July Reading Recap

There was a lot of variety in last month's reading, though I did happen to read two very different stories involving ghosts!

→ EVERYONE KNOWS YOU GO HOME by Natalia Sylvester: On Isabel and Martin's wedding day, which coincides with the Day of the Dead, Martin's father makes a uninvited ghostly appearance. Martin has no interest in speaking to his father, who abandoned the family long ago, but Isabel is fascinated by her father-in-law, who her new husband refuses to speak of. The next year, Omar appears again to Isabel, and the connection that grows between them is strengthened and complicated by the arrival of another unexpected family member. As Isabel, Martin, and the rest of their living family navigate challenges and triumphs, alternate chapters provide an account of Omar's past, starting with an eventful border crossing from Mexico to Texas.

In this emotional family story, Sylvester keeps the plot developments coming, and I was frequently in suspense and guessing at what would happen next. I felt deeply for the characters, even when I was frustrated over the many secrets they kept from each other. Some of the pacing felt off to me, and I was surprised that certain parts of the story weren't explained or shown, but overall, I found this novel affecting and worthwhile.

→ HIMSELF by Jess Kidd: Mahony was left on the steps of a Dublin orphanage as a baby in 1950. Twenty-six years later, he receives a letter revealing the name of his mother and his birthplace, and he travels to that small coastal town to learn about his past. In Mulderrig, Mahoney makes a few allies, including an elderly actress who shares Mahoney's suspicion that his mother's mysterious disappearance was actually a murder. Once the duo begins investigating, the town turns against them, and it becomes clear that more than a few villagers have something to hide. Also, Mahoney can see ghosts, and he's soon surrounded by dead who are eager to talk, but it turns out they aren't as much help as you'd think in solving a murder.

This is an entertaining novel full of quirky characters, exciting plot turns, and delightful prose. At some points the story is absurdly humorous or suddenly supernatural, at others the characters are subject to dark violence or peril, and Kidd manages all of these tones well. I enjoyed watching the relationships developing between Mahoney and his friends, and I was always rooting for them to outsmart their enemies and get to the bottom of the mystery. The narrative is a bit too coy about withholding information, including seeming to leave a question unresolved at the end, so it's somewhat less successful as a mystery than it is as the compelling escapades of a fun team.

→ THE LIGHTNESS by Emily Temple: Olivia enrolls in a summer meditation program for teen girls at a mountain retreat that's nicknamed the Levitation Center for the rumored abilities of some practitioners. She's searching for clues about her father, who disappeared after a visit to the Center, but what she finds instead is a growing fascination with three girls who hold themselves apart from the rest of the program. When the trio's charismatic, mysterious leader brings Olivia into their fold, her summer transforms into one of intense friendships and rivalries, dangerous games, and a quest to learn the secrets of levitation.

This atmospheric novel captures the obsessive extremes of adolescent friendship and longing. Throughout the story, short sections present Buddhist teachings and philosophical musings that comment on the events. Temple crafts great sentences, full of well-chosen details and subtle humor: "You could see the wealth in her cheeks, clear as anything. Day. Crystal. Vodka. My own parents managed, but things were harder for all of us after the separation. Corners and coupons were cut." Olivia narrates from an adult perspective, dropping foreboding hints about how the summer ends, but I found the eventual reveals underwhelming. Like seeking levitation perhaps, the story is more about the process than achieving the goal, and it succeeds in making the steps along the way compelling and disturbing.

→ In BIG FRIENDSHIP: HOW WE KEEP EACH OTHER CLOSE, Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman use the story of their own friendship to explore the value and challenges of adult friend relationships. Aminatou and Ann met in their mid-20s when they were both at transitional points in their lives. Their quick, easy connection grew into a mature bond as they worked through the strains of career stress, distance, chronic illness, and interracial friendship. As the podcast they started became a successful joint business, they found their personal attachment faltering, and eventually sought counseling together so they could commit to their Big Friendship for the long haul.

I've listened to the Call Your Girlfriend podcast for years and enjoy the hosts' feminist perspective on politics and culture as well as the way they celebrate their friendship, so I was intrigued that the book opens by revealing the precarious period of their relationship. This framing promises a more honest look at their friendship than the podcast has ever provided, and while the authors do discuss many issues frankly, the book is far from a sensational tell-all. In general, the more personal sections interested me less than the parts where Sow and Friedman place their friendship within a larger context, incorporating the stories of others and presenting research from experts who study interpersonal relationships. I would have liked even more of that broader approach, but I think there's enough to make this book a worthwhile read even to those not previously invested in the authors' friendship.

Good Stuff Out There:

→ At Electric Lit, Kate Reed Petty suggests possible ways to radically rethink online book events: "Innovation is part of the push for universal access—the more we can make online experiences exciting and engaging, the more we can cement an enduring tradition of truly accessible events. And we can also open the door to people who might never walk into a bookstore."

→ Adriana Balsamo describes the changed work habits of The New York Times Book Review in quarantine: "Before the coronavirus, the Book Review would receive hundreds of books and galleys (a printer's uncorrected proof) in the mail every week. Books were entered into a database and divided between bins and shelves for preview editors, who look over galleys more thoroughly and decide if they warrant a review or some other form of coverage.... Whether the galley was sent from one of the big five publishers (Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster) or a small press, every book passed through the hands of at least one editor for consideration."