A real life tale of survival and an historical epic with a dose of magic
Plus crime and thriller recs and the new hobby I'm taking up with my toddler
I think I’ve finally got my audiobook groove back. FINALLY!! It’s only taken a little over half the year, but I’m once again listening to, enjoying, and retaining books on audio. I know some of you have said you’ve also been in an auditory rut, so I’ll share the small tweaks that have helped me. First, and most importantly, I’ve been choosing my next audiobook as I near the end of my currently listen. This is so basic, but I typically finish an audiobook and then don’t think about what I’m going to listen to next until a listening opportunity arrises. Usually I have such a difficult time deciding at that point that I just put on a podcast instead. But know what’s next up means that as soon as I get a chance to listen, I dive right in. Next, I’ve stopped listening to audiobooks in the car completely. I’m just not absorbing them in that scenario which leads me to feeling dissatisfied with the experience overall. I’m reserving drives for podcasts or music and saving audio for chores and walks. Finally, I’m picking up lighter, quirkier, or more plot-driven books for audio endeavors. There was a time when I could engage with slow, introspective literary fiction on audio, but right now that’s just not working so I’m going in a different direction. Part of this is just accepting that audio is not going to be a vehicle that helps me read all of the books I really really want to be reading right now. Instead, it’s my way of fitting in books that are a little outside my norm, and that’s a good thing!
One of the books I’m reviewing this week I listened to exclusively on audio and the other I read mostly on the page with a couple of long audiobook sessions during dog walks. It feels great to be back in a rhythm with it, and I really hope it lasts.
This week in books.
This week I read…
A Marriage at Sea: A True Story of Love, Obsession, and Shipwreck by Sophie Elmhirst. This harrowing true story follows Maurice and Maralyn Bailey—a married British couple who survived adrift at sea on a raft for 118 days after a breeching whale capsized their boat. It’s one of those truth-is-stranger-than-fiction tales and Elmhirst does a good job telling it. The book is paced really well with enough backstory to fill out Maurice and Maralyn’s personalities and relationship dynamic before it moves into their adventure gone wrong. That part of the book is quite riveting. It’s incredible what the two went through and how they managed to survive, both physically and in terms of keeping their sanity (mostly) intact. While I enjoyed this book, at the end I felt like it was missing something or that I wanted it to go deeper. This is narrative nonfiction, telling the story of two people, and I think I wanted Elmhirst to dig deeper into the lasting impact of isolation or broaden the scope to explore how this event altered the Bailey’s marriage. At the same time, that isn’t what this book is, and I did appreciate the taut, brief, gripping story. Ultimately I feel that the book’s brevity made it a really excellent read, but it’s resistance to exploring some deeper themes will keep it from being particularly memorable. I’ve seen this book on quite a few best of the year so far lists and while it won’t make mine, I’m glad I read it and I enjoyed the story very much. If you enjoy unlikely tales of survival, you should definitely pick this up. I listened to this courtesy of PRH Audio and I did really like the audio, although if the recitation of lists bothers you, I’d avoid that format. Bookshop | Libro.fm
The Antidote by Karen Russell. I am so glad I finally read this book! It was one of my most highly anticipated releases of the year, but for some reason I kept putting it off. A lot of folks in the FictionMatters Literary Society loved it so we decided to read and discuss it together this month…just the push I needed. The Antidote is set in the fictional town of Uz, Nebraska during the Dust Bowl beginning with the cataclysmic storm now referred to as Black Sunday. There are four(ish) point-of-view characters in the book. We have the Oletskys, a kind-hearted wheat farmer named Harp and his fiery niece Asphodel who is mourning the murder of her mother. Then there’s Antonina who is the town’s Prairie Witch or “vault.” She uses her body to store the horrors, secrets, and shames of her customers so they don’t have to live with remembering them, keeping them safe until the owners come back to collect. Finally there’s Cleo Affrey, a photographer sent to Nebraska to document what’s happening in the west in order to make a case for Roosevelt’s New Deal. After Black Sunday, Antonina wakes up to find all the memories once stored in her body gone. At the same time, the Oletsky farm is the only piece of land untouched by the extreme weather. A sometimes violent, sometimes quirky, sometimes mystical series of events brings these four people together, and as pasts (and futures) emerge to haunt the town of Uz, they will seek to understand—and possibly even right—the wrongs of the past.
