Magic, Music, Money and More ( #AtoZChallenge )

 

       Magic and music are two interests of mine so these topics are reflected in the books that I own.  Many of these types of books are packed away where I wasn't able to easily access them for photographing, but I managed to find a couple in these categories along with some other books to represent the letter 'M'

Carter Beats the Devil by Glen David Gold

        This popular historical mystery thriller novel came out in 2001.  Though fiction, the title character was an actual famous magician from the early 20th century and many historical figures make appearances in this story filled with theatrical glitz and political intrigue  Worth a read I'd say.  I enjoyed it when I read it several years ago.

Beethoven The Universal Composer by Edmund Morris

       I enjoy reading about the lives of musicians and composers.  Beethoven was one of the best so I savored this book about his life.  I should go back to reread this book while listening to Beethoven's symphonies one after another.  A great way to spend a bleak day when I've got nothing else to do (this sentence sounds like it could be a line of a song)(music thinking is always on my mind).

Money

       Back when I was working and bringing in a regular paycheck I used to buy various books about money and finances.  I probably should have read some of them and taken heed of what they had to recommend.  Now I've got little money, but a lot of money books.  Here are a couple big ones:

The Bottom Line Money Book

Making the Most of Your Money by Jane Bryant Quinn

     I didn't really get my money's worth from either of them.

Medical Books

       My mother always used to have medical books when I was growing up.  Not professional type books, but family friendly medical books that many people would have in their homes.  If you felt something coming on, you'd consult the medical book to see what might be going on.  When I'd research whatever I might be feeling, I was always sure that the worst disease was the one I had.  Sometimes I'd just read those medical books for fun and end up feeling sick.  I've continued my mother's medical book tradition by adding a few to my own library.

The Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide  is a particularly handsome volume. It's a big ole book.  

Masada to Mexico and Beyond

Masada: Herod's Fortress and the Zealots' Last Stand by Yigael Yadin

The Oxford History of Mexico  by Michael C. Meyer & William H. Beezley

The World of the Ancient Maya by John S Henderson

 Memoir

        I like reading about other peoples' lives especially it comes straight from the source.  Memoir is one of my favorite genres.  Not only do I have several memoirs in my library, I also have several good books about writing memoir.  Most of these I ordered from Writers' Digest Books.  I haven't read most of them, but The Truth of Memoir by Kerry Cohen isn't a bad little book.  

The Moonshine Mule by Tom Fremantle

         If I recall correctly, this is another one of those books purchased through a mail order catalog from a book clearing service.  I got several nicely priced books in that haul.  This book particularly interested me because it's about a long walking trek.  I dream of taking a trek like that, but I think the days of doing a thing like this are behind me.  At least I can read about an adventure of that sort in this book.

You can read my review on Amazon here.

Meriwether Lewis by Richard Dillon

         Kind of a funny story about this one.  My friend Marvin in Tennessee and I were talking about the famed explorer Meriwether Lewis a couple weeks ago.   Why we would have been talking about such a thing eludes me now, but apparently Marvin had read something about Lewis recently that he found interesting.  I told him that over fifty years ago I had bought a book about Lewis from the Doubleday Book Club but I had sold it at a yard sale several years ago.  Well, lo and behold, I'm looking for books for this post and there it is plain as day on my bookshelf.   Guess maybe I'd better read this before I actually do sell it or something.  

Cormac McCarthy

      I first discovered the writing of Cormac McCarthy in about 1972 when I was attending the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.  This author had also attended there in the fifties and had lived around the area and this is where his earliest novels took place so I could relate to them geographically at least.  Since those days he has written several highly acclaimed novels, including some that have been made into movies.  Cities of the Plain  is part of his Border Trilogy.  This is but one of several McCarthy novels in my collection.  I'll be featuring others in future posts. Cormac McCarthy is one of my top favorite authors.

       Have you attempted to write any memoir?   Do you ever consult medical books to see what is wrong with you or someone else?   Are you familiar with Cormac McCarthy's work?