Each Little World

What's happening in Wisconsin

For the first time since protests against Wisconsin governor, Scott Walker, began on Valentine's Day in 2011, the New York Times newspaper has written about the events here and got the story right. It is worth reading since it provides the backstory as well as current information. It is also worth reading for those of you who live elsewhere, because if everyday Wisconsinites can't beat the vast sums of corporate money that are being spent to influence this recall election, then democracy is doomed. And they will be coming for you next. Read the full NYT story — "How Did Wisconsin Become the Most Politically Divisive Place in America?" — here.

Illustration: Jens Mortensen for The New York Times

"Once more ....

... this is what democracy looks like." That's what a voter said to me this morning as I exited Toki Middle School after voting and she entered. There was a steady flow of people at our local polling place just before 9 a.m., a good sign, and the next step in this gubernatorial recall process that has been going on for the past 16 months.

And yes, there are six fake Democratic candidates on the ballot, including Governor and Lt. Gov. But we won't be fooled by these GOP ploys. Here's information about where to vote etc. and also recall election info from the Government Accountability Board. Today's Breakfast Links on Dane 101 offer a number of recall stories and candidate interviews. Tom Hayden and John Nichols each offer their views on the broader implications of events in Wisconsin.

The countdown has begun: Twenty-seven days til we recall Walker. 

Keep your eyes on the prize

Know the only thing we did right

was the day we started to fight

Keep your eyes on the prize

Hold on, hold on.

The only chain that we can stand

is the chain of hand in hand

Keep your eyes on the prize

Hold on, hold on.

I just got home from celebrating the 350th sing along of Wisconsin's Solidarity Singers at the Majestic Theatre in Madison. It was a a night of music, dancing, shouting (er, singing) and solidarity. This spring the Solidarity Sing Along  received the William Gorham Rice Civil Libertarian of the Year Award “for the expression of the First Amendment rights of free speech and freedom of assembly” from the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin. The ability to combine fun with action is one of the hallmarks of the Wisconsin Uprising and one of the reasons events have been so peaceful. And no one does it better than the Solidarity Singers.

Technically we were celebrating the release of the Solidarity Sing Along CD —“This Is What Democracy Sounds Like” — but they haven't arrived. So we sang along with musical guide R. Chris Reeder (below in blue shirt on the stage last night), The Learning Curve Band and lots of other musicians whose music and lyrics have become part of the Wisconsin Uprising! I am hoarse from participating in unforgettable 70s punk/gospel versions of "People Get Ready" and "Keep Your Eyes on the Prize" led by the VO5 Band all dressed in gold, glitter, wigs and whatnot and lots of Badger Red. A consumate Wisconsin moment.

The evening brought home to me once again how life in Wisconsin has changed. Here it is Thursday night and I'm downtown with a politcal/gardening friend. We're hanging out in a historic Madison theater-turned-music club actually paying money to sing along with a crowd of unknown-to-us fellow citizens. For two hours we joined in on dozens of labor songs and classic tunes that have been re-fashioned to comment on our state's current crisis in democracy. The joint was packed and still jumpin' when my friend Cindy and I left, our voices and ears barely intact. (You can watch livestreaming of the event here).

Further east, another historic Madison theater was hosting a film that is deeply relevant to what's happening in our state and probably yours. The film — "Koch Brothers Exposed" — will be repeated Friday night, along with great local speakers. I am buying a copy of the Koch Brothers DVD and plan to have a house party where friends can gather to watch the movie (and drink Wisconsin craft beer) and have our own discussion. And then I can pass the DVD around to other friends so they can have their own Koch parties. 

This Saturday, April 28, the local version of the protest against the GOP war on women takes place from 1-3 p.m. on the South Hamilton side of the Capitol. (You can find details here). In Wisconsin, this is really just one more step in the process to recall Gov. Scott Walker, and just one more reason that Walker has to go.

Thursday night, Saturday afternoon. Whatever the day, whatever the time, whatever the weather, life in Wisconsin continues as it has for the past 14 months: Protesting, politicking, learning, going to the movies, singing, celebrating — all the while keeping our eyes on the prize. 

 

Anne Perry's WWI novels

"Dedicated to my grandfather,

Captain Joseph Reavley,

who served as chaplain

in the trenches during the Great War."

So begins the initial novel in Anne Perry's five volume series set during the First World War. Four of the five mystery novels begin with similar dedications to family members who served in the military: Perry's stepfather was one of the last officers to leave the beaches of Dunkirk in June, 1940; her father was a scientific advisor to the admiralty during WWII; and her brother's an army surgeon.

