Recent Reads

I’ve been reading some wonderful books lately, a mix of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. One thing helping my reading at night is a neck light. I love reading in a dark room at night, and this helps make print books more accessible to me. Here are some of my recent reads that I would recommend to others. I hope one of them strikes your interest. 

Letter from New York by Helene Hanff

Helene Hanff, the American author of the bookish epistolary memoir “84, Charing Cross Road”, had a radio broadcast on the BBC “Woman’s Hour” for over 6 years, detailing her life in New York City. This book collects her short, 5-minute broadcasts, organized by month. I loved seeing 1970s-80s New York City through her eyes. From the benefits of apartment building living to children sledding in Central Park, this is a fun, month-by-month snapshot in time.

The Island of Sea Women

Young-sook is a haenyeo, a female diver, living on Jeju Island, off the coast of Korea. In this work of historical fiction, Lisa See weaves together the story of Young-sook’s life, from the late 1930s up to contemporary time. As a haenyeo, Young-sook must work hard, spending hours each day diving in the sea for abalone, octopus, and other sea life to support her family and help pay for her male family members’ educations. She experiences many hardships over the years, and her role changes from that of dutiful daughter/granddaughter, to mother and grandmother. See does an incredible job of making her characters come to life, with rich descriptions of the eras they lived through. I enjoyed listening to this book on audio.

How to Stay Sane in an Age of Division by Elif Shafak

This is a short, quick read by Turkish author Elif Shafak, with a lot to ponder. Only 96 small pages, this can be read in just two sittings, yet I’ve found myself thinking about it still many days later. This is a book about the importance of connecting with others across political lines, not getting entrenched in echo chambers and listening to diverse perspectives. Shafak reminds us that “A human being, every human being, is boundless and contains multitudes.” She implores us, “Do not be afraid of complexity.” 

Above Ground: Poems by Clint Smith

I read Smith’s book “How the Word is Passed: a Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America” a few years ago and found it immensely readable. I remember attributing his beautiful writing to the fact that he is a poet. It was gratifying to get a chance to read these poems, which range from celebrations of fatherly joy to issues of social justice. I laughed at the poem named “Ode to the Electric Baby Swing” and loved his description of dancing in the grocery store aisle with his daughter wrapped on his chest. I grieved with his poem “All at Once” when he wrote about the contrast of anguish and joy in each day, “There is a funeral procession in the morning and a wedding in the afternoon./The river that gives us water to drink is the same one that might wash us away.” This is an accessible collection that makes for easy, smart reading.

First Comes Love Then Comes Malaria by Eve Brown-Waite

After falling for a Peace Corps recruiter, Eve eagerly joins up and ventures to Ecuador. When she eventually marries her recruiter, she follows him to the African country of Uganda, determined to learn how to live without running water and only brief access to electricity in the evenings. This was a humorous read that also illuminated how different the author’s experiences were living in other countries. I especially enjoyed learning about her years in Uganda, where she became part of a community and started raising her daughter.

Next up for me is a graphic novel. “Do Admit: The Mitford Sisters and Me” by Julie Pond takes on the Mitford sisters and their wild reputations. I am also listening to the laugh-out-loud funny, cozy mystery “Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers” by Jesse Q. Sutanto.

Katelyn Boyer is the Adult Services Librarian at the Fergus Falls Public Library