What I Read: June 2019

June was such a busy month! We had some great adventures and spent a nice chunk of time outside which is always wonderful. Fortunately our summer heat hasn't been as extreme yet as it was last year. I both love and loathe summer but it is so much easier to love it when it stays below 100 degrees.

Here's what I read in June:

Glitch, by Sarah Graley - I follow Sarah on Instagram and enjoy her comics so I was excited to try this middle grade graphic novel. It's about a girl who gets sucked into a video game and has to figure out what to do next. Also, she has a bff who she's promised to play this game with and has to deal with that fallout from not waiting to play the new game with her. My kids both enjoyed this one also.

Just Jamie, by Terri Libenson - This is another middle grade graphic novel that discusses some middle school friendship conflicts. It is well illustrated and covers those very real feelings and situations that make middle school so treacherous. It made me a little anxious but might be just the thing a middle schooler in your life is needing to read to understand how to navigate the trickier subtleties of relationships in that age range.

Girl, Stop Apologizing, by Rachel Hollis - I read Hollis's other book, Girl, Wash Your Face, and feel like there's a very particular subgroup of ladies that devour this type of literature and pep. For me it can be a little hit or miss but also depends on what mood I'm in. This book differs from Girl, Wash Your Face in that it's a direct plan of action and pep talk combo, designed to help you achieve your goals. Some of the info in here was really helpful and uplifting and some still feels a little entitled and recycled. It's a bit of that duality between the "i've done this all by myself" and "be authentic and show all the help you get" which can get a little frustrating to see so often. I still think there is great advice in this book, but it's worth approaching with critical thinking in mind.

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone, by Lori Gottlieb - I loved this look behind the curtain of therapy. Gottlieb's journey towards becoming a therapist was fascinating and interesting to read, and her honesty is so refreshing and helpful from both a patient and a professional viewpoint. I hope more people will read this, it seems criminally under-hyped to me. Therapy is so helpful!

A Conspiracy in Belgravia, and The Hollow of Fear, by Sherry Thomas - These are the second and third installments in the Lady Sherlock series and they're all such fun. It's a delight to spend time with these characters and the plots are compelling and original. It's wonderful to read, and being in the mind and capable words of Thomas is such a fun joy to me, it's like how you can fall totally asleep when someone you really trust is driving. Weird example? Probably. I often worry about continuing a series that the rest of the books won't be any good, especially if I loved the first one. These just get better and better and I can't wait for the fourth one to come out later this year. *Excellent on audio if that's a format you enjoy*

Unicorn Bowling, by Dana Simson - This is one of my children's favorite graphic novel/comics series. Phoebe and her unicorn, Marigold Heavenly Nostrils, get up to all sorts of adventures and mischief and have another round of those wonderful things in this collection of comics. It's clever and charming, funny and creative, and perfect if you're in the mood for something different. I like reading these in between bigger books with heavier subjects or just as a brain cleanser. They're silly and sometimes I need more silly in my reading life, and in my brain!

​Fix Her Up, by Tessa Bailey - This is a contemporary romance about a charming woman who has never been taken seriously, maybe because she's the youngest in her family and is a professional birthday clown. She has bigger plans than people expect and is quite a sassy lady. When a baseball phenom self-implodes and returns home who was also her childhood crush they strike up a deal in which she pretends to be his wholesome girlfriend to help land a job, and he in turn will get people to take her more seriously. This is a really fast read that is quite steamy on the page, so it will definitely make you blush. A LOT. But you're an adult (I'm assuming) and can turn the pages however and whenever you like. *For your consideration: some people give the side-eye to romance novels and romance readers. I sure used to. Here's what changed my mind and got me to give them a try - I would much rather read about a consensual relationship that I know is going to end happily - as they do in romance novels - than read about harmful and trauma inducing sexual assaults that are often described in more "high brow" literature. *

​Follow me on Goodreads to keep up with what I'm reading now!

IRL Book Club: May Discussion

In May my IRL book club read books with a focus on maternal figures or relationships in them. Here's what we talked about.

Everyone seemed to notice the disparity and rather troubled duality of the role of mothers or maternal figures in literature. There are lots of children's picture books about the bond and reliability of mothers, then mothers tend to go to the background, if they're present at all, in chapter books, and then seem to become a catalyst for plot points, subject to, or participants in, or causes of abuse in books for adults, and it's just a bit sad that there's not more continuity there across experiences. The stories of functional and present mothers/grandmothers/aunts/sisters are stories that should still be told.

We noticed something else that seems to happen if the mother is not present. There often is a character who acts as a surrogate, the maternal figure that's not actually the mother. There are a lot of wonderful literary characters that fall into this category that are some of our favorites. Ms. Honey from Matilda, for example, fits this characterization.

It was a fascinating discussion.

What I'm enjoying about this "read a book on this theme" style of book club is that everyone has something different to talk about because everyone read something different. But by looking for the same thing, we all have the same thing to pay attention to in our different books.

Here's what we read and discussed for those of you interested in adding to your TBR list:
The Mother Daughter Book Club, by Heather Vogel Frederick
Becoming Naomi Leon, by Pam Munoz Ryan
Finn Family Moomintroll, by Tove Jansson
Life on the Refrigerator Door, by Alice Kulpers
Cheaper by the Dozen (and it's sequel), by Frank B. Gilbreth and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
The Valedictorian of Being Dead: The True Story of Dying Ten Times to Live, by Heather B. Armstrong
The Help, by Kathryn Stockett
The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd
Matilda, by Roald Dahl
Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott
Eight Cousins, by Louisa May Alcott
The School Story, by Andrew Clements

Next month our theme is Children's Books! You're welcome to play along at home :) Happy reading!

What I Read: May 2019

The month started off really slowly for me. Finishing the semester of Grad school took it's toll, but I ended up reading much more than I expected. Books have always been an escape and it looks like I needed one this month!

Here's what I read:

The Book of Delights, by Ross Gay - I absolutely loved this little book of essays. Ross Gay wrote every day for a year and turned it into these 102-ish short essays about things that delighted him. He's a poet, literally, and it shows in the prose. An incredibly life giving collection that will increase your awareness of the delights in your own days.

The Scent Keeper, by Erica Bauermeister - You can see my review here.

My Plain Jane, by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows - this is the second in a series of historical retellings, in this case a retelling of Jane Eyre. But! In this version Jane sees ghosts and is being recruited by a society not to far removed from the Ghostbusters. It's hilarious and I recommend the audiobook highly. The previous book in the series, My Lady Jane, is a retelling of Lady Jane Grey, but some people turn into animals. Also very funny.

My Lovely Wife, by Samantha Downing - this twisty thriller is not heavy on blood and gore, which I appreciated, and deals with a couple who have landed themselves in the situation of killing people. It's all the things a summer thriller should be: compelling, strange, almost unbelievable, and unputdownable. I read it in two sittings.

The Burning Issue of the Day, by T. E. Kinsey - the 5th in the Lady Hardcastle series, this is a delightfully funny and refreshing historical cozy mystery. I love this series for the cleverness of the mysteries, the female friendships, the characters, and the humor. I've mentioned before that Historical Fiction isn't my thing, but these are great. The series is free on Kindle Unlimited and is definitely worth it if you have that service.

