The Bookworm 2023-2024

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BOOK WORM a reader’s guide by the faculty of falmouth academy 34th edition | 2023-2024

From the Librarian

The Bookworm

Dear Falmouth Academy Community, As the leaves start to turn and the cozy embrace of autumn settles in, it brings me great pleasure to welcome you to the 2023-2024 edition of The Bookworm, Falmouth Academy’s literary beacon. Our 34th issue promises to celebrate the joy of reading and the diverse world of books.

Our esteemed faculty members have continued their tradition of offering their unique insights and recommendations, reviewing over 60 books spanning a wide range of genres and styles. These reviews ensure there is something for every reader's taste within these pages.

At the back of the issue, Dr. Ben Parsons, Middle School Coordinator, introduces a new literacy program we designed together specifically for 7th-graders, with its primary goal to inspire and cement a love and habit of reading, which is the bedrock upon which strong writing skills are built.

In this issue of The Bookworm, I would also like to draw your attention to a collection of booklists curated by me that can be found on FA’s “DEI” webpage under the “About” section. These lists span various themes and topics, including Heritage Month celebrations, such as Hispanic Heritage Month, which we just celebrated in September, to special-interest collections such as Environmental Awareness.

If you would like to find inspiration in past issues of The Bookworm, please explore the “Publications” webpage also located under the “Who We Are” section of FA’s website.

Lastly, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to everyone who contributed to the success of this issue, from our talented faculty reviewers to our dedicated editorial team, with a special acknowledgment to Mr. Mike Deasy ’10, who served as a guest editor.

Please enjoy this 34th issue of The Bookworm and let its pages be your guide to a year filled with literary exploration and discovery. We hope you find inspiration, insight, and a new book to fall in love with within these pages.

Sincerely yours,

Britta Santamauro Director of Library and Media Services

Falmouth Academy 7 Highfield Drive, Falmouth, MA 02540 508-457-9696 falmouthacademy.org

Administration Matthew Green, Head of School Michael Earley, Assistant Head of School Petra Ehrenbrink, Academic Dean Pamela Clapp Hinkle, Director of Development Sarah Knowles, Director of Admission and Enrollment Management Carmen DiSanto, Director of Finance and Operations

Editorial Staff Amy Galvam, Director of Communications Julianne Waite, Designer

Our Mission Harnessing the power of inspired learning in a world-renowned scientific and vibrant artistic community, Falmouth Academy emboldens each student to take creative and intellectual risks to confidently engage the challenges of our times.

Guiding Values We value...

• the beauty of knowledge and the joy of conversation • collaboration and generosity of spirit • the power of a culture of kindness • relationships built on trust, respect, and direct communication • the wonder of imagination • each student’s pursuit of diverse challenges and opportunities • teachers as models of confident, rich adulthood • the richness of an educational experience that includes people with diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and identities

DEI Statement of Commitment Falmouth Academy is committed to continued growth in the area of diversity, equity, and inclusion. We intentionally strive to be a community of dedicated learners who understand their roles and responsibilities as local and global citizens confronting the challenges of our times.

Matt Barnes

History

When I Grow Up: The Lost Autobiography of Six Yiddish Teens Ken Krimstein

Ironically, I wrote about my introduction to graphic novels in my last Bookworm.

Now, a year later, and I am writing about another one. This book was gifted to me by my wife during the holiday season, and I breezed through it. The concept behind Krimstein’s book is fascinating. In the 1930s, hundreds of children in Lithuania entered an autobiography-writing competition. On the day the winner was announced, Nazi Germany invaded Lithuania.

The submissions were hidden in a church organ and forgotten for over a half-century. The never-before-published autobiographies were finally unearthed in 2017. Yiddish scholars, as well as other academics, poured over the works as they provided a new layer of complexity to understanding the period, as children’s and teenagers’ accounts of global events are often untold or deemphasized. Krimstein focuses on six autobiographies of Jewish teenagers doing everyday things such as ice skating with friends, cooking with family, and describing their love interests. The witty, humorous, and heartwarming book is tempered for the reader by the historical events that followed. The illustrations are unique draft-like sketches with the predominant color scheme of orange and black. When I Grow Up would be a great gift to any teenager, or a palate cleanser for a summer read.

The Story of Russia Orlando Figes

When Russia invaded Ukraine in the spring of 2022, the world watched as we saw untold destruction unfold. As a lifelong learner, I began devouring documentaries and podcasts about the invasion as I realized that I needed a more robust background in Russian history. Figes, a British professor and historian, who has written nearly a dozen books on Russian history, was an obvious choice. His newest book, published in 2022, The Story of Russia, all but fell into my lap. It is written chronologically, detailing nearly a thousand years of complex history in just under 400 pages, meticulously breaking down various myths and legends that have made the empire what it is today. Figes does an excellent job of analyzing the mentality of a nation-state caught between two worlds: Europe and Asia, East and West, religious and secular, liberal and conservative. He details how the patriarchal nature of the Russian state has played a role in the mythmaking mentioned above. As the reader makes their way to the final few paragraphs, they will notice how the book’s themes eventually connect to the present day.

Figes emphasizes how current autocrat Vladimir Putin uses

patriarchal myths to secure a vice grip on the Russian public.

If you are looking for a concise, decisive book to understand an ever-changing and complex nation-state, this book will do well on your nightstand. If you are looking to keep your mind busy while running errands or jogging on the bike path, the audiobook is as captivating as the print edition.

Barbara Campbell

Director of Alumni and Parent Relations

Welcome to Beach Town Susan Wiggs

I have long enjoyed Susan Wiggs’ series about how families are made and come together. Welcome to Beach Town did not disappoint.

Set in Alara Cove, CA, the book follows Nikki Graziola from being a scholarship student at Thornton Academy to becoming a world-class surfing competitor. While at Thornton, she refuses to accept that her best friend’s death was due to a drug overdose and throws out her valedictory speech at graduation to speak the truth by accusing a wellheeled member of the school community for causing the death. Consequently, Nikki is not awarded her diploma but, serendipitously, is selected to join a league that competes in surfing competitions around the world.

After her surfer husband of 15 years is killed in a car wreck in Australia, leaving Nikki destitute, she returns to Alara Cove where she again becomes entangled in controversy caused by the same family of the boy she accused of her friend’s death.

This is a can’t-put-down novel of finding yourself and recreating a family when all seems lost.

Christine Carter

Modern Language

Hester Laurie Lico Albanese

Although as a New Englander, the historical background of The Scarlet Letter has always interested me, the novel itself never particularly inspired or engaged me.

However, Laurie Lico Albanese’s fictional portrait of the woman behind Hester Prynne captivated me. Her novel, Hester, weaves magical realism with historical fiction and re-imagines Hester Prynne as Isobel Gamble, a Scotswoman who emigrates under the auspices of a family history of accusations of witchcraft. Isobel, who can see colors but who has always had to hide her gifts to temper the suspicions against the women in her family, travels to Salem, post-witch trials, with her husband, an apothecary, and is quickly drawn to Nathaniel Hawthorne, also living under the shadow of his family’s dark past.

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When Isobel’s husband leaves on a merchant ship, she must fend for herself, learning along the way that her new home is not as accepting and free as she thought. Its own dark history continues to affect its present—for the descendants of those who participated in the Witch Trials, the descendants of those accused, and others who do not fit into the strict ideals of this new community. Hester beautifully interweaves moments of romance, witchcraft, betrayal, and survival against the background of a New England still struggling to establish itself as a haven for those living on the margins of society.

Jennifer Chamberlain

School Counselor

Wrong Place, Wrong Time Gillian McAllister

In this gripping time-twisting crime novel set in Liverpool, Jen Brotherhood, the main character, witnesses a murder take place right before her eyes. The next morning, and on many mornings to follow, Jen wakes up on a different day in her past. Many of these days seem ordinary, but, with a more present-minded focus the second time around, Jen sees the past differently, which allows her to better understand her future and those in it. With many twists and turns, this book invites the reader to reflect upon the lengths one will go to in order to protect the ones they love.

The Emotional Lives of Teenagers: Raising Connected, Capable, and Compassionate Adolescents Lisa Damour

In this quick read, psychologist Lisa Damour pulls on both research-informed and real-life anecdotes from her practice to remind adult readers how challenging this developmental stage can be, especially in the digital age and the post-Covid era. This is a great read for any adult who is looking to better understand how teen emotions become internalized and how to support open lines of communication while their teen navigates the road to adulthood.

