Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Summer Reading, Part II: Tuesday's Reflection

I am moving into this new week following a week of rich, full days. I will no doubt write about them in a post in the near future, but for now I need to simply hold them in my heart. 

In the meantime here is Part II of my summer reading recommendations. This time the focus is nonfiction. I tend to think of fiction as the more normal choice for summer reading, but, of course, reading is all about personal choice. My nonfiction reading tends to be books about writing or memoir or books related to spiritual topics, and I have more than enough good choices waiting for me on my shelves. 

Nonfiction

1.     The Art of Stillness, Adventures in Going Nowhere, Pico Iyer. The author reflects on the pleasures of stillness in an age full of distractions and demands of technology. 
2.      The Soul Tells a Story, Engaging Creativity with Spirituality in the Writing Life, Vinita Hampton Wright. I read and liked another one of her books, The Art of Spiritual Writing, and think this one will be helpful to me as I continue to work on my spiritual memoir. 
3.      The Bright Hour, A Memoir of Living and Dying, Nina Riggs. Yes, I know there are lots of memoirs with this topic --I have a bunch on my shelves--but this one was on lots of summer reading lists a year ago and comes highly recommended.
4.      The End of Old Age, Living a Longer, More Purposeful Life, Marc E. Gronin, MD. I DO NOT like the title, for it sounds like major denial to me, and I don't think that is actually the topic of the book. Besides, the only end to old age is death. Instead, I think the book is more about finding value and strength in the aging process. We'll see!
5.      No Time to Spare, Thinking About What Matters, Ursula K. LeGuin. Essays from one of our literary giants. I have read the first section called "Going Over Eighty," her views on aging, and they are sharp and witty, and true. 
6.      Unbinding, The Grace Beyond Self, Kathleen Dowling Singh. I have read both The Grace in Aging and The Grace in Living, so I guess I am a member of Singh's fan club. WISE WOMAN.
7.       The Trilogy about the King Years by Taylor Branch. Bruce and I are going on a civil rights tour to Alabama and Mississippi in November and I know I will want to do lots of reading to prepare. I read the first in this trilogy, Parting the Waters, 1954-1963 when it was first released, but I think it would be good to read it again. The other two books are Pillar of Fire, 1963-1965 and At Canaan's Edge, 1965-1968. These are massive books and will be quite the undertaking, but this feels important and necessary. 

Additional Notes: I recently read May Sarton's journal At Seventy. I remember reading it when it was first published in 1984 and I was only 36. What was I thinking! I read all of her journals then, however, because I was and still am an avid journal keeper, but obviously now more of what she says in this book resonates with me. I also read The Art of the Wasted Day by one of my writing heroes, Patricia Hampl. I revisit her other books frequently and am so happy to have a new one to treasure. Finally, I am reading Living an Examined Life, Wisdom for the Second Half of the Journey by James Hollis, PHD. I am grateful his chapters are short, for he packs so much wisdom into a sentence, and I need time to process and absorb. 

An Invitation
What nonfiction titles are on your list? I would love to know. 


2 comments:

  1. Looks like a great list. The first thing I did was to see how many I could get through the library. Thankfully about 5 are available in libraries around the area. Excited to have more suggestions.

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