B2
Hood River News, Wednesday, February 11, 2015
CASCADE
Observations NRCS
By PEGGY DILLS KELTER
Books’ great beginnings
9.651 pages of pleasure
S
IGNS AND SIGNALS are everywhere
that 2014 is behind me and the New Year
has formally arrived. Bank statements
recapping last year’s paltry interest earn-
ings arrive in the mail box; I no longer
write “2014” on dated material; and it’s time,
once again, to recap the previous year’s reading
history.
Steve Duin, colum-
nist for The Oregonian,
got me in the habit of
recording the books I
read from January
through December.
Over the course of a
year, he challenges his
readership to read,
read, read — books.
Magazines and newspa-
pers are exempt. The
reader who devours the
most pages wins a prize; the reward for the rest
of us is the satisfaction in reviewing a year’s list
of books, once anonymous to us and now our
good friends.
In 2014 I read 29 books, for a total of 9,651
pages. I bested 2013’s count by hundreds of
pages, but still fell thousands short of the win-
ners. Nonetheless, I ended the year satisfied by
my reading accomplishments, and thankful for
the teachers and family members who instilled
in me a love of reading.
■
Two-thirds of the books I read were non-fic-
tion and one-third fiction. Many would look at
my list and determine that I must be a scatter-
brain. I’d rather think of my taste as eclectic.
2014’s list does seem to contain a few repeating
themes. There were lots of books about ec-
centrics, visionaries, and travelers. Carl Hoff-
man, author of the compelling “Savage Harvest
— A Tale of Cannibalism, Colonialism, and
Michael Rockefeller’s Tragic Quest for Primitive
Art” writes, “The fascinating stories aren’t the
ones about people following patterns but about
people doing the unpredictable.” My list would
support that statement. Not only did I read
about Nelson Rockefeller’s son being cannibal-
ized in New Guinea, but I also read the following
— all books about real people doing the unex-
pected, the outlandish, and sometimes the in-
sane:
■ “A Curious Man — The Strange and Bril-
liant Life of Robert “Believe It or Not” Ripley”
■ “80 Days — Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bis-
land’s History Making a Race Around the World”
■ “The Phantom of Fifth Avenue” about eccen-
tric heiress Huguette Clark
■ “The River of Doubt — Theodore Roosevelt’s
Darkest Journey,” a gripping tale of survival in
the jungle
■ “The Boys In the Boat” — the story of a Uni-
versity of Washington scrappy crew team that
did the unpredictable when they won gold at the
1936 Berlin Olympics.
I “traveled” vicariously to exotic and domestic
locales not only with Teddy Roosevelt and
Michael Rockefeller, but also to the Amazon with
Anne Patchett’s characters in “State of Wonder;”
the South Pole with the characters in Maria
Semple’s novel “Where’d You Go, Bernadette?”
and Prineville, with Dorothy McCall’s memoir
“Ranch Under the Rimrock.” In between my lit-
erary travels, I experienced the world through
the eyes of a dog in “The Art of Racing In the
Rain” and an autistic boy who begins to make
sense of the world with the help of Disney ani-
mation in the memoir “Life, Animated” by Ron
Suskind.
I read books by and about old “friends”— peo-
ple I’ve come to feel acquainted with through
books. These include:
■ Bill Bryson’s “One Summer – 1927”— Bryson
has long been a favorite writer of mine
■ Laura Kalpakian’s “Graceland” — a true sto-
ryteller and prolific novelist from Washington
State
■ The Mockingbird Next Door” — a book
about living next door to author Harper Lee (“To
Kill a Mockingbird”) and her sister
■ “Julia Child Rules” by Karen Karbo — Read-
ing this book, I relived my fairy tale night in
September 2000 when I dined with this American
icon.
■
Now I have my sights set on the 2015 selec-
tions. Chief among them will be rereading the
works of Luis Alberto Urrea, the Hood River
County Library’s pick for their 2015 “Everybody
Reads” program beginning in March. Urrea has
been a favorite author of mine since my sister
gave me one of his books. In his novels “The
Hummingbird’s Daughter” and “Queen of Amer-
ica,” Urrea weaves true historical events and
magical realism together with great craftsman-
ship. “The Devil’s Highway,” his riveting non-
fiction account of a group of Mexicans who at-
tempted to cross the US border, and died trying,
should be read by everyone attempting to under-
stand the immigration crisis in America.
