Educating Petunia

It's Tuesday...Where are you?

2009-12-15T06:00:00.000-08:00

Has a book ever transported you to a new land or experience? Share where your reading has taken you this week. Visit An Adventure in Reading to participate.

I am a girl convicted of murder in Kingston in Canada. A doctor of a new branch of medicine, psychology, is trying to figure out my guilt or innocence.

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

Fairies, Reluctant Dragons, Rogue Tooth Fairies and Stitches

2009-12-14T07:00:00.000-08:00

I've noticed that there are 4 books in my sidebar that haven't yet been reviewed. We can't have that now, can we? So here are my very small reviews:

The Reluctant Dragon - What a cute story about a pacifist dragon who is more interested in poetry and acting than in frightening the people in a local village. I've read it more than once and I always enjoy it. It's short and great for kids.

The Coming of the Fairies - Sir Conan Arthur Doyle wrote this non-fiction book in 1920 in defense of the sensational photos of the Cottingley fairies. It pretty much ruined Doyle's credibility with the public. It was dry and repetitive and definitely written from a slanted POV. To learn more about the Cottingley story, which is very interesting in its self, go here, or watch the movie Fairy Tale: A True Story. My family loved the movie even though it is not very accurate. It's on par with The Little Princess and The Secret Garden.

What-the-Dickens: The Story of a Rogue Tooth Fairy - It was difficult as a read-aloud because there are duel stories going on so the switching back and forth was awkward but the story was fun and made my kiddos LOL often. The vocabulary is broad and will stretch the minds of many young kids. We enjoyed it.

Stitches - I read Stitches because of several recommendations from book bloggers. I didn't find it fascinating. His family was riddled with mental illness and he suffered as a result but there was no real reason why I needed to know about it, unlike Maus or Persepolis which have something important to say. There was one drawing that was amazing. It's of the author's mother when he walks in on her in a compromising situation. It conveyed the emotions of deep sadness and fear that she must have felt. Otherwise I wasn't impressed.

The Sunday Salon

2009-12-13T09:00:00.000-08:00

Literature
Books-In case you missed it on Thursday, I quit 3 books this week because they were bogging me down. Now I'm working on The Snowflake and Alias Grace, both for the Four Month Challenge.

Challenges-I'm down to 2 challenges and am planning to join the 2010 Challenge that begins Jan. 1st. It seems like an easy one to fit my reading whims into as I go, making it easier to complete. I am making steady progress on the Four Month Challenge but I quit the one book I was reading for the Really Old Classics. I'm failing that one. Perhaps a couple of short plays can help me along.

Life
Quilts-I have several quilt tops that I've made because I like to sew and I love beautiful fabrics, but I don't need them. (20 baby quilts in pink do me no good other than to stare at.) I've considered finishing them and selling them on Etsy. Has anyone had any luck with Etsy? What do you think? Here is a queen sized quilt top I finished last week.

Christmas-Twelve days til Christmas! We have our tree up, all decorated and looking lovely. I still have shopping to do. The 2 boys are good but my daughter doesn't want much. You'd think this would be a good problem to have but I cannot possibly give the boys 10 gifts each and have only 1 for the girl. Suggestions for a creative girl that likes music and playing on her computer?
Have a great week friends!

Adventures in French Cooking

2009-12-12T06:00:00.000-08:00

It was after we had enjoyed my first French cooking endeavor, Boeuf Bourguignon, that Mom declared she expected Chocolate Soufflé for Thanksgiving. She wasn't joking. Mom was so serious about it that she bought a soufflé dish and looked up soufflé recipes and taped an episode of Good Eats about soufflés(very helpful) that we watched together. She even ate a chocolate soufflé at a fancy-pants restaurant nearby so she would know what it was supposed to taste like. She called it research. Suuuure.

This was my first taste of chocolate soufflé but I am a big fan now. It was just so delicious.
We used Julia's recipe with one exception: I substituted hot cocoa for the strong coffee that it called for. We knew from this experience that the coffee flavor comes through too strongly for our discerning palettes.

We didn't get away without learning a couple of lessons. It was a first try after all. It wasn't perfect. We didn't have the right sized soufflé dish because we couldn't find one that was 2-2.5 quarts so we used a 1.5 quart dish which worked alright, but the dish was small enough that it needed extra time to cook in the middle while the outside got a touch too much heat. It made not a bit of difference to the taste. You can see a little of the black edges in this photo.

Isn't she beautiful?

That fancy-pants restaurant I mentioned earlier? We went there a few days later where I sampled the Grand Marnier Soufflé. OMG, Heaven! They serve their soufflés with warm sauce that gets poured over the top and into the center, chocolate for the chocolate and vanilla for the Grand Marnier. I will be doing that next time because Mom already declared that Soufflé is now a family tradition for the holidays. :)

I'm a Quitter, Not a Bored Reader

2009-12-11T13:31:00.000-08:00

Hey blogosphere! It's been a while. What have you been up to lately? I can't say I've been busy because I haven't. I can't say I've been sick. Maybe a little sick but not enough to prevent blogging. I can't even say there is nothing to blog about. I've just been too bored to blog. I make no apologies. I'm just saying.

