The author and his wife decide to add two mini pigs to their family. Butch and Roxie arrive in a cat basket, however they start growing at an alarming rate. In no time, they learn there is no such thing as a mini pig, as they make the move from inside the house to an enclosure in the garden. This book is fast paced, often funny, and by the end you may begin to question, like the author, never eating meat again. Speaking with Professor Mike Mendl and pig breeder Wendy Scudamore, Whyman is keen to learn all he can about the extremely smart, very social, playful and talkative family members as he seeks to ensure their wellbeing. A must read for animal lovers.
This autobiography was utterly fascinating. It's a must read book that reads like a novel. Lady Anne tells the story of a bygone era. She grew up playing with her neighbors, the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. She and Margaret would go on to be lifelong friends. She served as her Lady in Waiting for 30 years. If you are looking for juicy tidbits about Princess Margaret this is not the book for you, however I came away with a greater respect for the princess. Lady Anne's life is surreal. She tells of going to Scotland to avoid the air raids in World War II to being a traveling salesman after the war. She goes from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows, often in the same day! She was a Maid of Honor to the Queen for her coronation and slept on the floor that night. This is a look at how the aristocracy used to live. From hunting parties with the King, not being allowed to inherit, developing the Caribbean island of Mustique and finally living in a cottage in the shadows of the family home Holkham Hall.
A very readable book on how we treat animals and how we could treat animals. The book is written in two sections. The first is Remarkable Discoveries About Animals - navigation, intelligence, communication, love, play and personality among others. The second section is Revolutionary New Ways to Show Them Compassion. Numerous studies are cited in both sections as well as websites and apps to help you navigate a new way of thinking. I love this book. Start where you are now and implement changes one at a time or jump right in.
This is a short novel set in Paris featuring a girl who rides the Metro. She loves books and invents stories about the other people she sees reading on the Metro. On day she changes her daily routine and ends up going down a lane and into a surreal situation. It's all about the power of the written word and joining those words with the right person.
This book is definitely a page-turner with many intense twists and turns. The writer switches from then to now or past to present bringing rural Ireland to life. The characters are complex and some are surrounded in mystery. I couldn't put it down.
The beloved author is back with a new series. Set in Malmo Sweden, this series features a new detective named Ulf Varg in the Department of Sensitive Crimes. He works with three others and picks up a fourth coworker along the way. This book is filled with McCall Smith's signature characters, compassion, humanity, wisdom, humor, and thought provoking prose. Reminiscent of Mma Ramotswe in Africa and Isabel Dalhousie in Scotland, Ulf Varg is the master storyteller at his best.
