Heiresses By, Laura Thompson

Five Stars. The photograph/cover sets the stage for "The Lives of the Million Dollar Babies." This is a comprehensive, well researched 'tell all' of the lives of the wealthy 'oligarchs' as Ms. Thompson references, dating back to the Edwardian age. In Part II, she moves on to the 19th century and takes a deep dive into the Vanderbilts, who were one of the wealthiest shipping and railroad tycoons. She at times, adds some tidbits of gossip and snarkiness particularly, when detailing the famous feud between the Astors and the Vanderbilts who fought for the 'Crown of New York Society.'

The Author weaves a gilded but, at times, tarnished tale of tthe lives of these million dollar babies from Mary Davies, Catherine Tylney Long, Ellen Turner to the Vanderbilts, Barbara Hutton, the Woolworth heiress, Nancy Cunard, Daisy Fellowes and more. The Author astutely notes, that before the 20th century, a wife's inheritance was the property of her husband, unprotected and vulnerable, the heiresses ended up in perilous situations, involving forced marriages, kidnapping and asylums. 

In 1964, "The Married Women's Property Act" 'allowed' women to equally share money and any property with her husband. Essentially allowing heiresses a 'share' of their wealth once they marry, which opened the door to men who were intent on marrying into wealth. 

The Author also shares literary references to books and short stories written about Heiresses, which added in the "Author's words, a 'minor frisson'  that made the comprehensive worldly tour of the rich and famous even more interesting. She cites, Jane Austin, Edith Wharton, "The Age of Innocence", Henry James, James Baldwin and Dorothy Parker. 

I thought the Author provided a detailed balance of the good, bad and the ugly when discusses the heiresses lives. At times, she was a bit tangential and difficult to follow..I never quite understood her reference to Meghan Markle and Jeff Bezos?! 

Overall. I found this to be a fascinating, engaging read that I devoured in a few days.

I was given an ARC of this book.The release date is 02/15/22. Many, Many thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan Press for the opportunity to read and review this delightful book.

Other Books by the Author:

The Six: The Lives of the Mitford Sisters

Agatha Christie: A Mysterious Life

Dogs: A Personal History of Greyhound Racing

Wanderlust By, Rebecca Solnit

I am a distance walker, and enjoy the process of getting lost in the gratuitous open road, while listening to podcasts, music or the chirping of birds. In 17 quotable essays, Rebecca Solnit writes of walking as an art form; and proseletizes a relationship between walking and thinking. She offers a historical premise for the value of walking, in our automobile dependent world.

Beyond that, she exposes the value of walking as an experience, a way to explore the city by capturing the essence from the ground up."Walkers sre practitioners of the city, for the city is made to be walked. A city is language, a repository of possibilities, and walking is the act of speaking that language, or selecting from those possibilities."

Ms. Solnit discusses the annals of walking, intermingling her own stories with quotes from historic artists, poets, writers, who were all known for walking as a form of meditation. She quotes from Balzac, Thoreau, Bertrand Russell, Virginia Woolf, Wallace Stevens, John Keats, Voltaire, Samuel Beckett, Paul Klee, Pablo Neruda, Hamish Brown, Charles Dickens, Victor Hugo,  Wordsworth, Edgar Allen Poe and Yoko Ono.

Ms. Solnit writes in poetic prose as she aptly describes the mechanics of walking as an art form:
"Suddenly I came out of my thoughts to notice everything, around me again-the catkins on the willows, the lapping of the water, the leafy patterns of the shadows along the path. And then, of myself, walking with the alignment that only comes after miles, the loose diagonal swinging of arms in synchronization with legs in a body that felt long and stretched out almost as sinuous as a snake. When you give yourself to places, they give you yourself back; the more one comes to know them. the more one seeds them with the invisible crop of memories and associations, that will be waiting for you when you come back, while new places offer new thoughts, new possibilities. Exploring the world is one of the best places to explore the mind, and walking travels both terrains."

