Happy Friday, everyone! Can you believe that February is already almost over?! It’s crazy…it really, really is. However, on the plus side – spring is *definitely* trying to make an appearance, at least where I live. Bulbs are starting to grow, flowers are beginning to make their first tentative appearances, the weather is getting incrementally better…I mean, honestly – this needs to be the first thing on the agenda for #FeelGoodFriday!
And WHO’S A GOOD PUPPER IN THE FLOWERS?!
Next up – did you hear about Sabrina Ionescu? If you don’t follow sports – women’s college sports, in particular – and don’t live in the Pacific Northwest, you may not have. But this woman did something *amazing*. Record-breaking, in fact – and only hours after speaking at Kobe and Gianna Bryant’s memorial service. She became the first (and only) NCAA player – male OR female – to earn 2000 points, 1000 rebounds, and 1000 assists within a college career. It’s pretty damn impressive, and kudos to her!!
Most of us are probably pet lovers of one stripe or another. I have a dog, 2 foster dogs (https://stillmorewords.com/2020/02/13/it-starts-small-and-it-starts-with-us/), 3 cats, plus another that lives on our front porch. Seriously – he decided he wanted to be an outdoor cat, so he has a house WITH A HEATING PAD on our front porch. Some life, right?? *Anyway*…the Wisconsin Humane Society decided to do a fundraiser a few days ago, and it was SO POPULAR, they had to shut it down early. Click on the link to see why – and be prepared for some adorable (and amusing!) pictures…I’m thinking they should replicate this everywhere??
And one last little giggle, because HEY! IT’S FRIDAY! I hope you all have a *wonderful* weekend, and that you also begin to see some signs of spring. To me, it’s the season of hope, and couldn’t we all use a little of that right now?
Admit it…you giggled. Chuckled? LOL’d? YOU DID, I KNOW IT!
Kobe Bryant was a legend on the court, and in some ways, off of it as well. But not a lot of people knew that he had books out as well – specifically, books for kids that centered around sports. I’m honestly not sure how much he had to do with the writing – my belief is that he created the idea for each story, and then had an author actually fill in the blanks. This article seems to show a bit about how that process worked for different books:
In Legacy and the Queen, we find a girl whose home has become an orphanage, whose father can barely keep food on the table for all his charges, and a country that has been united under one ruler. Legacy, however, just wants to play tennis – and when her father refuses to allow her, and instead plans to send her best friend to work in the mines, she runs away to try and get a scholarship to the best tennis academy there is. Upon arrival, however, Legacy learns that she’s looked down on for where she came from, that magic is not as hidden as she had supposed – and that some secrets should never have been buried.
It’s not a long book – perfect for the hesitant reader, or for reading out loud in a classroom/library setting. It’s an interesting story, and one that promotes friendship as well. Honestly, I ended up liking it more than I anticipated – there was something about the name “Kobe Bryant” being attached that sort of turned me off in the beginning – primarily, because it felt like there must have been an arrogant ego attached to anyone who assumed they could just…whip out a book that would be any good. And, I think part of me assumed that because the books are SO COOL LOOKING…all that flash must have been to make up for a deficiency within the story. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Legacy was a great story, one I started and didn’t want to finish. I definitely would have loved to read more about her, had Kobe not passed. I don’t know where that leaves his burgeoning book publishing, but it is just one more tragedy piled upon tragedy that this sports fiction niche may now go unfulfilled.
That brings me to another neat part about these books. Finding good middle-reader titles about other sports besides *football* can be hard to do. These books help young athletes find books that they can relate to – in Legacy, it is tennis. And I will be the first to admit, I know ZERO about that sport. However, it didn’t matter to the overall enjoyment and immersion of the story. Having said that, I would be willing to bet that a reader who actually *knows* about tennis would find that some of the details contained in the book would only enhance their personal enjoyment.
