Mrs Blackwell’s May Reading Log
I don’t create a reading stack at the beginning of each month, so my reading life takes shape as each month progresses. May turned out to be a big month of memoir. I have new insights into the lives of a food critic, a pop-punk megastar, and a fellow booksellers from the other side of the globe.
Here’s what I read in May 2025:
Ordinary Time: Lessons Learned While Staying Put by Annie B. Jones
Annie is a fellow bookshop owner in a small town in the US state of Georgia, and hosts a most excellent bookish podcast, From the Front Porch.
This is not the book I was expecting, but in many ways I enjoyed it more than the book I had imagined it was going to be.
I listened to the audiobook while I waited for my physical copy to arrive and I can now fully endorse both ways of experiencing the book. Annie’s voice is polished through years of experience, and she makes a lovely companions for your walk or commute. The hardcover is slightly shorter than hardbacks typically are, making it surprisingly pleasant to hold while reading.
So, onto the substance. Make no mistake, this more a memoir than a guidebook. It feels like your gentle, introverted best friend committed the contents of their heart and mind to paper so that you could learn what it’s like to inhabit the world as them.
There’s lots in here for existing fans of Annie B. Jones and I hope the book it attracts lots of new readers looking for thoughtful perspectives on a settled, small town life. If you know Annie it will not surprise you that Christianity is a key theme; if not, consider that your, err, trigger warning.
My favourite chapter (no surprises here!) is “A Life Lived with Books”, and I marked this delightful passage from it:
“I read books because, yes, by some twist of fate and act of serendipity, it is my job. I read books because, at their best, they make me better, more empathetic, more socially aware, more in tune to the stranger beside me. They help me imagine a better future, provide answers to my insatiable questions, take me places I’ll never get to go. I read books because they are an easy point of entry to relationship. They spark conversations and make me an enjoyable dinner companion (I hope). Books eliminate my awkwardness, awaken my expertise, and move me forward when I want to stay put. I read books because they fill up my depleted soul and give me renewed energy for a life spent outside the walls of my home and the safe pages of the novels I love.”
Ordinary Time is not available in New Zealand until July, but I have my ways and have secured a few copies early. You can get yours here, or listen to the audiobook through LibroFM.
The Psychology of Money. Timeless Lesson on Wealth, Greed and Happiness by Morgan Housel
Given the title and cover, you’ll probably have an instinctive reaction to whether this book if for you. If your reaction was instinctively negative, I encourage you to reconsider The Psychology of Money.
Like our health, success with money is about our day to day habits over the long term, rather than any one individual decision. Written as 20 story-based chapters, Morgan explains how to understand your money, and make better decisions about it for a lifetime. There’s no shiny objects here, just a whole lot of advice that will probably help you sleep better at night!
From Chapter 7, on Freedom:
“The highest form of wealth is the ability to wake up every morning and say, “I can do whatever I want today.”
People want to become wealthier to make them happier. Happiness is a complicated subject because everyone’s different. But there’s a common denominator in happiness - a universal fuel of joy - it’s that people want to control their lives.
The ability to do what you want, when you want, with who you want, for as long as you want, is priceless. It is the highest dividend money pays.”
Chinese Parents Don’t Say I Love You. A Memoir of Saying the Unsayable with Food by Candice Chung
Candice was a food writer in Sydney and her memoir begins with the her ending a 13-year relationship with a fortune teller. This offbeat detail sets the scene for a joyful work of creative nonfiction.
I laughed out loud as Candice described her Chinese parents fashion evolution. Their transition to retirement athleisure wear making them look “half start-up CEO, and half backpacker.”
The book jumps around a bit in time and context which I know some readers will find jarring, but the thread of relationships and food is consistent. In her chapter ‘Etiquette for a Solo Diner’ she explains:
“The important thing is that the place is open-minded about company. Somewhere you will not be kicked out of just because your companion does not have a physical body, will not eat, or may love food but come from an entirely different era or country.
Do not waste time on finding book-friendly cuisines... A decent napkin is all you need. Simply choose food you don’t have to make eye contact with.”
Something about Candice’s style reminded me of Meg Ryan’s character Kathleen Kelly in You’ve Got Mail and I think this paragraph could have been lifted straight out of the movie. Candice considers the best format for reading while solo dining:
“Of course, all of this is arbitrary if you are reading on a screen. But who’s ever seen a film with a beautiful stranger who risks their heart because they saw someone reading their device efficiently? No. You want strangers to sense you are special in your fantasy independent film.”
Heartburn by Nora Ephron
These thoughts of You’ve Got Mail while reading Candice Chung’s memoir sent me down a YouTube rabbit hole revisiting Nora Ephron movie trailers. It also made me realise that despite Nora has made some of my favourite movies - Julie & Julia, You’ve Got Mail, and Sleepless in Seattle - I’ve never read any of her writing. I put that straight with Heartburn.
The story is not-so-loosly based on Nora’s second marriage to journalist Carl Bernstein - who was one of the reporter to break the Watergate scandal. Carl had an affair with a British diplomat while Nora (or the book’s character Rachel Samstat) was seven months pregnant and the story charts that affair and the eventual demise of their marriage.
First published in 1983 this book is almost as old as I am, but other than a few technicalities around air travel and technology, this story didn’t feel dated to me.
Air by John Boyne
This is the fourth book in John Boyne’s ‘Elements’ series. I raced through the first three books in January (here’s what I had to say about Water, Earth and Fire) each one is centred on a single character, with peripheral characters providing the lead for each subsequent book.
In Air, we meet Aaron Umber - a minor character from the book Fire - who is now a middle-aged Dad, living in Sydney with his son Emmet. His son’s mother is Rebecca who was a minor character from the first book Water and the story appears to be about why Rebecca has disappeared from their lives and the consequences for Aaron and Emmet.
Air is set mostly inside airports and aeroplanes, which I thought was an interesting way to contain a story. This book had less suspense than the first three and I saw the big twist coming this time in this one. However, I still thought this was a satisfying conclusion to the series.
Fahrenheit-182 by Mark Hoppus
About twice a year there is a temporary lull in my reading schedule. I haven’t got anything on by bedside table that I’m really excited to read, so I look around the shop and try to pick something that’s a bit outside my usual programming.
My brother and his friends were fans of Mark Hoppus’ band Blink 182, and the song’s All the Small Things and What’s My Age Again loomed so large over my life in 1999 I thought I’d give this memoir a try.
As is traditional for a celebrity memoir it charts Mark’s childhood, the establishment of the band, their rise to massive fame and popularity, the fights, the band breakup, through to eventually reconciliation and reformation. For me the interesting part of the book was Mark’s cancer journey and I think this book could be a good read for men - in particular - in their 40s going through a major health issue. In a way that most other celebrities couldn’t, Mark manages to combine 🍆 jokes and cancer for some light relief.
Until the end of June you can use code: MAY2025 for 10% off in stock titles mentioned in Millie's video.
See you again in June!
