The Myth of Alzheimer’s August 18, 2008

Lyn says:

Wow!  What a different view of ‘brain aging’!  I couldn’t put it down.  Whitehouse says he has come from a prominent position in drug therapy research to a completely different view of what has been called Alzheimer’s disease.  He wants us to realize that we need to work with people to see what they CAN do and how caregivers can understand and care for those having brain difficulties.  The fear that comes with the diagnosis is as dangerous as the symptoms.  The ‘miracle cures’ are discussed in detail and debunked.  We have heard that Alzheimer’s disease can be distinguished at autopsy but that is incorrect – there is a continuum of brain plaques and tangles even in people who have no brain dysfunction.  Prevention from childhood is stressed with diet, exercise, stress reduction, environmental monitoring, education.  The stories of a caring approach to evaluating symptoms are encouraging.  Don’t get discouraged by all the science – understand what you can and go on to the discussions.  His quote from T. S. Eliot is the core of his new approach: ‘What are we going to do about it?’ is replaced by ‘How does one behave towards it?’

The myth of Alzheimer’s: what you aren’t being told about today’s most dreaded diagnosis by Peter J. Whitehouse

Dr Whitehouse’s description of himself and his book

Three Cups of Tea August 8, 2008

James says:

How can a tale of drinking tea be such a tale of adventure? Combine the skills of a good journalist with the mountaineering experiences of one compassionate person and voila! the adventures flow. Compassion expressed by almost single-minded devotion to educating the poorest of the poor in Pakistan and Afghanistan seems to be Greg Mortenson’s life-blood. His failure to summit K2 and his taking the wrong turn as he descended put him in the lap of one of the world’s poorest communities. As he says, though, maybe they really have a richer life. The tale cannot escape being a first-rate, first-hand, and severe condemnation of the U.S. policies in Central Asia. However, do not read this book for its implicit political statement against war and warring – read it for the adventure and the compassion. Greg’s second trip to the village he had first stumbled into is a hair-raising ride atop a 20-foot tall load of building supplies over a rockslide-prone narrow and curvy road climbing thousands of feet back toward K2. Other adventures include speaking to six persons when he had expected nearly 200, being kidnapped by jihadists, having his passport invalidated by a Taliban border guard (with absolutely no sympathy from the American Embassy – the ones charged with the protection of us citizens when we travel outside the U.S.), surviving two fatwas legally, even traveling with smugglers in order to reach the leader of Badakshan in northern Afghanistan. I had trouble putting it down.

Three Cups of Tea

Five Lessons I Didn’t Learn From Breast Cancer August 4, 2008

Philirya says: I recently finished “Five Lessons I Didn’t Learn From Breast Cancer (and One Big One I Did) by Shelley Lewis. Shelley’s experience with breast cancer is just like anyone else’s. It’s her epiphany afterword, or her lack thereof that’s different. This isn’t a breast cancer survivor’s pink wrapped spiritual awakening. In fact, she refuses to be called a survivor at all. She doesn’t wear a ribbon or think cancer is a ‘gift’. She does get through cancer with humor and determination, even while she is scared. “Five Lesson I Learned” is a wonderful book, written for those of us who don’t believe in higher powers, that believe you have everything in yourself to get through life’s challenges, no matter how dark they may be. Shelley doesn’t disparage those people who do believe in higher powers, believing you should do whatever you personally need to do to get through. “If you believe in God, pray. If you believe in science, do some research. If you’re a gal who likes to hedge her bets, pray to God the science works”, she says. It’s great in this day and age to find such a clear-headed book written on cancer. I heartily recommend it.

Persepolis July 28, 2008

Jennifer says:

Yes, it’s a “graphic novel”. But don’t miss this intimate, searing autobiography just because it comes fully illustrated, panel cartoon style, with portrayals of the author and her family, friends, and relatives. Caricature is a skill Ms. Satrapi perfected in post-Islamic revolution Iran, while she sat in class in her hijab, silently lampooning her teachers in the margins of her notebooks. This book, like Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi, offers a human perspective on Iran that is missing from most news stories. In Persepolis the perspective is that of a girl child. Satrapi grows up before our eyes as her life changes inexorably through the upheaval in her homeland. If you have never read a graphic novel, Persepolis should be your first, especially if you enjoy reading autobiographies.

A Pioneer’s Search for an Ideal Home: A Book of Personal Memoirs July 28, 2008

Deborah says:

After seeing this book in a display case at the Lynden Library, I decided to read it to become more acquainted with local history.  I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.  The book is a memoir of Phoebe Judson, the founder of Lynden.  She was over seventy years of age when she wrote her story and ninety-five when it was published.  The history is indeed very interesting, but the strength, sense of humor and bravery of this woman was astonishing.  Her memoirs begin in Vermillion, Ohio where she began a trip across the country, with her family, in a wagon train to the Puget Sound area.   I read the book and enjoyed the photograph at the end of the book.  This week I read in the paper that a monument will be made of Phoebe Judson and her husband Holden Judson.  I am glad the monument will be made and I will appreciate it all the more after reading her memoirs.

