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Monday, January 25, 2010
Eating Well, Living Well by Richard Beliveau and Denis Gingras ***
I loved Foods That Fight Cancer and Cooking With Foods That Fight Cancer by the same authors. These are mainstream Canadian scientists who tell you what medical system and the government won't tell you --- what causes disease and how to prevent and cure it with food. The recipes in the second book are great too.
It makes perfect sense --- all medicines are derived from plants afterall, so why wouldn't eating healthy fresh food keep you healthy.
It is no hardship eating this way as all the foods are delicious and easy to make, but of course you do have to stop eating fake food and you do have to eat fresh fruit and vegetables, especially cruciferous vegetables.
It makes perfect sense --- all medicines are derived from plants afterall, so why wouldn't eating healthy fresh food keep you healthy.
It is no hardship eating this way as all the foods are delicious and easy to make, but of course you do have to stop eating fake food and you do have to eat fresh fruit and vegetables, especially cruciferous vegetables.
Book 6 The Steppes are the Colour of Sepia by Connie Braun *
The redemption story of the Letkeman family who survived, against all odds, the Russian revolution, deportation to the Gulag, the German occupation, the Great Trek, and labour in Yugoslavia and Austria, and finally immigration to Canada. Much of it is so familiar to most of us --- we all have the same family stories. Braun has meticulously researched her family history, though sources are sparce. My only complaint are the several introductory and ending chapters that contrast in style with the wonderful telling of the main part of the book. She tells each part of the story by deconstructing an old photograph or postcard, a few of which somehow remain in the family. Maria Letkeman is the aunt of the Letkeman family that were our neighbours in Steinbach.
Book 5 DeNiro's Game by Rawi Hage ****
A book that hits you hard on the first page and keeps your heart pounding right to the end. Rawi Hage is in a rare class of writers whose prose you must stop to reread several times to admire the construction and feel the words again. According to my gauge, Annie Proulx, Jane Austen, and Winston Churchill and now Hage are in that class.
Hage tells the story of Bassam, a young man trying to get out of Lebanon during the Civil War. I am told by someone who was in Beirut through the war, that it is an accurate depiction of life in East Beirut during those years. Bassam is a man with the morals of the times, doing what has to be done. I judged but also understood.
A must read.
Hage tells the story of Bassam, a young man trying to get out of Lebanon during the Civil War. I am told by someone who was in Beirut through the war, that it is an accurate depiction of life in East Beirut during those years. Bassam is a man with the morals of the times, doing what has to be done. I judged but also understood.
A must read.
Book 4 The Story of French by Jean-Benoit Nadeau and Julie Barlow ****
This Canadian reporting couple wrote the definitive book on the French language and its relationship to history, economics, politics, and everything else.
I enjoyed a relaxing cruise in the slip stream of their excellent writing. They include occasional references to personal experiences which add to the enjoyment.
Their thesis is that French is far from yielding to English as a universal language, mainly because of the cultural mystique. French still is still the gate to all things wonderful in life.
I wanted to learn French properly before, and now I really really want to.
A must read for anyone interested in language.
I enjoyed a relaxing cruise in the slip stream of their excellent writing. They include occasional references to personal experiences which add to the enjoyment.
Their thesis is that French is far from yielding to English as a universal language, mainly because of the cultural mystique. French still is still the gate to all things wonderful in life.
I wanted to learn French properly before, and now I really really want to.
A must read for anyone interested in language.
Book 3 The Complete Persepolis **** by Marjane Satrapi
A must read --- a graphic memoir by an exceptionally talented woman. The history of Persia as experienced by a child growing into a rebellious teenager and young woman artist. Sent to Europe at age 14 alone to keep her safe from the arrest by the mullahs, her experiences are heart breaking and yet familiar to anyone.
Well told and real.
Well told and real.
Book 2 Fall on Your Knees* by Ann-Marie MacDonald
Interesting setting in Cape Breton, historical background interesting. A tale of characters and ethnic backgrounds, more creative writing than insightful.
Book 1 Crete** by Anthony Beevor
This one is from my shelf of half read books. I love Anthony Beevor, after reading the unputdownable Stalingrad. Crete is not in that league, but still well written, fascinating, and full of well researched opinion.
Beevor's thesis is why the Brits very incompetently lost Greece to the Germans in WW II and then followed suit by even more incompetently losing Crete. He blames it on the British officers running the show there and on one particular officer, Major General Freyburg, who "misread" Ultra communiques from Britain and prepared for a sea invasion instead of an airborne one. The son of this officer wrote a defence of his father so it is a well known controversy.
Beevor admires the Cretan partisan defence, made up of mainly priests, women, and kids (the Cretan men being in Greece defending the mainland) that went into action as the German paratroopers landed and kept it up through the entire occupation.
The Med was teeming with boats and submarines making secret landings on Crete and other islands, dropping off and picking up Brits and partisans, including the King of Greece.
Beevor as usual makes the whole story fascinating and easy to read, and I eagerly and constantly referred to the maps provided to follow the battles and other events.
Although there are many characters, he describes them and their relationships in interesting detail as to make them distinct and memorable. He especially likes to include opinions the players had of the others. He mentions Evelyn Waugh several times, as he was one of these officers --- Officers and Gentlemen was based on his experiences in Crete (it's on the reading pile).
The story ends with well drawn explanation of the Greco/Cretan political rivalries leading to civil war and chaos as the Germans leave Crete.
Beevor's thesis is why the Brits very incompetently lost Greece to the Germans in WW II and then followed suit by even more incompetently losing Crete. He blames it on the British officers running the show there and on one particular officer, Major General Freyburg, who "misread" Ultra communiques from Britain and prepared for a sea invasion instead of an airborne one. The son of this officer wrote a defence of his father so it is a well known controversy.
Beevor admires the Cretan partisan defence, made up of mainly priests, women, and kids (the Cretan men being in Greece defending the mainland) that went into action as the German paratroopers landed and kept it up through the entire occupation.
The Med was teeming with boats and submarines making secret landings on Crete and other islands, dropping off and picking up Brits and partisans, including the King of Greece.
Beevor as usual makes the whole story fascinating and easy to read, and I eagerly and constantly referred to the maps provided to follow the battles and other events.
Although there are many characters, he describes them and their relationships in interesting detail as to make them distinct and memorable. He especially likes to include opinions the players had of the others. He mentions Evelyn Waugh several times, as he was one of these officers --- Officers and Gentlemen was based on his experiences in Crete (it's on the reading pile).
The story ends with well drawn explanation of the Greco/Cretan political rivalries leading to civil war and chaos as the Germans leave Crete.
A Year of Reading
I decided in 2010 to read a book a week and write a mini-review. I have a pile of books I've read, and a pile of books to be read, on the dresser opposite my bed. It's not very orderly (more to dust and move), but it is very inspiring.
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