Rogue Protocol, and Exit Strategy, by Martha Wells - the 3rd and 4th books in the Murderbot Diaries. The 4th, Exit Strategy, is the final novella in the series but there will be a full length novel in the future. If awards matter to you, this series has won lots of them for good reasons.

A Study in Scarlet Women, by Sherry Thomas- the first in a new to me series, this is a gender switched Sherlock Holmes retelling, but also a historical fiction I very much enjoyed! The gender swap is interesting and well written, the writing is charming, clever, and compelling, and the mystery was clever. I'm listening to this series on Hoopla through my library, so it's worth checking yours for it too! There are three in the series at the moment, with a 4th planned for October.

The River, by Peter Heller - this is a phenomenal book. I love Peter Heller's writing and was nervous to read more for fear it wouldn't be as good as The Dog Stars. The River is as good and manages to be peaceful and thrillingly compelling at once. The story is of two college friends on a river trip who then encounter a suspicious situation, pressure from a looming wildfire and being far from civilization. It is a wonderful story that will expand what you thought fiction was capable of doing.

To Night Owl, from Dogfish, by Meg Wolitzer and Holly Goldberg Sloan - this is a charming epistolary novel aimed for children/tweens (there's a little talk of periods), but was delightful and entertaining for me to read also. It's the story of two girls who's dad's have started dating and want the girls to get to know each other at summer camp. One of the girls contacts the other to start planning how to ensure their families do NOT become united. A charming friendship ensues, and this book takes what you thought you remembered about the plot of The Parent Trap and turns it around into an absolutely lovely, honest, kind, and adventurous story of family found and growing, and the joys of summer possibility. Loved it.

The Valedictorian of Being Dead: The True Story of Dying Ten Times to Live, by Heather B. Armstrong - this was a fascinating memoir of a woman who has severe depression. She undergoes a treatment that basically turns the brain off and on again in an attempt to help lessen her situation's severity. I listened to this in audio and Heather narrates it herself. Her relationship with her mother was striking, her journey to and through this ordeal was fascinating, heartbreaking at times, and often jaw-droppingly moving. I especially remember the moments when she recalls feeling improvement the first few times after such a period of intense darkness. This is a great memoir of an unforgettable experience.
***Please be careful with yourself when going into this one. Heather describes things very accurately. If you've experienced depression it can be difficult and might be triggering for some people.

The Bride Test, by Helen Hoang - I really enjoyed Hoang's first book, The Kiss Quotient, and was excited to pick this one up. Contemporary Romances are still a little new to me, but they're really enjoyable. They're fun, dramatic, sexy, and have that same quality that make the best romantic comedies so endearing. The premise of this one is a little unbelievable, but that is part of what made it so fun to me. What I want to mention here, is that Hoang's characters express degrees of Autism, which comes from her own experience. She's doing really great things for the landscape of books and reading as a whole, and for the Romance genre in particular, by increasing representation in this area. It's wonderful for that reason, and her books are really a fun time!
***This is a romance novel with some steamy encounters, so know that going in.

People I Want to Punch in the Throat: Competitive Crafters, Drop-Off Deadbeats, and Other Suburban Scourges, by Jen Mann - I was hoping for so much more from this book and I really did not like it. Where I wanted to find that level of self-aware snark I enjoy, I found annoying, hypocritical and judgmental rants about other women that Mann interacted with. There's no mention of competitive crafting either, which I was looking forward to. Skip this and read Jenny Lawson instead.

If Cats Disappeared from the World, by Genki Kawamura - picture it (no, not Sicily), you're about to die, and then the devil shows up in a Hawaiian shirt to make you a deal - for every day you extend your life, you have to chose something to disappear. What would you do? Translated from Japanese, this novel is about a young postman who has to deal with his mortality, his past, and what he is willing to give up for a future. It is really cute, charming, thought provoking, and unique. It's also really short so it'd be a fun one to add to your list if you don't mind having some feelings to go with it.

​Phew! A great month of reading. What did you read in May? I'd love to hear.

Blog Tour: The Scent Keeper

Hello and welcome!

I'm so grateful and excited to have the chance to share this book with you, and let you know what I thought. It's always exciting to see a book before it's officially published, and even more of a privilege to be part of helping more people hear about it. I get excited every time I get book mail, asked to participate in a blog tour, or give a review, and even more excited when I hear back that someone enjoyed reading something I recommended! Books are the greatest, aren't they!

This is the first book I've read by Bauermeister, and I was impressed. Intrigued initially by the cover, I was even more intrigued reading the synopsis, "Emmeline lives an enchanted childhood on a remote island with her father, who teaches her about the natural world through her senses. What he won’t explain are the mysterious scents stored in the drawers that line the walls of their cabin, or the origin of the machine that creates them. As Emmeline grows, however, so too does her curiosity, until one day the unforeseen happens, and Emmeline is vaulted out into the real world--a place of love, betrayal, ambition, and revenge. To understand her past, Emmeline must unlock the clues to her identity, a quest that challenges the limits of her heart and imagination." (from Goodreads)

I was caught from the beginning of this novel, which is always something I'm skeptical about, and I read the first part (of three in the story) in less than an hour. Time flew by and I wasn't aware of it! Always a good sign. The book is broken up into three parts, the first dealing with her childhood on an island with her father. It's hard to tell much of what happens in the other parts without giving anything away, but the language and skill Bauemeister writes with creates a world you can't help but enjoy and be interested in hearing more about.

The character of Emmeline is intriguing and clever. She's a sharp and curious girl, willing to be courageous, brave, and resourceful. The first part of the book raises some compelling questions, problems, and issues Emmeline has to work out, and I was pleased with the plot's direction, the construction and flow of the story, as well as the answers we're given to those questions. This world of scents and smells, the memories they invoke and compel us and Emmeline to discover are curious, unique, and interesting.

I enjoyed spending time in this world. It was fun to explore, compelling and quick to read, and the writing earned the feelings from me, which I always appreciate. After this, I'm eager to read more of Bauermeister's backlist and thrilled to have found a new author to follow!

You can find The Scent Keeper here, or wherever you get your books.

April IRL Book Club Report: Poetry

Our book group's April task was to read some poetry we recently met to chat.

If you're looking to get more poetry into your life, here are a few quick suggestions:

1. Subscribe to the podcast, The Slowdown, which delivers a 5 minute poem every weekday, with thoughts from US Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith. It's a wonderful listen each day and a great way to discover new poets.

2. Subscribe to the newsletter, Pome, which delivers a daily email with a short poem each day. The poems are actually short so nine times out of ten, you can read them in a minute or less while you start the day. Note: Pome seems to be on haitus, but it's still worth getting on the list for in case it comes back. In the meantime, I'd encourage you to check out the poets featured which you can click on on the sign up page.

3. If you're in the library or a bookstore, walk through the poetry section and just have a look. What's on the endcaps (end of the bookshelves), or featured prominently? Grab something from that section and flip through it, or ask a librarian or bookseller what poets they like. I'm sure that would be a great way to get some good recommendations.

4. My follow up suggestion to that is that when you find a poem you like, look up the poet! A simple thing to do that can lead to some fun discoveries.

Ok, on to my recommendations, personal favorites, and what we talked about at Book Club:

• My go to is Emily Dickensen. Perhaps because I got to visit her house during a study trip in college and loved it, but also because I really enjoy her stuff. It's weird, poignant, and often more moving than I expect it to be. I feel like her poems are some that can be analyzed for meaning, and also equally enjoyed as little word clusters that sound fun. Also, I have a collection of her poems, so it's really easy to pull off the shelf and just read whatever I find.