Eleanor Clark

English

Signs Preceding the End of the World Yuri Herrera

Of all the vividness of Homer’s The Odyssey–the tricks and traps, storms and stratagem–the moment that moves me the most is quiet. Odysseus, having journeyed, at great peril, to the Underworld, sees and seeks to hug his mother. Of course, given that she is a spirit, a shade, his arms go through her insubstantial body three times 2

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and he is unable to grasp her. Yuri Herrara’s brief novel Signs Preceding the End of the World feels full of shades. Death shocks us, almost to the point of laughter, on the first page as Makina, the book’s protagonist, comes dangerously close to being swallowed up by a sinkhole that claims a man, a car, and a dog. “I’m dead,” she reflects calmly, and there are times when we wonder if maybe she is. Sent on a journey to cross what we assume to be the border between Mexico and the U.S. in order to track down her brother, Makina must navigate Odyssey-worthy obstacles–drug dealers, a river crossing, “patriots”—but amid all the understandably horrifying moments, she persists and perhaps even transforms. We’re not sure. Much of the novel is ambiguous, magical, echoing in its structure and language not only Homer, but also Aztec mythology, I believe, as well as Dante and Lewis Carroll. The mystery suits the tension. Lisa Dillman, in her translation of Herrara’s work, chose the verb “to verse” to capture the original “jarchas,” or “to leave,” which, Dillman explains in her “Translator’s Note,” is a word derived from the name of short Mozarabic verses written in Spain and thus embodies a sort of bridging. Makina, by design and by default, acts as a bridge, and often through words or “verse”: she speaks three languages; works, before her journey, as a switchboard operator in her village; even diffuses a seemingly doomed moment on her trip with poetry. Language empowers her, even delights her. Pausing, despite her exhaustion, to celebrate the way language shifts as cultures cross, Makina reflects how “[u]sing in one tongue the word for a thing in the other makes the attributes of both resound… It’s another way of saying things: these are new things. The world happening anew.” But the novel holds other moments that don’t ring with such hope, and we are left wondering what it means to “get lost or captivated”—a concern Makina carries along the way—and what returning home truly entails, particularly in a world of shades. Herrara has written a truly beautiful book.

Jennifer Crowley

Modern Language

Lessons in Chemistry Bonnie Garmus

I’d heard about this book and then a friend of mine said it’s going to be a series on Apple TV+ this fall, so I decided I’d add it to my summer reading. I’m glad I did! The book is about a woman in her 60s who is unsuccessful in gaining the respect she deserves in the field of science. However, by chance, she lands a cooking show where she has a platform to showcase the chemistry behind cooking and share her life experience to both entertain and inform her audience. The book offers sarcasm and humor as the protagonist, Elizabeth, endures unexpected heartbreaking moments throughout her life. This is a quick read, as you want to know what happens next! All readers can connect to the multitude of everyday issues raised in the book, including

family, love and friendship, as well as more serious issues such as misogyny, feminism and self-worth. It is an interesting look at how life circumstances (and our reaction to them) shape and define who we are.

Mike Deasy ’10

English and History

Be Holding Ross Gay

When a basketball player makes the perfect move—a crossover or behind the back dribble, maybe an exquisitely timed back-door cut—when the play seems to move beyond conscious tactics, beyond the Xs and Os, but instead results from chemistry, that elusive and intricate constellation of knowledges: footwork, timing, rhythm, instincts, grace—when it all comes together as the player takes flight towards the basket, the ball beginning to rotate slightly as it rolls off his fingertips, we say: “poetry in motion.” Ross Gay’s one-hundred page poem of couplets, Be Holding, emerges from his obsession with one infamous basketball play, Julius Erving’s reverse scoop in the 1980 NBA finals—indeed, poetry in motion. Gay begins the poem as he watches the play again and again on YouTube, and, in the way only a poet can, Gay travels through the language of basketball (the key, flight, pill) and his attention to the details of the scene (Dr. J’s massive hands, a camera flash, the faces in the audience) to explore his own internal world and the African-American experience, as well as develop a thorough understanding of practice and attention.

Twenty pages into the poem, reflecting on how he’s been watching the twenty second clip of Dr J’s famous bucket for hours, he asks: “what am I/ looking at// what am I/ practicing.” To look at—to behold. To be conscious of where we offer our attention, our regard, may be our most essential practice, Gay seems to argue. The title of the poem merits careful thought. A play on these concepts of attentiveness, the use of the progressive form (be holding) makes “to hold” a practice, an action in constant repetition, and forces us to consider: how do we practice holding others in our gaze, our outstretched arms, our love?

Carmen DiSanto

Director of Finance and Operations

and talking to the resident sea creatures, grieves the loss of her only son and husband. Cameron, on the other hand, carries the emotional scars of his mother’s abandonment as a young child. And then there is Marcellus, the magnificent and highly intelligent giant Pacific Octopus, whose presence forms the heart of the story. He longs for the freedom he’d known before becoming a resident of the aquarium.

Marcellus astutely perceives similarities between Tova and Cameron and orchestrates the path that will change both their lives, connecting them forever. This is an enchanting tale that explores the depths of human connection and the resilience of the human spirit.

Mike Earley

Assistant Head of School, Modern Language

In the Country of Others Leila Slimani

In this novel, based loosely on the past of her own parents, Slimani explores the personal, familial complexities for a young couple seeking to raise children and establish a stable life in colonial-era Morocco. Thanks to the author’s skill, I found myself understanding and sympathizing with many characters in the book, even as they find themselves in fraught emotional conflict with each other. The heroine is clearly the determined Mathilde, the young French woman who falls in love with a Moroccan soldier, Amine, in France during World War II. They marry and then return to Morocco where they dream of living happily on Amine’s family farm. The situation is certainly challenging for Amine. He relies on a good rapport with his Moroccan workers but is mistrusted because he is married to a Frenchwoman. He remains devoted to traditional ways of life, yet is trying to raise a family with a wife who comes from a different world. But, at least he is home and not in a country of others. The prevailing feeling for Mathilde is loneliness, both physical and emotional. Far from her family of origin and living in a country where much of the population hates the French, she must find a way to support her husband, hold her family together, and pursue her own growing interests. In essence, the book becomes a portrait of a very strong woman, much like a Moroccan, My Antonia.

Remarkably Bright Creatures Shelby Van Pelt

Remarkably Bright Creatures introduces readers to three captivating characters whose lives unexpectedly intersect during the after-hours at a local aquarium. The common thread bonding the characters together is loss. Tova, the retired marine biologist who spends her evenings cleaning The Bookworm 2023-2024

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Gundhild Eder

Modern Language

The Wave

Todd Strasser The Wave is historical fiction written for young adults. Originally published in 1981, it is based on a real-life event that took place in a California high school in Palo Alto in 1967. The novel provides a fictional account of the social experiment known as "The Third Wave," created by history teacher Ron Jones for his upper-level students, which aimed to illustrate how fascism can rise and take hold in a society.

In The Wave, Ben Ross, a young history teacher at Gordon High School, initiates a similar experiment. He is driven by the realization of his inability to effectively convey to his students how the German people failed to act against Adolf Hitler’s rise to power, culminating in his authoritarian rule. To challenge the notion that “It could never happen here,” Ross commences his experiment by indoctrinating his students with slogans like “Strength through discipline” and “Strength through community.”

Ross is amazed by how eagerly his students embrace these new disciplined behaviors and the sense of power they derive from them. He introduces a third slogan, “Strength through action,” which comes with additional rules of conduct. Ross and his students adopt a formal salute and the symbol of a wave for their class.

Initially, the experiment appears successful. Students become more focused on their schoolwork, and even the quieter ones gain confidence and participate in class.

However, things spiral out of control as members of the Wave start bullying other students who are critical of their organization, compelling them to comply. As fear pervades the school atmosphere, Ross realizes he has created something that must be stopped immediately. The question is, how?

Originally published in German as Die Welle, under the pen name Morton Rhue, it has been a valuable resource in many German high schools over the years. I firmly believe that educating young minds about the perils of fascism is crucial, especially given the ongoing surge of authoritarian governments worldwide.

Petra Ehrenbrink

Academic Dean, Modern Language

The Dark Matter of Mona Starr Laura Lee Gulledge

Upon the recommendation of Betsy Spark, I picked up this unusual graphic novel with exceptional artwork. In it, the title character chronicles her bouts of depression and constant attempts to keep the dark matter at bay. She does not shy away from difficult subjects, but also lists techniques that helped her on her journey, for example, finding help and comfort in “art-ners.” Even if you usually don’t pick up graphic novels, the bold and original story combined with stunning artwork is worth a look.

