Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry: My first reading of Wendell Berry came to me via a book recommendation shared in line at our campus coffee shop and was reinforced by a friend a few days later at a wedding. Somehow this seems a fitting way to discover the world of Port William. I now know this is one of the last in the series and plan to work my way from the beginning. Beautifully written, lush with description and life without being overly fussy. Enjoyable but with depth, Berry celebrates the simplicity of rural life in America without reducing his characters to caricatures. Only now I am sad I didn’t pick up any of his works before now. I fully intend to make up for lost time.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy: Would you be satisfied if I just said “Ugh”? When he decides to dive into the world of fiction, Jim has a nasty habit of taking the plunge with very difficult but quality works. In this instance, he decided to make me share in his suffering and unfortunately for us, the work was difficult without the quality. Reading this book was an act of futile drudgery, devoid of joy or meaning. A bit like the task of “the man,” the main character, walking endlessly with his beloved son; destination and purpose unknown. My issues with McCarthy’s Pulitzer Prize winning work weren’t just the nihilism that seeped from every adverbless, comma avoidant sentence. It lacked imagination, character development, and realism. One can only assume it was meant to be a Hemingwayesque, bare bones narrative whose style reflected the bleakness of the landscape through which the man and boy are traveling after some unnamed event has left Earth in ecological ruin. But Hemingway’s genius was bringing character into sharp relief despite his restrained prose. McCarthy starves the reader’s imagination to death with regards to his characters while forcing them to feast on absurdities like roving bands of cannibals and just-in-the-nick-of-time root cellars. In this case, I’ll choose the road less taken, thank you very much.
Troubled by Rob Henderson: I read this after hearing Henderson interviewed by Jordan Peterson. This memoir is unflinchingly raw and honest about the failings of the foster care system and the adults who raised him but also his about his own behavior. He recounts how the selfishness and unthinking actions of many people impacted his life and worldview with a sympathetic clarity which is to be applauded. Avoiding creating villains and heroes, Henderson allows the reader to draw their own conclusions about the complex motivations of both himself and others. A tragic and triumphant story well worth reading.
Beyond the River: The Untold Story of the Heroes of the Underground Railroad by Ann Hagedorn: This is my favorite style of historical non-fiction. Hagedorn brilliantly draws the reader into the world of 19th century Ripley, Ohio with her immensely well-researched work, often drawing heavily from primary sources which allows the historical figures to tell their own story instead of being spoken for by the author. This book has special meaning to my family because we have vacationed near Ripley the last two summers and had the opportunity to visit both the John Parker House and the John Rankin House for two of the most memorable historical museum visits we’ve ever had. History comes to life as you look across the Ohio River listening to the stories of slaves, aided by hundreds of brave men and women in their desperate bid for freedom. These stories were passed on to Harriet Beecher Stowe, a friend of the Rankin family, and many appear in Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Inspiring stories of courage in the face of unthinkable cruelty, particularly in the dark and clarifying times in which we live.
Honorable Mentions: Close to Death by Anthony Horowitz: Nothing to write home about but the perfect light read; a nice ice cream cone on a summer day. Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister: This one actually annoyed me, a lot but kept me turning pages to get to the end. Not exactly an ice cream cone, more like a slightly squished peanut butter and jelly sandwich halfway through a long hike: you won’t be leaving a five star review but better than nothing at all.