Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Splash du Jour: Wednesday
-- Robert Hellenga, The Fall of a Sparrow --
Have a great Wednesday!
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Tuesday, March 30, 2010
One Hell(enga) of a Writer
The author is Robert Hellenga, from the boonies of rural Illinois. You know, there are great writers hiding out all over the place, you've just got to ferret them out.
The Fall of a Sparrow is about an English professor who loses his college-age daughter in a terrorist attack in Bologna, Italy. Only a third of the way in -- but I am enthralled with the way Hellenga is painting such a realistic canvas, showing us how a deeply intellectual academic individual might go about re-ordering his life after such a horrific event.
In an interview, the author spoke of his admiration of Tolstoy.
When asked, "What works of art and what other writers have inspired you and shaped your journey as a novelist?" he answered:
My favorite novel is Tolstoy's Anna Karenina. I always have a copy nearby. I especially like the forward momentum of the novel. There's an urgency in the narrative voice, something that says this story is so important that I don't need to fool around with narrative tricks or verbal fireworks. Let me just set things down as clearly as possible.
This is what he is doing here in The Fall of a Sparrow.
Setting things down as clearly as possible.
It's the kind of writing I myself admire the most.
Check him out -- HERE.
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Monday, March 29, 2010
Splash du Jour: Monday
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Another Life Altogether
I thought of that legendary opening sentence when Elaine Beale raised the curtain of Another Life Altogether with this inaugural humdinger:
The day after my mother was admitted to the mental hospital, I told everyone at school that she had entered a competition on the back of a Corn Flakes box and won a cruise around the world.
The narrator is Jesse Bennett, a thoughtful, intelligent, introspective thirteen year old girl struggling to find her identity, her place. It's the 1970's. Yorkshire, England. Bay City Rollers, etc.
Jesse's an only child, trying to fit in and be accepted amongst her peers, and it doesn't help matters that her mother has serious psychological problems that keep landing her in Delapole, the local loony bin! Her optimistic father deals with the debilitated home situation by pretending things are not as bad as they really are, but [as one might imagine] the toll on a daughter in such a scenario can be devastating. Jesse resents the fact that she must excuse her mother's actions, and continually protect her from herself.
The Bennetts move to the country, to a remote community in order to make a new start of things. Here Jesse encounters the same struggle for acceptance but eventually strikes a friendship with Tracey, a bit of a rotten-apple of a kid. Influenced by her allegiance to Tracey, Jesse struggles to be true to herself and her own capabilities and desires. Fitting in is everything -- and meanwhile, her mother gets loonier and loonier.
Jesse has a secret known only to herself, and expressed only in the unsent letters she has hidden away in a cookie-tin, kept in the closet. If her secret gets out, she feels it would spell the end of her life as she knows it. The shame would be too great. Life, this life, or any other worth living, would be over.
Little does she know that the very release of that secret may be the only way she can experience real freedom. Real life. Truly, another life altogether.
Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way. Indeed. And this is the story of a uniquely unhappy family that found a way to overcome tremendous obstacles to happiness. In many ways, this novel is a testament to the merits of staying together for the sake of love. There are dozens of memorable characters I have not mentioned. Themes and threads I have not remotely touched upon. Suffice it to say that this is a deeply resonant, often times hilarious, heart-rending story. An unflaky look at flakiness. A searing, worthwhile, five-star-of-five al dente feast of a meal.
For more about Another Life Altogether, click -- HERE.
To get a copy, click on the image, above!
Happy reading!
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Friday, March 26, 2010
Splash du Jour: Friday
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Splash du Jour: Wednesday
The Dance / Henri Matisse / 1910
Were I called on to define, very briefly, the term art, I should call it "the reproduction of what the senses perceive in nature through the veil of the soul." The mere imitation, however accurate, of what is in nature, entitles no man to the sacred name of "artist."
-- Edgar Allen Poe, 1849 --
Have a great Wednesday!
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Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Revising My... Portfolio
Who is The Old Guy?
Well, The Old Guy is….. this old guy that always talks to me.
