Book Report – Page 3 – The Hermits' Rest

Book Report: This Dog Will Change Your Life

I was looking forward to This Dog Will Change Your Life, by The Dogist, Elias Weiss Friedman (2025), because I was in the mood for something light-hearted and perhaps funny, to take my mind off current events. Plus, as you may be aware, I’m fond of dogs.

Well, the book does have dogs, many dogs, even. And they’re good dogs, yes they are. But, not being familiar with the media influencer known as The Dogist (Elias made that name up himself), I didn’t know what to expect. I’m going to be charitable and say that his little quotes from dog owners must be more interesting accompanied by their supposedly very cute photos. Unfortunately, there are no photos in the book, just quotes from his Instagram:

Mister, German Shepherd (6 years old), Washington Square Park, New York, NY •

“He’s new to the city from Portland, Oregon. He’s a softie-he craves attention in a very un-Germanic way.”

Ok. Great. This was one of the better ones.

The book rambles around while Elias tells us about places he went to take photos of dogs and how interesting he finds it. He’s very happy that people recognize him and that he gets to go fun places to look at dogs. The dog parts of the book are okay, but there’s an awful lot about Elias and his life, which is nice but not very interesting.

I couldn’t really figure out the structure or where the book was going. Each chapter is a story about a dog that makes someone happy. I didn’t find much humor in the writing, though. Bland but well meaning is the best way I can describe it. And all that required a co-writer, Ben Greenman, who has ghost written for others.

Harvey says I should just pet him if I need dog content.

I think media influencers may not be very experienced in writing more than a few sentences and linking them together. That makes sense, because they aren’t required to do it to gain their fame. My guess is that The Dogist is a really good photographer who puts his notes by photos of cute dogs, very well. I hope he sticks with it in the future.

Sorry to give a negative review. But this book was just not for this dog lover.

Book Report: Demon Copperhead

I’ve been trying to escape by reading novels. The joke’s on me, because Demon Copperhead, by Barbara Kingsolver (2022) is not an escape. It’s more of a descent into hell with a really nice guy. Many of you have already read this book, but I’d been holding onto it for a while, thinking it would be a hard one to get through. I was correct about that, but it doesn’t mean the book wasn’t worth reading. Not when one of our greatest living novelists wrote it and it’s about a topic that has touched so many families, even those of us on the outside of the opioid epidemic.

I loved realizing that the book was based on the story of David Copperfield (get it, Demon Copperhead…), which was another book that was so depressing I had a hard time dragging my hyper-sensitive empath eyes over its words. Dickens really knew is sad-but-true sh**. Knowing that ahead of time, I knew where the arc of the story of the main character, who goes by Demon Copperhead, was heading. I just didn’t want to go there with him for a while, so I had to set the book aside as soon as the Big Bad Drugs came out.

A lot of the book was like visiting a new world (at least a respite from White Evangelical Christian World), because for better or worse, I have very limited exposure to addictive substances or illegal drugs, other than alcohol. Thanks to growing up with my mom (who was addicted to legal substances of tobacco, alcohol, and prescription drugs), I didn’t want to have anything to do with anything that might possibly mess with my brain. So, I partook of no weed, no shrooms, no LSD, and none of the other stuff.

It’s not that I didn’t know any people who enjoyed their substances of choice. I mean, I was a teen in the 70s, for goodness sake. I just wasn’t immersed in the culture that went with it. Yes, I managed to have fun anyway.

The world of foster care is another one I don’t have direct experience with, but I gained a lot of sympathy for friends and family who lived through some of the unpleasant aspects of the system. And I’m so grateful for the good foster parents and successful people who made it through.

Thankfully, Kingsolver has a knack for describing how things feel from the point of view of the person experiencing them, which means I learned about drugs from the user’s point of view, where things that might have scared me were just part of Demon’s daily life. Kingsolver also makes most characters in the book sympathetic – you can see how they got to be in the mess they were in. I liked her description of having sex from the man’s point of view, too, since it’s obviously not something I’m familiar with.

One thing that got me through the hard parts of Demon Copperhead was that sometimes I could just read the words and enjoy how well crafted they were, especially when Demon is observing the world around him. That boy had the artist’s eye, thanks to Kingsolver!

In summary, you probably should read this book. It will be eye-opening to those of you who’ve never lived in rural America or spent time in the poor parts of Appalachia. For me, the overwhelming feeling I got was how grateful I am so have only lived on the edges of the world in this book, and how much more empathy I have for those thrown into it by no fault of their own.

Three Significant Books

List three books that have had an impact on you. Why?

I have chosen three books (I actually discuss five, but one is a runner-up and two are related) that shaped me in that magical period when I was transitioning into an adult and my capacity for intellectual growth was at its peak. Each book was written when I was testing limits, making poor decisions I search of good decisions, and preparing to emerge a more rational and stable human. I’m grateful to have learned from these authors.