Above, I mentioned that the books are pretty cool looking? Well, I don’t normally include extra photos in my reviews, but…YOU HAVE TO SEE.
Yes, that is a velvet-type cover…watch out for pet hair.
The front endpapers…the back are *different*
IT’S GOT STRINGS FOR A BOOKMARK…YOU KNOW…LIKE TENNIS STRINGS!!
Every page has that cool design on the sides. Every single one.
Basically, whoever did his design for not only this book, but the others? Did a bang-up job. Kids love this sort of stuff, and so do adults like myself. It sets the books apart from others on the shelf, and gives them an aura that so many cannot match. They really are *very* cool.
Most middle-grade readers would enjoy this – there is a hint of fantasy about it, a bit of magic and some pretty amazing creatures. But that part is light, and the story revolves more around Legacy’s attempt to win her spot, the friends she makes, and trying to right an old wrong that gets discovered. For sure a great addition to any school library or classroom shelves, and I can say that I will be looking for more of Kobe’s titles to read myself.
I was at work yesterday, and a couple came into the store. Roughly mid-20’s, I would say? For the uninitiated, I work at an indie bookstore, which is where this all unfolded. Anyway, they’re looking around at the books – mostly *he’s* looking, while she’s talking and checking out more of the *stuff*. He picks up a book and mentions something along the lines of how interested it looks – and the response of the girl with him KILLED ME. She looked at the book, looked at the section where it came from, looked at him and said, “That’s a book for TEENS. You’re in the TEEN section.”.
This was me at that moment…
Guys. STOP BOOK SHAMING PEOPLE. Seriously, does it *matter* what section the book comes from? I have had adults buy board books, not because they have any kids, but because the pictures and the story are just so lovely that they couldn’t help themselves. I read middle-grade novels, young adult, and adult books – fairly interchangeably. In fact, I just finished a Kobe Bryant book last night (Review to come!), and it was quite lovely. I’m in my mid-40’s. And honestly? Sometimes the YA and middle-grade novels seem like they’re better, in that the authors have to work just a bit harder to keep the attention of kids and to make sure things make sense – because kids WILL call you out on that.
Now, in this particular case, the guy went ahead and bought the book anyway. But IMAGINE how many people wouldn’t, because they would start to feel silly after someone close to them says something like that? Imagine how many WORLDS they could have found and loved, but lost due to Book Shaming. Imagine how many lessons learned, how many different viewpoints heard from, and how many fabulous stories get put back on the shelves because someone made fun of someone else for their interests? Worse, imagine if that person who was shamed put back that one book that may have helped them in some way – the book that told them they too would be ok?
Listen folks – reading is reading is reading. It doesn’t matter how old you are, what you’re choosing to read (YES GRAPHIC NOVELS ARE INCLUDED. A post on THAT another time.), or what age group you’re reading from. Whether you’re a child like my daughter, reading WAY above her age level, or an adult like myself and *so* many others, enjoying the lessons and literary escapes provided by books for a “younger audience” – it LITERALLY doesn’t matter. What *matters* is that people are choosing to spend their time with characters that are important to them, that tell a story meaningful to them, and that maybe – just maybe, if they’re lucky – they’ll walk away having had a truly impactful interaction with the words on those pages. Like the individual in the following article, who read Illegal: Reflections of an Undocumented Immigrant *while he was in prison* and learned more than he ever would have imagined. (Book censorship in prison is a WHOLE OTHER TOPIC, but also bad in many, many cases.):
So, let’s stop with the Book Shaming? People are different, and just like with the clothes they wear, need to have choices that appeal to them in whatever way they’re feeling at that moment. What matters is that they’re reading, and since studies have shown that those who read fiction have better “social cognition” – and will often feel more empathy for others, we should be encouraging that REGARDLESS of whether they’re reading manga, young adult, graphic novels, middle-grade, or adult novels. OR YES, EVEN ROMANCE.
