Initial Impressions: That Distant Land, by Wendell Berry - August 2022

[Diane, "Miss Scarlett"]

I'm glad I read Sara's post because I was getting ready to say the same thing.

[Sue]

I just finished It Wasn't Me

This is another favorite but these are all so good it's almost pointless to say that. Each one becomes a favorite until the next one you read.

I was happy to see that Elton and Mary were admired by Old Jack and Wheeler. I was thrilled to see that the couple was overcoming their circumstances.

Old Jack's daughter Clara was a disgrace to ignore his wishes the way she did.

And Wheeler, what an amazing person and amazing friend. The way he described the paying it forward concept was beautiful.

[Diane, "Miss Scarlett"]

Sue, "The Memories of Old Jack" will give you Uncle Jack's whole story. It is another fabulous novel, and you get more of a sense of the early days of Port William.

[Cathrine ☯️]

I finished this morning. I loved my Port William visit.

[Lori]

Jealous of the finishers. Still taking my time and enjoying every minute.

[Sue]

Thanks for the info, Diane. I'm definitely going to have to put Memories of Old Jack near the top for next year's reading,

[Cathrine ☯️]

Holy Smokes! I have 5 unread Berrys. What a nice thing to ponder and look forward to.

[Sara]

Just finished "It Wasn't Me". This is the third time I have read it, and I cried every single time. Old Jack is one of my favorite characters, and I want to stomp Clara into the ground for not recognizing his worth and honoring his memory. I also love Wheeler and the explanation to Elton of what it is to be in the membership, part of the line of good men, that leads backward and forward through friendship recognized for the priceless gift that it is.

[Lori]

I’m half way through that story now. I’ve had too many distractions today. As, I can’t wait to get back to it tonight.

I think Sue is right. Every story is the favorite until you read the next one.

[Sherril]

I have loved reading all of the comments above. I look forward to reading many of the books mentioned, as well as this one.

[Sara]

Can't resist some music that goes with Berry.

https://youtu.be/EB5mHI4WXn8

[Connie]

That's a gorgeous song about getting the strength to start again after adversity, and Alison Krauss has the voice of an angel. Thanks for sharing, Sara.

The lyrics are online at:

https://www.google.com/search?client=...

[Sara]

Glad you enjoyed it, Connie. She does have "the voice of an angel".

[Connie]

Sara (taking a break) wrote: "Glad you enjoyed it, Connie. She does have "the voice of an angel"."

Yes, we have several of her CDs with Union Station.

[Sue]

Great song choice, Sara. I love Allison Krauss, especially with Union station. When she collaborates with other artists, she always makes them better.

[Julie]

Started this today, and so far, I loved A Consent with the adorable couple Tol Proudfoot and Miss Minnie, the schoolteacher!

[Sara]

Sue wrote: "Great song choice, Sara. I love Allison Krauss, especially with Union station. When she collaborates with other artists, she always makes them better."

I agree, she knows how to blend with anyone--even artists I am not fond of I can love when she teams with them.

[Terry]

I am way behind on this one. I seem to have more time for listening (mostly drive time) than hours for actually reading.

[Sara]

I think you accidentally posted in the wrong thread, Franky, but you are certainly right about Kelton.

[Franky]

Sara (taking a break) wrote: "I think you accidentally posted in the wrong thread, Franky, but you are certainly right about Kelton."

I just realized that...oops. I deleted and put it on the right thread.

[Terry]

Tol and Miss Minnie are indeed darling people! I just finished The Solemn Boy and think it is my favorite so far. Despite the melancholy ending, I found myself laughing several times throughout the story. Berry is very good at juxtaposing one thought or sentence improbably against another, and could cite several examples. I loved when Berry remarks that Tol’s dog “Pokerface had a good sense of humor, but he did not appreciate sarcasm.” That sentence, among others, made me laugh.

I am still trailing way behind this group, but will continue to make steady progress.

[Diane, "Miss Scarlett"]

Better late than never is our motto. There is no wrong time to read Wendell Berry.

[Sara]

I love Berry's sense of humor too, Terry. It is that old-time wit that I remember from my childhood. Your quote made me laugh all over again.

[Terry]

Sometimes I just have to laugh at myself! It took me till exactly halfway through the book to notice that each chapter has a date after the chapter title, and those dates are in chronological order. So there was some logic, after all, to the ordering of the stories.

[Cathrine ☯️]

Terry I did the same thing with a book about a month ago. It made me wonder just how much I miss while reading 🙄

[Diane, "Miss Scarlett"]

As far as I know, this is the only book that does that. I found it helpful.

[Sara]

This book is unique in that it is a gathering of the stories to put them into some chronology--a thing Berry never did while writing.

[Sue]

Terry, even though all of the Berry fans say the order doesn't matter, I like the way it lists his novels in the table of contents in the chronological order. I think I may follow that order when I get around to the novels and include a re-read of the stories that precede the books.

I'm so glad you are enjoying this and falling in love with Tol and Minnie too. I love Berry's humor also. I also love how he handles sad things because there is always a warm and comforting element with it. I already miss this book and these characters!

[Lori]

For Sue and Terry who are interested in chronological order, I found a website dedicated to Wendell Berry but it’s maintained by a fan named Tom Murphy as a place where he has gathered resources about Berry and his works. In case you didn’t know, Berry is not a proponent of computers and writes everything by hand with a pencil that his wife transcribes for him on a typewriter.

Tom Murphy has put together a chronological list:
https://brtom.typepad.com/wberry/work...

[Terry]

Wow— that is one long intimidating list, Lori! I am not that fanatical about reading books in the order they are written. But in a collection of stories, I just think an author puts them in a preferred order for a reason. In this case, they are ordered by the date of the story’s time. Also, if books are numbered in a series, I like yo start with number one.

I guess I’d like to hear which books are the member’s faves, although I think a few people have already mentioned Jayber Crow. Since he is such a prolific writer, it is hard to know where to start.

[Sara]

Jayber Crow is still my favorite and it was my first. Hannah Coulter is a close second. You cannot go wrong though, Terry.

[Lori]

Same for me - ditto what Sara said!!

[Terry]

Thanks, Sara and Lori! They are both now on my radar!

[Cathrine ☯️]

Add me to that list. Jayber was pretty darn special followed by HC

[Sue]

That is a pretty daunting list, Lori! I like that he wrote everything out by hand. It likely contributes to the intimacy in his stories.

[Diane, "Miss Scarlett"]

I ditto Sara, Lori and Cathrine, but will throw The Memory of Old Jack into the mix.

[Terry]

Thanks, Diane snd Cathrine. Those three should make a good start!

[Libby]

I'm well into this one, my second Berry book. My first one was The Memory of Old Jack. I'm enjoying this one equally as well as I did the first one. I'm listening to the audiobook as well as reading a library loan, alternating between the two and occasionally both at the same time.

[Sara]

Not surprised you are enjoying it, Libby. Berry is really a special author.