My Friend Amy

CFBA Book Spotlight: My Stubborn Heart by Becky Wade

mypalamy@gmail.com — Wed, 16 May 2012 19:38:49 PDT

About the Book:This summer author Becky Wade makes her CBA debut with a fun -- and funny -- contemporary romance. Amidst the light-hearted banter and laugh-out-loud moments is a compelling spiritual journey of one woman's choice to listen to God and wait on him. Filled with humor and authentic romance, My Stubborn Heart is shaping up to be the hit of the summer.

Kate Donovan is burned out on work, worn down by her dating relationships, and in need of an adventure. When Kate's grandmother asks Kate to accompany her to Redbud, Pennsylvania, to restore the grand old house she grew up in, Kate jumps at the chance.

Yet, she discovers a different kind of project upon meeting the man hired to renovate the house. ;Matt Jarreau is attractive and clearly wounded -- hiding from people, from God, and from his past. Kate can't help but set her stubborn heart on bringing him out of the dark and back into the light... whether he likes it or not.

Class of 2k12 Interview with J. Anderson Coats, Author of The Wicked and the Just

mypalamy@gmail.com — Tue, 15 May 2012 10:15:08 PDT

Throughout the year I'll be bringing you some interviews with the authors over at the Class of 2K12! I hope you will enjoy getting to know these authors and thoughts on their books better. Today I'm bringing you an interview with J. Anderson Coats. Her book, The Wicked and the Just, is out now!

Do you share any similarities with your characters?

Of course! I don’t think writers can keep themselves completely separate from their characters, no matter how hard they try. Cecily has my bullheaded conviction of the way things ought to be, and Gwenhwyfar has my simmering rage at the many unfairnesses the world dumps on our doorsteps.

That said, I’m not nearly as bold as either of my protagonists. I don’t have Cecily’s overwhelming hubris (although it was fun to write)and I don’t have Gwenhwyfar’s singleminded ferocity. I can only dream of having Gruffydd’s pragmatism, and I’m quite a bit brighter than Emmaline de Coucy. But even my secondary characters share parts of me, because human beings are complicated creatures and we go through phases and have experiences that shape us. It’s those feelings we draw on when we create characters, not necessarily the traits themselves.

Why do you write for young people?

Young people are smart. They’re exacting and merciless, and they know what sucks and what doesn’t. I admire that. It’s a raw honestly a lot of adults don’t have the stomach for.

But kids and teens also get fed a lot of bullcrap. Some of it they know is bullcrap, and some of it they have to learn is bullcrap. One
of the ways they unlearn bullcrap is through books. I had the good fortune of reading a cubic ton of pages as a young person, and I learned a lot about life that way.

I learned that the world was bigger than my hometown.

I learned that kids could solve problems without adults.

I learned that kids could be powerful.

Now I have a chance to contribute to that body of literature, and I hope I can live up to those who came before me.

If you had to describe your book in one word what would it be?

Complex.

THE WICKED AND THE JUST is set in the past, and people see the “historical fiction” label and get a picture in their mind of what it must be about. It’s one of the tricky things about genre – it can nudge people toward or away from a certain book based on a single phrase.

It’s my hope that people are willing to look beyond genre and read “an awesome story set the past” even they ordinarily don’t like “historical fiction.” I like this question because it lets me take THE WICKED AND THE JUST out of its little box and distill it down to its essence.

What was your reading life like as a child?

I can’t remember not knowing how to read. No one taught me; I just learned. My mother read to me every single night until I was twelve. I can remember going to the library once a week – every Saturday - and checking out stacks of books so tall I needed help getting them to the
car.

My goal at age ten or so was to read every book in the world. Even the crappy ones. I had a pretty good start on the books at the library down the street from my house. Then my mom took me to the library where she worked and I stood there speechless at the sight of shelves floor to ceiling spreading out of sight, up two floors and down another two.

My first thought was Aw hell, I’m never gonna read every book in the world.

My second was I’m sure gonna love trying.

What’s the last book you read?

Fiction: The Revenant by Sonia Gensler. Winnie was a complicated, believable heroine and the setting – the Cherokee Female Seminary –
was an intriguing and memorable backdrop. The ending was wonderfully satisfying. I’m looking forward to her next book!

Nonfiction: The Governance of Gwynedd by David Stephenson. Not that this is spoilery in any way for my next book. But I would read the phone book if David Stephenson’s name was on the cover. If I ever meet him, I will squeal like a fangirl.

Reread: De Nugis Curialium by Walter Map.

As you may be able to tell, yes, I am a massive geek.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure food?

Bacon.

There are very few things bacon cannot enhance. Bacon is good in a salad. It’s good on a sandwich. It can even coexist with a maple bar.

I would not put bacon in my coffee, though. I don’t think some sort of distilled spirit involving bacon would be good. So bacon is not the alpha and omega.

But it’s awfully darn close.

What are you working on next?

I’m working on several projects right now. One is a companion novel to The Wicked and the Just which follows Maredydd ap Madog, whose father is the ringleader of the rebellion of 1294, as he negotiates the future his father wants for him and the future he wants for himself. Another project is a standalone novel set in twelfth-century Wales which follows Angharad, a girl who wants nothing more than to get married and have her own hall and children. Trouble is, she’s been widowed twice before age seventeen. Now everyone thinks she’s cursed – especially Angharad herself.

You can learn more about J. Anderson Coats at her website. The Wicked and the Just is available now!

About The Wicked and the Just: 1293. North Wales. Ten years into English rule.
Cecily would give anything to leave Caernarvon and go home. Gwenhwyfar would give anything to see all the English leave.
Neither one is going to get her wish.

Behind the city walls, English burgesses govern with impunity. Outside the walls, the Welsh are confined by custom and bear the burden of taxation, and the burgesses plan to keep it that way.

Cecily can’t be bothered with boring things like the steep new tax or the military draft that requires Welshmen to serve in the king’s army overseas. She has her hands full trying to fit in with the town’s privileged elite, and they don’t want company.
Gwenhwyfar can’t avoid these things. She counts herself lucky to get through one more day, and service in Cecily’s house is just salt in the wound.
But the Welsh are not as conquered as they seem, and the suffering in the countryside is rapidly turning to discontent. The murmurs of revolt may be Gwenhwyfar’s only hope for survival – and the last thing Cecily ever hears

Weekend Random: More Thoughts on The Selection, TVD, TV, and Film

mypalamy@gmail.com — Sat, 12 May 2012 18:19:06 PDT

As it turns out, I have more thoughts on The Selection that were brought on by Emily's very innocent comment, "But, anyway, I thought Maxon was boring, Aspen was a whiner." I completely misread that as, "Aspen was a winner" and it made me think about the roles both boys play in America's life and how class influences that. (if you read my response to Emily's comment it's kind of embarrassing how I misread that but whatever)

First of all, I should disclaim that this is not something I think/know a lot about or critique a lot in stories or anything. My interest this year, though, in the idea of how class influences character motivation and story has grown because I read The Talented Mr. Ripley as inspiration for a story line on a TV show, rewatched Vicky's story on The Vampire Diaries and read the book Irises by Francisco X. Stork. All of these things in fairly quick succession made me think about this in a way perhaps I hadn't really before...more sympathetically. And so somehow Emily's comment made me rethink my initial reactions to Maxon and Aspen and their treatment of America. What I'm about to say is fairly spoilery so skip if you like!

Aspen is in a caste lower than America's which creates the conflict in their relationship. America is pretty sure that she wants to marry Aspen, but marrying him means she has to move down in caste, something her family wouldn't appreciate at all. When America is given the chance to earn extra money, she splurges on a huge meal for Aspen and he reacts badly. He doesn't like her providing for him, and feels embarrassed by it and breaks up with her. This immediately put me off Aspen, since America was obviously acting in love and also because the idea of the girl not being able to be the provider is off putting. I mean, to be honest, I can cut Aspen a little slack for feeling that way since the society they are living in seems as if it would support the idea of the man being the main provider. But it was his treatment of America as a result of these feelings that was a turn off.

So I was all ready for her to fall for Maxon who obviously fancied her straight away and always wants to listen to her and know what she thinks. And when she makes some good points about hunger in their country, he actually takes a personal political risk to address the issue. Additionally, he's willing to have her stay for as long as he can to give her reprieve from her home life even though it has to be somewhat painful for him...he wants to marry her.

So in short, to me, Maxon comes off far and away as the better choice (you know if she likes both guys, obviously she can't force herself to love anyone). But I was thinking about it and the thing is that Maxon has an advantage already in the situation, he's in a position of complete power. He's the prince for crying out loud! And I'm not sure that he should really get points for basically being a decent human being in the sense that just because he could expel her and doesn't that somehow makes him better? While emotionally he isn't the one in control, in all other regards he is, he could send her home if he wanted to or even force her to marry him if he wanted to. While Aspen has absolutely no control in his life, he's in a lower caste, would be asking America to make a huge sacrifice to marry him, etc. It doesn't change the way I feel about either character, but it did make me think about how this is presented in fiction...I was immediately turned off of Aspen for his reaction to America buying him food, but I can never know how Maxon would have reacted in the same situation. Maxon, the guy from the upper class, immediately becomes more attractive even though everything in his life gives him the advantage of being the better guy. I don't know if I'm making sense, but it was interesting for me to think about.

Can you think of any other examples where this happens?

