#ReadWomen2014 Non-Fiction: 'The Penguin Book of Witches'by Katherine Howe

I came across this book on a recent trip to Quebec but couldn't justify paying the marked-up/exchange rated/credit card fee-inducing price, so now that I'm stateside again I can't wait to get my hands on it, and just in time for Halloween, too. Katherine Howe is a descent of no fewer than three accused Salem witches, in addition to being a talented and prolific author who has already published a popular YA book (an adaptation of The Crucible set in a Massachusetts private school) and several novels. This anthology includes a variety of primary source writing on witches and witchcraft and functions as a historical treasury for those interested in the history of witchcraft (or I should say, the accusations of witchcraft; this book doesn't explain how to do spells and whatnot). Follow it up by watching 'Hocus Pocus' and 'The Craft' and celebrate a Feminist Halloween this year.

#ReadWomen2014: The Mitford Ladies

Surely by now you've already finished the terrific Mitford biography The Sisters, which I recommended two days ago. Now you're ready to dive in to the heady and diverse world of Mitford-penned books.

The place to start is with Nancy Mitford, the oldest and the most literary. Several of them wrote and published, but Nancy made writing her career, and since she never married and had to split an inheritance six ways, she truly wrote to make a living. She was close friends and correspondents with Evelyn Waugh and very much a part of the "bright young things" literary scene in pre-war London. Her books are the Roaring 20s equivalent of a good romantic comedy. I love Love in a Cold Climate and The Pursuit of Love, both of which make for a funny, breezy read.

If funny and breezy aren't exactly your thing, turn to Jessica (Deca) Mitford, the second-youngest daughter who moved to America and was a dedicated member of the Communist Party. She wrote several volumes of memoirs, the first of which Hons and Rebels, is truly excellent and was really widely read in Britain. This is a great pick if you enjoyed the biography, because it is much the same-- anecdotes of a life among six sisters (I should probably mention they had a brother who was largely unremarkable) in the British aristocracy. But if you prefer your aristocratic non-fiction with a touch of the macabre, I would recommend her best-selling piece of investigative journalism, The American Way of Death, a damning revelation of the corruption and excess of the funeral home industry. I had to read portions of this in high school and it was hard to stomach, but even all these years later it is still a fascinating read. 

Finally, there is Deborah Mitford/Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, whose bibliography would give Martha Stewart a run for her money. In addition to her own memoirs about life as a MItford sister, she published volume after volume about Chatsworth, her estate, including gardening books, photography books, histories, and cook books. The publication and sale of these was part of a larger scheme to make Chatsworth a public institution, thereby preserving it, and it was quite successful. If you visit England and tour any historic homes or estates, you have Debo Mitford to thank for it. 

#ReadWomen2014 Non-Fiction: 'The Sisters' by Mary S. Lovell

A few weeks ago, the youngest Mitford sister, Deborah (aka the Duchess of Devonshire) passed away after a long and impressive life spent in dedication to the restoration of Chatsworth, an English manor house she lovingly preserved. Her life, and the lives of her five sisters, were like something straight out of Downton Abbey.

Deborah (the youngest) led arguably the most traditional life for a member of the English aristocracy, becoming a duchess while simultaneously revolutionizing the business model of the English manor. Nancy Mitford, the oldest, was a very successful fiction writer and took a French military captain for a lover, natch. Diana married a fascist party leader and spent three years imprisoned during World War II as a result. (The sisters' cousin-by-marriage Winston Churchill eventually helped her get released). Unity Mitford moved to Germany, became enamored with Third Reich culture and was even an acquaintance of Adolf Hitler. When Britain declared war on Germany she attempted suicide with a handgun in a Berlin public park. Jessica "Deca" Mitford ran away and eloped with a cousin who was fighting in the Spanish Civil War, and following his death moved to America, where she became one of the most prominent female leaders of the Communist Party. There is one more, Pamela, who didn't do much of interest.

Now explain to me why you wouldn't want to read more about these ladies?

#ReadWomen2014: Alice Munro

I feel a bit exposed recommending Alice Munro, because I've only read one book of her short stories ( there are fourteen original collections). I was really delighted and surprised, as were most interested parties, when she won the Nobel Prize for Literature last year, but it only further validated my shame at not having read enough of her writing. If ever there were proof that you missed the boat on a writer, it's when they are awarded a prize that is notoriously slow to validate women who write in English.

