Another quick thought about our nation's capital, it's V A S T.
When Hubby and I travel, we are always amazed how European countries have such tight corners. By that I mean, their state buildings are so close together. In some spots, one could type a memo then pass it through a window to reach a department in another building.
Can you imagine foreigners walking around DC? They must think we are made of land with the vast space between The Capital, Washington Memorial, and Lincoln Memorial. The hubster and I racked up around 14, 900 steps visiting these facilities last night. That's seven miles folks! (Not to mention all the walking through terminals at the airport.)
It was a lovely experience. We watched the sun go down to the right of the Lincoln Memorial then strolled along the reflection pool as geese and goslings tucked their heads under for sleep. The night lights gleamed on the granite and marble, as we made our way home. Twas truly a romantic and patriotic experience.
I'm really glad we are having the conference in DC. The hotel cost$ may be unreasonable, but most attractions are free!
Friday, June 22, 2007
Most Attractions are Free!
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Curry Catfish Anyone?
It's in the wee hours as I write this, so please excuse my mistakes. I'm here in Washington DC bloggin' the conference. Not just any conference, but the annual American Library Association Conference.
The whole day has been one eye-opener after another, as we navigated the different airports and personnel who make them so colorful. Happy stewards and surly baggage handlers abound, but one conversation as we left Dulles for our hotel, I may never forget.
Our DC taxi driver, Patel, became excited upon learning we traveled from Memphis, Tennessee. Along with his running socio-economic commentary, he quizzed us on the cost of living, such as the current price per acre and the financial outlook for local catfish farmers. My husband referred to the loss of revenue since Vietnam entered the market, and then they jumped to another fish, blah-blah.
I lost the conversation as I sight-saw, when Patel started to recite water-temperatures certain, raised fish need. Long story short, our cabbie wants to raise catfish in the Delta.
We all have an American Dream we strive for and Patel's Catfish Farm is no exception. I mean, who would've thought a vegetarian would want to raise fish in the first place, but Patel is proof.
With this little 30 minute ride, Patel reinforced my decision to become a librarian. You see, Patel is an avid library user and gains much of his fish knowledge and lore from local DC Libraries. I'm proud my profession is helping him achieve his goal.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Non-Bloggie in a Bloggie World...
I apologize to those non-bloggers. This being my first time hosting a challenge, I’ve been unsure how to maximize the southern experience for y'all without blogs. I think the best idea is to copy and paste any reviews non-bloggers have into a post. Then participants can converse with them through the comments or e-mail.
Sweet Hush by Deborah Smith
Outer Banks by Anne Rivers Siddons
Ladder of Years by Anne Tyler.
MLH otherwise known as
Terminal Bend by Patricia Mayer
Old Dogs and Children by Robert Inman
Also, a shout out to two new bloggers
Flipper or Flippant?
out of 5 rating.While over at Book Haven, Nyssaneala had a very different point of view.
Mock My Words!
Robin posted a thoughtful follow up to her initial To Kill a Mockingbird experience. One thing she mentioned, she hasn’t heard the bird’s call. Thus, she is unaware of how truly annoying it can be. Yes, it has one heck of a repertoire, but it is SO loud. If you ever get one outside your bedroom window, you might rationalize the sin.
I shouldn’t complain since I’ve enjoyed the sweet lyrics of a certain Magpie outside my cabin door. At least mockingbirds change their tune, and change they do, rather skillfully. Did you know they can imitate alarms, sirens, cell phones, squeaks, barking dawgs, and pianos?!? If you sit with one long enough they will pick up a couple of whistled bars from your skilled lungs.
Since, Robin and other participants aren’t in the south, I found an audio that might help ease the need for a face-to-beak meeting.
Yes, we love the mockingbird, just look at the states which claim it as their very own bird: Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Texas. Did you notice Harper Lee's home state of Alabama isn't included?
Robin, thank yew for the post! :D
The Memory Keeper's Daughter (copy)
The first chapter of The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards sets the stage for a moving story. I condensed the chapter in my own words; it is southern author, Edwards, who makes the story soar. Be aware, while reading this summary three character-voices alternate.I held my breath with this second birth. The baby, a little girl, was different. She was like the training movies we saw in medical school. She carries an extra chromosome, it is obvious, and heart defects are sure to be her lot. I call out for the nurse.