Better the Blood Michael Bennett

Investigating several murders that turn out to be connected to an unatoned crime from the 19th-century, Maori detective Hana Westerman has to confront not only New Zealand’s first serial killer but also questions regarding her loyalty to her cultural roots.

This well-written novel is a crime story with complex characters that allows a glimpse of Maori culture and expertly weaves a history lesson of Auckland’s colonial past into the mystery plot, making this novel thought-provoking and a timely social commentary.

The Sanctuary

Katrine Engberg The Sanctuary continues Engberg’s story lines around Jeppe Kørner, Anette Werner, and Esther de Laurenti, even though it can be read as a stand-alone thriller. This time, homicide detective Jeppe Kørner is on sabbatical on the island of Bornholm, working as a lumberjack to sort his troubled thoughts. When his Copenhagen colleague’s current case proves to have ties to people on the island, Bornholm turns out to be less and less of a sanctuary.

Engberg’s assured atmospheric writing confirms her as a key player of Nordic noir.

Clytemnestra

Constanza Casati Described by most male authors as a villainess through and through, Casati’s Clytemnestra tells the ancient story of her life as a fiery tale of vengeance from the female’s perspective. This debut novel is a fresh take on an intriguing tale, absolutely gripping. If you liked Madeline Miller’s Circe, you should give this novel a try.

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It. Goes. By. So. Fast. The Year of No Do-Overs Mary Louise Kelly

Funny and moving, I think this account by NPR’s All Things Considered journalist Mary Louise Kelly about her oldest son’s senior year of high school is for everyone caring for a child who, at least occasionally, questions their path in life. If I had the means, I would hand a copy of this book to every parent of graduating seniors, or perhaps hand it out as a “travel guide” to parents of rising seniors who might find comfort in seeing how others faced similar decisions.

Kyle Flannery

Assistant Director of Admission

Small Things Like These Claire Keegan

Following Bill Furlong, an Irish coal merchant entering his busiest season in the winter of 1985, we uncover the hideous conditions resulting from perhaps the most shameful policy in the country’s history—the installment of mother and baby homes.

Unmarried women were sent to homes run by the Church and funded by the Irish government to have children in secret, often against their will. As a result, an estimated nine thousand mothers, children, and infants died over an 80-year period.

Furlong’s unexpected discovery leads him to question the complicit silence of his Church-controlled town where he not only grew up, but where he is raising his five daughters.

Through Keegan's depiction of these heinous conditions and characterization of community members in a small Irish town, we receive an emotional glimpse into a profound generational failure that has had a lasting societal impact.

Winner of the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction, Keegan’s novella unlocks our deepest sense of empathy and is the perfect read for lovers of quiet heroism.

Liza Fox ’96

Science

The Song of the Cell

Siddhartha Mukherjee I often have a hard time sitting down to read a book when the weather is lovely and the water beckons me in for a swim, and so, I consume audiobook after audiobook while gardening and going about my day. This summer, I enjoyed a wonderful lineup of books, but this engrossing narrative of the evolution of our understanding of ourselves through a history of cell biology captured my attention.

When I really connect with an audiobook, I trade my headphones for the tactile enjoyment of turning pages, and this is one that I had to head to the library to actually read.

In The Song of the Cell, Pulitzer-prize winning author Siddhartha Mukherjee takes the reader on a journey through the field of cell biology from the discovery of cells as the basic units of life, to understanding their coordinated functions in different organ systems, and onto the remarkable current technologies of cellular engineering. He grips the reader with relatable details about the lives of the many people for whom the cell has rebelled, causing cancer or disease. It is, in part, through them and their bodies’ reactions to different therapies, that cell biology has evolved with a better understanding of function and treatments.

Mukherjee views the new biotechnologies in cell therapy as creating “new humans.” This is not a nod to futuristic, genetically modified superhumans, but instead the reality of modifying human cells to better arm us against disease or our own flawed genetics. Ultimately, it is the coordination of all of our cells that makes our lives possible. This “song of the cell” becomes the symphony orchestrated by “a life within a life.”

Bettina Freelund

Modern Language

The Hidden Life of Trees Peter Wohlleben

Trees that talk with each other?

Wohlleben’s pioneering work about the intricate interconnectedness of trees reminds me of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Ents in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Wohlleben opens up a window to a hidden world where trees, these seemingly passive beings, possess the capacity to experience pain, remember, and nurture their offspring. They join forces to fend off pests and diseases. Oak trees, Wohlleben explains, orchestrate their annual acorn production to keep wild boars from relying too heavily on acorns as their primary source of food. Mushrooms, the often-overlooked residents of the forest floor, play a crucial role in this intricate ecosystem.

They form a symbiotic partnership with trees, aiding in nutrient absorption and disease prevention, contributing to the collaborative harmony that exists among these beings.

Compared with our fast-paced world of internet connectedness, trees communicate at an almost glacial pace.

Like the Ents of Tolkien’s imagination, trees teach us the value of patience and the enduring power of collaboration in the face of adversity. In this fascinating book about the hidden realm of the forest, I found a wealth of inspiration and wisdom waiting to be discovered.

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Amy Galvam

Director of Communications

Best Strangers in the World Ari Shapiro

As a devoted listener of NPR’s All Things Considered, hosted by Ailsa Chang, Mary Louise Kelly, Ari Shapiro, and Juana Summers, I enjoyed reading the recently released memoirs of both Kelly and Shapiro.

While I appreciated and related to Kelly’s exploration of her work-life balance as a busy journalist and a mother of two, it was Shapiro’s unabashedly grateful account of his life that charmed me.

Shapiro’s upbringing in an observant Jewish household, first in Fargo, North Dakota, and later in Beaverton, Oregon, was marked by love and affection. He confidently embraced his identity as a gay teen in the mid-90s and later attended Yale, where he graduated magna cum laude with a degree in English and a love for theater and a cappella. This last bit led to his becoming a semi-regular guest vocalist with the Grammy-winning band, Pink Martini, which I’ve followed since their debut album Sympathique in 1997.

After college, he landed a big break at NPR interning for legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg (who also recently published a memoir, My Dinners with Ruth, about her friendship with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg), and has been there ever since. Shapiro has been an editorial assistant, a Justice Department reporter, a White House correspondent in the Obama administration, a London bureau chief, and a foreign correspondent all before joining All Things Considered in 2015.

Shapiro’s memoir, a journey that spans the globe, occasionally reminded me of the movie Forrest Gump due to the remarkable series of significant moments he has been part of in recent history. Whether by fate or design, he has been present for many such moments and recounts them with optimism, an unparalleled love of humanity, and an appreciation for life while living it.

The Making of Yolanda la Bruja Lorraine Avila

Lorraine Avila’s The Making of Yolanda La Bruja is a multi-faceted teen novel that delves into the challenging themes of racism, privilege, inclusion, and gun violence. It does so with a compelling yet sensitive narrative that holds equal appeal for adult readers.

The story centers around Yolanda Alvarez, a Black Dominican-American teenager residing in the Bronx. Yolanda is not only a student leader but also a passionate advocate for justice at her predominantly brown and black inner-city high school. In addition to her activism, she is also a bruja-in-training, under the guidance of her grandmother, Mamá Teté, who is preparing her to carry on 6

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their family’s rich tradition of witchcraft, a practice deeply rooted in Latin American culture, blending Indigenous, religious, and mystical practices.

As the plot unfolds, Ben, a new white student from a privileged background, joins the school, and Yolanda attempts to befriend him. Shortly thereafter, she begins experiencing foreboding visions that suggest he poses a threat to the school community. Yolanda is faced with the challenge of trusting herself and safeguarding her community from the violence rooted in white supremacy that she envisions.

In this, her debut novel, Avila creates a thoughtprovoking narrative that encourages readers to reflect on the complexities of race, privilege, and the power of taking a stand.

The Postcard Anne Berest

The Postcard is a poignant exploration of how the past leaves an indelible mark on our present. Anne Berest’s prose invites readers to bear witness to the enduring legacy of trauma as she crafts a fictional narrative spanning five generations, deeply rooted in the narrator’s own family history.

