Part I
Our friend Carl flew off to France this summer. Before he left, asked for a copy of a Jane Austin novel. He’d decided he should read at least one of her books (probably so he could scoff at them from a more educated point of view). I considered giving him Emma, my personal favorite. But, if he’s only going to read one…

Me: You should read Pride and Prejudice. It’s funny.

Carl: It’s funny?!?

Part II
As Min was saying goodbye, he noticed Carl’s bags were ridiculously heavy. It turned out that Carl was heading off to Europe with six hardcover books. Min pointed out that Carl was going to be doing a lot of walking and biking — with his bags — and that books were actually available for purchase in Europe.

The end result… Carl left a stack of unread hardcover books in Min’s possession, and I swiped them.

So far, I’m half way through The Open Road: The Global Journey of the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, by Pico Iyer.

Thanks, Carl!