Resorts at Sea - September

September brings a hat trick … Yet another book … Cheaper than expected at 20% off. I think I’ll stop for a bit; I don’t wish to press my luck. The Grace Ships is written by a former Grace Line employee, bringing a great deal of insight into company operations, as well as possible whereabouts for at least one work of art dating back to the early 1930s.

Actually, there are very few books about these American shipping companies out there. Sadly these companies don't have the cache of Cunard, Holland-America, the French Line, etc. They are rare and at times, expensive; I've been fortunate of late in my recent hunts. There’s another half dozen or so books out there I need for research, and I’d love to have them in my collection, too. (Must get … the precious …)

Unfortunately, I have also been consumed this summer with three epic biographies: Washington by Ron Chernow, Theodore Rex by Edmund Morris, and Alexander Hamilton also by Chernow. Each is very enlightening and a must for anyone interested in history and politics. Having read another bio on Teddy Roosevelt, I wasn’t too surprised by Theodore Rex, but I was completely gobsmacked by Washington and Hamilton. Myths were busted. (The only thing that didn’t surprise me was the antics of Congress since the beginning of the country. Not much has changed on that front.)