Books 19 to 21 plus Two More
With the current situation of the coronavirus and all the closures to places I like to frequent, I find reading is one thing that can be done without much concern. Luckily I made it to the library before they closed and was able to pick up five more books. June 1 was the return date regardless if when checked out. I continue on my book reading quest.
This year, 2020, I have already completed nine books. My goal for the year is 24 which I should be able to reach easily. So here are the latest reads...
Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void is a non-fiction work by science author Mary Roach. Previously, I had reviewed two other books by Roach and I have found her a delight to read. She has a great sense of humor and enjoys to share, and in this novel it was at it's finest.
Published in August 2010, Packing for Mars was recognized in "Amazon's Best Books" of that month, it quickly became a #6 New York Times bestseller, and it was chosen as the book of the year for the 7th annual One City One Book: San Francisco Reads literary event program.
Wikipedia says it best: "In Packing for Mars, Mary Roach searches for answers to questions about the gross, the bizarre, and the uncomfortable aspects of space travel. The book's 16 chapters cover the entire comedic spectrum of all things space-related, and also include some study of the scientific side of space travel. The chapters discussing the various bodily functions of astronauts in space (going to the bathroom, having sex, vomiting) and obscure testing procedures (animals in space, lying in beds for months, parabolic zero-g) are balanced by the informative sections on topics such as the psychological effects of being in space, astronaut training, and the increasing use of human cadavers over crash test dummies in research."
But the story of the corned-beef sandwich, taken by Astronaut John Young as a gift to fellow astronaut Gus Grissom during the Gemini 3 mission is just too funny and also not well known. The offending sandwich came from a Cocoa Beach, Florida, deli called Wolfie's Restaurant and Sandwich Shop, at the Ramada Inn. Noted astronaut prankster Wally Schirra bought the sandwich and gave it to Young, who smuggled it on board in a spacesuit pocket. One member of Congress called it "a $30 million sandwich" and politicians cited safety concerns about crumbs interfering with spacecraft operations. The corned beef sandwich is now embedded in acrylic and is exhibited at the Grissom Memorial Museum in Mitchell, Ind.
I rate the book a 4.0 (Excellent) and would read anything by this author.
Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife, published in 2005, a non-fiction work by Mary Roach, is a humorous scientific exploration as to whether there is a soul that survives death. In Britain, the title of the book is Six Feet Over: Adventures in the Afterlife.
It was the recipient of the Elle Reader's Prize in October 2005. Spook was also listed as a New York Times Notable Books pick in 2005, as well as a New York Times Bestseller, and it was also an October Booksense pick.
Although the humor is still there, and she has some good stories to tell, this book was rated a 2.0 (Good) by me. It was also the fourth book I have read by Mary Roach.
The Color Purple is a 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker which won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction. It was later adapted into a film and musical of the same name.
Taking place mostly in rural Georgia, the story focuses on the life of African-American women in the Southern United States in the 1930s, addressing numerous issues including their exceedingly low position in American social culture.
Epistolary (I had to look it up) means written in the form of letters. These letters are mostly written by main character Celie, at the beginning as "Dear God" letters and then later addressed to her younger sister Nettie. There are some letters to Celie from Nettie. The form allows for short chapters and I personally feel a quicker read. It definitely deserves the awards it has won. I never saw the movie directed by Spielberg and starring Whoopi Goldberg as Celie. After reading the book, I may have to see it.
I rate the book a 3.0 (Great).
Far from the Madding Crowd (1874) is Thomas Hardy's fourth novel and his first major literary success. It originally appeared anonymously as a monthly serial in Cornhill Magazine, where it gained a wide readership.
The novel is the first to be set in Thomas Hardy's Wessex in rural southwest England. It deals in themes of love, honour and betrayal, against a backdrop of the seemingly idyllic, but often harsh, realities of a farming community in Victorian England. It describes the life and relationships of Bathsheba Everdene with her lonely neighbour William Boldwood, the faithful shepherd Gabriel Oak, and the thriftless soldier Sergeant Troy.
On publication, critical notices were plentiful and mostly positive. Hardy revised the text extensively for the 1895 edition and made further changes for the 1901 edition.
My personal feeling is that Hardy is a wonderful writer (although some of the archaic English words would send me to Google), and that his story was very good but I was able to predict some outcomes. Maybe I have been reading too much and I am starting to understand the basic structure of a story. I liked the name and character of Bathsheba Everdene, although my brain kept thinking of Katniss from The Hunger Games.
There was a movie made in 2015. At the time, it was not ever on my radar. Now, having read the book, I watched some of the videos on IMDB and seeing the characters on screen, I feel the need to see this movie.
I rated the book a 3.0 (Great).
Of Mice and Men is a novella written by John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it tells the story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers, who move from place to place in California in search of new job opportunities during the Great Depression in the United States.
Steinbeck based the novella on his own experiences working alongside migrant farm workers as a teenager in the 1910s (before the arrival of the Okies that he would describe in The Grapes of Wrath). The title is taken from Robert Burns' poem "To a Mouse", which reads: "The best laid schemes o' mice an' men / Gang aft agley". (The best laid schemes of mice and men / Often go awry.)
A second movie was made in 1992 which I never saw. It starred Gary Sinise and John Malkovich as the two main characters. The story is short and I was able to read it in just over a day. I liked it a lot and actually sat for 20 minutes after I finished it wondering about the story. I felt very sad.
In Wikipedia, there is a whole page on references to the story and references in popular culture.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Of_Mice_and_Men_in_popular_culture
I rated the Novella 3.5 (Great to Excellent).
