How many of us are working ourselves to death, taking on too much, for the sake of feeling worthy? What brought us here - family, school, patriarchy, capitalism? These are the questions Stauffer (a self-confessed gold star seeker) asks in this provocative book. She also searches for solutions and ways to overcome and reframe our ambition. Highly recommended.

A gathering of Carruth's poems written between 1965 and 1973. Carruth is always a pleasure to read and he is fine form here as he examines his life, the people and the landscape of the Green Mountains of Vermont where he lived at the time.

Interesting and thought-provoking, this book is a manifesto of sorts about the importance and value of fighting the constant urge to check and be validated by our phones and social media feeds. The title, even the author notes, is deceptive. It is more about doing what is important or at least not productive from the capitalist, technologist point of view, but rather finding connection with our fellow humans and other inhabitants of the world.

Savannah's rich and sordid history play a huge role in this mystery that entangles one of the city's well-regarded families. I felt like it lost a bit in the third act, but it's an engaging mystery flushed out by strong characters and enticing (true) historical tidbits.

Better known for her novels, Kingsolver shows a talent for poetry in this engaging collection. As with her novels, she demonstrates a love of the natural world from her vantage point of Appalachia. But she also focuses her keen eye on friends, family, and the resonance of death. The book opens with a series of delightful "How to" poems (as in the title of the book). Recommended.

I have enjoyed the Locked Tomb series, but this one was a bit of a struggle for me. I really felt like I was missing a lot (there's always a sense of that in these books) and the tone of this book is much different. Still, Muir's writing and character- and world-building are brilliant. If anything, I feel like I just need to reread the whole series before the next book comes out.

Four horror novellas: In "The Skin of Her Teeth", a cursed novel drives people crazy. A delivery job turns deadly in "The Dark Brothers‘ Last Ride." In "This Book Belongs to Olo," a lonely child has control over an unusual pop-up book. A choose-your-own adventure game rolls into reality in "The Story."
Full of creepiness. I read this book over Halloween and it was perfect.

[I received an advanced copy of this via #Netgalley.]

Stonehouse (1272 - 1352) was trained as a Buddhist monk before he become a hermit and poet. His poems confront the same problems we find in contemporary life - people full of ambitions & noise- as well as familiar territory for poets and hermits - the natural world, the loneliness and pleasures of solitude. Red Pine adds commentary to his translations in a bilingual edition of the poems. Highly recommended.

Ada Limon, our newest Poet Laureate, continues to put forward personal, powerful, moving poetry that delves deeply into the human condition - love, loss, pain, regret. She just keeps getting better. Highly recommended.

A powerful, personal collection of prose poems that find the poet wrestling with assault, bodily autonomy, fear, loss, and trauma through surreal dreams and rich images, many of water (hence, the title), many of distorted, fractured memories. A strong follow-up to her earlier collection We Shed Our Skin Like Dynamite. Highly recommended.

Following an accident that leaves him blind in one eye, and a heartbreak, the author goes looking for purpose in a cottage in remote Vermont. He only intends to stay one winter, but that becomes two years that have an enormous impact on his perspective. There is some gorgeous writing and sometimes he finds a meaningful insight, but there is a great deal of privilege and selfishness intertwined in a young man trying to find a new way to live.

A smart novella about a group of underwater creatures descended from African slave women tossed overboard focusing on the importance of remembering history and being part of a community. The story is inspired by the song “The Deep” from the rap group Clipping. Daveed Diggs, a member of Clipping, reads the audiobook.

“I am not a fan of our time, and thus sleep is an attractive alternative to consciousness.” Jim Harrison

Happy Labor Day! Take a nap. 💤

A collection of short poems, tiny kernels of wisdom, humor, and irony condensed to their essences from the always entertaining Billy Collins.

[I received an advanced e-copy of this book through #Netgalley. The book is due out in November 2022.]

This collection of many of Joy Harjo‘s best poems to reflect on her fifty years as one of America's best poets (and the first Native American U.S. Poet Laureate) is a wonderful gift. If you already know her, this is a wonderful review; if not, it is the perfect place to start. Sandra Cisneros provides a warm introduction. Highly recommended.

[I received an advanced galley through Netgalley. The book is due out November 1, 2022.]

