Reluctant Reader Confession

I was excited to read that the Coen Brothers were in Memphis looking for an unknown teenager to play the part of Mattie Ross in the remake of the western classic True Grit. Some of you remember this movie as an introduction to John Wayne's popular U. S. Marshall "Rooster" Cogburn character, but I differ. I was entranced by the Mattie character.

Every Sunday after church, Dad and I would sit down for the western matinee playing on our Nashville TV station. I must have been 11-years-old when I first saw True Grit. At the time, I was the spitting image of Mattie. I sported freckles galore with straight bangs and dirty blond hair short enough to be mistaken as a boy. In short, my brother and I looked alike.

Dad was the first to mention other similarities. Yes, I was a hard-headed mule who knew more than the people around her. Yes, when I set my mind to something, other things suffered. Yes, I was tough and quite gritty. Dad began to call me "baby sister" after that day and I much preferred it to his other nickname, "number two." My brother was "number one son" and well my standing was clear.

What does this have to do about reading? There is a point. I promise.

When I was in second grade, I did not belong in the "A" reading group. I tested in the "B" group and was placed there the second week of school. Well, I thought there was a mistake and I kept going to the A group only to be walked back to the B readers. Every once in a while my teacher, Miss Harper, would see me sit in the back of the As, but she played dumb and allowed me to stay.

It was a dark day when it happened again in third grade. Confidence was lost and I bowed with the shame of not being a "good" reader. This is when I became one of those reluctant readers. Oh, I could read. Vocabulary was not a problem; although, I had a tendency to add r's, t's and d's in words when spoken. I have a southern mountain mixed with Texan accent. To keep classmates from laughing, I became quiet and invisible – hiding behind the desk in front of me – during read-a-loud portions.

Confidence fell even farther as I was left behind in fourth then fifth grade. It became obvious during standardized testing that I could read but not understand what I read. My focus was on the words and not the story. As with millions of school children, I went from loving reading to hating it with every ounce of my being.

My determination to make something of myself led me to a self-improvement in reading. I would read a book after watching the movie and try to make sense of what I read. My first book was Jaws by Peter Benchley followed by the popular Amityville Horror by Jan Anson. (I give away my age here.) And the silly thing, it worked! I had a way back into reading and a great confidence builder!

It was True Grit that led to the biggest break through. The first two books were loose adaptations to screen and I could connect some parts but others were still incomprehensible. True Grit, written by Charles Portis, was almost exactly the same! The ending was a little different, but the plot and characters all matched up! In my joy, I read it two times straight through.

If I thought of this back in the 70's, I know there are others who have done the same thing. This is a perfect argument for replacing a beat up title with the new, movie-cover edition. It may have been the cover art that attracted me first then the idea followed. Whatever the case, I am a reader thanks to this backwards thinking. Oh, and Coen brothers, you are 30 years too late!

I write this as a non-published article for possible use in future book talks. It is more an exercise in habit since I write my articles Wednesday mornings and want to stay in practice. I realize it is wordie but it serves my purpose.

Reluctant Reader Confession

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/12/reluctant-reader-confessions.html

Christmas Quiz (copy)

As you bask in the glow of your finely lit Christmas tree, gather the family for a bookish Christmas quiz. Each paragraph below is a quote from seven beloved Christmas books. Guess the title of the book that corresponds to the quote. Sounds easy peasey, right? Well, I'm not going to give you the titles that derive from contemporary, classic and children's books. Answers found at the link titled "Christmas Quiz Answers". May I suggest a plate of angel-shaped cookies and eggnog to accompany your brain activity?

A. "The Kranks are skipping Christmas! No party! No tree! Nothing but money in their pockets so they can blow it on a cruise."

B. "I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach."

C. Chapter title "My Old Man And The Lascivious Special Award That Heralded The Birth Of Pop Art"

D. "Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas… perhaps… means a little bit more."

E. "You may be an undigested bit of beef, a blot of mustard, a crumb of cheese, a fragment of underdone potato. There's more of gravy than of grave about you, whatever you are!"

F. "The Herdmans were absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world. They lied and stole and smoked cigars (even the girls) and talked dirty and hit little kids and cussed their teachers and took the name of the Lord in vain and set fire…"

G. "His eyes-how they twinkled! His dimples how merry! His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!"

H. "On Christmas Eve, many years ago, I lay quietly in my bed. I did not rustle the sheets. I was listening for a sound—a sound a friend had told me I'd never hear—the ringing bells of Santa's sleigh."

I. "…the Man, the Connection, Santa Claus himself"

J. "More rapid than eagles his coursers they came, and he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name!"

K. "God bless us every one!"

Christmas Quiz (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/12/christmas-quiz-copy.html

Give Mississippi for Christmas! (copy)

Have you thought of giving Mississippi books as holiday gifts? I was thumbing through the University of Mississippi Press (UPM) catalog and thought the holiday selections would make perfect gifts for my friends.

The first selection is Occasions: Selected Writings of Eudora Welty compiled by Pearl Amelia McHaney. Associate professor McHaney thought it would be nice to collect rare works by the author for her centennial birthday. Articles such as her earliest story, “Acrobats in the Park,” and humor pieces such as “Women!! Make Turban in Own Home!” fill pages with pieces only found within archives. This book promises any Welty fan a new perspective on her genius.