Metaphors We Live By

This book is by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, two important scholars in pragmatics, the field I studied in graduate school. The thesis of the book is this:

The book suggests metaphor is a tool that enables people to use what they know about their direct physical and social experiences to understand more abstract things like work, time, mental activity and feelings. Wikipedia

My thinking about how society works, how media persuades audiences to, and how politicians manipulate the public have all been deeply affected by the ideas in this book.

My favorite example is the pervasiveness of the war metaphor. It’s one reason I can’t stand the phrase, “shoot me an email.” Business communication is just crawling with war terminology. Business is war. Politics is war. Love is a battlefield. This book was the impetus for me being me.

I recommend George Lakoff’s other works, as well. Once you start to see metaphors embedded in the language around you, you can’t forget it.

The Color Purple

I’m guessing most of you have been exposed to this work, originally a 1982 book by Alice Walker, in one form or another. I read it when it first came out, having read no reviews and knowing nothing about the author. This means my experience of The Color Purple wasn’t influenced by any preconceptions.

I was 24 when I read it. I’d never read an epistolary novel before, so I was charmed by the letter-writing format and how clearly the writer’s voice came through in each letter. I was also still fairly naive about how horrible humans can be to each other. The resilience and bravery the characters in the book affected me deeply.

The Color Purple told me that I, too, could survive and thrive in a world that threw many challenges at me. The characters have never left me and I’m not sure why.

I did love the film with Oprah Winfree in it. I just experienced it differently and got additional insights into the strength it takes to be your authentic self. I haven’t seen any other version and I’m okay with that. This is my favorite novel.

Runner Up: The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood (1985). I can’t bring myself to watch the television series. This book was too prescient.

The Woman’s Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets and The Skeptical Feminist

These are two books by Barbara G. Walker, also a prominent knitting writer of this time period. Both came out in the mid-1980s. These books introduced me to the idea of the maiden, mother, and crone archetypes.

The encyclopedia was my first introduction to feminist theology, and though it suffered from the same issues as many early neopagan writing (interpreting historical references and artifacts to support a mythical matriarchal past world, etc.), it still taught me enough to get me started on a lifetime of spiritual exploration. I can still remember sitting in my bedroom in Urbana, Illinois devouring this book when I should have been dissertating.

The Skeptical Feminist may not be in print anymore, but it reassured me that my weird philosophical leanings since childhood weren’t signs of insanity—I just didn’t have the words and concepts to explain my vague yearnings to be one with nature. It also reassured me that I don’t have to “believe in” some deity to apply archetypes and metaphors (them again) as I forge my own beliefs. Whew.

I use this information today as I draw from the wisdom of Jesus without identifying as Christian and take comfort in Buddhist ideas without adhering strictly to any form. It’s so helpful in these times.

Book Report: Matriarch

I had to read it! It’s in Oprah’s book club! Oh, just kidding. I actually read a review of Matriarch: A Memoir, by Tina Knowles that made me want to check it out. Also it’s shiny and pretty. The picture frame effect is very nice

This book was a gift from my spouse. I’m trying to shop local, if I shop.

Truthfully, I was very pleased to have the chance to read this book. I learned a great deal about the early years of my life from a Black perspective. Knowles did a fantastic job of painting a rich and realistic picture of Galveston, Texas in the late 1950s and early 1960s. I also learned so much about the role of Galveston in the history of Black Texans. That was worth reading the book right there.

The end papers for the book come from the cover painting. Very pretty.

I was surprised but pleased to learn how much I have in common with this woman who pulled herself up from poverty to create thriving businesses and became a renowned fashion designer, thanks to her mother’s teachings. Yeah, on the surface we’re quite different. None of my children are rich and famous, for one thing!

But underneath, Knowles had an upbringing that led her to have a similar fear of abandonment and drive to mother every needy soul who showed up in her life. She succeeded at being a great (though flawed and human) mother figure, and ended up having relationships that reminded me way too much of my past messes.

Knowles is brutally honest with herself, but does an incredible job of being gracious to others. There’s no long litany of blaming and accusations against others in this memoir. I’ve read so many where the author never acknowledges their own failures and mistakes, but Tina Knowles accepts her responsibilities and does her best to forgive or understand those who hurt her. Well, except she didn’t forgive those nuns in her first school…once again I thank my dad for not sending us to the Catholic school right down the road from us.

The parts of the book where she’s struggling to work and raise her girls and when Destiny’s Child is starting were interesting, mainly because I’m not familiar with the world they were living in. But by the end, when they’re all floating around on yachts with helicopter pads and renting out entire islands for parties, I didn’t have much to relate to. Good ole Jay Z can sure spend money.

