A Mental Road Trip Weekly Link Round-Up

 

Last night-- well, it was really 3:30 AM-- I finished reading the newest addition to my Best Reads of 2023 list. The book was the story of a road trip across America during the Depression, and my eyes were glued to each page. 

 

The book put me in mind of road trips I've been a part of over the years. Of Sunday drives when my grandparents, mother, and I would get in the Chevy and go somewhere. To a special spot on the Illinois River for fresh catfish. To Olney to see the white squirrels. To the State Fair where Grampa and I would be sure to walk through every single livestock barn in the fairgrounds.

Then there was the first BIG road trip when I was ten. The four of us loaded up the Chevy and headed west to visit my grandmother's Uncle Orville and Aunt Mae in Grass Valley, California. That was a trip of wonders. A herd of buffalo running up over the crest of a hill outside Cody, Wyoming. My first real rodeo in Cheyenne. Always getting potatoes with your meals in Idaho (whether you wanted them or not). The Great Salt Lake shimmering in the sun. The colossal redwoods. Wading out into the Pacific near Eureka, California...

"Adventures of the Spirit" Deborah DeWit

 

There have been other road trips since. Of course, there have. And many memories associated with each one. There's just something about packing a bag, loading up a cooler, jumping into the car, and GOING. Where? Somewhere! Anywhere!

And in the spirit of the good old-fashioned road trip, I hope you all enjoy this summer. If you're not able to jump into the car and go, there are plenty of books that will take you on a mental road trip-- and sometimes those are just as much fun.

 

[FYI: I've started having some problems with my lymphedema again-- mainly in my right leg, and I'm going to the hospital today. Since I'm 99.9% certain that they're going to be keeping me, responses to your comments may be very slow in coming. I'm not sure I'm going to bother taking my laptop, you see. I have managed to schedule some posts for next week, but not all of them. I'm feeling a mite puny, so I don't think I'm going to work myself into a lather trying to get everything set for one of those you-never-noticed-I-was-gone "vacations". This isn't anything major, so see ya on the flip side!]

Enjoy the links!

►Books & Other Interesting Tidbits◄

• Why are more and more brands creating virtual book clubs?
• Nearly 1,000 years old, this text shows the ingenuity of Chinese woodblock printing.
• Merging collections: How to move in with another book lover.
• Was the 1623 poisoning of 200 Native Americans one of the continent's first war crimes?
• Good news: There are more bookstores in the US this year than last.
• The evolution and reinvention of the sari.
• What is the appeal of dystopian fiction?
• Why one reader isn't leaving Goodreads reviews in 2023.

 

►Book Banning & Censorship◄

• Why are schools in Maine keeping Gender Queer on shelves, despite challenges? A case study in what makes a difference.
• The fifteen most banned books in America this school year.
• California officials aim to halt book bans to "preserve freedom".
• Missouri libraries are now required to adopt the state's new obscene material policy if they want to receive funding.
• A new Iowa law restricts gender identity education and bans books with sexual content.
• Montana is the first state to ban drag performers from reading to children.
• Texas cracks down on "woke civics" by restricting student interactions with elected officials.
• Book removal advocates await library policy changes in Fremont, Nebraska.
• Cheyenne (Wyoming) group to fight against banning controversial books from school libraries.
• The Central Arkansas Library System's board authorizes a legal challenge to the library material law.
• An article from a school newspaper about censorship targeting its shelves.

►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄

• The ruins of a 1,700-year-old Roman watchtower have been discovered in Switzerland.
• A "rather mysterious" 1,050-year-old structure has been unearthed in Germany. What is it?
• Archaeologists discover Roman camps in Jordan that may indicate a secret military invasion.
• Ancient toilets unearthed in Jerusalem reveal a debilitating and sometimes fatal disease.
• Thousands of stolen artifacts have been recovered by Italian police.
• Archaeologists find 500-year-old shipwrecks brimming with Silk Road trade details.
• Egyptian archaeologists have discovered the biggest ever mummification workshop.
• 153,000-year-old footprints from South Africa are the oldest Homo sapiens racks on record.

 

►Channeling My Inner Elly May Clampett◄

• Watch a pair of laundry-loving rescued prairie dogs living their best life.
• Heel! Heal! Recovery is easier with your best friends near you. (duh)
• Watch an octopus waking up from what scientists think could have been a nightmare. More from Smithsonian Magazine.
  
• This dog wears a camera that takes pictures when he gets excited.
• This puppy falls asleep in a news anchor's arms during a live broadcast... and quickly gets adopted.
• A service dog named Justin received a diploma with his owner at a New Jersey college graduation.
• There's a monument to Staff Sergeant Reckless in the Semper Fidelis Memorial Park in Triangle, Virginia.
• How the U.S. almost became a nation of hippo ranchers.

 

►The Wanderer◄

• Pickleball courts are replacing shuttered mall stores.
• Why did the water in Venice's Grand Canal turn bright green?
• The coast-to-coast American road trip is 120 years old.
• I wouldn't mind stopping by the Equality House in Topeka, Kansas.
• Listen to the sounds of Pando, the largest living tree in the world.

 

►Fascinating Folk◄

• Henry Ossawa Tanner was one of the first world-famous Black artists. Now his home is in danger.
• The women who fried donuts and dodged bombs on the front lines of World War I.
• Vaseem Khan becomes the first person of color to chair the UK's Crime Writers' Association.

 

►I ♥ Lists◄

• Thirteen thrillers by authors like Ruth Ware.
• Nine recent audiobooks narrated by the author that your ears will want to hear.
• Thirteen old-timey synonyms for "hot" to bring back this summer.
• The best recent non-fiction crime books.
• The best books to take to the beach this summer.
• The top thirty TikTok book recommendations so far in 2023.
• Must-read thrillers from Asian American and Pacific Islander authors.
• The 48 biggest summer blockbusters of the past half century.

That's all for this week! Don't forget to stop by next Friday when I'll be sharing a freshly selected batch of links for your surfing pleasure.

No matter how busy you may be, don't forget that quality Me Time curled up with a good book!