The Accidental Trail

In my previous post about Kindle, I mentioned how he often suggests books I might like to read. Well, I often take a suggestion and run with it. By ‘run with it’, I mean my natural curiosity (along with my research skills) tends to take over. I’d like to take you down one of my accidental reading trails that all started with one little non-fiction story.

It was late one night, and I had just finished a good book. I wasn’t really ready to go to bed, but I wasn’t in the mood to start another big novel. After scanning my bookshelf (“Hmmm, collections of stories, maybe?”), I decided to ask Kindle what looked good...for free.

I came across several good Kindle single stories that looked interesting. One, in particular, caught my eye because there was a world map with old black and white pictures on it. The price wasn’t free, but it was only $1.99. The name of the single was "My Mother’s Lover". The synopsis began, “On her deathbed, David Dobb’s mother Evelyn Jane revealed a secret she’d kept for 60 years about the man she had truly loved and lost...” and I was hooked. I enjoyed the single very much and was glad I’d read it. "My Mother’s Lover" was not the first non-fiction single I had downloaded and enjoyed, but it was the first one that sent me down a long and interesting trail. 

After I finished that single, Kindle suggested that I read Loving Frank by Nancy Horan. It is a historical fiction about Mamah Borthwich Cheney and her love affair with architect, Frank Lloyd Wright. It is a fascinating story and one that I couldn’t even begin to try to describe to you. It wasn’t a typical love affair but, after reading and researching the facts, I can assure you that Mamah and Frank were far from being typical anything. While the author added interaction between characters that no one could possibly know for sure, Horan did her research - which included Mamah’s letters and translations she did for Ellen Key, along with many other non-fiction sources.

Loving Frank is one of those ebooks that was good enough to buy as a real book to put on my shelf, and I knew I would want to re-read. I also decided on my next trip to Chicago, I’d be sure to add a tour of the homes that Wright designed. I also plan to make a trip to Taliesin and Taliesin West one day (both homes that Wright designed and lived in). As I said, the story of Mamah and Frank is fascinating...and unforgettable.

After Loving Frank, Kindle suggested that I try...

Oh, wait. This could take awhile, as following a winding path often does. I tell you what, I’ll post about the next book tomorrow. 

(You see, a lovely package arrived this week from Roche Winery in California, and I’ve been waiting until tonight to enjoy it...)