Last weekend I had the great fortune of traveling to Park City, UT with a group of high school friends. Without aging myself too concretely (as if anyone but my close personal friends read this ‘stack), suffice it to say we’ve been friends for more than a quarter century. This trip had everything - stunning nature, fresh air, physical exertion, laughter, board games, incredible food, a boat, more laughter, and yes, of course, books. Or more specifically, the bookstore/ice cream shop of my dreams.
I mentioned in my very first post that this newsletter would contain book-adjacent content such as cats and particularly cute bookshops, and this edition is no different. This absolutely perfect bookstore on Park City’s main street was not only named after a cat - featured prominently on the logo - it also shares a storefront serving up some of the best ice cream I’ve had in a long while. (Like books, I consume a lot of ice cream, so I know what I’m talking about).
I patronized the ice cream shop twice and the bookstore zero times, but that’s only because I already had my hands very full with reading, and I’m never too full for ice cream (literally, never). We did spend some quality time browsing the shelves and I was very tempted to buy something, although strolling the aisles with my fellow bibliophile (hi Jen!) while pointing at titles asking “have you read this” and commanding “you must read that” was, I swear, as fulfilling as actually taking home a new novel.
My restraint was mostly due to the fact that, at that moment, I was reading two books at the same time, rather rare for me but necessitated by the exact same hardback/long flight dilemma as I shared in “What Happens in Vegas” back in June. Only this time, I had a bit too much of my hardback to finish before the trip, and it was way too good of a book to rush through, so I packed a paperback for the long weekend, knowing that I had the end of the hardback to look forward to upon our return.
Enter Dream State by Eric Puchner.
I intentionally started reading this book before the Utah trip because it’s set in Montana, an adjoining and similarly scenic state (I assume; I have yet to visit) that I figured would get me extra excited for the adventure awaiting us in Park City. While Dream State dished up a great amount of scenery (if Montana had not already been high on my list of places to visit, this book would have given it a boost), I really fell in love with the story and the characters. As is the case with most of my favorite novels, this one involves - you guessed it - a love triangle with a side of dysfunctional family.
Perfect for a pool day: unexpected twists and turns, laugh-out-loud dialogue, heartwarming moments of male friendship. While the books I typically read tend to focus on female friendships, families, and romantic entanglements, I actually enjoy reading about male friendships the most. Perhaps this is because I have always been exceedingly proud of how my male high school friends have kept in touch with me and with each other over the last (fine!) 28 years. They have all, thank goodness, married wonderful women, such as my bibliophile friend, so it’s not always just me and a bunch of dudes. But these male friends have taught me more about enduring friendship than anyone, and have remained as solid and reliable a presence in my life as books. Now that is a dream.
That bookstore / ice cream shop looks absolutely perfect. I am impressed at your willpower not to buy every book in there!