What we're reading, what we're liking
My Mother's Charms by Kathleen Oldford
To be perfectly honest, the text for this small gift book is sentimental dreck, but for anyone fascinated by Monopoly playing pieces, Fabergé eggs and other small metal replicas of everyday objects, the pictures will exert an irresistible pull. It's hard to imagine why anyone would want 14-karat gold charms in the shape of a toilet or an outhouse, but others featured here include a tiny cocktail shaker with the Devil's head popping out of it, a folding chair that really folds, a minuscule golden egg beater, a doghouse (complete with dog), a table fan, a lipstick and a hand of cards (a royal flush, actually). Any one of them is capable of making a certain kind of person nearly faint with covetousness, so just ignore the tiresome, canned anecdotes explaining the poignant emotional connection the author has to each charm and just enjoy the photos. Too bad there aren't more.
-- Laura Miller
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