I say "old" [he told me once that he had just turned 70], but:
a) I myself will very soon be that "old" and,
b) The Old Guy is in better physical shape than I am.
He is always dressed quite sharp, and he is a very clear thinker. I recall reading a biography of Einstein and when he saw the book, he began going on and on about salient facts regarding Einstein…. things that I had just read in the book.
Which is to say that The Old Guy has been around the block a few times. He's sharp. Intelligent. He's got his wits about him and he is a pleasure to talk with. He speaks several languages. We've conversed about Flaubert.
Basically, he's smarter than me.
In his retirement years he's found that his real passion is business. Investing. Stock market. Things like that.
So, as I sat down at a table with my coffee he looked over at me and picked up the book you see above, and asked me if I had ever read it.
"No," I replied. "I have no MONEY to invest in anything."
I went on to say a few more things about how financial success does not seem to be my….. genre!
He laughed and suggested that maybe if I read some books like this, I would HAVE some money. Point well taken!
He said he picked up the book at a Barnes & Noble in Florida and is meeting his friend today to tell him to buy the book.
Minutes later, his friend arrived and without even prefacing with a Hello, I heard The Old Guy say to him, "I am never telling you one more thing about investing until you go right now and buy this book!"
The friend laughed and protested a bit, but The Old Guy dragged him away to the financial section of the store, asking me to watch his stuff while he was gone.
Soon they returned, with a freshly purchased Investor's Manifesto.
As I sort of eavesdropped on some of the ensuing convo, I must confess, a lot of what I overheard sounded sensible. Pretending to read my own book, I found myself seriously re-evaluating my own brilliantly-conceived retirement financial stratagem -- WINNING THE LOTTERY!
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Splash du Jour: Tuesday
-- James Thurber, 1955 --
Have a great Tuesday!
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Monday, March 22, 2010
Splash du Jour: Monday
-- Elaine Beale, in Another Life Altogether --
Have a great Monday!
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Sunday, March 21, 2010
Affinity
-- Daily Mail --
"Indeed", indeed!
A very pithy summation of my own thorough duping!
Gripped by the veritable knickers, I was!
I believed it all!
And to say more is to spoil too much, for a new reader.
I find it very difficult to say almost anything at all about this book without letting too much well-woven information slip.
But if you want to grab onto a book that does not at all disappoint the attention-span of even a half-awake reader -- pick this one.
Affinity, by Sarah Waters.
It is the third of her books I have read and it is my favorite, having loved the others.
Brilliantly crafted. Affinity is a book I unreservedly recommend to all readers yonder -- wandering in the Victorian London fog.
Trust me.
In the end, a lantern shall be brought near. Very near.
I remembered that comment of Arthur’s, that women’s books could only ever be journals of the heart. I think I thought that, in making my trips to Millbank, in writing of them here, I would somehow disprove or spite him. I thought that I could make my life into a book that had no life or love in it—a book that was only a catalogue, a kind of list. Now I can see that my heart has crept across these pages, after all. I can see the crooked passage of it, it grows firmer as the paper turns. It grows so firm at last, it spells a name—
-- from Affinity, by Sarah Waters --
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Friday, March 19, 2010
Splash du Jour: Friday
-- Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple --
And wow! He was right. The very next day, after I spilled a coffee into my Mac laptop, I DID open my wallet!
Have a great Friday!
******
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Alice in [Wonder]Chains!
I don't know.
All I do know is that I just cannot get this one song out of my head.
It is in there and IT WON'T COME OUT!
The song is called Your Decision and it's by American rockers Alice in Chains.
Besides being just a terrific and well produced song [in my opinion] somehow the lyrics are just lodged in my brain like a terrific Billy Collins poem, but on acid.
I don't even know what this song means, but I just like it.
Your Decision
Time to change has come and gone.
Watched your fears become your God.
It's your decision. It's your decision.
Overwhelmed, you chose to run.
Apathetic to the stunned.
It's your decision. It's your decision.
You feed the fire that burned us all when you lied.
