Monthly Archives: January 2017

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What You Can Do When You Just Can’t

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Bookish friends are the best friends.

Yesterday, a good friend of mine posted a query on Facebook, seeking recommendations “for someone who can’t focus on a book at the moment”.

largeFirstly, I was blown away by the honesty of that question.  Because there are plenty of times when even I, who turn to books to help me through any of life’s moments, simply can’t read.  The reasons are myriad: colds and headaches make focus really tricky; so does lack of sleep and a busy schedule; being in school, sometimes I’ve just read too much in a day to focus on another plot, another paragraph, another syllable.  But that doesn’t mean I don’t want literature in my life–often, it’s the best way to make all the other nonsense fade away and to ground me.

Secondly, I was thrilled with the range and thoughtfulness with which this question was answered.  Because book people will find a way to book even in the most trying of circumstances.  And so, it is with great thanks and appreciation that I present to you the list of things you can read, can appreciate, and can savor when you just can’t.

2261856Probably the first and more frequent recommendation was for short stories–everything from Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri, a collection of stories that deal with Indian and American culture, to tales-of-the-moment from Roxane Gay’s Difficult Women.  The works of Saki (also known as the British writer H.H. Munro) were also mentioned, along with travel stories like Visit Sunny Chernobyl and The Sex Lives of Cannibals.  Not only do shorter tales offer the benefits of reading without the emotional and physical commitment that a novel might ask, but their single-serving length also helps you carve out a manageable amount of time for yourself.  This can be enormously beneficial for busy readers, and also for those who have some troubles focusing for a novel-length amount of time.  And the sense of fulfillment in finishing a thing, whether it’s a story or a whole book, is just as sweet.

3766098Another suggestion was cartoons and picture books.  Lady Pole has sung the praises of Kate Beaton here, but let me reiterate: They are literary and feminist and smart, and you can flip through them here: http://www.harkavagrant.com/.  Another of Lady Pole’s favorites, Calvin and Hobbes, came up, which just goes to show you that we here at the Free for All are harbingers of excellent taste.  Another form of picture book that I hadn’t previously considered was home decor/fashion photography/pattern books.  All of these books, from comics to high fashion, give your eyes something on which to focus which doesn’t require the same work as words, but stimulates the imagination just the same.  Many can also give you ideas for projects to try yourself, which is always an exciting plus.

3168329Another avenue of exploration that was suggested was audiobooks.  These stunning little bits of technology leave your hands free to knit or clean or drive, while still pouring a story into your brain.  For many people who aren’t visual learners, or who don’t have extra hands or the time to stop and read a printed book, audiobooks can be an ideal way to discover new stories and adventures.  Best of all, these come in short versions, too!  P.G. Wodehouse’s phenomenal Jeeves and Wooster series is available on Hoopla, while other classics like The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes are available on CD and to download.  And don’t forget Free For All favorite Neil Gaiman, whose audiobooks are the stuff of which literary dreams are made.

2685156In the interest of full disclosure, I also added the Choose Your Own Adventure books to this growing and phenomenal list.  There is nothing more empowering, especially when you are feeling a little out-of-sorts, than discovering how to escape the lost city of Atlantis, or more diverting than to explore the Cave of Time.  The absurdity of these plots are often a great stress-buster in and of themselves, and the fun of finding out where your choices lead can’t be beat.

Life isn’t always considerate, dear readers, and our brains don’t always do what we would like them to do.  But the Library is here to help, in these situations, as well.  And never discount your friend’s recommendations, too. Sometimes, they lead to the best ideas you’ve heard all day.

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The Romance Garden

Our romance reviews are a little late this month, beloved patrons, and for that, our apologies.  But here, at long last, is our genre experts’ review of their top picks from the last month.  So whether you’re looking to defy the chill of winter with a steamy read, or are thinking about expanding your literary horizons with a new genre, enjoy your time here at the romance garden…because every mind needs a little dirt in which to grow…

A lady reading a book ~ Ernst Liebermann
A lady reading a book ~ Ernst Liebermann

 

Bridget:

What Happens in Scotland by Jennifer McQuiston

indexI’m always a little wary of historic romances that play on modern tropes, so I have to admit, my expectations for this play on The Hangover weren’t high.  What I found here, however, was a really charming, well thought-out, and wonderfully memorable romance that made me a confirmed fan of Jennifer McQuiston.

