Full Review of Late Migrations by Margaret Renkl

My Today Show Story

An Ordinary Morning

Before work one day, I was scrolling through my Instagram feed and spotted a quote from the author of Jenna Bush’s latest book club pick, Late Migrations by Margaret Renkl:

It resonated deeply with me.  It reminded me of the last line of my favorite TV show, The Office, “There’s a lot of beauty in ordinary things.  Isn’t that kind of the point?” 

It made me stop and think about my mission as a blogger promoting the value of reading in a chaotic, digital, over-stylized, and “highlight reel” kind of world. I believe in the value of stories, of the empathy and knowledge we gain from them, and how they change us for the better. In stories, the ordinary in life can often be extraordinary. 

So, anyway, I commented on the @ReadwithJenna Instagram post: “This.  All of this.”  and I shared it in my Instagram stories. 

“There’s Been a Call”

I checked my Instagram page again at lunch and was shocked—no, FLOORED—to receive a message from @ReadwithJenna asking me to be part of an upcoming segment on The Today Show, discussing the book with the author. 

Here is where I will tell you a secret: I hadn’t even read the book yet!  I texted my husband, “Should I drop everything, read it, and say yes?”

At the same time, I didn’t actually believe this was real yet.  I told my husband I would feel them out.  Maybe they just wanted a tweet or something they could post on the screen?  And then, maybe they wouldn’t even pick mine?

Nope.  They wanted me on TV to ask the author questions.  Gasp!  The normal side of me was ecstatic to have this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and feel that the little internet community I had only recently created was resonating with people and thriving. 

On the other hand, the introverted, bookish side of me was an anxious, nervous wreck!  I started panicking:  How could I be on TV?  Me! I’m not a TV person.  I’m a silently read and write alone kind of person. 

So, like any human ball of nerves would do (I’m an Enneagram 6, which can be described in two words, “I worry”), instead of jumping at the amazing opportunity, I asked for their deadline (the end of the day) and then told them I would let them know by then.  (Side note: what was I thinking?!) 

Then, for a few hours, I pictured myself bumbling over my words, falling off my chair, and becoming a viral laughing stock.  I tried to talk myself off the anxiety ledge: (a) This was an amazing once-in-a-lifetime opportunity; (b) it was taped, not live; and (c) I could sit in my pajama pants at home and film if I really wanted to.  How could I pass this up solely out of fear?  I talked it through with my husband one last time on the phone and knew I had to say yes.  

As the day ended, I got in my car and turned it on.  A strange thing happened then.  Out of nowhere, my iTunes started playing.  Now, I haven’t listened to iTunes in a few years, and the only songs I have on there are from Broadway musicals I attended.  I was also halfway through a podcast that morning, so it was odd that it didn’t simply resume. 

The song was from my favorite musical, Sunset Boulevard, and it was called … “There’s Been a Call.”  The song is about old Hollywood actress Norma Desmond getting a call to return to Paramount Studios to film and making them wait all day until she says yes.  It was a sign.  It had to be.  At that moment, my anxiety waned, and I started feeling excitement. 

I called my mom and shared the good news, then reached out to my closest friends as well.   My husband and I reconvened in person and talked about how happy we were that I was facing my fears for such a wonderful opportunity.  

I am the second reader asking a question, a bit more than halfway through the segment, and I asked Renkl about the process of remembering the small moments in her life.

Lessons Learned

The process of reading and preparing a review of one of the best memoir books, Late Migrations, as well as appearing on The Today Show taught me tremendous lessons. As an anxious, quiet person, I had to face and walk directly through a lot of fears in order to relax and enjoy this amazing opportunity. For starters, I had to be okay with not being perfect on national television because it would never feel perfect—that’s life!

Lastly, and most importantly, I learned that when you force yourself to get outside of your comfort zone and to share yourself and things that matter to you in a way that is authentic to “you” and genuine online and on social media, you can connect with others in a positive way. I think facing such fears is something to which any creative introvert can relate.

The experience reminded me of this quote from The Alchemist:

“And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”

Paulo Coelho

Review of Late Migrations by Margaret Renkl

I downloaded Late Migrations on Audible and started listening. My review of Late Migrations is that it was fantastic — a five-star read for me. In the book, Renkl shares bits of her life, some larger moments and some smaller moments, primarily as she grew up in Alabama in the 1960s. She writes in short micro-essays and connects the essays to themes of nature, love, loss, the value of memories, and the meaning of life.

(For these reasons, it’s a great book for Spring.)

Each word matters, and the essays have poetic qualities. They are soulful and bittersweet as they explore a complex range of emotions that everyone experiences in life: love, joy, sadness, and darkness. Renkl acknowledges, through several connections to nature, that everything that lives will die, but she exquisitely explores the meaning of life and the grief that follows after death, and so I also consider this to be one of the best books on grief.

This excerpt perfectly captures the spirit of my review of Late Migrations:

It’s the type of book everyone should read at least once, and then take some sort of action to preserve memories, both big and small, in their own lives. It’s also a very quick and easy read to which anyone and everyone can relate.

The quality of Late Migrations and its major life themes made it easy to develop discussion questions. I typed up a page and a half of questions and had a conference call with a sweet and kind producer, Patricia, who gave me the impression she truly valued promoting books, which is also so important to me.

She couldn’t believe how many discussion questions I came up with, but I just said, “You picked a really Type A person for this.”

Conclusion

I highly recommend Late Migrations, especially for a book club, as it offers so many major life topics to discuss. I hope you enjoyed this review of Late Migrations (+ me on The Today Show)!