Arlington Public Library

Diane's Book Lists

The Library Director’s 2020 Book List, Continued

Reading in a Pandemic

“Salvation is certainly among the reasons I read. Reading and writing have always pulled me out of the darkest experiences in my life. Stories have given me a place in which to lose myself. They have allowed me to remember. They have allowed me to forget. They have allowed me to imagine different endings and better possible worlds.”

Roxane Gay, "Bad Feminist"

In late December last year, I compiled a list of books I intended to read in 2020.  As with most “to do” lists and resolutions, I began with good intentions. And then the pandemic hit and the books on my list no longer seemed adequate. My reading tastes shifted along with everything else in both my work and home life.

Photo of hand written notes of a book list.

I’ve always been a reader, but I began reading voraciously, as if I was running out of time.

Barely was a book closed before another opened. My hold list in the library catalog grew and grew and GREW. I created booklists on scraps of paper and in the margins of the arts and style sections of the newspaper. I listened faithfully to The Book Review Podcast from the New York Times.

And I read. All the time. More than 50 books in all, across genres and styles, dating from the 19th century to the present.

Diane's 2020 Pandemic Reading List
Photo of book covers.

There were many standouts. Long a fan of coming of age novels, I read five that will stick with me. Each of these authors is known for other, more famous books. These are worth a look for everyone who wants to revisit the trials of adolescence and early adulthood.

I dipped into classics:

And on the lighter side because I needed a dose of hopefulness, “A Wrinkle in Time,” by Madeleine L’Engle.

Photo of book covers.

Race was very much on the national mind and steered me toward:

The 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment and women being granted the right to vote drew me to women’s issues more broadly. I read:

For the pure pleasure of superior plotting and writing, I’ll mention “Disappearing Earth” by Julia Phillips.

Photo of book covers.

And finally, the wonderful Arlington READS authors whose books we featured in our 2020 series, “We the People.” In a year of reinvention of Library programs and services, we Zoomed the author talks, part of our new now.

And on a personal note, I discovered the joy (and ease) of audiobooks, especially when read by the author. What a delightful way to get lost in a story.

Diane's 2020 Pandemic Reading List

Reading was an anchor, a sure bet during months of uncertainty. With hours blending into days, into weeks and then months, I occasionally lost track of the day of the week, but never lost my place in a book. I had something to look forward to and there were always more books.

My stacks of books have not disappeared, and I am still adding holds in the Library catalog. At this moment, I am reading “Surviving Autocracy,“ by Russian-American journalist, translator and activist Masha Gessen, who I am excited to announce will be our first Arlington READS author in the new year.

In closing, thank you for your support of Arlington Public Library. It is a joy and an honor to serve this wonderful community.

Stay safe, stay hopeful and keep reading.

Diane

Scrawled signature of Diane Kresh

The Library Director’s 2020 Book List

Looking for Winter Reading inspiration? Diane shares her list for the New Year:

“So many books, so little time.”
― Frank Zappa (1940–1993), American multi-instrumentalist musician, composer, bandleader and reader.

That about sums it up. No matter how many books I read, there are still more … too many more. And to compound the misery, I work in a library where browsable book stacks are steps from my office, where I can place an infinite number of holds, where colleagues tell me what their book clubs are reading or give me books as presents. And I am not even talking about the stacks of books on my nightstand at home, awaiting my attention, recommended by the book review podcasts I listen to while walking the treadmill.

In the spirit of new year’s resolutions, I created a “to do” list of books I hope to complete by the end of the calendar year. The list is my own and covers a range from the truly random to guilty pleasures.

All of my picks are available at Arlington Public, your favorite local library. Now to start turning some pages …

Minding the Gap

James Baldwin.  I am embarrassed to admit that I have not read anything by Baldwin … an oversight I must correct as we draw closer to 2024, the centenary of his birth.  The two I have elected to start with “Giovanni’s Room” and “The Fire Next Time”

Fyodor Dostoevsky.  “Oh Boy, Tolstoy!” APL’s adult reading venture of a couple of years ago, got me thinking about Russian tomes.  A wise friend told me that if I want to understand Russian aspirations, read Tolstoy, to understand the Russian soul, read Dostoevsky.  So “Crime and Punishment” it is.  And if I can’t make it through, I’ll tackle the novella, “Notes from the Underground.”

