I discovered Rachel Held Evans when I read about her tragic death earlier this year. A young woman in her thirties, happily married, and mother of two small children, she died suddenly from an allergic reaction to a medication she was given for an infection. In her short life, she published a very popular blog
Author: Barbara
While James Baldwin is an iconic literary figure, I had never read his books. I joined a bookclub, and Giovanni’s Room is this month’s selection. The novel is magnificently written, but there is no relief from the tragic story that unfolds. The book cover reads: “Set in the 1950’s Paris of American expatriates, liaisons, and
On Tuesday evening I treated myself to an evening of poetry by watching the livestream of The Universe in Verse 2019. This is the third year for this event, and all three programs of poetry, music, and wonderful backstories, most often told by Maria Popova of “Brainpickings (the show’s organizer and host), was a wonderful treat.
Thanks to everyone for sharing wonderful books through your interesting reviews and thoughtful comments. I really looked forward to the alerts that come via e-mail. I felt like a good friend was waiting to give me a gift–Christmas all winter. I am reading Insomnia, and I finally reached the top of the library’s list for
I love this title. There is something very magical about butterflies, especially beautiful monarch butterflies. It’s amazing that these delicate insects migrate more than 3000 miles from parts of Canada and the U.S. to the mountains of Mexico. Monroe’s book is a coming of age story. Luz Avila’s mother abandoned her when she was
The Forest Lover is based on the life of Emily Carr, a painter at the turn of the twentieth century (at the same time as Georgia O’Keeffe and Frieda Kahlo) . She was raised with the expectation that she would enter polite White Vancouver society and live alongside, but separate from, Native Americans who lived
A few years ago when Marie Kondo’s book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, came out, my very organized, neat, young neighbor decided it was a book I needed to own. I read it at the time, and I was bemused by the author’s dedication to tidying up. Because I’d read the book, I was
I’ve read more than I have written this winter. I’ll try and catch up a bit. Barbara Kingsolver is a favorite author. I loved the quirky characters in her early works. Poisonwood Bible was a very powerful read. I finally finished Prodigal Summer after many false starts. Something always interrupted me, and I’d need to
I pulled two more books from my shelf to reread, and it was a treat. Griffin and Sabine know each other only through letters and postcards. Their odd correspondence begins when Griffin, who lives in London, receives a note from Sabine requesting one of Griffin’s fish postcards. Griffin is an artist who sells his own
This book has been on my shelf forever. I don’t remember when I bought it or why. The pages of the paperback are yellowed with age. I’m so glad I finally picked it up and decided to read it. The book is a series of interrelated stories set in the 1950’s. The stories take place