Now, lest you think Knowles has ended up all jaded and materialistic, I note that she has started many philanthropic organizations and works hard to help young people living in poverty or other bad situations. Honestly, who knows what I’d do if I ended up mega-wealthy? And I can’t begrudge any of her family the rewards from their hard work, because not one of them just stood around and became famous.

Yes, that’s probably the best lesson I learned in this book, that my prejudices against ultra-rich people need to be tempered. Everyone in the Knowles family, from her ex-husband to her famous daughters to the people in their larger circles worked very hard to become great at what they do. That’s important to remember.

Oh, another thing I learned from Matriarch is that I am completely ignorant of every bit of Beyoncé’s music. That entire genre is a mystery to me, though I certainly know what the musicians look like and what interesting clothing they wear. Sigh. At some point popular music and I parted ways.

Book Report: The Raven Scholar

Lee likes to go to the bookstore/coffee shop in Rockdale, so I went with him one day to order a book. The shop doesn’t have a big variety, mostly historical romances and fantasy. I did need something to read, so I looked at all the covers and titles of the fantasy novels, and chose this one, The Raven Scholar, by Antonia Hodgson. It had an interesting cover, was purple, and featured ravens. All good if a random way to pick a book.

I also checked to be sure it wasn’t part 2 or 3 of a trilogy. Nope, part 1.

I actually enjoyed the book a lot! It was quite fun to jump into a new world and figure out how it worked. As you might guess, the heroine is a member of the Raven group in her society, which has all kind of animal totems, bears, hounds, tigers, etc.

I’ll share some masses of flowers to entertain you during the review. Here’s arrowhead clover.

The story in the book is complex and convoluted, but I could keep track of the characters better than I could The Lord of the Rings, so Hodgson has that going for her. All the characters are well developed, with good features and flaws that make them interesting.

I had a good time figuring out what was going on with the Emperor, who was supposed to be supervising a competition to determine who would succeed him. That’s one of the many interesting aspects of the culture created in this book, which is very well developed and internally consistent. That’s what I think is one of the hardest parts of writing fantasies, creating plausible worlds and cultures. This one is interesting and multi-faceted.

I think anyone who enjoys fantasy will enjoy meeting Neema, the title’s Raven scholar. She’s smart, vulnerable, and creative. And her Fox friend Cain, who happens to remind me of my son, is a great counterbalance.

And of course there is the great bonus that a good fantasy novel is a wonderful way to escape from your own comfortable world and exchange it for an immersion in another strange and fascinating one. For me, that’s a real blessing these days.

So, go ahead and check The Raven Scholar out, if you like to disappear into an engrossing alternate universe, and look forward with me to the next 600-page installment.

Book Report: Spare

I’ve read a few books lately. This was the first. I picked it up at the airport on my way to Hilton Head and finished it when I got home. Honestly, I’m not a huge fan of the British Royal family, nor do I dislike them, but I read so many conflicting reviews of this book by England’s Prince Harry, so I decided to read it.

Spare was a pretty interesting book, really. It showed how human and fallible Harry was, for sure, and how utterly strange the world the Royal Family exists in. I don’t know how anyone could survive in that setting without some big time PTSD and anxiety.

I mostly ended up feeling sad for these folks and blaming their blind adherence to outdated traditions for how things have ended up today.

Prince Harry came across as very honest about his own failings and his sincere desire to do something that mattered. Wow, that young man could use drugs with the best (or worst) of them. He really seemed to crave numbing and distraction. His love of flying helicopters and of ascetic African pilgrimages both seemed to be ways of keeping his brain occupied with something other than Princess Diana and all those Royal protocols.

The writing is surprisingly good and Harry’s voice is clear. I do hope that he’s able to keep helping others and gets some peace after being chased by paparazzi for so long. That has to be difficult even for people with strong boundaries and good mental health. For sensitive people like Harry, well, I can see how he got so messed up.

After reading this, I feel empathy, which I guess was the goal of the book. I’m aware, though, that there are other sides of this story. I wonder if any other aspects will clarify Harry’s story someday? At least he’s no longer needed as a “spare” anymore.

Book Report: The Serviceberry

This is a beautiful gem of a book. First, it’s beautiful to touch and hold. The cover is textured and has watercolors illustrating the cover. It’s even got lovely, thick paper and a nice font. That all counts with me, since I love physical books.

The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World, by Robin Wall Kimmerer, has at its heart a sweet story about sharing berries and the implications that simple act has for humanity and the planet.

It can beautify the world like a rainbow over an industrial complex.

Kimmerer shares stories about how “gift economies” can work, and how beneficial it can be to share what you have with others. Much draws from her experiences as a Native American, as well as other sources.