I've been doing a lot of reading lately but nothing seems to be grabbing me, so I am going to do something I hate doing. I'm quitting. I have been shuffling from book to book, reading a chapter in this one and a chapter in that, hoping that all books will be gotten through eventually, but I'm finding that I want less and less to read because some of these books just suck.

I feel guilty about quitting a book, like I'm giving up on it too soon, like I haven't given it time to reach it's full potential. I hate giving up on a story that may just be building up to something interesting. Especially if it's a book that others have raved about. Especially if it's a book that I spent money on. I might hurt the little guys feelings. Well phooey to guilt. So there. Childish, I know but that's what I'm about.

So here is what I have decided to quit under the cliche that life is too short:

Lake Wobegon Days - A library copy of the last book for the Take a Chance Challenge. Even though the challenge ended about 2 weeks ago I wanted to finish it for my own sense of accomplishment. Man, is this book boring. I kept thinking, "So why am I supposed to care about the founding of this town, about the bears that chased away students from it's first college? And why was this book on the Bestsellers List way back when?" So I quit it at page 150.

The Philobiblon of Richard de Bury: The Love of Books - With a title like that I figured I couldn't go wrong. I bought it. It didn't matter that I had no clue who de Bury was or that the book was written in biblical language in the 14th century. It was extremely thin and called The Love of Books. How bad could it be? Well I disagree with de Bury and his writing is hard to follow, not just because of the language but because he changed tenses from chapter to chapter, and because he worships books the way zealots worship God. He even misquotes the Bible to do it. I'm a Christian and a book lover but this was too much. So I quit it at page 19.

The White Mary - So many people have praised this one. Based on the description I wasn't so sure about it so I got the audio version since sometimes that helps me get through a book faster. Nope. I should have trusted my instincts. The degree of research is impressive and the writing is just fine but the subject matter is not my cuppa tea. I thought it sounded a lot like The Heart of Darkness but that made me want to reread The Heart of Darkness, not to continue reading The White Mary. Sorry to the people who loved it, but I quit it at Disk 3.

Awww. I feel so much better. Now I can move on to more interesting books like Alias Grace and The Snowflake. The guilt will just have to crawl into a hole somewhere in the cellar.

Review: When She Flew

2009-12-04T23:42:00.000-08:00

When She Flew
by Jennie Shortridge

Wow! I know it's become cliche to say a book is compelling but never was a book more fit for the verb than When She Flew. From the moment I broke the spine I had to find out what happened next. I even neglected my precious computer. This is seriously good reading.

Thirteen year old Lindy has been living undetected with her Iraq vet father for 5 years in a wildlife sanctuary in Oregon when she is spotted. Police are sent to investigate and make sure the girl is in no danger. Officer Jess Villareal disagrees with her Sergeant who has decided that Lindy should be put in foster care until her safety is verified. Jess has a sense about people and her sense tells her that separation from her father will cause more damage to Lindy than good, so she does something she has never done before: she goes against protocol and helps the father and daughter escape from police custody. Jess is just doing what she believes to be right but it will have farther reaching consequences than she could have imagined.

There is just nothing about this book that I didn't love. The characters were all sympathetic (except the mom who, thankfully, was given very little ink) and courageous. Lindy was beautiful and brave. Jess was strong and full of righteous conviction. The reactions of the police department as well as the community felt genuine. Even the excessive cussing was what I believe would be accurate to this type of situation. This was a story that could definitely be real. In fact it was based on a real circumstance that the author touches on in a small interview in the back of the book.

What I admired the most about this novel was that everyone (except mom) was trying to do the right thing. They were all honorable in their own way. They stayed in character and they developed consistently within that character. I kept rooting for the good guys and dreading the dangerous possibilities. The cover blurb says, "Taut, beautifully rendered." I agree 100%.

You should read this book. Seriously. Now!

A Sweet Tradition

2009-12-03T16:04:00.000-08:00

The mail carrier delivered some Swiss Colony goodies yesterday. It's a family tradition that ~~my husband~~ the whole family looks forward to every year. You can see a variety of sausages, old world cookies, a bottle of port, petits fours, macadamia nut chocolates, butter toffee, Bavarian creme torte, and liqueur truffles. That's a lot of sweets but the fun doesn't stop there. Before the weekend is over we will also have a large box of See's Candies and some fancy cheeses and crackers to go with those sausages. When Dad pulls out the sweets there are no limits either. You want 10 candies? Well, go right ahead. The only restriction is that there must be at least one of each kind of petits four and liqueur truffle for both Mom and Dad.

Let the gorging begin!

Review: Breaking Her Fall

2009-11-30T06:00:00.000-08:00

Breaking Her Fall
by Stephen Goodwin

What would you do if you got a phone call in the middle of the night that your 14 year old daughter was drunk and acting inappropriately at a party that you didn't even know she was attending? That is the opening premise of Breaking Her Fall. Action, tension, and inter relational conflict. It fell short of the first two and ran long on the last.

The book was mostly about how Tucker relates, or not, with his daughter, Kat, after she makes a mistake that affects her reputation among her peers, her family and herself. It was interesting to see a man's perspective of fatherhood, especially that of a single father who is the primary guardian. The realization that she is no longer his little girl is as violent emotionally as it ends up being physically. Kat may have made a possibly life changing mistake but Tucker's rash reaction causes more damage and is just as life altering.

