SITREP - Calling All Ghouls!
A study in the Journal of Aging Research found that babies born during the autumn months are more likely to live to 100 than those born during the rest of the year.
It’s been an interesting week for me. I’ve struggled to concentrate on my reading because of my injury, but as things have been slowly improving, I’ve been able to complete a couple of books. I hope I can read a bit more this coming week, but we’ll see how things go once physical therapy starts.
I finally purchased a new car! I don’t know how people can afford vehicles these days; everything is so expensive, and the interest rates are through the roof (even if you have good credit!). But I need a car, so here we are. Hopefully, things will improve in 2025 because this economy is not sustainable the way it’s going.
I fell behind in my writing challenge, but I think I can catch up this week if I’m very intentional about my writing schedule. Also, my new desk chair arrived (an early birthday present from my partner!), so once we have it all assembled, I think I'll be able to write for longer periods because I’ll be super comfy in a proper desk chair.
I think I’m blabbing to try to distract you from how little I read last week. Alas, it’s time to jump into the books.
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Book Things:
Currently Reading:
The Empusium: A Health Resort Horror Story by Olga Tokarczuk (translated by Antonia Lloyd-Jones):
I’ve had a rather mixed experience with Olga Tokarczuk. Her books are either major hits or misses (Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead - MAJOR WIN, Flights - WIN, The Books of Jacob - DNF1). I’m just starting her newest novel, and so far, I’m enjoying the vibes. It’s still too early to tell if I will like it, but I’m hopeful it will be a win for me.
This is set in 1913 at a health resort in the Silesian mountains. Our main character is suffering from tuberculosis and has come to this town to help him recover. I have a soft spot for TB narratives. I can’t really explain why, but I do. This is supposed to be a nod to Thomas Mann’s The Magic Mountain. Depending on how I get on with Empusium, I may pick up The Magic Mountain when I’m done. Something very sinister is happening in this strange little mountain town, and I can’t wait to get into this more this week. (15%)
I’m slowly working my way through Fool’s Errand. I’m predominantly listening to this when I’m in the car, and since I haven’t gone anywhere this past week, my progress has been slow. I made it to The Fool’s arrival and squealed with joy when he and Fitz reunited! I love The Fool! (15%)
John Knightley has arrived at Hartfield, and I kind of like his grumpy ass. He’s the only one who tells Emma straight up that Mr. Elton is into her. And despite what she might think she’s doing, she’s encouraging his feelings. She, of course, ignores John because Emma knows all.
Jane Fairfax is about to enter the picture, and I can’t wait to watch her and Emma interact. Jane is an interesting foil to Emma. Emma has money, raw talent, and position, but she’s also very sheltered and coddled by everyone in Highbury.2 Meanwhile, Jane excels in all her accomplishments; she must work to provide for herself and her loved ones, and she’s seen something of the world.
Poor, sweet, sheltered Emma has the best intentions but is overconfident in her abilities. People often complain about Emma being a brat or spoiled (she can be), but she’s really just a young woman who needs to grow up a little. And that’s hard to do when no external forces are pushing her to do so. (25%)
The Woman Destroyed by Simone de Beauvoir:
I made a start on the final story, The Woman Destroyed, but I don’t think I retained anything I read. I plan to restart the story later in the week. (46%)
Lies and Sorcery by Elsa Morante:
I managed a few pages before passing out the other night, but I don't think it moved the needle on my percentage read. I will finish this sucker by the end of the year. (70%)
Recently Finished:
Lady Audley’s Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon:
I never participate in Victober, but for some reason, I felt called to pick up something for the read-along this year. I searched my shelves and grabbed Lady Audley’s Secret.3 I bought this a few years ago and couldn’t remember what it was about, but it was shouting, “Read me!” and I am so glad I listened!!! This book is so much fun. I have a quick and dirty review coming out tomorrow on my channel, but I’ll summarize my thoughts here.