"And each walk moves through space like thread through fabric, sewing it together into a continuous experience."

"A lone walker is both present and detached from the world, more than an audience, but less than a participant."

Whether you enjoy sauntering, ambling, trekking, promenading in malls, alleyways, malls, mountains, small towns, large cities, gardens, the road less travelled, rambling, roaming, trails, this book will deepen your experience as you ponder the next path and decide to turn left or right?

Other Books By Rebecca Solnit:
Recollections of My Nonexistence: A Memoir 2020
Men Explain Things to Me 2019
Whose Story is This? Old Concepts, New Chapters 2019
Call Them By Their True Names: American Crises 2018
The Mother of All Questions-Further Reports from the Feminist Revolution 2017
Hope in the Dark-Untold Histories, Wild Possibilities 2016
The Faraway Nearby 2013
A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities That Arise in Disaster 2010
A Field Guide to Getting Lost 2005

Dinner with Edward By, Isabel Vincent

This was an intriguing memoir. I read it in one sitting. It's an interesting construct, two seemingly unlikely dinner guests together weekly. Each chapter starts with a menu for dinner, which Isabel and Edward have together, at his home.

Isabel befriends a father, of a close friend, age 90+ who is mourning the recent death of his wife, Paula. Isabel is also entrenched in a loveless marriage with a young daughter and concedes, she is"unraveling, despite my best efforts to pretend nothing is wrong." She works as an investigative reporter for the New York Post. Hoping for a change in scenery, she moves with her Siberian husband, from place to place,  searching for a change of scenery in life and her marriage. 

She finds refuge in weekly dinner dates with Henry, who is a self taught chef, who makes elaborate, gourmet meals, without the use of a recipe. "He had brined the chicken for two days in apple cider and salt, before rubbing the entire bird with thyme, rosemary and butter. He chopped carrots, onions and celery for a mirepoix, which he spooned onto parchment, and set the chicken on top. Then he wrapped everything in a paper bag and braised the chicken in the oven for hours." All of the meals are all 4-5 courses, with dessert and an alcoholic beverage.

She writes lyrically and aptly, uses food metaphors whenever possible. "He was teaching me something about cooking, but even more about appreciating life. He was teaching me the art of patience, the luxury of slowing down and taking the time to think about everything I did. She concludes,"I realize he was forcing me to deconstruct my own life, to cut it back to the bone and examine the entrails, no matter how messy that proved to be."

Their relationship ebbs and flows over time. The author does an excellent job describing the history of Roosevelt Island where they live, shares cooking tips and provides vivid-romantic-touching descriptions of Edward's love and loss of his wife. It's a delightful, touching, mouth watering (literally) story.


Other Books by Isabel Vincent:

Gilded Lily, Lily Safra, The Making of One of the World's Wealthiest Widows 2010
Bodies and Souls 2006
See No Evil 1997
Hitler's Silent Partners: Swiss banks, Nazi Gold And The Pursuit of Justice 1997

NOBODY'S LOOKING AT YOU Essays by, Janet Malcolm

Named one of BBC Culture, Lit Hub, O The Oprah Magazine and New York Times Books to read. The title story, is a profile of Eileen Fisher the fashion designer, who's Mother often said, "Nobody's Looking at You." Janet Malcolm clears the veneer in these essays, featuring interviews with Eileen Fisher, Rachel Maddow, Sarah Palin and others. Ms Malcolm follows her interviewees to their home, so she obtain a clear sense of who these people are, ' onstage and off.'

The essay on Eileen Fisher, I found to be laugh out loud funny. She offers insights and nuances with behavioral descriptions such as,when she arrives for lunch at Ms. Fisher's home,there was a mix up regarding the menu choice. Ms. Malcolm states in reference to Ms. Fisher, "she apologized for the lunch that clearly needed no apology." And later she offers this description regarding Ms. Fisher, "it occurred to me that Eileen looks better in her clothes than anyone else." She ends the essay describing Ms Fisher:

"These were the clothes for Mom's closet, in the obligatory black, gray and white, and as we stood before them. the image of Eileen, in all her delicacy and beauty, wafted out of them, like an old expensive scent."