Second selection is Highway 51: Mississippi Hill Country by Gloria Norris. I talked about this excellent coffee-table book a couple of weeks ago, but as a reminder it does depict locals having fun or working along our most beloved thoroughfare.

Captivating Combinations: Color and Style in the Garden by Norman Winter is third in the suggestions. As always, Mr. Winter provides stunning color photographs and audacious mixtures that make any gardener salivate. Only he could mix chili peppers with a bed of red petunias. In a section titled, “Butterfly and Hummingbird,” Winter captures a scene from Pine Mountain, Ga. where orange cosmos and lantana blend beautifully to attract butterflies. If anyone is interested – hubby pay attention – I would love this for Christmas!

One of the last selections is a remake of the 1972 Mississippi Cookbook. Here is your chance to give a batter and splatter free copy to your favorite cook. The history of the book states, “Over 7,000 recipes were collected from all areas of the state. From this total, the home economists of the state Cooperative Extension Service had the painfully difficult task of screening the amount down to the 1,200 best recipes.” Martha Hall Foose updates the forward in this must have tome.

My pick, which is also published by UPM but not included in the holiday list, is Lost Plantations of the South by Marc R. Matrana. Eight chapters are dedicated to the glorious past of architecture in this one of a kind book. Mississippi’s lost treasures are found in chapter six such as familiar Longwood outside of Natchez and Windsor south of Port Gibson. Readers will also encounter Goat Castle, Brierfield, Hurricane, Prairie Mont, Malmaison, and Homewood plantations. Imagine my excitement opening this present – um, hubby – Christmas morning.

Give Mississippi for Christmas! (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/12/give-mississippi-for-christmas-copy.html

On the John University: U.S. History (copy)

Back in 2005, I wrote a class paper based on encouraging boys to read. A great source for the paper suggested making a nook in the bathroom and filling it with magazines, newspapers, comics, and books.

Why limit this to boys? I understand there are large numbers of people who like to linger in the bathroom and this suggestion makes perfectly good sense. It is the perfect place to get comfortable and meditate right?!?

I admit. I do not have such a nook in my home. I have books in every room but the bathroom. I even have books in my closets! I imagine the reason is because I came from a home where books were not that important and hanging out in the bathroom was forbidden.

By coincidence a friend told me about this great series he is using in his bathroom to refresh his long forgotten American history. The series is titled "On the John University: The Path to Higher Education Starts with a Good Sit Down." He was currently reading "U.S. History" for which I grabbed a copy at the bookstore too.

Now, I must be honest. I have not read the whole book. It is 512 pages full of everything imaginable on the topic. Plus – like I mentioned earlier – I will not be reading this in the bathroom instead preferring to read it prior to sleeping for which the book is well suited.

Information is concise and fits in one or two pages. For example, on page 37 one can read about "The Real Pirates of the Caribbean" in four short paragraphs. It begins by telling readers there is no such person as Captain Jack Sparrow. Christopher Columbus has many pages dedicated to him, but the selections are in one or two page increments. I enjoyed the page titled, "The United States of Columbus?" since Amerigo Vespucci knew he was in a brand new land unlike Christopher's India.

The series includes other titles such as "Sports History," "Great Thinkers" and "World History." Imagine the wealth of information one will attain after reading one of these fine books, that is, if her mind can retain it all. I might gain some nuggets for the next Trivial Pursuits game.

Become flushed, "with the knowledge of America's movers and shakers." Stock your bathroom today.

On the John University: U.S. History (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/12/on-john-university-us-history-copy.html

In the Deep Heart’s Core (copy)

I was pulled aside before the discussion meeting on the book "In the Deep Heart's Core" by Michael Johnston. The book club member wanted to point out the specifics of the title.

First she read aloud the passage from W.B. Yeats:

"I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart's core."

She then followed with the quote from a Delta Native:

"If Mississippi is the heart of the Deep South,
Then the Mississippi Delta is the deep heart's core."

I agreed whole-heartedly! I would go even farther to say the South is really the heart of America! Unfortunately, there is a problem with the ole ticker. In the "deep heart's core" of Greenville lives some ugly plaque that has slowed the flow of blood to the extremities of the body of our state and our nation. People in the area have eaten a little too much racism, dined on ignorance and snacked on poverty to the point of stroke.

This is according to the book if one follows the logic. I blame no one, certainly, not the fine folks of Greenville. White flight has occurred in cities and towns all over the south and north. I am left wondering how to fix the problem. How do we place our heart on a diet and exercise routine and bring it back to a healthy pink condition?

It takes a man like author Michael Johnston to encourage a healthy lifestyle. Johnston was a fresh graduate of Yale Law School when he signed up for the Teach America program. He left his native Colorado for the south and in 1997 began teaching at Greenville High School.

In the first chapter he recalls talking to a couple of ladies while looking for a house. They asked him what he would be teaching and he told them English. This was met with a burst of laughter. One lady said, "You know that's a foreign language down here!"

He persisted and entered into the hearts of many of his students through poetry and chess. I encourage you to read this book and hand it to others. It is time we get the blood pumping.

