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Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal by Mary Roach (she of the interesting and quirky non-fiction books with one-word titles: Bonk, Stiff, Spook).
Yes, I enjoy her work a lot-I own "Bonk" & "Stiff", and have read "Packing for Mars" (about astronaut training/space travel).
She writes about stuff that I'm interested in, but that I wouldn't be able to watch a show about, because I get too squeamish over visual depictions-
but I can read the material just fine, so thank goodness for her books.
Just saw Daily Show interview this past week about "Gulp", then went to the town's library & suggested it as an acquisition.
If they get it (and I think they will), I'll get first crack at it-here's hoping
Merely from the interview, I learned that our stomach lining rebuilds itself every 3 days.
Jon Stewart asked why our stomachs don't digest themselves, since we can eat all sorts of things (incl. organ meats/other animals' innards).
Her reply was that to a degree, our stomach's do consume themselves, but that we gradually & perpetually (well, so long as things are functioning ideally) regenerate/replace these parts.
Know that I've heard that the entire human body replaces itself (at cellular level) every seven years-I'll understand all this better once I can read the book.
Also reserved a book my dear aunt recommended to me, Cheryl Strayed's "Tiny Beautiful Things" (collection of essays/her online advice columns).
It's due back in a week (from the person who has it checked out) so I expect I'll pick it up then.
I have trouble with fiction that is unrelenting grim. Not so much with grim non-fic, because history and life are, well, often grim, but that doesn't mean I want to see it in my fiction.
Have you ever been absolutely torn by the reviews?
I noticed a lot of posts talking about Burgess Boys, but it wasnt until Ketabcha mentioned OLIVE KITTERIDGE that any of this registered so thank you .
I read Olive because of this forum, and I did really enjoy it. So I guess Burgess Boys will go on my list as well. I just have to read to make progress on it
I'm currently reading The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad, which is April's pick for the book club I run at the library. It's very well written and an interesting topic (Afghan customs, laws, women's rights, etc), so I am enjoying it. But I'm only about a third of the way through, and we meet on Tuesday... so I'd better get cracking!!
Last edited by gizmo980; 04-07-2013 at 01:36 AM..
Reason: Thanks for the correction, anonymous repper. ;)
I'm currently reading The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad, which is April's pick for the book club I run at the library. It's very well written and an interesting topic (Afghani customs, laws, women's rights, etc), so I am enjoying it. But I'm only about a third of the way through, and we meet on Tuesday... so I'd better get cracking!!
Good choice.
I read that book when it first came out. The author, Ms. Seirstad, was sued by the "bookseller" after it became a hit. He didn't win. It's an interesting and true story, as you know, and the insights into the culture, religion and laws of Afghanistan give the reader an idea of what women have to put up with in Afghanistan. Luckily, some things have changed. Women have more of a voice. Some are even police.
I read that book when it first came out. The author, Ms. Seirstad, was sued by the "bookseller" after it became a hit. He didn't win. It's an interesting and true story, as you know, and the insights into the culture, religion and laws of Afghanistan give the reader an idea of what women have to put up with in Afghanistan. Luckily, some things have changed. Women have more of a voice. Some are even police.
Yeah, I think so too! Most of my book club members are well-educated senior ladies (and 1-2 men), who were craving something more intellectual... they gave me slack for the last two selections, The Amateur Marriage and Between, Georgia, for being too "trivial." So I'm hoping this and next month's selection, The Master and Margarita, will whet their appetites for something heavier.
And I'm glad to hear things have improved in Afghanistan. Some of the things I've read in the book just make me sad, especially from my perspective as a woman and librarian - and as an American, it also makes me very grateful for our freedoms.
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ketabcha
I read Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout in 2009. It won the Pulitzer. I feel like a name-dropper.
It is a totally character-driven book and at first meeting each of the characters I wanted to bop them upside the head because I didn't like any of them. And then....and then I did like them. I actually loved most of them. So, what does this have to do with the price of corn? Well....just about everything.
I just finished Strout's The Burgess Boys. Strout is good (or bad) about showing us the flaws of the characters from the get go. I had forgotten that. So, I was not fond of any of them and then I began to like them and, finally, I loved them.
Is it better to like a person immediately and then learn to detest them or to detest them at first and end up loving them? Am I so hot and then cold or just the opposite? Heck if I know. What I do know is that in Elizabeth Strout's books (well, the two that I have read) I am totally emotional about the folks who inhabit her stories.
I know I rave about particular books a lot of the time except for The Dinner... WAIT! I did rave about it. I hated it. Anyways (that word plays a rather small part in The Burgess Boys and I never use it with an s on the end) is a very fine novel. I just finished it and OMG! I loved it. I loved it so much that I am actually crying. Yeah, I'm weird. Always have been. But this novel is so outstanding that I might even manage to take off my robe and go buy a Frosty. Then again, maybe not.
Read it if you want to. It's great, trust me on that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mayvenne
I noticed a lot of posts talking about Burgess Boys, but it wasnt until Ketabcha mentioned OLIVE KITTERIDGE that any of this registered so thank you .
I read Olive because of this forum, and I did really enjoy it. So I guess Burgess Boys will go on my list as well. I just have to read to make progress on it
I tried -- for the second time -- reading The Burgess Boys. I got a bit further than I did on the first try, but I can't get past the dialogue.
Ketabcha: Is it just me, or is the dialogue just... off... stilted... unrealistic?
I don't think that I'm going to try for a third time. I think that this book is just not in my cards.
I tried -- for the second time -- reading The Burgess Boys. I got a bit further than I did on the first try, but I can't get past the dialogue.
Ketabcha: Is it just me, or is the dialogue just... off... stilted... unrealistic?
I don't think that I'm going to try for a third time. I think that this book is just not in my cards.
Gosh, Dawn, I had no problem with the dialog. I did have a problem with some of the things that the sister and brother said to the third sib but that usually involved mean name-calling. I loved the book and had no problem with it at all.
I'm about to pick-up and start two books: The Fault in Our Stars & Salvage the Bones.
Have you read other John Green? I haven't read The Fault in Our Stars but my 15 year old son has it in a boxed set, and I've read Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns, also by John Green, and was surprised at how much I really enjoyed them both. In fact, Looking for Alaska actually caused me to pull an all-nighter and I haven't done that for a book in a very long time!
Of course this is all very bad because here I am, decades later, still avoiding my assigned readings in favor of my chosen readings (have a ton of stuff to read for an English lit exam next week!). Never learn!
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