Central to the novel is an anonymous postcard, bearing the names of the narrator’s maternal great-grandparents and their children who perished at Auschwitz. The story revolves around Anne’s determination to discover the postcard’s enigmatic sender.

Through Anne’s lens, the narrative gracefully unfolds in two distinct halves. The initial part delves into her mother’s account of their family’s fate, vividly portraying their daily existence in Nazi-occupied France, and their determination to remain invisible. Despite their inevitable tragic end, readers are enveloped in the same sense of hope, unable to accept the impending horrors.

The latter half, set over 15 years later, follows Anne’s efforts to discover the postcard’s sender. Her investigation leads her to a handwriting analyst and to the village where her relatives once resided, gradually unveiling fragments of her family’s history and the enduring impact of their trauma.

In this, her English-language debut, Berest courageously explores and significantly enriches the complex body of Holocaust literature, by gracefully balancing the imperative of honoring the memory of victims with the duty of conveying the harsh truths of history.

As we navigate the intimate and unsettling journey of her characters, we are compelled to question indifference and impelled to acknowledge the invisible victims of our own time. This haunting refrain resonates, echoing the profound words of Anne’s mother: “Indifference is universal. Who are you indifferent toward today, right now?”

Matt Green

Head of School

House on Endless Waters Emuna Elon

I expect each of the readers among us, when we find ourselves between books, has a go-to person, a literary matchmaker renowned for recommending just the right book to just the right person. In my extended family, that person is my mother-in-law, who, well aware of my appreciation for historical fiction, recently lent me her copy of Emuna Elon’s House on Endless Waters.

The book’s protagonist, Yoel Blum, is a widely published and well-respected Israeli author whose various bookpromotion tours have taken him here, there, and everywhere, with the notable exception of Amsterdam, the city of his birth from which he, his sister, and his mother emigrated to escape the rapidly escalating persecution of Jews resulting from the Nazi occupation. Before her death, his mother had made him promise, without explanation, never to return to that city, of which he has no memory.

But Yoel does eventually return, and during a visit to the Jewish Historical Museum, finds himself staring at old footage that first stops him dead in his tracks and then sends him on a search—into the past, into his family history, and into the mysteries of his own identity.

House on Endless Waters is a terrific book, a fresh and compelling avenue into a historical time and place that needs to be told and, more importantly, remembered. Hats off to my mother-in-law for yet another successful match!

Olga Dies Dreaming Xochitl Gonzalez

Olga Dies Dreaming, Xochitl Gonzalez’s debut novel, explores issues of Puerto Rican identity, history, and politics. In the hands of a less skillful author, characters could easily have become caricatures, an oversimplified collection of good guys and bad guys assembled to educate readers on the injustices that the people of Puerto Rico have endured over hundreds of years. And while I learned a lot about that important subject, Gonzalez is after more. She is interested in the tension between remaining true to ourselves and our people and our competing need to fulfill our own personal and professional aspirations. In other words, the “American Dream” is once again on the menu.

The titular character, Olga, and her brother Prieto, were raised by their grandmother in a colorful neighborhood in Brooklyn. As children, they lost their father to addiction and their mother to the “revolution.” Olga is an Ivy League graduate who perhaps never lived up to her potential, settling instead into a lucrative career as a high-end wedding planner. Prieto is an up-and-coming congressman caught between his loyalty to the people he represents and the

political realities he confronts in DC. Each is grappling to some extent with feelings of having disappointed those who had such high hopes for them, none more so than their invisible mother, Bianca, who though she has been absent for decades, is never far away.

Gonzalez has written a highly readable novel, a familiar but still fresh take on the “American Dream” with memorable characters painted on a broad and colorful canvas. Though the ostensible protagonist is Olga, I found myself gravitating toward Prieto, a noble character who seems unable to escape or rise above the web of lies he has told or the compromises he has been forced to make. Surprisingly, however, what I ultimately most appreciated about Olga Dies Dreaming were the historical and political digressions. Gonzalez has crafted an engaging family story that both educates and entertains.

Sea of Tranquility

Emily St. John Mandel Having thoroughly enjoyed Emily St. John Mandel’s 2014 bestseller Station Eleven, I had high expectations for her latest effort Sea of Tranquility, expectations which my one-sitting reading experience aboard a train from Providence to Philadelphia exceeded. Never one to shrink from a challenge, this time Mandel takes on time travel, an often intriguing premise that nonetheless has been the demise of many an ambitious sci-fi wannabe.

But Mandel pulls it off, thanks in part to her worldbuilding acumen. The story begins in 1912; a young British immigrant, Edwin St. Andrew, wanders the woods of western Canada, where he undergoes a paranormal experience whose meaning he cannot begin to fathom. Before you can get too comfortable in that time or place, the scene suddenly shifts to the present. At a concert in New York, a composer is playing an old piece of video that seems to show a version of whatever Edwin saw in the forest. Now that we’re invested in the mystery, Mandel really gets to work, adding to this mix two other interwoven storylines. One unfolds in the 23rd century, where a writer called Olive Llewellyn, who was born and raised on a lunar colony, is visiting Earth on a book tour in the very early days of an eventual pandemic. The other plot takes place 200 years later when an investigator, “coincidentally” named after a character in one of Olive Llewellyn’s novels, begins to piece together the connections between all these different lives. It is this investigator, Gaspery-Jacques Roberts, who emerges as the book’s protagonist, becoming the latest in a long line of literary time-travelers forced to grapple with the dilemma of whether it’s ever morally right to alter the future.

Mandel has written a novel that is both vast in scope and intimate in focus. She is at once asking huge existential questions and exploring basic human needs and frailties.

Sea of Tranquility may share more in common with Anthony Doerr’s Cloud Cuckoo Land than with her own Station Eleven. If you have an appetite for speculative fiction, The Bookworm 2023-2024

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for piecing together narrative puzzles, for anticipating how it is that disparate stories across time and space can come together in a single room, I would encourage you to consider Sea of Tranquility.

Pam Hinkle

Director of Development

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow Gabrielle Zevin

I’m not a gamer. In fact, I really don’t like video games at all. But I was enthralled by Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, an engaging story about two video game designers whose lives intersect from childhood through adulthood. For characters Sam and Sadie, sometimes, like the title (a nod to Macbeth’s famous soliloquy) suggests, life can seem futile, plodding along through good times and bad towards its inevitable end. But sometimes in life, like in a video game, you have the chance for a do-over. You can take a new approach and try again.

This intricate story about second chances, forgiveness, love, and the enduring power of friendship is well worth the read.

And it might even pique your interest in video games.

Monica Hough

English

Small Things Like These Claire Keegan

The shortest novel that I read this year had perhaps the greatest impact. In only 128 pages, Irish writer Keegan creates an unforgettable character in Bill Furlong, a loving father and coal merchant confronted by a secret, the acknowledgement of which will threaten all he holds dear. As the title suggests, the small things in this novel accumulate like the falling snow, breaking hearts and mending them again.

Three of the works I love are inspired by other works I love, which makes for a lot of revisiting those earlier works in order to better appreciate the later. In The Odyssey, Homer asks the Muse to “tell the old story for our modern times,” but these authors do not simply retell or revise old stories, so much as they re-envision them, paying homage to what came before while reimagining in novel ways.

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Demon Copperhead Barbara Kingsolver

Kingsolver’s love of Appalachia and its people shines through the often grim circumstances of her characters. The eponymous heroes of both novels, Dickens’ David Copperfield and Kingsolver’s Demon Copperhead, evoke sympathy and ire as they attempt to survive institutional poverty and brutal treatment at the hands of supposed caregivers through compelling narration. By setting her novel in the 90s and early 2000s, Kingsolver adds an especially pernicious villain in the role that big pharma played in creating and exacerbating the opioid crisis. She deserved the Pulitzer.

Tom Lake

Ann Patchett Take Wilder’s Our Town, add a dash of Chekov’s The Cherry Orchard, and blend in the remarkable storytelling talents of the author for a thoroughly satisfying read.

Former actor Lara’s three daughters have returned to the family cherry farm during the pandemic. As they work the farm, they beg their mother to tell them the story of her long-ago work and romance with famous actor Peter Duke. Wilder’s play started Lara’s career, and through the many references to the play and Lara’s experiences with it, Patchett honors the complexities in the deceptively simple text of Our Town.

A Haunting on the Hill Elizabeth Hand

Shirley Jackson’s estate authorized Hand to craft this return to The Haunting of Hill House, and she does not disappoint.