I like how it’s possible to implement the practices found in this book right here and right now, but most important is the idea that we can share not only our bounty but our practice of reciprocity and abundance. We can do it and encourage others! That’s reciprocity!

It’s a nice contrast from having your goal be to hoard wealth. I have already shared the book, and hope to pass it on again. It would be perfect for a Little Free Library!

Book Report: Eve

Hey, look, I finished a book that I like enough to write about! I’d would wager (if I did that kind of thing) that any like-minded friend of mine would love Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution, by Cat Bohannon, as much as I did. It has footnotes and endnotes, too, which hints at some thorough documentation, yet there’s lots of humor scattered throughout, so it’s not boring one bit.

I got it at the airport on the way to Hilton Head. Those nails are so two weeks ago!

Bohannon tells the story of “Eves,” who are archetypal women of the past whose developmental firsts made big impacts on the evolution of humans. All my La Leche League friends will love the chapter on breastfeeding, though perhaps some more intense fans of this method of feeding might find flaws. I didn’t, and I even learned a little.

fingernails — Newest nails. Call me the Eve of Girly Gender Neutral Confusion.

You learn a lot about the history of hominids, as well as how mammals developed, told charmingly through example animals. You get all wrapped up in their little lives as you see how traits we still have made a difference millions of years ago. The book is a lot of fun.

As are these blue flag irises. I’ll now stop with random photos.

I also have to hand it to Bohannan for being “woke” in the best possible sense. That woman doesn’t put down anyone, even inadvertently, and she navigates our world of gender dysphoria and sexual choices like the consummate professional she is. I was duly impressed, and if I were trans or XXY or whatever, I’d feel like I’d been talked about respectfully. But she doesn’t make things awkward–if she chooses a typical example, she always acknowledges possible exceptions. I hope her terminology holds up now that there’s a (scary as heck to someone who fought for women’s rights) sudden devolutionary trend in women’s rights and roles in the US.

My only criticism, if you can call it that, is that Bohannon doesn’t talk about the effects of hormone replacement therapy in post-menopausal women. I’d be interested to know if the current trend of using bioidentical hormones has a positive or negative affect on women’s health and longevity. Maybe that will be in her next book.

This is a hefty tome, for certain, but remember at least a third of it is end notes, bibliography, and index. You’ll wish it kept going.

Books to Love

What book could you read over and over again?

I admit it. I have read many books by Brené Brown more than once. I think people need different kinds of support at different times in their lives. When I needed to drag my self esteem out of the gutter and stop telling myself I kind things about myself, her stories and ideas were there to push me toward healing. I’m forever grateful that she writes in ways that reach me.

Just a picture to note that Cattle Egrets have arrived.

Here are my Brené Brown favorites:

Her writing taught me I wasn’t alone and I wasn’t awful. What a gift!

Here’s a gift. My favorite wildflower, Texas Baby Blue Eyes.

I’ve mentioned before that I must have read Black Beauty, by Anna Sewell, dozens of times as a child. It shaped by love of horses and all animals and set me on a path of kindness to our animal friends.

Speaking of my animal friends, Apache and I had a hard lesson today. He is not fond at all of Tarrin’s gate obstacle. I got a good lesson in patience (though I did lose my patience once). He learned he has to trust me when I ask him to do things, and I learned I still have work to do on quietly repeating instructions and not showing my frustration.

It’s like the dung beetle. You just keep pushing until you get there. No need to get upset.

He’s such a good guy most of the time that I know Apache has his reasons for disliking the gate. We will work through it! After all, Brené Brown taught me that being imperfect is how we grow.

Book Report: The Power of Trees

I started reading The Power of Trees (2021, English 2023), by Peter Wohlleben, the German forester who also wrote The Hidden Life of Trees, last year. I had to put it down, because it was so depressing. It sure sounds like Europe’s trees are messed up and not much hope is shared in this book.

The book and many representatives of tree friends.

So, what a great book to read during an election where the non-environmentally friendly folks won bigly? But I got through it. I learned why forestry, with its great fondness for monoculture and treating trees like products rather than fellow citizens of the planet, has led to massive death in forests and loss of uncountable other species that support trees (what lives in the earth and helps trees do their work).

Wohlleben shows how allowing natural forests to regenerate on their own and create old trees that are allowed to live on would help restore a healthy climate (trees cool it) and still provide for human needs, especially if we recycle old wood products rather than always making new ones.

You’ll learn a lot about the complex interrelationship between trees and the other life around them as well as lessons that apply to forests around the world.

It’s wonderful that there are protected remnants of coastal forest here on Hilton Head. It helps that it was hard to reach for so long.

I always feel drawn to helping woodlands, knowing how many mighty trees in Florida my grandfather sent to sawmills in the early twentieth century. As I have resolved to focus on doing something kind every day, I’m keeping the remaining native woodlands in mind.