A few months after putting a hold on it at the library, Poems that Make Grown Men Cry finally came in. I can’t confirm first-hand that it indeed makes grown men cry, but what I can say is that it made me cry. Several times. Many inclusions are poems that I am familiar with and are to be anticipated – if not expected – from such anthologies (Shakespeare and Dylan Thomas among those authors), and the few new (to me) ones were those that really hit the mark: ‘For Ruthie Rogers in Venice’ and ‘For Julia, in the Deep Water’ are two examples. What I also found interesting is the total number of Thomas Hardy poems chosen. When I studied Hardy at university, I preferred his verse to his prose and still own a copy of his collected works (I’ll add, I haven’t read it since then, but I can’t bring myself to let it go.) So my theory that Hardy’s poetry is less read than his novels has gotten a shakedown, let me put it that way.
In sum, I like PTMGMC enough that I think I’ll buy a copy.
I can’t say the same yet for Les Murray’s Collected Poems – mostly because I haven’t started it yet! It is an imposing tome and has no introduction or foreword, so intimidated readers (such as myself) could look at it and not really know where to begin. At least, that’s how I feel – although one of his more famous poems ‘The Widower in the Country’ (incidentally chosen by Nick Cave in the above book) is on page 3, so that’s a handy ‘access point’. I admire his work, though, so I daresay I’ll slide into it smoothly enough.
The Goldfinch was one of the must-read books of a couple of years ago, but it’s taken this long for me to get my hands on it. Tartt is one of those authors who can trigger a quite polemic response in readers, and this novel is no exception: when I’ve mentioned it, I’ve had the loved it/hated it response. I’m only a little way through, and I have to say I’ve skimmed parts already (and when those parts are taking place in the middle of a bombing zone, warning bells flash….in all senses). But we’ll see, maybe I’m out of ‘practise’ reading fiction. It’s been a while.
Last is The $100 Startup by Chris Guillebeau – however I will add that I only got through the first section or so before Riley book-napped it off me! He found it where I left it on the couch one evening and it was fascinating to watch his reaction (remember, this is the boy who loves everything to do with money and entrepreneurs). His eyes lit up after reading the title – this is why title’s are so important! – and he picked it up and started reading right away. Amazing. We talked him through the problem of how he could manage to raise $100 – but we’re (well, HE) is still figuring out what ‘business’ it is he wants to run. Once he figures that out, I’m sure there will be no stopping him. When I mentioned that I’ve met Chris once – briefly – my ‘cool’ factor went up a notch… until I asked him to do his chores and then things went back to normal. Ha! Figures.
But here’s my question: what – if any – books are on the market for kids who are interested in business/entrepreneurism? I’ve sat here pondering the question and I can’t think of any! Because as much as I’m fine with Riley reading books aimed at adults (at least as far as this topic is concerned), I would be keen to know of any specifically written for kids. So if you know any, please hit me up with titles/links! Thanks in advance! x
What are you reading this month?