Another fascinating interview and essay; the 29 year old stiletto wearing prodigy pianist, Yuja Wang. She wears extremely short and tight fitting dresses that ride up as she plays, so that she has to tug at them when she has a free hand, to prevent full exposure. When Ms. Wang was asked by a reporter why she wore such short dresses, Ms. Wang states, "I am 29 years old, so I dress for my age. I can wear long skirts when I am 40." Once again, Ms. Malcolm follows her here there and everywhere, to present a realistic impression of this music phenomenon. She describes Ms. Wang as experiencing an existential crisis at a young age. Ms Wang states in regard to her career, she began performing at 15. "I have been doing this for 29 years, do I want to keep doing this, or is there something more? I don't like to say this, but I am almost like a prisoner. I haven't ever enjoyed my free time."

And the chapter on Sarah Palin with Kate Gosselin is a must read. At one point, in the chapter Ms Malcolm aptly describes an encounter between Sarah and Kate, "What follows is like a scene in a dream-or piece of experimental theatre-where disconnected things happen all at once, very fast and slow, and anxiety covers everything like a sticky paste."

Its a diverse, cultural exploration of fascinating individuals as 'real people' with problems, and struggles, that are deftly epitomized by Ms. Malcolm. I look forward to reading her other books.

Recent Books by Janet Malcolm:

Forty one False Starts:Essays on Artists and Writers (2014)
Iphigenia in Forest Hills: Anatomy of a Murder Trial (2012)
Burdock (2008)
Reading Chekhov: A Critical Journey (2002)

Deep Creek Finding Hope in the High Country By, Pam Houston

I didn't want this book to end! I wanted to keep following Pam, her Irish Wolfhounds and farm animals on all of their adventures. In 1993, after the success of her first book, "Cowboys are my Weakness" Ms Houston receives an advance of $21k which she uses as a 5% advance on a $400,000, 120 acre ranch in the Colorado Rockies. She then states, "I had no job, no place to live except my tent, nine tenths of a PHD, and all I knew about ownership was it was good if all your belongings fit into the back of your vehicle, which in my case they did."

Its a memoir of her struggles and dedication to maintain a lifestyle she cherishes, when the odds, and the unpredictable environment (fires, floods, drought) challenge her. She begins to see the benefits of nature as a means of nurturing and  healing old wounds. She describes, her desire "to live simultaneously inside the wonder and the grief...to love the damaged world and do what I can to help it thrive."

"How do we become who we are in the world? We ask the world to teach us."

Ms Houston writes eloquently about the beauty she finds looking out "her kitchen window" the bluebirds, elks, horses, rams, chickens and snow covered peaks of the Colorado mountains that surround her. She details her "Farm Almanac" and  learns 'ranching' from the locals who take her under their wing, and offer physical and emotional support, so she can survive as a novice caretaker of an aging homestead.

Her depictions of farming are hilarious and heartbreaking at times. "In the winter of 2011, I had only two chickens-Cheryl Crow, who thought she was a rooster and Martina. Two is not enough chickens-everybody knows that-but that is how many I was left with after the summer of ranch fatalities."

Ms Houston survives and thrives, and notes her dedication to the homestead, "But right from the beginning I've felt responsible to these 120 acres, and for years I've painted myself both savior and protector of this tiny parcel of the American west."

This book was an education on the trials of tribulations of living in the west, taking care of a ranch, "when to turn the outside spigots off, to have four cords of wood on the porch and two hundred bales of hay in the barn, no later than October 1st and the birth of lambs which are born "like clockwork on the 25th of March every year."

