Sunday Notes on Monday

Well this is my first Sunday Notes on Monday post for the New Year and I am pumped. It just so happens I have a week of use or lose vacation and I am going nowhere but in front of my fire place with a good book or two.  Bliss and relaxation.  Ok I have a few projects in my house that need to be taken care of, but I will get to them, maybe.  So I will get out my reading list and see what looks good.  So many great books and only twenty four hours in my day.  I do plan to catch up on sleep so I guess I have twelve or so waking hours.  None the less I am up for the challenge.

So if you have been reading my blog by now you know that every Sunday I play this little game with myself. On Sunday the first section that I read of the Washington Post is the Outlook section, it contains the book section. I go to the last page and read the Washington Bestseller list. This week the bestseller list focused on hard covers but it alternates between paperbacks and hardcover. You can check my scoring system on the May 6th post.

Surpsingly I have met my goal having read the books holding the 8, 9 and 10th spot. Inferno, Takedown Twenty and The Longest Ride are the three. I have posts on my blog for all three in case you are interested.  The interesting thing about this week's book section is the write up on two books both non fiction that I have added to my must read list. 

The first one is Angela Merkel, The Authorized Biography.  I added this book to my list for two reasons.  The first is how in this period of time Germany's economy is realtively stable especially when you compare it to the economies of many of the other European countries.  Living in Germany for three years I could not help being impressed by the work ethic of the German people I lived amongst and worked with.  Everything ran on time.  If the Ubahn was suppose to be at a station at 12:51, you could set your watch as it approached the station.  If you dropped a letter into a mail box on Monday destined for another location in Germany, that letter would be there on Tuesday.  They lived within there means, paid with cash and stayed out of debt. I think it is this mentality that has kept the country so stable.  The second reason I have added this to my must reads, is because I always like to read about strong women and the differences they have made on society.

The second book is called The Heir Apparent which is about Edward VII the eldest son of Victoria and Albert.  Queen Victoria always interested me but the movie The Young Victoria certainly made her even more interesting even if Hollywood took certain liberties when making the movie.  Still the victorian era in England was a most fascinating time that spanned many years so I felt that this book was good to add to my list.

I am finishing up the book Tell The Wolves I'm Home about the relationship between a 14 year old teenager and her Uncle who is dying of aids.  Good book.  Watch for my Post this week.  I am shooting for Wednesday. Click on the books that I have mentioned below for more info.