Synopsis
“‘Love is often hard, ignored, or hilarious (eventually),’ writes Anne Lamott in Somehow. ‘Love looks like you – to me and to a few others. And this is the hardest thing to believe.’ In her twentieth book, Lamott explores the power of love in our lives: how it surprises us, forces us to confront uncomfortable truths, reminds us of our humanity, and guides us forward. ‘Love just won’t be pinned down,’ she writes. It is ‘our very atmosphere’ and lies at the heart of who we are. We are, Lamott says, messy, complex creatures of love. Drawing from her own life and experiences, she delineates the intimate and elemental ways that love buttresses us in the face of despair as it galvanizes us to to believe that tomorrow will be better than today. Full of the compassion and humanity that have made her beloved by millions of readers, Somehow is classic Anne Lamott: funny, warm, and wise.”
-Synopsis from inside front cover
Review
Somehow: Thoughts on Love is the fourth book of essays I have read by Anne Lamott. The first book of hers I read was Dusk, Night, Dawn which I came across during a particularly difficult time in 2022 when I was looking for inspirational books. I searched specifically for books on that genre written post-pandemic and Dusk, Night, Dawn, was exactly the kind of uplifting book I needed.
Since then I have worked my way through all of her books, and of course had to read Somehow when it was published this past week. It exceeded my expectations and was a very timely read.
“Life delivers the unbelievable so often that you might as well believe.”
-from Somehow: Thoughts on Love by Anne Lamott
My favorite essays from this collection were “Swag,” “Hinges,” “Somehow,” “Fog of Love,” and “General Instructions.” Each feature her signature wry humor, honesty, and humility as she writes about her life, faith, parenthood, nature, and the many forms of love.
She shares a lot about her relationship with her husband, Neal, with whom she sometimes clashes with as most couples do. He often has great advice, not that she will always take it, but she will later acknowledge his wisdom. In “Somehow” she writes about a planned commencement speech being cancelled due to a mistake she made, and how Neal helped her get through that time…
“Neal did all the right things to see me through – namely, coddled me and disparaged the dean, even though he doesn’t think that mistakes are actually mistakes. He believes that landing someplace awful gives us a new starting point for our journeys and the chance to see that we are deeply, simply human.”
-from Somehow: Thoughts on Love by Anne Lamott
I think one of the things I love most about Anne Lamott’s writing is that she will also bring up her own mistakes and missteps and what she learned from them. There isn’t always a clear-cut answer or resolution and sometimes the lesson learned is that you were wrong, and you simply have to move on and try to do better next time.
I always come away from her books feeling refreshed, comforted and peaceful and this was no exception.
P.S. If you decide to read one of her books, I would highly recommend listening on audio as she narrates them herself and her humor comes across so well.
Hannah's Library 