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This newsletter is a haunting contemplation, Betsy. I guess, if I had to go on walkabout, I'd take my library card and smile my way into libraries in my path to get a new book each week...

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I like this - a library card makes the whole book choice much less fraught.

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Jul 5, 2021Liked by Elizabeth Marro

i agree about the graduate being better than the book, the visuals, music, and nuances made it my favorite movie. what would i take? pasta and bel canto. the idea of a walkaway is one that many of us have at least had cross our mind at some point in our lives

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Bel Canto for sure. That's a wonderful book!

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Another great Saturday morning read, Betsy, all the way through. Reading about Barbara Newhall Follett brought to mind a rather morbid thought I had earlier in the week. Reading about the terrible collapse of the condo in Florida...the thought came that a person could simply walk away (assuming they survived the collapse or got out before the thing fell), they'd be one of the missing never found amid the rubble, but out "there" somewhere, living a new life. As to a single book: First thought, best thought this morning: THE BOOK OF DELIGHTS by Ross Gay; second thought...oh I guess that's not allowed, but I was going to say, THE WRITING LIFE, by Annie Dillard. One food: a bag of "cuties," those little mandarins that peel so easily.

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These books sound wonderful. So do the oranges. Your thought about a person escaping into a new life after disaster is something I think about too. As with Barbara Follett it could be that there was no plan, only a moment and an opportunity, and then a new life. Here's hoping.

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Great newsletter again. As to what book I'd take, I'd take Sense and Sensibility. The book is full of lovely descriptions, loyal family and friends, and can always make me laugh and cry. Food is easy--apples! I can carry them easily, and a good crisp apple is instant good energy and heaven to crunch.

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You are much healthier than I am! I love that book too but I would be sorely tempted to bring chocolate and only chocolate.

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Jul 3, 2021Liked by Elizabeth Marro

Is there a chance in the universe that I could be the friend who connected you with Sari Fordham? You are both so wonderful! I don't even care how you connected, but it makes me happy. Her novel, WAIT FOR GOD TO NOTICE, is stunning, observant, sensitive, often funny, and has the kinds of honest family connections I love to read about.

Really enjoy your newsletter, Betsy!

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Yes, Andria, you are the friend who connected me with Sari. I saw your post about her wonderful memoir and checked it out. Thanks for the extra insights into WAIT FOR GOD TO NOTICE. I can't wait to read it.

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