We all got books for Christmas this year. I have to say my favorite was the Pioneer Woman cookbook. I have been wanting that ever since I started reading her blog! My husband is a meat-n-potatoes man so he is going to be happy. We've probably read the Train to Timbuctoo and Picture This a few dozen times already. I am not sure why the books are tiled diagonally (and it is driving me nuts) but you get the idea. Hooray for books!
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Yoga and Speech Therapy
I recently ran across two different articles suggesting incorporating yoga into speech therapy practice. Knowing Babs has definitely opened my eyes to the world of yoga so these articles jumped off the page at me. Both were directed towards pediatric speech therapists practicing in multiple settings - schools, private practices or clinics.
The first article, Yogic Techniques in Therapy, focused primarily on the benefits of yoga in relation to the needs that many children receiving speech therapy have. From increasing attention and concentration to providing a chance to interact socially in a nonpressured environment, the author's opinion was that yoga can only benefit a child, especially if that child has speech or language deficits.
The second article, Yoga and Shared Storybook Reading, focused on using yoga in a specific way during speech therapy. The author talked briefly about the benefits of yoga. She suggested choosing a book that has animals or natural elements that can relate to yoga poses; at each appropriate picture, the therapist can set aside the book and do the pose. The author felt that the concrete beginning and ending of a storybook activity was more beneficial than just doing a few poses with no framework.
I have somewhat of a mixed view on this. I think the authors are absolutely right about the benefits of yoga, especially for the children who receive speech therapy. Who wouldn't want their clients to have better attention and focus? However, I think it is stretching the boundaries to say that practicing yoga is practicing speech therapy. I wouldn't feel it was ethical to simply do yoga for my 45 minute session and then state the benefits given in these articles and submit my billing. If my patients need speech therapy, and I am licensed and certified to provide that, then that is what I should provide. Not to mention that many of the clients I worked with were too young or too impacted by their disabilities to actually participate in following even simple directions.
However, I could justify doing 5-10 minutes at the beginning of a session in order to focus a child. Or I might use it in a joint session with an occupational therapist as part of a calming break between more challenging activities. I could also see suggesting it to parents as an activity for their child. I think using yoga as part of your clinical repertoire takes discretion on the part of the therapist, but it is definitely an interesting idea to pursue.
The first article, Yogic Techniques in Therapy, focused primarily on the benefits of yoga in relation to the needs that many children receiving speech therapy have. From increasing attention and concentration to providing a chance to interact socially in a nonpressured environment, the author's opinion was that yoga can only benefit a child, especially if that child has speech or language deficits.
The second article, Yoga and Shared Storybook Reading, focused on using yoga in a specific way during speech therapy. The author talked briefly about the benefits of yoga. She suggested choosing a book that has animals or natural elements that can relate to yoga poses; at each appropriate picture, the therapist can set aside the book and do the pose. The author felt that the concrete beginning and ending of a storybook activity was more beneficial than just doing a few poses with no framework.
I have somewhat of a mixed view on this. I think the authors are absolutely right about the benefits of yoga, especially for the children who receive speech therapy. Who wouldn't want their clients to have better attention and focus? However, I think it is stretching the boundaries to say that practicing yoga is practicing speech therapy. I wouldn't feel it was ethical to simply do yoga for my 45 minute session and then state the benefits given in these articles and submit my billing. If my patients need speech therapy, and I am licensed and certified to provide that, then that is what I should provide. Not to mention that many of the clients I worked with were too young or too impacted by their disabilities to actually participate in following even simple directions.
However, I could justify doing 5-10 minutes at the beginning of a session in order to focus a child. Or I might use it in a joint session with an occupational therapist as part of a calming break between more challenging activities. I could also see suggesting it to parents as an activity for their child. I think using yoga as part of your clinical repertoire takes discretion on the part of the therapist, but it is definitely an interesting idea to pursue.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Thursday, December 16, 2010
90 Minutes in Heaven
I got sucked in by the bargain rack, yet again. I can hardly pass up a $5 book.
After reading the back of the book, I thought it looked like a fascinating read. It is the story of a man who was in a terrible car accident, died and went to heaven and then was brought back to life. Sounds fantastical, right? And some aspects of it were. But I was disappointed, to be honest.
While it was written with a biographer who has written "over 90 books" I thought the writing was stilted and forced a lot of the time. It felt a little bit defensive. It didn't flow well.
Also, while the title and summary make it sound like it's about heaven, it's actually more about the author's recovery process after a terrible car accident which leaves him dead for more than an hour. Near-death experiences are interesting story fodder, but I felt like this one fell a bit flat.
After reading the back of the book, I thought it looked like a fascinating read. It is the story of a man who was in a terrible car accident, died and went to heaven and then was brought back to life. Sounds fantastical, right? And some aspects of it were. But I was disappointed, to be honest.
While it was written with a biographer who has written "over 90 books" I thought the writing was stilted and forced a lot of the time. It felt a little bit defensive. It didn't flow well.
Also, while the title and summary make it sound like it's about heaven, it's actually more about the author's recovery process after a terrible car accident which leaves him dead for more than an hour. Near-death experiences are interesting story fodder, but I felt like this one fell a bit flat.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
The Secret History
A couple of friends from my yoga blog recommended this book. I grew up on a steady diet of dark Anne Rice books. I love dark books. And this was certainly a dark book.
At an elite, small university in Vermont, six students take their Greek education very seriously. Four of the students try to recreate a bacchanalia. It goes horribly awry and a local farmer ends up maimed to death. One of the excluded friends, Bunny, a character that seems to have no conscience or morals, finds out about the incident and begins to blackmail his friends as he struggles with what they did.
The group, led by eccentric Henry, are constantly in a worried frenzy that Bunny is going to tell someone what they did. Apparently their only solution to the problem is to kill Bunny.
The story, told by one of the friends, chronicles how they came to the decision and how that decision ruins their lives.
"It's funny, but thinking back on it now, I realize that this particular point in time, as I stood there blinking in the deserted hall, was the one point at which I might have chosen to do something very different from what I actually did. But of course I didn't see this crucial moment then for what it was; I suppose we never do. Instead, I only yawned, and shook myself from the momentary daze that had come upon me, and went on my way down the stairs." p. 199
"After dinner, I went back to my room. I dreaded the thought of the night ahead, but not for the reasons one might expect--that I was worried about the police, or that my conscience bothered me, or anything of the sort. Quite the contrary. By that time, by some purely subconscious means, I had developed a successful mental block about the murder and everything pertaining to it. I talked about it in select company but seldom thought of it when alone." p. 317
Brush up on your classics and your Greek. This book is full of delicious literary references and I'm sure I only understood half of them.
At an elite, small university in Vermont, six students take their Greek education very seriously. Four of the students try to recreate a bacchanalia. It goes horribly awry and a local farmer ends up maimed to death. One of the excluded friends, Bunny, a character that seems to have no conscience or morals, finds out about the incident and begins to blackmail his friends as he struggles with what they did.
The group, led by eccentric Henry, are constantly in a worried frenzy that Bunny is going to tell someone what they did. Apparently their only solution to the problem is to kill Bunny.
The story, told by one of the friends, chronicles how they came to the decision and how that decision ruins their lives.
"It's funny, but thinking back on it now, I realize that this particular point in time, as I stood there blinking in the deserted hall, was the one point at which I might have chosen to do something very different from what I actually did. But of course I didn't see this crucial moment then for what it was; I suppose we never do. Instead, I only yawned, and shook myself from the momentary daze that had come upon me, and went on my way down the stairs." p. 199
"After dinner, I went back to my room. I dreaded the thought of the night ahead, but not for the reasons one might expect--that I was worried about the police, or that my conscience bothered me, or anything of the sort. Quite the contrary. By that time, by some purely subconscious means, I had developed a successful mental block about the murder and everything pertaining to it. I talked about it in select company but seldom thought of it when alone." p. 317
Brush up on your classics and your Greek. This book is full of delicious literary references and I'm sure I only understood half of them.
Monday, December 6, 2010
The Monsters of Templeton
I have to admit that I bought this book because of its cover. I was walking through Hastings, saw it, saw that it was a NYT Bestseller, and picked it up.
I'm not in the habit of reading books that I don't enjoy. I figure there are so many amazing reads out there, why trudge through something miserable? With that said I'm not quite sure why I continued on with this book.
Willie Upton returns to her hometown pregnant and disgraced (her opinion). While home the lake monster dies and she is digging up family history and trying to get along with her mother. Templeton is the shadow of Cooperstown, New York and Willie Upton is a descendant of the great writer Jacob Franklin Temple (James Fenimore Cooper). Willie's mother tells her that her father is not who she originally told her and encourages Willie to research into family history to find the identity of her father.
Thus the book goes through generations of the family told from different points of view. Which, in theory I like, but with that many voices in that short of a book, it just got annoying.
I desperately wanted to like the main character. The author tried to make her this intelligent, charming character. I found her weak, whiney, and anything but intelligent. I didn't feel any connection to her at all. Nor the hippie to born again mother, Vi.
The book had all the elements of a good story: lake monster, secret history, ghosts, heartache. But, for me it never came together.
Which is why I can't figure out why I read the whole thing. I actually enjoyed reading it with all my criticisms aside. It was a fun read. It was a fast read.
Try this one at your own risk. And, if you make it through, let me know what you think.
I'm not in the habit of reading books that I don't enjoy. I figure there are so many amazing reads out there, why trudge through something miserable? With that said I'm not quite sure why I continued on with this book.
Willie Upton returns to her hometown pregnant and disgraced (her opinion). While home the lake monster dies and she is digging up family history and trying to get along with her mother. Templeton is the shadow of Cooperstown, New York and Willie Upton is a descendant of the great writer Jacob Franklin Temple (James Fenimore Cooper). Willie's mother tells her that her father is not who she originally told her and encourages Willie to research into family history to find the identity of her father.
Thus the book goes through generations of the family told from different points of view. Which, in theory I like, but with that many voices in that short of a book, it just got annoying.
I desperately wanted to like the main character. The author tried to make her this intelligent, charming character. I found her weak, whiney, and anything but intelligent. I didn't feel any connection to her at all. Nor the hippie to born again mother, Vi.
The book had all the elements of a good story: lake monster, secret history, ghosts, heartache. But, for me it never came together.
Which is why I can't figure out why I read the whole thing. I actually enjoyed reading it with all my criticisms aside. It was a fun read. It was a fast read.
Try this one at your own risk. And, if you make it through, let me know what you think.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Book Club Review: The Book Thief
This was a fast and fun read. Although, I guess "fun" isn't the exact word I'm looking for here. The book takes place in Nazi Germany and there really isn't a lot of fun about it. But, I couldn't put it down. I wanted to keep reading it even though I knew what was going to happen.
I knew what was coming because of history. And, because the narrator is Death. Doesn't take a lot to figure out.
We follow young Liesel as she grows through the war years. Her father is either dead or disappeared because he is a partisan (communist) and her mother is running for her life. We meet the main character as she is riding a train to her new foster home. And, watches her brother die. As they are burying her brother, the gravedigger drops a book in the snow and Liesel stealthily snatches it up. "The Gravedigger's Handbook". A book thief is born.
She goes on to live with her foster parents. I was ready for them to be horrible, but they are taking in a partisan child during a war. They get a small amount of money, yet not enough for that to be the reason for taking Liesel in. She creates a very tight bond with her accordion playing foster father, Hans. And, we learn to love the well meaning cussing and gruff from the foster mother, Rosa.
