Following the lead of another blogger (The Book Stop), who got it from another blog, I set myself the personal challenge of reading 20 books between June 1 and Sept. 1. In my June 3rd blog post, I listed ten of the twenty books I intended to read. How did I do? Overall I met my goal of twenty books and I read 8 of the 10 titles I listed in June. The breakdown of genre is 14 novels (six were historical novels), three memoirs (two political ones), two nonfiction titles, and one book of short stories.
I liked most everything I read, but Westover’s memoir was amazing, Manhattan Beach fascinating, but a bit too long; Lincoln in the Bardo weird but so inventive; and Bad Blood, a sit-on-the-edge-of-your-seat tale of lies and hubris. I also enjoyed the immigrants’ stories in TheLeavers (timely), the political dramas shared so very differently by Comey and Dorey-Stein, and the spare and exquisite prose as represented by Strout, Egan, Halliday, and Ford. Very hard to pick a favorite.
What was the best book you read this summer? Or your personal favorite? So much good literature and juicy political commentary available now.
Here’s the complete list. Titles are linked to the blog post with my review.
After several years of good intentions, we finally made the relatively short drive north to Rockland to visit the Farnsworth Art Museum. Rockland is a charming small town (worth a return visit on a cooler day) and the Farnsworth a gem. Why did we wait so long to explore it?
Focused mainly on American art, current exhibits included a selection from their permanent collection, a special exhibit of stunning gold animal heads by Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei (who attended Penn in 1981), as well as paintings by assorted Wyeths housed in a historic church building. Paintings there are by father N. C. Wyeth, sons Andrew and Jamie, and their sister plus a brother-in-law.
Sunset II 2008 by Alex KatzThe Painted Room, 1982 by Lois DoddRudy, 1980 by Alex Katz
The gallery spaces are all very attractive and flow nicely and the museum includes an equally inviting library open to the public. The small museum store, which also opens directly onto Main Street, contains an attractive inventory of items beyond the usual note cards and scarves.
We broke up our museum tour with lunch across the street at the cozy Brass Compass Café and tucked into the best lobster rolls and French fries we’ve had yet this season. It was really hot, above 90, and not a day to eat outside!
PAIRED HISTORICAL NOVELS
These two recent novels are set mostly in 1883-1885, one in Manhattan and the other in Philadelphia. In each, an unwed mother must deal with the consequences of giving birth without benefit of a spouse at a time when this stigma was life changing and possibly life threatening.
#14 The Address by Fiona Davis
This is the second of Ms. Davis’s three books, a writer whose distinctive shtick is using an historic building as a jumping off point for novels that combine mystery with a heroine in the past and one in the present day. Her first novel, The Dollhouse, was about some of the young women who lived in the Barbizon Hotel. This one focuses on The Dakota, a huge apartment complex on the edge of civilization when it was completed in 1884, and which is still a residence today. It’s a juicy read, perfect for a day at the beach.
In 1985, fresh out of rehab, interior designer Bailey Camden is trying to put her life back in order and has turned to her cousin Melinda Camden for support. Bailey’s grandfather was Theodore Camden, an architect who worked on the Dakota. Bailey is curious about her origins and seeks to learn more about the details surrounding Theodore’s death and the housekeeper, Sara Smythe, who murdered him. In interleaved chapters, we get Sara’s arrival from London to work at The Dakota, her attraction to the married Theodore, and her subsequent downfall, along with Bailey’s rough road to recovery and a renewed career.
The historical details on the building are fascinating, the characters mostly believable, and the mystery one you will probably solve before it’s revealed. The book is fun–a bonbon for a summer’s day! (~JWFarrington)
#15 Lilli de Jong by Janet Benton
This first novel by journalist and teacher Benton is intense and both vivid and compelling. In 1883, observant Quaker and schoolteacher Lilli de Jong surrenders her virginity to Johan, her fiancé, the night before he leaves Philadelphia for a new career in Pittsburgh. When her father marries his cousin soon after the death of her mother and is barred from Quaker Meeting and when Lilli finds herself pregnant with no way to contact Johan, her life unwinds. In disgrace, she leaves home and finds herself a place at a residence for unwed women, the first stop in her journey to survival. Allowed to stay there only until a few weeks after the birth, she must decide how to live her life with or without her baby going forward. Structured as a journal in ten books, the novel is Lilli’s account of her struggles and her descent into poverty and squalor. It is also one of the most poignant and penetrating accounts of motherhood and the love that binds mother and child.
In the author’s notes at the end, Benton describes how this book was conceived when she was pregnant with her own child and how it is also a tribute to Philadelphia, a city she loves. She details the historical underpinnings of the buildings, streets, and institutions that appear in her 19thcentury city. I found the book a moving account of one spirited and determined woman. (~JWFarrington)
All photos by JWFarrington (some rights reserved).
This week Maine is sunny and Maine is always quiet. Activity besides reading consists mainly of walks around the neighborhood, trips to the general store, and dinners with friends, punctuated by the occasional movie or boat trip. Included in this blog are a few photos of the local scene plus reviews of a new documentary and a compelling novel.