Playwright Holly Sherwin has a grant to develop her play, Witching Night, and she desperately needs a success to restart her flagging career. She gathers her girlfriend and two actors (also in need of a hit) and rents the spooky mansion as a workshop. Sherwin’s play is a reworking of a mediocre Jacobean play, The Witch of Edmonton, but there is nothing mediocre in Jackson’s novel nor in Hand’s take on it. This nod to reimagining earlier works reflects the skill Hand shows in crafting something both familiar and entirely new.

Hayley Jayson

Modern Language

Charles Jodoin

Director of Auxiliary Programs

The Reading List

The Last Thing He Told Me

As a lifelong lover of reading, I often find myself reading books about books. In this novel by Sara Nisha Adams, two unlikely characters form an enduring bond over a mysterious reading list found at a public library in London. Aleisha, a teenager working at the library for the summer, meets Mukesh, an octogenarian widower who visits the library to return his late wife’s borrowed book.

Neither Aleisha nor Mukesh is much of a reader, but Mukesh asks Aleisha for a recommendation for a book that could help him understand his wife’s love of reading. Aleisha happens to find a crumpled up piece of paper with a list of books starting with To Kill a Mockingbird. As Aleisha and Mukesh work through the reading list together, they develop a heartwarming friendship and help each other through difficult times. This book is a reminder that reading about people from different backgrounds and in different situations can allow us to connect with others more deeply.

The Last Thing He Told Me is a captivating and suspenseful novel that keeps you hooked from start to finish. The author skillfully creates a tale of intrigue, mystery, and emotional depth, as the protagonist unravels the truth behind her husband’s sudden disappearance. With well-developed characters and unexpected twists, the story explores the complexities of relationships, trust, and resilience. Dave paints vivid scenes that make you feel like you’re right there alongside the characters, experiencing their every emotion. Whether you’re a fan of thrillers or emotional dramas, The Last Thing He Told Me is a must-read that will leave you thinking long after you’ve turned the last page.

Sara Nisha Adams

The Lioness of Boston Emily Franklin

The Lioness of Boston details the adult life of Isabella Stewart Gardner and culminates with the opening of her eponymous museum in Boston. This fictional account of Gardner’s life highlights her perseverance as a noncomforming woman in Boston’s high society at the turn of the century. Gardner’s love of plants and art becomes a way for her to stake her claim in a world dominated by men. As she travels across Europe and meets up-and-coming artists, Gardner cultivates the collection that will later become the masterpieces found in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. As a researcher of seventeenth-century French salon culture, I was very interested to read how Gardner participated in and hosted her own cultural and philosophical salons at a time when women were still not admitted to Harvard and other prestigious educational institutions. After reading this book, I am very much looking forward to my next visit to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum to admire the collection with a newfound appreciation for its patroness.

Laura Dave

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo Taylor Jenkins Reid

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is a captivating and deeply engaging novel that delves into the complex life of the enigmatic Hollywood icon, Evelyn Hugo. The story, brilliantly told through the eyes of journalist Monique Grant, unravels the secrets, scandals, and sacrifices that shaped Evelyn’s tumultuous journey through fame, fortune, and love.

Reid’s impeccable storytelling weaves together the glamorous backdrop of the Golden Age of Hollywood with the raw emotions and vulnerabilities of its characters. The narrative explores themes of ambition, identity, sexuality, and the price of success—offering a thought-provoking exploration of the choices we make in the pursuit of our dreams.

The characters in the book are multidimensional and richly developed, each with their own flaws and strengths that make them feel incredibly real. Evelyn Hugo herself is a force to be reckoned with—a complex and unapologetically flawed woman who bares her soul to Monique in a series of gripping interviews. As Monique delves deeper into Evelyn’s story, readers are drawn into a world of passion, heartbreak, and resilience.

What truly sets this novel apart is its ability to make you reflect on the complexities of human relationships and the choices we make when faced with difficult circumstances.

The exploration of Evelyn’s marriages and her unbreakable bond with her one true love provides an emotional depth that resonates long after the final page.

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Taylor Jenkins Reid’s prose is eloquent and evocative, effortlessly transporting readers to different eras and settings.

The pacing is masterful, with alternating timelines that keep you eagerly turning the pages to uncover the next layer of the story.

In The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Taylor Jenkins Reid has created a masterpiece that is both a glamorous escape and a poignant examination of the human experience. It’s a beautifully crafted novel that will leave you contemplating the choices we make and the legacy we leave behind.

Doug Jones

Mathematics

Dinner in Rome Andreas Viestad

There are those rare moments when you come across a book that you feel was written just for you. Former FA Math/Science teacher Peter Conzett found this book and gave me a copy because he knew how much I would enjoy it, and he was not mistaken. I enjoyed every moment of reading this analysis of world history as experienced through a meal at one of my favorite Roman restaurants.

Reading each page was a bittersweet moment for I knew I was coming closer to the end of the book. Viestad carefully guides us through his entire Roman meal, typically a long, drawn-out affair consisting of many courses. He discusses the historical significance of each element from both a worldwide and Roman-centric point of view. For anyone who has spent time in Rome, Campo di Fiori, in particular, you can taste each separate course and savor the connection the author is making between gastronomy and historical sensibilities. If none of this sounds appealing or interesting to you, more is the pity; but if you have been to Rome, studied Latin or Roman History, or simply enjoy a traditional Italian meal with its many courses, be prepared for a tasty read.

Sarah Knowles

Director of Admission and Enrollment Management

Little Monsters

Adrienne Brodeur In November 2019, I had the privilege of attending a captivating book talk at the Falmouth Public Library with featured author Adrienne Brodeur. At the talk, Brodeur discussed her best-selling new memoir Wild Game: My Mother, Her Lover, and Me. Since then, I’ve been fascinated by Brodeur, her life story, and her literary work.

Brodeur’s latest work is the novel Little Monsters, a work of fiction set against the backdrop of the outer Cape in the summer of 2016. Within the pages, the reader is drawn into the lives of the dysfunctional Gardner family and their many 10

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secrets. The novel reminds us that no matter how idyllic something may seem, imperfections may lie beneath.

Told from alternating points of view, Little Monsters dives into complex family dynamics. The book opens with widower and patriarch Adam Gardner, a marine biologist at the local oceanographic institution, who has stopped managing his bipolar disorder and believes he is on the brink of a major scientific breakthrough. Meanwhile, his daughter Abby, an artistic talent, and his son Ken, an aspiring politician, navigate their strained and complicated relationship as they plan for Adam’s 70th birthday party. What unfolds is a modern-day nod to the biblical allegory of Cain and Abel. Additionally, the reader is introduced to other family members, each concealing their own secrets.

Set against the 2016 backdrop of political change and activism, Brodeur weaves a narrative around themes of family legacy, envy, mental health, abuse of power, infidelity, and the rise of matriarchal influence. Little Monsters is an entertaining family drama with its unraveling secrets and their far-reaching consequences.

Chinese-ish: Home Cooking, Not Quite Authentic, 100% Delicious Rosheen Kaul and Joanna Hu

Combining watercolor drawings, photography, personal anecdotes, and recipes, Chinese-ish is a collaborative cookbook celebrating the cultural Asian heritage of chef Rosheen Kaul and illustrator Joanna Hu. Kaul and Hu reflect on their Southeast Asian heritage and immigrant upbringing in Australia by reminiscing on their favorite family dishes.

This work was recently awarded the 2023 James Beard Award for Visuals, which honors cookbooks with exceptional graphic design, art, and photography. Hu’s watercolor illustrations pair exceptionally well with the highly saturated photographs from Armelle Habib, providing the reader with a clear understanding of each recipe.

The recipes are also very approachable and easy to make, as long as you have the ingredients. For items you cannot source locally, I suggest taking a trip up to Quincy. Start with a visit to the China Pearl for some dim sum and then walk next door to Kam Man Foods, an Asian market, where you will find all the ingredients you need.

I’ve been savoring every recipe from this book. One standout pairing is Dong Po Braised Pork served alongside the Smashed Cucumber Salad. The salad’s acidity is nicely balanced against the fattiness of the pork. It’s a meal that will leave your dinner guests wanting more.

From basic Chinese cooking techniques, like cooking rice without a rice cooker, to rebellious “Chinese-ish” dishes, like “snacks that feel kinda wrong,” this cookbook is a window into the culinary experiences of straddling multiple cultural worlds.