Liesel struggles to learn to read and falls in love with books. Her second stolen book was from the ashes of one of Nazi Germany's book bonfires. And, a very unexpected person witnesses the theft, the mayor's wife. The mayor's wife has a large library and leaves the window open for Liesel to steal more books. These are the books she reads to the town when they are all in a bomb shelter during air raids.
Liesel has two amazing friends in this story, not counting the mayor's wife who really saves her life, Rudy and Max. Rudy wants to be Jesse Owens when he grows up. He and Liesel get into all sorts of mischief together. One of my favorite passages is when the scrape up enough money to buy candy but they can only afford one piece. They take turns sucking on it.
Max is the Jew who lives in her basement. Max and Liesel become good friends and due to a kindness done by Hans, Max has to leave. Liesel searches for him constantly.
This book is about the horrors of war. The overwhelming despair that comes with loss. And, the overwhelming goodness that humans are capable of.
One of the reviews on the back of the book says that the author, "doesn't sugarcoat anything, but he make his ostensibly gloomy subject bearable."
Of the book club books we have read, this one is my favorite.
I knew what was coming because of history. And, because the narrator is Death. Doesn't take a lot to figure out.
We follow young Liesel as she grows through the war years. Her father is either dead or disappeared because he is a partisan (communist) and her mother is running for her life. We meet the main character as she is riding a train to her new foster home. And, watches her brother die. As they are burying her brother, the gravedigger drops a book in the snow and Liesel stealthily snatches it up. "The Gravedigger's Handbook". A book thief is born.
She goes on to live with her foster parents. I was ready for them to be horrible, but they are taking in a partisan child during a war. They get a small amount of money, yet not enough for that to be the reason for taking Liesel in. She creates a very tight bond with her accordion playing foster father, Hans. And, we learn to love the well meaning cussing and gruff from the foster mother, Rosa.
Liesel struggles to learn to read and falls in love with books. Her second stolen book was from the ashes of one of Nazi Germany's book bonfires. And, a very unexpected person witnesses the theft, the mayor's wife. The mayor's wife has a large library and leaves the window open for Liesel to steal more books. These are the books she reads to the town when they are all in a bomb shelter during air raids.
Liesel has two amazing friends in this story, not counting the mayor's wife who really saves her life, Rudy and Max. Rudy wants to be Jesse Owens when he grows up. He and Liesel get into all sorts of mischief together. One of my favorite passages is when the scrape up enough money to buy candy but they can only afford one piece. They take turns sucking on it.
Max is the Jew who lives in her basement. Max and Liesel become good friends and due to a kindness done by Hans, Max has to leave. Liesel searches for him constantly.
This book is about the horrors of war. The overwhelming despair that comes with loss. And, the overwhelming goodness that humans are capable of.
One of the reviews on the back of the book says that the author, "doesn't sugarcoat anything, but he make his ostensibly gloomy subject bearable."
Of the book club books we have read, this one is my favorite.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
The Christian Atheist
This book jumped off the shelf at me. With a title like "The Christian Atheist," it was bound to catch my attention.
Pastor Craig Groeschel doesn't attempt to sway actual atheists to a Christian worldview. Far from it. This book is written for and about people who claim to be Christians but when you actually examine their lives, they look no different than an atheist's life. The subtitle sums it up neatly, "Believing in God but Living as If He Doesn't Exist."
I liked the way the book was divided into chapters with each chapter starting, "When You Believe in God But..." and filled out with things like "but are ashamed of your past" or but still worry all the time" or "don't think He's fair." There was a chapter for everyone. Several for me, that's for sure.
I thought the book was a little "fluffy" for lack of a better term. It seemed like the depth was missing in a lot of places, maybe in an attempt to make a broader impact. Some of the anecdotes seemed a little cute-sy at times to me. I'd love someone's opinion who didn't grow up immersed in Christian-ese as to whether it's readable and relevant to people who aren't Christians but are interested.
However, Groeschel wrote with humilty and passion, something I appreciate in these types of books. It made me think about my worldviews and how I actually live my life and whether they mesh. Some of the chapters hit pretty close to home.
Overall it was an interesting read, but one I'm more likely to pass along than keep on my shelf.
Pastor Craig Groeschel doesn't attempt to sway actual atheists to a Christian worldview. Far from it. This book is written for and about people who claim to be Christians but when you actually examine their lives, they look no different than an atheist's life. The subtitle sums it up neatly, "Believing in God but Living as If He Doesn't Exist."
I liked the way the book was divided into chapters with each chapter starting, "When You Believe in God But..." and filled out with things like "but are ashamed of your past" or but still worry all the time" or "don't think He's fair." There was a chapter for everyone. Several for me, that's for sure.
I thought the book was a little "fluffy" for lack of a better term. It seemed like the depth was missing in a lot of places, maybe in an attempt to make a broader impact. Some of the anecdotes seemed a little cute-sy at times to me. I'd love someone's opinion who didn't grow up immersed in Christian-ese as to whether it's readable and relevant to people who aren't Christians but are interested.
However, Groeschel wrote with humilty and passion, something I appreciate in these types of books. It made me think about my worldviews and how I actually live my life and whether they mesh. Some of the chapters hit pretty close to home.
Overall it was an interesting read, but one I'm more likely to pass along than keep on my shelf.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Very Charleston: A Celebration of History, Culture, and Lowcountry Charm
While in Charleston, South Carolina last week, I picked up this little gem of a book.
I love its bite sized bits of history and information, the little recipes, and the fun artwork.
I never read a guide book before a vacation, I always read them post vacation. When I read them prior, nothing really makes sense and I have no idea what they are talking about. But, after the trip, it all sinks in and I can look back on the trip.
This book has just the right amount of information that I can retain during a trip! Plus, it is beautiful and fun to flip through making it a great addition to my coffee table stack.
I love its bite sized bits of history and information, the little recipes, and the fun artwork.
I never read a guide book before a vacation, I always read them post vacation. When I read them prior, nothing really makes sense and I have no idea what they are talking about. But, after the trip, it all sinks in and I can look back on the trip.
This book has just the right amount of information that I can retain during a trip! Plus, it is beautiful and fun to flip through making it a great addition to my coffee table stack.
Friday, November 19, 2010
A Slant of Sun
Once again, I accidentally found this book while looking in the library for something else. I am always up for reading a memoir or any kind of book about disabilities and when the two are combined, I can't pass it up. This was a story, written by a mother, about the journey of her son who was given a diagnosis on the autism spectrum.
I have never read a memoir about this subject that was so exquisitely beautiful and vulnerable. I've worked with many parents of kids on the autism spectrum and even worked in their homes and gotten to know them fairly well. But to see into the emotions and particularly the relationship of love between a son and a mother alternately squeezed my heart with joy and grief. And did I mention the writing was exquisite? Like poetry in prose.
I have never read a memoir about this subject that was so exquisitely beautiful and vulnerable. I've worked with many parents of kids on the autism spectrum and even worked in their homes and gotten to know them fairly well. But to see into the emotions and particularly the relationship of love between a son and a mother alternately squeezed my heart with joy and grief. And did I mention the writing was exquisite? Like poetry in prose.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Book Review - Firefly Lane
I just got back from vacation in which I read Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah. Let me just tell you - this was the PERFECT, guilty-pleasure read for a vacation. You know how sometimes you just want to sit on the beach, by the pool, or in your hotel room and get lost in a really easy read? Or maybe something to read while flying across the country to help pass the time? This is the ideal book for that scenario. About two girls who become best friends and grow up together, Firefly Lane goes through each decade starting in the seventies leading up to present day, showing how the friendship grows. This story is the sort of "best friend" material that makes one long for a buddy to experience ALL stages of life with. It's a fast-paced, page turning, and ultimately beautifully warm and fuzzy book, with a tear-jerker of an ending. Every single person that's read it, says they LOVED it. That was enough for me.
My only complaint was that it sometimes felt rushed and almost dizzying as it never gave up on the plot line. But, I believe, this is what one should expect from an easy, vacation read. It's just a book to get lost in and not use much brain-power, which is exactly what my vacation called for.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Book Club Review: The Lacuna
Wow. There were some definite similarities between The Book of Salt and The Lacuna. Cooks in the homes of intellectuals. Heros of communism. Diaries and art.
Harrison grows up in Mexico with his Mexican mother. At a young age he learns to cook through the patience of his mother's beau's cook. He uses that knowledge to secure a job mixing plaster with famous Mexican muralist and communist, Diego Rivera. And, that leads to him cooking in the Rivera household. Thus enters one of the great characters of the book, Frida Kahlo (Kingsolver in the back of the book says, "I didn't initially plan to write about Frida Kahlo, as I considered her too private and self-involved to add much to my story. But she grew on me. I began to understand her not as a martyred icon but as a roguish, complicated person. She began stealing scenes.").
The ousted Soviet communist leader Leon Trotsky comes to Mexico and moves into the Rivera household. Harrison then becomes somewhat of a personal secretary to Trotsky. After Trotsky's assassination, Harrison moves to Asheville, North Carolina and begins his career as a writer. He sets his stories in ancient Mexico and uses adventure to push forth his social commentary.
The structure of the book is unique and reads quickly. Harrison has always been a writer and has kept diaries since his childhood. The book is structured around his personal diaries, letters, news clippings, and the commentary of his longtime stenographer, Violet Brown.
While the story makes a lot of commentary about art and politics and especially the strict separation of art and politics in the United States, I found the most scathing commentary to be on news reporters. At one point Harrison writes, "It is more important to speak than to think." He also writes about the radio news shows, because there cannot be silence there are a lot of half formed opinions to fill the silence. No well formed thoughts. I wonder what he would say now with Twitter, Facebook, TV talk shows...blogs. Literally no silence.
I really enjoyed this book and have already recommended it to a few people.
Harrison grows up in Mexico with his Mexican mother. At a young age he learns to cook through the patience of his mother's beau's cook. He uses that knowledge to secure a job mixing plaster with famous Mexican muralist and communist, Diego Rivera. And, that leads to him cooking in the Rivera household. Thus enters one of the great characters of the book, Frida Kahlo (Kingsolver in the back of the book says, "I didn't initially plan to write about Frida Kahlo, as I considered her too private and self-involved to add much to my story. But she grew on me. I began to understand her not as a martyred icon but as a roguish, complicated person. She began stealing scenes.").
The ousted Soviet communist leader Leon Trotsky comes to Mexico and moves into the Rivera household. Harrison then becomes somewhat of a personal secretary to Trotsky. After Trotsky's assassination, Harrison moves to Asheville, North Carolina and begins his career as a writer. He sets his stories in ancient Mexico and uses adventure to push forth his social commentary.
The structure of the book is unique and reads quickly. Harrison has always been a writer and has kept diaries since his childhood. The book is structured around his personal diaries, letters, news clippings, and the commentary of his longtime stenographer, Violet Brown.
While the story makes a lot of commentary about art and politics and especially the strict separation of art and politics in the United States, I found the most scathing commentary to be on news reporters. At one point Harrison writes, "It is more important to speak than to think." He also writes about the radio news shows, because there cannot be silence there are a lot of half formed opinions to fill the silence. No well formed thoughts. I wonder what he would say now with Twitter, Facebook, TV talk shows...blogs. Literally no silence.
