You get what you need

The Rosie Project - Graeme Simsion (Simon & Schuster, 2013)

I actually paid for a Kindle book! And this book faced some tough circumstances; I started reading it while spending my Saturday night at the emergency vet. Not the most auspicious of beginnings. But it was funny, and helped take at least a little of my mind off my poor sick cat.

And the book turns out to be a totally charming romantic comedy, and one from a guy's point of view, which is refreshing. Don is an Australian genetics professor with what seems to be an undiagnosed autism spectrum disorder. (He gives a talk on Asperger's early in the novel, and pretty much diagnoses himself then.) He's created an amazing and extremely rigid order and schedule for his life, all of which gets upended when his friend and fellow professor (also a cad) sends a seemingly wild child woman to his office. The woman herself isn't unexpected in and of herself, since he's developed a rather thorough questionnaire meant to screen for a compatible mate, but Rosie is clearly all wrong. And yet...

Don's journey away from the safe boundaries of his world is charming and often silly, but it works. I had a smile on my face pretty much the entire time.

You drive and you drive and you drive some more

In a Sunburned Country - Bill Bryson (Broadway Books, 2000)

Last week I drove about 800 miles over 2 days. It made me a little cranky, and definitely sore. But I was driving between Southern California and the Bay Area, where there is plenty to see, even on that cow country stretch of the 5. So I felt a little sheepish reading Bill Bryson in Australia, where there are regular 1000+ mile drives to get pretty much anywhere.

Bryson is hilarious. I think I knew this, but here is proof. This exploration of Australia's cities, interior, features, people, culture, etc. is the result of 3 separate trips that expose him to much (and yet still just a small piece of) the land Down Under.

Themes: Places have a lot of weird stories. And when you're on the road, you get intrigued by all sorts of roadside attractions.

Australia has LOTS of things that can kill you. Lots and lots and lots. Animals mostly. And getting lost in the desert and dying.

Bryson walks a lot. He makes me wish I were better at going offline and just walking.

He also drinks a lot on occasion. Especially when traveling with a friend.

Travel plans get messed up pretty often.

Australia is awesome, and writers get to go there surprisingly often (well, to me) for book tours.

Also, you should probably find this book just for the description of cricket. I almost fell off the couch. It's most of chapter 7, although it appears here and there elsewhere in the book. This may be one of the lazier book reviews ever, but I promise, you will enjoy this read.