The CW Will Die Soon

In other news, the CW didn't order The Selection TV show and I was actually really disappointed! I think part of reading less books is spending more time thinking about some of the ones you do read and the more I thought about this as a TV show the more I thought it could really work. And then Jace Lacob actually called it one of the 13 best drama pilot scripts and his description of the pilot made it sound like it would be a pretty great show. So it's disappointing. But it's also making me wonder what in the world the CW is doing. The last real hit they had was The Vampire Diaries and I don't understand why they aren't following the formula that made that work. And I don't mean love triangles, I mean capitalizing on something that is popular in culture and giving it a fresh spin. Part of why The Vampire Diaries worked was because it was a vampire show for teens and there was nothing else like it on air. And vampires were popular! Last year they had a zombie show in the works that they didn't pick up, but have you seen the ratings for The Walking Dead? And also zombies are/were pretty popular. Now they had a show that taps into the popularity of dystopian works without being The Hunger Games at all, and they pass on it. It wouldn't be so bad except that the shows they did order all sound terrible. They all sound like tired, recycled ideas that will fail. Well Arrow might do okay, but I don't care to watch it. I do understand that there are things I don't understand like contracts and money, professional back scratching etc that go on, it's just kind of a bummer for me because I like shows that aren't procedurals and they are so hard to find. It's sad to see The CW veer in that direction as well. BUT in happy making news they renewed Nikita!!!! It's on Netflix, please watch it and catch up, I need some friends to talk about it with!

A few more TVD thoughts

The post-finale interviews have been really off-putting to me. Mostly in regards to the Klaus in Tyler's body while being in love with Caroline stuff. The fact that Klaus was in Tyler's body in the final goodbye scene is kind of gross to me, since he was all kissing her and stuff, but mostly it's just sad that the scene wasn't "real." The only thing is that it makes sense why "Tyler" wanted her to leave and turned into a wolf to scare her away...it's because he wasn't going to be dying and needed her not to know that. I'm guessing Klaus chose to possess Tyler because Tyler is a hybrid like he was. But ugh if he sleeps with Caroline next season, I don't know. It's not so much the story itself as the fact that the people writing it think it's fun that gives me serious pause as to why I'm still watching.

But also I was reading part of an interview where Julie Plec was talking about what a great character Klaus is, and how lucky they were to have such a great character come into the show etc, etc. and this has to be a case where she's too close to the material or the actor or something because the show has really suffered creatively from the injection of Klaus and the twist to keep him alive is a huge burden on it as well. And the way she's talking about the originals being around next season is terrible! We don't need them! And the weird thing is I thought the story line had a lot of potential, but if you look at the season as a whole, it was mostly all about giving us the necessary history to establish the dramatics of the last few episodes. TERRIBLE. (I was thinking about how Klaus said Elena would be safest with Matt and not Stefan or Damon and it turned out that she died with Matt. It was all there in the season all along)

A few GG Thoughts

I wrote at length about the character of Serena and how I saw her arc earlier this year so it's been interesting to see how it has all come to fruition. I have to admit it's much sadder than I had hoped for. But even so I liked how in this past episode Serena was helpful to both Blair and Dan and their relationship together. It was actually a really high moment for her because she was important and helpful to her two closest friends. That made it all the more heartbreaking to see her past actions come back to hurt her at the end of the episode. And watching the preview...well while she was helpful to them in 5x23, I think she'll be trying to tear them apart in the finale. It's a sad story line, but still one I can understand. I'm curious to see how it wraps up. And yes I'm still watching despite how terrible it is, this show has some interesting stuff going on in it that I can't seem to let go of.

Film

A couple of weeks ago I watched Love is a Many Splendored Thing. It was one of those movies on Netflix, I just sort of put on and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Part of it is because I spent a weekend in Hong Kong and it's not something I think about a lot so it's fun to see a story set there. It really is an interesting place. And it was interesting that the film engaged ideas about race and interracial relationships and affairs and all of that stuff. It made me really want to read the book it's based on as I'm sure the book digs much deeper into these ideas. (it's a book based on fact) BUT!!! It is so weird to me that while the film is engaging these ideas in a way that seems progressive and positive and interesting in the narrative text, what's onscreen contradicts it all because the actress playing the heroine, who is supposed to be both Chinese and English, is played by a white actress with some make-up to give her an Asian look. Apparently, it would be too off putting to audiences to see the actor kiss an Asian girl. THIS IS SO BIZARRE TO ME. How can you tell a story like this without really telling it?

I also saw The Avengers on my birthday. I liked it well enough for a superhero action flick, but to be honest, that's all it was. It has some good humor and fun moments.

This is all a good excuse for me to remind you that Film Club is discussing Whip It this month. Please join in!! Our discussion will be on the 31st.

Reader Survey

Thanks to everyone who filled out my reader survey! Just in case you missed it, here's the link. I'd still love your feedback. It has already inspired me in the posts I've written since I put it up. :)

Happy Mother's Day!

CFBA Book Spotlight and Brief Thoughts: Submerged by Dani Pettrey

mypalamy@gmail.com — Fri, 11 May 2012 22:36:50 PDT

About the Book: A sabotaged plane. Two dead deep-water divers.

Yancey, Alaska was a quiet town . . . until the truth of what was hidden in the depths off the coast began to appear.

Bailey Craig vowed never to set foot in Yancey again. She has a past, and a reputation--and Yancey's a small town. She's returned to bury a loved one killed in the plane crash and is determined not to stay even an hour more than necessary. But then dark evidence emerges and Bailey's own expertise becomes invaluable for the case.

Cole McKenna can handle the deep-sea dives and helping the police recover evidence. He can even handle the fact that a murderer
has settled in his town and doesn't appear to be moving on. But dealing with the reality of Bailey's reappearance is a tougher challenge.

She broke his heart, but she is not the same girl who left Yancey. He let her down, but he's not the same guy she left behind. Can they move beyond the hurts of their pasts and find a future together?

Brief Thoughts: I'm about a third of a way through this book, and it's a quick easy read. I requested it because I kind of like stories about divers, at least I have in the past. I think this is a pretty strong unique premise for Christian romantic suspense and the writing is strong. It's definitely Christian fiction, the hero and heroine have already exchanged their stories of conversion. But it's got some unique stuff going on with the premise and setting, so definitely worth a read if you enjoy Christian fiction romantic suspense!

Disclaimer: the publisher sent me a copy of this book

The Vampire Diaries 3x22 The Departed

mypalamy@gmail.com — Thu, 10 May 2012 22:24:04 PDT

Sigh.

I kind of hated it you guys. Even though we've been predicting Elena's turn around these parts for quite some time, I still didn't like it happening. And there's kind of a lot to unpack on the free will/choice front.

I thought the season was building to both Elena and Bonnie making choices (and no I don't mean about the brothers) and Bonnie definitely did, while Elena's will probably happen in the premiere of next season ~~which I won't be watching~~ But...I don't know it's kind of sad, I feel like these could have been better stories. And at the same time, there's some stuff I did like about it, I don't know.

Bonnie sacrificing Tyler for her mother would have had a lot more emotional resonance if Bonnie and her mother had had...some kind of relationship. And also if Bonnie had seemed like it bothered her that she was just casually using Tyler's body (killing him? I'm not sure) in order to do what she wanted. Like...basically I feel like not enough time was spent on Bonnie's characterization and actions in this episode, in order to preserve the plot twist of rage.

I know like...no one cares about Tyler but me, but can I just say how mad I am at this turn of events? The whole season was about Tyler being under Klaus's control, and not by choice, and then he went and broke free and now Klaus takes over his body....and...I don't know I guess there's some underlying interesting ideas about how one person's free will affects another's but it's not like that is intentional or will ever be fleshed out in interesting ways on the show. I'm just so sad for Tyler. But...I'm hopeful he's not actually dead. Even so, it's a really horrific thing to think about, having the person who controlled your mind, take over your body, and if Caroline doesn't know...well you know where this is going.

Also, this finale felt like one huge farewell to Stefan/Elena. Even though Elena technically chose Stefan, that Damon/Elena flashback and the way Elena described her feelings for Damon + what happens when you become a vampire, all lead me to believe that Elena and Damon are on for real next season. Elena becoming a vampire is like a reset on all of these relationships. Plus, thematically I think that Stefan has represented Elena's more human side, and Damon represents the more supernatural/darker side so it just makes heaps of sense for this to happen. Also, once Elena's life is not constantly in peril* Damon won't always feel like he has to interfere with her choices etc. Also maybe with Tyler out of the picture and Elena dealing with vampireness and Damon, it opens the door for all you who want to see Stefan/Caroline happen! :)

Everyone was manipulating everyone in this episode, though. Even Matt the human drugged Elena! The doctor gave Elena vampire blood! I did like the flashbacks, they were a nice touch. And Alaric is dead, the only one I believe is actually dead in all of this.

Basically the more I think about this finale, the more I dislike it, not so much as an episode itself, but because of the story lines it sets up, though...come to think of it, I don't really like what happened in the episode either. I would have liked to see things resolve differently I guess. Am I alone in feeling this way? I'm not kidding when I say I'm not even sure I'm interested in watching next season. (though, lol, I said this about Gossip Girl last season and now I'm heading into another dreadful finale, smh.)

TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS PLEASE

*once the council knew about the vampires, I KNEW Elena was definitely turning because she has to be relevant to whatever the big threat is.

Thoughts on Feminism is for Everybody by bell hooks

mypalamy@gmail.com — Thu, 10 May 2012 00:00:13 PDT

Okay so, this was a read for A Year of Feminist Classics. In February. I finished it in March. It's May now, and I'm just now writing about it. I have probably forgotten 75% of my gut reactions, thoughts, and feelings to this book, but alas, I will attempt this anyway.

