What Teachers Make: In Praise of the Greatest Job in the World by Taylor Mali

On New Year's Eve of 1997 Taylor Mali attended a dinner party where one of the guests, a young, arrogant lawyer, made it clear his opinion about the teaching profession: one must be of impaired intelligence to choose a career that paid so little money and earned such little respect.

While Mali could not find the proper words to put the man in his place on that particular night, his anger at that encounter resulted in one of the most famous diatribes to ever come out of the teaching profession.

Today, Mali writes this memoir and series of essays as not only a tribute to the teaching profession, but also as a way to explain everything that inspired him to write that poem. The encounter with the lawyer was the impetus for writing the poem, but he also goes on to explain all of the other stanzas that he wrote as a result of the lawyer that fueled his ire.

But Mali wants to do more than just explain his motivations for writing a poem in this book. He wrote it as a tribute to teachers. In a society that has pegged us as greedy and lazy, Mali asks that we take a step back and look at what teachers sacrifice for the sake of their students. He logically and thoughtfully reminds us of the very things that teachers have been saying for years: in a country of extreme greed and brazen excess, the people who give of themselves the most are the ones who are being attacked. How is that justice?

The purpose of this book, as Mali states in the introduction is, "Someone needs to remind teachers that they are dearly loved. I'm that guy."

This book, however, isn't just a stating of the obvious injustices of how teachers are treated today, but it's also a celebration of small victories and the little moments in our classrooms that so often make us laugh or cry. Mali taught in classrooms for nine years and then left to pursue a career as a full-time poet (who does that in this day and age?) and advocate for the teaching profession. But from reading this book, you quickly realize that the classroom lost a wonderful teacher. Not only is his wisdom easily apparent, but you quickly begin to wish your own children could have him as their teacher.

This book is the perfect gift for any teacher, but as it is preaching to the choir, a better choice would be for a person in need of some enlightenment about how hard teachers work (for so little money).

What Teachers Make: In Praise of the Greatest Job in the World by Taylor Mali
Publication Date: March 29, 2012
Publisher: Putnam
Pages: 197
Genre: Nonfiction
Audience: Adults
Disclosure: Book received for review from publisher

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

When historian Diana Bishop unassumingly calls a bewitched manuscript from the stacks of Oxford's Bodleian Library, she doesn't realize that the magic inside of her that she has considered unwelcome for so long is soon to cause problems for her and will open the floodgates to a world of magical creatures that she has tried to remain removed from her whole life.

Suddenly vampires, witches and daemons are swarming the Bodleian, all with the desire to get their hands on this powerful alchemical manuscript, for they feel it can unlock the secrets about their future and their past.

One such creature with an interest in the manuscript is Matthew Clairmont, a charming vampire who seduces Diana and becomes invested, not only in her research, but also in her personally. This quickly angers the supernatural world of creatures and Diana and Matthew must fight not only for the manuscript, but also for their love.

A Discovery of Witches was not a book I was expecting to like. I've never been a huge fan of the paranormal and this book is teeming with it. Despite the fact that the characters felt emotionally distant, I still really enjoyed spending time with them and found their plight fascinating. A good way to describe this book would be a much more grown up, erudite version of Twilight. So all the Twi-hards who are all grown up and need a new fix, Matthew Clairmont might be a good replacement for Edward Cullen. 


I definitely am looking forward to reading the second book in the series which comes out this summer.


A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
Series: All Souls #1
Published: February 8, 2011
Publisher: Viking
Pages: 579
Genre: Fantasy
Audience: Adults

Broetry by Brian McGackin

Broet Laureate Brian McGackin has created this side-splitting book aptly titled Broetry, for the men in the world who - I'm not going to pull any punches here - are not cultured in the finer things in life (though I guess what constitutes "finer" completely depends on who you talk to). Rather than reading poems about love and butterflies or Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, McGackin tackles topics like Star Wars, crazy stalker girlfriends, why guys cheat, cougars, and even Steve Guttenberg.

What McGackin was trying to accomplish in Broetry was to show that poetry can be relateable to guys. As he says in the intro:

" A poet I admire once wrote, 'Saying you don't like poetry is like saying you don't like food.' In other words, a beet is just a beet. If you're not into beets, you can eat spinach. Don't like vegetables? Have pizza! The point is, if you think you don't like poetry, you just haven't found a poem that's right for you."

This is pretty much the exact thing I have been telling my students every year when we start studying poetry extensively (though this book is definitely NOT appropriate for my students, who are sixth graders). The students who say they don't like poetry only hate it because they haven't found poems in a topic they can relate to. Brian McGackin has filled a niche that has pretty much gone unfilled since the beginning of time, unless you count dirty limericks.

But does taking an uncultured, non-literary population of males and turning their interests into poetry automatically make it literary? No, but I don't think that was Brian McGackin's goal anyway. Broetry is kind of like the gateway drug. Oh, you like these poems? Well, why don't you try your stab at some of these Billy Collins poems? Or Langston Hughes? Or William Carlos Williams? Perhaps they'll never fully appreciate Emily Dickinson, but hey, it's a start.

The language in Broetry is crass, obscene, and almost banal in its simplicity, but what it lacks in beautiful turn of phrase, it makes up for in clever play-on-words, hilarious titles, and unexpected topics. This book would make an amazing Christmas stocking stuffer for that "guy's guy" in your life who has always looked his nose down at poetry unless it starts with the line "There once was a man from Nantucket..."

