May Reading Round Up

Bonk: the curious coupling of science and sex /Mary Roach
Okay - you can stop snickering now. Honestly! You may remember me reviewing this author's other book Stiff (ahem). Well I happened to see that she'd written this one, and had also been on TEDTalks talking about her book so intrigued I got it out. Being a G-rated blog I can't tell you some of the more interesting items inside this book but suffice it to say it is well written and very interesting. And also funny. As a highly dedicated observer of humanity I very much enjoyed it. :)

So what else have I read?

I haven't read the Book Club's book of the month yet (still on the hold list) so I can't review that but some of the other girls have:
The 19th Wife / David Ebershoff
Mel, Susannah, Janine, Sharon,
Sharon has reviewed June's book as like me, she was on a long waiting list at the library. I've also read this month's book but will wait to post my review later - mainly for my own continuity, others need not feel such compunction.
Kate has reviewed April's book as she's had a lot of real life to deal with lately!

I managed to delete my reading history off my library card record so I can't remember if I read more than Bonk. Silly of me to rely on technology I suppose. I know I started to read The Opium Clerk/ Kunal Basu and couldn't get into it. There was also a book with a yellow cover but can't for the life of me remember what it was.

Oh!! Now I remember - I read these two.
Call the midwife : a true story of the East End in the 1950s / Jennifer Worth.
Shadows of the workhouse / Jennifer Worth

These are Worth's autobiography and I highly recommend them. As the title suggests, she worked as a nurse/midwife in the East End during WW2 and after. The stories she tells will make you laugh and some will make you cry. There were some beautiful stories of people overcoming poverty and others that will make you want to rage at the injustice. Great stuff. Includes a women who had 25 children. No, really!

She's written a third and final book which I've yet to read.

And I'm now on a Gabaldon kick right now which means I started on Cross stitch and am now on Fiery Cross - 4 books in2 weeks. I know they aren't everyone's cup of tea but I find them engrossing. I really like the ongoing story of the Jamie/Claire relationship. So many stories stop at the marriage day and leave it as "happily ever after". I also like the strange diseases etc she describes. I'm going to be very sad when the series ends. I hope she writes some more in similar vein since her other series (Lord John Grey) doesn't entirely reach me.

And apropos of nothing, I see Elizabeth George has killed off Inspector Lynley's wife and unborn child. *meh*