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‘Excellent Women’ and a Wilde schnook

‘Excellent Women’ and a Wilde schnook

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There’s something very gratifying about reading Oscar Wilde’s children’s stories with your grandchild. I agreed heartily when Cameron, 10, pronounced one of the characters (the Miller) to be a “schnook”! Although I didn’t take a photo of him with the book, here he is a few months ago during a visit to a wonderful Vincent van Gogh exhibit in Indianapolis: This month’s books included several novels with strong female protagonists from over the centuries. From Mother Courage to Miss Pym…

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Cameron reading "The Velveteen Rabbit"
Books about pigs and a Velveteen Rabbit

Books about pigs and a Velveteen Rabbit

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As June comes to a close, it looks like this month’s books include at least two more “banned” books … both about pigs. Book 1: Animal Farm by George Orwell Here’s another classic that is typically read in high school (unless it’s banned). But I must have been too busy reading Shakespeare (Carmel High had just released a massive amount of themed six-week English classes to choose from) or Works of War back then, as this is a first-time Animal…

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2022 James at Chauncey's
The grad

The grad

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May 28 is a special day for our family. It’s Dad‘s birthday. He would have been 92 this year. And oh, how he would have loved to have been in Terre Haute, Indiana, on that day. … because May 28 this year was also the day James graduated from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, with a double major (Electrical Engineering and Math) plus a Master’s degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering. But for Dad it would have been even more than…

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"Diary of a Nobody" book cover
May’s Books: Mysteries of life

May’s Books: Mysteries of life

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Now that May’s books are all read, I’ve come to realize something: They are all mysteries. Some are classic detective novels, but others are the result of journalists digging in to uncover mysteries about stolen children and how sausage used to be made. Book 1: The Jungle by Upton Sinclair Did you read The Jungle by muckraker Upton Sinclair back in high school? It’s haunted my brain ever since, so I downloaded a free copy to take a second look,…

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April books
Maus, cats, and a van

Maus, cats, and a van

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Lots of reading this month, with a mix of fiction and non-fiction. Although about half were also made into movies, I made a point to watch only three. The foolishly banned Maus came in two volumes, and left me especially grieving for the author’s loss of his mother and her journals. Lots of trigger warnings for this month’s batch of books, as Maus – along with any Holocaust story – is deeply disturbing. There’s also language in books written in…

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Cameron reads Beatrix Potter
The rich, the poor, the bunnies

The rich, the poor, the bunnies

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Now that I look back on the list, it’s clear that March was packed with an odd assortment of books. Not exactly “in like a lion, out like a lamb”; the month’s literary arc was not a smooth one. Week 1: Mrs. Astor Regrets by Meryl Gordon What an exhausting read! I vaguely remember this story from the news 15 years ago, when “elder abuse” was a developing term. Mrs. Astor was ridiculously rich. Admittedly, she wasn’t a great mother,…

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Bear and flowers
A fable of war (and peace)

A fable of war (and peace)

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Mom‘s fable about two soldiers and an old bear is best read aloud, to a child or a child at heart. Or anyone who questions war. Bear, Who Would Not Be a Soldier There was once a bear who lived in shabby comfort in the heart of an old forest. He had been a woodcutter, other times a guide, but never had he worn a uniform or joined a society. Now he was old and heavy like a grandfather tree,…

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1950 Modern American Verse
‘Waiting Is Winter’

‘Waiting Is Winter’

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The weather was so warm over the weekend. And then, around two o’clock this morning, a wild storm brought winter back. Ah, well. Guess we’ll just have to wait. Perhaps there were similarly fluid weather conditions when Mom wrote this sonnet, called “Waiting Is Winter,” in April of 1949, while a freshman at Saint Joseph College. (You remember sonnets, right? Traditionally, a sonnet is a 14-line poem written in iambic pentameter. It follows a specific rhyming pattern and focuses on…

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"The Color Purple"
Forbidden February

Forbidden February

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The madness of banned and challenged books is back. If you’ve followed recent reports of a certain school board, you already know that those who demand book bans haven’t even read the books. I believe that answers the question without it being asked. Demanding Pulitzer Prize-winning books be removed from school libraries without even taking the time to read those books is insane. Three of the four books I read this month have been banned or challenged in the past….

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2021 Harry & Linda in Lenox
Book maniacs

Book maniacs

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Maybe I should have asked my oldest brother if he and his wife are sick of being called “maniacs.” You know – being long-time Maine residents and all. Harry and Linda are avid readers. They regale family and friends each December with a letter tucked into their Christmas card detailing their recommendations based on their favorite reads of that year. Here’s a compilation from the past several years: Harry: After rereading Bleak House, Harry still ranks it as Dickens’ best….

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