Happy Place

Rough Draft

Since my encounter with Emily Henry’s novel Beach Read during the summer of 2020, I eagerly await each new book announcement. Since then, she has released three romantic comedies: People We Meet on Vacation (2021), Book Lovers (2022), and Happy Place (2023).

Happy Place is set on the coast of Maine and offers a glimpse into the lives of a group of college friends, whose annual summer retreat serves as a touchstone for their decade-long bond. The story revolves around Harriet and Wyn, a couple that has broken up but pretends to be together for the sake of their close-knit group of friends. How long can they keep the charade going? The book explores the complexities of the group’s long-term friendships and their quests for finding happiness. Each friend has their own drama and secrets they haven’t shared with the group.

In today’s digital age where texting and social media connect friends across states and time zones, the idea of a regular gathering spot, a “happy place,” can hold profound meaning. Personally, this resonates with me as my own small group of college friends reunites each summer at a beloved location. This place has the power to transport us back even for just a short weekend. Life is in constant motion, however, and we must acknowledge that friendships evolve over time.

Happy Place reminds us that we can’t let the emotions and memories of the past dictate the course of our future. We have to allow ourselves to accept the role of nostalgia.

Henry has an upcoming novel, Funny People, scheduled to be released in April 2024. In addition, film adaptations of her first three novels are currently in the works. I suspect we will be reading and seeing more of Emily Henry.

I have a personal connection to the stories in this memoir by journalist Katie Tur because I lived in Los Angeles during many of the events she describes here, and I remember always hearing the helicopter flying overhead that her parents owned and operated. Tur describes her childhood and adolescence in southern California as her parents pursued the news in a novel way—by listening to police band radios and flying overhead to film events—like Sean Penn and Madonna’s wedding, the Rodney King beating and LA riots, and OJ Simpson’s desperate run on the LA freeways in his white Bronco. The stories we all remember are interspersed with an intense memoir as Tur recounts her turbulent life with her parents. I found the story riveting.

Liz Ledwell

Part Narnia, part Alice in Wonderland, and weirdly Dickensian, this novel drops us into the story of a schoolgirl in London, Dhikilo, who seems to be the only one who notices that the letter D has disappeared from writing and conversation. She goes in search of an answer to this dilemma, magically traveling to the land of Liminus with the help of her old history professor, Professor Didderfield, and his dog, Nelly Robinson. Let the adventures begin!

Emily Henry

Katy Tur

English Department Chair, Drama

The Ink Black Heart Robert Galbraith

The continuing saga of London private detective Cormoran Strike and his partner Robin focuses on the mystery surrounding Edie Ledwell (so how could I not read this book?), the creator of the cartoon “The Ink Black Heart,” which spawns a cult-like following and some rather nasty trolls on the internet. Murder, mayhem, social commentary, and a little awkward romance—all makings of a good story.

Sleepless in Hollywood Lynda Obst

I sometimes wonder if I am the only person who loves reading stories about the business of Hollywood. I picked this book up at a yard sale, so excited to read more from the author of Hello, He Lied. Producer Lynda Obst writes about the shifting tides in Hollywood and how global changes in the entertainment business have changed what we see on our screens. A little dated (the book was published in 2013), still, much of her predictions have come to pass, and it is oddly timely given the current writers and actor strikes.

D: A Tale of Two Worlds Michael Faber

The Wager

David Grann This is the year when I read books written by authors whose previous books I loved. In this one, by the author of Killers of the Flower Moon, two ships arrive in eighteenth-century London, months apart, both having survived mutiny, shipwreck, and murder. The Wager reads like a thriller, reconstructed from The Bookworm 2023-2024

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ship’s logs, diaries, and court proceedings. Who is telling the truth?! What really happened? Read and find out.

Romantic Comedy Curtis Sittenfield

I always think I’m not going to like Sittenfeld’s books, but I’m always pleasantly surprised. I can almost hear the pitch meetings with her publishers where she shared her plot ideas: a miserable experience for a scholarship student at a boarding school (Prep), twins with unusual psychic abilities (Sisterland), a roman à clef of George and Laura Bush’s life (American Wife), a modern-day Pride and Prejudice (Eligible). The pitches seem trite, but the writing never is. What I admire most about Sittenfeld is her versatility. Romantic Comedy is unlike any of her other books.

It is the story of a sketch comedy writer who is unlucky in love until a guest on the show, a rock and roll legend, strikes up a conversation. Their romance is unusual (I particularly loved the texts and emails they exchanged during the lockdown), but never too obviously cute. A fun summer read.

Don’t Think, Dear Penned by a former ballerina, or at least one who attended professional school in New York City but never quite made it to the professional world, this book recounts the passion young dancers feel and the trials they must endure. The often brutal way in which dancers seek to attain perfection is easy to judge as a terrible way to live, but Robb intersperses her memoir with such love for ballet and for the lessons she and her fellow students learned by studying the craft at such a high level, that I closed the book wanting to run to the studio and perfect my own pirouettes. For any former (or current) dancer, this is a must-read.

Science and Mathematics

Arts

Emily Oster

This summer, my husband and I have been preparing for one of life’s next adventures: raising a child! As a scientist, I admire Emily Oster’s approach in sharing loads of data all about this exciting, yet nerve-wracking time in life as we prepare for our first baby.

In Expecting Better, Emily addresses everything to expect during each trimester of pregnancy. She also delves into The Bookworm 2023-2024

Barbara Kingsolver

I enjoy the writing of Barbara Kingsolver, and this title was enticing. Her writing is evocative, and I found myself immersed in the lives of the characters of her newest book, Demon Copperhead. Kingsolver creates beautiful descriptions of the complexities of life in Appalachia. It is laden with both loveable and truly detestable characters struggling with addiction, incarceration, and poverty. Born to a teenage addict mother and raised by his grandmother, Demon, the titular character, navigates a harsh world. As with her other novels, this one has evoked real emotion and given me insight.

I’m Glad My Mom Died Jeannette McCurdy

Expecting Better Cribsheet

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Susan Moffat

Demon Copperhead

Alice Robb

Scottie Mobley

some controversial choices that often arise during pregnancy, such as: Can I still enjoy my morning cup of coffee or have an occasional glass of wine with dinner? What about sushi? Can I still sleep on my back? The book explores these questions and more.

In her next book, Cribsheet, she walks the reader through choices parents may need to make regarding the early years of their child, such as: Should you sleep train your baby? What age is the best to start potty training? How much screen time is too much, and is there a right age to introduce screens? Along the way, she debunks several myths surrounding pregnancy and child-rearing.

What I like most about her books is that she tends not to push a certain method, position, or viewpoint, but rather empowers the reader with knowledge of the pros and cons of the various topics she covers. In a nonjudgmental way, she states just the facts supported by numerous studies, all of which are referenced in the back of the book, so that the reader can make their own decisions that are best for their growing family.

I was extremely disturbed by this title and it piqued my curiosity. This memoir takes us through McCurdy’s upbringing as a child actor since the age of 8, best known for her role on Nickelodeon’s iCarly. Her initial drive was to fulfill her mother Debra’s dream to become vicariously famous. McCurdy suffered emotional and physical abuse from her mother, so much so that she developed a serious eating disorder. Despite the abuse and dysfunctional relationship, she loved her mother deeply. This book offers an interesting look at growing up in the spotlight with its dark underside.

Although it’s a heavy subject, the book is written with a sense

of humor as “Nette” bares her soul. I’m not sure that I would recommend this book, but I admire McCurdy’s insight and ability to endure.

Lucy Nelson

Arts

Jennifer Park

The Night Circus

Modern Language

Loot

Erin Morgenstern

Tania James

Without any forewarning, the mysterious Cirque des Rêves suddenly appears in towns around the world. Open from dusk until dawn, each tent houses a different skill or theme. Many of them are fantastical and defy logic. Is it a sleight of hand or real magic? We quickly learn of a pre-destined duel between two magicians, although they are not aware of each other’s presence within the circus. The circus disappears from towns just as quickly as it appears fully assembled and gains a following known as “The Dreamers.” As I read this book, I could feel myself drawn to this group of loyal followers bewitched by the magic. It reminded me of my own yearning for real magic as a child and being a part of a secret society, marked only by a single red article of clothing worn to the circus. The duel between magicians evolves into a love story, but it does not detract from the whimsy of the circus. I highly recommend this book for anyone still searching for magic in the world.

