The Housekeeper and the Professor is a touching and original novel by Yoko Ogawa that embodies the quiet sway of love.

The novel’s premise is unique. A brilliant math professor suffers a traumatic brain injury which has damaged his short-term memory. He can only remember 80 minutes at a time. The Professor’s sister-in-law hires a housekeeper with problems of her own. Luckily, the Professor is fond of the Housekeeper’s ten-year-old son, whom he named Root (as in square Root.) And every 80 minutes, he needs to be reintroduced to them. After school each day, Root walks to the Professor’s house, and the Professor helps Root with his math problems. They also discussed Japanese baseball as long as the players and the games occurred before the accident.

Each day, the Professor works diligently on mathematical formulas despite the limitations of his short-term memory. He puts sticky notes on his clothes to remind himself of mundane tasks or recent progress in solving an equation. The Professor sees the world in patterns and numbers. When he realizes that the sum of his Housekeeper’s birthday (220) factors and those on the back of his prized watch (284) are ‘amicable numbers,’ he ascribes deep meaning and connection. And though the Housekeeper didn’t finish her schooling, her intellectual and emotional curiosity is evident as she cares for the Professor and his unique situation.

Over time, the emotional capacity of each member of this triangle expands exponentially. This beautiful story reveals quiet characters who offer love, acceptance and compassion to one another. 4/5

A finalist for the 2021 National Book Award, Laird Hunt’s quiet novel Zorrie penetrates the resilient soul of a woman living on the Indiana plains. Hunt’s inspired description of Zorrie Underwood’s interior is incisive. The story begins in the Depression and spans much of the 20th century. Echoing the sparse prose of Kent Haruf or Elizabeth Strout, this novel is about emotional resilience, an appreciation of simpler times, and a reminder to savor life’s small gifts.

Zorrie Underwood was orphaned when her parents died of diphtheria. She was sent to live with a cold and distant Aunt, who died of a stroke when she was 21. The year is 1930. With no family, Zorrie is left to fend for herself. After living in barns and taking odd jobs in Illinois, including a stint in a radium plant, the Indiana land calls her home.

When Zorrie finds a community in Hillisburg, Indiana, her life improves. She falls in love and she and her husband farm the fertile Indiana soil like the neighbors surrounding her. Though loneliness and sadness stalk her life, she is embraced by a community that looks out for one another.

Zorrie and the other characters take time to think before uttering their thoughts. They spend time ruminating. They find solace in pondering their encounters or remembering loved ones who have passed. A restraint permeates this Indiana farm culture, which is such a contrast to our current times when people impulsively post anything and everything they think on social media.

Laird Hunt’s beautiful novel is about one woman’s perseverance and resilience despite her losses. It is also an homage to a simpler time when community socials, the beauty of the landscape, singing and cooking provided solace and meaning. This story is a reminder to slow down, embrace human connection and appreciate the small joys of being alive. 4/5

Happy Holidays!