Broetry by Brian McGackin
Published: July 5, 2011 by Quirk Books
Pages: 128
Genre: Poetry
Audience: Adult Males
Disclosure: book recieved for review from the publisher

P.S. If you don't recognize the poem on the front cover, please do me a favor, culture yourself and look up "This is Just to Say" by William Carlos Williams. What's on the cover is a lot more amusing once you know it was "inspired by" by an actual celebrated American poet.

Joy for Beginners by Erica Bauermeister

Joy for Beginners is less of a novel and more of a series of short stories woven together through Kate, the character who hosts a dinner party for her friends to celebrate the winning of her battle with breast cancer. At this dinner party, Kate challenges all of her friends to complete a task that they have always feared doing - but Kate gets to choose their task.

The premise behind this book sounded right up my alley. A book where characters must look at their lives, take a risk, and address a fear? Talk about easy character development, right? 

Unfortunately, I think the writing got in the way a little bit. The entire book was so lush and dripping with details, that it became more about the descriptions and less about the story or the characters. I found myself forgetting everything about the characters from previous chapters due to the overwhelming descriptions. I also never really felt the fear behind the women who had to complete these particular tasks. Bauermeister's penchant for writing descriptions that are extremely sensory and sensual didn't really translate the fear these women were feeling.

Having said that, there were stories in this book that I did find endearing, and reading it wasn't an unpleasant experience. I just wanted the author to tell their stories rather than bogging them down with so much description.

Joy for Beginners by Erica Bauermeister
Published: June 2011 by Putnam
Pages: 288
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Audience: Adult/Chick Lit

A Pug's Tale by Alison Pace

 From Goodreads:

There are pugs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art!

Hope McNeill has worked at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for years, but this is the first time she's been able to bring along her pug, Max. (Officially at least. Previously she's had to smuggle him in inside her tote bag.)

The occasion: a special "Pug Night" party in honor of a deep-pocketed donor. Max and his friends are having a ball stalking the hors d'oeuvres and getting rambunctious, and making Hope wonder if this is also the last time she gets to bring Max to the museum.

But when a prized painting goes missing, the Met needs Hope's--and Max's--help. In her quest for the culprit, Hope searches for answers with an enigmatic detective, a larger-than-life society heiress, a lady with a shih tzu in a stroller, and her arguably intuitive canine. With luck, she'll find some inspiration on her trips to Pug Hill before the investigation starts going downhill.

This is by far Alison Pace's best book to-date. Her quick wit and penchant for writing humorous tales revolving around dogs and art have come together in this magnum opus. 

While I loved and adored Pug Hill, what left me wanting more from that story was that the pugs of Pug Hill were not in it enough. A Pug's Tale most certainly remedies the problem of not enough pugs. While Hope is the protagonist of this story, her pug Max is most certainly the star, for without Max, it would be impossible for her to solve the strange mystery of the Fantin-Latour painting that has gone missing from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

And what Pace has mastered so beautifully is her ability to make a non-talking, non-narrating dog feel like a real character. Max is just a dog in this book. He has no special powers (well, other than intuitiveness) and yet, there would be no book without Max. I don't think I've ever read an author describe the mannerisms and spirit of a pug so deftly as Alison Pace has. The whole book is full of perfectly pugnacious passages like this:

Max, who'd been completely quiet, obedient, docile even, for the duration of my phone call with Ben, twirled his head around like an owl and looked up at me with great urgency. His eyes were extra large, his gaze intense. His tongue lolled out the side of his mouth as he made a quick slurping noise. With a few grunting pants, he whipped his head toward the corner of the studio, hoisted himself up, and, like a bullet, took off, gasping, snorting, wheezing across the room. I will admit that my first thought was not about the art. My first thought was that I was worried about Max's ability to breathe. (20)

There are so many different hats this book can wear for different types of book-lovers. If you love mysteries, you'll love this book. If you love chick lit, you'll love this book. If you love dog books, you'll love this book. If you love New York City, you'll love this book. Heck, if you loved From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler as a kid, you'll love this book as a grown-up. Just go out and read it.  More than likely it will appeal to who you are as a reader because there are so many different types of readers it will appeal to.


A Pug's Tale by Alison Pace
Publish Date: June 7, 2011 by Berkley Trade
Pages: 289
Genre: Mystery
Audience: Adults

You Had Me At Woof: How Dogs Taught Me the Secrets of Happiness by Julie Klam

From Goodreads:

Julie Klam was thirty, single, and working as a part-time clerk in an insurance company, wondering if she would ever meet the man she could spend the rest of her life with. And then it happened. She met the irresistible Otto, her first in a long line of Boston terriers, and fell instantly in love.

Over the years her brood has grown to one husband, one daughter, and several Boston terriers. And although she had much to learn about how to care for them-walks at 2 a.m., vet visits, behavior problems-she was surprised and delighted to find that her dogs had more wisdom to convey to her than she had ever dreamed. And caring for them has made her a better person-and completely and utterly opened her heart. Riotously funny and unexpectedly poignant, You Had Me at Woof recounts the hidden surprises, pleasures, and revelations of letting any mutt, beagle, terrier, or bulldog go charging through your world.

Anyone who knows me knows I can't get enough of dog books because even though we always know the outcome of just about every dog story ever written, they always make our human world just a little better with their loyalty and unconditional love. Julie Klam manages to put so perfectly into words what it is about dogs that makes us love them so much. 

I knew I would love this book when, in the first chapter, Julie Klam describes her Boston Terrier Otto as smelling like Fritos. I knew I found a kindred spirit at this declamation because I have always said to my husband that our pug Frank, on occasion, smells like corn chips. He always looked at me like I was crazy when I said this, so that was the moment when I knew this book was going to be nothing short of loveable.