In the Deep Heart’s Core (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/11/in-deep-hearts-core-copy.html

The Blind Side (copy)

I began reading Push by Sapphire last night for today's book talk. As I read it, I kept thinking yuck. By page 27, 12-year-old main character, Claireece Precious Jones, has been abused physically and sexually by both her parents. My stomach is still turning. The film based on the book, Precious, is currently in theatres.

I decided to switch gears and talk about another book currently in theatres titled The Blind Side by Michael Lewis. My book talk, written in January 2007, opens with the horrendous tackle Joe Theismann endured by Lawrence Taylor—an attack which ended his football career. Viewers, 17.6 million, saw the heartbreak as New York Giants and Washington Redskins battle it out during a Monday night football game. It was, "the start of the second quarter, first and 10 at midfield," when Theismann caught the "flea flicker" and set up for a pass.

Out of nowhere Taylor raised his arm to sack attack Theismann. The force wasn't in Taylor's arm but rather in his descending right thigh. As he came down for the tackle his thigh was pushed down into Thiesmann's right leg, fracturing tibia and fibula.

Lawrence Taylor was known as a fanatical quarterback destroyer. Apparently, Taylor suffered from claustrophobia and preferred to maneuver away from the pack. Meaning, he would not lower himself into a set position when in the line of scrimmage. Once the ball was snapped, he preferred to move around the mass and be the guy closer to the top of any tackle.

His natural fear became a new successful maneuver for "sacking the quarterback." Time-after-time he went around the line and circled back to find the quarterback unprotected. He, in effect, hit the man from his blind side and created a new football strategy.

This new strategy requires a heavy, nimble man or waltzing elephant to be effective. It is a unique human that possesses this mixture, weight and grace—so unique, that the NFL is willing to pay big money for the specimen. The left tackle, Taylor's position, is the second highest paid player, other than the quarterback.

Imagine you are a football scout and you have just seen an incredible sight, a sophomore at Briarcrest Christian School, bulky yet nimble, making three pointers on a Memphis basketball court. This is how Michael Oher first appeared to scout Tom Lemming, believing he had just witnessed the next Orlando Pace.

The next year, Lemming "ranked him [Oher] as the #1 offensive line prospect" in the country. Follow Oher's evolution from gentle giant to mean machine in this very entertaining book.

I'm excited to hear all the Oscar talk for Sandra Bullock in The Blind Side and Mo'Nique as the mother of Precious!

The Blind Side (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/11/blind-side-copy.html

Diary of a Wimpy Kid (copy)

Yesterday, I ate lunch with a group of unfamiliar librarians. After the small talk died down we sat looking at each other and smiling. It was time for my favorite question. "What are y'all currently reading?" This is my chance to do a little reconnaissance work.

During my turn I announce, "I just finished 'Diary of a Wimpy Kid.'" It is written and illustrated by Jeff Kinney who uses a cartoon format to tell a story. This last sentence is added for your benefit. I am lucky if I remember the title correctly.

The librarian next to me spoke up and said, "I have to tell you a funny." She continued, "My daughter, Lauren, came up to me and asked if Jared was sick." He hadn't complained of any ailments to me. "No. Why?" With a deadpan expression she said, "Because, he is always reading."

Apparently, Jared is enamored with the Wimpy Kid series and eaten them all up at once. There are four published in this series that include the original, plus "Rodrick Rules," "The Last Straw" and "Dog Days." Jared also likes the Alex Rider series for those mothers out there who recognize a kindred spirit in their sons.

This is exciting! Boys reading! I later looked on the local public library's catalog and found most of the titles checked out. One could really be excited knowing that even more boys were reading, but there is no proof. These could be checked out by girls, too.

So, what's the hubbub, Bud? Main character, Greg Heffley, ask his mother for a "journal" not a girly "diary!" Well, she hears what she wants to hear and brings home a diary. So, if anyone asks, it is a journal. Greg believes keeping track of his life now will lessen headaches later when he is famous. See, he can make copies of his journal and pass to all the reporters; thus, keep those pesky childhood questions to a bare minimum.

Greg is a typical middle school student, he tries to be popular and avoid the Cheese Touch at all costs. Abe Hall got the Cheese Touch last year and no one would come near him. He moved to California over the summer and Greg hopes he took it with him. One is afflicted with CT after they come in contact with a moldy slice rotting on the school's outdoor basketball court.

In an interview with author Kinney he said, "My goal was to write a book that made people laugh." He can sleep well at night knowing millions of kids are laughing.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/11/diary-of-wimpy-kid-copy.html

Highway 51 (copy)

Again, I am reminded of the diverse talent Mississippi has to offer after flipping through the photographs of Gloria Norris' new book "Highway 51: Mississippi Hill Country." The coffee-table-size book is a collection of her camera work that is testament to all the singers and writers who made their homes along the mainline between Jackson and Memphis. She spreads a wide net at times. The book includes towns such as Oxford, Teoc, Holcomb, Independence, and Coffeeville but all would use highway 51 as the thoroughfare.

