The Magic of Winter Reading

December 3, 2024December 3, 2024 / Apple Hill Cottage / 3 Comments

My kids are readers (no surprise, they were raised by a librarian) and they both married readers. So over Thanksgiving weekend we talked about books quite a bit. We talked about great books we had read over the last year; we caught up on books we had recommended to each other; we talked about authors we all (or some of us) had read; we discussed the plusses and minuses of Goodreads and Storygraph, Libby and Hoopla; we talked about what books were being made into movies, and why e-books just aren’t as magical as holding an actual book in your hands; and through it all we had our phones out to note anything that sounded good that we might have missed. Our different tastes made us a motley discussion group–from sci-fi/fantasy, to modern best sellers, to historical fiction to nonfiction to an occasional Children’s or Young Adult novel…we run the gamut of genres. And we were all enthralled as we watched The Dark Winds, a television series made from those evocative Tony Hillerman novels of the Navaho or Dine people. Some of us are thinking of reading or re-reading a few of them.

Both kids discussed their failures at participation in an adult summer reading program–and they both agreed that they wanted to read what they wanted to read. They didn’t want to be told to read a horror book or scary mystery (that was my daughter) or a light beach romance (that was my son). I’m right with them, but I might make exceptions for a beach romance (Emilie Henry, anyone?)

It’s not summer any longer though, and if your December calendar hasn’t already filled up, count yourself among the favored few. But beach reads and summer reading aside, winter is THE best time for reading. Sitting by a cozy fire with a mug of something warm to drink and an exciting book? It might even be better than summer reading, because nature is definitely not calling me to go outside and take a walk. I’m making my New Year’s Resolutions early this year—I’m going to read more deeply, more widely. On my list is:

the National Book Award winner James by Percival Everett (except I might have to reread The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I loved Tom Sawyer, but I’m thinking I didn’t finish Huck Finn–it was so long ago, I can’t remember.)
The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger. Two of Krueger’s books, Ordinary Grace and This Tender Land have made my 5 star list.
Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout. Just this summer I read her pandemic novel, Lucy by the Sea and I was reminded how much I enjoy her writing.
During December I’m going to be reading Niall Williams’ new book Time of the Child because I also read his book This Is Happiness this summer. It was a slow, lyrically written character study of an Irish village being electrified in the sixties. If you want to step into the time before social media and modern frenzied life, Niall Williams is your man.
We Shall Not All Sleep by Tony Woodlief. His book from several years ago, Somewhere More Holy blew me away with his phrasing, his words, his thoughts, his humility and I’m looking forward to reading his new one.
It’s also going to be a Tolkien winter: The Hobbit + The Lord of the Rings + The Silmarillion (which I haven’t read and was highly recommended to me by my son-in-law). What could be better than the rereading of the ultimate fight against the Dark Lord, when we have our own evil cabal seizing power in this very country? It’s also a good time to stick your head in the sands of Middle Earth.
Octavia Butler’s Parable of the Sower. I read it when it came out in the nineties, but I’m told she predicted the Make America Great Again saying, so how can I not reread it, just for that alone…
And I’m also going to be rereading Prayer in the Night by Tish Harrison Warren because dark, winter, nights fit my mood this year, and I need to be reminded that light, spring, and morning will return…

And if any of you out there sometimes like great children’s books, I highly recommend The Eyes of the Impossible by Dave Eggers (it won the Newbery Award this past year) and The Inquisitor’s Tale by Adam Gidwitz. And right now I’m reading two excellent widely divergent books–The Comfort of Crows by Margaret Renkl (essays on the natural world in your backyard) and Eugene Peterson’s imaginative book on Revelation, Reversed Thunder.

My list is endless…

Read widely. Read deeply. The winter is long…

The House of Two Tabbies

November 21, 2024February 4, 2025 / Apple Hill Cottage / 4 Comments

I’ve been doing everything in my power lately to ignore the fact that an aged crude, racist, sexist, criminal now runs the country where I live. And worse, that many people I know and love probably voted for the crumbum. (Thanks to Uncle Archie for that word.)

So Just for Fun to escape the news–Here is the update on our estranged tabbies. Just like your relatives, they disagree on most everything. And just like your relatives, they don’t get along.

But progress has been made. (See The Cute Cat Post for the beginning of the story.)

The cold nights have forced Tommy Orange to come inside. On the cold rainy days he doesn’t want to go outside, but he isn’t quite ready to be a house cat either. He’s in transition–unhappy in both places and quite grouchy. A far cry from the sweet lovable cat we adopted. Perhaps he just hates November too?

It’s generally an uneasy truce, with one going high and one going low. When they meet, it could be a hiss, or a swipe of paws, or a full chase around the house with Tommy O. usually ending on the bed.

But there have been some bright spots: the blanket sliding down on the slippery couch to put them together; Mini refusing to concede her spot on the bed and jumping up on it regardless; and the two of them sleeping cuddled next to me for more than an hour. I confess to using that excuse to extend my Sunday afternoon nap.

Mostly, we spend a lot of time being referees. Mini eats her special expensive Lamb cat food, mixed with immune support vitamins and probiotics in the kitchen. Tommy O. gets his cheap kibble in the bedroom. Mini covets his kibble and sneaks in to eat it every chance she gets. He could care less. He’s also uninterested in her expensive food; perhaps because he eats the real meat of mice, chipmunks, and moles every evening. But just yesterday, he was in the kitchen eating her food, while she was in the bedroom eating his. It’s enough to make the cat parents give up and say Whatever….

We purchased a rather expensive cat door for Tommy Orange. It fits into the bedroom window that goes out on to the covered back porch, and it was for him to go in and out the window as he chooses. The makers of the window (Cat Flap Fever) have been emailing me, asking for a review, which I would do if either cat had actually used it on their own. The only time either one has used it has been when we have stood there with them and opened the flap. Perhaps they are extraordinarily stupid? It’s been two weeks now, and Tommy shows little interest in using it.

There is one thing they do agree on–the sunny carpet is a good place for an afternoon truce.

The Darkest Night

November 2, 2024 / Apple Hill Cottage / 6 Comments

He comes to bring the light
to a dark and broken world.
    We know at some time, some place
    we will all face
    that darkness, that brokenness, that fear...
    Knowing does not make it any easier to hear
    or speak out loud.

But Remembering

He comes to bring the light
to a dark and broken world.
     Over and over, again
     I bring my pain
     to the one who knows, who listens, who calms...
     His outstretched hands are a balm
     to my weary soul.

Whether your anxiety is from a diagnosis, the shape of the world, the upcoming election, a broken relationship, or simply the coming dark and cold… Call to mind his face. He brings light, and peace, and strength to face those very fears.