• This lovely poem, The Lanyard, by Billy Collins, was read and it had us all remembering our own mothers and lanyards we've made. What a beautiful poem! I'm adding Collins to my list of poets to read more from.

• We looked up a couple from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, including this one, and this one.
  

• On the lighter side, one person brought a book of poems by Jack Prelutsky, who's cleverness and word play reminds me of The Phantom Tollbooth. Among others, we enjoyed this one. My kids would love his style and humor, so he's on my list for the library.

It was wonderful to have a dedicated time to explore some poetry with friends. We reminisced about poems we remembered from different parts of our lives, and the parts of our lives that poems reminded us of. It was a really nice time.

I love the no pressure atmosphere of this book group. Sometimes I'm in the mood for a more academic and intense discussion, but it is so refreshing to be able to show up with no expectations or homework to have accomplished ready to present and defend. To bring what we've been enjoying, what we thought, and know that's enough and will be received by friends, and food, for a few hours each month, is exactly what fills me up at this moment in time.

I'm thinking of making a little guide for anyone who's interested in some tips for starting their own book club. What would you like included in that? Any questions you've ever wondered about book clubs or how to make them work for you? I'd love to hear from you.

Three Books on A Theme: Older Female Characters

We have all read and heard about books that describe the unexpected journeys of a grumpy old man who is charmed into an adventure and those are great books.

But what about the old women? They’re still there, aren’t they? Where are the books about their adventures? With their issues?

I have three to share with you today that are each incredible and describe women who have lived and learned, loved and made mistakes, and are STILL doing those things. We don’t really think people stop learning, living, loving, engaging, thinking, feeling joy and sadness and personal growth once they hit a certain age, do we?

I love the TV show, The Golden Girls, and these novels about women who have led rich and long lives fill that space in my head and my heart where Rose, Dorothy, Blanche, and Sophia keep residence. ​They are very much worth reading.

The Woman Next Door, by Yewande Omotoso, is one of the best books I read in 2018, and deals with the lives and relationship between two elderly women who live next to each other. They have opposite backgrounds and Omotoso’s writing exquisitely examines each of them.

Our Souls at Night, by Kent Haruff, was a quiet punch in the face to me, and totally unexpected. It’s short, concise, and deeply tender. Haruff tells a story about two older people who begin spending their nights lying next to each other in bed, just talking. It is impressive and made me cry, remember friendships and long for that deep understanding and connection, while also writing about how temporary everything is. It’s beautiful and I can’t recommend it enough.

Three Things About Elsie, by Joanna Cannon, was another unexpected favorite. I love the cover first of all, and at times I can barely see the woman disguised in the floral background. Cannon brings us into the thoughts and remembrance of Florence, a woman who has fallen and is looking back on her life as she waits for someone to notice that she hasn’t shown up to something yet. I was not expecting this to have glimmers of mystery, suspense, and to deal so carefully with the issues of memory and reliability that show up more with age. It is worth your attention and is great in audio.

Let me know if you read any of these, or if you have any recommendations for me to check out!

Book Report: Into the Land of the Unicorns, by Bruce Coville

Welcome to a new segment I'm calling "Book Report" where I re-read a book I loved or remember enjoying, but don't remember anything else about. Should be fun, with a slight chance of trauma, embarrassment, and the possibly negative effects of the passing of time...sounds great, right? For funsies, I'll be including an adorable picture of myself around the time I was into each book (If such a picture can be found).

Let's dive in with my first pick: Into the Land of the Unicorns, by Bruce Coville.

My personal copy didn't look like this, but I also have no idea where it went. I remember spending lots of time staring at the cover though, and how much I loved the story behind it. As a kid growing up in the 90's, this hit on lots of the themes I resonated with, and was delighted to see during my re-read:

-all the feels
-traveling to another world (and the implications of having what you thought was fantasy actually be real)
-the "surprise! you're really important and have a big job to do and the fate of this world is at stake!" trope that I still love, and remember was high on the list of things I went to in my imagination and playtime.
-family secrets!
-"we leave at first light!" style adventuring, feat. tall grass up to your waist
-communicating with animals
-a Big Bad Unknown but Powerful Evil (who also can live for a really long time), literary variation on the video game's Boss, which I feel like was a thing in playground games back then too.
-magical beverages!
-magical JEWELRY (the power of a mystical locket had me totally captivated every time)
-UNICORNS!!

I can tell you what, I know exactly why little-me loved this book.

We meet Cara Diane and her grandmother as the story begins in medias res while they are seeking refuge from an unknown follower. Cara's grandmother knows more than she's telling, but she's so loving that Cara trusts her enough to LEAP OFF THE ROOF OF A CHURCH AT HER WORD and what do you know? She's transported to the world of Luster, where unicorns live.

Almost immediately after arriving, something tries to drown her and steal the magical amulet she wears round her neck, but she wakes up in a cave and is tended to by a grumpy, but very capable, bearish creature. Shortly after drinking a magical beverage, Cara meets Lightfoot, the unicorn, who STABS HER IN THE CHEST WITH HIS HORN to heal her.

CAN YOU FEEL THE DRAMA?! It's as thick as the Lisa Frank folders I filled with drawings of unicorns.

Not to spoil the rest of it for you, but the three of them, plus a few other creatures and friends met along the way, discover that what they have stumbled upon requires a quest, as it could destroy the entire unicorn species and allow for Luster itself to fall to its doom. See, the amulet Cara has, is a portal that connects Earth to Luster, and there is a significant group of humans with the last name of Hunter, who's destiny is to kill all Unicorns. The Hunters (maybe a cult, but IDK) are led by a maybe immortal woman named Beloved, with a rather troubled past and part of a unicorn horn in her heart.

Thus the journey is set, for Cara, Lightfoot, and the rest of their ragtag group of misfits and outcasts, to cross the wilds of Luther to bring their plight to the queen. Along the way they meet the keeper of the Unicorn Chronicles, who writes the stories and unicorn history and lives in the best house I could possibly imagine, and a dragon WHO'S HEART IS IN A BOX plays a significant role in their progress.

This was so much fun to read. It's the first of a series of an epic adventure, and in my opinion is a great beginning to fantasy literature for kids, and would be a fun read for anyone. There's nothing that I noted to be problematic or that has aged poorly, so I think it still holds up and would be great to read aloud too.

Have you read this yet? Have you ever gone back to re-read favorites from other parts of your life? I'd love to hear about it!

May Task: Mothers

My book group's task for May is to, "read a book with a positive maternal figure" which I knew might be a challenge, but I didn't anticipate the level of difficulty this theme was! I could think of a couple bad*ss ladies who inspired me and supported their children and other women in books, but it was a handful that I could count on one hand.

Cue the blessings of bookish internet friends! I reached out to one of my favorite bookish facebook groups to ask for recommendations and suggestions and they came through like the champions they are!

I marked the ones I have read with a * so you can see what I can endorse, but obviously most of these I haven't gotten to, meaning: do your own homework to see if they're ones you might be interested in. Hopefully this is helpful!

