What I'm reading this week (3/8/21)

 Last week I finished:

David and Goliath, Malcolm Gladwell

I'm a big fan of Malcolm Gladwell, and this is Gladwell at his best. This book explores the relationship between people and groups with power vs. people and groups with little power, and the tipping point (though he never recycles the term from his previous book) at which what seems logical becomes the flaw that turns a Goliath into an underdog. I highly recommend this one. The audio, narrated by the author, is very good, too. My rating: 4 stars.

Whale Day, Billy Collins

Another stellar poetry collection from Billy Collins. My favorite poem was "Architecture at 3:30 A.M." Accessible, charming, and witty, this one is definitely worth the price of admission. My rating: 4 stars.
 

One from the Hart, Stefanie Powers

My husband and I have recently rediscovered the 1980s television show Hart to Hart staring Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers. I can think of very few shows (or movies) where the leads have the chemistry they do in this show. This led to an obsession for all things Stefanie Powers, which led me to her 2010 memoir. In it, she talks about her film career, her love affair with William Holden, and setting up the William Holden Wildlife Foundation in Africa after his death. This one was a disappointment for me. It is not an intimate book. I don't need my celebrity memoirs to be filled with dirt and have all the names named, but this was just too guarded. I get the feeling she wrote it for the money but decided she was only going to tell the stories she wanted to. There was very little in the book about Hart to Hart--even though the title plays on the show's title. All in all, kind of a boring, dry memoir. My rating: 3 stars.

A Doctor in the House, Candy Carson

This is another re-read that I took in on audio this time around. It's the memoir of Dr. Ben Carson's wife, Candy, and it came out when he was running for president in 2016. Dr. Carson was my choice for president that year, until his bid was no longer viable. I can't think of a more humble, gentle, thoughtful, intelligent person, one of the very few people who I would call a personal hero. And listening to his wife narrate this audiobook, it's obvious that they're two peas in a pod. Her voice is so gentle and soft, she almost fades away while reading. Here is my previous review. My rating: 4 stars.

Present over Perfect, Shauna Niequist

This was my third reading of this title. Check out full reviews here and here.

Dear Fahrenheit 451, Annie Spence

This is another re-read, and frankly, I think I found it more entertaining the first time I read it. Read my initial review here. A word to those who don't like swearing: give this one a wide berth. My rating: 4 stars.

I'm currently reading:

I'll finish this sometime this week, and my review will be up next week.

My evening read (until others show up in the mail):

I'm loving this book!

My audiobook:

Another re-read. This was written two kids, nine marriages, and 20 grandkids ago!