Wednesday, December 21, 2005

Floating Through France

Floating Through France: Life Between Locks on the Canal du Midi


Edited by Barbara Euser, I am lucky enough to be published in this Travelers' Tales collection alongside such wonderful travel writers as Larry Habegger, Linda Watanabe McFerrin and Joanna Biggar. It is a delightful gathering of travel experiences, reflections, emotions that come out of drifting along this beautiful southern waterway at only a few miles per hour.

Available in Spring!

Monday, December 19, 2005

The Caliph's House, Tahir Shah

Subtitled A Year in Casablanca, this book chronicles one man's purchase and renovation of an estate in Morocco. His tale of foreign home renovation and culture discovery is in the same vein as Peter Mayle's delightful A Year in Provence. In this completely different world than France (although they do speak French), Tahir Shah explores his own family history, ethnicity, culture and more. He contends with difficult employees, bad spirits, and an upside-down government system while making friends with a stamp-collector, a countess and some chamelons.

A brisk journey through the year, The Caliph's House is an easy read, but not without depth. Shah has such a keen eye to his surroundings that he need not use many words to convey a feeling or introduce a person. The story has been done before and as long as people feel like uprooting their families and moving to lands unknown to their own experiences, this story will repeat itself. But the cast of characters is so different, the culture so colorful that it is nearly impossible not to fall in love with Morocco.

Recommended for Armchair Travelers, Culture Explorers and Home Remodelers

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

A Time to Read

Just in time for later-minute shoppers comes a lovely little essay/recs list by Alan Cheuse or NPR. A Time to ReadAlan Cheuse's Holiday List starts off like an enjoyable little esay about reading and morphs into his suggestions for book-lovers this holiday season.

"Because of the pressure of daily life and the need to kick back and free the mind from the workaday world, many people throw up their hands and then turn on the TV. <...> But then comes holiday time, sacred days, time outside of ordinary time, when it's possible to find free hours for reading during a day usually given over to work."

Ain't that the truth Alan!

Thursday, December 01, 2005

Fondling Your Muse, John Warner

I strongly encourage you to take the time to read John Warner's bits of "Brilliance and Wisdom".

These are all funny. Some are really friggin funny and others are downright hilarious!

The book isn't bad either.