Fiction
*Harry Potter series, by J. K. Rowling - ALL HAIL MOLLY WEASLEY!! Queen of wizards and of mothers. I might re-read the series just for her character.
*Ramona Quimby books, by Beverly Cleary - I did read several of these when I was much younger and honestly, don't remember much of Ramona's mother, but this recommendation was made several times and would probably make for some fun reading.
*Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott - Marmee was mentioned several times as well, and while I have read this and the movie with Elizabeth Taylor and June Alyson from 1949 has a special place in my heart, it has been such a long time again! Worth revisiting.
This is How it Always is, by Laurie Frankel
Beartown, by Fredrik Backman
The Raven Boys, by Maggie Stiefvater
Little Fires Everywhere, by Celeste Ng
A Discovery of Witches, by Deborah Harkness
The Red Tent, by Anita Diamant
Room, by Emma Donaghue
Eternal Life, by Dara Horn
Shelter in Place, by Nora Roberts
Anger is A Gift, by Mark Oshiro
Little Big Love, by Katy Regan
I Liked My Life, by Abby Fabiaschi
On Beauty, by Zadie Smith
*Calvin and Hobbes, by Bill Waterson - Another one of my favorite fictional mothers, and who I relate to more now that I'm a mother and catch myself, um, saying things she says while dealing with my own kids with Calvin-esque tendencies. Obviously any time spent with Calvin and Hobbes is well spent.

Non-Fiction:
*The Year of Magical Thinking, by Joan Didion - This is a book about loss, but also deals with being a mother, mothering as children get older and experience their own significant struggles, and is written exquisitely and honestly.
Kid Gloves, by Lucy Kinsely - A graphic novel!
Come Back: A Mother and Daughter's Journey Through Hell and Back, by Claire and Mia Fontaine
Catastrophic Happiness: Finding Joy in Childhood's Messy Years, by Catherine Newman
*I Am, I Am, I Am: Sixteen Brushes with Death, by Maggie O'Farrell - I loved this book when I read it last year, especially because she wrote this as proof of bravery for her daughter. It is a little scary, but it is worth it.

It's pretty interesting that when specifically looking for maternal figures in books, I ran into two categories: instructional/inspirational, OR detrimental plot points. Many of the mothers depicted are the source of issues, mental and/or physical anguish, a relationship that has caused suffering, regrets, shame, totally absent, or, if you read thrillers, sometimes are the cause of serious and dangerous consequences.

The how to "enjoy the mothering process" isn't at all what I was looking for in this prompt either. I could write like, 1,000 more words about how interesting this is from an information seeking and organizing place, and then another 10,000 on what it means when those are the main two characterizations in literature that mothers seem to fall into, but another time.

What I want to find, and am now looking out for in my own reading, is mothers as characters, who aren't the center of the book, aren't a trigger for a plot point or source of trauma, but who exist in the books as human beings and who are depicted as supportive, positive forces. Is that really so hard?!

I would LOVE to add to this list, so if you have any recommendations from your own reading please drop them in the comments. I'm on the lookout now to compile my own booklist that solves this issue so others can find it!

Strangers and Other Lives

This was a fascinating little read. I feel like the people who work at Target that I see too frequently are my not-so-strangers, but that's another story. There's also a lady who walks her boxer that we see almost every single day in exactly the same place while I'm driving the kids to school (we call her "the boxer lady").The last line wonders who's no-so-stranger YOU might be. Interesting thought, right?
I seem to also belong to the opposite group, though, as I've had to convince several strangers that I am NOT in fact, their college professor, their neighbor who moved away, or their favorite sorority sister from college (and that's just from the past two years or so). Then I have to convince these people again while they stare deeply into my face, that I do not know them.
They always say, "you have her exact mannerisms, which are rather unique, I could've sworn you were her", and as I deny being someone else again, I watch their faces as this longing to see recognition from me remains unfulfilled and I have to excuse myself to go get my rotisserie chicken and not forget to buy more eggs, or pay for my chicken sandwich and make sure to get enough Polynesian sauce.
I wish I could see who they thought I might've been, and what part of that person I embody so convincingly. Did my existence in that place remind them of happy things? Did they go home and reach out to this other person and tell them "I saw someone who looked just like you today, how have you been" and I wonder, what are these duplicates of mine doing today?
I made a little book list for myself of novels that were discussed to me as having plots that slightly nudge up against this idea. The only one I've read is Dark Matter by Blake Crouch, which I super highly recommend you read, like right this second.

One True Loves, by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Eternal Life, by Dara Horn
Life After Life, by Kate Atkinson
If, Then, by Kate Hope Day
The Incarnations, by Susan Barker

Have you read any of these?? Have others that would go along with this theme? Do you have a not-so-stranger in your routine?

To Read or Not to Read?

I really enjoy listening to audiobooks, but have recently noticed that I can't focus on them when I'm running. Not that I run often, but I've been trying to get back into it. This led me to some other discoveries about myself and my preferences.

As always, it's important to remember that what works for me may not work for you, and what works for you may not work for me. But that's totally fine!! As Amy Poehler said so wisely, "Good for her, not for me". An excellent mantra.

Anyway, so I discovered that I can listen to talking when I'm walking. Podcasts, fiction, non-fiction, is best for me when I'm on a walk, or walking on the treadmill. I like listening to them in the car and while I'm doing errands. I also prefer to listen to them faster than 1x. Usually 1.5x or 1.75x. I find a lot of people use a "recording voice" which makes sense, but I like it when it sounds like they're just talking to me in a regular tempo. Of course this isn't a blanket rule, because some audiobook narrators speak faster at 1x than others, and so do some podcasters, so it does take some getting used to in order to figure out what works for you (I really get a kick out of figuring out how much time I've saved by speeding up the speed. Makes me feel like I'm getting more things done).

To go into even more detail, (this is gripping content I'm sure) I've noticed I prefer non-fiction in audio rather than in print, because my mind tends to wander when I'm reading facts on paper, but when it's spoken to me I can remember it. I mostly prefer fiction in print (or e-book), because my brain can easily create the world from the story easier when I'm reading it off the page as opposed to listening to is (Endurance, by Alfred Lansing was so much more compelling than I expected on audio).

I'm a walking contradiction though in my listening to fiction rule because I both enjoy listening to cozy mysteries, and other low stakes fiction stories, especially if the narrator has a lovely accent (see: the Maisie Dobbs series, by Jacqueline Winspear). I also like listening to memoirs when they're read by the author (I really loved, This Will Only Hurt A Little, by Busy Phillips), I have also found that audiobooks can be especially helpful when the book has names or cultures that are unfamiliar to me as the narrator gives me additional information by speaking it aloud, that I wouldn't be able to know from just reading the text (most recently I was grateful to have listened to Stay With Me, by Ayobami Adebayo for the accents I would have had no idea how to correctly pronounce).

When I'm running, at least at this point in trying to make it a habit again, I need loud obnoxious music to go drown out my wailing. I admire people that can listen to podcasts or audiobooks while they run, but I just haven't been able to manage it yet.

Do you have any weird or specific personalized reading behaviors? I'd love to hear them if you do!

Short Reviews

I figured it was time to tell you about a few of the books I've managed to finish reading recently. These shorter reviews are fun to write and I hope you enjoy them! I'd love to hear what you've been reading lately too!

