By Ruth A. Sheets
Here I am again ready to share with you the best books I read in the second half of the year. Again, they are from a range of genre. I hope you will try a few and let me know if I had made a good choice. You might notice that I especially like non-fiction.
1. Someone Has Led This Child to Believe by Regina Louise (Regina had a childhood first of being passed off from her father to mother and back, then when neither wanted to care for her, she went into foster care where she was abused, ultimately put into an institution for troubled teens, then to a mental institution where she was drugged heavily. A system worker wanted to adopt her, but was never permitted. She went to college and came to own a salon and to become a writer, against all odds.)
2. Integrated, How American Schools Failed Black Children by Noliwe Rooks (The author discusses the case Brown v. Board of Education and its “intent” to integrate schools while what happened was conflict, closed schools so Black children could not attend, Black qualified teachers fired, Black students being relegated to the classes for poorly functioning children. Now schools are often as segregated as pre-Brown. The old segregated schools for Black children did have qualities of unity and support which often do not exist now.
3. Who is Government, The Untold Story of Public Service ed. by Michael Lewis (I had no idea of what to expect with this one, but it was great! The various authors present the stories of government workers who have done amazing things because they love their subject and are dedicated to the people of this nation. Our government is “not designed to highlight the individual achievement of unelected officials,” but so many have done remarkable almost impossible things for the benefit of this nation (well, until Trump got his second term).
4. The Counterfeit Countess, The Jewish Woman Who Rescued Thousands of Poles During the Holocaust by Elizabeth B. White & Joanna Sliwa (This is a powerful book about a Jewish teacher who was able to get the ID of a Polish countess and use it to get food to the Poles at one of the concentration camps in Poland. This book describes how violence, hatred, evil grow and will not stop by themselves. This woman was so courageous and caring. Everyone in this country should read this one to see what the Trump/Miller/Vance/etc. EVIL are capable of doing if not stopped, and how even one person can make a difference.)
5. Solidarity, The Past, Present, and Future of A World-Changing Idea by Leah Hunt-Hendrix & Astra Taylor (The idea of solidarity is huge. It is a way of bringing people together for a critical cause that has serious implications for themselves and many others toward improvement of a life situation: unions, Civil rights, government change, climate change, the arts, and so much more.)
6. Not Another Banned Book by Dana Alison Levy (Molly and her reading friends in her school’s book club learn the books they are reading are scheduled to be banned and the teacher/librarian who led the group was on probation. The students decided to fight back and got an online program going to raise money to buy the banned books to put into the Little Free Libraries around town. The quirky group is leaving 8th grade for high school, each in their own place with their own style.)
7. Cults Like Us, Why Doomsday Thinking Drives America by Jane Borden (This amazing book describes the US from the beginning at Plymouth Rock, as a collection of people who saw working for the end times at the center of life. She talks about how gaining money at the expense of others is part of this because it is about the individual doing his, sometimes her own thing as though they were the messiah, or sent by the messiah to announce the coming. She included actual cults and there were plenty of them, utopian communities, corporations like Amway, religious groups, and others. The groups demand conformity, complete subservience, and often permit the guy in charge to sexually exploit the other members.)
8. How We Learn to Be Brave, Decisive Moments in Life and Faith by Mariann Edgar Budde (This woman I admire describes her life as a series of experiences of learning courage, attempting to follow examples of others’ courage. She is now the Episcopal Bishop of DC, and a strong, but as she describes, a far less than perfect person who tries to stand with the people to do what’s right.) Note: She is the priest who called on Trump to be kind and merciful as president the day after his inauguration. He couldn’t hear such words.
9. In the Garden of the Righteous, The Heroes Who Risked Their Lives to Save Jews During the Holocaust by Richard Hurowitz (This book grabbed me from the beginning, presenting 10 stories of non-Jews who risked their lives to help Jewish people trying to escape the Nazis in different countries. Some of the people saved hundreds, even thousands of people while others one or two, all important!