First talent is Gloria Norris herself. This is her first book of photographs but readers may know her other works such as the novel "Looking for Bobby" or the short story collection "Three Stories." Born in 1937 just off 51 in Holcomb, she decided to photograph the pavements' people and places when she noticed gated communities and homogenous fast foods beginning to populate the route.

Many pages are devoted to the talented Elvis. The book includes his home, Graceland, Sun Studio where he recorded and his blue Caddy. I imagine many girls swooned when seeing him while riding top-down. Across from the caddy is a picture of the blue doors of the Lorraine Motel. It makes brilliant two-page spread, but Lorraine is off highway 61. Here is another example of the wide net as she includes the Peabody, too.

The third group includes writer talent such as William Faulkner and Eudora Welty. The introduction written by Rick Bass who began his career writing while working as a petroleum geologist in Jackson remembers the road well. A picture of Faulkner's woods behind Rowan Oak sits opposite the backdoor from inside facing those woods. The green hues soothe in both with contrasting black tree trunks juxtaposed to the single black umbrella hanging on the coat rack.

Norris includes living musical talents such as Art Browning, Karen D'Ambrino, Lester Senter Wilson, and the Smith Brothers. We catch a reflective R.L. Burnside with his red Cutlass mirrored in the window beside him. On a two page spread devoted to Mississippi John Hurt, viewers will marvel at the speckled nature of two totally different settings. One being his headstone with coins scattered at the base and the other a knotty cypress doorframe with a guitar headstock leaning on the wood.

Local talent is also displayed in the book. Sledge Taylor tends to his cattle in Como and rocking chair maker, Greg Hawkins, proudly holds his saw. My favorite is Coretta Allen sitting in Austin's Barbershop getting her hair done. This is a must see and read book!

Highway 51 (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/11/again-i-am-reminded-of-diverse-talent.html

National Bookstore Day (copy)

Time for celebration! That’s right! November seventh is National Bookstore Day! Yippee!

I will be celebrating in my usual fashion. I’ll be chasing down the staff and asking for the latest spectacular reads. I’ll be skipping through the sports section, pouting past the self-help, mulling in the literature, and flipping through the pages of various magazines. Best of all, I will leave the store with five new books to read. Hubby limits me to five.

It took a bookstore not a library to foster my love of reading. Do not get me wrong. I love my childhood experiences in the public library. I even had favorite librarians, but when I reached a certain age – let’s say the age of annoyance – I was kicked-out by those same librarians on a regular basis. I promise you; sometimes, they just stopped me at the door!

There was a time I was to cool to be seen with a book, too. This would be my high school and college years. Textbooks were cool. They represented studying and school “research” but a novel smacked of nerdism. Anyone who reads these book talks and corrects my many English mistakes now knows why.

It was a messy bookstore in downtown Nashville that created the monster you now read. In an old wooden five-n-dime converted into floor to ceiling books, I dove into the Tennessee history section. My new passion became reading and retelling ghost stories at the many camps I attended. This decrepit store added to my imagination as images of ghosts haunted the very aisles I perused.

After moving to Memphis, I combined my frugal and annoying nature by reading the local history at Bookstar on the floor. It wasn’t long before I noticed others doing the same thing and I made friends. One of those friends turned me on to mysteries for which I am ever grateful.

I continue my love of bookstores by visiting and buying local history books when I travel. I have ghost stories from Maine, Oregon, Alaska, Ireland, Venice, etc. In Natchez, I met a nice store owner who placed One for the Money in my hands because I was in dire need of a mystery. This is how Janet Evanovich and the Stephanie Plum series came to north Mississippi libraries!

I will be forever indebted to an enthusiastic bookseller on Prince Edward Island. It was his high praise of South American literature that turned me on to Gabriel García Márquez. Love in the Time of Cholera is one of my all-time favorite books.

Be sure to celebrate and annoy your closest bookstore employee this coming week!

National Bookstore Day (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/10/ntl-bookstore-day-copy.html

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (copy)

Is Jane Austen revolving in her wooden coffin or spinning in the family crypt? Perhaps she is waiting casually for the next rain so as to emerge from nearly 200 years dead as a zombie?!? This is exactly what is happening to others in a new book by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith titled Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.

With Austen’s work in the public domain, almost anything is possible, but I like Grahame-Smith’s ability to alter the story and make it ridiculously fun. I see this as a great opportunity to bring campy and classic together for an enthusiastic classroom experience.

Word-for-word text, chapters, and storyline order does not change unless to add zombies. For example, in the open sentence of Austen’s work it states, “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.” In Grahame-Smith’s version one reads, “It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains.”

The characters and ethics remain exactly as written in the classic with slight zombie precautions. For example, Mrs. Bennett is consumed with teaching her five daughters the matrimonial arts in both renditions. Readers will find Mr. Bennett less laissez faire towards his daughters and more guiding in their studies of the martial arts. Furthermore, the Bennett sisters all carry small daggers hidden beneath dresses, but refuse to be seen with muskets. The large gun provides onlookers a very unladylike silhouette.

It is a fact during Austen’s lifetime the word zombie did not exist. Grahame-Smith prefers to use words such as undead, unmentionables and plague stricken instead; although, the word zombie is peppered throughout. I imagine a classroom might enjoy doing the same vocabulary exercise.

