Hello,

I absolutely love, love, love this book-jacket collage by writer Michael Chabon, a recreation of the “Science Fiction & Fantasy” section of his favorite childhood bookstore during the years 1972-1980. So imaginative, so creative, so beautiful. I love the way this project looks; I love the way it celebrates the style of the cover art of the past; I love it as an exercise in nostalgia and connecting to earlier experiences; I love it as a reader who often looks back on her own reading history; I love using it as a source of new books to read.

In fact, I love it so much I’m terrified by my own impulse to create my own version. For a long time, I’ve told my family that I wanted to open “The Only Good Books Bookstore” that would stock only truly good books. This would be a way to do that! But I can imagine spending countless hours on it…when I could be reading and writing actual books. I’ve already spent a looooot of time perusing Michael Chabon’s virtual shelves. I hadn’t thought of Philip José Farmer’s To Your Scattered Bodies Go for decades, but when I saw that cover, I remembered it in a flash.

Onward,

5 Things Making Me Happy

This painting has puzzled me. What’s up with Mrs. Dale—is she a vampire? Guy Pene du Bois, “Mr. and Mrs. Chester Dale Dine Out.”

I can’t resist a tips list, and I especially can’t resist a tips list about creativity—so I was so interested to read this New York Times list of six tips from comedian, writer, and actor Mike Birbiglia. It’s from 2016, but no less relevant in 2023.

New bucket-list item: The next time I publish a book, I want to have an outfit that matches the book jacket. Ann Patchett matches her novel Tom Lake, and if I remember correctly, KJ Dell’Antonia has a pair of cowboy boots inspired by her novel In Her Boots.

Ever since we were little, Elizabeth and I have wondered what Victorian smelling salts smelled like. I tried them as part of my research for Life in Five Senses, and I recently caught Elizabeth’s reaction to them on camera. A fun experiment that I don’t think we’ll repeat. I love seeing people sharing stories in the comments about finding smelling salts in their grandparents’ medicine cabinets, and how they’re used for various jobs. Fascinating!

My sister Elizabeth and I, and our children, went to spend a week in Kansas City with our parents, and I got to listen to the summer sound of cicadas. I never thought much about that sound, until Elizabeth told me how much she loved it (not everyone does; cicadas are very loud). As so often happens with me, once someone else points out how much pleasure they take in a sensory experience, my own pleasure becomes much greater.

Updates

• This month’s Jump-Start in the Happier™ app is about “Reframing Productivity.” Starting this Sunday, August 13th, get seven days of tips to help you prioritize your aims and clear the space you need to achieve them. You’ll practice saying no to some things in order to say yes to others. It’s free to join—click here to download the Happier app.

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