Enneagram, Romance, Chemistry, and a Master Class in Writing

    This entry will be especially long because I didn't post last week due to twins, traveling, and the torment of Covid (not me, Dear Husband). 

 

    There are many, many ways to learn about the Enneagram and many, many opinions about its effectiveness,  legitimacy, and provenance. I found The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile to be reasonable and balanced. Can you sort people into categories and understand them? Maybe? I think people are complex, and I doubt if I can fully understand myself, even less someone else. But I find it helpful to consider that other minds don't work like mine. For example, I prefer a stable, planned life, and Dear Husband desires adventure and spontaneity. This has occasionally, sometimes, okay frequently caused friction between us. Seeing us as different numbers (I'm a six, and I think he's an eight, or maybe a one) makes space in my head for life beyond I'm right, and he's wrong or, inconceivably, visa versa. It's a good thing for me and our marriage-building moments, also-known-as intense discussions, AKA big fights, for me to have an idea of different motivations and perspectives.

    Book Lovers by Emily Henry is a fun read, especially if you are familiar with romance tropes. popular-romance-fiction-tropes-to-keep-your-readers-hooked This book exploits them turning them upside down, making for a plot with unpredictable, exciting twists and turns. Henry's skillful writing had me rooting for these enemies to get together because I wasn't sure if they would. If you consider yourself a book person, you will especially enjoy all the book recommendations and allusions. It's a treat.

   Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus is the story of a female scientist in the late fifties and early sixties. It depicts the worlds of science and academia where women are not welcome, and are actively abused: financially, sexually, and intellectually. Yet, it is a clever, humorous book and is already on the movie track. brie-larson-apple-lessons-in-chemistry-1234888875

    Though I was entertained Lessons in Chemistry, I found Garmus' depiction of the evilness of men and religion heavy-handed. Any belief in God made the character unintelligent and prejudiced. Although she tried to bring balance by having characters on both sides of the divide--a minister who doesn't believe in God and an understanding male OBGYN--it didn't give her point nuance or complexity and weakened her message.

   Last Night in Montreal reminds me of reading Julius Caesar in 8th grade English. Mrs. Cohen opened my eyes to the inner workings of great writing--structure, characterization, comparison and more--and I was amazed. Last Night in Montreal is a master class of great writing. It is tense and compelling. I'm not one to throw around five stars on GoodReads, but I gave five stars to this book, not because I enjoyed the story in the same way as I did Lord of the Rings or A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, but because it was valuable to my development as a reader and it deserved it.

Maps, Mysteries, and Mallorca

 

  I have several geography nerds in my family. One is my husband. I thought of him frequently as I read Peng Shepherd's book The Cartographers. Using fiction, it wrestles with the question: what is the purpose of a map? (I asked the internet that question, and one of the things that popped up was this gem of a website: https://www.mapshop.com/10-reasons-why-maps-are-important/) The story is a bit campy with several barely credible coincidences, but I enjoyed it and was a willing participant in setting aside reality. The premise is Nell Young, a rising star in the cartographer world and the daughter of prominent cartographer Daniel Young, has a public argument with her famous father over an ordinary gas station map. He is her boss, and she is an intern. He not only fires her, but also destroys her reputation. They don't speak for seven years. Then he dies under suspicious circumstances. She finds the disputed map hidden in his office. What makes this worthless map so valuable? 

    This book is fun to read because it contains the New York Public Library, a mysterious society, a curve-ball laden plot, and quirky characters. I'm looking forward to reading other works by Peng Sheperd. It is a mature version of Greenglass House by Kate Milford.

    Greenglass House is the first in a YA series. Milo is looking forward to Christmas break at his family's usually deserted hotel; however, several peculiar guests arrive. They seek answers about the smuggler the hotel belonged to before his death. Where is his treasure? What would they do to get it? Milo finds untapped courage as he and Meddy, the cook's granddaughter, try to solve the puzzle and redeem their ruined holiday before anyone get's hurt. Milford had several plot twists that surprised me.

  When I worked at a bookstore, we joked that beach reads usually incorporated turquoise in their covers. The Vacationers by Emma Straub indeed advertises itself well. It is a quintessential beach read: a good one. A Manhattan couple, Jim and Franny, with their two children--Sylvia, who recently graduated high school, and Bobbie, who is five years out of college--go on vacation to Mallorca, Spain. Franny's best friend, Charles, and his husband, Lawrence, and their son's long-term girlfriend are with them in a beautiful house. Seven people are vacationing under one roof with secrets and unspoken hopes, but not for long. Straub skillfully takes the familiar ingredients of a beach read: betrayal, unrequited love, expectations, and sunshine and creates a diverting, satisfying story. ⛱ 

In Which I Time Travel

 

    I have been on vacation on the west coast for the past ten days. The first seven days were with two of my adorable grandchildren (3 years and 8 months) in San Diego. Then Dear Husband and I returned to the Grand Canyon for a second time. The first time I went, I became sick and only saw the Grand Canyon clinic. This time was much better. 

    Between the three-hour time change--7 PM is now 10PM and 5 AM is now 8 AM--and playing with some cuties, I didn't read a single novel until the plane ride back. It was a glorious novel by Emma Straub entitled This Time Tomorrow. It's about one of my favorite sci-fi subjects, time travel. Alice turns a discontent forty, but wakes up the next day to find she's sixteen again. What's going to happen? Straub cleverly has Alice's father be a novelist who writes about time travel. The book, besides telling an enthralling story with great characters, also discusses time travel tropes (looper-time-travel-tropes) and referencing several movies, books, and shows that contain time travel plots. It explores the question: if you could do it again, what would you change in a fresh engaging way. The story is complex and heartwarming. This is the first Emma Straub book I've read, and I will be reading others.

    I was lamenting to Dear Husband that I hadn't read much this week, and he reminded me of this book that I read at least five times a day to my granddaughter: The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson with illustrations by Axel Sheffler. This wasn't a hardship because the text and the pictures are delightful. I enjoy a kid's book that has little surprises in the illustrations. It helps keep everyone interested. The story is in rhyme, but it's not annoying because it is well-done and adds to the enjoyment of the book. It is about a bright mouse in perilous situations at the bottom of the food chain so he makes up a tale of aterrible creature who wants to eat his preditors. If you have a little person in your life, I recommend highly this book. Donaldson's other book Room On A Broom is terrific as well. 

    Some of my sweetest memories of being a mom of young children is reading to them. Getting to read to my grandchildren is like traveling back in time. (See what I did there?) This Usborne book, Who's Making That Mess illustrated by Stephen Cartwright is one that I've owned for over 25 years. I brought it with me to San Diego and it was a hit. From the appealing animals, hidden ducks, and silly premise it is an excellent reread with new things discovered each time. Plus it has flaps!