Written by Kat Stone Underwood and Lauren Williams, One Read co-chairs.
This year’s One Read selection, Daniel Mason’s “North Woods,” follows an extraordinary succession of inhabitants of a single house in the woods of New England, exploring the many ways we’re connected to our environment and to one another across time, language and space. This work of historical fiction narrowly beat out Nikki Erlick’s work of magical realism, “The Measure,” in a public vote.
The remaining eight titles considered by our reading panel examine survival of all kinds, from processing grief and escaping abuse to thriving in spite of oppression and being alien in a human world.
In the haunting and beautiful novel “The Vaster Wilds,” Lauren Groff upends the typical tale of survival by centering a servant girl fleeing a starving and disease-ridden colonial settlement, choosing the harsh natural world over a cruel man-made one.
“Help Wanted” by Adelle Waldman focuses on a different kind of survival — attempting to make ends meet when you work a low-wage job. When the CEO of a big box retailer announces his transfer to another store, the employees of “movement” (also known as logistics) begin jockeying and scheming to place one of their own at the top. In addition to being a workplace dramedy, this book takes a hard look at capitalism, consumerism and privilege.
Hanif Abdurraqib is more than a poet and essayist, just as his sharp and lyrical book “A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance” is no ordinary work of nonfiction. This genre-blurring celebration of musicians, athletes and artists combines cultural analysis and personal experience to explore the ways Black performance weaves through and impacts American life and history.
Instead of using art as a tool of historical and cultural exploration, in his book “All the Beauty in the World: The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me,” Patrick Bringley describes a season of his life using art to turn inward, to become still and heal after losing his brother to cancer. Part behind-the-scenes-at-work memoir and part celebration of humankind’s masterworks, this book is an entertaining stroll through one of the world’s most famous museums.
Andrew Leland started losing his sight as a teenager, and he knew that one day he would lose it entirely. But when? “The Country of the Blind: A Memoir at the End of Sight” chronicles his experiences as he comes to terms with many things: his changing relationships, his own prejudices, and even being “blind enough” to use a white cane. With wit and humor, Leland also explores the language, customs and politics of blindness. This thought-provoking memoir tells the story of one man learning a new way of being.
Another memoir considered was by poet Safiya Sinclair. “How to Say Babylon” lyrically tells the story of Sinclair’s tumultuous childhood growing up in Jamaica with her siblings, their mercurial father (a reggae musician and strict follower of Rastafari) and their mother who struggles with the forced domesticity of their religion. After discovering poetry, Sinclair finds a way to her own voice and power.
Another book with complicated relationships is “Klara and the Sun” by Kazou Ishiguro. Klara, a solar-powered Artificial Friend, longs for a human companion, and when 14-year-old Josie picks Klara and takes her home, we get glimpses of their somewhat-dystopian society. Ishiguro presents a unique commentary on the human condition, and all of its beauty and messiness, as experienced by a robot.
Last, but not the least, is the lovely and unique novel “Beautyland” by Marie-Helene Bertino. The tale follows Adina, a gentle alien whose job is to learn about Earth to determine if it’s a habitable planet. She communicates her discoveries to her fellow aliens via a fax machine, and tells them of all the fragile complexities, resilience and weirdness that make up human life on Earth.
Join the library and the One Read Task Force in September as we explore the topics and themes in “North Woods” — including memory and place, nature, American history and ghosts — through art, music, discussions, films and more. Visit dbrl.org/one-read later this summer for details.
