I need it because ...

I had a co-worker who could use language skillfully. To put it another way, she was good at making excuses. I had been believing that I hadn't made clumsy excuses like she had done, but one day, I noticed that I also make excuses, not to others, but to myself.

My excuse is used under the same circumstances. When I want to buy a book, I make an excuse to myself. I'm not a big spender and I know that I don't have to make such an excuse, but I do it. It is because I tend to buy books easily and I don't finish reading some of them. This is my bad habit. That's why I hesitate to buy a new book.

A couple of days ago, one book caught my eye and I could not resist reading it, it's "This Explains Everything: Deep, Beautiful, and Elegant Theories of How the World Works." It seems interesting!

I looked at a website that has a rating of books. I found that several people rated a low score and those results made me a little disappointed, only a little. There are also several people who rated a high score on that book. I was at a loss whether I should buy it.
I need an excuse to myself, you know?

I wrote whether I should buy it or not buy it on my Twitter. Then, one of my followers said to me "The time when you want to read it is the best time to read it!"
Oooh, don't say that!

Then I found the best reason that I should buy it. My birthday is coming soon. All right, I'll buy a birthday gift for myself. I used the much-valued reason to buy the book that can be used once a year.

I wonder if I found a good book next time, what will the reason be?

Pictures with puzzle elements: Mitsumasa Anno

I guess most readers of this blog are puzzle lovers who live outside of Japan. So, I have chosen a famous Japanese illustrator "Mitsumasa Anno" for today's topic, just in case you don't know him.
 

wikipedia - Mitsumasa Anno

Mitsumasa Anno is an illustrator and children's book writer. His children's books are published worldwide, and he has won many awards. I don't pay much attention to children's book writers, but he is exceptional because his illustrations have a sense of puzzle.

I have several of Anno's books. Here is a book " ANNO'S ALPHABET," the Japanese version. If you like impossible objects, you may love this book even it's published for children. I'm amazed at his idea of design and of course, his technique of drawing.

There is also a Japanese alphabet book of Anno's. When I bought these books, I practiced drawing pictures and tried to draw impossible objects but couldn't draw well.

I found Anno's illustrations on the page of Impossible World. 

Impossible World - Mitsumasa Anno
http://im-possible.info/english/art/various/anno.html

As you can see in the middle of the above page, there is a puzzle like a six-piece burr, and please have a look at it carefully. It's something strange isn't it?
Anno drew impossible objects and stairs that remind me of Escher's works in children's picture books. I don't know much about him, but it seems like he has a puzzle sense and is interested in mathematics.

There are several books of conversations with Anno and some mathematicians; Tsuyoshi Mori, Gisaku Nakamura and Koji Fushimi, that have been published. 

Any of those books are fun to read. I looked for their English version books, but unfortunately, I couldn't find any. So, I pick up some contents randomly here.

• Why is symmetry beautiful?
• What is the shape of the field of vision? A rectangle or circle?
• Rectangles make the world
• Image of 0
• Turning a polyhedron over
• Talking about Escher

I think these contents attract puzzle lovers.

Here are different types of his books. These are his series of picture books of journeys.

If you look at the pictures carefully, you will find something that makes you smile. I found Little Red Riding Hood somewhere. I heard that there is a person who posed the same as a famous picture or a trick art. I love his wit and sense of humor.

If you have a chance to visit a library or bookstore, please look for his books. It's worth taking a look, especially for puzzle lovers.

Using my character for reading English books

I know I'm a little like a child in a sense. I always wonder why and how something is and how it works. People say that children are full of curiosity, but as they grow, they lose their mind of wonder but I'm not losing it. I don't know it's a good thing or a bad thing. My curiosity usually goes to scientific matters and artistic things.

Then, one idea came up to my mind. I have a habit to eagerly know something that I'm interested in. I think I can use this personality for practicing English. I have been thinking I have to read more English books, so if I read mystery novels, I think I cannot stop reading.

I think anyone has experiences of stopping reading books partway through. There are various reasons, but the biggest reason is a book wasn't so interesting to you. To think of myself, I like mysteries, so the best idea to keep reading is reading mystery novels. I think I'm not able to stop reading until I know who the criminal is.
I liked reading Sue Grafton's novels. Maybe I'll try to read one of her books again.