The Abu Dhabi Bar Mitzvah: Fear and Love in the Modern Middle East by Adam Valen Levinson With the recent news that Saudi Arabia will soon be offering tourist visas, the publication of Adam Valen Levinson’s new memoir/travelogue, The Abu Dhabi Bar Mitzvah: Fear and Love in the Modern Middle East, is perfectly timed. More than … Read more
Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman by Lindy West The word “shrill,” evocative and onomatopoetic, conjures high-pitched, grating voices. It’s used derogatorily, and it’s often aimed at women. Author Lindy West re-appropriates it in her book Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman, a memoir that’s as funny as it is poignant. West is a former movie … Read more
The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin It’s halfway through a humid summer in 1969 on New York City’s Lower East Side, and the four Gold siblings are restless. There is no air-conditioning in the house, and life seems to be happening to everyone else but them. Kids are getting wasted at Woodstock, there is rioting outside … Read more
The Turtle of Oman by Naomi Shihab Nye When news headlines emphasize violence and strife, it can be comforting to engross oneself in a “gentle read,” and Naomi Shihab Nye’s delightful novel The Turtle of Oman fills the bill. Although intended for a grade-school audience, it’s appropriate for adult readers, too, particularly those who enjoy learning about … Read more
Read, Then Watch: The Power of Protests(DVDs related to this year’s Whatcom READS selection, Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist) If you haven’t yet picked up a copy of this year’s Whatcom READS title, Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist</i>, you’ve still got time. Author Sunil Yapa … Read more
The Newcomers: Finding Refuge, Friendship, and Hope in an American Classroom by Helen Thorpe The refugees arrive with nothing, not even the language, having escaped violence, poverty, unspeakable loss. Their destination is Denver, Colorado. There they will land in a classroom helmed by Eddie Williams, the teacher tasked with orienting refugees from around the globe … Read more
The Water will Come: Rising Seas, Sinking Cities, and the Remaking of the Civilized World by Jeff Goodell Flash forward to 2050. Most of Blaine and Birch Bay are underwater, as are Sandy Point, big sections of Slater and Ferndale roads, Squalicum Harbor, the new waterfront development, the Bellingham Cruise Terminal, and parts of Fairhaven—to … Read more
Every January, buzz about the Academy Awards starts to build in anticipation of the big event in March. And every year, I make a resolution to see more of the nominated films before the winners are announced. For me, there’s always a dilemma; if the movie is based on a book, should I wait to … Read more
My Old Man and the Mountain by Leif Whittaker Tales of climbing Mt. Everest are filled with legendary figures: George Mallory, Sir Edmund Hillary, Tenzing Norgay, Reinhold Messner, Scott Fischer, and Ed Viesturs, to name a few. Right in there is famed mountaineer Jim Whittaker, the first American to summit the world’s highest peak. His … Read more
Dear Fahrenheit 451: Love and Heartbreak in the Stacks by Annie Spence My Life with Bob: Flawed Heroine Keeps Book of Books, Plot Ensues by Pamela Paul The Futilitarians: Our Year of Thinking, Drinking, Grieving, and Reading by Anne Gisleson Bibliophiles looking to gift books or simply stock up on reading material for the holidays … Read more