Guilty Pleasures

“The Chestnut Man,” by Soren Sveistrup.  A psychopath is terrorizing Copenhagen. Can’t wait.

“Disappearing Earth,” by Julia Phillips. A debut novel, two young sisters disappear on the Kamchatka peninsula, the northeastern edge of Russia.  It appeared on many “best of” lists at year end.

Dusting off Classics

John Steinbeck.  “East of Eden,” sometimes you just need a big sprawling morality tale.

Hot Issues

Ralph Thaler/Cass Sunstein, “Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness.” From the winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics, Richard H. Thaler, and Cass R. Sunstein: a look at how people make decisions.

Bina Venkataraman “The Optimist's Telescope: Thinking Ahead in a Reckless Age.” How to mitigate loss based on short-sightedness and think more strategically about the future.

Sendhil Mullainathan and Eldar Shafir, “Scarcity” How to manage with less than one needs.

An Author I Haven’t Read

Ocean Vuong, “On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous,“ by Ocean Vuong.  A son writes to his mother who cannot read. Viet Nam, finding one’s voice, race, class, and the love between a mother and son.

Bernardine Evaristo, “Girl, Woman, Other.” Modern Britain and womanhood, a novel about the lives of black British families, “struggles, pains, longings and loves.” I’ve already started this one --- the writing is lively, fresh, funny. Reminds me a bit of Zadie Smith’s “White Teeth.”

Memoirs

I’ve been working through the NYT’s fantastic list of “50 Best Memoirs of the last 50 years and plucked Annie Dillard’s “An American Childhood.”

Samantha Powers, “The Education of an Idealist: A Memoir.” Political memoir; on the front lines of   American foreign policy.  From 2013 to 2017, Power served in the Cabinet of President Barack Obama and as US Ambassador to the United Nations. Powers modeled her memoir on Andre Agassi’s “Open” which was an amazing book.

Short Stories

I got hooked on short stories in 8th grade. Classics like “Under the Lion’s Paw” by Hamlin Garland, “Silent Snow, Secret Snow,” by Conrad Aiken (now out of print), and Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery.”

Lucia Berlin, ed. Stephen Emerson, “A Manual for Cleaning Women.” Alice Munro and Raymond Carver territory.

Nancy Hale, “Where the Light Falls.” A rediscovery of a mid-century master storyteller.  Noir-ish, taboo subjects; subversive and mature.

Fun for Theater and Film Geeks

Ash Carter and Sam Kashner “Life Isn't Everything: Mike Nichols, as Remembered by 150 of His Closest Friends.”

Alexandra Jacobs, “Still Here: The Madcap, Nervy, Singular Life of Elaine Stritch.”

Re-Visits

Erich Maria Remarque, “All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel.” I first read this more than 20 years ago and there are scenes I can’t forget.

Louisa May Alcott, “Little Women.”  A coming of age story, nascent feminism, in praise of individuality.

Geraldine Brooks, “March.” Historical fiction, the father of the girls in “Little Women” goes off to aid the Union cause in the Civil War.

And finally...

Arlington Reads Spring 2020 Authors

Sponsored by the Friends of the Arlington Public Library, Arlington Reads has grown from one book in the fall of a given year to close to a dozen annual events centralized around a theme and including both fiction and nonfiction.  It goes without saying that I will read each of the selected books and that I will likely read more by the author in preparation for each event.  So right off the bat, I have added exponentially to the task ahead. There’s something for everyone in this year’s themed program, “We the People.”

First up, on Tuesday, March 10, is Roxanne Gay, culture critic and author of “Hunger,” and “Bad Feminist,” among other works of fiction and nonfiction. I hope to see you there!

Browse Diane's 2020 Book List
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