Jennifer Howard's Blog

I’ve got a new essay, “Home Range,” in the spring/summer issue of South 85 Journal. If you’ve launched a kid into the world and/or lost a parent, you might relate. Here’s a taste: The summer my mother crossed out of our lives, my son and I hit the road. It was 2021, a year of... Continue reading »

A friend of mine who writes middle-grade novels told me recently that historical fiction for kids is selling well these days. (I guess we’ve all had enough of the current reality.) Linda Joan Smith’s debut novel, THE PEACH THIEF, fits right into that. I wrote about it, glowingly, for the New York Times Book Review:... Continue reading »

New blog post: a freezing update from DC, and RIP Jules Feiffer.

Remembering what I saw at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

“The news will find you, so pace yourself if you can”: A shorter-than-usual, post-election newsletter about taking some time to regroup before whatever’s coming.

October newsletter: Seeing red in the back yard, manifesting a blue wave, and feeling blue about the Washington Post.

This month: Getting my hands dirty in the garden. Starring water features, messy robins, and Olivia Laing’s new book, THE GARDEN AGAINST TIME.

An impromptu trip with an old friend to explore the T.S. Eliot/Emily Hale archive at Princeton University, my alma mater.

Spring flings: Gen Z in the library, “Housewife,” and Stumpy the cherry tree. A short newsletter for what’s felt like a very long month.  

From my latest newsletter: As the old year gave way to the new, I observed the rituals of organizing and sorting. But lately I’ve been more interested in what we choose to keep. What makes a thing meaningful enough to hang onto? There’s a lot to unpack there, and I’ve been working out ways to... Continue reading »