The Lost Man, by Jane Harper - I adore Harper's series following detective Aaron Falke in The Dry, and Force of Nature, because the mysteries are twisty and compelling, the setting (Australia) is foreign to me, and Harper writes it so you feel the atmosphere even if you've never been there. I also really appreciate Harper's skill with character development. She's wonderful at creating real people with motives and flaws. The Lost Man takes place in the harshest part of the Australian wilderness where one must carry a load of food and water whenever leaving the house just in case they end up stranded as the heat could, and does, easily take lives. This is where this standalone novel of suspense begins. One brother, who has grown up in this environment, is found dead in this landscape, yet his car, fully stocked, is also found nearby. What follows is a slow burn examination of the consequences of family secrets, isolation, and the compounding force of an extreme environment. While Force of Nature is my favorite of Harper's work, this is a great book if you're looking for suspense with incredible atmosphere.

The Feather Thief, by Kirk Wallace Johnson - I was drawn in by the cover of this non-fiction pick, and am thrilled I listened to it on audio. It covers a non-violent true crime incident that happened in the early 2000's in which a lot of feathers and skins of rare birds was stolen by a professional flute player. Why? Victorian salmon fly-ties use the feathers of exotic birds. If that's not interesting enough to catch your attention, the story of how the author stumbled upon this should get you the rest of the way there. After suffering a severe injury as a result of sleep walking out of a window from PTSD, Johnson finds that the only thing that soothes him enough to sleep is to spend hours fly-fishing. One weekend another fisherman mentions the theft and Johnson becomes obsessed with figuring out what happened and why. He delves into the strange world of Victorian fly-ties and the history of those involved in the crime. This book is well written, compelling, and surprising. I highly recommend it if you're interested in non-violent true crime or micro-histories. It's fascinating!

As Long as We Both Shall Live, by JoAnn Chaney - This is an intense work of suspense, I'll tell you that upfront. Chaney does not mince words and I found her narrative style to be more compelling than other domestic thrillers I've read lately that have a bit of a "trying too hard" tone. Chaney is sharp and harsh in her word choice. This mystery surrounds a death, a disappearance, and then makes you question if anyone has actually died or disappeared and who you think it was in the first place. I enjoyed the mystery and my only issue was that I thought too much of the book focused on unrelated content from one of the detectives lives, and I didn't enjoy spending that much time with him. If you enjoy the domestic suspense thriller genre, this would be one to add to your TBR. It's not as graphic as Gyllian Flynn (IMHO), but it's no walk in the park either, so approach with whatever level of care you need.

Stay With Me, by Ayobami Adebayo - I listened to this on audio and am so glad I did. I would have been so confused with keeping characters straight and would not have been able to even slightly figure out how to pronounce the names. This story is an emotional gut punch but also one I'm glad to have read. It deals with a woman in a plural marriage in Nigeria. It directly confronts the circumstances that brought her to such a choice, and what happens after, and why. It is not an easy read, and these characters experience a lot of loss and suffering. It's a wonderful examination of desire for family and belonging, of sacrifice and the power and motivation behind the choices we make

Compilations of Forgotten Womxn

I've noticed a trend recently, maybe it's just because I've started to pay attention, where books emerge that share a common theme about highlighting women and non-binary folks who participated and contributed and created amazing things but that had not had their accomplishments highlighted. It is no argument that women have not been given equal opportunity or recognition throughout history and even now, in 2019, when this is finally becoming something that is discussed, it is still an idea met with resistance and skepticism.

Enter the books that compile excellent women, who are each deserving an entire series on CNN, a biography, and a podcast season's worth of attention and then some. Part of me is thrilled to have these resources so I can show them to my kids, so they can see what women have always been able to do and how powerful and worthy and important our contributions are. I also am delighted to learn about these stories that I had no idea even existed.

To wax philosophical and ramble a bit here, every time I watch a trailer for a movie like Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel, even the female version of Ghostbuster, I get a little weepy and wonder what it would have done for my internal voice to have had those examples of funny, strong, competent women in the background of my youth. I seriously have to fight back tears during some of the opening scenes of Wonder Woman where all the women are fighting each other because that demonstration of strength and possibility is something I know would have made me feel empowered to see at an earlier age. Instead, I looked to the kids of the Recess cartoon, Harriet the Spy, Alex Mac (pretty obscure reference there, but she could turn into goo and slide under doors and solve problems), and my favorite Disney Princess, Meg from Hercules, who is a fierce and empowered lady.

I'm thrilled that as a group, women have been able to grab some of the attention, recognition, and deserved praise that should have been present long ago. There is still an endless path ahead in this area, but anyway, I think maybe checking out some of these books from the library, or adding them to your personal collection, and then talking about the women who DID SO MANY THINGS is a really helpful way to advance and smooth out the playing field.

Here are a few collections to check out:
The League of Extraordinarily Funny Women: 50 Trailblazers of Comedy, by Sheila Moeschen
Headstrong: 52 Women Who Changed Science - and the World, by Rachel Swaby
Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World, by Pénélope Bagieu
Bygone Badass Broads: 52 Forgotten Ladies Who Changed the World, by Mackenzi Lee
Bad Girls Throughout History: 100 Remarkable Women Who Changed the World, by Ann Shen
Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World, by Rachel Ignotofsky
Women in Sports: 50 Fearless Athletes Who Played to Win, by Rachel Ignotofsky
Women Who Dared: 52 Stories of Fearless Daredevils, Adventurers, and Rebels, by Linda Skeers
Galaxy Girls: 50 Amazing Stories of Women in Space, by Libby Jackson
Rad American Women A-Z: Rebels, Trailblazers, and Visionaries who Shaped Our History...and Our Future!, by Kate Schatz
Little Dreamers: Visionary Women Around the World, by Vashti Harrison
Herstory: 50 Women and Girls Who Shook Up the World, by Katherine Halligan
​Modern HERstory: Stories of Women and Nonbinary People Rewriting History, by Blair Imani
Limitless: 24 Remarkable American Women of Vision, Grit, and Guts, by Leah Tinari

I hope you check some of these out!! Let me know if you have any recs for me too. Happy reading, friends.

*As usual, these are all affiliate links.

New Books!

It's the most wonderful day of the week, you guys, because for some unknown reason, publishing puts out new books on TUESDAYS! Rejoice and hallelujah, there are some great books out today. Here are some I'm eager to get my hands on:

