TREE TO PAPER

Do you like books that keep you on the edge of your chair, books that provide deep information about current issues, books that make you think outside your normal comfort zone by taking you on adventures you wouldn't make yourself, or books that will lead you on a quiet journey with someone like you? I like all those reasons to read and more.

Good books provide much richness to my life. I am always searching for thoughtful, inspiring reading. Lost Words by Robert McFarlane and Jackie Morris led me to the discovery that the Oxford Junior Dictionary editors eliminated from the current edition words that describe nature, such as acorn and goldfinch, and included more technological or virtual words such as blog, broadband and voice-mail instead. Lost Words is a beautifully illustrated book that took me on a hunt for those lost words with a reminder that we are losing our necessary touch with nature.

Another favorite is Infinite City, a San Francisco Atlas by Rebecca Solnit, one of the best current essayists we have to read, who probes the layers of life in San Francisco. A book illustrated with maps with titles such as "Green Women, Open Spaces and Their Champions" and "Graveyard Shift, The Lost Industrial City of 1960 and the Remnant 6 A.M. Bars."

And my favorite fiction, Sweeping Out Glass by Caroline Wall, a riveting tale set in Kentucky with a strong, no-nonsense female character confronted by all kinds of heart-wrenching events while she defends her home from malicious gossip, mean people, lies hidden under friendships and misunderstandings. One of those books that kept me up way past my bedtime.

More good reads

Here are offerings from readers of this blog:

Joan S: Shade, A Tale of Two Presidents by Peter Souza

PatK: The Old Ways by Robert McFarlane
           Circe by Madeline Miller
           The Soul of An Octopus by Sy Montgomery
            Sunlight on a Broken Column by Atia Hosain
            Transcription by Kate Atkinson

Sara L: Promise Me Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship & Purpose by Joe Biden
             Endurance by Scott Kelly

Teresa C: Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell, an interesting read in light of present-day circumstances

MaryM: The Year of Living Danishly by Helen Russell
               The Indigo Girl by Natasha Boyd
               Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
               The Dressmaker's Dowry by Meredith Jaeger
               The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman
               The Perfume Collector by KAthleen Tessaro
               The Gilded Years by Karin Tanabe
               The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See
               The Girl Who Wrote in Silk by Kelli Estes
               Karolina's Twin by Ronald Balson
               Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
 
Jane B: The Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly

JoanneK:  A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles (recommended by several readers)

Thank you for your great suggestions! Have a good year of reading.