I do realize I am treading on sacred ground by suggesting this book. By all means, if this sounds hideous, do not read further. I found the reading hilarious. I admit that I thought Elizabeth was destined to become one of the undead by the book’s cover art, but I will be bold and tell you, do not fear. It is her friend Charlotte who withers into plague-dom.

If you do like this format – be advised – the movie rights are sold and another book by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith is out titled Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/10/pride-and-prejudice-and-zombies-copy.html

Tweak (copy)

In this season of scary, my last two booktalks discussed a town lost to methamphetamines (meth) and the dangers lurking in our plant world. Combining their messages, I began to wonder if meth occurs naturally in the plant world and ran across a Wikipedia entry claiming it does.

“Methamphetamine has been reported to occur naturally in Acacia berlandieri and possibly Acacia rigidula, trees which grow in west Texas.”

Yes, I am skeptical. I find a normal path’s reversal odd since drugs derive from plants rather than researchers finding them in plants after they are synthesized. It could happen, I guess, but the path to drug use is happening and rather scary.

Two more books to scare you are Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey through His Son's Addiction by David Sheff and Tweak: Growing Up on Methamphetamines by Nic Sheff. The father and son actually wrote the separate memoirs at the same time. They also stopped writing about the same time when David suffered a brain hemorrhage and Nic relapsed into abuse.

The two recovered and finished their perspective manuscripts and decided to let each other read them before publication. David felt it was a fair arrangement since Nic’s abuse had hurt family and friends and he did not want Nic’s book to hurt anyone else. The experience brought them together and both books were published in February, 2008.

In Beautiful Boy we see every parent’s nightmare happening to David as he watches his bright, talented son descend into drugs. David prescribes to the tough love method and just before Nic hits bottom during the writing relapse, David is ready to say, “No, I will not give you money and contact your sponsor.”

By reading both books, readers will get a full understanding of secrets. For example, David claims his son was 17 when he started experimenting with drugs, but in Tweak we find Nic is 11 when he starts. They both claim it is the meth that brought Nic to his lowest, but I found Nic to be more enamored with heroin. It is odd to read how Nic associates the heroin “nod” to being cool and the meth “tweak” to being messed up. I am left wondering if heroin lurks in his future.

Whatever one may think of meth and books about the subject, these two are very useful sources. Whether one finds themselves on the path of patience with a user or the path of abuse, these two books are rough but arrive at hope.

Tweak (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/10/tweak-copy.html

Wicked Plants (copy)

It was a beautiful July day when we hired a guide to lead us up one of the mountains in Alaska’s Denali National Park. Isaac, the guide provided by our remote lodge, packed us lunches for a full day of hiking that included animal sightings and a nap in a wildflower covered meadow. Along the way, we snacked on the abundance of wild berries that Isaac promised were safe.

I must give Isaac’s credentials. All of 25, young Isaac was a botanist with one children’s book on spiders published and a dream to work on an Alaskan crab boat. Both of us trusted his judgment; even though, I was reading Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer in which the author claims Christopher MacCandless’ death on eating poisonous “Alaskan” berries.

Isaac taught us the difference between safe and dangerous berries on this hike. We now forage on berries while hiking as an energy boost. Um, this was before I read Amy Stewart’s Wicked Plants and all those nasty little berries lurking around to poison me.

The full title is Wicked Plants: The Weed that Killed Lincoln’s Mother & other Botanical Atrocities. The fun chapter titles include: “This Houseplant could be Your Last,” “Deadly Dinner,” “Stop and Smell the Ragweed,” “Weeds of Mass Destruction,” and “The Devil’s Bartender.”

In “Deadly Dinner” Stewart points out that everyday edibles can make you sick if they are not prepared correctly. Did you know that corn can kill if it makes up a major part of one’s diet? The disease is called pellagra with symptoms that “came to be known as the four D’s: dermatitis, dementia, diarrhea, and death.” Stewart continues, “the ghastly symptoms of pellagra could have inspired European myths of vampirism in Bram Stoker’s Dracula: pale skin that erupted in blisters when exposed to the sun, sleepless nights brought on by dementia, an inability to eat normal food because of digestive problems, and a morbid appearance just before death.”

Yum, pass the corn!

Are you having any chili cookouts this fall? Be sure to cook the kidney beans thoroughly. Undercooked they can cause severe nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Not a parting gift one likes to bestow on guests.

If Stewart’s name sounds familiar, I wrote about her last book Flower Confidential. She is a fascinating author who describes our plant world and the mayhem lurking in beautiful greenery.

Wicked Plants (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/10/wicked-plantes-copy_12.html

Methland (copy)

The people of Oelwein still talk about the day Roland Jarvis blew himself up; although, technically, he was involved in an implosion. No one was surprised, mind you. In a town known for its “century old” railroad roundhouse and abundance of “meth labs,” he cooked a product of fine quality that many of his fellow Iowans craved.

Jarvis, well known amongst the authorities in Oelwein, pronounced OL-wine, spent two separate stints incarcerated for the production and distribution of methamphetamine. In both instances, he immediately went back into business following his first day free. His crave was too much.

