something that is not books

I am having fun getting back into an old favorite passtime: jigsaw puzzles. My four-year-old is pretty good with puzzles and becoming bored with the twenty or fifty-piece ones she can do alone and even our small collection of 100-piece puzzles she still needs help with. She wants to do "the BIG puzzles" with me. I have a small collection, some of them I've had since I was a kid myself.

I'm culling some out now and hoping to eventually acquire new ones. I want to keep puzzles I'll enjoy doing again and again (similar to how I keep books I want to re-read) and I've come to realize I am particular about my puzzles, what kind of challenge I like, and what makes them enjoyable or frustrating. I like a certain piece size and number- less than 500 and it's not challenging enough, more than 1500 and it starts to feel tedious. I don't like puzzles with uniform cuts (all pieces having two 'bumps' and two 'holes' and they go in straight rows like a grid) but ones that have unique, funny shapes that you can eyeball and try to match from the jumble on the table.

I'm also particular about the kind of picture- I want something that is striking or pretty to look at when it's done and something that has a variety of visual textures and colors which makes it fun to put together. So even though I love M.C. Escher's work, I found the puzzle of his House of Stairs incredible frustrating to assemble and I don't think I'll ever work that one again! I also don't like them so tiny and minute in detail it's like a find-the-hidden-object game. The one exception so far is a 1500 piece jigsaw I have of the painting Proverbidioms by T. E. Breitenbach. My great-aunt had a print of this on her wall and I remember as a kid always staring at it, trying to figure out what sayings all the images represented. I was delighted to find it as a puzzle. My ten-year-old enjoyed helping me put this one together a few years ago, and we tried again to identify all the sayings (and failed). It took us a long time, too.

So. I'm thinking of maybe joining a puzzle swap site, if I don't just donated my unwanted puzzles. I have a number of puzzles on my shelf that are now in the "iffy" category- not sure if I want to keep them or not. I decided to work them each again, to make a decision. It's also a fun activity my youngest enjoys doing together. I've done them all before, so to make it a bit more challenging I deterred from my normal strategy, which usually is: make the boarder, then sift out pieces that have the greatest constrast, or the most interest (faces in particular) and work out from there going from specifics to general. Thus the background usually gets done last. This time I decided to do it backwards. I still made the boarder first, but then deliberately worked the background, going general to specific. It was still fun, and made putting this puzzle together take about a week (done in many short sittings) rather than just a few days.

I also had fun taking photos of the assembly stages (click on the first image to see larger and use arrows to skip through them):

There's a little family story behind this puzzle. I used to get puzzles at garage sales and thrift shops (never again- too often they have missing pieces). This one had five missing pieces and my older daughter (four or five at the time) was sooo disappointed. She loved the cute kittens. So I made substitute pieces out of cardboard covered with a layer of white paper, colored with colored pencils and sealed with clear packing tape, burnished with the back of a spoon. I will probably never do that again- these are rather large pieces and it was still very hard to cut the tiny shapes right. But they do fit in the puzzle, even after re-working it a few times over the years. Can you spot them?

I've hung this puzzle up on my four-year-old's wall, just like I once did with her older sister. She was delighted. We'll be starting another BIG puzzle soon. I might keep sharing pics- it's fun to do and I thought you might be interested in occasionally seeing something other than books here.

Magic by the Lake

by Edward Eager

The kids from Half Magic go to a lake for summer vacation. And of course the lake is magic, they find out all about it from a talking turtle. Thus follows a vacation full of adventures. The kids are a little wiser than last time- they know magic doesn't often turn out how you expect, and that there are rules to follow, but they still make errors in judgement and try to bend the rules or control what type of adventures they will have. All kinds of mishap and hilarity ensues. They meet a mermaid, have a run-in with pirates, visit the South Pole, seek buried treasure, get captured by cannibals, hide from Ali Baba's thieves in a cave, and in one curiously different episode, two of the girls unwittingly wish they were sixteen and go off on a midnight boat ride with boys (who of course don't realize they're flirting with some little girls!)

The children are very well-read and sharp on history- they keep thinking of famous stories they want to be a part of, or moments in history they want to visit. I like this, but wonder how much of it modern kids would pick up on? The reference to A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, for example, I only recognized because I read the book just seven years ago- I didn't know it at all when I first read Magic by the Lake as a kid, and surely missed many others.

It's a fun story and the characterization is done really well- these kids act like real children- squabbling and being snooty to each other and wanting excitement and dreading chores and so on. But for some reason I didn't enjoy this book quite as much as the first one. Maybe because some of the attitudes are so dated, the scenes with cannibals and "natives" can be painful to read, for example. On another note, there was one sentence that made me blink, completely taken aback. It mentioned a lovely summerhouse by the lake where one could enjoy watching the sunset and listening to the water and the mosquitoes. I cannot imagine a single person who would find sitting with mosquitoes pleasant!

