Radio Silence

My apologies for the radio silence here at Book Barmy…

I’m up to my eyeballs in a neighborhood association issue…involving permits, environmental regulations, and densely worded planning submissions. It’s a wonderful group of neighbors and we have a great pro-bono consultant ~~~

As a result, my leisure reading time has been cut way back. I’ve even had to set my alarm a few mornings – please, have a bit of sympathy…

In the meantime, remember how I confessed that I enjoyed examining people’s bookcases when they broadcast from home — it seems I’m not alone. Here’s an article from the New York Times:

“What Do Famous People’s Bookshelves Reveal?

I’ll leave you with the current window display from Omnivore Books – a wonderful (and favorite) cooking-themed book shop.

A Message to the Literary World

I thought this was worth sharing ~~ from yesterday’s New York Times

Dear Reader, What an unusual and terrible time this is for all of us. With people’s lives at risk, and many lost so far; with the vast majority of us confined to our homes or out of necessity, precariously trying to work outside our homes. There is much to mourn, much to be grateful for and much cause for worry and fear.

Apart from the obvious life and death matters at stake, we at the Book Review hold a special concern for those whose livelihoods depend on books. We think of the authors whose book tours have been canceled, authors who depend on income from teaching, authors who need money from speaking engagements to supplement their advances. All of those opportunities, temporarily — and in some cases, permanently — gone.

Our hearts go out to the debut authors of the season, many of whom spent years, perhaps a lifetime, waiting for the dream moment when their first book would make its way into the world. We think of the authors whose publication dates have been delayed, complicating not only their financial lives but all other plans, professional and personal. We think of the authors whose new books are coming out right now, at a moment when the realities of everyday life can feel all-consuming, and when libraries are shuttered and many bookstores have closed or laid off workers. We think of those dedicated booksellers and bookstore owners who fear for the future of their retail homes, which even in good times can be difficult to keep going. We are heartened to hear of stores that are maintaining and even beefing up their online presence and manning their phone lines, offering curbside delivery to customers in their communities. We think as well of authors’ co-creators, the people who work in the publishing industry. Editors, copy editors, publicists, art directors, illustrators, salespeople, marketing executives and publishers who are now, like many of us, working from home offices with all their complications. Many in publishing have taken pay cuts, been furloughed or lost jobs. Which brings us back to you, our readers. We know you share our concerns about the state of the literary world we all admire and cherish. We hope that you find time and space in this difficult moment to turn to books, to do what they have always done: challenge us, inform us, entertain us. Books offer us the chance to escape and they force us to engage. Books are among the great empathy builders, bridging gaps that divide us geographically, politically, philosophically and demographically. At a time when many people feel isolated and alone, books bring us together. Please join us in support of all those in the literary world during this challenging time. Pamela Paul Editor of The New York Times Book Review

Birthday in Place

I had a birthday yesterday (yes, sometimes it falls on Easter). My usual birthday treat – wherein I’m let loose at our huge city flower market with Husband and his wallet in tow — well, it just was not going to happen. It seems flowers are not considered essential (I know! – but OK).

Before I could even feel even a little bit sorry for myself and my birthday under lock down — it turned into a wonderful day.

Husband surprised me on several fronts. He somehow found a pot of tulips.

He baked me birthday cookies — see the candles?

There were birthday cards to open, Facebook birthday wishes, and gifts from family and friends.

There also was a new cookbook from a favorite bookshop — Omnivore Books on Food.

Okay, the cookbook was a gift I got myself. Omnivore is small unique shop which is currently closed- but trying to stay in business. The owner (who is very well known in the food circles) is committed to paying her employees– even if out of her own savings. So I felt justified – helping one of my favorite shop owners (check), a cookbook I’ve longed for (check, check), and my birthday (check, check, check). Please click on the link above, and take a look at their website, they are happily fulfilling orders by mail –wherever you live.

But, I have to say, that the best part of my birthday was Husband made me my favorite dinner and cleaned up afterwards! Such a great gift.

It was a big number birthday ~~ Okay, let’s just say I’ve been filling out a certain type of health insurance forms since January.

Reading in Place My Favorite Books: Part 3

How is everyone out there? We’re now into the third week of shelter in place and it’s predicted to last for at least a month longer. Schools will not reopen until the fall, all our parks and beaches are closed except for visitors on foot or bicycle. Our transit system is all but shut down. The city streets are eerily quiet. Friends have been furloughed from their jobs, perhaps permanently. We’re doing our shopping as best we can and relying on our neighborhood shops. It may be a long time before we see our friends, or go out to a film, a restaurant, or (sob) a bookstore. We’re eating in, staying in, distancing on walks, and waving at (not hugging) our favorite children.

Now I’m a grand worrier, it’s my core strength — but even I, in my darkest wee hours worry fests, could ever have worried up ~~ well, a pandemic.

The operative word seems to be surreal. ~~ Okay, enough of that, how about we just move on to more pleasant thoughts — the final installment (for now at least) of my favorite books.

Once again a blatant plug to support your local independent bookstore — especially during these difficult times.

I know the libraries are closed in many areas, so if you want to buy any of these books — Please contact your local independent bookstore. They will happily take your order, personally ship your book(s), and will surely appreciate your distancing business right now. Find your local bookseller HERE

Gift from the Sea, by Anne Morrow Lindberg

Another one of those books I’ve read and re-read, purchased and given away to friends. Anne Morrow Lindberg, shares her meditations on youth and age; love and marriage; peace, solitude and contentment. She writes these during a brief vacation by the sea and draws inspiration from the shells she finds on the shore. A mother of five, an acclaimed writer and a pioneering aviator, Lindbergh casts an unsentimental eye on the trappings of modernity that threaten to overwhelm us: the time-saving gadgets that complicate rather than simplify, the multiple commitments that take us from our families. And by recording her thoughts during a brief escape from everyday demands, she helps readers find a space for contemplation and creativity within their own lives. (Be sure to find an edition with color illustrations of the shells.)

