Books - Book Review - Sophie Pitt-Turnball Discovers America - Dyan Sheldon

Tiny Little Reading Room wrote in my review of another Dyan Sheldon book, that there was a trip by the English girl who goes to the Salamanca home in New York. So, as soon as my pile cleared a little, I requested a copy from my library.

Poor Sophie. She wanted to get away from London to escape a nasty friend, but that summer, her family wasn't going to France, as they usually did. So, her mom gets a trip to New York.

She imagines a wonderful time at an artist's studio in Soho. Magical trips to stores and museums. Cool weather.

When she arrives, not only does her suitcase decide to take a world tour without her, the Salamanca Family forgets to pick her up. She is dripping in her nice clothes and is relieved that she hasn't been kidnapped.

Things get worse. Not only is she NOT in Manhattan (but in Brooklyn), she finds out that there is NO air conditioning in her room, she has to live with some vile pets, is always hungry, because the veggie food isn't filling enough for her, has to wear someone else's clothes, and take care of children that can best be described as semi-civilized.

But I do sympatize with Sophie. She had to live in a home where "there were things everywhere. Books, knick-knacks, pots, masks, pictures, boxes, baskets, tins, bags, Christmas ornaments, buckets, broken machinery, sculptures, toys...It went on and on...About the only thing that there wasn't was furniture. Not a stick - just big cushions on the floor." I would die in the mess also.

Sophie learns not to be so schedule oriented and actually has fun when she meets more people and stops being afraid of everything.

A fun read! It's funny to read what teens consider problems.

Stuff - Learning about other Books

With the heat leaving for a few months, literary events and historical lectures abound.

I recently attended a talk by Dr. Rebecca Scott and her colleagues about the work that they are doing, after having written Degrees of Freedom.

She is studying the legality of slavery and freedom by following the story of a mixed race family, fleeing from Haiti in the early 1800s, landing in Cuba, and later in New Orleans. I had never thought about it, but Dr. Scott mentions that the family had to travel into three different jurisdictions (France, Spain, and pre-Civil War United States) and each new place presented questions about their freedom.

It almost sounds like a fictional novel, but it's all true. Dr. Scott has gone to archives in France, Cuba, Belgium, Spain, and the United States to try to find any paper trail of this family.

When the book comes out, I will let you know.

Last night, I attended a One Book, One New Orleans event: a panelist discussion group about Why St Bernard Matters.

This parish was destroyed 100% in the Katrina; absolutely nothing was spared. The parts that I saw on my drive over are slowly, slowly recovering. But, there is such a sense of place in that community, a bond for each other, that nothing can tear apart.

Dr. Hyland, the parish historian, mentioned that St. Bernard was always the protection for New Orleans, not only a land buffer against hurricanes, but militarily. (The Battle of New Orleans was actually fought in Chalmette, St. Bernard Parish, not in the city proper). And, at one time, many home were built on natural ridges, but as man-made encroachments increased, the protection against storms decreased.

Another panelist was Michelle H. Buuck, who wrote about the heroic acts of the St. Bernard firemen. Their goal was to rescue everyone during the Katrina and not leave until they were sure that there was no one left behind. What a story. Of course, I had to buy the book (my addiction) and I hope to read it soon!

Books - A Reading Challenge

I am hosting a reading challenge for 2009, called 9 for '09. It's a chance for you to whittle down your to-be-read stacks.

Buttons and rules are HERE. Hope you join.

First postings can start on 12/27/08. I just hate to start anything on January 1st, so if you are tired from your Christmas celebrations, you can make a post.

Stuff - Read UP

I saw this graffiti on this parking meter near the parking lot, where I leave my car during the day.

People who were waiting for the free buses and trains out of town during the Hurricane Gustave evacuation had to stand in line in this area (since it's near the Union Terminal Station), so I think that a bored person used white-out to write this succint message.

READ UP - an instruction manual of how to operate this old-fashioned parking meter? a wish to have something to read while waiting in line? a reaction to reading all the signs before leaving town?

I have no idea, but I just love the words.