 

 

But! I did read Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage and really enjoyed it. I had to read it slowly to savor each and every story, but also to mitigate how much her stories made me feel. The titular story is my personal favorite, but each one is a small treasure full of impact. 

I was especially excited to write about her this week as I travel to Montreal, QC for a long birthday weekend. She's from Ontario, but close enough.

#ReadWomen2014: Barbara Kingsolver

How did I make it to October of 2014 without a post on Barbara Kingsolver? She is certainly one of the most significant American women writing today and has been since the publication and critical-acclaim of her first novel The Bean Trees, which I read as a junior in high school for an AP Language class.

The next year, in AP Literature, I had to read The Poisonwood Bible, a novel that has stuck with me as one of my all-time favorites for over ten years now. My copy got so dog-eared and worn out I had to replace it. I loved it so much that I did a presentation on it for class that required limping around the classroom and pretending to be a mute (if you've read it, that makes a lot of sense). I have read and re-read it, and every time it surprises me and I am reminded again of Kingsolver's incredible talent as a storyteller.

More recently I read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, her nonfiction book on local and sustainable food. It was a very smug reminder that her life is not like your life, and at times I found it to be incredibly frustrating in a Gwyneth Paltrow-type way. But, I also found it infinitely more enjoyable than anything else I've read on the local foods movement, not only because Kingsolver is a writer first and a sustainable gardener second, but also because it was so deeply personal and forthright.

My book club read The Lacuna last year, and I'm very embarrassed to admit that it is the only book club selection I didn't read, and not even for any good reason (I did only partially read Delta of Venus, but that was a very deliberate choice). I just had too many other good books to finish up, and I neglected it for too long and then suddenly a month had gone by and it was time to discuss it. When I realized I wasn't going to finish it in time, I put it back on the shelf, but I have every intention of getting it back out and trying again someday.

#ReadWomen2014: Caitlin Moran

I didn't include Caitlin Moran in the earlier post on funny women writers because although she is a bit of a celebrity, she's a journalist and writer first and foremost. I just finished her amazing pseudo-memoir How to Be a Woman in which dispenses sage wisdom based on her extremely hilarious and often crass personal anecdotes (In response to being called "Fatso" as a teen: "I'm fat because every time I fuck your dad he gives me a biscuit"). It's fairly filthy but really funny and very endearing and sweet, a bit like if Georgia Nicholson grew up to write a book on feminism and growing up. I especially love the image of her on the cover; she could be a hip witch character from Harry Potter.

Her new book How to Build a Girl is a coming-of-age novel that seems largely autobiographical. The heroine Johanna grows up in a very bohemian family and becomes a music writer at 16, much like Moran herself. I haven't read it yet because I'm on a very long wait list at the Public library for a copy, but I can't wait to just devour it.

Books by Funny Women

Lena Dunham's memoir Not That Kind of Girl follows in a long and illustrious (albeit recent) tradition of famous, funny women publishing essays and memoirs. Part of the reason she received such a publicized advance on the book was because of the incredible (and somewhat surprising) successes of her predecessors. Below are some of my favorite funny lady books, including some titles to watch for in the coming months.

Bossypants by Tina Fey -- The O.G. of books by funny ladies in the modern era. I like how seamlessly she blends autobiographical stuff with funny essays, and then somehow manages to give you really profound advice about feminism without your realizing what just happened.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling -- Another classic, which you've likely already read. If not, got on that, and also watch her show on Fox, 'The Mindy Project,' and then join me in anxiously awaiting her second memoir, which she's currently working on.

I Don't Know What You Know Me From by Judy Greer -- I cannot abide this one because she claims to be from Detroit and then reveals she actually grew up in Livonia. This is simply too much for me, but I still love her in everything, but mostly 'Arrested Development.'

 I Hate My Neck by Nora Ephron -- She's an incredible wit, a strident feminist, and a very sweet lady, whose personal voice as a writer is probably the strongest of this group. When you read her essays, you feel like you're reading something written by a friend or a very hilarious mother. This particular volume is focused on aging and womanhood, but all her writing is excellent.

