WHAT I'M READING V. 54

1. Shakespeare by Bill Bryson

I love Bill Bryson's writing and have loved every book I've read of his so far.  I was excited to discover that he wrote one on Shakespeare and really enjoyed listening to this one.  Some things were familiar to me, some things were new information, and all of them were presented with wit and his eye for detail in a way that all felt fresh and important.

2. Becoming Mrs. Lewis by Patti Callahan

I have read many books set in England, and this one more than the others made me want to go visit. Callahan's description of England are so beautiful.  This book is a piece of historical fiction regarding the story of how C.S. Lewis and Joy Davidman began as pen pals and ended up married to one another.  I was intrigued, enjoyed most of the book - although at one point midway through I felt a little fatigue - and really liked seeing C.S. Lewis from a woman's perspective. Joy Davidman was a writer in her own right and the book includes many of her poems and details of a woman's writing life. I am glad I read this one and would recommend it to other Lewis enthusiasts.

3. The Man Who Planted Trees by Jean Giono

My cousin Lois handed this one to me to read. It's a short story, bound up into a beautiful book, telling the story of a man's diligent and consistent effort to plant as many trees as he can in a valley in the foothills of the Alps in Provence throughout the first half of the 20th century.  It's quiet, lovely and hopeful.

4. Talk Triggers by Jay Baer and Daniel Lemin

We read this one at work for our book study.  It's a book about marketing, and it asserts that the best sort of marketing is word of mouth because it is free, genuine and impactful.  It makes the case that customers value stories and authenticity, and prompts businesses to ask themselves what they are doing to get people talking about their business.  They call this strategy a "talk trigger" and the book details why it is important, examples of other businesses that have successfully employed it, and details how one can determine their own talk trigger.  We're working on implementing ours at work and will find out if it is as imapctful as this book suggests!