As I came to the end of 2025 I found myself reading two books concurrently, Marce Catlett by Wendell Berry and An Incremental Life by Luci Shaw. Both books had been published in 2025. I found it interesting that both authors were over 90 years old when their books were published. (Berry was born in 1934 and Shaw passed away in December at the age of 96.) Surely there are not many books that would fit into that category.
There is something beautiful about the long pursuit of writing unimpeded by age. Although I didn’t feel that Marce Catlett was Berry’s best work (I would have liked more stories about Marce and less about growing tobacco and marketing it in the 40s) he is always a master storyteller and his tender prose is a pleasure to read.
Luci Shaw’s book of poetry was a delight and I must say that I felt that she was in top form. I have not read her work extensively for comparison but I can’t think of any I liked better. The vulnerability of age might be an asset in writing poetry and perhaps in reading and enjoying it as well.
