Add these books to your summer reading list

Don’t you love it when a friend recommends a book? Especially if they say, “Run, don’t walk, to get a copy.”

Extra points when the friend says, “I’m sending you this book pronto because I love it so much.”

That’s what happened when former Shreveporter Ginger Hamilton, my neighbor on Samford Avenue in the mid-1960s, read “These Precious Days,” a collection of essays by Ann Patchett. She loved it so much she immediately sent me a copy.

Today I recommend it for your summer reading list —not because Patchett is an award-winning, bestselling author who you feel like you should read. Instead, because these pieces are full of engaging observations on an array of topics, from not buying stuff (except books, of course) for a year to the author’s husband’s love of flying small planes, complete with spot-on descriptions of Mississippi.

This collection is a pleasure with just the right tone for summer—like chatting with a friend in the porch swing. I’d also recommend it as a book-club selection.

The personal essays, released last fall by HarperCollins, focus on home, friendships and writing. Her essay about author Eudora Welty reminded me of writing a fan letter to Welty when I was in high school—with no street address because I thought everyone in Jackson, Miss., would know who she was. Alas, the letter was returned, and I never tried to contact Welty again. I still regret that. Patchett says Welty wrote with “the compassionate truth,” a phrase that also describes the way Patchett captures everyday life and relationships in this book. Maybe I’ll write her a fan letter…

The author of eight novels, four works of nonfiction and two children's books, Patchett was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for her most recent novel, “The Dutch House.” She lives in Nashville, Tenn., where she is co-owner of Parnassus Books. While I’ve never met her, I’ve done a book talk and signing at Parnassus and greatly appreciate her devotion to the importance of bookstores. For more info about her, see: www.annpatchett.com.

Getting children outdoors in summer

In our family, we’re talking about “Outdoor Kids in an Inside World: Getting Your Family Out of the House and Radically Engaged with Nature” by Steven Rinella.

Released this month by Random House, this book piggybacks on a frequent topic of conversation with young parents in our family—how to keep children from spending so much time on computers, tablets and smartphones and encourage spending more time outside, the way we did when we were kids.

According to the publisher, the average American spends 90 percent of their time indoors: “Not only does this phenomenon have consequences for kids’ physical and mental health, it jeopardizes their ability to understand and engage with anything beyond the built environment.” The book offers practical advice for getting kids engaged with nature in a muddy, hands-on way, with activities such as camping to conquer fears, build tolerance for dirt and discomfort and savor swapping stories around a campfire; growing a vegetable garden to develop a capacity to nurture an appreciation for hard work; fishing lakes and rivers to learn the value of patience; and hunting for wild game to face the realities of life, death and what it takes to obtain food.

For your own “summer school,” a book on aging

Admit it, readers over 50: It’s hard not to talk about aging. My three brothers and I are optimists, but we find ourselves increasingly circling back to this topic as the years pass, and the youngest of us siblings recommended “From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life” by Arthur C. Brooks, a social scientist who, at the height of his career at age 50, embarked on a seven-year study of waning abilities and opportunities for progress as we age. The book, published by Penguin Random House’s Portfolio imprint, released in February and has been No. 1 on the NYT bestseller list.

I listened to the unabridged audio version, narrated by the author (my favorite type of narrator).  Using social science, philosophy, biography, theology and eastern wisdom, as well as dozens of interviews with everyday men and women, Brooks discusses how true life success is well within our reach and stresses refocusing on certain priorities and habits. This book is both sobering and encouraging for us more-than-50 folks and would make a good study for a church group or a book club or just provide interesting supper-table conversation.

Brooks is professor of the Practice of Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School and Professor of Management Practice at the Harvard Business School. For more info: www.arthurbrooks.com.

And a series for summer …

“I just learned a new word,” husband Paul said last week. “’Pugil.’ It means as much as much as you can pick up between your thumb and first two fingers.”

So it goes with his ongoing interest in Patrick O’Brian’s” Aubrey-Maturin adventure series, which has resulted in lots of household discussions about a variety of archaic words and nautical terms. Now on the 13th book, “The Thirteen-Gun Salute,” Paul is enjoying the series, which a female book-club reader told me is “like the Hardy Boys for middle-aged men.” (I don’t think Paul appreciated that description, but he has devoured these books over the past few months.) The inspiration for the “Master and Commander” movie, there are 20 complete books in the series—and one unfinished.

This could be a perfect series to start this summer if you’re a fan of historical adventure.

Sign up for summer reading “experiences” at area libraries

One of my favorite times of year is summertime, when reading takes on the carefree feel of being a child out of school—and libraries offer tons of free programs for all ages. As a child, I devoured books from the Shreve Memorial Library Cedar Grove branch each summer, and I encourage you to take your children, grandchildren, neighbors and yourself to a library during the hot weeks of summer for free air-conditioned pleasure. This year’s summer reading theme is “Discover Oceans of Possibilities at Your Library.”

Drop by a branch or look at your favorite library’s website for activities coming up. As Bossier Parish libraries say, “We don't feel like ‘summer reading program’ really captures the full scope of what we do here at Bossier Parish Libraries over the summer. With dozens of innovative programs and events happening for all ages, your summer at Bossier Parish Libraries really is much more than reading—it's an experience.”

As always, I’m blown away by the many offerings from North Louisiana libraries, no matter their size. (Want examples of a small library system doing big things? Check out Webster Parish, headquartered in Minden: www.websterparishlibrary.org)

Columnist Judy Christie is the author of 18 novels and nonfiction books. With NYT bestselling author Lisa Wingate, she co-authored “Before and After: The Incredible Real-Life Stories of Orphans Who Survived the Tennessee Children’s Home Society,” the nonfiction sequel to Wingate’s novel “Before We Were Yours,” now in paperback. For more about Christie, see www.judychristie.com.

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Add these books to your 2022 summer reading list