The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion

4/5 stars

What's it about? A heart-wrenching meditation on grief, loss, and marriage, Didion lays bare the aftermath of her husband's sudden passing and her daughter's long illness. Sparse and unforgettable.

How’d I find it? My spouse, a devout Didion fan, lent his copy. This is a book he gives regularly to bereaved loved ones.

Who will enjoy this book? There is no one quite like Joan Didion, but for those seeking similar subject matter, try Kat Chow's Seeing Ghosts. If you want to recreate the general feel of the book, try poet Ada Limón's The Carrying.

What stood out? The sheer intimacy of this book is astounding. I mourned John as I read. After finishing the last page and dabbing my eyes, I happened to notice that the letters for "John" are in a different color within the title on the cover. The crying resumed.

Which line made me feel something? The bursts of repetition broke me. "You're safe. I'm here." "You sit down to dinner and life as you know it ends." These recall the larger shared life between Didion and Dunne, making his loss all the more poignant.

Upstream by Mary Oliver

4/5 stars

What's it about? In this collection of selected essays, Mary Oliver offers insight into her life as a reader, writer, and human. Though most of the book focuses on nature and gratitude, a section devoted to literary criticism muses on Whitman, Wordsworth, Poe, and Emerson.

How’d I find it? My spouse received this is a Christmas gift and kindly let me read it first.

Who will enjoy this book? Fans of Walt Whitman, Annie Dillard, Ross Gay, and Aimee Nezhukumatathil’s World of Wonders

What stood out? Essays written by poets offer a buffet of language and sentiment, and Upstream is no exception. Oliver’s love for the world is potent and infectious; after sitting with this book, you’ll want to go for a walk. I find a current of sadness that runs beneath Oliver’s measured glimpses of her own life, but this makes the simple joys she describes, such as observing a resident spider feed, all the more special. The writing can be precious at times (think 2013’s Dog Songs), but the overall warmth of the reading experience makes those moments easy to overlook.

Which line made me feel something? “Once I put my face against the body of our cat as she lay with her kittens, and she did not seem to mind. So I pursed my lips against that full moon, and I tasted the rich river of her body.” Did…Mary Oliver admit to suckling a cat?

Ghostways: Two Journeys in Unquiet Places by Robert Macfarlane

4/5 stars

What's it about? An exploration of two spaces that unsettle and lure the spirit: a strip of land off the coast of England that hosted nuclear tests and a forgotten valley thoroughfare. In "Ness," Macfarlane fashions a harrowing tale of encroachment, while "Holloway" chronicles friends as they hunt for a passage using instructions from a novel.

How’d I find it? I selected this book during a weekend browse at Bridge Street Books.

Who will enjoy this book? Fans of Roger Deakin, Leanne Shapton, and Rob Cowen's Common Ground

What stood out? The writing is poetic and textured, and the lovely use of illustration and white space allow the reader to soak in the language before moving to the next page of prose. While the two tales differ greatly ("Ness" is certainly more didactic), they complement each other and pair for a delightful read.

Which line made me feel something? From "Holloway:" "...the landscape's pasts felt excitingly alive & coexistent, as if history had pleated back on itself"

Soft Science by Franny Choi

4/5 stars

What's it about? The collection explores the tension between human and human-made, between strength and weakness, control and abandon. Choi's language is rich and intoxicating, a dessert that you finish over several sittings.

How’d I find it? This was a solid birthday gift from my love.

Who will enjoy this book? Fans of contemporary American poets (Hanif Abdurraqib, torrin a. greathouse, Sally Wen Mao, etc.)

What stood out? "Perihelion: A History of Touch" is a standout piece, taking the titles of its various subsections from full moons in the Farmer's Almanac. I am personally skeptical of most books where the word "wound" is used on the first page, as it typically means I'm in store for a book-length exploration of identity — not always the reading experience I'm going for. The craftsmanship of Soft Science makes the appearance of "wound" twice on the first page forgivable. I'm telling you, this is high praise.

Which line made me feel something? There were so many. An example from "A Brief History of Cyborgs:" "Even blood, when it comes down to it, is only a series of rules."