It started when he was 16 and needed to work double shifts to support his growing family. By taking a little meth, he could stay up for hours and bring home a nice paycheck. Unfortunately, his meat-packing company was bought-out and Jarvis suffered a huge pay cut. This forced him into working more double shifts and needing even more meth.

By the winter of 2001, Jarvis was in no shape to be cooking. He could see the disembodied heads in the trees over looking his house and knew they were spying on him. With nods to the black helicopter overhead, the heads signaled to the cops he was indeed cooking. He ran down to the basement and began to throw all of his ingredients into the overflow drain.

He started dumping these items first: anhydrous ammonia followed by Coleman lantern fluid, denatured alcohol, and kerosene which made an awful stink. His last effort consisted of two gallons of hydrochloric acid for which he sat back and enjoy a cigarette.

The following vacuum sucked out the windows before igniting the boxes in the corner of the room. The air, created by the new gaping holes in the windows, fueled the flames and Jarvis watched as the joists began to flicker bright blue. He looked down and noticed his white tube socks were no longer anchoring his feet and his Vikings tank top was on fire.

He rushed up the stairs and out onto the porch for safety, but then the meth-induced thoughts began to nag. He wanted to save his mother’s furniture and spent 45 minutes in and out of the house until he looked down at his skin and noticed white eggs. He began to knock the eggs off his arms, his legs and his torso, but in reality he was sloughing off his melted skin.

This true horror story is one of many in Nick Reding’s new book, Methland: The Death and Life of an American Small Town.

Methland (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/09/methland-copy.html

The Sanctuary of Outcasts (copy)

South of Baton Rouge sat an obscure little plantation called Indian Camp. Robert Camp ran a highly successful sugar plantation until the Civil War took all his fortunes and left the home and acreage back to the wild. The land was so isolated by the Mississippi River the only inhabitants maintained they had to fight for fishing rights with the mosquitoes who staked their claim in blood.

In 1894 the State of Louisiana took ownership of the property and designated it the Louisiana Leper Home. All Louisiana inhabitants that were diagnosed with the disease were sent to live the rest of their lives in the colony.

“The geography was perfect for outcasts. The plantation was virtually impossible to reach by land: a washed-out road with no outlet, leading to a tiny drop of land that looked like gravity had pulled it into the river’s path. It was known primarily to boat captains who navigated the sharp 180-degree turn in the Mississippi River just south of Baton Rouge.”

At first the residents had to fight with bats and snakes to live within the dilapidated house and slave quarters. They dealt daily with no running water and the very basic in sanitation as they waited for improvements from the state. A doctor from Tulane took notice and requested an order of nuns who arrived in 1896.

By 1914, the site was designated a national leprosarium and President Woodrow Wilson assigned $250,000 for the “care and treatment of people affected with leprosy.”

Today the facility is called Carville and it still houses those unfortunate enough to have contracted Hansen’s disease. On a positive note, the residents are dwindling in number since the disease is lessening and approximately 130 patients now walk the halls.

Because the facility had more beds than occupants, in 1990 the Bureau of Prisons decided to transfer federal inmates to the Federal Medical Center in Carville. On May 3, 1993, Neil White became the newest inmate.

Upon arrival, an inmate cornered him and told him he would be living with lepers now. Oh, and since he was a convict that makes him a lepercon!

Do pick up this fascinating book by Oxford resident Neil White titled In the Sanctuary of Outcasts.

The Sanctuary of Outcasts (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/09/sanctuary-of-outcasts-copy.html

Eat, Drink, and Be from Mississippi (copy)

Brother and sister growing up in Mississippi is only part of the story associated with Nanci Kincaid’s latest book titled Eat, Drink, and Be from Mississippi. The book explores how racism not only occurs in the South – like we cornered the market on the ugliness – but it happens just as easily in a state as liberal and progressive as California.

Truely and Courtney Noonan are products of a southern conservative home outside the city limits of Jackson in Hines County. They grow up in the nineties with little controversy. True is doing his part as a lineman on the high school football team to impress Truely, Sr. and make him proud. Courtney is attending Millsaps with a full scholarship, but things are about to change dramatically for both siblings.

It begins when Courtney asks her roommate to drive her home from college mid-semester. Courtney has the crazy idea to blow off the slow life of Jackson and move to the ever-sunny San Jose, California, to attend the university. True is concerned his sister is disrespecting their parents and making a mistake. This causes a slight ripple in the otherwise smooth relationship between brother and sister, but all is made well again by Truely, Sr. allowing Courtney to leave.

Soon Courtney settles into classes and meets Hastings Littleton, a successful realtor who has a passion for southern cooking. Before readers have a clue, 21-year-old Courtney is shacking up with 31-year-old Hastings. The moral decline California is known for has gotten a hold of Courtney and the parents hang their heads in shame.

After spending a Christmas at the Littleton household, Courtney having succumbed to parental pressure and married, True is now bitten by the westward bug and enrolls at San Jose State himself. As this unbelievable story unfolds, we see Truely marrying Jesse and becoming a programming millionaire joining the ranks of his real estate millionaire sister.

This book is so soap-opry; I still have suds behind my ears. The protagonist, Arnold, appears after page 140, and I am surprised by my patience in reading. It is the relationship between the street thug, Arnold, and the siblings that awakens the sleeping racism within this trifling trichotomy.

