Dear Ron, Please stop introducing me to fascinating books with your scintillating prose. My bedside pile of To-Reads already threatens to topple and crush me in my sleep. (Just added "Yellow Pine" to my Politics and Prose cart.) More seriously, love your reviews, esp. the mini interviews with authors. I always look forward to your intelligent, humorous, slightly acerbic voice.
Don't listen to Holly. I am retired and live alone. I listen to books all day and into the night. I can keep up with you and more. Love to read anything you have to say.
I could have said much the same. ("Dear Ron, Please stop introducing me to fascinating books with your scintillating prose.") Thanks for saying it for me. After my home library of thousands of books outgrew my available space, I switched to ebooks. Now my "stack" of e-books is growing as well (and becoming budget-busting). Ron is the one at fault because his "reviews, esp. the mini interviews with authors" make so many reads look possitively irresistable. I too always look forward to his "intelligent, humorous, slightly acerbic voice." How can we possibly stop him? I guess we have to be self-disciplined.....No, there must be another answer....
Small world -- I have personal experience with the developer of Yellow Pine, NextEra Energy. They are the world's largest electric utility holding company by market capitalization (Wikipedia).
They are in the process of acquiring Dominion Energy:
"NextEra Energy to buy Dominion in a deal that unites two key players in race to power AI data
I am not an author, but during the time I was dealing with one of NextEra's projects, I wished I were. Had I the talent, I could have written volumes about this company's many transgressions.
I hope Claire Vaye Watkins's book becomes a bestseller and, in the process, inspires the conversation that needs to be had about this energy provider.
I feel like I’m in a book club with a particularly enlightened moderator selecting the books and leading the discussion. You know what? It’s only 10AM but I’m going to have a glass of wine.
I am an 80+year old woman who chose not to have children -- simply because I did not want to be a mother. I didn't want to have that responsibility. And I still think I made the right choice. To say that I chose sacrifice "to save the environment" would be ridiculous as well as dishonest, not to mention pretentious. Watkins' statement about putting the blame where it belongs is so true, so simple, so emphatic, so right! If you want children, and you have whatever it takes to do a good job of parenting, go for it, and celebrate! I look forward to reading this novel, which sounds like a heap o'fun as well as full of hard truth.
I just became a subscriber because I.always jump onto this email as soon as it shows up. I really enjoy your writing, and that is worth something in these days of doom and despair. Thanks for reading and writing!
I've never read Watkins although I certainly know of her and follow reviews of her books. I have no idea why I haven't read any of them yet. This one sounds challenging in all the right ways. A new goal. Thank you.
This is like trying to make the case for poor, rich Grand Escalante: “But there are microorganisms! In the crust!” Current leaders appear to value the desert only for its utility in disposing of bodies. Looking forward to this, after the Colson Whitehead.
I was mesmerized by CVW’s book Gold Citrus Fame. Her writing and her intellectual grasp of all things desert will hold you, too. I particularly was captivated by her telling of the history of manifest destiny. Magnificent! From this review, I suspect Yellow Pine is yet another deep read.
I'm with you, Holly. I read an article about a guy in New York getting evicted for having too many books in his apartment and thought "That could be me!" And still. I'm grateful for every thoughtful review.
A magnificent review , beautifully written, deeply thoughtful, and almost literary in itself. You do more than analyze a novel; you capture the landscape, the anxieties of our time, and the fragile persistence of hope.
Lines such as “the desert is not merely the setting of the novel , it is the very model for its plot” and “almost everything interesting happens underground” reveal your rare ability to transform landscape into meaning and fiction into a profound meditation on humanity, nature, and survival.
Your prose is as vivid as poetry, with images that linger long after reading. A truly exceptional piece of criticism.
You are a master of language, a true poet of ideas, and a creator of sentences that leave us in awe.
Dear Ron, Please stop introducing me to fascinating books with your scintillating prose. My bedside pile of To-Reads already threatens to topple and crush me in my sleep. (Just added "Yellow Pine" to my Politics and Prose cart.) More seriously, love your reviews, esp. the mini interviews with authors. I always look forward to your intelligent, humorous, slightly acerbic voice.
Thanks so much, Holly. (And sorry about the budget-busting influence!)
Don't listen to Holly. I am retired and live alone. I listen to books all day and into the night. I can keep up with you and more. Love to read anything you have to say.
Ha! Well, thank you.
And no worries: I'm happy to listen to you both!
I *still* laugh about your takedown of "Eruption" (the Crichton/Patterson disaster).
It made me wish that Patterson would team up with Danielle Steele, just so I could read your review of that potential Pullet Surprise* winner.
(*credit to Dave Barry).
