I listened to this audiobook on a long drive as a passenger staring out windows, and it was an unexpectedly lovely journey.

I wouldn’t have read it by description, but it was on the Tournament of Books shortlist, so I decided to give it a try. I did not expect to love it, but I did.

It made me feel connected to the invisible women behind the men who punctuate history with overshadowing (and often unstable) presences. It made me grateful for a marriage based in respect and friendship. It made me fearful of the metaphorical and literal heat of menopause and middle age and growing old(er). It made me nostalgic for college and late nights putting post-its in stacks of library books. It made me hopeful that we, people, will find a purpose in the noise, a path in the dark, and the words to say what needs to be said.

Read it!