Candle Island, written by Lauren Wolk and narrated by Emily Rankin
I enjoyed this middle grade novel about a mom and daughter who, after the death of their husband and dad, move to a small island. The mom is a famous artist who refuses interviews and values privacy. The girl simply wants to be valued for who she is. I love a story about small town life, parent and child relationships, and friendship, which this book had plenty of. I also appreciated the focus on art, poetry, and singing.
23:18, As he turned out the light, he said, "The very ink with which history is written is merely fluid prejudice."
4:25:47, My mother had taken me on her knee and said, "The world is full of both creators and destroyers. The creators tend to build things out of what's inside them. The destroyers tend to ruin things that are outside themselves. You get to choose which one you are. The rest is out of your hands."
"And what if someone's both?"
My mother had smiled. "There's no what if. We are all both. But in what measure? That's what you get to decide.
The Christmas Letters, written by Bret Nicholas
This very short book is a sweet reminder that relationships matter more than whatever our culture deems as markers of success and that we don't always realize how big of an impact our seemingly small gestures make on the lives of others.
Echo Mountain, written by Lauren Wolk and narrated by Holly Linneman
A family displaced from city to country because of the Great Depression. An old woman considered a hag at the top of a mountain. A husband and father in a coma. A woman grieving the loss of her son. A girl with a love of nature and desire to help bodies heal. This middle grade novel has friendship, both among peers and intergenerational, family dynamics, grief, and personal growth. This one was harder for me to get into than the other books by Wolk that I've read, but I liked it.
7:32, That life is a matter of moments, strung together like rain. To try to touch just one drop at a time, to try to count them or order them or reckon their worth, each by each, was impossible. To stand in the rain was the thing. To be in it.
The Healing Season of Pottery, written by Yeon Somin and translated from Korean by Clare Richards
A thirty year old woman who's hidden away from the world after quitting her job amidst unexpected drama accidentally finds herself in a pottery studio. What follows is a sweet novel about friendship, people supporting each other as they each work through their own issues, the art of ceramics, the beauty of handmade items and heartfelt gifts, and the rewards of living a life invested in relationships, community, and intentionality.
The writing frequently felt awkward to me, but I attribute that to the book being in translation. I was in the mood for a story about someone slowly coming out of a hard place into a healthier and happier one, so I was willing to overlook whatever I didn't love about the writing. Also, I love the cover art. I found out about this book from a post on the Salem Public Library's Facebook page.
p. 27, Seven weekdays in a row, of course, would be difficult for anyone to stand. A seven-day weekend, on the other hand, was a bottomless swamp of inertia.
p. 33, She had a talent for softening things around the edges. Crafting her words to make them easier to swallow.
p. 63, The first smile of the day was important. It determined how the dozens of others that day would turn out.
p. 180, "So that I could be happy right where I am, I decided to do things 'in moderation.' So that I can look after myself and those I care about, I work at a moderately busy place, earn a moderate wage, have fun in moderation ... People look at me and say I lack ambition. But isn't 'moderation' the greatest ambition we can have? I'm being really ambitious in trying to stay happy and within the lines of moderation. It's about choice."
p. 237, "Whether it's pottery or life, it takes more than one attempt for them to come out right. And all that effort makes the end product more valuable, too."
Hinds Feet on High Places, written by Hannah Hurnard and narrated by Wanda McCaddon
This book is an allegory about spiritual growth, maturing from a place of fear to one of joy, learning to value the hard parts of life, trusting in the good shepherd, and changing from a person focused on receiving love to one who wants to give love. I read the print version of this story back in November 2016 on my sister's recommendation, but decided to try the audio version this time. The audio includes Hurnard's explanation of how she ended up writing the book, as well as a brief autobiography. I didn't mark the timestamps in the audio version, but here are my favorite quotes as I marked them in the print version.
p. 121, From bitter experience she knew that pictures thrown on the screen of her imagination could seem much more unnerving and terrible than the actual facts.
p. 198, She felt nothing but a great stillness in which only one desire remained, to do that which he had told her, simply because he had asked it of her.
p. 230, Every circumstance in life, no matter how crooked and distorted and ugly it appears to be, if it is reacted to in love and forgiveness and obedience to your will can be transformed.
p. 253, Faith has nothing to do with intellectual belief. Faith is obedience. Faith and abandonment to Gods' will and power are inseparable. Faith is willingness to do Gods' will. Unwillingness to abandon ones' own will and to obey God is unbelief.
