Books - My certificate from the Australian Reader's Challenge

I was so happy to receive this prize from the Australian Reader's Challenge! I haven't gotten a reading certificate since I was a kid and had completed my summer reading at the New Orleans Public Library.

(I did paint over my name, though.)

The children on the certificate and on the website look soooooo happy to be reading their own books. They are embarking on a wonderful journey!

I found out about this challenge from the Reading Matters blog.

I mailed my donation to a U.S.-born friend who lives near Sydney. She converted my $US funds to $Aus and sent in my paperwork.

I hope to be able to participate next year and also send in a review or two!

Books - Give me your suggestions

The International Fiction bookclub, which I organized, is now selecting books for 2007.

We are selecting 11 books (we won't bother to have a meeting in December).

I have read everything except Frankenstein and Cloud Atlas.
These are the ones that I nominated:
The Black City - George Sand
Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
Karel Capek - Four Plays (or another anthology with his plays)
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
The Mercury Visions of Louis Daguerre - Dominic Smith


What do you know about these? I am excluding books that I have already read.
Please tell me your opinions.

Black Swan Green - David Mitchell
The Blue Bedspread - Raj Kamal Jha
The Club Dumas - Arturo Perez-Reverte
The Conjurer's Bird - Martin Davies
The Crimson Petal and the White - Michel Faber
Dancing in a Different Place - Isla Dewar
The Devil and Miss Prym - Paulo Coelho
Empress - Shan Sha
Everything is Illuminated – Jonathan Safran Foer
A Fine Balance – Rohinton Mistry
God's Snake - Spanidou Irini
Ines of my Soul – Isabel Allende
The Inheritance of Loss - Kiran Desai
Maps for Lost Lovers - Nadeem Aslam
Mao's Last Dancer - Li Cunxin
Pinocchio in Venice - Robert Coover
Testimony of an Irish Slave Girl - Kate McCafferty
What is the What - Dave Eggers
The Years of Rice and Salt - Kim Stanley Robinson

Books - Book Review - The Last Templar - Raymond Khoury

The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury

Street Treasure
a box of books

The other day, I was in the Marigny section of New Orleans, and I found a huge box with a lot of books. I even wrote a haiku about it.

And one of my great finds was The Last Templar.

This book helped me to forget about my bruised finger. I was lost in two worlds: the 13th century and the present.

Don't read the reviews. It is BETTER written than the Da Vinci Code. The topic is somewhat similar, but not quite. Mr. Khoury won't get sued by anyone.

The funniest part of the book is when the FBI is looking for information about the Templars. They get frustrated when they can't get the answers they want from the internet and need to physically search for clues at (gasp) at libraries!

There are some gory sections, both in the present and in the past, but if you have seen any horror movies, you can stomach the goriness in this book.

This books also gives a small homage to New York City. One of the characters sees the gaping hole where the Twin Towers once stood, when he is on the airplane. Also, post-9/11 NYC is described in terms of security precautions and fears of people.

This book is great to read on a cold day or if you have a cold. You will forget your troubles and go to another world!

Stuff - No Book Binding Class, but...

I had my next three Wednesdays planned: taking a book binding class at the New Orleans Glassworks and Printmaking Studio.

I was really looking forward to the class; learning something creative, lovely and soothing, meeting creative types, making more journals for my use. But, I bruised (but did not break) one of my fingers on my right hand at the gym this past Saturday. I put my finger in this plastic splint, and it's feeling better.

Since I am NOT ambidextrous and have almost no sick time left to recover, I have decided to take the class next year and still go to work but not overtax my finger.

However, now I have the chance to volunteer for Artistic Ancestry: An International Festival of Alternative Theatre.
I volunteered to be a ticket taker, since it won't put stress on my finger.

I am hoping to see these productions:
Chekov's Wild Ride, The Maid of Orleans, The Story of Tea, Salt, and Water[war]s.

Show and Book Review - Global Cooling

History Channel has been doing some interesting shows recently.

One show is called Mega Freeze, a concurrent phenomenom with global warming.

With all the icebergs melting, scientists theorize that all the new fresh water added to the salt water oceans will cause this current to stop flowing. This is the current that keeps weather moderate on the eastern seaboard of the United States and such European countries as the UK and France.

If this current stops flowing, London will have the same wintery conditions as Calagary , Canada. The host described London's weather as rainy but not too cold, but I bet its residents will debate that point.

As the show was playing, I kept wondering, are they going to mention A Creed for the Third Millennium
by Colleen McCullough?

This book deals with global cooling in the US. People in Canada and northern states such as Michigan have either abadoned it or live in the southern areas of the U.S. part-time. Atlanta, GA is the financial and entertainment capitol. Washington, D.C. and New York City are so cold, that only a few brave souls live there.

One Connecticut psychologist or psychiatrist published a book about coping with the cold weather and adjusting to the weather or accepting the move. He is recruited to give hope to the people.

The ending always disturbed me, but as I get older, I understand the pressures of being the savior of a country can do to a man.

This is one of the books that I read every few years.

So, now I feel that the Mega Freeze program is complete with my two cents.

Going to UK in 2007

I finally booked my plane ticket; I am flying into Gatwick to visit a friend.

She lives south of London. I plan to go with her and her little boy to some of the typical touristy sites.

Then, I hope to take the Chunnel train to Britanny, and another train to Manchester to visit another friend.

The trip will be in April, during the Easter holiday.

I am looking forward to being in "normal" cities for a change, where I don't have to think about whether there is enough water pressure to flush a toilet or take a shower and where I can find something at the store.

Yipeee!

November 2006 Update

I am saying good bye to some activities in my life right now, so that I can devote more time to this blog and my other blog, Katrina-Ku.

I did finish Brothers. I am still mulling over it. I liked the story; I learned about more recent mainland Chinese history.

The bookgroup is going to meet at Marginy Perks on Monday, November 8th to discuss Budda-Da, and to nominate books for 2007.

There will be no meetings at the 3rd week of November nor December; everyone is feeling the need to reconnect to family and friends.

I have also made a dent in my magazine reading. My friends are enjoying reading the magazines, after I am through with them.

I have also started knitting and crocheting more, to bring serenity in my life. I love shaping thread to create an object. I want to try felting techniques with some yarn that I bought at a recycling place for 50 cents; so if I mess up, it won't be a large financial loss.

bye for NOW, but I will return!