One of the great pleasures of a life-abroad: Amazon.com

Hallelujah.

I ordered some books on March 7, 2009 from Amazon and didn't expect them till April 3-5th. So imagine my surprise and delight when 2 of the 3 packages arrived today (9 business days early)! I selected the option where they will ship the packages separately, but at no extra cost to me, so that they arrive faster.... ahhhhhh customer service!

Anyway:


The books I ordered:

Augusten Burroughs - A Wolf at the Table: A Memoir of My Father

Burroughs is one of my favorite authors. He grew up in a rather messed up household and I really "get" his twisted humor. The finding things funny, or ordinary, when they are totally not funny, or ordinary. He's gay, he's wry, and he's a tad OCD. I love him. This latest book though is not supposed to be a dark-humor memoir like the rest of his books, it's really a memoir of how it was to grow up with his alcoholic father and his attempts to gain his approval, supposedly sans humor.

Marsha Mehran - Pomengranate Soup: A Novel

Iranian sisters move to Ireland, open a cafe, and a "foodie-lit" book ensues. I enjoy books that make me hungry, and this one has recipes as well!

Bill Bryson - In a Sunburned Country

Bill Bryson was born in the Midwest of the U.S. but lived in England for almost twenty years, and he's a travel writer. This is his book about traveling to Australia. I bought it soley based on this quote, which describes his impression of cricket:

listening to two men sitting in a rowboat on a large, placid lake on a day when the fish aren't biting; it's like having a nap without losing consciousness. It actually helps not to know quite what's going on. In such a rarefied world of contentment and inactivity, comprehension would become a distraction.

Now this quote is based on listening to the game on the radio, but I will tell you, it's equally boring watching it on tv, or in person.


Richard Yates - Revolutionary Road

Saw the movie. Loved it. Had to get the original novel.

Andrew Doughty - Maui Revealed

We're going to Maui and Oahu in June (2 months and 19 days.....) I've heard that this "Revealed" series is the best from several places.


Comments

Suzer said…
I've got two of those...have read Bryson's 3 times now;)
DanYells said…
I'll get to Bryson's... I just finished Burrough's and one of my travel books :) I think the pomegranate cafe is next

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