A CLUTCH OF BOOKS FOR HURTING HEARTS
I rarely find a book that surprises me anymore, but I was drawn to one I found on a recent Sunday morning at Darvill’s Bookstore in Eastsound on Orcas Island. Orcas Island is part of the San Juan Islands north of Seattle and Darvill’s is probably my favorite bookstore anywhere. The book stood behind a few others laid out on a table so I spotted it quickly. Also, it had that “Bookseller” word in the title and I am a sucker for books about bookstores. The Paris Bookseller (title) by Kerri Maher was not one I’d heard about. I purchased the book and during the next week I discovered a delightful story. I quickly realized the heroine was homosexual and could not recall reading a book with such a heroine. I quickly forgot that entire aspect of the book as I realized that homosexuality in Paris in the 1920s was generally accepted. Then Sylvia Beach, the main character, travels to Paris from her home in the U.S. when in her early twenties. Her mother took her family to live there briefly when she was small and she remembers Paris and longs to return. Soon she has fallen into friendship with a bookstore owner and has a job there. She becomes part of an entire group of literary friends. She opens her own store nearby and calls it “Shakespeare and Company.” At one point I turned to the back of the book and realized it is historical fiction. A group of budding American writers gathers at Sylvia’s store (also a lending library) to include Ernest Hemingway, Ezra Pound, Gertrude Stein and Alice Toklas and James Joyce. Joyce is struggling to put together his book Ulysses. America’s writers are in Paris as many books are being banned in the U.S. When Joyce fails to find a publisher in America, Sylvia finds a way to publish his work.
In Love and Pajamas by Catana Comics, Catana Chetwynd is one of the book picks for our Mother/Daughter Bookclub this year and I also found this graphic novel something new for me in reading. Catana’s love for her partner spills from every page in her wonderful drawings. She describes her book like this, “Being yourself with your partner—and embracing your partner’s quirks—is such an important part of a relationship and is the very foundation for all the moments.”
Another easy, quick read but one that will draw you back many times, is The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy. I keep this book on my bedside table and frequently refresh my memory with some of the sayings. My favorite is when the boy speaks of how his “heart hurts” as I find that descriptive of how I often feel these days. My heart hurts—when I see people treat one another without decency or kindness—when I see Moms who are not given good maternity care or cannot find child care so they can return to work or are not allowed maternity leave from a job—even though bills have been introduced in Congress that would help young mothers with these needs. My heart hurts too when I see War break out for no apparent reason other than a man’s need to boost his ego. My heart hurts and I read this book about four friends, human and animal, traveling together.
Another book pick for our bookclub (the picks this year were made by my daughter Becca), is Kate Baer’s book of poems titled I hope this finds you well.
She includes emails from fans and those who have strong opinions, then breaks their comments into poems. I recall using this technique when teaching memoir classes. I would ask everyone to do a 15 minute freewrite. Then we would circle the strong verbs, phrases, and break these out and form poems.
I keep a list of books I read on Goodreads and usually write a summary of each. You are welcome to follow me there. What have you been reading? Contact me at parsingwithsusan@gmail.com
Below is a picture of some of these books. I am also reading Doris Kearns Goodwin Leadership in Turbulent Times. She compares four presidents, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson.
I wanted to gather up some of the love I found in these books and send it to each of you. Susan
