Let’s get real here! We all know that Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series is not serious literature. It probably won’t be required reading for your […]
Beijing-Let the Reading Begin
Are you curious about Beijing now that the Summer Olympics have begun? Of course, on any given day you can watch NBC, PBS or the Travel Channel and see kaleidoscopic images and all the sights and sounds of this highly populated historic city. But, for a dose of the real unadulterated Beijing, pick up the book The Last Days of Old Beijing: Life in the Vanishing Backstreets of a City Transformed by Michael Meyer. Meyer is a native Minnesotan who moved to China with the Peace Corps and volunteered to teach English in a Beijing elementary school. He’s one of the few Westerners who has had the opportunity to live among the native Chinese and experience the city, culture and cuisine in a manner that most outsiders could only dream of. This is a fascinating mix of history, politics and customs and gives an inside look at this mysterious city.
Come Along With Me
Ever since I read Maud Hart Lovelace’s Betsy and Tacy Go Over The Big Hill as a little girl I’ve traveled through my reading. I always wanted to know what was over that hill, around the corner or down the street.
I look for that strong sense of place when I’m picking a book for myself. I want that book to transport me to another city or place, one I might like to learn more about or visit. I love authors who can make you feel and smell and experience the essence of that “sense of place’ in their story. I’ve traveled a bit but not anywhere near as much as I’ve been able to travel in my reading. One day I might be sitting in a coffee shop in Seattle and the next day I’m riding a train through Switzerland. It’s just like virtual travel. How cool is that?
