Reading, writing...that's what I do.

REVIEW OF THE CORRESPONDENT by VIRGINIA EVANS

Novel writing is always about human joy, human grief. And novels often use tropes to organize content and please the reader. Definition: A trope is a common or recurring motif, theme, or device in storytelling. It also refers to any figurative use of language—such as a metaphor, simile, or irony—where words express a meaning different from their literal sense.

Reading Virginia Evan’s THE CORRESPONDENT, the cover quotes Ann Patchett: “A cause for celebration.” In my humble opinion…that depends. It took me a long time to read and finish this novel. I read another (Elizabeth Strout’s THE THINGS WE NEVER SAY) during that time.

But yes, I finally did get to the end of the correspondent, a series of letter shared by the main character, Sybil Van Antwerp, who is the correspondent, with various other letter writers who come and go.

All writers use tropes. In fact, you might be creating a novel right now and not realize that the amazing plot  line you are working with contains a trope, one that has been used for centuries by other writers. Examples…the long, lost parent, the dead child, the secret lover, the dying major character. 

And what is a motif or theme…basically it is human experience. When you sit down to write a novel, you are writing about love and grief, surprise and longing. These are human qualities and they surface in our lives when we encounter love, death, abuse, abandonment, success, and unforgivable pain.

It would be wrong of me to state right out what the major TROPE in The Correspondent is. You have to read much of the novel to find it, which is interesting, because many writers use a trope at the very beginning, and then expand on it to bring the novel to a its close. Evans reveals this almost at the conclusion of her work. It’s as if she is driving us down a twisting highway, allowing us to meet so many people in her life, when the one person she longs for who we know nothing about is finally revealed.

Maybe that is why Evan’s Sybil is THE CORRESPONDENT, her name another interesting choice: Sybil is of Greek origin and translates to “prophetess” or “oracle”. In ancient Greek and Roman mythology, sibyls were prophetic women believed to interpret messages from the gods and possess divine knowledge of the future.

The Correspondent is 281 pages of letters, characters and indecision, the major cause of all being revealed at the end. Different? Useful? It worked for this new and now admired writer. Let me know if it works for you. 

Info On Supporting the Celiac Safety Act

A friend online asked that we call our representatives in Washington, regarding the CELIAC SAFETY ACT. I immediately offered to write about this condition. 

DEFINITION: Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder. When a person with this disease eats gluten, which is a protein found in wheat, barley and rye, the small intestine is often damaged. Such damage causes malabsorption, leading to symptoms such as diarrhea, bloating, and fatigue. The basic treatment is a strict, lifelong gluten-free diet. 

 Though symptoms can vary widely, they often include digestive issues, unexplained anemia, osteoporosis, or an itchy rash (dermatitis herpetiformis). In children, the condition may cause stunted growth and delayed puberty. Left untreated, it can lead to malnutrition and other autoimmune conditions.

DIAGNOSIS: How Is Celiac Disease Diagnosed? 

To insure physical safely and accurate results, a diagnosis usually means that two medical procedures have been completed before the diagnosis is definite, and before the patient starts a gluten-free diet.  

• Blood Tests: Screening for specific antibodies (such as the tTG-IgA test).

• Endoscopy: If blood tests are positive, a gastroenterologist performs an endoscopy to take a tissue sample (biopsy) from the clients’s small intestine to confirm the damage and thus the condition: Celiac Disease. . 

Health Issues that indicate a need to testing:

• Digestive: Abdominal pain, bloating, chronic diarrhea, constipation, nausea, and vomiting.
• Nutrient deficiencies: Malabsorption can lead to iron-deficiency anemia, low vitamin B12, and calcium deficiencies. Thus weight loss.  
• Bone and joint pain: Long-term poor absorption can lead to weak bones, osteopenia, or osteoporosis.
• herpetiformis dermatitis: an intensely itchy, blistering skin rash that often appears on the elbows, knees, and buttocks.
• Systemic and mental symptoms: chronic fatigue, headaches, depression, anxiety, and in some cases, infertility

MANAGEMENT: How to manage Celiac Disease

Managing celiac disease requires eliminating all sources of gluten from one’s diet. Even trace amounts can trigger an immune response. 

Currently, the only gluten ingredient required to be listed on labels is wheat, because it’s also a major food allergy.

