Each week (give or take one or two here and there) I share three things I like – It could be a book, a movie, a podcast, an album, a photo, an article, a restaurant, a food item, a beverage, or anything else I simply enjoy and think you might too. You can find a whole pile of things, especially books, I like and recommend HERE.
1) Theo of Golden by Allen Levi
I stumbled upon this novel having heard very little about it by vague mentions that it’s good. So let me blow away the mist and declare this book very good. While it isn’t in the class of Leif Enger’s work, it feels like that. It is rich and warm and deep. It has none of the cynicism of so much modern literature that revels in the flawed hero and bows to man’s baser nature. The story is of a mysterious older man who arrives in a small Southern city and quickly begins quietly blessing others. His motives are unclear, but his actions are good. As the story unfolds we discover bits and pieces about hims as he befriends people in the town. It stands out more and more that this is a story of love and virtue, a rarity in contemporary writing. It is a tale of people and lives more than events or action. And the story has a satisfying ending (which I will not reveal), whereupon the reader is sated and still wants more.
Oral history is a genre that tends to the verbose and flabby. Editors often struggle to know what to include, so they just throw it all in, leaving the reader slogging through unnecessary pages rather than eagerly turning pages. Graff offers a master class in oral history in this book about an event that is both widely known and under-appreciated. From the mouths of generals, presidents, prime ministers, seamen, civilians, and soldiers he weaves together the events of D-day. No section meanders or bogs down. The reader is left with a vivid picture of events and a deep understanding of the details and human struggle involved. It is a powerful book, and well worth reading.
3) O Brother, Where Art ThouSoundtrack
At first blush, one might think this is an album of little consequence full of silly songs. It is, in fact, a masterpiece of Americana and folk music. When I first saw the movie 25 years ago I was struck by how the music enhanced the movie, and even told the story. Americana music hadn’t experienced much ofa resurgence in 2000, so the sounds and harmonies and artists were largely new to me–Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch, the Fairfield Four. This soundtrack introduced me to artists and musical traditions I now love. If you have never seen the movie, that hardly matters–the songs tell their own story. It holds up because the music is timeless.
