One of my mottoes is to "Shop the house." I do that when I change tabletop vignettes or furniture arrangements for a new season or just because I am bored. What do I already have that I can use in a different way? What is hiding in a cupboard that will be fun to display now? How about switching locations of a chair? Maybe that is just what I need for a new and fresh look.
When it comes to reading this past month, I have also been shopping the house. Since I have not been able to browse in bookstores or the library, I have been shopping our bookshelves, and, trust me, there are more than enough books I have not yet read. My own personal TBR--to be read--collection.
Here's a sample of books--all fiction, for I seem to need to read fiction more these days than nonfiction--I have read in April.
1. Beartown by Frederik Bachman who wrote A Man Called Ove. The setting is a town obsessed with hockey, but this is not just about hockey or I would have put it down within the first few pages. Instead it is packed with insights into human motivations and responses to conflicts and expectations. The small town, down on its luck, sees a winning hockey team as its ticket for revival, but when its young star player is accused of a serious wrongdoing, no one is untouched. I thought it was a bit longer than it needed to be, but I am glad I read it.
2. Lessons from Yellowstone by Diane Smith. I have no idea what led me originally to this slim novel, but I am so glad I finally read it, for it is charming. I have always enjoyed epistolary novels like 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff or The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Annie Barrows and Mary Ann Shaffer or Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher, and this one is no exception. The main characters, including a young female medical student, are scientists and naturalists on a working expedition to Yellowstone National Park in 1898. I thoroughly enjoyed the descriptions of the flora and fauna, but also the characters' personalities and the controversies about the future of the region.
3. A Piece of the World by Christina Baker Klein. You may know this author for one of her earlier books, Orphan Train, which I have never read, but now I plan to do so, for I enjoyed her never heavy, but always fresh descriptive writing style. This is a novel about Christina Hathorne, who was the model for Andrew Wyeth's perhaps most famous painting, "Christina's World." He figures in the story, but the book is more about her and how she lived with a significant disability.
4. The Spectator Bird by Wallace Stegner. My husband names Stegner's Crossing to Safety as one of his favorite books of all time, a book he has read more than once. I love that book, too, and also really liked Angle of Repose and Big Rock Candy Mountain, which is why The Spectator Bird landed on our shelves, I am sure. The main character in this book is a 70 year old man, a retired literary agent, who is a bit soured on his life, at least this stage of life when he feels the effects of aging and arthritis. At his wife's request, he begins reading aloud a journal written twenty years earlier when they spent several months in Denmark. I don't think I would have appreciated this book when I was younger, but now I better understand some of his struggles and his regrets and his perspectives. Not his best book--and I had to look up the meaning of a number of words, which is not the worst thing,--but I love the way he goes deeply and widely into a subject.
5. The Betrayal by Helen Dunmore. This is a chilling look at 1942 Stalinist Soviet Union. The main character, Andrei, is a physician and his wife, Anna, a nursery school teacher. Andrei is forced to treat the child of a high-ranking secret police officer, and no, the implications of that are not good. Dunmore has written many books, and I intend to explore her more.
I will continue to shop my shelves, but I was just able to pick up from the library a couple books I have requested, and I will read those first. Two memoirs: Joy Enough by Sarah McColl and Bleaker House by Nell Stevens. Plus, while taking a walk the other day I found a real treat in a Little Free Library, a book that has been on my TBR list for a long time, The Likeness by Tana French. And, finally, for our May book group I will read Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders, which is finally in paperback.
Happy Reading!
An Invitation
What have you been reading lately? Any recommendations? I would love to know.
Are you looking for a good mystery series? Are you looking for an author with a nice-sized backlist, someone new to you?
Well, you have come to the right place.
A series set in Toronto about a Muslim detective and his hockey-playing female detective has grabbed my attention. I have read the first two of the series by Ausma Zehanet Khan, and I really like the complex character development in these books. The characters are more important, it seems to me, than the nature of the crime being investigated. The first is The Unquiet Dead and the second is The Language of Secrets. I plan to request the third one from the library soon--I guess I better do that before you do!
