Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2024 i Reader's Digest

READING IS A solitary activity, most of the time anyway, unless you're reading aloud to someone—a great joy we probably don't share often enough once kids are grown. A few years ago I read The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, a magical tale by Kate DiCamillo, aloud to my husband and tween son—a chapter a night—and we all enjoyed the time together. It's easy to get all nostalgic for the old days when families gathered around the TV and watched the same show, versus now when we're often glued to our phones or streaming our own thing at our own pace. Remember listening to the radio together in the car? I know all the AM Gold hits thanks to road trips with my parents and sisters. In case you don't…

A FEW DAYS BEFORE Thanksgiving every year, Hoang Ly settles into a chair at his home in Fredericksburg, Virginia, to write a thank-you email to Stephen Greene, the lanky American who helped Ly's family escape Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. “We wish you a healthy and happy Thanksgiving!” Ly wrote in one note to Greene, who now lives in Annapolis, Maryland. “Your help to evacuate my family out of war-torn Vietnam is always in my heart.” Ly always ends his messages the same way: “?ank God and thank my great friend, Steve Greene.” Ly began this Thanksgiving ritual in 1976. He also writes Greene and his wife, Kathy Greene, a note at Christmas, a tradition he has continued for 48 years. “I look at Steve…

SIX YEARS AS a space reporter taught me that chaos reigns supreme. I have watched enough go wrong to know that no mission or any view of a celestial event is ever truly promised to us terrestrial observers. So when my mother and I decided to drive out to Erie, Pennsylvania, to see the April 8 solar eclipse this year within the path of totality, I knew this would be a trip of two clashing attitudes. I'd be pessimistic about the weather and convinced we'd be victims of the randomness that governs the world; my mom would have strong faith that order would triumph and the skies would let us glimpse an eclipse like this for the first time in our lives. I told her not to count on the…

SOME COOKS WILL insist on making their own cranberry sauce, laden with plump whole berries and ingredients like honey or orange zest. Others swear solely by the stuff in a can. Americans in the latter camp consume more than 5 million gallons of jellied cranberry sauce each year—just between Thanksgiving and Christmas! While 68% of Americans say they love the taste, another 15% just love the way it jiggles. If you've ever seen a slippery cylinder of jellied cranberries wriggle out of its can, you'll recognize what Farmers' Almanac aptly describes as the satisfying whoosh-plop. The man who first crammed cran into a can was New Englander Marcus L. Urann. In 1912, wanting to extend the berries' short selling season, he developed a sauce that could be preserved in big…

Coming up with a name for email attachments can be mind numbing, especially after countless drafts. For example: Draft 1: final.pdf Draft 2: finalv2.pdf Draft 3: finalv3.pdf Draft 4: finalFINAL.pdf Draft 5: finalFINALv2.pdf Draft 6: finalFINALv2THISONE.pdf Draft 7: finalFINALv2THISONE_with_edits.pdf Draft 8: final_LAST_FINAL.pdf Draft 9: FINAL_LAST_FINAL_final.pdf Draft 10: FINAL_LAST_FINALfinalv2.pdf Draft 11: FINAL_LAST_NOMOREAFTERTHIS.pdf Draft 12: FINAL_LAST_NOMOREAFTERTHISv2.pdf Draft 13: FINAL_LAST_NOMOREAFTERTHISv2_with_ edits.pdf Draft 14: FINAL_LAST_NOMOREAFTERTHISv2_with_ edits_edited.pdf Draft 15: FINAL_LAST_NOMOREAFTERTHISv2_with_ edits_editedv2.pdf —FROM DEAR INTERN, EDITED BY MARA NELSON-GREENBERG (CHRONICLE BOOKS)…

YOU MAY HAVE noticed them last summer when the weather got warm enough for T-shirts: those square or round, somewhat three-dimensional patches on people's upper arms (though they can be worn elsewhere too). They're too raised to be estrogen or nicotine patches. So what are they? They're continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), prescribed by physicians for people with diabetes to help them keep track of and control their blood sugar levels. As of the end of the summer, one of these monitors, the Stelo biosensor from Dexcom, became available without a prescription, giving new groups of Americans the chance to improve their health by wearing one. CGMs measure blood sugar, but they don't actually require blood to do it. The patches cover tiny sensor wires that are inserted (painlessly) just under…

Robert Zemeckis reunites with America's sweetheart, Tom Hanks, for a family drama certain to join the legendary director's catalog of classics (Forrest Gump, Back to the Future, Cast Away). In Here, Zemeckis's lens never moves—it's everything else that does. Trained on a single plot of land that eventually becomes the living room of an American home, the film hurtles through time, spending most with Richard (Hanks), a baby boomer who grows up within its ever-changing walls. During Richard's teenage years, we meet Margaret (Robin Wright), his future wife, with whom he eventually buys his boyhood home from his mother and father. The film might be set in one place, but the couple charts and travels a winding journey to life's landmarks that leaves you awe- and wonderstruck. (In theaters Nov.…

