Apologies for not putting out a newsletter last week. After returning from watching over my mom in rehab two weeks back I came down with a bout of congestion and sinus headache that led to fever and lethargy, leaving me not in a state to produce my weekly newsletter. Went to the doctor, who ordered a nose swab at the lab. That tested for just about every virus you could think of and came back all negative. So, the doc prescribed a pack of antibiotics for five days that has managed to knock back whatever has been keeping me down. I’m still not quite 100% but feeling much better.

I did still manage to keep my pace of reading a book a week, so I have two reviews for you this week.

In another bit of news, I will most likely disappear from the book reviewing blog for much of the month of August. My partner Tony and I are headed to Spain, where we’ll meet up with my sister-in-law and her partner to walk the Camino Primitivo (the “Original Way” in English). That is the oldest (dating back to the 9th century) of the routes of the Camino de Santiago, the famous pilgrim trails that wind through Portugal, France and Spain and converge on the Cathedral of St James in the town of Compostela in northern Spain. In the Cathedral are held what are said to be the remains of the Apostle James. The Cathedral has been a pilgrimage destination for centuries.

People walk the Camino for all kinds of reasons. Spiritual reasons for many, of course. For others it’s with fitness goals in mind. Some enjoy the history of it all - walking in the footsteps of over 1000 years of fellow sojourners through the beautiful rural Spanish landscape. Others seek adventure - walking for days through a foreign land while interacting with fellow travelers from around the world. For Tony and I it’s a combination of all those - with history and adventure at the top of the list for me.

So now, on to the book reviews —

Finally, a book whose subtitle actually does help you understand what the book is about! In this case, the title itself may be what’s misleading. The Loves of Theodore Roosevelt isn’t a book about the romantic interests of our 26th President, but, as the subtitle says, it’s about the women who helped create the man who became our 26th President.

The book reveals the strong women who surrounded Roosevelt, who helped shape and guide him. His mother Mittie, his sisters Bamie and Connie, the woman who all around him knew as his childhood sweetheart who became his second wife, Edith, his college sweetheart and first wife Alice, and their daughter Alice.

All these women had roles to play behind the scenes as TR rose in public admiration as the epitome of masculinity, the self-made man who was always a proponent of the “strenuous life” - as opposed to a life of comfort. TR was the man who talked softly but carried a big stick.

He was, in the words of his most famous speech, “the man in the arena”. But, as is clear from this book, he wasn’t there alone. It’s not surprising that the women in his life stayed in the background - that was how things were done at the end of the nineteenth and in the early twentieth centuries.

His mother Mittie was a strong-willed Southern woman, who some claim was the basis for the character Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With the Wind. She taught TR, by words and example, that women are as capable as men, though her influence on Teddy seems to have faded after her husband died.

His sister Bamie ruled the family after their father died and took charge of a good part of the running of TR’s household. She oversaw the construction of the family home that had been meant to be occupied by Theodore and Alice, whose death left the couple’s young daughter in Bamie’s care.

His first wife Alice Lee and her family imparted their strong progressive values to Theodore as he was starting out in life.

His sister Connie was a keen observer who understood people and what motivated them. She was a key personal advisor to Teddy during his presidency. His second wife Edith had a shrewd political mind, helping to shape his quick rise on the national stage. She is often credited with fashioning the role of the modern First Lady.

TR’s daughter Alice came to play an important role later in his political career, helping him craft many of his most important speeches in his second and third runs for the White House.

We get to see TR throughout his life, both with and without the influence of these women in an engaging and well-documented biography. The author is the CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library Foundation, which is now hard at work at completing the library building in North Dakota.

RATING: Four Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

RATING COMMENTS: The story of the rise of a President, his family, and the influence of the women in his life who helped shape him. This is an engaging and well-documented biography.

WHERE I GOT MY COPY: I checked out the audiobook from my library on the Libby app.

The second book this week has a subtitle that follows the subtitle trend - it promises more than the book delivers.

But I digress.

Algospeak is written by a young etymologist who has made a reputation for himself as an influencer on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. He is well-versed in the use of language in the online world, and the speed with which changes in language are occurring online.

This short book takes you right into that world, and covers some interesting topics, even for those of us who aren’t influencers. The author’s writing style is very accessible. The lessons he’s learned in how to quickly grab a TikTok viewer’s attention are also on display here in written form. The writing has an immediacy and a pace that are engaging, pulling the reader along as the writer lays out his arguments.

If you want the audiovisual representation of what it’s like to read this book, check out one of the author’s video shorts on YouTube, where he goes by the name The Etymology Nerd. There you’ll see the intense in-your-face style that has been effectively translated to the page.

The book’s main thesis is twofold. One, algorithms within social media are leading to the creation of new English words and phrases that would otherwise not occur. Two, social media is increasing the pace of change of our language.

Who am I to say his thesis is not correct? I’m not an expert, and certainly not the Etymology Nerd. But there is a disconnect between the urgent style with which he delivers his message and the seriousness with which I can take that message. Yes, these changes to our language sound like they are happening, but no, they probably are not as important to me as they are to the Etymology Nerd.

That said, this book was a lot of fun to read and I learned a few things from it. So you can stick that in your pipe and smoke it - a really old phrase I’m sure no one on TikTok is using. 😊

RATING: Three and a Half Stars ⭐⭐⭐🌠

RATING COMMENTS: Insights into how our language is changing online from the influencer also known as The Etymology Nerd. Fun to read, I learned a few things from this book.

WHERE I GOT MY COPY: I received an advance reviewers copy from NetGalley and the publisher Knopf. The book will be generally available next Tuesday, July 15th.