10. Money Lies and God by Catherine Stewart (This was a walk through the right-wing pseudo-religion movement which is more about power than the Christianity it espouses. The author shows the history and claims of this group of mostly white men but a few white women pumping out all sorts of lies about people not like themselves, then pushing their poison all over the world. The author says action on the part of those against this movement is the best response to it.
11. There is No Place for Us, Working and Homeless in America by Brian Goldstone (This is one of the hardest books I have read in a really long time. The author follows several families whose incomes are not sufficient to have a decent place to live due to outrageous rents. They have children and move regularly as they can’t afford rents or car repairs, or any of the other expenses that arise. All are working but even with 3 jobs can’t afford a place, often forced out of a home or job for being a few minutes or days late with rent. So much needs to be done. )
12. On Savage Shores, How Indigenous Americans Discovered Europe by Caroline Dobbs Pennock (I knew some indigenous Americans had been brought to Europe in the 16th century and beyond, but didn’t realize that it was more than a few and to Spain, Portugal, and England mostly. This is a hard book to read because of the cruelties involved: the slavery, the dismissal of people’s rights (particularly in England), the diseases that killed so many when no one had a good idea of how to stop the epidemics. Good book that should be widely read.)
13. One Big Open Sky by Lesa Cline-Ransome (A group of Black families from Nachez, MS set off for Nebraska where it is said there is land to be purchased to homestead. The story is told from the viewpoints of the women and girl in one family: daughter Letty, mother Silvy, and friend Philamena. Hardships faced the people traveling west: getting provisions, stranger violence, injuries, illness, and death. The family arrives after 5 months of travel in a community of mostly Black homesteaders where they, now fatherless plan to make a life. Gr.3-6 and older)
14. The Paris Deception by Bryn Turnbull (The story follows two women in the Paris art world during WWII: Fabienne and Joan. They tried to figure out how to keep the Germans from taking and/or destroying the art from the late 1800s onward.)
15. Eleanor, A Spiritual Biography, The Faith of the 20th Century’s Most Influential Woman by Harold Ivan Smith (Using previous biographies of the Roosevelts, Eleanor Roosevelt’s own personal writings, and writings for newspapers and magazines, the author presents a portrait of a woman whose faith and acceptance of the faith and backgrounds of others was strong as she tried to follow the teachings of Jesus to love, to care for those who are poor, and to include everyone as children of God.)
16. The Capitol Ghost Mystery by Michelle M. Barone (Sylvy’s class goes on a trip to the Colorado capitol in Denver. She was disfigured by an accident when she was younger and has no friends until she is paired up with a kid who had bullied her at school. Together, they solve a mystery for the Capitol, for her family and for her friend’s family. Fun for gr.5 and up)
17. Murder at an Irish Bakery by Carlene O’Connor (This was a twisted mystery about a baking competition with all kinds of rivalries, even hatreds with lots of red herrings and good Irish humor. All the books of the series are good!)
18. 8-Legged Wonders, The Surprising Lives of Spiders by James O’Hanlon (I loved this book about spiders, a critter I have found interesting, I think, since reading Charlotte’s Web,” and watching a spider spin her web across our front door when I was growing up, the same web night after night, catching bugs, but gone in the morning. I find spiders remarkable and not deserving of the bad reputation they have. Go spiders, natural pest control!)
19. The Unquiet Grave by Sharyn McCrumb (This mystery brought to life an actual murder and trial in West Virginia in 1897. A young woman marries a near stranger and is found dead at the bottom of stairs but the husband doesn’t want her body examined. They exhumed the body and found evidence of strangulation. The story is told in various voices.) I really like Sharyn McCrumb’s mysteries!
20. Newsroom Confidential, Lessons and Worries from an Ink-Stained Life by Margaret Sullivan (The author writes of her life in various jobs writing for and managing newspapers over 40 years. She discusses her various jobs, the people she worked with, the principles that guided her work, and her responses to the positives and negatives of reporting and writing for public consumption, angry that so much of what is put out is about making money rather than truth.)
