Empty Nest: Spring Reading

One of my readers recommended ?The Boys in the Boat? by Daniel James Brown, about ?Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.? I must admit, I'm a sucker for Olympic Gold stories, especially if it has to do with Americans during the pre-World War II era. For me, there are two qualities that define a good book. First and foremost is prose, second is story line. The prose in ?Boat? is nothing spectacular, it's prosaic, if you will. I see that I have very few underlinings. However, ?cotton-puff clouds drift across robin's-egg-blue skies? does catch my eye. The adventurous story line of working-class boys rising to the near impossible as members of a university crew team is a sure-fire winner. Except that the reader knows from the beginning what the outcome will be. So, where is the surprise? Brown also commits an egregious historical error early in the book in listing an erroneous fact about Henry Ford. The error puts me on edge and makes me wonder about all the historical facts. If you catch the same error as I did?it's very early in the book?drop me an e-mail. All-in-all, even though it was a No. 1 New York Times Best Seller, I'll give ?The Boys in the Boat? a five out of a possible 10.

Ginnie and I are taking our belated honeymoon in May. We are going to England, Scotland, and Ireland. Ginnie's dentist, upon hearing of our adventure, passed along two books. One of them is ?How the Irish Saved Civilization? by Thomas Cahill. It's very highbrow intellectual, and rather tough reading, something I don't normally cotton to. However, the story caught me up, and I had to see it to the end. In general, when the Roman empire fell, by attacks from barbarians, who destroyed all the books and artwork they could get their hands on, plunging civilization into the Dark Ages, it was Ireland who saved man?s bacon. Isolated by water, Ireland was immune from barbarous attacks. Scribes went to work copying books, a rather unique form of hero and story line. One of the heroes was St. Patrick. The prose was attractive also. ?Wherever they went the Irish brought with them their books, many unseen in Europe for centuries and tied to their waists as signs of triumph, just as Irish heroes had once tied to their waists their enemies' heads.? Also a national bestseller, I'll give ?How the Irish Saved Civilization? a seven.

A book that I could not put down, even though we all know the historical ending, is ?The Wright Brothers? by David McCullough. I've read every book by McCullough. His American history and prose is second to none. ?The Wright Brothers? is an all-American story of two brothers from Dayton, Ohio, with little education, who, under intense criticism, ridicule, and danger, thrust the world into the age of flying, like a mamma robin shoving her baby from the nest. As bicycle mechanics, they developed complicated mathematics for lift, thrust, and drag. They built their own wind tunnel and gasoline engines. When other inventors were receiving grants to finance their flying machines, the Wrights used their own limited funds. In an age when bicycles were considered dangerous and morally hazardous, because they drew youth away from books, the Wright brothers saw a time when men would soar like birds. In an age when it was believed that man no longer had the opportunity to achieve greatness (sound familiar?), the Wright brothers, through good old-fashioned hard work, perseverance, and faith, set the world in a new direction. From their pastor father they were taught, ?We learn much by tribulation, and by adversity our hearts are made better.? But through all they accomplished, the Wrights remained humble. ?A man who works for the immediate present and its immediate rewards is nothing but a fool,? Wilbur was fond of saying, and ?No bird soars in calm.? I'll give this book a 10.

Have a good story? Call or text Curt Swarm in Mt. Pleasant at 319-217-0526 or email him at curtswarm@yahoo.com. Curt also reads his stories at www.lostlakeradio.com and 106.3 FM in Farmington.