Daisy Jones & the Six, by Taylor Jenkins Reid - getting lots of hype. Chosen as a Book of the Month selection, and as Reese Witherspoon's March 2019 book. This novel is a verbal history of a fictional band and follows the adventures of Daisy Jones. Sounds similar to the vibe of the movie, Almost Famous.
Auntie Poldi and the Vineyards of Etna, by Mario Giordano - The second in an excellent series and one of my most anticipated reads of the year, this follows the adventures of Auntie Poldi who has moved to a small town in Italy, hoping to drink herself to death. In this installment, she finds a dead body in a vineyard and chaos and shenanigans ensue! I really loved the first book in this series, and especially am intrigued by it since it's translated from Italian. I feel like sometimes the sentences or writing and conversations are just different than in cozy mysteries written in English and it's incredibly delightful. This is super high on my TBR.
The Lady of the Black Lagoon, by Mallory O'Meara - Mallory is one of the hosts of the Reading Glasses podcast and I love her from her conversation there and am really intrigued by this book she's been working on for a long time. This non-fiction work tells about the woman who came up with the design for the creature from the black lagoon. It sounds timely, fascinating, and important.
The Island of Sea Women, by Lisa See - I was intrigued by this novel which is about a community surrounding an all female diving group. It sounds like a fascinating epic story of friendship, community, and strength, and diving is never something I'll do in person, but I'm intrigued to read about it instead.
The River, by Peter Heller - I LOVED The Dog Stars by Peter Heller, for it's quiet and compelling plot, but equally for it's incredible transportive connection to nature. I'm anxious to get lost in Heller's writing again and am eager to pick up his other books as well. The River is about two friends who go on a wilderness canoe trip, and I don't want to read much more of the summary before I dive in! Side note: all the covers of his books are just gorgeous and I'm a sucker for a great cover.
Gingerbread, by Helen Oyeyemi - This was recently picked for the March 2019 installment of Emma Roberts' book club, Belletrist. I really enjoyed the magical realism and fairytale adjacent nature of Oyeyemi's writing in Boy, Snow, Bird and her books are on my list of works I'm really excited to spend time with in the near future. I've intentionally avoided most of the book's summary descriptions but will share what I do know. The novel surrounds a family gingerbread recipe. With knowing the connotations of gingerbread in fairytales and having read Oyeyemi before, I am so excited for this book. And AGAIN the cover is gorgeous.
The Stranger Diaries, by Elly Griffiths - This thriller was blurbed by the queen of mystery, Louise Penny (author of the Inspector Gamache series which I love), and claims to be perfect for fans of The Lake House and Magpie Murders. I loved both those books and they're both very different vibes! Additionally, if those recs aren't enough, this story is about a woman who keeps a journal, then something bad happens and the journal, or some other entity, starts writing back to her!!!! My favorite Harry Potter book is the Chamber of Secrets, in part because I was enthralled completely by the exchange relating to the diary of Tom Riddle, so I am VERY here for this! Just hope it lives up to the hype I've built up for it in my head.

There are a ton more new books out today that deserve highlights, but this is the round-up I've picked this time. There will be more next week!! Happy reading, friends!

*as always, these are affiliate links which means that if you purchase something from one of the links on my pages, I get a small kickback.

Books to Read for Women's History Month

March is women's history month, so in honor of that, here are some books by and about women that I think are worth reading. As always, it benefits everyone to read widely and diversely, outside your own experiences. Because of deeply entrenched prejudice in the publishing industry, the most space is given to white men, so when you read a book by a woman by checking a book out from the library, downloading an audiobook, buying one from your bookstore or from amazon, etc, you're giving voice and power to those who haven't given, and still aren't given, an equal shot, so it does matter very much.

Additionally, there's a difference between sympathy and empathy, and reading is a great way to gain empathy towards people who's hurt or struggles you may not agree with or understand. So have a look at what you've read lately, and try to extend it a little. It's a good exercise to do all year long. and has been incredibly eye opening to me as I've worked on this in my own reading life.

Here are some recommendations:
Bad Feminist, by Roxanne Gay - I LOVE Roxanne Gay's lyrical, yet no-nonsense approach to everything she writes about. This collection of essays was one of the first things I read that broadened my understanding and went right up to the idea that you can like something that is problematic, and what does it mean to have both of those feelings at once? Highly recommend this collection. Need my own copy to read again and underline.
Convenience Store Woman: a memoir, by Sayaka Murata - Fascinating and strange and lovely. This is a tender and eye-opening story about a woman who just wants to be a good convenience store clerk and the pitfalls and struggles she endures in trying to maintain a tidy and focused life that doesn’t stay that way. Nothing like you're expecting and you won't forget it.
I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death, by Maggie O'Farrell - An incredible account of near death experiences the author wrote to demonstrate bravery to her daughter. Terrifying, moving, and empowering this book made me angry, made me cry, and inspired me to live better.
Goodbye, Vitamin, by Rachel Khong - One of my favorites of the past several years, this novel deals with a year of a woman's life when she goes back home to help her parents as her father deals with Alzheimer's. It is beautifully saturated with feeling but as sparse as poetry. I LOVE this book and hope you'll read it.
The Woman Next Door, by Yewande Omotoso - This is like Golden Girls, but woke, and without the laugh track. It's another one of the best books I've read in the past several years and I think it deserves more recognition. It's phenomenal and deals with race, friendship, aging, and life in a way that I haven't encountered much, but hope to see more often. Please go read it. It's SO good.
Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things, by Jenny Lawson - Lawson is incredibly honest about her struggles with mental illness. This is her second book about her own experience and it is hilarious and poignant and it made me feel validated and gave me language and perspective for something that seems to be so difficult to talk about. I cried so hard, and laughed so hard, reading this. If you struggle with any type of anxiety or depression I recommend it. If you know someone who struggles with anxiety or depression (and you most likely do), read this. It's sooooooo good (*note: If I remember right, there's a significant amount of language in this book but I thought it was important enough, and often funny enough, that it didn't bother me, but I think some people would appreciate a heads up about that).
Anything by Agatha Christie, Tana French, Jane Harper, Phoebe Robinson, Louise Penny, Martha Wells, Vivien Chien, or Kate Morton.

So many good books! If you ever need or want a more personalized recommendation, email me! I live for that stuff. Happy Reading!

Site Update and What I'm Reading

My reading pace has slowed lately with my grad school semester getting underway and life progressing as it does. However, I have managed to read a couple of interesting things worth sharing briefly.

Foe, by Ian Reid, was a chilling and surprisingly literary thriller. Read it if you're at all interested in the type of thriller where things are slightly askew but you're not quite sure why, but don't look up the synopsis. It's better that way. I think I knew a little too much about it going in but I still really liked it.

Currently I'm reading As Long As We Both Shall Live, by JoAnn Chaney. This book has been hyped for a while on some websites and podcasts that I enjoy so I was thrilled to get it from the library and dive in. The writing is witty and quick and it's a return to the tightly wound domestic suspense that I love reading that truly feels original and clever when it's still just a story of a murder. Sometimes a good mystery is just what I want to escape into. Interestingly, there's another book out this year that has a similar title and a near exact cover, like it's so similar it seems like an oversight to me. A book I read last year had it's title changed because it was too similar to another popular book published, even though they were visually very different and their plots were also unique. I haven't read that yet (not sure if it's out yet) but it'd be interesting to compare the two since I'm positive they'll be mixed up for each other all summer at least.

I've recently updated some of the features here on the website and wanted to tell you about them.

In the RESOURCES section (linked here and above in the menu), I've updated the links, added a few more fun podcasts, and restructured the order of the lists to make things more findable. There's a section for newsletters I enjoy, websites I look to for good book deals and to discover new books, poetry resources, and other

In the BOOK CLUB DATABASE section (linked here and above in the menu), all the celebrity book club current book selections have been updated and every book mentioned is linked as well.

Have a look around and send me your feedback! What else would make this space more useful to you? More interesting? What do you like seeing here? Thanks so much, and happy reading friends.

*Note: All links are affiliate links, which means if you purchase something from my link you're doing the good work of helping fuel my literary addiction.

March Task: Read a Classic

This month's book club task (that we'll talk about in March) is to read a classic you haven't gotten to yet. I have to admit I have actually enjoyed many of the classics I've read in the past. That might be the glow of memory speaking since it's been a while since I dived into reading anything written before 1970. I will readily admit to getting easily caught up in the hype of new books, because they're NEW and EXCITING and so the classics tend to stay unread.