21. A Protest History of the United States by Gloria Browne-Marshall (This book is one every high schooler should read with their teachers. OK, the rest of America should read it too. It is a great way to look at history from the point of view of those who did not like what was going on at a particular time and let the world know about it from the revolts of enslaved persons to anti-war protesters to constitutionalists to LGBTQ persons, women, and citizens of color.)
22. House of Sticks by Ly Tran (This is the memoir of an immigrant from Vietnam whose father had served with the Americans in the war and was a Prisoner of War of the Communist government for 10 years. In 1992, he brought his wife and 4 kids to NYC. He was scared of the government, so would not permit his daughter to get glasses even though she could hardly see and was having trouble in school. They were poor but a determined family and all of the kids became successful, attended college, and made a life for themselves, but it was tough.)
23. Small Acts of Courage, A Legacy of Endurance and the Fight for Democracy by Ali Velshi (The journalist MSNOW host describes the challenges of his family’s struggles for a better life and the trials of being forced out of countries because of their color. Despite THAT, they made their mark wherever they were, changing lives wherever they went. Beautiful!)
24. Hatchet Man, How Bill Barr Broke the Prosecutors’ Code and Corrupted the Justice Department by Elie Honig (This was a trip through the second part of Trump’s first administration when Barr was Attorney General and used the position to get Trump off the hook several times for his “criminal” behavior, and used the office for his own purposes. Anyone interested in politics will find this one interesting.)
25. Shadow Work, The Unpaid, Unseen Jobs that Fill Your Day by Craig Lambert (The author takes readers on a ride through many of the activities we do each day that once people were paid to do on behalf of corporations that now, don’t want to pay people to do, of course, while raking in the bucks: ordering and serving ourselves at fast food restaurants, checking and bagging our own groceries, pumping our own gas, building our own unassembled furniture. The author calls it “middle-class serfdom.” He adds that it has undermined community as it keeps us from talking with those who used to do the work and made everything more personal.
26. Night on Fire by Ronald Kidd (In this novel, Billie lives in Aniston, AL in 1961 when the Freedom Riders came through town on a Greyhound bus. She is white but appalled at the way the riders were beaten and the bus burned just because white and Black people were sitting together. That begins her transition into adulthood in a racist society. Gr.5 and older)
27. A Pair of Wings by Carole Hopson (This is a fictionalized autobiography of Bessie Coleman, the first African-American woman to earn an international pilot’s license. She had to go to France to get it since no Black woman could get such training here. The author presents a vibrant, ambitious, decent woman who needed to fly.)
28. Grant by Ron Chernow (This is a long book, but portrays a hero of American history not so much as a hero but as a man doing the best he could with what he had. The parts I found most interesting are those describing his respect for Black Americans and the number of them he put in government positions, even ambassadorships when he was president. He was not always a great judge of people and was betrayed rather often, but that did not lessen his belief in this nation and its people.
29. Coded Justice, A Thriller by Stacey Abrams (Avery, the hero of Abrams’ past books is asked to investigate a death at a medical research facility where AI is being used to provide medical care for veterans. A fascinating look at AI’s potential as well as a challenging mystery.)
30. Future Face, A Family Mystery, An Epic Quest, and the Secret to Belonging by Alex Wagner (Alex’s mother is Burmese and her father from Iowa with European ancestry. She is an only child and wanted to find out the heritage of her family, visits the countries of origin, and takes the DNA tests to learn more. This is an interesting and entertaining trip through her research.)
31. The Indispensables, The Diverse Soldier Mariners Who Shaped the Country, Formed the Navy, and Rowed Washington Across the Delaware by Patrick K. O’Donnell (I really liked this book about a group of men from Gloster MA, that I knew only vaguely. I knew about their major feats: evacuating Brooklyn and Washington’s crossing, but not the many battles and skirmishes they participated in, their naval actions against British shipping, and so much more. They were also multi-racial and a wide range of ages.)
