June 2020 Bookshare with Maryann Steven's books

Hello All,

Maryann wanted to add a description of the books she read and reported on at our last Bookshare gathering. 

BRAIDING SWEETGRASS by Robin Wall Kimmerer 3.5⭐️ changed from 4 because it went on too long & got repetitive. Kimmerer is like a Native American Barbara Kingsolver- a botanist who with literary magic weaves her native soul & reverence for all nature with her scientific knowledge & understanding. She has a PhD & is a university professor. “My culture is rooted in feelings of gratitude.” Thanksgiving address vs pledge of allegiance. Now our minds are one. Leaders must have vision, be generous & sacrifice for the people. Leadership is rooted not in power & authority but in service & wisdom. Time is a circle so that a story is both history & prophecy.

SUMMER OF '69 by Elin Hilebrant 3.5 ⭐️. Kate Nichols Levin, born a Boston Brahmin, is emotionally caught between her mother’s overbearance and her own role as mother to 3 daughters & a son, each at a different stage during this tumultuous time, 1969.  Her son is drafted, her oldest daughter expecting twins when she had been planning to attend Harvard to work in her masters in American lit, Kirby, her middle daughter has been arrested twice at anti-war protests, & dear Jessica, just turning 13 and experiencing her first crush. Kate handles it all by drinking too much, thus handling nothing at all. Advertised as a historical novel; I would not agree. It is a family drama played out in the summer of 1969 in Boston, on Nantucket & Martha’s Vineyard. The moon launch, Mary Jo Kopecneck, Vietnam, Woodstock- each play a background role but I wouldn’t classify it as historical fiction. Maybe it’s too close to me?

NINE PERFECT STRANGERS by Liane Moriarty 3.5 ⭐️ Set in Australia as all Moriaty’s books. Nine people, each with their own reason, journey to the secluded, posh health spa, Tranquila. The svelte, exotic owner/operator Marsha with her still noticeable Russian accent breathes, “You will be a different person when you leave here. “ Ten days of yoga, meditation, silence, personalized menus, massages, & exercise, accompanied by frustration, mystery, & danger, assures Marsha’s claim is correct though not necessarily satisfactory. Hard to put down but so long that all the twists & turns prove slightly tedious. I liked her wrap up - it seemed necessary though not particularly literary.

SATURDAY BIG TENT WEDDING by Alexander McCall Smith 3.5 ⭐️. McCall Smith Always tells a good story.