I really enjoyed this book and have already recommended it to a few people.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
November Pick
This month we'll be reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. It's been on my list for a while, and I'm not sure where I even got the recommendation. While it's listed as a teen and adult book, all of the reviews were adamant in the fact that this book is in no way juvenile. Happy Reading!
Monday, November 1, 2010
A Box of Books
A friend of mine just gave me a box of books her children have outgrown. Imagine how happy I was to discover classics, like Make Way for Ducklings, The Polar Express and Stellaluna. It made me realize how many good children's books are out there.
Top 10 Baby/Toddler Books
In my opinion, that is. They are fun for me to read, even over and over, which is necessary for this age group. They all have great illustrations and really captivate my kids:
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| Beautiful illustrations, I am still noticing new details after dozens of reads. |
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| Love the illustrations, love the cadence of the book. |
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| Great book for photos and labeling pictures. |
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| My toddler loves these books, especially when I act them out. |
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| Fun pop-outs but a sturdy board book that can't be easily destroyed |
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| It's a classic. Better for toddlers than babies. |
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| Another classic by this wonderful author. |
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| Great textures for baby to feel. |
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I like almost all the books by Boynton. |
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
The Comfortable Home
I was recently at a benefit auction that had tons, literally hundreds, of gift baskets for the silent auction part. Imagine my giddiness when one of those baskets had a design book and a gift certificate for a one hour design consultation. I DIE.
Yes, I guarded my bid all night. Yes, I can be a jerk. Cue evil laughter.
The book is the Comfortable Home by Mitchell Gold and Bob Williams. I *heart* design books. They are big and glossy and drool worthy. Plus, they look great on your coffee table!
I am slightly familiar with Gold and Williams. They design classic furniture and bedding etc.
The book is organized to help you along your home design journey and begins like every book on design: clip pictures that you love. Which I do. I have a binder full of gorgeous pictures for inspiration. And, on my refrigerator is a paper protector sleeve full of kitchen inspiration pictures.
Inspiration is the easy part. Seriously, who couldn't look at House Beautiful and find 10 inspiring rooms? The hard part is putting it together. It takes time. Design is never done. It is ever evolving. And there are some very tricky parts.
For example, room layout. How do you arrange your furniture to make the most of the room and to facilitate all that you use that room for? The Comfortable Home provides templates for different room layouts, from tiny spaces to grand spaces. I found this part of the book particularly helpful and useful.
Another feature of the book is taking a room and decorating it two different ways so you can see how dramatically different a room can be.
The photos are beautiful and it doesn't disappoint on the glossy beauty front. However, the design is very classic and very safe. The rooms are beautiful, but don't seem INSPIRED to me. You know those rooms that just ooze character and individuality? There were none of those. Anyone could live in these rooms. They could be staged for a sale...no personality. Very safe.
Yes, I guarded my bid all night. Yes, I can be a jerk. Cue evil laughter.
The book is the Comfortable Home by Mitchell Gold and Bob Williams. I *heart* design books. They are big and glossy and drool worthy. Plus, they look great on your coffee table!
I am slightly familiar with Gold and Williams. They design classic furniture and bedding etc.
The book is organized to help you along your home design journey and begins like every book on design: clip pictures that you love. Which I do. I have a binder full of gorgeous pictures for inspiration. And, on my refrigerator is a paper protector sleeve full of kitchen inspiration pictures.
Inspiration is the easy part. Seriously, who couldn't look at House Beautiful and find 10 inspiring rooms? The hard part is putting it together. It takes time. Design is never done. It is ever evolving. And there are some very tricky parts.
For example, room layout. How do you arrange your furniture to make the most of the room and to facilitate all that you use that room for? The Comfortable Home provides templates for different room layouts, from tiny spaces to grand spaces. I found this part of the book particularly helpful and useful.
Another feature of the book is taking a room and decorating it two different ways so you can see how dramatically different a room can be.
The photos are beautiful and it doesn't disappoint on the glossy beauty front. However, the design is very classic and very safe. The rooms are beautiful, but don't seem INSPIRED to me. You know those rooms that just ooze character and individuality? There were none of those. Anyone could live in these rooms. They could be staged for a sale...no personality. Very safe.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
The Kindness of Strangers
While looking for books on traveling with children, I happened across this book in the stacks. I was actually at the library alone, so I had time to browse.
It's a compilation of stories by both published and first-time authors about encounters with kind strangers while traveling around the world. With an introduction by the Dalai Lama and a focus throughout on kindness and what binds us together as humans, this book radiated faith in the goodness of people.
A little bit of everything and a fast read, this book would make an excellent companion on a journey or a good escape through the adventures of others for the homebound.
It's a compilation of stories by both published and first-time authors about encounters with kind strangers while traveling around the world. With an introduction by the Dalai Lama and a focus throughout on kindness and what binds us together as humans, this book radiated faith in the goodness of people.
A little bit of everything and a fast read, this book would make an excellent companion on a journey or a good escape through the adventures of others for the homebound.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
The Hole in Our Gospel
Don't let the word "Gospel" throw you off. This book is about social justice, plain and simple. It's about authentic faith. It's about poverty, children, hunger, injustice and what the Church with a capital C is neglecting. It's about the gaping hole in the message of Hope Christians are supposed to be promoting.
Richard Stearns is the current president of World Vision, a Christian based humanitarian organization. In the first part of the book he tells the story of how he was challenged to leave his job as CEO of Lenox, a luxury tableware company, and take the CEO position at World Vision. He is brutally honest about his struggle and eventual realization that "he is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose".
The first part of the book tells Stearns' story and as an avid memoir and biography reader, I thoroughly enjoyed it and appreciated the humility and transparency with which he shared his journey. The second part is a dizzying account of the statistics of poverty and injustice in our world. The third section is a challenge to do something about it.
This book has changed my thinking, or rather solidified my thinking. I've traveled to a third world country. I sponsor two children, one in Bolivia and one in Sierra Leone. We give money to various international charities. These issues are ones I think about...but this book took it to a new level.
Here are a few of the statistics I found staggering, "...AIDS has now left 15 million children behind as orphans. Again, this is a number that is incomprehensible. Picture a chain of children holding hands and stretching out across America. This chain, starting in New York, would stretch all the way to Seattle, back to Philadelphia, back to San Francisco, then east to Washington DC, back again to Los Angeles, and finally to about Kansas City." Can you see those children?
"It is estimated that a child dies every five seconds from hunger-related causes." That means about 12 children died in the time it's taken you to read this blog post to this point.
I could go on with the statistics but it becomes mind-numbing. Stearns does a great job of using word pictures, like the chain of children one above, to make the statistics real. But can we really fathom it? Does it mean anything to us?
Stearns advocates that it should. He constantly puts things in perspective with statistics like this one, "If you make $50,000 per year, you are wealthier than 99 percent of the world! ... If you don't feel rich, it's because you are comparing yourself to people who have more than you do--those living above even the 99th percentile of global wealth. It's also because we tend to gauge whether or not we are wealthy based on the things we don't have...our difficulty is that we see our American lifestyles as normative, when in fact they are grossly distorted compared to the rest of the world. We don't believe we are wealthy, so we don't see it as our responsibility to help the poor. We are deceived."
He also calls the Church to account for its negligence in these matters. He clarifies that not all churches are lacking and that many have done great things. But in general, all could do more. He states, "There is much at stake. The world we live in is under siege--three billion are desperately poor, one billion hungry, millions are trafficked in human slavery, ten million children die needlessly each year, wars and conflicts are wreaking havoc, pandemic diseases are spreading, ethnic hatred is flaming, and terrorism is growing...and in the midst of this stands the Church of Jesus Christ in America, with the resources, knowledge, and tools unequaled in the history of Christendom. When historians look back in one hundred years, what will they write about this nation of 340,000 churches? ... Will they write of ... Christians who lived in luxury and self-indulgence while millions died for lack of food and water?"
The call to action section of the book is full of stories of individuals making huge differences by simply offering what they are able. This one was my favorite: Austin Gutwein, a nine-year-old learned about children orphaned by AIDS. He decided he could do something so he decided to shoot 2,057 free throws on World AIDS day, one for each child orphaned by AIDS that day. He got people to sponsor him and raised almost $3,000. Today, he's raised almost a million dollars. A nine-year old.
I am contemplating what I can do. What more I can do. How I can teach my children to live with compassion, generosity, and genuine faith. I want to get beyond the feeling of hopelessness and find a way to help. Even if it's small, I have to do something. How can I not?
Richard Stearns is the current president of World Vision, a Christian based humanitarian organization. In the first part of the book he tells the story of how he was challenged to leave his job as CEO of Lenox, a luxury tableware company, and take the CEO position at World Vision. He is brutally honest about his struggle and eventual realization that "he is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose".
The first part of the book tells Stearns' story and as an avid memoir and biography reader, I thoroughly enjoyed it and appreciated the humility and transparency with which he shared his journey. The second part is a dizzying account of the statistics of poverty and injustice in our world. The third section is a challenge to do something about it.
This book has changed my thinking, or rather solidified my thinking. I've traveled to a third world country. I sponsor two children, one in Bolivia and one in Sierra Leone. We give money to various international charities. These issues are ones I think about...but this book took it to a new level.
Here are a few of the statistics I found staggering, "...AIDS has now left 15 million children behind as orphans. Again, this is a number that is incomprehensible. Picture a chain of children holding hands and stretching out across America. This chain, starting in New York, would stretch all the way to Seattle, back to Philadelphia, back to San Francisco, then east to Washington DC, back again to Los Angeles, and finally to about Kansas City." Can you see those children?
"It is estimated that a child dies every five seconds from hunger-related causes." That means about 12 children died in the time it's taken you to read this blog post to this point.
I could go on with the statistics but it becomes mind-numbing. Stearns does a great job of using word pictures, like the chain of children one above, to make the statistics real. But can we really fathom it? Does it mean anything to us?
Stearns advocates that it should. He constantly puts things in perspective with statistics like this one, "If you make $50,000 per year, you are wealthier than 99 percent of the world! ... If you don't feel rich, it's because you are comparing yourself to people who have more than you do--those living above even the 99th percentile of global wealth. It's also because we tend to gauge whether or not we are wealthy based on the things we don't have...our difficulty is that we see our American lifestyles as normative, when in fact they are grossly distorted compared to the rest of the world. We don't believe we are wealthy, so we don't see it as our responsibility to help the poor. We are deceived."
He also calls the Church to account for its negligence in these matters. He clarifies that not all churches are lacking and that many have done great things. But in general, all could do more. He states, "There is much at stake. The world we live in is under siege--three billion are desperately poor, one billion hungry, millions are trafficked in human slavery, ten million children die needlessly each year, wars and conflicts are wreaking havoc, pandemic diseases are spreading, ethnic hatred is flaming, and terrorism is growing...and in the midst of this stands the Church of Jesus Christ in America, with the resources, knowledge, and tools unequaled in the history of Christendom. When historians look back in one hundred years, what will they write about this nation of 340,000 churches? ... Will they write of ... Christians who lived in luxury and self-indulgence while millions died for lack of food and water?"