Word Power ANSWERS 1. genesis (B) beginning The sisters are estranged, though neither recalls their feud's genesis. 2. mastodon (A) extinct mammal Mastodons looked like elephants, except with reddish brown fur. 3. commodores (B) Navy officers Two of Lucas's ancestors were commodores during the Civil War. 4. parliament (A) lawmaking body Formed in A.D. 930, Iceland's parliament is one of the world's oldest. 5. evanescence (C) impermanence Daylilies are known for their evanescence. 6. lush (C) leafy Groundskeepers tend the mansion's lush gardens. 7. primus (B) Scottish head bishop The primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church was among the distinguished guests at King Charles's coronation. 8. pixies (C) fairies Tinker Bell is one of literature's most famous pixies. 9. rancid (B) foul After the power outage, we tossed two fridges' worth of rancid food. 10. nirvana (B) promised land “Only…

Does your pet have a special gift, like “Marshall Feathers” the rapping crow or Percy the Jenga-playing dog? The Pet Collective (our sister brand) is looking for mind-blowing talent for season 2 of its hit streaming show World's Most Talented Pets (available on Freevee, Fubo, Pluto TV and more). If your pet has a trick that we have to see to believe, get the cameras rolling and enter our contest before Nov. 15. Your furry friend could be crowned the next Kelly Barkson—oh, and win the $5,000 grand prize! “I'm a former Michigander, so when I began reading your story about the favorite drink of every state (July/August 2024), I flipped to Michigan to see if I was right. Yes! It was Vernors ginger ale, just as I thought. After…

Dancing the Tears Away Jarom Ngakuru, a Maori man living in Robinson, Texas, was devastated. His grandmother had died in their native New Zealand and he couldn't get home for the funeral. That's when, he said on a TikTok video, his co-workers “brought home” to him. His brother-in-law taught the men the intricate choreography of the haka, a traditional Maori dance. They gathered in a large room and surprised Ngakuru with the dance: a quick squat, a vigorous thrust of the arms and a stomp of the feet accompanied by guttural shouts, followed by more complex moves, stomps and chants—the hallmarks of the haka. Halfway through, a stunned Ngakuru joined them. At the end, the men held their last position as Ngakuru wept in his brother-in-law's embrace. Said a video…

I handed my purchase to the clerk at the thrift store and said, “I just turned 68 and would like to receive a senior discount, but I don't have any proof of age on me.” Before the clerk could object, the woman in line behind me came to my defense: “She's buying a CD of John Denver's Greatest Hits. What more proof do you need?” —CAROL TANIS Jenison, MI My husband and I were watching TV with our 13-year-old grandson when a commercial for wireless bras came on. My grandson was stunned. “Wait, wait, wait!” he said. “You mean those things have Bluetooth?!” —DIANA MULLENS Fremont, OH I was at a craft fair and overheard a man say to his wife in a tone that conveyed no less than six…

1 TODAY'S MALL has probably changed a lot from the shopping center where you went to buy school clothes in your youth. Sure, you can still shop there and maybe catch a movie, but you might also try your hand at ax throwing, navigate a ropes course, ride a roller coaster, adopt a pet or even renew your driver's license. 2 CREATIVE NEW uses like these have helped fill square footage left empty after many of the classic mall anchors closed some stores (JCPenney, Macy's, Sears) or went out of business entirely (Lord & Taylor, Montgomery Ward). Before the recent reimagining of malls, many sat empty, earning the creepy moniker of ghost mall. 3 THE YEAR 1980 was peak mall, with about 2,500 of the indoor shopping meccas across the…

JULY 4, 1995, SHOULD HAVE been a happy day for me. It was not only our nation's birthday, it was mine as well. I turned 45 that day. But it was also the day my father died. In the week prior to his death, my wife, Pat, and I visited my parents. While Mom and Pat chatted, Dad and I did the same. At 77, he wasn't well, suffering from diabetes and congestive heart failure. After some small talk, Dad looked into my eyes and said, “Joe, my road is short. I'll be leaving here soon.” The words hurt, but I tried not to show it. Then he came to the point, as was his way: He wanted his casket draped with an American flag. That right, he said, is…

FROM THE WASHINGTON POST They got ready for parties and shared countless laughs as freshmen in the dormitories of the University of Maryland at College Park. They bonded over being Black women at a university where, in 1971, only 4% of the student body was Black. Friends dubbed the tight-knit group of women Sugar Hill, and the name stuck. “It was unique for that many African American females to be in one place,” says Elizabeth Gholston, an early member. “During that time, you needed that kind of camaraderie and cohesiveness.” On Dec. 14, 1973, the women, most of them college seniors, gathered to celebrate a birthday and an early graduation. But that wasn't the end of the friend group. By the evening's end, they decided they should meet again the…

“Unintended consequences can be quite wonderful when you try something new,” says Leadership the Eleanor Roosevelt Way author Robin Gerber. Literary professionals Kathleen Kaiser and Adanna Moriarty gather industry contacts for twice-monthly lessons in the business of books. Keep an ear out for Gerber's episode about how her book on the iconic first lady led to a public speaking career. The show is essential listening for anyone with a book inside them that they're unsure how to extract, or an interest in how books make it from ideation to publication.…

