The Crooked Places Made Straight by Raphael G. Warnock

THE CROOKED PLACES MADE STRAIGHT by Raphael G. Warnock is definitely informed by his position as a “pastor who serves in the Senate.” He invites readers to take a spiritual journey with him, writing “Our country needs moral leadership and a renewed vision like Isaiah’s, one that invites us to reach out to one another, to pray for one another rather than prey on one another, and to reach toward our highest and noblest ideas rather than sink in our basest fears.” Warnock explores six issues to offer “Reflections on the Moral Meaning of America.” He devotes a lengthy chapter each to voter suppression, influence of dark money, poverty, incarceration, gun violence and the climate. He quotes the Bible frequently and notes, for example, that there are “some two thousand verses in the Old and New Testaments about the poor and how to treat them.”  Warnock is not afraid to point out hypocrisy and that “the harshest and meanest voices against poor people in our country are often Christian voices.” He notes the efforts to cut or restrict programs like Head Start, Upward Bound and Pell grants, all of which he had personally participated in. Saying “we suffer from a poverty not of resources but of moral imagination and from a deficit of courage and vision,” Warnock outlines three goals for his thought-provoking book, paraphrased here: (1) to inspire readers to renew a common sense of purpose and to talk to people outside their comfort zone; (2) to urge politicians to look beyond election cycles and to take action to help the people they serve rather than their own ambitions; and (3) to reengage, especially for all of our children, to “when you pray, move your feet.” Publishers Weekly called this “a clarion call for a fairer America” – have a look. 

The Lost Book of Elizabeth Barton by Jennifer N. Brown

Somehow, I kept hearing about THE LOST BOOK OF ELIZABETH BARTON by Jennifer N. Brown prior to its publication and I am glad I was able to read a preview of this historical fiction debut. The story is set in two time periods, the 1500’s when Elizabeth Barton (a real person regarded as a visionary and saint by some) and 2023 when fictional academic Alison Sage has discovered a bound copy of Barton’s prophecies and is invited to an exclusive conference to discuss her research. From the beginning something seems off, but Alison is new to the professional attention and gladly shares with other professionals (Roger, Charles, Westley, Marla, Brian and Arjun) whose work tangentially relates to her own. They actually stay at a Manor House within walking distance of the priory where Elizabeth (The Holy Maid of Kent) lived. Brown alternates the time periods so as to provide background about the dangers surrounding the religious conflicts when Henry VIII was planning to divorce/annul and (re)marry. She also describes possible motivations and actions of the prioress and Elizabeth’s benefactors, basing her writing on texts, letters or sermons and families who lived at the time. It is a fascinating look at that period. Modern day Alison, however, seems a bit naïve especially when she rekindles a romance with a fellow scholar. THE LOST BOOK OF ELIZABETH BARTON received starred reviews from both Booklist (“Recommend to fans of Wolf Hall and all readers consumed with the treacherous Tudor times.”) and Publishers Weekly (“excels at depicting the manipulation of women across the centuries … . Fans of historical suspense will be wowed.”).

Consider the Birds edited by Callie Smith Grant

CONSIDER THE BIRDS contains a series of essays about human interaction with birds, sometimes with them as pets, sometimes observing them in nature. The collection is edited by Callie Smith Grant and the audiobook is narrated by Siiri Scott. Together with the contributing authors they do indeed share “Heartwarming True Stories of Our Feathered Friends.”  There are some religious references, but overall, CONSIDER THE BIRDS contains gentle stories and offers pleasant listening.  It was informative to hear about wildlife rehabilitation and the special connection, like knowing when backyard birds were in distress, that an author developed. This recording is full of facts, too; did you know that swallows who can fly and eat at the same time? There are tales about a pet crow, about hummingbirds, and a seagull (coincidentally, the state bird of Utah) named Coco who was adept at asking for food from a restaurant waiter. The antics are often fun and generally informative, describing actions, diet, and even parenting styles for these amazing creatures.

Heart of a Stranger by Angela Buchdahl

HEART OF A STRANGER by Angela Buchdahl is certainly in contention for my favorite book of the year. That is a surprise because this is the story of an Asian American female Rabbi. Other than female, I don’t check any of those boxes, but I truly loved her “Unlikely Rabbi's Story of Faith, Identity, and Belonging.” At the end of each section, she offers a mini-sermon of sorts, exploring a concept, like this: “Faith is a noun, something you can have or possess, as ‘I have faith in God.’ Trust, on the other hand, is a verb. It is something you do or act upon. It is a choice and a deliberate response as in ‘I trusted, so I followed.’” HEART OF A STRANGER received a starred review from Publishers Weekly. The Washington Post review says, [our] “nation … has long rewarded those who chase opportunity and embrace pluralism. Today those ideals are more fragile than ever, and Buchdahl’s story now feels like an example of what once worked in America but may soon be lost.” This is an amazing, inspiring story for people of all faiths. Highly recommended.

