New texts from podcasters ...

 Here are a couple of new texts coming out this week from podcasters and an award-winning science writer:

ORGANIZING FOR THE REST OF US by Dana K. White promises “100 Realistic Strategies to Keep Any House Under Control.” It is unfortunate that the cover is so muted and not really appealing, but some of the ideas do gel. For example, White who is a blogger and podcaster about decluttering, encourages readers to accept that they have too much stuff. She says, “focusing on having “less” and making my home “better” is what finally brought about real change … When I focused exclusively on getting stuff out of my house instead of looking for creative ways to keep my stuff, my home started to look more organized, feel more organized and function [in a] more organized [manner].” Using a very informal tone, White provides much needed inspiration with humorous anecdotes and pragmatic advice.

WHY HAS NOBODY TOLD ME THIS BEFORE? by Dr. Julie Smith deals with coping techniques for emotional and mental health. Smith, a clinical psychologist with over 3 million followers on her TikTok channel, helps her readers to understand low moods, deal with emotional pain and grief in some of the early sections of this debut. She also offers advice on topics like fear, self-doubt, stress, and having a meaningful life. Each chapter has a bulleted summary (e.g., “to fight fear, you must be able to face it; escape and avoidance only provides short-term relief but feeds anxiety in the long term”). The last chapter, “When to seek help,” is especially important, of course.  Smith says that “this book is your toolkit to use for improving or enhancing your mental health and wellbeing.”  About five percent of the book contains useful references and other suggested (primarily UK-based) resources which might be of interest to our psychology students. 

EMOTIONAL, subtitled “How Feelings Shape Our Thinking,” is written by Leonard Mlodinow, an award-winning author (in addition to his own work, he has co-written other texts with Stephen Hawking) and physicist. Here, Leonard Mlodinow encourages increased self-awareness and reflection as he explains some of the more recent affective neuroscience findings. Mlodinow contends that today, “we know that emotion is as important as reason in guiding our thoughts and decisions … emotion operates at a more abstract level – it affects the importance we assign to the goals and the weight we give the data.” Fascinating to think about this in the context of the many personal decisions which are being made relative to vaccine mandates, mask wearing, and other restrictions related to COVID-19. Overall, EMOTIONAL seems a bit too sophisticated for many of our high school students; it does, however, contain extensive notes and received a starred review from Publishers Weekly.

Good Enough by Leanne Brown

GOOD ENOUGH by Leanne Brown is a mix of recipes and commentary from the author of Good and Cheap, one of my favorite cookbooks of the last few years. Brown subtitles her latest offering “Embracing the Joys of Imperfection and Practicing Self-Care in the Kitchen.” For someone looking for a more “mindful” approach to cooking, this might appeal, but I was more interested in finding easy to make recipes.  Brown definitely wants to support her readers, saying “my intention is for this book to be a gentle hug and a whisper in your ear that you are stronger than you know…” Throughout, she shares some cute graphics as well as attractive pictures of food and personal stories like the one that accompanies “How to Get a Girlfriend Salad” and describes her husband Dan’s cooking. In another part of the book is a section titled “Being Your Own Best Parent” and a list of healing activities like cooking and baking, reading a novel, listening to music, walking or running, and drawing or writing. I think most of us have found solace in cooking and baking during the pandemic – many may enjoy making Brown’s “Every Day is Summer Berry Cookie Bars” or “British Beer Cheese and Roasted Broccoli” or “Curried Chickpeas and Spinach.” However, I wish there was even more overall emphasis on practical, nutritious recipes like those in her earlier cookbook.

The Chosen One by Echo Brown

THE CHOSEN ONE is written by a recent Dartmouth college graduate, Echo Brown, and builds upon her experiences there. The fictional account details how out of place she felt on a campus filled with rich, white students.  After being hypnotized, the main character begins to see portals and openings everywhere and starts questioning her own sanity.  For our privileged students this would likely be a difficult, although important, read that offers new perspective.

