Up to 32!
Well, it's too darn cold to do much more than read. Except maybe clean (and I'm stalling from that, at least for a while, heh heh)
31. The Blind Side, by Michael Lewis. I am, at best, a casual sports fan. I freely admit that I'm a fair weather fan of my local teams. This was one of those "broadening my horizens" selections. That said, I found "The Blind Side," about the life of Michael Oher, considered now to be one of the most promising prospects for the NFL, a good read. True, some of the technical football stuff sailed over my head like a place kick (just what is a four-four forty, anywho), but anyone can follow and appreciate the story. Oher came into the spotlight from the most unlikely circumstances. One of 13 children, he grew up on the streets -- literally -- of Memphis. His father was absentee (later, he was murdered when Oher was in high school), his mother addicted to drugs. Michael and his siblings largely slipped through the cracks of the system. It wasn't until the efforts of a caring neighbor, who managed to get Michael into a conservative private school, that Michael's fortunes changed. Despite his upbringing, Michael had a few things going for him: he had a photographic memory; he was intelligent (despite earlier IQ tests, which pegged him as being boarderline mentally retarded); and he was a naturally gifted athlete. His life improved when he was noticed by Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy, who eventually legally adopted him. Through their efforts and the use of a tutor, Michael, who's previous attendence at schools can be described, at best, as erratic, went from a 0.6 average as a sophomore, to earning As and Bs by the time he was a senior. The book was both inspiring and sad. It shows how much can be accomplished, even in "hopeless" cases. But I think the author says it best: "Pity the poor kid...who was born to play the piano, or manage people, or trade bonds." It makes you wonder how many other Michaels there are out there who will be forever as written off because they have no immediately noticeable talent?
32. The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain, written and illustrated by Peter Sís. "The Wall" is a sort of pictoral autobiography and commentary from Sis, who grew up in Prague. It showed his life through the years -- both good and bad -- through mostly black and white illustrations. I loved the symbolism in the colors: red for fear, a splash of color for dreams. This book works on many levels: a young child can concentrate on the main line of text and the illustrations and get a rudimentary grasp on the oppresiveness of the Soviet-controlled Prague. Older children can follow the greater amount of text, interspersed with the art, to piece together more of the history and the time periods. It reminded me in many ways of Maus.