May 2006 booklist

Not quite the end of the month, but close enough for my purposes.

1. Talk to the Hand, Lynne Truss (audio book)
   Another exercise-time  book. Great to read as a book, but also delightful read aloud by the author. (British accent!)

2. The Godfather, Mario Puzo
   In preparation for the movie, which is considerably tamer than the book. A re-read.
    
3. The Martian Chronicles, Ray Bradbury
   Obviously the work of a brilliant mind. I was astonished at the complexity and uniqueness of many of the stories. But it was still unsettling, still that quality of dis-ease that I've found in all his other work. It's more about the spareness of his writing than any words he does or does not use. It always just makes me uncomfortable. And yet I still enjoyed it. ...?

4. The Endless Knot, Steven Lawhead
   Another re-read. Good, as always. The ending makes me sad, but it's the only way it could be. (Kind of like LotR.)

5. The Virgin Suicides, Jeffrey Eugenides
   Interesting, but I'm not quite sure what all the hoopla is about. Parts of it were quite brilliant, but I don't like books that don't give you the answers. 

6. Captivated, John and Staci Eldridge
   *snicker* (Sorry.)

7. The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell
   I think I still liked Blink (his second book) better, but it's all facinating. I'm not even sure how to describe this one, except that it's about what makes some trends/brands/fashions take off while others fail. Great non-fiction.

8. Guards! Guards! Terry Pratchett
   I think I only have about four Pratchetts left to read. =\ So sad. This one was about...well, Here Be Dragons. It was good, but not one of my favorites.

 

And in other news...

I could say something like, "gee, it's great to be back home", only it's not great, just good. I'm one of those souls that is happy away and happy at home. (But I do miss you, oh, I do miss you.)

My flights were great, the captains were friendly and gregarious. I enjoyed my brief stay in Cincinatti again, and took time for a nice (non-quiet) supper at Moe's Bar and Grill, where I slipped on the wooden floor and fell over in an amusing manner, but that was before the wine, not after.

When I got home I unpacked everything in half an hour (!), and slept well and soundly. It was a beautiful thing.

And now I've jumped back into Life with both feet. This morning I enjoyed coffee with frothed milk. (The frother works wonderfully!) I set up a meeting with a man I'd never met and successfully carried it off and got accomplished what I needed done. I've worked through a mountain of Interlibrary Loans and done a bunch of other stuff, all very urgent but not very interesting to the outside world.

(I think I'm going to read Guns, Germs, and Steel next. I wrapped up most of my books before I left, so I'm in the delightful position of getting to choose a whole new crop of books to begin.)