Books I've Read

So at the very first book swap party I was determined to leave with only one book, as I have shelves of books at home. However a 10 year old and his Nani convinced me that The Hunger Games was a must read.  I hadn't seen a 10 year old that excited about a book in a long time.  So I took the book and Sunday morning opened it and that night finished it.  I literally couldn't put it down, it was that good.  On Monday I had to have the other two books, so I called Deb and asked her for them, even begging her to leave them on the porch since she was going out that evening.  The other too I read within the next week, work got in the way of my 24 hour marathon read.

This sequel is pretty good, I enjoyed it almost as much as the original.

Sums up the story but my least favorite of the three.

I really enjoyed the Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. I may have been drawn to the title because of my own self-titled story about my travels to Cuba here. This is a sweet story about a time that is a bit of an embarrassment to Americans during the WWII and the prejudice against the Japanese.  I found it very informative and Jamie Ford a wonderful storyteller.

Another book I haven't seen the move to yet, I always like to read the books before I see the movie version. This way my imagination can determine who and what everyone looks like.  This is another commentary on prejudice and opening peoples eyes to that fact we're all human beings.

The first computer I worked on in my first job was this.  I've grown up with the Mac and in my industry everyone aspires to do the kind of marketing that Apple does.  So while I haven't read a biography in a long time this was a must read.  Insightful journey into a genius mind, albeit with a nasty style of management.  He did get it down and revolutionized an industry and the way we interact with each other.  As for management style I think I know a few people who have read this book and do exactly as he did, and to them "no thank you."

I'm working on a few more on my nightstand and hidden in all kind of places that I keep discovering.  So as I get thru those ones I'll post about them.  Enjoy the above for now.

Books I've Read - January

I just finished this fascinating book called the Billionaire's Vinegar. It's all about a bottle of wine sold thru Christies that broke auction records. Supposedly it's a bottle that Thomas Jefferson purchased from the Chateau and had engraved with his initials, year and vintage. In 1985 it was sold to Malcolm Forbes for $160K. The story features a few real life collectors and one man, Hardy Rodenstock, who seems to suspiciously stumble upon the oldest bottles of wine. I love wine, but can't say I know much about it. This book was a fascinating journey on what kinds of tasting notes wine specialists make, on Christies and Sotheby's auctions and the people who run them, how to make a 1787 vintage fake wine, then how to test wine to see if its fake (i.e. radation before and after the a-bombs) and why some people collect wine to store in a cellar and others drink it, seriously why wouldn't you drink it. If you love wine you'll enjoy this book immensely. I enjoy a good mystery, love history and am grateful to learn something new anytime I take a week to read a book.


My dear friend Bekah and I like to swap books and she told me I must read the above book. I started it last night and already laughed on Page 2. The Sweet Life in Paris: Delicous Adventures in the World's Most Glorious - and Perplexing - City. David Lebowitz has a funny sense of humor and I love when people can just pick up there lives and move to a new city, foreign one at that. I know I'd have to learn patience if I moved anywhere as things are done so much differently. But that's the charm of it all. I'll share a few snippets as I get further into the book. It has fantastic recipes that have already made me salivate.