My book reading for this past year pretty well matched other years in terms of the number read. 48 in all. 20 non-fiction, 28 fiction.
In alphabetical order by author, here are the non-fiction titles I liked best. (Fiction will be listed next time.)
1. Bill Bryson, I'm a Stranger Here Myself, Notes on Returning to America After Twenty Years. A chuckle-out-loud book describing his life back in the U.S. after living in Britain. Though at the end, he and his family return to England.
2. Annie Dillard, An American Childhood. Dillard-quality writing about her rather privileged life growing up in Pittsburgh.
3. Vicki Constantine Croke, Elephant Company, An Inspiring Story of an Unlikely Hero and the Animals Who Helped Him Save Lives in World War II. The setting is Burma 1920-1946. The "unlikely hero" is James Howard Williams who worked for a British teak company and was in charge of their working elephants throughout a wide area, finding them courageous, loyal, and truly wonderful beings. Then after the Japanese invaded and the British left, Williams and the elephants led two amazing evacuations over treacherous trails to India--one for refugees, the other for the elephants themselves so that they wouldn't fall to the Japanese. Some amazing tales here.
4. Eric Larson, Dead Wake, The Last Crossing of the Lusitania. In May 1915, a single torpedo destroyed the Lusitania, Britain's fastest, most beautiful passenger liner, sinking it in only 18 minutes and killing more than a thousand people some dozen miles from the Irish coast. There were plenty of life boats, but because the ship could not be stopped and because of its tilt and the fact that it sank immediately, only 6 were used. In addition, after daily drills to familiarize themselves with how to release the life boats, those crew members were instantly killed when the torpedo struck when they were below-decks taking out passengers' luggage for arrival next morning in Liverpool. It wasn't until another two years when the Germans said that any ship was fair game to submarine attack (including those of neutral nations and passenger ships) that the U.S. entered the war. Grim and gripping.
5. Lois Pryce, Lois on the Loose, One Woman, One Motorbike, 20,000 miles across the Americas. A well-written tale describing the gutsy adventures of an English woman who traveled solo on her motorbike. This relates her first attempt at such a venture, here from Anchorage to the tip of Argentina during which she encountered terrible winds, terrible roads, sudden snows, hours in customs, totally bare landscape, a prima donna riding companion part way, and oil leaks. But great chutzpah.
6. Lois Pryce, Revolutionary Ride, On the Road in Search of the Real Iran. Here in 2013 is our heroine again, riding her motorbike alone through Iran, wearing required hijab and proper Islamic Republic dress. She had already traveled solo through the Americas (see #5) as well as from London to Cape Town, South Africa. This book details her experience through Iran plus a good overview of contemporary Iranian history. She liked the place well enough to return the following year only to find that the rules had changed and those from the U.K. and U.S. could not travel the country alone, only in a group.
7. Katherine Towler, The Penny Poet of Portsmouth, A Memoir of Place, Solitude, and Friendship. A fellow-writer and resident of Portsmouth, the author finds herself filling the niche of "family member" and unwitting caretaker for Robert Dunn, once New Hampshire's poet laureate and a man who valued his independence but who found himself needing support as he followed the unwritten road to death. An honest, well-written account.
8. Harriet Welty-Rochefort, French Toast, An American in Paris Celebrates the Maddening Mysteries of the French. Funny, concise, enlightening. We want to be nice; they want to be logical, witty, no matter whether it tramples on someone or not. We want to have fun; they aren't so concerned with fun. We spread ourselves wide, new friends, etc; they look to their family. We smile thinking we'll be liked; they don't take anyone who smiles seriously. When writing this she'd been married to a Frenchman and living in Paris for 20 years.
9. Meik Wiking, The Little Book of Hygge, Danish Secrets to Happy Living. A sweet rendering of the way Danes attain a happy life, especially since their winters are rather dour. By being cozy with candles, hot drinks, friends, board games, and things that are simple, natural, and homey.
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