Books by Pam Houston:
Cowboys are My Weakness (Short Stories) (1992)
Women on Hunting (1996)
Waltzing the Cat (1998)
A Little More About Me (1999)
A Rough Ride to the Heart (2000)
Sight Hound (2005)
Contents May have Shifted (2012)

Happy Mothers Day! Five Poignant -Non Fiction Books on Motherhood

Blue Nights By, Joan Didion

In Joan Didion prose, a beautifully written book, that explores the textures of motherhood, life with her husband John Dunne, the life and unexpected death of her adopted daughter, Quintana Roo.

Ms Didion reviews her life with her husband and daughter, and focuses intently on the trials, tribulations and challenges of parenting. "This book is called "Blue Nights" because at the time I began it, I found my mind turning increasingly to illness, to the end of promise, the dwindling of days, the inevitably of the fading, the dying of brightness." Its a life review in questions, as she contemplates growing old, her fears, thoughts and doubts.

Mother Is A Verb, By, Sarah Knott

This newly released book on Motherhood, written by Historian Sarah Knott provides a historical interpretation of Motherhood from the Seventeenth to 20th century. Beyond medical jargon, Ms. Knott brings a comprehensive perspective from Cree and Ojibwe women, to old world wisdom of Appalachia to New York City to London's East End. It's an artist's narrative of the visceral aspects of motherhood; she reads diaries, records, medical records, first person narratives, items of clothing, her personal experience.

"Perhaps the best way to explore the pasts of having a baby is to put grand narrative aside, and pay attention to the fragments and the anecdotes. Perhaps the best way to explore mothering's many pasts is to build a trellis of tiny scenes, pursuing the many different actions involved. Conceiving, miscarrying, quickening, carrying, birthing. And then, cleaning, feeding, sleeping, not sleeping, providing. These make up the visceral ongoingness, the blood and guts of being "with child." The verbs."

"Historical forgetting leaves holes in the fabric that binds us. Things that seem natural only by force of repetition too easily take on a false status. Appeals to old, mistaken certainties, or to universals, stand uncorrected. How things are now too readily becomes how things were and should always be. It's not healthier to forget, to lose the past; historical remembering makes matters bigger and more open-minded."

This was a refreshing read on the realities of motherhood. Although it clearly offers an 'academic' experience, I found it refreshing to read a truly global perspective.

The Mother of All Questions, By Rebecca Solnit

Rebecca Solnit is one of my favorite authors.This book a follow up to her National Best Seller, Men Explain Things to Me. The initial focus of the book was inspired by a question she received, when she was discussing the works of Virginia Woolf. During the question period that followed, the subject that seemed to most interest a number of people was whether Woolf should have had children. Ms Solnit, is familiar with this line of questioning, as she does not have children either.

"Part of my own endeavor as a writer has been to find ways to value what is elusive and overlooked, to describe nuances and shades of meaning, to celebrate public and solitary life."

The line of questioning was an endless drill of 'why don't you have children" and no answer given was satisfactory. Beyond this mantra, its a wise and woeful discussion of misogynist views and the trial and tribulations of navigating the waters.

Heart Berries By, Terese Marie Mailhot

This is a poetic memoir of a writer who begins with a "notebook" in a treatment center and candidly explores her life with heart wrenching detail. Its a tribute to her Mother, a social worker and activist. Ms. Mailhot grew up in Seabird Island,on British Columbia on the First Nation Reservation. She identifies herself as a Niaka'pamux, part of the Indigenous First Nation's people of Southern British Columbia.

I LOVED this book. As Kyo McLear describes, its "ache and balm. It's electric honesty and rigorous craft." As Ms. Mailhot deftly describes her life which she describes as "maltreated." She writes to explore the pain and acknowledges, that her memory is gilded with pain, imagination and what we choose to forget. "I know the math of regret and nostalgia."

She explores her culture of indigenous people, motherhood, love, relationships, mental illness and discovers her voice through the pleasures and pain.

