Week 5B - Gulp

On the menu for this week is Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal by Mary Roach.

Mary Roach is sort of a science writer for the everyday person. Gulp is another book on a somewhat taboo subject, from the author that brought us Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers (another great book that I'd recommend to any curious person).  

In Gulp, Roach explores the psychology of what we eat and why we like (or don't like) those things, as well as the biology of what happens once we put food in our mouths. 

This book will answer questions like: "Why is crunchy food so appealing? Why is it so hard to find words for flavors and smells? Why doesn't the stomach digest itself? How much can you eat before your stomach bursts? Can constipation kill you? Did it kill Elvis?"

Recommendation: An interesting and funny book for anyone who has ever eaten or plans to eat in the future.

*Spoilers after the break*

Week 3B - The Language Instinct

This week's book is The Language Instinct: How the Mind Creates Language  by Steven Pinker.

I've been reading this book for about a thousand years (only a slight exaggeration). Back in college, my roommate took one linguistics course. I didn't even take the class, but she would tell me about some of the cool things she learned. I've always been interested in words and how things work, so when I saw this book recommended on an internet forum, I was intrigued. I picked up a copy from Half Price Books (which is one of my favorite places) and started to read.

This book was not, at least for me, a quick read. It is interesting and informative and witty, but also sometimes very technical and science-y. Along with eye opening examples and studies, the book gets into pages of sentence diagramming (giving me unfortunate flashbacks to fifth grade English class), as well as delving into sections of the brain (though now I know a bit about Broca's area and Wernicke's aphasia). That being said, it's taken me over a year to finish this book. I've read a chapter here and there for so long that it was very refreshing to finally reach the last sentence.

Who knew the brain is so colorful?

The Language Instinct: How the Mind Creates Language  by Steven Pinker, is everything you never realized you wanted to know about language: "how it works, how children learn it, how it changes, how the brain computes it, and how it evolved". Blending psychology and linguistics, this book shows that "language is a human instinct, wired into our brains by evolution".
   
Recommendation: If you have an interest in language, go for it. (The book does get a bit technical, so it may take some will power to finish.)

*note: this book was published 20 years ago, so there is new information about a lot of things discussed.

*Spoilers after the break*

Week 2B - Gathering Blue

For this week's book report, I read Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry. 

I picked this book up a few years ago and never got around to reading it. It's set in the same universe as The Giver, which was one of my favorite books as a kid.

I think I've seen maybe one trailer for this

The main character in Gathering Blue is a girl called Kira. She has a crippled leg, in a society where the sick and weak are left in a field to be eaten by beasts (So she's already in a pretty rough situation). When her mother dies, Kira is protected by the Council of Guardians. In return, Kira is tasked with using her skills as a weaver on an important project. Her talents not only keep her alive, but they also get her special privileges and lead her towards the secrets of her community.

Recommendation: quick book to read on a rainy afternoon.

*Spoilers after the break*

Week 1A - The Smartest Kids in the World: and how they got that way

As you may or may not know, I am friends with, or related to, a lot of teachers. Seriously, so many teachers. Because I talk to so many educators I regularly find myself in conversations about education, policy, different teaching styles, etc. So I found this week's book really interesting. I honestly don't recall how I came upon The Smartest Kids in the World, but I'm glad I did.

No cool 'on location' pictures to add, because I have this downloaded on my Kindle app.

I read T.S.K.i.t.W. in a dental waiting room. The chair was uncomfortable. The soothing music was not very soothing. The receptionist had the sniffles, bless her heart. Despite all of these aggravating distractions, I wasn't aggravated or distracted.

Waiting rooms are a special kind of hell.

Author Amanda Ripley asks "What is the best way to educate children?". Her search takes her to Finland and South Korea, and includes accounts from three American teens studying abroad for a year. Ripley considers how differences in culture, socioeconomic standing, the expectations for students, and parental involvement all impact the learning experience. This book is well researched and engaging.

