August 1st…half the summer is over and I have not posted since June 15th. My goal when I started this blog was to post regularly and I have not been very good at that lately. It seems our best intentions sometimes get side-lined when real-life issues come along. I have certainly been thinking about this blog and in particular this post. My book reviews are one of my favorite things to write about and I know some of you enjoy reading them also. Words, both written and spoken are what save us sometimes. These last few months have been difficult and sad. A month ago we lost our beautiful, sweet Gracie and on the same day, two hours later, I lost my most beloved brother. During those trying days sometimes the only solace I could find was between the covers of books. Words read and spoken during the last month have been so important. We never know what life holds for us as we move forward and when sickness and dying come we are never prepared because no matter how much time we have, it is never enough. Words are healing, words matter. Words are sometimes all we have to hold onto and all we have to share with each other at the end. Words will help us as we move forward to remember the goodness and love that we had for each other and words in books can help us heal and move forward. They also help us to move away from sadness for a few hours at a time. The magic power of healing is often found in words.
Not all of the books here were read in the last month of course but I’m listing the books that I haven’t had time to get up before now. I won’t do a big review of all of them but at least you will have the titles to the ones that I’ve read. There are a few very special books in here though that I do want to tell you about. The ones that took me away to another place and time just for a while.
Comfort by Ann Hood…I mention this book because Ann Hood is a beautiful writer and I read this at the beginning of my brother’s illness…It was her journey through grief when her daughter died. There was some distance between my reading this and my own experience so although it was sad it was very good but not sure I could have read it in the last month…5 stars though.
Writing Hard Stories by Melanie Brooks… was another book I liked very much. For myself I am writing little life essays about my life growing up, some I post, some I just save. Sometimes writing about one’s life is hard so I found this book really helpful. It was little stories written by many wonderful authors telling their own stories and how they were able to put pen to paper. It would be a great book for anyone interested in writing their own stories or just an incidence in your life. Lots of highlights in there for me to look over again and again. 5 stars.
Growing up in the Last Small Town by Bob Barnett…fun and entertaining and a look back at growing up in the 1950s and ’60s. Although this memoir takes place in West Virginia coming of age in a small town during those years was pretty much the same. Lots of fun memories in there for me. 3 stars.
Snow by John Banville and The Library Book by Susan Orlean were both very good reads. Not as strong as the others but worthy of reading and I give them both 3 stars. To me, Snow was the better of the two but that’s just my opinion.
In the photo above all of those books were worth a read…I loved every one of them.
The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson was a real surprise. Although it is a novel it is historical in the subject matter. The story was inspired by the true blue-skinned people of Kentucky and the brave and dedicated Kentucky Pack Horse library service of the 1930s. It was really fascinating. “A lush love letter to the redemptive power of books.” I give it 5 stars.
Monogamy by Sue Miller…Sue Miller always writes a good book. I haven’t read one of hers in a while but this one was very good. A couple, married for 30 years and the husband dies, leaving behind secrets that his mourning wife discovers. She spirals into darkness and wonders if she ever really knew her husband. 4 Stars.
Keep Sharp by Sanjay Gupta…A must-read for anyone who might want to do their best to keep dementia at bay and just keep their brain healthy. I like his style of writing. So easy to understand and such good advice. A book I will keep and check in on every once in a while. I have a lot of information underlined in this book. 5 Stars
Four Winds by Kristin Hannah…This was one of my top books from this group. Could not put it down. Another historical novel about the Great Depression. The harsh realities that divided the nation and the enduring battles between the haves and the have-nots. In 1934 millions are out of work and drought has devastated the Great Plains. Farmers are fighting to keep their land. Dust storms roll relentlessly across the plains. No water…livestock and people were dying and no government help. A must-read 5 stars
This group were all favorites…All different but for reasons that matter, they were all very special.
Townie by Andre Dubus 111 This one was a must for me, for two reasons…I loved his book House of Sand and Fog and he lives in my “backyard”. It was a memoir and I already knew some of the back story about him and his father, who is also a celebrated author. It was a hard story to read with lots of violence and physical abuse but I think NPR describes it best. “ As a memoir, and as a family story, Townie is beautiful and almost perfectly executed. As a meditation on violence, from an author who once it embraced it, it is shocking, necessary and indispensable.” Parts of this book hit close to home for me growing up but I do know that even when things are tough there is always home and sometimes even redemption. Quite a unique book. 5 Stars.