This was the first time I participated in AYOFC. I chose this one, because I've heard a lot about bell hooks and also because my own knowledge and background in feminism is limited. This is where I talk about my background! I grew up in an evangelical Christian home where I guess a complementarian view was held. Men and women are equal, just created for different roles is what it boils down to, basically. This is a theological issue primarily because those roles are mostly in the church and family and are based on some passages in the Bible. For the most part, this didn't really affect me except that I knew I couldn't be a pastor and if I ever got married my husband would be the spiritual authority in our house. I never really questioned it. Feminism was kind of a dirty word, and feminists were painted as being rather radical. And then I went to a small conservative Christian college in the south which had the same ideas. And I loved my college, I loved my experience there, I wouldn't trade it for anything, but I think it created a developmental delay for me because I was cocooned with people who all thought the same way for the most part. (even so big huge fundamental questions were raised for me during this time that I just sort of ignored) I remember sitting in a lecture in one of my theology classes and my professor, someone I loved and respected so much more than I can probably explain, was talking about the verse in I Timothy 2:12, where Paul says he does not permit a woman to teach over a man. And he was like, this is really the verse that it comes down, the reason women can't teach theology in church, etc. And went on to say some of the usual stuff about this, if you believe one thing in the Bible is true you have to believe it's all true, etc. (it is so weird for me to think about this now. I haven't thought about this in awhile, but I really really looked up to this professor so it kind of makes sense, especially if you know me!, why it took so long for me to embrace a different way of thinking.) So anyway, that's kind of where I started out. It was teaching in Japan + the internet that eventually challenged everything I thought about everything!

I'm saying all of this because sometimes I feel a little guilty for being behind or failing to understand all of the ideas around feminism. And to be honest, if you just sort of stumble into it like I did in an internet space it can be really intimidating. And this book made me feel a little bit better about that actually, because apparently there actually used to be educational groups or something for the purpose of actually teaching women about feminism. (this reminds me of church so much you have no idea!) I wish those still existed, because not only do I like the idea, but they sound like they'd be great for building really great friendships.

The definition of feminism that bell hooks uses is, "A movement to end sexist oppression" This is a nice pared down definition for me, those of you who have spent more time thinking about this may have issues with it. The book is basically a history of the feminist movement which I found really fascinating. It was both a history and a pointing out of where things went wrong. When AYOFC discussed this book, they discussed whether or not it's a book for a beginner or someone you want to convert. While it may not be the right book to start out with, I think that it's okay because it really gives a good overview of the things feminism has achieved, where it fell apart, and why it's important. But I do agree with the idea that a book that discusses what feminism actually is might be more important to start with.

It was beneficial for me, though, to learn about how women achieving more equality in the workplace derailed the overall objectives of feminism. This was completely educational for me. Also educational was the discussion on intersectionality and how this all worked together--once women of a certain class achieved a measure of equality in the workplace, they abandoned the sisterhood. Also the stuff about how American/Western women try to control the discussion on feminism and act like we got it all together was humbling and rang really true. And all the discussion of how single mothers have been treated, how women have felt in marriages, the role lesbians have played in feminism, all of this was just super interesting.

Of course hooks makes it clear that women can be just as sexist as men, which I find to be true. Ever since I've become more aware, I'm often shocked and saddened by how women talk about other women and even men.

But the section that resonated with me perhaps the most was the one on spirituality. This is my biggest problem. I have described my upbringing above, but maybe what I didn't explain well enough is that I am still a person of faith. I loved many things about my churches growing up. I can't imagine not having had the experiences I had, the tight knit groups of people that became like a second family, the very many painful and difficult trials we endured together, sometimes caused each other. I miss that so much now, as an adult. I've periodically found churches that came close, but I'm at the point now where I can't get past the outer wrapping of a church to get there. I feel like in attending a church and entering into the fellowship, you engage a kind of contract that you agree and believe the same things, and I feel like at this point I think too many different things. My grandma visited recently and I attended some traditional services with her. And part of it was so lovely, like achingly lovely, but then the sermon assumed so many things. I wanted to pose so many questions and punch so many holes in the message. I can't deal with sermons that function as pep talks. Anyway! I say all of this to say that the question of feminism remains. The kind of church I love and am comfortable with is usually also quite sexist. And I just don't think I can bear that anymore. I read some blog posts on some Christian blogs at the beginning of the year--women who were single at 30 or so and in so much pain. Why hadn't God sent them a husband? And I thought, the problem here is the church culture. The message women are sent, over and over, is that their highest calling is to be a wife and mother. It is romanticized and idealized and families are the most sought after members of any congregation. Single women (and men) are often overlooked and exist on the fringes. Instead of being supported and celebrated and encouraged. And while there may be some singles ministries, what happens in singles ministry cannot and will not override what the overall church culture/message is. I attended a Christmas Eve service a few years ago and the message focused entirely on young parents. And I thought...WHAT? This is Christmas Eve!! The day of the year when we're reminded that we're not alone, that God loves us and remembers us, and this message excludes so many people! And that's the problem, even if there's a great ministry for singles, the church is still saying in a thousand ways, sure you can be single, but it's like settling for a second best kind of life. There's no message that it's okay not to get married, that you can find fulfillment in other ways, and that's not a burden, that can be GREAT. And so the result is that so many people are hurting, deeply hurting because they think God is withholding from them his true blessings. I don't know it just makes me really sad. (and I've wanted to blog about this forever, so ha, here was my excuse)

Hooks says we need role models, and I do agree with this. I think there are some women who have really blazed a trail, but there is still so much work to be done. And I think there are some great bloggers I love to read now, like Rachel Held Evans, etc. But it must be so lonely, and there's so much hate. I recently saw a Christian fiction author (male) write about something..oh I can't even remember what now. But he has a pretty consistent misogynist tone on his blog and the comments were terrible. I was so angry. I wrote so many comments in my head I never left. But when some women said they were feminists and he tried to tell them they basically couldn't be Christians and feminists, I almost lost it. But there were so many people (and women :() agreeing with him, I just cannot imagine what it's like for someone like Rachel. And Julie Clawson has written about this as well. It just makes me so sad. But this is the problem I have, and part of why finding a church has been difficult. I know eventually I'm going to just have to go outside my comfort zone.

Anyway, I feel like I got off track, I just wanted to say that's an area I long to see real concrete change, an area where I feel extremely lonely. Even when I was reading this book I was emailing a friend about it and saying how/why I was reading it and she proceeded to tell me how submission to one's husband isn't anti-feminist. I totally respect her right to believe that for her family, but if I don't I feel like that shouldn't be a threat to anyone. Part of the problem, of course, is what I mentioned above about biblical interpretation.

Overall, I really liked this book. It was educational for me. I wish I had written about it earlier, because I think I had so many more thoughts about it while reading, but this is long as it is. Recommended for anyone interested in a brief history of feminism and how it relates to certain subject matters.

Rating: 4.5/5
Publisher: South End Press
Source: Bought it

To Dream the Impossible Dream + Reader Survey

mypalamy@gmail.com — Tue, 08 May 2012 01:03:12 PDT

Hi everyone!

Today is my birthday so I thought I would make a list of outlandish birthday wishes...things I know I can't have/no one could afford to give me because it's fun to dream!

Wish #1--Andrew Peterson's new album, Light for the Lost Boy. It's not due to come out until August 21st, but I want it now.

Wish #2--A trip to NYC. It would probably be good if it was around the time of Book Expo America so I could see some of y'all! I don't know if I would attend the convention though, the real reason I want to go is to see the new Evita on Broadway. I loooove Evita, can't help it and even though the reviews haven't been great, this would be a dream trip! But I'd probably also want to tag along for Sleep No More, I know there's a big group going and it sounds like it would be fun. In short, I'd want all the socializing of BEA with the fun NYC sightseeing/cultural experiences I rarely get to do when I'm in New York. (I've been there many times, tbh, but either always on a budget or for some other reason like BEA)

Wish #3--A third season of Nikita. This seems kind of silly, but the show is hitting it out of the park on one of my favorite things in any story right now...the creation of close friendships/family bonds with the people we find along the way. Also, it has such great female characters who drive the bulk of the story lines. It's just so much fun. I like it.

Wish #4--A new book series to fall in love with. See...this one is impossible. Lately I've just been in such a reading drought. And it's absolutely not the books themselves, I know this! I just want some interesting books to read that make me think about things and want to talk about them with others. It's so weird to me in the book world that it can be hard to find that connection over specific books. Everyone is so busy consuming books we rarely spend much time talking about them together. Whenever I host a readalong it seems I pick the worst books as well!

Wish #5--Lower temperatures. It's only May for crying out loud, can we dial it back a bit?

So those are some of my impossible birthday wishes, but I have one that you can help me with! Lately I've been feeling kind of directionless in my blogging and so I have decided to do a reader survey! I write for myself (every TV and film post is evidence of that) but I also enjoy knowing what people want to read about. Would you be willing to fill out this survey for me? It's short and I'm hoping it will help me find some purpose. Thanks so much everyone! I love you!

New Year's Eve DVD Giveaway

mypalamy@gmail.com — Tue, 08 May 2012 15:47:56 PDT

Good news friends! I have one copy of the New Year's Eve DVD to give away to one lucky winner in the USA or Canada. To enter to win, just leave me a comment and tell me how you are doing on your New Year's resolutions...or if you didn't set any, what resolutions you'd set now! Make sure you leave a valid email address in the email address field.

This giveaway is open until May 12th at midnight PST. Winner will be notified by email.

