books and birthing babies

Not another book review! Well, actually a little bit more. I've just finished Ian McEwan's The Child in Time, first published in 1987 around the time pregnancy became, in my worldview at least, more than just a notion. It's an extremely well-written account of the loss of a young child, from the father's point of view. Let's just say I found it emotional. Mr. McEwan won the Booker prize for Amsterdam, the first destination in my alphabetical tour of Europe. His newest novel is Saturday, a day I have always looked forward to. I intend to read both of those books sooner rather than later.




Now for the birthing babies part of this post. An old acquaintance of mine is expecting her first child about now. I discovered this by visiting her website and stepping nimbly to a conclusion which she confirmed by e-mail. I had the good fortune to meet her at an 8:08 evening in Toronto last winter, and her first reaction upon seeing me was to rush over and give me a hug after proclaiming something about me now being a daddy. She then stepped back and introduced me to a man whom I assumed to be her boyfriend, partner or spouse. I guess he got the message. My congratulations go out to both of them. By the way, photos are more effective if they're properly cropped. Don't you agree, Jessica?