Elva Fields Blog » books
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Latest Loves
A few things I'm loving lately:
1. Saving space in your toiletry bag and sailing right through TSA in a carry-on are two fantastic reasons to love this shampoo bar, but the fact that its scent is delightful and that it doubles as a body wash are two more checks on the love list. It's joined me on two week-long trips, and mine still has lots of life left. (Thanks, mom, for such a great Christmas gift!)
2. An account I follow on Instagram (I cannot for the life of me remember who posted this!) just referenced this brilliant blog post about saving kids artwork, and I can't wait to document my overflowing backlog of kiddo creations from their grade-school years. And, let's be honest, my teenagers are still making things with which I have trouble (and guilt) parting, so I may have multiple volumes on order for each of my children.
3. Our latest Spotify playlist, complete with a new favorite from Waxahatchee and an old favorite from Mary Chapin Carpenter...and a few more tunes to welcome springtime.
4. I've never read anything quite like North Woods by Daniel Mason, and it is wholly different in the very best of ways; the writing and story are inventive, curious, stunningly clever, and entirely fascinating. Layers of life and history and time and place pulled me in from the start, and I hated to see it end, though I've taken it along with me ever since.
5. On a recent trip to the Caribbean, I had the absolute pleasure of a food tour in Antigua's capital city, St. John's. Everything we tasted was delicious and everyone we met was delightful, and a highlight (in addition to our wonderful guide Tracy Anne) was learning to make an Old Fashioned Rum Punch. Not the bright pink syrupy confection with grenadine and pineapple juice you may be thinking of - this was the OG of rum punches that is full of rich flavor from spices and fresh citrus. This blog post I found shares a recipe that is VERY close to the one we learned in class - and we added some mint and a twist of lemon peel for garnish. Might be my new warm-weather cocktail. -
Latest Loves
A few things I'm loving lately:
1. After I saw the beautiful creations Joy Cho of Oh Joy! crafted with this marbling kit, I knew it would be a fun and colorful project for my favorite middle-schooler. (She may be too cool for many things these days, but thankfully not for making art with her mom.) I have so many ideas for our next attempt, and this first try at marbling was a hit. (And there are plenty of materials in the kit for future trials!)
2. Tig Notaro has been a favorite of mine since her Taylor Dane bit (I still cry laughing every time) and her new podcast, Handsome, with Fortune Feimster and Mae Martin brings so much laughter and joy to my Tuesdays.
3. Speaking of crying (though not crying laughing), that's what I was doing by the end of this beautiful (as the title would suggest) book. In the best way. I love a story of family dynamics, humans making their way among the broken bits of life, and eventually creating and finding their own wholeness.
4. I'm so excited to finally have some wearable Elva Fields merch, and especially in honor of our 20th birthday last month! It's my new favorite hat, and you can have one, too!
5. Delicious on its own or with bourbon, my most-loved of Modica's superfood goodness in a bottle is the Tart Cherry Old Fashioned (and I don't typically care much for cherry, but this is really great.) Cheers!
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Latest Loves
A few things I'm loving lately:
1. I heard this live version of a childhood favorite on our amazing local Louisville radio station 91.9 WFPK and had to add it to the latest Elva Fields playlist for some nostalgic listening, along with some other fun songs.
2. It's been a while since I've read and finished a book in just a day or two (such an indulgence!) but this one was compelling, captivating, and wholly enjoyable. Like the traditional recipe for which the book is named, I devoured it. (As a bonus, the author curates a playlist at the end of the book to accompany various scenes and characters in her novel, and I couldn't help but add one of her suggested songs to the Elva playlist this month in homage to this wonderful read.)
3. This dark chocolate bark gets rave reviews and was new to me on my last visit to Trader Joe's. I'm currently hiding the bag on a far shelf in the pantry to keep it all to myself. As it turns out, I may have to hide it even from myself soon enough.
4. Though it's billed as an overnight lip mask, I use this goodness as a regular lip gloss day AND night. Thanks to my former sister-in-law who sent it as a holiday gift, my ever-peeling lips are a little less dry and chapped these days.
5. Two shows I've loved watching lately: one with my kiddos, one without them. Both smart, funny, entertaining, and humanity-at-its-worst-and-best heartwarming.
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Reading List
Landline by Rainbow Rowell - Clever and fun and sweet and laugh-out-loud heartwarming, I loved championing the main character all through her ups, downs, and relatable life-living.
The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin - Following the lives of the four Gold siblings, this engrossing and captivating read explores how learning the date of each of their deaths during a childhood visit to a nomadic psychic informs their choices and paths. (And had me questioning how I might live differently, too, with such knowledge.)
Yes Please by Amy Poehler - I knew her work from SNL and film, but listening to Amy Poehler on audiobook made me want her to be my new best friend. She is (obviously) hilarious, but equally aware in a "let's cut to the chase and get to what really matters in life" kind of way, open and honest about her shortcomings and challenges, and so passionate about her craft that it seems like she maybe could be my new best friend. Yes, please.
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout - Every single character in this novel is so beautifully and intimately captured that their presence is felt beyond each page. None more so than the title character, Olive. She fumbles, she offends, she is sometimes unbearable, and sometimes so wonderfully loving and vulnerable that I couldn't help but to love her back. (No wonder this was a Pulitzer Prize winner. It's stunningly written.)
The Marseille Caper by Peter Mayle - I think I read this in late September, early October when I was trying to hold on to summer and its carefree pleasures. What a joy to be transported to the south of France for breathtaking scenery, wine-filled sunny lunches on a terrace, and a bit of mystery for entertainment. A delight.
Happy Reading!
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Reading List
Calypso by David Sedaris - I heard one of the stories from this collection, read by Sedaris, on The Paris Review podcast and then had the incredible fortune of snagging a highly-in-demand copy of the book from my local library branch not long after to read the rest. With sardonic wit and self-deprecating humor, mixed with razor-sharp assessments and observations (often specific to family and its unique dynamics) the stories are at once laugh-out-loud hilarious and heartbreaking, walking a beautiful balance between the two and reminding me to just love people where they are. (But perhaps spare no detail in writing about them!)
The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro - This story of a captivating young woman who unexpectedly heads to Paris in the 50s after a mysterious request appears in the mail for her had me interested from the start. Her experiences intertwine with those of a young woman in Paris in the 20s and 30s, and the historical richness, beautiful descriptions, and intriguing unfolding kept me hooked every step of the way.
The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Steadman - I'll never look at lighthouses the same way again after this story of a lighthouse keeper off the coast of Australia and his young wife, who, in the mid-1920s, make a decision that changes everything in ways they never meant or anticipated. Grappling with overlapping and juxtaposed perceptions of right, wrong, duty, obligation, choice, and love, the characters and their interconnectedness are beautifully written and wholeheartedly compelling.
Alternate Side by Anna Quindlen - I've never read something by Quindlen that I didn't love or that wasn't incredibly insightful or wise, and this is no exception. I'm not sure what I enjoyed most: the New York City neighborhood setting, the main character's humor and strength, or the honest look at privilege that left me thinking long after I returned this one, reluctantly, to the library.
