Books, Bites, and Sights

The Vanishing Half, Brit Bennett

4/5 stars

Thrift-neck. That’s what I call the kink in my neck that I get after a long day of tilting it to the side as I stroll the aisles and shelves of my local Goodwill. As I try to minimize my material possessions and also my environmental impact, I have stopped buying physical books; however, I still traverse the aisles at used book stores or thrift shops in search of gems.

Unlike the old adage, I do judge books by their covers – honestly, who doesn’t? And typically I don’t read the back blurbs of books. I have become very trustworthy of beautifully crafted covers, recognitions, or awards. Additionally, I gravitate towards stamped books of notable celebrity clubs such as Oprah’s or Reese Witherspoon’s, which is how I ended up with The Vanishing Half.

I have a book bestie, that one friend who also manically reads and who you can always talk about your current and past reads with. When I told her I was reading The Vanishing Half, she scrunched her face and gave the dreaded, “Oh, I didn’t really like that one.” Ugh! Not what you want to hear when beginning a new novel, but I decided to give it at least 100 pages, and I am glad I did.

I have always gravitated toward historical fiction, and The Vanishing Half offers a unique storyline about family dynamic within the historical context of race and gender-identity in Louisiana in the mid 1900’s. Two sisters who are so different yet alike. Two sisters on different life paths yet the same journey.

Pappy’s Smokehouse in Midtown ($50)

Y’all. Shut up. Pappy’s Smokehouse is worth the wait and holds its weight in customer service, quality, flavor, and affordability. Do not be intimidated by the line – instead embrace it and know that you will thank yourself later.

Friday night around 6 pm my boyfriend and I got into St. Louis. Pappy’s closes at 7, so we immediately drove to the Midtown location. The line was out the door, and after standing in line for 10 minutes my boyfriend and I saw that they were out of both the ribs and the brisket, so we decided to cut our losses and try again tomorrow.

On Saturday we got to Pappy’s at 11. Plenty of brisket and ribs left, but to our surprise, the line was still out the door! We waited a little less than an hour, got to the counter, ordered the ribs, burnt ends, corn, green beans, and coleslaw, waited less than 5 minutes, and ate.

Award winning and highly recommended on reddit (which is how I stumbled on it lol). Pappy’s is a no-duh when visiting St. Louis, and did I mention it was all less than $50.

Sunrise at Gateway Arch National Park

Early morning at the Arch means ample street parking, cozy sweaters, and pink skies over the Mississippi River. Worth the early morning – and always free.

St. Louis Zoo ($10)

The St. Louis Zoo is free, and parking is only $10 dollars. And let me just say, nothing beats a walk around the local zoo on a sunny day. My boyfriend and I have started intentionally visiting zoos when traveling, and I have come to really cherish our zoo escapades. Some highlights for us personally were the Reptile House and the lively spider monkeys.

Gateway Arch National Park Museum and Tram tickets ($35)

Considering that I am unlikely to visit the St. Louis Arch again, I had to ride the tram up to the top – like they say, when in Rome. Tickets were $17.50 a piece, and the entire experience was a little less than an hour long. The background to my photo dump is the bird’s eye view I captured from the top of the Arch. On a budget? I would skip this, but if you have the time and money, it is a neat experience. Additionally, there is a very informative and free museum at the visitor center.