In celebration of the arrival of summer, I’ve collected a few titles on subjects pertinent to the season most people anticipate with glee:
The American Amusement Park by Dale Samuelson (with Wendy Yegoiants), 2001
791.068 Sam
A visit to an amusement park is a vital part of enjoying the summertime in America. Pennsylvania has a healthy number of such fun and frolicsome venues: Hersheypark, Dorney Park, and Dutch Wonderland are all geographically close to Reading. My personal favorite is Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, PA, if for no other reason than parking and admission are both free. Knoebels has a special place in my family as well. My grandparents met at the roller skating rink there in the 1930s. As a matter of fact, if Pap-Pap were still with us, he and Mam-Mam would be celebrating their 73rd wedding anniversary this very day. My mother and her siblings have their memories of youthful merriment at Knoebels, as do my sister, our numerous cousins, and myself. Now the fourth generation of our clan are making their own happy recollections of having visited there. I recommend a visit to Knoebels to anyone who’s never been there, it’s well worth the drive!
791.068 Sam
A visit to an amusement park is a vital part of enjoying the summertime in America. Pennsylvania has a healthy number of such fun and frolicsome venues: Hersheypark, Dorney Park, and Dutch Wonderland are all geographically close to Reading. My personal favorite is Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, PA, if for no other reason than parking and admission are both free. Knoebels has a special place in my family as well. My grandparents met at the roller skating rink there in the 1930s. As a matter of fact, if Pap-Pap were still with us, he and Mam-Mam would be celebrating their 73rd wedding anniversary this very day. My mother and her siblings have their memories of youthful merriment at Knoebels, as do my sister, our numerous cousins, and myself. Now the fourth generation of our clan are making their own happy recollections of having visited there. I recommend a visit to Knoebels to anyone who’s never been there, it’s well worth the drive!
American Green: The Obsessive Quest for the Perfect Lawn by Ted Steinberg,
2006
635.9647 Ste
Author Steinberg takes on a singularly unique American phenomenon: the relentless pursuit of a flawless greensward. I read this text when it first arrived on our library’s shelves and was flabbergasted at the financial statistics the author reported as to how much many Americans lay out annually on things such as weed killer, lawn feed, watering, and maintenance. I felt the message (which was rather heavy handed at points) that yard turf shouldn’t be quite such a monumental national priority was fully justified. American Green is a verdant gem of a book on a topic most people wouldn’t imagine could take up two hundred and ninety five pages.
Contested Waters: A Social History of Swimming Pools in America by Jeff Wiltse,
2007
306.481 Wil
When the canicular days of soaring temperatures and oppressive humidity descend, nothing beats a cool dip in the pool. Wiltse details the history of the swimming pool in American society, focusing much of the book on the roles of the municipal natatorium (to be honest, a natatorium is an enclosed, indoor pool, but it’s pleasant to use a synonym and that’s close enough) in community life. The emphasis on children’s physical fitness, which was born in part due to the frightening polio outbreaks of the years before Salk’s vaccine, played a key role in the pool becoming a mainstay of many cities and towns. The author also addresses the injustice of racial segregation and its affect on access to such pools.
635.9647 Ste
Author Steinberg takes on a singularly unique American phenomenon: the relentless pursuit of a flawless greensward. I read this text when it first arrived on our library’s shelves and was flabbergasted at the financial statistics the author reported as to how much many Americans lay out annually on things such as weed killer, lawn feed, watering, and maintenance. I felt the message (which was rather heavy handed at points) that yard turf shouldn’t be quite such a monumental national priority was fully justified. American Green is a verdant gem of a book on a topic most people wouldn’t imagine could take up two hundred and ninety five pages.
Contested Waters: A Social History of Swimming Pools in America by Jeff Wiltse,
2007
306.481 Wil
When the canicular days of soaring temperatures and oppressive humidity descend, nothing beats a cool dip in the pool. Wiltse details the history of the swimming pool in American society, focusing much of the book on the roles of the municipal natatorium (to be honest, a natatorium is an enclosed, indoor pool, but it’s pleasant to use a synonym and that’s close enough) in community life. The emphasis on children’s physical fitness, which was born in part due to the frightening polio outbreaks of the years before Salk’s vaccine, played a key role in the pool becoming a mainstay of many cities and towns. The author also addresses the injustice of racial segregation and its affect on access to such pools.
Iced Tea : 50 Recipes for Refreshing Tisanes, Infusions, Coolers, and Spiked Teas
by Fred Thompson, 2002
641.6372 Tho
I am always happy when a book title brings a new vocabulary word into my personal lexicon. Before landing upon this book about iced tea, if someone had asked me to identify tisane I would likely have answered, “Isn’t that the capitol of some nation in Africa?” Apparently a tisane is a beverage, hot or cold, made by infusing parts of any plant except that of the tea bush. “Tisane” and “herbal tea” are not interchangeable because a tisane is not really a tea…fascinating! In any event, I am partial to iced tea, and this book provides many curious and delightful twists on an old summertime favorite.
Whether your estival pastimes include mowing a lawn, taking a swim, visiting an amusement park, or sipping an iced tea: Happy Summer!
No comments:
Post a Comment