Book shaming is only shameful for the shamer, that they feel it’s acceptable to try and control someone else’s reading. Honestly, I feel like #BookShamingIsBad should be a thing, so I’m going to start here. Have any of *you* ever been shamed for the book(s) you choose to read? What are some of your favorite titles that seem to bring out the worst in others’ shaming tendencies? Maybe someone will feel that connection and know that it really IS ok to read what you choose.
Guys. I am infuriated and appalled and disgusted. The other day was the Daytona 500, a race I don’t generally watch, but which my husband did for years. He was a *huge* NASCAR fan when we first met, and he couldn’t understand why I typically had a book out. Circles, dude. They go in circles. Unless you’re invested in the individual racers – which I wasn’t – it can be SUPER boring. I know there are a bazillion people who disagree with me, and please don’t @ me – I’m thrilled that people have a thing they love, but…it’s just not something I do.
ANYWAY. What got me so upset is that, at the end of the race, there was a HORRIFIC crash. Ryan Newman’s car hit the wall, flipped, was hit by another car on his driver side, and crossed the finish line upside down and on fire. Like I said, I’m not typically a NASCAR watcher, but…it looked bad. *Really* bad. So, as with so many others – I scrolled through social media, trying to find out if he was going to be ok. I knew he had a family, and was devastated for them – I cannot imagine what it must be like to be a racer’s wife. I could not do it. I couldn’t.
As I was scrolling, I started seeing something AWFUL in my twitter feed. People who were saying that this happened because of a “Trump curse” and that it was his fault that Newman crashed, and so on. Here’s the thing – I *detest* Trump with every fiber of my being, the horrible way he’s treated people is completely unacceptable to me. Stiffing contractors, making fun of people, blocking aid that got people *killed* – nope. Can’t stand him or the policies he pushes. But here’s the *other* thing – anyone claiming that he had some responsibility for that accident? IS AN ASSHOLE. I may not like the guy or what he stands for, but putting the blame for this crash on his shoulders is ridiculous and ALSO unacceptable. If I wouldn’t tolerate it from him, I’m sure as hell not going to tolerate it from anyone else.
Is this really what we’ve become? Yes, I saw so many others trying to uplift his family, and asking for thoughts and prayers. But in what world is it ok to level this accusation on ANYONE? And don’t lay out the “that’s what democrats do” BS on me, either – I *am* a democrat. I, and so many others, stand on the platform that hate is not ok, whether it’s coming from the White House, or over the interwebs. And of course, I got crap from a few people (NOT dems) for saying something about it – it was Trump fans, actually. Which was…weird. There was one gentleman, though – his profile is a MAGA 2020 hat, so…there’s that – who tweeted this to me:
Thank you, sir. May more of us find this spirit in our hearts over the coming months, and realize that we truly ARE more alike than we are different.
Also: As I was typing this, a brief statement was given that Newman is in critical condition, but that the doctors don’t expect any of his injuries to be life-threatening. For him, for his family and his crew, for his friends and ALL his loved ones – I am thankful. I wish him well in his recovery.
The vast majority of us in the United States walk a tightrope of some sort every single day. Whether it’s worrying about getting healthcare for your loved one recently diagnosed with cancer, worrying about a loved one who needs rehab, worrying about your child’s education, or worrying about living from paycheck to paycheck because you simply don’t make enough to be able to put any aside. Through the lens of a small town VERY similar to the one I grew up in, Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn examine how our upward trajectory as a country faltered, then started its downhill slide to where we are right now – divided, most people struggling to make ends meet, many schools effectively segregated, serious addiction issues, and with no clear path to fixing *any* of it at this time.
The authors ably demonstrate that our country has, in large part, failed its populace. That our strongest years were when we had higher tax rates and created programs to help support the weakest of us until they were stronger and able to give back. That working class people all over the country have been lost and ignored, while the formerly-growing middle class continues to shrink. That much of this decay is due to policies enacted that were, at best, mistakes – and at worst, cruelty for the sake of it. That “personal responsibility” has a piece to play – but so does an ethos of compassion and empathy.