How Happiness Happens: Finding Lasting Joy in a World of Comparison, Disappointment, and Unmet Expectations, written by Max Lucado and narrated by Ben Holland
This was a somewhat random Libby selection, in that I've enjoyed Lucado's books in the past, had never heard of this one, and found it during a search for a book that was immediately available. A mix of current research and things Jesus said, all presented in Lucado's gentle, story-telling way, this book guides the reader toward happiness. There's also an interview between the narrator and the author, as well as a related sermon the author gave at the church he pastors, at the end of the book.
2:23, Make your happiness dependent on how others serve you and you will always be disappointed. Find happiness in serving others and, well, you can complete the sentence. < snip > We elevate our joy by giving joy to others.
2:42, Jesus shared truth, but graciously. Jesus offered grace, but truthfully. Grace and truth; acceptance seeks to offer both. If we offer only grace, then we gloss over the truth. If we only offered truth, then we dismiss the joy of grace. Our goal is to strike a balance. Oh, if only the balance were easy to strike. I have tilted in both directions. I have been so zealous for truth that I have forgotten grace. I've been a crusader for tolerance and omitted truth.
3:16, Forgiveness is simply the act of changing your attitude toward the offender. It's moving from a desire to harm toward an openness to be at peace. A step in the direction of forgiveness is a decisive step toward happiness.
The Radioactive Boy Scout: The Frightening True Story of a Whiz Kid and His Homemade Nuclear Reactor, written by Ken Silverstein
Recommended by a friend back in September of last year, this 2004 book is about a Michigan teenager's obsession with nuclear energy. The same as I am, David Hahn spent his high school years secretly and deceptively working with radioactive materials at his home. His project eventually required federal agents to clear the area because of the danger it posed to the community. While the science-focused chapters didn't draw me in, I did enjoy the human interest aspect of his story.
Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout, written and narrated by Cal Newport
Although many details of this book aren't relevant to my life because they're set in the context of a career, the general principles are applicable to everyone. I always appreciate a perspective of time management and productivity that isn't all about doing more, earning more, or being more. I chose this 2024 book because it was a "skip the line" option on Libby, but I'd previously heard good things about the author.
Stone Yard Devotional, written by Charlotte Wood and narrated by Alisa Piper
I knew nothing about this book before I saw it as a "skip the line" option on Libby. It's slow-moving and character-driven novel, the story of a middle-aged woman who describes herself as an atheist and ends up living in a convent. It's living in the present while pondering the past, dealing with grief, exploring friendship, and learning to live with change. It's different than books I usually read, but it suited the mood I was in and I enjoyed it. I particularly liked the narrator's voice and cadence of speech (at 1.25x speed, which is my default).
The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Vol.1, written by Beth Brower
Recommended by a friend, this novella comprised of general entries is the first in a light-hearted series of eight books about a young adult in the late 1800s. In this first volume, she's recently returned to the London home she inherited years earlier and is trying to get settled in her new life. With some relatives who are difficult and others who are allies, she navigates societal expectations and practical issues with sarcasm and a sense of humor. I'll probably work my way through this series when I need literary fluff.
p. 41, But my true love is the evening walk, that last hour of daylight that has its way with the sunlight, shadow, and soul.
That was the case this evening. The lamps were lit, light coming from the house, and there walked I, alone, and not upset to be so.
The Water Keeper, written by Charles Martin
The first book in a series, this novel is about a man who's committed his life to rescuing girls who are victims of sex trafficking, a life that involves lots of secrecy, danger, and solitude off the Florida coast. Woven into the story of his search for a specific girl, the book is also about the loss of two very important people in the man's life, the introduction of three new people, hope, redemption, freedom, and lasting love.
p. 67, "How his hands touch her says a lot about how his heart holds her."
p. 136, "By definition, the leader is only leading when someone is following. If no follower, then no leader. And if you're leading, then you're judged by how well another follows. They need each other."
p. 181, These were not girls with faces and hearts and emotions and the desire to wear a white dress and press the face of their firstborn to their bosom.
This was flesh. Period. Nothing more.
p. 183, Who am I? And more importantly, whose am I?
In my life, in my strange line of work, I'd discovered that we as people can't answer the first until someone else answers the second. It's a function of design. Belonging comes before identity. Ownership births purpose. Someone speaks whose we are, and out of that we become who we are. It's just the way the heart works.