The call to action section of the book is full of stories of individuals making huge differences by simply offering what they are able. This one was my favorite: Austin Gutwein, a nine-year-old learned about children orphaned by AIDS. He decided he could do something so he decided to shoot 2,057 free throws on World AIDS day, one for each child orphaned by AIDS that day. He got people to sponsor him and raised almost $3,000. Today, he's raised almost a million dollars. A nine-year old.
I am contemplating what I can do. What more I can do. How I can teach my children to live with compassion, generosity, and genuine faith. I want to get beyond the feeling of hopelessness and find a way to help. Even if it's small, I have to do something. How can I not?
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
12 Months of Reading
Last night I met with my real-in-the-flesh book club. We go to a coffee shop once a month and last night was our book selection night. We each brought two books (or summaries of our two choices) and people voted and picked one.
Here is the list of what we will be reading the next twevle months:
NOVEMBER - Firefly Lane by Kristen Hannah
DECEMBER - Little Bee by Chris Cleave
JANUARY - Frankenstein by Mary Shelly
FEBRUARY - Thousand Splended Suns by Khaled Hosseini
MARCH - Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
APRIL - Moloka'i by Alan Brennert
MAY - Same Kind of Different As Me by Ron Hall
JUNE - The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson
JULY - Mao's Last Dancer by Li Cunxin
AUGUST - Leaving the Saints by Martha Beck
SEPTEMBER - Color of Water by James McBride
OCTOBER - Traveler's Gift by Andy Andrews
This looks like a great list! I'm surprised because I haven't read a single one. Anyone read any of these?
Here is the list of what we will be reading the next twevle months:
NOVEMBER - Firefly Lane by Kristen Hannah
DECEMBER - Little Bee by Chris Cleave
JANUARY - Frankenstein by Mary Shelly
FEBRUARY - Thousand Splended Suns by Khaled Hosseini
MARCH - Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
APRIL - Moloka'i by Alan Brennert
MAY - Same Kind of Different As Me by Ron Hall
JUNE - The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson
JULY - Mao's Last Dancer by Li Cunxin
AUGUST - Leaving the Saints by Martha Beck
SEPTEMBER - Color of Water by James McBride
OCTOBER - Traveler's Gift by Andy Andrews
This looks like a great list! I'm surprised because I haven't read a single one. Anyone read any of these?
Saturday, October 16, 2010
The Things They Carried
Apparently this is a classic, at least for military types. Which is probably why I didn't know about it. It was one of those "interesting covers" books in the library in the Staff Favorites area. I read the jacket flap and it sounded fascinating.
The whole book read like a nonfiction memoir, especially because the author gave his main character his name and occupation (writer). I checked the back of the title page many times and it states directly that it is fiction. It seems to be based on the author's memory, however. You can read more information here.
This book is a collection of related short stories, with common themes throughout. It follows a platoon in Vietnam and explores their changing reactions to war, violence, death and "normalcy".
The author writes with a blunt candor yet in a strange beautifully poetic way. This was one of my favorite passages:
"For the most part they carried themselves with poise, a kind of dignity. Now and then, however, there were times of panic, when they squealed or wanted to squeal but couldn't, when they twitched and made moaning sounds and covered their heads and said Dear Jesus and flopped around on the earth and fired their weapons blindly and cringed and sobbed and begged for the noise to stop and went wild and made stupid promises to themselves and to God and to their mothers and fathers, hoping not to die. In different ways, it happened to all of them. Afterward when the firing ended, they would blink and peek up. They would touch their bodies, feeling shame, then quickly hiding it...as if in slow motion, frame by frame, the world would take on the old logic--absolute silence, then the wind, then sunlight, then voices. It was the burden of being alive." (p. 19).
If you are looking for reading material out of your ordinary genres, pick this one up.
The whole book read like a nonfiction memoir, especially because the author gave his main character his name and occupation (writer). I checked the back of the title page many times and it states directly that it is fiction. It seems to be based on the author's memory, however. You can read more information here.
This book is a collection of related short stories, with common themes throughout. It follows a platoon in Vietnam and explores their changing reactions to war, violence, death and "normalcy".
The author writes with a blunt candor yet in a strange beautifully poetic way. This was one of my favorite passages:
"For the most part they carried themselves with poise, a kind of dignity. Now and then, however, there were times of panic, when they squealed or wanted to squeal but couldn't, when they twitched and made moaning sounds and covered their heads and said Dear Jesus and flopped around on the earth and fired their weapons blindly and cringed and sobbed and begged for the noise to stop and went wild and made stupid promises to themselves and to God and to their mothers and fathers, hoping not to die. In different ways, it happened to all of them. Afterward when the firing ended, they would blink and peek up. They would touch their bodies, feeling shame, then quickly hiding it...as if in slow motion, frame by frame, the world would take on the old logic--absolute silence, then the wind, then sunlight, then voices. It was the burden of being alive." (p. 19).
If you are looking for reading material out of your ordinary genres, pick this one up.
Friday, October 15, 2010
I Am Charlotte Simmons
If you ask me for a book recommendation, the one that first comes to mind is Tom Wolfe's I Am Charlotte Simmons. Of course, anything Tom Wolfe is brilliant. But, at the time I read Charlotte Simmons, I was just past the age of Charlotte, with enough similar experiences and just enough time between those experiences and reading the book that I could put it into perspective.
Charlotte is a brilliant college freshman who has led a sheltered life. She goes to a very prestigious university and is culture shocked and completely let down by it. The cast of characters includes the stereotypical college types: the frat guy, the intellectual (socially awkward) geek, and the star basketball player.
What is simply amazing about this book is that an older guy wrote it. He does an amazing job of capturing college life. He did lots of research on college campuses including Stanford and Michigan. With one little exception, a completely melodramatic boy induced depression, he nails the life of a college girl. Or, a college girl like me.
I certainly was not as smart as Charlotte Simmons, but I was definitely the sheltered girl who went to the big fancy school and got an education. Before I started college I barely knew what brand names were, let alone high end brand names. Gucci for example. Not a lot of need for designer duds when growing up on a ranch. I remember using a month's worth of food money for a pair of Diesel jeans...just like Charlotte.
I've read reviews that pan Wolfe for setting the stage to make a big social commentary on college life, race relations, and sex hierarchies. Or saying that Wolfe trying to "shock" us. Having been there, nothing in the book is that shocking and telling it like it is...well, it is what it is.
This is definitely one of my favorite books. Have you read it? What do you think? If you haven't read it, go get it right now! It reads fast. And, stop by and let me know what you think.
Charlotte is a brilliant college freshman who has led a sheltered life. She goes to a very prestigious university and is culture shocked and completely let down by it. The cast of characters includes the stereotypical college types: the frat guy, the intellectual (socially awkward) geek, and the star basketball player.
What is simply amazing about this book is that an older guy wrote it. He does an amazing job of capturing college life. He did lots of research on college campuses including Stanford and Michigan. With one little exception, a completely melodramatic boy induced depression, he nails the life of a college girl. Or, a college girl like me.
I certainly was not as smart as Charlotte Simmons, but I was definitely the sheltered girl who went to the big fancy school and got an education. Before I started college I barely knew what brand names were, let alone high end brand names. Gucci for example. Not a lot of need for designer duds when growing up on a ranch. I remember using a month's worth of food money for a pair of Diesel jeans...just like Charlotte.
I've read reviews that pan Wolfe for setting the stage to make a big social commentary on college life, race relations, and sex hierarchies. Or saying that Wolfe trying to "shock" us. Having been there, nothing in the book is that shocking and telling it like it is...well, it is what it is.
This is definitely one of my favorite books. Have you read it? What do you think? If you haven't read it, go get it right now! It reads fast. And, stop by and let me know what you think.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Sleeping Through the Night
This book was the only book on infant and toddler sleep that wasn't checked out of the library. That made me feel a little better. Apparently I am not alone in my quest for my baby to sleep all night, or alone in the desire to sleep all night. Or at least for more than three hours at a time.
I've been down this road before. I swore I would never make the same mistakes twice. But then I did. Because the mistakes are easier at the time, and because I was trying to figure out how to get two kids to nap and go to bed, and because I was flying solo a lot of the time.
In my quest about a year and a half ago, I read many sleep books and articles on the internet. I read Ferber and Sears; I read the No-Cry Sleep Solution and the Baby Whisperer; I read Healthy Sleep Habits, Healthy Child, which was my favorite and the approach that ultimately worked for my son.
For those of you who've never had to pry your bleary eyes open for the third time in a night at 4:00 am, I doubt you've given much thought to how to get a baby to sleep. I know I never did. I love to sleep! It's one of my favorite things. Little did I realize how complicated it really can be.
Most sleep books talk about the basic structure of sleep, how it works, etc. So I skipped right on through those chapters. In essence, every human wakes up multiple times in the night. And every human figures out ways to fall back asleep, often without even realizing they awoke (or they have insomnia). Babies begin to associate "conditions" with sleep at an early age.
Parents unwittingly (or in my case, knowingly) cause negative sleep conditions by providing "sleep props" that help the baby sleep and consequently must be there when the baby awakes naturally several times a night. If a baby gets a bottle, or breastfed, or rocked or sung to (you get the idea) to fall asleep, then they expect that at night. Wouldn't you be a little disturbed if you awoke and your favorite pillow and blanket had been removed in the night and placed in the hallway?
Experts disagree about how best to respond to night-wakings. Some advocate straight crying-it-out and others promote a gentler approach. Still others say do whatever it takes to get your baby to sleep as it's your responsibility as a parent. And as a parent, there can be a lot of guilt and angst involved when sleep-training occurs.
This book provides the most moderate, middle-of-the-road approach I've read yet. Basically, you do the sleep-training only when you are putting the child to bed in the evening. After you've established a set bedtime and a bedtime routine (something all experts agree is crucial) then you lay the baby down awake in the crib and leave. Most babies will cry, some will scream. The parent should continue to check in and stay no more than a minute, then leave again, continuing this until the baby falls asleep. On average, the first night babies cry 40 minutes, the second night 60+minutes and the third night 20 minutes. After that most babies will simply fall asleep, maybe with a little crying.
But what is different (and so encouraging if it works) about this book is that the author advocates continuing to do whatever you normally do in the middle of the night to get the baby to sleep. She says within two weeks of sleep training at bedtime, most babies will learn to console themselves to sleep and will begin sleeping through the night.
When we did sleep-training with our son, we did cry-it-out in the middle of the night. It was awful...he screamed for more than an hour (from midnight to one thirty) the first night. Personally, I'd rather go through the crying earlier in the evening when I'm not desperate for sleep. And I also now have a two-year-old that I don't want to awaken from his sister's crying for long periods in the middle of the night.
We've got a trip coming up so now isn't a good time to start, but the book provided several ideas for changing things that I can do now without implementing the full-on training. I feel like this book and this author finally gave me a solution I can live with. Highly recommended.
I've been down this road before. I swore I would never make the same mistakes twice. But then I did. Because the mistakes are easier at the time, and because I was trying to figure out how to get two kids to nap and go to bed, and because I was flying solo a lot of the time.
In my quest about a year and a half ago, I read many sleep books and articles on the internet. I read Ferber and Sears; I read the No-Cry Sleep Solution and the Baby Whisperer; I read Healthy Sleep Habits, Healthy Child, which was my favorite and the approach that ultimately worked for my son.
For those of you who've never had to pry your bleary eyes open for the third time in a night at 4:00 am, I doubt you've given much thought to how to get a baby to sleep. I know I never did. I love to sleep! It's one of my favorite things. Little did I realize how complicated it really can be.
