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Miss Bennett: Christmas at Pemberly - Since I won't be home for Christmas this year, I hoped to get into the spirit of the season by going to see this charming play. It was quite fun, although I'm sure that the serious Miss Bennett and the equally serious Mr. de Bourgh mighn't think so. They meet by chance in the library at Pemberly where Elizabeth Darcy, Mary Bennett's sister, has set up a live tree, which no one can understand. Delightful!
Detroit Hustle A Memoir of Love, Life & Home by Amy Haimerl - My hometown has changed so much over the years. Detroit Hustle is the author's story of choosing to move to a new city with her husband as a young pioneers of sorts. Their new city has a troubled past, but young people from all over the country are going there to forge their lives on difficult streets. As the story develops, Detroit becomes home.
Hamilton - What a lovely treat! I was fortunate to see Hamilton with my best friends and my goddaughter. I knew I would love it; the music and lyrics are so compelling and modern in the telling of the life of Alexander Hamilton, one of America's first revolutionaries and patriots. I think he may be rolling over in his grave to see what has happened in his America this past year. He backed the Electoral College based on principles that are no longer in effect, and the same goes for the second amendment. Were he alive today, analyzing and writing about current issues, he would be so pleased to see that his nationalist policies are in place, but he'd be distraught to see how many of those policies have been used to put our country in great debt. This musical biography was fabulous.
The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan - The circle of Dorrigo Evans full life took him from humble beginnings to the best that life has to offer. Through it all there was always a book at his side. This story is remarkable. When Dorrigo's brother Tom tells his deepest secret, I knew that the story had been worth the long hard read.
A Shoe Addict's Christmas by Beth Harbison - After a long deep serious book, sometimes a silly little Cinderella fairy tale is in order. This one is like a piece of candy. Enjoy the sweetness for a minute and then it's over. And in this case, I didn't want more!
Burma Surgeon by Gordon Seagrave, M.D. - This is perhaps the most well-known of the Burma books. It was written in the early 1940s by a missionary doctor who lived and worked in Burma. This is an amazing story and the photos are amazing. He believed that anyone is capable of doing anything and so he trained young native girls to be nurses who could do almost anything he could do, whether it be care for patients or drive for two days to another town, or learn a new language. When I was in Myanmar, I thought it was kind of strange that there seemed to be a hospital on every corner. Dr. Seagrave might be the reason.
We are home from a two week Thanksgiving vacation in Puerto Vallarta, and it was so relaxing to suspend responsibility. Even so, I was busy busy all the time. Our days were shaped by the noon "Aqua Fitness" class at the pool with Edgar and/or Clara. Around that, I was playing Pokemon Go, and Pokemon were popping up all over the place, but there was only one pokestop near us at the local Starbucks by a pirate ship that used to be part of the entrance to a miniture golf place. So I'd go into town to walk the malecon along the waterfront because there are at least 10 pokestops that can be hit in a 10 minute walk. Steve even got on the program and accompanied me for a lot of steps and miles. I'm halfway through Level 26 and filling out my Pokedex.
And of course I read, and of course I did jigsaw puzzles. Peter joined us for a few days which was the highlight of the trip.
The Girls by Emma Cline - Narrated by Evie, a 14 year old often left to her own devices by her divorcing parents, this story has a clear voice. Evie lives in a small town in California in the 1960s, and becomes kind of obsessed with Suzanne, a rough older girl who lives on a commune in the desert. It's all likely, but trashy in a compelling way. The innocent title somehow lets you think you might be getting a sweet story, but instead you get this hazy crazy stuff that happened to and around Evie.
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by Elena Ferrante - Now I'm wondering whether this is autobiographical. The author is so invested in the life of her main character, Elena, also known as Lina, who tells the story of the people she grew up with in a poor neighborhood in Naples, Italy. This is the third in a series of four novels, with the same dull conversational style including the characters' politics and discussions and writings. Lina has followed her nose, stuck to her studies and "made it". The end of this book was almost worth all the reading of the previous three, and from the beginning, there's been a mystery on top of it. I can wait to find out how it all ends.
The Coldwater Warm Hearts Club by Lexi Eddings - Simple and sweet. Lacy is a small town girl who was swallowed up by the big city and comes home to regroup. It's all very sweet and even the sad parts don't seem too bad. (Is it the cover?) My favorite line in the book was said by an old woman who told Lacy that "...if where you are ain't the happiest place to you, then you ain't home yet." Who knew that this was the book that would give me food for thought as I think about where the future will take us.
