The Cloud Collector's Handbook by Gavin Pretor-Pinney

First Line: You might well think that cloud collecting sounds like a ridiculous idea.

I've never been accused of having my head in the clouds, but I should have been because it's one of my favorite things to do-- especially during the summer here in the Sonoran Desert. I knew all the different types of clouds had names, but didn't know them past cumulus and cirrus. When I stumbled across The Cloud Collector's Handbook, I knew I had to have a copy; I'm the type of person who likes to know the names of things.

This little hardcover is broken into five basic chapters: Ten Main Cloud Types, Notable Species and Varieties, Accessory Clouds and Supplementary Features, Other Clouds, and Cloud Optical Effects. It also contains handy indexes of technical terms, images and more in the back.

The book is filled with gorgeous photographs of all the more recognizable types of clouds, and author Gavin Pretor-Pinney tells readers what causes them to form and under what conditions they may be seen. If you're the type of person who likes to keep lists or to score yourself on how many different types of clouds you've seen, you can keep track with this book.

I loved examining all the photographs, and I learned a great deal from reading the text. The next time I look up at the sky, I'm going to be much better informed, and The Cloud Collector's Handbook is now an important addition to my reference shelf.    

The Cloud Collector's Handbook by Gavin Pretor-Pinney

ISBN: 9780811875424

Chronicle Books © 2011

Hardcover, 144 pages

Non-Fiction, Reference

Rating: A+

Source: Paperback Swap 

REVIEW: Dirty Spanish

Title: Dirty Spanish: Everyday Slang from "What's Up?" to "F*%# Off!"
Author: Juan Caballero with Nick Denton-Brown
ISBN: 9781569756591/Ulysses Press
Language/Reference
Rating: A

First Line: This book was written with the assumption that you already know enough Spanish to get by.

They never teach you slang in those high school foreign language classes. At least they never did in mine. But of course, we all wanted to learn how to swear in the language we were learning. I became better acquainted with the intricacies of another language when Maria, a foreign exchange student from Colombia, and I became friends. I mispronounced something that caused her (1) face to turn tomato red, and (2) to break out in hysterical laughter. Although I knew I'd just committed some major faux pas, she would never tell me what I'd actually said. That alerted me to the fact that I'd better be careful what I say when I try to speak someone else's language.

A little book like Dirty Spanish is a great tool. Not only will it help you to not sound as if you've just wandered out of Spanish 101 in high school, you'll learn that harmless slang in Mexico might get you a fist in the nose in Spain. Divided into chapters such as Howdy Spanish, Friendly Spanish, Party Spanish, Body Spanish, Angry Spanish and Hungry Spanish (among others), the author also tells you which Spanish-speaking country uses the particular phrase. There's lots to learn in these 126 pages, and you'll laugh along the way.

Dirty Spanish is indispensable for any trip you're planning to a Spanish-speaking country, or if you just want to understand what Spanish-speaking employees are saying as they walk past. (I'd received a compliment and didn't even know it!)