There are moments of heartbreak, joy, and absolute hilarity in this book, but crux of Klam's thesis is, no matter how dysfunctional your house might seem, dogs will almost always fill it with love, laughter, good health, and happiness.

I was initially drawn to this book because the adorably awkward Boston Terrier on the cover reminds me so much of my pug Guenter. And even though I love dog memoirs, I wasn't initially sold on this book from the jacket blurb. I have read so many dog books and this one didn't jump out at me as unique or different from the ones I've already read. But every time I would go to the book store, I would see that face, the one with the bulgy eyes and the awkwardly angelic expression that reminded me of Guenter, and it wasn't long before the pull of the cover caused me to cave and finally buy it. 

I was not disappointed. So much of Julie Klam's reasons for loving dogs are my own reasons and they're not ones I can articulate without re-writing her entire book.  So my suggestion to you if you're a dog-lover (or if you're not a dog-lover and just want to know what makes us crazy dog-people tick) is just to just read this book. You won't be disappointed.
  
A note about the format: I did actually listen to the audiobook version of You Had Me at Woof. Usually if I listen to an audiobook, I'll do a review of the audio presentation if it was stellar or sub-par. This audiobook was right in the middle. There was nothing distinguishable about it, but it kept me engaged and the narrator, Karen White, had a pleasant and soothing voice. If you enjoy listening to audiobooks and are always on the lookout for good ones, I would recommend this one.


You Had Me At Woof: How Dogs Taught Me The Secrets of Happiness by Julie Klam, narrated by Karen White
Published: September 2010 by Riverhead and  October 2010 by Tantor Audio
Pages: 240
Audiobook Length: 5 hours, 44 minutes
Genre: Memoir
Audience: Adult dog-lovers

Pug Hill by Alison Pace

From Goodreads:

For Hope McNeill, pugs are love, unconditional friendship, happiness, and freedom. She doesn't have one of her own (busy life, tiny apartment), but she does have Pug Hill in Central Park, where pugs (and their owners) from all over New York convene.

She also has a crush on one of her co-workers, a flailing romantic relationship, and an unspeakable fear of public speaking. Then Hope's father calls with an assignment: to make a speech at her parents' anniversary party. Frantic, she signs up for a public speaking class, but can't help wondering-will it transform her into an eloquent orator? Maybe some fears are so big that even all the pugs in the world might not be enough to assuage them.

Alison Pace has mastered her niche as an author: fun, lighthearted stories that include neurotic main characters who possess an endearing love for dogs. This is my second reading of Pug Hill and it is by far my favorite of Pace's novels because, well, like Hope, I understand that pugs are love and happiness. When Hope feels most hopeless, her go-to happy place is pug hill. The people in her life don't understand her obsession with it, and despite her incredibly neurotic, sometimes downright annoying, tendencies,  I completely get this facet of her personality. And even if you as the reader don't get that pugs are love, the way that Pace describes Hope's encounters with them, you can't help but understand why this is her happy place.When you read passages like this, you will be sure to plaster a smile on your face so big that your face will hurt:

"Eustice!" someone yells from a few feet to my right.  An extremely, let's say, girthy pug, in a gray turtleneck sweater, comes bounding up the hill.  His tongue hangs out to the side, the way so many tongues of so many pugs seem to like to do, and he's panting very loudly; I can hear the panting, accompanied by some intermittent snorting even before he gets close, even before he heads in a beeline right past his owner and right toward me.


"Well hello, Eustice," I say very encouragingly and very enthusiastically at his arrival. He looks up at me, and very politely hoists his tongue up and licks the foam from his pug nose. And the way he does it, everything about him, makes me smile so completely. I say next what makes most sense, "Thank you Eustice." With a jerking motion, he moves his whole body to the side throws back his head and turns around, and just like that, he's off. (165)

What Alison Pace did so perfectly, in just a few short paragraphs, was describe the mannerisms of a pug in such a way that you almost feel like you're in the presence of one - or even better, that you want to get one for yourself. And despite whether you think they're the most adorable dog or the most hideous dog, you can't help but smile when there are pugs around.

As a pug lover, the title and overwhelming cuteness of the cover is what initially drew me to the book, but Pace's fun, jaunty writing style is what kept me reading, and what inevitably drew me to some of her other books. 

I'm not going to lie. This book is total chick lit. There will undoubtedly be people who read this book and feel frustrated at how neurotic and self-centered the main character is. Not to mention how neatly the book ends.  And I would normally be one of those critics.  I'm one who likes books to end neatly, but not so neatly that it feels contrived.  In the hands of a less dexterous author, the ending would have felt contrived. But with Pace's deft writing style and commitment to seeing the growth of her protagonist, this story works and just makes you feel good all over. A highly recommended title for anyone who needs to be jolted out of a funk from reading books full of grave, heavy-handed prose.

And, better still, if you loved the first installment of Pug Hill, Pace has written a sequel set to be released on June 7th called A Pug's Tale.
 
And coming soon, Alison Pace will be joining me here on the blog for an interview to talk about her new novel. 

Pug Hill by Alison Pace
Published: May 2006 by Berkley Trade
Pages: 312
Genre: Realistic fiction/chick lit
Audience: Adults (pug lovers!)

A Woman's Guide to a Healthy Stomach by Jacqueline Wolf

Why do my jeans fit only in the morning?

Why am I always guzzling Pepto-Bismol before a big meeting?

Could my PMS cramps mean something serious?