Review: The Selection by Kiera Cass

mypalamy@gmail.com — Sun, 06 May 2012 00:00:06 PDT

This book came onto my radar ages ago because of the cover and of course, The Hunger Games comparisons. But then it got optioned for TV and I was like, lol yeah right. Not reading it. But the show has a really good chance of making it on the air and eventually my curiosity won out. By the way, I somehow missed the drama surrounding this author and a review so that did not impact my reading at all.

This series has potential but this book itself was kind of trying to read. The names are horrible. The main character is America Singer. And she's a singer. Anyway, it's set in a future world, the United States of America no longer exists and there's a "history lesson" info dump in the middle of the book that explains how everything came to be, but they live in castes and America is in caste 5 which is artists. This doesn't really feel like a dystopian in the sense that America actually loves her country and thinks it's benevolent. There are a lot of really strict laws though, such as no sex before marriage, curfews, etc. And marrying outside of your caste is frowned upon. But America is in love with a boy in caste 6 and hopes her family will let her marry him, even though it will mean a downgrade in caste for her.

The country always selects the prince's wife via a Bachelor style show called The Selection. It is supposedly a random lottery of 35 girls in all castes, but whether or not it's truly random gets called into question. America signs up to assure Aspen, the boy she loves, that she did so she won't regret it or something and also because her family really wants her to and give her incentive. Of course she gets picked and heads off to the castle. Due to a series of events she ends up becoming quite good friends with the prince and etc. etc.

One of the things that I kind of liked was that the girls struggled with how to feel towards each other...should they feel competitive? But they genuinely liked each other! etc., so it wasn't all about girls being catty to one another though there was some of that. The book is mostly a lot about this, and the clothes, and the various elements of the competition and how America feels about all of it and of course how she feels about Maxon, the prince.

But..I feel like there's this bigger story that's waiting to break out in the books (at least I hope so!) about the rebels that attack the castle and the country. In this, the first book, America loves her country even though she has some problems with it, like the fact that there are hungry people. She even expresses some thoughts early in the book that feel like the kind of patriotic lines most people think about their country (or at least my country). In other words, she hasn't really thought about it much, she accepts the propaganda so to say. But there are these rebels attacking the castle and in this first book, it's just like BAD REBELS but I think/hope that in future books, as America learns more about her country and how things work she may come to sympathize with them. She's already expressed a bit of a rebellious spirit so there's hope. Also, it could just be such a great story...learning that the country you love actually has a lot of problems and learning how to be part of the process to make that better...the potential conflict if she falls in love with Maxon but doesn't support the monarchy, etc. So I feel like these books could get really good, but I don't know if that's her ultimate goal. I guess I'll wait and see! This book itself was just mediocre to me, I didn't rush to pick it up and even though it's quite short it took me about a week to read. Oh and just in case it needs to be said...100% Team Maxon.

Rating: 3.75/5
Source of Book: bought it
Publisher: HarperTeen

Reading Addiction, TV, A Great Link

mypalamy@gmail.com — Fri, 04 May 2012 23:44:46 PDT

I was chatting with a friend today and she asked me if I ever thought reading could become an unhealthy addiction. It's an interesting question, and certainly one I've considered. I don't think reading itself has ever been an addiction for me. I love to read, but I have a certain level of tolerance for it. I couldn't read all the time, I enjoy doing many other things. At the same point in time, I also can't imagine a life without reading. It's something I've never been able to explain to people who have lived their lives without enjoying reading (and I've known many due to my work) but it's a way of life. A reader finds time to read. Even if it's very little during extraordinarily busy times.

Anyway, I suppose that reading could become an addiction. It can be a way to escape the realities of life and lose yourself in a story. But I don't think it's ever actually worked for me. I might think I'm reading to escape, but I have all too often been confronted with uncomfortable truths about my own life in stories that were seemingly innocuous. It's one of the best things about reading but also what makes it dangerous, you never know when your perspective will be altered or dramatically shift through a story, a line of dialogue, a surprising turn of phrase. I've read books and had the ideas stick in my mind long after I forget much else about the plot. And the thing is as long as you open yourself up to a certain extent, it's impossible to predict which books will teach you the most about yourself and this world. (fwiw, I've had this same thing happen with TV shows, too) It does make me curious, though, do you read to understand yourself and the world or just for escapism? Does that attitude you take towards reading affect its potential impact?

ETA: Obviously reading can serve different functions in your life and I didn't mean to suggest that if you read to escape that's somehow wrong or that you might sometimes read to escape and sometimes read to think about new things or whatever. All I meant to say is that for me it is not a guaranteed escape and that's part of why I like books, but also find reading somewhat dangerous. Also...I don't think reading to escape=addiction! Sorry for being confusing.

So while I don't think I've ever been addicted to reading, I've definitely been addicted to book acquisition and blogging (though obviously not lately).

TVD

It's really weird, but I have nothing much to say about the episode. I enjoyed it. It surprised me in some ways. I appreciate that I now understand how the season has come together. I feel like this season was so bad because it was basically one big information/history dump for these final episodes. I'm slightly hopeful they are setting up a more interesting story for next season. I still think Elena will become a vampire. I have no idea where the show goes from there, but they are setting it up differently (and perhaps in a better way) than I thought they would. I think Bonnie will probably go dark. (btw if Elena dies in that car accident with Matt--as it appears from the promo--that scene where she said good-bye to her normal life on the bridge takes on so much more significance) Mostly I'm ready for season 4.

Gossip Girl (lol)

I just have to bring up that Bart being alive, that moment when Chuck opens the door and Bart is like..."Oh my god." is television gold. And I don't mean that in a good way, I mean it in a, "this is possibly the worst thing I have ever seen on TV" way. The past three seasons Chuck has moaned about his dead daddy and done awful things to people in the name of that crushing Bass pain and burden and now suddenly Bart has been alive all along. Which, I guess, was the only way to resurrect the daddy issues since they were mostly put to rest last season. Seriously, though, this show has just grown so hilarious to me, I can't wait to see what completely absurd thing they will do next.

Link of Importance

Jessica of Read React Review's post on the plagiarism stuff awhile back is well worth reading. I appreciate everything she says about it, but in particular her third point on women and moral autonomy.

Have a great weekend everyone!

CFBA Book Spotlight: Traveler's Rest by Ann Tatlock

mypalamy@gmail.com — Thu, 03 May 2012 18:46:52 PDT

About the Book: A YOUNG WOMAN determined to honor her commitment...

AN INJURED SOLDIER convinced life is no longer worth living...

A RETIRED DOCTOR certain it's too late to be forgiven...

Jane Morrow has a dilemma. She's engaged to Seth Ballantine, a member of the National Guard's 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, and he's returned from Iraq severely wounded. Jane hasn't seen him for nearly a year, and with trepidation, she heads to the VA hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, where he is being treated.

Seth isn't happy to see her. He'd asked her not to come. He wants to end the relationship. But Jane loves him, and despite his injury, she's determined to convince him that they can have a life together. Her faith has never been strong, yet she hopes God will answer her prayers and tell her what to do.

Beautifully written, Travelers Rest takes readers on a journey through pain and tragedy to a place of hope and redemption.

Heather Swain: Crafty + Cheap + Eco-minded = Making Toys and Games

mypalamy@gmail.com — Tue, 01 May 2012 06:26:17 PDT

I come from a long line of crafty women, most notably my mother and grandmother, both of whom could find more fun things to do with an old sock than Mattel Brothers can do with molded plastics, so my brothers and I grew up making most of our fun rather than having it presented to us in boxes. I’m also, shall we say, um frugal, okay cheap (thus the name of my blog, One Cheap Mother) and I can’t stand to spend money on stuff that will capture kids’ attention for 30.5 seconds then get lost under the couch where it will form a colony with the dust bunnies. Nor am I going to spend oodles of cash on electronics before my kids hit double digits. Plus, I’m married to a great guy who thinks hard about how our life choices affect the environment. Add it all together and you have the perfect recipe for repurposing stuff around the house to make toys and games rather than buying them.

When working on my blog and my books MAKE THESE TOYS and PLAY THESE GAMES, I find inspiration all over the place. Sometimes I look at historical catalogs to see what kids played with before Toys R Us and Amazon came along. A lot of the toys and games from the past are still super fun and can be made easily using updated materials. For example, I came up with spool catapults, no-sew beanbags, felt board activities, and hula hoops games this way. I also look at what kids play with today and try to figure out how I can make my own versions of existing toys and games. I had a blast creating mini versions of arcade and carnival games like shoebox foos ball, button hockey, and even a cardboard box pinball machine for PLAY THESE GAMES. I also like appropriating new technology in interesting ways. My favorite is using digital photos for scavenger hunts or card games like Friends and Family Concentration and Go Fish.

Mostly, I’m always thinking about creating toys and games that will be fun and simple to make. I hate opening up a craft book with my kids and feeling like I need a slide ruler, a blow torch, and three weeks to complete a project then everybody ends up frustrated and begging to turn on the TV. Or making something lame that just ends up cluttering my count tops. (I mean, seriously, how many pine cone snowmen can you have?) I’m kind of like a chimp--if I can’t eat it or play with it, I lose interest.

I focus on using stuff we can easily find around the house or at the dollar store (lots of cardboard, straws, buttons, balloons, and tape) then finding interesting and easy ways of putting them together. Since so many of the disposable objects in our lives have become standardized, it’s fun to find ways they fit together. For example, I discovered that drinking straws are the same diameter as the circle a hole punch makes and those straws fit perfectly through the holes in empty spools—hello wheel and axle!

The best part about making toys and games at home is the confidence it’s given my kids. Now they see that they can entertain themselves and when one of their creations breaks, they can make it again. That doesn’t mean they never ask me to buy them stuff—they are 21st century children after all. But it does mean they’ll at least go for the craft supplies and try to make something on their own before they ask me for money, which would make my grandma and mom very proud.

