Books I Read in April

Middlemarch by George Eliot
I started reading this lo, these many months ago, and finally finished it at the very, very, tail end of April. I read it for Mimi's Lenten read-along, and I so enjoyed it. It was a really dense read, and is rather long. So be forewarned, this is not a book you can just flirt with, it requires a serious commitment.  It was thought provoking with interesting characters and a historical backdrop that taught me a few things. Fiction is my favorite way to learn!

This Book is Overdue! How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All by Marilyn Johnson
I really loved this book, but the topic is pretty close to my heart. I just think libraries and librarians are so important, and even more so in this age of information overload. I enjoyed the stories about the various libraries and librarians. I liked reading about the cool things different librarians are doing. It was fun to read about other aspects of librarianship, and also to see some familiar names crop up from my own field. It's mostly a pretty rah-rah book about librarians, but it also depicts us as humans with real flaws, and not cookie-cutter stereotypes.

Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin
I come from a family of political junkies, so this book was fascinating to me. It was pretty intriguing to see the process of the presidential campaigns behind-the-scenes. This book was somewhat controversial because the authors chose to leave there sources anonymous, so take it with that grain of salt. It's not a book everyone would enjoy as it's certainly not an uplifting read, but I found it to be pretty engrossing.

Wild Ride by Jennifer Crusie and Bob Mayer
I read this book after I cataloged it because the premise was so wacky, I just couldn't resist. An amusement park on an island in the Ohio River is a prison for five ancient Etruscan demons, and there are five guardians who have to make sure they stay trapped.  Wow, talk about suspension of disbelief. I was somewhat intrigued because I've read most of Crusie's other books, and this seemed nothing like her usual work. Most of her novels are really funny, character based romances. Her collaborations with Mayer have been more plot based, but this is a even a departure from those. I can't say I really cared for it, and it doesn't seem like it would appeal to her fan base. It was just pretty out-there. And shockingly, (I say with tongue somewhat in cheek) despite people being possessed by pesky demons left and right, none of them had to be cast out with prayer and fasting. 

Grow Great Grub: Organic Food from Small Spaces by Gayla Trail
This book is beautiful! I love the pictures. And that's really what gardening books are all about, right? The pictures? Considering I'm pretty much totally inexperienced as a gardener myself, they're one of my favorite things about gardening books, anyway. It seemed to have lots of cool, practical advice for growing vegetables in small spaces. I actually have a reasonably good sized yard, but most of it's shady so we don't have a lot of prime vegetable growing space, so I think a lot of these tips will be useful...you know, when I plant a garden. 

One Magic Square: One magic square : the easy, organic way to grow your own food on a 3-foot square by Lolo Houbein
Not so many color photos as the book above, but lots of different charts for 3 foot square gardens vegetable gardens, which sounds like a totally reasonable size for a complete garden neophyte. It also has recipes and all sorts of stories from an experienced gardener.