Eight Hundred Grapes, New Slow City, Little Book of Happiness, Creative Schools

What I Read Last Week I finished four good books last week: I reviewed Eight Hundred Grapes here. Now I'm giving away a finished copy of the hardback along with a very cool Eight Hundred Grapes coffee mug. Enter to win the book and mug here. In New Slow City, William Powers, after living happily and simply in a twelve-by-twelve cabin (a story recounted in the appropriately named Twelve-by-Twelve), marries and moves with his new wife to NYC. The challenge is on: can the couple live happily and simply in a 350-square-foot micro-apartment in New York? Be warned that Powers is, shall we say, somewhat west of the status quo when it comes to living simply and slowly...I honestly can't see the mass of American people adopting many of his ideas. But even if you are inspired to try a few of his ideas, it's a book well worth reading. O's Little Book of Happiness is exactly what the title states: little stories about everyday happinesses. I swear that I could physically feel little jets of happiness enter my bloodstream as I read along in the pages of this book. It is quite delightful. Perfect little boosts of happiness in each story. Ken Robinson is determined to help education, and I think Creative Schools: The Grassroots Revolution That's Transforming Education is his best effort yet. Robinson seeks out schools and teachers and methodologies that produce fabulous results and shares these schools and teachers and methodologies with us. You can't help but be motivated to join Robinson's revolution after reading this book, I think.

What I'm Reading Now   You can see my bookmarks are all near or past the halfway mark in all of these books: Magister Ludi, As I Lay Dying, Lone Star, Far From the Madding Crowd, and Lists of Note. I'm also on disk 10 of 14 on my audiobook, In the Kingdom of Ice. These are all fantastic reads; it's hard to decide what to read on each day. I've been especially taken with In the Kingdom of Ice... I don't know when I've enjoyed a more compelling audiobook.

What are you reading today?!

And I hope you'll stop by and throw your name in the hat

to win a finished hardback of Eight Hundred Grapes 

along with a clever little EHG coffee mug. 
Stop by here to win!

What is the Sunday Salon? Imagine some university library's vast reading room. It's filled with people--students and faculty and strangers who've wandered in. They're seated at great oaken desks, books piled all around them,and they're all feverishly reading and jotting notes in their leather-bound journals as they go. Later they'll mill around the open dictionaries and compare their thoughts on the afternoon's literary intake....That's what happens at the Sunday Salon, except it's all virtual. Every Sunday the bloggers participating in that week's Salon get together--at their separate desks, in their own particular time zones--and read. And blog about their reading. And comment on one another's blogs. Think of it as an informal, weekly, mini read-a-thon, an excuse to put aside one's earthly responsibilities and fall into a good book. Click here to join the Salon.

The Sunday Post is a meme hosted by Kimba at Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It's a chance to share news and recap the past week.

Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia at The Printed Page. We share books that we found in our mailboxes last week. 

 It is now being hosted here.