During CSI’s recent celebration of the association’s invaluable volunteers, some members discussed their favorite books. Glenda Mayo said “Maiden Voyage” by Tania Aebi struck her at a younger age, because, “It amazed me that someone so young could travel around the world alone on a sailboat.” On the CSI-Connect Community page, members were asked, “What great books have you recently read, or are currently reading?”
Here are some of the answers:
The best book I’ve read in the past six months was “Black Elk: Life of an American Visionary,” by Joe Jackson, published in 2016. It’s a biography of Black Elk, an Ogalala Lakota medicine man (1862-1950) who led a truly extraordinary life.
– Kevin O’Beirne, PE, FCSI, CCS, CCCA
Just finished “A Clearing in the Distance,” the biography of Frederick Law Olmstead, America’s first Landscape Architect. Amazing read, I do recommend!
– William Sundquist FCSI
Olmstead figures prominently (as the designer of Central Park) in a fascinating book I read last year, “City on a Grid: How New York Became New York” by Gerard Koeppel. It’s the story of how Manhattan’s street grid was created. Surprise—politics played no small part.
– David Metzger FCSI, Member Emeritus, CDT, FAIA, SCIP
You must read “Isaac’s Storm” (Erik Larson), the historical account of the Galveston hurricane of 1900.
– Donnamarie McGaw CSI, CCS, CDT, AIA, LEED GA, USGBC
“Piranesi” by Susanna Clarke and “The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue” by VE Schwab. Both fantasies and both ponder fundamental things we may take for granted. Also, I’m currently reading “Version Control” by Dexter Palmer—about time travel, but also commentary on our current way of life/interaction with technology. And, if you’ve never read “East of Eden,” I highly recommend that.
– Angela Prichard CSI
