Nightstand (August 2011)

Has August flown by or what?

I can’t believe it’s already time for another Nightstand post. Unfortunately, I just took a batch of books back to the library, so you can’t see photos of what I’ve read (except what I’ve read since Saturday or kept back for review). Fortunately, I did log my books–and I even logged them online for the time being (since my computer is still in limbo.)

So, here’s my box of finished books followed by my list of books read:

Adult Fiction

• Crying Wolf by Peter Abrahams
  I expected suspense based on the front cover quote from Stephen King “–something obscured by barcode–merican suspense novelist.” This didn’t turn out as suspenseful as I expected, but that was a good thing from my point of view. Instead, it was an engaging if not exactly well-told story about a poor young man, a set of rich twins, and the dangers of crying wolf.
• The Gold Shoe by Grace Livingston Hill
  I started reading this on my way down to KC to skydive–and ended up reading the first seven chapters out loud to my traveling companions. I quoted a passage from this book in yesterday’s post
• Duskin by Grace Livingston Hill
• The Sacred Shore by Janette Oke and T. Davis Bunn

Adult Non-fiction

• Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua
  Why are Chinese children (or the children of Chinese immigrants) so much more likely than Western children to be prodigies? Amy Chua says it’s because of the way Chinese parents parent. Chua begins this memoir on a soapbox–and doesn’t quite get back down as she realizes (and reveals to us in story) that Chinese mothering isn’t working with her younger daughter. I enjoyed this quite a bit-but I can understand why it was so controversial when it first came out. Chua’s Chinese parenting sounds an awful lot like child abuse to Western ears–except that these Western ears tend to register the same complaints as she against “Western parenting”, making them much more likely to consider parenting on the Chinese end of the spectrum.
• God’s Diet by Dorothy Gault
  I reviewed this title here. Prepare for a mini-rant from this particular Registered Dietitian.
• Dave Barry is NOT making this up by Dave Barry
• My Fair Lazy by Jen Lancaster
  Jen Lancaster goes on a “Jenaissance”–freeing herself from the addiction of reality TV to become a “cultured woman”. I loved reading about Jen’s theatre-going experiences, pet troubles, and foot-in-mouth moments. I also loved that there was none of the conservative-bashing that seems so obligatory for memoirs these days. Jen happens to be a conservative herself, but she makes a point to leave her politics out of her writing (except inasmuch as the fact that she’s a conservative makes her even more fish-out-of-water among the hoity-toity culturata she’s now brushing shoulders with.)
• The Most Reluctant Convert by David C. Downing
  This was a very good biography of C.S. Lewis, discussing his religious life from childhood to conversion. I wrote a mini-review in my Chronicles of Narnia Reading Challenge wrap-up post

Juvenile Non-Fiction

• The Holocaust, Hitler, and Nazi Germany by Linda Jacobs Altman
  Not as well-organized as the other books in this series.

Juvenile Fiction

• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
  I had definitely forgotten a lot from when I read this as a child. I think I love this book. I quoted from it here.
• Little Men by Louisa May Alcott
  I might love the sequel even better. There’s something about a group of almost wild children… Rainbow Valley was one of my favorites in the Anne series. Should I be surprised that I’m also in love with Little Men (or Jo’s Boys, as it has alternately been titled-Whoops, guess I was wrong on this one. Jo’s Boys is a separate book, and one that sounds rather more sensational than the wholesome Little‘s.)?
• The Mystery in the Snow created by Gertrude Chandler Warner

Juvenile First Readers

• Bones and the Math Test Mystery by David A. Adler

Children’s Picture Books

• To & Fro, Fast & Slow by Durga Bernhard
• The Girl in the Castle inside the Museum by Kate Bernheimer
• The Tortoise and the Hare Race Again by Dan Bernstein
• The Curious Demise of Contrary Cat by Lynne Berry
• Are You Going to Be Good? by Cari Best
• Easy as Pie by Cari Best
• Goose’s story by Cari Best
• Last Licks by Cari Best
• Sally Jean the Bicycle Queen by Cari Best
• What’s so Bad about Being an Only Child? by Cari Best
• Three Cheers for Catherine the Great by Cari Best
• Shrinking Violet by Cari Best
• Montezuma’s Revenge by Cari Best
• Wolf Song by Mary Bevis
• The Artist by John Bianchi
• Welcome back to Pokeweed Public School by John Bianchi
• Spring Break at Pokeweed Public School by John Bianchi
• The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams Bianco
• The People with Five Fingers by John Bierhorst
• Turkey Bowl by Phil Bildner
• Twenty-One Elephants by Phil Bildner
• A Regular Flood of Mishap by Tom Birdseye
• Airmail to the Moon by Tom Birdseye
• Soap! Soap! Don’t forget the soap! by Tom Birdseye
• Look Out Jack! The Giant is Back! by Tom Birdseye

In addition to the books I’ve finished this last month, I have a number in progress (currently in a tote for easy travel!)

And I was unable to resist the lure of more books when I went to the library on Saturday, so I am almost certainly going to (once again) have to return books unread when I make my next trip down to the library in three weeks.

Don’t forget to drop by 5 Minutes 4 Books to see what others are reading this month!