Nevermore: Overstory, Longevity Paradox, Wild Swans, Blowout, Beekeeper of Aleppo, In a Sunburned Country, Pursuit, None of the Above, The Dog I Loved

Reported by Laura 

Nevermore read a wide variety of books this week; some were enjoyed, some were not. The first was The Overstory by Richard Price. Each chapter is a new story about a different tree and the character’s unique experiences with them.  This book won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize, but the reviewer was not impressed. She found the stories a little weird for her taste.

          Our next book has been read by several members. Most did not like it. The Longevity Paradox by Steven R. Gundry outlines a nutrition and lifestyle plan that he says will support gut health and help people to live, not only longer, but well. Our reviewer felt it wasn’t scientifically sound and didn’t find it very helpful. There was no new useful information and the book could do with some editing. One food item (lentils) was on two lists: What to eat and what to avoid. Definitely not recommended.

          The Wild Swans by Jung Chang was a book that was recommended! This nonfiction book spans a century covering three generations of a Chinese family. The author tells the biographies of her grandmother and mother and then her own autobiography. The reviewer enjoyed the book and said she learned a lot about China and the Japanese invasion. The grandmother was a concubine with bound feet and the mother was strong in the Communist party, though fair. The family suffered a lot and Ms. Chang relates how the only time she ever saw her father cry was when he was forced to burn his books.

          Another nonfiction book read this week was Rachel Maddow’s Blowout. The reviewer found it to be a slow, dreary read and couldn’t finish it. She said it covered anything you might need to know about big oil and gas taking over the world and Rex Tillerson illegalities. If you are interested in those topics, give it a try.

          The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri is a fiction book based on the author’s experiences over two summers in Athens at a refugee center. It deals with the flight of refugees from Aleppo to Europe during the Syrian Civil War. Nuri, a beekeeper, and his artist wife, Afra, are faced with leaving everything they love behind as they embark on a journey to Britain where Nuri’s cousin and business partner has started an apiary to teach beekeeping to fellow refugees. The reviewer found it thought-provoking and a good read.

          In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson was deemed laugh out loud funny and highly recommended. In his usual style, he takes readers off the beaten path as he explores Australia and gives information not found in ordinary travel books. With all that is going on in the area at present, it was somewhat bittersweet to read about, but all in all, an excellent book.

          Our next book was a suspenseful offering by Joyce Carol Oates. Pursuit is told in flashbacks, alternating between present day and the terrifying childhood of the main character. Abby marries one day and is in a horrible accident the next. In and out of consciousness, she shares horrifying details of her past and her husband is faced with wondering what his new wife hasn’t told him. The reviewer enjoyed the book, but figured everything out halfway through.

          None of the Above by I. W. Gregorio is a YA fiction book that was sad, but very informative. The book centers around a young girl who is a popular high school student. She is an athlete and elected homecoming queen, but when she decides to lose her virginity, she finds it unbearably painful. A trip to the doctor reveals that she was born intersex, having both male and female parts. After she confides in her best friend, the secret is leaked to the entire school, the bullying begins in earnest, and her life is changed forever.

          The Dog I Loved by Susan Wilson was a beautifully written book that focuses on two different women and the dogs who saved them. Rose was a woman caught in the trap of a controlling boyfriend who ends up serving time in jail for a crime she didn’t intend to commit. While in prison, she becomes part of a program training service dogs. Meghan is a young woman severely damaged in the war and searching for a way to regain her freedom. A service dog may be the key to fulfilling her dreams. This book is a testament to the human (and canine) spirit.

Nevermore: Allende, Burying Man, Roads, Interior Darkness,

Reported by Ambrea

This week in Nevermore, our readers explored a variety of books new to the library, starting with The Japanese Lover by Isabel Allende.  In 1939, Alma Belasco’s parents send her from her native Poland to San Francisco, California, to escape the clutches of the Nazi regime that is starting to make itself seen.  While living with her aunt and uncle in America, Alma meets Ichimei Fukuda, the son of a Japanese gardener, and she falls in love.  But when Ichimei and his family are relocated after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Alma and Ichimei keep their relationship a closely guarded secret—and cultivate a love that blossoms over seventy years.  Our reader was very impressed by Allende’s latest novel, saying it was a very good novel and it was “very beautiful” with its evocative language and it’s tender, lovely characters.  Overall, she enjoyed The Japanese Lover and recommended it to other readers.

Next, our readers discussed The Burying Man, a novel by Cleudis Robbins and Janene E. Nielsen.  Set in the “hills and hollers of Appalachia,” The Burying Man is a story that recounts the struggle of one family that’s caught in the midst of the Bloody Harlan County Coal Wars—one that will try to destroy Mournful Grace, his wife Evangelene, and their daughter, Bud, who narrates their tragic tale.  Although our Nevermore reader hadn’t yet finished reading Robbins and Nielsen’s novel, she said she found it to be one of those books that’s incredibly enjoyable to read.  “[The Burying Man] doesn’t use dialect, rather it uses the language in a way that’s easy to understand,” our reader pointed out.  Like Denise Giardina’s novel, Storming Heaven, Robins and Nielsen take advantage of the language quirks in Appalachia and manage to convey the tone and flavor of Appalachian culture without turning their characters into mere caricatures.

