years ago or so, I read my first Lewis book, “Babbitt” on the strength of the prudish, boorish, racist Upson [...]
Posted in books on Jun 24th, 2009
Sometimes I go to the library, and every book I pick up is a total home-run! My most recent library expedition was such a winner. First things first, I snagged a couple of Jean Shepherd‘s collections of short stories, In God We Trust (all others pay cash) and Wanda Hickey’s Night of Golden Memories (and [...]
Posted in Recommendations, books on May 6th, 2009
I just finished reading the last of Terry Moore’s Strangers In Paradise series and I am going to be recommending it to everyone I can, because it was just that good. I’m going to link the Wikipedia synopsis of the series which gives you an idea of what the stories are about, though it completely [...]
I’ve been reading other people’s blogs in DC and Japan, especially, talking about cherry blossom viewing. It is that time of the year! Here in KC, we have a lot of trees blooming…mostly crabapple, redbud, and Bradford pear. I don’t know that there are any cherry trees to speak of, but there are plenty of [...]
When I was a kid, one of my favorite fonts of knowledge was my school’s shelf of the World Book Encyclopedia (1969 Edition). As I was a kid in the ’80s, the encyclopedias were obviously pretty out-of-date, but there was sufficient content that wasn’t really going to have changed significantly in the 20-ish years between [...]
Posted in books, grumbles gripes and pointless bitching on Mar 17th, 2009
This past library run was a real strike-out so far. I’d picked up My Lush Life by Douglas McEwan, ’cause I’d heard it was kind of like Patrick Dennis’s stuff, and I love, love, love me some Auntie Mame. It was, however, a tedious faux-biography that wore thinner and thinner as I read on. By [...]
Posted in Fashion, Recommendations, books on Feb 25th, 2009
I’ve been enjoying a two-book set I checked out from the library. It’s a fashion history survey based on the collections of the Kyoto Costume Institute. If you’re into fashion (historic or contemporary), these books are a real treat. The collection is marvelous and the photography is splendid. Some of the more spectacular garments are [...]
Posted in Recommendations, books on Feb 16th, 2009
Okay, now it’s book-nerd time. I just read a couple of books that I really enjoyed, so I’m going to make a big ol’ fuss about them here on my blog. The first one I’m going to recommend isn’t that deep, but damn if it isn’t some funny stuff. The book in question is The [...]
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