Two Thirds of the Way
Monday 21st Apr
After day 20 and I am happy to say that I have made up the deficit and am slightly in front.
One of the distractions that I mentioned in my last blog was that I was finishing writing a children's book. Whether it will ever be found on a shelf in a bookstore or online remains to be seen but it was very enjoyable to commit my imagination to writing.
The list of books that I have been reading for the 450 Pledge has grown.
I have picked up Agatha Christie's Autobiography.
Having spent her life writing about people being murdered in many and varied ways I half expected that she would have had a tough childhood.
But in fact, she recollects a delightful early life. Reading her anecdotes really does bring smiles and the occasional chuckle.
I selected a book on Mount Vernon and Monticello the wonderful homes of George Wahington and Thomas Jefferson, respectively. I had the pleasure of visiting both these wonderful houses when I was on a trip to the U.S. in 2010.
Monticello was built and rebuilt by Jefferson during most of his long life. It put a great strain on his finances. When the Library of Congress was burnt down, he offered to sell his entire library of 6487 volumes to Congree for a tidy sum. The offer was accepted.
Other books that I have been reading this month include "Books that Changed History" and "The Times Aviators."
On my journey with William Bligh, he has reached the Sandwich Islands on Captain Cook's third and final voyage. This was where Cook came to an untimely end.
As an aside, Matthew Flinders sailed with Bligh on Bligh's second breadfruit voyage. The one that didn't end in mutiny.
After Flinders circumnavigated Australia his voyage home was interrupted when he pulled into a French port. His friendly dealings with Baudin did not help because it was seven years before he was able to continue his journey home. It was in prison that his cat Trim met an untimely end. Trim had character and Flinders wrote a short book on his adventurous life. Flinders also wrote a book on his own voyages, as did Cook. And books by or about Cook, Flinders and Bligh have a place in my library.
Earlier I mentioned Mark Twain visiting Adelaide. Although not part of my pledge reading list, I have a book by Twain called "Innocents Abroad" It is his account of what amounted to the first organized cruise. He sailed from New York and travelled to the eastern Mediterranean. There were even optional excursions. Hilarious, donkey rides, confusion with exchange rates, seeing famous people like the Emperor Napoleon III and the Ottoman Sultan. He even met Tsar Alexander II All in all, he had a very adventurous time. I also have the book on his travels in Australia.
That is enough talk about books. Now I need to get on with reading.
I will leave this blog for now and hopefully the next one will announce the successful completion of this challenge.
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Two thirds of the way to my reading target.