Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon

Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey, by The Countess of Carnarvon.  Those of us who have claimed “Downton Abbey” as our most important hour of TV, EVER, will love this non-fiction history of Highclere Castle.  Centered on the 1895-1925 era of wealth, fame, travel, extravagance beyond imagination and living in the highest of high styles, this story will keep visions of the TV story flashing in your mind as the real lives are interwoven in your mind with the fictional lives.  There are names in the real story that are also in the TV story, Bates and Crawley!  Characters with entirely different positions, but it was fun to come across the real names as they related to the real story.  There may have been more that I missed, but those two jumped out at me.  The real story tells even more about the many many people employed to sustain the lavish life styles of the Castle. With their own saw mill, huge gardens to feed hundreds, huge house staff, gardeners, horse raising, hunting grounds, and more, comprising an entire village of support, it is hard to imagine so many people being employed just to keep the small main family going.  The real characters also spent many winters in Egypt at archeolgical digs for which the 5th Earl of Carnarvon won world wide acclaim.  The book starts with the 5th Earl of Carnarvon marrying Almina, a wealthy heiress.  He needs her wealth, she wants his social position.  It works very well. As in the TV rendition, the Castle really was a hospital during W.W. I. Thus the story goes on with details about their entertaining, travels, family, and spending...based on actual events and recorded into documents from that time.  It points out the question:  Do they own the castle, or does the castle own them?  Loved this book. Have always loved Castles. Notice the capital letter there.  Oh, be still my beating heart.  9/10.  Keep in mind it is NOT fiction.

Learn Me Good, by John Pearson

Learn Me Good, by John Pearson. True story of a laid off engineer who becomes a third grade math and science teacher in an inner city school. His emails to former coworkers, about his first year of teaching, are the body of the book. He tells his friends about the exploits of his students, humorous, sad, touching, and revolting. We former teachers can relate totally! Testing is a major part of his year just as it has become for all teachers these days. Short read. If you only have a few minutes at a time, each email can be read as your short chapter. You can also go to "Read Me Good" on Facebook and click 'like' to see posts from him. 8 out of 10. Recommended to my teacher friends and to parents who wonder, "What is it with these schools?"

Wild, by Cherly Strayed

Wild by Cheryl Strayed.  Biography of single, mixed-up gal who walks the Pacific Crest Trail alone, from California through Oregon, to Washington.  Sort of a diary of her experience interspersed with the story of her life that led to her a decision to tackle this trek.  Loneliness, weather extremes, strangers, wild animals, lack of money, physical pain and a back pack so heavy it makes other trekkers shake their head in disbelief, makes the walk tough enough to break the most determined walker.  Her past drives her determinedly onward.  Interaction with other hikers makes a tough time more bearable, but also poses a threat to the single woman alone.  I rarely read non-fiction so this was a diversion, but I am glad I found it.  Solid 8 out of 10.  As a midwesterner, I enjoyed reading a book about the western states’ geographical attributes and not just the surfs up, big city, Hollywood kind of life.