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My reading over the winter has been quite varied — a little bit of everything from fiction to poetry, academic works to young adult reads. Here are a few of the books that have stuck with me the most!
Upstream: Selected Essays by Mary Oliver
My first foray into Mary Oliver’s prose! Upstream is an ode to nature and literature. I began reading this collection while camping in the late summer and completed it while nestled into my duvet on a cold winter’s night. The first time I read Oliver’s ubiquitous poem “Wild Geese,” I thought, that’s it — that is the kind of writing about nature and spirituality and humanity that makes sense to me. In Upstream she explores the sometimes brutal nature of, well, nature (see “Sister Turtle”) as well as the impact of the Transcendentalists or even Poe’s attempts to grasp hold of the unknowable. A fine example of American prose if there ever was one.
I cannot stop thinking about this book. It is quiet and subtle. The novel follows a youngish couple in the upper midwest whose story unfolds against the backdrop of the seasons and the attempts of the unnamed narrator to keep a small flock of chickens alive. Come wind, come predators, come the upheaval of moving house — this motley group of hens will win your heart. Perhaps my own affinity for keeping chickens makes me biased. Like Oliver, Polzin wrestles with the brutalities of nature, but infuses the heartfelt narrative with humor. It reminded me of just how riduculous but endearing that chickens can be.
Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley
Wow. A gut-punch. Angeline Boulley spins a tale of intrigue, love, friendship, and belonging in this young adult novel. Daunis Fontaine is about to be a freshman at the University of Michigan, but her uncle’s recent death and her grandmother’s illness leads her to reconsider a life closer to home in Sault Ste. Marie. The daughter of a white mother and an Ojibwe father (a Hockey legend in the region), Daunis finds herself caught between worlds at times. When she begins falling for the new kid on the block, Jamie, things get even more complicated. Boulley balances tension and hope with grace as she unfolds the mysteries, lies, and dangers that lie ahead for Daunis. Do yourself a favor and read this via audiobook on Libro.fm to get the best feel for the Anishinaabe language.
“My girl, some boats are for the river and some are for the ocean.”
― Angeline Boulley, Firekeeper's Daughter
Brit Bennett’s 2016 debut is an exploration of mothers, mothering, and motherhood. Nineteen-year-old Nadia is grieving the loss of her mother when she is faced with an unexpected pregnancy. The father, Luke, is not only her boyfriend, but the son of the local pastor. With precious little support, Nadia makes a decision that will change her fate. There are some heavy topics here, so check content warnings if preferred. I took my time with this one, mostly because it dealt with a lot of difficult themes, but the writing is really good. I’m looking forward to reading The Vanishing Half in due time.
I’ve been doing a lot more academic reading this season as I prepare for the graduate classes I’m teaching at the university. This semester I am teaching a research seminar on “Slavery and Capitalism” and my students and I have, so far, found Berry’s work to be one of the most compelling and engaging studies of American slavery in recent years. If you are at all interested in the formation of capitalism in America or economic studies, pick this one up. Berry tracks how enslaved peoples were valued monetarily from before birth to after death — with especially excellent discussions of the valuation of women of childbearing age and the underground trade in Black cadavers among American medical schools.
What will my spring reading look like? Who knows! I’m very much a mood reader who reads across multiple genres and formats at once. You can find these books and more from your local indie bookseller, on Bookshop.org, or as an audiobook at Libro.fm ♥︎