Lady Georgette Thorold, a widow of two years, has been shrewdly avoiding re-marriage, determined to experience freedom for the first time in her life.  So when her cousin Randolph brings her to Scotland, Georgette is on her guard–marriage laws in Scotland are notoriously lax…so when she wakes up the next day, in bed with a bearded, brawny Scotsman and a wedding ring on her finger, Georgette panics, brains the stranger with a chamber pot, and flees, desperate to remember what happened the night before, and whether she is, indeed, married to a total stranger.

James McKenzie, Esquire, can’t tell if he spent the night protecting an innocent lady or under the spell of a wily thief, but he isn’t about to forget the woman in his bed…and not only because she stole his purse before fleeing.  But as both James and Georgette try to piece together what really happened the night before, they both begin to realize that they may have as much to learn about themselves as they do about the person beside whom they woke up.

There are so many elements of this book that shouldn’t have worked, but did–mostly because McQuiston is such a talented writer, keeping the plot light, easy, and genuinely funny, pulling off a literary sleight-of-hand that was quite impressive.  She balances humor with character description and analysis really well, giving her book just enough depth, and providing this relationship with solid enough ground that I was really rooting for these two to find each other again.

What struck me most was the honesty that Georgette and James demand of each other.  The emphasis on this story is on trust instead of blind passion, and that made this vaguely ridiculous premise into something really unique and special.

Reading in the Garden. Susan Ricker Knox
Reading in the Garden. Susan Ricker Knox

Kelley:

The Viscount and the Vixen  by Lorraine Heath

3826861When I read a really good series, I always expect that at least one of the books is bound to disappoint, but the third book in Heath’s Hellions of Havisham series is perhaps my favorite of them all. In addition to the Mad Marquess of Marsden, a sweet and seemingly addled old man who charmed me from the start, this is a romance that leaves a little room for magic and that creates not just a happy, but a beautiful, ending to the story.

Viscount Killian Locksley’s father went mad the day his mother died giving birth to him. As a result, the viscount grew up in a home where no one ever visited, the clocks were stopped at the time of his mother’s death, and he and his father’s three wards were allowed to run wild over the estate. Locksley knows that love is the thing that drove his father mad, and is determined never to suffer the same fate.

Portia Gadstone is a desperate woman who needs protection and money, so when she learns that the mad Marquess of Marsden is looking for a new wife she applies for and gets the “position.” Thanks to a carefully written contract and Locksley’s determination to protect his father from a title chaser, of course the mad marquess never marries Portia and the story that unfolds follows the unexpected marriage of Portia and Locksley.

Although intended to be a loveless union forged for the sole purpose of conceiving Locksley’s heir, Portia and Locksley are drawn to each other from the start. Both of them are characters who carefully guard their hearts, and the love they find together is a surprise to them both, but that same tenuous love will have to survive the revelation of Portia’s past in order for them to make a real future and family together.

Heath always impresses me with her ability to create page-turning romances that also have genuine emotional depth. The story of the broken-hearted Mad Marquess anchors the book in a tragedy from which only Portia can help the family heal. The story Heath tells in The Viscount and the Vixen is not just a story about romance; it’s a story about love in all of it’s forms.

January's flower, the carnation
January’s flower, the carnation

Until next month, dear readers–we wish you warm hearts and good books!

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Making Magic: Why I Don’t Make New Year’s Resolutions

*This post is part of Free for All’s “Making Magic” series, which will focus on Kelley’s exploration of the opportunities in the library’s Creativity Lab as well as musings about art, creativity and imagination.