Heather Swain is the author of Play These Game: 101 Delightful Diversions Using Everyday Items and Make These Toys: 101 Clever Creations Using Everyday Items and the creator of the blog One Cheap Mother which you can find at heatherswainbooks.com

FIRST: Garden of Madness by Tracy L. Higley

mypalamy@gmail.com — Tue, 01 May 2012 00:00:14 PDT

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

You never know when I might play a wild card on you!

Today's Wild Card author is:

Tracy L. Higley

and the book:

Garden of Madness

Thomas Nelson; 1 edition (May 1, 2012)

***Special thanks to Ruthie Dean of Thomas Nelson for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Tracy started her first novel at the age of eight and has been hooked on writing ever since. After earning a B.A. in English Literature at Rowan University, she spent ten years writing drama presentations for church ministry before beginning to write fiction. A lifelong interest in history and mythology has led Tracy to extensive research into ancient Greece, Egypt, Rome and Persia, and shaped her desire to shine the light of the gospel into the cultures of the past.

She has traveled through Greece, Turkey, Egypt, Israel, Jordan and Italy, researching her novels and falling into adventures.

Visit the author's website.

SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:

The Untold Story of King Nebuchadnezzar's Daughter.

For seven years the Babylonian princess Tiamat has waited for the mad king Nebuchadnezzar to return to his family and to his kingdom. Driven from his throne to live as a beast, he prowls his luxurious Hanging Gardens, secreted away from the world.

Since her treaty marriage at a young age, Tia has lived an opulent but oppressive life in the palace. But her husband has since died and she relishes her newfound independence. When a nobleman is found murdered in the palace, Tia must discover who is responsible for the macabre death, even if her own is freedom threatened.

As the queen plans to wed Tia to yet another prince, the powerful mage Shadir plots to expose the family's secret and set his own man on the throne. Tia enlists the help of a reluctant Jewish captive, her late husband's brother Pedaiah, who challenges her notions of the gods even as he opens her heart to both truth and love.

Product Details:

List Price: $9.99

Paperback: 400 pages

Publisher: Thomas Nelson; 1 edition (May 1, 2012)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 140168680X

ISBN-13: 978-1401686802

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

Prologue

Babylon, 570 BC

My name is Nebuchadnezzar. Let the nations hear it!

I am ruler of Babylon, greatest empire on earth. Here in its capital city, I am like a god.

Tonight, as the sun falls to its death in the western desert, I walk along the balconies I have built, overlooking the city I have built, and know there is none like me.

I inhale the twilight air and catch the scent of a dozen sacrifices. Across the city, the smoke and flames lift from Etemenanki, the House of the Platform of Heaven and Earth. The priests sacrifice tonight in honor of Tiamat, for tomorrow she will be wed. Though I have questioned the wisdom of a marriage with the captive Judaeans, tomorrow will not be a day for questions. It will be a day of celebration, such as befits a princess.

Tiamat comes to me now on the balcony, those dark eyes wide with entreaty. “Please, Father.”

I encircle her shoulders in a warm embrace and turn her to the city.

“There, Tia. There is our glorious Babylon. Do you not wish to serve her?”

She leans her head against my chest, her voice thick. “Yes, of course. But I do not wish to marry.”

I pat her shoulder, kiss the top of her head. My sweet Tia. Who would have foretold that she would become such a part me?

“Have no fear, dear one. Nothing shall change. Husband or not, I shall always love you. Always protect you.”

She clutches me, a desperate grip around my waist.

I release her arms and look into her eyes. “Go now. Your mother will be searching for you. Tomorrow will be a grand day, for you are the daughter of the greatest king Babylon has ever seen.”

I use my thumb to rub a tear from her eye, give her a gentle push, and she is gone with a last look of grief that breaks my heart.

The greatest king Babylon has ever seen. The words echo like raindrops plunking on stones. I try to ignore a tickling at the back of my thoughts. Something Belteshazzar told me, many months ago. A dream.

I shake my head, willing my mind to be free of the memory. My longtime Jewish advisor, part of my kingdom since we were both youths, often troubles me with his advice. I keep him close because he has become a friend. I keep him close because he is too often right.

But I do not want to think of Belteshazzar. Tonight is for me alone. For my pleasure, as I gaze across all that I have built, all that I have accomplished. This great Babylon, this royal residence with its Gardens to rival those created by the gods. Built by my mighty power. For the glory of my majesty. I grip the balcony wall, inhale the smoky sweetness again, and smile. It is good.

I hear a voice and think perhaps Belteshazzar has found me after all, for the words sound like something he would say, and yet the voice . . . The voice is of another.

“There is a decree gone out for you, Nebuchadnezzar. Your kingship has been stripped from you.”

I turn to the traitorous words, but no one is there. And yet the voice continues, rumbling in my own chest, echoing in my head.

“You will be driven from men to dwell with beasts. You will eat the herbs of oxen and seven times will pass over you, until you know that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men. To whom He wills power, He gives power.”

The tickling is there again, in my mind. I roll my shoulders to ease the discomfort, but it grows. It grows to a scratching, a clawing at the inside of my head, until I fear I shall bleed within.

The fear swells in me and I am frantic now. I rub my eyes, swat my ears, and still the scratching and scraping goes on, digging away at my memories, at my sense of self, of who I am and what I have done, and I stare at the sky above and the stones below and bend my waist and fall upon the ground where it is better, better to be on the ground, and I want only to find food, food, food. And a two-legged one comes and makes noises with her mouth and clutches at me but I understand none of it and even this knowledge that I do not understand is slipping, slipping from me as the sun slips into the desert.

And in the darkness, I am no more.

Chapter 1

Seven years later

The night her husband died, Tia ran with abandon.

The city wall, wide enough for chariots to race upon its baked bricks, absorbed the slap of her bare feet and cooled her skin. She flew past the Ishtar Gate as though chased by demons, knowing the night guard in his stone tower would be watching. Leering. Tia ignored his attention.

Tonight, this night, she wanted only to run.

A lone trickle of sweat chased down her backbone. The desert chill soaked into her bones and somewhere in the vast sands beyond the city walls, a jackal shrieked over its kill. Her exhalation clouded the air and the quiet huffs of her breath kept time with her feet.

Breathe, slap, slap, slap.

They would be waiting. Expecting her. A tremor disturbed her rhythm. Her tears for Shealtiel were long spent, stolen by the desert air before they fell.

Flames surged from the Tower and snagged her attention. Priests and their nightly sacrifices, promising to ensure the health of the city. For all of Babylon’s riches, the districts encircled by the double city walls smelled of poverty, disease, and hopelessness. But the palace was an oasis in a desert.

She would not run the entire three bêru around the city. Not tonight. Only to the Marduk Gate and back to the Southern Palace, where her mother would be glaring her displeasure at both her absence and her choice of pastime. Tia had spent long days at Shealtiel’s bedside, waiting for the end. Could her mother not wait an hour?

Too soon, the Marduk Gate loomed and Tia slowed. The guard leaned over the waist-high crenellation, thrust a torch above his head, and hailed the trespasser.

“Only Tiamat.” She panted and lifted a hand. “Running.”

He shrugged and shook his head, then turned back to his post, as though a princess running the city wall at night in the trousers of a Persian were a curiosity, nothing more. Perhaps he’d already seen her run. More likely, her reputation ran ahead of her. The night hid her flush of shame.

But she could delay no longer. The guilt had solidified, a stone in her belly she could not ignore.

She pivoted, sucked in a deep breath, and shot forward, legs and arms pounding for home.

Home. Do I still call it such? When all that was precious had been taken? Married at fourteen. A widow by twenty-one. And every year a lie.

“I shall always love you, always protect you.”

He had spoken the words on the night he had been lost to her. And where was love? Where was protection? Not with Shealtiel.

The night sky deepened above her head, and a crescent moon hung crooked against the blackness. Sataran and Aya rose in the east, overlapping in false union.

“The brightest light in your lifetime’s sky,” an elderly mage had said of the merged stars. The scholar’s lessons on the workings of the cosmos interested her, and she paid attention. As a princess already married for treaty, she was fortunate to retain tutors.

Ahead, the Ishtar Gate’s blue-glazed mosaics, splashed with yellow lions, surged against the purpling sky, and to its left, the false wooded mountain built atop the palace for her mother, Amytis, equaled its height. Tia chose the east wall of the gate for a focal point and ignored the Gardens. Tonight the palace had already seen death. She needn’t also dwell on madness.

Breathe, slap, slap, slap. Chest on fire, almost there.

She reached the palace’s northeast corner, where it nearly brushed the city wall, slowed to a stop, and bent at the waist. Hands braced against her knees, she sucked in cold air. Her heartbeat quieted.

When she turned back toward the palace, she saw what her mother had done.

A distance of one kanû separated the wide inner city wall from the lip of the palace roof, slightly lower. Tia kept a length of cedar wood there on the roof, a plank narrow enough to discourage most, and braced it across the chasm for her nightly runs. When she returned, she would pull it back to the roof, where anyone who might venture past the guards on the wall would not gain access. Only during her run did this plank bridge the gap, awaiting her return.

Amytis had removed it.

Something like heat lightning snapped across Tia’s vision and left a bitter, metallic taste in her mouth. Her mother thought to teach her a lesson. Punish her for her manifold breaches of etiquette by forcing her to take the long way down, humiliate herself to the sentinel guard.

She would not succeed.

With a practiced eye, Tia measured the distance from the ledge to the palace roof. She would have the advantage of going from a higher to a lower level. A controlled fall, really. Nothing more.

