A Mountain to the North, a Lake to the South, Paths to the West, a River to the East by László Krasznahorkai

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Like the long title, this book is full of long passages, sentences that are entire paragraphs long. Entire chapters, in fact! A Mountain to the North, a Lake to the South, Paths to the West, a River to the East by László Krasznahorkai is a strange and fascinating medication on obsession, focus–deep, deep focus–of the absurdity, of the pain and beauty of life. Big stuff.

Krasznahorkai won the Nobel Prize in literature this year, and so I grabbed this book to see what he was all about. The deep descriptions in this book is what does it, I think. Krasznahorkai pairs deep description with complete control and poetry on the line level, informs, and conveys to readers some deeper understanding of the human psyche than they otherwise would have known. Yes, Krasznahorkai wins this award.

Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma by Claire Dederer

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Now this was a fascinating book! In Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma by Claire Dederer, Dederer offers monstrous male artists (in every form) and analyzes their audience. As an avid reader, and citizen of the world, I am somewhat interested in the question, especially in the wake of the “me too” movement and subsequent “cancel culture.” Dederer wrestles with the question and avoids simple soundbites and quick solutions.

As a reader, I was interested in our similarities and differences. We both love Woody Allen movies, but she loves Polanski and I can take or leave his work. She has a distaste for Hemingway, and I still think his work is extraordinary. We both love Carver.

However, what was most interesting to me was in the last half of the book, when she turns her lens toward herself: “Am I a Monster?” and “Abandoning Mothers.” As a mother and an intellectual and an author, and, maybe above all else, someone who delights in deep focus, the questions Dederer asks are those that I share.

A question arises, “Do my children matter as much as my writing?” Dederer seems to have a good relationship with her children, seems to have balanced it all in some kind of positive way, but it was not without struggle.

However, for me, this is not the question, but rather an adjacent statement, which is that I matter too. Contemporary motherhood culture has women give of themselves so completely that there is no space for exploration, creation, for the self of the mother/person. To me this is intolerable, and I find myself needing to claw out a space for myself within the rigid expectations of motherhood within my culture, also still while the other thing is true: I love my children and feel deeply grateful for them. Plus, they inspire a greater depth of work in me that I otherwise could have created. And, amid all of these realities, I matter too.

The Siren’s Call by Chris Hayes

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The Siren’s Call by Chris Hayes is about the attention economy and how various forms of media seek to gain and hold our attention for profit. This book is important for anyone engaging with media, especially social media, to read. Because our attention is a means of profit, the smartest, wealthiest, most powerful people put massive amounts of resources into taking our attention from our own purview and giving it to others, who then exploit it for profit. From there, it isn’t hard to delve into deeper philosophical questions about the value of a life lived with an attention that has been ceded to others.

If You Don’t Like This, I Will Die by Lee Tilghman

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When Lee Tilghman’s followers said she was problematic, out of touch, too privileged– that she should be cancelled–she responded with her book, If You Don’t Like This, I Will Die, where she basically says, “Yes, I am, and you don’t even know the half of it.”

What follows is a behind the scenes look at the life of an “influencer.” Most people follow influencers, and Tilghman offers a behind the scenes look at the work, the lifestyle, and the mental sacrifice that can go into that world. Things are definitely not what they seem. Tilghman’s book highlights just how all consuming social media is–from excessive time, to resources, and to our attention too, of course. Posting became her entire life. She saw everything from the perspective of a post, and she worked very hard at it constantly. But she was so focused that she could not enjoy regular life.

Many people say that social media makes people sad because it makes them feel fomo. I do not experience that. However, I do experience the time suck that is synonymous with social media usage.

I paired this reading with Chris Hayes’s The Sirens’ Call, a book about the attention economy, and they work really well together! I recommend!

Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson

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I have this thought that the key difference between Democrats and Republicans is that Democrats are too deeply skeptical of their leaders, and Republicans are too deeply trusting of their leaders. Democrats think it is their patriotic duty to hold leaders at arms length and with skepticism. Republications think it is their patriotic duty to support and embrace. Logically, I know this is not true. In fact, I know Democrats that are pretty rah rah enthusiastic about their leaders and Republications that are pretty skeptical. However, in popular discourse, it does seem like there might be some truth to my initial observation.

Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson illustrates that Democratic skepticism. Heck, they’re skeptical of all of government. And, but, also supportive of government too and still believing that government can solve many human problems.

However, all of this is besides the point. The main point–amid many interesting (and long) tangents–is that we live in a world of abundance. There are enough resources to easily feed everyone, for example. Within that abundance, hunger really does not ever need to be a thing.

This makes sense to me. It seems to me that we have the resources so that all basic needs can be met for everyone: food, shelter, and medicine. What about the capitalistic drive that “makes America great” you ask? Well, I think that after those basic needs are met, people will still want different and better food, housing, and medical care, and will also still want and innovate well beyond those basic needs. (Hopefully within the laws and regulations that keep us all relatively safe.) So, don’t fear?

I felt that some of the stats and interpretations in the book were unfairly interpreted, some inaccurate. There was a subtle assumption of upper class values as superior than those of the poor and working class. All standard fair for this type of book, fairly subtle, but also not winning over any new voters, ya know?

As a species we haven’t yet figured this out yet, but world peace seems so achievable. The book promotes the very real possibility of a peaceful and healthy future. What more could we want?

Rosarita by Anita Desai

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Rosarita by Anita Desai is a book for literary readers who want to spend some more mental energy in the beautiful cities of Mexico. Decades have passed now since I spent a summer traveling through Mexico on a trip with my school, but this book brought back that wonderful sense of travel–the unique sights and sounds that can only be experienced by being in Mexico, as an outsider perhaps. Readers who do not have the same connect to the country will still enjoy the prose, the rich description, and the strange emotional journey of our main character.

The Forever Colony by Victor Villanueva

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I enjoyed The Forever Colony by Victor Villanueva tremendously. The book does the work of reclamation history and offers lovely prose and theory and magical realism. I was reminded of The Lost Journals of Sacajewea by Debra Magpie Earling, which does something similar, imho.

Who Is Government? by Michael Lewis (et al)

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Who Is Government? is a book written by several writer/long form journalists, including Michael Lewis, who take a close look at areas of government that are frequently glossed over in new clips or political commentary. Specifically, individual public workers and their accomplishments are highlighted.

From this book, I learned more about the U.S. government. I was inspired by specific unsung stories of success and ability. For the successes, though, the book also ends on a flat line. The realities of social perception and the cultural roadblocks that literally stand in the way of saving lives are also hard pills to swallow.

Overall, I recommend the book as a reminder of what people are up to every day in their government jobs. Beyond the soundbites and glossy news stories, people are working methodically to improve lives, usually for modest pay and little recognition.

Mindset by Carol Dweck

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All teachers should know and apply the concept of a growth mindset (this opposed to a fixed mindset). The concept is fairly common among teachers, simple to grasp, and truly can be life changing if effectively applied and integrated.

I thought I sufficiently understood and applied the concept. However, I decided to read the whole book, Mindset by Carol Dweck, for some research I’m doing and gained a lot more by doing so. Yes, the concept is simple, straightforward, and easy to grasp, but the book includes many examples that illustrate different concepts, many of which really helped deepen my concept of what fixed vs. growth mindset can look like in different settings. It was enlightening!

This is a concept that is broadly applicable to all humans, not just teachers and (active) learners. (Hopefully we all never stop learning.

The Deep Places by Ross Douthat

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If you have ever been plagued by an illness that nobody could understand, and that no doctor could diagnose, that no medication could alleviate, and if you have ever had your otherwise reasonable self brought to the brink of insanity by said illness, then The Deep Places by Ross Douthat will likely be a good read and possibly even a comfort to you.

This book offers a tale of a man, and a family at the top of their game, who then are brought to their knees by a mysterious illness. The book offers insight into the experience of chronic illness, but it also takes an honest and stark look too, in that nerdy mix of insight, religiosity and theory that Douthat is known for.