Rating: 3/5       190 pages, 1957

Greenhouse

by Gail E. Christianson

This book tells the history of the phenomenon global warming. How it began to occur, and how we first started to notice it, and a little bit about what we might do about it. Historically it starts at a point just prior to the industrial revolution, detailing all the changes in how mankind has used and created energy, tinkering we've done with fuels and chemicals and other things. And all the bad it has done to the environment. And how much it's been misunderstood or ignored, and the politicking behind making people think it's a non-issue and so on. The history stuff was really interesting, because it connected a lot of ideas and reasons that I'd never realized were related. Also fairly dull to read. I did want to finish it, to see the final points, but it was hard to get there. Of course since the book is over a decade old it's not up-to-date. Some things are, I believe, worse than the author had surmised they would become. Other things he pointed at quickly declining or going extinct, are still here or on the road to recovery. I appreciated that it was pointed out where the science was inconclusive, and where some people thought a warming climate would actually be beneficial. It strikes me as rather crazy that in the 1800's some scientists were already measuring changes in the atmosphere, but they failed to realize it could have such a negative impact.

So much stuff in this book, no way I can relate even a small part of it. Lots of sobering things, and it touches on many other interesting topics including evolution, the rapid growth of the industrial revolution, all the incidents that triggered new inventions therein, pollution, wildlife migrations and scientific feuding to name a few.

Rating: 2/5       305 pages, 1999

the 56th TBR post

(yikes)

No Better Friend by Robert Weintraub- Bermudaonion's Weblog
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson- A Striped Armchair
Once Upon a Flock by Lauren Scheuer
Phoebe and Her Unicorn by Dana Simpson from Things Mean a Lot
A Brave Vessel by Hobson Woodward- James Reads Books
Zoobiquity by Barbara Natterson-Horowitz and Kathryn Bowers
Folks This Ain't Normal by Joel Salatin
From Elephants to Mice by James Mahoney

The Indoor Naturalist by Gale Lawrence- A Striped Armchair
Fifteen Dogs by Andre Alexis- The Indextrious Reader
Swarm by Lauren Carter - Jules' Book Reviews
Steering Toward Normal by Rebecca Petruck - Caroline Bookbinder 

Half Magic

by Edward Eager

Four bored children find an ancient worn coin and discover that it grants wishes- but the tricky part is that only half the wish comes true. Sometimes this is in a sensible way- if they wish to go a mile, they only go half the distance, but other times it is confounding with hilarious results. What does half a talking cat sound like? How do you only half remember your family (someone in a fit of anger wishes she belonged to a different family). The kids get into all kinds of interesting adventures- some intentional and some not. They travel back in time to joust with Sir Launcelot, stop some thieves in a jewelry store, get stranded in a desert and much more. Though they try to take turns and come up with fun things to do together, it becomes much more than just a way to fill a boring summer with excitement, and they have to put things right in the end.

I got this book at a used sale thinking my older daughter would enjoy it, but sat down and read it in one morning by myself. And it's great. Laugh-out-loud funny in parts, good characterization, a solid lesson about getting what you wish for. There's even some subtle family dynamics and pointers on behaving decently to other people, with the siblings squabbling, helping younger ones (or not) and the oldest daughter upset at her mother's interest in a possible suitor (only she of all the children remembers their deceased father). Even though it was published in the early fifties and is set a few decades earlier (motor vehicles are a new invention, messages are sent by telegram and when the children go to the movies, it's silent pictures so they get cross with the youngest for begging to have the words on the screen read out loud!) it's written in a way that still feels completely accessible.

I am pretty sure I once read this book from my elementary school library- I distinctly remember the cover. But I had forgotten almost everything except the basic premise, and I'm sure most of the references went over my head back then- the author pays homage to E. Nesbit, Lewis Carroll, Hans Christian Anderson, T.H. White, Little Women and many other authors and literary works. It helps that the kids in the story love to read, and another main character owns a bookshop!

Rating: 4/5      192 pages, 1954

more opinions:
Shelf Love
Avid Reader
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Mormon Diaries

by Sophia L. Stone

Having grown up in the LDS church and parted ways in my adult years, I could relate to a lot in this short, soul-searching memoir. My experiences and path were different than hers (I didn't have the same feminist leaning, for example) yet a lot of things were the same. She describes very well what it is like for many women in the church, the often not-so-subtle pressures to conform, the doctrines held dear to one's heart. Her growth as a person unfolds, from a young girl unsure of herself and eager to follow instruction to a bold woman searching for a way to find truth and follow her own conscience. Questioning the church and her upbringing of course was very upsetting to her family and I particularly admire how she managed to make her feelings clear to her young children while at the same time nurturing their trust and growing faith. I also admired that she did not let her disillusionment with one particular religion seriously affect her belief in God, but found spirituality beyond one set of rules and guidelines.

I like this author's voice. Succinct and clearly descriptive as well. She writes very honestly, I can only imagine how painful and cathartic it must have been to put these words to paper. At the same time I wished for a bit more depth, for more of her own words and perhaps fewer quotes from church authorities and scriptures (although these were very useful in clarifying the religious stance and illustrate well the depth and importance of spirituality in her life). A good read, one that was hard to put down. It's a story of unfolding awareness, emotional and spiritual growth, and in spite of the pain and struggles, ends with a sense of joyful optimism.

This book was given to me by a friend.

Rating: 3/5      194 pages, 2012

more opinions:
Big Al's Books and Pals

still book blogging

for eight years now. My blogiversary was last wednesday, and I didn't even notice (I was actually gone on a trip). And like before, there's not much to note, things are pretty much the same. The book stacks are piling up, the to-be-read list is getting longer, and I still stand before my bookshelves some days and just breathe a big sigh, admire all their patient spines and remember why I want to read them again and again. I don't think this love will ever die.