To feel the pain that spurs you on black inside.
No one plans to take the path that brings you lower.
And here you stand before us all and say it's over.
It's over.
It might seem an afterthought.
Yes, it hurts to know you're bought.
It's your decision.
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Splash du Jour: Thursday
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Splash du Jour: Wednesday
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Splash du Jour: Tuesday
Monday, March 15, 2010
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Tragedy / Recovery
Right after work on Friday I went to my favorite Starbucks at the Southkeys Chapters [you know the place]. Sat down and read some latter portions of Salinger’s Seymour: An Introduction while waiting for the lineup at the coffee counter to diminish. I hate standing in lineups for anything.
Ahhh… finally got my steaming hot coffee and sat down to resume my reading. But first I thought I’d boot up my computer and let it idle on the table in case I got inspired at any moment to write a Pulitzer Prize-winning blog.
Reached for the coffee -- SPLOOSH – the cup tipped over, drenching my beloved Mac’s innocent keyboard. I instantly said several curse words and tipped the choking laptop upside down, coffee spilling all over the place. In those moments there is no care for public decorum – I just kept swearing and stuff.
But, well, needless to say, it did permanent damage. I won’t go on about it.
Hence, the very next day [yesterday] I was in the Apple store, purchasing this new laptop that you see in the photo – spent all of last night transferring data from the old soggy Mac onto this new one, via the use of an external keyboard and mouse and the technical wizardry of my friend. On my own I could never accomplish this computer transition. I would have just gone and jumped off a bridge somewhere.
But I am slowly getting used to the newness of this wonderful machine – so stay tuned!
*******
Friday, March 12, 2010
Splash du Jour: Friday
The embarrassed ventriloquist begins to apologize, and the blonde yells, "You stay out of this, mister! I'm talking to that little fucker on your knee."
Have a great Friday!
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Thursday, March 11, 2010
Splash du Jour: Thursday
VANCOUVER (Reuters) - Canada's largest airline has learned it sometimes has to take a back seat to the country's biggest sporting passion, ice hockey, the head of Air Canada said on Tuesday.
The airline was forced to delay a flight from Vancouver during the 2010 Winter Olympic Games because passengers watching the end of gold medal final on airport televisions ignored repeated calls to board.
"We incurred a flight delay for a reason Air Canada had not yet encountered in over 72 years of existence," chief executive Calin Rovinescu told a business gathering.
The Canadian fans were rewarded for their delay, as the nail-biting end to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics saw Canada beat arch-rival United States 3-2 in overtime.
Have a great Thursday!
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Wednesday, March 10, 2010
It's About Time!
I just love it when technology gets it right!
Splash du Jour: Wednesday
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
Unsettling Thoughts About Settling
Talk radio.
At one point, an interesting segment was airing [on CBC]... about dating, getting engaged to be married, and the marital relationship in general.
When this one statistic was mentioned I quickly grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down the findings. Of course, I cannot cite sources -- but this one Ph.D author of such things, she said that a survey was taken, asking people the following:
Would you enter into a marriage relationship knowing [and feeling] ahead of time that the other person possessed 80% of what you consider essential requirements in an ideal partner?
I was surprised at the results that came blaring through the way-too-loud radio.
93% of women said that they would not do so.
[The cynic in me felt that the number would be lower.]
And here is the shocking thing -- 80% of men said that they would marry someone that was 80% of what they always wanted!
To a man, finding someone that was 80% of everything would be like snagging a real catch!
But women tend to think quite differently about this, regarding their men. I find that profoundly revelatory. Interesting.
Are there lower expectations among men?
Later, someone phoning in to the program [a man] said, "Settling inevitably leads to resentment, and resentment leads to relationship cancer."
I tended to agree.
After hearing these results I concluded that I am not a "typical" man, I guess. Because I am among that rare-ish 1/5th.
That 20 percentile grouping that would not settle for less than 100% [of whatever].
I just told this all to my cat. And the look he gave me [he was sleeping before I roused him] sort of reminded me of the price one pays for such.... such selectiveness in mates!