I didn't like Tucker or Kat. I didn't care for any of the secondary characters. The only one I did like was Lily, Tucker's closest friend, until she too threw her respectable nature out the window. While the characters that people this book are presented as good, they all lack morals. No wonder the children behave the way they do. I'm so glad my own kiddos don't act even remotely like these ones do.

This was the second to last leg of the Take a Chance Challenge. I won't bother looking up anything else by this author.

I am so disappointed that I will miss completing this challenge by mere days. I am reading the last book now but it is too long for me to finish it by the end of the month, especially since I am driving home from visiting out of town family and I continue to work on The Novel for NaNoWriMo. But this challenge was a hoot. HOOT HOOT! I loved creating the list and working through it. Thank you so very much to Jenners from Find Your Next Book Here. If you have a Part 2 of this challenge, Jenners, I want to be notified of it.

Review:Love Finds You in Lonesome Prairie, Montana

2009-11-28T15:46:00.000-08:00

Love Finds You in Lonesome Prairie, Montana
by Tricia Goyer & Ocieanna Fleiss

Have you ever heard of the term "chocolate read?" It describes a book that you read just as a treat. A guilty little pleasure. You don't read it out of obligation or for its "nutritional value" but just because sometimes it is just right for the moment. I adore books that make me ponder life and question my ideals but every once in a while I crave a simple love story with a guaranteed happy ending. In Lonesome Prairie, Montana I found my love story, though it wasn't always so simple; and I got a reminder of some of the deeper spiritual lessons that I have learned along the way. That's like organic chocolate. :D

Julia Cavanaugh travels from New York to Montana on the orphan train in 1889 to deliver a group of young girls she's been caring for to their new families only to find out that she's been secretly set up as a mail-order bride to an uncouth miner. Having never left the city before she finds it hard to adjust to life on the prairie. The young Parson, Isaac Shepherd, can offer protection, friendship, and spiritual guidance, and maybe his heart too, but only God can direct Julia to her true home.

With a number of less than satisfying novels under my belt in recent months, I was in sore need of some good, clean fun. This Christian romance came just in time. It had everything I crave in a "chocolate read"; pleasant characters, lively adventure, and a happy ending. I even detected just a touch of Jane Austen shadowing. One can never go wrong with Ms. Austen as a guide.

Lonesome Prairie is unapologetically Christian. That means no unrealistic and unhistorical smut involved. This novel is pure. I like that. It means the good are good and the bad are treated judiciously. Forgiveness is promoted and so is repentance. It has just the right mixture for a relaxing afternoon chocolate read.

I almost forgot! There's a contest for some great treats from Montana. Click the button to find out how to enter.

Thank you, LitFuse, for providing a copy of Love Finds You in Lonesome Prairie, Montana for me to review.

Adventures in French Cooking

2009-11-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

I'd like you to meet my culinary BFF. Dude, it rocks! Not only does it rock but it also chops, slices, grates and kneads in just seconds. Gone are the days of chopping and slicing by hand for 20 minutes. This food processor is one of the best Christmas presents I ever asked for.

But it has its limits.

First I shall share the fancy nom français of our meal(Google Translator is oh so helpful):

Bifteck Sauté Bercy
Purée de Pommes de Terre à l'Ail
Tomates Grillées au Four

That's pan-broiled steak with shallot and white wine sauce, garlic mashed potatoes, and whole baked tomatoes.

I started by doing something new; I rewrote the recipes in the style that we modern Americans are used to using, meaning the list of ingredients followed by orderly instructions. As I went along I left out all the parts that weren't necessary, like an entire paragraph describing how to tell when the steaks are cooked to the perfect à point(medium rare). This took about half an hour for all three recipes but it saved me so much frustration as I was cooking. And I was never caught off guard by a sudden "refer back to the master recipe but leave out this and add that." It is the beginning of my collection of Petunia's Semi-Homemade Julia Child Cookbook. Look for it in a book store near you in 2015.

I have made the pan-broiled steak before so it went smoothly but still, here is what I learned this time around: buy a good, thin cut of meat. The sauce may sound awesome but it is mild. It's not like adding salt to your food; it's more like adding parsley. You don't really taste it. And the meat needs to be thin in order to cook all the way through. Either start with a thin cut or pound that baby down. We don't like pink meat so there was a piece of steak that didn't get eaten. :(

And now is where I share the food processor's limits. While making the potatoes I thought I would use the processor with the chopping blade to "mash" the potatoes since I was missing the requisite potato ricer. Bad idea. Do you know what happens when you chop boiled potatoes at turbo speed for a couple of minutes? They become paste, like the kind of paste we all used to ~~taste~~ use in kindergarten. And this paste tends to work its way into all the crevices of the food processor's bowl and blade taking at least three days to clean properly. Needless to say I will be asking of a potato ricer this Christmas. Still the potatoes were good if hard to swallow. Btw, there were 2 heads of garlic in there. Not cloves, heads. The flavor is milder than you would guess but still.

Lastly I made the tomatoes. This was the easiest thing I have made so far and I loved them. Loved. Them. If you are a tomato lover you have to try this. Put a bunch of cherry or grape tomatoes in a baking dish. Sprinkle on a little olive oil, salt and pepper, and bake at 400* for 10 minutes. They are so hot and juicy. Just make sure your mouth is closed tightly before you bite into them. Tomato seeds stain. (Who knew?)

