Yellow Wife

Sadeqa Johnson wrote Yellow Wife after she visited Richmond, Virginia. With her family she visited the Richmond slave trail and the Lumpkin Jail. She learned about the jailor and his wife and family. She did research on the area. She read the names of slaves sold at the Lumpkin Jail and used their names as characters in this historical fiction novel. This is one of those books that is hard to read and very necessary to read. The main character is Pheby Delores Brown who, at age 17, is looking forward to turning 18 because her father/master has promised to free her on her birthday and send her north. Freedom doesn't come for Pheby until after the Civil War has ended. She ends up as the wife of the jailor in Richmond. Pheby is a strong female character trying to do her best in an impossible situation. 

The Husbands

 Chandler Baker wrote The Husbands. The story is about Nora, a married lawyer with a four year old daughter and another baby on the way. Nora's job is challenging because she has to keep up her billable hours in order to make partner in the firm. Her focus at work is lacking because she is so busy at home and her husband, although helpful, is not sharing equally in the burden of running a home and dealing with a 4 year old. Nora and her husband are thinking of moving into a development. So this story is like a gender reversing Stepford Wives. The women who live in Dynasty Ranch, are smart, successful at their jobs, and not overwhelmed. This was one creepy novel.

Roses and Lupines

 

Normal People

 Sally Rooney wrote Conversations with Friends which I enjoyed reading. She also wrote Normal People which I did not enjoy as much. Normal People is about Marianne and Connell. They live in a small town in Ireland and go to the same high school. Marianne comes from a wealthy dysfunctional family. Connell lives with his single Mom who cleans Marianne's family house three times a week. Both Connell and Marianne end up attending Trinity College in Dublin. The book covers their interactions beginning in high school and into young adulthood. Both Connell and Marianne have their mental health issues. What I found frustrating is that they both were so focused on their problems they never made any progress nor found any relief.

The Passenger

 Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz wrote The Passenger in 1938 at the age of 23 just after Kristallnacht in Germany. The story is about Otto Silbermann, a respected businessman, who fought for Germany in World War One. His home was raided by the Nazi storm troopers and he snuck out the back door. Over the next three days, as Otto tries to process and accept the situation in his own country, he starts taking train rides from Berlin to Hamburg and to other German towns. He is turned away from establishments he once patronized. Although he looks Aryan he fears being discovered as a Jew. His world is collapsing around him. The book was published when it was written but was not well received. Boschwitz planned to make changes and have it reissued but he never got the chance because, as a German Jewish refugee, he was sent to Australia by England and on his way back his ship was sunk by a German submarine. His editorial notes  (in letters to his mother) were recently found and the changes were made and his story rereleased in 2021. The story was painful to read at times but I think it is necessary for all of us, a citizens on this planet, to ready and study historical fiction.

 

Crown Tipped Coral

 

Today I joined some master naturalists and the Lake Superior Mycological Group on a mushroom foraging hike in Lester Park. About 40 people split into four groups and agreed to meet back in an hour. The weather today alternated every hour. One hour of warm sunshine was followed by another hour of cold rain and strong winds. Luckily our hour was sunshine. Two kinds of edible mushrooms were found. Here is a photo of crown tipped coral mushrooms. People say they taste a little bit like black pepper. These mushrooms are found on decaying trees. Other people found oyster mushrooms. Two 4 year old boys found the most oyster mushrooms and were quite proud of themselves. I did learn today that if you want to find edible mushrooms you had best look in hard wood forests. Good to know. I would like to find some chicken of the woods and morels.

Win Me Something

Kyle Lucia Wu wrote Win Me Something, a coming of age novel about a girl named Willa. Willa's parents divorced before she was old enough to remember them living together. Both her parents remarried and had more children. Her father was of Chinese descent and her mother had blond hair and blue eyes. Growing up in New Jersey, she felt invisible because she was too white to fit in with the Asian kids and not white enough to fit in with the white kids. At age 24 Willa takes a job as a nanny for a wealthy family in the Tribeca area of New York City. As she takes care of Bijou, a 9 year old girl, she compares her family to the one she is working for. The more time she spends with this family, the more invisible she believes she is. This was a sad and introspective story about Willa.