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I’m writing this on New Year’s Day and thinking about all of the resolutions that people make at this time of year. Get organized, lose weight, exercise, be more patient, eat healthier…. Wonderful aspirations all, but how many people actually keep them after the first week or month passes? And what do they say about how we feel about ourselves? Usually resolutions involve something we don’t want to do but feel we should, they focus on our faults and failings, the things we feel are “wrong” with us. They say, “You’re not good enough” and spur us onto changes that often aren’t sustainable.

The truth is, you are good enough, and you have everything you need. In 2017, in the words of Elizabeth Gilbert, my wish for you all is to “embrace the glorious mess that you are.” Maybe if we all loved ourselves a little bit more, we wouldn’t need resolutions because treating ourselves and each other better would come naturally.

In the spirit of just that idea, I offer you a list of books about mindful and compassionate living. What does this have to do with creativity and imagination you ask? You’ll be surprised at where your art goes when you take the time to be mindful, be present to the world around you, and especially when you tune into what’s going on inside of your gloriously messy self.

yamas and niyamasThe Yamas and Niyamas by Deborah Adele
In this introduction to the ten ethical foundations of yoga, Deborah Adele devotes a chapter to each Yama and Niyama that includes clear examples and explanations of the concepts followed by a series of questions to help readers spend time deeply exploring each principle. Whether you’re a yogi looking to deepen your practice, or someone who just wants to expand your way of living and thinking, you’ll find lots to explore here.

miracle of mindfulnessThe Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh
Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh wrote this brief but thought provoking book that teaches us to bring mindfulness to our everyday activities. In Hanh’s world, even an act as simple as washing the dishes is an opportunity to find peace and presence in each moment.

 

 

the invitationThe Invitation by Oriah Mountain Dreamer
“It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.” Thus opens Oriah’s famous poem, The Invitation, which is the basis of her book. The Invitation asks readers to look deep into themselves to learn to experience life fully. Rachel Carlson, author of Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff says, “The Invitation is a treasure. If you want to live more deeply, honestly, and passionately, you must read this book.”

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Saturdays @ the South: 2016 in Review

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It is entirely possible that Lady Pole,  your friendly South Branch Librarian missed the memo that year-in-review posts are to come before the year ends. Despite being bombarded with year-end lists throughout the month of December, and despite having created a similar post last year in December, I somehow still managed to think that a look back at 2016 belongs at the beginning of 2017. Thus, the first Saturdays @ the South post of the New Year is a retrospect of the South Branch of the old year.

While I mentioned already that I’m eager to leave 2016 in the rear-view mirror, one thing I never have trouble looking back on is the year in book and media that have gone out from the South Branch.
It’s fun for me to see what has been the most popular and that information, in turn, helps me decide what to purchase during the coming year. Thanks to the very helpful folks at NOBLE who were kind enough to pull the data for me, I have a few “top 10” lists on what has been the most popular at the South Branch. And, because (as I’ve mentioned a few times before) I love infographics, I’ve put together those lists in infographic form. (Also, if you’re not as into infographics as I am, I’ve collected them on a Pinterest board.) So for your edification and enjoyment, here are the greatest hits from the South Branch from 2016:

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Did your favorites make the list? Are you surprised by what you found here? There were a couple of surprises for me, including the fact that 2 of the non-fiction books that were the most popular this year can only be found at the South Branch and are not available anywhere else in the NOBLE catalog.

Till next week, dear readers, I’ll continue to review what’s going on at the South Branch to ensure that it serves the needs of our community the best it possibly can and so we can make it an even better library in 2017.

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Five Book Friday!

Welcome, dear readers, to our first Five Book Friday post of the New Year!

I don’t know about you, but the holiday season, though lovely, just gets a bit….relentless….at times.  Which is why we at the Library love Blanket Fort Reading, about which, much more later.  But that doesn’t mean that we can’t celebrate, right?  So here are some holidays in January that can be savored without a great deal of fanfare:

January 8: National Argyle Day

We all know the diamonds-and-stripes pattern of argyle from socks, golf sweaters, and Bert’s sweaters on Sesame Street.  But do we know why they are so familiar?  The argyle pattern is actually the clan colors of Clan Campbell, from Argyll, in western Scotland.  Though familiar in Scotland for centuries, it first gained popularity in the United States after the First World War.  As the US was a military ally of Great Britain, the American media began focusing heavily on the royal family and their doings.  And King George loved to wear argyle sweaters while golfing.  So today, sport a little Clan Campbell pride today!