"The thing about women from the river is that our currents are endless. We sometimes outrun ourselves."

MOTHERHOOD By, Sheila Heti

Ms Heti describes the gains and losses of Motherhood in a frank, exploratory tone, as she grapples with the choice herself. I enjoyed her previous book, "How Should a Person Be" as well. In making life decisions, Ms. Heti uses the pen to write through her feelings in a journalistic form.

In her late thirrties, as her friends are discovering the 'beauty' of Motherhood. She feels doesn't feel the same compulsion and begins to question whether she will ever have children. She is clearly ambivalent and struggles with the question.

"To go along with what nature demands and to resist it-both are really beautiful-impressive and difficult in their own ways. To battle nature and submit to nature, both feel very worthy. They both seem entirely valuable."

The author acknowledges its a controversial subject to discuss and there is much that is often left unsaid. I admire her willingness to speak openly of her fears and to put the question 'out there' when some people feel the question she not even be asked.

Women Rowing North By, Mary Pipher

I found this book to be thought provoking and poignant. As an aging woman, I could not get enough discussions on mental health-authenticity-real life stories-gratitude-nature references-empathy-humor-friendship-cultural and kitchen table wisdom.

The book is part memoir, a journal, a discussion on the aging process and the ways in which culture and societal norms ignore us, paint us as doting grandmothers, who are better off recessing into the woodwork, rather than challenging us to speak up and out. She describes aging as navigating life's currents and flourishing as we age. "As our bodies age, our souls expand."

"To grow into our largest best selves, we must be able to claim our own lives. We need to sort out what we truly desire and then go for it.'

In the introduction to the book, she writes, in reference to the aging process, "To be happy at this junction, we cannot just settle for being a diminished version of our younger selves. We must change the ways we think and behave. This book focuses on the attitudes and skills we need in order to let go of the past, embrace the new, cope with loss, experience wisdom, authenticity and bliss." 

She makes some very, very good points such as, with each new stage in life, we 'outgrow' strategies that worked for us at an earlier age. "If we don't grow bigger, we become bitter." She recommends expanding our capacities to cope, and describes growth as a qualitative process.

Mary does present 'happy stories' of people overcoming tremendous physical and mental health hurdles to reach to the other side of despair, contentment...living a fulfilling life. She does profess to being a proverbial caretaker (oh yeah...we get it) which carries a heavy weight throughout the book, most likely for her and we as, readers. I did see her as the Grandmother in charge, nurturing, caretaker extraordinaire, which I found difficult to relate to, and a tad bit condescending.

Aging is a painful (literally) process. There are no quick solutions to life long questions. She does tend to gloss over the narrative, as a way to circumvent a deeper problem. For instance, she states we can all 'orchestrate' bliss. Its a shallow point to a much larger issue-how can we truly 'feel' bliss rather than arranging it.

I found some chapters to be more helpful than others. But overall, I found the book to be inspirational, and as a way of seeing aging as earned wisdom. "We have weathered strong storms and hold a long view of life's journey."

She is a Clinical Psychologist specializing in women, trauma, and the effects of our culture on mental health. She lives in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Empowering Women, By Louise Hay

"A Guide to Loving Yourself, Breaking Rules and Bringing Good into Your Life"

Louise Lynn Hay (October 8, 1926-August 30,2017)
Louise Hay is known as one of the founders of the self-help movement. Her first book, Heal Your Body, was published in 1976, long before it was fashionable to discuss the connection between the mind and the body. Revised and expanded in 1988, this best selling book introduced Louise's concepts to people in 33 different countries and has been translated into 25 languages throughout the world."

This book is an inspirational read that I will refer to when in doubt. It is divided into 11 Chapters that discuss: Advertising & Targeting Self Esteem, Positive Affirmations, Health & Well Being, Aging and Women Supporting Other Women.

