Oh, the lazy days of summer. I love this season, when the light is long and the hours stretch to include more reading, relaxing, and some unintentional re-reading.

Here are some of my latest favorites:

1.
Long Bright River by Liz Moore
I can’t stop telling people to read this book. Yes, it’s a “crime thriller mystery” but it’s so much more. Written in a beautifully spare style that runs emotionally and psychologically deep, this novel is smart, poignant, and incredibly moving. The book debuted in 2020 and was a New York Times bestseller, but somehow I missed it. The world is full of books, and thankfully, it seems we’ll never run out.

2.
History of Wolves by Emily Fridlund
A very unusual novel that beautifully balances a languid pace with eerie tension. There is a deep mysterious tone that is both frightening and captivating.

(Because I gave the book to a friend, I didn’t include this novel in the photo above. Do you do this: press your favorite books into unwitting hands, urging them to read your latest love? Is this annoying? Please send me a line, let me know!)

3.
Commitment by Mona Simpson
I love Mona Simpson. I’ve been reading her since the 1990s (Egads, that’s “vintage” era!) and in the last decade I kind of lost track of her. A few months ago I was visiting one of my favorite bookstores and spotted this new novel. As usual, Simpson’s taut writing style manages to feel both spare and full. In this story of a family fractured by mental illness, the characters are vivid and flawed, and the sense of time and place is finely drawn.

(I gave this book away, too. What do you do with your favorite books?)

4.
Send Word: Poems by Donna Henderson
Send Word is an absolutely beautiful book, and finding this poetry collection has been an inspiring surprise. In this, her fourth book, Henderson skillfully blends evocative poetry with abstract art and sophisticated design. Henderson lives in Oregon, where she works as a psychotherapist, and is also a visual artist, singer, songwriter and accomplished poet.

(I’m keeping this book, though I did loan it, briefly, to a friend).

5.
Dear Life: Stories by Alice Munro
Confession: I didn’t like this short story collection when I read it in 2016. Then I forgot I read it and picked it up a few months ago — and loved it.

Oh, the power of time and change.

Munro is a master at fiction, and I’m just now understanding the praise she’s earned. To me, this paragraph sums the book, and, well, life:

“I did not go home for my mother’s last illness or for her funeral. I had two small children and nobody in Vancouver to leave them with. We could barely have afforded the trip, and my husband had a contempt for formal behavior, but why blame it on him? I felt the same. We say of some things that they can’t be forgiven, or that we will never forgive ourselves. But we do — we do it all the time.”

But with her recent death, that line now takes a grim view. It’s come to light that Munro’s husband sexually assaulted their daughter and that Munro was aware of the abuse and chose to stay in the marriage.

Oof, I don’t know what to do with this information. Can you love the writing while loathing the action? It’s an old debate. In literature, film, art, there are just too many examples of artists behaving more than badly (Woody Allen, Pablo Picasso, Diego Rivera . . . ) My mind churns on the schism between art and artist.

In lighter news . . .

6.
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

I loved this book when it was published in 2011. Recently, a good friend was raving about the novel and I agreed with great enthusiasm. But when she got into details, I drew a blank. I have a bad book memory (see above) and rarely reread books (well, not intentionally). But this gem deserved a rerun and I was delighted to return to New York in the 1930s and an engrossing tale of art, culture and class.

7.
Table for Two: Fictions by Amor Towles

Quick on the heels of Rules, I swanned into Towles’ newest book, Table for Two, a fantastic collection of short stories. Sometimes I forget the feeling of really great writing. The way you get so immersed in the experience that you simply glide through the pages as the characters take shape and the plot unrolls with ease. The reader does not see the turbulence of trying, does not feel the clack and clang of the writer’s hard work. Instead, the experience is effortless. You simply feel the float.

(This is a library book, and I don’t want to give it back!)

In other reruns, I recently rewatched two great movies:

8.
The Visitor
This 2007 movie features a college professor who finds a new outlook on life thanks to an immigrant couple who accidentally move into his apartment. Actor Richard Jenkins, with his dry, understated delivery, brings this quiet movie to life.

9.
Born on the Fourth of July
Yes, Tom Cruise stars in this 1989 movie — but watch it anyway. I’m not a fan of the Cruise machine of blockbuster films, but in this one (and Magnolia, my all-time favorite film) he is a powerhouse. Oliver Stone directs this anti-war drama set during Vietnam, and the message is just as relevant as it was nearly 40 years ago.

I watched this movie on July 4, 2024, and it was an excellent counter to the rockets red glare madness that was blasting through my neighborhood.

Okay, that’s enough from me. I’m tired! Give me some energy, won’t you, and share with me your latest good books, rereads & rewatches. I always like to hear from you.