Here, finally, are the answers to these questions, and hundreds more, about the nagging stomach problems that plague so many women. In this reassuring guide, Dr. Jacqueline L. Wolf, a leading expert in the field of gastrointestinal health, explains the causes and cures for women's most common digestive ailments (including bloating, constipation, diarrhea, acid reflux, IBS) and more serious, life-altering conditions like Crohn's disease and endometriosis. This candid book deals with sensitive issues in a down-to-earth way and eradicates once and for all the secrecy and shame surrounding these urgent problems. - from Goodreads

 

As someone who suffers from more than one digestive ailment (from which I will spare you the details), I think this book is a must-have for your shelf if you are one such sufferer. The book was divided into logical chapters, and each chapter had subheadings in the form of questions for easy access to the information you need, so you can skip the information that doesn't apply to you.

I highly recommend this book to any woman who suffers from any sort of digestive ailment. It's the perfect go-to reference tool whenever new symptoms pop up (as they tend to do with me) or you're dealing with an ailment for the first time.  Since women deal with digestive issues more than men do, I appreciate the fact that Dr. Wolf catered to the audience who needed it the most. 

A Woman's Guide to a Healthy Stomach: Taking Control of Your Digestive Health by Jacqueline Wolf

Publish Date: February 18, 2011

Pages: 272

Genre: Nonfiction

Audience: Adult women

ARC downloaded through NetGalley

Love is a Mix Tape: Life and Loss, One Song at a Time by Rob Sheffield

Mix tapes: We all have our favorites. Stick one into a deck, press play, and you’re instantly transported to another time in your life. For Rob Sheffield, that time was one of miraculous love and unbearable grief. A time that spanned seven years, it started when he met the girl of his dreams, and ended when he watched her die in his arms.

Using the listings of fifteen of his favorite mix tapes, Rob shows that the power of music to build a bridge between people is stronger than death. You’ll read these words, perhaps surprisingly, with joy in your heart and a song in your head—the one that comes to mind when you think of the love of your life. - from Goodreads

Rob Sheffield has a gift for writing in a way that helps conjure up your own memories of the music and era he writes about. While I was listening to Love is a Mix Tape, I couldn't help but remember so many moments from my own junior high and high school experiences that had been long forgotten.

As a whole, I really liked this book. There was one point in the narrative, however, that felt a little disjointed from the rest of the story and that's when he started talking about Jackie...moreRob Sheffield has a gift for writing in a way that helps conjure up your own memories of the music and era he writes about. While I was listening to Love is a Mix Tape, I couldn't help but remember so many moments from my own junior high and high school experiences that had been long forgotten.

As a whole, I really liked this book. There was one point in the narrative, however, that felt a little disjointed from the rest of the story and that's when he started talking about Jackie O. When you read this part of the story, you understand the narrative; it's not confusing why he talks about her. It just completely changed the tone and direction of the story and made it feel slightly off-kilter.

The rest of the book was thoroughly enjoyable and I love that the rock music of my era is now looked upon as classic rock. There's a point in the story where Sheffiled talks about how he hated Pearl Jam at the time they were making music, but now whenever he hears a Pearl Jam song on the radio, he turns it up and shouts, "YEAH! PEARL JAM!" I feel the exact same way. It's crazy to think now that Pearl Jam is considered CLASSIC rock and that the music of the 90's is looked at collectively as the music of a generation - MY generation. When did that happen?


Love is a Mix Tape: Life and Loss, One Song at a Time by Rob Sheffield
Published: January 2007
Pages: 224
Genre: Nonfiction/Memoir
Audience: Adult music lovers

Drive : The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink

Forget everything you thought you knew about how to motivate people--at work, at school, at home. It's wrong. As Daniel H. Pink explains in his new and paradigm-shattering book, the secret to high performance and satisfaction in today's world is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to learn and create new things, and to do better by ourselves and our world.

Drawing on four decades of scientific research on human motivation, Pink exposes the mismatch between what science knows and what business does - and how that affects every aspect of our lives. He demonstrates that while the old-fashioned carrot-and-stick approach worked successfully in the 20th century, it's precisely the wrong way to motivate people for today's challenges. In Drive, he reveals the three elements of true motivation:

# Autonomy - the desire to direct our own lives
# Mastery - the urge to get better and better at something that matters
# Purpose- the yearning to do what we do in the service of something larger than ourselves

Along the way, he takes us to companies that are enlisting new approaches to motivation and introduces us to the scientists and entrepreneurs who are pointing a bold way forward. - from Goodreads

This book was mainly written for people in the business world, but the research presented here has direct, sobering implications on education as well. My hope is that many administrators, CEOs, upper-level managers, and anyone in leadership positions will read this book. The old model of external motivation that Pink refers to as "If/then Rewards" ("If you do this, then you'll get this...") is found consistently again and again to subvert motivation and actually prevent us ...more This book was mainly written for people in the business world, but the research presented here has direct, sobering implications on education as well. My hope is that many administrators, CEOs, upper-level managers, and anyone in leadership positions will read this book. The old model of external motivation that Pink refers to as "If/then Rewards" ("If you do this, then you'll get this...") is found consistently again and again to subvert motivation and actually prevent us from doing our best work.

Yet businesses and schools across America continue to use this old model of motivation (Motivation 2.0 as Pink likes to call it... Motivation 1.0 is merely cave-man survival) in an attempt to keep us compliant.

Compliance will no longer get the job done. We must do better. We must create autonomy in our work environments rather than managerial control over minions. Drive gives us the knowledge and tools to make that happen. To paraphrase Maya Angelou, when you know better, you do better. Let's hope many people read this book so they can know better to do better.



Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink
Published: December 2009 by Riverhead Hardcover
Pages: 256
Genre: Nonfiction
Audience: Adults in business or education

Backseat Saints by Joshilyn Jackson audiobook review (+ giveaway)

Rose Mae Lolley is a fierce and dirty girl, long-suppressed under flowery skirts and bow-trimmed ballet flats. As "Mrs. Ro Grandee" she's trapped in a marriage that's thick with love and sick with abuse. Her true self has been bound in the chains of marital bliss in rural Texas, letting "Ro" make eggs, iron shirts, and take her punches. She seems doomed to spend the rest of her life battered outside by her husband and inside by her former self, until fate throws her in the path of an airport gypsy---one who shares her past and knows her future. The tarot cards foretell that Rose's beautiful, abusive husband is going to kill her. Unless she kills him first.

Hot-blooded Rose Mae escapes from under Ro's perky compliance and emerges with a gun and a plan to beat the hand she's been dealt. Following messages that her long-missing mother has left hidden for her in graffiti and behind paintings, Rose and her dog Gretel set out from Amarillo, TX back to her hometown of Fruiton, AL, and then on to California, unearthing a host of family secrets as she goes. Running for her life, she realizes that she must face her past in order to overcome her fate---death by marriage---and become a girl who is strong enough to save herself from the one who loves her best. - synopsis taken from Goodreads.

Backseat Saints is beautifully written despite a painful subject matter. Had I not been so transfixed by Jackson's masterful turn of phrase and hypnotizing audio narration (by the author herself), I probably would have some more critical things to say, but since this was one of those audiobooks that is so well narrated, all I can do is sing its praises. Jackson has such a sweet, lilting southern drawl that you can't help but be won over by her storytelling.

There is no point in this story where you feel the outcome will be predictable. You are constantly left guessing as to how Jackson will end it and the climax will leave you on the edge of you seat. If you often find yourself turned off by boring, sleep-inducing audiobooks, look no further than Backseat Saints to jolt you from your slumber.


Backseat Saints by Joshilyn Jackson
Audiobook narrated by: Joshilyn Jackson
Audiobook published: June 2010
Total playing time: 13 Hours
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Audience: Adults


*Giveaway*

Back in June I participated in Audiobook Week over at Devourer of Books. Jen was able to provide a great deal of audiobook giveaways through the generosity of publishers. Backseat Saints was a title I won through that week of participation and I'd like to pass it on to someone else to enjoy.

Fill out the form below before 10 PM EST on October 10, 2010 and I will send one lucky winner my 11-CD audiobook copy of Backseat Saints.

Open to US residents only.

The Leisure Seeker by Michael Zadoorian

This was one of the most memorable books I've read this year. Very rarely do you read fiction about the elderly, and even more rarely do you read about an elderly couple facing their imminent mortality.

Ella, battling terminal cancer, and John, Alzheimer's, this married couple decides to hit the road in their RV for one last road trip. Despite the horror and pleadings from their children and doctors, Ella refuses to just sit at home at wait to die.

There is symbolism a ...more This was one of the most memorable books I've read this year. Very rarely do you read fiction about the elderly, and even more rarely do you read about an elderly couple facing their imminent mortality.

John and Ella Robina have been married more than fifty years. Now that Ella is battling terminal cancer and John Alzheimer's, they decide to gas up their RV and head out for one last adventure. Despite the horror and pleadings from their children and doctors, Ella refuses to just sit at home at wait to die. John, however, rarely remembers where home is and just does whatever Ella says.

There is symbolism abound in this book. The idea of taking a road trip on an old and decrepit road like Route 66 is not lost on the reader and Zadoorian writes in such a way that makes Ella and John's journey feel like your own - something that many of us have never stop to think about out of fear.

Once you get past the fear, however, you see the tenderness of this couple, and that even when faced with the end the road, they still choose to be on it together. What could be more hopeful than that?

I can only hope that if my husband and I make it to our eighties, that we decide to keep the adventures going like John and Ella, even when we're close to the end of the road.



The Leisure Seeker by Michael Zadoorian
Published: January 2009
Pages: 272
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Audience: Adults

Honeymoon with My Brother by Franz Wisner

When Franz Wisner is dumped by his fiancee only days before their wedding and then demoted at his job a week later, he knows his life is in need of a change. Touched by his brother Kurt's care and concern when he helped Franz make phone calls and cancel plans, he decides to go on with the wedding, without the bride.

Also unable to cancel his honeymoon plans and in a delirium of love and appreciation for his friends and family who came to his "wedding" to support him, Franz asks his brother to go on his honeymoon with him. Though instead of champagne and rose petals, they ask for beer and double beds.

While on their honeymoon of sorts, the brothers decide that they need an even bigger change in their lives and set out on a year long adventure around the world.

I have read many travel memoirs, and after a while, you'd think I'd start to get sick of them, but I continue to eat them up. I enjoyed this one just as much as the others, and I especially loved how Wisner told part of the narrative through letters to his ninety-nine-year-old step-grandmother, LaRue. She was an integral part of the story because she was one of the few people in their lives who encouraged the trip.

Just as with anyone who travels for an extended period of time, Franz and Kurt find themselves changed to their very core. Life back in California will never be the same.

This book was rife with lessons, but everything to be learned from it and the beauty of travel can be summed up in this one passage on p. 250:

Before leaving Millie's village, I decided to take an afternoon run on the country roads leading to her property, pas dozens of shacks made with plywood and tarp...

