December is a busy time, filled with lots of get togethers and sharing and celebration. But it can also serve as a time for reflection as we face the reality of another year come and just about gone. For some, it’s ending on a high note, while others find themselves in a season of despair. Let’s check out some books on endings as we bring another year to a close.
“The World Keeps Ending, and the World Goes On” by Franny Choi is a collection of poetry that presents a sharp, but often tender look at the multiple ways the world has ended and yet manages to continue on. Her writing delves into the challenges humanity, particularly those on the margins, has faced. This includes living (and dying) through a global pandemic, the painful legacy of racism in this country, which the Black Lives Matter movement has illuminated and the far-ranging horrors of the atomic bomb dropped long ago in Hiroshima. Though heavy with the despairs we face, Choi’s poems help lighten the emotional load with glimpses of hope: the life that emerges from a landscape decimated by an atomic bomb and the powerful legacies left by those taking collective action.
A work colleague turned me onto the podcast “Terrible, Thanks for Asking,” which is the darkly funny response many of us probably could be giving when asked the ubiquitous “How are you doing?” question. The podcast, hosted by Nora McInerny, chronicles the stories of people who have gone through hard times and the ways they made it through. McInerny is no stranger to grief, having lost her husband and father within a few months of each other, and she explores this experience in the book “No Happy Endings: A Memoir.” McInerny’s writing reflects on grief’s complexity and on how we can live in a way that embraces both the ending we are facing and the new beginnings that will come after.
For some, spirituality serves as a guide and support through challenging times. “How to Begin When Your World Is Ending: A Spiritual Field Guide to Joy Despite Everything” by Molly Phinney Baskette explores one woman’s journey through a harrowing medical diagnosis with only her faith to light her way. As she works through a somewhat unique health struggle, her writing manages to illustrate universal truths we all can relate to no matter what our spiritual beliefs may be. Even in those darkest of moments when all hope feels lost, we can find the strength to endure through even the worst seasons of life.
Melanie Cantor explores the idea of facing your ending in the fictional tale, “Death and Other Happy Endings” and how an ending can present an opportunity to face some of the realities we have tried to avoid. Jennifer learns she has a terminal rare blood disorder and only three months left to live. She decides to write letters to three of the most important and challenging people in her life — her cheating ex-husband, an ex-boyfriend who often let her down and her estranged sister. With her life coming to a close, she decides to let them all know how she feels about the relationships she had with them. In the process, Jennifer learns some life lessons, faces several painful truths and even finds some joy.
“The Last Days of the Dinosaurs: An Asteroid, Extinction, and the Beginning of Our World” by Riley Black examines probably one of the most famous endings in the world. The end of the dinosaurs helped usher in an era that would allow new creatures to flourish and eventually evolve into humanity. Although it is nonfiction, the book often reads like a novel with scientific fact interwoven into tales capturing the experiences and imagined perspectives of various creatures who were living (and dying) during the turbulent period of extinction. It’s a reminder of how endings can often be the very thing needed for a beginning to occur.
Let’s close this out with a fun look at “the fairy-tale ending.” In “Princesses Behaving Badly: Real Stories From History — Without the Fairy-Tale Endings,” Linda Rodriguez McRobbie explores the fascinating lives of several mostly forgotten princesses and queens through a lens that is a blend of pop culture and history, often forced to imagine the real course of events since the historical record is often a bit sparse on women. The book is divided into seven sections, with stories about women who were warriors, usurpers, schemers, survivors, partiers, floozies and madwomen. Endings are often sad, but this author offers a look at women who tried out something different for a change, which may leave readers smiling.