Our main character is Robert Audley, a wealthy young barrister who doesn’t really work. He runs into his old friend George, who’s just returned from Australia, where he made his fortune. George was disowned by his father when, a few years earlier, he married a young woman his father disapproved of. George went to Australia to make his fortune to support his wife and child, but on his return, he finds out his wife has died. Robert takes a very distraught George to his uncle's home to help distract him. Robert’s uncle recently married a young, beautiful woman who’s about the same age as his daughter from his first wife (because, of course he has). George goes missing shortly after he and Lady Audley meet, and the detective adventure begins!
As a modern reader, this was very predictable, but I didn’t care. I wanted to know how Robert would get us to the twists I knew were coming. This was so much fun to read. If you read The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins and thought it a bit of a slog, try Lady Audley’s Secret. This moved so fast that I could not put it down. I can’t remember the last time I had this much fun reading a Victorian novel. I loved it!
A Sunny Place for Shady People by Mariana Enriquez (Translated by Megan McDowell):
Mariana Enriquez is quickly becoming one of my favorite short story writers. Short stories can be challenging. A good writer will give you a story that feels complete. You go through the three-act structure and a full character arc, so you’re satisfied at the end of it. Bad short story writers will leave you feeling like you need more. Enriquez did not disappoint. I was having a blast working my way through these stories. I went down so many rabbit holes to research random artists, events, and places she mentioned throughout. I love when I can really dig into a book like this. I was sharing all my research over on the Instagram broadcast channel for TBR Lowdown. And I hope to do more of this with the books Naomi and I plan to discuss on our podcast.
This collection focuses on ghosts, both literal and figurative. The stories feature women who can see the ghosts of the victims of violent murder but also people dealing with the ghosts of their memories and experiences. She discusses poverty, addiction, depression, trauma, class, and so much more.
We will discuss this collection in an upcoming TBR Lowdown episode, so stay tuned for my full thoughts. For now, just know that I loved this collection.
Lacrimore has the isolated vibes of And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie mixed with a touch of Shirley Jackson and a dab of Victoriana. Oh, let’s not forget the ghosts, grief, and creeping damp. It’s an incredibly atmospheric read that calls on all your senses.
“Have you ever truly met death, Sen?” He asked softly. “Have you ever felt the life start to run out of you?” His chair creaked as he leaned closer across the table. “Have you seen it?” Vandorus placed his fingers at his temple. “Just at the corner of your eyes? That soft darkness that gathers there? And here,”—his hand then traced the curve of his ear—“ a million whispers beneath the surf. Do you ever hear that in your trances?” “
I don’t know.” She clasped her shaking hands together.
“But I know. I remember.” Vandorus stood to his full height. “There was little of me left in this world when I felt something in the next, slipping just beneath my understanding. I nearly brushed against it before my mind was dragged away. Back into the physical. Back into sickness and, eventually, health. And so it was lost.”
It’s a story about death and decay, loss and grief, and the secrets we keep. Everyone in this story was hiding something. But at Lacrimore, those secrets didn’t matter as much as they would on the mainland. Everyone on the island was ostracized from normal society in some way. Lalichai was obsessed with learning everything he could about Lacrimore. Dr. Vandorus was exiled from the mainland after conducting horrible experiments on his patients. The medium, Sivre Sen, is called to the island in a dream to lead Lalichai's soul from that terrible place to the other side. But there are things the island must teach her before she can do that. Also, Lalichai was still alive when she got there. But she has her own secrets she’s trying to keep about her life on the mainland and what really happens during her trances.
“Perhaps we don’t experience death differently at all. Perhaps we all cycle back to some sort of common ground at the very end,” came Lalichai’s argument. “How long can we exist as cerebral beings before it collapses under instinct?”
It’s also a story about the rule makers and the history keepers. Who decides what’s wrong and what’s right in this world? And what happens to those who live outside those rules? Lalichai uses his privilege to bring together a group of outcasts who have lived rather companionably with each other for a time. They’d be criminals on the mainland, but at Lacrimore, they can be themselves.
“Few have witnessed the stories of Lacrimore. Fewer still have cared to write on them. This is the first attempt to do so beyond local legend and hearsay. History is but a collection of perspectives built upon one another, with some voices granted the authority to define that history, depending on who is in power to make such decisions.
