'Little Big Horn 1876'

While Aaron and I were at the Battle of Little Bighorn battlefield, they had a really nice gift shop we breezed through. While there, I purchased a book - 'Little Big Horn 1876' by Peter Panzeri. I'm usually not one for buying things at gift shops since everything is so expensive {and plus I took pictures of the site}, but since this place was on my bucket list, I figured I would splurge. :)
The author did an excellent job of writing about both sides throughout the book - The Indians and the Cavalry. He writes about the plans and preparations made by both sides prior to the battle, the tactics and different weaponry used, the battle and what all went down, as well as the aftermath of the battle. The book also has superb photographs, artwork, and maps. If you're a history nerd like me and want to gain some really insightful information about Custer's last stand, I would definitely recommend this book. {Or visit us, and read it here!}

I give it a 5/5.

The Titanic

Today on the drive home from the Memorial Day services I read an interesting, short, non-fiction book.  It was written by one of the survivors from the Titanic, Lawrence Beesley.

I have seen the movie 'Titanic' and while there are events that occurred in it that are true, there also were things that were fictionally documented.  For example, Lawrence Beesley tells of how calm and and how much respect for authority the passengers on the Titanic had.  They did as they were told and waited in silence for each order they received from the officers. "Similarly, the engineers below, the band, the gymnasium instructor, were all performing their tasks as they came along: orderly, quietly, without question or stopping to consider what was their chance of safety". (Beesley, 128)
Also, I didn't realize that the main reason a lot of the lifeboats were only half full was because people simply refused to get on. Lawrence Beesley talks of how safe and lighted it seemed on the big "unsinkable" ship and when faced with the choice to get into a small life boat and row into the darkness, many people refused the latter. 
One last bit of information I found interesting was that the iceberg field the Titanic was in when it sunk was 70 miles long and 12 miles wide. Wow!

A Friend like Henry

Lately I have been really interested in non-fiction books. There's just something about reading a true story about real people or events that actually happened.
The latest book I've read, which was exceptional, was about an autistic boy and the golden retriever his parents got for him which ends up unlocking his world.  It's called A Friend like Henry by Nuala Gardner.
I don't know very much about autism so it was interesting to learn that:
"Autism is diagnosed when there are deficits in three main areas. The first is the inability to communicate both verbally and non-verbally.  The second area is lack of imagination and flexibility of thought. The third is the inability to socialize, make friends, and make sense of the world we live in." (Gardner, 8)
Like I mentioned above, Henry unlocked Dale's world in so many ways.  Here is a clip I found that gives a brief summary of what the book is about. There is so much more in the book though -- I  recommend reading it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJSu3G0U5SY