How can he ask me to do this? Doesn’t the mother have a say? Shouldn’t they think about this for a couple of days before sending the baby to the state hospital? He hands me a piece of paper with a name and address. He gazes into my eyes and I give the slightest okay as my one protest exits, “the snow.”
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
The Bird is the Word!
I’m thrilled at the number of participants who are re-visiting or getting to know Atticus, Scout, 
Tom, Jem, Boo, Dill, etc. from To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. It does my heart good knowing y’all are enjoying it in your comfy chairs all over the World. :)
Although, I hope your seats are hot and stifling like the courtroom scenes. It will help you imagine sitting amongst grumpy, stinky people, breathing the same stagnate air. Try choosing characters to empathize with, such as the coloreds in the gallery, where naturally, heat rises. Can you place your feet in the shoes of the accused Tom Robinson?
I’m reminded of the horrible true story of Emmett Till and his acquitted murderers. As the mockingbird, his joking whistle provided a catalyst for others' sins.
Read thoughts from other participants here:
Robin at A Fondness for Reading begins her post with, "Sissy Spacek narrated the audio book version of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and I think it's the most beautiful book I've ever listened to." Read more...
Laura from Musings had this to say, "Je ne regrette rien." Read more in English...
Nymeth at Things Mean a Lot had this to say, "I think that what impressed me the most about this book was how very human it is. People are portrayed as people – with flaws and shortcomings and limitations, but as real people despite them, or because of them." More at...
Rebecca from Fond of Books is a little confused by Boo. Can anyone of y'all help her? Meanwhile, here are some of her thoughts. "I think my favorite part was when the ladies were saying how terrible it was what Hitler was doing to the Jews, and not realizing they do the same thing to the black people in their county." Talk to her...
Kevin at Encyclopedia Kevinannica places TKaM in his All Time Top Ten List. Here are his quotes from the book...
Monday, June 18, 2007
Survivor "Southern Style"
Tasteless Southern Joke #1
Because of the popularity of CBS's Survivor reality show, several southern TV stations are joining together to plan their own, Survivor Southern Style.
The contestants will start in Montgomery, Alabama, travel over to Georgia and on to South Carolina . From there they will head up to North Carolina and over to Tennessee. They will then proceed down to Mississippi and Louisiana , finally ending up back in Alabama.
Each will be driving a pink VW with New Jersey license plates and large bumper stickers that read: I'm Gay, I'm a Vegetarian, NASCAR Sucks, Go Yankees, Hillary in 2008, and Deer Hunting is Murder!
The first one that makes it back to Montgomery alive wins!
Murf made the button, too!
“Where are you from?” the woman asked me. For a moment, I was going to lie and say I was
from Sausalito, California. Everyone loves you if you say you’re from California, while everyone is filled with sorrow or loathing if you admit you’re from the South.
I bellowed out a big Amen after reading this quote from Murf's blog. I personally get the loathing rather than the sorrow when I meet people from up north. I can see in their eyes the jumping to conclusions: white trash, red neck, bigot, stupid, etc. It is only when I meet another Southerner, up North, that I feel a kindred spirit. "Really, so who's your peoples?" Where's your homeplace?" "How bout dem Dawgs!"
Murf of As I was Saying read The Prince of Tides for her first book in the challenge. She had this to say...
Amanda of A Patchwork of Books isn’t participating in the Southern Reading Challenge; although, she highly suggests The Prince of Tides for participants. She likes to visit this book ever couple of years, but she thinks she will put it away for five years now. Hear why...
Sunday, June 17, 2007
And The Winner Is...
Angela Marie at Enchanted Daffodil!
Actually, when I asked my hubby for a number between one and 50, he blurted out 20. It was Henk again! Henk you are one lucky blogger, but to be fair, we repicked in order to spread the southern love.
Angela Marie, do you like pecans? Just e-mail me with your address and I'll get the treats in the mail.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Born Today in 1811...
I no more thought of style or literary excellence than the mother who rushes into the street and cries for help to save her children from a burning house, thinks of the teachings of the rhetorician or the elocutionist.