I particularly enjoyed Chapter 4, "Your Relationship with Yourself." She discusses the fears women have, particularly, of living alone.  I appreciate how she aptly downsizes problems, as a means of minimizing their power, she reinforces the need to acknowledge them and then 'walk through your fears."

"Do a meditation where you look at each fear and then drop it in a stream of water to literally dissolve it and make it disappear downstream."

Throughout the book, she lists practical solutions with a 'bottom line' and drives home the message that women have the power, but we aren't using it."

"Inside of you is a smart, powerful, dynamic, capable, self confident, alive, alert, fabulous women. The world is waiting for you."

https://www.louisehay.com

Bettyville By, George Hodgman

George Hodgman, a magazine and book editor, leaves Manhattan, for his hometown of Paris, Missouri to take care of his aging Mother, Betty. At age 90, soon to be 91, she is a force to be reckoned with. It is a bitter sweet memoir, which brings back nostalgic memories for both mother and son. Betty, is fiercely independent and grapples with losing her driver's license,fighting her 'need' for George and most notably, she has never accepted the fact that her son is gay. George grapples with memories of his father, depression, growing up in a conservative, close knit community, grief and loss.

The book is hysterically funny, as George delicately states the obvious. But, he is astute in paraphrasing,so he does not hurt her feelings. George describes their relationship, "I was her conspirator and she made me laugh or want to reach out sometimes, to protect the part of her that rarely showed, her secret soft spot."

The book is full of "Betty-isms" that George aptly describes, which are laugh out loud funny.
"Betty complains constantly about her feet. New shoes, she claims cause her agony. (She has always taken pride in the fact that she wears a narrow size.) Now she insists on the same size, though her feet have swollen."

George obligingly chauffeurs her around the city to various appointments, most notably, Waikiki Coiffures, where her hair is styled into a "lacquered bubble blown back in a way that suggests shock." She states, she has not had a "successful hair appointment since 1945." As Betty slowly realizes she is not quite the independent woman she use to be; the star of the bridge table and piano.

Its an ever changing world for both George and Betty, as they both contemplate the intersection of old and new. "When people ask Betty if she emails, she stares back and asks., "What kind of question is that?" Everyday it becomes more apparent to me, and to her -a woman who still calls a refrigerator an 'icebox'--that her world is gone and she is standing almost by herself now, the only one who remembers how it was here, wondering half the time, what it is people are talking about."

As we all ponder our aging years, the book calls to attention, the enduring love of a son.
"On Betty's journey, I have learned something I had not known. I am very strong, strong enough to stay, strong enough to go when the time comes. I am staying not to cling on, but because sometimes, at least once, everyone should see someone through. All the way home."

The New Old Me By, Meredith Maran

This was a delightful read! Its a rollicking memoir that starts in San Francisco where the author loses her 9-5 job, her marriage ends, she loses her best friend, her life savings and moves to LA.
As she adjusts her 'point of view', acknowledging her age at 60, may pose a multitude of challenges and may be a long, uphill climb. The author is keenly aware that she is now older than her doctors, therapists, mortgage broker, and most of her friends.
Ms Maran accepts a job as a copy writer, working with 30 somethings, who dress in Lululemons, prepared for 'Work out Wednesdays.' She is planted in the center of the thicket, as she describes the work place as the 'vibe is mellow, a group of friends hanging out, snacking on wasabi seaweed, drinking grass green juices from the fresh pressed juicery down the street and water from mason jars, dissecting last night's Game of Thrones." HIL-arious!
The author brings you with her, as she meanders through life and discusses the demands of marriage, family, death, youth, loneliness, sex, alcohol, friendship, love, and more. She presents herself 'unvarnished' and vulnerable, as she tackles the next challenge and feels stronger each day, with a renewed sense of accomplishment.
Ms Maran speaks of the wisdom she has learned and 'Earned' through the aging process. She ends the book describing her birthday and her decision to paraphrase Stephen Stills. "If I can't be with the one I love, my best insurance policy against a sad, lonely old age is to love the one I'm with. The one who will never leave me, no matter what. That one of course, would be me."

