In the early 20th Century, a Black woman named
Adelaide Henry sets out from California to the wilds of Montana. Like many
others, she dreams of homesteading a much-hyped paradise. Everywhere she goes,
she lugs an enormous steamer trunk…which she sings to as it makes ominous
thumping sounds.
Montana turns out to be anything but a paradise. The weather
is unimaginably brutal, and the physical labor of setting up a homestead is
unrelenting. Worst of all is the crushing loneliness. From practically the
moment she sets foot in the shack that came with her deed, neighbors appear--women
desperate for a friend, and men equally desperate for female company and
possible courtship.
Not all the visitors are benign and they all harbor secrets.
There’s a family of grifters, thieves, and murderers, whose innocent-appearing
blind children are the most vicious of the lot. A single woman schoolteacher with
a clouded past and a child shunned inexplicably by everyone. A lesbian couple,
one Black, one Chinese. Adelaide, with her work ethic and essential decency,
soon settles into the community. She’s ever anxious to protect her own secret:
What’s in the trunk? And what havoc will it wreak if it
gets out?
Gorgeously written, the book alternates between passages of
emotional depth and suspense horror. Everyone hides something, and some secrets
are more deadly than others. The layered unveiling of those secrets, and the
compassion of the central character are handled with exceptional skill.
The relationship between Richard I (“Lionheart”) of England
and Philip II (“Dieudonné”) of France has been the subject of much debate, particularly
whether it was of a romantic and sexual nature, as a number of medieval and
modern scholars attest, or an intense friendship at a time when sharing a bed was
a common expression of trust. Historically, the relationship turned bitter and
ended only with Richard’s death in 1199.
Historical fiction, especially romantic historical fantasy, takes
such questions as these as a starting place. It goes beyond the dry facts and
dates to the juicy question of, “What If?’ What if Richard (then Duke of
Aquitaine), larger-than-life action hero, and introverted, cautious Philip fell
in love the first time they met? Richard was not then heir to the throne and
had a contentious relationship with his father, Henry II. Philip, newly
ascended, had to contend with repairing the damage to France caused by the
weakness of his late father. But what if they each found solace, completion,
and joy in one another?
In the hands (or rather, the pen) of a brilliant poet, the
answer is a heartbreakingly beautiful story whose words sing on every page. The
author relates how she used history as a starting point and then followed where
the story lead her. This is the “romantic fantasy” aspect of Solomon’s Crown.
This love story shaped Western Europe perhaps never happened but should have.
It is not altogether accurate regarding the social attitudes of 12th
Century C.E. England and France. I agree with most of Siegel’s choices and with
her commitment to make the story emotionally true.
My favorite character was neither Richard nor Philip, but
Philip’s wife, Isabella of Hainaut. In Siegel’s version, by the time Philip was
forced into marriage, he had had enough lustful encounters with Richard to have
figured out his sexuality, to the point of severe doubts he can perform on his
wedding night. She’s very young (only eleven years old) and terrified of
pregnancy (the desired result of said wedding night) and its high mortality
rate. When she summons the courage to beg Philip to postpone intercourse, he’s
relieved. But he’s a kind person, so when she lies beside him, unable to sleep,
he soothes her by reciting her favorite poem (in Latin). The next day, she
memorizes the following part to recite to him. With such a beginning, they
become friends. She turns out to be a perceptive, resourceful person who has no
issues with Philip’s relationship with Richard, not just the sex but the love.
Like Richard’s mother, the redoubtable Eleanor of Aquitaine, Isabella matures
into a force in her own right. While Philip and Richard wrestle with inner
demons and family power struggles, Isabella’s character growth and essential
decency stand out.
I loved every page of this book, even though I knew the
romance would eventually fizzle and Richard would die. Those sad events remain
in the future, and perhaps in Siegel’s world, the lovers will remain joyously
devoted and grow old together.
In my mind, the spring season will always be associated with COVID-19.
In spring 2020, the federal government declared a nationwide emergency, and life drastically changed. Schools and businesses closed, and masks and social distancing were mandated across much of the nation.
In spring 2021, after the vaccine rollout, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said those who were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 could safely gather with others who were vaccinated without masks or social distancing.
In spring 2022, with the increased rates of vaccination across the U.S., the universal indoor mask mandate came to an end.
