Bedside Table Books

Hello out there! Hope everyone is cozied up and braving the wet and wild weather of late. We talk a lot about summer and beach reading but there may be some truth to getting more pages flipped when the lamplight is on longer and the storms are keeping us cozily inside. I’m popping up here to share a few of the books on my radar lately. Amy Tyler of Red Fern Book Review podcast recorded a little chat we had about the choices – tune in over here to eavesdrop!

One of my favourite books of all time is Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann. McCann threaded the lives of a seemingly unrelated characters into a stunning tapestry.  Apeirogan, published in 2020 is another creatively presented novel by McCann, this time focused on two men who have each suffered the tragic loss of a child during war time. The catch, one man is Israeli while the other is Palestinian. Though they represent opposing sides, they come together in their shared grief to work on a path to peace. McCann’s writing was inspired by a true story and through the braiding of 1001 entries, some as simple as a photo or quote, others several pages, he captures the perspectives and suffering and desire for resolution. Apeirogon, incidentally, is an infinitely sided polygon that can be looked at in any number of ways. I’ve had this on my shelf since it first published in paperback and I’m feeling it’s even more timely now to delve into. I imagine this one will lead to great book club discussions.

The Trade Off by Samantha Greene Woodruff is a recent release in our favoured Historical Fiction category. 1920’s New York City and a focus on a young woman with a particular skill with numbers and patterns finding her way into Wall Street – I’m thoroughly intrigued! Something that’s a little different. Due to the times and the woman’s religious affiliation she needs the cover of her charming brother to be involved in the traditional men’s world of finance. Money, family, romance and the Stock Market Crash … lots to entertain in this story.

Alice McDermott is a multi award winning literary writer and this is her ninth novel. Published in the fall of 2023, Absolution has recently hit the shelves in paperback. Kristin Hannah’s The Women took us to the front lines in Vietnam in 1965. Absolution also looks to women’s roles in Vietnam in the early 60’s, before the feminist movement, but this time the focus is on two trailing spouses “doing good” to support their ambitious husbands within the local community in Saigon. Their complicated relationship and the consequences of their privilege and flaws are reflected upon some 60 years later by one of the women and the daughter of the other.  Ann Patchett calls this novel “A Moral Masterpiece” Absolution might be another slightly uncomfortable read that prompts excellent discussion.

Niall Williams is another writer I’m counting as an all time favourite. His book This Is Happiness is on the keeper shelf right beside Colum McCann’s Let the Great World Spin. Is it coincidence that they are both Irish writers? Time of the Child returns the reader to the small Irish town of Faha where This Is Happiness held our attention in its pages. The cast of characters return to this seasonal stand-alone read but focus is on the local doctor and his unmarried daughter. Slightly distanced from the community due to their professional status, the walls come down when father and daughter discover an infant left on their doorstep and their lives are changed forever. A heartwarming tale that unfolds over the month of December as a community gathers to help one another in extraordinary ways. The writing by Williams will have you stopping to savour descriptions and word choices again and again. A lovely giftable book.

For the non-fiction readers, Roland Allen delivers a deep dive into the simple notebook but takes it to a whole other level as he discovers notebooks represent a vast history of ideas rather than mere stationery. In The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper, we learn the first notebooks were bound and used in Florence, Italy in the year 1300 as ledgers for shopkeepers. Cooks, kings, sailors, fishermen, musicians, engineers, politicians, adventurers, mathematicians and artists all adopted their own versions of notebooks that carry over into modern day. This study entertainingly tells the stories of famous notebook users like Leonardo daVinci, Newton, Henry James, Darwin, Agatha Christie and a number of modern authors too. Bruce Chatwin’s Moleskine gets a good look. The relatively new concept of Bullet Journaling in notebooks is also discussed. I keep “commonplace” notebooks – notes and quotes gathered from a variety of sources compiled in a “common place”, the prettier the cover the better. I also keep smaller notebooks for those ideas and thoughts and recommendations that vanish into thin air not long after their first appearance. Some people keep Notes in their phones (does that count I wonder?) A good, trivia packed read into creativity with a thorough and engaging researcher.

And finally, something a bit more whimsical perhaps.  Big in Sweden was released this past July and was a widely recommended summer read. I think you’ll find the humour, travel, charm, and poignancy perfect for any time of year. We follow a tall, 35 year old American woman after she successfully submits an application to participate in a Swedish reality show in which Americans of Swedish descent participate in a variety of Survivor-esque endeavours to discover more about their cultural roots.  In so doing, she learns a lot about what friendship and family mean to her and about her own place in the world. “A fish-out-of-water tale filled with warmth, optimism, and wit, Big in Sweden is at its heart a love story: love for family, friends, country, and–most importantly–oneself.” As an interesting aside, Meg Ryan narrates the audio book and has exuberantly sung the praises of the tale. Sally Franson herself competed in a similar show and was inspired by her experience to set her novel in the same world.

What have you found to read lately?