Heart Berries by Terese Marie Mailhot was another memoir that had a fair amount of trama to it but was written in a completely different manner than Townie. I do love a good memoir. I think we can learn so much about life by viewing someone else’s problems, joy, lifestyle, and most often healing. Heart Berries is a powerful, poetic memoir of a woman’s coming of age on the Seabird Island Indian Reservation in the Pacific Northwest. She also came from a dysfunctional upbringing and was hospitalized for a dual diagnosis of PSD stress disorder and bipolar disorder. She is given a notebook and a pen and begins to write her way out of trauma. Heart Berries is a small book but so powerful in her recovery, reconciliation, and love. I just loved her tenacity and will to find her place in the world. 5 stars.
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith This has been on my list to read for a very long time. A couple of years ago I Joy in The Morning and just loved that book so I added a Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Betty Smith has a style of writing that is so engaging and comforting even when the story is raw and heartbreaking. I would encourage everyone, at some time to read one of Betty Smith’s books. It just makes one remember that even if the “old days” had some or lots of difficulties, those days taught us great lessons in life. I will continue to read the rest of her books moving forward. 4 stars.
This is the Story of a Happy Marriage by Ann Patchett. A wonderful book of essays/short stories from a writer who really knows how to write with honesty. “These essays twine to create both a portrait of life and a philosophy of life.” Ann Patchett is the perfect author for a summer read and the stories in this collection are wonderfully written and enlightening. 5 Stars for Ann
eat, sleep, shop LONDON by Saska Gravelle I just loved this book. I always have two books going on…my reading book and another book of perhaps short stories, poetry or travel books. Snippets of info instead of chapters. London is a favorite place of mine. I use to visit often when my husband worked there on and off for 8 years. So having this book, broken down by neighborhoods was awesome. The author had all the details of where to eat, sleep, and shop in each district. Underlines all over the place and a strong desire to go back there as soon as this virus is under control internationally. London will be up-front on my list. Oh, and another thing I just loved about this book, it is jam-packed with beautiful photos of everything. So even if you can’t go, the photos will be almost like being there. Think tea and scones with clotted cream. 5 Stars.
I saved the best for last, although I really liked all of these books. Every once in a while though one comes along and just tugs at your heart strings and this was it for me in this group.
Finding Freedom by Erin French Can we just savor this cover for a moment. I know, but I couldn’t help myself and although it is pretty here, to see it in person is much more delicious. Vibrant and beautiful, stunning light and that black background to highlight it all. Whoops, my photography skills crept in there. It is a book that looks really nice sitting on a side table just because. This is a story of survival. It is a memoir of a life built up, torn down, and rebuilt again. It’s about a young girl growing up on a farm in Maine. A part of Maine that Erin loves. It’s about addiction, a man who shouldn’t have been trusted, a pregnancy that broke her dreams, and mental illness. It’s also a book about dreams and really hard work to pick yourself up again. It’s about fighting the system and starting from scratch all over with nothing but a few pots and pans and an old airstream camper. Erin was a cook, a brilliant cook, learning at the diner that her father owned in Freedom Maine. It turns out that it was her passion. Finding Freedom reveals the passion and courage needed to invent ones-self anew and the poignant, timeless connections between food and generosity, renewal and freedom. Today, you will need to make a reservation to her restaurant in Freedom Maine, a year in advance of when you will want to visit. A brilliant memoir of survival. 5 stars but I would really give it 10 if I could.
So there you have it. It was a time of needing words more than ever for me. Words in books, poems, quotes of all kinds. Notes and letters from friends and family helped to keep me on a even keel. And most importantly words shared between me and my brother on the last leg of his journey. Words for me to hold in my heart when days are sad. Words…at the end of the day, it’s all we have as a gift to share with each other. We were fortunate him and I, to have been born talkers. We were never at a loss for words both good and bad. I never realized before that words would mean so much.
So as you go through your days remember to choose wisely the words that you speak and the words that you read. Let books guide you and lift you up. There are so many out there to choose from. I hope maybe something in this list will bring you joy when you need it, lift you up when you are down and amaze you when you learn something new, you know that “I didn’t know that “ moment. A simple “word”…makes us or breaks us. How can one little 4 letter word make such a difference. I don’t have an answer for you yet…but when I find that answer in a book I’ll be sure to let you know…Happy August to all you “word” lovers out there.
““If we understood the power of our thoughts, we would guard them more closely. If we understood the awesome power of our words, we would prefer silence to almost anything negative. In our thoughts and words, we create our own weaknesses and our own strengths. Our limitations and joys begin in our hearts. We can always replace negative with positive.” -Betty Eadie”
