Every two weeks, I order nonfiction books that are given a call number between 600 and 699. These books can fall into a wide range of subjects, including recipes & cooking, automobile repair manuals, home electrical wiring and industrial tools, building plans for decks and bathrooms, and health care for the mind and body. Here are three books I recently ordered that I think you'll enjoy!
Size Matters: How Height Affects the Health, Happiness, and Success of Boys - and the Men They Become
Randy Newman sang a song ribbing "Short People", there is a website named Shortstuff, and there is even a Short Persons Support website. Stephen Hall, who is not quite 5'6", has written about the causes and effects of society's bias against shortness and describes how people of small stature can and do thrive. According to Kirkus Reviews, "Shortness is not a prerequisite for enjoying Hall's work, but concerned parents of short boys will find it particularly reassuring". As a "petite" person myself, I found this book both witty and very informative.
The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic - and How It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World
Read Stephen Johnson's thrilling historical account of the cholera outbreak in Victorian London and how a doctor's creative thinking revolutionized our approach to disease, cities, and the modern world. From the construction of the vast sewer system that continues to function in London to today's developing countries facing enormous public-health problems to our worries about terrorists armed with weaponized viruses and/or nuclear weapons, this book encourages a good deal of thinking. Thrilling and educational!
French Women for All Seasons: A Year of Secrets, Recipes and Pleasure
Discover new recipes (both French and American), read tips on entertaining and on style, shopping and exercise. Mireille Guiliano, the author of French Women Don't Get Fat offers us a second helping of French gastronomy and style. Her new book is not only useful, but charming and witty too. Read about her "50% solution" and other techniques to change your eating habits without embarking on a major diet.