But she made the mistake of looking over, to the street level far below. Her senses spun and she gripped the wall.

She scrambled onto the ledge, wide enough to take the stance needed for a long jump, and bent into position, one leg extended behind. The palace rooftop garden held only a small temple in its center, lit with three torches. Nothing to break her fall, or her legs, when she hit. She counted, steadying mind and body.

The wind caught her hair, loosened during her run, and blew it across her eyes. She flicked her head to sweep it away, rocked twice on the balls of her feet, and leaped.

The night air whooshed against her ears, and her legs cycled through the void as though she ran on air itself. The flimsy trousers whipped against her skin, and for one exhilarating moment Tia flew like an egret wheeling above the city and knew sweet freedom.

This was how it should always be. My life. My choice. I alone control my destiny.

She hit the stone roof grinning like a trick monkey, and it took five running steps to capture her balance.

Glorious.

Across the rooftop, a whisper of white fluttered. A swish of silk and a pinched expression disappeared through the opening to the stairs. Amytis had been waiting to see her stranded on the city wall and Tia had soured her pleasure. The moment of victory faded, and Tia straightened her hair, smoothed her clothing.

“Your skill is improving.” The eerie voice drifted to Tia across the dark roof and she flinched. A chill rippled through her skin.

Shadir stood at the far end of the roof wall, where the platform ended and the palace wall rose higher to support the Gardens. His attention was pinned to the stars, and a scroll lay on the ledge before him, weighted with amulets.

“You startled me, Shadir. Lurking there in the shadows.”

The mage turned, slid his gaze the length of her in sharp appraisal. “It would seem I am not the only one who prefers the night.”

Long ago, Shadir had been one of her father’s chief advisors. Before—before the day of which they never spoke. Since that monstrous day, he held amorphous power over court and kingdom, power that few questioned and even fewer defied. His oiled hair hung in tight curls to his shoulders and the full beard and mustache concealed too much of his face, leaving hollow eyes that seemed to follow even when he did not turn his head.

Tia shifted on her feet and eyed the door. “It is cooler to run at night.”

The mage held himself unnaturally still. Did he even breathe?

As a child, Tia had believed Shadir could scan her thoughts like the night sky and read her secrets. Little relief had come with age. Another shudder ran its cold finger down her back.

Tia lowered her chin, all the obeisance she would give, and escaped the rooftop. Behind her, he spoke in a tone more hiss than speech. “The night holds many dangers.”

She shook off the unpleasant encounter. Better to ready herself for the unpleasantness she yet faced tonight.

Her husband’s family would have arrived by this time, but sweating like a soldier and dressed like a Persian, she was in no state to make an appearance in the death chamber. Instead, she went to her own rooms, where her two slave women, Omarsa and Gula, sat vigil as though they were the grieving widows. They both jumped when Tia entered and busied themselves with lighting more oil lamps and fetching bathwater.

In spite of her marriage to the eldest son of the captive Judaean king, Tia’s chambers were her own. She had gone to Shealtiel when it was required, and only then. The other nights she spent here among her own possessions—silk fabrics purchased from merchants who traveled east of Babylon, copper bowls hammered smooth by city jewelers, golden statues of the gods, rare carved woods from fertile lands in the west. A room of luxury. One that Shealtiel disdained and she adored. She was born a Babylonian princess. Let him have his austerity, his righteous self-denial. It had done him little good.

One of her women stripped her trousers, then unwound the damp sash that bound her lean upper body. Tia stood in the center of the bath chamber, its slight floor depression poked with drainage holes under her feet, and tried to be still as they doused her with tepid water and scrubbed with a scented paste of plant ash and animal fat until her skin stung.

When they had dressed her appropriately, her ladies escorted her through the palace corridors to the chamber where her husband of nearly seven years lay cold.

Seven years since she lost herself and her father on the same day. Neither of them had met death, but all the same, they were lost. Seven years of emptiness where shelter had been, of longing instead of love.

But much had ended today—Shealtiel’s long illness and Tia’s long imprisonment.

She paused outside the chamber door. Could she harden herself for the inevitable? The wails of women’s laments drifted under the door and wrapped around her heart, squeezing pity from her. A wave of sorrow, for the evil that took those who are loved, tightened her throat. But her grief was more for his family than herself. He had been harsh and unloving and narrow-minded, and now she was free. Tia would enter, give the family her respect, and escape to peace.

She nodded to one of her women, and Gula tapped the door twice and pushed it open.

Shealtiel’s body lay across a pallet, skin already graying. The chamber smelled of death and frankincense. Three women attended her husband—Shealtiel’s sister, his mother, and Tia’s own. His mother, Marta, sat in a chair close to the body. Her mourning clothes, donned over her large frame, were ashy and torn. She lifted her head briefly, saw that it was only Tia, and returned to her keening. Her shoulders rocked and her hands clutched at a knot of clothing, perhaps belonging to Shealtiel. His sister, Rachel, stood against the wall and gave her a shy smile, a smile that melded sorrow and admiration. She was younger than Tia by five years, still unmarried, a sweet girl.

“Good of you to join us, Tia.” Her mother’s eyes slitted and traveled the length of Tia’s robes. Tia expected some comment about her earlier dress, but Amytis held her tongue.

“I was . . . detained.” Their gazes clashed over Shealtiel’s body and Tia challenged her with a silent smile. The tension held for a moment, then Tia bent her head.

She was exquisite, Amytis. No amount of resentment on Tia’s part could blind her to this truth. Though Amytis had made it clear that Tia’s sisters held her affections, and though Tia had long ago given up calling her Mother in her heart, she could not deny that her charms still held sway in Babylon. From old men to children, Amytis was adored. Her lustrous hair fell to her waist, still black though she was nearly fifty, and her obsidian eyes over marble cheekbones were a favorite of the city’s best sculptors. Some said Tia favored her, but if she did, the likeness did nothing to stir a motherly affection.

Tia went to Shealtiel’s mother and whispered over her, “May the gods show kindness to you today, Marta. It is a difficult day for us all.” The woman’s grief broke Tia’s heart, and she placed a hand on Marta’s wide shoulder to share in it.

Marta sniffed and pulled away. “Do not call upon your false gods for me, girl.”

Amytis sucked in a breath, her lips taut.

Tia’s jaw tightened. “He was a good man, Marta. He will be missed.” Both of these statements Tia made without falsehood. Shealtiel was the most pious man she had ever known, fully committed to following the exacting requirements of his God.

Marta seemed to soften. She reached a plump hand to pat Tia’s own, still on her shoulder. “But how could the Holy One have taken him before he saw any children born?”

Tia stiffened and brought her hand to her side, forcing the fingers to relax. Marta rocked and moaned on, muttering about Tia’s inhospitable womb. Tia dared not point out that perhaps her son was to blame.

“But there is still a chance.” Marta looked to Amytis, then to Tia. “It is our way. When the husband dies without an heir, his brother—”

“No.”

The single word came from both her mother’s and her own lips as one. Marta blinked and looked between them.

“It is our way.” Marta glanced at Rachel against the wall, as though seeking an ally. “My second son Pedaiah is unmarried yet. Perhaps Tia could still bear a son for Shealtiel—”

“You have had your treaty marriage with Babylon.” Amytis drew herself up, accentuating her lean height. “There will not be another.”

Tia remained silent. Her mother and she, in agreement? Had Amytis watched her languish these seven years and regretted flinging her like day-old meat to the Judaean dogs? Did she also hope for a life with more purpose for Tia now that she had been released? Tia lifted a smile, ever hopeful that Amytis’s heart had somehow softened toward her youngest daughter.

“Jeconiah shall hear of your refusal!” Marta stood, her chin puckering.

Amytis huffed. “Take the news to your imprisoned husband, then. I shall not wait for his retribution.” She seemed to sense the unfairness of the moment and regret her calloused words. “Come, Tia. Let us leave these women to grieve.” She meant it kindly but it was yet another insult, the implication that Tia need not remain for any personal grief.

Tia followed Amytis from the chamber into the hall, her strong perfume trailing. Amytis spun on her, and her heavy red robe whirled and settled. Her nostrils flared and she spoke through clenched teeth.

“By all the gods, Tiamat! For how long will you make our family a mockery?”

The Sunday Salon: This is not a post about plagiarism

mypalamy@gmail.com — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 00:20:59 PDT

No really it's not. But if that's what you want to be reading about, I recommend this post and this post for good words and updates.

Books
I'm currently reading The Selection which is a totally absurd book. The world makes no sense to me, but it's easy reading, I'll give it that. And from what I can tell so far, it's going to make a perfect CW show--love triangle, girl defined by her romantic prospects and interests, and also treated as property! I have some major issues with it, but even so there are some kind of interesting ideas in it that I'm curious to see if she fleshes out. Also, I know I said i wouldn't read this book because of how early it was optioned for television and yet here I am reading it anyway. I always change my mind, I am unreliable, etc.

List Making
I was reading this blog post by Roger Ebert about voting for the ten greatest films of all time and how he was adding The Tree of Life to his list for Sight & Sound magazine. The post is really interesting to me as he explains his thought process and discusses just how difficult it is to make such lists. Yes it is. It is always hard to make "best-of" lists but at the same time they are really useful. Also, I haven't seen many great films apparently. So it's also always frustrating for me to realize just how much my education is lacking. But besides that the comments are absolutely fascinating and reveal just why it's so hard to make lists. Everyone feels it's necessary to express how they disagree with the person and what their list is and why the list maker made the wrong choice. And they can also get pretty nasty. Everyone thinks their own opinion is the only right one of course. It was kind of interesting because someone pointed out that The Tree of Life wasn't even his top 2011 choice. And I thought about how that has kind of happened to me in the past, I give the books I read ratings and I've chosen at the end of the year to honor a lower rated book as a best of the year over a five star book. It's entirely possible for your feelings to change about something over time.