January 13: National Rubber Duckie Day

And speaking of Sesame Street….according to the 1973 Sesame Street Calendar, January 13 is the birthday of Ernie’s very best pal. Rubber Duckie, who made his television debut in 1970.  The rubber duck has quite a history, as you can see here, but today, it’s ok to have this song stuck in your head…

January 20: National Cheese Lovers’ Day

All hail cheese!  Though I haven’t been able to dig up why we celebrate those who love cheese on this particular day, I am not going to let such as auspicious occasion pass.  Cheese, after all, is one of the oldest foods mankind has sampled, with records going back into prehistoric times.  If you are really a devotee of all things cheese, then you can feast on this fact: The world’s largest cheese was presented at the 1964 New York World’s Fair, weighing in at over 34,000 pounds.

January 23: National Pie Day

Oh, happiest of days!  For all those who, like me, believe pie to be the most perfect of all foods, may all your crusts be ever flaky, your fillings be piping, and may your epicurean delights be unending!  Like cheese, pies, in some form or another, have been around since approximately 9500 BC.  The pie-in-the-face gag has been around since Ben Turpin received one in Mr. Flip, a silent film from 1909.

And, since every day in the Library is New Book Day, here are some of the books that danced their way onto our shelves this week for your delight and enjoyment:

Five Books

3842521Lady Claire is All That: Maya Rodale’s latest Keeping Up with the Cavendishes novel is a nifty spin on the old Pygmalion story, with the “creator” falling in love with his “creation” (and vice versa), but also a great tale about learning to appreciate yourself and your uniqueness in a world of conformity.  Lady Claire is a brilliant non-conformist who has dulled suitors to tears with her talk of mathematics.  While on the hunt for a newly married Duke with whom she intends to discuss equations, she encounters Lord Fox, an athlete and recently jilted suitor whose interest in math is nil–but whose interest in Claire is quite high.  Because Fox has made a bet that he can transform Claire into the bell of the season.  But Claire has plenty of other ideas in mind for her lessons with Fox–and soon their conniving leads to a love that neither ever expected.  Rodale is a master of funny, feminist romances, and this simmering tale of opposites attracting is another jewel in her metaphorical crown.  Publisher’s Weekly agreed, giving this book a starred review and saying “Romance readers weary of insta-love stories will glory in the slow, eminently believable development of physical and emotional intimacy between Claire and Fox. Rodale expertly blends sensuality and genuine admiration in this superb romance.”

3794617Avid Reader: A Life: You might not know his name, but I can guarantee you that you are aware of the enormous influence that Robert Gottlieb has left on publishing.  He began his career editing The Columbia Review, and working in the greeting-card department of Macy’s before landing a job at Simon & Schuster, and becoming the first head of Alfred A. Knopf 12 years later.   He was responsible for publshing Catch-22, among other bestsellers, and has worked with such noteworthy authors as Toni Morrison, Doris Lessing, John le Carré, Michael Crichton, Lauren Bacall, Bill Clinton, and Miss Piggy.  While this book is about his life, and his later work as editor of The New Yorker, Gottlieb’s book is also very much about the act of reading, the art of publishing…and his love of dance.  While inspiring in his success, Gottlieb’s work is also enthralling because of his sheer love of what he does. The New York Times Book Review had a similar observation, noting “Robert Gottlieb’s buoyant memoir of his indefatigable editorial career proves Noel Coward’s observation that work is more fun than fun.”  …Would that we can all be so lucky.