Thanks to all of you for joining me on this never-ending journey between the pages, and fostering my bookish habits! Those lists are every-longer because of you (I rarely browse shelves at random anymore).

A Child of the Northeast

by Kampoon Boontawee
translated by Susan Fulop Kepner

This book is about life in a small, poor village in nothern Thailand. The young boy Koon is its central character. His rural village is very poor and they have been facing years of drought. Nearby water sources have dried up and people have begun moving away from the village- they can no longer catch fish or grow rice. Koon's father teaches him how to find other things to eat- they hunt lizards and frogs, catch cicadas, crickets and gather ants' eggs. They also eat many kinds of small birds, owls, snakes, mongoose and other wildlife. Koon is a good-natured boy and usually obedient to his parents; he is always interested in learning how to prepare certain kinds of food and make necessary things- a new roof for their house, baskets, fishnets, etc. His close friend is more of a troublemaker and a braggart, providing strong contrast to Koon's character. When the drought gets particularly bad, Koon and his family travel to a river where they can catch and preserve fish, bringing back bounty to trade for rice and other goods. Through the story various dynamics in the village unfold- conflict between men who want to lead in different ways, disagreements between neighbors, the hasty marriage of a young couple and issues they work through during their first year together as man and wife. The constant poking fun and teasing, saving face and nursing pride, vying for attention- this mostly seems to be Koon's young friend but some of the grown men feel acutely the need to be seen important as well. I most admired Koon's mother, who worked hard without complaint and acted gracious to everyone, giving to those in need and rarely finding fault. His father was a constant source of wisdom and strength, knowing when to push on through difficulties and when to step back and let things go (as when a flood tore away their fishing nets). It is a quiet kind of story, one that doesn't seem to have much going on but is an intriguing portrayal of a different way of life.

Rating: 3/5        483 pages, 1994

Catch Me A Colobus

by Gerald Durrell

Here Durrell has his own zoo established, but is working on a tight budget so he outlines how it was set it up as a Trust to get people interested in wildlife conservation to help support the zoo. The book describes their work at the zoo with various wild animals- how they were cared for, dealing with illness and injury, their excitement and feeling of success when some of their animals bred for the first time in captivity: the rare white-eared pheasant, the tapir, Geralda baboon, a chimpanzee, a lioness that had problems giving birth, serval cats and civets. Most of the book though, is about his trips to foreign countries to collect new animals for the zoo. On one trip they had extra complications caused by taking along a film crew, hoping to educate the public about their work via a television program. The most memorable trip was one to Sierra Leone where they acquired leopards, various birds and other animals but the focus was on two types of colobus monkey- beautiful creatures with long silky fur quite unknown (at that time) to the rest of the world. Durrell tells in detail of their efforts to find these animals, to catch enough of them to keep a breeding colony, and the difficulty they had getting the animals adjusted to eating the kinds of food they could be provided with back at the zoo. I admired the fact that when one of the groups of colobus failed to adjust and refused all food to the point of becoming lethargic, he simply let them go again. He also tells of another trip to Mexico where they collected thick-billed parrots but in particular were searching for the teporingo or volcano rabbit- and it proved very difficult to get ahold of. Like all his other books, Gerald entertained me with amusing incidents and lively descriptions of the interesting animals. The last chapter tells of numerous wildlife species he feared would soon go extinct, with a plea for wildlife conservation and financial support to the zoo's trust.

Rating: 3/5     221 pages, 1972

Edith and Mr. Bear

A Lonely Doll story
by Dare Wright

Picture book story of a little doll who lives with Mr. Bear and Little Bear. Mr. Bear comes home from a trip and brings presents- the younger ones clamor for gifts and then argue about whose is better. But the most wonderful thing is a glass-sided clock Mr. Bear bought for himself. Edith is fascinated by the workings of the clock; Mr. Bear puts it up high out of reach. One day when no-one is around Edith climbs up to see the clock closer, and accidentally breaks it. She hides the evidence, and then lies when Mr. Bear asks who did it. She feels bad about lying, but can't admit it and feeling worse and worse, starts being horrid to her friends and can't even enjoy her own birthday party. She decides to run away, but after wandering through the streets half a day cold and lonely of course she goes home again. Mr. Bear has been frantically looking for her. She is welcomed back and finally confesses what she did, all is better now. Well, at least, she made amends. But the story continues a little and you see that Edith isn't perfect- she still does naughty things, quarrels with Little Bear and likes to brag. But she never again lies to Mr. Bear.

The photographs by Dare Wright (a woman) illustrating this story are just lovely. They're made with a real doll and teddy bears (also a live kitten in a few scenes) posing in different situations with tiny props. Although black and white they're very nice and the vintage look is charming.

There's only one picture that looks awkward to me, where Edith has just come home and is standing ashamed in the doorway. Mr. Bear is holding the door open but it looks like he is going to hit her over the head with his pipe!

Reminds me of a children's book in my daughter's collection called Carmen (black and white photos illustrating a story of a lonely girl in a city apartment). I'd like to find the others in this Lonely Doll series. I found this one at the public library, they have a few more.