What Matters Most by Diane Button

WHAT MATTERS MOST by Diane Button probes “Lessons the Dying Teach Us About Living.” I have a very kind friend interested in becoming a death doula and I think that is probably why I originally requested this text. However, a dear aunt was just diagnosed with cancer last week and is already in hospice, so this book feels even more poignant as I watch the grace and stoicism with which she is approaching death. Button has been acting as a death doula for a couple of decades and each chapter in WHAT MATTERS MOST shares a story of one of her patients. near the end, she provides a list of six questions designed to help take steps towards a meaningful life: (1) Who matters most? (2) What matters most? (3) What worries you most when lying awake in bed at night? (4) What brings you joy when you are awake in the daytime? (5) What is left unsaid? And (6) What is left undone? Readers will clearly be moved by the readings and by the reflection on a meaningful life which this compelling book prompts. Each chapter end a with a “lesson” like “Don’t forget to count your joys” or “There is power in an intentional pause or “We don’t Have to wait for a special moment to celebrate. Find the moment in the present.”  This is a beautiful book.

My Beloved by Jan Karon

MY BELOVED by best-selling author Jan Karon is book fifteen in the Mitford series featuring Father Tim Kavanaugh and his many parishioners in a small town in North Carolina. It was refreshing to return to Father Tim’s simple truths (I understand. Thank you. I'm sorry. Love you.) and the endearing cast of characters who make up his friends and extended family. They always seem ready for a challenge – whether it is running a bookstore or rehabbing a derelict building. I especially enjoyed the scenes with (former mayor) Esther and Ray Cunningham as they get ready to celebrate their 70th wedding anniversary. And then there is the mystery of the disappearing love letter – will it be found/returned in time for Christmas? In between, Karon sprinkles observations (“They say you fall because you're old. You do no such thing. You fall because you're not payin’ attention.”) and mini-homilies (“That's one of the things friends are for - to listen to our repeat stories.”). Jan Karon puts her heart into these books and of MY BELOVED, written after her daughter’s death, she says, “The characters are essentially the same, but the author is different. In MY BELOVED, I opened up like I hadn't done since Candace's diagnosis. Opening up can be scary but I didn't run - I surrendered. … I was laughing, hard. And crying, hard. And I knew I was home.”

Ordinary Time by Annie B. Jones

ORDINARY TIME by Annie B. Jones is subtitled “Lessons Learned While Staying Put.” Reading this collection of story essays made me feel as though Annie Sue Butterworth Jones was a dear friend sharing her wise observations on life. Readers will learn that she is a talented writer and the owner of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in Thomasville, Georgia. One of my book group members also says she “meets with her weekly” since Jones hosts From the Front Porch, a regular podcast about books, small business, and life in the South. In ORDINARY TIME, she writes about family, her dreams, marriage, best friends and so much else (the only section which seems to be oversharing is about religion and her crisis of faith). She offers numerous self-reflective insights: “playing was silencing the perfectionist inside me” or “I am a finisher. But life requires a lot of opening. And I am not so good with the opening, the starting of something new.” Jones herself describes ORDINARY TIME as “a collection of stories about a life rooted in place, the blooming of possibility that can happen there, but also the hardship, the loneliness, the longing for more.” I especially liked her comments on childhood, “our childhood obsessions like basketball or The Baby-Sitters Club can save us. They can remind us of who we were before anything mattered, … before everything felt heavy and hard. When life is overwhelming and challenging and our joy is stolen or hard to find, I think the things we once loved can bring us back, center us, make us whole.”

Her sections on books and reading are well worth re-reading and I wanted to note a couple of other quotes: “I wonder if this is why I love books. I can dip my toe into other lives without entirely changing my own.” and “I read books because, at their best, they make me better, more empathetic, more socially aware, more in tune to the stranger beside me. They help me imagine a better future, provide answers to my insatiable questions, take me to places I'll never get to go. I read books because they are an easy point of entry to relationship.” and “A love of books is the through line of my life, a hobby I can trace back to my earliest childhood memories and immediately weave through my middle school and high school selves ...” 

