Directions: The date at the beginning of each book is the date on which my review was published in this blog. Each review consists of three parts: 1. “Why read it?” 2. Sample ideas from the book, either paraphrased or quoted, and 3. Final, thought-provoking quotes. To locate the review, look at the “Blog Archive” at the right of the blog. Click on the year 2007. Find the month in which the review was published, click on it and go to the date of the review.
Saturday, May 5, 2007. Dictionary of Foreign Terms. New York: Thomas V. Crowell Company, 1975. A compendium of short, pithy, thought-provoking statements from many parts of the world.
Sunday, May 6, 2007. Don Quixote of La Mancha. Miguel de Cervantes. Novel. If you read Don Quixote for no other reason, read it for the abundance of proverbs uttered by Sancho Panza and by many others.
Monday, May 7, 2007. The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of the Structure of DNA. James D. Watson. An inside view into the chaotic process of science. And an apology to women scientists.
Tuesday, May 8, 2007. Editors on Editing: What Writers Need to Know about What Editors Do. Ed. Gerald Gross. Editors today do far more than simply correcting mistakes in grammar. It takes tact to encourage writers to make corrections. And they have to sell—the writers on changes, the members of the publishing house on accepting the book for publishing and, of course, readers to buy the book.
Wednesday, May 9, 2007. The Eighth Day. Thornton Wilder. Novel. God finished His creation on the seventh day. The human race picked up from what God finished on the eighth day. A study of creativity and achievement and a theory that every family has a messiah. Oh, yes, there is a murder mystery, too.
Friday, May 11, 2007. Emma. Jane Austen. Novel. Emma tries to manipulate the lives of others with disastrous effects for those she is manipulating and for herself.
Monday, May 14, 2007. The Bridge of San Luis Rey. Thornton Wilder. Novel. In 1714, a bridge over a canyon in Peru breaks, precipitating five travelers into the gorge. A friar wonders why these five people perished. Does God have a plan?
Tuesday, May 15, 2007. End Zone. Don DeLillo. Novel. One view of the experience of playing college football. In one sense it is a ritual.
Thursday, May 17, 2007. Eros and Civilization: A Philosophical Inquiry into Freud. Herbert Marcuse. Civilization and society are repressive. Why not let people use their potential?
Saturday, May 19, 2007. The Essays of E.B. White. EB White believes that people will want to read what he wants to write. Writes on a variety of topics, including New York City and Maine.
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