A Pioneer’s Search for an Ideal Home: A Book of Personal Memoirs by Phoebe Goodell Judson

“Kerplunk” and “The Book of General Ignorance” June 25, 2008

Suzanne says:

“Kerplunk!”
Patrick McManus’ collection of short stories describes, with self depricating humor, how I imagined many boys grew up in the 50’s and 60’s:
Huntin’, fishin’ and living moments that later become tall, tall tales.

“The Book of General Ignorance“
A fun read full of trivia snippets, it’s written by John Lloyd and John
Mitchinson and challenges many well know cultural “facts”. While it is
classified as nonfiction, the authors do not cite their sources. This leads
me to the question the veracity of the book’s factual content. Whether true
or not, the authors entertain and amuse.

Apples, Gadget Nation, The Fairy Tale Detectives June 4, 2008

Philirya says:

This is going to be a long dark summer for me as my favorite television series ended in a cliff hanger. To distract myself, I’m taking off my floaties and jumping in the deep end of the reading pool, hoping to read books outside my comfort zone.

My first book is Apples are from Kazakhstan by Christopher Robbins.
 If you are anything like me, the only things you know about Kazakhstan are the name, and that it is a former Soviet Republic.
What I didn’t know before reading this book is that wild apples originated in Kazakhstan and spread around the world from there. I also didn’t know that both Fyodor Dostoyevsky  and Alexandr Solzhenitsyn were exiled there.
The book covers a year’s stay by Mr. Robbins as he takes a tour and learns the history of Kazakhstan.

The second book is Gadget Nation by Steve Greenberg.
 Mr. Greenberg profiles American inventors and their strange and sometimes useful inventions. For instance, Clocky, the alarm clock on wheels. When you press the snooze button, Clocky rolls off your table and across the room, forcing you to get out of bed if you wish to shut if off when the alarm goes off again.
Also there are Mac and Cool bowls. You place Mac and Cool bowls in the freezer. After you make supper, you place it in a Mac and Cool bowl.  This way, your child can eat supper when it is the right temperature for them.

Last, I have The Fairy Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley.
 It is the first in a series of books about Sabrina and Daphne Grimm, descendants of Wilhelm Grimm. They are surprised to find out that Grimm’s Fairy Tales are a chronology of actual events as experienced by Wilhelm.
They are sent to live with their grandmother Relda Grimm because their parents are dead and there is no one else to care for them. When they come to live with Granny Grimm and her lodger Mr. Canis, they meet Puck, Jack the Giant Killer, and Mayor Prince Charming.
At this point, either you get why Mr Canis living with Granny is clever, or you don’t. Look up ‘canis’ if you don’t. I’ll wait.

See, wasn’t that clever? Granny Grimm takes the girls to find out why a local farmhouse appears to be flattened, with an imprint of a foot surrounding the wreckage. When Granny and Mr. Canis are kidnapped, it’s up to Sabrina and Daphne to save the day.

Back to the Sixties May 30, 2008

Lisa says:

The popularity of Sheila Weller’s Girls like us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon–and the journey of a generation expresses the desire to revisit (or learn about) that magical, stormy time in our history (also on CD).  If you are on a waiting list for a copy of this tri-ography, there are plenty of other titles steeped in sixties culture to keep you preoccupied.  Here’s a list of some recent publications to get you started.  Use the comments to add your favorites to the list!

Boom: voices of the sixties by Tom Brokaw (also large type, CD, Playaway and downloadable audio)

A freewheelin’  time: a memoir of Greenwich Village in the sixties by Suze Rotolo

The hippie narrative: a literary perspective on the counterculture by Scott MacFarlane

Laurel Canyon: the inside story of rock-and-roll’s legendary neighborhood by Michael Walker (also CD)

Prime green: remembering the sixties by Robert Stone

The sixties: photographs by Robert Altman

The sixties rock experience (3 CD set)

Sixties style by Judith Miller

The sixties: the years that shaped a generation produced by Oregon Public Broadcasting (DVD)

 

The Last Lecture May 30, 2008

Melody  says: 
Randy, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, was asked last summer to give a lecture which he titled “The Last Lecture” as he had just been diagnosed with terminal cancer and given six months to live.  He is married and has three young children under the age of six.  The lecture was so moving to me; I first watched him on Oprah, where he gave the lecture again.  It was so touching!  He basically tells one and all about achieving those childhood dreams, overcoming obstacles, and asks the question if we were going to leave or vanish tomorrow, what would we want to leave as our legacy?  It is very poignant and will forever be the “message in the bottle” for his children.  (You can also watch his lecture online by going to www.thelastlecture.com) [book] [audiobook]

Author:  Randy Pausch