2022 #26 Happiness: Essential Mindfulness Practices (Thich Nhat Hanh)

 

Happiness: Essential Mindfulness Practices by Thich Nhat Hanh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As this is a very practice-based book, I'm not sure it is the best choice as an audiobook if one wants to have the information as a reference (and doesn't want to take notes). That said, there are some really choice and good practices...some of them particular to group settings (and adapted from those at Plum Village) and others that are generally good philosophies to carry. I find the ecumenical ties encouraging: the "Today's Day" practice, for example, is very much akin to the "Haec dies" of Christianity (This is the day that the Lord has made), and a lot of other traditions that ask us to live fully in the present day and be glad for it.

I appreciated the acknowledgement that not everyone can "walk" (when discussing the walking meditation), but would have preferred some more robust alternatives rather than suggesting those who cannot walk "support" those who can. This has been one of my concerns about physical practice of meditation over all---it can be ableist. I appreciate the more flexible approaches advocated by Ten Percent Happier and others in terms of having a choice of "anchors"--not just the breath. That said, I appreciate that a lot of what comes from Thich Nhat Hanh is echoed with a slightly more secular undertone at TPH.

I did find myself wondering how parents find some of his recommendations for parenting, as he does not have children, of course. I'm not a parent, but some of the recommendations struck me as very idealistic and probably better suited for something like Plum Village rather than a household, but I am speculating. I also wondered if some of the peacemaking approaches might enable people to stay in an abusive relationship, because everyone "suffers". He does address this at times, but I can imagine that someone who has had their sense of self so altered by abuse might interpret this as a responsibility merely to communicate their suffering, rather than escape from it.

Edoardo Ballerini's narration is calming in and of itself, and now I feel that I cannot remove his voice from my reading and understanding of Thich Nhat Hanh--this is not a bad thing. He makes listening to this work a rather meditative experience with peaceful intentionality.

This is a good overview of meditative practices that can be incorporated into every day life: eating, walking, resting, communicating....so "Happiness" is an apt title. As with most of Thich Nhat Hanh's works, the Buddhist foundations are there as a point of reference, not dogma, so there is much here for those that are looking to embrace a mindfulness practice without a religious connection.

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2022 #25 The Visit (Adichie)

 

The Visit by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As is true of anything, this short story will land differently with different readers. Going in, however, you need to know that it is dystopic (but not by much), and definitely satirical (not funny, but satirical). I didn't read it as a condemnation of matriarchy, but I can see how the role reversal might not sit well even with those sympathetic to the message of the book. On that front, I didn't feel it did enough--it was too simple and binary. That said, I think it teases out some important issues and lays bare how much goes unsaid in our legislation and the assumptions that shape governmental power. And while the general gist might seem a bit binary, the characters are interesting and kept me engaged.

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2022 #24: Upgrade (Crouch)

Upgrade by Blake Crouch
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I read Crouch's Dark Matter four years ago and very much admired how the author seems to negotiate that oh-so-fine line between the "sci" and the "fi" of the genre. This was my first time listening to his work and it was a very different experience than that of reading.

I appreciate the "realistic" dystopias like this one--those that remind us this is probably NOT a far off distant future, at least in some respects. Gene modification is certainly a growing aspect of our lives, and the ravages of climate change are inevitable. Crouch digs in to the moral questions connected to our survival of a species, and not in the same old clichéd ways. As with in Dark Matter, the book is threaded with a tale of decision making, and how one person's "save humanity" is another's "lose our humanity." Everyone has their own justifications, and I think Crouch really brings that forward with his protagonist, Logan Ramsay.

Where I didn't enjoy the experience of the audiobook is the lists....there were a lot. I think reading through lists of gene names (HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee symbols) would have been less irritating than hearing them read to me. I longed for a genetic upgrade to speed up time during those passages. Perhaps those who really dig details like that feel differently, but it did nothing for me except make me feel impatient.

