New Year, New Books to Read

I read 66 books last year. Down a little from last year, but still not bad. And when you consider that a few of those books were grade school books when I was volunteering at Fairfield Elementary, this year is about even. So for the past two days, I have been deciding on what to read. That involves a careful process that I have developed over the years. It’s simple, but it does take a little time.

          Of course, if I have any unfinished books they go to the top of the list automatically. This year I have two: “The Inklings” by Humphrey Carpenter, and “The Annotated Flatland” by Ian Stewart. The former is about C.S. Lewis and a Thursday evening group of friends who met in his rooms at Oxford in the 30’s and 40’s for readings and discussions. Stewart’s book is my choice for our March book group meeting. The original, without any annotations, was written in 1884 by Edwin A. Abbott. The theme of the book is about limitations of a people living in a place called Flatland to view more than 2 dimensions, and what happens when a person named A. Square challenges this view. Underlying this story is a critical view of Victorian views of English society and women’s rights of that time.

          I have added five other books to my current reading. Not all of them get read every day, but I do get to all of them several times a week. I’ve begun “Killers of the King” by Charles Spencer, brother of the late Princess Diana. It’s about the trial and execution of Charles I, Oliver Cromwell and the Commonwealth, and then finally his son’s, Charles II, revenge on his father’s murderers.

          The next book is “William Shakespeare’s The Force Doth Awaken” by Ian Doescher. This is the seventh installment of the Star Wars series. Written the way Shakespeare would probably have written it, it should be as enjoyable as the previous six. Ironically, I have not seen any of the Star Wars films.  My friends kid me about that. I will watch them one day. But right now, I’ll read the books by Shakespeare.

          The third book I added is “The Hobbit” by J.R.R. Tolkien. Always wanted to, I’ll read this first, then the Rings trilogy.

The fourth book is “Thomas Jefferson’s Crème Brulee” by Thomas Craughill. It’s about Jefferson and one of his slaves in France during the time there as ambassador and learning about French cuisine (his slave) and crops (him).

          The last book is next month’s book group selection. It’s “1776” by David McCullough. I expect it to be as good as his others.