Happy Mother’s Day! I hope that everyone is celebrating their mothers, grandmothers, stepmothers, and all the women who have influenced your lives.
This Mother’s Day is especially poignant to me because my mom passed away in February, so this is the first year I am unable to call her or send a card. Losing a parent is never easy, but losing my mom has really hit me to the core. I am the youngest (and a surprise, by the way), and I feel that by the time I arrived, my parents were older and perhaps more patient with me than with my siblings. In addition to being a wonderful mother, my mom and I were great friends. I tried never to take that for granted because I know being good friends is not necessarily a given in a mother and daughter relationship. I was very lucky that way.
For this column, I want to honor the spirit of my mom by recommending titles that represent her joys, hobbies and interests. She was the one who took me to the library on a regular basis and encouraged a love of reading and writing. Before she married my dad, she took a few journalism classes, and while she never had the chance to pursue a writing career, she was my biggest cheerleader when I developed a love for words and language.
This week’s reading list is dedicated to my mom and her varied interests in life. When I think of her now, I remember her great love for reading, sewing and quilting; as a friend to and caretaker of many a furry and feathered creature; and her curiosity about the world, especially women’s history and weather. And camels—a specific family thing that makes me smile every time I see one. I hope that one or more of these titles will speak to you—and maybe your mom, too.
Here’s to you, Mom.
- “The Backyard Bird Sanctuary: A Beginner’s Guide to Creating a Wild Bird Habitat at Home” by Alan Baczkiewicz
- “Camel Crazy: A Quest for Miracles in the Mysterious World of Camels” by Christina Adams
- “Fearless with Fabric: Fresh Quilts from Traditional Blocks: An Inspiring Guide to Making 14 Quilt Projects” by Sarah Maxwell
- “First Ladies of the Republic: Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, Dolley Madison, and the Creation of an Iconic American Role” by Jeanne E. Abrams
- “My Life in a Cat House: True Tales of Love, Laughter, and Living with Five Felines” by Gwen Cooper
- “New Women in the Old West: From Settlers to Suffragists, an Untold American Story” by Winifred Gallagher
- “A Sideways Look at Clouds” by Maria Mudd Ruth
- “Write for Your Life” by Anna Quindlen
New at the Library
Fiction
- “The Lying Club” by Annie Ward
- “The Sacred Bridge” by Anne Hillerman
- “Two Storm Wood” by Philip Gray
Nonfiction
- “The Elegant Edible Garden: Design a Dream Kitchen Garden to Fit Your Personality, Desires, and Lifestyle” by Linda Vater
- “Playmakers: How the NFL Really Works (and Doesn’t)” by Mike Florio
- “Things that Matter: Overcoming Distraction to Pursue a More Meaningful Life” by Joshua Becker
Children
- “The Einsteins of Vista Point” by Ben Guterson
- “Lift, Mix, Fling!: Machines Can Do Anything” written by Lola M. Schaefer, illustrated by James Yang
- “Nana Loves You More” written by Jimmy Fallon, illustrated by Miguel Ordonez
This is just a small sampling of the many new titles added each week to the Fort Vancouver Regional Library District collection. Find more in our catalog, or call (360) 906-5000 to reserve titles or find additional listings.
Jan Johnston, Collection Manager
Fort Vancouver Regional Libraries
You can email Jan at readingforfun@fvrl.org.
A version of this "Check It Out" was first published on May 8, 2022, in the The Columbian newspaper.
Find more book columns in our Off the Shelf blog.
