Completed: South African books for my history class

This past term, I took a general upper-division course on South African history. I took it because I knew next to nothing about South African history - I knew Apartheid had been, I knew it ended in large part because of Nelson Mandela in 1994, and I knew it struggled economically both before then and since.

That was really all I knew. And this was laid quite abruptly bare to me once I started this class. The history of South Africa is complex, multifaceted and painful (as is the history of many other nations), but of this one I knew next to nothing. It was a big learning curve, and a difficult but enriching class.

As recommendations based on the class, I would suggest watching the movie 'Last Grave at Dimbaza' and 'Tsotsi' - though all the movies we watched were great, these two may have been the most impactful for me.

For reading, we read three books, and parts of many others. The three full reads were:

Title: South Africa in World History
Author: Iris Berger
Published: 2009
Pages: 163

Iris Berger's brief overview is too brief, in my opinion. Without our other sources, what she wrote would have lacked depth enough to be impactful. As a piece of a bigger puzzle it was OK, but on its own wasn't very helpful.

Title: The South Africa Reader: History, Culture, Politics
Author: Clifton Crais, Thomas V. McClendon eds.
Published: 2013
Pages: 624

This was probably my favorite reader that I've ever had, except perhaps one I had for an Anthropology of Art class as an undergrad. It was full of enriching, challenging, raw and important documents. Though we didn't read each and every selection, we read the large majority of this book (and a lot of the page count was references, so it wasn't as enormous as it sounds). I'm glad I read this reader - not a normal sentiment among university students!

Title: The Heart of Redness
Author: Zakes Mda
Published: 2000
Pages: 288

I am a bit embarrassed to say that this was, I believe, my first reading of a work of fiction by an African author. It was a historical fiction that brought to life the world of the Xhosa Cattle Killing, along with a modern parallel story connected to the past. I believe my prof called it mysticism - the indigenous Xhosa beliefs integrated into the narrative. Mda is a beautiful writer, and it was an excellent read. From the course I have several other novels and books that I will tackle eventually. This book and this class were definitely a case of 'for every book I read, I find three more. At least'!

Total Books Blogged: 60

Total Pages: 17,329

Completed: The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

This was the second-to-last bedtime book I read with the kids (I'm going to try to get through a lot of blog updates today and tomorrow, to be up-to-speed for the new year!). It sounded similar to Artemis Fowl, which we enjoyed so much, so it seemed promising.

I will put the caveat in here that the boys really enjoyed this book. This is why it got 3/5 on Goodreads. All on my own, I probably would have given it a 2. The story was not horrible, but was outlandish and difficult-to-believe enough that it would have needed to have been pulled off with Rowling-esque finesse to be great. And Stewart isn't Rowling. The dialogue didn't flow well, the events felt pieced together, and none of it really brought you into that world - rather, you felt you were reading a book about a story. It never got to a point where you were forgetting you were reading a book at all, that you just got lost in the story. 

So, for me it was meh, and for the boys it was a lot of fun. I do note, though, that they haven't asked for any sequels, so perhaps not their favorite series in that regard (Artemis was an immediate sequel the next time we hit the library!). 

Title: The Mysterious Benedict Society (#1)

Author: Trenton Lee Stewart

Published: 2007

Pages: 487

Total Books Blogged: 57

Total Pages: 16,254

Completed: The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More by Roald Dahl

Hm. There are 7 stories in this book, and I've started to really love short stories - I'll be looking for more of them to read. Here are the 7, from the best read to the worst one, in my opinion:

The Mildenhall Treasure

• The second and last non-fiction Dahl ever wrote. As an archaeologist, it's wonderful!

A Piece of Cake, and Lucky Break

• The first piece of non-fiction Dahl ever wrote, and the context thereof. And it is beautiful - much like Mowat in how poignantly it speaks to the human aspect of war. I learned a lot about Dahl reading this story, and its context.

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

• This is one of the cleverest short stories I've ever read. You just want to believe it is true. Wonderful indeed!

The Hitchhiker, The Boy Who Talked with Animals

• These two were interesting. Snapshots, almost, and you wonder what inspired Dahl to write them, as they seem so ordinary, and yet when you think through it they're certainly worth their stories unto themselves.

The Swan

• Just don't even read this story. I was disturbed after reading it, and I get very cringe-y thinking about it. Good on Dahl for being able to create so realistically such a hideous picture for his readers, but I just can't understand how this would be a young adult story, and what would have inspired its creation. 

Title: The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More

Author: Roald Dahl

Published: 1945 (originally) - 1998 (this version)

Pages: 225

Total Books Blogged: 56

Total Pages: 15,767

Damn - 5 months

Between class, summer vacation/travel, class again, class a third time, getting back to school, and just the fact that I have been reading quite a bit! No real excuses, but there you have it. It hasn't been a priority.