Being Mortal By, Atul Gawande

Dr Gawande is a General Surgeon who contemplates the use of palliative care, to prolong the inevitable- death. The author begins the book stating that he was taught a variety of subjects in medical school, but mortality wasn't one of them. The author further addresses the point, stating that the purpose of medical school was to teach 'how to save lives, not how to "tend to their demise." Dr Gawande describes the scope of medicine as 'narrow' and essentially, the 'repair' of health, not the 'sustenance of soul.' The author struggles openly with patients and the ethical dilemma of 'saving' patients, knowing that additional treatment, will prolong their life, and then lead ultimately, to a painful death.

"People die only once. They have no experience to draw from. They need doctors and nurses who are willing to have the hard discussions and say what they have seen, and will help people prepare for what is to come- and escape a warehoused oblivion that few people want."

Dr Gawande illustrates the point, when he describes a patient, who was living a 'fantasy'. The patient was demanding treatment at all cost, to prevent the inevitable, death.  Consequently, all preventive measures were utilized, and the patient suffered through all of the 'enhancements' applied to 'keep him alive.' After 14 days, the patient's son intervened, requesting the ventilator be removed.

In Chapter 5, "A Better Life" he offers examples of nursing homes, which allow birds, animals, community activities and community gardens.  Dr Gawande provides examples of nursing homes, who are giving patients 'reasons to live' rather than 'warehousing them' till they die.

In Chapter 6, "Letting Go" the author describes death as a process, that involves preparation for the event, the final chapter. Understandably, once it is clear death is inevitable, the focus shifts to the quality of life, and how to strengthen relationships with family, friends and ways to maintain independence. It is a difficult subject to contemplate, as the author states, 'death may be the enemy, but it is also, the natural order of things. I knew these truths abstractly, but I didn't know them concretely." Once death is on the horizon, the author recommends having a concrete plan in place to move the 'abstraction' to reality.

The author ends the book with, "Hard Conversations" including his own, with his father, who requested 'no ventilators and no suffering.' Dr Gawande states there was comfort in knowing what his father's wishes were, so he could accommodate them. But also, so he could say "good bye" knowing that his father was at peace, and so was he.

Fifty Days of Solitude by Doris Grumbach 1994

This elegantly written book provide the author's account of her retreat in 1993, to her winter home, alone for 50 days, as a self imposed exile, from the outside world. She traveled into town for essentials and church only. She maintained contact with friends and family through correspondence only-no phone. Her objective was to avoid "the noise of the world." and to restore her inner voice, free from the criticism of others.

I found the concept intriguing. Do we present our 'true' selves to the world or are we living with a pretense, a reflection based on, who we think we should be, based on the mores of society?

At times, the book reads like a prose poem.

"A day began with a fine winter sunrise, a long view of the distant horizon slowly taking on color, the sky glowing brilliant with yellow streaks transmuted into red, even a royal purple. As I watched, the fully lit blue and white day arrived and the pale yellow from sun snow shown like polished ivory."

She ends the book metaphorically, stating that she now needs to live with the "top layer of my person-known to the outside world for social purposes. But, close to the bone, there had to be an inner stratum, formed and cultivated in solitude, where the essence of what I was, an now, and will be, perhaps to the end of my days, hides itself and waits to be found by lasting silence."

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There are photos interspersed, as well as discussions, referencing paintings by Edward Hopper, Francis bacon and Pablo Picasso. I found her daily musings and uneventful "events" interesting and thought provoking.

Other Books by Doris Grumbach

Chamber Music 2014

Coming into the End Zone: A Memoir 2014

The Missing Person 2014

The Pleasure of Their Company 2001

The Presence of Absence 1999

Life in a Day 1996

Extra Innings: A Memoir 1995

Magicians Girl 1993