Most sleep books talk about the basic structure of sleep, how it works, etc. So I skipped right on through those chapters. In essence, every human wakes up multiple times in the night. And every human figures out ways to fall back asleep, often without even realizing they awoke (or they have insomnia). Babies begin to associate "conditions" with sleep at an early age.
Parents unwittingly (or in my case, knowingly) cause negative sleep conditions by providing "sleep props" that help the baby sleep and consequently must be there when the baby awakes naturally several times a night. If a baby gets a bottle, or breastfed, or rocked or sung to (you get the idea) to fall asleep, then they expect that at night. Wouldn't you be a little disturbed if you awoke and your favorite pillow and blanket had been removed in the night and placed in the hallway?
Experts disagree about how best to respond to night-wakings. Some advocate straight crying-it-out and others promote a gentler approach. Still others say do whatever it takes to get your baby to sleep as it's your responsibility as a parent. And as a parent, there can be a lot of guilt and angst involved when sleep-training occurs.
This book provides the most moderate, middle-of-the-road approach I've read yet. Basically, you do the sleep-training only when you are putting the child to bed in the evening. After you've established a set bedtime and a bedtime routine (something all experts agree is crucial) then you lay the baby down awake in the crib and leave. Most babies will cry, some will scream. The parent should continue to check in and stay no more than a minute, then leave again, continuing this until the baby falls asleep. On average, the first night babies cry 40 minutes, the second night 60+minutes and the third night 20 minutes. After that most babies will simply fall asleep, maybe with a little crying.
But what is different (and so encouraging if it works) about this book is that the author advocates continuing to do whatever you normally do in the middle of the night to get the baby to sleep. She says within two weeks of sleep training at bedtime, most babies will learn to console themselves to sleep and will begin sleeping through the night.
When we did sleep-training with our son, we did cry-it-out in the middle of the night. It was awful...he screamed for more than an hour (from midnight to one thirty) the first night. Personally, I'd rather go through the crying earlier in the evening when I'm not desperate for sleep. And I also now have a two-year-old that I don't want to awaken from his sister's crying for long periods in the middle of the night.
We've got a trip coming up so now isn't a good time to start, but the book provided several ideas for changing things that I can do now without implementing the full-on training. I feel like this book and this author finally gave me a solution I can live with. Highly recommended.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Authors to Love: Julia Glass
I just now realized that one of my favorite authors, Julia Glass, has a new book out.
I can't wait to get my paws on this book. I have loved all of her previous books, however, her first book is still my favorite. She has the ability to weave lives together and just when you think paths won't cross, they do.
From Publishers Weekly, "The artful construction of this seductive novel and the mature, compassionate wisdom permeating it would be impressive for a seasoned writer, but it's all the more remarkable in a debut. This narrative of the McLeod family during three vital summers is rich with implications about the bonds and stresses of kin and friendship, the ache of loneliness and the cautious tendrils of renewal blossoming in unexpected ways. Glass depicts the mysterious twists of fate and cosmic (but unobtrusive) coincidences that bring people together, and the self-doubts and lack of communication that can keep them apart, in three fluidly connected sections in which characters interact over a decade. These people are entirely at home in their beautifully detailed settings Greece, rural Scotland, Greenwich Village and the Hamptons and are fully dimensional in their moments of both frailty and grace. Paul McLeod, the reticent Scots widower introduced in the first section, is the father of Fenno, the central character of the middle section, who is a reserved, self-protective gay bookstore owner in Manhattan; both have dealings with the third section's searching young artist, Fern Olitsky, whose guilt in the wake of her husband's death leaves her longing for and fearful of beginning anew. Other characters are memorably individualistic: an acerbic music critic dying of AIDS, Fenno's emotionally elusive mother, his sibling twins and their wives, and his insouciant lover among them."
From Publisher's Weekly, "In her second rich, subtle novel, Glass reveals how the past impinges on the present, and how small incidents of fate and chance determine the future. Greenie Duquette has a small bakery in Manhattan's West Village that supplies pastries to restaurants, including that of her genial gay friend Walter. When Walter recommends Greenie to the governor of New Mexico, she seizes the chance to become the Southwesterner's pastry chef and to take a break from her marriage to Alan Glazier, a psychiatrist with hidden issues. Taking their four-year-old son, George, with her, Greenie leaves for New Mexico, while figures from her and Alan's pasts challenge their already strained marriage. Their lives intersect with those of such fully dimensional secondary characters as Fenno McLeod, the gay bookseller from Three Junes; Saga, a 30-something woman who lost her memory in an accident; and Saga's Uncle Marsden, a Yale ecologist who takes care of her. While this work is less emotionally gripping than Three Junes, Glass brings the same assured narrative drive and engaging prose to this exploration of the quest for love and its tests—absence, doubt, infidelity, guilt and loss."
From Publisher's Weekly by Lydia Millet, "The fictional palate of Julia Glass, bestselling author of 2002's Three Junes, is one of dog-breeding women and foxhunts, tony Manhattan galleries and boutiques, European travel and haute-cuisine chefs. In common with Rebecca Wells's Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood franchise, Glass's third novel, I See You Everywhere, has female bonding among the landed gentry, a focus on relationships, and devil-may-care, enigmatically charming women of great romantic allure. Like Three Junes, the novel is a series of vignettes across the years, in this instance from the points of view of two sisters with different personalities. Louisa, the elder, is the steady sister on the lookout for love, while Clem is the younger sister, an adventuring, restless spirit with an unfortunate habit of chewing men up and spitting them out. Their parents, too, resemble those in Three Junes: the mother is obsessed with raising and training expensive dogs on a country estate (this time in Rhode Island instead of Scotland); their father is a good-natured, kindly soul who plays second fiddle to a powerful wife. Louisa, not unlike Glass herself, is an urban woman who inhabits the New York art world and moves from making art (pottery) to writing; Clem, being a wilder sort, has a passion for wild animals and moves around the remoter reaches of the continent as an itinerant biologist to do contract work with charismatic fauna ranging from seals to grizzly bears. It's not entirely clear how the sisters relate to each other's livelihoods; Clem seems largely uninterested in art, whereas Louisa alternates between lavishly praising her sister's work to save animals as heroic and referring to polar bears, in 2005, as like Al Gore... suddenly all the alarmist rage. City and country mouse have a wary, competitive, sometimes antagonistic relationship grounded in affection; they occasionally steal each other's boyfriends, but are usually there for each other in times of need, up to and including possible drowning, maiming and cancer. Both cook well, though Louisa is the true gourmet. Clem is better in the sack, at least if we take her word for it: as she says in a letter—reminding us, perhaps inadvertently, of the piña colada song—what she likes most in life are laughter, sex, champagne and sunsets. The sisters do have music in common: though both white, they listen almost exclusively to music by black performers, from Billie Holiday to Bob Marley.I See You Everywhere has a bourgeois, chick lit sensibility, minus the proud vacuousness of the Bushnell set and plus a somewhat unexpected, sad vanishing act by one of the protagonists. It should prove an engaging and intelligent, though not literary, page-turner for sisters who like to revel in sisterhood."
I can't wait to get my paws on this book. I have loved all of her previous books, however, her first book is still my favorite. She has the ability to weave lives together and just when you think paths won't cross, they do.
From Publishers Weekly, "The artful construction of this seductive novel and the mature, compassionate wisdom permeating it would be impressive for a seasoned writer, but it's all the more remarkable in a debut. This narrative of the McLeod family during three vital summers is rich with implications about the bonds and stresses of kin and friendship, the ache of loneliness and the cautious tendrils of renewal blossoming in unexpected ways. Glass depicts the mysterious twists of fate and cosmic (but unobtrusive) coincidences that bring people together, and the self-doubts and lack of communication that can keep them apart, in three fluidly connected sections in which characters interact over a decade. These people are entirely at home in their beautifully detailed settings Greece, rural Scotland, Greenwich Village and the Hamptons and are fully dimensional in their moments of both frailty and grace. Paul McLeod, the reticent Scots widower introduced in the first section, is the father of Fenno, the central character of the middle section, who is a reserved, self-protective gay bookstore owner in Manhattan; both have dealings with the third section's searching young artist, Fern Olitsky, whose guilt in the wake of her husband's death leaves her longing for and fearful of beginning anew. Other characters are memorably individualistic: an acerbic music critic dying of AIDS, Fenno's emotionally elusive mother, his sibling twins and their wives, and his insouciant lover among them."
From Publisher's Weekly, "In her second rich, subtle novel, Glass reveals how the past impinges on the present, and how small incidents of fate and chance determine the future. Greenie Duquette has a small bakery in Manhattan's West Village that supplies pastries to restaurants, including that of her genial gay friend Walter. When Walter recommends Greenie to the governor of New Mexico, she seizes the chance to become the Southwesterner's pastry chef and to take a break from her marriage to Alan Glazier, a psychiatrist with hidden issues. Taking their four-year-old son, George, with her, Greenie leaves for New Mexico, while figures from her and Alan's pasts challenge their already strained marriage. Their lives intersect with those of such fully dimensional secondary characters as Fenno McLeod, the gay bookseller from Three Junes; Saga, a 30-something woman who lost her memory in an accident; and Saga's Uncle Marsden, a Yale ecologist who takes care of her. While this work is less emotionally gripping than Three Junes, Glass brings the same assured narrative drive and engaging prose to this exploration of the quest for love and its tests—absence, doubt, infidelity, guilt and loss."
From Publisher's Weekly by Lydia Millet, "The fictional palate of Julia Glass, bestselling author of 2002's Three Junes, is one of dog-breeding women and foxhunts, tony Manhattan galleries and boutiques, European travel and haute-cuisine chefs. In common with Rebecca Wells's Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood franchise, Glass's third novel, I See You Everywhere, has female bonding among the landed gentry, a focus on relationships, and devil-may-care, enigmatically charming women of great romantic allure. Like Three Junes, the novel is a series of vignettes across the years, in this instance from the points of view of two sisters with different personalities. Louisa, the elder, is the steady sister on the lookout for love, while Clem is the younger sister, an adventuring, restless spirit with an unfortunate habit of chewing men up and spitting them out. Their parents, too, resemble those in Three Junes: the mother is obsessed with raising and training expensive dogs on a country estate (this time in Rhode Island instead of Scotland); their father is a good-natured, kindly soul who plays second fiddle to a powerful wife. Louisa, not unlike Glass herself, is an urban woman who inhabits the New York art world and moves from making art (pottery) to writing; Clem, being a wilder sort, has a passion for wild animals and moves around the remoter reaches of the continent as an itinerant biologist to do contract work with charismatic fauna ranging from seals to grizzly bears. It's not entirely clear how the sisters relate to each other's livelihoods; Clem seems largely uninterested in art, whereas Louisa alternates between lavishly praising her sister's work to save animals as heroic and referring to polar bears, in 2005, as like Al Gore... suddenly all the alarmist rage. City and country mouse have a wary, competitive, sometimes antagonistic relationship grounded in affection; they occasionally steal each other's boyfriends, but are usually there for each other in times of need, up to and including possible drowning, maiming and cancer. Both cook well, though Louisa is the true gourmet. Clem is better in the sack, at least if we take her word for it: as she says in a letter—reminding us, perhaps inadvertently, of the piña colada song—what she likes most in life are laughter, sex, champagne and sunsets. The sisters do have music in common: though both white, they listen almost exclusively to music by black performers, from Billie Holiday to Bob Marley.I See You Everywhere has a bourgeois, chick lit sensibility, minus the proud vacuousness of the Bushnell set and plus a somewhat unexpected, sad vanishing act by one of the protagonists. It should prove an engaging and intelligent, though not literary, page-turner for sisters who like to revel in sisterhood."
