April Reads, Bought & Borrows

This was a busy month (and rainy!) but I managed to read some great, atypical books (for me), several of which I've been advocating heartily to others - see my UK post --  Now that the weather is turning, I suspect my reading list will slim significantly.  From my bookclub, I was introduced to two well-written non-fiction reads: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks & The Female Brain which were accessible and interesting. The Female Brain especially is a recommended book for women, fathers and husbands... I've been recommending it particularly to men with teen daughters.  Half of the book is reference material so it's concise, smart 5 chapters read quickly - plus you'll have some fascinating "did you know?" 's for your next dinner party!

The second half of the month I read a favorite past author of mine Sara Gruen, mainly due to my anxiety over the upcoming Water for Elephants movie release (I'm worried they'll ruin the very awesome story!).  Ape House was a surprising and touching story that reminded me of what Gruen is really all about in her stories: love of intelligent animals and how they teach us so much about our humanity.  It's inspired me to re-read Elephants and to hunt down some of her other tales. 

The last two were unusual for me again -- a book about a Salem witch and a modern researcher (not a particularly favorite topic for me) and a crime novel.  I actually sped through them both and enjoyed them a great deal.  The witch book was a great insight into Puritan society, or even medieval society really and the crime novel sated my need for a 4th Girl With/Who book by the deceased (and great) Stieg Larsson.