A barefoot man in drawstring shorts pushed an old bicycle out of the bush. He hopped on and decided to ride along in silent partnership, slowing his pedal to match my pace, occasionally yelling words of encouragement in a tongue I could feel but not understand. Then a happy, shirtless boy, no more than seven, legs speckled with clay, ran out of a shack, using all his speed to catch me. I slowed. After a handful of hollers, a few of his playmates joined him from compounds along the road. Boys and girls devising entertainment in a world without The Wiggles or Dora the Explorer. Now there were a dozen in the parade, with the man on the bicycle our grand marshal.

The sun cast lengthy shadows across the road. Darkening but still warm The children's giggles mixed with the music. Down to a fast walk now while they still ran, I stared, trancelike. Oh, those faces, those high-octane, pure-joy faces with teeth bent and noses crusted. The kids yelled and pumped their hands in the air as if they were prizefighters after a TKO, forcing me to stop beceause I was laughing so hard.

The smallest of the group, a little girl, pushed through the others. I could see the dress she wore was no more than a bedsheet with some creative stitching. It couldn't hide a bloated belly or limbs that should have been longer. What she didn't have in size, she had in affection and elan. Curiosity pushed her to swipe my leg, then stare at her fingers. I smiled and she reciprocated by hugging my knee with all her body would allow. Soon, too, the others.

A father's voice from a hut pulled them off my leg and forced a trot back to their homes. The man on the bicycle pedaled ahead. I stood in the middle of the dirt road, frozen, and I started to cry. Here was Africa.

The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister

This book gathers together a group of eight people at Lillian's restaurant every Monday for a cooking class. We are thrust into the stories of each of these people's lives and how they came to be in the class, starting with Lillian, the teacher.

The descriptions in this book are dripping with words, almost excessively so. In fact, the overuse of similes becomes comical after a while, and then progresses to irritating. When just about every sentence ends with one, you start to question the judgment of the editor.

What I did enjoy about the book, however, was the care the author took to creating a character who cooks by feel rather than being chained to a recipe. It shows how food can be a pleasure rather than the typical frazzled wives and moms who struggle to get dinner on the table every night.

Cassandra Campbell narrates the audio version of this book and has a sensual, lustrous voice. Perfect for the food porn that is described in its pages. Just a word of warning though: the descriptions of food in this book can quickly fling you into a binge. Don't read or listen to this on an empty stomach. You will be sorry.


The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister
First Published: January 2009
Pages: 256
Audience: Adult
Genre: Realistic Fiction

No Plot? No Problem! A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days by Chris Baty

Chris Baty is the founder of the literary world's infamous National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) every November. Every year I have my 6th graders participate in the Young Writers version of the program, but have never actually participated in it myself.

The adult version of NaNoWriMo proposes that you write a 50,000 word novel in one month's time. (The Young Writer's version allows the kids to choose their own word count.)
I always enjoy reading "how to write" books because it helps me hone my craft as a writer and a teacher. But this book stands out among the others because of its humor and its ability to make you want to get up and write a really crappy novel RIGHT NOW. The case that Baty makes for writing a novel in thirty days is simply this: so many of us (myself included) say, "Someday I'm going to write a book - when I have the time, and when I'm older and wiser." Baty is telling us t...more
I always enjoy reading "how to write" books because it helps me hone my craft as a writer and a teacher. But No Plot? No Problem! stands out among the others because of its humor and its ability to make you want to get up and write a really crappy novel RIGHT NOW. The case that Baty makes for writing a novel in thirty days is simply this: so many of us (myself included) say, "Someday I'm going to write a book - when I have the time, and when I'm older and wiser." Baty is telling us to STOP WAITING! The novel you could write today is just as valid and plausible as the one you could write thirty years from now.

Writing a novel in such a short time frame forces you to turn off your inner editor and just "git r done" which is what so many writers lay claim to when people ask them where they get their inspiration. Oftentimes, inspiration comes from just sitting down and writing a lot of crap, only later turning it into a literary masterpiece during the long and tedious revision process.

Not only is this book the motivational speech most of us need to sit down at the computer and start writing (and to keep writing when all hope seems lost) but it also has a lot of great writing exercises to get you through the difficult patches that are sure to come about during your 30 days chained to the computer. I highly recommend this book for anyone who's wanted to write a novel but procrastinated it into oblivion. Chris Baty will make you want to start writing before you even finish the first chapter.

Hot, Flat, and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution and How It Can Renew America by Thomas Friedman

I've gotta give Friedman credit. While a lot of this book was very slow-going and I will admit that I skimmed through quite a few places in the book that I felt were a bit over my head, I have to say that Friedman sure knows how to lay out a thesis. From what I remember about The World is Flat and now this book, he knows how to write a "Chapter 1" that draws everyone into his argument. Even though I skimmed through quite a few pages in this book, as a whole, I feel like this is a bo...more I read this book a year ago, but given the devastation that this BP oil well disaster is causing in the Gulf of Mexico, I can only pray that this moment is the impetus for the world to attempt to eradicate its dependence on fossil fuels. Complacency and maintaining the status quo are no longer acceptable. It's time to stop letting oil executives hoard money while they destroy our children's futures.

I've gotta give Friedman credit. While a lot of this book was very slow-going and I will admit that I skimmed through quite a few places that I felt were a bit over my head, I have to say that Friedman sure knows how to lay out a thesis. From what I remember about The World is Flat and now this book, he knows how to write a "Chapter 1" that draws everyone into his argument. Even though I skimmed through quite a few pages, as a whole, I feel like this is a book that all Americans should read - especially those in any sort of political office. Our American way of life just cannot continue at the pace it's going right now and Friedman gives not only explanations as to how this mess all started, but he actually gives some possible solutions. The solutions he gives are extremely large scale and not something easily solved, but if enough people in the political world can get behind his message, maybe it is possible.