Friday, October 8, 2010
The Girl Who Fell From the Sky
I judge books by their covers. When I'm strolling through the library, I look for interesting covers and titles. With my two little ones in tow, I don't have time to peruse the stacks like I used to. The cover of this book drew me in.
What a fascinating story Durrow has created. Tragedy woven with growing up tied into racial identity. Told from multiple points of view at multiple points in time, this book kept me turning the pages to see what happened next (or had already happened but not yet been revealed).
Who are we really? And what is the deepest kind of love? This book explores those questions in a way that I could identify with. Highly recommended.
What a fascinating story Durrow has created. Tragedy woven with growing up tied into racial identity. Told from multiple points of view at multiple points in time, this book kept me turning the pages to see what happened next (or had already happened but not yet been revealed).
Who are we really? And what is the deepest kind of love? This book explores those questions in a way that I could identify with. Highly recommended.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Am I a Hipster?
Here it is. My first post on this blog. I spent the weekend thinking about my varied reading interests, the little "kicks" I get on and what possibly I could blog about. I have gone through so many phases. One month loving biographies, to the next obsession of re-reading college textbooks, to where I am right now... which is, plain and simple, hard to describe.
I'm in an actual, real-life bookclub. We are going on almost 2 years now. I've gotten to read some great books and not so great books. It just comes with the territory of putting a group of ladies together with different backgrounds and interests. I may review some of those books on here, but I'm finding my true interest and love is in articles.
Right now, I'd say I break up my reading to about 30% novels to 70% articles of various topics (blogs, politics, religion, social justice, pop culture, fashion, and self-help). I'm just a sucker for a well-written article! And having a baby to take care of really changes my reading schedule. My time is broken down into much smaller increments, thus making article reading that much more attractive.
So my first review for the blog HAD to be about an article that I found super interesting. I have heard a lot lately about "hipsters" - on television, internet, and especially in pop culture. I needed the Urban Dictionary definition because for awhile, I wasn't quite wrapping my brain around the term.
It says "Hipsters are a subculture of men and women typically in their 20's and 30's that value independent thinking, counter-culture, progressive politics, an appreciation of art and indie-rock, creativity, intelligence, and witty banter"
Full definition here
When I saw that the September issue of Christianity Today had a cover article titled "Hipster Faith" I had to check it out.
I'm so glad I did. It was one of the best written pieces about my generation of Believers to date (at least that I've come across). On top of that, the article explained so much about the struggle I have with the "mega church" mentality. FYI - if you have no idea what I am talking about, do a quick google search and you'll be informed of mega churches in no time.
The article had a great historical overview that I really enjoyed. And when I read "in order to be a hipster, one must be a rebel" I fully understood why I feel so much connection to hipster Christianity. I like to fly against the norm. I always have. I like to shake things up. That's why this article really struck me. I can't say I agree with every single thing in this article (ie. progressive politics and publicity stunts for shock value) but overall, it was great.
The next logical question was and is - does this make me a hipster? I think maybe so (gasp!). I found myself agreeing with so much of what the hipster movement stands for. Tell me what you think. Are you a hipster? And if so, how do you add faith into the mix?
I'm in an actual, real-life bookclub. We are going on almost 2 years now. I've gotten to read some great books and not so great books. It just comes with the territory of putting a group of ladies together with different backgrounds and interests. I may review some of those books on here, but I'm finding my true interest and love is in articles.
Right now, I'd say I break up my reading to about 30% novels to 70% articles of various topics (blogs, politics, religion, social justice, pop culture, fashion, and self-help). I'm just a sucker for a well-written article! And having a baby to take care of really changes my reading schedule. My time is broken down into much smaller increments, thus making article reading that much more attractive.
So my first review for the blog HAD to be about an article that I found super interesting. I have heard a lot lately about "hipsters" - on television, internet, and especially in pop culture. I needed the Urban Dictionary definition because for awhile, I wasn't quite wrapping my brain around the term.
It says "Hipsters are a subculture of men and women typically in their 20's and 30's that value independent thinking, counter-culture, progressive politics, an appreciation of art and indie-rock, creativity, intelligence, and witty banter"
Full definition here
When I saw that the September issue of Christianity Today had a cover article titled "Hipster Faith" I had to check it out.
I'm so glad I did. It was one of the best written pieces about my generation of Believers to date (at least that I've come across). On top of that, the article explained so much about the struggle I have with the "mega church" mentality. FYI - if you have no idea what I am talking about, do a quick google search and you'll be informed of mega churches in no time. The article had a great historical overview that I really enjoyed. And when I read "in order to be a hipster, one must be a rebel" I fully understood why I feel so much connection to hipster Christianity. I like to fly against the norm. I always have. I like to shake things up. That's why this article really struck me. I can't say I agree with every single thing in this article (ie. progressive politics and publicity stunts for shock value) but overall, it was great.
The next logical question was and is - does this make me a hipster? I think maybe so (gasp!). I found myself agreeing with so much of what the hipster movement stands for. Tell me what you think. Are you a hipster? And if so, how do you add faith into the mix?
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Book Club Review: The Book Of Salt
I kept reading The Book of Salt for its intoxicating language not its gripping story. While the actual story has a lot of merit and could be very intriguing, I found it was the language that kept bringing me back, not an intense desire to know how the story would end. Because there was no other way it could end. The book travels back and forth through time in a very dreamy manner, from Bin's childhood in his mother's kitchen, to his time on the seas, to his time at 27 rue de Fleurus.
Bin, a Vietnamese cook, comes to Paris after disgrace, hardship, and heartbreak and finds employment with Gertrude Stein and Alice Toklas. Life certainly doesn't get any easier for Bin who constantly hears the derision of his father, The Old Man, in every step he takes.
I was constantly searching for the meaning of the title, "The Book of Salt". Which made me pay particular attention to every reference to salt. There were the obvious references to salt in cooking, and the less obvious references to salt in tears and in the sea. And, maybe I'm reading too much into to it, but a lot of salt in Bin's wounds.
"Intriguing," however, always calls for a second look, an irresistible glance back, a heightened desire to know and to have. Intrigue cannot be added at the very end. A sprinkling of sequins, a glazing of glass beads, a handful of store bought fringes, all suggest a lack of forethought, like salting a roast after it has cooked as opposed to before. My Madame knows that intrigue, like salt, is best if it is there from the beginning."
"A pinch of salt, according to my Madame, should not be a primitive reflex, a nervous twitch on the part of any cook, especially one working at 27 rue de Fleurus. Salt is an ingredient to be considered and carefully weighed like all others. The true taste of salt--the whole of the sea on the tip of the tongue, sorrow's sting, labor's smack--has been lost, according to my Madame, to centuries of culinary imprudence. It is a taste that Miss Toklas insists is sometimes unnecessary, as in the gazpacho of Malaga, and other times, as in the gazpacho of Segovia, it is the hinge that allows the flavors of the other ingredients to swing wide open. 'In m kitchen, I will tell you when salt is necessary,' my Madame said, concluding the real lesson for that day."
I found that reading about life at 27 rue de Fleurus was endlessly fascinating. I loved reading about Miss Toklas rearranging Gertrude Stein's impressive art collection to make room for new pieces. I loved reading about all the visitors who would worship at the feet of the woman credited with coining the phrase, "The Lost Generation". And, it broke my heart to read about Bin and his lover, Sweet Sunday Man.
One part of the book that made me feel incredibly ignorant was the cameo by Ho Chi Minh. Even when Bin revealed the man on the bridge's name, Nguyen Ai Quoc, I still didn't realize it was supposed to Ho Chi Minh until I read the back of the book and some other reviews.
Overall, I would definitely recommend this book.
Bin, a Vietnamese cook, comes to Paris after disgrace, hardship, and heartbreak and finds employment with Gertrude Stein and Alice Toklas. Life certainly doesn't get any easier for Bin who constantly hears the derision of his father, The Old Man, in every step he takes.
I was constantly searching for the meaning of the title, "The Book of Salt". Which made me pay particular attention to every reference to salt. There were the obvious references to salt in cooking, and the less obvious references to salt in tears and in the sea. And, maybe I'm reading too much into to it, but a lot of salt in Bin's wounds.
"Intriguing," however, always calls for a second look, an irresistible glance back, a heightened desire to know and to have. Intrigue cannot be added at the very end. A sprinkling of sequins, a glazing of glass beads, a handful of store bought fringes, all suggest a lack of forethought, like salting a roast after it has cooked as opposed to before. My Madame knows that intrigue, like salt, is best if it is there from the beginning."
"A pinch of salt, according to my Madame, should not be a primitive reflex, a nervous twitch on the part of any cook, especially one working at 27 rue de Fleurus. Salt is an ingredient to be considered and carefully weighed like all others. The true taste of salt--the whole of the sea on the tip of the tongue, sorrow's sting, labor's smack--has been lost, according to my Madame, to centuries of culinary imprudence. It is a taste that Miss Toklas insists is sometimes unnecessary, as in the gazpacho of Malaga, and other times, as in the gazpacho of Segovia, it is the hinge that allows the flavors of the other ingredients to swing wide open. 'In m kitchen, I will tell you when salt is necessary,' my Madame said, concluding the real lesson for that day."
I found that reading about life at 27 rue de Fleurus was endlessly fascinating. I loved reading about Miss Toklas rearranging Gertrude Stein's impressive art collection to make room for new pieces. I loved reading about all the visitors who would worship at the feet of the woman credited with coining the phrase, "The Lost Generation". And, it broke my heart to read about Bin and his lover, Sweet Sunday Man.
One part of the book that made me feel incredibly ignorant was the cameo by Ho Chi Minh. Even when Bin revealed the man on the bridge's name, Nguyen Ai Quoc, I still didn't realize it was supposed to Ho Chi Minh until I read the back of the book and some other reviews.
Overall, I would definitely recommend this book.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Reckless Faith
I got suckered in by the bargain table. I picked up two books and a cd for $15. Little did I know that the books were going to stir up thoughts that are always swirling just below the surface for me. Reckless Faith by Beth Guckenberger was a quick read but a thought-provoking one.
Beth and her husband Todd live in Monterrey, Mexico. They serve orphans and are parenting nine children, with a combination of biological, foster and adopted children. The book is not so much a memoir as a collection of stories about moments in Beth's life that impacted her greatly and led her to where she is now, a missionary in a poor area of Mexico to the "least of these".
Each chapter focused on a person and situation that were keystone events in her life, even if they were as simple as a short interaction with a blind person. She elaborated through sharing her experiences how she feels her faith has become reckless, willing to trust God and follow His leading, even if it doesn't seem to make much sense.
My favorite chapter was titled "Joel". Edgar leads a children's home that Beth's organization works with. One day, he has no food to feed the children. So he gathers them to pray. One little boy, Joel, asks Edgar what food God is going to bring, if maybe God will bring them meat? That same day, a man named Carlos flies into town and calls Beth. He has a surplus of the product he brought to town to sell and is giving it away if she knows of anyone who needs it. She thinks of Edgar and calls him. He asks what it is and she replies, "It's high end cuts of meat, steaks, beef and pork." Of course it is.
