Leave it to Bill Bryson to shift his view from expansive (A Short History of Nearly Everything) to contained (At Home: A Short History of Private Life) and still draw the reader in with the rich storytelling has come to mark Bryson’s work for the past few years. At Home begins, aptly enough, in Bryson’s own home, as he begins to weave a rich tapestry of history behind each of the rooms, the furniture, the architecture and more that we mostly ignore in our day-to-day lives. At Home makes us look closer at what it is that makes our home our home. We spend some time in each chapter inside his home as Bryson focuses his gaze on his own English place, even providing us with the original architectural plans (and the revised ones that actually got built). All you need is a cup of tea, and maybe a cracker or two, and it is like spending time with an old friend who can talk your ear off for hours in a way that rarely gets boring.

The book is as much a history of England (with some early America thrown into the mix) as it is about why we have bathrooms, why the best bed in the house was often the one not slept in, how the nursery came to evolve in a time of high child mortality, and more stories of disease and illness than you really want to know, and yet, Bryson keeps you hooked amid all that pestilence and grief. Don’t even ask about the rats, lice and other critters …

I find it fascinating how Bryson is able to cobble together such rich prose out of some mundane ideas, or so I often thought, and yet, I could barely put At Home down, and I even know in whose hands I am going to pass this book to. That is the mark of a good read — you know who would love it next. At Home is a sure winner for those looking for an unexpected non-fiction treasure right inside your own four walls.

Peace (in our homes),
Kevin

Kevin’s currently-reading book montage

Kevin Hodgson’s favorite books »

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According to Goodreads, where I have been faithfully documenting just about every book I read this year, I have consumed more than 50 books (and counting). I had set a goal for myself of reading 40 books over the course of the year of 2011, and exceeded that by just more than 10 books. I started using Goodreads a few years ago but this last year, I was sort of obsessive with it. It’s one of those spaces that is both a source of book ideas and also a place to add what you know to the general cloud of data.

So, what does the year say about my reading habits?

• I did a lot of read-alouds with my youngest son. We’re now in that prime age of 7 years old when he is getting to love more complex stories, so Harry Potter, the Throne of Fire series, and more were a hit with him. Another year or so, and the read-aloud moments might be more difficult to sustain. For now, I am enjoying the time together, with a book between us.
• I read less graphic novels this year than any other year in recent times. I can’t quite say why, but I did.
• The longest book I read was Reamde by Neil Stephenson, and I still think he could have cut about 300 pages and still had a good book.
• I had 14 books with the top rating and just one book with the lowest rating. I think I am a generous reviewer.
• I can’t help but notice a few books on my “current reading” have been there for some time. These are mostly collections but still … get ’em read!
• I created my own category of “abandoned” books this year. I am at the point where I don’t want to waste my precious reading time with a bad book. I feel guilt when I abandoned a story, but I can live it with (as long as the next book is good)
• There is a solid mix of fiction and non-fiction in my book pile. I like to mix it up.
• I have 24 books on my “to read” list, and a pile of books by my bedside table.

So, what is my goal for 2012? Bump it up to 45 books! I think I can do it.

Peace (on the shelves),
Kevin

I’d love to be able to say that I hear no echoes of my own classroom experiences in John Pearson’s Learn Me Gooder stories, which follows a fictional teacher throughout the year in a series of email correspondences with his friends and relates all of the odd things that go on inside of a high-energy third grade elementary classroom. But I do, darn it. I hear those echoes and I can clearly see the students as if they were standing right in front of me, with off-kilter insights, emotional baggage and wide smiles at the fun of being part of a classroom where anything goes. (Note of disclosure: Pearson provided me with a free ebook version of Learn Me Gooder in hopes that I would do a review, but we had not arrangement regarding positive or negative review).

Luckily, my own experience in the classroom is not quite as odd as that of the teacher in Learn Me Gooder. Educator Jack Woodson, whose teaching tales formed the narrative of the first Learn Me Good novel by Pearson, survives the turmoil of teaching in a Texas school beset by standardized testing, immigrant families arriving and departing with little notice, language barriers and more by using humor to lighten the load. Pearson entertains, but also educates, as he explores the daily life of a teacher through the wide-eyed lens of humor.

So, yes, I laughed at much of what goes on with Jack Woodson. I laughed hard and loud.(Plus, Woodson finally gets a girlfriend in this second book. See? Even teachers have lives!)

The use of the email correspondence with friends from Woodson’s past job is a smart narrative touch by Pearson, as we see the back-and-forth emerge with playfulness, and some wistfulness of Woodson sometimes regretting leaving there for teaching but never enough to leave his kids behind. And in the end, it is Woodson’s nurturing nature and understanding of his wacky students that anchors this book firmly into the ground, and those very qualities of Woodson the teacher make Learn Me Gooder a recommended read for any teacher or any parent or anyone who has ever been in a classroom that made you just want to shake your head and smile.

Peace (in the learning),
Kevin

PS — You can also follow John Pearson’s blog for Learn Me Good, and see where some of the stories come from.

Two of my three sons loved the Charlie Bone series. One read all of the books; the other listened to most of them on audio. Me? I found the writing too slow-paced and too much like Harry Potter to really get into the Charlie Bone narrative (the story tells of a boy who goes to a school to develop his magical abilities to enter into photographs, and he comes to realize he is one of a line of descendents of the powerful Red King.)

Now writer Jenny Nimmo returns with The Chronicles of the Red King, which tells the historical tale of the original ancestor. I’m happy to say that I found the writing more lively than Charlie Bone, and the characters of Timiken (the king in search of a kingdom that he can call home) and his sister, Zebaydah, and their camel, Gabar, (yep, a camel with attitude) are nicely done. I did enjoy most of all the story of where the magic comes from — in the guise of the last web spun by the last Moon Spider, woven with tears and rain and more, and given to Timoken by a small magical creature who gets destroyed by an army of evil creatures who want the moon cloak.

I read this novel as a read-aloud with my youngest son who loved the story. It was a quick read, just right for the holiday season.Clearly, Nimmo has further plans for the series (this is book one) and while I don’t think it is the best book I read this year, it was decent, and I can see my son and I following the series in between larger books (we’re reading Summerland right now by Michael Chabon … it’s wonderful).

Peace (with the moon cloak),
Kevin

PS — the book video