I read These Precious Days by Ann Patchett in December for book club. An essay collection was a great choice for a busy month. We didn't have to track a plot and characters for 300 pages, and it was easy to pick up and put down as time allowed.
These 23 essays are reflections on the author's memories covering a wide range of topics, from the first Thanksgiving dinner she prepared while in college and her year of no shopping to the three fathers in her life and the endless comments she's received because she has no children. A connecting thread was that people come into our lives at the time they're meant to.
The titular essay comprises a significant portion of this collection and was the one I was anticipating. In it, Ms. Patchett shares the way in which she came to host Sooki Raphael, Tom Hanks' personal assistant, in their home while she went through cancer treatment during the pandemic.
As an author and bookstore owner, many essays relate to books in some way. Family, faith, friendships, and love are also common themes. There was some 'name dropping' but Ms. Patchett rubs elbows with some pretty impressive people so that didn't bother me. I read this via audiobook narrated by the author so it felt like she was telling me these stories over a cup of tea in a cozy cafe. I listened to some of this volume while reorganizing bookshelves which seemed appropriate.
Our book club found many topics to discuss; however, the female members enjoyed it much more than our lone male member. I'm grateful the Double Booked Book Club motivated me to move this from my TBR shelf to my 'books read in 2022' list.
These 23 essays are reflections on the author's memories covering a wide range of topics, from the first Thanksgiving dinner she prepared while in college and her year of no shopping to the three fathers in her life and the endless comments she's received because she has no children. A connecting thread was that people come into our lives at the time they're meant to.
The titular essay comprises a significant portion of this collection and was the one I was anticipating. In it, Ms. Patchett shares the way in which she came to host Sooki Raphael, Tom Hanks' personal assistant, in their home while she went through cancer treatment during the pandemic.
As an author and bookstore owner, many essays relate to books in some way. Family, faith, friendships, and love are also common themes. There was some 'name dropping' but Ms. Patchett rubs elbows with some pretty impressive people so that didn't bother me. I read this via audiobook narrated by the author so it felt like she was telling me these stories over a cup of tea in a cozy cafe. I listened to some of this volume while reorganizing bookshelves which seemed appropriate.
Our book club found many topics to discuss; however, the female members enjoyed it much more than our lone male member. I'm grateful the Double Booked Book Club motivated me to move this from my TBR shelf to my 'books read in 2022' list.