Holly,
I could have said much the same. ("Dear Ron, Please stop introducing me to fascinating books with your scintillating prose.") Thanks for saying it for me. After my home library of thousands of books outgrew my available space, I switched to ebooks. Now my "stack" of e-books is growing as well (and becoming budget-busting). Ron is the one at fault because his "reviews, esp. the mini interviews with authors" make so many reads look possitively irresistable. I too always look forward to his "intelligent, humorous, slightly acerbic voice." How can we possibly stop him? I guess we have to be self-disciplined.....No, there must be another answer....
Small world -- I have personal experience with the developer of Yellow Pine, NextEra Energy. They are the world's largest electric utility holding company by market capitalization (Wikipedia).
They are in the process of acquiring Dominion Energy:
"NextEra Energy to buy Dominion in a deal that unites two key players in race to power AI data
Centers" (CNBC, May 2026)
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/05/18/nextera-nee-dominion-energy-d-data-center-ai.html?msockid=3a6e2ff5b2d86a9103c53b78b35c6bcd
I am not an author, but during the time I was dealing with one of NextEra's projects, I wished I were. Had I the talent, I could have written volumes about this company's many transgressions.
I hope Claire Vaye Watkins's book becomes a bestseller and, in the process, inspires the conversation that needs to be had about this energy provider.
Thank you so much for this, Mr. Charles.
I feel like I’m in a book club with a particularly enlightened moderator selecting the books and leading the discussion. You know what? It’s only 10AM but I’m going to have a glass of wine.
That's so funny because in an earlier draft of this review, I wrote, "I wish I were cool enough to be in a book club that discussed this novel."
I am an 80+year old woman who chose not to have children -- simply because I did not want to be a mother. I didn't want to have that responsibility. And I still think I made the right choice. To say that I chose sacrifice "to save the environment" would be ridiculous as well as dishonest, not to mention pretentious. Watkins' statement about putting the blame where it belongs is so true, so simple, so emphatic, so right! If you want children, and you have whatever it takes to do a good job of parenting, go for it, and celebrate! I look forward to reading this novel, which sounds like a heap o'fun as well as full of hard truth.
Love this perspective. Thanks, Virginia.
I work with/for her publisher Riverhead and I’ve loved reading Watkins evolution as a writer. She’s just so good! Thanks for another great review Ron.
Thanks, Megan. She is a fascinating writer, isn't she?
I just became a subscriber because I.always jump onto this email as soon as it shows up. I really enjoy your writing, and that is worth something in these days of doom and despair. Thanks for reading and writing!
Thanks so much for your financial support, Joan. Generous folks like you make this work possible for me. I’m deeply grateful.
I've never read Watkins although I certainly know of her and follow reviews of her books. I have no idea why I haven't read any of them yet. This one sounds challenging in all the right ways. A new goal. Thank you.
This is like trying to make the case for poor, rich Grand Escalante: “But there are microorganisms! In the crust!” Current leaders appear to value the desert only for its utility in disposing of bodies. Looking forward to this, after the Colson Whitehead.
"Current leaders appear to value the desert only for its utility in disposing of bodies." -- love that.
Thank you.
I was mesmerized by CVW’s book Gold Citrus Fame. Her writing and her intellectual grasp of all things desert will hold you, too. I particularly was captivated by her telling of the history of manifest destiny. Magnificent! From this review, I suspect Yellow Pine is yet another deep read.
I'm with you, Holly. I read an article about a guy in New York getting evicted for having too many books in his apartment and thought "That could be me!" And still. I'm grateful for every thoughtful review.
WHAT?! "Evicted for having too many books"!?
One more thing I have to worry about....
Such a delightful review! Just added it to my book club's picks for next year. Although hard to believe the book could be any better than your review.
I love the addition of asking the author a question. Brilliant!
My wife’s good idea!
OK - this is definitely on my list --
Loved this phrase -- I kept writing “RUN” in the margin. More women should listen to that good advice. Great review. Thanks!
This made me subscribe. I love when a review itself is a creative piece that gives me a hint of the book's tone!
A magnificent review , beautifully written, deeply thoughtful, and almost literary in itself. You do more than analyze a novel; you capture the landscape, the anxieties of our time, and the fragile persistence of hope.
Lines such as “the desert is not merely the setting of the novel , it is the very model for its plot” and “almost everything interesting happens underground” reveal your rare ability to transform landscape into meaning and fiction into a profound meditation on humanity, nature, and survival.
Your prose is as vivid as poetry, with images that linger long after reading. A truly exceptional piece of criticism.
You are a master of language, a true poet of ideas, and a creator of sentences that leave us in awe.
Thank you, Moniro. I appreciate your support very much.