If you liked Tree of Life though the comments are a chore. It's amazing to me in a way that people call this film inaccessible to the general viewer, because I am an average viewer. I'm not a film student, I'm not particularly knowledgeable about great film, but I loved that movie. I do understand it's not for everyone, but I think this kind of talk is unnecessarily limiting. Having said that, I can see that it's probably never going to be the kind of film that has mass appeal. But I think there's a difference between saying something has mass appeal and it has no appeal for the general viewer.

How do you approach making best of lists? What would be your top ten films of all time?

Excerpt: The Good Father by Diane Chamberlain

mypalamy@gmail.com — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 22:27:35 PDT

Diane Chamberlain writes books that are very compulsive reading and I'm looking forward to getting to her new one! Today I'm sharing with you a short excerpt from it, as well share some information with you about a live chat coming up.

About the Book: A beloved daughter. A devastating choice. And now there's no going back.
Four years ago, nineteen-year-old Travis Brown made a choice: to raise his newborn daughter on his own. While most of his friends were out partying and meeting girls, Travis was at home, changing diapers and worrying about keeping food on the table. But he's never regretted his decision. Bella is the light of his life. The reason behind every move he makes. And so far, she is fed. Cared for. Safe.

But when Travis loses his construction job and his home, the security he's worked so hard to create for Bella begins to crumble….

Then a miracle. A job in Raleigh has the power to turn their fortunes around. It has to. But when Travis arrives in Raleigh, there is no job, only an offer to participate in a onetime criminal act that promises quick money and no repercussions.

With nowhere else to turn, Travis must make another choice for his daughter's sake.

Even if it means he might lose her.

Excerpt:

"We'll come to you about eleven tomorrow night," he said. "You still hanging in the same place? The lot by the Wal-Mart?"
"Yeah."
"Just make sure you've got enough gas to get us to the Virginia border and back," he said, and then he was gone from the line.

Follow along with the blog tour!

The Vampire Diaries 3x20 Do Not Go Gentle (and other TV stuff--Gossip Girl and Nikita)

mypalamy@gmail.com — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 02:06:29 PDT

I think tonight's episode was named after the Dylan Thomas poem and was a very appropriate name. That poem is the stuff sadness is made of and so was this episode. I have thoughts! Lots of them. (I also had tears. Lots of them.)

I like this show, but this season has been frustrating. I think some of the weaknesses in the writing I was able to overlook before have just been so front and center and irritating. Tonight was a mixed bag. I thought Alaric's death was so well done, it was poignant and affecting. TVD can really hit the right emotional notes when it needs to. On the other hand, the Tyler/Caroline/Klaus stuff felt rushed and stupid and confusing when there was so much potential for good story there.

This season has really revolved around the triangle and I guess after Elena gives into her passionate feelings for Damon on their road trip, she needed to remember why she'd loved Stefan. I think this episode was about Elena remembering the Stefan she'd fallen in love with to begin with and also served as an obvious reminder to the audience of the same thing. It's really been the first time with Elena that Stefan was back to being like the Stefan he was before everything happened. There was so much....I don't know bittersweetness to it that really appealed to me. I don't really have a side in the triangle, I seem to enjoy whatever couple the show is choosing to give me at the moment. Strangely though, I think I've enjoyed Stefan/Elena on the whole more this season when in the past I enjoyed Damon/Elena more. I did think that moment where Elena said she had no one was overkill, since she has tons of people! But whatever.

Iris and I have talked about this season's heavy emphasis on choice/free will and consequences and this episode fed into that so much that I don't even know where to start. You have Elena choosing between Stefan and Damon (lol), Bonnie saying there is always a choice when Damon delivers an ~apology that should have got him slapped, and of course Alaric choosing not to turn....and then both Bonnie and Alaric seemingly being stripped of their choice. (I'm a little confused on what's going on with Bonnie.) Since this is always one of the more interesting ideas on supernatural shows it works for me...but...I feel like the evidence mounting for Elena turning is so huge. I just hope I'm looking at this with my tunnel vision and that I'm wrong, because I don't know where the show goes after that. But there's also a part of me that feels like it would be a little bit of a relief because things like Damon and Stefan so easily turning Bonnie's mom wouldn't happen if Elena was a vampire. And maybe that's been part of their goal with all of this.

Esther fashioning Alaric into a weapon of mass destruction was interesting because it gave the show a chance to revisit why maybe we should consider that killing all the vampires is a good idea. The show will never endorse it, Elena was talking about killing the good and the bad (but who is really good? maybe Caroline) BUT it should be a consideration. And I guess maybe we'll get that through Bonnie a little bit, but I wish with all my heart they'd let Elena be tempted by the idea. Whatever happens and whatever choice they make impacts far more than their world in Mystic Falls. But it's like they don't even give any consideration to that. I like that Alaric felt guilty over his complicity with the vampires living, because I think that's a normal response. And for him to have two personalities emerge in order to deal with the cognitive dissonance of his hatred for vampires and his new found friendship with them could have been one of the better storylines on the show, but they kind of gave him an out with Esther brainwashing him I guess. (in rewatching the earlier episodes of the season, I noticed that Alaric goes to the Council and insists on joining as Team Human after Damon kills him. So the show did a nice job in setting this up) Also, with Esther saying she was talking to him on the other side...is that the explanation for why the ring was taking longer to work?

Alaric choosing to die and telling Elena that caring for her and Jeremy was the closest he came to the life he'd always wanted was SAD. Because all the things that are not said is that he never got the life he wanted. It was being cut too short, etc. And then Bonnie coming at the end to ensure his change was the twist but kind of cheapened how beautifully done his death was!

Also I loved Jeremy, just being a normal human person.

Tyler making fun of Klaus's drawings was funny, but also irrationally irritating to me that the show has been just so lazyyyy with Caroline's story line. The Klaus/Caroline story could have been really interesting, but instead they took the easiest, cheesiest possible route and then make fun of themselves for it. But I don't know, maybe it will come back in the future. Caroline telling Tyler she loved him was sweet, ngl my shipper heart loved it, but to be honest, the Tyler/Caroline in the episode mostly fell flat for me, their storyline is all...I don't know how to say it, all structure no depth? Like Caroline telling Tyler she loved him was an anticipated moment, something you knew they were building to, and while sweet was just kind of...there. Also Tyler offering to die makes me think he will most likely NOT die. (fingers crossed!)

Unpopular opinion but I like Klaus best when he's yelling at his mother. He sounds like a spoiled brat and it gives me these spoiled prince vibes. Klaus should lose his temper more often and do big vicious things because he can. Then he would be scary.

Also loved Damon telling Klaus that Stefan already has a brother. :)

Alright, I know I've posed this theory of Elena turning at season's end before to disbelief here, but I do think it's a possibility. I'm going to give you reasoning now.

1) Last year, Elena would have turned to save her own life. She didn't want to become a vampire, so she didn't. This year, I think she would turn in order to HAVE a life (not be Klaus's blood bag) and to protect the people she loves.
2) The season has been SO HEAVY on the theme of choice. Three characters with significance have faced the choice to turn or not and each time it was given narrative weight.
3) Elena's humanity is a liability. This season it was shown with what Stefan and Damon did to save Bonnie's mother, but Caroline brought it up tonight to Matt as well. That means we are supposed to be thinking about this, imo.
4) There's been a lot of emphasis on Elena, the normal human girl vs. Elena the girls who loves vampires. Which Elena will she choose, etc.
5) There is also this promotional poster.
6) Alaric's death means her last parental figure has died....losing innocence, growing up, etc.

Of course the other option is that Elena will tell both Salvatore brothers to get out of dodge and she will try to reclaim her human life. Whatever happens, I feel like the show is building to a finale where Elena and Bonnie both will make huge choices and this past episode did nothing to erase that feeling.

Please tell me what you thought about the episode! What do you think the show is building towards? Did you enjoy Stefan/Elena? Did you cry?

Nikita and Gossip Girl and Men Telling Women Stuff About Themselves

I loved last week's Nikita a lot, because it delved into Nikita: the not so pretty side. And also her issues of self-perception. And Nikita is a really fascinating character to me in a lot of ways, I think there's really interesting stuff on the show about her and how she relates to the ideas of more traditional roles, i.e. being a mother. She's so maternal, and yet abhors the thought of motherhood, Michael's son calling her "the gun lady" was one of the more heartbreaking moments on the show for me. (and also one of the most brilliant because it said SO MUCH)

Anyway, there was a scene at the end of the episode where Nikita had just been tortured and was thinking about how she was an evil person who had enjoyed hurting someone once. And she says some stuff to Michael that wasn't very nice and when she goes to apologize to him for it, he says that he knows she didn't say those things because she doesn't love him, but because she doesn't love herself, but he was willing to teach her. I actually loved the moment and thought it was really sweet and earned.

