BOOK NOTES by Joan Ruddiman
A December tradition for Book Notes is to offer titles for gift-giving. Over the course of the Advent season, we suggest books for little kids, young adults and grown-ups, often with ideas specific to what men, mystery readers and moms might enjoy.
Recently a Book Notes reader asked me, "So what books did you give? And what books did you get?"
What great questions! Since January is not good for much besides hibernating and reading, the following titles are shared as some of my recent favorites that offer an escape from the doldrums of winter.
In response to the first question, I had two titles I gave to loved ones this year. To my women friends, including my daughters, I happily gifted "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd. This book was mentioned in Book Notes in a list of worthy titles but was never fully reviewed here in part because it is so unique it just needs to be discovered by each reader.
It is a woman’s book. The protagonist is a young woman who comes into her own. Lily is old enough to realize she is a whole lot better away from home and her miserable father but still child enough to need the mothering love of the black woman who raised her. Lily and Rosaleen an oddball Thelma and Louise hightail it out of town to land in the most improbable safety net provided by an even odder cast of characters dominated by "the calendar sisters."
Women recognize in these vividly characters their own lives as daughters, mothers, friends and lovers. You cry, you laugh, you think about it long after the afternoon it takes to read.
I had so many copies of "Mountains Beyond Mountains: Healing the World: the Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer" on the counter that the teen at the checkout looking over the stack asked, "Hey, are you Tracy Kidder?" No, just a huge fan, now even more so with this non-fiction account of the extraordinary Paul Farmer, a doctor who is literally saving the world one patient at a time.
Since the book was mentioned in Book Notes in early December, Farmer and his work in Haiti and with drug-resistant tuberculosis has been the subject of several articles in the New York Times and other national press. Kidder is a wonderful writer. He draws his readers deeply into a particular slice of life in this case, Farmer’s manic international search for cures and the funds that will support his work. How Farmer gets to Bill Gates, George Soros, the World Health Organization (WHO) and makes them dance to his tune is awe-inspiring. He plays only by his rules and is wondrously winning the game against some of the world’s toughest opponents medical and political. I gave this book to those I love because I think it is one of the most significant stories of our time.
So what did I get? "Life of Pi" was reviewed recently. Don’t miss that one. Mitch Albom’s latest is typical of his style sweetly philosophical. "The Five People You Meet in Heaven" affirms the value of all people and all ways of living. Read it fast, share it with friends and have a nice chat about it.
What Albom does in words, Thomas Kinkade does with pictures. "The Thomas Kinkade Story: A 20-Year Chronology of the Artist" is a fascinating look inside the life experiences and faith that have shaped the most recognized artwork of this generation. Full page, color copies of Kinkade’s "light paintings" enhance the text lovingly written by Rick Barnett who is the founder and executive director of the Thomas Kinkade National Archive. You know the art, now get to know the artist. It is a good story.
"Chocolate for a Woman’s Soul" by Kay Allen Baugh is an anthology of "77 stories to feed your spirit and warm your heart." What chicken soup did for souls Baugh does with chocolate especially for women.
In the same spirit is "Romancing the Ordinary: A Year of Simple Splendor" by Sarah Ban Breathnatch. No woman I know can sustain a daily routine, but most can manage to fulfill a resolution four out of seven days. Breathnatch understands women as her "year" of thoughts to ponder span all 12 months but with readings enough for every other day rather than each day of the week.
Any of these one- to two-page vignettes in the early morning or a view of a Kinkade piece with tea and Trek get my day off to a peaceful and reflective start. I think this is what my loving pals had in mind when they chose these titles for me.
At a later date, Book Notes will review some of the heavier (literally and figuratively) reading also happily received. For now, this lighter fare warms the heart and lights up the dreariness of January. Get going with reading and reflecting with your own gifts given by your loved ones. This should be the season to indulge ourselves.
Joan Ruddiman is a teacher and friend of the Allentown Public Library.