While browsing an old library issue of The New Yorker Magazine, an advertisement with this poem caught my eye:
READ.
Read widely, broadly, deeply.
Read things that upset,
Disturb, or provoke.
Read things that amuse,
Delight, and soothe.
Read while waiting
and in bed
and while eating cereal
(but not while driving).
Read favorite authors
and those unknown
and some that are translated.
Read out of print books,
library books, magazines,
and graphic novels.
Read everything from A to Z.
Read, read, read.
Read as if your life depended on it.
A to Z Wineworks
My mind was blown. This is exactly how I read.
The imagery in the ad suggested that A to Z Wineworks is a vineyard. Okay. What is the connection to the “Read” poem in the ad?
I Googled, emailed and received this response from Keith H. Scott, Director of Marketing at A to Z Wineworks:
Gina – thanks for taking notice of our advertisement in The New Yorker and reaching out. The ad’s text originated with our winery co-founder and owner, Deb Hatcher, who shared the below thoughts:
“As a lifelong educator and avid reader, I always hope to spark curiosity. One of my degrees includes an English major (University of Michigan) and I’ve taught writing and literature to HS and college students (and art to children and adults). I initiated our brand in my kitchen in 2002 (after 17 years in the Oregon wine industry) using A to Z to indicate that we believe in blending (for greater complexity, richness and quality) and source grapes from any vineyard in Oregon “from A to Z.
“We support literacy in many ways from the state’s SMART program to Portland’s Everybody Reads program. Our CEO is on the board of Literary Arts and Linfield College. Most of our leadership (50% women) have liberal arts degrees and we recently instituted an artist-in-residence program.
“In these divisive days of extreme ‘special interests,’ we hope to help inspire people to read widely and expand where and how to get information while supporting sources of responsible journalism.”
I’ve yet to taste the wine but I’m loving this vineyard’s passion for literacy – a passion I share and the note on which I will close out 2020’s blog posts until the New Year.
Books I’ve Read in 2020
New (to me) Authors
· The book of X, Sarah Rose Etter
· Kane & Abel, Jeffrey Archer
· Only Time Will Tell, Jeffrey Archer
· The Sins of the Father , Jeffrey Archer
· Best Kept Secret, Jeffrey Archer
· Be Careful What You Wish For, Jeffrey Archer
· Mightier Than the Sword, Jeffrey Archer
· Cometh the Hour, Jeffrey Archer
· The 57 Bus, Dashka Slater
· Monday’s Not Coming, Tiffany D. Jackson
· Man of the Year, Caroline Louise Walker
· The Body Never Lies: The Lingering Effects of Cruel Parenting, Alice Miller
· Such a Fun Age, Kiley Reid
· American Dirt, Jeanine Cummins
· Don’t Call Us Dead, Danez Smith
· Dark Matter, Blake Crouch
· On Earth We Were Briefly Gorgeous, Ocean Vuong
· His Only Wife, Peace Adzo Medie
· Everywhere You Don’t Belong, Gabriel Bump
· Little Eyes, Samanta Schweblin
· How Much of These Hills is Gold, C. Pam Zhang
· This Is All I Got: A New Mother’s Search for Home, Lauren Sandler
· The Fearless Organization: Creating Psychological Safety in the Workplace For Learning, Innovation, And Growth, Amy C. Edmondson
· The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest, Anatoliĭ Nikolaevich Bukreev, G. Weston DeWalt
· Think Wrong: How To Conquer The Status Quo And Do Work That Matters, John Bielenberg, Mike Burn, Greg Galle, Elizabeth Evitts Dickinson
Memoir
· Heavy: An American Memoir, Kiese Laymon
· What Comes Next and How to Like It, Abigail Thomas
Race and Racism
· White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide, Carol Anderson
· Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People about Race, Reni Eddo-Lodge
· Backlash: What Happens When We Talk Honestly About Racism in America, George Yancy
· The History of White People, Nell Irvin Painter
· So You Want To Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo
· We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy, Ta-Nehisi Coates
· What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Blacker, Damon Young
· My Grandmother's Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies, Resmaa Menakem
· How to Be Black, Baratunde Thurston
· I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness, Austin Channing Brown
· Waking Up White: And Finding Myself in the Story of Race, Debby Irving
· How to Be an Antiracist, Ibram X. Kendi
· Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, Ibram X. Kendi
· Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, And Become a Good Ancestor, Layla F. Saad
· Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents, Isabel Wilkerson
· We Can’t Talk About That At Work! How To Talk About Race, Religion, Politics, And Other Polarizing Topics, Mary-Frances Winters
· Diversity, Inc.: The Failed Promise of a Billion-Dollar Business, Pamela Newkirk
· How the Irish became White, Noel Ignatiev
· Race Talk and the Conspiracy of Silence: Understanding and Facilitating Difficult Dialogues on Race, Derald Wing Sue
· The Loudest Duck: Moving Beyond Diversity while Embracing Differences to Achieve Success at Work, Laura A. Liswood
Art and Creativity
· Sticker City: Paper Graffiti Art, Claudia Walde
· Squares & Other Shapes, Josef Albers
· Creative Is A Verb: If You’re Alive, You’re Creative, Patti Digh
· Water Paper Paint: Exploring Creativity with Watercolor and Mixed Media, Heather Smith Jones
Curiosity, Productivity and Neuroscience
· A Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life, Brian Grazer and Charles Fishman
· Face To Face: The Art of Human Connection, Brian Grazer
· A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas, Warren Berger
· Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything, BJ Fogg, PhD
Re-reads
· Magic Eye II: Now You See It: 3D Illusions, N.E. Thing Enterprises
· Magic Eye III: Visions: A New Dimension in Art, N.E. Thing Enterprises
· Next, Michael Crichton
· Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World, Cal Newport
· Solitude: A Return to the Self, Anthony Storr
Health
· How Not To Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven To Prevent and Reverse Disease, Michael Greger, M.D. with Gene Stone
· Move Your DNA: Restore Your Health through Natural Movement, Katy Bowman
· The Body Keeps The Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma, Bessel A. van der Kolk, M.D.
· Ordinarily Well: The Case for Antidepressants, Peter D. Kramer
General Non-fiction
· Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business, John Mackey, Raj Sisodia
· The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups, Daniel Coyle
· The Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy, Not Time, Is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal, Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz
· Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss without Losing Your Humanity, Kim Scott
· Emotional Equations: Simple Truths for Creating Happiness + Success, Chip Conley
· Why Are We Yelling? The Art of Productive Disagreement, Buster Benson
· Make a List: How a Simple Practice Can Change Our Lives and Open Our Hearts, Marilyn McEntyre
· Talking To Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don’t Know, Malcolm Gladwell
Feminism
· Stop Telling Women To Smile: Stories of Street Harassment and How We’re Taking Back Our Power, Tatyana Fazlalizadeh
· Outraged, Ashley “Dotty” Charles
Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot, Mikki Kendall
Read widely, broadly, deeply.
Read things that upset,
Read things that amuse,
Read while waiting
and in bed
and while eating cereal
(but not while driving).
Read favorite authors
And those unknown
And some that are translated.
Read out of print books,
library books,
magazines,
and graphic novels.
Read everything from A to Z.
Read,
read,
read.
Read as if your life depended on it.
– Deb Hatcher, Founder and CEO of A to Z Wineworks