Case Closed? Nine Mysteries Unlocked by Modern Science by Susan Hughes is a fun look into nine mysterious disappearances, many going back to ancient times.
The book is definitely geared toward middle grade readers. The language was on a level younger kids could understand, and larger words (like Anthropology) that young kids might not have come into contact with previously are explained in a way that does not make the reader feel stupid or condescended to. And, the author also included a glossary in the back of the book to use as a reference guide.
This is a great starting point, and would definitely be a book I'd direct children toward if they showed an interest in history, or science. My main complaint with this book is that there wasn't a lot of detail. Both our introduction to the original mystery, and its resolution were told with just the basic facts presented. Knowing that this is a book geared toward younger kids makes that understandable and acceptable, but I still found myself wishing for more detail. But, this is a great place to start. If mysterious disappearances intrigue you, this is likely a book you will enjoy as a starting point, but don't expect very much new information if you are already familiar with the cases.
Although I did enjoy reading this book, it doesn't cross over for adults as well as I'd hoped. However, I do not fault the author or the book for that, because it is meant to be a place to initially learn about some of these disappearances, and it was written for kids. If you have kids who are interested in history or science, I'd definitely recommend picking up a copy of this book and giving it a shot.
*Disclaimer: Review copy received from the author/publisher in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
John Lennon: All I Want is the Truth, a Photobiography by Elizabeth Partridge is not a book I would have chosen to read on my own. I read it because I want to read every Printz Honor and Award, and this book won the Honor in 2006.
I've never been interested in the personal lives of celebrities. I just don't care. So, I wasn't expecting to love this book. And I didn't. But, that was probably more because I wasn't particularly fond of the subject matter than because of the writing or presentation of Partridge. The book is presented as a photobiography, which I generally enjoy. But, John Lennon was not really a person to admire, and I find it hard to enjoy reading any biography if I don't much care for the subject.
I really enjoy the music of The Beatles. I grew up listening to their music with my dad, and my favorites are always able to bring a smile to my face or call up a fond memory. And, there is no doubt about the fact that they changed the face and future of music. But, liking their music doesn't mean I'm terribly interested in their personal histories.
And really, John Lennon is not a person who made it easy to like him. I felt like most of the information related about Lennon was negative. He was moody, felt a huge sense of entitlement, just knew he was so misunderstood, and felt that he was above normal standards of conduct, even before they became super famous. It just got worse after. He wasn't terribly loyal, and turned away from the people who loved him most. He's not a person to look up to or aspire to be like. I find that I respect his music, but have very little, if any, respect for who he was.
Maybe that makes me a bad person, or maybe I'm just another one of those who misunderstands, but I don't really care. He wasn't a nice person, and I don't feel like I have to respect that.
I've decided that awards committees really like the photobiography. There are several photobiographies on the Newbery list, both winners and honors, and then this. The book is well written, well researched, and the information was presented well, but I don't know why it would be widely read, unless you are a huge Beatles or Lennon fan, or are like me and trying to read the whole list.
The Voice that Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights by Russell Freedman is an in depth look at the life and career of Marian Anderson, and what impact her career had on the 1960s Civil Rights movement.
Before picking this book up, I didn't really know who Marian Anderson was. The name sounded vaguely familiar, but I couldn't have told you who she was. When I think of the Civil Rights movement, I think of the main people associated with that — the ones you learn about in school — Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and the Montgomery, AL bus boycotters, the lunch counter sit in crew and Malcom X. I'd never thought much about performers and the impact they might have.
Marian Anderson was a young black woman who loved to sing. She sang in her church choir, and after a series of sacrifices made by both her and the members of her community and congregation, she was able to begin a successful singing career in the time when very few people who weren't ethnically Caucasian had a chance. Her abilities as a vocalist and her wide international fame made it possible for her to take a stance on equal rights and have people listen.
As her fame grew, she refused to sing for segregated audiences, and when Constitution Hall, owned by the Daughter's of the American Revolution in Washington D.C. refused her the chance to preform because she was black, she and her good friend, Elanor Roosevelt (the first lady) staged a free concert on the steps of The Lincoln Memorial.
