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The Famine Ships the Irish exodus to America, 1846-51  by Edward Laxton  

If you are of Irish lineage or even if you are only intrigued by Ireland and it's history this book is a must read. Mr. Laxton's cache of detail help to give the reader the genuine experience of the starving immigrants. That my great great grandfather and his family got here at all -let alone healthy and intact as a family - is a miracle and gave me a whole new respect for what desperate measures people will resort to in order to survive. Laxton brings to bear the full experience of life inside a very cramped, wave tossed, wooden hulled ship. It's humbling in it's scope; melancholy and poignant in it's message: America or Death....

Madalene 

Math Instinct  by Keith Devlin

This is a very accessible book which demonstrates that the instinct for math is found naturally in infants and animals. Mathematical concepts difficult even for computers are performed subconsciously. Even plants display growth in a mathematical pattern. Also shows that math is often understood in one context and completely misunderstood in others, such as word problems. Written for the layman in an interesting and enjoyable manner.

Stop Whining and Start Living  by Dr. Laura Schlessinger

A new self-help book from Dr. Laura Schlessinger. She attempts to help people get past their negativity. The chapters all begin with the problem of an actual caller to her show, she then instructs them to essentially, "get over it" and they say, "Wow! I never thought of it like that." and somehow they are magically assisted. I found no practical advice or useful methods of refocusing your energy from negative to positive. Some readers might appreciate the inspirational stories of some of the callers, but do not use this book for serious advice on everyday living.

S.D.

Riding Toward Everywhere, by William T. Vollmann  

     Whether or not you have ever read a book by William T. Vollmann, a quick look almost anywhere on the web reveals that he is a complex and diverse writer and thinker who searches in earnest, or perhaps ceaselessly, for a subject that inspires him.

     Riding Toward Everywhere chronicles Vollmann’s equally ceaseless and uneasy search for his own sense of freedom which he pursues, illegally and at times dangerously, by jumping the freight trains that wander the country and carry him on a physical and emotional journey as broad and diverse as the territory covered by the trains themselves. 

      Vollmann’s journey is fraught with literal and metaphorical dangers. Not least is the likelihood of being crushed under tons of rolling steel or being beaten or arrested by every hobo’s nemesis, the “bulls” who roam rail yards like feral cats. But, for Vollmann, there is the equal risk of being crushed under the enormous weight of his sometimes troubled, sometimes confused, sometimes nostalgic but always relentless need to be somewhere other than where he finds himself at any given moment.

       This book is brilliantly written. Vollmann’s descriptions of the endless panorama provided by a speeding freight train are often breathtaking in their complexity and lyricism, and his infatuation with the stunning juxtaposition of this rolling geography is often contagious. Setting aside the risk of death, injury or imprisonment, just as he so often does, the desire to join him is sometimes overwhelming.

       Just as there are on his journey, though, Riding Toward Everywhere has its troubled spots. Among them is Vollmann’s disappointing tendency to interrupt himself. After a long and exciting passage depicting the effort to hop a train, for example, he ends the otherwise suspenseful and tense story by simply saying, “ . . . we gave up and caught a plane home.” It goes without saying that it is at that point that all fantasy is lost and the reader is plunged head first into the fetid waters of dull reality. 

     Troubling, too, is Vollmann’s affliction with what can perhaps best be described as a kind of political Tourette’s Syndrome. Again interrupting himself, he periodically take vicious swipes at the current administration in Washington, DC, the class structure in this country and a host of other social ills. Setting personal politics aside, these outbursts are shattering distractions that have the same effect as an actor stopping in the middle of Hamlet, turning to the audience and asking, “So, whaddaya think so far?”

     Through it all, though, Vollmann provides a fascinating, sometimes disjointed, but always revelatory look at a life and an attitude that is light years from the reality of almost every reader. And that makes it worth the trip.  

 -Rod Lang

Eat This, Not That  by David Zinczenko

This is a diet book and shows how someone could consume fewer calories and fat by making different selctions at restaurants and in the grocery store. Instead of advising eating only "health foods" like many books, this one says if you are going to eat fast food anyway, you do have some options nontheless. It lists the fat and calories of various items on fast food menus and recommends similar, but slightly healthier options from the same menu. For instance a Whooper has less fat than a Big Mac. The book might be useful to someone who eats out regularly, but only an interesting browse to the rest of us.

-S.D.

Clapton: The Autobiography by Eric Clapton

This painfully honest memoir chronicles the life of music icon Eric Clapton. His difficult childhood was shared with a constant companion - his guitar. His prowess on the guitar resulted in a remarkable career, spanning decades. While experiencing musical success, his life was spinning out of control. After years of self-abuse, Clapton was finally able to confront his alcoholism and help others with similar issues. Following the tragic loss of his son, the singer found happiness at last with his wife and children.

-BQ

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