This year, 2020, I have already completed nine books. My goal for the year is 24 which I should be able to reach easily. So here are the latest reads...
Extra #1: Packing for Mars by Mary Roach
Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void is a non-fiction work by science author Mary Roach. Previously, I had reviewed two other books by Roach and I have found her a delight to read. She has a great sense of humor and enjoys to share, and in this novel it was at it's finest.
Published in August 2010, Packing for Mars was recognized in "Amazon's Best Books" of that month, it quickly became a #6 New York Times bestseller, and it was chosen as the book of the year for the 7th annual One City One Book: San Francisco Reads literary event program.
Wikipedia says it best: "In Packing for Mars, Mary Roach searches for answers to questions about the gross, the bizarre, and the uncomfortable aspects of space travel. The book's 16 chapters cover the entire comedic spectrum of all things space-related, and also include some study of the scientific side of space travel. The chapters discussing the various bodily functions of astronauts in space (going to the bathroom, having sex, vomiting) and obscure testing procedures (animals in space, lying in beds for months, parabolic zero-g) are balanced by the informative sections on topics such as the psychological effects of being in space, astronaut training, and the increasing use of human cadavers over crash test dummies in research."
But the story of the corned-beef sandwich, taken by Astronaut John Young as a gift to fellow astronaut Gus Grissom during the Gemini 3 mission is just too funny and also not well known. The offending sandwich came from a Cocoa Beach, Florida, deli called Wolfie's Restaurant and Sandwich Shop, at the Ramada Inn. Noted astronaut prankster Wally Schirra bought the sandwich and gave it to Young, who smuggled it on board in a spacesuit pocket. One member of Congress called it "a $30 million sandwich" and politicians cited safety concerns about crumbs interfering with spacecraft operations. The corned beef sandwich is now embedded in acrylic and is exhibited at the Grissom Memorial Museum in Mitchell, Ind.
I rate the book a 4.0 (Excellent) and would read anything by this author.
Extra #2: Spook by Mary Roach
Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife, published in 2005, a non-fiction work by Mary Roach, is a humorous scientific exploration as to whether there is a soul that survives death. In Britain, the title of the book is Six Feet Over: Adventures in the Afterlife.
It was the recipient of the Elle Reader's Prize in October 2005. Spook was also listed as a New York Times Notable Books pick in 2005, as well as a New York Times Bestseller, and it was also an October Booksense pick.
Although the humor is still there, and she has some good stories to tell, this book was rated a 2.0 (Good) by me. It was also the fourth book I have read by Mary Roach.
#18: The Color Purple by Alice Walker
The Color Purple is a 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker which won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction. It was later adapted into a film and musical of the same name.
Taking place mostly in rural Georgia, the story focuses on the life of African-American women in the Southern United States in the 1930s, addressing numerous issues including their exceedingly low position in American social culture.
Epistolary (I had to look it up) means written in the form of letters. These letters are mostly written by main character Celie, at the beginning as "Dear God" letters and then later addressed to her younger sister Nettie. There are some letters to Celie from Nettie. The form allows for short chapters and I personally feel a quicker read. It definitely deserves the awards it has won. I never saw the movie directed by Spielberg and starring Whoopi Goldberg as Celie. After reading the book, I may have to see it.
I rate the book a 3.0 (Great).
Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
Far from the Madding Crowd (1874) is Thomas Hardy's fourth novel and his first major literary success. It originally appeared anonymously as a monthly serial in Cornhill Magazine, where it gained a wide readership.
The novel is the first to be set in Thomas Hardy's Wessex in rural southwest England. It deals in themes of love, honour and betrayal, against a backdrop of the seemingly idyllic, but often harsh, realities of a farming community in Victorian England. It describes the life and relationships of Bathsheba Everdene with her lonely neighbour William Boldwood, the faithful shepherd Gabriel Oak, and the thriftless soldier Sergeant Troy.
On publication, critical notices were plentiful and mostly positive. Hardy revised the text extensively for the 1895 edition and made further changes for the 1901 edition.
My personal feeling is that Hardy is a wonderful writer (although some of the archaic English words would send me to Google), and that his story was very good but I was able to predict some outcomes. Maybe I have been reading too much and I am starting to understand the basic structure of a story. I liked the name and character of Bathsheba Everdene, although my brain kept thinking of Katniss from The Hunger Games.
There was a movie made in 2015. At the time, it was not ever on my radar. Now, having read the book, I watched some of the videos on IMDB and seeing the characters on screen, I feel the need to see this movie.
I rated the book a 3.0 (Great).
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Of Mice and Men is a novella written by John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it tells the story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers, who move from place to place in California in search of new job opportunities during the Great Depression in the United States.
Steinbeck based the novella on his own experiences working alongside migrant farm workers as a teenager in the 1910s (before the arrival of the Okies that he would describe in The Grapes of Wrath). The title is taken from Robert Burns' poem "To a Mouse", which reads: "The best laid schemes o' mice an' men / Gang aft agley". (The best laid schemes of mice and men / Often go awry.)
A second movie was made in 1992 which I never saw. It starred Gary Sinise and John Malkovich as the two main characters. The story is short and I was able to read it in just over a day. I liked it a lot and actually sat for 20 minutes after I finished it wondering about the story. I felt very sad.
In Wikipedia, there is a whole page on references to the story and references in popular culture.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Of_Mice_and_Men_in_popular_culture
I rated the Novella 3.5 (Great to Excellent).
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