Now, as spring 2024 fast approaches, the CDC reminds Americans that even though the public health emergency is over, the risks associated with COVID-19 are not. But those risks are higher in some groups than others. Therefore, the agency recommends that adults age 65 and older receive an additional COVID-19 vaccine, which is updated to protect against a recently dominant variant and is effective against the current dominant strain.
You have a 54% less chance of being hospitalized with severe COVID-19 if you’ve had the vaccine.
Increased age means increased risk
The shot is covered by Medicare. But do you really need yet another COVID-19 shot?
As a geriatrician who exclusively cares for people over 65 years of age, this is a question I’ve been asked many times over the past few years.
In January 2024, the average death rate from COVID-19 for all ages was just under 3 in 100,000 people. But for those ages 65 to 74, it was higher – about 5 for every 100,000. And for people 75 and older, the rate jumped to nearly 30 in 100,000.
Even now, four years after the start of the pandemic, people 65 years old and up are about twice as likely to die from COVID-19 than the rest of the population. People 75 years old and up are 10 times more likely to die from COVID-19.
Vaccination is still essential
These numbers are scary. But the No. 1 action people can take to decrease their risk is to get vaccinated and keep up to date on vaccinations to ensure top immune response. Being appropriately vaccinated is as critical in 2024 as it was in 2021 to help prevent infection, hospitalization and death from COVID-19.
These symptoms can be alleviated with over-the-counter pain medicines or a cold compress to the site after receiving the vaccine. Side effects are less likely if you are well hydrated when you get your vaccine.
Getting vaccinated is at the top of the list of the new recommendations from the CDC.
Long COVID and your immune system
Repeat infections carry increased risk, not just from the infection itself, but also for developing long COVID as well as other illnesses. Recent evidence shows that even mild to moderate COVID-19 infection can negatively affect cognition, with changes similar to seven years of brain aging. But being up to date with COVID-19 immunization has a fourfold decrease in risk of developing long COVID symptoms if you do get infected.
Known as immunosenescence, this puts people at higher risk of infection, including severe infection, and decreased ability to maintain immune response to vaccination as they get older. The older one gets – over 75, or over 65 with other medical conditions – the more immunosenescence takes effect.
All this is why, if you’re in this age group, even if you received your last COVID-19 vaccine in fall 2023, the spring 2024 shot is still essential to boost your immune system so it can act quickly if you are exposed to the virus.
The bottom line: If you’re 65 or older, it’s time for another COVID-19 shot.
I'm always on the lookout for great information about world-building, especially fascinating astronomy discoveries. This is an excerpt from an article in Universe Today by Evan Gough. Check it out for the full story. (I find this image evocative and beautiful -- do you?)
Stars end their lives in different ways. Some meet their end as supernovae, cataclysmic explosions that destroy any orbiting planets and even sterilize planets light-years away. Our Sun is not massive enough to explode as a supernova. Instead, it’ll spend time as a red giant. The red giant phase occurs when a star runs out of hydrogen to feed fusion. It’s a complicated process that astronomers are still working hard to understand. But red giants shed layers of material into space that light up as planetary nebulae. Eventually, the red giant is no more, and only a tiny, yet extraordinarily dense, white dwarf resides in the middle of all the expelled material.
Can some planets can survive as stars transition from the main sequence to red giant to white dwarf? Researchers at the Space Telescope Science Institute, Goddard Space Flight Center, and other institutions have found what seem to be two giant planets orbiting two white dwarfs in two different systems.
If the researchers are correct, and the planets formed at the same time as the stars, this is an important leap in our understanding of exoplanets and the stars they orbit. It may also have implications for life on any moons that might be orbiting these planets.
Some white dwarfs appear to be polluted with metals, elements heavier than hydrogen and helium. Astronomers think that these metals come from asteroids in the asteroid belt, perturbed and sent into the white dwarf by giant planets. “Confirmation of these two planet candidates with future MIRI imaging would provide evidence that directly links giant planets to metal pollution in white dwarf stars,” the authors write.
Astronomers have found that up to 50% of isolated white dwarfs with hydrogen atmospheres have metals in their photospheres, the stars’ surface layer. These white dwarfs must be actively accreting metals from their surroundings. The favoured source for these metals is asteroids and comets.
This artist’s illustration shows rocky debris being drawn toward a white dwarf. Astronomers think that giant planets perturb smaller objects like asteroids and comets inside the WD’s Roche limit. They’re destroyed, and the debris is drawn onto the star’s surface. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)
