February 2016

As usual, it's been a while between posts. A year. Here are some February 2016 additions to my to-read list.

The Translation of Love by Lynne Kutsukake will be published in April, 2016. I read a review of this book and it sounded really interesting. Thirteen-year-old Aya Shimamura and her father are repatriated to Japan after WWII. It's a different perspective on the Japanese internment camps than I've read before. It's also interesting that they were in a Canadian internment camp. I had no idea that there were internment camps in Canada. My book club recently read The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka, which ended with the Japanese women and their families being relocated to camps so that sparked an interest in reading this book.


Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War by Mary Roach will be published in June, 2016. I've read and enjoyed a few other books by Mary Roach, most recently Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal. This is my favorite type of nonfiction - informative, interesting, and entertaining. If a nonfiction book is covering the most interesting topic in the world, if the book is dull I won't want to finish. I'm not taking a college course, I'm reading a book because I'm interested and want to enjoy the experience. Mary Roach has always delivered. The focus on the military is also one of the reasons I added this book to my list. That's a topic that I enjoy reading about, both fiction and nonfiction, and am always looking for a different perspective.



Labor of Love: Why Dating is (and Always Has Been) Work by Moira Weigel will be published in May, 2016. I'll admit to having watched a season or two (or more) of the bachelor. It makes me cringe fairly often, but it's also entertaining. I think that's part of what made me add this book to my to-read shelf. A feeling of "Thank God I don't have to date right now" in the same way I'm happy there was no Facebook or Instagram when I was in college. What a nightmare! I like reading history, especially social history, and am curious about the history of dating and how it evolved into what it is today. And also the differences between dating in various cultures. I'm not sure if it delves into that. If it doesn't, maybe someone could write a book. Actually, somebody probably already has.