I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman

I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron

I've enjoyed many of Nora Ephron's rom-coms. However, I am clearly not the target audience for this book. She talks about many of her experiences and concerns as an older woman in Manhattan. She is concerned that as she has aged, her neck does not look good in the fancy dresses she likes to wear. Her life centers in New York where even a move of a few blocks can change the way life would live. She has "first world problems". There is some humor, but it is hard to relate to.

The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir

The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir by Bill Bryson

Bill Bryson grew up in the Des Moines, Iowa in the 1950s. His dad was a sports journalist who extensively covered baseball (and liked to wear just a shirt to bed.) Things were "safer" in the 1950s, with kids roaming around without safety gear. The family also had a trip to New York where they stayed at a cheap hotel in Harlem, and even had the cops ask them to leave. (They stayed.) Bill had a friend who would always get the rap for getting in trouble, such as nearly burning down the house. For drinking, they started making fake ids out of old checks. Then the friend discovered it was easier to just steal from the grocery store and then grab pallets worth from the distributor. The book title refers to his superhero alter-ego.  The book is a funny, short tale of growing up in a different time.

March: Pulitzer Prize Winner (A Novel)

March: Pulitzer Prize Winner (A Novel) by Geraldine Brooks

The book is set primarily during the time of the civil war. The lead is teacher and chaplain. They manage to interact with many historical figures at the time. (It does feel that they are just trying to have anyone possible appear.) The book is historical "fan fiction", exploring the life of the father in Little Women as he was off to war. He has various struggles as we tries to work with the system and maintain his moral values while away from home. There was nothing very special.

Malinche: Una Novela

Malinche: Una Novela by Laura Esquivel

Since this was in Spanish, I found I had to listen to at 1.5 speed instead of my usual 3x. The book is ostensibly historical realism. It focuses on Malinche, a native Mexican who served as a guide and spouse of conquistador Hernan Cortes. She was part of a neighboring group that had no love for the Aztec leaders. However, in this story, she feels she is brought along for the ride. She is concerned that Cortes has took things too far as he has conquered Mexico for the Spaniards. This is primarily a vehicle for a tapestry of magical realism. There is plenty of great imagery, but not a lot of historically accurate details.

Lost on the Amazon (Choose Your Own Adventure #9)

Lost on the Amazon (Choose Your Own Adventure #9) by R. A. Montgomery

This 1980s book has been updated to include mention of cell phones, but much of the story remains the same. You are a doctor going to the Amazon to help people and rescue some friends. You battle with the situation as well as run into real "Amazons". I like to read these to find all the endings. Now I remember how annoying it was. I have various bookmarks to try to go back. The various endings are also not in the same universe. The multiple endings are not different outcomes from the same base scenario, but instead rely on different premises. 

Katie, the Kitten Fairy

Katie, the Kitten Fairy by Daisy Meadows

The girls see a kitten running around. It looks like a regular kitten until it starts to show pits of fairy magic. It can transform to a giant being or do other magic. It had been running away from goblins that were trying to hold it. The kids help a boy to rescue and later adopt the cat. They also get the goblin away from goblins, making the world happier.

Paige the Christmas Play Fairy

Paige the Christmas Play Fairy by Daisy Meadows

The original title was Paige the Pantomime Fairy, which sounds much better. One of the girls is dancing in a Cinderella. One performer gets sick, so both friends are able to perform. Alas, goblins are on the loose. They stole a few special objects and the girls need to help get them back. There are funny moments where a goblin runs around and the others just think he is somebody in custome. The girls find the magic items which help people remember their lines, dance correctly, et cetera. It follows the typical story of a "long" fairy book. This one has a number of very British Christmas traditions in it. There was an attempt to adapt it to an American audience, but it comes off as a bit weird.

Polly the Party Fun Fairy

Polly the Party Fun Fairy by Daisy Meadows

[Add photo] The seem to have run low on ideas when they title this fairy. Party Fun seems a little odd for a title. The girls are going to camp. However, some things are a bit amiss. Their rafts leak. The eggs for a contest end up hatching into chicks. The girls find Polly and she tells them that goblins have stolen her stuff. They see the goblin, chase after him as he makes a getaway in a frisbee raft, and capture him with a bucket. Things are restored to normal and they can now get ready for the 1000 anniversary party - as well as have fun at camp. The ideas in this book are a little less well done than others.

No One Makes You Shop at Wal-Mart: The Surprising Deceptions of Individual Choice

No One Makes You Shop at Wal-Mart: The Surprising Deceptions of Individual Choice by Tom Slee

Economics is based on individual choice. People "vote by their feet". If everyone chooses something, that will win. However, it is not so simple. The large corporations have power that make it difficult for others to compete. There is an amalgamation of benefits and costs with an imbalanced relationship. Game theory comes into play. People may prefer to have a vibrant local downtown. However, they also want the lower prices that walmart offer on some things. Alas, by getting those low prices, they decimate the downtown. The book has some interesting cases of how decisions are made for us by the big entities, leaving us with little opportunity. Big movie studios and big businesses make things their way, leaving an illusion of free choice, but providing little of it. The book has interesting thoughts, though does get a bit disorganized.

Reflections on the Revolution in France/Rights of Man (Giants of Political Thought)

Reflections on the Revolution in France/Rights of Man (Giants of Political Thought) by Wendy McElroy and George H Smith, discussing works by Edmund Burke and Thomas Paine (Contributor)

This is a quick audio introduction to two famous works from over two centuries ago. The audiobook includes various voice actors to discuss the essays and their authors. There was some controversy with Burke as he seemed to take on different views. This short audiobook provides good background, but is not a source of the original works. 

