i've been reading

The same few books were collecting dust in my sidebar for a long time.  I have updated the list with new books on my to-read shelf.  I did, in fact, read those others and here are my capsule reviews.

The first was Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, which I bought on a summer reading recommendation from NPR.  It was, as touted, very unique.  I was glued to it.  Good thing, it's arranged like a Chinese puzzle, and would have been even harder to follow if put down for any length of time.  Actually, I read it on some very long plane flights or I might not have stayed with it. I was extremely impressed with the skill and creativity of Mitchell; I could not have imagined a book like this much less written it.  Thus, I recommend it on the basis of nimble writing and storytelling. I confess that my life is fairly complicated and when I read for enjoyment, I like things to be more tidily wrapped up than this.  Others will no doubt find this book much more satsifactory and compelling than I did.

Small Wonder is a book of essays by one of my favorite writers, Barbara Kingsolver. I very much enjoyed her classic The Bean Fields as well as the excellent Poisonwood Bible.  I tend to rarely read books of short stories or essays, but Kingsolver is a fine writer, and none of her books have disappointed me. If you like her, you will like Small Wonder, although I think High Tide in Tucson is her best collection.

I already reviewed Amphibian Declines in another post.

John Berry's The Great Influenza is a book I read quite awhile ago, but kept on the sidebar hoping people would pick it up and learn what happened in the 1918 flu pandemic.  Because, people, another flu pandemic is just around the corner.  This is not a dry, lifeless account (although lifeless bodies abound), but a well-written, important book.

Comments

[Cindy M.]

hi Nuthatch, I've finally found time to catch up on some of your posts. I learn something every time I visit and thank you for that!
I'm also a Barbara Kingsolver fan and have read all of her books (some 4 or 5 times). If you like her style of writing, you'd enjoy Terry Tempest Williams' non-fiction book titled 'Refuge'. I highly recommend it.
Will visit again soon :)