However, I remember vividly reading Anna Karenina and being floored by the prose. I remember reading Don Quixote and absolutely delighted to see the type of quirky weirdness in such an old book that I felt in myself and thought was "not ok". I remember reading The Picture of Dorian Grey and realizing that a classic book didn't have to equate to just British characters extrapolating about people's gestures and party manners years and years and years ago (wink).

Another tip I have that can help classics be more meaningful is to find a good narrator, perhaps an actor, who has worked on the audiobook version and listen to it! Sometimes all you need is those tiny lines of text read aloud for it to make any sense :) check out Audible and your library's digital lending app.

Previous classics I've enjoyed that I would also heartily recommend:
Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes
The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde
Any Jane Austen
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser (fun fact: I wrote my senior paper/thesis in college on this book - might be interesting to re-read it and I think it's far enough in the rearview mirror I could open the book without getting stressed out)
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (the best adventure story!)
Bartleby the Scrivener (short, and in my opinion, utterly hilarious) by Herman Melville
Dracula (I like to listen to this every October) by Bram Stoker
The Hound of the Baskervilles (or other Sherlock Holmes stories) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

What I might read:
Maybe I'll finally finish Moby-Dick (don't tell my college english professor!) by Herman Melville
Maybe I'll work on revisiting something from my high school reading list (as outlines in this post)
1984 by George Orwell
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (I started this years ago for school but never finished it and am curious about the history surrounding it)
​
Do you have a favorite classic book or any that you've been meaning to get to?

January Reading Wrap-Up

I managed to read 15 books this month. I had lots of time to read since my kids were on winter break until January 9th, and I didn't start my semester of grad school until a couple of days ago. Even so, that's a lot for one month for me! Here are the ones I really enjoyed.

* Inkheart by Cornelia Funke - this was our nightly read aloud book for the past couple months. It's over 500 pages but it's a very compelling story about a man who can read things into reality if he reads out loud. Chaos ensues, obviously, and we're enjoying the second of this series right now.

* As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust by Alan Bradley (Flavia de Luce #7), and Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd by Alan Bradley (Flavia de Luce #8) - Flavia is such a fun character to follow. I enjoyed #8 more than #7, but these are cozy-ish mysteries so they don't have much gore or actual terror/grossness/grit in them. It's a great series.

* Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris - David Sedaris is a wonderful writer. This is a collection of holiday stories that had me laughing to myself each time I opened it up. He's irreverent and clever, which meant some of the stories were quite biting and may have been edited differently had they been published today. Having read his most recent collection last year (Calypso) it's fun to see how Sedaris has evolved and grown as a writer. I love his style nonetheless and am enjoying working my way through his backlist while waiting for the new stuff.

* We're Going to Need More Wine by Gabrielle Union (Audiobook) - I was quite impressed with the honesty of this memoir. Union presents her life without apology and I was fascinated by how she was able to recognize her own growth, her mistakes, and by how decidedly herself she lives her life. There are many times that this audiobook was difficult to listen to, but as a white woman, those are things I need to examine and hear and look at.

* My Favorite Half-Night Stand by Christina Lauren - I'm going to write a post about how the romance genre gets undeserved side-eye (which I used to very much dish out), but let me just say this book was fun. It's like a rom-com and was the perfect easy read I needed. There are some pretty steamy parts, so if that's something you like to know ahead of time, now you know (though honestly, I've never blushed more than when I listened to Outlander and this is nowhere close to that - and it's all consensual so that's a plus). The characters in Christina Lauren's books continue to be some of my favorites. They are compelling and fully written and the banter is top-notch. What could be better? Did you know Christina Lauren is actually two people? It's a fact.

* The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory - Another romance you may have heard about, as Reese Witherspoon just picked this for her Hello Sunshine book club February read. This is a fun story of a woman who's boyfriend proposes marriage on a jumbo-tron at a baseball game, after only 5 months of casual dating, and spells her name wrong. Two people sitting nearby (Carlos and his sister Angela) end up helping the main character, Nik, out of the awkwardness that ensues and she becomes involved with Carlos. I also enjoyed this novel, which has plenty of steamy scenes as well, but another wonderful cast of characters with compelling lives and motives. I haven't read The Wedding Date (also by Guillory) yet, but will be picking it up to read next when I need something light and rom-com-esque!

* The Wizards of Once by Cressida Cowell (Audiobook) - Narrated by David Tennant (need I say more?!) this is a phenomenal audiobook of middlegrade fiction by the author of the How to Train your Dragon series. Everyone in my family loved listening to this during two weekends full of driving this month and we're excited to get the next one in the series. The story follows two young members of opposing groups. Those with magic (the wizards) and those without (the warriors). Involves prophecies, giants, a delightful enchanted spoon, and witches of the most terrible iteration I've ever read. I'm consistently impressed with what Cowell is able to create, and the narration of Tennant is incredible!

* Messenger of Truth by Jaqueline Winspear (Maisie Dobbs #4) - I enjoyed this installment of the Maisie Dobbs series much more than some of the others. It dealt with the death of a young artist and was more compelling to me than the more WWI centered books that came before this. Don't get me wrong though, it's still very much in the history and time where WWI is unavoidably present, but I think I enjoyed it more now that Maisie's backstory is more in the back and something the reader already understands by this point in the series. I enjoy the narrator's soothing voice and accent very much, and will continue with the series.

Also read:
Ayiti by Roxanne Gay (Audiobook)
Atomic Marriage by Curtis Sittenfeld (audible original - like a short story almost)

I also reviewed these four books that I read this month in this post.
French Exit by Patrick DeWitt
Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead by Sara Gran
Tell the Machine Goodnight by Katie Williams
Dear Mrs. Bird by AJ Pierce

Did you read anything great last month?

High School Reading List - a project of sorts

Warning, I'm not sure what this has to do with books OR a readerly life, but just go with me for a moment.

Last year my son's 3rd grade class performed a shortened version of Hamlet, by William Shakespeare. Hamlet happens to be my favorite play and so I was quite chuffed to hear that he was excited to be participating as King Claudius. He nailed his role, all of his lines, and at 9, has a warm place in his brain surrounding Shakespeare. Thank goodness for good teachers, am I right?!

Let's fast forward to the present when I stumbled upon this gem of an Instagram account for SpakNotes. Yes, that SparkNotes that I used to run to in times of shame when I hadn't read the book for class and didn't know what I was going to write about for the essay and didn't have time to actually do the work I should've done when the essay was assigned! And they're funny (see above for proof).

This thought sped me to a spiral of remembering the books I had loved in High School and how that was like, half a life ago, and what would I think about them if I read them now, as a totally responsible and different person.

Here's the books/plays that I identified with and remember loving as a high schooler:
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Hamlet
No Exit by Jean-Paul Sartre
The Great Divorce by C. S. Lewis
Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

Other asides:
I think I missed the day we read The Lottery by Shirley Jackson so I'll have to look that up sometime. I was highly annoyed by Lord of the Flies and The Catcher in the Rye, don't remember anything about The Great Gatsby, already revered TKAM, I didn't like Of Mice and Men AT ALL because I felt like it played with my emotions to no fortunate end and that's unfair.

I think it would be just as interesting a project to revisit the High School reading list for the ones I hated as it would be for the ones I really enjoyed. I smell a fun self-imposed book project coming up! If I count up all the ones I mentioned here, that's 14 books from my youth to revisit. Sounds fun, doesn't it?!

