Review: The Seed Detective

The Seed Detective
Uncovering the Secret Histories of Remarkable Vegetables (Hardcover)
by Adam Alexander

A lovely little combination of memoir and gardening. The author delights in collecting and growing (and eating, of course) all sorts of heirloom and heritage vegetables.  So this book is the story of them, both the historical origin of the vegetable and the author's acquaintance with them.  Where they originated, how they changed over time, how he met them and what he does with them now.

I'm not an expert--although I am "layman" knowledgeable--about vegetable plant history, but I didn't find any glaring errors in his stories.  So I would rate this book as both informative and interesting. Very interesting throughout.  I enjoyed it and expect someone else would too. Go veggies!

Review: Dogged Days on the Florida Trail

by Kyle Rohrig

    
So good and grueling an adventure--I could cry!  He endures and survives the most hideous of conditions--think Florida, think swamps--mushy, buggy, wet; sticky mud and unbearable humidity.  But also think southern states and walking a trail that sometimes takes automobile roads as part of the route.  Americans, especially in the southeast IMHO, are intolerant of pedestrians taking up space on their precious highways. A few drivers will move over for pedestrians, if they can; some try to scare them by near-misses; most never even see them as they blast by.

And the dogs that people let run loose--they're the worst. I've experienced it many times myself, jsut trying to walk through a neighborhood on the sidewalk or in the street. A few dogs come up just to be friendly, but way too many are aggressive and may even bite a person passing by. I've had dogs run up and bite at my ankles while I'm jogging down a public street--it sucks.

But he endured all that and wrote an entertaining travel story about it all, plus some of his own and his dog's history that made the whole thing an absolute delight!  Loved it!

Review: Wild DFW

Wild DFW: Explore the Amazing Nature In and Around Dallas–Fort Worth    
by Amy Martin

Not really a book to read, but an excellent reference to all the places where you can go and see some cool nature.  I read it all the way through, but only because it was a library book I had to give back.  I may buy a copy for future reference.

 One section describes a small selection of the flora and fauna found in the area--that part was way too skimpy for me to enjoy.  But all the places to go and what to see--spot on. Can't wait to get out and start exploring.

Review: Ranch of Dreams

The Country's Most Unusual Sanctuary, Where Every Animal Has a Story 

I thought it was going to be a heartwarming story about the animals at Black Beauty Ranch, a rescue and retirement community for animals in East Texas. And it was--a little bit. It started off autobiographically, then jumped into the individual animal stories. And those were pretty interesting, especially that of the famous chimpanzee who learned sign language. And the cats were interesting.

But after that the book devolved into interminably long and painful stories about animal "massacres" of burros, horses and bison. The stories of the burro rescues were fairly interesting (or was that the horses?) on account of the logistics of tracking down, capturing and transporting a big, wily creature.  But the bison chapter was simply a tedious retelling of how humans nearly exterminated the creature from the American West. Which was nothing to do with the ranch and very little to do with the two or three bison they eventually acquired. That part could have been deeply interesting, but it just wasn't there.

And then he got off into elephants. If you really want to read about the cruel treatment of elephants in all its gory detail, and the attempts of the San Diego Zoo and others to cover up their evil acts, fine. Read this.

But again, that's nothing to do with Black Beauty Ranch. I skipped most of it and jumped to (and enjoyed) the description of how they socialized the three elephants that they have.

It's a pretty old book, published in '97, about 25 years ago. I hope it's not still relevant. Maybe the author's intent was to draw his readers in with a promise of a unique and fascinating story of a ranch...and then blast them with the reality of animal abuses. But I know the reality and didn't appreciate it being thrown in my face.  I have enough nightmares already,

Review: Ellie Dwyer's Olympic Moment

Ellie Dwyer's Olympic Moment: Book 6 of the Ellie Dwyer Series
by Diane Winger

Very much in the same pattern as the others in the series, but if you're hooked, you're hooked. And I'm hooked.  I wouldn't recommend this for everyone--nothing much really happens and although there's a teeny tiny bit of plotted uncertainty that runs through them all, it's not what makes the stories enjoyable.

Sure, there's a woman with an oddly unpredictable memory problem. Sure there's an accident that puts normally indefatigable Ruth out of commission for a while. And of course there's a strange weirdness with Ellie's daughter that keeps her guessing. But none of those are enough to make a story worthwhile.  What does that, for me, is the day-to-day story of a life I'd love to be living. Traveling around the country in a camper, seeing new places and things, hiking a lot of trails, and hanging out with a true friend.  That's the life for me!

Review: Can I Kiss Her Yet

 Can I Kiss Her Yet?: A True Tale of Love, Marriage... and Camels
 by Tony James Slater

Maybe not as funny as he wanted it to be. But amusing throughout even though it seemed to drag on long after the wedding.  I guess two honeymoons count as part of the the whole "marriage" story. And I didn't mind reading about them, they just surprised me.

I hadn't read his other book--A Bear Ate My Pants--but I might, now. He's a decent writer with an amusing turn of phrase and certainly some serious adventures of the comically absurd nature.  So absurd, in fact, you think they couldn't possibly be real.

But I expect that they are. You don't go setting out on a trip with no money and very limited supplies and not expect some wild and wooley things to happen.

Review: Snowman

 The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, the Horse that Inspired a Nation
by Elizabeth Letts

Sorry to admit that I quit on this, about three-quarters through.  But I read the ending.  It's a good book and well-written, but after that first or second competition, it was the same thing over and over. Snowman is up against horses from farther and farther away; the owners and jockeys are better funded and the horses all look better on the way to the field. Snowman wins.

And that's a great thing.  There just didn't seem to be any enjoyment in reading the same thing again and again.   If you're really into horses and jumping, you'll rejoice over every single page.