View Full Version : Be The Book You Want to See in the World
Take-off on "be the change"...
If you could be a BOOK that represents the life you would want for yourself, what book would that be?
For me, while it would be a RADICAL change and I can't hope for it until my next incarnation, it's William Coperthwaite's A Handmade Life.
https://www.amazon.com/Handmade-Life-Search-Simplicity/dp/1933392479
His life was one of radical simplicity, having been a close friend of the Nearings. But I love this book because it blends philosophy with culture with art and design, with love, and nature, and with craftsman's skills.
When I need inspiration, it's my go-to book. It's a well-rounded life lived by someone with commitment to artistry and intention.
What book would you "be"?
I never read that book because my library doesn't have a hard copy, but I found they do have an ebook of it, so I will check it out. Thank you for the referral.
I would probably be close to author Amy Dacyczyn, though I have worked rather than be a stay at home mom, because I have focused on frugality in small areas to save for bigger things, most especially a house.
I guess if I could inhabit any literary universe, it might be that of James Herriott, in Yorkshire. That always seemed familiar and the way things ought to be.
I wish my life as a book had been more like Gerald Durrell's My Family and Other Animals, that we could all be enjoying a rich comic life on the beach, together.
It's a good question!
So many to choose from, but based on today's world, I would pick "How to Be Compassionate: A Handbook for Creating Inner Peace and a Happier World" By His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. I would choose this for myself and wish it for other's as well.
Michel de Montaigne. I would have a respectable career as a statesman, enjoy my estate and write the “Essais” in my spare time.
My favorite story as a child was The Blue Teapot, by Alice Dalgliesh, about a spinster who lived in a house overlooking the Bay of Fundy. She had a cat or two, drank tea, made quilts, adopted twins from a local orphanage, and sold her things to patch a leaking roof. I must have heard that read hundreds of times, until I had it memorized. One day, I realized I had made a similar life for myself. My goals have never been lofty ones.
Earth Abides. (How to survive the end of the world.)
I started The Handmade Life. I think some people here would not like it because they are all about specialization and self-styled experts, not the lived experience and wisdom of ordinary people.
It has changed as my life unfolded. I wanted the spirit of Anne of Green Gables when young, the wild adventure of a Louis Lamour western as a young adult (never mind that I am female), but as the years have passed, there are fewer and fewer female models written about. Self-sustained independent living, > world traveller, > theatre set designer, artist, > independent thinker very content with life today.
Suggestions of a book that includes the latter would be appreciated.
Norman Maclean's A River Runs Through It and Other Stories. Not just for the fishing, which would be nice, but for the general philosophy of the characters and the lifestyle of early 1900's Montana. The book and movie were both good, but the book was better. It has one of my favorite quotes,
“Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs.
I am haunted by waters.”
Razz if you consider fashion an art maybe The Rainbow Comes and Goes about Gloria Vanderbilt by herself and her son Anderson Cooper?
Rogar, that was such a beautiful book.
So, in summation, I want to see a world of spinsters in leaky cottages with water views. :~)
Honestly, of the thousands of books I've read, I don't think I've read a Utopian one yet, so I'm useless in this thread. I've read James Howard Kunstler, and he made me want to litter. Or buy a Keurig.
I'll show myself out.
Jane, I liked your choice! I thought that was the purpose of the exercise, to pick a book that reflected how you wanted your life to be, not how you wanted the world to be, although for some, it is the same thing.
Anyway, I chose from a personal standpoint, like you did. What world felt the best to me, that I would want to live in.
Jane, I liked your choice! I thought that was the purpose of the exercise, to pick a book that reflected how you wanted your life to be, not how you wanted the world to be, although for some, it is the same thing.
Anyway, I chose from a personal standpoint, like you did. What world felt the best to me, that I would want to live in.
That makes me feel better, Tybee. Thanks.
Jane, I liked your choice! I thought that was the purpose of the exercise, to pick a book that reflected how you wanted your life to be, not how you wanted the world to be, although for some, it is the same thing.
Anyway, I chose from a personal standpoint, like you did. What world felt the best to me, that I would want to live in.
Yes, you are correct, Tybee. That was my intention. Jane, by all means, revel in your leaky cottage with a water view! I definitely can also see myself in The Secret Garden--but only the the secret garden part--not the huge somber manor part.
happystuff
7-6-20, 11:11am
Well, the book I want to be in the world, I've posted. On a personal, more fantasy level, I'll go with The Green Kingdom by Rachel Maddux.