I tried a challenge once - for a few days, rather than ever saying 'I don't have the time', replace those words with 'it just isn't a priority for me'. It re-frames all of your actions as choices, and what you prioritize becomes much clearer. So - my blog has not been a priority, and this is a super-small catchup post. I will do all of the books since The Professor and the Madman, with a few sentences about each, because I don't have the energy to stress over writing each book up. So here we go:

Title: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Author: Robert Louis Stevenson
Published: 1886 (originally)
Pages: 64

The copy I read definitely had more pages than this, but it is indeed a short, heartbreaking story. It's a story we're all familiar with, but that I actually had all wrong. It is not a horror/scary story, in my opinion - it is a tragedy. Such an incredible read, and something that for sure I wasn't expecting. Recommend.

Title: A Christmas Carol and Other Stories
Author: Charles Dickens
Published: 1843 (originally)
Pages: 368

Actually my first Dickens! I feel bad admitting that, but am glad I finally tackled some. The Chimes was probably my favorite story in here, as it epitomizes the 19th century industrialization and the paternalistic attitude of the rich at the time - the historical accuracy is painful to read.

Title: James and the Giant Peach
Author: Roald Dahl
Published: 1961 (originally)
Pages: 146

Though of course a fond childhood classic movie, James and the Giant Peach is not my favorite Roald Dahl book. I enjoyed it, but I've enjoyed others more. Read this out loud to the boys at bedtime - there's several more selections here that fell into that category :)

Title: History of the Canadian Peoples vol 2: 1867-Present
Author: Margaret Conrad, Alvin Finkel
Published: 2009
Pages: 456

Relatively dry first-year Canadian history textbook for class. Nuff said.

Title: Hyperbole and a Half
Author: Allie Brosh
Published: 2013
Pages: 369

If you haven't read Brosh's original blog upon which this book is based (and is by the same name), read it. Read both. Just read it all - it's hilarious, raw, honest, emotional and laugh-out-loud funny.

Title: The Enormous Egg
Author: Oliver Butterworth
Published: 1958 (originally)
Pages: 188

I think I pulled this from a Goodreads young-boys reading list- this too was a bedtime story. It is a totally fun tale of a boy whose chicken lays a dinosaur egg, and hatches out a dinosaur. In a more recent book, hilarity would ensue. In this one, it's a very practical, emotional response in trying to do what's best for the dinosaur, which was a very 50s, refreshing perspective. However, a farm family in the 50s also has a lot of gender roles, so I worked through that with the kids too...!

Title: A Little Princess
Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett
Published: 1902 (originally)
Pages: 242

Read this version - the drawings and typeface were so pretty, it helped to make the story! I loved loved loved this movie when I was a kid. I am normally good with knowing which movies come from books, but in this case I did not know this was a book until relatively recently. I read much of this book while drinking Starbucks in Plantation, Florida, waiting for my bestie to get out of dental assistant school and getting geared up for her wedding. The book is plotted somewhat differently than the movie, and well worth a read. With a latte. In a coffee shop. It's the right book for that.

Title: Late Victorian Holocausts: El Nino Famines and the Making of the Third World
Author: Mike Davis
Published: 2000
Pages: 464

This book was a total slog - the first third was totally heartbreaking, the second third just so incredibly dense in scientific information. I think I spend about three months reading this book. I understand now why la nina/el nino are so difficult to predict, and I also understand so much more about how 20th century India came to be, and just how callous the British Empire could be regarding non-white human life. This book is one of the most valuable historical analyses I have ever read. A total toughie but absolutely worth it.

Title: Superfudge
Author: Judy Blume
Published: 1980
Pages: 182

Fun story: I was pen pals with Judy Blume in middle school for a year or so. One of our projects in Grade 6 was to write to an author. I chose her, and lo and behold, she wrote back! We exchanged a few letters. I'm sure I'm the one who let it fall off. But either way - one of the coolest school projects ever.

This is a book that I actually heard (and read over J's shoulder). He read it out loud at bedtime, a bit each day. I think he relates to free-spirit Fudge. I hear it all in his voice when I think about it :)

Title: E. Aster Bunnymund and the Warrior Eggs at the Earth's Core
Author: William Joyce
Published: 2012
Pages: 251

This is our second Joyce book - we also read Nicholas St. North and the Battle of the Nightmare King. We loved that one (both the physical book and the story), so we got another one, and this one was just as much fun. This was another read-aloud-at-bedtime book. They are whimsical, young and fun, but with plenty of story to engage you. Read him, it'll make you feel young.

Title: George's Marvellous Medicine
Author: Roald Dahl
Published: 1981
Pages: 120

Yet another bedtime book! G is almost 12, and yet we do stories every night still. I'll be sad to ever give it up. George's is much more a favorite Dahl book :)

Title: And No Birds Sang
Author: Farley Mowat
Published: 1979 (originally)
Pages: 245

Though it was a shorter book, this is one of the most impactful books I have ever read, bar none. Mowat captures, raw and unpolished, the havoc, fear, anger, and desperation of an average soldier during WWII. The numbers of that conflict are so overwhelming, it's hard to remember each person was just that - a person, with emotions, with family. Nothing has ever provided such a crucial human element to the conflict as Mowat did for me. Read this damn book.

