Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb

MAYBE YOU SHOULD TALK TO SOMEONE by Lori Gottlieb is a work of non-friction which was recommended by my cousin and which received a starred review from Kirkus who called it “A vivacious portrait of a therapist from both sides of the couch.” The author is a mid-40s single mother who also writes a column for The Atlantic called “Dear Therapist.” She shares anonymous stories from some of her patients as well as her own struggles with a breakup when The Boyfriend decides he does not want to live with her young son. There are many poignant moments as she counsels others (like Julie, the young woman who recieves a devastating cancer diagnosis) and narrates her internal thoughts during her own sessions with a therapist. Did you ever see Shrinking (on Apple TV) with Harrison Ford? This is not as hilarious, but it also takes you into the real lives of a therapist with her own issues and wry sense of humor. MAYBE YOU SHOULD TALK TO SOMEONE deals with feelings, parenting, and other relationships, as Kirkus (again) says: “Saturated with self-awareness and compassion, this is an irresistibly addictive tour of the human condition.” One of my favorite sections mentions “Welcome to Holland” and notes that “Julie started to see that we're all in Holland, because most people don't have lives that go exactly as planned. Even if you're lucky enough to be traveling to Italy, you might experience canceled flights and horrible weather.”

Yet here I Am by Jonathan Capehart

YET HERE I AM by Jonathan Capehart is subtitled “Lessons from a Black Man’s Search for Home” and provides ample insight into the background and influences on this award-winning journalist who appears regularly on PBS NewsHour with David Brooks (How to Know a Person). Capehart shares stories about his childhood including being raised by a single mother and her re-marriage when he was a sophomore in high school (hard on any kid), “a suburban middle-class Black kid who grew up playing with white kids now back in a majority Black city [Newark] with no clue about how to relate or fit in.” Writing about college at Carleton, Capehart says, “without a doubt, just about every wonderful thing that has happened in my life can be traced back to my decision to go to that small liberal arts college in Minnesota.” He continues with engaging stories about his work in the news media, including Washington Post and MSNBC, and offers unique perspective on being gay and Black, commenting, “Blackness is always at the mercy of someone else’s judgment. You can be too Black, not Black enough, or not Black at all, and I have run the range my entire life.” YET HERE I AM received a starred review from Kirkus and praise from, among others, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Katie Couric, Michele Norris, and Jon Meacham. 

Simply Jamie and Cold Kitchen

SIMPLY JAMIE by Jamie Oliver is the latest cookbook for this renowned chef and here he offers suggestions for “Fast & Simple Food.” Oliver divides the recipes between five sections: Midweek Meals, Weekend Wins, One Pan Dinners, Pantry Love and Delicious Desserts. The recipes, like Spiced Cashew Chicken or one of the 8 Cool Ways with Salmon, are comprised of relatively few ingredients and are accompanied by a time estimate to prepare (generally a half hour or less). I am intrigued by Baked Bolognese Crepes, as he says, two big hitters with families. The pictures are colorful and appealing and both air fryer directions and nutrition information are available. SIMPLY JAMIE is a great addition to his many other popular cookbooks.

COLD KITCHEN by Caroline Eden (Samarkand) is subtitled “A Year of Culinary Travels” and contains only a dozen recipes. Instead, Eden describes her travels and reflections on various cuisines as from her Edinburgh kitchen she attempts to recreate favorite dishes like soup from Poland or dessert from Latvia. I found the text to be rather dense and was hoping for a narrative more similar to Ruth Reichl’s Garlic and Sapphires, for example. However, Kirkus gave COLD KITCHEN a starred review and The Wall Street Journal also offers a more thorough and positive review.

The French Ingredient by Jane Bertch

THE FRENCH INGREDIENT is the first book and memoir from Jane Bertch who started La Cuisine Paris in 2009. Despite the early setbacks which she describes that business has become the largest nonprofessional culinary school in France. Bertch subtitles her text “Making a Life in Paris One Lesson at a Time” and very engagingly depicts nearly two decades living and working in Europe. It is an eventful transition from a retail banker to a founder of a cooking school. Entrepreneurs will relate to her comments: “I was on a roller-coaster ride -- at one moment thinking, Forget it this will never work, the next feeling euphoric because we had booked a client or got some press.” She also does an entertaining job of contrasting her own grandmother’s “chaotic” kitchen with the French mise en place: the preparation for the meal with everything washed, chopped, measured, etc. before cooking begins, noting “this is likely why in a French cookbook, you will often see ingredients presented in order of quantities (highest to lowest), rather than when you use them (as in American cookbooks).” She also writes about the importance of relationships, particularly clients and regulars at a food establishment. A fun and informative read, and Bertch says, “I hope that something within these pages inspires you to do whatever you dare to think you can do -- despite all the obstacles and doubts.”

