Finding Margaret Fuller by Allison Pataki

FINDING MARGARET FULLER by Allison Pataki (The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post and Beauty in the Broken Places) provides a fictional look at the life of a journalist and author who was famous during her lifetime (1810-1850) but is much less well known today. A contemporary and friend to writers like Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and later Louisa May Alcott, Fuller crafted works such as Woman in the 19th Century. Fuller was even rumored to be an inspiration for Hawthorne’s Hester Prynne. Sadly, she met an untimely death in a shipping accident, but Pataki is a master at imaging and recounting events in Fuller’s life during her visits to Concord and while living in Boston and in Europe (there, Fuller was a foreign correspondent for Horace Greeley’s newspapers). Fuller’s feminist leanings are explored as well as her romantic trysts although modern readers may tend to cringe at Emerson’s seeming manipulation of her. FINDING MARGARET FULLER received starred reviews from Booklist and Publishers Weekly (“full of lush details about the life of an overlooked contributor to Transcendentalism and women’s rights”).

Black Wolf by Juan Gómez-Jurado

BLACK WOLF by Juan Gómez-Jurado (Red Queen) is the second action-packed novel featuring Antonia Scott and it, too, is excellent. Although diminutive in stature, Antonia is a giant in intellect, observation, and analysis; she is trained and manipulated by Mentor in her role as part of a select cadre of international law enforcement. Her partner, Jon Gutiérrez, is a large (“He is not fat …”), gay, and formerly disgraced police inspector who is very brave and loyal. Together, they are tasked with helping to find a pregnant woman on the run, Lola Moreno. As the body count mounts, Scott and Guiterrez confront the Beast (Aslan Orlov), local leader of the Russian mafia operating in Spain, near Madrid. Lola’s gunned down husband was deemed a traitor to Orlov’s organization and now Orlov is determined to find and kill Lola, so he calls in the Black Wolf, Chernaya Volchista. Readers will devour this thriller in a few days, appreciating Gómez-Jurado’s skills at narration while developing and sustaining suspense. He could easily be describing his own writing when Gómez-Jurado explains, “that's the way it is with Antonia: to get to know her, you have to fit together pieces of the puzzle with the small details you pick up on and don't blink or you'll miss it.” BLACK WOLF ends with a cliffhanger and I am eagerly awaiting the third entry in this series, The White King, (due out next Spring).  Highly recommended. 

An End to Inequality by Jonathan Kozol

AN END TO INEQUALITY by Jonathan Kozol is about “Breaking Down the Walls of Apartheid Education in America” with a call for reparations. Kozol is an award-winning, best-selling author of other titles like Savage Inequalities, Amazing Grace, The Shame of the Nation, and Rachel and Her Children. He has been writing about American schools since the mid-1960s and his recent text continues to present pleas for more equitable situations. Significant and disturbing statistics are woven throughout and he writes at length about “a parallel divide between two words of pedagogic practice and methods of instructional control: one of them a tightly wired code of discipline and training that is held to be appropriate for children of one class and race, the other with more space and time for children to take some joy in learning as an act of exploration.” In the final chapter, Kozol points to school libraries (and their absence) as another measure of how educational opportunities differ. He says, “in Chicago, only ten percent of schools in which Black children make up the largest proportion of the student population still have school librarians, according to an investigative study published in 2021 and cited in a lengthy piece of disturbing reportage by the Chicago Sun Times in 2022.” AN END TO INEQUALITY received a starred review from Kirkus. (“Most impressive is Kozol’s ability to draw connections among disparate events to illustrate the underlying systems driving the nation’s greatest inequities.”). Endnotes and sources encompass roughly a fourth of the well-researched text.

Egyptian Made by Leslie T. Chang

EGYPTIAN MADE by Leslie T. Chang is an intriguing look at “Women, Work, and the Promise of Liberation.” Chang, an award-winning author, contrasts the stories of female factory workers in Egypt with those of the women she interviewed in China for her previous text, Factory Girls. The patterns that appeared as a result of cultural differences (e.g., roughly one-third of women are illiterate and it is estimated that less than one fourth of women in Egypt work outside the home) were eye-opening. Chang argues that globalization has actually had a negative impact on women working in Egypt where pressures from families and husbands in an increasingly conservative society are limiting opportunities for women. She profiles three women in depth (Rania, a new factory supervisor working to escape an unhappy marriage; Doaa, who wants to become a social worker after her divorce; and Riham who wants to run her own clothing factory). Chang is living in Colorado now and I sincerely hope she is working on her next study. Library Journal compared this book to Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed which was a part of the high school curriculum for years. Readers may want to pair the very informative EGYPTIAN MADE with Getting Me Cheap or other recent texts on workers’ rights or with any of several books about global forces and the Middle East specifically. 

