I Got A Library Card And I'm Not Afraid To Use It

I finished both "The Wordy Shipmates" and "Juliet, Naked".

The Wordy Shipmates was very interesting to read, although sometimes a little...wordy. There was a lot of in-fighting and bickering between those early shipmates and sometimes the account of all that got a little boring. But I like, in general, the way Sarah Vowell writes. She occasionally interjects her personal feelings about things, but that's ok. Sometimes straight history can be boring. A little subjective perspective adds context and depth.

The main thing I took away was the constantly-needs-to-be-learned-history lesson that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. These people had a good and noble mission. They had high aspirations and good intentions. And not that all of that was lost, we are living proof that some of it survived and was improved upon, but the human need to control and have power over others splintered their group, slaughtered Native Americans (and they praised God and had "Thanksgivings" in honor of these successful slaughters), and drove out any dissenters. Harvard, founded in 1636, was founded to provide Puritan approved education after that rebel, Anne Hutchinson, home bible-schooled women (gasp!) in unapproved curriculum. Trivia...George Bush is one of her descendants. The man who put her on trial, John Winthrop, also has an American politician descendant...John Kerry. Who knew?

Juliet, Naked is a very funny book. It's a wonderful play on modern music, the facade of celebrity, the obsession of fans, and the magical absurdity of the Internet. Can't really say much more without revealing the plot. It made me laugh out loud.

New books are listed above. These, and the two I just finished, are library books. Trying to save money. The library is our friend.