Best. State. Ever. by Dave Barry: Book Review
4 Stars. My husband is a travel nurse who largely grew up in Miami and in winter months we often find ourselves back in Florida as he works at different hospitals around the state. Even before we started traveling, we visited my in-laws, who live in Naples now, at least once a year. Needless to say […]
Down the Great Unknown by Edward Dolnick: Book Review
4 Stars. John Wesley Powell caught my attention when my husband and I visited the Grand Canyon in 2013. I would periodically think that I should read a book about him and then I would forget about it. When we visited Lake Powell and Horseshoe Canyon in Page, AZ a few months ago, I decided that it […]
A Woman in the Polar Night by Christiane Ritter: Book Review
4.5 Stars. This is a slim volume and much of it is taken up with Mrs. Ritter, her husband, and his friend Karl’s day-to-day survival in Svalbard (Formerly Spitsbergen). Fair warning, that survival isn’t really for those who are disturbed by hunting for food and for furs to sell. Just trying to keep wood […]
My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell: Book Review
2 Stars. I’m sorry to say that this didn’t quite work for me. I’m disappointed since so many other readers love it. The tales of the family misadventures were hilarious. Larry, the budding author, is a know-it-all who can steer his mom in any direction he chooses. Leslie, the avid huntsman, shoots his guns and scares the wits […]
The Invention of Nature by Andrea Wulf: Book Review
3.5 Stars. I have to admit that I’m one of those who have never heard of Humboldt; or, if he was ever mentioned in my classes, I’ve completely forgotten him. And that’s a shame because the man was so right about so very many things. He was brilliant and brought together many scientific disciplines in his theories in a time when scientists […]
Unbeaten Tracks in Japan by Isabella Bird: Book Review
3 Stars. I read one of Ms. Birds earlier books, Adventures in the Rocky Mountains, during my blogging break and quite enjoyed it. I could only admire a woman who, in Victorian times, not only traveled alone, but managed to summit Longs Peak in a dress. When I needed a travel book as part of the 20201 Nonfiction Challenge, Ms. […]
Around the World by Matt Phelan: Book Review
4 Stars. This book is a taste of three journeys and made me eager to learn more about the featured explorers. The artwork is beautifully done in a style that I (most definitely not an artist) can only describe as a cross between line drawings and watercolors. The predominant colors of each section reflect (or set?) the mood. Warm […]
Hiking Oregon’s History by William L. Sullivan: Book Review
4 stars. I know this book probably won’t have much appeal to a broad audience but it was so engaging, I felt that I needed to review it. When my husband and I first arrived in Oregon in April of 2020 for his work assignment at a hospital outside Portland, my aunt put me in touch with one of her friends who owns a summer home on […]
Educating Alice by Alice Steinbach: Book Review
3 Stars. I loved Without Reservations, Steinbach’s first book. I admired her courage in packing up and traveling solo. I liked her thoughts and observations and felt that she is someone that I’d like to know and befriend in real life. I didn’t like Educating Alice quite as much. I felt that the author was trying a little too hard […]
Seriously Mum, What’s an Alpaca? by Alan Parks: Book Review
2.5 Stars. When I have daydreams about packing up and moving to a new country, Spain is always the one that comes to mind. We visited in 2010 and just loved it. We felt welcome everywhere we went, the people seemed happy, and it just fit. Plus, my husband’s bilingual. At least one of us could speak the language. When I saw this as a free […]
The Places in Between by Rory Stewart: Book Review
Rory Stewart walked through India, Pakistan and Nepal in 2002, a time that was very unstable given the events of 2001 and the subsequent war. He decided that he wanted to walk through the heart of Afghanistan as well. He met with a lot of bureaucracy, but he was eventually given permission to undertake his […]