Bicycle Journeys

I've been interested in the idea of long-distance bicycle touring with families. Recently, I've read several "trip journals" at crazyguyonabike.com (great site!). I've also read the following:

Mud, Sweat, and Gears by Joe Kurmaskie. This book is the story of Joe, his wife, and three children (including a nursing baby) as the bike across Canada. I enjoyed it, but expected (and wanted) something more like a simple travelogue. It's interspersed with stories of Joe's past adventures (that don't always have to do with bikes) and is also a little crass at times.

A Pedouin Life by Bill and Amarins Harrison with Cheyenne, Jasmine and Robin. I couldn't put this book down! It's about the Harrison family's year-long adventure biking from Kentucky to Alaska on quint bike. I loved the writing style and despite the fact that I'd already read their whole blog of the adventure (which I also had trouble peeling myself away from!), the story didn't seem old and retold. I find it especially fascinating that the family is self-described "blue-collar" and left Kentucky with just $300.

The Homeschooling Option

The Homeschooling Option: How to decide when it's right for your family by Lisa Rivero preaches homeschooling as something wonderful. It gives insight into why people homeschool and how their days run and has lots of quotes from a variety of happy homeschooling students and parents. It was interesting to peek into the world of homeschooling, but the book glossed over any homeschooling negatives or problems so isn't necessarily helpful for a parent truly considering that educational option.

Homeschooling Books

I've been curious about homeschooling lately, so have read:

Complete Idiot's Guide to Homeschooling by Marsha Ransom. This book is exactly what the title says it is. I knew little about homeschooling before reading it and after reading it, knew the basics. It briefly discussed common homeschooling philosophies and how to go about teaching your children. It was informative, but I also skimmed large chunks of it that were full of common-sense information.

100 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum by Cathy Duffy was a much better book. It went through the different philosophies more in depth and had several lists of questions to help you decide on which type of curriculum best suits you and your child(ren)'s needs. About 2/3 of the book is curriculum reviews.

Long Way Round

I read about half of Long Way Round by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman. The book details the two actors' journey around the world on motorcycles. It is a fascinating read, but full of foul language that I decided I'd had enough of.

In Defense of Flogging

In Defense of Flogging by Peter Moskos is an okay book. The author's argument is that prisons are cruel and ineffective and that for many criminals we should give them the option of being caned and released. He doesn't go into much depth on why he thinks flogging is great, but does write an interesting history of prisons and their past and current problems.

Berlin at War

Berlin at War by Roger Moorhouse is an amazingly well-written account of the everyday life of Berlin citizens during World War II. Each chapter touches on a different aspect of life-- food rationing, the bombings, the use of radio, etc. The accounts are very engaging, full of excerpts from diaries and interviews with survivors. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone with even the slightest interest in WW II.

The Soul of Medicine

The Soul of Medicine: Tales from the Bedside by Sherwin B. Nuland is a collection of various doctors' stories that the author retells and then sometimes reflects on. The stories run the gamut from weird cases (e.g. a young man with lungs full of stool) to mistakes that doctors have made to special doctor/patient relationships. It was a quick read and I'd recommend it, especially if you have an interest in medicine-- which, looking back at the books I've read, I guess I do :)

Books I never finished...

I haven't found many books lately that have held my interest. Brilliant: The Evolution of Artificial Light by Jane Bronx, and A Week at the Airport by Alain de Botton are two I've recently started and then given up on.

I Shall Not Hate

I enjoyed I Shall Not Hate: A Gaza Doctor's Journey on the Road to Peace and Human Dignity by Izzeldin Abuelaish. I learned much about Palestinian/Israeli relations and also was inspired by Izzeldin's consistent, unfaltering kindness and hope-- even after three of his daughters are killed by Israeli fire.

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua was a definite thumbs up. I live in a community with a large Asian population, but am a "western parent" according to Chua's description. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the reasons behind the way "Chinese parents" raise their children and the way a "Chinese parent" views "western parents". Chua's writing is crisp and to-the-point. The end of the book was a little anti-climactic-- I expected a judgement on which style of parenting was better-- but I appreciate how Chua didn't try to make conclusions about something she doesn't know the answer to (she pushed her children academically and musically, but then let up some when her 13 year-old rebelled).