For those interested in learning more about organizations which work with first generation college students, be sure to inquire about programs sponsored at individual colleges and universities and also start by looking into these (some national, some local) which work with multiple schools:

• Posse Foundation
• QuestBridge
• OneGoal  founded in Chicago
• Link Unlimited with over 50 years of working with economically disadvantaged African American high school students in the Chicago area, working towards graduation and college acceptance.

As research has repeatedly shown, more knowledge and support lead to greater success for first generation students.  Echo Brown has won a number of awards for her writing, including Black Girl Unlimited which was named a William C. Morris Award Finalist, a School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, a New York Public Library Best Book of the Year.  THE CHOSEN ONE received starred reviews from Booklist (“powerful and vulnerable”) and Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books.

The Maid by Nita Prose

THE MAID by debut author (and long-time editor) Nita Prose is vaguely reminiscent of Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Both involve a mysterious death and a character with a unique, often wise, perspective. Here, Molly Graves is a maid at the Regency Grand Hotel and as she points out, “My uniform is my freedom.  It is the ultimate invisibility cloak.” Extremely observant, but struggling with social cues and niceties, Molly has been raised by her Gran who died recently so Molly has no-one with whom to process the day’s events. Instead, the reader is invited to share Molly’s stream of consciousness thinking about finding a dead body, about her attraction to the hotel’s bar keeper, about her greedy boss and other co-workers, and even about some of the guests. Throughout, Molly charmingly avoids problems (getting arrested as the main murder suspect, for one) and relies on Gran’s advice: “Vile and evil are composed of the same letters. One begets the other.” or “Everything will be OK in the end. If it’s not OK, it’s not the end.” And what an ending for Molly –THE MAID is a January 2022 LibraryReads selection, received a starred review from Library Journal and this entertaining, character-driven mystery is rumored to have been optioned as a movie.  

The Cat who Saved Books

THE CAT WHO SAVED BOOKS by best-selling Japanese author Sosuke Natsukawa has a very clever cover which instantly conveys both the Asian influence and the fantasy element of this story.  The main character (aside from the talking cat) is a young, immature high school aged boy, Rintaro Natsuki, who lives in Japan and inherits his grandfather’s bookshop. He struggles to adjust to life without much adult support and follows the magical cat to multiple labyrinths where books are imprisoned, severely edited, or discarded if they are unlikely to be profitable.  An introvert who is wise beyond his years, Natsuki encourages those involved to see books from a different perspective and to appreciate them for the power they have.  That part of the book is lovely, thought-provoking, and even somewhat humorous.  However, a neighborhood girl begins to share the adventures and that blossoming attraction adds little to the story of Rintaro’s coming of age and willingness to take risks.  The premise is intriguing, especially for book lovers, but the pace is a bit slow and the ending less dramatic than it could be. Overall, THE CAT WHO SAVED BOOKS is a fun, undemanding read – it was an Indie Next pick and a December 2021 LibraryReads selection.

The Ivory Key by Akshaya Raman

Happy New Year! THE IVORY KEY by Akshaya Raman first attracted my attention because of its beautiful cover, but I stayed for the story which is an excellent fantasy involving four siblings. Now young adults, they are estranged to the point where one, 18-year-old Vira, has recently become ruler and has had her brother Kaleb imprisoned due to suspicions that he was involved in their mother’s unexpected death. Another sister, Riya, has run away to join the Ravens, an opposition group living in the forest, while the remaining brother named Ronak gets involved with some dangerous, unethical people in an attempt to escape the kingdom and royal life. Their country, Ashoka, has always been a significant producer of magic which is used it to defend its borders, but the magic is running out and the kingdom could soon be overrun by enemies.  However, there is a legend involving an old map which leads to the Ivory Key to unlock additional magic quarries. Could these four combine their talents and learn to work together despite mistrust and the self-centered objectives of each sibling?  Told from alternating perspectives, the character development is especially strong and debut author Raman’s worldbuilding includes numerous references to Indian culture. An intriguing story full of adventure, romance, and betrayal which seems perfect for a movie adaptation, THE IVORY KEY received a starred review from Booklist and is the first of a planned duology.