What he said about oil and petrodictators really hit home for me. Especially when on p. 80 he quotes Peter Schwartz, the chairman of Global Business Network as saying American energy policy today is, "Maximize demand, minimize supply, and make up the difference by buying as much as we can from the people who hate us the most." Yeah, as Friedman says, "I can't think of anything more stupid."

I also thought it was very interesting the connection he made to urban Islam (Cairo-Istanbul-Damascus-Casablanca) vs. desert Islam (mainly Saudi) and how that has affected the climate of freedom in the Middle East. I was extremely appalled to find out that those urban Islam centers have been almost completely flushed out by Saudi investors who now control the media in those areas and dictate what the once progressive areas can watch and even what kinds of films they can make.

There were quite a few passages from this book that really hit home for me:

On pp. 8-9
In some ways, the subprime mortgage mess and housing crisis are metaphors for what has come over America in recent years. A certain connection between hard work, achievement, and accountability has been broken. We've become a subprime nation that thinks it can just borrow its way to prosperity - putting nothing down and making no payments for two years...as with our homes, so with our country: we have been mortgaging our future rather than investing in it.

On p. 93
I started mulling the First Law of Petropolitics after 9/11, reading its daily headlines and listening to the news. When I heard Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez, telling British prime minister Tony Blair to "go to hell" and telling his supporters that the U.S.-sponsored Free Trade Area of the Americas coalition "can go to hell" too, I couldn't help saying to myself: "I wonder if the president of Venezuela would be saying these things if the price of oil today were $20 a barrel rather than $60 or $70 a barrel and his country had to make a living by empowering its own entrepreneurs, not just drilling holes in the ground!"

On p. 177 on asking French president Nicolas Sarkozy a question at a journalists' breakfast:
"What would be the impact if America became the world leader on combating climate change rather than the world's laggard?" Sarkozy began by talking about his love for American culture: "I grew up listening to Elvis Presley... I grew up watching American films... America is a story of unprecedented economic success, unprecedented democratic success...I will always love America. So when I see the U.S. hated by everyone, it really pains me." And when America is not taking the lead on such an important global issue as climate change, added the French president, "I am asking, 'Where is the American dream? What happened? Where has it gone?...You are bounded by two oceans. You will be the first to be affected by rising sea levels. You should be setting the example. You should be spearheading the battle for the environment.'"

On pp. 241-242 on talking to a group of Chinese auto executives:
Every year I come to China and young Chinese tell me, "Mr Freidman, you Americans got to grow dirty for 150 years - you got to have your Industrial Revolution based on coal and oil - now it is our turn." Well on behalf of all Americans, I am here today to tell you that you're right. It's your turn. Please, take your time, grow as dirty as you like for as long as you like. Take your time! Please! Because I think my country needs only five years to invent all the clean power and energy efficiency tools that you, China, will need to avoid choking on pollution, and then we are going to come over and sell them all to you. We will get at least a five year jump on you in the next great global industry: clean power and energy efficiency. We will totally dominate you in those industries. So please, don't rush, grow as dirty as you like for as long as you want. If you want to do it for five more years, that's great. If you want to give us a ten-year lead on the next great global industry, that would be even better. Please, take your time.

On p. 245:
In what free market would you find the U.S. government slap a 54-cent a gallon tariff on sugarcane ethanol imported from Brazil, a democratic ally of the United States, while imposing only a 1.25 cent a gallon tariff on crude oil imported from Saudi Arabia, the home of most of the 9/11 hijackers? Only in a market where the American corn lobby has enough clout in Congress to prevent Brazilian sugar ethanol from competing with American corn ethanol.

On p. 259:
Socialism collapsed because it did not allow the market to tell the economic truth. Capitalism may collapse because it does not allow the market to tell the ecological truth.

On p. 265 when talking about conservative politicians complaining about gasoline taxes and what pro-green revolution politicians should say:
The American people certainly have been taxed quite enough I totally agree. Right now they are being taxed by Saudi Arabia, taxed by Venezuela, taxed by Russia, taxed by Iran, and, if we stay on this track, they'll soon be taxed by Mother Nature. And when Mother Nature starts taxing us there will be no politician you can call on the phone to get relief. So let's get one thing straight: My opponent and I are both for a tax. I just have this quaint, old-fashioned view that my taxes should go to the U.S. Treasury, not the Saudi Treasury, and not the Russian Treasury.

And finally, on p. 397:
It is much more important to change your leaders than your lightbulbs.

Educating Esme: Diary of a Teacher's First Year by Esme Raji Codell

The diary of Esme's first year as a teacher is everything it should be: endearing, discouraging, enlightening, uplifting, and tiring! It just goes to show you what one good teacher with heart can do for children - even at the hand of poverty, violence, and an incompetent administrator. What makes this such an entertaining read is Esme's strong voice as a writer and teacher. She doesn't hold back. But even when she's angry, you can tell that her words are said with love and passion.

I especially loved the following statement Esme said to a young, naive teacher who said she just wanted the students to like her: "It's not our job to be liked; it's our job to help them be smart." (87) I think of this statement every time I remember my junior high English teacher. I hated her when she was my teacher, but now that I think back to my entire schooling, she really impacted my life as a writer. So that attitude is the same for me. I don't care if they like me now. I hope that ten years from now they can look back and realize how instrumental I was in their education.