A Dangerous Idea by Debbie Levy

A DANGEROUS IDEA by Debbie Levy is subtitled “The Scopes Trial, The Original Fight over Science in Schools” and has been mentioned on this blog previously. It covers a very relevant topic, not only due to the centenary nature of the events it describes, but also because of the contemporary debates related to science (e.g., vaccine efficacy) and book banning. Levy, a best-selling writer of books for young people, vividly transports readers to the 1920s through her words and visuals like images of the high school textbook, Civic Biology, that helped spark the lawsuit from ACLU. She begins by describing how local leaders in Dayton, Ohio encouraged the trial so as to promote visits and spur the local economy. Of course, she also focuses on the backgrounds of the two prominent lawyers, William Jennings Bryan (multiple times Presidential candidate) and Clarence Darrow, and on the trial, its media coverage, and the religious fervor – once again, so many parallels to today. Levy spoke about the book with School Library Journal, saying “What made this book fun to write—and I hope will make it fun to read and maybe to teach, or at least to talk about—is it’s full of surprises.” One I spotted: the court case began with a prayer at the invitation of the presiding judge. A DANGEROUS IDEA received multiple starred reviews, including ones from Booklist, Horn Book, School Library Journal and Shelf Awareness. The text is extensively researched - Levy includes a helpful timeline, source notes, and selected bibliography; together they comprise roughly twenty percent of the text. Interested readers (especially middle and high school students) may also want to read a fictionalized account related to the Scopes Trial featured in Monkey Town (2006) from Ronald Kidd. Some adult titles include the play (later a movie) Inherit the Wind by Jerome Lawrence and recent non-fiction Keeping the Faith by Brenda Wineapple.  

The Grey Wolf by Louise Penny

THE GREY WOLF by Louise Penny is number 19 in the Inspector Gamache mystery series set in Three Pines, Quebec. The title comes from a tale about a Cree elder who referred to two wolves who war inside each of us. One is strong and compassionate, wise and courageous, the forgiving Grey Wolf; the other, the Black Wolf, is vengeful, unforgiving, cruel, cunning and brutal. And once again, Gamache faces evil – this time related to a threat to the infrastructure and an environmental challenge: “How lucky he'd been. To be of a generation that believed it would last forever. The forests and clean rivers, the fresh air. His was the last generation, as it turned out.” Jean Guy and Isabelle are stalwart aides as they seek to prevent terrorism and to root out treachery and corruption, travelling to homeless shelters, remote monasteries, and the Vatican itself. In her Acknowledgements, Penny provides an eloquent summary: “The Gamache books are proudly crime novels, … but at their core they are about community. Acceptance. Belonging. Courage. The books are about the triumph of love and the power of friendship about trying to do better. Progress, not perfection.” THE GREY WOLF received starred reviews from Booklist, Library Journal, and Publishers Weekly (“one of the series’ best”). I was sorry to learn that Book People had run out of copies when I visited, but it appears they have restocked and they conveniently list ALL of the titles in this excellent series. Note: number 20, The Black Wolf, is scheduled for 2025!

The Cliffs by J. Courtney Sullivan

THE CLIFFS by J. Courtney Sullivan features an old, possibly haunted, house near Awadapquit, Maine. The other main character, a young woman called Jane, used the abandoned house as an isolated refuge when she was a lonely high schooler. She soon left town for college and ultimately found a “dream job” as an archivist specializing in women’s issues at a Cambridge Library. Over the years, she introduces her future husband to the house when they visit her mother and sister, who work together in the resale field and both of whom struggle with alcoholism. Then, at 38, Jane ends up back in Awadapquit, with both her marriage and career in jeopardy due to her own overindulgence with alcohol (“Sometimes the tragedies of a person's life didn't happen neatly, single file, one at a time, but all at once, so that it was impossible to know how you felt about any part of the whole.”). At that time, the new owner hires Jane to learn more about the house’s history and her capable research was my favorite part of the book. Sullivan expands upon Jane’s findings about the sea-faring captain who built the house; she devotes entire chapters to his wife and her maid, giving each a voice in describing their lives. Readers also meet the next owner, a talented artist who experienced a family tragedy. And there are even sections on the Indigenous people who named the area. Sullivan has included numerous threads – spiritualism and mediums (“…bodily death is not the end of consciousness. It is merely the passing of the soul into another plane.”); the Shaker religion; abuse and misuse of historical artifacts; women’s roles over time; alcoholism’s impact across generations; and modern-day entitlement. Both The Washington Post and The New York Times (“This skillful novel makes the case that knowing what came before offers us our best chance to truly understand our connections to one another, and what we owe to the land we inhabit.”) also reviewed THE CLIFFS which received a starred review from Kirkus and was the July 2024 Reese’s Book Club selection.