Rating: 4/5         58 pages, 1964

The Summer of the Falcon

by Jean Craighead George

This is the story of a young girl who trains a falcon with her brothers. June and her family spend their summers in a big house in the country, and her brothers seem to have a regular practice of catching and training various types of hawks. (The forward to the book points out that the story is set in the sixties, when there were no regulations against this). It's a coming-of-age story, showing how June grows up over a period of three summers- from being headstrong, a bit careless and adventuresome, to taking on responsibility in the household and learning some manners as she grows into a young lady (she really resents this transition at first). Most of the book though, is about the work with her bird, a kestrel or sparrow hawk. June is eager to successfully train the bird and prove herself to her brothers, but she tends to make mistakes and neglect the hawk at times- it really tells how much falconry work is about keeping the bird at the right state of hunger or satiety- when hungry it will feel inclined to fly to a lure, when full it can be let loose to sit content and there's no risk of loosing it, for example. I liked the book particularly for the falconry details; the character development is nice too even for such a brief story. Some aspects strongly reflects its timeframe- women were expected to keep house, kids played widely unsupervised (exploring caves and jumping into flooded rivers!) and often got themselves into trouble. There are lighthearted and heavy moments- a party that gets crashed with pranks involving the animals, the children build a clay city and make up a secret language, a family friend dies on a trip- really quite a lot packed into this little book!

Perhaps that's why it felt rushed and some things were never explained, which made me wonder if the author wrote another book about this family? There's not much background on why these kids regularly keep hawks for example, or what June does with her falcon when she's at school during the winter months, I was left puzzled at times. Otherwise, a good read!

Rating: 3/5     153 pages, 1962

The Tygrine Cat

by Inbali Iserles

Fleeing his homeland upon his mother's death, young Mati hides on board a ship and steps out on a new land. He tries to join a community of feral cats that holds territory in the marketplace, but they are suspicious of outsiders. Mati doesn't understand their customs, has strange abilities and looks different too. (From the descriptions I guessed he was an abyssinian). Mati tries to make friends and learn their ways, but frightening events start to occur and the innocent newcomer is held to blame...

I was disappointed that I didn't care more for this one. It has a lot of adventure and a bit of a mystery too, since Mati can't quite remember where he came from and is unaware of the ancient powers he holds. Turns out he is being chased by an assassin and must face a final battle with an evil creature. It's a fast-paced story with a strong fantasy bent but I guess I just wished for a little more character depth and the feline lore- traditions, superstitions, invented names the cats called things- dogs and humans for example were "hinds" and "oolfs"- wasn't quite rich enough to seem real. I just couldn't get into it. But I bet my ten-year-old will really enjoy this book.

Abandoned         242 pages, 2007

more opinions:
Things Mean a Lot
Socrates' Book Reviews
The Book Vault

The Abandoned

by Paul Gallico

Delightful story about a lonely boy who loves cats and finds himself turned into one. He rushes into the street after a tabby kitten and is hit by a car when the transformation happens. Unceremoniously thrown out of the house, Peter-now-the-cat must find his way in a terrifying new world where everything once familiar is now strange. Luckily he meets a very kind and street-wise female named Jennie who is quite skeptical of his story until she realizes he does not at all behave like a cat, and moreover can read and understand human speech. Jennie takes it upon herself to teach Peter how to survive as a stray and moreover, how to act and think like a cat- all the little skills and rules of conduct for his new life. They have quite a number of adventures, including time spent as ship's cats, and become very fond of each other, even though Peter longs for the comforts of his past life while Jennie cannot bring herself to trust human beings. I won't say more, only that this is a wonderful book I wish I'd encountered as a child but am very glad it stands up to my first reading it as an adult. I don't know which I liked more, the deep story of friendship and trust, or the wonderful details of being feline. The ending feels like a bit of a cop-out, but I dismissed that easily enough. I'd read it again.

As you can see from the cover image, it has also been published with the title Jennie. I found out about this book here.

Rating: 4/5        307 pages, 1950

The Grandest of Lives

Eye to Eye with Whales
by Douglas H. Chadwick

Writer and wildlife biologist Chadwick (of A Beast the Color of Winter) became interested in whales and started accompanying other scientists on study trips across the oceans to lend a hand and see whales up close. In this book, he shares information on five whale species, the well-known orcas, humpbacks and giant blue whales, the more common and less-studied minke, and the deep-diving northern bottlenose whale. Each chapter tells about the studies being conducted, difficulties due to weather and equipment failure, innovations in the field, the conflicts of traditional whaling interests and fisheries with conservation efforts, and brief encounters with whales after long hard hours spent searching for them. It was the whale behavior stuff I found most interesting, whether it be their feeding methods and mysterious communication calls or movements among themselves and how some approached boats (one female seemed to think the boat could babysit her calf). Not to be all one-sided, Chadwick also observed methods used on a Norwegian whaling vessel (aimed at killing whales - their rightful heritage, it is claimed- in the fastest, least traumatic way possible) and traveled to Japan to find out about the whaling activities there. There are lots of numbers- population fluctuations and such- and other types of data gone into in detail, which detracts from enjoyment for this casual reader. The author communicated well how difficult it is to learn anything about the personal lives and habits of the whales, when we only glimpse them at the surface, and 95% of their time is spent below it. It was a worthwhile read, covering many aspects of whale biology and research.

