Our neighbors sold their house and told us we were free to take any leftover books in their garage for ourselves or the library or wherever. We were busy, and the next day the books were in the dumpster. My son and I went dumpster jumping and grabbed quite a few. I think the history books and bestsellers will do well in a Friends of the Library sale. But I couldn't resist and kept a pile for myself. Some books I've read before and want to pass on to others or reread, some were totally new, so expect an eclectic selection of reading in the next months.
Bailey White is a regular commentator on NPR's All Things Considered, lives down in Georgia with her mother and teaches first grade. These are short, delightful vignettes of the South, her life, her mother, her classroom. A very quick read, I especially liked the story of the wild turkey eggs. Ornithologists were trying to protect pure-bred wild turkeys, but had scared a mother off her eggs right before they hatched. The author was a 6 year old with measles and a high temperature. The ornithologists put the eggs in bed with her and she woke up next to a bunch of baby turkeys, which followed her around for a while.
I liked this woman, who drove her car until it was considered an antique, and while almost intimidated by used car sellers, stood up to them and got a good deal. She is a great combination of old and new, rural and sophisticate, not unaware of the greater world. She takes a three week vacation every year "up north." She uses trains and busses, knows a wide variety of folks, relates to the lush nature around - be it snakes or alligators, worked hard to create a wildflower garden, uses common sense in teaching her kids, and has a sense of humor that appeals to me.
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