Nanci Kincaid has written a readable book; although, it is not my cup of tea. Admittedly, I found it hard to swallow.

Eat, Drink, and Be from Mississippi (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/09/eat-drink-and-be-from-mississippi-copy.html

The Air between Us (copy)

Like most readers, I have a stack of books ready for reading in my home. This allows me a chance to read something for which my mood dictates. I go for the book on top, but then shuffle if it does not grab my attention. Sometimes a book finds itself on the bottom and I end up taking it back to the library.

One such book, The Air between Us by Deborah Johnson, has been in the pile numerous times. Not only have I renewed then returned two separate copies – a new hardback and also the paperback – but I went out and purchased a copy for the pile. This was a book I wanted to read; furthermore, I needed to read.

Set in the fictional 1960’s town of Revere, Mississippi, Critter Tate is having trouble. He is having trouble steering his father’s pick-up truck and stepping on the pedals at the same time. So far he has managed to drive 30 miles into town without a wreck, but the town curbs are giving him a time. With a little extra gas he launches over the curb at Doctors Hospital and comes to an abrupt stop at the black only entrance.

All of 10-years-old, Critter thinks he has done right, but the trouble continues. His passenger, Billy Ray Puckett, lays strewn across the seat with blood oozing from his white self. Critter’s dad is gonna be mad when he sees all the blood. Then the attendants flat out refuse to allow Billy Ray in the black only entrance.

It didn’t look good for Billy Ray as Critter notices his blood turning dark. Critter has seen death enough times to recognize the signs. Back in the truck, he hauls it around to the other side of Doctors and sits paralyzed at the door. Seeing no one through the screen, Critter cringes as he knows he faces a sure whipping if he goes through the white only entrance.

Billy Ray lets out a moan that sets Critter through the door and to the first nurse he can find. None-too-happy the nurse scowls down at him as he burst out, “I told him he was doing it all wrong!” Billy Ray had fallen out of his rickety deer stand and gone and shot himself.

The Air between Us is well worth the read. Deborah Johnson, currently living in Columbus, displays a mastery of storytelling in her first novel. What I thought would be a depressing story blooms into a funny, quirky mystery that holds a reader’s attention for hours. The characters are so alive the story might be set in Anywhere, Mississippi.

The Air between Us (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/09/air-between-us-copy.html

Library Card Sign-Up (copy)

The beginning of the school year is one of my favorite times. Amongst all the new student confusion – where do I go for this, what do I need for that – appears the readers for the year. Without help from the staff, they search the online catalog and begin to read book spines to find a certain book. The reader then strolls confidently to the circulation desk with a couple of fictions in hand and a shy smile on her face.

I like imagining why the little smile accompanies the patron. I pretend I am them, seeing the library for the first time, and finding that great book to read. It is common for the latest in a series or current bestsellers to sit on our shelves waiting for readers while at the public library one has to wait in line for the same books. Naturally, all books are due at the end of the semester and sit ready to read by the beginning of the next.

I like to think the students have found favorite authors that afford the library some sort of cool points. Yes, it is my pipe dream to see them smiling because they are happy with our collection.

Unfortunately, there are only a handful of students who come to the library as recreational readers. More often I stand in front of a group of students during orientation who are just realizing our college has a library. I want desperately to place a book in the hands of these students that they will enjoy. How do you make the average student fall in love with books?

This is the question facing more and more librarians in the state of Mississippi. In an article in The Commercial Appeal by Dorothy Johnson, executive director of Shelby County Books from Birth, titled “Reading is powerful fuel for child's growth” she cites facts that make me excited. One such fact I now use during orientations. “Children exposed to books and reading during preschool years enters kindergarten with a listening vocabulary of 20,000 words, versus 3,000 words for those who don't have this exposure.”

Imagine the change our great state of Mississippi would undergo if we placed books in the hands of our kids before they ever hit kindergarten. Imagine my joy if I got 20 more readers at the beginning of a semester then 20 more the following semester.

Okay citizens of Mississippi. Gather your young ones in the car and head for the nearest public library. Go, get out there and celebrate Library Card Sign-Up Month in September. We need more readers!

Library Card Sign-Up (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/09/library-card-sign-up-copy.html

Tattoo Machine (copy)

Not just for drunken sailors anymore, tattoos are appearing on more skin then birthmarks. What is the fascination with decorating ones’ skin? If you ran away from the doctor ready to inoculate you as a child, why sit still for multiple pricks as an adult? I get the argument that it makes one unique, but if everyone is doing it who is unique?

I picked up Jeff Johnson’s new book Tattoo Machine looking for the answer. What I got was a whole lot of fun akin to sitting around a campfire listening to horror stories.

Johnson owns a century run tattoo shop in Portland, Oregon called the Sea Tramp Tattoo Company. In his many years of customer service he has seen a variety of clientele. No two people are alike but as the sticking time approaches a couple of categories begin to emerge.

The shop has its own vocabulary for these stereotypes. The person who comes armed with pain pills is a bunny. One who loses his lunch is a chudder and an appointment that greedily downs fast food before the session is a taco valve. Customers are encouraged to eat before the needling, but isn’t the taco valve looking to chudder?!?