Still, the story shares with good spy novels the sense of never knowing who you can trust -- even the protagonist. A lot of the characters operate at Anakin-as-older-padawan level (sorry for the Star Wars reference, which is a first for me). But that's good character writing--and it turns out that messing around with our genetics doesn't really change the human capacity to straddle good and evil...well, until the Epilogue. I would have preferred just the letter of the epilogue, but Crouch spares us a totally clichéd reunion (e.g. overwrought with emotion), at least.

The book spends too much time with cat and mouse/fugitive scenarios, and then seems to remember its raison d'être in fits and starts, so the rhythm of the book in that sense is my biggest issue. I also didn't really care for Henry Levya's reading. His voice is fabulously comforting as Logan--but a bit too much. Even in scenes that warranted the character having a strong emotional response, everything felt a bit too even-keeled -- playing chess was about the same experience as coming under gunfire. Levya is a great choice, in some respects, because he does really help us understand Logan as a sort of "everyman" character--but it all starts to blend a bit a couple hours in.

All in all a worthwhile experience, and it teases out some larger questions with which we should be grappling now, not "in the future."


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2022 #23: The Prestige (Priest)

 

The Prestige by Christopher Priest
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It has been awhile since I've read/listened to a literary work that I would describe as "unique", but this warrants it. I'll put out there that I have not seen the film (nor did I know it existed until much later in my listening), and I don't really care to because the audiobook experience was so vivid and complete.

Both the narrative structure and the content are compelling. We first meet a character who at least initially, seems sort of incidental -- Andrew Westley. We know little about him except that he's adopted, a disgruntled journalist, and a recipient of a book written by one of his biological ancestors. Refreshingly, Christopher Priest does not fall on "adoptee" clichés (either positive or negative), and Westley feels he must have a twin brother out there and he wants very much to meet him. This would be a good foundation for a story, but soon we forget that it is even there...for awhile at least.

What follows is a chronicle, in epistolary style, of a feud between two magicians, and one that gives new meaning to the "sins of the fathers..." Each magician gets substantial air time to be centered as the ...protagonist? Tough call. Alfred Borden and Rupert Angier each share details of their childhoods and development of their careers as magicians, as well as their complex perspectives that inform their actions and reactions in their feud with each other. Admittedly, some of the descriptions of certain illusions contained so much detail that my attention started to drift, but the detail, particularly in the case of Angier's narrative is actually where the devil is. We shall leave it at that.

This truly was an experience--I got lost in the story and forgot why it started. Of course the book returns to where it began, with Andrew (and the Lady Katherine...Angier). Just when I felt like it was enough to bear witness to the lives of Alfred Borden and Rupert Angier, Priest throws in...not a twist per se, but takes us where we might not wanted to have gone. Simon Vance's narration is excellent-- expressing nuances of jealousy, concern, regret, and fear, spread over several characters. Ultimately it is a story about hubris and ambition, but also about love and vulnerability. And on top of all that, a good-old-fashioned mystery--not so much a "whodunnit" but more of a "whodunwhat".

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2022 #22: Japanese Farm Food (Hachisu)

 Cross-posted at the Lady of Shallots

Japanese Farm Food by Nancy Singleton Hachisu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am working my way through two Japanese cookbooks right now, both of which are filled with insight and craft (my review of Sonoko Sakai's Japanese Home Cooking: Simple Meals, Authentic Flavors coming soon!).

Nancy Singleton Hachisu's Japanese Farm Food is, as advertised, very much about farm life in Japan and the food that grows there. For that reason, it resonates more as a narrative for me than a cookbook, as many of the ingredients are specific and connected to the life of the farm. She is not as free with the substitutions as Sonoko Sakai, but there are a few (blackstrap molasses for kuromitsu, for example). To call her a purist wouldn't seem totally correct, and that's largely because of the beautiful narrative she constructs about life on the farm and learning how to acculturate in meaningful ways. In truth it is inspiring, if somewhat a bit daunting at times.