This book spoke to me because I have always had a heart for children, particularly children with special needs, without parents, in search of love. I felt challenged to do more with that desire than just think about it now and then. I'm not sure what that looks like...but I want it.
Beth and her husband Todd live in Monterrey, Mexico. They serve orphans and are parenting nine children, with a combination of biological, foster and adopted children. The book is not so much a memoir as a collection of stories about moments in Beth's life that impacted her greatly and led her to where she is now, a missionary in a poor area of Mexico to the "least of these".
Each chapter focused on a person and situation that were keystone events in her life, even if they were as simple as a short interaction with a blind person. She elaborated through sharing her experiences how she feels her faith has become reckless, willing to trust God and follow His leading, even if it doesn't seem to make much sense.
My favorite chapter was titled "Joel". Edgar leads a children's home that Beth's organization works with. One day, he has no food to feed the children. So he gathers them to pray. One little boy, Joel, asks Edgar what food God is going to bring, if maybe God will bring them meat? That same day, a man named Carlos flies into town and calls Beth. He has a surplus of the product he brought to town to sell and is giving it away if she knows of anyone who needs it. She thinks of Edgar and calls him. He asks what it is and she replies, "It's high end cuts of meat, steaks, beef and pork." Of course it is.
This book spoke to me because I have always had a heart for children, particularly children with special needs, without parents, in search of love. I felt challenged to do more with that desire than just think about it now and then. I'm not sure what that looks like...but I want it.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Everyday Pasta
This is a cook book that I reach for over and over again. I have a thing for pasta. Giada's recipes are simple, quick, and made from such good ingredients. If you are short on time or are doing some pantry clearing, these are great recipes.
There is a recipe in there for Baked Gnocchi that gets raves every time I make it. It is the dish that I make when I want to impress people and it is so simple.
There is another recipe for Spicy Sausage and Kale pasta. It is a definite go to. The substitutions are limitless and it makes great left overs.
If your weeknights are rushed and you want to cook a hearty meal that shows your people how much you love them...look to Giada.
There is a recipe in there for Baked Gnocchi that gets raves every time I make it. It is the dish that I make when I want to impress people and it is so simple.
There is another recipe for Spicy Sausage and Kale pasta. It is a definite go to. The substitutions are limitless and it makes great left overs.
If your weeknights are rushed and you want to cook a hearty meal that shows your people how much you love them...look to Giada.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Child of Mine
Chicken nuggets and french fries, sugar cereal, goldfish crackers, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, macaroni and cheese...what do all of these foods have in common? They're beloved by toddlers and preschoolers and a guilt source of many parents. How do you get your young child to eat anything else? Especially something (gasp) green?
I recently finished Child of Mine:Feeding with Love and Good Sense by Ellyn Satter. A friend had recommended this book, saying that this approach to feeding worked really well with her kids and she wished she had read it sooner. Those kind of recommendations almost always result in good knowledge gained.
The book is for parents, child care workers, grandparents, and anyone else who regularly feeds children. Satter's underlying principle is:
The parent is responsible for what, when, where.
The child is responsible for how much and whether.
The first part of the book goes over her main priniciple in depth and her philosophy on feeding. Basically, it is the job of the adult to provide a variety of nutritious foods, regular meals and snacks, a pleasant atmosphere with the family eating together and a relationship of love and trust. It's the child's job to eat. According to her theory, over several days to weeks, a child's body and need to grow will drive them to eat the foods that will provide the nutrients that they need. And if you follow this philosophy, eventually your child will eat well and eat the things you eat.
After the philosophical underpinnings are laid out, she goes chapter by chapter developmentally including chapters on: breastfeeding, formula feeding, first foods (6-12 months), toddlers (1-3 years) and preschoolers (3-5 years). I found this a useful format and most of her advice seemed right on with other feeding advice I've heard. But instead of making a parent feel panicky with the need to check off each part of the food pyramid, she offers real-world suggestions in an empathetic yet firm voice.
I found this book extremely helpful. I know I'm going to do things differently with my second child (who doesn't?). I wasn't very good about continuing to provide opportunities for my first child to eat things he didn't like at first. It seemed like a lot of work (and a waste of money) to make food that I ended up scraping into the garbage can. So his preferred food list is pretty small and typical of young kids. He does love fruit but won't touch vegetables. The good thing is he'll tolerate anything on his plate and even tries new things occasionally.
I decided, though, that I want to raise children who are less picky than I was. And I agree with Satter that unless the child is given opportunities to eat lots of different kinds of food then they'll probably not want to try new foods. I love her idea of the family table. I like that she doesn't advocate pushing kids to try new foods (mostly because it removes confrontation and tantrums from dinnertime). However, she advocates that you let kids eat as much of whatever food that they want (keeping in mind that as the adult you've given them the food). I feel like it's important to set some limits.
Her advice has steeled my resolve to be more structured about meals and snacks and not allowing grazing in between set feeding times. It's also encouraged me to be more well-rounded in what I prepare for myself (I don't really like a lot of vegetables either). It's also given me more backbone to say no to short-order cooking.
All in all, this book was helpful to me as a parent and such a good resource that I'm considering buying my own copy to keep on hand and lend out to friends.
I recently finished Child of Mine:Feeding with Love and Good Sense by Ellyn Satter. A friend had recommended this book, saying that this approach to feeding worked really well with her kids and she wished she had read it sooner. Those kind of recommendations almost always result in good knowledge gained.
The book is for parents, child care workers, grandparents, and anyone else who regularly feeds children. Satter's underlying principle is:
The parent is responsible for what, when, where.
The child is responsible for how much and whether.
The first part of the book goes over her main priniciple in depth and her philosophy on feeding. Basically, it is the job of the adult to provide a variety of nutritious foods, regular meals and snacks, a pleasant atmosphere with the family eating together and a relationship of love and trust. It's the child's job to eat. According to her theory, over several days to weeks, a child's body and need to grow will drive them to eat the foods that will provide the nutrients that they need. And if you follow this philosophy, eventually your child will eat well and eat the things you eat.
After the philosophical underpinnings are laid out, she goes chapter by chapter developmentally including chapters on: breastfeeding, formula feeding, first foods (6-12 months), toddlers (1-3 years) and preschoolers (3-5 years). I found this a useful format and most of her advice seemed right on with other feeding advice I've heard. But instead of making a parent feel panicky with the need to check off each part of the food pyramid, she offers real-world suggestions in an empathetic yet firm voice.
I found this book extremely helpful. I know I'm going to do things differently with my second child (who doesn't?). I wasn't very good about continuing to provide opportunities for my first child to eat things he didn't like at first. It seemed like a lot of work (and a waste of money) to make food that I ended up scraping into the garbage can. So his preferred food list is pretty small and typical of young kids. He does love fruit but won't touch vegetables. The good thing is he'll tolerate anything on his plate and even tries new things occasionally.
I decided, though, that I want to raise children who are less picky than I was. And I agree with Satter that unless the child is given opportunities to eat lots of different kinds of food then they'll probably not want to try new foods. I love her idea of the family table. I like that she doesn't advocate pushing kids to try new foods (mostly because it removes confrontation and tantrums from dinnertime). However, she advocates that you let kids eat as much of whatever food that they want (keeping in mind that as the adult you've given them the food). I feel like it's important to set some limits.
Her advice has steeled my resolve to be more structured about meals and snacks and not allowing grazing in between set feeding times. It's also encouraged me to be more well-rounded in what I prepare for myself (I don't really like a lot of vegetables either). It's also given me more backbone to say no to short-order cooking.
All in all, this book was helpful to me as a parent and such a good resource that I'm considering buying my own copy to keep on hand and lend out to friends.
Book to Movie: I Capture The Castle
The husband was on the road for a week, which gave me some time to catch up on my chick flicks. Or, romances, as I like to call them.
I ran across I Capture The Castle on Netflix. And I was totally engrossed. It completely brought the book to life for me.
A brilliant writer moves his family to a castle in countryside so that he can write his next masterpiece. The next big thing doesn't happen for him and his family falls into desperate poverty while living in a drafty, cold castle.
Cassandra, the middle child and second daughter, begins to write a journal, which is where our story picks up. It details day to day life in the castle, the struggles with putting food on the table, dealing with their eccentric father...and finding love. And, more than love, a marriage proposal to get them out of there!
Grab a glass of wine and cuddle up with the book or the movie.
I ran across I Capture The Castle on Netflix. And I was totally engrossed. It completely brought the book to life for me.
A brilliant writer moves his family to a castle in countryside so that he can write his next masterpiece. The next big thing doesn't happen for him and his family falls into desperate poverty while living in a drafty, cold castle.
Cassandra, the middle child and second daughter, begins to write a journal, which is where our story picks up. It details day to day life in the castle, the struggles with putting food on the table, dealing with their eccentric father...and finding love. And, more than love, a marriage proposal to get them out of there!
Grab a glass of wine and cuddle up with the book or the movie.
Good Read: The King's English
Are you at all like me? Have you dreamed of running and owning a bookstore? Maybe a children's bookstore a la Meg Ryan in "You've Got Mail"...or a used/new bookstore like The Book Exchange? Or like the Tattered Cover in Denver (what a dreamy, dreamy place!)? Or a tiny local place like Aunt Bonnie's in Helena or The Bookstore in Dillon?
I imagine floor to ceiling shelves, stacks of books in every nook and cranny, comfy chairs, and delicious coffee. Or, cause I'm me, yummy wine.
Ah the lure of the independent bookstore. Don't get me wrong. I think Amazon is great because I can always find what I'm looking for. And, I love to wander the aisles of Barnes&Noble, Borders, and Hastings (I know, gasp!). But, I love that feeling of not looking for anything in particular and always finding a treasure. Or, how the people at the local places have actually read the books and can recommend things to you.
Debbie, at the Bookstore in Dillon, always has a recommendation. She knows local authors. And even though I don't live there anymore, she still remembers my tastes and what I have read. Amazon can recommend stuff to me, but it is always a little off.
Enter The King's English by Betsy Burton, "adventures of an independent bookseller." It is part memoir of a woman's struggles and successes running a bookstore before the megastores came on the scene and then the effects when the megastores arrived. It is part literary tribute to all of those wonderful things she read and the authors she met. And, what I find the most glorious about it, is that it is part book list.
A well curated book list from a life of books and reading. Whenever I am stumped on what to read, I reach for this book.
25 Mysteries to Die For. 35 Favorite Poetry Books from TKE's First 25 Years. An Incomplete and Unscientific but Nonetheless Shocking List of Books Challenged or Censored by Bookstores, Libraries, and Schools. 25 Western Fiction Titles Grounded in Place. 25 Books on Reading Books.
You get the drift. Ah-mazing.
I reach for this book for inspiration, for knowledge, for hope, for dreams, for love of books.
Oh, and I have to be honest here. This book also came from my mom. She knows a thing or two about good books.
I imagine floor to ceiling shelves, stacks of books in every nook and cranny, comfy chairs, and delicious coffee. Or, cause I'm me, yummy wine.