In the meantime, I am in the process of reading two books: The Heart of Happy Hollow by Laurence Dunbar and Tournament of Shadows: The Great Game and the Race for Empire in Central Asia by Karl Meyer and Shareen Brysac. And I need to start Tim Winston's Cloudstreet for the last 2008 selection of the International Fiction Book Club

Heart is hard, despite being short stories. Dunbar was the son of slaves; some of the prose in stories is the English of former slaves, who did not receive any education.

Tournament is just plain long. (It's my last book for the Chunkster Challenge.) I like learning about how Russia and England tried to rule over northern India, (including present day Afghanistan and Pakistan), Tibet, and Nepal. As you can imagine, it wasn't easy in the 1800s and I am suspecting that it was a failure, at the end. I enjoy reading about the men and women who participated in this venture and I am learning many words, especially the origin of PUNDIT .

(Someone should have given this book to advisers of the current President of the US to read and warn about the terrain and the people.)

I also want to host a reading challenge, so I am working on the theme, graphics, setting up the blog, and learning about Mr. Linky. I will let you know what it is soon. Since I hate starting things on 1/1, I have to hurry up.

Books - Book Review - Don't Let;'s Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood - Alexandra Fuller

This memoir about life before and after African liberation, told from the viewpoint of an English ex-pat, who considers herself African, is compelling.

It's not an easy read, because the parents and the rest of the Europeans in those places are racist and supremists, despite their dependence on the African natives to cultivate the land and do other chores.

And, the voice of the author changes. In the beginning, she tells the story in a childish, and at times, whiny, annoying voice. She tries to remember how it was to be a child during the chaotic times of civil war in the former Rhodesia.

To begin with, before Independence, I am at school with white children only. "A" schools, they are called: superior schools with the best teachers and facilities. The black children go to "C" schools. In-between children who ae neither black nor white (Indian or a mixture of races) go to "B" schools.

It doesn't help that the mother is an alcoholic, both parents are rather self-centered, and the other white adults behave in a similar manner.

As the story evolves, I felt more sympathy for the parents, especially the mother (she lost 4 children before they turned 3 years old), but I still wondered, "Why in the world do these parents want to raise their two nice girls in this environment?"

These are some of the events that Fuller lived through:

the mom shot and killed an Egyptian spitting cobra

malaria
flea bites
mosquito bites
bad water
electricity by generator
handle a gun before age 10 in case terrorists come
intense heat and droughts
land mines
food rations until crops come in
outdoor toilets! (argh)

One book club member suggested that in Africa, the parents could live as they please and behave as they wish. (They didn't communicate well with the girls and when something bad happened, they would go on a holiday that was more of a nightmare.) If they had remained in England, people would have commented on their horrible parenting skills.

Fuller becomes more aware of the situation of the true Africans as she grows up. Once, she almost ran over a child on her motorbike. She goes back to the family to give them food and other items but feels that her gifts are just a drop in a bucket of poverty.

Despite all the negativity, she loves Africa. What I can't know about Africa as a child (because I have no memory of any other place) is her smell; hot, sweet, smoky, salty, sharp-soft. It is like black tea, cut tobacco, fresh fire, old sweat, young grass..

The morning starts with an "explosion of day birds, a fierce fight for territory, for females and food. This crashing of wings and the secret language of birds is such a perpetual background sound that I begin to understand its language...The night creatures..saw and um with such persistence that the human brain is forced to translate the song into pulse..Halfway between the dark of night and the light of morning, all animals and crickets and birds fall into a profound silence as if pressed quiet by the deep quality of the blackest time of night...

Her impressions of London are the polar opposite: most struck not by the sight, but by the smell of England. How flat-empty it is; car fumes, concrete, street-wet.

I must admit that when I read the summary of this work, I didn't want to read it. But, I am glad that I stuck it out. Does Fuller fully understand what goes on in Africa? Probably not, but her viewpoint still counts.

Illustration Friday - Strings

This week's theme is Strings.

I looked up the word in the dictionary and decided to incorporate three of them.