3859810Piano Tide: Do we belong to the Earth or does the Earth belong to us? The question raised by Chief Seathl almost two hundred years ago continues to be the defining question of our age–and in Kathleen Dean Moore’s debut novel, it sparks a startling confrontation in the wilds of rural Alaska.  Axel Hagerman has made his fortune in the forestry and fishing industries, and has recently decided to add to his takings by selling the water from a salmon stream, a quest which brings him face to face with Nora Montgomery, who has just arrived on the ferry with her piano and her dog.  Nora is eager to disappear into the Alaskan landscape, having left everything about her life in the continental United States behind.  But as Axel’s business operations move to more dangerous ventures–namely, a bear pit, Nora finds herself more and more involved, and increasingly ready to take a dangerous stand.  Moore is an award-winning naturalist, philosopher, activist, and she brings all her talents to bear in this novel, creating a story that is very much about nature, mankind’s violence towards it, and the dangers such acts pose.  But it’s also a brilliant character study that is as engaging as it is thought-provoking.  As Booklist notes in its starred review, this novel is “Moore writes so eloquently and with such passion about the natural world, from tiny tide pool inhabitants to giant grizzlies and towering hemlocks, that she leaves the reader in wonder and awe.”

3789497Selection Day: Aravind Adiga was awarded the Man Booker Prize for his novel The White Tiger, and this novel, a deeply moving coming-of-age novel set in the slums of Mumbai, is receiving similarly rave reviews for its insight, wisdom, and impressive scope.  Fourteen-year-old Manjunath Kumar knows he is good at cricket–if not as good as his older brother Radha.  But their obsessed father drives both boys nevertheless, determined to make cricket stars of them both, regardless of Manjunath’s love of science and all things related to CSI.  And when Manju meets Radha’s great rival, a mysterious Muslim boy privileged and confident in all the ways Manju is not, he is forced to come to terms with who he really is, and what that will mean for his family, as well.  A funny, heartfelt story that deals as much with privilege, class, and global ideologies as it does with inter-family relationships, this is book was lauded by The Atlantic‘s Mark Greif, who called it “The best novel I read this year… In its primal triangle of rival brothers and a maniacal father, hell-bent on success in cricket in India, Adiga grips the passions while painting an extraordinary panorama of contemporary sports, greed, celebrity, and mundanity. As a literary master, Adiga has only advanced in his art since his Booker Prize-winning The White Tiger.”

3783817Taste of Persia: In this stunning cookbook, Naomi Duguid takes us on a culinary and visual journey through Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, and Kurdistan, reveling in their religious, ethnic, cultural and geographic diversity, and celebrating all their delicious tastes.  The photos in this book are truly breath-taking, and Duguid has a knack for writing about food, its preparation, and its deeply personal meanings, in a way that is both hunger-inducing and surprisingly emotional.  This book has been named the Best Cookbook of the Year by The Boston Globe, Food & Wine, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, The New York Times Book Review, The San Francisco Chronicle, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal, and is definitely one that needs to be seen to be fully appreciated.  The Wall Street Journal also notes “With one foot in the old world and one in the new, Ms. Duguid does a beautiful job of translating complex concoctions into accurate, easy-to-follow recipes that reflect not just the flavors but the spirit of the countries that once made up the Persian Empire.”  As ever, we at the Library stand ready and willing to taste any of the culinary delights produced from these recipes.

Until next week, beloved patrons–happy reading, and happy new year!

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Best of 2016: The End

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As humanity tries to put this festering wound of a year behind us, you are going to see a lot of “Best of 2016” (and “Worst of 2016”) lists floating around.  But none, I promise you, is quite like the Peabody Library’s Best of 2016 List.  We asked our staff to share with us–and you–their favorite books, films, albums, or other Library materials that they encountered this year.   The response was so terrific that we’ll be running a weekly series for your enjoyment.

And, just a note, the rules were that the media had to be consumed in 2016 (books read, films viewed, albums heard, etc.), but that doesn’t mean that they were made in 2016.  There are some classics on this list, as well as plenty of new material, so you can see all the phenomenal finds the Library has to offer year round!