The author I have recently discovered is Madeleine St John, and I have read three of her books this month: The Essence of the Thing, which was nominated for a Booker Prize in 1997, A Pure Clear Light, and A Stairway to Paradise. Each of these is short, with snappy, engaging dialogue, and characters who may remind you of people in your lives. St John knows how to capture relationships that are more than what they seem on the surface. Some of the characters are in more than one of the titles, but they can be read in any order.
The following books, however, are my favorites for this month.
1. The Street by Ann Petry. As I read this book, I kept asking myself, "Why haven't I heard of this book before now?" Petry is an African American writer with more than one acclaimed book to her name. She wrote in the 40's and this was the first book by an African American woman to sell over a million copies, so it is not unknown. We read this for our couples' book group, and the woman who recommended it, a retired university English professor, said it ranks as one of the best books she has ever read, and I, just as breathlessly, agree. The street referred to is in Harlem close to the end of WWII and is the story of a woman raising her young son, trying to make it on their own. She believes in the words of Benjamin Franklin that if she works hard and saves wisely, she will be able to become financially independent and move out of the tenement where she is tormented by the "super" who stalks her. The street in Harlem is as much a character in the story as Lutie, her son, or others Lutie encounters in her attempts to lift them into a better life. The story is at times hard to read, and even harder because it feels all too true today. Don't let that stop you.
2. Made for Goodness and Why This Makes All the Difference by Desmond Tutu and Mpho Tutu. When you are too discouraged to get out of bed, ask someone to run to your favorite independent bookstore and get you this book and then prop up your pillows and read. Let Bishop Tutu lift you up, just as he did in The Book of Joy, written with the Dalai Lama. What? You haven't read that yet? What are you waiting for?
Reading Made for Goodness is part of my self-guided Compassion 101 course. As you may have read in an earlier post, my word for the year is "fullness," and Tutu equates that with wholeness. I have underlined so much in this book, and I have no doubt you will find just as much that resonates with you. Here's a sample:
He lists the practices of goodness as "noticing, savoring, thinking, enjoying, being thankful," and the habits that allow wrong as "mindlessness or tuning out, inattentiveness, busyness of doing to distraction, and an ungrateful heart."
"God dwells in each of us. God dwells in each of us
even when we are unaware of it. It is radical not only
in the sense that it is revolutionary. It is radical in that
it is, literally, at the root of everything...The God who
dwells in us is a part of us that cannot be destroyed." p193
I could go on and on. We each need this book.
It is almost March and I wonder what will be my favorites in the coming month. I have a big stack from the library next to my chair in the snug. Stay tuned and happy reading!
An Invitation
What did you read and love this month? I would love to know.
In our family there is almost no better gift than a book. We quickly become almost anti-social when we get a new book, for we are that eager to open the cover and read. All of us got new books for Christmas, and now somehow the cold temperatures we are experiencing don't seem so daunting, for we can curl up with our books.
However, before doing that, it is time look back on this year's reading. This year's reading included books read for our couples' book group--a group that has been in existence for decades. Bruce and I were part of the group before we moved away from St Paul twenty years ago, and we have been graciously welcomed back to the group now that we live here once again. Our meetings are a highlight of each month. Now anytime I am reading I wonder if the book will be a candidate for our book group. This is an added dimension for my reading, and several of my 2014 favorites are books discussed in book group.
Here's this year's list of favorites--in no specific order.
Fiction
1. How the Light Gets In and The Long Way Home, mysteries by Louise Penny (Now we have to wait again for the next installment!)
2. The Burgess Boys, Elizabeth Strout, the author of Olive Kitteredge, a favorite from an earlier year. (Book club selection)
3. Under the Wide and Starry Sky, Nancy Horan (the story of Robert Louis Stevenson and his American wife, Fanny. You may recall that Horan wrote Loving Frank.)