Gorman's lengthy collection reflects her deep appreciation and knowledge of history and her love of language as she searches for hope in the midst of America's racial violence and the coronavirus pandemic (many of the poems were written during that time). Her famous poem from the inauguration closes the collection. Gorman is a gifted poet and clearly a voice to be reckoned with now and in the future.

A fast-paced, well-written short novel. Sam Gregory, insurance investigator, is called to an elite boarding school to find a stolen rare book. As he unravels the clues, the bodies mount and dark truths are revealed. It's fun, it's lightning quick, a mix of hard-boiled noir and supernatural horror that I thoroughly enjoyed.

In her forties, the author discovered the joys of silence and solitude and it lead her to explore the meanings and varieties of silence. This memoir describes her searches for silence places and the meaning of silence throughout human history. A smart, beautifully written book. Highly recommended.

Ada Limon is our new Poet Laureate https://www.npr.org/2022/07/12/1110804783/ada-limon-named-new-u-s-poet-laureate

When Alberto Manguel was 16 and working in a bookstore, he was asked by Jorge Luis Borges to read to him part-time. (Borges was blind by then.) No doubt his time with Borges was an important episode in one of the world's greatest bibliophile's life and this short work fills in a bit of what that experience was like. A smart incisive book for fans of both Borges and Manguel, and booklovers generally.

Mandelstam is known far more for his poetry, but this book gathers some of his prose in a striking collection that shows his poet's mind at work. The main pieces here a memoir about his childhood, his one and only short story (which is striking for its absurdity and almost stream of consciousness style), & two pieces of travel writing. Mandelstam is not interested in revealing much of himself, but keenly observing the people, places, and things.

A delightful, witty, very British mystery about a group in a retirement village who gather weekly to solve cold cases finding itself mixed into a local recent murder. The cast of characters is very entertaining and the mystery is full of good twists and turns. I can't wait to read the next book in the series.

The third entry in the Murderbot series is as entertaining as the others. A fun series.

An insightful memoir that focuses attention on an often-ignored group, the black Americans in Appalachian coal towns. Turner was a child in an eastern Kentucky coal town and he reminisces about the way things were, finding good (e.g., the sense of community) and bad (being so reliant on the company for your life, the changes that integration brought). An interesting, thought-provoking book.

“The bookcase of early childhood is a man‘s companion for life.”

Akbar's deeply spiritual poems often strike beautiful chords. As a Muslim in America, Akbar and his spiritual beliefs find resonance and challenge in this country. Many of the poems ask the powerful questions Why and How in the midst of his spiritual searching. While he occasionally succumbs to verbal gymnastics or clunky metaphors, Akbar has a powerful and important poetic voice.

A thought-provoking book of essays and poetry by a woman as she contemplates her roles as mother, daughter, and poet in a rich Chinese tradition. A lovely collection.

[I received an advanced e-galley from Netgalley.]

This is a lovely collection of poetry by a poet from Mauritius who writes in French and translated by Kazim Ali. The collection is very brief, though. Half the book is an interview between the poet & the translator as well as literary criticism of her work. The poems do not need this background; they stand on their own about femininity, sexuality, & colonial politics.

[I received an advanced e-galley of this book from #Netgalley.]

Saigyō is one of Japan‘s most famous and beloved poets and this translation brings new attention to his powerful work. He had the opportunity for a comfortable life of wealth and security, but instead chose to be a recluse monk who spent much of his life wandering and writing tanka—traditional 31-syllable poetry. Saigyō contemplates his reclusion, enlightenment and death, all the while finding deep meaning by looking at the moon.

The second Murderbot novel finds the free SecUnit exploring his mysterious past. I found this one even stronger than the first, probably because of the mystery elements. Murderbot continues to be a fascinating character that this novel develops more fully.

A fun sci fi read about a security robot assigned to a team of scientists exploring a planet but who really just wants to be left alone to watch its media in peace. The SecUnit has hacked its own governor module and is thus no longer under anyone's control. It calls itself Murderbot, though not out loud, as its mysterious past involves killing many people. Murderbot is a fun, interesting character amidst a good story with mystery and surprises.

In the first year of the COVID pandemic and lockdown, Gessner ruminates on the wisdom of Thoreau and its application to our modern lives and this time of crisis. It does often read like a journal, much as Thoreau wrote, so there are often not clear answers but it gives the author space to explore his love of nature while questioning our way of life. Highly recommended.

