In My Shopping Bag 2010/11/29

I haven't had time to read, but wanted to share with you some books I bought today:

This is Issue 35, published by my favorite author Dave Eggers (see earlier post).
I've been collecting since Issue 1.



Edited by Dave Eggers, a collection of writings assembled by high school students,
sourced from places you and I would never have the time nor opportunity to
come across, like low-circulation literary reviews and blogs.



This is the 3rd instalment of the brilliant Knuffle Bunny story, starting with Trixie's first words,
with second story about Trixie going to pre-school, and now hot off the press this one about
Trixie's first overseas trip. I just read it to my daughter, she loved it!

In My Shopping Bag 2010/11/26

I haven't had time to read, but wanted to share with you some books I bought today:

For a friend

Multiple copies for friends and for our bookshelf

Multiple copies for friends and for our bookshelf



For my daughters' bookshelf



For a friend

  

A. J. Jacobs

Speaking of "trivia-lovers", The Know-It-All is a memoir of the year the author spent trying to read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica.

A writer for Esquire magazine, A.J. Jacobs is the archetypal 30-something New Yorker, and his writing reflects this. I read this book in 2007, the year in which I became pregnant with my older daughter, which made reading about the author's encyclopedia quest alongside his sometimes funny, sometimes frustrating tales of his and his wife's attempts to have a baby all the more enjoyable.

I eagerly bought Jacobs' follow-up book, The Year of Living Bibically, his memoir of the year he spent following the bible as literally as possible. Again very relevant to my own life because the book included musings on his toddler son, and I read this around the time my older daughter was turning one. In addition, my husband and I were starting a dialogue about when and how to expose our daughter to religion (he's Christian, I'm Buddhist).

It seems so flippant to learn about Christianity from a humor writer, but after reading this book, I really gained a better understanding of my own feelings and opinions regarding Christianity, religious belief and spirituality.

Mental Floss

The Mental Floss History of the World: An Irreverent Romp Through Civilization's Best Bits is the book I read while I was in the hospital (see earlier post). I loved the witty writing as well as the content, despite not being much of a history buff or nonfiction reader. I especially enjoyed the coverage on the early historical periods. By early I mean early: organized in chronological order, Chapter 1 starts at 60,000 BC and doesn't romp through the 1800's until page 266.

Now I know the difference between the Mayans and the Aztecs. And I would love to return to Rome for another guided tour of the city, where I first heard mention of the Etruscans and the Moors; it's nice to have this historical reference now.

The authors also did a good job with China. My brother and I spent a few childhood summers staying with relatives in Taiwan to learn Chinese. I barely remember the Chinese idioms and morality stories that we were taught, but can easily recite the Chinese dynasties in chronological order (rote learning works!). And the authors actually pointed out the key events in each of those dynasties, sometimes against the backdrop of what was happening concurrently in Europe.

This book is a must-read for anyone who loves to inject trivia into conversations.

On a more philosophical note, it's interesting that in the developed world today, people expect and almost demand a leisure-filled and meaningful life. Throughout the ages, 99% of the people were poor and suffering, toiling hours on end to survive from hand to mouth. (Interestingly, this book notes that the Jews were persecuted in every period of history.) Few ancestors seemed to be searching for self-fulfilment; there were so many mass deaths brought on randomly by lawlessness, plagues and wars, regardless of social class or geography. Understanding that past generations lived in ignorance and general insignificance makes me feel even more grateful for the abundance in my life.