The Fiddler in the Subway

 The Fiddler in the Subway (#923) isn't usually my cup of tea, as they say, but one of the gentlemen in my library book group suggested this collection of previously-published feature articles from the Washington Post by Gene Weingarten.  The hook that pulled me into reading this collection was the fact that Joshua Bell, whom I've had the pleasure of hearing perform live, was the fiddler playing in the Metro station in Washington, D.C.  What happened in this social experiment set up by the Washington Post is reason enough to read these essays, but there's lots more here worth your time.  Weingarten was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for this piece, as well as another feature article included here.

Gene Weingarten is principally known as a humor writer, although I was not familiar with his work; perhaps many of you may be.  However, many of these features are thought-provoking as well as amusing.  I was very pleased to be able to spend some time thinking about these essays even after I finished the book.  I'm happy to pass along a recommendation to read The Fiddler on the Subway as it came to me by chance.  It's worthwhile reading at its best.