Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner

Michelle Zauner’s wildly popular memoir, Crying in H Mart, is everything everyone said it would be: devastating and beautifully written. Zauner is a musician who rose to fame with her band Japanese Breakfast with their breakout album Psychopomp which came out in 2016. Her memoir, though, is not about her musical fame, but about her mother’s terminal cancer diagnosis and the months following her death. 

Zauner grew up in Eugene, Oregon, which is the backdrop of her contentious childhood and difficult relationship with her mother. She describes her mother as “not a mommy-mom,” compared to the mothers of her classmates. She was not as warm or affectionate as Michelle thought she ought to have been, but as she grew into adulthood the two became much closer. Her mother’s diagnosis only cemented her filial love, and they ultimately became “innately, intrinsically intertwined.” 

Food fuels the story. The title, for one, references the Asian grocery store chain H Mart, but Korean food is also woven into every aspect of the narrative: The fish covered in gochujang Zauner’s mother makes for her before she leaves for college; the “tender short rib” with “Hard-boiled soy-sauce eggs sliced in half, crunchy bean sprouts flavored with scallions and sesame oil, doenjang jjigae with extra broth, and chonggak kimchi, perfectly soured” she prepares when she comes to visit after the initial cancer diagnosis; the jatjuk (pine nut porridge) Zauner makes for her mother during her final months and continues to make for herself when she is gone; the doenjang jjigae (fermented soybean soup) she makes the day after her funeral.

Perhaps the most powerful element of Zauner’s story is how she ties the living memory of her mother to the Korean food she ate as a child and learns to cook in her mother’s absence. Each dish holds a piece of her mother. Each conversation she stumbles through in Korean grasps at her mother. She found a home in her mother’s culture, thus allowing her to embrace that culture as her own.

Zauner’s memoir is striking in many ways, but one of the most profound is how she brings a humanity to her mother that we sometimes struggle to do with a parent. After her mother’s death, she learns more about her than she ever knew while she was alive. She realized how similarly she and her mother saw the world, how their emotional turmoil was inseparable, and how the memory of her mother would continue with her. Even as just a reader and spectator at the sidelines of Zauner’s relationship with her mother, Crying in H Mart feels like a tether between the two that now lives beyond their physical bodies. It was beautiful to read about and I think Zauner did an excellent job memorializing her mother with this book.

This title is also available in the following formats:

Large Print

Libby eBook

Libby eAudiobook

The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elizabeth Tova Bailey

Did you love The Soul of an Octopus by Sy Montgomery? If yes, then you should definitely read The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elizabeth Tova Bailey.

Bailey’s life was forever changed after a vacation where she caught an unknown illness, which quickly snowballed into a bevy of mysterious, chronic, and debilitating conditions. While grieving this change, she was gifted a companion: a wild snail found in the woods near her house. Observing and caring for this snail helped Bailey cope and launched her on a journey to learn more about this underappreciated animal.

This is a book about slowing down, with a thoughtful, lyrical pace to match. The fascination with our tiny neighbors is contagious, with interesting facts throughout helping to balance the author’s poignant emotional journey of being betrayed by her body. Honest, understated, and with a deep appreciation for nature and wildness, this bittersweet book will help you rest and see the world around you more clearly.

It’s also available in large print, so don’t miss out on a great piece of nature writing.

The Big Sick on DVD

Guest blog by Laura

The Big Sick is based on the true story of the early relationship between comedian Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon. Nanjiani and Gordon fall in love, which is a problem because Nanjiani’s religion dictates that he must marry a woman of his faith in an arranged marriage. Gordon becomes seriously ill and falls into a coma shortly after they break up and Nanjiani and her parents are thrust into a tenuous exchange while they watch Gordon’s condition deteriorate.

I’ve had Muslim friends for decades so I am familiar with traditional customs and the cultural schisms that arise on occasion among Muslim children raised in American culture. This movie accurately captured the essence of such a divide.

Nanjiani portrays himself and actress Zoe Kazan portrays Gordon. They have a great onscreen rapport and quickly develop into amiable characters. Zenobia Shroff and Anupam Kher play the role of Nanjiani’s parents. Shroff humorously captures the zeal of an overeager Pakastani/Muslim mother who is persistent in her efforts to play matchmaker. Shroff and Kher deliver one of my favorite scenes in the movie when Nanjiani is leaving for New York.

Holly Hunter and Ray Romano play Gordon’s parents. Hunter is natural in her role of a woman who displays both her ferocity and tenderness as a mother. Romano’s understated, dry humor plays off of Nanjian’s quick and sarcastic wit.

The Secrets of People Who Never Get Sick by Gene Stone

It’s the cold and flu season again – what do you do to combat that “achy, sniffly” feeling? Do you get a flu shot? Swear by chicken soup? Stock up on vitamin C and zinc? Get more ideas in The Secrets of People Who Never Get Sick by Gene Stone which reveals the favorite tricks of people who stay healthy all winter long.

A lot of the “secrets” are pretty common sense – wash your hands, reduce stress, get enough sleep – and some are grounded in tradition – chicken soup, eating garlic, keeping a positive attitude. However, there are a few that are, shall we say, unusual – dunking your head in hydrogen peroxide every morning for instance, or eating dirt. No matter what the secret is, Stone takes a non-judgmental look at it, examining both the scientific and anecdotal evidence for each. And he tries each of these secrets on himself – some have become part of his daily life, some not so much. In the end, Stone asserts that you need to do what’s best for you – what works for one person may not work for another. Your key to success (and good health) lies with two important factors – belief that what you’re doing is working, and consistency. Armed with those facts and some new ideas, you can look forward to your healthiest winter yet!

Frugal Librarian #16: H1N1 sauce

frugallibrarianI wouldn’t recommend slathering pork spare ribs with it, but a hasty palm swab might be in order down for the next few months any time you shake hands, touch doorknobs/railings, or handle money.

But why pay “the man” a hefty price for the brand name Purel?   I found this outstanding recipe for DIY sanitizer!  I mean, who doesn’t have a whole bunch of grain alcohol lying around?

“Why would you want to make your own hand sanitizer when you can pick up a bottle in most stores? Many reasons: It could be cheaper to make in bulk, you get to control the ingredients (which is great for those with allergy issues), and you have the peculiar right to brag about yet another thing you made yourself.
You can earn those eco-friendly DIYer brag rights with instructions from Eco-centric blog, EcoSalon:
In a small bowl, mix ¼ cup each of pure aloe vera gel and grain alcohol with 5 drops of tea tree essential oil. To make it smell less pungent, add 5 drops of your favorite fragrance oil. Using a funnel, pour this blend into a bottle small enough to stash in your purse. (Rinse out an empty tube of makeup or lotion to make use of waste.)”

Might not hurt  to get that flu shot, either.  But if you’re one of those folks that don’t believe in vaccinations, raid grandpa’s still and put some uh that thar Bed Bathtub n’ Beyonder stuff in it.