Rating: 3/5        256 pages, 2006

A Whale for the Killing

by Farley Mowat

In the late sixties, very little was known about whales and their demise from the whaling industry and overfishing seemed imminent. So when a fin whale (second-largest next to the blue whale) became trapped by the tide in a small cove on the coast of Newfoundland, Mowat saw it as an opportunity to learn more about the whale at close quarters. He was shocked and angered to find locals using the whale for sport, shooting at it and chasing it with their speedboats. He appealed to local authorities for help and getting little response, went to the media and Canadian government. The small community he lived in split sides as some saw his work advocating for the whale as meddlesome, objected to being denied water passage through areas they'd always used, and resented criticism from the outside world. Others welcomed the attention the whale brought their small village, hoping it would bring them tourists and that improvements like better roads would follow. Efforts to free the whale had to wait for the next highest tide (which would need to coincide with a storm to raise the water enough for the whale to escape via a narrow passage) - it would have been a month at best, but the story of the whale covers only ten days. Mowat struggled to find means to feed the whale, and protect it from people (whether they were just curious, bored or outright cruel mattered little in the end- they did the whale no good).

It gets set up slowly, introducing the reader to the history of whaling in Newfoundland (and around the world) as well as the location. Mowat had only been in this remote fishing community for five years, seeking a quiet place to live far from "modern society" (he rants a lot against industrialization and modern technology, seems to hate the telephone in particular). Unfortunately his actions in favor of the whale brought all kinds of conflict and ill-feeling, I guess he did not continue living there for long after the incident. In parts the book is almost more a study of human nature (how people responded to the whale's presence and each other's involvement in its plight) than it is about the whale itself. There are some detailed descriptions of its sheer size, calm movements, eerie sounds. Also details on its natural feeding methods (which could hardly be met) and how another fin whale (probably its mate) stayed just outside the inlet to the cove constantly until the whale died. It's a frustrating story to read, because so little could be done, and by the time scientists became interested in the whale it was too late for them to arrive and learn anything. But the book did have an impact on early whale conservation efforts.

Rating: 3/5      239 pages, 1972

TBR from reading and browsing

I had a chance to visit the public library without my kids, so browsed the shelves at leisure. Brought home a few books to read, but couldn't possible carry (or find time for) all the ones that caught my eye, so I wrote down a list of titles to go back for later. Some of these are also from references listed in recent reads:

Beneath the Surface by John Hargrove
Amazing Rare Things by David Attenborough
Smithsonian Natural History Kathryn Hennessy
The Amateur Naturalist by Nick Baker
Secret Lives of Common Birds by Marie Read
Captivating Bluebirds by Stan Tekiala
Life Along the Delaware Bay by Niles, Berger, Dey et al
The Bonobo and the Atheist by F.B.M. de Waal
Giraffe Reflections by Dale Peterson
Wolf: Legend, Enemy, Icon by Rebecca L. Grambo
Whitetail Tracks by Valerius Geist
The Odyssey of KP2 by Terrie M. Williams
The Last Unicorn by William DeBuys
Wild Ones by Jon Mooallem
The Way of the Panda by Henry Nicholls
The Amateur Naturalist by Gerald Durrell
The Great White Bear by Kieran Mulvaney
Among Giants by Charles Nicklin and K.M. Kostyal
The Intimate Ape by Shawn Thompson
Tibet Wild by George B. Schaller
Into Great Silence by Eva Saulitis
Last Chain on Billie by Carol Bradley
The Black Rhinos of Namibia by Rick Bass
An Indomitable Beast by Alan Rabinowitz
A Sting in the Tale by David Goulson
Ten Million Aliens by Simon Barnes

Wild Animals in Captivity by Heini Hediger
Zoo: a History of Zoological Gardens by Eric Baratay
A Different Nature: the Pradoxical World of Zoos by David Hancocks
Sea Otters by Marianne Riedman
Sea Otters by John A. Love
Sea Otters a Natural History and Guide by Roy Nickerson
The World of the Sea Otter by Stephanie Paine

Death at SeaWorld

Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity
by David Kirby

This book is about the controversy over keeping orcas in captivity. If you've seen the film Blackfish, it's the same topic, although much broader in scope. It's not all about SeaWorld, it does discuss other marine parks and some studies of orcas in the wild.  Kirby goes into a ton of detail, particularly about the background of various people involved and what led them to work with orcas. By the second half of the book I realized its main focus was the 2010 incident when a male orca killed an experienced trainer during a show. There is a lot of detail about what happened afterwards, especially the legal tangle that ensued. Kirby attempts to fairly portray both sides- presenting what the captive marine industry has to say and their defenses, but its pretty apparent that the book leans in the anti- camp. It seems his main source was Naomi Rose, a wildlife scientist who works for the Humane Society- there's a lot about her. Practically a portrait of the life and work of Naomi Rose, in many ways. It became hard to read- because of the horrific scenes described when trainers were injured or killed by captive whales, the suffering of the animals (especially compared to the condition and behavior of their wild kin) and the tedious recitation of facts which, although informative, make for very dull reading. I would have rather read more about the whales themselves, this book is mostly focused on industry practices, events and people. However I learned a lot about what goes on and honestly I'm appalled that marine parks still keep orcas for display and entertainment after what has happened. They seem very unsuitable for life in captivity. Read more here.

I borrowed this book from the public library, found it while browsing the shelves.

