J's Pages

This one's an intro to the background behind the current environmental concerns, targeted at a teen audience. (Why I put it on my library "For Later" shelf, I forget. It's been on there since 2015.) Mr. Fleischman touches on the history, politics, sociology, and psychology of humanity's relationship to the environment. He has definite opinions about climate change and the like, but he also encourages the reader to do their own research and to try and recognize some of the fallacies one finds in the media. The text is pretty readable, though I found the book's design a bit annoying. (I'm an old man. I want my footnotes at the bottom of the page, not dangling off the sides of the body copy with illustrations.)

Check it out..
LibraryThing link

Labels: CheckItOut

// posted by John @ 9:23 PM 0 Comments

In book three of A Song of Ice and Fire, the threat in the northern lands of Westeros becomes a reality as the men of the Night's Watch face assaults on the Wall. Meanwhile, the kings and lords to the south are caught up in their own wars and bloodsheds, and Daenerys Targaryen follows her own path in the east. I found this volume a bit less enjoyable, mainly because I didn't like that Mr. Martin killed off some of the characters I liked and added twists that prolonged the storylines of a couple of others. I'm still planning on reading the next book, though, so I have to recommend you check it out. 

LibraryThing link

Labels: CheckItOut, GeorgeRRMartin, SongOfIceAndFire

// posted by John @ 2:00 PM 0 Comments

It's been awhile since I've read one of my wife's textbooks. This one's a more recent acquisition--one from her classes for her TESOL certification, rather than her college days. It's an introduction to the relationship between language and culture, and how teachers will need to account for them when teaching cross-culturally. I enjoyed reading it, despite the fact that it's a textbook. (Full disclosure: I did not answer or otherwise work through any of the review questions.)  

Check it out
LibraryThing link

Labels: CheckItOut

// posted by John @ 11:28 AM 0 Comments