Over the course of the past half a year, my focus and interest have shifted towards housekeeping, a subject I had previously shown no enthusiasm or aptitude for, according to my former roommates. I have meticulously planned out cleaning schedules, spent an excessive amount of time contemplating the merits of different fabrics, and have even found joy in loading the dishwasher. In fact, I have gone so far as to describe it as “fun”. I attribute and hold accountable one book for this transformation: Cheryl Mendelson’s Home Comforts. Initially published in 1999, this unexpected bestseller is packed with nearly 900 pages of practical advice, ranging from the proper technique to wash dishes to the use of furniture paste wax. What captivated me was the captivating introductory essay, in which Mendelson, a novelist, professor, and lawyer, argues for the significance and dignity of housekeeping—an activity that brings life to one’s home, transforming it into a miniature society with its own unique ways and rhythms. Though I remain an erratic housekeeper, I am now convinced that housekeeping is both an art and a science, a venture that extends beyond maintaining cleanliness.
The following seven books also delve into the experience of becoming engrossed in a skill or craft and provide insights into how seemingly mundane activities can offer valuable lessons about contemporary living. Whether it’s playing sports, learning a foreign language, or engaging in any other pursuit, these books suggest that by closely examining any human endeavor, we uncover lessons about our connection to the natural world, history, other cultures, and even our own bodies. Furthermore, they vividly capture the satisfaction derived from these pursuits, tempting readers to explore new hobbies and expand their sense of capability.
Vintage
In Other Words by Jhumpa Lahiri
In 2012, Lahiri relocated to Rome and made the decision to solely read and write in Italian to fully immerse herself in the language. This bilingual collection of reflections portrays her love affair with the Romance language, from the initial longing she felt upon hearing it during a trip to Florence to the two decades she dedicated to studying through language classes, tutoring, and rigorous self-teaching. She openly admits that the path to fluency is a perpetual test. Frequently mixing up similar words and struggling with verb tenses, she acknowledges that she will never achieve the same level of proficiency as she has in English. Nevertheless, Italian reintroduces a sense of mystery, delight, and intensity to her reading experience. According to Lahiri, every page seems to be veiled in mist, and the obstacles she encounters stimulate her curiosity. The unfamiliarity of each new term feels like discovering a treasure. Beneath her sense of wonder lies a deeper argument—immersing oneself in new skills purely out of love is inherently hopeful and transformative. She writes, “The more I feel imperfect, the more I feel alive.”
Read: Learn a foreign language before it’s too late
Duke University Press
Beyond a Boundary by C. L. R. James
James, the Trinidadian scholar, is well-known for his Marxist writings and his advocacy for Caribbean independence. However, his obsession with cricket remains relatively obscure. James spent a lifetime engrossed in the sport; he disappointed his family by prioritizing cricket over his education, played for a first-class club in Trinidad, and later reported on cricket as a journalist in England. He even credits the game for sparking his political activism, stating that cricket had unknowingly thrust him into politics due to the class and race tensions that unfolded within the socially stratified clubs on the island. Beyond a Boundary argues that cricket cannot be understood without considering its historical, social, and cultural context. In its most ambitious moments, the book asserts cricket’s foundational role in British history and its status as a visual and dramatic art form. Even to those unfamiliar with the sport, James conveys its richness, explaining how a batter’s style reflects their individual personality as well as society’s priorities. The game effortlessly connects its followers with the wider world.
New York Review Books
Onward and Upward in the Garden by Katharine S. White
White openly admits to being a “careless”, “lazy”, and “amateur” gardener. However, her collected gardening columns for The New Yorker reveal a critical eye and an exquisite taste. As the magazine’s first fiction editor, responsible for publishing works by eminent writers such as E. B. White, her future husband, White delivers sharp assessments of gardening books and seed catalogs from 1958 to 1970. These assessments go beyond analyzing the prose to evaluating ease of use, typography, paper quality, and color reproduction. Sprinkled throughout the columns are glimpses of a life immersed in flowers. During winter, her house is filled with plants, and she worries about the placement of cyclamens and the temperature of African violets. White even shares a comical incident involving her attempt to grow lilies in her frozen garden in Maine, resulting in her and her eager family attacking the flower bed with a crowbar. Her opinions on bearded irises, gourds, dahlias, and gladioli are expressed with such charm and charisma that it’s impossible not to daydream about what my own garden could look like.
Read: The healing power of garden class
Flatiron
The Shepherd’s Life by James Rebanks
Imagine the lush landscapes of England’s Lake District, and poets like Wordsworth and the Romanticists might come to mind, eulogizing untouched wilderness. James Rebanks, a shepherd from a family with deep roots in the region, contradicts these poetic notions of his homeland. He asserts that every acre of land in the Lake District has been shaped by the actions of people over the past ten thousand years. In his thought-provoking memoir, Rebanks paints a captivating picture of the care and maintenance required when it comes to shepherding. He vividly describes the coordinated efforts of shepherds as they gather their sheep from the mountaintops each summer and the anxiety-inducing task of helping ewes give birth to lambs in the spring, sometimes necessitating the use of bare hands. As the story progresses, the decision of which rams to mate with the ewes takes on the weight of a high-stakes artistic choice. Rebanks positions his portrayal of traditional farming as a counterpoint to modern life, viewing his experience studying at Oxford as largely “pointless and empty”. His compelling critique invites readers to seek out rooted and time-honored ways of living.
The Shepherd’s Life: Modern Dispatches From an Ancient Landscape by James Rebanks
Vintage
What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami
This timeless memoir follows Haruki Murakami as he trains for the 2005 New York City Marathon and reflects on a life dedicated to running. Though the book borders on self-help, with chapter titles like “Suffering Is Optional” and “Most of What I Know About Writing Fiction I Learned by Running Every Day,” there is an overarching sense of resigned optimism that sets its tone apart. Murakami writes, “Life is basically unfair,” but he believes it is possible to find a sense of fairness even within its unfairness. On race day, things may unfold beyond one’s control, just as his aging body and slower finishing times are beyond his influence, not to mention the stubborn and avoidant personality he carries along like an old suitcase. This book refrains from advocating that everyone should take up running (in fact, Murakami finds it pointless torture to force people into it). However, the scenes of him jogging through Kauai or Cambridge, Massachusetts, lost in the serenity of crisp morning air and the rhythmic interplay of his footsteps, breathing, and heartbeat are persuasive on their own.
Read: The wisdom of running a 2,189-mile marathon
What I Talk About When I Talk About Running: A Memoir by Haruki Murakami
A Degree of Mastery by Annie Tremmel Wilcox
The initial section of A Degree of Mastery plunges readers headfirst into the world of book conservation, and it is truly mesmerizing. Wilcox takes us through the process of carefully removing the spine from a deteriorating book printed in 1817, dismantling the binding, and then washing the pages in a bath of deionized water. With meticulous precision, she repairs ripped pages and seamlessly reassembles the book. Her dedication to her craft is truly inspiring.
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