I really enjoyed this book. Russell’s gift for writing magic is magic itself. It’s easy to immediately buy into the mystical elements she weaves into her story because she presents them with confidence and just the right amount of detail. She also uses magical realism to great effect both narratively and thematically—something I find is often lacking when authors attempt to insert fantastical elements. I also loved the rich history she presents, really making the Dust Bowl come to life through her depiction of this land, its history, and its people. The real history combined with the magic is going to keep me thinking about this book’s themes for a very long time.
What didn’t work so well was the driving impetus of the plot which revolves around an evil sheriff’s increasingly evil actions and schemes. His character was so cartoonishly villainous. It distracted me from the more nuanced elements I enjoyed and also made me notice just how black and white the book’s overall moral structure became. This would have bothered me less if that plot came to something significant, but many of the threads introduced early in the book were dropped halfway through. It was frustrating to me, especially because I felt like the whole thing was an addendum to the story Russell really wanted to tell.
In spite of this fairly big issue, I did truly enjoy the book. It’s one of the most original new novels I’ve read in a while, and I do think there’s potential for it as literary prize season begins. If you like rich, innovative historical fiction, I highly recommend giving this a try. The audio is excellent (I received a gifted copy from PRH Audio), but the physical book contains photographs that add a lot to the sense of time and place, so if you do listen, try to find a copy to thumb through as well. Bookshop | Libro.fm
Now I’m reading…
Our FictionMatters Book Club selection is Milkman by Anna Burns. I am so glad to be finally reading this book!
New on my TBR
I listened to an interview with the author of BoyMom and now I want to read her book even though I don’t have a boy.
The Weekly Dispatch.
I bought tickets for John Proctor is the Villain and I could not be more excited. I’ve wanted to see this since it premiered because I taught The Crucible at a Catholic all girls school during the Me Too movement. I didn’t think there was any way it could happen but then the run was extended and things came together and I’m going next month. I can’t remember ever being this excited to see a play, and I will be reporting back.
Louise has been interested in painting recently so we’ve been exploring watercolor together. I’ve never been an artist and one of the really fun things about having a kid is getting back in touch with the joy of making things. It’s also fun to be a beginner at something with my kiddo. This week I made the best painting I’ve ever made—I’m so proud! And I’m inspired to learn and try more. Funnily enough, this week I’ve now seen a wave of people talking about trying watercolor for the first time (I purchased a few of
’s suggestions)…we must all be in need of a relaxing creative outlet.
Link Roundup.
The 9 best books of the year so far. (Vox)
The best recent crime and thrillers. (Guardian)
How did Condé Nast go from dominance to decline? A new book explains. (NPR)
Revel in the brilliant cruelty of Henry James’s criticism. (Wash Post, gift link)
The nonfiction books NPR staffers have loved this year. (NPR)
The NYT Book Review discusses the best books of the year so far.
Veronica Roth’s favorite dystopian novels. (NYT, gift link)
8 books about space that reimagine what it means to live on earth. (Electric Lit)
For questions, comments, or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to reach out by emailing fictionmattersbooks@gmail.com or responding directly to this newsletter. I love hearing from you!
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Happy reading!
Sara
I struggle with audiobooks in the car too. I wonder why that is! Thanks for exploring your audio habits here; it helped me think through my own.
I love your cacti! I'm embarassed that I feel so much more comfortable following book prompts (which has really taught me a lot about the "how" of watercolor) than just being creative and painting whatever I want. But looking forward to busting through that barrier at some point!