So I continue on my trek through France by way of MtAoFC. Stay tuned next time when I attempt Chocolate Soufflé for the Thanksgiving Buffet.

The Sunday Salon

2009-11-22T14:00:00.000-08:00

Literature
Books-I have been reading Breaking Her Fall by Stephen Goodwin all week but I plan to finish today. I'm also finishing What-the-Dickens, a read aloud for my kiddos. We are at a cliff hanger with only 25 pages left to go. It's been a fun ride. Next week I will be reading Lake Wobegon Days, a book I haven't a clue about. Should be good.

Challenges-One week left for the Take a Chance Challenge with two sections left to complete. I will make it. There is also only one week left for the Clear Off Your Shelves Challenge which is good because I have 2 new ARCs and a slew of library books slated for the next month that would bring down my average below my challenge goal. I scored another 15 points for the Four Month Challenge with The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, bringing my score up to 35 points. I have yet to read anything for the Really Old Classics Challenge but that should change in Dec.

Life
Cooking-I gave another go at French cooking. I tried something a little different to prepare that made a big difference in the kitchen. You can read all about it tomorrow.

Writing-NaNoWriMo is on its final leg and I don't know if I will make it. I try to write each day but I am coming in below the daily word count goal quite often. I may not have 50,000 words by Dec. 1st but I will have the skeleton of a story with lots of potential and 30 days worth of intensive writing practice. I consider myself successful already. (Btw, I posted a snippet of the prologue here if you want a peek.)

Homeschool-We are taking the whole week off. Yay! I am just as excited about the break as the kids are. We will visit with family all week, eat until we feel sick and then eat some more. I love vacation time.

NaNo Sneak Peek

2009-11-20T09:00:00.000-08:00

One of the best challenges for the Take a Chance Reading Challenge was #8:

"Lit Riff (inspired by the book Lit Riffs by Matthew Miele.) Choose a song and then write a brief story that is inspired by or further explains the lyrics of the song."

I knew instantly which song I was going to use but the more I thought about it the more elaborate my idea got. It became the inspiration for my NaNoWriMo novel. So here is a sneak peek of my thus far nameless novel followed by Norah Jones singing Wish I Could.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

“And your dog? What's his name?”

Catherine considered lying about that but after having told so many of them she just couldn’t. Besides, this was all part of her self imposed punishment. “James. His name is James.”

She saw the look of anguish that swept across Cissy’s face as it did every time they had this conversation. Cissy’s eyes turned red with tears that she refused to let fall. “My husband was named James, bless his heart. He was the most gentle and kind man I ever met, next to Ben in there.” She indicated with her hand that Ben was inside, manning the cafe. Catherine looked in and saw Ben wiping down the counter top. He knew she was there and he knew why. He had told her many times that she should stop putting herself through this. She had paid for her part in what happened but she felt compelled to keep it up. Her guilt must not be allayed. What she had done to Cissy was unforgivable even if Cissy didn’t know anything about it.

“He died in the war you know? The first war. The Great War. We were so happy but he felt he had to go help the troops to fight for freedom. He would say, ‘Those boys out there are dying Cissy. They need our help and I am able. I’m a good shot. I can’t let boys of 19 and 18 and some younger fight when I could stand next to them and defend them.’ He was always thinking of others like that.” Her expression changed to grief. “I miss him everyday.”

“I understand,” was all the comfort Catherine could offer.

“Did you lose someone close to you too?”

“Yes I did.” She didn’t elaborate and Cissy didn’t push the matter. She never did. She was always sensitive about such things.

“Yes," Cissy continued after a few moments, "they took my husband. He fought along side those young boys and he defended them. It cost him his life but he would have given more if he could have. His act of heroism saved Ben’s life. And Ben has in turn devoted his life to taking care of me. He’s a good man, Ben is. Solid and able bodied. And he understands my grief.”

Catherine looked in the window again to see Ben watching them. Catherine waved but he only nodded his head once in acknowledgement. Catherine knew that Ben had suffered too; and suffered more now than ever since Cissy had come down with dementia. Cissy rarely remembered Catherine and sometimes she mistook Ben for James who had been Ben’s closest companion. It wasn’t Cissy’s fault. It was no one’s fault that Cissy’s brain just went back to the time when she was the happiest and then the most anguished. It was Catherine’s fault though that James had joined the Army in the first place. Catherine had been in love with James and he returned her affection but it was wrong. He felt guilty. He was trying to gain some distance from Catherine as well as wanting to help with the war. He had hoped that distance would bring an end to their relationship but that was never the way it worked. The distance only made her long for him more.

Cissy had never known about the affair. James' death had almost crushed the very life out of her as it was. Catherine had suffered her own pain in silence. Cissy's need for support and Catherine's guilt had demanded it. She couldn’t fall apart and she could never ever tell Cissy what had happened.

Now she had spent the rest of her life trying to atone for her sin and never feeling the relief of forgiveness.

Note that all content published on this blog is the property of the blog owner. Please don't steal my work. But feel free to link to it.