She was an incredible woman, who didn't apologize to anyone for who or what she was. She had a firm sense of self, and a strong character. Reading this book, I was amazed at the impact she had on moving the Civil Rights Movement forward.
This isn't the first Freedman biography I've read, and I have to say that I like his style. It's easily accessible for younger kids, but contains enough information that they are a great starting place for adults as well. He uses a lot of photos to illustrate his points, and they really help to bring the subject of the biography (or photobiography) alive.
I read this book because it won the 2005 Newbery Honor Award, but it's a great book to read if you are interested in her life, classical singers, or the impact of some of the lesser known, but still influential, members of the Civil Rights Movement.
This clip is a video of Marian Anderson singing Ave Maria in German.
* Disclaimer — I received an unbound copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair an unbiased review.
Thumbing Through Thoreau is an illustrated collection of quotations from Henry David Thoreau, compiled by Kenny Luck. According to the introduction, Kenny Luck is an avid fan of Thoreau. In Luck's words, Thoreau is his "literary and intellectual soul mate." This book is his chance to gather the best of Thoreau's writings, ideas, and philosophies into one place and make it accessible for everyone.
Before I go into my review of this book specifically, I need to make clear my opinion of Thoreau generally. I read Civil Disobedience in high school and rather enjoyed it. We also spent sometime discussing several major quotations from Walden and discussing those short passages and individual quotations. I found them interesting and thought provoking. I read Walden last year in it's entirety, and had none of the positive feelings for Thoreau I experienced in high school. I found his writings to be pompous, pretentious, and demonstrative of an over inflated sense of self and self importance, not to mention a little self-righteous. So knowing that I don't particularly love Thoreau, why would I accept a book of Thoreau's writing for review? Because I recalled those positive emotions from high school reading small excerpts and individual quotations, which is exactly what this book is! Complete with illustrations!
I decided I would read the book, because I prefer reading Thoreau as individual quotations, and I also liked the idea of the illustrations. The illustrations were lovely. The illustrations were produced by two different artists, with all of Jay Luke's illustrations on the even-numbered pages, and all the odd-numbered pages illustrated by Ren Adams. Each picture is simple but striking. More often than not, the illustrations have very little, if anything, to do with the actual quotation on the page, but instead depict a natural setting. Some are nothing more than the branch of a tree, or an individual flower. Others are more complex landscapes showing trees near bodies of water or rather detailed trees. Although, I am going to admit that when I read several quotations in a row, the illustrations did begin to blend together. Taken individually, the illustrations are each wonderful. When you begin to group them all together, they also start to run together.
However, the main complaint I had with this book was the font. (Feel free to use the 'search inside' feature on amazon.com to see what I mean. in my blog.) The quotations are printed using different sized font for the various words, as well as different shades of gray or black. I imagine the bolded words are those that Luck believed to be of more importance, and requiring emphasis. However, I like to think that I can figure out the important words on my own. I'm rather of the mind that the type of people who would be interested in piking up and reading this book already know how to determine which words are more important in a quotation. It was especially annoying on those occasions where I found myself disagreeing with the words he chose to tell me were more important. **Edit: I was just informed by the publisher (see the comments section) that the bolded words were not actually chosen by the author, and were instead included for purely aesthetic purposes. It makes me smile more fondly on the author, for not supposing he knows better than anyone else which words are more important (sorry about that Kenny...) but I still don't like the shifting font types. I think it detracts from the reading and changes the way you internalize the quotations. ** End of Edit.
I do very much appreciate the idea behind this book. I believe that it makes Thoreau more accessible to people. He isn't an easy man to read for everyone. I know some people who adored Walden and Thoreau and others who can't abide him. I think that this book would be a great addition to anyone's bookshelf. It makes Thoreau easier to approach and the illustrations were lovely. This book would be perfect as a 'coffee table book.' You know, the books that sit on the table waiting for people to glance through, and making the host/hostess look very well-versed. I can see myself picking up a bound copy of this book in the future, and having it displayed somewhere in my home. Very few people decide to sit down and read an entire book of quotations, but this is the perfect type book to take slowly, reading only a few at a time, and to flip through when you don't have the time to sit down and read from your book, but would still like to be reading.
If you like Thoreau, want to like Thoreau, or are interested in getting a glimpse of Thoreau's ideals before you invest in his complete writings, this is a great book to look into. Luck did an amazing amount of research before compiling these quotations and he has a wide variety of sources, including personal letters, and Thoreau's journals in addition to his published works.
If you would like more information about the book, or about Kenny Luck (who did participate in the 69th Annual Thoreau Society Gathering at Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts in July, 2010) you can visit the website for the book, http://www.thumbingthroughthoreau.com. Here you can find photos from the above mentioned Thoreau Society Gathering, additional information about the author and illustrators as well as samples of the illustrations. Head on over, check it out, and let me know what you think!
*Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
I know I am, but what are you? is a book written by Samantha Bee, currently the Most Senior Correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. I haven't watched a lot of The Daily Show, because I don't really watch much TV, but I've seen a few clips and it always makes me laugh. So, I don't really know how funny Samantha is on TV, but I can tell you that she is hilarious in writing.
This book is a memoir, or more accurately, a collection of personal essays detailing the many adventures of young Samantha. She adopts a frank and droll tone as she discusses the events from her past with an almost resigned acceptance. Her writing is so clear, and her voice so well drafted that there were times I could almost hear her sigh and admit, Yes. That really is what happened. This really is my life.
Although her stories were funny, what really made this book for me was her writing. She has such a strong voice as she writes that I think she could probably make a quiet Thursday evening watching TV into something wildly entertaining. Some of the stories that she told felt a little like that. They were interesting, but told by someone else would probably end up as one of those stories that trail off awkwardly as the teller looks embarrassed and mumbles, Well, you probably just had to be there...
I didn't really know what to expect when I accepted this book. Although I enjoy comedy and humorous writing, there's a pretty thin line between really funny — makes you laugh out loud — and the wow, you really just said that?! I know you are trying to be funny, but maybe you should stop. You all know how those situations go. Someone thinks they are so funny, but no one else seems to agree. I never once felt like Samantha was trying too hard with this book. It was just the perfect blend of an interesting story, good writing, comedic timing, fact, and probably just a little bit of fiction. I don't know how much creative license Samantha Bee used when telling the story of her life, but whatever it is she did, it definitely worked for me.
I laughed out loud reading this book more than I can remember ever laughing before. And, since I read this book on more than one occasion in public, it made for some interesting conversations, and some really awkward looks. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. From the pictures and the reader comments on the dust jacket to the very last line, this is a wonderfully entertaining and amusing book.
I recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of The Daily Show, anyone who has ever felt like their life is too weird for words, and everyone who likes to laugh. I can only hope that Samantha Bee will be writing more in the future.
And, stay tuned because the awesome publishers have made copies of this book available to giveaway! More information coming soon!
Although I have always enjoyed history and love learning about the past, a lot of non-fiction tends to be very dry and tedious. It is informative and the information itself is interesting, but the delivery often leaves much to be desired. It is always a treat to find an author who can write history and keep it interesting.
The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir is a wonderful example of that. Ms. Weir delivers a very informative, yet highly entertaining account of Henry the VIII; one of England's most notorious monarchs. Henry's desperation to father a son led to one of the greatest scandals in English history. Before reading this book, I knew the basics about Henry's reign. I knew that he married 6 women and had a reputation for beheading those women who displeased him, his desire to marry Anne Boleyn initiated the break between England and the Catholic church, because the Pope wouldn't grant him a divorce and his two living daughters were both rather famous monarchs in their own right.
Because I knew very little actual information about this period of English history, but have always been fascinated by what I heard, I decided to pick up this book and learn a little more about King Henry and his outrageous court. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed reading this book. The book was very well written and flowed from one sequence of events to another very smoothly. Although this was non-fiction, it read more like a novel than the typical dry recitation of historical facts.
