My year began in a small cottage situated near a field dotted with pygmy goats and three bossy ostriches.
The time there was quiet and perfect and short. But in those brief months many wonderful pages were turned. Wow, were they good.
“The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” by Stephen Chbosky was a housewarming gift from a dear friend. I picked it up one night after a pygmy goat visit and only put it down when absolutely necessary. Charlie has quirk, insight and introspection. (Can’t really be a wallflower without those three attributes, can one?) Told in letters written by Charlie to an unnamed receiver, the book takes clever and articulate turns in the descriptions of teenage life. So compelling and accurate is the teenage voice I had no choice but to read several pages aloud to the goats as I sat against the fence which divided us. I’m not positive this book caught the attention of my miniature friends, however. Still, don’t let that sway you. This novel is as fun to read aloud as it is silently. Trust me on this one.
In between goat residence and my current one I took a small jaunt to New Mexico. While there I inhaled “Runaway: Stories,” by Alice Munro. “Tricks” was my favorite in this collection. I think about this story often. I have written critiques and reviews on it for classes and colleagues, and still my mind spins around this deceptively complicated plot. The language is sharp and pitch-perfect. The characters have the deepest development one can have in 30 pages. And the story line is so … well … tricky. Infused with hope and despair and parody and complex dialogue, Munro takes her readers on a quick journey to an end which will make one gasp.
On the return flight I picked up “The Story of a Marriage” by Andrew Sean Greer, which I had a feeling would be marvelous. Greer is a novelist with a strong sense of poetics and lyricism and usually chooses story lines left of mainstream. This novel about a marriage is no different. Rich in plot and sub-plot, language and sub-language, it must be taken in slowly, absorbed only the way sensations leave us breathless and awake can. Brew the coffee or tea, or uncork the wine and pick a comfortable spot to consume this little treasure.
The context is haunting with one surprise after another, only the surprise and twists come upon the reader quietly, like a ghost reading over one’s shoulder.
When I returned to northern California an unexpected twist in my path brought me to an sweet little reading space. Although it is far from my pygmies and ostriches, it still has magic. Tucked away behind giant ferns and chattering finches clamoring for the nearest feeder, reading is an easy occupation in this dwelling. “Dancing After Hours,” by Andre Dubus was the first pleasure. This author is the father of Andre Dubus III, famous for his book “House of Sand and Fog.” Recommended by Julia Glass, I picked up this collection of short stories and learned a great deal about love, Ted, and sentence structure.
One character describes literature as “the human attempt to make truth palpable and delightful.” Who can argue this? (And if you can, I don’t want to hear it.)
Other treats to come my way: “The Thirteenth Tale,” by Diane Setterfield; “The Falls,” by Joyce Carol Oates; “Truth and Beauty,” by Ann Patchett; “On Writing,” by Stephen King; and I rounded the year off with an old favorite, “Housekeeping,” by Marilyn Robinson. (Secret: this is the only book which I read, re-read and then read again three years later only to make it to the last page, close the book and then begin it again.)
There were others. Of course, there is always more than what is mentioned, especially when one sits inside a year full of encounters, surprises, new places, strange animals, love, loss, wonder and gifts. All 12 months a steady stream of words showered — really good words. And 2009 promises more of the same, according to notes and books I have on my desk. Until then, let’s toast to marvelous beginnings, haunting endings, quirky characters with resilient hearts, and the stories which await us.
Cheers, best, and be good.
Shannon Calder is a freelance writer, consultant, inspiration specialist and book reviewer. To read more go to postcardscalder.blogspot.com.