Superior Scribbler

2009-11-19T08:00:00.000-08:00

Flying in from one great blog, this prestigious award was granted to me from DogEar Diary. Thank you Jeane for your high regards. My self esteem has jumped up a notch. In turn I pass the award on to some of my favorites:
A Reader's Respite
Hey Lady! Whatcha Readin'?
Book Chatter
KyusiReader
In THIS Life

There were a list of "rules" to go with the award but they took all the fun out of the process so the only rule I followed was to pass the award on to 5 other great blogs. Love to you all!

Review: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

2009-11-18T06:00:00.000-08:00

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
by Jean-Dominique Bauby

What an incredible accomplishment! For a man in this state to have written such an eloquent book is astonishing.

At the age of 42, Jean-Dominique Bauby, the editor-in-chief for the French Elle magazine, suffered a stroke leaving him in the almost completely paralyzed state known as locked-in syndrome. With the use of only his left eye, Jean-Do was able to blink his way through the French language frequency-ordered alphabet, an alphabet set in the order of letters most commonly used to the least, in order to write his memoir. It took him 10 months working 4 hours a day with an assistant to write this 131 page book.

Within its pages there is some truly lovely prose. There is poetry in his descriptions when he writes about his struggles after the stroke and some of his life before. It's not always cohesive but that is more than forgivable. And Bauby has a sense of humor too. I felt that it was okay to laugh at this passage because he was laughing along with me:

"Having turned down the hideous jogging suit provided by the hospital, I am now attired as I was in my student days. Like the bath, my old clothes could easily bring back poignant, painful memories. But I see in the clothing a symbol of continuing life. And proof that I still want to be myself. If I must drool, I may as well drool on cashmere."

This book is not exactly life altering but the story behind it is inspirational.

But I have to back up a little bit here. Before I read the book, I watched the movie; and before the movie was glowing review of the book that I read at Bending Bookshelf. When the movie arrived in my mailbox I was surprised to find that it was a French film but some of my favorite movies have been foreign films so I hunkered down to read my way through the movie.

It started off really disorienting. The beginning depicts Jean-Do waking in the hospital and realizing what condition he is in. It is viewed from his perspective so it is foggy with flashing scenes that don't make much sense. There is a really gross scene of one of his eyes being sewn shut but it gets better as it goes. Throughout the movie it moves back and forth between being inside his head and what happened the little while leading up to the stroke.

The movie was moving and very effective in showing what life must have been like for Bauby. However, upon further investigation it seems that the movie took some liberties. The mother of Bauby's children (I'm not sure if she is in fact an ex-wife) is made to be the "butterfly" that keeps his spirits up with her loving devotion but according to his friends she had little to do with him during his last year of life. This was disappointing but it doesn't change my adulation for the film. It was beautifully done.

I would recommend the book and the movie to anyone. They compliment each other and should be viewed and read as companions. This is a case where watching the movie first enhanced my experience with the book.

This review of both a movie and the book it was based on is another challenge completed for the Take a Chance Challenge, the Movie/Book Comparison. I am so grateful to have been exposed to such a life affirming duo. Thank you Jenners for the challenge and Charley for the recommendation.

It's Tuesday...Where are you?

2009-11-17T15:21:00.000-08:00

Has a book ever transported you to a new land or experience? Share where your reading has taken you this week. Visit An Adventure in Reading to participate.

I am a father, from Washington DC, distraught at the news of what my young daughter did at a party. My actions have farther reaching consequences than hers.

Breaking Her Fall by Stephen Goodwin

The Sunday Salon, Monday Edition

2009-11-16T13:06:00.000-08:00

Literature
Books-Since the read-a-thon I've read two books. My long and not-so-encouraging review of The Hidden can be found directly below. And I read The Diving Bell & the Butterfly, which I loved. Can't wait to get a review up about both the book and the movie, which I also loved. I'm currently reading Breaking Her Fall by Stephen Goodwin. I'm reserving judgment til the end.

Challenges-The Take a Chance Challenge is almost at an end and I still have a few parts to finish it but I will finish it on time. It's all planned out. As for the Clear Off Your Shelves Challenge, it seems I misunderstood part of it, but it works to my benefit. My percentage is now at 70% instead of 50%. What a relief! I've done nothing towards the Really Old Classics Challenge yet; and I have 20 points so far for the Four Months Challenge with another 15 estimated by the end of the week.

Life
Writing-As you know I am doing NaNoWriMo this month. I love my book concept and the progress I've made so far is exciting but I'm way behind in my word count. I need a few 3K word days to make it up if I hope to be successful. But I have some exciting news for you. I plan to share some of the first chapter with you before the end of the month. Watch for it and tell me what you think. I expect honesty but praise and awe at my natural ability are always welcome. :D

Sewing-I have a strict policy against posting photos of my family but with a little cropping I can show off the Alice in Wonderland costume that I made my daughter for Halloween. When we walked down the street a little girl said excitedly "There's Alice!" My daughter was glowing with pride. It's too bad you can't see the black shoes and black headband in her long blond hair but I did leave her beautiful smile. She made the perfect Alice.

