Appalachian Song by Michelle Shocklee

Appalachian Song by Michelle Shocklee
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this dual timeline (1943/1973) book with midwives and music at its core. In 1943, a young girl who calls herself Songbird shows up in the yard of a midwife who lives with her four sisters, wounded in the shoulder by her father, because she won't drink a potion to abort her baby. Although hiding and caring for Songbird could bring danger to the sisters, they decide to do it. For four months, she stays there, endears herself to even the dissenting sister, and gives birth to a beautiful baby boy. When her father shows up a few weeks later, wanting to sell the child, Songbird and Bertie (the midwife sister) take off from their home in the back woods of Sevier county (Smoky Mountains, TN) and with the help of a pair of pastors, take the child to Nashville, where he is adopted by a loving couple. I will stop here and not share the 1973 plotline, but it's well worth your time to read it yourself.
I definitely plan to seek out more of her work.

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The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 stars - Sometimes the stars align and you find a book that is just right at the right time. This book, about three orphaned witches taken in by a motley crew that includes an older gay couple who've been together for 50 years, a middle aged woman, who acts as household manager, and a thirty-ish male librarian with trust issues. They decide they need a witchy tutor for the girls to help them accept themselves and master their talents, and Mika Moon fits the bill. Mika herself grew up without a family, as female witches die young if they give birth. Primrose, the self-appointed leader of the English witch group, took her in and used a series of nanny/tutors to raise her, while being mostly absent. One of Primrose's steadfast rules is that witches need to be solitary, for the protection of all. Mika has been alone, lonely and found it hard to trust others for much of her life. But she finds herself with strong feelings for the girls and their caretakers, much to her chagrin.
This book is about finding ourselves, and our places in the world, and taking risks, and it really spoke to me.

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Foreign Correspondence by Geraldine Brooks

Foreign Correspondence: A Pen Pal's Journey from Down Under to All Over by Geraldine Brooks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I have read all the novels Geraldine Brooks has written, enjoyed them all, and have wanted to read this memoir for years. It isn't available in many public libraries, but I was able to get it From UT Knoxville, through interlibrary loan.
I didn't realize that before Brooks wrote novels, she was a foreign correspondent, who grew up in Australia. Her introduction to the larger world was developed through a series of pen friends that she regularly corresponded with from adolescence through young adulthood. It was when she came home to bury her father, as an adult, that she found the many letters from these friends, who came from America, France, Israel, and one from Australia. She decides that she will see what has happened to these people 23 years later. The second half of the book sees her visiting them, or in the case of her favorite friend, who died in her early twenties, her mother. She will continue that relationship for the rest of their lives.
I really enjoyed reading this memoir and seeing clues to some of the themes in her other books.

It was my first childish inkling of the way writing can reveal us to ourselves. It was also my introduction to the notion that Australians have lives that were worth writing about. p. 32

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Violeta by Isabel Allende (a reread 3 years later)

Violeta by Isabel Allende
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 rounded to 4.0 stars - This is the first book that I have read by Isabel Allende, it jumped out at me from a New Book shelf at the library. The storyline is epic, covering a full century, but the author does it in just over 300 pages. While this is a very reasonable length for a book, the premise is that this is basically a letter that she is writing (albeit on her computer) from her deathbed to her beloved grandson.
Violeta is born during the 1920s flu pandemic and dies 100 years later during the COViD pandemic. In between she lives an interesting life filled with lovers, revolutions, family, and fortune. From Depression to depression, wealth to poverty, tiny villages to world travel, feminism, Cold War, and the war on drugs, this book encompasses it all in a way that was interesting, but not overwhelming.

Update 1/24/25 - I didn't realize this was a reread, until I had checked it out. I started reading it at the library, and by the end of the day had devoured it. It was really interesting, having read the earlier book The Soul of a Woman, which was a memoir, and seeing the parallels between her life and the main character's life. Well worth the reread.

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52 Ways to Walk by Annabel Streets

52 Ways to Walk: The Surprising Science of Walking for Wellness and Joy, One Week at a Time by Annabel Streets
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2.5 rounded to 3 stars - It's not that the book didn't have some interesting ideas, it's more that it felt it needed to come up with an arbitrary number (52) of them. Some of the better ones:
-Walking in the cold is good, it helps to form brown fat
-Your gait at age 45 can help predict your chances of getting Alzheimer's, but it's unknown whether the changes in your brain affect your gait, or vice versa (I suspect the former).
-Studies show that people who are able to cultivate solitude (walk alone!) are more resilient and contented.
-Don't take pictures, take the time to sketch while you walk. You'll experience and remember more.
-Make it a daily habit, in all kinds of weather, all times of day or night, and in many types of places.
Of course, there is also the ridiculous - Walk backwards! The example given was Plennie Wingo, who, in 1931 decided to walk around the world - in reverse. He did end up going 7,000 miles, but during that time he sprained his ankle, fractured it, and caused a car crash. No thanks.
The irony of this suggestion doesn't escape me. The author, who claims to love to walk, had bad back pain from her seated job. She was seriously considering quitting it to become a walking-tour guide, but decided to buy a desk treadmill instead.

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Holiday Greetings from Crossville

It's hard to believe that 2024 is almost in the books, and that we have lived in Tennessee for more than 5 years now. We may live in Tennessee, but our hearts are with our loved ones, wherever you may be. We did some traveling this year, our first trip to Florida - Pensacola, in January; Hawai'i again in February to see our newest granddaughter; Indy/NY for the eclipse, Missouri in May to see Alden graduate and do another section of Route 66, and back to NY in July for John's sister, Jean's Celebration of Life. We finished our travels with a trip to Virginia for our anniversary and a short trip to do the Illinois section of Route 66 in September. We were blessed with several visits from family, including all four grandsons and Corey and Jess at Thanksgiving. Here are a few of our favorite memories.

That Librarian by Amanda Jones

That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America by Amanda Jones
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm not sure what to say about this book. It makes me angry. I am a librarian, and the idea that anyone would treat this librarian in this way, and would advocate banning books without having read them is outrageous. Libraries correctly have a challenge system available to members of the public who are concerned about the appropriateness and placement of any given book in the collection. The system involves actually reading the book in question, and thoughtfully explaining why you think it is inappropriate. Sometimes books do need to be reviewed, whether for age appropriateness or other content related issues. Sometimes a book just needs to be moved to a different section of the library. Librarians are professionals and as such, are careful with their collection choices. But, they are also humans, and occasionally make mistakes.
Regardless, no one has the right to slander and smear another person in the way that Amanda was treated. She stood up at a public library meeting and stated that public libraries are for all members of the public, including the marginalized. Collection policies are carefully considered, and policies are in place to deal with any book there are concerns about. At no time, did she reference a specific book, or imply that parents did not have the right to oversee what their children read. In fact, she pointed out that was, in fact, the parents' duty, and that many libraries have policies in place that require adult supervision of children. As a result of her speaking out, she was accused of being a pedophile, a groomer and a porn pusher, and had death threats made against her. What is this world coming to?
Chapters 15 and 16 are worth reading, without a doubt. However, there were a few issues that prevented me from rating this book higher. I wish the editing had been tighter, in places it tended to be repetitive. Also, I came away with the message that "all Republicans are bad" and "Fox News is evil and spreads lies." Blanket statements like that, about any group are, in my experience, not the way to build consensus and create a better world.


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