Wintering

Welp, I just read my favorite nonfiction book of 2021.
There is this magical thing that happens: sometimes the right book falls into your life at exactly the right time. I didn't know it but I needed to read Wintering this winter, and I believe, I need to own a copy so that I may reread it every winter from now on. I have this incredible feeling that this book will mean different things to me in different years. I do recognize there is a place for it in my life and on my personal library shelf.
It's something in May's voice that just kind of connects with my reader soul. While our lives may be different, she nailed the feels I've been feeling, named them, called them out, and inspected them. She did this in the way my brain loves nonfiction titles to explore: introduce a topic and then investigate it by researching something that fits the bill. Example: May loses her voice due to her own health “wintering” and takes singing lessons. She explores how important singing is to humans and my brain fired up with connections- I cannot sing (I sound something like a cat in heat) but I used to sing all of the time leading storytimes at the library and the absence of that singing, that outlet, the group sing of every toddler and every parent singing their heart's out (and drowning me out, thankfully) and dancing to One Little Finger- the absence of this had me slowly dying but I didn't KNOW it. As a remedy, I led a one-woman concert in my car on the drive home from work last night.
My heart was about ten pounds lighter when I pulled into the driveway.
Normally I avoid getting personal in a book review, but I don't think I can express the impact this book had on me without going there a bit. YMMV. I can't imagine anyone disliking this book, but I do feel a deep connection to this book. I'd love to read her other works.
It is my great hope that some celebrity moron does not slap her stupid book club sticker on this.