Did you have any favorites in high school? Have you re-read any of them since then? What about the ones you hated?

Mary Oliver and Poetry

I took a creative writing class in college that I LOVED, but the poetry unit was harder for me than the story writing part. I found it really difficult to get into an emotionally open space to create poetry for a grade. It felt like a much Bigger Deal than I knew it was but also I knew that poetry meant something to me, so I didn't want to be casual or flippant with it. I'd had a teacher in high school who had everyone in the class take turns reading poetry and while I started thinking deeply about Invictus (still a beautiful beast of a poem, IMO), and Dave Matthews Band lyrics (I was 14 okay!), it got me looking and thinking and noticing that some words in a certain order made me feel things I couldn't previously describe.

Back to the college course, there was a day where we had to read our own work and have it critiqued (kill me), and one person's poem was literally filled with cliche's meant in earnest, almost two per line... I almost died from the agony and from the effort of feeling that had also gone into this poem that I almost self imploded from judgement. After that class I sat in my car writing a children's story that I thought was a totally brand new idea but was just a version of the ugly duckling where the duck turns out to be a good musician and that's pretty much what Happy Feet is too and I hate that movie...and I laugh cried for a minute because I realized then that we are all the same and there are no new ideas, but isn't this life singularly beautiful anyway because we feel things uniquely even if they're the same feeling?

I remember discovering Mary Oliver years later, and feeling like, whoa this is what I've been trying to say, this is the feeling I haven't been able to articulate and a consistent and repeated Yes! This is it. This is life. These words are true and beautiful and good.

​When I found Oliver's poetry I was going through a difficult time in my journey of motherhood where I expected and assumed that my existence as a mother would provide my life's full serving of joy and, well, it didn't. It was, and continues to contribute a significant amount, but it's not a full life's serving. Realizing that felt like many flavors and levels of failure of the deepest and most personal kind and I wallowed. I wallowed hard.

I think I heard about her on a podcast or someone shared a poem from her on Facebook and I was intrigued. So, I checked out all the books I could find from her at the library and read them all and was demolished and put back together. The words she painted with are simple and ordinary and exquisitely exact. I didn't even realize the impact they had on me until looking over them again this morning after hearing Mary Oliver had died.

I will miss her talent and her precision. I am anxious now to get my hands on some of her work to carry around, re-read, underline, stare at, and cry about. Here's a taste of what she could do, I hope you'll look up some more. I'm so grateful for her voice that has been so much to me.

“Ten times a day something happens to me like this - some strengthening throb of amazement - some good sweet empathic ping and swell. This is the first, the wildest and the wisest thing I know: that the soul exists and is built entirely out of attentiveness.”
― Mary Oliver

“If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty of lives and whole towns destroyed or about to be. We are not wise, and not very often kind. And much can never be redeemed. Still life has some possibility left. Perhaps this is its way of fighting back, that sometimes something happened better than all the riches or power in the world. It could be anything, but very likely you notice it in the instant when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid of its plenty. Joy is not made to be a crumb. (Don't Hesitate)”
― Mary Oliver, Swan: Poems and Prose Poems

“Said the river: imagine everything you can imagine, then keep on going.”
― Mary Oliver

“The Journey

One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice --
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
"Mend my life!"
each voice cried.
But you didn't stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do --
determined to save
the only life you could save.”
― Mary Oliver

Reading Lately

I start another semester of Grad School this week, and have read 11 books during my break this month. I have several in progress as I failed my self-appointed task to cut down the number of currently reading titles. I'll give myself to the end of the month to really be done with that, but I think my goal in the future is to read 1 audiobook, 1 e-book, and 1 physical book, is a noble one.

Books with my kids don't count. We currently have two going. A road trip book (The Wizards of Once by Cressida Cowell, which is read by David Tennant on Audio which we're really enjoying), and a night time read before bed book (Inkspell, the sequel to Inheart by Cornelia Funke).

Anyway, here are some great books I've finished this month:
French Exit by Patrick DeWitt - I love Patrick DeWitt's style. His characters are hilariously pretentious and strange and at the same time, completely believable. His writing style is impeccable with words that bring you to another place and illuminate the story with function and glitter. His plots are unexpected and weird and ordinary in exactly the ways I prefer. This book is short but it may be my favorite of his. In the way great comedy is multi-layered and more enjoyable with each re-watch, I have a feeling this book falls into the same category. It's got such wit while describing rather mundane and slightly depressing rich people relationship problems. It follows the adventures of a woman and her son, who have lost their fortune, and must make something of the rest of their lives. Oh, and the dead husband/father has been reincarnated as a cat. I need my own copy so I can read it again. It's fantastic.

Tell the Machine Goodnight by Katie Williams - Initially I was drawn in by the cover, but then I heard the elevator pitch. A machine can tell you three things that will increase your happiness. Well, obviously I needed to read it and I'm very glad I did. This falls into the totally unexpected and wonderful category that DeWitt's novels also inhabit for me, and I was delighted, moved, and transported by this slim book. Dealing with those involved with the machine that decodes one's happiness, this book inhabits a few perspectives and shows us the motives, actions, progress, and mistakes of several characters. It's beautiful and thoughtful and a very quick read I think is worth your time. It won't be for everyone but I think it will give you something to think about even if you don't end up liking it as much as I did.

Dear Mrs. Bird by AJ Pierce - Let me preface this with the admission I made on Instagram, that I don't really like WWII novels or much historical fiction. AT ALL. The Horror, I know. It's fine. It's just not my thing. I have read too many that played with my emotions just for funsies and that's not cool. So I'm picky about what I read in that genre. I read this as an audiobook, and picked it up because the premise sounded exciting. The narrator has a lovely voice that was very soothing, but the writing is equally lovely. The plot doesn't center on WWII terror as I expected it to, but merely holds that as a backdrop for the events. Our protagonist is a plucky young women eager to make a name for herself as a journalist, and I related to her daring dreams that didn't quite consider the reality of her situation. She finds herself having to approve letters to an advice columnist. When she feels for those who's letters are being turned away without a second glance and decides to do something about it, ample amounts of chaos ensue. If you like historical fiction this is probably smack-dab in the middle of your wheelhouse. If you aren't a fan, like me, this is one that's worth a try. It's not too long, just delightful and well written enough to earn the feelings you generate for it, and the characters are real enough to believe and root for. Glad I read it.

Claire deWitt and the City of the Dead by Sara Gran - I heard about this one a few times on a podcast and finally checked it out from the library. It's not that long so I ended up giving it a try. It's short chapters and incredibly compelling main character made it an incredible detective mystery. I am eager to read the next book in the series and would follow Claire anywhere (sometimes from behind my fingers but I'd still go). She is as spunky and unexpected as Veronica Mars but her humor and tone is grittier and a bit more introspective. I also love the hints of the fantastic and magically symbolic that gave this book it's atmosphere. It does deal with some unpleasant situations but seeing as it's a murder mystery detective story that was expected. I found it absolutely transporting. I love finding a great series with an amazingly flawed but genuinely smart detective at the center. I am so glad I finally got around to reading this one. I think there are two more in the series waiting for me and I'm going to savor them.

Let me know if you decide to read any of these or what you thought if you already have read them! As always, I'm more than happy to give you a personalized recommendation if you want one :) Happy Reading!