~ Harriet Beecher Stowe
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Quill Awards Bathe in Southern Voices
The Quill award finalists were announced this past week! What, you ask, are the Quills? Quills are to books, the equivalent of Oscars for movies and Tonys for theatre. There are five nominees in 18 categories such as general fiction, humor, romance, business, graphic novels, history, and poetry. This October, all winners will dine at Lincoln Center while NBC televises the event.
I’m excited to report the audio books have a “down-home” flavor. All five nominees are narrated by southern voices. So, without further ado, the nominees are… Can’t Wait to Get to Heaven by Fannie Flagg, as read by the author, is a native of Birmingham, Alabama. Her sweet voice adds spark to eighty-something Mrs. Elner Shimfissle’s quirky life. One minute she is up a tree picking figs and the next off pondering the meaning of life. Library Journal says, “she still can mix humor, wisdom, and pathos in highly memorable characters that made [her] earlier books successes.”
And, drum roll please, my money is on the classic To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee as read by Sissy Spacek. The actual list suggests Sissy Spacek “performs the book” where as other nominees merely read theirs. Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Sorry to hear...
Nattie from Nattie Writes is no longer with us. Her fight with stomach cancer was rather sudden and short. I briefly met her, and enjoyed a joke, in April when she signed up for the Southern Reading Challenge. So I thought, in memory of her, I would read her picks.
There is no shortage of good days. It is good lives that are hard to come by.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
And the Winner Is Henk!
Henk from Masterpieces is the Winner of a Southern Surprise! Wouldn't you know my first prize goes to a participant who lives across the pond in the Netherlands! Henk, how do you feel about pecans?
I hope everyone is submerged in a good ole southern book. Happy Reading!
Note: Henk, I'll need your address to send the tin, full of pecan delights!
Thursday, June 07, 2007
1st Southern Reading Reviews In!
Here's a taste of southern reading going on in the challenge:
Fond of Books stands at the head of the class by being the first to read and review a southern book. The Color Purple had Fond of Books saying, "What a wonderful book. I had seen the movie many times and love it so I was pretty sure I would love the book too. After reading this I appreciate how well the movie stayed with the original story."
Diane from Nanners and Noodles read The Ballad of the Flim Flam Man by Guy Owen. She had this to say, "Some ideas are timeless, and I found I could relate to the cynicism of Jones about the greed of most men, the old idea that you can’t con an honest man, and the apparent lack of Christian ideals in some of our religious leaders, even though the con takes place over the television rather than in revival tents."
MamaT from Summa Mamas has completed Kaye Gibbons’s Sights Unseen. She had this to say, "The story of Maggie Barnes and her family as told by her daughter Hattie. Maggie is that woman known in her small North Carolina town as "that Barnes woman with all the problems." Her problem is mental illness--bipolar disorder in particular. A very clear-eyed look, in my opinion, of the costs of living with such a person, both to the person herself and to her family. The story has a twist--thanks to medication, electroconvulsive therapy, and psychiatric intervention, Maggie becomes well. The interesting thing is to see how that change affects her family. Gibbons has a gift for writing things so realistically that you lose track of the fact that you are reading a novel and assume that you are reading an autobiographical tale instead. Very good."
Lynne from Lynne’s Little Corner read Between Georgia by Joshilyn Jackson. She had this to say, "I loved this book! I had read GODS IN ALABAMA a short time ago and enjoyed it, but this one is much better. The characters are great - you can picture them in your mind and hear them speak. You can feel the love and pain between them. They had problems and took care of them in their own way - not always the best way, but they did what had to be done. They're strong people, although some of them didn't realize the strength that they possessed."
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Finn (copy)
It has been said there are no true original stories. Each story is built on a previously written story. For example, a story we are all familiar with in Genesis, Noah’s Ark, is found in the Hebrew Torah, the Islamic Quran, and the Epic of Gilgamesh. Various versions of the classic may be found in children’s picture books and in Sunday school lessons, too.
Other literature of late expands on classics with a variety of success. Two come to mind: The Red Tent by Anita Diamant is based on the Biblical story of Dinah, and Wicked by Gregory Maguire is based on The Wizard of Oz.
New on library shelves and bookstore displays, Finn by Jon Clinch is based on Mark Twain’s 
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Main character, known only as Finn throughout the book, isn’t Huck but rather his father. A mean, nasty bigot of a man who only cares for his son when money enters the picture, somehow makes for a sympathetic character.