Recommendation Level: Good for parents, educators, people who make laws and policy about education, anyone-who-cares-about-America-being-the-best-and-investing-in-our-country's-future, a white elephant gift...

*Spoilers after the break*

Week 1B - A Wrinkle in Time

A few weeks ago I was helping my mom pack up her classroom, as school was over. Of the many boxes we packed, one was filled with a classroom set of this book. Even though it's a classic, I've never read it before. My mom handed me a copy and told me to take it home to read.

And thus A Wrinkle in Time came to sit around my room for a month.

I was out of town last week, enjoying a family reunion of sorts. When my boisterous cousins got to be a bit much, I settled into a quiet room and read. I finished a couple books, including this one. I did, however, neglect to write my book report (my bad), but in my defense, we were in Arizona and it was boiling lava hot (as you know, extreme heat is not conducive to writing).

basically Arizona

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle, is the story of high school student, Meg Murry, who goes on an intergalactic mission to save her scientist father. Meg is accompanied by her little brother, Charles Wallace and their school friend, Calvin.

I'm not really into science fiction, so I found it difficult to get into the story; however, once I got to the main conflict, I came to enjoy the book quite a bit.

Recommendation level: If you've got a spare Saturday morning, why not?

*Spoilers after the break*

Preface

Thank you for joining us at Simply Book Drunkards. I'm Angel and like my sister, I love to read...now.

That wasn't always the case. In fact, I remember a summer when my Mom actually paid me to read. That interested my 8 year old self, because even at that age I loved to shop. I wasn't paid much, something like $0.50/book; man did I fly through The Baby-sitters Club and The Boxcar Children series. Fortunately for my Mom (and unluckily for Mr. Pig E. Bank), I grew to enjoy reading for the sake of a good story even without the allure of monetary gain. 

I've spent a couple of hours each week during the last school year as a tutor for Reading Partners. Seriously, if you haven't heard of them check them out at http://readingpartners.org/, and sign up to be a volunteer. It's an awesome organization that makes a difference in the lives of children.

I have a true passion for the written word, although because of reasons I've lately neglected recreational reading.

However, there's nothing like a challenge to get me back into my reading groove. We'll follow our "rules", avoid punishments, and learn something new along the way.

I'm excited to start this experiment and hope you'll join us for our adventure!

Best wishes and happy reading, 
Angel

Prologue

Welcome to Simply Book Drunkards. My name is Brandy and I love to read.

I didn't always love to read though. My mom often tells this story from my youth. I was five years old, quietly reading a book, when she asked me to read it aloud to her. I just looked at her for a moment before closing the book and saying, “I can’t read, Mom; I’m in kindergarten.”

Fortunately, I finally realized that I was indeed literate, through the efforts of my parents. Throughout my childhood, my parents continued to read with my sister and me daily. Both of my parents are teachers now, and I know firsthand how effective they are in fostering a love of learning in children. So, thanks.

Unfortunately, no matter how much I love reading, I've been lax in finishing books as of late. My room is full of piles of unread or unfinished books I've picked up over the years at second hand bookshops and bargain bins. Earlier this year I even renewed my public library card. I checked out and read five or six books that month, and then promptly forgot it existed. I have to get better library habits. 

The point is, I was visiting my sister a couple weeks ago and we got to talking about reading. I wanted to start reading more, and what better way is there to motivate yourself than to compete with your siblings? I challenged my sister to read a book a week. This blog is where we’ll keep ourselves honest by reporting our reading. (Like middle school book reports, only more actually interesting.)

To make this work, we've made rules.

We also want to expand our horizons as we read, so we've stipulated a few mandatory genres outside of our normal book picks (romance book, here I come). We’ll each post a book report once a week (I’ll be on Tuesdays and Sister will be on Thursdays).

Cheers and Happy Reading,

Brandy

p.s. For the record, these days I'm happy to read aloud if asked ("I've graduated college, Mom; I can read."). Perhaps one day we can read and do a book report on my novel (is it cheating to do a book report on a book you've written?).