Editor’s note: The opinions of the smart, well-read women in my Denver book club mean a lot, and often determine what the rest of us choose to pile onto our bedside tables. So we asked them, and all Denver Post readers, to share their mini-reviews with you. Have any to offer? Email bellis@denverpost.com.
“The Comfort of Ghosts,” by Jacqueline Winspear (Soho Crime, 2024)
“The Comfort of Ghosts,” by Jacqueline Winspear (Soho Crime, 2024)
Sadly, this is the final installment of the Maisie Dobbs mystery series, which follows Maisie, her family, friends and colleagues from shortly before World War I to shortly after World War II in England. The series unfailingly illuminates gender and social issues along the way, this one portraying problems arising from the housing shortage in 1940s England, the result of the destructive German bombing. Naturally, Winspear also gives Maisie another case to solve. And, perhaps somewhat nostalgically, Winspear looks back over Maisie’s life and experiences (and also the series), from her humble beginnings as a below-stairs maid to serving as a nurse near the front lines in World War I, through her education and career as a private investigator, and brief foray into espionage in World War II. Winspear also drops a slight hint of a possible future for some of these characters. — 3 stars (out of 4); Kathleen Lance, Denver
“Braiding Sweetgrass,” by Robin Wall Kimmerer (Milkweed Editions, illustrated edition, 2020)
In essays of poetic beauty, Robin Wall Kimmerer gently blends tales of her indigenous ancestors, her considerable ecological and botanic knowledge, and her holistic worldview into a shimmering whole. Kimmerer shows how plants can teach us, naturally and compassionately, to treat the world with respect and joy, building more sustainable interactions between humans and the land. Stories from many sources — her personal history, ancient myths, metaphor — all grow together to create a sense of abundance and gratitude. You’ll want to walk in a forest, and plant a garden, and clear algae from a choking pond.
This is nonfiction at its most illuminating and most enriching. It’s a book to cherish, to reread and, like a braid of sweetgrass, gift to every person you know who loves amazing writing, and this amazing world. — 4 stars (out of 4); Neva Gronert, Parker
“The Last One, a Novel,” by Fatima Daas, translated by Lara Vergnaud (Other Press)
“The Last One, a Novel,” by Fatima Daas, translated by Lara Vergnaud (Other Press, 2021)
Disjointed as if you’re hearing thoughts in your own head, self-centered like a child’s perspective, this story jumps from topic to topic but always focuses attention on the author’s voice. Her feelings and experiences, presented in herky-jerky delivery, remind you that you’re reading a story completely unfamiliar to most Americans. Not only is Fatima a Muslim, she’s also living in Paris, and she’s gay, and she’s a teenager teetering on the edge of making sense of her life, and she’s using an autobiographical style that challenges the reader. Is this someone’s real life? No matter. Fatima fights chronic asthma, a mean dad, and romantic confusion. The truth, which fiction is best at, is conveying a sense of real life. This book assured me again that people are people, all struggling to do their best with their lives, although those lives may be quite different. — 3 stars (out of 4); Bonnie McCune, Denver (bonniemccune.com)
“Women in the Valley of the Kings: The Untold Story of Women Egyptologists in the Gilded Age,” by Kathleen Sheppard (St. Martin’s Press, 2024)
Sheppard sketches the careers of a handful of women who were often overlooked but yet proved to be key players in developing the nascent field of Egyptology in the late 19th century. These pioneering women were financial backers, hands-on archaeologists, academics, artists and museum curators. And each woman profiled here paved the way for others to follow. But the common thread, beyond their work in Egyptology, is their status as white, almost exclusively unmarried and largely well-to-do women, in a field dominated by white, European or American men. And yet they persisted in following their passions and talents, and made their marks. Inspiring. — 3 stars (out of 4); Kathleen Lance, Denver