32. What Set Me Free, a True Story of Wrongful Conviction, A Dream Deferred, and A Man Redeemed by Brian Banks & Mark Dagostino (This is a powerful book about the inanities of our criminal justice system. Brian was accused of a rape that never happened by a girl at his high school. He was an up-and-coming football star and was tried as an adult, then imprisoned at different prisons in California. He finally was released but served a 5-year parole with an ankle monitor which made it impossible for him to do much of any job. The accuser was finally caught confessing that the whole story was a lie. The CA innocence Project helped to exonerate him. This is a great book for high school and older students.)
33. Cassandra Speaks, When Women Are the Storytellers, the Human Story Changes. By Elizabeth Lesser (The author takes the reader through Western history to look at the story from a woman’s point of view where she was scorned. Threatened, killed for her beliefs, and otherwise deprived of a recounting of her role in human history. Women have been caught up in being excluded from the structures of power most of the time, which The author suggests must be changed for women to take our rightful place.
34. Miracles and Wonder, The Historical Mystery of Jesus by Elaine Pagels (Theologian Pagels looks at the scriptures of Jesus life and those that explain the experience of a 1st Century Rabbi who taught love, acceptance, caring for those who are vulnerable and how and why people all over the world have been drawn to Jesus and still are. She looked at the Gnostic Gospels and other early writings to find more clues that helped shape early Christianity and the faith that has come to us today.)
35. Palaces for People, How Social Infrastructure Can Help Fight Inequality, Polarization, and the Decline of Civic Life by Eric Klinenberg (This was a fascinating book about how communities and housing complexes can be designed to make life better for the residents and the community as a whole. People have to believe the owners care about the properties, there has to be a lot of light, clean public spaces, and other amenities that anyone should expect.
36. Untouchable, How Powerful People Get Away with It by Elie Honig (Ugh! This book deals with the very rich and powerful and how difficult it is to bring charges for their many crimes and then to get them to stick: bribery, threats, intimidation, prestige, as well as the challenges of gathering evidence against people who know how to hide things and make things hard for prosecutors, so often people like Trump are rarely indicted. The author explains it, as a former prosecutor, then declares it wrong!)
37. The Venetian Bargain by Marina Fiorato (Tera lives in Constantinople but is forced to flee to Venice when her father is ordered on a mission there by the Sultan in 1576. She is a doctor and finds a place in the city in various jobs until she connects with a male doctor during the plague outbreak.)
38. The Frozen River, A Novel by Ariel Lawhon (Midwife Martha Ballard is brought into a case when a body is found frozen in the ice. She meets the new doctor in town, an arrogant fool, and various other characters in an actual town in 1790 Maine, and helps solve the murder. It is based on the life of a midwife who lived there and in all her work, lost no mother and a rare child when delivering over a thousand babies in her area during her career.)
39. Murder By Degrees, A Mystery by Ritu Mukerji (In Philadelphia in 1875, the police find a body in the river. A woman doctor becomes involved in the investigation. There is a mistaken identity, and a cast of unsavory rich folks who use the people around them. Very well done.)
40. Where Biology Ends and Bias Begins, Lessons on Belonging from our DNA by Shoumita Dasgupta (This book presents what scientists know about our DNA, related to race, genetics, and gender, then points out that our biases are hiding as genetics.)
41. A Well-Trained Wife, My Escape from Christian Patriarchy by Tia Levings (Tia was raised in a cult-like set of groups that groomed women to be submissive wives deserving of beatings by husbands who had been groomed to be abusers, all in the name of god, of course. Tia tolerates it as long as she can, then just leaves and faces the struggles afterward. Disturbing, but makes the reader aware of what is out in the world of patriarchal Christianity.)
Yay! You made it to the end of this. Unfortunately, that only took us through November’s collection. Well, if there are books I just MUST share from my December reads, I will send them later, maybe at the end of a blog. I hope you enjoyed the variety of comments and brief descriptions of the books I included. It was fun for me reading back over the terrific books I read this year. I am already reading a couple of the books that will be counted in next year’s collection.
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