Homeschool-We have been learning about the pilgrims. I'm astonished at how much I didn't know about them. I just remember sharing a meal dressed up as Indians and Pilgrims from my school days. Did you know that less than half of the people on board were not in fact seeking religious freedom? They were just along for the ride to help colonize the New World for the British Empire before Spain or France or the Dutch could claim it for themselves. We also learned about the colony that became New York. I didn't realize there was so much history there or that it went back to the same period as the pilgrims. I have gained such an appreciation for learning since I've been homeschooling my children. It's fascinating stuff.

What about you? Are you learning anything new lately?

Review: The Hidden

2009-11-11T22:00:00.000-08:00

The Hidden
by Tobias Hill

It seems unnanimous so far that book bloggers are less than enthusiastic about The Hidden. I'm not about to disagree. What was hidden in The Hidden was interesting storytelling, engaging characters and appropriate puncuation.

Let's start with story. Ben Mercer, running from a failed marriage, becomes entangled with a mysterious team of archaeologists trying to uncover the glories of ancient Sparta. There is history, mystery and danger. Sounds intriguing, yes? Not so much. Actually, the history parts were interesting. The details of archaeology were alright also. It was the wreck of Mercer's life that was like trudging through a mucky swamp. His obsession with his ex-wife was pathetic. His endless questions and need to be a part of the group of folks he was warned away from was tedious. There was no substanse and nothing to compel the reader to continue reading. The action finally picks up near the end but the contents of the action were bewildering. They seemed out of place for this particular story. There were some attempts at foreshadowing but not enough.

Now the characters. I didn't like any of them. Ben Mercer was the worst. He was a whiny, snivelling child. He let everyone walk on him. I could never get a true sense of who he was. Maybe that was the point, to show that even Mercer didn't know who he was but, again, it fell short for me.

Lastly, puncuation. Was this an attempt to push the restrictive bounds of literature? Was there a deeper reason for leaving out quotation marks? All dialogue was confusing. I could never be sure who was talking to whom. There is a reason we follow standard puncuasion rules: clarity.

To be fair, there is a great deal of research into many different subjects from ancient Spartan history to archiology to the more recent history of the specific regains of Greece dealt with in the novel. The characters, while unsympathetic, were unique and distinc. The themes all followed each other smoothly. The Thesis chapters were effectively revealing about Mercer's mental state, moreso than his inner thoughts. Unfortunately, it was all for nought due to the book's confusing and boring nature.

Tobias Hill is a man of some scholarly statue in England. He is an accomplished poet and writer of short stories, a winner of some few honors. I would be interested in reading some of his shorter works. I believe he could be interesting in a more concise writing style. The Hidden might be more up the alley of men who read fiction since their tastes seem so different from those of women.

Go check out what others are saying about The Hidden at TLC Book Tours. There are some interesting comments, not all of them as prickly as mine.

Adventures in French Cooking

2009-11-07T17:18:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite cooking shows on cable is Semi-Homemade with Sandra Lee. She's so pretty and the colors in the background of her kitchen match the mood of whatever she is cooking and she decorates the table so adorably; and best of all, she creates wonderful food by cutting corners without sacrificing flavor. She saves us time by showing us what we should do for ourselves and what can be 'borrowed' from other sources. It's like Martha Steward for real women.

As you know from my previous adventures in French cooking, Julia Child doesn't cook semi-anything. She is down and dirty, food flung all over the kitchen, 3 sinks full of dirty dishes, and hunker down 'cause it's gonna be a long ride. In the end the food is usually really good but I am learning where corners may be cut that would not make any difference to the food. I am going by the advice of first do it the right way, then adjust it to suit your needs.

What I need is for Sandra Lee to come out with a book based on Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

I haven't cooked a full meal in a couple of weeks because of a readathon and a flu followed by a cold but I did try to squeeze in this little dish because asparagus was in sale:

Asperges au Naturel avec Sauce Hollandaise

In case it is not completely obvious, that's boiled asparagus with Hollandaise sauce. I was surprised when I read through the recipe. First, she tells you how to peel the asparagus. I have never peeled an asparagus before. I had no idea it needed to be peeled. But, as I said, first do it the right way. Second, Hollandaise sauce is essentially egg yokes blended with two cups of butter. That's it?

Guess how long it takes to peel two dozen or more thin asparagus? Guess! Forty five minutes!! You can't just use a potato peeler either. I'm grateful that Julia tells us that up front. Once they are peeled and placed in the boiling water I was ready to start the Hollandaise sauce.

The process for the sauce looks something like this: whisk, dribble in melted butter, whisk whisk, dribble, whisk whisk whisk, dribble dribble, whisk some more. Fifteen minutes later I realized that I would be using the electric mixer with the whisk attachment next time. I also realized that my hand had a major cramp going on. French cooking is a contact sport.

So pour the sauce over the boiled spears and there you have it. It tasted just like when I boil my spears and add a big dollop of butter. An hour for this? Oh well. I like asparagus and I like butter. But I will never peel an asparagus again.

Next on the menu:

Râpée Morv Andelle

Gratin of shredded potatoes with ham and eggs and onions. OH EM GEE! This was the best recipe so far. It was easy to make and tasted like heaven in my mouth. Can you see the foamy bubbles around the edge of the dish? That's what butter looks like when it has been baked into a gratin.

