Review: I'm a Stranger Here Myself by Bill Bryson

This is actually a collection of the pieces he wrote for a column in a British magazine about life in America. They relate some of his experiences on returning home to the US after living in England for twenty years. They're hilarious.

I first read Bryson's A Walk in the Woods a couple years ago, and definitely fell in love with his ironic voice. He relates some stories and facts about history that are frankly, absurd and hysterical.

In I'm a Stranger Here Myself, Bryson discusses the numbers of Americans (400,000) who are injured each year by beds, mattresses, or pillows. Seriously. It's almost ten times more people than were injured by razors and razor blades. Pretty weird!

Many of the pieces made me laugh out loud. A couple of times I caught my husband sneaking a peak at the book when he thought I wasn't looking to try to find out what was so funny. Great stuff!

Review: Walking Man by Narciso Zamora

When Narciso Zamora runs away from his parents' home in Peru at age fourteen, he has no idea that God already has a plan for his life. After living in the streets, working here and there, stealing what he could when it was convenient or there was no work, he met a family who changed everything for him.

Zamora began spending time at their church, and suddenly, the message he'd been hearing sunk in. He studied theology and began a ministry that spanned decades and miles, taking him on foot through the jungles of South America on journeys that often lasted for days. Pressing on through extreme poverty and persecution, Zamora and his family planted churches in Peru, Ecuador, and Chile. Walking Man is the testimony of his life and experience.

While a simple story, Zamora's tale paints a stark picture of his life in Latin America as a pastor and missionary. His determination and commitment in the face of disaster are heartwarming, as are the testaments of God's faithfulness to provide to him and his family.

Review: Tweak: Growing up on Methamphetamines by Nic Sheff

Last week I read Beautiful Boy, by David Sheff, and this week I took a look at the other side of the story-- the memoir written by his son Nic. It is raw, intense. You take a ride with him on emotional roller coaster of rehab and relapse and coming to grips with the understanding that this addiction is bigger than he is. Or was. It was very moving. I admire his courage, for baring his soul in this way, sharing his experiences so openly.

And I really enjoyed the bits we heard about the PJ stories he made up for his younger siblings. I'd definitely be in line to buy those! Too funny.

Review: Beautiful Boy by David Sheff

Beautiful Boy is the haunting tale of a father's anguish over his son's addiction, primarily to methamphetamine. It explores the devastation of his family as David's son, Nic, battles his addiction and becomes someone even his family does not recognize. For David Sheff, even in those times, a tenuous hope blossoms-- as long as Nic is still alive, he may recover.

As someone with a long family history of codependents, I strongly identified with the struggle David Sheff endured in order to support his son without being consumed by the choices Nic made. Also powerful were the use of movies, songs, quotes, and other books.

Part of what made this story unique and uniquely powerful to me was the counsel frequently obtained from experts in the field of meth rehabilitation. This is not simply the woeful tale of a man who watches his son war with an evil addiction time and again. It is also a man who hit the books and called in the experts, got as much information as he could about his enemy, his son's enemy. The most evil drug of our day: crystal meth.

Review: Everybody Wants To Go To Heaven But Nobody Wants To Die: or the Eschatology of Bluegrass by David Crowder and Mike Hogan

This is a fun, rambly, random look at the history of thought regarding the human soul, the development of bluegrass music, and the endurance of sorrow in life. It's a little off-beat-- having sections consisting of IM conversations between the two authors, columns relating a strange story exploring loss in several lives all paralleled together, and hilarious footnotes all throughout the book. The tone is warm, thoughtful and informative. A little silly.

The book was written shortly after both authors lost a dear friend. The topic of grief and loss is explored almost sideways, dancing up to it tenuously and backing off again, perhaps letting the reader draw his own conclusions.

I enjoyed the wit and humor as well as the abundance of history on the way that European and American cultures view the human soul, from Jung back to Aristotle. It was simultaneously a fun yet deep read.

Review: Take Joy by Jane Yolen

Yes, that name probably looks familiar. Jane Yolen is an award-winning author, whose work I believe I first encountered in the book Briar Rose, set during World War II with a retelling of Sleeping Beauty beautifully woven through it. She's written many other books as well.

Take Joy is a book about the craft of writing, but it's written very conversationally, with the purpose to encourage a writer to simply... take joy! Revel in the wonder of the craft and the creative process. It is a book I return to again and again for encouragement. Great tips on the craft itself are woven through the entire book, but whereas some books on the craft of writing read like a textbook, this is more like sitting down to coffee with an experienced writer and letting her share her heart, her struggles, her techniques for overcoming those struggles with you. Great read! I recommend it not only for other writers, but anyone who has read and enjoyed her work.