read with me: july and august 2020
read with me!
The world is burning (literally, figuratively, spiritually, etc. etc.) and I’m sending this newsletter under a terrifying orange wildfire-tinted San Francisco sky. My climate grief feels insurmountable these days, but I’ve been reading some really great books that are seeing me through this time and also giving me a little bit of hope.
books
Man V. Nature, Diane Cook: Okay, so I understand if you don’t want to read apocalypse fiction considering it actually feels like we’re living through Black Mirror/The Twilight Zone/ insert any sci-fi dystopia, but for some reason these weird and extremely imaginative climate-themed short stories oddly brought me a sense of calm. Cook’s new book The New Wilderness is also on my list.
The vanishing half, Brit Bennet: You’ve probably seen this cover everywhere because it seems to be the book of summer (and was unsurprisingly just sold to HBO). But! It’s actually a terrific summer/beach read. The writing is great, the pacing and plot are on point, and it held my attention, which is saying something these days.
Home cooking, Laurie Colwin: A memoir filled with Colwin’s favorite recipes, this book kind of feels like a big hug. Colwin transported me to her tiny 80s New York apartment, and her various dinner party fails and triumphs. I’ve found more and more escape in cooking these days, so this was exactly the balm I needed. Wine while reading recommended.
Homesick For Another World, Otessa Moshfeg: These short stories are so so weird and dripping with Otessa Moshfeg’s bleak depiction of humans and her wry sense of humor. (See My Year of Rest and Relaxation)
The Yellow House, Sarah Broom: This book is fantastic. Full stop. It’s an emotionally rich memoir about Broom’s childhood in New Orleans, her family’s winding and complex history, and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. It’s also an extremely well-researched and beautiful exploration of New Orleans’ equally complicated history.
Valley of the Dolls, Jacqueline Susann: This book was the raunchy sensation of the 1960s, and from what I’ve read about it, it was the 50 Shades of the time aka people hid it behind other books because they were embarrassed to be seen reading a book with sex scenes in it (lol). But it’s “compulsively readable” in the sense that there is such good drama, amazing twisted romances, great 50s Hollywood references, and so much champagne. 10/10.
Cultural Insurrection, Jonathan Nossiter: Three years ago, during my senior year of college, my friend Reed (shout out Reed) brought over a bottle of wine from Berkeley. He explained that it was a “natural wine” and part of a new movement of winemaking. It contained no sulphites and was biodynamically farmed. We all had a glass and I almost spit it out. It was “funky” and not what I was used to wine tasting like and I was turned off from natural wines for a few years. Boy was I wrong. (Sorry Reed). Since we moved to our neighborhood, Devin and I have been visiting this little bottle shop down the street from us (shout out Gemini) that specializes in natural wine and I’ve been hooked ever since. The flavors aren’t muted in the way so much industrial wine is, it feels experimental and, for lack of a better word, unfiltered. Nossiter explores the history of natural wine, the badass farmers who are rejecting big agro and pesticides, and the peasant-farmer movement that is working to bring back the old way of making wine.
Climate Justice, Mary Robinson: What’s happening to our natural world is distressing. Our leaders’ apathetic don’t-give-a-shit-let’s-keep-pumping-fossil-fuels-into-our-air attitude is distressing. The fact that a political party in the US is partially propped up by climate denial is even more disturbing (I’m really mad right now if you can’t tell). But this book filled me with hope. Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland and climate justice advocate, profiles people around the world who are making enormous strides to combat climate change in their communities.
other reading i’ve enjoyed
The Media Isn’t Ready to Cover Climate Apartheid
Are National Parks Really America’s Best Idea?
The Search for New Words to Make Us Care About the Climate Crisis
Life coaching is unregulated and growing rapidly. Should it be reined in?
my months have been less terrible because
Visiting the Chesapeake bay, being with my family, eating salty crabs smothered in old bay seasoning while simultaneously reading about how seriously the area has been impacted by dramatic sea level rise. Cocokind glow essence (it smells like the sea and makes me feel luxurious whenever i use it) Signing up to volunteer with the sierra club writing letters + making calls to defeat donald trump and give us a shot at a habitable planet. Do the same! Watching broadchurch, which is the PERFECT quarantine TV show. It’s a BBC mystery/ police procedural (gah I know) but has lots of amazing women characters. Punchy old westminster rosé Laurie Colwin’s potato salad Adrienne maree brown: am i satisfiable (please listen to this and let me know what you think) These Tevas Carmen Mcnall planter Parks project t shirts
Let me know what you’re reading, what you’re finding inspiration in, and what’s bringing you some joy or distraction.
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Sending ALL my love and a virtual hug.