But all is not gloom and doom – there is also a focus on people and programs that are doing things *right*, and the differences they are making in lives and in our country. They extensively demonstrate that investing in children when they are young, focusing on treatment rather than incarceration, making sure all people have health care, and making sure that we focus on helping EVERYONE work will MORE than amply pay off for *all* of us in the long run. They highlight very specific methods that have worked, and discuss immediate solutions that could get bipartisan support.
The ironic thing as I was reading this book is that so many of those hurt most by the policies of the current administration are the ones who continue to back him. They’re not stupid people, or hateful – but they feel so left behind by the standard politicking that they felt Trump could fix things for them. Help them find a way off of the tightrope they walk every day – and watch their children and grandchildren walk as well. For any of these solutions to come into play, people need to reach out t0 them, see them for the hurting humans they are, and seriously work to address their concerns.
This book is honestly one that should be read by people on every side of every damn aisle. These issues shouldn’t be partisan problems, but people problems. There is plenty of blame to go around, but rather than looking behind us to point fingers – we should be looking forward at how we can help make sure our children and our grandchildren don’t have to walk the tightrope.
So…Vageode cakes are a thing? Apparently, this is from a couple of years ago and I somehow missed it. But holy hell, the comments are GOLD. And it’s not just the random Facebook people, but the owner of the shop – bless her for her humor with her replies. I’m going to post links to the original that got the whole thing started, and then to a post that also covers more of the aftermath. And, you know, if you’re ever in the market for a Vageode cake or cupcake…you know where to go!
The initial post where things went…awry
A post with multiple links to follow the whole, sordid saga 😉
I saw this and about DIED FROM THE ADORABLE. Guys, he’s 91. *And he just started!*
You may have seen this already, but I couldn’t NOT include it. These days especially, it often feels like kindness and compassion are getting harder and harder to see in the world around us. I’m not ashamed to say I shed a few tears…
Have a great weekend, everyone! And remember – as Ellen says, Be Kind. You never know what someone may be going through, and something as simple as a smile can do wonders. ❤
I have a co-worker who is CRAZY about any book that has mermaids. The more vicious the mermaid, the better, really. I’m…not as into mermaids, and honestly was a little hesitant about reading this book because – MERMAID. However, I am pleased to inform you that THE MERMAID IS AWESOME. The entire *story* is awesome. I mean, even the cover is awesome – can we take a second to appreciate how just downright *cool* that cover is? It manages to intertwine so many pieces of the book and look kick-ass, all at the same time.
So we have a princess, who is supposed to become the Queen of her people. A pirate, who is shady but means well all the same. A mermaid who is most definitely not what I expected but absolutely ROCKS. And a fancy dude who is engaged to the princess through no fault of either of them. When Princess Amora lets her magic overtake her during the ceremony at which she is supposed to prove her control, the potential punishment is death. Bastian, the pirate, helps her flee so that she can fix things – as long as she agrees to help him as well. Along the way, however, secrets are exposed that risk *all* of their lives – as well as the lives of all the people Amora was once expected to rule.
It’s rare to read a book where all the characters – male, female, *and* mermaid – are on equal terms. Where they all have their strengths and weaknesses, but no matter how flawed they may be, they all fit together like the pieces of a puzzle. Often, one tends to be there to fill in the gaps of another, or the token male to compliment the weaknesses of the female – and if you remove one of those characters, if often won’t make a huge difference in the outcome of the story. That is not the case here.