Travel as a Political Act by Rick Steves

Rick Steves is one of the foremost Americans who is lucky enough to travel for a living.He has built his business on the idea of traveling “through the back door.” Despite the snorts of snickers this phrase might impart on immature high school boys, his meaning is to take “the road less traveled” – though the very definition of someone carrying around a travel guidebook is generally not someone who is willing to take the road less traveled. Still, Steves tries to balance his guidebook recommendations, giving information on heavy-touristed must-sees (The Louvre, Buckingham Palace, Neuschwanstein Castle, etc.) and pleasantly surprising back door finds (A little souvenir shop in Berlin that will stamp your passport with a former East Berlin checkpoint stamp).

So if anyone has the right to preach the gospel of “how to travel”, it’s Rick Steves. And that’s just what he does in Travel as a Political Act – preach that is. It’s not excessively preachy, but you do get the sense that he does get a little self-righteous at times. But then again, he has every right to be. In his many years of travel, he has managed to gain a world perspective that is not easy to acquire by “vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime” (Twain) as so many Americans do.

There was so much good, quotable material in this book, that my post-it flags were working overtime:


During his talk of his time in Germany, I always sat up a little straighter, having myself spent two years of my life in Germany. I was moved by Steves’ description of their parliament building, the
Reichstag, one of my favorite buildings in Europe:

“Germany’s old-meets-new parliament building comes with powerful architectural symbolism. It’s free to enter, open long hours, and designed for German citizens to climb its long spiral ramp to the very top and literally look down (through a glass ceiling) over the shoulders of their legislators to see what’s on their desks. The Germans, who feel they’ve been manipulated by too many self-serving politicians over the last century, are determined to keep a closer eye on their leaders from now on.

Spiraling slowly up the ramp to the top of the dome during that festive opening week, I was surrounded by teary-eyed Germans. Now, anytime you’re surrounded by teary-eyed Germans… something exceptional is going on. Most of those teary-eyes were old enough to remember the difficult times after World War II, when their city lay in rubble. Forthese people, the opening of this grand building was the symbolic closing of a difficult chapter in the history of a great nation” (11-12).

Steves does assert many of his political leanings in this book and I’m sure that could turn people off on the other side of the political spectrum, but the message of this book goes beyond politics. It speaks to our very humanity and the need to understand how, despite our differences, people around the world are really the same. When you let the sensationalism and fear-mongering of the media dictate your judgments, that's how wars get started and that's how they continue to get perpetuated.

I was touched and impressed by Steves reporting on his trip to Iran. His thoughts were very balanced: giving the positives and negatives of the society, but all the while, remaining true to his political ideology: you should be forced to get to know people before you bomb them. During his time in Iran, he was met with nothing but friendly, amiable people, and while he was disturbed by many things, he also had many misconceptions of the Iranian people and culture obliterated.

If you have been hesitant to travel and see the world, I highly suggest you read this book. It just might change your mind.

360 Degrees Longitude: One Family's Journey Around the World by John Higham

This is the true story of John & September Higham packing up their lives, their jobs, their responsibilities, and setting off for an around the world adventure with their two kids for an entire year.

Not only was this book entertaining, but it reinforced the importance of travel to learn tolerance and understanding. It forces you to set aside your preconceived notions of culture and actually learn the truth beyond the propaganda.

It was crazy to read about the family's experiences in Thailand one day, and then, on their whim, just decide to up and go to Cambodia. To have that kind of freedom must be so completely different from the normal daily grind of American suburban life.

This book helps you realize a couple things about travel:
1) The media has a way of making you view the world through a specific lens - one of fear and propaganda. If you take away your frequent use of the media to get your information and force yourself to experience the world beyond the propaganda, and you actually find that people and cultures around the world are worth giving the benefit of the doubt.

2) The American dream is not everyone's dream. Americans have this mistaken notion that everyone around the world aspires to be like us. That is so not the case. Break down the arrogance and celebrate that others around the world love their culture and lifestyle just as much as we do.

I certainly could never do what the Highams did, but their story just helped reinforce why travel has become such an important part of my life.

Not only was this book a joy to read, but it adds an interactive experience to the mix: you can download a Google Earth file and travel along with the family as you read! This is a very cool feature that actually got me to explore Google Earth for the first time. I'm ashamed to admit I had never explored this application prior to this occasion. Now I think it's one of the coolest pieces of software ever!

The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin

Gretchen Rubin had an epiphany one rainy afternoon in the unlikeliest of places: a city bus. "The days are long, but the years are short," she realized. "Time is passing, and I'm not focusing enough on the things that really matter." In that moment, she decided to dedicate a year to her happiness project.

- Taken from Goodreads

I wasn't really a fan of this one. I like the idea of trying to find ways to fill your life with more happiness, I'm just not one who likes to quantify things, especially something as philosophical as happiness. I don't prefer charts and graphs and lists of strategies. I found Rubin's method incredibly exhausting and all I kept thinking about was how unhappy her method would make me if I attempted to carry it out. I do think that seeking happiness does involve some strategy, I just think Rubin's means of seeking it out was not the way I would go about it.

Don't get me wrong, I think her intentions were good and I admire her attempts, I just found myself having to skip entire sections because her method for going about seeking happiness felt so mundane to me.

What good I did take away from this book was:
1) Trying to find happiness in the mundane. Rather than doing something drastic a la Elizabeth Gilbert and travel the world, Rubin testifies that happiness is in our everyday moments.
2) The attempt to find ways to be more happy was not just for selfish reasons, but also so that she would be more prepared when that bad news wakes her from her sleep one night at 3 a.m.