WHERE, OH WHERE? (page 112) B. Smyrna, Delaware BRAIN GAMES (page 107-108) On Pins and Needles 43+36=79 Set Free In Good Company Three: your cousin, her husband and their youngest child. Number Logic In each circle, multiply the top two digits, then subtract 2 from the result to get the number in the bottom. The calculation for the last circle is (9 × 6) – 2 = 52. In each grid, divide the top left number by 9 to get the number below it. Then multiply that number by the top right number to get the bottom right number. The calculations for the last grid are 54 ÷ 9 = 6 and 6 × 8 = 48. Reader's Digest (ISSN 0034-0375) (USPS 865-820), (CPM Agreement# 40031457), Vol. 204, No. 1202,…

CHARLOTTE LIEBLING THOUGHT it was a pity. Unsold stuffed animals at the London thrift shop where she worked were thrown away. These weren't simply toys; each was someone's childhood companion. In 2019, Liebling started Loved Before, a “soft-toy adoption agency” that mends and cleans donated stuffed animals and resells them—60,000-plus so far—with more than half the profits going to charity. Even if they're “battered or worn, we'll find them homes,” she told the Washington Post. Lauren Sergi said she donated her beloved toys because she “wanted them to go on adventures with new friends.”…

Over the course of his career, entomologist Justin Schmidt allowed himself to be stung by countless wasps, hornets, bees and other nasty pests, then described the sensation in a chart called Pain Scale for Stinging Insects. Schmidt died last year, but Atlas Obscura recently published some of his more imaginative descriptions: Honey Wasp: “Spicy, blistering. A cotton swab dipped in habanero sauce has been pushed up your nose.” Suturing Army Ant: “A cut on your elbow, stitched with a rusty needle.” Red-Headed Paper Wasp: “This is the closest you will come to seeing the blue of a flame from within the fire.” Florida Harvesting Ant: “Bold and unrelenting. Somebody is using a power drill to excavate your ingrown toenail.” Tarantula Hawk: “Shockingly electric. A running hair dryer has been dropped…

My co-worker was on the phone with a customer, trying to spell out a last name. It wasn't going well because the customer couldn't understand one of the letters. “Z,” my co-worker said. “No … Z”, she repeated. “I said Z!” The customer still didn't understand, so my co-worker finally yelled in exasperation, “Z as in xylophone!” This time the customer got it. —JANE GARRISON Rock Hill, SC Work insults with a smile, as shared on Reddit: ♦ “Working with you is like working by myself, but harder.” ♦ “You are so brave to say that.” ♦ “You're not making the point you think you are.“ ♦ “Wisdom has been chasing you, but you have always been faster.” ♦ “You're making that look real difficult.” Adults are always asking children what…

A Convincing Argument When my boyfriend and I were finally old enough to vote in our first presidential election, we spent months debating with one another about our chosen candidates. We were quite persuasive, as we discovered when we got home from the polls and learned that we'd both voted for the other's initial choice. —SHERRY FOX Appleton, WI Casting a Baseballot In 2020, Boston used Fenway Park as an open-air voting facility because of COVID-19. After casting my ballot, I was able to walk through the empty stands. I snapped a photo of my “I Voted” sticker, with the legendary field and empty seats in the background. I don't know if the stadium will be open for voting again, but I can say for now that I'm part of…

Henry V Henry V is lauded as England's greatest medieval monarch despite only ruling for nine years. He was born to a noble family, his mother died when he was a boy, and his father was exiled by his cousin, King Richard II, who protected Henry V. His loyalties were tried when his father sneaked back to England, jailed Richard II and seized the crown himself. (Comparisons to Succession and Game of Thrones are apt.) Later, Henry V inherited the throne, cemented England's dominance, waged and won battles and inspired a Shakespeare play (also called Henry V). Dan Jones, author of the hugely successful historical fiction trilogy Essex Dogs, tries his hand at biography and corrects the bard's factual errors. The Mistletoe Mystery The author of The Maid and The…

1. genesis n. ('jeh-nuh-suhs) A mass departure B beginning C time span 2. mastodon n. ('mas-tuh-don) A extinct mammal B mob boss C bullfighter 3. commodores n. ('kah-muh-dorz) A black waterbirds B Navy officers C portable toilets 4. parliament n. ('pahr-luh-muhnt) A lawmaking body B group of buildings C royal advisers 5. evanescence n. (eh-vuh-'neh-sns) A brilliance B inner peace C impermanence 6. lush adj. (luhsh) A fragrant B drunk C leafy 7. primus n. ('pry-muhs) A Brazilian monkey B Scottish head bishop C Argentine steak 8. pixies n. ('pik-seez) A baby owls B flecks of color C fairies 9. rancid adj. ('ran-suhd) A resentful B foul C clearheaded 10. nirvana n. (nr-'vah-nuh) A yoga greeting B promised land C female lion 11. placebo n. (pluh-'see-boh) A raised platform B thin membrane C dummy pill 12. eurythmics n. (yr-'ith-muhks) A music education system B science of sound C hippie poets 13. anthrax n. ('an-thraks) A infectious disease B weed killer C spider's abdomen 14. incubus n. ('ing-kyuh-buhs) A unhatched egg B…