New titles about the American Civil War

The first national observance of Memorial Day occurred on May 30, 1868. Then known as Decoration Day, the holiday was proclaimed to honor the Union soldiers who had died in the Civil War. Here are reviews of three excellent books which deal with the Civil War time period.

WIDE AWAKE is a newly published book by Jon Grinspan who is Curator of Political History at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Grinspan’s love of history and his devotion to scholarship shines through as he relates steps in his research on “The Forgotten Force that Elected Lincoln and Spurred the Civil War.” I was intrigued by his comments of looking into newspaper databases and was able to locate over one hundred and fifty front page newspaper articles from 1860 or earlier about this paramilitary group. They wore uniforms, had banners with a wide-open eye (see image of certificate below), marched (often with torches), and widely supported Lincoln and other Republicans in the 1860 election. Almost all ended up eventually joining the Union forces. Commenting on the echoes of history, and this “grassroots force pushing elite leaders into action,” Grinspan writes that the “Wide Awakes of 1860 wrestled with the same forces -- mass democracy, public protest, free speech, political violence, slavery, and race -- that we grapple with today.” Booklist gave WIDE AWAKE a starred review and Kirkus describes his well-written text as “a welcome study of an overlooked aspect of the Civil War and the events leading up to it.” Extensive notes and references comprise roughly twenty percent of this text.

THE AGITATORS by Dorothy Wickenden (Nothing Daunted) is about “three friends who fought for abolition and women's rights.” Readers may be familiar with stories about Harriet Tubman, a famous underground railroad conductor, but are likely less well-versed about Martha Coffin Wright, a Quaker (and sister to Lucretia Mott) who criticized Lincoln’s position on slavery and organized women’s rights conventions with Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. The third member of the trio is Frances Seward; as the wife of Governor, then Senator, and then Secretary of State William H. Seward, her influence was often largest behind the scenes. The three friends lived in Auburn, New York and Wickenden traces their efforts from the 1820s onward through 1875 in a detail-filled text. Her afterward, extensive notes, and selected bibliography together comprise at least a fourth of the book. THE AGITATORS received starred reviews from Library Journal (“Filling a gap in the telling of women's and abolitionist history, this highly readable book gives these three women their due.”) and Publishers Weekly (“an essential addition to the history of American progressivism”).

Finally, THE DEMON OF UNREST by Erik Larson (The Splendid and the Vile) is subtitled “A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War” and the best-selling author definitely chronicles the exploits of some unsavory characters. For example, Larson recounts James Henry Hammond’s sexual abuse of his nieces and subsequent selection to Federal office, serving as Senator for South Carolina. Often commenting on other parallels to today’s headlines, Larson writes, “I had the eerie feeling that present and past had merged. It is unsettling that in 1861 two of the greatest moments of national dread centered on the certification of the Electoral College vote and the presidential inauguration.” This text, too, is extensively researched with approximately twenty percent devoted to a lengthy bibliography and detailed notes. THE DEMON OF UNREST did receive starred reviews from Booklist and Publishers Weekly. While highly regarded, it did not feel as compelling as earlier works by Larson, however.

A Great Country by Shilpi Somaya Gowda

A GREAT COUNTRY by Shilpi Somaya Gowda is a novel which uses suspense and family dynamics to explore attitudes towards race, immigration, class, and privilege. Early on, Gowda writes about how “a country whose global advantage was its diversity born of immigration was turning its back on what had made it great.” She describes the lives of two hard-working immigrants, husband and wife Ashok and Priya Shah, who recently moved from Irvine to the wealthier enclave of Pacific Hills. Running their own business, they “keep their heads down” and seem to be fulfilling the American Dream. All of that is disrupted when their 12-year-old son, Ajay, is arrested by an over-zealous cop who fails to account for Ajay’s age and communication difficulties likely attributable to autism. There are two older sisters, Deepa – a rebel at heart who prefers their old neighbors and tries to open her parents’ eyes to “the challenges of being a visible minority and an obvious foreigner” – and Maya, a young high school student desperately trying to fit in and loosing her own identity in the process. A timely and well-crafted look into American society and a family in crisis, A GREAT COUNTRY received a starred review from Publishers Weekly who wrote “Readers won’t want to put this down.” I concur – I read this novel in two days – definitely recommended. Teachers, students, and book groups will find much to discuss; as Gowda prompts in her author’s note when referring to the South Asian American post-pandemic experience: “the minority group often deemed to be 'model' in the US was being forced to reconsider its role and comfort level in this country. Should we be seeking common cause with other communities of color? Or protecting ourselves in dangerous times? What did it mean to be an American in this new context, hyphenated or otherwise?”

