On Losing a Husband – This beautiful piece by Ben Loehnen resonated deeply with me, and I’ve heard his heartbreaking story from mutual friends several times. I love his evocation of those first, foggy days and weeks, and I also got goosebumps because one of the first things I did after my father died was bring a chain over to my mother so she could wear his ring around her neck.
The 100 – Whit and I have been watching this series together for months, and we both find it riveting. There are echoes of the Hunger Games and Lost, and references to a wide variety of literary and mythological tropes. Super interesting. I love the strong female characters. I will say that the series is pretty violent.
Tell Me More: Stories About the 12 Hardest Things I’m Learning to Say
The Finnish Olympic team and knitting – I heard a story about this knitting when I was driving home from Grace’s school on Sunday evening. I just love that they are all knitting to calm their nerves, and especially love that after the Olympics they will take the individual squares and make a blanket for their presidential couple’s new baby.
Less things I love as things I hope to love, but there are a lot of books I’m looking forward to reading as soon as they come into the library: The Power
I write these Things I Love posts approximately monthly. You can find them all here. What are you reading, thinking about, and loving lately?
I sobbed through Tell Me More, I think it might be my new favorite of hers! And the knitting story, obviously I have a soft spot in my heart for those knitters!
(Waving hello to you and your blog, I’ve missed you. Catching up on all your painfully beautiful words as of late. Sending you and yours much love, you’ve been in my thoughts often xo)
Lindsey,
I am in the midst of ‘The Red Sparrow’ trilogy. It’s brilliant if you enjoy terribly realistic espionage and counter espionage thrillers. ‘Red Sparrow’ sets the table, then comes ‘Palace of Treason’ and finally, the rather timely, ‘The Kremlin’s Candidate.’ Jason Matthews the author and also another author Karen Cleveland are two of the top spy and thriller writers working today. I’d venture that it has to do with their long and prestigious careers at the CIA. Karen Cleveland has written a current NYTimes best seller, ‘Need To Know.’ Her novel is a nail bitter from opening page. It is the most compelling spy-read I’ve encountered that weighs in at just under 300 pages. Matthews work is more dense and nuanced reflecting his more than 33 years working in the CIA’s Operations Directorate.
‘Red Sparrow has been made into a film starring Jennifer Lawrence and Joel Edgerton. Here’s link to a three minute interview with Jennifer Lawrence, Francis Lawrence, the director, Jonna Hiestand Mendez, a former CIA intelligence officer and Scott Shane of the NYTimes. https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/politics/100000005745470/jennifer-lawrence-red-sparrow.html
If you enjoy intricacy woven into your spy thrillers, you’ll love ‘The Red Sparrow Trilogy.’
As a father and a grandfather, I found ‘The Power’ intriguing, frightening, thoughtfully developed and artfully presented by Nomi Alderman. I couldn’t help but think of the quote, “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
I can’t wait!! I just read Need to Know and found it very entertaining! CIA novels are among my favorites … xo
I loved Winter by Ali Smith.
Lindsey you may have already read these but if not I think you would really like Heating and Cooling and Educated: A Memoir. I also thought Prairie Fires the biography of Laura Ingalls Wilder was very well done.
I always love your recommendations. I’m reading The Immortalists right now. I just finished a book called The Future Home of the Living God by Louise Erdich that I think you would like. Also very curious to hear what you think about The Power! I read it and liked it but one of those books that needs discussing!
I really liked The Immoralists. Interested in Tell Me More!