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Not on Wednesday, because on Wednesday there was a baker's dozen of Girl Scouts whose decisions I needed to facilitate, but now seems good. Where am I with my books?
Recently Finished
Far Afield by Shane Mitchell, which was a marvelous combination of travelogue and recipe that felt grounded in Mitchell's experience of the places she wrote about. The photographs were beautiful and also interestingly chosen; much food, yes, but also the people, and the people in action, doing the things that are important to them -- fishing, riding, herding sheep, praying. The book felt respectful rather than wide-eyed at the cultures it portrayed, which I appreciated.
I also finished Stevenson's Miss Buncle Married and am now confirmed in my belief that I do not really like Stevenson, so I sent the rest back to the library. It is just too much farce and not enough real people.
Tana French's The Witch Elm was unsurprisingly very good, although having just finished it I am still sorting out what I think about all of the pieces -- and I started to talk about how it is not my favourite, but then I wanted to say which one is my favourite and I am not certain, I like them all so much in different ways, I think that is a post of its own.
On the Go
Eat My Words by Janet Theophano, which suffers from being from 2002, before Google had digitised so many records, so there is a lot of Theophano explaining how impossible it is to find information about various women whose cookbooks she is studying, whereas I can spend five minutes on Google and get a slew of geneaology, census records, church records, etc etc etc. It makes it an odd reading experience; I really am interested in the texts themselves, but my interest in Theophano's analysis of the texts is fragmented by the amount of time she spends speculating about things which are now more knowable. I will finish it but it is not thrilling me.
A Traveller in Time by Allison Uttley is a children's story about time travel that is not structured at all like I would have expected -- it is much less a straightforward adventure and much more circular and reflective. I am about 3/4 of the way through and curious to see how it ends up so I can consider it properly.
Carol Anderson's White Rage is about the history of structural racism in the US. I am finding it very necessary reading but I have to take breaks because it is so infuriating; I am hoping as it moves closer to the present day I can start figuring out specific ways to address some of the things she explains, because I am appalled at what has been done and that I have gone so long without really knowing about it.
Forthcoming
I read the first Binti book by Nnedi Okorafor, was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it, and now have two more waiting for me.
Rice, Noodle, Fish is another food travelogue, this one by Matt Goulding, focused on Japan.
The Lonely City by Olivia Laing, it looks like it is both about loneliness as an experience and about specific artists being lonely in New York and how that shaped their art.
I hear the sounds of the Instant Pot venting its pressure, so now downstairs for dinner.
Recently Finished
Far Afield by Shane Mitchell, which was a marvelous combination of travelogue and recipe that felt grounded in Mitchell's experience of the places she wrote about. The photographs were beautiful and also interestingly chosen; much food, yes, but also the people, and the people in action, doing the things that are important to them -- fishing, riding, herding sheep, praying. The book felt respectful rather than wide-eyed at the cultures it portrayed, which I appreciated.
I also finished Stevenson's Miss Buncle Married and am now confirmed in my belief that I do not really like Stevenson, so I sent the rest back to the library. It is just too much farce and not enough real people.
Tana French's The Witch Elm was unsurprisingly very good, although having just finished it I am still sorting out what I think about all of the pieces -- and I started to talk about how it is not my favourite, but then I wanted to say which one is my favourite and I am not certain, I like them all so much in different ways, I think that is a post of its own.
On the Go
Eat My Words by Janet Theophano, which suffers from being from 2002, before Google had digitised so many records, so there is a lot of Theophano explaining how impossible it is to find information about various women whose cookbooks she is studying, whereas I can spend five minutes on Google and get a slew of geneaology, census records, church records, etc etc etc. It makes it an odd reading experience; I really am interested in the texts themselves, but my interest in Theophano's analysis of the texts is fragmented by the amount of time she spends speculating about things which are now more knowable. I will finish it but it is not thrilling me.
A Traveller in Time by Allison Uttley is a children's story about time travel that is not structured at all like I would have expected -- it is much less a straightforward adventure and much more circular and reflective. I am about 3/4 of the way through and curious to see how it ends up so I can consider it properly.
Carol Anderson's White Rage is about the history of structural racism in the US. I am finding it very necessary reading but I have to take breaks because it is so infuriating; I am hoping as it moves closer to the present day I can start figuring out specific ways to address some of the things she explains, because I am appalled at what has been done and that I have gone so long without really knowing about it.
Forthcoming
I read the first Binti book by Nnedi Okorafor, was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it, and now have two more waiting for me.
Rice, Noodle, Fish is another food travelogue, this one by Matt Goulding, focused on Japan.
The Lonely City by Olivia Laing, it looks like it is both about loneliness as an experience and about specific artists being lonely in New York and how that shaped their art.
I hear the sounds of the Instant Pot venting its pressure, so now downstairs for dinner.
