DCL Book Chat

Just My Type is a book about fonts. Yes, I realize that sounds pretty odd, but remember how hot Eats, Shoots and Leaves was a few years ago, and think about how fonts can actually elicit emotions and pretty strong reactions. A few years ago when Ikea changed their font people were actually angry about it. It was a fontroversy. 

Simon Garfield is a British author who has written non-fiction works delving into everything from the history of AIDS in Britain, to the attitudes of the British during and after WW2. He’s a splendid writer who concentrates on somewhat “quirky” topics. You will learn why the “T” in the Beatles logo is longer than the other letters and how Gotham font helped Barack Obama into the White House. If you have ever looked at the drop-down menu in Word and wondered what a Garamond is, or why you’re attracted to Comic Sans, which this book calls irreverent and naïve, this might be something to consider for a change of pace.

Dedra

In The Third Miracle – An Ordinary Man, A Medical Mystery and A Trial of Faith, Colorado author and journalist Bill Briggs does an amazing job of telling the story of handyman Phil McCord who worked at a convent in Indiana and had a mysterious eye ailment after having cataract surgery. One cold day he was walking across the grounds and soon found himself inside the chapel. He prayed to Mother Theodore Guerin and God for help in having a cornea transplant or just help with this ailment. The next morning, his eye was so much better that the doctors were perplexed. They did not understand it.

But the Sisters of the Convent said it was the intervention of Mother Theodor Guerin who they had been championing to become a saint. McCord soon regained his 20/20 sight. The Catholic Church was investigating alleged miracles that Mother Guerin was said to have been part of and 100 years from the first alleged miracle – this one took place.

Briggs interviewed McCord, the nuns and explored the rigorous court drama and what he called almost a CSI Vatican way of how they name saints. The book reads like a mystery novel complete with drama, amazing characters like Mother Theodore and Phil McCord, the Church and the Vatican. Think – Erik Larsen Devil in the White City – The Third Miracle will capture your attention and is hard to put down.

Lisa

Most of the world has never heard of Henrietta Lacks but her contribution to medical science is immeasurable. Without her knowledge, while she was dying, her doctors took samples of her tumor that have lived on since the 1950s and aided in medical discoveries from polio to AIDS research. At the same time her cells were launching a multimillion dollar industry, her family was living in poverty with no health insurance. Rebecca Skloot spent ten years researching the story of Henrietta Lacks and the result is a gripping and fascinating true story.

Dedra

Born to Run is an epic adventure that began with one simple question: Why does my foot hurt? Christopher McDougall begins an investigative adventure into the world of running, ultramarathons, the shoe industry, and the Tarahumara Indians, a reclusive group of “superathletes” known for their running endurance and speed. Informative, inspirational and thrilling, Born to Run will appeal to both runners and non-runners alike.

Heather

Author Rebecca Skloot masterfully weaves a complex story of science with the human side of the story of a woman’s culture of cells that change the course of medical research forever. The story focuses upon the legacy of Henrietta Lacks, a young woman diagnosed with cervical cancer in the 1950s, who died shortly after the birth of her 5th child. During treatment at Johns Hopkins Hospital, doctors take a tissue sample during a biopsy. Scientific research show unique attributes of her cells… HeLa cells are the first human cells to grow in culture and not die… This discovery opens the door to research, grow and sell of the cells around the world for groundbreaking medical research.

The Lacks family is woefully unaware of Henrietta’s cells being used in science until 20+ years after her death. The story intertwines the family’s struggle to come to terms with Henrietta’s legacy, while medicine struggles with concerns of consent, research, and bioethics. An interesting and thought-provoking read!

Kyra

From the author of Eat Pray Love (film due out Aug 2010), this book describes Gilbert’s unplanned, soul-searching journey into the question of committed relationships and marriage. After finding post-divorce love, the globetrotting couples lives are altered with an incident with US border officials.

Initially skeptical, Gilbert goes on information seeking quest about marriage. Her research includes looking into some historical, legal, and social aspects of the institution. During her world travels, she asks strangers, friends, family about their experiences, in order to arrive at her decision of whether to marry or not.

Kyra

“Selma Koch, a Manhattan store owner who earned a national reputation by helping women find the right bra size, mostly through a discerning glance and never with a tape measure, died Thursday at Mount Sinai Medical Center. She was 95 and a 34B.”

The Dead Beat tells the story behind the obituary page – the people who spend their lives writing about the dead, and the thoughtful and quirky life stories they tell. You will be humbled, edified, and warmed by Johnson’s account of the craft of obituary writing and how it preserves and shares with us lives well lived.

Mary Ellen

Remarkably candid book from a tennis icon who grew to hate the sport he’d been groomed for. Pressured for success from the cradle, Agassi shares his angst-filled journey to find self-identity both on and off the court. In the process, he opens himself to acceptance of his talent, love, and giving back to his hometown community in Las Vegas. Wide-ranging appeal for non-sports fans and sports fans alike.

Kyra

You may know Lisa Scottoline as the New York Times bestselling author of thrillers featuring strong women. In this book, based on a collection from her weekly Philadelphia Inquirer column, you’ll meet the real Scottoline and she’s hilarious. From her marital history (twice divorced from men she calls Thing One and Thing Two) to being caught braless in the emergency room to learning to build a chicken coop, she will have you giggling as she lets her hair down, roots and all.

Dedra

“Who needs Julia Child? I’ve got Pioneer Woman.” Baltimore Post

Ree Drummond started blogging and built The Pioneer Woman website into an award-winning site, where she shares recipes, showcases her photography, and documents her hilarious transition from city life to ranch wife. This cookbook is like your best friend giving you advice rather than an expert telling you what to do. And she uses easy to find ingredients in her recipes!

Dedra