Audible provided members a free choice of an Audible original this month and I chose Jingle Bell Pop by John Seabrook. It is a short book and only took a little over an hour to listen to. I enjoyed it. Background information was provided for many favorite Christmas songs. I learned who wrote them and how they came about to be created. I learned what time frame they were written. Some of the songs covered were centuries old and some were just produced last year. This book was a fun read. John Seabrook has a longer book about the origin of other music that I am now interested in reading. It is called The Song Machine: Inside The Hit Factory. If you are an Audible subscriber I recommend this book to enjoy this holiday season. Please click on the author's name and book title above to follow the links to more information and enjoy the video that follows. It is one of the Christmas songs that is covered in the book.
It was delightful to snuggle back into my genre of historical fiction and listen to one of my favorite narrators, Grover Gardner, read an absolutely wonderful story. The novel is not long, lasting just short of six hours listening time. The author, Paulette Jiles, has written a great book. Set in the post civil war era in Texas, the reader journeys along with an older gentleman and a young girl who has been a captive of a Native American tribe for four years. The man is returning her to her aunt and uncle as her parents and younger sibling were killed when she was captured. She has been happy with the Native American family she has been living with and does not want to go live with people she does not remember. The things the girl and the older man experience together along the way cause them to forge a friendship and soon she is calling him grandfather. This is a book that is appropriate for all ages and would make a really good movie. Anyone who enjoys historical fiction will enjoy this book. Please click on the book title and author's name above to follow the links to more information and enjoy the video that follows.
Again out of my normal genre, Lab Girl by Hope Jahren is a memoir. The author writes about her life as a research scientist. Her area of interest is botany. The story she tells weaves from her childhood, meanders through her education and winds into her profession, marriage and motherhood. It was a book I enjoyed and I wish I could convince all young women to read. Hope Jahren sets an example of how it is possible for women to achieve many things. Her journey has unconventional experiences as a young professor. Road trips with research field studies and camping, both as a student and a professor, are described. It also touches on the impact of bipolar disorder on a person's life. The problem of funding for research is explored. Please click on the author's name and book title above to learn more information about the book and enjoy the video that follows.
As with the last book I listened to on audio, this book is out of my normal genre and it is a book that I have heard talked about by more than one of the young women in my family. Heck, even my hair stylist mentioned she had purchased Girl, Wash Your Face. Therefore, in an effort to understand what is clicking in the minds of so many important people in my life, I decided to listen to the book. It would be considered a self help book. The author herself narrates it and in this manner adds authenticity to the stories she tells. Rachel Hollis has put what she calls a lie as each chapter heading. What she is doing is addressing various myths and negative self talk in each chapter. She explains in an enthusiastic manner and by using amusing stories of her own experiences, how to set goals and achieve them. Nothing she writes about goal setting is new and it can be found in other books and at other seminars. But her presentation is done in such a way that she resonates with women. This book is considered Christian lit. She does write about how important her faith is to her. Part of me feels like she would reach a larger audience if she didn't stress her faith so much. But she does encourage diversity in ones life, she does encourage women to realize their dreams and potential, and if she didn't include that part of her make up she would come off less authentic. So like any other self help book, the reader should approach it with critical reading skills and discern what of the material is helpful and what is not. A lot of this book would be a great ideas for women of many nationalities, of varied belief systems and from all socioeconomic groups. Personally, my goals are not as materialistic as the author's goals. But the same steps will work to achieve all types of goals. I would recommend women to read this book. Whether it is to review goal setting and their achievement or to see why many women are so excited about this book. Please click on the author's name and the book title above to follow the links to more information and enjoy the video that follows.
