Balanced Books

 On a walk last night, I was talking with my husband and kids about which books we were reading, and I came to realize that I have a habit that I think I learned from my kids of reading multiple books at the same time. I always have at least one audio book going in addition to choices on my nightstand of poetry, novels, spiritual wisdom, and nonfiction unrelated to my work. Finally, in addition to all of that, I usually have at least one serious work-related book going that I can read during the day without considering it "leisure." I guess that brings me to five books at a time on average!  I know that makes me sound distracted, but there's something about this balance of choices that is freeing and nourishing to me. I find that the books speak to each other. Now that I'm done prepping for comps, I am free to go back to this balanced approach to my reading roster.

1. Braiding Sweetgrass Robin Wall Kimmerer, as an audio book read by Robin Wall Kimmerer. 
• This is a cross between nonfiction, history, and spiritual knowledge, recommended to me by multiple friends. I am enjoying listening to this while I'm in the car, folding laundry, crocheting, cooking, or straightening up my house.  The best place to listen is while looking out over my messy, pollinator-filled backyard, sitting in one of my hooded deck chairs with my crochet blanket in my lap.
2. Dreamtigers by Jorge Luis Borges
• Poetry and personal essays, written in 1960 but as immediate as a collection from a close friend living in our moment. I've recently found a new fascination with 20th century Latin American writers who witnessed the ebb and flow of democracy, socialism, and fascism of various kinds. Borges offers wisdom in his observations of the role of the artist amidst changing political climates.
3. Return to the Place: The Magic, Meditation, and Mystery of Sefer Yetzirah by Rabbi Jill Hammer
• Still early in my journey with this one, but I'm looking forward to diving deeper into the interlocking worlds of spoken creation, oneness, and multitudes. 
4. Mona's Eyes by Thomas Schlesser
• This is the next novel I'll be reading for my book club. We plan to talk about it at the High Museum.  Should be a good mix of visual description and family-based storytelling. Looking forward.
5. Race and the Greening of Atlanta: Inequality, Democracy, and Environmental Politics in an Ascendant Metropolis by Christopher C. Sellers
• This is the first new history book I'm picking up to support my dissertation research. Should provide some useful background on Atlanta's interwoven civil rights and environmental movements, and conservative backlashes against both that took root in the 1980s. Might help set the scene for my deeper understanding of the newest park and memorial movements at the Chattahoochee Brick site and the site of the former Atlanta Prison Farm.