How About Paleoanthropology?

A friend loaned me her copy of Almost Adam by Petru Popescu (1996). What a neat story! A dedicated young scientist who has lived and studied in Africa for a few years is attracted to a remote area because of the possibility of discovering the remnants of a prior civilization. Not only does he find some anthropological history, he also encounters a boy showing every indication of being an example of an earlier evolutionary stage of humankind. They find ways to communicate, and develop a real fondness for each other.
There's a lot more to the story including treachery, overthrow of an African government, romantic love, and sex among the aborigines.
Did I get your attention?
Give the book a try. It's really excellent.

WAY DIFFERENT

I read a lot of mysteries and courtroom dramas because they're entertaining, and no heavy-duty thinking is required. Occasionally one comes along that teaches the reader a lot while still filling the entertainment aspect.
Such a mystery novel is In Cold Pursuit by Sarah Andrews (2007). The story is set in the Antarctic in the current era. In my opinion, it started out rather slowly, and I wasn't sure that I'd want to read all of it, but little by little, it captured my attention, and ended up being good enough that I wanted to share it with any reader that might stumble onto this website.
The fascinating part is really not the mystery, but instead, learning about how people manage to live at the South Pole. In addition to all the clothing, the insulation, the air-locks on all buildings, and other bits of trivia, you might be interested in knowing that persons in that situation have to consume about a zillion calories every day just to keep warm. And they never gain an ounce!
Had we all known that earlier, we might have chosen a different career.
The author spent two months at McMurdo Station, Antarctica, and seems to have loved it.

This one's terrific!

I belong to a couple of different book clubs and have to restrain myself from ordering all the good books offered in their monthly catalogs. However, I couldn't pass up The World Without Us by Alan Weisman (2007).
In it, the author envisions what would happen to this planet if we humans were suddenly no longer here. In addition to the imagination required to produce a book like this, it also had to take a lot of research. There are chapters on what happens to the city, the country, the oil refineries, the nuclear energy plants, and more. If you're not already aware of the dangers of over-population, this book might get your attention.
As a non-scientist, I thoroughly enjoyed the book, but I'm also sure that my daughter, who is a scientist, will find it equally engaging.

Too Good to Pass Up

I realize that I haven't reported on any books for a long time.
I've certainly read a lot of them. Many were excellent (some were not), but none made me feel compelled to write about them.
At last, I've read one that touched me so much that I'd feel like a dirty skunk if I didn't share a bit of it with you.
The book is Chosen by a Horse by Susan Richards (2006).
On the cover it says "How a broken horse fixed a broken heart". That may strike you as overly-sentimental, but the story isn't.
A lonely, fortyish woman takes in a starving horse and foal. The story takes off from there. It isn't a romanticized "National Velvet" kind of story. This has horse poop, illness, alcoholism and the possibility of sex.
Bet you get teary at the end, just like Mike and I did.

This time, it's a book...

OK, no whining this time.
A good, fun book to read is Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert ( 2006).
This first-person memoir was written by a young woman who recognized that she was quite unhappy, and set out a schedule for herself to bring about changes.
Fortunately, she had the financial wherewithall to be able to afford this.
First, she went to Italy for a certain amount of time, where she learned the language and ate a lot of pasta. Next, off to India for a while in an Ashram, where the expansion was not of the waistline, but of the spirit. Finally, she journeyed to Indonesia, to be loved.
It's interesting, and worth reading.

The bad thing about blogs

If anyone besides me reads this, you'll notice a real reduction in the number of posts as time has passed.
It isn't that I'm not reading; I'm just not writing about it.
The reason is: the lack of comments from readers. My daughter told me right at the beginning to not set myself up for disappointment by expecting comments, but when there are none, I feel that no one even looks here.
I write this to share recommendations about books that I've read, as many of those books have been recommended to me. The difference is that I tell people "Wow! I really liked that book", but seldom does anyone report back to me.
So, to those few of you who do: You're treasured!

Do I have great friends, or what?

I hope that any of you that read this blog realize that I don't find all these excellent books by myself. I have wonderful friends that lend or recommend or even bring books to my house. Yesterday, I finished reading Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer (1996). You may have heard of this book, as they just recently released a movie that was based on it.
This is the true story of a young, idealistic, financially secure college graduate who gave away all of his possessions and his money to set out alone looking for adventure, self-reliance, and equality with his fellow human beings.
He eventually ended up in the Alaskan wilderness where he starved to death. I'm not giving anything away by telling that; there's been a lot of publicity.
Sounds grim, doesn't it? Surprisingly, it's not. The book is very well written, and though the ending leaves you sad, you're also somewhat awed by the single-minded resolution of this young man that any of us would have been proud to know.