Finding my Tribe

A community of authors and bookworms

During last week’s French Club dinner, much of the talk whetted our appetites for the drama club’s upcoming show. (It puts on a musical every spring and a festival of one-act comedies in the fall.) Toward the end of the evening, my friend Louise said, “Don’t forget to go to the authors festival tomorrow. My husband worked his butt off organizing it.”

An event to celebrate the written word!

I’ve found my tribe!

I feel sad for people who choose not to read. Books are passports to the universe, letting you explore worlds and times different from your own without leaving your chair. They let you experience ancient Rome, futuristic dystopias, or fantastical realms. You meet fascinating characters, “live” in their realities, and gain a deeper understanding of the human experience. Books were my escape from the crushing and lonely island of childhood. They gave me comfort and inspiration, and the courage to dream of a different life.

American physician and novelist Abraham Verghese (“The Covenant of Water”), who received the National Humanities Medal in 2015 from President Obama, says W. Somerset Maugham’s “Of Human Bondage” inspired him to become a doctor. Maugham’s fiction introduced me to Western art, particularly impressionism and post-impressionism. (Read “The Moon and Sixpence” — Maugham’s splendidly evocative novel loosely based on the life of Paul Gauguin — if you don’t believe me.) Gustave Flaubert’s pursuit of the “mot juste” (the right word) guided my career as a journalist. The character of Sebastian Flyte in “Brideshead Revisited” is a decadent masterpiece painted in Evelyn Waugh's cynical palette. Natasha Rostova is one of Leo Tolstoy’s grandest inventions — a living, breathing embodiment of the Russian spirit, as she evolves from carefree nymph to wise, compassionate woman. Victor Hugo’s Jean Valjean was my beacon of hope in a dark world. They were more real to me than my classmates.

So I toddled off to the authors festival. More than 30 authors had signed up to take part. Scattered on tables were piles of their work — novels, “how to” guides, military history and tactics, spirituality, short story collections, memoirs, and an anthology.

My friend Jevertt responded to the pandemic by learning how to format and publish his books. One of them, “Rebirth in Rio,” is a romantic historical drama set against the backdrop of the Portuguese monarchy’s move of its court from Portugal to Brazil to escape Napoleon’s invasion in 1807. I agree with one of the Amazon reviewers that it should be a mini-series. (Perhaps by the makers of “Bridgerton”?)

“The Hong Kong Gambit: A Plot to Buy Thailand” is retired foreign service officer Phillip Church’s first foray into serious fiction writing. It gives readers “a very good understanding of Thailand's engagement in the trafficking of young girls for sex, and the role that Chinese syndicates play,” says one Amazon reviewer.  

Air Force brat-turned-Army wife Suzi Weinert moved 11 times across the United States and overseas with her husband while raising five kids. Her website says she learned “whatever couldn’t be taken on a move could later be supplemented with judicious second-hand buys.” Visiting military thrift stores led to a series of garage sale mystery thrillers. 

One reviewer describes Mindful Writers Groups and Retreats founder Madhu Wangu (and author of 11 books) as “part gentle guru, part teasing sprite, and part firm realist.” Her latest book, “Unblock Your Creative Flow,” teaches how mindful writing practice silences your inner critic and increases focus and clarity. She runs an online mindful writers group on Facebook.

Deborah Price’s “Love’s Last Act: Planning a Peaceful Death with No Regrets” is a guide to making end-of-life plans. She had a 45-year-plus career in nursing as a clinical research nurse, a university-level nursing instructor, and a public health, oncology, elder care, hospice and palliative care nurse. Price tells the story of Bill, 72, who fell off a ladder while cleaning leaves from his roof gutters. Before surgery for a fractured hip, he accepted but did not sign a “Do Not Resuscitate” (DNR) form. Post-surgery complications occurred, leading to a coma and difficult outcomes for Bill and his wife. Price’s book teaches how to plan your departure from life while you're thriving.

I don’t buy print books anymore, because (A) I have a small apartment, and (B) I’m something of a minimalist. I do all my reading on my phone. So at every stop, the first words out of my mouth were “does it have a Kindle edition”? One of the tables was selling an anthology of prose and poetry by a writers’ group in our community. The proceeds would go to the fund that takes care of residents whose money has run out. Worthy cause! Despite it not having an eBook version, I happily forked over $10.

I may have to rearrange one of my few (and overflowing) shelves. Something tells me that, living in a place like this, more print books are in my future.

But in the meantime, I have some reading to do.