Despicable characters tend to be plot drivers, but audience losers. An author takes a chance when he creates a main character so hateful. Why? Most readers want to empathize or step into the personality instead of wish them dead. Finn is lustful towards black woman, abusive to children, and slightly insane. Not really a person one would like to meet in the real world or read about.
Yet, author Clinch works in our sympathy for the alcoholic. In the first chapter, three young boys steal fish from Finn’s trout line. Finn, in search of drink, stumbles upon them mid-crime. Two of the boys bail, but one is left trying to remove a hook from his palm. The unfortunate takes a backhand from Finn, which knocks him out and the hook free. Then our antihero is seen tenderly removing the fish from the boat’s hull.
The book opens with an excerpt from Huckleberry Finn. Jim and Huck, while on the run, enter a cabin containing the body of a murdered man; who happens to be Huck’s father. The seedy room is strewn with “greasy cards,” “old whiskey bottles,” and “a couple of masks made out of black cloth.” The plaster walls shown “the ignorantest kind of words and pictures, made with charcoal.”
This scene sets the stage, from murderous start to vindicated end. Finn, although evolving from Huckleberry Finn, stands alone as an original.
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Clear Case of Uppin-the-Ante!
Lisa at Bluestalking Reader isn’t participating in the Southern Reading Challenge! Nope! No 
rinky-dink, read three southern books of your choice, but a rather blue-blooded Southern Literature Project. She has a list of canons and modern titles to make any Southern Literature 101 class proud.
Lisa is gonin' great guns, folks! She just recently devoured Larry Brown's, Father and Son, and is currently chewing on Hick by Andrea Portis (Is Portis any kin to my beloved Charles Portis?) If you are still looking for books to place on the list or replace duds, check out her left hand margin.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Challenger's Hubby is Southern Author!
That's raight! Deana from Friday Night Fish Fry is married to Martin Clark. A smart man, not 
just for marrying Deana, but writing two books while working as a judge in Virginia.
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Y'all Ready For This?
In many of the books y'all will be reading this summer, a southern voice cry's out. Will you be able to discern it?
Kevin of Encyclopedia Kevinannica is the first in with notes on Zora Neale Hurston's rich 30's/40's black voice! Hurston was criticized for her black, southern voice. Readers of both races felt it contrived, but I believe she was true. One reason, she spent weeks living in turpentine camps. These camps were known for being seedy and lawless such as the wild west.
This is the quoted passage (thanks to Kevin) from her work, Their Eyes Were Watching God:
"You know if you pass some people and don't speak tuh suit 'em dey got tuh go way back in yo' life and see whut you ever done. They know mo' 'bout yuh than you do yo' self. An envious heart makes a treacherous ear. They done 'heard' 'bout you just what they hope done happened."
"If God don't think no mo' 'bout 'em then Ah do, they's a lost ball in de high grass."
"Ah hears what they say 'cause they just will collect round mah porch 'cause it's on the big road. Mah husband git so sick of 'em sometime he makes 'em all git for home."
"Sam is right too. They just wearin' out yo' sittin' chairs.""Yeah, Sam say most of 'em goes to church so they'll be sure to rise in Judgment. Dat's de day dat every secret is s'posed to be made known. They wants to be there and hear it all."
"Sam is too crazy! You can't stop laughin' when youse around him."
"Uuh hunh. He says he aims to be there hisself so he can find out who stole his corn-cob pipe."
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Is Mister Linky Southern?
Southern Reading Challenge Eve is upon us and I hope all list are made. It would be so nice if y'all went to bed with visions of columned plantations in your heads. :)
If you visited earlier today, you may have noticed a couple of test posts. Mister Linky and I were having a slight row, but all is well now. He was quite the gentleman and is now ready to admit I was right. Right all along, fiddle-lee-dee! :D
So, with out further ado, pick up y'all's books and commence to reading.
Here's a quick rule reminder. Spend the hot, humid months of June, July, and August reading three Southern books by Southern authors. Most lists were approved ahead of time, because some contain variables to the Southern author/book rule. You Know Who You Are and the reasons I allowed them. Please note that when writing notes or reviews on the books. Also, one may substitute two movies based on a book/play by a Southern author for one book.
Within these books, spend some time finding that "sense of place" we talked about. It could be a description of a smokey mountain in the Appalachians or the red clay dirt of a Georgia field, and how it bonds a character to their community. Why, when a southerner meets another southerner they are always quick to discover each others' "home place" or "peoples".
Prizes will be drawn at the end of each week starting on Friday. Have fun and as said earlier, "I will try to be YOUR ultimate Southern Librarian!"
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Water for Elephants (copy)
Why wait? He swings his walker forward, leading with the right foot and only slightly dragging the left, as he advances down the hall. No one will notice and he will be alongside the biddies in 15 minutes, tops. He smiles, humming hokey-pokey, as he reaches the hens without any assistance.
Hazel commands the others to make room for Jacob as she situates herself closest to him. “Oh, it’s so exciting! They’ve been at it all morning!”
As Jacob looks up from his walker, the white and magenta stripped tent comes into view. He suddenly clutches his chest as his heart races with pleasure or is it dread.
“Nurse! Nurse! Hurry! It’s Mr. Jankowski!”
Later that day, Jacob, resigned to his wheelchair, is rolled directly across from the new guy at his lunch table. Why does this old coot get to sit with him and the ladies? Did they think we would have something in common? I mean, I was a vet and he was a lawyer, two totally different professions.
The ladies are all talking at once about the circus, of course, when mightier than thou spits out, (Don’t lawyers have any manners?) “I once carried water for the elephants.”
“What?!? You did no such thing! You old coot!” Dang it, my heart is again banging louder than a marching drum. Why is it every yahoo seems to think they can tell the world they carried water for elephants? Not our elephant. Not our Rosie. She drank tons, not gallons, of the stuff and if she had it her way, it would be lemonade.
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen is a gritty, coming-of-age tale set in 1930’s depression era America. Our hero, Jacob, retells his life as a fallen Cornell student. One, who in desperation, jumps a train in the middle of the night. Not just any train, though. It’s the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth!
Question?
Do y'all want another blog for the challenge, separate from this?
This is the one I set up. It's wordpress which I was hoping to teach myself during the summer. A blog that would be purely Southern and not include my (copy) articles. Now, with all the challenges, I believe it is just another headache to keep up with yet another blog. (I'm really not happy with my template, either.) So, use it or lose it?
Monday, May 28, 2007
4 days and counting...
Have you got that list in order?
What about substituting a couple of movies?
I promised Working Words 100 that 2, set-in-the-South, movies might be substituted for one book. It might really be fun to pair the same Southern book with movie for a full-family, literature-based, activity. I’m big on reading aloud and think To Kill a Mockingbird would be an awesome, summer experience.
Book-2-movie list which compliments our SRC theme:
All the King’s Men
Any John Grisham such as The Firm and A Time to Kill
Because of Winn-Dixie
Big Fish
Cape Fear
Cold Mountain 
The Color Purple
Deliverance
Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
Forrest Gump
Fried Green Tomatoes
Gone with the Wind
The Great Santini
In the Heat of the Night
Last Picture Show 
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
My Dog Skip
The Notebook
Terms of Endearment
(play-2-movie) Any Tennessee Williams such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
SRC Lister Needs Help...
Jackson and The Optimist's Daughter by Welty. I'm thinking about the first Miss Julia, but wouldn't mind something with a little bluesy heat to it."Saturday, May 26, 2007
Everyone Needs a Little Kira-Kira!
Newbery Challenge 2007
Friday, May 25, 2007
6 more days...
...until Southern Reading Challenge begins! So, pull up a rocker and get comfortable!
~ Bill Ferris
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
The (Southern) Ladies of Covington, NC
Lynne of Lynne's Little Corner had this to say about Joan Medicott's An Unexpected Family, the newest book in the Ladies of Covington series.
I've been reading this series of books about 3 "mature" ladies living in Covington, NC for quite a few years now. They're nice, cozy little books, quick and easy to read. This is the eighth in the series. The writing is simple, the stories a bit predictable, but still pleasant to read.
It's enjoyable to see books written about women a little bit older than the normal star of a book. Ms. Medlicott has shown that even though a woman is older, she can still have a full and exciting life. Hobbies, new careers, friends, love, marriage - even sex. Maybe just at a trifle slower pace. I've heard that the 50's are the new 30's, so the 60's must be the new 40's. Shoot, we're still kids! We've got a whole lot of living left in us!
The Ladies of Covington Send Their Love (2000)
The Gardens of Covington (2001)
From the Heart of Covington (2002)
The Spirit of Covington (2003)
At Home in Covington (2004)
A Covington Christmas (2005)
Two Days After the Wedding (2006)
An Unexpected Family (2007).
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
8 Random Things (I Won't Tell My Mother!)
JenClair from A Garden Carried in the Pocket tagged me for this meme.
The rules -
1: Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
2: Write a post with the 8 random things, and post these rules.
3: Tag 8 people and include their names.
4: Leave a comment and tell them they're tagged, and to read your blog.
1) I chew my fingernails when I read.
2) I drive too fast when alone. The guard calls me, "Little Lady with Big Feet."
3) My nickname in Alpha Eta Rho, our flying fraternaty, was Mag Drop.
4) My grandmother's name, since forever, is Sweetheart.
5) I taught myself to typw, I mean tpye, damnit TYPT, AUGH
6) I used to be the editor of a small British Car Club newsletter, Wyres & Tyres.
7) My middle name is Carol, but Sweetheart spells it Carole.
8) When I worked at Smyrna Air Center, I would layout between the hangers on breaks. I also spent one summer as the flag-in-airplanes, lure with your looks, get them to the gas-pumps, girl. (About 10 times, the gag got old and the ramp got hot!)
If you read this, nay-nay, you're IT!
Oh, No! Not the Wolf's Head!
Newbery Challenge 2007Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi
2003 Newbery Medal Winner
Main Characters: Crispin(Asta’s Son) and Bear
Setting: Medieval England
Time Period: 1377
Plot: Heir to the thrown, Crispin, who knows himself only as Asta’s Son, loses his mother one day and spends the following days running for his life.
I love quest books! I love traipsing through unknown kingdoms, being amazed at the news sights, sounds, smells, and adventures that await me. Could I be a little “Dorothy?”
Recently orphaned, our hero, Crispin, has been falsely accused of stealing from the manor and killing a priest. For this, a “wolf’s head” is placed on his name, and anyone who finds him may kill him as a hunted animal. So, he runs, he runs so far away… (Please, excuse me, Flock of Seagulls!)
Unbeknownst to Crispin, he is the illegitimate son of the manor’s Lord. This comes as a shock to the steward, too. His plans for becoming the next Lord are in jeopardy if Crispin is allowed to live. Thank goodness, Crispin meets a likable fellow in the joker, Bear.
This is one of those books, where you see the ending before it arrives, only to find out it doesn’t happen. You know that place in a book, when you are nearing the end, and go ahead and finish it for the author. In a good book, I savor this junction. I come up with two or three different endings. Avi had other plans. ;D
Summer Reading Ideas (copy)
Summertime is right around the corner, and you know what that means--summer reading! As last year, I would like to provide you with a shopping list of new books, ready for the beach, front porch, or lazy hammock.
Hilma Wolitzer’s new novel, Summer Reading, is the perfect start to a long, hot summer. Library Journal says, “It's a lazy summer in the Hamptons, and earnest Angela hopes to convince her book group that reading Flaubert and Bronte really will make a difference.” And guess what, the book comes complete, with its own reading group guide.
David Baldacci new book, Simple Genius, places Secret Agents Sean King and Michelle Maxwell at odds as they move through this Washington, D.C. thriller.
Hey, Girls! Zane’s new title, Dear G-Spot, contains real letters to the author with naughty Dear Abby answers.
Booklist has this to say about A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, “Unimaginably tragic…second novel is a sad and beautiful testament to both Afghani suffering and strength. Readers who lost themselves in The Kite Runner will not want to miss this unforgettable follow-up.”
Barbara Kingsolver spends a year eating local, home-grown food in her new non-fiction, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. Publisher’s Weekly claims, “Local food—in the growing, buying, cooking, eating and the telling—demands teamwork.” Kingsolver provides the prose, hubby Hopp provides the technique, and daughter Camille provides the recipes in this group effort.
Need help with that swing? Two golf books promise a taste for the greens: Tales from the Q School by John Feinstein and Alice Cooper, Golf Monster by the aged rocker.
Bring Baywatch’s David Hasselhoff to the shore, via his autobiography, Making Waves.
Finally, run, don’t walk, to the library and sign-up for these sure-fire bestsellers: Lean Mean Thirteen by Janet Evanovich, The Overlook by Michael Connelly, The Good Guy by Dean Koontz, Bungalow 2 by Danielle Steel, and James Paterson’s The Quickie and The 6th Target.
Happy Reading!
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Mississippian Wins Pulitzer!
Reknown poet and proud father, Eric Trethewey, stated, “Natasha had the gift of language even when she was a little girl, and I knew it was extraordinary.”
Margaret Gibson, former professor at University of Massachusetts, added, “Natasha’s poems are grounded in personal experience and observation, grounded in what I would call an ethical or moral point of view.”
My Name in Print!
Monday, May 14, 2007
She Used that Word!
Newbery Challenge 2007
The High Power of Lucky by Susan Patron 
2006 Newbery Medal Winner
Main Characters: Lucky and guardian Brigitte
Setting: Trailer Park in Hard Pan, California
Time Period: Modern
Plot: Ten-year-old Lucky lives with her father’s, French ex-wife after her mother dies. She finds clues that lead her to believe Brigitte is moving back to France and not adopting her.
I consider any Newbery a quality chapter book for children. That being said, there has been some controversy surrounding this year’s winner. The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron includes the word “scrotum.” Not once, not twice, but six times it appears in print.
Knowing the controversy, pre-read, I was not shocked when I read it on the first page. I’ll admit, it takes a lot to shock me, but I initially thought, “Why this word?”
Picture yourself at a local Alcoholics Anonymous meeting where someone is telling their “rock bottom” story. Our main character, Lucky, is attending one such meeting by crouching behind a fence, when the offending word is said. Do you think a rough, ex-alcoholic would say “scrotum” or whip-out one of the many colorful slang representations? (I was shocked because he didn’t say balls!) ;D
I don’t want to give away the ending, but I found the word an essential element, tying the story together in the end. Before, you jump to harsh conclusions, I plead with you to read the book from cover-to-cover. Newbery committees aren’t arbitrary popular vote members. They spend a year discussing the pros and cons; and in this case, the book is worthy of all accolades.
South of Illinois, but NOT Southern!
Newbery Challenge 2007
A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck 
2001 Newbery Medal Winner
Main Characters: Mary Alice and Grandma Dowdel
Setting: Chicago to rural Illinois
Time Period: Post-depression, 1930’s
Plot: Mary Alice is sent to live with her ancient grandmother in a hick town south of Chicago. Mary Alice learns it isn’t the age or the place that confines her from learning.
The story is rich with humor and inter-generational play between a grandmother and her granddaughter. I don’t know about most people, but I consider my grandmother’s generation a hoot. They tell the best stories and they have the oddest names for everyday objects. My grandmother insist that I roll the glass down (window), and always wants to know where my pocketbook (purse) is.
Peck brings the feel of small-town America, with its limits and freedoms, to Mary Alice’s awareness. Knowing all in town has its advantages; until, one who knows you, won’t give you a chance. For instance, I have enjoyed stage fright all my life. People in my hometown know this, and cater to my problem. I was given parts where emotions could run high, such as I could yell a part and be red in the face because of acting and not fear. When I moved to the small town of Como, I was eager to get back on stage, so to speak. I performed a solo within a year of living there. I wasn’t nervous, my voice didn’t quiver, and the experience was rather liberating. I contribute it all to people not knowing my history, thus not pooh-poohing me into lesser demanding roles.
Loved this book and highly suggest it to other readers. Not as innocent as Anne of Green Gables, and a little too slow for the Harry Potter types, this is a possible read-aloud in 5th or 6th grade class. I think it complements Rules of the Road by Joan Bauer, because of the inter-generational relationship.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Honor thy Southern Moms w/ Books!
Sage got me thinking about Southern mothers with his comment on the Faulkner quote post: "Roy Blount, a southern writer in exile, has written a humorous book about his relationship with his mother (and about southern mothers in general). [The book is Be Sweet: A Conditional Love Story] In it, he says something like, `My mother loved me to pieces. I've spent my entire adult life trying to put those pieces back together again!’"
Friday, May 11, 2007
More From Mo!
Mo of Inside Mo’s Mind also suggest, "Karin Slaughter, who grew up in Georgia, and now lives in Atlanta."
Grant County Novels
Blindsighted (2001)
Kisscut (2002)
A Faint Cold Fear (2003)
Indelible (2004)
Faithless (2005)
Beyond Reach (2007)
I Suggest Raney!
The Raleigh News and Observer said, “Clyde Edgerton is the love child of Dave Barry and Flannery O’Connor."
Where Trouble Sleeps (1997)
In Memory of Junior (1992)
Killer Diller (1991)
The Floatplane Notebooks (1988)
Walking Across Egypt (1987)
Raney (1985)
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
This Made Me Giggle!
If a writer has to rob his mother, he will not hesitate; the"Ode on a Grecian Urn" is worth any number of old ladies.
~ William Faulkner
Saturday, May 05, 2007
Who's the Clown?
We had a surprise visit from Rainbow the Clown (Millee Wrenn) 
Thursday! Millee is my friend from Tunica whom happens to be the Children's Librarian at Olive Branch Library.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Lost In My Own Backyard (copy)
Author Tim Cahill lives 50 miles north of Yellowstone National Park and considers this his backyard. And what a backyard! One can spend a lifetime discovering the 2.22 million acres of mountains and valleys filled with geysers, mud pots, and thermal springs. In the past 25 years, Cahill has done just that.
Cahill’s book, Lost In My Own Backyard, isn’t a guide book, but rather an answer to frequent Yellowstone questions. For instance, “How close is too close to a bison?” Um, silly question, but Cahill claims common sense lacking in some tourist. He has a special name for those who edge closer and closer to a bison for that amazing, once-in-a-lifetime shot, “instamatic injury.” He adds, “If the tail goes up it means either charge or discharge.”I feel in love with Cahill’s style of writing. He talks to the reader such as an actor, who faces the camera, might tell a plot twist. In the first section of the book titled, “Trails,” he employs his mini-me as a discussion partner on the trail. On the Mt. Washburn trail we overhear older Cahill telling younger, know-it-all self, how not to be a “dumb butt” as they view the “embarrassment of wonders” which is the park.
In the second section titled, “In the Backcountry,” the reader visits the park few have ever seen. Cahill says out of a billion visitors a year, 99.2% never venture into the backcountry for an overnight stay. Could it be all those “Beware of Bear” signs? Cahill is one of the few who have seen rare moonbows, petrified forests and odd faces in the hoodoo formations while walking the outback.
To my librarian’s delight, his last section is titled, “A Selected Yellowstone Bookshelf.” His shelves contain guidebooks, trail maps, and educational books associated with the park, such as biology, history, and geology. The first book mentioned, Lonely Planet Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Parks, just happens to include his written forward.
I highly recommend this humorous book to anyone about to explore America’s first backyard, Yellowstone National Park.
Southernest Dog-Bloodhound!
Mo from Inside Mo's Mind says, “her Bloodhound series is set in the Okefenokee. A great little cozy mystery…” HarperCollins says, “Virginia Lanier lived on the edge of the Okefenokee Swamp in Echols County, Georgia. She published her first book at age 65.”
Death In Bloodhound Red (1995)
The House on Bloodhound Lane (1996)
A Brace of Bloodhounds (1997)
Blind Bloodhound Justice (1998)
Ten Little Bloodhounds (1999)
A Bloodhound to die for (2003)
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
SRC Warm Ups by Readers!
Sage at Musings has written a lovely review of Georgian author Judson Mitcham's Sabbath Creek.
Lynne of Lynne's Little Corner of the World had this to say about the Southern Comedy of Manners Series written by 
Ann B. Ross.
"I've enjoyed all of the books in this series. I love the characters of Miss Julia, Hazel Marie, Little Lloyd, Sam, and all of the others. I'm looking forward to reading the next book, Miss Julia Strikes Back, which is out in hardcover now."
Miss Julia Stands Her Ground (2006)
Miss Julia's School of Beauty (2005)
Miss Julia Meets Her Match (2004)
Miss Julia Hits the Road (2003)
Miss Julia Throws a Wedding (2002)
Miss Julia Takes Over (2001)
Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind (1999)