Utopian literature generally leaves me pretty cold. From Galt’s Gulch to Ecotopia, the characters spend way too much time justifying themselves and their way of thinking to be believable. Whatever opposition they have are cartoonishly drawn villains or idiots. It’s the literary equivalent of a visit from the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Utopian literature generally leaves me pretty cold. From Galt’s Gulch to Ecotopia, the characters spend way too much time justifying themselves and their way of thinking to be believable. Whatever opposition they have are cartoonishly drawn villains or idiots. It’s the literary equivalent of a visit from the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
I did not see any requirement for Utopian literature in the OP. Not sure where that came from. Do you want to be a farmer, fisherman, violin maker, lazy bum or forever being an accountant? What book describes it best?
"Utopian" came from me, I think, because the books described seemed to me to lead in that direction. But maybe not.
I'm for the "lazy bum" role, anyway.
The Tao of Pooh and Calvin And Hobbes. :)
I was always drawn to Pippi Longstocking as a character. She had contrary notions that led to adventures. I will contnue to ponder this question since not just one comes to mind.
I was always drawn to Pippi Longstocking as a character. She had contrary notions that led to adventures. I will contnue to ponder this question since not just one comes to mind.
I loved that she had a horse on her porch. Made such good sense.
This is when I wish I had started that book title journal I've thought of starting so many times.
"Utopian" came from me, I think, because the books described seemed to me to lead in that direction. But maybe not.
I'm for the "lazy bum" role, anyway.
One of my favorite characters is Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe. From the thirties through the sixties, he steadfastly refused to take time from his interests or even leave his brownstone on 35th Street except in the most extreme circumstances. He was way ahead of his time on work-life balance.
One of my favorite characters is Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe. From the thirties through the sixties, he steadfastly refused to take time from his interests or even leave his brownstone on 35th Street except in the most extreme circumstances. He was way ahead of his time on work-life balance.
And for you gardeners out there, Rex Stout's sister Ruth Stout wrote my favorite gardening book of all time, Gardening Without Work, which is finally back in print!
And for you gardeners out there, Rex Stout's sister Ruth Stout wrote my favorite gardening book of all time, Gardening Without Work, which is finally back in print!
I wonder if she provided her brother with technical advice on orchids.
I wonder if she provided her brother with technical advice on orchids.
I doubt it. Ruth Stout's gardening method, which I have adopted, uses heavy mulching with hay or straw, and Rex referred to her yard as "a garbage dump." Rex was the orchidist in the family.
I hadn't realized that Ruth and Rex were family. I am always amazed at what I learn on this site. Thanks for sharing. I did try Ruth's method of gardening until the twitch grass invaded my garden because the straw was 'contaminated' with it. DH and I reverted to the more tidy method of weeding by hoeing. lol
And for you gardeners out there, Rex Stout's sister Ruth Stout wrote my favorite gardening book of all time, Gardening Without Work, which is finally back in print!
Tybee - have you ever read The Inviting Garden: Gardening for the Senses, Mind and Spirit by Allan Lacy? I think you might enjoy it. It's not really a How but a Why book. And he writes quite a bit about Charleston, S.C. gardens, if I remember correctly. It's been many years since I read it but still remember what an enjoyable read it was.
Tybee - have you ever read The Inviting Garden: Gardening for the Senses, Mind and Spirit by Allan Lacy? I think you might enjoy it. It's not really a How but a Why book. And he writes quite a bit about Charleston, S.C. gardens, if I remember correctly. It's been many years since I read it but still remember what an enjoyable read it was.
I have not, Geila, so thank you, I will look for it. The deep shade gardens of Savannah and Charleston are a very happy memory.
I read all of Jessamyn West's novels and short stories when I was young. I think I was enamored with the simplicity of their lives, the contrasting characters (some mild, some wild), and their convictions concerning the Civil War (they were Quakers). That's what I remember, and even though I haven't read them in a long time, the memory of them endures. (Leafy Rivers, The Friendly Persuasion, Except for Thee and Me) So I guess in answer to the question, those books formed a want of those characteristics in my life. Some mildness, some wildness, nature, strong convictions.
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