And we can’t forget the character of the house itself. It’s a living, breathing creature that changes shape, shakes, rattles, and decays around our characters. It’s everything a haunted house should be - oppressive, decrepit, and possibly sentient.
A house was never only a house. It was a vessel.
This was the perfect gothic horror read for the spooky season.
Just in from publishers:
(Thank you to all the publishers who send me books for spotlight and review. I will never get over how bonkers it is that this happens.)
This week is all about poetry:
Paper Boat: New and Selected Poems: 1961-2023 by Margaret Atwood (Out now from Knopf):
Paper Boat is a new collection of Atwood’s most vital poems spanning her entire writing career. “Atwood, in her journey through poetry, illuminates our most innate joys and sorrows, desires and fears.” I love a collection like this because you can see how an author evolves throughout their career. I will take my time dipping in and out of this collection over the next few months. Do you have a favorite Atwood poem or novel? Let me know in the comments.
Forest of Noise by Mosab Abu Toha (Out October 15, 2024, from Knopf:
An incredibly timely collection of poems about life in Gaza by award-winning Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha. These poems capture the chaos and suffering but also the beauty around Abu Toha. As the bombs fell, Abu Toha kept writing poems. “Uncannily clear, direct, and beautifully tuned, they form one of the most astonishing works of art wrested from wartime.” I expect to be in tears when I’m done reading this.
Find Me As The Creature I Am by Emily Junmin Yoon (Out October 22, 2024, from Knopf):
This is a collection of poems from a new, up-and-coming voice in contemporary poetry. The collection explores “our most fundamental instincts, capacity for affection, and the ways in which we resemble the wild.” The collection is full of tenderness and violence, longing and love. I read a few poems when this arrived, and I enjoyed the voice and how she plays with the duality of man as both beast and human.
3, 2, 1, Round-up:
(AKA Random Non-Bookish Things Because I Totally Have Other Interests)
Three Things I’m Loving About Fall:
Cheesy Halloween shirts, like my adorable Winnie the Pooh Trick or Treat denim button-down. I don't know where it came from, but one day, it appeared in my wardrobe, and I accepted it into my life.
Pumpkin Pie - Fall marks the start of the boozy baking season, which means I didn’t make just any pumpkin pie; I made a Bourbon Pumpkin Pie!4 It’s even better with some bourbon whipped cream, but the season is just starting, so we’ll take it slow with the boozy bakes.
And, of course, jack-o-lanterns. It’s been ages since I’ve carved a pumpkin! A whole bunch of us got together and worked on some pumpkins. I’m quite proud of mine.5
Two Videos to Watch:
This is an older lecture that I stumbled upon in one of my many late-night YouTube binges. The lecture is from Virginia Nicholson, who explores the way of life of the Bohemian artists of the early 20th century. She covers artists, poets, writers, and composers who shook off Victorian rules and experimented with new ways of living and making art. She touches on artists like Dylan Thomas, Robert Graves, Katherine Mansfield, and Dora Carrington and how they rejected tea parties, chaperones, and monogamy.
I love these ADHD pomodoro timers! There are so many of these on YouTube, and they all work. This is just one I particularly enjoy. When I’m not in a productive mood, it can be challenging to get anything done, especially when I have a laundry list of things to complete. The more I have to do, the more overwhelmed I can get, and then I have no idea where to begin. I love this method because you can simply pick a task and a length of time and focus on that one thing for however long you choose. I love it for writing sprints, editing videos, and even cleaning. It’s not some earth-shattering new hack, but it’s one that works.
One Adorable Picture of Alfie and Mercy
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Thank you for reading. See you next week!
Seriously how do you make an orgy scene boring?
Everyone but Mr. Knightley, that is.
Every year on Booktube, there is a Victorian literature read-along in October called Victober.
Typically, I just wing it, but I thought I’d try a recipe this year. Next time I make this, I’ll add a third tbsp of bourbon.
And yes, I had someone help me with mine because of my stupid back, but she’s still pretty.
Happy Birthday, Alyssa!
I can't see the difference between using the Pomodoro Timer and just setting the timer on my microwave.