But people with Celiac (which is a condition that can severely damage the small intestine) are sensitive to all gluten — so not only wheat, but also barley and rye, and a long list of ingredients derived from those things (e.g. brewer’s yeast, malt, farro, graham flour, some soy sauce and “natural flavors”).

If the SAFETY ACT passes, it would mean all gluten would have to be declared — a real game-changer for folks with Celiac. Everyone should be able to EAT without worrying the food is destroying their body.

Please read and consider helping. Look up your reps and write to them. And thanks for reading, because when this reaction occurs, patients frequently experience a wide range of gastrointestinal and non-digestive problems, including

• Digestive issues: Abdominal pain, bloating, chronic diarrhea, constipation, nausea, and vomiting.
• Nutrient deficiencies: Malabsorption can lead to iron-deficiency anemia, low vitamin B12, and calcium deficiencies.
• Bone and joint pain: Long-term poor absorption can lead to weak bones, osteopenia, or osteoporosis.
• Dermatitis herpetiformis: An intensely itchy, blistering skin rash that often appears on the elbows, knees, and buttocks.
• Systemic and mental symptoms: Chronic fatigue, headaches, depression, anxiety, and in some cases, infertility

Also, here are some resources, recipes, and guidance on navigating a gluten-free lifestyle that you can consult:

• Beyond Celiac

• Celiac Disease Foundation

Elizabeth Strout’s Latest Novel: THE THINGS WE NEVER SAY

Elizabeth Strout is ONE AMAZING WRITER. Starting with her novels, AMY and ISABLE, ABIDE WITH ME, she went on to create OLIVE KITTERIDGE, which won her the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 2009. But even if she had not had that prestigious start, Strout would have forged ahead, a village of her characters constantly speaking to her, enabling her to keep writing one amazing book after another. I have read all of them.

Her most recent award, THE STORY PRIZE, was given for her novel: ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE…a collection of interconnected short stories set in Amgash, Illinois—the imagined rural, impoverished hometown of imagined author Lucy Barton from Strout’s, MY NAME IS LUCY BARTON. 

The book introduces us to new characters, revealing why Lucy left the town and its confining culture to move to New York, where she created a new life and began to write stories analyzing and revealing the memories of these people and their circumstances. When Strout writes from the point of view of Lucy Barton, there is a sadness and loss of connection that Strout might have experienced in her own life. Those novels include: MY NAME IS LUCY BARTON, and TELL ME EVERYTHING, LUCY BY THE SEA, THE BURGESS BOYS. But with the love of her older characters still fresh and alive, Stout then gave us: OLIVE AGAIN, and OH,WILLIAM.

Now in this latest book, she is exploring and developing characters in a totally different environment, but with the same interior writing. We truly KNOW Strout’s characters, because she slowly peels away the elements they are hiding: their fears, mistakes, longings, and confusions. And so…

THE THINGS WE NEVER SAY 

A brief summary: The novel’s main character is Arti Dam, a history teacher, liked and honored by his students, who lives and works in costal Massachusetts, but who secretly fights his personal fears, brought on by feelings of isolation, despair and the occasional desire for suicide. We gradually learn that these events are related to past sorrows in his life. Arti might be named for the “art” of finding one’s way through sorrow and worry, through memories that create confusion. Because what is life? What is MY LIFE? And most particularly, how can Arti get closer to his estranged son, after an accident that caused a death?

And yes, we might admire a character who approaches each day with the desire to communicate with his students. But that cannot heal the worries and the fears that Artie is struggling with. Secrets make people fearful. Secrets make people lonely. Maybe this amazing writer is speaking to many of us….how are you doing in life today? What fears are you forced to hide? What truths are you denying? And if you are denying your individual truths…why are you doing so?

Reading always helps us SEE our own true selves. At least I believe this. Thus, maybe Elizabeth Strout has a message for all of us….because this novel is also set against the backdrop of the 2024 election. Wow! 

Let’s ask ourselves…what things do we need to say, do we need to share with those we love? And do we need to share them NOW?  A question to consider. 

Thanks for reading.  

MISSING SADIE MAE

When I was growing up, there really wasn’t room in the bank account for our mother, Jinni, raising three children on her own….to provide us with a pet. But regardless of our slim funds, Jinni always managed to keep us happy. There was the occasional bowl of gold fish, and our turtle we named IKE. But being desperate to be like the other children in our neighborhood, we devised a way to take Ike out onto Wood Street, where he soon after died, probably because you can’t pull a slow turtle down a sidewalk and expect him to enjoy it. 

