God Is Round

With a title like “God Is Round,” I was drawn to this contagious level of devotion, for a subject as uniting as soccer. I will refer to the sport as both soccer and football, the other football having no place here. This book name comes from a true love for the game, and its author, Juan Villoro, is an encyclopedia of the sport – and also of literature. He opens with a bit on an Uruguayan writer who worked first in his country’s national football stadium, and he throws in references to global literature and other popular culture – some of which I don’t get. Nor do I know all of the players – but even a non-follower must recognize more of these legends than they might think. And, he does not give explanations of the rules, only anecdotes of memorable plays or behaviors – so you have to be ‘in the know’ to get some things. I am not a “fan,” but I appreciate the simplicity of the game, its intuitiveness and universality. Villoro’s writing makes me want to both read about and watch (maybe even play) more football.

The Illustrated Compendium of Amazing Animal Facts

“The Illustrated Compendium of Amazing Animal Facts” by Maja Säfström is a funny little book. Like Matt Sewell’s “Owls,” also published by Ten Speed Press, it is quirky, nice to look at, and actually informative of some of nature’s stranger evolutions. This book is even better suited for younger readers, as the facts can be read within a short attention span. There is a pleasant ridged texture on the cover, but the cool metallic blue there is the only color in the book – all the pages are black and white. The drawings are even and controlled, with enough accuracy for unmistakable identification, but with a signature artistic freedom, including some speech bubbles from a few animals. They range from ants to whales, with one to several facts. Sometimes they’re pictured by themselves; other times they are shown with some of their habitat. Each has two facing pages devoted to it, seen all in one view. There are a few trends across species, such as the ability or inability to move backwards; what they are called in a group; and eating, sleeping and even excreting habits. Many of the facts you may have heard before, but maybe those younger readers haven’t yet. I’d like to think these are all indeed facts, and not any urban legends. 10 birds, 26 mammals, 3 fishes, 11 invertebrates, and 5 reptiles or amphibians make up this bestiary, yet they do not appear to be in any taxonomic or alphabetic order. These animals are familiar favorites, from the domestic to wild, common to rare, and all seem happy to be part of this collection. This is a fun read, a book to flip through and another way to learn about the diversity of life.

Note: I received a free copy of this title through BloggingForBooks in exchange for an honest review.

Never Cry Wolf

I was excited to see this classic on NetGalley, first published in 1963 but now available as an ebook. I hadn’t read anything by Farley Mowat before, and I could immediately see, when I began reading “Never Cry Wolf,” that one reason he is celebrated is the rich vocabulary and story-telling he entertained with. I found him reminiscent of Bill Bryson, but even more over-the-top. He seemed to almost go out of his way to never use the same word more than necessary, for full expressiveness, and has a slightly more subtle satire. Comparisons can also be made with Edward Abbey in “Desert Solitaire”: both were alone in a barren place, becoming part of the landscape, working for government agencies, with their own interpretations of meeting their requirements.