Top Ten Books of 2013

Here are my picks for 2013:

1. We Are Water by Wally Lamb

Lamb, Wally. We Are Water. HarperCollins, 2013. Print. 

“We are water: ‘fluid, flexible when we have to be. But strong and destructive, too.’ That’s evident in this emotionally involving new novel from the author of She’s Come Undone…clear and sweetly flowing; highly recommended.” --Library Journal, starred review.

2. Stuck in the Middle with You by Jennifer Finney Boylan

Boylan, Jennifer F. Stuck in the Middle with You: Parenthood in Three Genders a Memoir. New York: Crown Publishers, 2013. Print. 

Like Wally Lamb, Jennifer Finney Boylan names her books after great song titles. Also like Wally Lamb, Jennifer Finney Boylan is an outstanding writer/teacher/social activist. If you like funny, honest, unique memoirs, you will love Stuck in the Middle with You.

3. Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris

Sedaris, David. Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls. New York: Little, Brown, 2013. Print.

"Deeply satisfying.... Sedaris can bring to mind Anthony Trollope, P.G. Wodehouse, Alice Munro, and Woody Allen, sometimes in the same paragraph." --David Carr, New York Times Book Review.

4. The Wonder Bread Summer by Jessica Anya Blau

Blau, Jessica A. The Wonder Bread Summer: A Novel. New York: Harper Perennial, 2013. Print. 

“Raunchy, poignant, and triumphant in turn--and sometimes manages to be all three at the same time.” --Booklist

5.  Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy by Helen Fielding

 Fielding, Helen. Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy. Alfred A. Knopf, 2013. Print. 

“Mad About the Boy is not only sharp and humorous, despite its heroine’s aged circumstances, but also snappily written, observationally astute and at times genuinely moving." --Sarah Lyall, The New York Times Book Review.

6. Tapestry of Fortune by Elizabeth Berg

Berg, Elizabeth. Tapestry of Fortunes: A Novel. New York: Random House, 2013. Print. 

"Berg strips her writing down to what is essential and takes an unflinching look at lifelong regrets. The characters are so completely realized, even the bit players will settle in your heart." 

--Diane Holcomb, Booklist (starred review).

7. Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

 Quick, Matthew. Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock: A Novel. Little, Brown, 2013. Print. 

"...the novel presents a host of compelling, well-drawn, realistic characters-all of whom want Leonard to make it through the day safe and sound." --Kirkus.

8. Beyond Belief by Jenna Miscavige Hill with Lisa Pulitzer

Hill, Jenna M, and Lisa Pulitzer. Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape. HarperCollins, 2013. Print. 

"Hill’s candid memories of growing up inside the Church of Scientology are notable not just for their detail but for the light they shed on an environment that fosters isolation, powerlessness, and privacy loss." --Publisher's Weekly.

9.The Invisible Girls by Sarah Thebarge

Thebarge, Sarah. The Invisible Girls: A Memoir. New York: Jericho Books, 2013. Print. 

"Thebarge's writing style is clear and breezy. From the beginning, there are compelling questions on the table." --The Oregonian

10. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

Simsion, Graeme. The Rosie Project. Simon & Schuster, 2013. Print. 

"If you're looking for sparkling entertainment along the lines of Where'd You Go Bernadette and When Harry Met Sally, The Rosie Project is this season's fix." --Heller Mcalpin, NPR Books.

Early Childhood Education: Growing Up

Back in the early 70's, there weren't many childcare options in my quaint New England town. Since my mother was a working single mom, I had to spend hours every day at a wretched place called The Happy Child Nursery School.

The owner was a morbidly obese, smelly woman who wore muumuus every day, even in the middle of winter. (She was so fat that she probably never felt the cold.) Miss Muumuu lived in a decrepit colonial house which probably hadn't been painted since the turn of the 19th century. In addition to the nursery school, the house also featured a museum of antique dolls. We weren't allowed to touch the dolls, but we didn't want to anyway. The dolls were downright creepy. Many of the dolls were kid-size with metal braces holding them in posed play positions as if they were frozen for life in an eternal game of TV tag. Miss Muumuu also had two male boarders who lived in the upstairs of the house. One man had a twitch and walked with a limp. We called him Skippy.*

There were some happy moments at the Happy Child Nursery School. During playtime we'd go outside, roll over a log, and play with worms. Another highlight was nap time when Miss Muumuu would watch hours of television while the happy children rested on soiled army cots listening to Phil Donahue interview male hookers, Siamese twins, and other assorted human oddities. Consequently, the first sex question I asked my mother wasn't "where do babies come from?" It was "what's the difference between a transvestite and a transsexual?" (They didn't use the politically correct term transgendered back in the early 70's.)**

Thankfully, daycare standards and early childhood education have improved drastically. (Believe it or not, Miss Muumuu held an advanced degree in Child Development from an ivy league college.) It's a bit unrealistic, but The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children under the age of 2 experience no screen time (screen time includes computer, video, iPad, and TV screens), and that parents limit older children's screen time as well. This is because it takes away from real-life creative play and social interaction.

Personally, I think a little screen time, maybe 20 minutes of a Sesame Street video (not a lurid talk show) before dinner is okay because it gives harried parents a much needed break. Some television shows really are educational. Thanks to Schoolhouse Rock, I can recite the Preamble of the Constitution. And not all screens are bad. For example, iPads and smart phones can help nonverbal children communicate and are being used as teaching tools for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Although it's a little didactic, I got a kick out of the book Todd's TV by James Proimos. It's about a boy whose parents are too busy to pay attention to him, so he starts spending time with his TV instead. When the parents get jealous of the TV, they do what they should have done a long time ago. They turn it off.

Proimos, James. Todd's Tv. New York: Katherine Tegen Books, 2010. Print.

*I also had a school bus driver with a limp. We called him Hoppy. (Gosh, I hope I'm not the one who came up with these nicknames.) My stop was the last on his route so I'd sing to him after the other kids got off the bus. At the time I knew all the words to all the songs in Fiddler on the Roof. He really liked Matchmaker, Matchmaker.

**Speaking of transgender issues, She's Not There is one of the best memoirs I've ever read. It was written by Colby College professor, Jennifer Finney Boylan, who started her life as James Finney Boylan. I had the pleasure of sitting next to her at an ALA publishers breakfast event. I started chatting with her and asked where she worked. She said Colby College, and I said, "isn't that where Jennifer Finney Boylan works? Wait--oh my gosh! You ARE Jennifer Finney Boylan! I love you. I feel like I already know you!" She said "well, you do know an awful lot about me." We were instant conference buddies and I introduced her to all my favorite librarian and writer friends.

Boylan, Jennifer F. She's Not There: A Life in Two Genders. New York: Broadway Books, 2003. Print.

Jennifer Finney Boylan wrote another really great memoir entitled I'm Looking Through You: Growing Up Haunted. It describes her life growing up in a haunted house. What I really like about the book is that the ghosts aren't really a big deal. They just happen to be there. Watch this video tour of Jennifer's childhood home: jenniferboylan.net. It reminds me of Miss Muumuu's place.

Boylan, Jennifer F. I'm Looking Through You: Growing Up Haunted. New York: Broadway Books, 2008. Print.