Ah the lure of the independent bookstore. Don't get me wrong. I think Amazon is great because I can always find what I'm looking for. And, I love to wander the aisles of Barnes&Noble, Borders, and Hastings (I know, gasp!). But, I love that feeling of not looking for anything in particular and always finding a treasure. Or, how the people at the local places have actually read the books and can recommend things to you.
Debbie, at the Bookstore in Dillon, always has a recommendation. She knows local authors. And even though I don't live there anymore, she still remembers my tastes and what I have read. Amazon can recommend stuff to me, but it is always a little off.
Enter The King's English by Betsy Burton, "adventures of an independent bookseller." It is part memoir of a woman's struggles and successes running a bookstore before the megastores came on the scene and then the effects when the megastores arrived. It is part literary tribute to all of those wonderful things she read and the authors she met. And, what I find the most glorious about it, is that it is part book list.
A well curated book list from a life of books and reading. Whenever I am stumped on what to read, I reach for this book.
25 Mysteries to Die For. 35 Favorite Poetry Books from TKE's First 25 Years. An Incomplete and Unscientific but Nonetheless Shocking List of Books Challenged or Censored by Bookstores, Libraries, and Schools. 25 Western Fiction Titles Grounded in Place. 25 Books on Reading Books.
You get the drift. Ah-mazing.
I reach for this book for inspiration, for knowledge, for hope, for dreams, for love of books.
Oh, and I have to be honest here. This book also came from my mom. She knows a thing or two about good books.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Holy Cow: An Indian Adventure
I have a very special place in my heart for travel memoirs. I find them fascinating and whenever I travel somewhere, I am constantly constructing a memoir of my travels in my head.
As you may or may not know, I am a yoga teacher and have a fascination with India. And, as much as India may beckon to me for her spirituality, her beauty, and her food...I find myself afraid of her poverty, her dirtiness, and her immense population.
Sarah Macdonald moves to India from her native home in Australia to be with her boyfriend (and then husband). She had been to India once before when she was younger and hated the experience. Now, she finds herself back in India with a significant other who is never there (he is a journalist and constantly traveling).
She learns much of India from her household staff. She gets to witness the extravagance and celebration that is the Indian wedding season. She comes close to death. She is constantly revolted and ravished by India, by India's extremes.
"India is beyond statement, for anything you say, the opposite is also true. It's rich and poor, spiritual and material, cruel and kind, angry but peaceful, ugly and beautiful, and smart but stupid. It's all the extremes. India defies understanding, and for once, for me, that's okay. In Australia, in my small pocket of my own isolated country, I felt like I understood my world and myself, but now, I'm actually embracing not knowing and I'm questioning much of what I thought I did know. I kind of like being confused, wrestling with contradictions, and not having to wrap up issues in a minute before a commercial break. While the journalist in me is still curious about he world, I'm still not really missing the way my old job confined my perceptions of life. My confinement here is different--I'm trapped by heat and by a never-ending series of juxtapositions. India is in some ways like a fun house hall of mirrors where I can see both sides of each contradiction sharply and there's no easy escape to understanding."
One of the most striking aspects of the book is describing India's poverty and cruelty. As westerners, we have ideas of great food, beautiful architecture, and beautiful saris. India is a country wracked by poverty. "How I miss Australia, where destitution comes via television images, and I can press the off button. India makes me feel anything but lucky and happy. As the Vipassana high wears even thinner and my Sikh strength further fades, I feel increasingly dismayed and guilty. I feel guilty for not giving these women money and guilty for knowing it wouldn't be enough. I feel guilty for being in a position where I'm privileged enough to be a giver rather than a taker and I feel guilty for wanting more than I have and taking what I do have for granted. At times I feel angry at the injustice. But most of all I feel confused and confronted. Why was I born in my safe, secure, sunny Sydney sanctuary and not in Kesroli? India accepts that I deserved it, but I can't. I wait for understanding and for the monsoon."
Another aspect of the book that I found endlessly engrossing was Sarah's small ventures into the many faiths and religions of India.
She goes to Kashmir and encounters Islam. "Inshallah is a common word in Kashmir. In this state nothing is taken for granted. Everything is 'if God is willing'. The word 'Islam' actually comes from a root of a word that means 'complete surrender,' but Mehmooda's fatalism astounds me. In India I've slowly been learning that I'm not in complete control of my life. I got sick, Jonathan is constantly called away and India's general disorganization means things never really turn out as I expect, but Mehmooda's faith and fatalism make me realize how much I still cling to the belief that I have power over my destiny. Perhaps it's time to let that go. Back at the boat on the lake of lotuses I shiver with thoughts of surrender, for it seems such surrender requires sacrifices I could never make. I'm not sure I want that depth of faith and I can't imagine being capable of it."
The majority of Indians are Hindu, which is a faith that I yearn to learn more about. The more I learn about it the more fascinating it becomes. The more it feels real and true to me. "Hinduism is a faith of almost infinite diversity. Yet the broadest, most complicated religion on the planet actually caters brilliantly to the individual. It seems every Hindu is free to create and follow his own unique religion, choosing his own gods and methods of worship. The gods of non-Hindus are respected and Hindu gods are generously shared. A young boy called Anu walks me back t my camp and gives me some options for puja. I can look to Hanuman for energy, Varuna (the god of water) if I want rain, Lakshmi (Vishnu's consort, the goddess of wealth) if I need money and Sarawathi (Brahma's consort the goddess of knowledge) if I have an exam coming up. Ganesh (the elephant god and the child of Shiva and Parvati) can be called on when starting a new journey or venture and Vishnu, Rama or Krishna if I want purity of spirit. Anu bids me good-bye, saying, 'just be taking your picking, all is for one and one is for all.'"
Sarah explores all the spirituality that India has to offer. She goes to a ten day Vipassana meditation retreat. She explores the gurus of India, yoga, and the Kumbh Mela. She visits the Sikhs and the Jains. She visits Dharamsala and watches the Dalai Lama speak. She shares Seder with some expatriate Jews. She learns about the diminishing Parsi population. She even spends time learning about her cultural religion, Christianity. "By absolving my anger about Christianity I have cleared the last obstacle that stood blocking my readiness for faith. I realize I don't have to be a Christian who follows the church, or a Buddhist nun in robes, or a convert to Judaism or Islam or Sikhism. I can be a believer in something bigger than what I can touch. I can make a leap of faith to a higher power in a way that's appropriate to my culture but not be imprisoned by it." With all of these abundant faiths in one country, it is no wonder that India conjures ideas and dreams of faith and spirituality.
Overall, this was a beautiful travel memoir and I highly recommend it.
As you may or may not know, I am a yoga teacher and have a fascination with India. And, as much as India may beckon to me for her spirituality, her beauty, and her food...I find myself afraid of her poverty, her dirtiness, and her immense population.
Sarah Macdonald moves to India from her native home in Australia to be with her boyfriend (and then husband). She had been to India once before when she was younger and hated the experience. Now, she finds herself back in India with a significant other who is never there (he is a journalist and constantly traveling).
She learns much of India from her household staff. She gets to witness the extravagance and celebration that is the Indian wedding season. She comes close to death. She is constantly revolted and ravished by India, by India's extremes.
"India is beyond statement, for anything you say, the opposite is also true. It's rich and poor, spiritual and material, cruel and kind, angry but peaceful, ugly and beautiful, and smart but stupid. It's all the extremes. India defies understanding, and for once, for me, that's okay. In Australia, in my small pocket of my own isolated country, I felt like I understood my world and myself, but now, I'm actually embracing not knowing and I'm questioning much of what I thought I did know. I kind of like being confused, wrestling with contradictions, and not having to wrap up issues in a minute before a commercial break. While the journalist in me is still curious about he world, I'm still not really missing the way my old job confined my perceptions of life. My confinement here is different--I'm trapped by heat and by a never-ending series of juxtapositions. India is in some ways like a fun house hall of mirrors where I can see both sides of each contradiction sharply and there's no easy escape to understanding."
One of the most striking aspects of the book is describing India's poverty and cruelty. As westerners, we have ideas of great food, beautiful architecture, and beautiful saris. India is a country wracked by poverty. "How I miss Australia, where destitution comes via television images, and I can press the off button. India makes me feel anything but lucky and happy. As the Vipassana high wears even thinner and my Sikh strength further fades, I feel increasingly dismayed and guilty. I feel guilty for not giving these women money and guilty for knowing it wouldn't be enough. I feel guilty for being in a position where I'm privileged enough to be a giver rather than a taker and I feel guilty for wanting more than I have and taking what I do have for granted. At times I feel angry at the injustice. But most of all I feel confused and confronted. Why was I born in my safe, secure, sunny Sydney sanctuary and not in Kesroli? India accepts that I deserved it, but I can't. I wait for understanding and for the monsoon."
Another aspect of the book that I found endlessly engrossing was Sarah's small ventures into the many faiths and religions of India.
She goes to Kashmir and encounters Islam. "Inshallah is a common word in Kashmir. In this state nothing is taken for granted. Everything is 'if God is willing'. The word 'Islam' actually comes from a root of a word that means 'complete surrender,' but Mehmooda's fatalism astounds me. In India I've slowly been learning that I'm not in complete control of my life. I got sick, Jonathan is constantly called away and India's general disorganization means things never really turn out as I expect, but Mehmooda's faith and fatalism make me realize how much I still cling to the belief that I have power over my destiny. Perhaps it's time to let that go. Back at the boat on the lake of lotuses I shiver with thoughts of surrender, for it seems such surrender requires sacrifices I could never make. I'm not sure I want that depth of faith and I can't imagine being capable of it."
The majority of Indians are Hindu, which is a faith that I yearn to learn more about. The more I learn about it the more fascinating it becomes. The more it feels real and true to me. "Hinduism is a faith of almost infinite diversity. Yet the broadest, most complicated religion on the planet actually caters brilliantly to the individual. It seems every Hindu is free to create and follow his own unique religion, choosing his own gods and methods of worship. The gods of non-Hindus are respected and Hindu gods are generously shared. A young boy called Anu walks me back t my camp and gives me some options for puja. I can look to Hanuman for energy, Varuna (the god of water) if I want rain, Lakshmi (Vishnu's consort, the goddess of wealth) if I need money and Sarawathi (Brahma's consort the goddess of knowledge) if I have an exam coming up. Ganesh (the elephant god and the child of Shiva and Parvati) can be called on when starting a new journey or venture and Vishnu, Rama or Krishna if I want purity of spirit. Anu bids me good-bye, saying, 'just be taking your picking, all is for one and one is for all.'"
Sarah explores all the spirituality that India has to offer. She goes to a ten day Vipassana meditation retreat. She explores the gurus of India, yoga, and the Kumbh Mela. She visits the Sikhs and the Jains. She visits Dharamsala and watches the Dalai Lama speak. She shares Seder with some expatriate Jews. She learns about the diminishing Parsi population. She even spends time learning about her cultural religion, Christianity. "By absolving my anger about Christianity I have cleared the last obstacle that stood blocking my readiness for faith. I realize I don't have to be a Christian who follows the church, or a Buddhist nun in robes, or a convert to Judaism or Islam or Sikhism. I can be a believer in something bigger than what I can touch. I can make a leap of faith to a higher power in a way that's appropriate to my culture but not be imprisoned by it." With all of these abundant faiths in one country, it is no wonder that India conjures ideas and dreams of faith and spirituality.
Overall, this was a beautiful travel memoir and I highly recommend it.
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