I’ve been tracking my reading for long enough now to know that I usually hit a reading slump in March that tends to stretch into April. But that doesn’t mean it’s not frustrating while I’m in it, especially because this particular slump seemed to last well into April.
But just like that, I found myself full-on reading mode the last week of April, devouring two books in three days. (I probably would have finished more, but I had family in town for the weekend.)
The book that broke my slump was All The Beauty in the World by Patrick Bringley. This book has been on my radar for a few months, but I was resisting buying it until I came across it in an actual bookstore. After his brother died of cancer, Bringley spent ten years working as a security guard at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and this book chronicles his experiences amid the collections.
Despite the fact that the Met (like all museums) has a deeply problematic history (that unfortunately still carries on to this day), it is also one of my favorite places in the world, and Bringley’s book reminded me of why. There’s so much beauty contained in that building (not to mention the building itself) and Bringley writes about it with such tenderness. If you’re an art lover, this book should go on your list.
The other book I finished in April was Unraveling by Peggy Orenstein. The best way I can describe this book is a mashup of two other books I read recently: Vanishing Fleece and Sundressed. Like Vanishing Fleece, Unvraveling charts the lifecycle of wool from sheep to sweater. But where the two books diverge is that Vanishing Fleece focused more on small scale wool manufacturing, while Orenstein tackles every bit of her textile journey by hand. Unraveling also reminded me of Sundressed in that there was more discussion about the human and environmental implications of the clothes we wear.
Because of these similarities, Unraveling certainly didn’t feel like a fresh book to me. I also found the beginning, where Orenstein whines about the difficulties of the early days of the pandemic, to be more than a little tedious. (Unfortunately, I think we’re going to see a lot of books published in the next year or two where the writer, understandably so, can’t help but reflect on their pandemic experience.) Still, I’m glad I pushed through, because the book does get better. In particular, I loved the chapters on color and dying the wool. And just like with All the Beauty in the World, I was able to chug through this one in a few days!
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