Canadian stretcher bearers carry wounded through the mud at Passchendaele (aka Third Battle of Ypres, 31 July-10 November 1917). Copyright permission: This item is from The First World War Poetry Digital Archive or the Great War Archive, University of Oxford (www.oucs.ox.ac.uk/ww1lit/gwa).

 

Family background alone would qualify Perry as knowledgeable about the sacrifices members of the military — and their families — make. Add that to a long and successful career as a mystery novelist and you've got the makings of a superb series of wartime stories. In fact, Perry makes her grandfather, Joseph Reavley, the protagonist in the opening book of the series, "No Graves As Yet." The title, like the titles of all the books in the series, are taken from poems of the era and are quoted at the opening of earch volume.

VAD (Voluntary Aid Detachment) fitters at work on a car at Etaples. Copyright permission: This item is from The First World War Poetry Digital Archive or the Great War Archive, University of Oxford (www.oucs.ox.ac.uk/ww1lit/gwa).

 

"No Graves As Yet" opens with that quintessential English scene: a game of cricket on a summer afternoon. But the golden moment is shattered with the announcement of the death of Joseph Reavley's parents in an automobile accident. But when Joseph gathers with his siblings to mourn their parents, his brother Matthew — who works in British intelligence — suggests their deaths may not have been an accident. A cryptic phone message to Matthew from their father the day before his death suggests he had found an incendiary document that could bring down the British government and even destroy the nation's honor and reputation. 

The story follows the two brothers as they search for the document their father referenced, try to determine who's behind it, who can be trusted and what should they do with this information. 

German factory workers in 1917. The original caption says that the munitions are made with 'heart and hand for the Fatherland'. Copyright permission: This item is from The First World War Poetry Digital Archive or the Great War Archive, University of Oxford (www.oucs.ox.ac.uk/ww1lit/gwa).

 

The five books move among the four fictional Reavley siblings, who also include Judith, an ambulance dirver on the Western Front, and Hannah, living with her young children in the family home; Hannah's husband who's in the British navy also appears. There's a cast of recurring characters, mostly townspeople and soldiers in the ranks, who are as well-drawn and real as the main figures, and who allow us to follow people at all levels of society at the front and at home. 

The books scan a wide range of subjects and locations, ranging from family relationships, university and small town life, to the struggle for Irish independence; from Ypres to Gallipoli to the Battle of Jutland. They are totally satisfying stories that never seem false. Though Perry always catches you up on the characters and the prior action in each book, there is a richness of detail and association that accumulates by reading them in order: "No Graves as Yet," "Angels in the Gloom, "Shoulder the Sky," "At Some Disputed Barricade," and "We Shall Not Sleep." 

Andre Kertesz: Latrine. Poland, 1915. (When I was trying to find this Kertesz image, I discovered this poem based on the photo). Click on the photo to enlarge it which will give you a graphic idea of a soldier's life in the Great War.

. . .

Since Perry's books all began with a quote from WWI-era poetry, I visited the Great War Archive, an amazing on-line resource which includes photos and The First World War Digital Poetry Archive, among its categories. Many of the items in the archive were submitted digitally by individuals who had retained family items from WWI, thus providing much more material to scholars. According to the archive: 

"Over four months in 2008 the public were invited to submit digital images of items originating from the First World War. This proved a powerful means of building the archive and making use of the Internet’s ability to tap into amateur digitisation and bring together unknown collections. Because of the chronological proximity of the First World War, many people hold personal items to do with the war that they have been happy to share via a straightforward licence. All submissions required basic metadata, copyright clearance, limited in file size, and have been vetted before release. In total over 6,500 items were submitted to the archive, all of which are now freely available online in the Great War Archive."

These items came from people from different countries and different sides of the conflict, like the German factory photo (2nd from the bottom).

Solidarity Saturday

ONE YEAR LONGER, ONE MILLION STRONGER: For those of you living elsewhere, just a couple of photos to let you know the good fight is still being fought here in Wisconsin. On Saturday, about 65,000 people gathered at the Capitol to celebrate the one year anniversay of the return of the Wisconsin 14 and recent political events in general. We were not at this rally, so I am posting a couple of photos by Leslie Amsterdam from the rally and march.

RECALL DATES: At this point it appears that the recall elections of the Governor, Lt. Gov. and all four targeteded GOP Senators will go forward. Tentative date for the Democratic primary is May 15 and June 12 for the general election.

MEET JOHN DOE: I should also mention that our dear Gov has started a defense fund, something that a state official may ONLY do when he is under investigation. Walker is part of a John Doe investigation that actually began just about the time he was being elected governor in 2010.

