Eat, Read, and Be Mommy

That pretty much sums up my reasons for abandoning y’all for the past week, because I have been both legitimately busy–especially during my daylight, capable-of-coherent-writing hours–and emotionally overwhelmed. The busy has been a variety of things, like PTA business and meetings, appointments, and errands; the emotional load comes from my daughter’s struggles with her mental health. You can’t help worrying about the people you love, and that worry steals some of the emotional energy you normally put into other things…like blog posts. I’ve gotten so behind, however, that I’m persevering today–which is easier to do after several better days in a row for my girlie.

(On the other hand, it’s 9:30 and my mind is winding down, so you get a relatively quick and easy book review so that I can switch laundry, do 10 minutes on the exercise bike, shower, and go to bed. Wahoo!)

My kids and I actually listened to Sharon Creech’s Saving Winslow on a road trip months and months ago (it may actually have been a year or more). Since I always feel like I miss a few touches when I’m driving, however, I borrowed a physical copy from Britt that’s been sitting in my room ever since; I unearthed it the other day and, on a whim, decided to just listen to it again and return Britt’s copy this week. (Yay for things leaving my house!) I did listen to it, I’m reviewing it now, and I’ll for sure see her next week, so that works, right?

Anyway. Saving Winslow is longer than, say, Creech’s Love That Dog, but it’s still short enough for the drive to Kanosh; in a way, it reads like Patricia MacLachlan, only less word- and more animal-oriented. Winslow is a newborn donkey with no mother to care for him, and Louie the boy who is determined to save him. There is (sparely drawn) effort and struggle and triumph, both of life over death and of hope over grief, and ultimately Winslow succeeds in winning over the people who matter. The book’s conclusion manages to feel both hopeful and real, and I would expect lovers of both animals and stories with plenty of emotional nuance will enjoy this one.