Rating: 3/5        469 pages, 2012

Sea Otters

by Glenn VanBlaricom

A nice introduction to sea otters, this short book tells a lot about their biology, lifestyle and interactions with people, including the often negative consequences. How otters cope with living in the cold water, their diet, what is known about their breeding habits and life cycle, methods used to study them and so on. I didn't know there are two species of otter that use ocean waters- marine otters rest and breed on land and only the sea otter spends its entire life in the water. As a key predator otters influence their environment significantly- they must eat a lot to keep up body heat so they actually compete with shellfish harvesting. Ironically this wasn't even an industry until otter populations were decimated by fur hunters. On the other hand, otters keep down numbers of sea urchins which can consume so much plant and algae life they turn large areas of ocean floor into an aquatic desert. It's a complicated issue. I was surprised to learn that even though otter populations had recovered encouragingly since hunting them was banned in 1911, they had a seventy percent population decline in the decade prior to this book's publication. Their new threats are conflicts with fishing industries, pollution and oil spills, poaching for illegal fur trade, legal harvest by native tribal groups and a shift in feeding habits by orcas- which now often eat otters.

Sea otters are so charming, and the pictures in this book are very appealing. I learned why sea otters perform those amusing contortions in the water, rolling with their paws held up (seen in a lot of cute videos posted online)- they like to keep their paws dry when resting (keeps them warmer) but have to roll themselves to stay anchored in the kelp which gradually unravels as the wind and waves move.

I picked up this book at a discard sale. You might think from its length and numerous large pictures that it's juvenile non-fiction but the writing is quite sophisticated. An easy read in one sitting for me, however it might be a bit beyond my ten-year-old.Very educational, interesting reading and good quality photographs. I have a number of books from this WorldLife Library series published by Voyageur Press, and they're all good.

Rating: 4/5      72 pages, 2001

The Lost Whale

by Michael Parfit and Suzanne Chisholm

In 2001 a small killer whale was seen in Nootka Sound, separated from his family group. He hung around there for five years. Apparently skilled and outgoing for such a young orca- at four years old and living solo he had no trouble catching fish to eat. The whale was approaching boats and acted very interested in people. His friendliness won him a lot of fans- people started travelling from afar to go out on the water and see this little whale that would come up to the side of a boat, nudge the sides, roll at the surface to look at people, flip his fins around and lob his tail, spyhop and surf the boat's wave- you name it. But when the whale grew bigger and got bolder it became a serious problem. He interfered with the passage of vessels, frightened people by lifting their boats out of the water, broke a number of propellers and rudders. People worried about serious damage or injury when he played around seaplanes and approached kyakers. There was a lot of public conflict over the fate of this whale- many said he should be left alone, which was difficult to enforce when the whale deliberately approached people. Others thought it cruel to deny the whale contact when he obviously sought it out. First Nations groups saw the whale as an embodiment of their ancestor and felt honored by his presence in their waters, they actively thwarted capture efforts. Attempts to relocate the whale or lead him back to his migrating pod would cost a lot, with little promise of success. Many worried that if the whale was captured he would not actually be relocated but end up in an aquarium instead. The book is all written in a very matter-of-fact reporting style, with here and there some lovely descriptions of the moods of the ocean or the texture of the water's surface. I mainly read through the whole thing just to see where the orca ended up. I'd never heard of this story before.

I borrowed this book from the public library.

Rating: 3/5      330 pages, 2013

Now You See Me

from Endangered to Extinction
by Diane Brischke

This book is a call to action on behalf of endangered wild animals. It highlights twenty very recognizable species- cheetah, elephant, panda, manatee, wolf, iguana, parrot, rhinoceros, etc and tells briefly what kinds of threats they face from mankind including pollution, habitat loss, climate change, poaching and population decline due to the pet trade. Sadly, it is not a book I can recommend. I expected from the large format to find gorgeous photographs inside, but only a few are excellent in quality, the rest are just okay. I know the book is directed at younger readers, but still it seemed overly simplified and very repetitive. Not much real information was shared, mostly generalizations about animals loosing habitat and facing the end: extinction. Except- some of them aren't in that dire of a situation yet. Black bears are featured in this book, yet the IUCN lists this bear as being of "least concern" and National Geographic says "this is the only bear species considered secure throughout its range". Sloths are also "of least concern." Leopards are "threatened". So why are they in this book? There are far more species seriously critically endangered that could have been included.

Aside from that, I found it annoying to read because of the numerous typos, odd punctuation, run-on sentences and awkward phrases that seemed to be missing words, so they made no sense. I often had to read a sentence two or three times. The book really needed a better editor. White text on various dark and colored backgrounds was a poor choice, it's a headache for my eyes. I can only imagine this would be frustrating and disappointing for kids to read, as it was for me.

I received a copy of this book for review.

Rating: 1/5      52 pages, 2014

The Octopus and the Orangutan

by Eugene Linden

What, exactly, is the nature of intelligence? This book looks at a wide variety of animal behaviors that baffle or surprise people, because they display a level of intelligence and ingenuity that we like to reserve for ourselves. Most of the incidents described here are encounters wild animals have with people in captive settings, not in the kind of measured experiment scientists use for proof. So it's anecdotal evidence, things we can only surmise and guess at what they might really mean in terms of how much the animal actually understands. I was actually expecting a lot more stories, but appreciated what I got- the author takes pains to examine the background of each incident presented, and goes into depth considering all the implications and possible explanations. There are stories of animals using deception, offering comfort, using tools in new ways (at least not seen by humans before), communicating across species, hiding their intentions and negotiating for rewards. The discussion ranges all over- sometimes I got impatient when it seemed to veer off topic (away from the animals), but the author always had a point. Lots of ideas that I'm still thinking about. Orangutans and octopuses are held up as key examples of intelligence but the book also features squirrels, orcas, elephants, dolphins, chimpanzees, starlings, dogs, horses and more.