Historical Fiction

When I was growing up, I read a lot of historical fiction like the novels about the American Revolution by the great Kenneth Roberts. Those led me to non-fiction and biography as a way to learn more about, and to appreciate, history. It's a love that continues to this day. And I also continue to veer back and forth between reading the serious views of the history of an era and the novels that describe the same period.

I'm not sure how I discovered "Historical Fiction: A Guide to the Genre" by Sarah L. Johnson but it is a great find, tailor-made for readers like me. The book is one of the titles in the "Genreflecting Advisory Series" geared to library staff. Locally it is part of the South Central Library System's "professional collection," which includes a circulating copy of the book. No matter what type of fiction you're interested in — teen romance, Jewish-American, African-American, horror, sci-fi — there is a Genreflecting guide. 

Though "Historical Fiction" was only published in 2005, there is already a Vol. II to this particular subject. According to the author's website, Vol. I covers over 3,800 historical novels, 1995-2004, arranged by subgenre. Vol. II — published in March 2009 — is a  guide to over 2,700 historical novels, 2004-present, plus info on the latest trends. Mind boggling, huh?

The thing that makes this such a useful tool for librarians and readers alike, is that the book begins with a discussion about the appeal of the past, what readers are looking for, and the various "appeal factors" in this subject, such as type of character, pacing, level of realism. Then the titles are arranged by a finely-calibrated subgenre categorization with sections on traditional historical novels, multi-period epics, Westerns, historical mysteries, literary historical novels and so forth. And then those categories are further broken down by period (ancient civilizations, Victorian) and country or geographic region.

So that means you can hone in on a very specific group of titles that will appeal to you. Or you can find a whole new area to explore. I began by looking for titles and authors that I had already read in a particular category to see what Johnson said about them. Then I went to the library looking for my list of suggested new authors and titles. I currently have home a selection of books by three authors dealing with the WWI era, both straight-out mystery novels and literary titles. The first book I started was so compelling that I am about to finish the fifth and final book in the series (which I will write about another time). 

If you like to read in a particular area, I would suggest looking for the Genreflecting guide that fits your taste. Johnson's volume on Historial Fiction has proved so immediately rewarding that I could imagine using it as a guide for a long time. Johson also has her own blog: Reading the Past, where she reviews books including titles that are out of print. Another bonus for someone like me who is already a fan of publishers of out of print lit like Persephone Books.  

The storefront of Persephone Books in London. 

Sissinghurst: An Unfinished History

It is an article of faith with me that a place consists of everything that has happened there; it is a reservoir of memories, and understanding those memories is not a trap but a liberation, a menu of possibilities. The richer the knowledge, the wider the options. Multiplicity is all. The only enemy is narrow, singular definition. And Sissinghurst, perhaps like any place that people have loved, is layered with these multiplicities. 

— Adam Nicolson

Is there a gardener anywhere, no matter the size, style or location of their garden, who does not know of Sissinghurst? Who cannot mentally envison the white garden or the view from the Tower? If you can do that, imagine what it would be like to spend your childhood roaming the landscape at Sissinghurst and then wake up one morning and know it's yours. And yet it's not.

That's the predicament of Adam Nicolson whose grandparents — Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson — restored the Elizabethan buildings to create a home at Sissinghurst and designed and built the famed gardens surrounding it. Nicolson inherited it from his father who assured its continuity by giving it to Britain's National Trust. Sissinghurst is one of the few Trust properties that has been a successful tourist attraction from the get-go.

But to Adam it is missing its heart: the working farm that existed as part of Sissinghurst for hundreds of years. Nicolson wants Sissinghurst to have that working center again. To put it in simple terms, he wants to "grow lunch," believeing "a good lunch would make a good landscape." How he tries to go about making changes at Sissinghurst — and whether he can or should do so — is an engrossing story no matter what way you look at it.

"Sissinghurst: An Unfinished History" is a must-read for anyone who loves Sissinghurst in order to understand not only its long and complex story but the larger implications of becoming a Trust propery. But Nicolson gives us so much more than that; it's  a story about family, history, ecology, change, tradition, consensus, individuality, and, of course, creating a garden. All of it so beautifully and thoughtfully written that I found myself reading phrases and paragraphs a second time, and though you can't tell it from this review, I compiled five pages of notes by the time I finished the book! 