…There were a few books on a number of people’s ‘Best Of’ Lists this year, so here is a special final edition of our series that covers the “Best of the Best”!

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From the Upstairs Office, the Reference Desk, and the Classics Book Group:

3784204Three Comrades by Erich Maria Remarque

“I wasn’t expecting the romantic beauty that this post WWI Germany set book delivered. All I knew going into this title was that the author wrote All Quiet on the Western Front, so I was expecting a “guy” book. In the end, it was a love book, but a messy love book with no false notes. The male friendships were as well developed as the romantic plot line, if not more so, and they make the book something truly special.”

“This novel drove home the real, lasting, and indelible impact that the First World War had on those who fought in it.  But, more than that, it is a stunning book about friendship, about a place, and about a time that Remarque knew was dying, even as he wrote the book.  Having read All Quiet on the Western Front, I knew Remarque the modernist soldier-writer.  But this Remarque was funny and earnest and insightful, and this book is one that I won’t soon forget.”

The year is 1928. On the outskirts of a large German city, three young men are earning a thin and precarious living. Fully armed young storm troopers swagger in the streets. Restlessness, poverty, and violence are everywhere. For these three, friendship is the only refuge from the chaos around them. Then the youngest of them falls in love, and brings into the group a young woman who will become a comrade as well, as they are all tested in ways they can have never imagined.

Written with the same overwhelming simplicity and directness that made All Quiet on the Western Front a classic, Three Comrades portrays the greatness of the human spirit, manifested through characters who must find the inner resources to live in a world they did not make, but must endure.

From the Upstairs Offices, the Reference Desk, and the South Branch:

3722322The View From the Cheap Seats by Neil Gaiman

“My love for Gaiman knows no bounds, but listening to his collected nonfiction was a particular treat. He’s thoughtful, insightful and honestly, this collection is worth it just to hear him talk about libraries in his own voice.”

An enthralling collection of nonfiction essays on a myriad of topics—from art and artists to dreams, myths, and memories—observed in #1 New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman’s probing, amusing, and distinctive style.

An inquisitive observer, thoughtful commentator, and assiduous craftsman, Neil Gaiman has long been celebrated for the sharp intellect and startling imagination that informs his bestselling fiction. Now, The View from the Cheap Seats brings together for the first time ever more than sixty pieces of his outstanding nonfiction. Analytical yet playful, erudite yet accessible, this cornucopia explores a broad range of interests and topics, including (but not limited to): authors past and present; music; storytelling; comics; bookshops; travel; fairy tales; America; inspiration; libraries; ghosts; and the title piece, at turns touching and self-deprecating, which recounts the author’s experiences at the 2010 Academy Awards in Hollywood.

Insightful, incisive, witty, and wise, The View from the Cheap Seats explores the issues and subjects that matter most to Neil Gaiman—offering a glimpse into the head and heart of one of the most acclaimed, beloved, and influential artists of our time.

From the Reference Desk, and Patron Recommendation:

3622766A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay

“Tremblay’s love of the horror genre drew me into this book (and taught me a great deal, too!), but it is his power to tell a story, to twist a narrative, and most of all, to make me doubt everything I believed to be true, cannot be adequately described.  This book scared me, awed me, and rendered me incapable of functioning when I was done, as I tried to fully grasp the implications of those final eighty pages or so.”

A chilling thriller that brilliantly blends psychological suspense and supernatural horror…The lives of the Barretts, a normal suburban New England family, are torn apart when fourteen-year-old Marjorie begins to display signs of acute schizophrenia.

To her parents’ despair, the doctors are unable to stop Marjorie’s descent into madness. As their stable home devolves into a house of horrors, they reluctantly turn to a local Catholic priest for help. Father Wanderly suggests an exorcism; he believes the vulnerable teenager is the victim of demonic possession. He also contacts a production company that is eager to document the Barretts’ plight. With John, Marjorie’s father, out of work for more than a year and the medical bills looming, the family agrees to be filmed, and soon find themselves the unwitting stars of The Possession, a hit reality television show. When events in the Barrett household explode in tragedy, the show and the shocking incidents it captures become the stuff of urban legend.