Dan Nightingale

value, but they often feel quite disparate from the main content. Perhaps, if the book were edited more succinctly and made a bit more cohesive, I might recommend it more highly.

Science

Shape: The Hidden Geometry of Information, Biology, Strategy, Democracy, and Everything Else Jordan Ellenberg

As a recreational mathematics enthusiast, I picked up this book hoping to explore the applications of geometry in everyday life. I have not read Ellenberg’s previous work, How Not to Be Wrong, but I had come across considerable praise for it over the past few years. Unfortunately, I cannot praise Shape as highly as his preceding book. Ellenberg discusses all the facets mentioned in the subtitle of this book, and some of them are quite intriguing. In particular, his commentary on the shape of political districting is interesting and accessible even for the mathematical novice. However, there is also a subtler interpretation of this book’s subtitle, which highlights its downfall. The author attempts to cover a wide variety of topics and, perhaps, too many. When his audience considers the noticeable tangents Ellenberg takes within a given chapter, it can be slightly distracting. There are several moments when you will be following a line of reasoning within the explanation of a given concept when, suddenly, Ellenberg digresses to provide an anecdote that only slightly touches upon the topic at hand. If the digressions were more poignant, I could better appreciate their

Loot is a work of historical fiction that transports readers to the late 1700s in Southern India, during the era of Tipu Sultan, a prominent Muslim leader. The narrative revolves around a skilled woodcarver who is commissioned to craft an automaton in the form of a tiger, and his unlikely collaboration with a French clockmaker.

I found it interesting how the author highlights the lesserknown French presence in India prior to British colonization.

In addition to being a commentary on colonialism and power dynamics, the book delves deeply into the challenges people endure to find someone to love and something meaningful and lucrative to do, transcending cultural boundaries.

The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida Shehan Karunatilaka

The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida is a satire that, despite its disturbing undertones, takes readers on a journey through the aftermath of a photojournalist’s murder, a consequence of incriminating photographs.

In this book, the writer portrays the afterlife as a sprawling and chaotic realm where the deceased must confront pivotal choices, such as surrendering their memories or influencing the living. As the journalist tries to reveal the location of hidden photographs to the living, Karunatilaka offers a satirical critique of the widespread corruption entrenched within certain circles of Colombo’s power hierarchy during the pivotal year of 1990 in Sri Lanka’s 26-year-long civil war.

Having lived abroad myself, I found numerous references to the expatriate scene in the city highly relatable. Beyond that, reading about the pervasive darkness that can lurk beneath the surface of power felt important.

Tin Man

Sarah Winman In Tin Man, Sarah Winman explores the life-long friendship between two boys who, as the novel progresses, grow into men. In this particular relationship, on the continuum of sexuality, one identifies more as gay while the other more as straight. This leads to a complexity in their bond, which is amplified when one of them falls in love The Bookworm 2023-2024

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with someone else. Tin Man is not the only book I have read

by Sarah Winman. In the spring I read Still Life and thought to myself that if Sarah Winman were among my friends, I would want her to be my closest. Reading her prose is like feeling you belong. Her descriptions and dialogue are heartfelt. She highlights how the quality of our relationships are what influence our moments of happiness the most. She helps the reader believe that found families are possible, that people can truly be there for one another over time, though not without inevitable disappointments and let downs here and there.

Ben Parsons

Middle School Coordinator, English

H is for Hawk

Helen Macdonald In a world in which it often feels as though the falcon can no longer hear the falconer, Macdonald’s memoir provides an alternative narrative, one that allows humans to learn from nature and find solace in its untamable forces. Although it took me a little while to get into Macdonald’s much acclaimed story of her relationship with a fierce and feral goshawk (I’m not a birder, so I had to do a little research to figure out what exactly a goshawk looks like), I did at times find myself transported by her poetic style.

Her book carefully weaves together three stories: her relationship with an adopted goshawk, ruminations on the loss of her father, and reflections on the life of fellow writer and goshawk-trainer, T.H. White. I found myself more absorbed in the story of her relationship with her goshawk than in the other two narratives, but certainly her battle with grief offered a compelling juxtaposition of the human experience with the more savage, unflinching, avian one. If you are looking for a slow burning meditation on life, death, love, and loss, I’m not sure you can find better.

A Brief History of Earth: Four Billion Years in Eight Chapters Andrew H. Knoll

In the “science for laymen” genre, Knoll’s book impressed me for its clear yet rigorous examination of our planet’s geological history and all that it reveals about Earth’s origins, how life came to be, and what its future may hold. Knoll’s accessible prose and well-curated images make our Earth’s four billion-year history read like a thriller with clues found in igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rock. Some of the content is familiar (trilobites and dinosaurs!), but much is new to the lay reader (how cyanobacteria photosynthesized enough oxygen to reach a concentration of 10%, how successive mass extinctions “recalibrated” the planet in different ways, and 14

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how carbon impacts our Anthropocene Epoch). Although the final chapter on our collective future has yet to be written, the predictions of renowned paleontology and biogeochemistry professor put a lot in perspective.

Helen Reuter

Learning Specialist

The Shepherd’s Life James Rebanks

The Shepherd’s Life is a deliciously detailed account of life as a modern-day sheep farmer in England’s Lake District. Taking the reader along on his daily chores, through the seasonal happenings, and into his childhood and family history, Rebanks tethers together one of the most quietly beautiful landscapes in the world with one of the richest yet ignored or dismissed groups—a poor laboring community.

From the sounds and sights of rounding up the 400 ewes and lambs down the craggy fells with fellow “commoners” for mid-summer shearing to his own teenage rebellion against school and his father, and to the rich generational and lived knowledge of land and livelihood, Rebanks’s story is at once a universal saga of family bonds and tensions, and a sharp critique of modernization piled in a deep bed of pelage-drifts of fleecy wool and soothing lanolin, along with rough sticks, piercing briars, and matted dung. It’s a narrative resplendent with beauty, safety, and comfort, yet darkened with hard work, worry, and inevitable familial and communal tensions.

It’s well worth a read.

Jill Reves

Science Department Chair

Miracle Country

Kendra Atleework I had the pleasure of meeting Kendra Atleework in Long Beach, CA, at a women’s author conference. She was young, yet her writing in her first book is dreamy and lovely. As a recipient of water from “up North” while growing up in Southern California, and as a student and engineer in Northern California, as well as a lover of the Sierra Nevada, I noticed that the difference between my two regional habitats was stark. As a child, I heard that William Mulholland was a genius for turning the southern desert into an oasis after the California Aqueduct was completed in 1913. What I didn’t hear about was the devastating effects it had on northern California towns like Bishop—on businesses, farms, and Indigenous people. I have always thought that the wars of the future will be waged over clean water. I didn’t realize it had started over a hundred years ago in my home state. I read this as if I were reading the backdrop of my own history living in California, without judgment, as the story of one Bishop woman’s life.

Olivia Riddiford

Admission

Romantic Comedy Curtis Sittenfeld

From the first page of this book, I knew this would be my Bookworm contribution. As I begin writing this, I have not even finished the book, but I am enjoying it so much that I thought I should put my thoughts down on paper instead of waiting until the summer when it may not be as fresh in my mind.

This is the story of Sally, a writer at a Saturday Night Live-type show called, “The Night Owls.” In the first part of the book, she focuses on how the slumpy male writers on her show seem to get dates and even marry beautiful starlets who either host the show or are the musical act. When her male office mate becomes engaged to a beautiful pop star, she writes a skit about it. As the week progresses, she finds herself drawn to the male star, who is both the host and the musical guest.

Now that I have finished this book, I don’t want to give too much away, so I will not say anything more except that I loved it! It is well-written with lots of laugh-out-loud moments. As much as I did not want it to end, I had to stay up reading just to finish it. As soon as I did, I reread the whole thing again—and it was just as good the second time.

Britta Santamauro

Director of Library Services

Accountable

Dashka Slater This shocking account of the events that unfolded at Albany High School in California ultimately illustrates to me the enormous responsibility of today’s educators: not only must they know their subjects, but they must also possess a basic understanding of adolescent development, psychology, and strong communication skills. Teaching content is the easy part of being a teacher, but owning and deploying the soft skills needed to educate and engage young adults is what makes being a teacher far more challenging than is generally acknowledged. The book reminds us that an incident that is not handled well from the very beginning can escalate into something so large and traumatizing for all involved that it leaves irreparable harm.

