May Books

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The Secret Garden
by Frances Hodgson Burnett

What a great book. The story of a snotty little girl who has to go live with her uncle in a large estate. When she hears of a secret garden that has been off limits for 10 years since the death of the uncle's wife she vows to find it and along the way transforms into a new and better person, along with her cousin who mistakenly thinks he's an invalid. There's a third child who uses his knowledge of the outdoors to help them along. Just very well-written, very charming and a great story. There's a reason they're classics! 4/5

Sword Song
by Bernard Cornwell

Fourth book in the series and still loving it. This time the king's daughter is kidnapped and Uhtred tries to rescue her on his own. The book ends with a chaotic battle where no one is really sure whose side they are on and who is fighting who. 3.5/5

North and South
by Elizabeth Gaskell

This Victorian-era novel (you may recognize the name from the television adaptations) is about contrasts and differences. Margaret is a snooty girl forced to leave her plush southern estate and live amongst the dirty factory workers of northern England. The events that follow reshape her and her vision of the world around her. If you like Jane Austen this book is right up your alley. 3/5

Nine Innings
by Daniel Okrent

One of those books that I really enjoy but can't recommend to anyone else. Orkent takes a totally humdrum regular season baseball game and analyzes every aspect, every at-bat. He goes into details that a typical fan never would know or hear about. Well, an average fan in 1982 at least. A lot of the stuff he goes over is pretty common knowledge for a baseball fan, but there's still a lot of good stuff in there. A lot of great detail, especially on the mental battle between the pitcher and hitter. Fun to read about some of the players from that era who are now Hall of Famers, broadcasters, or managers. 4/5

Books for May: 4
Books for 2016: 21