I found this book at a thrift shop.

Rating: 4/5      242 pages, 2002

extra TBR

Most of these book titles I came across as references listed in the back of The Soul of an Octopus; the rest of them I happened across while looking for the former in the library's online catalog. Add to the list!

Horseshoe Crabs and Velvet Worms by Richard Fortey
Sex, Drugs and Sea Slime by Ellen Prager
Still Life with Chickens by Catherine Goldhammer
A Farm Dies Once a Year by Arlo Crawford
Fifty Acres and a Poodle by Jeanne Marie Laskas
One-Woman Farm by Jenna Woginrich
Growing a Farmer by Kurt Timmermeister

Octopus the Ocean's Intelligent Invertebrate by Roland Anderson
Window to the Sea by John Grant
Super Suckers by James Cosgrove
Octopus and Squid: the Soft Intelligence by Jacques Yves Cousteau
The Outermost House by Henry Beston
The House of Paper by Carlos Maria Dominguez- So Many Books

The Soul of an Octopus

by Sy Montgomery

The octopus is an alien intelligence, right here on earth. These creatures are fascinating. Sy Montgomery wowed me as usual. She's one of my favorite nature writers- always accessible, easy to get immersed in her stories, I can't put the book down. She tells about getting to know several octopuses in succession at a public aquarium behind the scenes, becoming a priveledged enough visitor to receive an access badge and herself answering questions about the animal for visitors. Ocotopuses have a very short lifespan in spite of all their smarts (three to four years at best) so the aquarium usually had a younger one adjusting to life in captivity behind the scenes when the current octopus on display began to age. They each had their own personality, some appearing to like the company and attention of humans, others not. They presented different challenges- a bored octopus will cause trouble by attempting to escape or eating its tankmates, so the aquarium staff have to find toys to amuse it or make food puzzles to keep it occupied. In between visits to the aquarium tanks, Montgomery took diving lessons and made forays into the ocean with guided groups, hoping to observe wild octopuses (they're hard to find). She also relates many interesting things about many other fish and invertebrates at the aquarium or that she encountered on the ocean dives, and talks about her developing friendships with other octopus fans, how contact with the octopus changed some of their lives. Mostly it is full of wonder for this strange, incredible animal and knowledge shared. And now I want to read more about octopus, must find more books. There's several on my list, but I haven't been able to find copies yet...

I borrowed this book from my public library.

Rating: 4/5       261 pages, 2015

The Book of Animal Ignorance

by John Lloyd and John Mitchinson

A book full of really odd and intriguing facts about animals. Lots of things I never heard of before. Made me constantly blurt out an astonished "did you know-??" to my husband if he happened to be in the room when I was reading, and jot things down to look up online later- yeah, they're true. It's organized in alphabetical order and tells about all kinds of interesting critters, from the unusual (naked mole rats, tardigrade aka "water bears", quolls) to the more commonly known worms, rabbits, monkeys, fleas, you name it. Surprising bits of information on all of them. It reminded me a lot of those "True Facts About the [insert animal name]" videos you find on youtube with the deep voice narrating, because of the amount of crazy information about how animals mate. From anatomy to behavior, animals have more strange ways of doing it than I had ever imagined!

Some things that really jumped out at me: polar bears will eat toothpaste. Apparently they find the smell of it irresistible. There is a moth that smells like goats (and another one that smells like chocolate). The area of an echidna's brain that has to do with reasoning and personality is very large in proportion to the rest of it- even bigger than that in "higher" mammals. No one's figured out why. Female ferrets actually get sick if they're not mated when in heat. Also: ferrets have been used to thread cables through long tunnels or pipes, and Boeing used them to run cables through inaccessible parts of airplanes- until apparently the ferrets started getting bored and taking naps halfway through finishing their task! Some frogs will vomit by turning their stomach inside out and cleaning it with their hands before swallowing it again! (I think that's nearly as gross as the sea cucumber's defensive mechanism of vomiting up its guts). The giraffe's tongue is dark blue to keep it from getting sunburned (it is used so much to pluck leaves off trees). Echidnas may appear brainy for their size, koalas are not. Their brain is so small it floats in the cranial cavity, surrounded by twice as much empty space! There is a calculator made from the neurons of leeches?? I don't understand this one, really. There is a specific species of louse that infects almost every animal- except for bats, echidnas and the platypus (why?) The Romans used to eat parrots, when their novelty as pets wore off. There is a species of rabbit that has stripes- it is extremely rare. The tuatara (primitive reptile related to lizards) has a third eye. An earthworm has ten hearts!

Very interesting article this book lead me to look up: Humboldt's Parrot: Endangered species and endangered languages. Want to know more crazy stuff about animals? Read the book!

Rating: 3/5      241 pages, 2007

TBR again

I think this is the first time I've posted a TBR list where every title on it is actually available at my local library.

