“[Helen] had studied English literature sixty years before. Bits of poetry rattled inside her” (from This Is Not About Us by Allegra Goodman). Here are some of the rattly bits from my mid-March through mid-April reading, from children’s and adult literature, fiction and nonfiction, graphic novels and essays.
- “It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” (attributed to Indian philosopher J. Krishnamurti in A Better World Is Possible by Meera Subramanian and Danica Novgorodoff)
- It was a beautiful reminder that cities aren’t loud, cars are loud. (Life After Cars by Sarah Goodyear, Doug Gordon, and Aaron Naparstek)
- Mum rolled her eyes. “Whatever else I’ve done wrong in this world, at least I raised a bad liar.” (Benny on the Case by Wesley King)
- If I squint, the [Zoom] grid looks like a haphazardly curated collection of Joseph Cornell boxes. (“Screen Share” from Frog: And Other Essays by Anne Fadiman)
- “Just, only two people ever know what goes on in a marriage.” (The Keeper by Tana French)
- There was so much smoke outside and they were all supposed to ignore it. How were you supposed to live in a world on fire? (When Tomorrow Burns by Tae Keller)
- “It’s funny,” Lorna would say. “You feed them the same. You love them the same. But every child’s its own country.” (A Far-Flung Life by M.L. Stedman)
- …just in case, she started to carry a book with her whenever she gave a speech so that she would have something to read if she was sent to jail. (Loudmouth: Emma Goldman vs. America (a love story) by Deborah Heiligman)
- After we collide with a life-changing moment, what matters is what we choose to do next. (Midnight Mayhem by Christina Uss)
- “Just because someone carries it well, doesn’t mean it isn’t heavy.” (Run Home by Alyssa Bermudez)
Jenny Arch 