How admirable the promptness and persistence of [the Magi’s] faith! Their eyes no sooner beheld the miraculous star shine brilliantly before them than they set out, hastening their steps, eager to arrive at the place to which the star was calling them…And now let us return in earnest to ourselves and see whether we have a faith prompt and persistent like the faith we have just admired in the Magi. Therefore, let us look to see if we have the same openness to the inspirations of grace, which is really our guiding star, the lamp that enlightens us with a truly divine light.
The above meditation from Blessed Basil Moreau in yesterday’s Magnificat is such a beautiful reflection for Epiphany and the start of a new year! It’s exciting to think forward to what “inspirations of grace” and guiding stars may appear, in various forms, in 2024.
The stars God sends my way often take the shape of books that demand my attention! It’s exciting, when I put together my annual “top reads” list, to think ahead and wonder what authors and titles may crop up in the year to come. Perhaps it will be an author who’s been hovering in the wings for some time, or perhaps it will be an entirely new title…
I already have some wonderful 2024 tomes lined up in the books I received for Christmas! My brother Porthos gave me a beautiful book which I had no idea existed - The Tale of Snow White and the Widow Queen by Jonathan Pageau. Apparently it’s new and slated to be the first in a series of fairytale retellings. I read Snow White over my Christmas breakfast and thoroughly enjoyed it. The illustrations by Heather Pollington are wonderfully rich, and the familiar characters and tropes are arranged in lovely and meaningful ways. I found this podcast where Jonathan Pageau breaks down the symbolism of the story which was so interesting. I’m excited to see more from this series!
One bookish thread continuing from the old year to the new year has been Edith Wharton: I visited her home The Mount in Lenox, MA this past fall. I did film some video clips which I’m hoping to edit and upload later this month, so stay tuned! When I spotted stunning reprints of Wharton’s Italian Villas and Their Gardens and Decoration of Houses at The Mount, I had to add them to my Christmas list, but the Edith nonfiction I’ve been reading during this snowy January weekend has been her autobiography, A Backward Glance.
When I was young it used to seem to me that the group in which I grew up was like an empty vessel into which no new wine would ever again be poured. Now I see that one of its uses lay in preserving a few drops of an old vintage too rare to be savoured by a youthful palate; and I should like to atone for my unappreciativeness by trying to revive that faint fragrance.
Published in 1934, this work is fascinating on so many levels - as an insight into the life and mind of a great writer, as a portrait of a bygone age, as a source of charming anecdotes, and, of course, as a great follow-up to a visit to The Mount. Early on in the autobiography, Wharton mentions her great-grandfather (who participated in the Boston Tea Pary and served as an artillery commander in the American Revolution), and the name of his stately home was the inspiration for the name of her stately home.
Edith Wharton confesses that, at least as a child, she preferred mythology to fairytales, but I have been carrying my Tolkien-inspired fairytale kick into the new year. I have not only the Snow White book but also a beautiful new copy of Tales of India (from the same series as the gorgeous Nordic Tales I’ve mentioned) and a beautiful used copy of Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates (which should be an excellent winter read).
The weather this weekend feels propitious for pulling out another book from my Christmas gift pile: that 100 Morning Treats cookbook! I need to decide between starting with a simple and straightforward bake or diving in the deep end with a braided bread.
Whether you’re out chasing a star in the crisp, cold air or following a more warm and cozy inspiration, I hope it’s a lovely weekend and a happy Epiphany!
A Snowy Epiphany & New Books