The Heart and the Chip by Rus and Mone

THE HEART AND THE CHIP by Daniela Rus and Gregory Mone is a generally optimistic non-fiction work that is subtitled “Our Bright Future with Robots.” Author credentials are impressive and contribute to making this a relevant, easy to read text: Rus is actively involved in the robotics field as director of MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory and Mone has co-authored several other texts with scientists like Susan Cain, Bill Nye and Neil deGrasse Tyson. Rus and Mone have divided their new text into three parts: Dreams, Reality, and Responsibility. Focusing on robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning, they are adept at providing useful definitions (“a robot is a machine capable of following and repeating these three steps: (1) Sense (2) Think (3) Act”) and distinctions: “machine learning and artificial intelligence are often confused, as the latter has become a business and marketing buzzword, but you can think of machine learning as pattern recognition systems that work in service of AI, to assist with higher-level decision-making and reasoning.”

It was also very exciting to read about their positive spin on current (e.g., using scans in medical diagnoses with significantly reduced error rates when humans and robots work together) and future applications (e.g., developing exoskeletons to improve the mobility for older people), including numerous suggestions (a wish list, really) for inventions capable of meeting needs like: smarter, more sensitive hands; softer, safer robots; more agile robots (and perhaps ones that are better at anticipating human actions, especially when driving); ways to build robots faster; incorporating better artificial muscles and more powerful batteries, plus better sensors and faster brains; and mechanisms for communicating more naturally with robots. Yet another section outlines eleven attributes for future robotics systems, addressing questions of regulation and ethics at a high level. Rus and Mone acknowledge that there is vast potential for malicious hackers and see the need for cybersecurity as a reason that could “spur tremendous job creation.” Roughly five percent of the text is notes for reference by readers and researchers.

The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan

THE UNDERGROUND LIBRARY by Jennifer Ryan (The Kitchen Front, The Spies of Shilling Lane, The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle, and The Chilbury Ladies’ Choir) is another truly “feel good” book from this fabulous author even though it, too, is set in the perilous times of WWII. Bibliophiles will not be able to resist Ryan’s praise of libraries and the value of books: “Libraries aren't only about books; they're about people. They're about human life, how books can mend hearts, comfort wounds, and inspire us. But most of all, books can bring people together. Their ideas and thoughts make us realize that we are not alone, that we are all connected.” Most of the action of THE UNDERGROUND LIBRARY takes place in war torn London and, like Ryan’s previous works, details the support which a close-knit community, especially females, offer each other. In her latest, three young women are the main characters: Juliet Lansdown (newly hired as library deputy head and living on her own for the first time), Katie Upwood (library assistant and soon-to-be high school graduate whose young boyfriend has gone off to war), and Sofie Baumann (a Jewish refugee on a work visa and separated from her family). Each of them struggles with difficult circumstances both in her work and home/family life. Yet, each becomes more resilient in the process while also finding valuable friendships and romantic happiness. Ryan actively researches her historical fiction novels; she based this one on Bethnal Green Library which was actually hit during the Blitz and recently celebrated a century of service. More information and images from the deep level shelters are available at The London Transport Museum; Ryan also suggests exploring WW2 – The People’s War, an archive of World War Two memories written by the public and gathered by the BBC. THE UNDERGROUND LIBRARY is a March Library Reads Selection – perfect for readers looking for an inspiring, diverting tale of pulling together and overcoming hardships. 

Cooking in Real Life by Lidey Heuck

COOKING IN REAL LIFE by Lidey Heuck offers “Delicious & Doable Recipes for Every Day” and the Library Journal review says “Heuck's excellent debut cookbook is recommended.” I concur. Heuck, who worked for Ina Garten (she writes the foreword to this cookbook) and Erin French offers relatively easy recipes with a bit of flair. Examples include Baked Crab Dip with Sweet Corn & Old Bay, Kale Salad with Gouda, Honey Crisp & Walnuts, or One-Pan Chicken Meatballs with Red Sauce & Spinach. Each is accompanied by a colorful, attractive photo. Although nutritional information is not provided, she doesn’t ignore vegetables, either; it’s easy to imagine happily serving guests dishes like Green Beans with Crispy Capers & Garlic or Crispy Smashed Potatoes with Salsa Verde. Heuck offers a short introduction to each recipe and further suggestions (“make it a meal” or “cooking for a crowd”) on several. COOKING IN REAL LIFE was named among the top cookbooks of spring 2024 by Food & Wine and by Epicurious. Pick this up and start experimenting – it is filled with practical advice and is sure to be a winner.

QUICK AND EASY LOW CHOLESTEROL COOKBOOK by Dick Logue is scheduled for May 2024 publication and is subtitled “Flavorful Heart-Healthy Dishes Your Whole Family Will Love.” The emphasis here is more on health and Logue does provide nutritional information. One fun recipe (with zero cholesterol) that I would like to try is called Breakfast Cookies – made with mashed banana, applesauce, quick cooking oats, dried cranberries, milk, pecans, and spices. Sounds yummy, right? I am also looking forward to cooking some Vegetable Mains like Grilled Stuffed Portobellos or his Tomato and Basil Quiche. Logue has edited several other cookbooks with a heart healthy or low sodium emphasis, but sadly, this new title has very few photographs and that seems a real detriment in terms of making it enjoyable to cook in a healthier way. True to the title's promise, these recipes are often geared to beginners with relatively few ingredients and easy-to-follow instructions.