1. The twine/rope - I cut out leaves from a fancy sample cloth. It's machine-embroidered with two different threads.

2. The scientific - String Theory. I looked in Wikipedia to find information about this theory and wrote some words relating to it on pieces of paper.

3. Along in a row - string of similar homes. I lined up the words and leaves in a linear pattern.

The background is an old book with watercolors.

Books - Book Review - The Waves - Virginia Woolf

If you are not a VW scholar, I do recommend this Harcourt edition of The Waves. The introduction is loooong, but necessary. I read about half of the introduction, started the first section of the book, and went back to the Introduction.

This novel is revolutionary. There is really no plot, just the thoughts of the main six characters, as they interact with each other over the years. The time sequence is linear, but the story isn't related in the usual methods of the novel.

And the passage of time is denoted by the position of the sun at a beach.

When the characters are children, "the sun had not yet risen. The sea was indistinguishable from the sky, except that the sea was slighty crease as if a cloth had wrinkles in it." The characters meet for the first time at a nursery school or a kindergarten and think: .."Birds are singing up and down and in and out all round us, " said Susan. ..."I burn, I shiver," said Jinny, "out of this sun, into this shadow."

The first section continues with impressions of their world, as seen by English children who parents have some money to send them to a private school.

The novel continues by following the children at boarding school, going to university, work, or finishing school, in their 20s, 40s, and old age.

Another indication that time passes, is the technology that Woolf mentions. First, carriages and trains trasport the children. Later, there are cars and telegraph lines. The thoughts mature as they age.

Their personalities change little over the years. Vain Susan likes being the center of attention and doesn't it like it when as she ages, she can't keep her beauty. Bernard is the great raconteur but never writes the great English novel. Louis is the smartest of the bunch (and the most self-conscious about his origins) but he starts work after secondary school, because his Australian banker father can't afford to spend more on his education.

In the back of the book, there are notes that let you know what some of the historical, literary, and British allusions mean. Woolf had a great education at home and read a great deal; she weaves all this information in the novel.

This is one book that I need to re-read, because I don't think that I have caught all the depths of the work. The language is beautiful, the structure very different from what I am used to reading. A challenge, if you dare to read it.

P.S. This work in my last one in the What's in a Name Challenge! Yeah to me for completing this challenge.

Books - Book Review - Tuim Tin Tassie - John McDonald

John McDonald was kind enough to send me a copy of his latest and greatest - Tuim Tin Tassie (Empty Tin Cup).

I think that at one time, the Spanish and Scots languages must have crossed paths, because a tasa is a cup with a handle and it's close to tassie.

As in my previous review of John's work,
Throu Gaun Chiel, all the haiku are great, but I can only mention a few.

Guid Friday
he spreeds's freet
a bittie thinner


Good Friday -
he spreads his butter
a little thinner

The person in the haiku takes his religion very serious. For Lent, I give up nothing. I just try to be a better person all year!

(John must be a Catholic, because he also writes about the Mass and rosaries.)

a snell wund
the bodach hunkers
his box souchin

a bitter wind -
the old man sits
his accordion wheezing

First of all, the Scots words, wund, bodach and souchin sound so musical and add to the aural quality of the haiku. Then, there are enough words for a clear picture to form in my mind. And, it's evocative to cause me to be sad for the old man for a moment.

frae'r poke
a bra skailin -
flittin

from her bag
a bra spilling -
moving house

Interesting. What happened just a few moments before and what is going to happen next?
Mmmm.

To get your daily dose of John's words, click here. Better than coffee or tea!

Last time, Poet-in-Residence beat me in reviewing John's Throu Gaun Chiel. Now, I am the first to post for Tuim Tin Tassie. Cheers to me!

Illustration Friday - Sugary

This week's theme is Sugary.

I made a candy wrapper by weaving scraps of paper together and put it against a watercolor background to bring out the colors of the wrapper.

All the sugar is inside the wrapper.

Books - Literary Awards

I finished reading one book, but I can't review it yet. And I am currently reading 3 books and finished none of them, so I will just let you know about some other literary awards that are not the biggies (Nobel, The Man Booker and the Pulitzer.)

For these prizes, I am including only the shortlist. You can probably find the longlist near the Home page.

