January 2012 reads

I found my way to the blog so here I go. I have finished three books since the blog started.

The Pacific- by Hugh Ambrose- son of Steven Ambrose- This is about a collection of Marines in the Pacific during WWII. It is pretty harsh in the recounting of the events affecting these men. The people are real and the research of the letters and records is amazing in the detail. The sacrifice made by these men is unbelievable. This book was written after the script to the HBO series was completed. I did not see the series but it is similar to Band of Brothers,the 101st airborne in Europe that was so popular. I recommend it as a history read and and to anyone who thinks war is all glorious. It is not and this book tells the story and preserves the honor and memory of these men.

The Wide Mouth Frog- My kids grew up hearing the wide mouth frog story from me. It is a great story that tells the adventures of a frog's trip through the zoo asking all the animals what they feed their babies. Well it has been published and Erin bought the book for me to read to the kids. The book is not as good as the live telling but it does help select the animals which is the hardest part of the story telling. The plot is slightly different and the ending departs from my story in an unacceptable way. So I use the pictures and tell the story in character. I did have to edit my usual ending out of respect for the Spruce Street Jordan's good sense. It ends with a pursed lip, milquetoast "no kidding" instead of the standard "No Sh_t" Oh well my kids have better sense than I most of the time and I can't arm Rachel with punch line for Church. I recommend the live telling by Grandpa using the book as an outline over the straight read of the words of the book. I do requests. Rachel loves it......August was speechless.

Maphead by Ken Jennings- This is a geography lesson written by a self professed map geek. If you have ever spent hours gazing over the Rand McNally Atlas you will enjoy this book. If you throw away the National Geographic and save the maps like the author and I do you will enjoy the book.

Maps were essentially unchanged for 500 years until space travel and the science of mapping changed our perspectives. Does the GPS make maps obsolete? Some say yes others say no as the sense of place is the strength of the map. Why did we become America and not Columbia? Amerigo Vaspucci sold maps with titillating stories about naked natives with huge sexual appetites for Europeans. Amerigo was a self promoting individual that left the impression that he knew the New World better than anyone and Columbus died thinking he had found Asia not a New World. The library of Congress purchased the first known map with America written on it (1510) for $20 million.

It is a quick read with an annoying footnote habit every third page or so that tells a story within the story. Most are quite fun but it stops the flow of the read. The book reads a little like a Bill Bryson book. (that is a good thing)

This was a gift from Adam and Kristen and I will pass it on to them for them to pass on to others that might want to read it. I want it back.

My next book was started yesterday- A Patrick Henry biography. Report to follow on this ancestor of Erin's.

Max