literate once more

i managed to pick up two books during the break, diane ackerman's a natural history of the senses and mike gayle's brand new friend.
i've been meaning to get ackerman's a natural history after hearing good reviews about it but as it was not readily available in most bookstores and i was not actively searching for it, i conveniently forgot about it altogether.the other day while perusing through stacks of second-hand books in booksale, i spotted the familiar title and immediately grabbed it.this wasn't the first time i found a book on my to-read-list in a second-hand bookstore, the first one wasa pilgrim at tinker's creek which i also found by accident and bought at a real bargain.
i just started with her book but already i am captivated by it. in her introduction, she writes "the senses don't just make sense of life in bold or subtle acts of clarity, they tear reality apart into vibrant morsels and reassemble them into a meaningful pattern. they take contingency samples. they allow an instance to stand for a mob. they negotiate and settle for a reasonable version and make small,delicate transactions."
the second book, gayle's a brand new friend, which i purchased after but finished first because it was easy reading. i am not a huge fan of chick lit but my friend willard raved about his books so i decided to check them out.when i read his first two books, my legendary girlfriend and mr. commitment, i was hooked and became a fan.
aside from gayle, the only other author whose books i've been trying to get is alan lightman especially after reading einstein's dreams which i loved because it was a perfect example of science and art coming together.although, i was a bit disappointed with good benito, i enjoyed his collectionof essays, dance for two.now, i am trying to get my hand on his other books, a sense of the mysterious, dinner for two and turning thirty, because when i saw them at a fully booked, i found them too expensive and decided to wait until powerbooks got them.unfortunately, i missed them at powerbooks, that or they never had any copies available.so when i saw a brand new friend at powerbooks the other day, i bought a copy immediately even if it was a bit pricey.
and even if i was unhappy about the ending, i liked what the male protagonist rob wrote in his letter,"you ask me why we've only got one word for 'snow' and i've been thinking about it ever since.maybe you're looking at it the wrong way.yes, it would be easier if we sub-divided and categorised it down to specifics - but would it really be as much fun?the way i see it is, we may only have the one word for love, but what a word it is."
my only problem with gayle's books is that as most of his stories are set in england, he occassionally makes references to british pop culture, politics and icons as well and uses british idioms i am not familiar with.ooh, i really need to get out and explore more of the world.
i forgot how much fun reading can be, curled up alone in my room with a good book, relaxing music and delicious food.ah yes, if you happen to drop by in ongpin, or any eng bee tin branch, you might want to try their crispy mikiron.it's the perfect pika-pika while reading.