Our next book is far removed from the hills of Appalachia, returning to California to visit the Hollywood Hills in All the Stars in Heaven.  Adriana Trigiani’s latest novel brings to life the glittering, glamorous—and terribly brutal—world of Tinsel Town, offering an insightful look into the relationship of Loretta Young and Clark Gable, weaving a masterful story about scandal and adventure.  Our Nevermore reader said it was a “curious history of Hollywood,” an intriguing blend of history and fantasy that reflected the radiance of the era.  It also reflects Trigiani’s usual style of storytelling with larger-than-life characters, unforgettable stories, and endearing heroines who are sure to capture reader’s hearts.  Our reader recommended it to the group, saying it was both interesting and, more importantly, fun to read.

Additionally, our readers looked at a brand new collection of stories by Peter Straub.  Titled Interior Darkness, Straub’s latest is a collection of 16 selected stories that he compiled over twenty-five years of experience—stories that provide a close examination of the human heart and the darkness that lurks within all people.  Moving from stories like “Blue Rose” and “Mr. Clubb and Mr. Cuff” and “The Ballad of Ballard and Sandrine,” Straub writes tales that encompass all human experience and offer a glimpse at the interior darkness that many harbor.  Our Nevermore reader said that the stories in Straub’s latest collection were both fascinating and interesting.  While some were “quite dark,”  all offered intriguing glimpses into the thoughts and minds of people. Interior Darkness contained an interesting set of stories that definitely made him think.

Next, Nevermore looked Henry Petroski’s brand new book The Road Taken:  The History and Future of America’s Infrastructure.  According to Petroski, many roads in the United States have been rated poorly by the American Society of Civil Engineers while roughly sixty-five thousand bridges have been classified as “structurally deficient.”  He notes that the things taken for granted by drivers—such as stop signs, guard rails, traffic lights, speed limits, interstate systems—did not always exist; however, they are now a crucial part of the American infrastructure.  Petroski offers an in-depth look at the American roadways of today and the roads of yesterday, providing an insightful report on the infrastructure that’s now crumbling.  Our reader was fascinated by Petroski’s book.  He said it was interesting (certainly interesting enough to stir quite a bit of discussion among our book club members) and simultaneously comprehensive, since it looked at the history of road building from Colonial America and beyond and, more importantly, offered an absorbing look at the railway system that nearly killed the roadways.  He highly recommended it to other readers and soon hopes to look at some of Petroski’s other works, which often look at everyday items like toothpicks, pencils, pens, and more.

Last, our book club discussed The Road to Little Dribbling by Bill Bryson.  Bryson, who is famous for his Notes on a Small Island and A Walk in the Woods, has written a new book on his return to England,  his adopted country.  Part travel narrative, part memoir, The Road to Little Dribbling is a fascinating examination of the culture and history of Britain, celebrating the same eccentric and wonderfully beautiful country he loved—and taking a long, hard look at the changes time has made.  Our reader, while impressed by some of Bryson’s other works, was less enthusiastic this time around.  He found he didn’t care as much for The Road to Little Dribbling for two reasons:  one, he found Bryson spent less time actually illustrating his travels in England and more time griping about the things which changed which the author didn’t like; and, two, he found Bryson’s language a little less than appealing.  Altogether, he said it was a fine book; however, he said it was ill-suited for him.

A Short History of Nearly Everything and A Really Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson

Reviewed by Kristin

Bill Bryson is quite an amusing author.  Ever since I read A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering American on the Appalachian Trail back in 1998, I’ve been hooked.  However, since I started the audiobook version of A Short History of Nearly Everything (the original, adult version) I have been learning and laughing my way through my short daily commute to work.  In fact, my fifteen-year-old has even been laughing when she listens along with me, as Bryson spouts out ridiculous bits of biographical material about the scientists who have made significant discoveries about how the world works.

For the first time, I actually understand scientific things that were previously beyond my grasp.  Bryson makes Einstein’s theory of relativity pretty easy to comprehend and explains scientific notation in a way that makes me see just how large (or small) things are, when they have to be measured as 10 to the 26^th power.  Bryson describes the immenseness of space and the proportions of what takes up space in your average atom.  He explains the composition of our earth, our atmosphere, and our universe, so far as we can deduce from the scientific evidence gathered over the recent centuries.

Of course many more things are included, as this IS a short history of nearly everything.

With the grown-up version being a hefty 544 pages, (almost 18 hours as an audiobook) the kids’ version is called A Really Short History of Nearly Everything.  With bountiful illustrations and blocks of large print text, interesting facts are packed into the 169 pages in a kid friendly way.

Bryson states that his fascination with science began with a 1950’s era science textbook with a cutaway diagram showing a cross section of the earth.  Unfortunately, the book wasn’t nearly as interesting as the diagram led him to believe, and Bryson lost his scientific curiosity for a time.  Fortunately for us, he found it again and was willing to expound upon his knowledge in an attempt to explain the history of nearly everything.

Obviously, no one can write a single volume or even a set of volumes that explains everything in this great world around us.  (That’s why we have internet-empowered librarians and information specialists, right?  We definitely do not know everything, but we have a good idea of where to look to find the answers.)  But Bryson certainly does try, and makes much of it extremely accessible to the average reader.