Andre Leon Talley, a black man, grew up in North Carolina in the 1950’s and 60’s when segregation was still the norm and options for blacks were limited. Raised by his grandmother, his childhood was strongly grounded in the life of the church and the values it represented. From an early age, Talley was drawn to fashion and after earning his degree at Brown University, he began working in Paris, writing and commenting on the fashion scene there. Later he came to New York and worked at Vogue with both the legendary Diana Vreeland and the meticulous Anna Wintour.
Over time, Talley became an icon for others aspiring to a career in the fashion industry. A large man physically, his mode of dress and his style have always been colorful, bold, and uniquely his.
Kate Novack is the producer and director of this excellent documentary covering Talley’s career. She has creatively combined a wealth of archival footage of life in Durham, NC in the 50’s and 60’s and the fashion scene in Paris and New York in the 70’s with interviews with Talley’s contemporaries, colleagues, and friends from his childhood. While racism is an underlying current, it is not dwelled upon. The interviews with Talley himself take place interspersed throughout the film leading up to the 2016 election. The scene on election night is remarkable for its restraint.
On a personal note, Kate Novack is someone I know a bit since she is the daughter of very good friends. The Chief Penguin and I had the pleasure of viewing the film at a special showing at the local nonprofit theater in Boothbay Harbor complete with a Q&A afterward with Kate. It was informative to hear more about the making of this film.
Kate and spouse Andrew Rossi are also the creative team responsible for two other recent documentaries: First Monday in May, and Page One about the New York Times. They are all worth seeing! For more about Kate and the Talley film, here’s an interview by Garage.
SUMMER READING
Timely Novel about the Immigrant Experience
#13 The Leavers by Lisa Ko
This 2017 novel is another one that made multiple best books of the year lists and was also a National Book Award finalist. It’s a vivid portrayal of a Chinese mother and her son who at various points navigate the different physical and cultural worlds of Fuzhou, China and the Bronx. Pregnant by a neighbor she has no interest in marrying, Polly leaves China for New York City where Deming is born. She works first on a factory floor and later in a nail salon. When she realizes she can’t work and take care of him, she soon sends him back to China to live with his grandfather. When he’s older, she brings him back to the U.S.
Deming makes the adjustment to the city, grooves to all its sounds and colors, and is comfortable living with his mother, her boyfriend Leon, Leon’s sister Vivian, and her son Michael who becomes his good friend. Until the day his mother doesn’t come home. Feeling abandoned and rejected when he hears nothing from her, he must then cope with white foster parents, being adopted, and living in suburban upstate NY. Ten years later at 21, having spent the past ten years as Daniel Wilkinson, he seeks to locate his birth mother. The novel alternates between Deming’s life in the United States and his times in China and sections in Polly’s voice about the torture of being deported and the new successful life she builds in her native land.
My only quibble is that it could have been more tightly edited at points to sustain the forward momentum. Nonetheless, it is a richly imagined novel of identity: how does one figure out who he or she is, how does he find a way to believe in himself, what must one do to belong, and what is acceptable behavior and what is selfish. Both Deming and Polly wrestle with the issues of who they are and what living a fulfilling life means. Each is a multi-layered character with Polly being especially complex. (~JWFarrington)
The first few foggy days here were perfect for nestling into the couch with a book and that I did. I spent two entire days just reading! An absolute treat.
SUMMER READING (Tracking 20 by Sept. 1)
#9 My Dear Hamilton by Stephanie Dray & Laura Kamoie
Historical novels can be a painless and enjoyable way to delve into history and to discover the personalities behind famous individuals. This six-hundred page novel was so absorbing and fascinating I read it in little more than a day! For anyone who has seen Hamilton, the musical, it provides intriguing counterpoint, being the story of Eliza Schuyler Hamilton told from her perspective. It’s all here—from her youth as the child of a Revolutionary War general who took her to negotiations with the Iroquois nation, to her marriage to upstart Alexander Hamilton, to her role as his helpmate and the mother of his children, to the fifty years after his death she contributed to society as social activist and philanthropist.
Authors Dray and Kamoie are both published novelists and Kamoie has the added distinction of being a former history professor. They have researched the historical record in detail, read countless works about the period and the founding fathers, and used Alexander and Eliza’s own words whenever possible. Few original documents exist about Eliza herself. In fleshing out this lively and accomplished woman, they have invented what they imagine might have been Eliza Hamilton’s emotional responses to Hamilton’s adultery and his death by duel as well as her relationships with her sisters, Peggy and Angelica, and her friendships with Lafayette, James Monroe, James Madison, and Martha Washington among others.
In two long afterwords, they explain where they diverged from fact and how their portrayal of Eliza differs from and expands upon the Eliza in the musical. If you like history and complex women, this would be a great book to take to the beach! (~JWFarrington)
MIDTERM REVIEW: MY FAVORITE BOOKS OF 2018
Of the books I’ve read in the first part of this year, these are the ones I consider the most memorable. In no particular order, I’ve listed them here.
Best Contemporary Novel
American Marriage by Tayari Jones
Best Historical Novel
Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan
Most Creative Sequel (What Came after Portrait of a Lady)
Mrs. Osmond by John Banville
Best Historical Novel about a Real Author (George Eliot)
