Yesterday, December 6, was the day of Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of children and the fourth-century bishop of Myra, a Byzantine city in what is now Turkey. On this day, many Swiss-German households with young children are visited by “Samichlaus,” as Sankt Nichlaus is pronounced in the Swiss-German dialect. He doesn’t arrive in theContinue reading “The Patron Saint of Children”
Category Archives: Families
Weddings Past and Present
I recently attended the Manhattan wedding of the daughter of a close American friend—it was a joyous occasion, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I was delighted to be invited, but also surprised because here in Switzerland, I’ve learned not to expect an invitation when our friends’ children get married. This is no reasonContinue reading “Weddings Past and Present”
In Praise of Midwives
When I moved to Switzerland thirty-six years ago, I didn’t know anyone still practiced midwifery—I thought the profession had gone the way of blacksmithing. Five years later, I walked into Bern’s teaching hospital to give birth to my son and met my first midwife. She was with me during and after the birth and madeContinue reading “In Praise of Midwives”
Switzerland’s Junkyard Playgrounds
When I was eight, we lived in a neighborhood that was still being built. Our narrow suburban street had families living on either side in small concrete houses with carports and tidy front yards. But only a few blocks away, there were half-built homes and vacant lots. We children—mostly boys, but I wasn’t the onlyContinue reading “Switzerland’s Junkyard Playgrounds”
A Joyful Novel
I’m not even going to try to come up with a list of the best books I read in 2023. But I can tell you about the book that delighted me most: Ann Patchett’s Tom Lake. A review in the Guardian calls it “an engaging exploration of contentment,” but I’m glad I didn’t read thatContinue reading “A Joyful Novel”
‘Tis the Season
This year, Bern’s Christmas season started on December 3, the first day of Advent. The official purpose of Advent is to celebrate the coming of Christ with four Sunday services before December 25, but since few Swiss attend church, it’s a time for feeling festive and getting a head start on baking the many sortsContinue reading “‘Tis the Season”
Under Cover
Don’t judge a book by its cover. Are you kidding? Of course we judge a book by its cover. Not if it’s by a favorite author, perhaps, but when we’re browsing in a bookstore or even online for a novel by a new writer, we look for covers that appeal to us. So I’m delightedContinue reading “Under Cover”
School’s Out!
Memory is unreliable—we all know that—but my childhood summer vacations seemed endless. I remember getting out of school at the end of June and not returning until the beginning of September: three months of pure fun. And, I now realize, three months of stress for parents who had to figure out what to do withContinue reading “School’s Out!”
My Mother’s Library
Only two days past Mother’s Day, I just had a little piece about my mother Joy Hays published on Lesa’s Book Critiques, a blog about books—especially mysteries—that is run by library manager Lesa Holstine. Lesa has won all kinds of awards for her book reviews, and I’m very grateful to her for publishing the piece.Continue reading “My Mother’s Library”
Sons and Brothers
The freezing rains of late November and the icy rush of the Aare as it loops around the city of Bern set the scene for Sons and Brothers, the second Polizei Bern novel, which was published on April 18 and can be ordered on Amazon or through https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Sons-Brothers/Kim-Hays/9781645060581 In this book Giuliana Linder and RenzoContinue reading “Sons and Brothers”
Kim Hays 