Real men may not eat quiche but they DO eat gratin. And they ask for more. You can't tell from the photo but this is a smaller sized casserole dish. It makes about six smallish portions. When we all realized how little gratin there was we almost cried. So I made it again the next week, doubling the recipe and cooking it in a regular sized casserole dish but it didn't turn out as yummy as the first one. I will just have to buy another smaller casserole dish. Yes, I would spend money on another dish just for this gratin. It's worth it.

Hey, I thought of something that Sandra and Julia have in common: they both suggest the appropriate type of alcohol to go with any meal. No wonder I love them both so much.

You can read more of my Adventures in French Cooking here.

Missing You

2009-11-05T23:38:00.000-08:00

Poor blog. All neglected and alone. Rejected and dejected. But I have returned to free you of the dust and boredom that have o'ertaken you. I am here at last. I am the prodigal blogger.

Dear dear blog. You don't know what it's like to read and blog for 24 hours straight. It makes one not want to read or blog again for many long days. Or weeks even. Not to mention the cooties. I've had oh so many mucus cooties. They have run amuck (and I do mean a-muck) in my head and chest. I couldn't let them infect the keyboard. That would just be gross.

But I can't stay beauteous blog. I only stopped by for a moment to tell you that I am abysmally busy this month. Did I not tell you? Why, I am writing a book. There is nothing like writing your own book to cure you of Read-a-thon-itis. Applied for one month it will leave me fresh and clean, ready to take on the lofty responsibilities of blog care. So hold on just a wee bit longer most beloved blog. I will returned anew sometime in December to guide you in the way you should go. And if you're really patient maybe I can make a brief appearance a couple of times between now and then.

It is NaNoWriMo time again. It seems like some kind of sick joke that it comes so close on the heels of the readathon. As if writing blog posts once an hour weren't enough, now I have to write 1667 words a day on a novel that I didn't have time to plan or research because I was too busy reading for pleasure. What's a girl to do?

For those keeping score (there are NaNo spies everywhere) I am at about 4100 words in five days. That's half par. But we fear not. We have the weekend to write until our fingers are bloody. And when we are done we will have one poorly written, piece o crap novel to show for it. So there!

It's Tuesday...Where are you?

2009-11-03T12:41:00.000-08:00

Has a book ever transported you to a new land or experience? Share where your reading has taken you this week. Visit An Adventure in Reading for more details.

I have just run away from my problems to Metamorphosis, Greece. There is an archaeological dig near by that I am trying to get on to take my mind off my failed marriage.

The Hidden by Tobias Hill

Review: Green Angel

2009-10-29T06:00:00.000-07:00

Green Angel
by Alice Hoffman

This little book has been lounging on the kids' bookshelf for a while. I bought it second-hand mainly for the cover. I could not find a pic of the back of the cover which is too bad because it is just as emotionally evocative but contrasted. Where Green, the protagonist, is lonely and searching on the front, she is transformed into Ash, someone untrusting and full of pain.

Green is the only survivor in her family of some kind of terrorist attack in a nearby town. Her world is left starkly empty and covered in ashes. Her beloved garden can yield nothing under these conditions. In self preservation Green changes her name to Ash and embodies her pain in her appearance; she shaves her head, sews rose thorns into her clothes, hammers nails into her boots and tattoos black roses with thorns and crows all over her body. Gone is the patient nurturer, drowning in her pain. But changes take place in her heart and her body as she slowly reaches out and tends to the pain of others without the strength to take care of themselves.

I thought this story a beautiful one. Green wears her pain on her sleeve literally. She desires to be someone else but, though for a little while she can pretend, she can never fully get rid of who she always was before her life was turned upside down.

I believe that this novel is written for a YA audience. The imagery, while raw and sympathetic, was laid on pretty thickly. There is no mistaking Hoffman's meaning. But for me this made no difference. I still loved it.

I can't decide if this is an allegory for the common struggles of teenage hood or if it's about the reactions everybody goes through with a traumatic experience. Green is suddenly left without her parents and she is sorely missing her sister who visits her in her dreams, a girl full of life and spirit. Could the sister represent childhood? A past self? Or maybe happiness? I suppose this is where the reader contributes to the story. For me, trauma leaves me feeling alone and self protecting, even hurting others to protect myself from being hurt again. But eventually the pain subsides and the essential person returns, worse for wear but the same in her being. This book encapsulates the transformation of innocence into experience with all it's agony. Those struggling with depression will see themselves within the pages and recognise the hope that is offered at the end.

Have you read anything by Alice Hoffman? Is her adult work similar to this? I'm hoping that it shares the same richness but adds some sophistication. Which of her books would you recommend I read next because I am most definitely reading more of her work.

With a Little Help from My Friends

2009-10-28T11:39:00.001-07:00

So I have this friend named Cid. She's very personable and loves to share her positive outlook on life. She's one of the few people I know that is in a great mood consistently. She simply loves being happy. She has an opportunity to be a paid "Good Mood Blogger". Can you imagine that? But she needs my help and yours too. Visit this site, read she snippet about herself and vote for her. You can give one vote per day up until Nov. 6nd. I know how much she would appreciate the votes. I'll let you know if she gets the job.