The Summer Guest by Justin Cronin

I fell for this book based on it’s cover and then it sat on my shelves for years unread. One foggy morning I picked it up at random and didn’t look back. This is a complex story of a family and its summer camp over time — the children and their parents, love and loss — all told simply and beautifully. Mr. Cronin paints a beautiful picture of a remote Maine camp where the summers of deep woods and deep lakes come alive on the pages — “enough silence to let you hear the planet spin or make you mad if you thought too long about it.” This is a must read (and a must keep on my shelves) novel. I highly recommend it. My full review with the book cover is HERE.

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

Husband handed me this book and said you should read this, it’s great. I looked at the cheesy pulp western cover and thought — really? But he insisted and, so read it I did. Not only did I read it, I cried through it, I laughed out loud, I thought about when I was away from it, and even dreamed about it. The characters are alive, vivid and you can’t help but be swept along on their journey. This Pulitzer Prize­–winning classic of the American West follows two aging Texas Rangers embarking on one last adventure. Not only an epic tale of the western frontier, Lonesome Dove is also a treatise on friendship, love and loyalty. Even if you’ve seen the film (which was quite good) I highly recommend you experience this masterpiece in novel form. And yes, I did say, and mean — masterpiece.

Parnassus On Wheels, by Christopher Morley

I first read my grandfather’s copy of this idyllic book when I was still at home, obsessed with books, but yet itchy to get out into world. Parnassus On Wheels was the perfect solution. Roger Mifflin is a traveling salesman and roams 1917 New England in a horse-drawn caravan selling books. He’s decided to sell his little enterprise and thinks he’s found a buyer when he meets Helen McGill – a 39 year old spinster living with her brother. Mifflin thought McGill’s brother might like to buy him out, but it is Helen who casts fortune to the wind. Together she and Mifflin set off on the open road and along their way they encounter adventure and romance, and we get to learn Mifflin’s philosophies on life and books. A short, but oddly weighty tale about the love of literature, books, but mostly about life itself. There is a second book in the series, The Mysterious Bookshop, 1919 is a classic mystery set — where else? — in Roger’s bookshop. Many years later, I found my own copies in a used bookshop for $5 each. I’ve re-read both several times. Both are classics and deserve a space on your shelves. Here’s my favorite quote “When you sell a man a book you don’t just sell him twelve ounces of paper and ink and glue – you sell him a whole new life. Love and friendship and humour and ships that sail at sea by night – there’s all heaven and earth in a book, a real book I mean.”

A Fine Balance, by Rohinton Mistry

I very rarely re-read modern books, with the exception of A Fine Balance which I think I’ve read three times. One of the finest novels I’ve ever read.  Overstatement?  Not at all.  Simply superb, the beauty and humor of this book is matched only by the awfulness and arbitrariness of life — a “fine balance”.   The novel takes place in India during the mid-1970s under Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s  “State of Emergency”.  A Fine Balance tells the story of a group of Indian citizens- two tailors, a student and a widow, as they struggle through their lives, how their fates entwined, how their initial distrust for each other blossoms into family of friendship. This is a novel that instantly absorbs the reader.  Preoccupied with the characters — Ishvar, Om, and Dina, — I cried for them, cheered them, and still remember them to this day. The story line and the characters remind me of Dickens. See my full review HERE

P. D. James

Okay, not a book per se, but a series of mysteries — all of which are excellent. Probably best known for her Adam Dalgliesh series, P. D. James is considered the grande dame of mystery and was a remarkable writer who crafted tales of suspense with engaging and interesting characters. She also wrote several stand alone mysteries — Cover Her Face is one of my favorite — again all tautly written. If you only know P.D. James by the PBS Dalgliesh adaptations (which were only passable), you’re in for some great reading ahead. What distinguishes P.D. James (and her mysteries) is that she crafted story lines that bring up questions of social privilege, politics, aesthetics, and theology. Be sure to read the Dalgliesh series in order as the characters and their relationships evolve. A fine mystery series with wonderful writing. Kingsley Amis called her “Iris Murdoch with murder”.

Robert Parker

I think we’ll end this segment about my favorite books with something easy to read, lighthearted and laugh-out-loud funny. Perhaps we all need that right now. I’m talking about Robert Parker’s long running series of mysteries. There are two; the Spenser series and the Jessie Stone series. Both are well worth picking up. Mr. Parker’s novels crackle with wit and contain some of the best dialogue ever written. (If you are an aspiring author, read Parker and learn how dialogue can and should deliver.) My hand reaches for one of his paperbacks whenever I chance upon them – often found at used books stores or those free little library boxes as you walk around. Guaranteed to make you chuckle and forget the outside world for a bit. My full admiration for his writing is HERE.

So folks I’ll say stay well, stay safe, and goodnight — sleep tight.

April Fools

Just checking in. Everyone staying safely home and keeping well? We are. And while you’d be right to think I’m getting alot of reading done, I’ve also been on social media.

Normally, I don’t do much in the social media realm. I have a Facebook page and follow others on Instagram. Won’t get even close to Twitter — thank you very much. But my point, and yes I do have one, is that my time on social media in the recent weeks has proven to be really uplifting and funny. And, so I thought this might be the perfect day to share some humor from my wanderings on the internet.

And then there’s these:

And then there’s this video

This endeth the humor for today — out for a walk, then back to my book.

Try to remember ~~ You are not stuck at home. You are safe at home