So far this year I’ve read 5 books – not exactly record breaking, but since having kids, reading a book has felt like a rare luxury. I think my increased book consumption rate is at least partly due to our recent acquisition of a new bed. We treated ourselves to a lovely new bed with an electric motor so you can raise and lower the head end, which makes it a superb place to lie and read.
Interestingly, all 5 books of the books I’ve read so far this year have been non-fiction. So what have I been reading about?
The one straw revolution, Masanobu Fukuoka
I read about this on Root Simple and thought that Masanobu Fukuoka sounded like my kinda guy. A slightly crazy hippy with a revolutionary method of natural farming. This book is more philosophy than field guide, but is inspirational.
The natural way of farming, Masanobu Fukuoka
A follow-on on to the above, this is more about the actual practices involved in Fukuoka’s method. The is a lot about rice & barley that’s not relevant to us, but there is much about fruit trees that I should re-read.
Bröd Beroende (English title: Wheat Belly), Dr William Davis
A friend pulled this out at Christmas and asked if we’d like to borrow it. I had read about this book when it came out so I jumped at it, and it’s a fascinating read. I was already convinced that wheat is not fit for human consumption and it’s been out of my diet for a while now (along with most other fast-carbs). But there was much to learn and it reinforced that I’m not crazy for ditching the wheat. I think everyone should read this book.
You could just re-read the above paragraph, but substitute “sugar” in place of wheat. Everyone should read this book. Especially those with children.
This is by a Swedish author and I don’t believe there’s an English translation yet. The title translates to “A Sweeter Blood”, and it is also about the terrible things that sugar consumption does to our bodies. Another book I think everyone should read.
Quiet – The power of introverts in a world that can’t stop talking, Susan Cain
I just started reading this one. I’m a classic introvert, and I don’t care who knows it. But I can remember the difficulties it presented when I was a child. My school reports almost always said “Tineke should speak up more in class”. I tried pointing out that I would speak up, when I felt I had something worthwhile to say, but it seemed that the default “normal” behaviour was to just open your mouth and go for it, no matter what kind of rubbish was going to come out. I preferred to stay silent unless I had a point that was really worth adding. The problem then is that when you do have something to add, it often gets ignored because people like to listen to the noisy talkers instead of the quiet talkers. In any case, I learnt to throw my weight around more as an adult, and computer science at least was a discipline where the deep thinkers got a little more tolerance and respect. Professionally I have learnt to speak more forcefully to get my ideas heard, and in most companies I’ve managed. There was one investment bank where I was told I wasn’t a good enough “corporate citizen” – in other words, I didn’t belong to enough clubs, attend enough networking breakfasts, talk enough, or talk loud enough. I left the bank and was much happier.
And at the end of the day, the classic introvert likes nothing more than to creep into her new comfy bed and read a book in peace and quiet.