We are Home by Ray Suarez

WE ARE HOME by Ray Suarez (Latino Americans) is subtitled “Becoming American in the 21st Century: an Oral History.”  When reading this text, I was struck by how at least some Americans seem to easily forget that we are a nation of immigrants – according to the most recent Census report, 13.9 percent, or roughly one in seven of us are foreign born. That means nearly everyone would have friends and neighbors, even family, amongst these 46.2 million people. As Suarez notes, it is even more astounding when one realizes that a quarter of Americans are foreign-born themselves or the children of foreign born residents. In WE ARE HOME, he shares the stories of several immigrants, including Samir (from Yemen, but grew up in Kenya and won a lottery for his family to come to the USA), Margaret (from Scotland who met her husband in Iran and settled in the US after that revolution), and Jaime (from El Salvador whose father applied for asylum). Suarez weaves in facts about historical changes like the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 and other statistics although the preview of his text sadly lacks any notes or bibliography. Overall, I think Suarez is trying to humanize and personalize the immigrant experience, but he takes a winding path to make key points about how immigrants contribute to American life. With an aging population, we need each other more than ever. One example is the March 2024 report from the Association of American Medical Colleges which projected the shortage of doctors in the United States to be 86,000 by 2036. Even the Wall Street Journal has run several articles concerned about nursing shortages and new State Department proposals which could limit the number of au pairs allowed to work here. Hopefully, there are stories in WE ARE HOME and from resources like Pew Research Center and Migration Policy Institute that can contribute to a fact-based sharing of information on the important, but divisive, topic of immigration reform.

Troubled by Rob Henderson

Subtitled “A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class,” TROUBLED by Rob Henderson describes his experiences in foster care, the military, Yale and Cambridge. In some ways, this text is reminiscent of 2016’s Hillbilly Elegy as both chronicle childhood instability (life with drug addicts and abandonment by parents) followed by military stints and time at Yale (in fact, Vance “blurbed” this new book). Henderson is quietly reflective and focuses a great deal on what he labels as “luxury beliefs.” He writes at length about differences in experiences and perspectives, noting, for example, “in one of my classes at Yale, I learned that eighteen out of the twenty students were raised by both of their birth parents. That stunned me, because none of the kids I knew growing up was raised by both of their parents.” Later, he comments, “I grew to understand that there were aspects of social class that can't be quantified or put on a resume” and “part of integrating into this community meant having a cursory knowledge of the latest op-eds and fashionable news items.” Henderson himself has written an essay with excerpts (“Only the affluent can afford to learn strange vocabulary. Ordinary people have real problems to worry about”) from TROUBLED for The Wall Street Journal. Given Henderson’s frustration, anger, and bitterness at “elites” and hypocrisy, it would be interesting to compare and contrast his conclusions with the analysis and commentary on White Rural Rage recently published in The New York Times.

But You Don't Look Arab by Hala Gorani

BUT YOU DON'T LOOK ARAB by Hala Gorani includes a Timeline of Key Events (stretching from 1909 to 2023) and a Select Bibliography. Gorani, an Emmy Award–winning international news anchor who was raised mostly in France, shares her family’s story and provides significant background about the twentieth century history of Syria and surrounding regions. Her text is both informative and emotive and I know specific students who would readily relate to her situation of being the blond-haired, blue-eyed daughter of Syrian immigrants. Gorani makes the choice to group events geographically (with sections labelled for major cities Aleppo, Cairo, Paris, Istanbul, Baghdad, Beirut, for example) rather than chronologically. In some ways, this makes following her thoughts more difficult for readers, but simultaneously allows them to more fully immerse themselves in another culture. Future journalists and readers curious about the Middle East will enjoy this new title as well as No Ordinary Assignment by Jane Ferguson.

Exit Inteview by Kristi Coulter

EXIT INTERVIEW by Kristi Coulter is a spirited and relatable discussion of employment at Amazon from 2006 to 2018. Coulter, a gifted writer, begins by describing the all-day interview process; although she seems surprised by some questions (e.g., How many gas stations in the US?). Coulter uses the subtitle “The Life and Death of My Ambitious Career” and she writes about the evolution of her feelings towards the organization for which she works and the content, decisions, and impact of that work. Some chapters looking specifically at events associated with female employment since 1972 – simultaneously disheartening and amusing, these are fascinating compilations of national (passage of the ERA; Ferraro for VP), local (harassment at Amazon), and personal (family dynamics, childhood games) occurrences. Her insights on gender are thoughtful; they are not overly strident, but they do allow readers to appreciate the inherent biases that are present in society and particularly (and unfortunately!) in the tech sector. Hopefully, some readers will recognize themselves and pause for deeper reflection. Her own father seems unable to acknowledge the prejudice she faces daily. Likewise, her own capitulation to work pressures and toxic workplace expectations should provide an opportunity for further introspection by all of us. Obviously, it is not just the warehouse conditions at Amazon that are prompting injury, burnout, and exit interviews.  

No Ordinary Assignment by Jane Ferguson

NO ORDINARY ASSIGNMENT is a memoir from Jane Ferguson, Peabody and Emmy award-winning reporter for the PBS NewsHour. Beginning with reflections on her childhood and the troubles in Northern Ireland Ferguson says she understands “now how the crack of bullets echoes long through the years, triggering a cascade of tragic events in individual lives.” Her bravery is often manifested in her news reporting and she relates this to the anxiety and she faced when young, writing, “my ability to make peace with fear, to let it hitch a ride along with my life, began under that staircase in my childhood house.” Although she writes about being inspired by reporters like Martha Gellhorn, Kate Adie, Dervla Murphy, and Gertrude Bell, one readily senses her own inner strength and resilience – the ability to adapt that she showed as a scholarship attendee at an exclusive boarding school in the US as well as working on the factory floor and killing chickens back in Ireland the summer before college. NO ORDINARY ASSIGNMENT received a starred review from Kirkus and made me think of how small acts (a surprise check allowed her to pursue some post-graduate studies in Yemen) can have a big impact on others’ lives. Interested in foreign correspondents? See also And Then All Hell Broke Loose by Richard Engel which describes reporting from the Middle East and was published several years ago.