4. The Snow Child, Eowyn Ivey. (Another book club selection, set in 1920 Alaska and based on a Russian fairy tale)
5. Mysteries by Jacqueline Winspear. (I am now waiting for a new one to be published. These mysteries are set in post WWI London and the main character, Maisie Dobbs, is a private investigator. I also really liked her stand alone novel set during WWI, The Care and Management of Lies.)
6. The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd (Book club selection. While I thought this book attempted to hit too many themes, it still was engrossing.)
7. The Signature of All Things, Elizabeth Gilbert. (Book club selection again. Not everyone in the group loved it, but I was fascinated by it.)
8. Vacationland, Sarah Stonich. (This was on my "favorites" list last year and we read it for book club this year.)
9. All Passion Spent, Vita Sackville West (Book club. Do you detect a theme here? We paired this with Being Esther by Miriam Karmel, which I liked, too. Each book focuses on an older woman and the choices made in old age.)
10. Lila, Marilynne Robinson (Now I want to go back and reread all of her books.)
11. Life After Life, Kate Atkinson (Challenging and creative structure, but well worth it.)
12. I also reread some Barbara Pym books and thoroughly enjoyed the reprise.
Note: I read The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, but I am one of those that doesn't understand why it got such critical acclaim. Oh well!
Nonfiction
The majority of my favorite nonfiction books are in the realm of spirituality. I am also reading (and using) books about writing
1. A Religion of One's Own, A Guide to Creating a Personal Spirituality in a Secular World, Thomas Moore
2. The Ten Things to Do When Your Life Falls Apart, An Emotional and Spiritual Handbook, Daphne Rose Kingma (My life did not fall apart in 2014, although there were challenges, but there is such wisdom here and strategies and reflections for whenever life hits us in a way we don't expect.)
3. The Paper Garden, Mrs. Delaney Begins Her Life's Work at 72, Molly Peacock (My second reading of this gorgeous and inspirational book.)
4. This is the Story of a Happy Marriage, Ann Patchett (You know her for her novels. Now read this wonderful book of essays.)
5. Calm Surrender, Walking the Path of Forgiveness, Kent Nerburn
6. Handling the Truth, On the Writing of Memoir, Beth Kephart
7. The Rebirthing of God, Christianity's Struggle for New Beginnings, John Philip Newell (I heard the author speak this year, and he was thought-provoking about the present and future state of organized religion.)
8. Fully Awake and Truly Alive, Spiritual Practices to Nurture Your Soul, Jane Vennard
9. The Situation and the Story, The Art of Personal Narration, Vivian Gornick
10. Ask the Beasts, Darwin and the God of Love, Elizabeth A. Johnson (Johnson is a renowned feminist theologian. Her writing is always challenging, and I am so glad I read this in the context of a class.)
11. The House on Teacher's Lane, A Memoir of Home, Healing, and Love's Hardest Questions, Rachel Simon (I have had this book on my shelf for a long time and so enjoyed her reflections on creating and being home.)
12. Small Victories, Spotting Improbable Moments of Grace, Anne Lamott (Classic Lamott. She is always a star.)
13. A Season of Mystery, 10 Spiritual Practices for Embracing A Happier Second Half of Life, Paula Huston (Both this book and the book by Jane Vennard are excellent new looks at spiritual practices.)
Over the course of the year I have consulted many times two spirituality books on an ongoing basis: The Gift of Years, Growing Older Gracefully, Joan Chittister and The Endless Practice, Becoming Who You Were Born to Be, Mark Nepo. Both are perfect companions during my morning meditation time.
I have a feeling that the novel I am reading now, The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters, will end up on my 2015 list. Excuse me while I take a reading break! Happy reading, everyone!
An Invitation
What were your favorite books this year? If you read any of the books on my list, I would love to know your opinion. What are you planning to read in 2015? I would love to know.
What are the essential books on your bookshelf? Who are the authors who are your mentors, your guides? If you had to reduce your library to only a couple shelves, which books would unquestionably have a place? Which books do you return to, reread and consult?
