Take the Cannoli

There are some vacations where you can relax and read. This was not one of them.

Long-time reader Kristy had loaned me her paperback copy of Take the Cannoli by Sarah Vowell, that rare book not available in the Las Vegas public library system. Having read and enjoyed Assassination Vacation, I knew I'd need outside help to devour Ms. Vowell's entire oeuvre. (Wow, that sounded dirty.)

Because the book is a collection of essays Ms. Vowell delivered over the radio or in print, it was easy to sneak in a chapter while waiting for my sister to get ready in the morning, or before I went to sleep at night.

Part travelogue, part autobiography -- Ms. Vowell makes me want to be a professional writer. (In a way, I will be, but writing in the context of law is rarely as funny.) She's like Jimmy Breslin to my Jess, but that's not important.

She uses her career as an opportunity to try all sorts of creative ventures: retracing the Trail of Tears with her twin sister Amy; attending a rock star fantasy camp; searching Hoboken for Frank Sinatra's legacy; and getting a goth makeover. Not a bad itinerary for someone who doesn't really drive.

And finally, say it with me: Becky.