Shomeret's Odd Number of October Reads 1/3

[Shomeret]

Well, my books aren't all odd but they are an odd amount of books. When I post about an odd book, I always let you know. That's only fair.

So I went to New York to see my mother's new tombstone and do a Jewish ceremony called the unveiling near the end of October. My brother had been assured that it would be ready, but it wasn't. Murphy's law applies. But my brother and I did see a Broadway show. I didn't read as much on vacation as I expected, but I did better than September.

1)Game of Queens: A Novel of Vashti and Esther by India Edghill (Biblical fiction)
383 pages. Source: Library Started: 9/25 Finished: 10/1

Why Read: I loved Wisdom's Daughter: A Novel of Solomon and Sheba. I thought that this might be as good.

Comments: I thought that the most interesting character was the prophet Daniel who isn't mentioned in Esther's recorded story. He was rather eccentric, but he wasn't as prominent as the two Queens, so I wouldn't call this an odd book. Vashti was a strong character who I ended up admiring. It was a good read, but not a great one. Rating B.

2)Robert B. Parker's Lullaby by Ace Atkins (mystery) 310 pages. Source: Library Started: 10/1 Finished: 10/3

Why Read: This is the first Ace Atkins Spenser novel. I really like Ace Atkins so I wanted to read it and the Spenser novels he's written since. But I didn't get a round tuit until my F2F mystery group decided to read it. Round tuits are rare you know.

Comments: It was a fun read because Ace has mastered the type of dialogue that Parker wrote in the Spenser novels. I liked Mattie too. Rating B

3)Teaching What Really Happened: How to Avoid the Tyranny of Textbooks and Get Students Excited About Doing Historyby James W. Loewen (history/education) 248 pages. Source: Library Started: 10/3 Finished: 10/4

Why Read: I tend to agree with Loewen's belief that textbooks are a problem in the teaching of history if teachers confine themselves to the textbooks.

Comments: Loewen is a college instructor who went on the warpath against high school history textbooks because of all the untrue things that students in his classes believed about history. I myself was convinced that people in medieval times believed that the Earth is flat. Loewen had evidence that they didn't--a globe that had been made in 1492 before Columbus returned with the supposed evidence that the Earth is round in 1493. By then, it would have been old news. This was a fascinating book. Rating B+ See my review at http://shomeretmasked.blogspot.com/20...

4)Dancing in Your Bubble: Ancient Teachings; Modern Healing by Teri J. Dluznieski (alternative religion/self help) Source: Author for review Started: 9/26 Finished: 10/5

Why Read: So I offered to read Dluznieski's novel Cafe' of the Hungry ghosts: behind the veil of ordinary, a cosmic wind is stirring and reviewed it last month. I said I was interested in it because of the shamanism aspect. So she also gave me this book which is her non-fiction book about shamanism. It's the same approach and same culture as in the novel, but was written before the novel.

Comments: This would make a great companion book for Cafe of the Hungry Ghosts, but the exercises can be used by anyone to work on various personal issues. I learned some interesting stuff about Andean shamanism. Rating B. See my review at http://shomeretmasked.blogspot.com/20...

To Be Continued...

[Ann]

Shomeret: I have a round tuit! It was a gift from a co-worker who kept it in his desk to pull out when he got a round tuit!

[Melodie]

Must be standard practice with tombstones now. My dad's wasn't ready when they told us it would be either. I've been very happy with Atkins' take in the Spenser books he's written. He sometimes out Parker's Parker!