A sense of the mysterious by Alan Lightman

I was hooked by Alan Lightman's writing after reading Einstein's Dreams. Lightman is both a physicist and a novelist, giving him the tools to write this volume that is subtitled Science and the Human Spirit. Metaphors to explain scientific phenomenon fill these essays and your mind. For example, from cosmology, the use of a slowly inflating balloon covered with dots to represent the expansion of the universe with no known center. Lightman celebrates these unions of science and the humanities. His biographies of Albert Einstein (the contradictory genius), Richard Feynman (the one and only), Edward Teller (megaton man), and Vera Rubin (dark matter) explore each person's imagination, creativity and personality as they wrestle with science and the world. Lightman ends the book with two insightful essays. One essay explores the ramifications of turning 35 and thereby becoming an "old man" in theoretical physics. Most discoveries in that field are made scientists in their twenties! The final essay examines the wired world and the lack of time to waste. Wasted time for Lightman is time that feeds curiosity, creativity, and the inner soul.

Let us know what you think about this book or other books by Lightman.

Beguiled by the Wild: The Art of Charley Harper

I was introduced to the art of Charley Harper through a recent issue of Audubon magazine. By doing a little more digging, I uncovered this gem of a book.
Each colorful picture is accompanied by a paragraph of succinct information about each illustrated bird or animal. Mr. Harper labels his illustrations and fills the descriptions with a multitude of puns.
Some of my favorites include "Dolfun", "Family Owlbum", "Lovey Dovey", "Skimmerscape", and for the zebra picture above "Serengeti Spaghetti"!

The Summer of a Dormouse by John Mortimer

The Friends Book Club continues to meet.

Next meeting is Wednesday, Feb. 27th in the High Library Conference Room at 7pm. The Friends meet on the 4th Wednesday of the month. They select books from Bestsellers, National Book Award winners, Classics and the lighter side.

This month's selection is written by John Mortimer who is a retired barrister and is the creator of Rumpole. The Friends have characterized this book as "how not to grow old graciously." This witty book is filled with entertaining tales about Mortimer's childhood years in England during World War I, travels in Morocco, travel filmmaking with Franco Zeffirelli, panhandlers in New York as well as serous concerns such as prison reform.

Enjoy the book, then enjoy the company of other readers. See you there.

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

I came to this book from first watching the movie at the recommendation of my daughter. It's about an entering high school freshman and some blurred memories of an incident over the summer.

The writing is clear, insightful and funny.
"The ninth graders are herded into the auditorium. We fall into classes: Jocks, Country Clubbers, Idiot Savants, Cheerleaders, Human Waste, Eurotrash, Future Fascists of America, Suffering Artists, Goths, Shredders. I am clanless. I wasted the last weeks of August watching bad cartoons. I didn't go to the mall, the lake, or the pool, or answer the phone. I have entered high school with the wrong hair, the wrong clothes, the wrong attitude. And I don't have anyone to sit with."

"The orchestra plays an unrecognizable tune. Heather says the school board won't let them perform Christmas Carols or Hanukkah songs or Kwanzaa tunes. Instead of multicultural, we have no-cultural."

"The rest of the Marthas sigh on cue. Apparently, beets are Not Good Enough. Real Marthas only collect food that they like to eat, like cranberry sauce, dolphin-safe tuna, or baby peas. I can see Heather dig her nails into her palms under the table. The peanut butter molds to the roof of my mouth like a retainer."

Through art class, Melinda Sordino finds her voice.
Even though this was written for a juvenile audience, I found many truths here.

100 Notable Books of 2007

Have a little time to read?

Need to buy some Christmas gifts?

Want to make a reading list?

Follow the link below to discover outstanding fiction/nonfiction/poetry suggestions from the New York Times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/02/books/review/notable-books-2007.html?ex=1354510800&en=a3e0be2831179b73&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

These titles were culled from the New York Times Book Review since December 3rd, 2006.

Enjoy.

American Gospel: God, the founding fathers, and the making of a nation.

This book came to my attention from two campus colleagues. Here's what others have said.

Library Journal: "Newsweek managing editor Meacham here holds that, despite the strong religious differences of the Founding Fathers, religion became a force for unity, not division; it shaped the Constitution and the nation without strangling it. This is quite an argument to make given the history chronicled. Quakers were at odds with Anglicans, and New Englanders engaged in witch trials while building a "City of God." Others massacred Indians. The Virginia charter provided for Christian mission but also for taking land and searching for gold. To boot, early settlers of that state purchased slaves. Meanwhile, deists Jefferson and Franklin looked at Jesus as the great moral teacher. The religious spirit was "more sectarian than ecumenical," the author maintains, yet it was recognized that a moral and religious force that God provided could and would serve as a uniting factor. Meacham provides a balanced account of this "American Gospel" as to how it was formed and how it is shaping our history down to such present-day challenges as holiday displays, prayer in schools, abortion, euthanasia, and gay rights." --George Westerlund, formerly with Providence P.L., Palmyra, VA Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

The title is a bit misleading, since the book chronicles these issues through the late twentieth century. Current and past presidents have struggled with the implications of decisions as they relate to religion and politics. Share your insights here.

Tomorrow by Graham Swift

Friends of the High Library Book Club meets Wednesday, November 28th in the High Library Conference Room at 7pm.

Come join the discussion of this recent book.

"From Amazon: Graham Swift wants to keep us awake with Tomorrow, a monologue in which a mother lies next to her husband, worrying about a revelation that will soon alter their lives."

Graham Swift is a previous Booker Prize award winning author. This novel is written from a woman's point of view and is primarily an interior monologue. Does this writing style work or is it just tedious?

Join the discussion either in person or on the blog. Let us know what you think.