Among the many stories Johnson relates, one made me chuckle in agreement. In his location he has the opportunity to work on many a homesick GI. State flags are popular amongst this group as a quick display of pride. One such GI asked for the Texas state flag. Johnson explained that he did not own a book of flags and the young man should visit the library for an example. The GI shook his head and said he knew the flag by heart and began to draw it on a napkin. The following week the GI stomped into the store and yelled, “I’m Texan not Portuguese!”

In Johnson’s 18 years of artistry, he has gathered some strong opinions on fellow artist. He looks down on those who call their machine a gun. He dislikes sloppy and lazy workers who draw on their customers with a pen or toothpick dipped in ink. It is accepted if one is emulating smoke or wind; otherwise, these are “Night Hogs” in his opinion and not true artist. “Direct-to-skin drawing, at its worst, is a pressure sales tactic.”

As for the psychology of decorating ones skin, the book gives no answer, but it is packed with pure unadulterated fun. I must warn you. The author is very much in the style of celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain. He throws out the off-color jokes and slings the slang like no one’s business.

Tattoo Machine (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/08/tattoo-machine-copy.html

Your Own Sylvia (copy)

I love this book! Last night I picked up Your Own, Sylvia by Stephanie Hemphill and read through it like a runaway train. Why? What propelled me? Is it that good?

Yes! It is the biography of Sylvia Plath written in verse chronologically from birth to tragic suicide. Marketed for teenagers, it enjoys a plethora of awards including the 2008 American Library Association Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults and 2008 Michael L. Printz Honor Book.

What a great way to introduce Sylvia Plath to a whole new reading audience. In my education she was sorely missed. I lacked exposure to her poems or books during high school and college although my friends were reading The Bell Jar as a word-of-mouth choice. I guess the educators thought it best not to study a woman who wrote with suicidal tendencies, but from Your Own, Sylvia readers will realize there is more to Plath’s writing.

The poems are written as if the person in Sylvia’s life at the time is speaking. For example, the poem titled “First Publication” is written as if the editor of the Boston Herald is speaking to the reader about Sylvia’s first published poem at the age of eight. Footnotes are included for each poem that explains the history behind the event or person featured. At the bottom of “First Publication” the footnote reads, “‘Poem,’ a sweet rhyming verse about crickets and fireflies, appeared in the Sunday Boston Herald on August 11, 1941, on the ‘Good Sport Page’ of the children’s section.”

I like the fact that this book leads readers to other books. It is natural to have the desire to read The Bell Jar after one finds out the real people who populate the fictional pseudo autobiography. For example, Janet Wagner who vocalizes the poem “Stigmata” appears in The Bell Jar as the “sweet, farm-fresh Betsy from Kansas.” In real life, the two were friends while guest editors for Mademoiselle magazine.

Need more convincing? Here are the first lines of “Owning Sylvia Plath” as vocalized through a reader of her poems.

Who are you, Sylvia Plath?
A cold comet locked in place by gravity?
A glint in the cracked ceiling above my bed?

Something shimmers out of your chasm.
Your language feels like words
trapped under my tongue.

Your Own Sylvia (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/08/your-own-sylvia-copy.html

Magazines Anyone? (copy)

I picked up an old habit over the summer. I am now running two miles without stopping. Along with my new obsession comes a healthy curiosity. Do I run to the library and check out books on running to fulfill my need to know more? Well no, I take the easy approach. I subscribed to Runner’s World magazine.

Without prompting from me, two of my carpool buddies (new to the running thing) are also subscribing to the magazine. They look forward to their first month’s issue having read articles from hand-me-down copies. This example is proof others want to learn everything they can about a hobby. It is a shared human experience.

Do you have a son or daughter with a hobby such as gymnastics, football, basketball, knitting, drawing or sewing? Do they also balk at reading? Here is your chance to shine.

Subscribe to a magazine that follows a favorite hobby such as Sports Illustrated or VIBE. When the issue arrives place it in the teenager’s room and then casually walk away. Say nothing about reading it or how much it cost or “I was thinking…” merely walk away.

Reading magazines counts as reading. Who cares if the quality is questionable? It is the fact kids are reading and exposing themselves to different vocabularies and sentence structures without the pressure of test taking afterwards that has huge appeal. One can learn from fun, senseless reading, too.

I see you shaking your head at me. Your child’s hobbies are video games or talking/texting on their cell phone while in the home. Well, gamers will be thrilled with GamePro magazine. This monthly rag rates the latest games from every system and every genre. Packed with secret codes to advance players and thought provoking articles like “Versus Mode” where they pit game hero against game hero such as Inspector Tequila against Max Payne, will enthrall young readers.

Cell phone chatterers can find amusement in entertainment magazines. We at the library like to thumb through the pages of PEOPLE magazine. We look at the pictures and read the captions, but rarely do we actually read an article. Again, it may not be quality reading but it is active reading not before seen from that texting teenager. Sorry, I was unable to find a magazine for texting.

Consider magazines for those in your home who do not read. They could be the stepping stones to a reading future.

Magazines Anyone? (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2009/08/magazines-anyone-copy.html