Peculiar questions and practical answers...from the files of the New York Public Library

 

This is a fun book that showcases the huge variety of questions received by librarians at the New York Public Library from the 1940s through the 1980s. Each question is shared verbatim, including errors, and humorous answers are supplied; each question and answer is just a page or two (in fairly large font), so this is a quick read. The book is illustrated by cartoonist and illustrator Barry Blitt; these illustrations are very well done and some of the best parts of the book.

Letter to a Christian Nation, by Sam Harris

 

This is a small but powerful book that elucidates Sam Harris's thinking about the dangers of religion and religious beliefs. I read it when it first came out, but decided to take another look at it now, and find that I agree with him now as much as I did the first time I read it.

Quiet influence: the introvert's guide to making a difference, by Jennifer B. Kahnweiler

 

This is a useful guide to using the strengths often associated with introverts to be more successful in your work. In that sense, this book isn't just for introverts; basically, anyone can benefit from the thoughtful suggestions in this book. The six strengths that author Jennifer Kahnweiler emphasizes are 1) taking quiet time, 2) preparation, 3) engaged listening, 4) focused conversations, 5) writing, and 6) thoughtful use of social media. In each chapter, she provides tips for how to use that strategy, avoid overuse, and next steps. Of course, none of the six strengths are exclusive to introverts, but Kahnweiler uses anecdotes about introverts to illustrate all of her points.

Sink: A Memoir, by Joseph Earl Thomas

 

Thomas grew up in a northeast Philadelphia neighborhood with an extended family headed by his grandfather. Written primarily in the third person, this gripping memoir shows what it was like to come of age in a house filled with violence and neglect. The author's grandfather regularly terrorizes him with both physical and emotional abuse. His mother is addicted to crack and comes and goes, according to her addiction and occasional incarcerations. Their house is infested with cockroaches, which appear throughout the memoir in horrific frequency. Thomas is regularly bullied and abused by the children in his neighborhood and school but finds himself unable to fight back, except in his imagination. He finds solace and escape in video games and fantasies, eventually making friends who have the same interests. This book is a courageous and absorbing examination of one young man's life. This is a riveting memoir that will make readers squirm with its unflinching look at the unvarnished detail of the author's life and circumstances. This is a compulsively readable and brave memoir.

Originally published in Library Journal 147:12 (2022): 113.

The Trayvon generation, by Elizabeth Alexander

 

This is a thoughtful examination of the impact of racial violence on young black men and women, boys and girls by poet, educator, and scholar Elizabeth Alexander. Using poetry, art, music, and film to illustrate her points, she paints a vivid picture of the societal problems that affect young blacks.

Welcoming the unwelcome, by Pema Chodron

 

Buddhist teacher and author Pema Chodron shares her wisdom in this concise collection of lessons, presented in 20 brief chapters. Using anecdotes from her own experiences, she shows how you can use Buddhist practices to develop more compassion for others.

What unites us: reflections on patriotism, by Dan Rather

This is a sincere and heartfelt examination of American history and the American character. I was given this book because I attended a presentation given by Dan Rather at my university in 2019. I was impressed with his generosity and how he gave so many people in American the benefit of the doubt in spite of the caustic political and social climate created by Trump and his followers. This book is divided into five main sections: freedom, community, exploration, responsibility, and character. It delves into Rather's meditations on these themes through specific topics, such as the vote, the press, science, arts, the environment, and more. He shares anecdotes about his time growing up in a rural Texas town, as well as people he's crossed paths with throughout his career. His observations about people are generous while recognizing the many bad things about our history as well, such as discrimination and violence. Given that this book was written before the pandemic and the worst part of the Trump presidency, including the insurrection on January 6, I wonder if Dan Rather feels similarly optimistic now?
 

Dear America: notes of an undocumented citizen, by Jose Antonio Vargas

 

This was a heartfelt and introspective look at the predicament of journalist Jose Antonio Vargas. Brought to the U.S. as a 12 year old by his grandparents, he was supplied with a fake green card that was transparently fraudulent the first time he tried to use it to get a driver's permit in California. From that moment on he tried to hide the fact that he was in the country illegally, but slowly he began to confide in friends who were able to help him go to college and eventually begin a career as a journalist. But the anxiety of constantly lying eventually led him to come out in the open about his undocumented status, and his life took a different turn as a speaker, activist, and documentary filmmaker. This book is his tale, and while he doesn't take a political stance, he makes the case that he is every bit as deserving of being a citizen as those who were born here. Just a few months too old to qualify for the DACA program, his life in this country is still precarious.

Aethelstan: the first king of England, by Sarah Foot

 

This is a deeply researched and well-written biography of Aethelstan, grandson of Alfred the Great and son of Edward the Elder. Author Sarah Foot makes the case that he should be considered the first king of England as it was only under Aethelstan that the whole island was united after he defeated a combined Scottish and Viking force at the Battle of Brunanburh in 937. Foot doesn't tell Aethelstan's story in a chronological way; instead she focuses on a series of themes that highlight different aspects of his life and reign: family, court, church, kingdom, war, death, etc. It's an interesting and effective way of tackling a life that has to be pieced together from archaeological evidence and many accounts written after the fact. The one issue I have with this book is that the only version still in print was a trade paperback and the 16 pages of plates were printed on the same quality of paper as the text and they are very dark and hard to discern. The page of photographs of coins is practically useless. The e-book version available through my university didn't seem to have any illustrations at all (perhaps a rights issue?). I will have to try to get my hands on a print copy of the hard cover to see if the illustrations are better.