The Most
of Nora Ephron
By Nora
Ephron
After
finishing The Most of Nora Ephron, I have to say that it is one of the
best books I’ve ever read. Nora Ephron
was a great writer. She was positive, funny
and wise. Robert Gottlieb did a great job putting the selection together
posthumously, although it was started with Ephron prior to her passing. The
selections, all previously published, included newspaper columns, blog posts, a
novel, play and screenplay. She was a
feminist, a foodie and, in the end, an aging woman. I’ve tabbed her recipes and her words of
wisdom. Her hilarious writing helped me
through a long, dark winter. It’s
definitely a book I’ll revisit. I'd give
it an A+++. The Most of Nora Ephron
is definitely a GREAT read!
Lots of
Candles, Plenty of Cake
By Anna
Quindlen
Lots of
Candles, Plenty of Cake was definitely a real treat.
Anna Quindlen has the life experiences to which many women can
relate. Her words are always written
with sensitivity and humor. This book,
written at sixty, rang true to me.
Looking back at her life, she covered a wide range of topics. My favorite quote from the book is one about
parenting:
It is the ultimate pay-it-forward
endeavor: we are good parents not so they will be loving enough to stay with
us, but so they will be strong enough to leave us. Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake is a book worth reading.
Jonathan
Strange & Mr. Norrell
By Susanna
Clarke
I did
manage to get through the entire thirty-two hours and two minutes of the
Audible version of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. I have to admit that it was a challenge. It did not turn me into one of the books cult
followers. I’m really sorry about that,
too. One of my former students
recommended it to me years ago. I really
wanted to like it. After being unable to
get through the book, I tried the audio version. It was better, but not much. The basic story,
which was based on magic in England in the 1800’s, was interesting. It was just too long and had too many
details, side stories and footnotes. I’m
sure that was the beauty to the books followers, but it wasn’t for me. They just made the book seem somewhat boring
and very long. The audio version
interested me enough to finish it. I
feel like that was an accomplishment, but I wouldn’t recommend it.
The
Intellectual Devotional: Revive Your Mind, Complete Your Education and Roam
Confidently with the Cultured Class
By David S.
Kidder & Noah D. Oppenheim
For many
years, my husband and I have shared books at breakfast. We began this practice as a part of dealing
with our empty nest and in an attempt to grow together rather than apart.
At first
the books were filled with 365 daily “something”, usually inspirational or
self-help topics. Over the years, we’ve
graduated to more interesting books, the most recent being The Intellectual
Devotional. While continuing the 365
daily reading format, the book is filled with selections from seven fields of
knowledge: history, literature, visual arts, science, music, philosophy and
religion.
The daily
selections are short, ranging in both interest and accuracy levels. For our purposes, that really wasn’t a
problem. Regardless, the topics gave us
something to talk about and share. We’ve
had great discussions and often ended up researching the topic further. The practice keeps our minds sharper, has
refreshed memories and provided a connection that helps keep us growing in the
same direction.
One word of
caution: Our edition of this book had
very small print. We had to purchase a
magnifying glass to read the additional facts at the bottom of the page. This problem seems to have been solved in
other editions. We’re presently reading The
Intellectual Devotional: Biographies and the print size is much better.
Definitely
a good read and a great discussion starter!