His look seemed to say -- "Umm. Do you even realize that I am a frigging CAT?"
Splash du Jour: Tuesday
-- Don DeLillo, in Point Omega --
Have a great Tuesday!
*******
Monday, March 08, 2010
Splash du Jour: Monday
Sunday, March 07, 2010
Thou Shalt Not Covet...
Not the neighbor's wife.
Not the neighbor's ass.
[Not that I've even seen either thing....]
I covet BOOKS!
And 2010 promises to be a year full of great new books. I could talk for three years about books I have on the back burner, waiting to be read by me. There seem to be more of these, than those that I have already read. Which is saying a mouthful, considering I have basically lived half a normal lifetime reading books on a near-constant basis.
If I lived three normal lifetimes I would not tire of books -- nor ever deplete a To-Be-Read pile over there, cobwebs from stack to wall.
But yeah, 2010 looks good.
I will place here just a mere listing of three real beauties.
First, a new one by Ian McEwan. Solar.
And if you don't like McEwan, just keep that information to yourself.
I want to remain friends with you. I just truly cherish his writing. I'm well on my way to reading everything he has written, past, present and future. Admittedly, I have not really enjoyed his short stories. I believe his real knack is in the realm of the novel. Solar [and all of these release dates are Canadian] is due to be in stores ON TUESDAY.
March 9th, 2010.
Then there is Yann Martel.
His new novel Beatrice and Virgil, with a release date of April 6th, 2010. His novel Life of Pi is a story that has indelibly left a mark upon me.
Meeting the author and having a fifteen second chat with him was enough to show me that he is the real deal.
Then...... I may even anticipate this one the most of all...... Philip Pullman's trilogy His Dark Materials was something that completely took me by surprise. ACCOSTED me.
I cannot wait to get my hands on this new novel of his, entitled The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ.
Well, all that is within me covets this book! Relase date: April 2oth, 2010. I am insanely curious as to how I will like it, as compared to the WONDERFUL Saramago novel The Gospel According to Jesus Christ.
Anyhoo -- just dropping in here to say "Hi" to all my Booklover friends.
And say, "Welcome to the spring of 2010".
A year in which much literary-coveting shall be richly rewarded.
Click on the book images to learn more about each book.
Meanwhile, happy reading to one and all!
Friday, March 05, 2010
Depressing, Yet Beautiful
I have always loved the music of Alison Krauss, and I have several of her CD's.
This evening as I sat reading a book in Starbucks, I was surprised to heart this song entitled Ghost In This House, playing softly, overhead. I was familiar with the song, but surprised to hear it played because this is not exactly top-40 stuff!
But it is just so beautifully done by Alison and her band, Union Station.
So when I got home I tried to find a LIVE version of it. And I did. [Isn't YouTube amazing?]
I believe there is no voice as clear and true as that of Alison Krauss. There. I said it.
OK, maybe Eva Cassidy. And then Alison.
If I believed in angels, I would say Alison had the voice of one.
She may not be your "style" necessarily, and like I mentioned, the lyrics are depressing as all hell, but for clarity and just gorgeous harmony -- well, GIVE IT A LISTEN.
Tell me what you think.
Thursday, March 04, 2010
Hitch24 [minutes].
His [2007] book entitled "god is not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything" remains one of the best books I have ever read when it comes to effectively delineating and explicating some of the absurdities of religion.
I've been informed in a secret emailing from Random House that there will soon be a sort of memoir-type autobiography entitled "Hitch22: Some Confessions and Contradictions", due to be released in Canada on June 1st, 2010.
I've already asked for a pre-release review copy!
Anyhoo, for a sampling of what Hitchens is like, here is a 24-minute interview with CBC's Jian Ghomeshi on the radio program "Q".
Wednesday, March 03, 2010
Splash du Jour: Wednesday
-- Herman Melville, in Moby Dick --
Have a great Wednesday!
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
Splash du Jour: Tuesday
-- The Wizard of Oz, to The Cowardly Lion --
Have a great Tuesday!