Kiriyama Prize 2008 - fiction winner is Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones and non-fiction winner is The Father of All Things by Tom Bissell. I have also read one of the finalist books, The Last Chinese Chef by Nicole Mones.

Neustadt International Prize for Literature and the winner is Patricia Grace

IPAF 2007-2008, a new award, selected Sunset Oasis by Bahaa Taher as the winner.

International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award and the winner is Rawi Hage's De Niro's Game .The Attack by Yasmina Khadra is on my TBR pile!

Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction and the winner is The Road Home by Rose Tremain

The only bad thing about these prizes is that I now know about different writers and now have some choices for my Christmas present to myself. (Actually too much!)

If you know of other awards, let me know!

Book - Book Review - The Throu-Gaun Chiel - John McDonald

John first contacted me when I was selling the Katrina-Ku books for the New Orleans Haiku Society, and we maintain contact through emails and postings on the seasonal haiku blogs.

He has published his book of Scot Haiku. The first poem is written in Scots and the second in English.

I tried reading a few out-loud last night and yesterday at a bench during my lunch hour in a Sean Connery-like accent and failed miserably.

However, I try to guess the words before I read it in English. It's a good mental gymnastics and it gives me time to pause and think about the thought.

I can't quote all of my favorites, because it's most of the book. But here is a smal sample:

waff of wull lickerie -
the bairn in me
wints sweeties

smell of wild liquorice
the child in me
wants sweets

I had no idea liquorice was a natural treat; I thought the only form was in those long and ugly
stringy bars in the candy jars or plastic bags. However, I can relate to the sweet tooth cravings; I love sweets also!

hauf-fou halfins
sclimin the sterr -
paidlin squaiks intae'r drame

tiddly teenagers
climbing the stair
pressing squeaks into her dream

Sclimin sounds a lot better than climbing, and teens are such strange creatures that I think I will refer to them as halfins from now on.

cluds
passin ower
fou o dubs

clouds
passing over
full of puddles

This is something I can relate to: summer showers and winter rains!

As I said, there are more that I love, but I can't quote them all.

If you want to read more of John's haiku, click here!

Illustration Friday - Packed

This week's theme is PACKED.

Well, the blueish and white thing should be a bed. My perspective was off, so it looks flat.

I have various clothes (made from paper scraps) ready to be packed for my next fun trip or hurricance evacuation.

The headboard is a machine-embroideried flower that I cut out from the fancy cloth sample.

Stuff - I LOVE YOUR BLOG Award

I was nominated last week by BookGirl and since I was slow on the response, some of my favorite book blogs were already nomintated. So, I am going to nominate some other book bloggers and creative ones!

Maggie Reads - for insightful Southern Lit and news on whats it's like to work in a library!
The Asylum - for exposing me to authors that I have never heard of! (He lives in Ireland.)
The Mookse and the Gripes - a new blogger who reads extraordinary books. (I still need to ask him what his blog title means.)
Reading Adventures - a lover of many book challenges and host of challenges

Autumn Haiku 2008 - for helping me to enjoy the fall and write about the fall. (I usually administer the summer ones, because it's so hot in New Orleans, that I can't enjoy the summer. However, the summer is the time that most of the poets enjoy, since they live in northern climes.)

Kami Haiku - great poet and a nice person who sent me a lot of nice emails!
Zen Speug - when I need a mental workout, I slow down to read his Scottish verse.

Illustration Friday artists who have blogs:

Jus qu'aux yeax.. An American ex-pat living in France and doing great collage!
Papor Artist - a collage artist who also teaches workshops and that I hope to meet some day.
Timothy Hunt - a creative collager who uses paper bags!

Fashion and Gossip

Project Rungay, of course. They know everyone and write their unedited opinions about fashion, design, and other fun topics!

So spread the word on other blogs!

Here are the rules:
1) Add the logo of the award to your blog
2) Add a link to the person who awarded it to you
3) Nominate at least 7 other blogs (Well, since I like to disobey, I nominated more than 7!)
4) Add links to those blogs on your blog
5) Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs!