I read so many good books in the first half of this fun-filled month (read with sarcasm), and I have been terribly slow at posting my thumbnail recommendations lately, so I am going to do a quick book review round up here, among other things.
Yes, my back is better, thanks for asking, and I’m grateful for modern medicine. First, I want to thank Ibuprofen for all of its help, both in its daytime and night-time form. Next, I appreciate the Poulsbo Kaiser doc for fitting me in and for prescribing both Physical Therapy and steroids, not in that order. We will see if that combo will bring me back to complete health or at least return me to to a pain-free existence.
A trip to Poulsbo is always worthwhile though, so no regrets. What a charming spot to drop in for a walk around town, with a stop at Sluy’s Bakery of course. Always too many choices in that store, but this time I selected the Swedish Almond pastry and a gingerbread man. And then yummy sushi rolls for lunch at Jo:a in Silverdale perfectly balanced out the day’s menu. Thanks for the great recommendation, Darren O’Brien!
Naturally we stopped in at Costco and Trader Joe’s and got enough supplies to last us until the next trip to town, because who knows when that will be! On our last trip to Trader Joe’s our usual Shiraz was not available so we got Pinot and Cabernet and a blend or two. This week the Shiraz was back in stock so now the “wine cellar,” also known as the shallow bilge in the main salon is very well stocked for the holidays.
As the cold and humidity sets in and the North wind picks up (the image above is our temp through the porthole this morning) it is time to get the sails and sail cover off and get everything stored for the winter. We did step one today—remove the main sail and its sail cover from the boom, fold them, and put into bags all ready for storage. Mostly I watched Russel work, but I lent a hand here and there. Flaking and folding a sail, even with a nice big clean floor to do the job on is pretty hard for one person!
Now to the book reviews. First off, for middle school and young teens, there’s Ned Bear and The Dirty Whisker Curse, by A.B. Roveen. It came out the same day as my book, and I knew a few people who’d read it and loved it, and we kept seeing each other on Facebook, so I bought the ebook and found it delightful—a spunkier, wilder, and much more magical Wind in The Willows, but with a much bigger protagonist (he’s a bear after all!) and quite a lot more “messing about in boats.” Highly recommended.
I got an ARC of The Most Amazing Department Store by Sharon Neiss Arbess and since I feel like this is such an important story right now, I am reviewing it without waiting to get the corrected book. We North Americans like to think that anti-semitism is something that happened a long time ago, over in Europe, but this fashion-crazy, often humorous novel is set in Montreal, mostly during the 1930s, ‘40s and ‘50s, and the way these bright young Jewish women were treated is shocking and disturbing.
Speaking of unforgettable stories, You’ll Forget This Ever Happened: Secrets, Shame, and Adoption in the 1960s is a memoir that puts you right in the author's shoes as she, still such a child herself, is forced to endure the worst kind of “home"—there's little homey about it—for "unwed mothers," then give up her baby. And that's only the beginning of the story, only the start of the roller coaster of emotions you'll find in this book. I found it extremely hard to put down this brave, honest, sincere memoir.
Against All Enemies is such a gripping war novel—it literally starts with a bang, and never really lets up. I don’t read a lot of books with naval battles in them, unlike my husband, but these felt so real, I would sometimes have to put the book down and take a break. The most fascinating part of the book is seeing what could happen, militarily, in our current global situation; the book jumps from San Diego all over the globe, including China and Russia. I think Russel is going to like this one!
I also read an ARC of The Work Boyfriend by Rebecca Mardon and though I don’t read much romance, this was so thoughtful and felt so real that it really read more like literary fiction. Don’t get me wrong, it hits all the right genre buttons for a workplace romance, and the love triangle hinted at in the title is just as complicated as you’d think, but the ending is not what I saw coming, though I thought it was quite perfect. You can pre-order the book right now, and receive it before the December holidays.
And lastly, I had missed Jodi Picoult’s 2016 novel Small Great Things but I found it in my library and I loved it. Authors are always saying it is “impossible” to write well about race in America nowadays, but of course many fine writers have done it such as Tayari Jones and Angie Thomas and Brit Bennett. Jodi Picoult deserves to be added to that line up. She writes from multiple POVs and knocks this one out of the park.
I’ll leave you with this from John Irving: If you’re lucky enough to find a way of life you love, you have to find the courage to live it. Take courage, all writers and artists!
And thanks to you all for being along on this voyage with me as I try to find my way here on Substack—I am discovering a few like minds over on TikTok, which is a trip, and trying to send out some cheer on my other socials, too, but this format has really been truly rewarding for me. I hope it’s been fun for you. You have my gratitude.
Here’s hoping you all have a peaceful, satisfying, joyful, and happy Thanksgiving!
hasta pronto!
How could I miss the "something" that happened that required all the ibuprofen? So sorry I'm late to offer sympathy and speedy recovery. Thanks for the reviews, always. I just got a copy of Michael Cunningham's newest, "Day," which has been a longtime coming. But I'm a patient woman and besides, it's not as if there aren't other books to read while waiting. Take care. Stay warm.