Good Mood Gig from SAM-e

Review: Confessions of a Slacker Wife

2009-10-28T02:58:00.000-07:00

Confessions of a Slacker Wife
by Muffy Mead-Ferro

It's kinda funny how I came to read Slacker Wife. It was at DogEar Diary that I heard about Mead-Ferro's book Confessions of a Slacker Mom. Jeane made it sound like a book that would affirm, in part, what I try to do with my family. It was so appealing that I went straight to my library's website and reserved a copy. But when I picked it up, the cover was slightly different. It took me a couple of days before I realized this was not Slacker Mom but Slacker Wife. Oops! No biggie. I'll read this one while I wait for Slacker Mom to come in. But when I went back to the library website to request it it said that I already had a copy of Slacker Mom, not a copy of Slacker Wife. It's a clerical error. It was their mistake, not mine.

Okay, so maybe you had to be there.

Anyway, my household runs rather traditional. He brings home the bacon and I fry it. For the most part I like it that way. So I was a little nervous that this would be a treatise on women's liberation from housework or something like that. "Let him wash his own damn underwear," and all that but it wasn't. I'd call Mead-Ferro an equalist, if that's a word. She does challenge the traditionally held ideals but only in the sense that they often go unquestioned. Don't just do things this way because mom did; do it because it works for you. She admits that in her marriage she does the laundry while he does the minor home repair but it's because that's where their talents lay. I like that idea.

Slacker Wife reads like Ex Libris by Anne Fadiman, sort of. It's like a collection of Mead-Ferro's thinking processes about various issues that relate to marriage. Everything from body image to child rearing to s*x is discussed. It doesn't come across as a woman holding herself up as some kind of expert out to teach the women of the world how to chill. It's more like chatting with a friend and learning a few things based on her experiences that are different than my own.

I do disagree with one part of her book. I think showering ought to be a daily activity for all people. I don't care if other countries aren't as hung up on cleanliness as the US is. It's not the germs I care about. I'm not overly occupied by antibacterial disinfectants. I eat food that's fallen on the floor. Shoot, I used to chew my mom's ABC gum(already been chewed). I'm not the Queen of Lysol. But a daily shower is a necessity, for me and for you too please. When I've had a shower I feel better and you don't have to find subtle ways to plug your nose in my presence. Seriously, consider those around you. Shower. Daily.

So the book was fun. Nothing really new but a nice reminder to give yourself a break. Everything doesn't have to be perfect all the time. In fact, it never will be. I think that Slacker Mom will be even better. If only I can figure out how to get the right one from the library. Maybe I should request Slacker Wife and see what shows up.

Review: The Persian Pickle Club

2009-10-26T14:00:00.000-07:00

The Persian Pickle Club
by Sandra Dallas

I was having a hard time putting my impressions down about this book. I thought Payers for Sale by Dallas was beautifully told and entertaining. This one was more conventional, nothing extraordinary. The characters were still good, if too many to keep track of. I've heard complaints about the names (Queenie Bean, Ella Crook, Cheed Root, Prosper, Skillet) but I think they are fun, especially when the subject matter is serious or dull. They add humor and character.

But I decided that rather than write a boring old review about a book that was nice but nothing special, instead I'd use this opportunity to fulfill a leg of the Take a Chance Challenge and write my review in poetic form. Enjoy.

Haiku
Small town quilting bee
New girl solves a mystery
Happy endings abound

Limerick
There was a young lady named Bean
Who at a quilting bee was seen
She made a new friend
With a mystery to attend
In the end everyone did come clean

Free Form
Tough times
Heat and drought
Everyone struggles

Pressure mounts
Innocence doubted
Comfort not to be found
Keeping secrets kept
Loyalty is sacred
Everlasting support

The Sunday Salon

2009-10-25T14:53:00.000-07:00

Literature
Books-Thanks in part to the 24 Hour Readathon I read four books this past week. I need to get reviews up but my mind is mushy right now. I feel a nap coming on.

Challenges-I've met my goal for the RIP IV Challenge. Yay! I'm halfway done with Take a Chance but I need to get moving. Only one month left. I'm just over 70% for Clear Off Your Shelves. I only need 50% so that gives me a little room for library and newer books. And I joined 2 new challenges that start next Sunday, The Really Old Classics & The Four Month Challenge. If you want to see my challenge books, click on the buttons on the left.

Life
Food-I did try a couple more recipes from MtAoFC. One was fab and the other failed my expectations. That post will go up sometime this week.

Music-I've been teaching myself piano since Jan. when a friend loaned us his extra piano. This week was a tough song but I think I'm finally getting it. The hard part about self-teaching is that if you don't understand something there is no one to explain it better or break it down to smaller, more digestible pieces. But playing brings me joy and that's all that matters.

Illness-The Eldest had flu this week. He hasn't been sick in years. Even when the rest of us get terrible stomach flu he doesn't catch it. Now we are all paranoid about getting it. In our area of the US they say if you have the flu then it is the swine flu, which doesn't actually bother me too much. It seems like everyone and their mother has swine flu right now. Hopefully it has run its course in this family.

Halloween is on Saturday! We don't celebrate the holiday so much as have fun designing and creating costumes from scratch. And it is the first holiday in a string of holidays that involves candy or other sweets. From now until May my largest Tupperware bowl becomes known as the Candy Bowl. We are all looking forward to a full Candy Bowl.