Title: A Dog Year: 12 Months, Four Dogs, and Me
Author: Jon Katz
Published: 2002
Pages: 212

Uhm. Hm. The dogs were beautiful, their stories were worth the read. But similar to A. J. Jacobs, I don't totally love this author. He's a bit unapologetic for being the way he is, and the way he is doesn't sound like company I would want to keep. For this reason, I won't be reading more by him (same as Jacobs). But this book was nice. My boss owns a border collie, and she LOVED this book (and so did her Mom). So to each their own!

Title: Anne of Green Gables
Author: L. M. Montgomery
Published: 1908 (originally)
Pages: 320*

*This is the first book I read via an app called Serial Reader, so the page count is from a print copy.

I am Canadian, a girl, and for 5 years was very good friends with someone who loved Montgomery almost as an idol. So how, you might ask, did I avoid reading the Anne books? The answer is - I don't know how I hadn't yet read any of them. So, I started! Anne is positively charming, Marilla's heart is so large, and Matthew is just charming. I'll read the others too, once I get there.

Title: Three Cups of Tea
Author: Greg Mortenson, David Oliver Relin
Published: 2006
Pages: 349

A beautiful book. Unfortunately it's a crock. But I'm all for education of women all over the world so... someone should keep doing the work this book claims to be doing? Sigh.

Title: The Art of Racing in the Rain
Author: Garth Stein
Published: 2006
Pages: 321

Just read this book. It is the only book that has ever moved me to sobbing. No, not a glistening tear - full-blown sobbing. But goodness, SUCH a beautiful story, so well-written. I don't like car racing, couldn't care less - but still couldn't tear myself away from Enzo. Just read it, promise?

--

That's 16 books! I'm pretty proud of myself. There's a few others on the list, some comic books - maybe I'll add those at some point. But I've been reading a lot, and that's what counts!

Total Books Blogged, including all the ones in this post (OMG so many books): 55
Total Pages: 15542 (That's more than 4000 new pages!)

Of all the ones in this post, which one should you read the most?: The Art of Racing in the Rain. Oh just read it.

Word of the ?Week: Scriptorium

This word came from The Professor and the Madman, which I finished back in the fall. I wrote down the page numbers to reference for the word (p 112 and 149), but failed to take pictures of these before sending my sister back her book.

If I remember correctly, the scriptorium is where the dictionary magic happened, in the book.

In a broader sense, it means 'a place for writing', a space dedicated to the written word, especially medieval monastic illumination and hand-copying of manuscripts. How beautiful - I feel like if I could choose, I'd give it a try to be a monk 500 years ago, grow my own food, and write and illuminate. Live in a building that today would stand in ruins in some beautiful country corner of Europe. I'm sure it was not so romantic in reality, but in a little fairy tale moment it sounds peaceful and paced without stress. I feel like I should write that as a story, and then re-read it when I need a bit of peace away from the modern whirlwind.

Completed: The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

OK to be fair, I finished this book in November, according to Goodreads. But also according to Goodreads, I am ten (TENNN) books behind on the blog. I have read more than I have written, but I wouldn't have it the other way around. 

The Professor and the Madman was a fascinating tale. I love when history is written in a way that reads as though it is a novel, and Winchester certainly accomplishes this, though the subject matter surely makes it a relatively breezy task. If you are looking for a juicy tale of murder, intrigue, insanity, dedication, and heartbreak, this is one for you. I could hardly put it down, I enjoyed it so much. 

I wrote a few notes on my phone about this book. One was a definition, which I'll put in a separate post in a moment. The second says 'p. 142 - old books'. The problem is I no longer have this book - I sent it, along with some toddler clothes, back to my little sis (as I had borrowed it from her). So - I highly recommend taking this book out, reading it (as it is wonderful), and paying special attention to page 142 and whatever it is that I thought was so brilliant about what was said on that page. Then someone tell me what it was!

Title: The Professor and the Madman
Author: Simon Winchester
Published: 2005
Pages: 288

Total Books Blogged: 39
Total Pages: 11,245

Completed: The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams

Last year, I read several books that were ones I felt I should have read in childhood that I never did (for example, Tuck Everlasting). This is another one that I feel everyone read when they were a kid - rounding out their bunny lit with all of the Peter Cottontail books! I didn't realize it was only from 1987 - I would have guessed decades older, in a golden-books kind of way.

But I never did read this one, til I found it for free on my iBooks app (whatever it's called - the one where you can have books on your phone). Things like Kindls are a topic for another post (I hate them), but having a quick bit to read on your phone can be very nice. The Velveteen Rabbit was my phone book.

Oh, to be young and not have this book attack my heart in such a forlorn way. To feel all too Real while reading all about a velveteen rabbit's journey to Real-ness. If it wasn't a part of your childhood, make it part of your adulthood - it's free, and it's available on your phone.

Title: The Velveteen Rabbit
Author: Margery Williams
Published: 1987
Pages: 40

Total Books Blogged: 38
Total Pages: 10,957