Adalyn Grace has managed to create a crew that feels *right*, where you know that if something happens to one of them (no spoilers!), drastic and terrible things will take place. Amora is the undisputed leader of this group, who has strong morals and ethics, is intelligent but can be headstrong, and will die to protect her people. It was absolutely refreshing to have a female character not given to histrionics, repeating the same stupid mistakes over and over again, or leaning so hard on the male characters that she feels like a slug. Honestly, Amora might be one of my favorite characters in quite some time. THIS is the kind of content that I like to show to YA readers! Girls can see someone to strive to be like, and boys can learn that girls kick ass too. They will see this in Vataea, the mermaid, as well. She’s been horribly treated by humans, and has some anger management issues – but she doesn’t nurse that grudge to the exclusion of all else, as some would have her do.
Bastien and Ferrick are the two gents here, and they play off the women very well. To be honest, they tend to be the more emotionally vulnerable of the four, and if there had to be a “you complete me” sort of statement, it would be one of them that might be muttering it. Together, they are truly what makes this story shine.
Don’t get me wrong – I *loved* the story. Different magics, unraveling secrets, betrayals of all sorts…what’s not to love? However, the glue that holds it all together are the four people that are living it, and that bring the reader along for the ride. Experiencing the highs and the lows, and sometimes even the crazy, these four individuals are so woven into all the elements of the story that it really was unexpected when I realized I only had a few more pages left to read.
When I finished the book, I had to check to see if there is another one planned. There was no cliffhanger, so don’t dread that. Things come to a conclusion – and one that could have wrapped up the story. However, I felt (hoped?) that some of the unanswered questions *I* had might be answered in a #2. Goodreads currently has one listed as “All the Stars and Teeth Book 2”, so…I’m hopeful. I will happily spend more time enveloped in this unique and excellent world that Grace has created, for however many books she would like to bring me.
Today, folks, let’s talk about tea. Not too long ago, when discussing grief with my homeschooling kids, we talked about how it’s ok to grieve for *anything* that is meaningful to them. One example that I used is my love for tea, and how devastating it would be for me if I could no longer drink tea for whatever reason. I can give up a lot of stuff if I absolutely had to, but tea…? That would be difficult.
Tea, to me, is so much more than a simple drink. It is, essentially, comfort in a cup. It’s warm and cozy, and few things can make me relax better than a good cup of tea and a book. The preparation is also key – heating the water, measuring out the tea, letting it steep for the appropriate time. Adding sweetener and milk, watching them swirl in the cup as I stir…even that part adds to the overall vibe of drinking my tea.
It’s also very complex – depending on how it’s treated, tea can be *so* many things. There is white tea, green tea, black tea. Tea can be smoked, or roasted. It can be herbal (which is actually NOT tea, but a tisane), or a rooibos. It can have spices added to it (Chai, I’m looking at you!), essential oils, or bits of fruit and flowers. Even chocolate gets added to tea at times! Honestly, the options seem endless.
Over the years, I’ve become somewhat of a tea snob. I have my favorites, and when I have to travel (typically, for a gymnastics meet with my daughter), I take my own tea with me. At work, I have a special bag that I keep tea, sweetener, cream, and a special tea spoon in – I just make sure, every couple of days, that all my supplies are replenished. I even have a tea cabinet – I think it probably used to a buffet, but I decided it was better for my tea than silly dishes. It is loaded with tea paraphernalia – mugs I’ve collected, a Japanese tea set from long ago, a Yixing clay tea pot, and LOTS AND LOTS OF TEA. Some were impulsive purchases, some are flavors I wanted to try, and some were specifically purchased as part of a fund-raiser for one organization or another. But some are die-hard favorites, the ones that I try to *always* have on hand.
Up first? Portland Breakfast tea from Smith Tea company. This is the one I take to work with me, and I purchase it in bulk sachets (because loose tea is not very feasible when running a bookstore with no break room). Smith Tea was actually started by Steven Smith, the same guy who started Tazo tea, and the guy knew his tea. He’s passed now, but lives on with Smith Tea and the amazing people still running it. If you happen to be in the Portland area, there are two great tea shops where you can not only drink this, but try their EXCELLENT Sparkling Strawberry Honeybush. It’s light and refreshing and delicious. But for a really good, everyday kinda tea? You can’t go wrong with Portland Breakfast. https://www.smithtea.com/products/portland-breakfast?variant=14659225485357
The second company that I tend to frequent is *also* local to me, and I LOVE THEM. There are three teas I tend to get there, though it’s not uncommon for me to come home with others. The first is my standard, every-day-I’m-not-at-work tea that I purchase in bulk leaves. It’s not uncommon for me to start the day at home with 2-3 cups of their English Breakfast. I used to be a die-hard fan of another brand that I ordered, but then I was able to compare their tea with Jasmine Pearls’…and there really was no comparison. JP’s tea was whole and fragrant, rather than being dusty and dry with little smell. So, I stick with theirs and I’ve not been happier. https://thejasminepearl.com/english-breakfast/
The other two teas are both chocolate, though one is actually a black tea and the other is a rooibos. The black tea version is called Cocoa Deluxe, and on a day when it’s rainy and cold, and you need something to lift your spirits – something warm and delicious and comforting? THIS IS IT. Steep it, add a little honey and some milk or cream – then sit back, relax, and let your soul unclench for just a little while. https://thejasminepearl.com/cocoa-deluxe-black-tea/
But, sometimes, those soul-unclenching moments are needed later in the day, and I’m super sensitive to caffeine after about 3pm. Cocoa Rouge to the rescue! A rooibos is perfect for that, giving me the same comfort – but WITHOUT the sleepless nights. I make this the same way, with a bit of honey (or agave) and milk, and it’s a balm before bedtime. The only downside to this one flavor is that it *is* seasonal, so I tend to stock up on it when I can. https://thejasminepearl.com/cocoa-rouge/
I do also enjoy collecting more unusual tea mugs – ones that don’t have “Made in China” stamped on the bottom. It’s something I like to look for when I travel with my daughter, though I also enjoy getting the Starbucks mugs for different locations. One of these days, I’ll have a shelf just for those, but…ah, well. If you’re in the market for a tea set or a mug to go with that excellent tea you just ordered, I *highly* recommend Etsy. There are some talented peeps on there, as long as you wade through the nonsense. It’s also fun just to look at the vintage tea sets sometimes, just to see all the gorgeousness from another way of life. AND…one of these days I’ll get this, just for the grin it would bring every time I use it: https://www.misshavishamscuriosities.com/store/p653/Green_Havisham_Kindly_Fuck_off__Cup_and_saucer.html#/
Do you have a favorite tea, or other drink? I’d love to hear about it – I’m always open to expanding my horizons!
A piece of the same Japanese tea set I have. It’s got quite the history!
I’m lucky enough to work in a bookstore, and I’m even *luckier* that the bookstore is in an airport. No, really – I love it. We rarely ever have the same customers twice, which means we rarely get complaints. Many of the people traveling are going on a vacation, so they’re already in a pretty decent mood. I honestly love the variety of people, situations, and requests. And…we also get some fun(ny) moments as well. Things that you just never see coming, but that you’re still laughing about days later.
For example, there was a father and his son in the store a while back. Kid was maybe 8? 9? Dad said he could get a book, but the boy was MUCH more interested in getting one of the Magic 8 Balls we had for sale. (Hm. This story may age me. But for those of you unfamiliar with what a Magic 8 Ball is, I give you this link – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_8-Ball) ANYWAY. He really, really wanted this toy instead of a book. Dad, knowing they’re going to be trapped on an airplane for a while, buys him a book that had been shown the *teeniest* bit of interest, and on the way out, the kid is still wheedling for the 8 Ball. He insists that it would be more fun on the plane, and decides the best course of action is to…ask the Magic 8 Ball. He shakes it and shakes it…and shakes it some more. I think he thought the more energy he put into it, the better his outcome would be? While he’s shaking, he’s asking, “Would the Magic 8 Ball be better than a book?”. After a few final shakes, he stops and holds it still – and waits for the answer to appear. When it does, he slowly reads the response out loud….
I read Dopesick when it first came out in hardcover, and I was stunned by the stories and the information contained inside. It was released before it became more common knowledge about how the drug companies bargained with and bribed doctors to prescribe more pills. Before we knew that the companies were aware of how addictive Oxycontin is – and continued to sell it alarming rates anyway. Before many were aware of how bad our opioid epidemic truly is – and how much worse it’s likely to get. I read this book because, as with so many, I knew someone who fell into its trap.
I met one of my closest friends in adulthood in a group I belonged to – a gal so much like me in so many ways, that we became close pretty quickly. Her other half was a great guy, funny and outgoing, doting dad to their daughter. And then…in what felt like overnight to me and turned out to be anything but…her world came crashing down. It turned out that he had been nursing an addiction to opioids for quite a while, based on a prior injury. At some point, that pill addiction morphed – and so did he. Things started disappearing from their house. Their bank accounts were emptied. He lost his job, and found out he had been using fake medical struggle stories of her to borrow money from work that never got paid back. His personality changed, and this kind and funny guy became mean and cruel and even frightening. It all came to a head when she kicked him out, left with no savings, many of their valuables hawked without her knowing – while she was being diagnosed with a disease and their daughter was facing major surgery. She tried, so valiantly, to get him into this rehab or that rehab – and they never took. You know those radio and tv commercials about rehab facilities? THEY’RE LIES. It can be a battle to get a loved one into one, and often by the time there’s a bed ready – they have disappeared back into their drug use again. I now have to turn the radio off or down when they come on because I get so angry at the empty promises made to desperate people. This became her daily struggle, along with fielding calls from creditors, trying to find ways to help him, dealing with her own health concerns and that of their daughter, and knowing that he could call or show up at any time and demand money that she simply didn’t have.
Then Dopesick came out, and I scooped it up. I have always been the “no such thing as too much information” type, and I wanted to learn. And boy, did I learn. I learned that our country is dealing with a crisis, one of our own making. A crisis we tend to see in shades of black and white, even though it is anything but. One filled with people who have been negatively labeled, though so SO many of them were simply trying to fix their pain and didn’t know at what cost. What Beth Macy did was to make all the information that too few knew, and make it easily accessible and understandable, even to average folks like me.
Macy shows how our current treatment systems are flawed, and how so much of those flaws come from our own biases about those addicted to these drugs. How families go though hundreds of thousands of dollars, trying to get help for their loved ones. She shares methods that *are* working, and talks with the people who are actively trying to make those methods more common. Most of all, though? She gives the addicted a voice. She allows these people their stories, without judging, and gives hope to those reading that change *is* possible.
My friend is now happily married, and managing her disease as best she can. Her daughter got an amazing scholarship to an excellent school, and she is thriving. Her former partner? In and out of jail and prison, still addicted, and more often than not living on the streets. It’s all around us, if we only open our eyes.
We all know someone who knows someone who has an addiction. It would be difficult to find someone who has NOT been touched by this battle, in one capacity or another. And change is happening, though far too slowly for so many out there (https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/2/4/21115481/trump-state-of-the-union-2020-overdose-deaths-opioid-epidemic). However, it’s still a HUGE problem, and the emergence of fentanyl is only complicating that. As such, it’s on ALL of us to learn what we can, and to have the knowledge of what is happening around us. We all may say that it would never happen to us or to anyone we love – but I’m here to say that I thought that too.
NOTE: To purchase a copy of Dopesick, you can use this link, which takes you to options for independent bookstores, as I won’t link to Amazon: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780316551304
Beth Macy also has an audio book out, titled Finding Tess, that follows up on one young lady she profiled in Dopesick. It’s not a long listen, but its immediacy in that format is undeniable, and it’s a should-listen for sure. Have kleenex, and be prepared to be angry and upset and to have *all the feelings*.
Still More Words 