Fifteen years later, a bestselling writer interviews Marjorie’s younger sister, Merry. As she recalls those long ago events that took place when she was just eight years old, long-buried secrets and painful memories that clash with what was broadcast on television begin to surface—and a mind-bending tale of psychological horror is unleashed, raising vexing questions about memory and reality, science and religion, and the very nature of evil.

The Romance Garden Top Picks:

3784064A Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet

“First time novelist Amanda Bouchet has given the gift of a completely addictive fantasy romance to genre fans everywhere. A Promise of Fire is the first book of Bouchet’s The Kingmaker Chronicles, and based on the Orange Rose Contest and Paranormal Golden Pen wins, Romance Writers of America thinks it’s pretty great too. In addition to a very well developed cast of characters- Griffin’s family in particular- the world Bouchet creates is believable and well-built. The plotting is also first-rate, making it very difficult to find a good place to put this book down. If you like fantasy and you like romance, like me, you’ll be wonderfully glad you picked it up… until you remember that A Promise of Fire is Bouchet’s first book, and you have to wait until January 2017 for The Kingmaker Chronicles Book 2: Breath of Fire.”
3803359The Fixer by Helenkay DimonThis is not a man who “takes what he wants”, like so many other heroes whose privileges are used to justify their horrible behavior.  This is a romance of equals who respect each other and value each other’s talents and input, and of two people who aren’t used to making interpersonal connections, which adds an utterly charming artlessness and humanity to both characters.  The mystery element of the plot is strong and interesting as well, but for me, this book was about shattering genre conventions, readers’ expectations, and telling a story about a strong, healthy, and honest relationship that was as meaningful as it was engaging.”

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Wednesdays @ West: Write Your Way to Hygge

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Perhaps I’m guilty of stretching the concept of hygge too far, but I personally think that writing can be a perfect cozy winter activity.  If writing warms your heart or penning a book has always been on your bucket list, here are my three suggestions as to how to incorporate more of it into your life in 2017.

  • Write your memoir.  Long, cold winter days and nights are a great yourlifeisabooktime to reminisce.  Get those memories down on the page.  Even if you never publish it, future generations will enjoy reading about your experiences.  If you need a little guidance, check out Your Life is a Book: how to craft and publish your memoir by Brenda Peterson and Sarah Jane Freymann.

sanepersonsguidetoselfpublishingOnce you’ve finished your memoir or novel, you’ll want to get your lovely book into the hands of readers, so you’ll need a plan to publish your work.  You can go the traditional route and try to get your work picked up by a mainstream publisher.  For tips on this option, check out the classic Writers’ Market.  More and more authors, however, are going a new route and self-publishing their books.  For guidance on the DIY path to publication, the West Branch has you covered.  Tomorrow night (Thursday, January 5th) at 7pm, we’ll have self-published author Diane Mulligan here to tell you everything you need to know about the self-publishing process, from preparing your manuscript to marketing your book.  There’s still space in the workshop, so make sure you sign up and join us!

Finally, for those of you who don’t daydream about being an author, I have on final suggestion:

  • Write letters.  Hygge includes a strong emphasis on togetherness. snailmail  But let’s face it, writing (like reading) can often be a solitary past time.  Not so with letter writing.  Sometimes we just can’t be with the ones we love.  Sure, there is e-mail, texting, Facebook and Skyping for virtual togetherness, but to me that lacks a certain coziness.  And really, what brightens up a day more than opening your mailbox to discover a letter from a loved one, instead of just bills or requests for donations?  For an extra-special sense of community, try starting your own version of an Amish circle letter.  And take the time to make your letter a real work of art by creating your own stationary, decorating your envelope and adding other handmade touches before giving it to your mail carrier.  I highly recommend Snail Mail by Michelle Mackintosh for endless inspiration in this department.

So grab that pen, dust off your typewriter or cozy up to your keyboard and get to work.  And may hygge follow!

hyggewriting