These are not just practical questions, but are revelatory questions about who you are and who you were created to be.
When I started writing this post I thought I was going to write about Thomas Moore's most recent book, A Religion of One's Own, A Guide to Creating a Personal Spirituality in a Secular World, but after writing the opening paragraph, I realized I am not ready to write about this book. I need to sit with it more, to reread all I have underlined, to reflect on what has arisen for me as I have read this book. His books have always been the right book at the right time for me, and I know without a doubt that his books will figure prominently on my "Forever Bookshelves," but I need more relaxed, internal time with this new book before I share my reflections on it in this blog.
Switching Gears
Oh great, I said to myself, what do I write about in what has become a third Thursday of the month regular feature, my book of the month? It's not that I haven't read other books (For example, I loved the new novel Under the Wide and Starry Sky by Nancy Horan about Robert Louis Stevenson and his American wife, Fanny. Horan wrote the acclaimed Loving Frank about Frank Lloyd Wright and his wife Mamah Cheney), but this post is not meant to be a book review, but instead, is a way to offer spiritual reflections and to invite your thoughts as well.
I reread my first paragraph and had my answer. My Ideal Bookshelf. Art by Jane Mount. Edited by Thessaly La Force. http://www.idealbookshelf.com/pages/the-book. Normally, I don't quote from the cover flap, but I am making an exception this time, for it describes perfectly the scope of this book.
The books that we choose to keep and display--let alone
read--can say a lot about who we are and how we see
ourselves. In My Ideal Bookshelf, more than one hundred
leading cultural figures including writers…musicians…,
chefs and food writers…Hollywood figures…, and fashion
designers…share the the books that matter to them most--
books that define their dreams and ambitions and in many
cases helped them find their way in the world.
Now if that weren't intriguing enough, the book itself is lovely. Each short first person essay is accompanied by an illustration of the book spines of the individual's personal selections.
One Book Leads to Another
This book sits in one of the cubbies in my Lady's Writing Desk in the living room, and I dip into it occasionally. I am reading the essays both in the order in which they are presented, beginning with Hugh Acheson, a chef and cookbook author, but also open it at random and see where I land. Just now it is the writer Mary Karr and I love her shelf, which includes one of my favorite books, The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston. Seeing the spine of that book reminds me of the class I took many years ago in which that book was discussed and then many years after that driving quite a distance to hear Kingston speak. Seeing this title this morning makes me think about the way I have at times been a "woman warrior;" times in which I have gone to battle for a cause or a person; times in which I have stood up for myself and surprised myself doing that. This is a contender for my "ideal bookshelf," and deserves to be reread.
Each quick hit with this book seems to lead to a memory, a connection, a writing idea, or at the very least a new book for my ever-growing "Books to Read" list. And, of course, the very nature of this book makes me think about what books I would want on my ideal bookshelf. Just how long is this fantasy bookshelf anyway?
Fantasy Shelves
My fiction shelf is already quite full and includes my favorite childhood book, Dandelion Cottage, which I think inspired my own love of home tending. Each of the other books--Pride and Prejudice, Giants in the Earth by Rolvaag, The Scarlet Letter by Hawthorne, The Woman's Room by French, a selection of Nancy Drew books, Grapes of Wrath by Steinbeck, Hedda Gabler by Ibsen, A Separate Peace by Knowles, The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald, and Goodbye Columbus by Roth--conjures memories of time and place, as well as a stage in my personal development.
I have not yet committed to an imaginary nonfiction shelf, although I know Thomas Moore's Care of the Soul will be there. I can think of others, such as Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg and Composing a Life by Catherine Bateson and Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh, but the nonfiction shelf feels more in flux to me. I know I will continue to read excellent fiction that will move or delight me, but when I think about choosing fiction for my ideal bookshelf, I feel myself gazing into the past. The potential nominees for my nonfiction shelf seem more about the present and the future, as I strive to restore my essential self. Does any of this make sense to you?