Nicolson in the Rose Garden at Sissinghurst. NTPL/Penny Tweedie 

Something sweet for Valentine's Day

Sophie Blackall's "Missed Connections: Love, Lost & Found" is a sweet but not sugary small confection. Blackall, an artist, blogger and reader of on-line postings of "missed connections" has turned these sometimes silly, often wistful messages — very short short stories — into a book of arresting images. Each tale is told in a single image illustrated with Blackall's watercolors and calligraphy. Sometimes the words are all part of the picture; sometimes the full text is only readable on the page facing the picture.

The book — at only $14.00 — would make a much longer lasting impression than flowers or candy at a fraction of the cost. In this time of continuing economic worries, nobody wants a gift that strains someone else's budget. If you're looking for a memento of the occasion that is both quirky and tender, Blackall's book is perfect. If you want to splurge, she has an Etsy shop where she sells prints of her charming illustrations. And if the budget is terribly tight, "Missed Connections" is available through the South Central Wisconsin Library System. Or you can read and enjoy her blog posts about her father's adventures.

Illustrations by Sophie Blackall from her Etsy shop.

Reading Downton Abbey

Viewers who are watching the PBS drama Downton Abbey are apparently likely candidates for books dealing with the subjects of the series, according to a recent story in the New York Times. So publishers are working to provide them with titles that look at the upstairs/downstairs relationships in great houses and at World War I (which pretty much put an end to many of England's great houses). So I thought I would offer a few suggestions as I like those topics as well — and have a whole shelf of books devoted to WWI.

I've written about some of my favorite books, especially those that look at women, their roles in WWI and the aftermath here and here and here. 

I'm currently reading Peter Englund's "The Beauty and The Sorrow: An Intimate History of the First Wold War," translated by Peter Graves. This book looks at the war through the eyes, words and actions of twenty people who were there. Men and women of all ages, from all branches of the services and a variety of countries on both sides of the conflict are represented. Though the book looks at the Western Front, much of the action takes place in different theaters of the war than we often see covered in such books; both Africa and the Eastern Front (including Russia before and after the Revolution) get a lot of ink. This is war on the ground, on the front lines and in soup kitchens and hospitals, in deserts and on mountaintops told in the words of the people who were following orders, rather than making them.

 

The cover photo from "The Beauty and The Sorrow" is from the Minnesota Historical Society.

I read this fascinating tidbit in "The Beauty and the Sorrow" after watching the first episode of Downton Abby/Season Two; the scene where Mary gives Matthew her good luck stuffed toy animal. This is about Alfred Pollard, a British infantryman, age 21, on the Wesern Front in December, 1917:

"He is carrying a new mascot in his pocket — a small china doll with a lilac ribbon round its waist and an angelic expression painted on its face. It is a gift from the sister of Mary, the woman who turned down his marriage proposal so firmly. Pollard has christened the doll Billiken and he always carries it with him from now on."

"The Beauty and The Sorrow: An Intimate History of the First Wold War" is available from the South Central Library System in Wisconsin. 

Savoring the moment

We slept in this morning after partying last night at the recall victory celebration. It was a great moment to take a couple of hours to enjoy the results of so much hard work by thousands of people across the state. We saw neighbors from the days we lived on the East side and were new homeowners, we saw folks we've met at political events over the last eleven months, we saw organizers, office staff and all the Wisconsin winter soldiers who never gave up. In fact, the spirit, the energy and the mometum of this homegrown movement continue to grow. 

And for those of you outside of Wisconsin, I can't emphasize enought that despite what you may read or hear in national media, this movment is far beyond the union and collective bargaining concerns that sparked it last February. This morning's edit in The Cap Times says it all. 

We arrived about a half an hour after the celebration started and the hall was absolutely packed. Here you see 1,000,000 signatures leaving the stage. The favorite sign of the day was "Thanks a million!"

The stage is at the left out of the frame of the picture, but you can see how big the crowd was.

Everyone hopes that the numbers are significant enough that they will spur Wisconsin's former U.S. Senator Russ Feingold into running for governor. Russ has the name, the experience and the moral high ground.

It's Wisconsin, so yes, there was free beer (and soda). The free beer was Miller lite so we were going to buy a craft beer but they'd run out of the good stuff for sale and were trying to restock amidst the melee! 

Using a Segway to see above the crowd. (Note the political message on the wheel).

Amazingly enough, I ran into Matthew Rigney, the young man who was one of the folks in charge of the West Side Field Office where I picked up and returned all my recall petitions as well as working the phone banks. The button on my hat says "Living Scott free!"

Since it's Wisconsin many people were wearing Badger red; a common sight at all the rallies no matter the seaon. 

Perhaps the most encouraging and heartening sight at all these events over the last year has been the number of families who are involved and who bring their children. We love seeing them and their presence reminds us who and what we are fighting for.