Urrea’s novel “Into the Beautiful North” is
this year’s library selection, and a truly enchant-
ing book. Here’s how its publisher describes it:
“Nineteen-year-old Nayeli works at a taco shop
in her Mexican village and dreams about her fa-
ther, who journeyed to the US to find work. Re-
cently, it has dawned on her that he isn’t the
only man who has left town. In fact, there are al-
most no men in the village — they’ve all gone
north. While watching The Magnificent Seven,
Nayeli decides to go north herself and recruit
seven men — her own “Siete Magníficos” — to
repopulate her hometown and protect it from the
bandidos who plan on taking it over.
“Filled with unforgettable characters and
prose as radiant as the Sinaloan sun, ‘Into The
Beautiful North’ is the story of an irresistible
young woman’s quest to find herself on both
sides of the fence.”
■
The kick-off event for “Everybody Reads”
will be March 15 at 2 p.m. at the Hood River
County Library. Watch for other events occur-
ring throughout the spring. Be a part of this
wonderful experience that celebrates community
and good books.
office
moves
The Hood River office of
the USDA-Natural Resources
Conservation
Service
(NRCS) has been re-located
to the USDA Forest Service
Hood River Ranger District
office, 6780 Highway 35, Mt.
Hood-Parkdale.
The new office is handi-
capped accessible, per feder-
al regulations. The phone
number for NRCS District
Conservationist Carly Heron
remains the same, 541-386-
2815. The re-location was ef-
fective Feb. 5.
The Hood River Soil &
Water Conservation District
and the Hood River Water-
shed Group will remain in
their current location on the
campus of the OSU Mid-Co-
lumbia Research and Exten-
sion Center at 3007 Experi-
ment Station Drive, Hood
River.
For further information,
contact NRCS District Con-
servationist Carly Heron at
541-386-2815.
Doula group
welcomes
Cohen
Meg Becker and DeLona
Campos-Davis announce
the addition of a third
doula ready to serve expec-
tant families in the Gorge.
Stefanie Cohen brings a
background in massage and
10 years of doula experi-
ence. Birth doulas support
women and their partners
during labor and child-
birth.
Join them the second
Tuesday of every month at
7 p.m. for a free information
event to meet the doulas,
held in the offices of Laura
Mayo, acupuncturist, 506
Cascade, No. 100.
B irths
William Ravins
A son, William Thomas
Ravins, was born on Feb. 4,
2015, at Providence Hood
River Memorial Hospital to
Tim and Rachel Ravins of
Hood River. He weighed 8
pounds, 7 ounces and mea-
sured 21 inches. He joins a
sister, Hannah Ravins, 3.
Grandparents are Elaine
Genor of Aloha, Ore., and
Pat and Trudy Ravins of
Hillsboro, Ore. Great grand-
mother is Mary Ravins of
Hillsboro.
Charlotte Ault
A daughter, Charlotte Mae
Ault, was born Jan. 14, 2015, at
Providence Willamette Falls
Medical Center in Oregon
City, Ore., to Aimee and Jared
Ault of Gladstone, Ore. She
weighed 6 pounds, 7 ounces
and measured 20 inches.
Grandparents are Barb and
Kirk Stein of Hood River,
Greg and Tammy Ault-Tryon
of Eagle Creek, Ore., and
Chuck Cooper of Lahue,
Hawaii. Great grandmother is
Laura Young of Hood River.
BIGGER
ADS
%LJIRRWMXVWJRW
DGVFRYHULQJWKH1RUWKZHVW
.com
It’s time
for the
52nd Annual
Hood River
News
Subscription
Campaign
OPEN TO ALL
KIDS &
TEENS
AGES 10-16
KIDS - Earn
BIG Cash Bonuses
Here’s How!
• Come in and sign up at
the Hood River News office
on Wednesday, Feb. 18 or
Thursday, Feb. 19.
• Call friends & family and
sign them up for a Hood
River News subscription.
1st PRIZE
$
Recycle Tips
HAZARDOUS
WASTE
- Hazardous waste col-
lection events are FREE
to residents, businesses
and farmers of Wasco,
Sherman, and Hood
River Counties.
- Quarterly collections in
Hood River and The
Dalles, plus 8 rural
events/yr.
- Go to our website for
full schedule and list of
what we accept.
www.tricountyrecycle.com
541-506-2636
00
1000
Spread The News!
AND
EARN CA $ H!
Call Esther or Ray at 541-386-1234