Latest Non-Fiction Reads

Lately I've been tearing through non-fiction at a vastly accelerated rate, and forgetting to share all of the awesome things I've found!  So here's a catch up, 

Science Ink

I read about this book online only last week and immediately posted two of the pictures from the review to Pinterest, and then put the book on hold through our library.

I can't believe in all of my years of studying science-adjacent subjects, I've never thought of getting a science-themed tattoo.

I'm not inked, but I've always wanted a tattoo...  just never settled on something that means enough to me and is unchangeable enough to be forever on my skin.  Maybe now I have no excuse?

There are so many brilliant pictures in this book, but my favourites include a tree of life...

And some palaeoanthropological pretties, of course :-)

The AWW Cooking School

The best part of this book is the double page spreads that compare different types of the same food group, for example, pasta (click to embiggen):

There's one for salad greens, one for vegetables, one for rice, one for noodles, and more.  There are some brilliant technical lessons, and techniques for making the most basic things - you know, those things that everyone notices if you screw up!

It's such a hefty volume, and includes food inspired by many of the different cuisines that influence Australian and New Zealand home cooking, that it might be all you need (other than Edmond's).  There's also a version for kids (I saw this in the library and it looks just as fabulous!), and both versions are marked down over at Mighty Ape right now (use the links above).

The Modern Library:  The 200 Best Novels in English Since 1950

I never really like books like this because everyone has a different opinion of what the 'best' of this or that is, and I rarely agree.  This book, though, is well-written, took input from people from around the world, and doesn't seem to dwell on the same books that everyone is told they should read.

Of course Lord of the Flies is there, Catcher in the Rye, Lolita, and The Bell Jar, but there are others that I've never heard of, like Lucky Jim, The Little Girls, and What a Carve Up!*.  Some are even set outside of America and the UK!  Maurice Gee and Janet Frame feature, and there are stories set in China, India, South Africa, and Australia too**.  If you're looking for a list of books from outside of your genre, this might just be it.

*Please don't tell me how ignorant I am of brilliant literature - as I've said before, I don't claim to know everything (or anything) about literature!

**All links are to the cheapest editions on Mighty Ape at the time of writing this post, but most have other editions to choose from.