Yes, Please by Amy Poehler -- Forthcoming in October! She earns the very high praise of being worth saving my next Audible credit for, as I'm hopeful she'll be the reader in her own audio book version. She's talented and funny and if her presence in Bossypants is any indication, she has plenty of sage feminist wisdom to dispense with as well. Additionally, if you're not already enjoying her incredible media empire that is 'Smart Girls at the Party,' go remedy that.

#Readwomen2014 Non-Fiction: 'Not That Kind of Girl' by Lena Dunham

Do you really need me to tell you that this book drops today? You shouldn't. It's arguably the biggest book release of the year, and quite famously, resulted in one of the biggest book advances on record. It's crass to talk about money, but it bothered me enormously when so many people made a stink about it; why does anyone begrudge a talented young woman for her successes? This seems to be a recurring theme for Dunham, who so many people hate for really unfair or arbitrary reasons. Her publisher gave her a huge advance because she is a proven, critically-acclaimed writer, a very hard worker, and worth every damn cent of it.

Moving on, excerpts and previews from this collection of essays have been circulating for a few weeks now, along with plenty of positive reviews. There is now a well-formed genre of smart, funny women writing memoir/essay collections (more on that tomorrow), and this will certainly take its place in that pantheon. Particular kudos to Dunham, however, for earning the coveted text-only cover; this might have something to do with the constant public debate over Dunham's physical appearance, but I choose to take it as a sign that famous women won't always have to splash their faces on their covers. I've enjoyed Dunham's contributions to the New Yorker for quite awhile now, and I'm a devotee of Girls, frustrating as it can be at times, so I'm really looking forward to digging in to this. If you live in a major city, look up her book touring schedule, because she's doing really major events at huge venues with other funny, talented women, and they look awesome. I was so disappointed that she was making so few stops in the Midwest.

#ReadWomen2014: Jhumpa Lahiri

I am really new to Jhumpa Lahiri, having just read Interpreter of Maladies, her first published work and a Pulitzer-Prize winning collection of short stories, earlier this month. But I feel no hesitation in endorsing her anyway, because she was always an author I was going to get around to reading. She has served in a Joan Didion-like role in my life, as a critically-acclaimed author with a fairly robust body of work that I just always had on my list of things to read, but never found the motivation to get to it. 

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#ReadWomen2014 Non-Fiction: 'Just Kids' by Patti Smith

Musical memoirs and biographies are not my cup of tea, in part because so many of them celebrate eras in music that are of greater interest to Baby Boomers than to me. When someone publishes a 1,000 page unauthorized biography of Destiny's Child, I'll change my tune (no pun intended).

What I really love about Patti Smith's memoir Just Kids, however, is the way she is able to completely transcend the specifics of her life and her relationship with Robert Mapplethorpe in order to write a memoir that is simultaneously revealing and universal. It feels like you are getting glimpses into the otherwise private, closed-off lives of two extraordinary artists, but at the same time you really don't need to be a huge fan in order to find the story compelling. There is very little of the usual post-revisionist memoir life "moments," i.e. the events that in the opinion of the writer, were significant in their lives and coincidentally, can be concisely and effectively described in prose. What Just Kids manages to accomplish is a really intimate portrait of the life of an artist and writer, and in no way does it come across as the memoir of a famous person who is conscious of their image or brand.

I've really fallen in love with the audio book version of this, which is read by Patti Smith herself. Her gravelly voice and Jersey accent enhance every line and something about it has felt so perfect as the days are getting shorter and colder. Maybe it's that I'm wearing black jeans and boots again, so hearing her voice in my head just enhances the mood I'm already in.

#ReadWomen2014: Antonia Fraser

In my recap of Wolf Hall, I alluded to a phase of Tudor dynasty obsession in which I devoured many biographies, the vast majority of which were written by Antonia Fraser, including her The Six Wives of Henry VIII.  I found them at the Ann Arbor Public Library and knew very little about the author when I pulled them off the shelves, but that chance encounter sparked an Antonia Fraser devotion in which I regularly engage.

As if it's not enough that she's a terrific biographer and writer, she is also the widow of Nobel Laureate Harold Pinter; as the daughter of an Earl, is officially referred to with the honorific "Lady Antonia," and she once survived an IRA bombing with Caroline Kennedy. She has won a significant number of awards for her non-fiction writing, and has penned a series of detective novels. Likely of greatest interest to Bookhive readers is her biography Marie Antoinette: The Journey, which was the primary basis for the Sofia Coppola film 'Marie Antoinette.'