It's time to stop writing about books and return to reading time. I do promise to write in the future about A Religion of One's Own by Thomas Moore. I know it has sparked so many thoughts for me, but they are jumping and bouncing in me and in no shape to sit on a shelf yet.
An Invitation
You knew what the question would be before getting to this spot in the post, didn't you? What would be on your Ideal Bookshelf? Why? What do the books you have selected say about you--where you've been, who you are and who you are striving to be? I would love to know.
Lists. I love making them and love reading them. I come by that naturally, for my father is a great list maker. For example, he has kept lists of every single flight he has taken in his life. Recently, he made a list of all the people with whom he has worked over the years. Over 300 names! He even made a list of everyone in his first grade class. Not bad for an 89 year old man.
My favorite lists, however, are lists of recommended books--many are added to my ongoing list of books I hope to read someday. In that spirit I offer my own list of Favorite Books of 2012. Here they are in no particular order:
Fiction
* The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obrecht
* Coral Glynn by Peter Cameron
* Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks
* Glaciers by Alexis M. Smith
* The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach
* Rules of Civility by Amor Towles
* Room by Emma Donoghue
* The Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan-Philip Sendker
* The Magician's Assistant by Ann Patchett
* The Forever Marriage by Ann Bauer
* Joe Sandilands mystery series by Barbara Cleverly (still have a couple left)
* The Uninvited Guests by Sadie Jones
* The Chaperone by Laura Moriarity
* The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker
* A Good American by Alex George
* Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka
* Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver
* Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (AGAIN!!! --almost an annual read)
Nonfiction
* Awakening the Energies of Love, Discovering Fire for the Second Time by Anne Hillman
* Aging as Spiritual Practice by Lewis Richmond
* On Rereading by Patricia Meyer Spacks
* You are Here, Discovering the Magic of the Present Moment by Thich Nhat Hanh
* Wild, From Lost to Found on the Pacific Coast Trail by Cheryl Strayed
* Kayak Mornings, Reflections on Love, Grief, and Small Boats by Roger Rosenblatt
* When Women Were Birds, 54 Variations on Voice by Terry Tempest Williams
* Patience, The Art of Peaceful Living by Alan Lokos
* Against Wind and Tide, Letters and Journals 1947-1986 by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
* The Morville Year by Katherine Swift
* Healing the Heart of Democracy, The Courage to Create a Politics Worthy of the Human Spirit by Parker J. Palmer
* In Lieu of Flowers, A Conversation for the Living by Nancy Cobb
* Help, Thanks, Wow, The Three Essential Prayers by Ann Lamott
* The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe
* The Emotional Life of Your Brain by Richard Davidson and Sharon Begley
Sneak Preview. Currently, I am reading two books I am positive will be on the Favorite Books of 2013 list: Seven Thousand Ways to Listen, Staying Close to What is Sacred by Mark Nepo and Dearie, The Remarkable Life of Julia Child by Bob Spitz. And I am adding to my "want to read" list by reading My Ideal Bookshelf, Art by Jane Mount and Edited by Thessaly La Force.
A List Gene. It seems, by the way, that the list gene in our family has passed down the generations. Our grandson, Peter, almost 5, is a great listmaker already. He suggested we make a list of all the animals we saw at the zoo this fall. He asked his mother to make a list of what he could take for lunch at daycamp this summer and all the things he and his buddy could do when she came over to play. And, of course, there was his list for Santa. Someday, maybe he will make a list of his favorite books as well, too.
Your List. I would love to know what is on your favorite books of 2012 list and what you hope to read in 2013. Send me your list.
One of my mottoes is to "Shop the house." I do that when I change tabletop vignettes or furniture arrangements for a new season or just because I am bored. What do I already have that I can use in a different way? What is hiding in a cupboard that will be fun to display now? How about switching locations of a chair? Maybe that is just what I need for a new and fresh look.