The Vaccine Book

Curious about the phenomenon of delaying or withholding childhood vaccines, I checked out a copy of The Vaccine Book: Making the Right Decision for Your Child by Robert W. Sears, M.D., F.A.A.P. The book goes through each vaccine in a separate chapter clearly explaining the disease(s) the vaccine prevents, the ingredients in the vaccine, and side effects. It then goes on to to answer the question "Should You Give Your Baby X vaccine?" These sections make me nervous. Sears has slyly titled one subsection under this heading as "reasons some people choose not to get this vaccine". With this title he makes it so that he is not giving misinformation; he is just reiterating what parents have told him. But the reasons, coming from an authoritative doctor, can be easily interpreted as scientifically and medically valid. These sections are also riddled with a flippant disregard for the principle of herd immunity. In talking about parents' concerns about the MMR vaccine, Dr. Sears says, "I also warn them not to share their fears with their neighbors, because if too many people avoid the MMR, we'll likely see the diseases increase significantly" (p. 97). Who is Dr. Sears writing this book for? Are only a certain group of people to be the privileged ones to skip vaccines while others take risks to give them protection?

After reviewing each vaccine, Dr. Sears reviews the safety research, side effects, vaccine ingredients and their safety. A lot of the information he gives is reasonably straightforward. He gives the statistical risk of vaccine side effects as well as risks of the disease (though these numbers sometimes involve a lot of extrapolation, which I don't think everyone would do the same way) and discusses what these side effects are. He also devotes quite a bit of space to discussing the safety of vaccine ingredients, especially aluminum. The final sections discuss "Myths and Questions" about vaccines-- efficacy, how to relieve the pain of injection, etc. and a page-and-a-half on whether one has a "social responsibility" to vaccinate his/her kids (he concludes that parents have the right to decide what is best for their kids). The last sections of the book put forth an "alternative" vaccination schedule. And... at the very end of the book are the "resources", where, after writing a book that makes vaccines seem super-dangerous, Dr. Sears explains that the "vast majority" of articles in medical journals show that vaccines are "safe and effective".

All in all, I was disappointed with this book. I was looking forward to hearing good arguments about why I should delay or withhold vaccinating my children. I didn't find them. I'll continue to vaccinate according to the CDC schedule.

Misconceptions

Misconceptions: Truth, Lies, and the Unexpected on the Journey to Motherhood by Naomi Wolf was definitely a unique book. It was a strange, unorganized mix of the author's personal experience of pregnancy, birth, and mothering a young child and general information on these topics. The book had quite a negative tone, going into some depth on problems with maternity care in the U.S. The suggested solutions (which were few) were unrealistic and poorly thought out. I finished the book (meaning it wasn't awful), but it wasn't that great of a read.

Birth (and an adoption) books

I'm behind in posting. Being pregnant, I've been reading several birth-related books.

Get Me Out by Randi Hutter Epstein, M.D. was a short history of birth "from the Garden of Eden to the Sperm Bank". It was entertaining, sassy, but did not go into much depth on any topic.









Baby, We Were Meant for Each Other by Scott Simon is a book about adoption. The author details his feelings and experience in adopting two children from China. This is interspersed with the stories of adopted adults that Simon knows or has interviewed. I enjoyed the book, but didn't feel glued to it.







Baby Catcher by Peggy Vincent is one of those books I'll never forget. Peggy chronicles her journey from nursing student to a homebirth midwife practicing in Berkeley in the 1980s. The birth stories she retells are interesting, inspiring, sometimes funny, and sometimes scary. What struck me the most as I read the book, however, was the love and respect Peggy showed her clients. Her clientele ranged from hippie types to Christian Scientists and yet, in her writing, Peggy never showed any hint of disrespect or bias toward or against her clients' varying personal beliefs or birth wishes. Peggy also discussed her experiences of working as a midwife in a hospital setting (including setting up a hospital-based birthing center) and the abrupt end of her homebirth career (caused by a lawsuit that prompted her malpractice insurance carrier to refuse coverage). I felt for her and the way both homebirth and hospital midwifery lack an established and respected position in U.S. medical care. The book also made me think deeply about what I want in a birth provider. It helped me come to the (maybe obvious)understanding that it isn't where the birth happens (home or hospital) or even necessarily what type of provider (CPM, CNM, OB, etc.), but that the provider is, in addition to being medically competetent, someone who loves and respects me and whom I can trust.

And, last but not least, I've perused and skimmed the following books. I haven't read enough to offer much in the way of opinions or reflections, though I find the idea of birth art in Birthing from Within fascinating. I just might try it.