Latinoland by Marie Arana

LATINOLAND by Marie Arana is subtitled “A Portrait of America's Largest and Least Understood Minority.” Arana, a prolific author and finalist for the National Book Award, is very honest, creative and personal in her approach to this topic. She notes that “today one in five souls on American soil claims Hispanic heritage” and “we are not a unified people.” Her efforts to share her experiences and the stories of individuals like Carolyn Curiel or Ellen Ochoa add detail. However, as even she points out “one book cannot possibly capture the whole” and this necessarily broad brush tends to cloud summary conclusions. I had expected more data to be readily available and wish that Arana had been able to include more charts and graphs in addition to the sweeping historical reflection and moving stories she shares. LATINOLAND is extremely well-researched with Arana including copious notes that comprise almost a third of the text. Both Booklist and Kirkus (“an impressively wide-ranging overview”) gave Arana’s work a starred review.

Did you know that there are plans to open a National Museum of the American Latino on the National Capital Mall in 2035? There are so many interesting written works and resources available. Examples include Harvest of Empire (revised in 2022) by Juan Gonzalez, many of the books by Héctor Tobar, and (especially for high school readers) Living Beyond Borders (2021) edited by Margarita Longoria. The much older (2013) Latino Americans from Ray Suarez was also a series on pbs; the accompanying website features ideas for lesson plans and educational materials such as updated statistics from Pew Research Center.  Numerous schools and colleges have crafted libguides for Hispanic Heritage Month; one of the most comprehensive is from Rice University’s Fondren Library. No doubt Marie Arana (who disparages Nixon’s efforts to create the original week in honor of American Hispanics) would at least encourage more conversation around these materials; as she says, “although we account for more than half of the US population growth over the last decade … it seems as if the rest of the country is perpetually in the act of discovering us.”

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.

The Heaven & Earth Grocery Story by James McBride

THE HEAVEN & EARTH GROCERY STORE by award-wining author James McBride is a complex, difficult novel to describe, but one that deserves your attention. Here are some thoughts from the author’s interview on PBS NewsHour:

Encouraging writers to forget race and focus on humanity, McBride says, “Self-definition is the first step towards self-control. ... just appreciate everyone for who they are.” He develops rich characters in his latest novel which centers on Pottstown Pennsylvania’s Chicken Hill neighborhood where Moshe and Chona Ludlow integrated a theater and ran a grocery store although the community was mostly filled with Black residents, including de facto community leader Nate (the theater’s janitor) and his wife, Addie. A skeleton is found in 1972, but relevant events from 40 years earlier drive the mystery and McBride's empathetic social commentary about marginalized groups (Jews, Blacks, Italian immigrants) in America. THE HEAVEN & EARTH GROCERY STORE was a LibraryReads selection for August 2023 and received multiple starred reviews: Booklist (“Funny, tender, knockabout, gritty, and suspenseful”), Kirkus (“pitch-perfect dialogue”), Library Journal (“compellingly written, and not to be missed”), AND Publishers Weekly (“endlessly rich saga”). For additional perspective, especially about the novel’s rather slow pace, here is the New York Times review.

All the Sinners Bleed by S. A. Cosby

ALL THE SINNERS BLEED by S. A. Cosby (Blacktop Wasteland) is another fantastic mix of mystery, crime, and social commentary by this award-winning, gifted author. Cosby introduces Titus Crown, a former FBI agent who is now the Black sheriff in a rural Virginia community. In addition to all of the prejudice and bigotry he faces there is also a school shooting and gruesome discoveries about a serial killer. Like his other novels, Cosby offers non-stop action and an interesting, well-developed cast of characters – readers learn about Titus’s family (deceased Mom, Pop, and brother), former and current girlfriends, and a mix of co-workers, each with their own issues. We listened to the audiobook and thoroughly enjoyed the presentation, including subtle changes in inflection and accent to represent different characters. ALL THE SINNERS BLEED received starred reviews from Library Journal and Publishers Weekly, plus it was a LibraryReads selection for June. For yet another positive opinion (“a far better novel than Cosby’s earlier books” which, given their high quality is saying something) see Stephen King’s review in The New York Times. Highly recommended.