Cat Sense by John Brandshaw- Opinions of a Wolf
Working Stiff by Judy Melinek- Shannon's Book Bag
The World's Strongest Librarian by Josh Hanagarne- Caroline Bookbinder
Jennie alternate title The Abandoned by Paul Gallico
Hallucinations by Oliver Sacks- seen on library shelf
Aquarium by David Vann- Bermudaonion's Weblog
The God Species by Mark Lynas- So Many Books
Help! I'm a prisoner in the library by Eth Clifford- Melody's Reading Corner
I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson- Things Mean a Lot
Living in Denial by Kari Marie Norgaard- So Many Books

Children of the Wild West

by Russell Freedman

A juvenile non-fiction book, this is pretty good for its intended audience but won't be a keeper for me. It relates what life was probably like for kids during the mid- to late 1800's in America. Pioneer children travelling west in wagon trains and native american children living in their various tribes. Mostly it just details daily life, occasionally touches on some deeper topics such as how native american children were often taken from their homes and put into white schools, taught new occupations. (Some of the most compelling images were side-by-side pictures of groups of native girls and boys, depicted when they first arrived at a school dressed in their traditional attire, and again a year or so later in stiff western clothing. They look miserable- but its hard to tell really when you remember how still they had to keep their faces for a clear photograph back then). The book also tells how young children had to work on farms and homesteads, in town jobs such as running messages or typesetting, riding horses on ranches and even acting as travelling performers. Their typical daily chores. What kinds of games and amusements they had. Schooling in one-room buildings (that often doubled as a church on sunday), the hardships of frontier schoolteachers. I did not find a lot here that was new to me, but the photographs are excellent for their time, it is quite something to peer at their solemn, often indistinct faces and wonder what it was really like for them. The book also details how early photography was done, the difficulties of travelling photographers who presented their skill as a novelty item to the hardworking people in frontier and mining towns.

Rating: 3/5        104 pages, 1983

Of Wolves and Men

by Barry Holstun Lopez

The last book I read sparked my interest to read another one about wolves off my shelf. This book introduces the biology and behavior of the wolf, but mostly it is an examination about the different aspects relationships between mankind and wolves have taken on through the centuries, up to the present day. It looks at fairy tales, myths, folklore and misconceptions alike (presenting a nice distinction between fable and fairy tale by the way). It is not exactly linear in nature, discussing firstly the close parallel lives of native americans and other peoples who lived a hunting lifestyle had with wolves (and how this affected their view and esteem of wolves), then the warfare and extermination programs run against wolves in North America- all the various methods and justifications people had for killing wolves and the devastating effects this had. Then it examines the medieval view of wolves, which was mostly fanciful and moralizing. Wolves were presented as the embodiment of evil and religious powers only strengthened this idea, which persisted for a very long time. Then there's the completely opposite idea of the wolf as a nurturing mother that would raise human children in the wild- I came across a lot of familiar material in this chapter. Lopez shows how eventually science tried to look at real wolves and understand them, but how difficult it remains to break from old ideas, to see past what we've always believed to be true. The final epilogue is all too short, a glimpse of the time the author spent raising two wolves- I want to read more about that. I suspect he did not write much about it because he realized it is a bad idea and didn't want others to be encouraged to copy the experiment. Throughout it all, some fascinating history and intriguing ideas about how human minds from the depths of the past have shaped what we see and understand today. The overall idea I came away with was that no matter which way we look at the animal, we only see a part of it, what we think of it, never completely what the wolf truly is in and of himself. Some part of the animal will always remain a mystery to us, and Lopez seems content to leave it that way.

Rating: 3/5      308 pages, 1978

Women who Run with the Wolves

by Clarissa Pinkola Estes

This is a heavy book. Rich indeed. One you have to read slowly, take in pieces, ponder over. I'm not sure I understood all the things Estes was getting at, and its definitely a book that requires a re-read, if not many. In a nutshell, Estes examines and analyzes fairytales, myths and folktales in the context of what they can teach about the inner lives of women. It reminded me a lot of Care of the Soul, a book I haven't read since high school. In each segment of the book, Estes examines a particular fairy tale (often several related tales or different versions as well) and goes into great depth about the wisdom and insight it can convey about such things as finding inner strength, recognizing things that take you away from your true self, enduring and continuing on in the face of difficulties, recognizing people you feel kinship with, finding and drawing upon your creative energy and so on. The ways and manners in which women expresses themselves and mine their inner strengths are myriad, and Estes recognizes that. She presents a lot of tales I was completely unfamiliar with, and explains others in ways I had never considered before. I was a bit surprised to find some other reviewers disagreed entirely with her viewpoint, said she forced and changed the stories to say what she wanted, diverted from their original meaning. But I just took it to be part of the power of storytelling, to use stories and word imagery to communicate something strong and lasting. Oh, and there are many comparisons to wolves and how they live. Estes calls the feminine soul your inner Wild Woman, who is keen and responsive and fierce in ways like the wolf...

So is it a bunch of interpretive hogwash, or something profoundly insightful? I guess it depends on the reader. For myself, I found quite a bit to take away and ponder at length, and I am keeping this book on my shelf to delve into again someday.

this is what 926 books look like

all piled up in one room, waiting for shelving to be installed.

There's another few dozen TBR books under the bed as well

this stack next to my smaller aquarium

and my regular TBR shelf that's full of clutter because I don't have things all organized and put away yet. Oh, and the count is off- some more books here on the floor in front of little shelf that my father-in-law gave me (unfortunately I won't be keeping most of them- half are of a genre I don't usually read, and the other half books I know I love- because I already own copies of them!)

And last of all, the book I'm currently reading. It's taking me a long time to get through this one, but what a fantastic read!