Sunday Caught My Interest

I am back after two weeks in Oregon and a week here of catching up on home stuff and Christmas shopping. I had a wonderful time first visiting with my brother Dave, and then my other brother came in for a two week stay (he can work anywhere – lucky dog) and then a burst of frenzied activity for Thanksgiving. Shortly after I arrived in Oregon, Ralph the laptop was officially declared dead by my other brother and I had to make do with my mom’s apple laptop. I did learn a few more tricks (copy and paste) but without my bookmarks I felt lost so it turned out to be a relatively technological free vacation for me. Then all the freshman in college came (my niece, youngest, and two of his friends) and between them and other brother the air was zapping. Other brother programed my dad’s Ipad for him and that thing is pretty amazing. The youngsters were not all clued to their phones – they giggled a lot, ate vast quantities, played board games and pool, and had great discussions about life. Good reads, good food, good company – all the hallmarks of a wonderful holiday.

So here is what caught my interest this week:

One of my first memories is a few days after JFK died in November 1963 and the reason the memory stuck with me is because of how silent the world was. I remember being in my front yard in a normally loud and busy neighborhood and there was no noise what so ever. So when I read about Stephen King’s new book 11/22/63 at Bibliophile by the Sea, it took me immediately back to that day. And King plays on the “what if” games we tend to play in our heads – what if JFK hadn’t died, what if someone had gone back and changed history. King is someone I see as an either/or writer in that I love some of his stuff and really dislike others so I really hope this one of his good ones.

Bibliophile by the Sea also mentions a book I have never heard of – Lions at Lamb House by Edwin M. Yoder, originally published in 2007. Yoder has William James worried about his brother Henry so he invites Freud to spend so time at Henry’s estate evaluation the famous novelist. Throw in William’s Nephew Horace who falls in love with a local clergyman’s daughter and it seems you have a novel exploring literature, manners, and morality.  I grew up surrounded by literary families (most notably the Mitfords, the Sitwells, and the Jameses) and while my mother wasn’t a Freudian, she was a follower of Carl Jung so this novel looks like a pleasing blend of the two disciplines.

This winter Himself is teaching the Department’s History of Technology course and it is one of the few course he teaches that I have been interested in (somehow Thermodynamics and Numbers Theory do not interest this English major). Devourer of Books reviews what sounds like a fascinating book and surely a must buy for someone for Christmas. It is A History of the World in 100 Objects by Neil MacGregor, the Director of the British Museum. The objects range over 2 million years and span the globe with each one illustrating a turning point in Human history.

Tom of A Common Reader recommends After Midnight by Irmgard Keun (originally published in Germany in 1937). This novel reflects the author’s own experiences in the last days of the Weimar Republic and the rise of the Nazi era. Having just finished In the Garden of the Beasts which also describes these days from the perspective of the American Ambassador to Germany and his daughter, After Midnight seems like a suitable follow-up. It is a slim novel (160 pages) and details the story of Sanna Moder, a young, apolitical, “ditzy” blonde in love with her cousin and struggling to navigate a very difficult time when everything seems turned upside down.  I read the opening pages on Amazon and will be looking for this one.

A book about “family, obsession, memory, and the urge to create” sounds right up my alley – in fact the review on Page247 as well as on Amazon have really gotten me excited about Stone Arabia by Dana Spiotta. Add to the mix that it is an introspective book rather than plot driven and I am a goner. The quotes Gavin includes in her reviews are wonderful and a description of sibling relationships from the book, “there are no first impressions, no seductions, no getting to know each other,” seems spot on.  This is the story of a brother and sister. Nik was very creative and musical when he suddenly stopped and became a bar-tending drifter. His sister Denise has a quiet life, supportive of her brother but when her mother becomes ill with dementia and Nik seems to be sliding back into a depression, Denise takes a look back at their life as a family and their relationships with each other.

Stefan Zweig was a Jewish writer who fled Austria in 1934. I read his novel The Post Office Girl and thought it was very well done. Caroline from A Work in Progress introduces me to another Zweig novel, Journey into the Past which has been reissued by The New York Review of Books. The novel was published originally posthumously after the author committed suicide in 1942. It is a short novel that tells the story of a poor, modest secretary to a wealthy man. The secretary eventually falls in love with his employer’s wife, leaves her for a what was to be a two-year separation while he is on assignment for his employer. Unfortunately WWII intervenes and it some time before the secretary can return to Europe.I found Zweig to be a master of tight construction as well as very good at getting into the emotions and feelings of his characters. I look forwarding to reading a second one by this author.

Finally, thanks to bookcouscious, here is a must have for those who like Holiday Books for children – The Carpenter’s Gift by David Rubel. It is a tale of giving, the fictionalized tale of the origin of the Rock, and the importance of the charity Habitat for Humanity and sounds absolutely wonderful. As a side note, there was a lovely article in our paper this morning about how Habitat for Humanity is adapting to the downturn in home construction by helping struggling families making  much-needed repairs to their existing homes.

Happy reading!

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