The events unfolded in 2017, at a time when language degraded and things were said publicly that would have been unimaginable just a few months earlier. “Offensive humor” circulated widely on social media. The deterioration of language, paired with teenage behavior where cracking each other up, pranking, and roasting one another were ways to find status and friendship, all played out on a “private” social media account (also a reminder that nothing is ever truly private on the internet). This backdrop is what sets the stage

for what happened. It is completely and utterly impossible to imagine how the type of posts could have been interpreted as “funny,” but, again, it’s a reminder that teenage psychology, if not corrected early on, can take horrifying shapes at times.

The last thing I want to mention about the book is that it will leave you unsettled and flabbergasted at how, in the name of justice, the judicial system fails the most vulnerable yet again.

The Half Moon

Mary Beth Keane I really enjoyed Keane’s novel Ask Again,Yes, and therefore, I was excited to read her new book, The Half Moon. Just like in her previous novel, Keane explores how love for a partner evolves over time and how it is also formed by and intertwined with it.

The couple struggles to come to terms with their paths in life, adjusting their hopes and dreams as they face infertility and stumbling blocks in their careers. As both characters’ existential crises unfold, the question remains whether there is a bond between them that is stronger and larger than life.

Life and Other Love Songs Anissa Gray

Life and Other Love Songs is a multigenerational family saga that spans from the 1970s in Detroit to the 1990s in New York. The past catches up to the main character, Oz Armstead when, after years of living a successful life, he compulsively breaks with everything he fought and lived for. His strong desire to live a “normal” life, forcing everyone around him into his vision of happiness, ultimately backfires, and he has to come to terms with his past as well as his present. The story of this novel exemplified, like no other book I have ever read, how generational trauma lives on in families despite the concerted effort to move beyond.

George Scharr

Arts Department Chair

Leon Merian, The Man Behind the Horn Leon Merian and Bill Bridges

This book was given to me by a friend who thought I might enjoy reading about a Boston-based musician, who, like me, was both a professional musician and school teacher.

The Man Behind the Horn details Merian’s career as a trumpeter in the Big Band era of the 40s, 50s, and early 60s. Throughout the book he shares personal anecdotes featuring many big-name jazz musicians including Gene Krupa, Jerry Lewis, Danny The Bookworm 2023-2024

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Kaye, and Jackie Gleason. He also recalls what it was like touring the segregated South as the only white musician in Lucky Millender’s band.

Despite his modicum of fame and several record deals, Merian was never able to achieve the stratospheric fame he sought, mostly because of his reputation as a difficult person and bad boy.

Ruth Slocum

Director of College Counseling

Bilgewater

Jane Gardam I think many would enjoy Jane Gardam’s Bilgewater, first published in 1976 and reissued in 2016. This novel tells the story of Marigold Green, daughter of schoolmaster Bill Green and hence known at the school as “Bill’s daughter,” which becomes the unfortunate nickname, Bilgewater. Marigold’s mother has died in childbirth, and she is being raised by her father and also by Paula, a young matron who efficiently and affectionately tends to the small boys at the school and to Marigold. Paula is caring but firm; her most frequent adage: “Beware of pity.”

Gardam’s descriptions of the brilliant, loving, but deeply eccentric Bill and the shining, energetic Paula are in some ways archetypes but also full portraits of the best that people can be in an odd, isolated community with a serious purpose.

Schools, especially English boarding schools during and after the world wars, not only shape individuals but, in this case, a culture and ultimately a nation. Jane Gardam, who was born in 1928, writes about England after WWII in a way that shows a nation slowly emerging from devastation and of characters who are trying to remember some of the joy and grace of a time not ruled by war. In Marigold, we get a bright child, growing up motherless in an environment both hostile and nurturing. There are many reasons to appreciate this book, but I loved it because of Gardam’s snappy, often hilarious style and because it is a story of youth, adversity, and love.

Rob Wells

History Department Chair

Building: A Carpenter’s Notes on Life & the Art of Good Work Mark Ellison

I saw a discussion of this book with its author on the PBS NewsHour early this summer, and I was intrigued enough to go out and buy it. Ellison is a highly skilled craftsman today, specializing in designing and building intricate features, especially elaborate staircases, in multi-million dollar build-outs and redesigns in New York City.

The book combines tales from some of his most memorable jobs and the trajectory of his career with life lessons he wishes to impart from his journey. The history enthusiast in me really enjoyed the opening sections that shared his early biography, but I worried that I might find his very intentional efforts at wisdom-sharing a bit obvious or predictable as the book moved on. While there were a few such moments, all in all, I found the work grew stronger and more engaging as it progressed. I admire the way in which he chose to pull it all together in the last chapters. I need a hard disclaimer here that I did not read this book because I have a passion for carpentry or woodworking: I know nothing of such things; I had to have my dad bail me out on completing the basic plant stand in middle school shop class. Still, I found the limited degree to which he discussed techniques interesting, and I found myself thoroughly enjoying Mr. Ellison’s company as we ventured across the years from project to project. I believe that he is a terrific carpenter and design problem solver, but he also proves to be a highly culturally literate guy who writes very well.

FALMOUTH ACADEMY Falmouth Academy is distinguished by its dedication to educational excellence, guided by its exceptional faculty and accomplished alumni. With a long-standing record of academic success, our aim is to set the standard for superior education in southern New England.

Beyond academics, we prepare our students to be lifelong learners, responsible citizens, and ready participants in the challenges of the future. We encourage curiosity, creativity, and cultural understanding, empowering our students to thrive in an interconnected global society. Through innovative learning experiences inside and outside the classroom, we connect our students with diverse ideas, places, and cultures.

Curious about the students who come from more than 22 towns across Cape Cod, the South Shore, the South Coast, and Martha’s Vineyard to be a part of our community? Explore their stories and experiences by visiting us at falmouthacademy.org.

If you’d like to schedule a tour or learn more about our admission events, please visit falmouthacademy.org/admissions or call us at 508-457-9696.

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The Bookworm 2023-2024

Falmouth Academy's Next Chapter in Building Literacy: Reading the Word and the World Dr. Ben Parsons, Middle School Coordinator At Falmouth Academy, our students learn to “converse with a text” in thoughtprovoking and stimulating ways. Our hope is that these “conversations” provide them with what Brazilian educator and philosopher Paulo Freire called a reading of “the word” and “the world,” giving them the tools they need to confidently engage with the challenges of our times.1 For our Middle Schoolers, this project involves “homework” that encourages reading for pleasure. For years, the Accelerated Reader platform offered 7th graders an incentive to curl up in study halls, wile away the time on a long commute, lie under a tree on a sun-dappled afternoon, or relax before bedtime with a great book. Students would earn points for every book read based on its lexile and length, with credit applied upon successfully passing a comprehension quiz. The goal of the program was always to foster habits of mind that promote a love of reading.

This year, Mrs. Santamauro and I decided to sunset AR and pilot a new reading program that more actively fosters encounters with different literary genres and voices. After reading The Emotional Lives of Teenagers this summer (the faculty summer read), we were influenced by Lisa Damour’s research on literature and its effect on raising connected, capable, and compassionate adolescents. Damour’s findings, consistent with so much of what we have always believed at FA, reaffirm that “reading compelling narratives of lived experiences builds compassion and the ability to take another person’s perspective. Perhaps most interesting, research shows that this effect is achieved only when young people become emotionally engaged with what they are reading…

Empathy builds in teenagers only when literature stirs their feelings.”2 With Damour’s research in mind, we also redesigned the assessment component of the project to encourage more qualitative book reviews upon completion of a book. We are calling the new program “Book Bingo,” with students getting credit for completing five contiguous squares each trimester. With exciting, open-ended bingo squares like “fantasy novel,” “historical fiction,” “graphic novel,” “non-fiction,” “book turned into a movie,” and “book written by a non-American author,” we hope to usher in the next chapter of the literacy project that Patrice Buxton, faculty emerita and reading promoter extraordinaire, helped launch years ago.

Books Current 7th-Graders are Reading

Small Favors

The Girl from the Sea

The Outsiders

Erin Craig

Molly Knox Ostertag

S.E. Hinton

The Giver Lois Lowry

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe Benjamin Alire Saenz

1

Freire, Paulo, and Loretta Slover. “The Importance of the Act of Reading.” The Journal of Education, vol. 165, no. 1, 1983, pp. 5–11.

JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/42772842. Accessed 23 Oct. 2023.

2

Damour, Lisa. The Emotional Lives of Teenagers. Random House, 2023. P. 16.

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