But then, after awhile, there was a major change, there was PETER FRITZ, a gold-colored canary. We set up a wire birdcage in the corner of our dining room, opposite where Jinni had her typewriter and table of the necessary things one needs type insurance policies and thus raise we three children. 

This was a very big deal for Jinni to allow us to have this PET. All our friends had dogs–but Jinni made it very clear that dogs cost money and would require more work on our part. SO…we settled for the bird…this after Bill and I tried to walk a turtle down Wood Street by tying a string around his neck…truly not a cruel act on our part….we just desperately WANTED A PET.

And then our dream came true, we had this lovely canary, we all eagerly awaiting a lovely song to proceed from his throat. But maybe Peter Fritz (named because I wanted to call him Peter, and my older brother John wanted to name him after the musical conductor Fritz Reiner, a common thread in our family, using names that no one else would ever use, one gold fish named Igor, after Igor Stravinsky…) But this is totally okay! We  were always a music loving family, my father having one of the first phonographs that allowed him to also record our voices. And this became a true miracle, his encouraging voice also being  recorded (though I refused to speak)…so that when our father died a year later…wow, we had his amazing deep voice recorded. But that death also meant that when I came home from high school and found Peter Fritz lying on the floor of his bird cage, I called my mother at her office, begging her to do something. But there was nothing to do. The bird had died, but even so, we will offer our profound human love to a bird, a cat, and very often a dog, who we somehow believe will be with us forever.

And then….much later….there was Sadie Mae, the beloved pet of our daughter Christie and her family…a poole mix, the first dog I ever truly loved my entire life…Sadie Mae, who died this week. And now we are all missing her, remembering how sweet she was, how protective she was and so caring of Christie’s children. A dog who learned about love from her family, and thus from the very beginning showed us how she LOVED HER PEOPLE, her people always loving her back. Sadie creating a game with me when she discovered a newly purchased bag of apples and sent them rolling along Christie’s kitchen floor. It became a game that I would struggle to win. Sadie loved it. And the time I had brought dark chocolate to the house, and somehow she got up on the counter and I found her trying to eat it. This required a trip to the vet…but we were fortunate and Sadie was okay. 

Sadie of the LONG LIFE. Sadie of the GOOD LIFE. She will be missed forever….puppy, charmer, lover, and giver into her old age. And if you know the phrase A Dog’s Life to be one of goodness and love….Sadie certainly had A Dog’s Best Life.   

Mama, Did He Take a Bus?

My brother Bill Pfordresher died this year, and now that it is Father’s Day once again, I remember this story. It is an eternal story, part of our family, part of our lives.  

We were a family of five…until my father died of a massive coronary at the age of 45, leaving my mother Jinni with a six, three and three-month old, Bill. And though this was truly part of his very early life, Bill gradually learned about fathers, and thus began to ask why he didn’t have one…later, hearing more family conversations, asking if he did have a father, had he gone to heaven? Certainly, Bill was hearing those words in our home, and being wise for his age, only three or four, he was trying to figure things out.

So one day (our mother said she was ironing in the kitchen) Bill came in with a question: “Mama, did he take a bus?”  

In our family, the story is legend, because our wise and amazing mother Jinni, knew exactly what Bill was asking. She also knew the importance of truth…that it is linked to trust. And that very day, Jinni did what she had done with John, who was six when our father died, and later with me who had been only three…she drove Bill to the cemetery, doing her best to explain heaven, death, sorrow and love…loving attempts to help a child understand where his father had gone.  

REUNIONS  

And now it is only days since Bill died and left us…the youngest of the three, life unpredictable, life always a pattern of sorrow and joy. Surely Jinni our mother, and Al our father….were there to great him. Surely, Bill no longer has questions, his body free of the weight of illness…his new life one of peace and understanding. 

Bill did not take a bus…but after enduring illness and death…he is now free to live beyond human bonds. We miss him, cry for him. He taught us how to love, to have faith, to sing when you are sad, to always look for joy and happiness. 

Bill was a gift of joy to Rita, his wife, to me, my brother John, my mother and so many others. Now he is with both of his parents and many friends who went before him. I like to think there are guitars in heaven, Bill will once again finding freedom and joy as his fingers create new and heavenly music. 

PS This post is only normal in length…it being impossible to include all aspects of Bill’s amazing and wonderful life.