The first half of the 600+ page book was dedicated to Catherine of Aragon, Henry's first wife and Anne Boleyn, his second. Catherine was married to Henry for 24 years and is the only wife to have been married to Henry for longer than 4 years. During the later years of his marriage to Catherine, Henry's attentions began shifting toward Anne Boleyn, one of the ladies of the court. While it makes sense to devote so much of the book to these two women, the history here did get a little repetitious. I was also a little disappointed because none of the other wives were given as much detail as the first two. Although I did wish for a little more detailed information to be given on the remaining 4 wives, I understand why there was less to say of the others. I mean, Katherine Howard was only 19 when she was married to King Henry, and she was executed after only 2 years of marriage, and Anne of Cleves was married to Henry for less than a year. I did love that interspersed throughout the story of each of these women was the connections to the other women in Henry's life, as well as information about what had happened or what was happening to each of the previous queens. That is something that would have been missing from individual biographies on these six women that I was grateful was included.
Overall, this was a book well worth reading. The facts were well researched, the history informative, and the writing engaging. I will definitely be picking up other books by this author in the future.
The Story of Mankind by Hendrik van Loon was awarded the very first Newbery Medal in 1922. I decided a few years ago that I wanted to read and own every Newbery Award Winner. Given that this won the first Newbery, I was excited to read it, even though I had heard some less than favorable things about the writing.
Let me first admit that I skimmed a vast majority of this book. I started the book with the full intention of reading everything as normal, but it didn't take long for me to realize that I would never get through the book if I tried to read without skimming.
The one positive thing I can say about this book is that Hendrik van Loon took on an impossibly difficult topic. He tried to fit the entire history of mankind into one book. This must have taken huge amounts of time and research, and I give the man props for that. However, that is about the positive thing I can say about the book.
While reading, it is painfully obvious that van Loon thinks himself to be terribly witty and clever, but he's not. At all. He's dry and dull and tries too hard to be entertaining, instead of just letting the history tell itself.
I was also rather confused at the way he broke up history, and what time periods he gave more weight to. In a book that only has 485 pages to talk about the entire history of mankind from when we were amoebas until the 1920s, there are only a few pages to talk about different parts of history. But why would you spend 4 pages on Ancient Egypt and 13 on chivalry in the Medieval Era?! This feels a bit backwards to me.
Overall, this is not a book I'd recommend. The only reason I read it was so that I could complete the Newbery list, and I admit to feeling a huge sense of accomplishment now that it's done. But man, was it a struggle to get through.
Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt & Stephen J. Dubner is a book that's been sitting on my shelf for about 3 years now. It was a text book for one of my Political Science classes in college. This book was used entirely for in class discussion. All of my classes that semester had a large reading load, and this one didn't seem as important to get read as the actual texts and published articles.
I read the first 3 chapters along with the class, before I prioritized (well, probably more like got lazy) and set it on the back burner. But, I enjoyed the book and the information it presented, and I've always planned to go back and read it. So, I added it to my Fill-in-the-Gaps list, and on my list for Adam's TBR Challenge, over at Roof Beam Reader.
I liked this book. A lot. The writing is mostly smooth, and the questions asked and the information presented is readable, entertaining, and interesting. Levitt is a somewhat unorthodox economist, claiming he isn't very good with numbers, and the traditional economic subjects don't interest him too much. He'd much rather decipher why drug dealers still live with their mothers if they are all supposed to be rich, or whether or not your name can really make a difference in your future careers. Dubner is a journalist who interviewed Levitt. They liked working together, and decided to collaborate on a book, detailing some of the studies and analysis they did to answer some of these questions.
I liked that the questions asked were a little unusual, but also relevant and pertinent to life. Economics can be broken down into the study of incentives, and it's interesting to note what they believe to be highly motivating. Incentives aren't always monetary. They can also be social, and moral. These incentives are often connected. Breaking apart or changing these incentives give us an added insight into human behavior, and why people do what they do. I don't know that I agree with everything they theorize about in this book, but I can say that they have done a very thorough job with their research, and it was never dull.
It's not a book for everyone, but then — I don't think much non-fiction is. But, this is a book that will make you think a little differently about the world and ask a new set of questions, even if it only happens while actually reading the book. I'm glad I finally finished this one. It was definitely worth it.
Have any of you read this book, or their blog? What do you think?
