Dr. Bookworm
gonzo book reviews
These are my riffs on books: old and new, fiction and non- fiction. Enjoy and let me know what you think!
Cathy Luh
Against Posh?
“Fourth floor,” warbled the disembodied female voice in our hotel elevator in Edinburgh. She drew out “fourth” like it was two syllables, “FAAH-uth.” Our “Roads Scholar” tour guide Kevin, who is English, tilted his head and said, “That’s a rather posh voice.” Can a voice be posh? This was news to me. I always thought…
Growing Up Is Tough
Sure-footed as mountain goats, my sister Long-Long and I picked our way down the steep, narrow dirt path that typified much of Hong Kong’s terrain. Rough-cut slabs of stone, some cracked and dangerous, bridged over ravines. I was seven. Rose was a year younger. We were on our own, on our way to catch the…
Jim and Ling-Ling; James and Cathy
“Cairo.” Sister Cathlin, our High School English teacher, pointed to the word she had written on the blackboard and asked, “Does anyone know where this is?” “It’s a city in Egypt,” I blurted. I burned in embarrassment when she said, “Yes, but … it’s also a town at the Southern tip of Illinois. It’s pronounced KAY-row.”…
The Grammar Book That Is a Life Hack
Can a book be whimsical and deadly serious at the same time? A grammar book, no less. In the history of my learning how to write, I have never gotten through the first few pages of a writing style book (Strunk and White, AP Stylebook, Chicago Manual of Style from the University of Chicago). They…
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Dr. Bookworm 