In addition to spending massive amounts of time preparing food (most of it grown on the family farm), Hachisu also runs an English-immersion pre-school/kindergarten, adorably called "Sunny-Side Up!" Her anecdotes about the children and the photographs (by Kenji Miura) of their wonderful joy are one of the best parts of the book.

Originally from Northern California (Bay Area), Hachisu describes herself as a "town girl" (182), and one gets the sense that everything is indeed relative. She advocates buying local, and one might find themselves frustrated on that front if "local" isn't Japan. As with most cookbooks, the book suffers a bit from inconsistent cross-referencing and incomplete indexing: If a recipe calls for dashi, it often includes the page reference for making the dashi. However, I'm still waiting for the cookbook that indexes ALL the recipes that use dashi (or any other distinctive ingredient to that cuisine). Sometimes the recipes are helpfully grouped together, as is the case with the kaeshi on p. 310, which is necessary for flavoring the dashi of the following recipe, "noodle dipping sauce." But these are nitpicky quibbles. Many of the recipes, particularly some of the salads and vegetable dishes, are accessible for novices, and require only basic staples such as soy sauce and miso. The majority of the dessert recipes are for ice cream (mostly adapted from Lindsey Shere's Chez Panisse recipes), and you'll want to have an ice cream maker (although the patient internet searcher can likely come up with alternative methods). I am curious to try her method for making anko (the sweetened paste made with azuki beans) since I made Sonoko Sakai's version, which was wonderful, but time-intensive.

One of the most valuable parts of the book--and here I'm considering photocopying the pages and laminating them since I suspect I shall return to them often--are the charts and glossaries in the back. The "Vegetables by method" and "Fish and Seafood by Method" charts motivate the cook to actually understand, not just follow, the recipe. It is also very useful should one have to decide based on what's available/in season.

The whole book is beautifully produced, from the lovely "matte" finish of the photography, the easy-to-read font, and the overall design. Her stories--interspersed and as prefaces to recipes--are wonderful to read, and tinged here and there with the wistful and nostalgic, but also the pragmatic sensibility of living and eating in communion with the earth. As I explore the recipes I may make a substitution here or there that Hachisu might frown upon, but I will at least try to approach my cooking with the reverence and sincerity she seems to bring to her craft.



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2022 #21: Why We Cook: Women on Food, Identity, and Connection (Gardner)

 

Why We Cook : Women on Food, Identity, and Connection by Lindsay Gardner
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Lindsay Gardner's whimsical-yet-substantive illustrations make this a charming book that is a pleasant mish-mosh of reflections, substantive essays, and lighter fare (inspirational quotes and magazine-type survey questions). While there are a few recipe, it isn't a cookbook--although I certainly would have appreciated an index (foods, recipes, people). The table of contents suffices, however, split into "Memorable Meals", "Kitchen Portraits", "Essays", "Home Cooks in Conversation", "Recipes" (listed by contributor, rather than dish), "Profiles" and "Contributors in Conversation." I found the "in conversation" bits to be the least engaging on the whole, although the occasional nugget of wisdom or a surprising witticism made them worth reading. Not all the "essays" carry the same weight -- Cara Mangini's list of seasonal eating choices doesn't really compare to Osayi Endolyn's "Like Paradise" that uses five paragraphs to offer an intimate, honest, and humble look at the importance of our quirky roots and spaces where cooking happens. That said, I'm glad both were included, but I would have liked a bit more sense of narrative and build across the book. The Profiles and Kitchen Portraits are where I think the book has the deepest value--illuminating and amplifying important women who have contributed much to the world of food in multiple ways.

Because the book does not have an overarching narrative, however, it is a great gift for the cooks in your life. It is easy to put down, easy to pick back up, and would be of interest for a cook who may not be an avid reader. We need more of this type of book that will amplify lesser-heard voices and appeal to a wide audience through beautiful illustrations and an approachable tone.

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