Like his debut Night Sky with Exit Wounds, this collection shows the creative power and passionate humanity of an exciting new poet. Intimate and personal while also reaching for bold statements about the world we live in - war, sex, love, death, failure, beauty. This is a collection that will haunt you long after you read it. Highly recommended.

[I received an advanced e-galley of this book through Netgalley; due to be released April 5, 2022.]

The selected works of a vastly underappreciated poet. Gathering poems from her entire body of published work, these poems reflect the strong mind and opinion of a woman in West Virginia whose astuteness guides her heart and words. Often the poems touch on the substance of her life in Appalachia, farming, wilderness, nature, the proximity of death. Highly recommended.

A strong collection of political poems, as the title implies. Herrara's strong poetic language gives voice to the struggling and the people who are pawns in the midst of political upheaval here and elsewhere. He keeps his response very human, very hopeful, never losing sight of the people in the midst of these turbulences, people who are just trying to survive and find better lives.

A strong collection of poems arising from travels as the poet mourns his father. The movement through the world captures some of the feeling of the poet's loss as he navigates life after his father.

This engaging, informative, thoughtful collection finds contemporary writers reading and discussing Thoreau (and not just Walden). As with any anthology, there is a mix of styles and subjects here and there are a couple of clunkers, in my opinion, but overall the writers are engaged with their subject. Many provide interesting historical details. I particularly enjoyed the writers of color who find something in Thoreau's themes. Recommended.

The Nobel Prize winner's most recent book is, of course, beautiful, even if short, even by the standards of poetry volumes. The encroaching darkness and Death are prominent themes here, and the poet wrestles beauty from them even as she questions the meaning of it all.

This memoir finds the iconoclast Peacock in various wild places around the world with his friends, some well-known, having adventure and living large. An entertaining series of stories through some dangerous wild places, this book also serves as a sharp reminder of what we are losing in the wake of climate change and becomes an urgent plea to change our ways.

[I received an advanced e-galley through Netgalley.]

An entertaining high-stakes political thriller about a new Secretary of State who works for a president she actively campaigned against and must quickly uncover an international conspiracy that could kill thousands of people. A well-paced, entertaining thriller, with strong characters, insider details, and some nods to Louise Penny's Gamache series.

1. F@#$ no.
2. Sitting in my warm house, with a hot cup of coffee, reading a good book, occasionally looking out the window and being glad to not be out in the snow.

@TheSpineView
#two4tuesday

Tagging anyone who wants to do it

This was my last book finished in 2021.

Nezhukumatathil's poetry finds metaphor and meaning in nature, particularly the aquatic, to accentuate her personal poems about love, being a mother, and life in general with its joys and sorrows. There are poems that speak to the destructiveness of climate change, sensuous poems that liken ourselves to like fish or other animals, poems full of wonder, deep admiration, & awe for the natural world.

Happy 2022!

An incredible anthology of Chinese poets from 1500 BCE to 1200 CE translated into English including biographical and historical sketches, discussion of the difficulties and challenges of translation, the role of women in the tradition, and the relationship between these poets. This is an essential book for anyone interested in the classic period of Chinese poetry. Highly recommended.

Today‘s gentle reminder

The term Orwellian has became pervasive in our lives, reflecting one writer's fears and warnings about fascism and power. In this extremely well-researched, timely, & smart book, she looks for what George Orwell loved, what drove him to write so powerfully, and ultimately his optimism. In the midst of horror, Orwell always sought beauty & hope. A great examination one of the greatest writers in the English language. Highly recommended.

1. Just some peace & quiet & reading time. It‘s been too hectic.
2. No. We‘re driving to our holiday destination and snow would make it an enormous hassle. It can snow when we get back.

@TheSpineView

#twofortuesday

Copper is fifteen and coming into his own as a young man whose uncle guides him through some of the bigger philosophical questions of his life. This book has shaped many Japanese lives, most notably the filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki who has come out of retirement to put this on screen. It would have made a deeper impression on me when I was younger, but this is the first time the book has been available in English and is an engaging, thoughtful read.

Her first new collection in twelve years, Rita Dove's latest book shows why she is a Pulitzer winner and one of our best living poets. She explores the joys and pains of living and history in her unique poetic voice that goes from anger to elation with breathtaking beauty. Highly recommended.

With all our family obligations, we‘re doing an early Christmas unwrapping of gifts from immediate family and I‘m excited about this gift.

Happy holidays, everyone!