Geronimo Stilton: The Race Across America

The Race Across America (Geronimo Stilton, No. 37) by Geronimo Stilton, cover by Giuseppe Ferrario, illustrations by Danilo Brazzi, Francesco Castelli and Christian Aliprandi

Geronimo Stilton is a mouse that likes reading. Bike parts showing up in the mail. Then his friend tells him that they will be competing in the race across America. They go through a lot of training and decide that they will use it to support a children's hospital. they have challenges during the race, but enjoy the scenery and manage to barely win. The book is fun stylistically. It is halfway between a book and graphic novel. There is some narrative, but also plenty of small callout pictures and text.

Touch the Art: Make Van Gogh's Bed

Touch the Art: Make Van Gogh's Bed by Julie Appel and Amy Guglielmo

This gimmicky book has bits of artifacts on famous pictures for kids to touch. There are brief verses describing the paintings. It is quite weird, but it does introduce to some impressionist art pieces.

Under the Sea (Usborne First Jigsaw Books)

Under the Sea (Usborne First Jigsaw Books) written by Fiona Watt, illustrated by Rachel Wells

There is not a whole lot to this book. It has a few pages that list under the sea creatures, with a sentence on the facing page. At one time, there were some simple jigsaw puzzles in there, but those are long gone.

That Rabbit Belongs To Emily Brown

That Rabbit Belongs To Emily Brown by Cressida Cowell (Author), Neal Layton (Illustrator)

Emily Brown likes her bunny, Stanley. Queen Gloriana really wants the rabbit (who is often referred to as bunnywunny). She sends the various heads of the military to offer increasingly large trades for the rabbit. Emily refuses. finally the queen's men sneak in in the middle of the night to take the rabbit. Alas, after being washed and stuffed, the rabbit feel broken. Emily Brown takes back her rabbit and explains to the queen how to make one of her stuffed animals beloved.

The drawings are great in this book with a mixture of different styles (and a bit of photography). The story remains a bit ambiguous. Is this really the parents trying to clean the rabbit? Or another kid desiring it? Or is this just a plain old adventure that the girl dreams of?  This ambiguity adds to the quality of the book.

The Bravest Fish (originally Bright Stanley)

The Bravest Fish The Bravest Fish (originally Bright Stanley) by Matt Buckingham

The school of fish are going on a trip. Stanley wakes up late and misses the school. He tries to find them, and encounters other creatures, including some scary ones. He finally catches up with the other fish. The pictures are "bright", with a simple light-hearted story.

Froggy Rides a Bike

Froggy Rides a Bike by Jonathan London (Author), Frank Remkiewicz (Illustrator)

Froggy dreams about his new bike. He suddenly wakes up and is excited to go. Dad limits him to an affordable, practical bike. Then dad repeatedly says he won't let go - then he let's go. Then he repeats it again. Froggy successfully rides his bike. It is a bit annoying that he says he won't let go so many times. Is that the only way to get Froggy to do it willingly?

The Legend of Bass Reeves

The Legend of Bass Reeves by Gary Paulsen

Bass Reeves grew up a slave. He was skilled with animals and weapons. He later got in a spat with his master and ran away. He lived with the Indians for a while. Later when he knew he was free, he returned and lived as a farmer. When U.S. Marshals were needed to fight the lawlessness in Indian country, he was the ideal candidate. He had tracking and weapon skills as well as experience with languages. Being black may also have been a benefit, as the white criminals would not expect as much from him. He did a great job and caught many criminals - including his own son. The first half of the book covers his early history - this may be the most heavily fictional part. It does make a good story, but it is hard to tell how much is real. (He does come across as very naive and innocent.) The life as a Marshall may be a little more documentable. 

Lola at the Library (Lola Reads)

Lola at the Library (Lola Reads) by Anna McQuinn (Author), Rosalind Beardshaw (Illustrator)

Lola looks forward to going to the library every week with her mother. She gets books and participates in library activities. The book has lively drawings and a fairly simple story that kids relate to.

The Gingerbread Girl

The Gingerbread Girl by Lisa Campbell Ernst

After the Gingerbread man ran away, the old man and woman decide to cook a gingerbread girl with lots of candy. Alas, she runs away. She has a different rhyme as she goes. Eventually she gets to the fox. However, rather than get eaten, she uses her licorice hair to bridle the fox and now rides him around. Everyone goes to the old man and woman to keep them company. and eat treats. It is a bit interesting, but the message is quite confusing.

Story of the World, Vol. 1: History for the Classical Child: Ancient Times (Second Edition, Revised)

Story of the World, Vol. 1: History for the Classical Child: Ancient Times (Second Edition, Revised) by Susan Wise Bauer

This is a succinct introduction to ancient history for children. The narration is rather slow, so it is easily understandable and 4x speed up. The book provides a broad history of the world leading up to 400 AD. 

Coverage includes the "big" areas, such as Rome, China, Israel and Babylon. There are also various discussions on some of the lesser known ancient civilizations in Africa and Asia. There is even a little bit from the Americas.

The history takes a roughly chronological approach, though there are a few jumps to provide coherent narrative. Most are told as narratives from the point of view of the actors, usually the key characters, but occasionally a fictionalized "common person".

It is a great introduction to history that is at a child's level, but not dumbed down.