#ReadWomen2014: Natalie Babbitt

I don't often read YA novels, and I even less frequently blog about and recommend them. Natalie Babbitt, however, was one of my favorite authors growing up, and I occasionally enjoy re-reading her short YA novels just for fun, and I have yet to tire of them. Both Tuck Everlasting and The Search for Delicious can be read in one sitting, and they are decidedly of a different era in YA fiction, before it was called "YA fiction."  They lack the genre-y quality of later popular YA novels, but still somehow manage to gracefully skim the surface of fantasy or sci-fi, much like The Giver or A Wrinkle in Time. 

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#ReadWomen2014: Nora Ephron

This week's #ReadWomen2014 is a particularly fun one, because getting to know Nora Ephron as a writer absolutely includes a screening of her movies, especially When Harry Met Sally, the screenplay of which is even included in The Most of Nora Ephron, a posthumous collection of her work which I recommend for its breadth and variety. In addition to the screenplay, it includes her early journalism, later essays, her Wellesley commencement address about being flat-chested, and her post-divorce novel Heartburn. Really hardcore Nora Ephron fans might want this in addition to some of the individual essay collections (Wallflower at the Orgy, I Feel Bad About My Neck), even though there will be some overlap.

Her writing is smart and funny and so. so absolutely touching and human. She bares her soul in so many ways that manage to be simultaneously funny and sad, and she pretty unapologetically and honestly embraces her flaws, which feels in a strange way like a granting of permission for the reader to do the same. She is someone you can read when you want a really fun, smart book that is entertaining and soulful.

#ReadWomen2014 Non-Fiction: 'The Feminine Mystique' by Betty Friedan

I put off reading The Feminine Mystique for a long time, and until pretty recently I just assumed I would never get around to it. Every time I've tried to read a non-fiction work of particular cultural importance from the past, I've been bored and disappointed. It's hard to read something like this, which in the immediate aftermath of its publication was put up on a such a pedestal, but which today seems flawed in so many ways. I was surprised how much I enjoyed it, even with a heaping portion of skepticism.

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#ReadWomen2014: Roxane Gay

In case you haven't figured it out already, I am a fan of Roxane Gay. I have already endorsed her first novel, An Untamed State, and her essay collection Bad Feminist, out this week. Both are great, and by all means, buy them and read them.

I would be remiss, however, if I didn't include an endorsement for Roxane Gay's prolific writing on all manner of subjects, all over the Internet, most of it freely available. She is at the very forefront of the literary Internet, and her Twitter feed is a joy to behold. There are a few authors I really truly enjoy following on Twitter because they approach it as just another form of authorship, rather than a stream of self-promotion, and Roxane Gay is certainly one of them. I know a lot of people who don't use Twitter because they aren't really sure how or why they need it, and she's a good example of what you might be missing.

Equally as an enchanting is her Tumblr page, which she updates almost daily. This is the best place to find aggregation of all her Internet writing, including terrific essays written for the likes of The Rumpus and Salon. If you enjoyed Bad Feminist, this is the source material from which it was born, and there is plenty more out there. What I particularly love about her Tumblr though is the deeply personal, almost diary-like writing exercises she posts every week. Lately they've been following a similar structural pattern of Gay's narration and photos of her cooking a recipe (she's a devotee of Ina Garten) while she reflects on her life. The results are equally profound and delicious, and if you're a fan of food writing, you'll love it. It reminds me of Nora Ephron's food writing, but maybe a bit more heartfelt and somber. Really, really lovely stuff.

I often try to carve out a ten minute chunk in every work day to see what she's been writing, and I never find myself skimming her content, which is rare for stuff in my RSS feed. I read and digest every word while I sip my coffee, and then I impatiently wait for her to post again. Every voracious reader understands that anxiety and enthusiasm that comes from waiting for a favorite writer to finish a project so it can be consumed, and with Roxane Gay, you only have a wait a few hours.

Finally, she has a work of non-fiction/fiction/poetry on the Haitian diaspora, Ayiti, I haven't read it yet, but I really can't wait to check it out. For those who enjoyed An Untamed State, it will provide a lot of parsing out of the Haitian-American cultural  context of that novel.