Then I was watching Gossip Girl this week (yeah yeah I know) and the end scene with Dan and Blair felt really similar. On Gossip Girl it was a bit different, though, because I feel like they've been telling this story about Blair for seasons now, and that they were telling a very specific story with Dan and Blair (that has sort of proved true, it's both more explicit on the show than I thought it would be and not executed as well as I'd hoped). Anyway Blair sort of ruins a big moment for Dan out of her own insecurity about her place in life and later tells Dan she feels like she's lost herself and so he tells her how wonderful she is and how no one can take that away from her, etc. So this scene was also expected. But it made me think of the scene on Nikita and how both shows had these really affirming moments for their female leads come from the men in their lives and I saw some fan reaction that was less than thrilled by this. But..I don't know, it doesn't bother me? I think if their sense of self-worth was completely wrapped up in how their boyfriends saw them it would bother me more, but instead I feel like these are supposed to be healing moments. And that's kind of how life works, as the saying for addicts goes it's in relationships we are broken, so it's in relationships we must heal. Having someone love you and believe you is not really a bad thing. And being loved by someone you love is fantastic! Anyway, please tell me if I'm wrong or what you think about this, because I'm curious and wanting to discuss.

Random

I watched the episode where Bones gave birth to her baby and it was ridiculous, a truly terrible hour of television. But out of everything what annoyed me most was how Brennan called the place where Jesus was born a barn. She's always so accurate and specific that this grated beyond belief until I realized they were going to have her give birth in a barn so they needed it for set-up. Character assassination, tbh!

I have been working very intensely on a jigsaw puzzle and every time I close my eyes I see the pieces. I also dreamed about it two nights in a row. I've also thought about every life as a puzzle metaphor that must exist.

Review: They Shoot Horses, Don't They? by Horace McCoy

mypalamy@gmail.com — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 23:24:22 PDT

I heard about this book randomly while reading a review of The Hunger Games. Actually, I think the reviewer was referring to the film, but I decided to read the book first. They said The Hunger Games lifted the idea of a fake relationship for the cameras from this story, and that was the first time I had ever heard that, and since it's one of the interesting parts of THG for me, I decided to read the book!

It's really short and also it's about dance marathons. Which made me bump it up immediately because for some reason, the idea of dance marathons are really interesting to me, ever since that weird episode of Point Pleasant! (a show about the devil's daughter that only had 13 episodes. I watched it after the fact, but it taught me about dance marathons! See TV is not 100% evil, it can be educational)

Anyway, just in case you've never heard of them, dance marathons were these events to test human endurance where couples would dance for hours on end with very short breaks, sometimes as long as a month at a time. And they became staged events for entertainment where the people running the events charged admission, etc. So you can kind of see how this ties into The Hunger Games. Also sometimes there would be a big cash prize.

In the book, the main character, Robert, randomly meets this girl Gloria outside of a movie studio. Gloria wants to break into the movie business but she's not having much luck, and Robert wants to be a director, but his ideas are boring, so Gloria convinces him to join the dance marathon with her. And basically the book starts out where you know Robert shot Gloria and you're wondering why, and the answer is very unsatisfactory. But it is hailed as "the first existentialist novel to have appeared in America." so maybe that's why. Anyway....

A lot of the book is about the set-up of the dance marathon and how it's good for the couples to appeal for sponsors and how sometimes the sponsors are weird, and how some people would cheat, and how important it was to the people organizing the marathon to get famous people there and sell tickets and the different ways they would devise to make that happen and how horrible it was for everyone to be dancing nonstop like this. For the most part they stopped dancing and just had to keep moving. It seems terrible! I would not join one. Also, there was no fake love story!!! I think this must be something that's different about the movie and the book. But I was really disappointed! I read the book for the fake love story that never happened. They were approached to hold a fake wedding in order to get more interest in the marathon but they turned it down flat.

Anyway, Gloria is more and more miserable and wondering why she's alive, and wishing she could die, and some people DO die, and overall the book is not that happy. But it's not really depressing either? It's just kind of interesting.

Has anyone seen the movie? I'm thinking I'll have to watch it eventually to satisfy my curiosity, but I'm wondering if you have seen it how it diverges from the book...is there a fake love story? etc.

This was a really fast but interesting read. And I still want more stories about dance marathons, so looking for recs on that front as well!

Rating: 4/5
Source of Book: bought it
Publisher: Serpent's Tail Classics

The Cabin in the Woods and more

mypalamy@gmail.com — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 22:30:00 PDT

I feel like we've been hearing about The Cabin in the Woods forever. Or anyone that pays like a tiny bit of attention to what Joss Whedon has going on has been hearing about it forever. I knew I wanted to see it but last week's priority was Blue Like Jazz. I have a really busy week with family stuff coming up so I decided to squeeze it in this Friday.

I didn't know...a lot about it? I'd seen a few trailers that I found confusing, but I thought it was going to be your typical horror flick, only with a touch of goofy funny. I was therefore pleasantly surprised by how different and thought provoking I found it. I didn't think it was perfect, I'm not here to tell you that I think it's better than The Hunger Games (current pet peeve is how everything is better than The Hunger Games) but I do find myself wanting to talk about it.

If you haven't seen the movie and wish to remain unspoiled, than I'd suggest just moving on the rest of this post!

Click for spoilers, and I mean ALL THE SPOILERS. The Cabin in the Woods invites comparisons to The Hunger Games because it's set up in a simliar fashion. We first meet the "game makers" as they are setting things up to go and then the unknowing teens who are setting out for a weekend of fun at a cabin in the woods. Everything about their stories feel like your typical teen slasher horror flick, but then we cut away to the guys behind the curtain at strategic points in the story that make you wonder what exactly is going on...why are they doing this? Why did they put stuff in Jules' hair dye to alter her behavior, why are they placing bets, why does no one care,etc.

And what's interesting about how they set this up is that you have your typical roles, the innocent good girl, the more flirtatious girl (who they later call the whore), the jock, the fool, the nerdy guy. And even though they don't exactly fit those labels and expectations, the guys running the game are doing everything they can to make sure they do. Basically they are attempting to engineer your classic horror slash film, all for some greater good, it seems like a corporation, there was a worldwide attempt, but why?

And the thing about it is that even while the film seems to be critiquing this very voyeuristic culture, (it does kind of remind me of The Hunger Games, and to a lesser degree,Sucker Punch in that regard) it is also delivering what you think you came to see. You see every bloody death. You watch the blond girl character do all manner of sexy provocative things including take off her shirt. And you don't exactly feel any impact from it for the guys engineering everything, because they're funny to be honest. So I'm not sure how successful it is if it intends to say anything at all.

The other thing, though, that I liked was how these five kids were chosen for what is revealed to be a sacrifice and forced into these roles. And you can take away from that how society chooses our roles for us, and we sacrifice our true selves so often to play them. This is perhaps the most interesting idea in the film to me, and it's only hinted at.

I did like all the horror story creatures and I can see how this could be a franchise, because there are endless possibilities and combinations of stories to tell. And that blood bath at the end was something else.

Anyway, I did really like it and I recommend seeing it if you can and then coming back to talk to me about it, because I want to talk about it!

Nikita

I just watched this episode and it was everything I love about this show. I had only one small gripe, but mostly this episode was a perfect example of why this show is so freaking good. I mean it hits every important emotional note for me, it really delivers. I genuinely like all the characters, and I love that they allow Nikita to be complex and interesting.

Part of my love for this show is that I just generally like stories about people fighting the good fight against impossible odds, and how it makes them tired, and they doubt themselves, and they wonder if they're doing anything really good at all, and they form impossibly close bonds with the people they work with. I loved this about Buffy and Supernatural in its early days, and now Nikita. And here's the thing, I just really liked that Nikita was allowed to acknowledge that sometimes she likes hurting people, that sometimes she likes to do bad things and that Michael was there to say sure, maybe part of you is evil, but that's only part of who you are. This makes her so relateable and real, and it was a very earned moment for the show. And even though I don't really ship Michael/Nikita, I thought that scene at the end where he said she didn't love herself but it was okay, he would teach her, was so sweet. And true! Because why, after everything she'd been through, would she love herself? It was a really follow-up to her conversation with Amanda as well.

It just makes me so sad that this show will probably be cancelled and we'll be stuck with all the boring stuff on TV foreverrrr. Why don't other people like what I like? :(

Randoms!

Libby of Libby's Book Blog is hosting a really fun challenge where you read a book and then make a pilgrimage to the place in the book. It sounds like a fun summer project so I highly suggest checking it out! She has sign-ups open now.

I could actually use a few people to bounce BBAW ideas off of. I have a couple of people already listening, but if you still care about BBAW and don't mind a few emails from me to chat ideas, will you let me know? You can either email me at mypalamyATgmailDOTcom or leave me a comment with your email address. This isn't an official volunteer sign-up, just looking for friendly advisers!

That's it from me! I'm off to the Festival of Books today and looking forward to it. I need some renewal of my bookish love. Have a wonderful weekend everyone and I'll catch up with you soon!

The Vampire Diaries 3x19: Heart of Darkness (and other Thursday night TV)

mypalamy@gmail.com — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 23:39:22 PDT

This episode was kind of frustrating to me because I felt like all these people that had valid reasons to have certain feelings about things were completely disregarded by the important people in their lives. Also, I knew right away that Esther was possessing Rebekah, so there was no twist there to me. And why was everyone dumping on Rebekah? Ugh. Okay..

Elena and Damon were hot. I thought that scene was well done, I don't care. I mean they put a lot of effort into showing how hard Elena was fighting her attraction to him. The only thing that was just freaking me out the whole time was how Jeremy was around, obviously disapproving, and with COMPLETELY VALID REASONS. Damon killed him. And also it didn't help that we had Caroline, who is supposed to be one of Elena's best friends, telling Tyler in the same episode Elena is sort of giving into her feelings for Damon, that Damon doesn't care if Klaus sired Tyler--he'll kill him anyway. And even that scene where Elena tells Alaric she's going on the road trip and then starts talking about her Stefan/Damon issues was so laughable to me, because she just came across as a teenage girl that's completely self absorbed about her love life. Which, you know, is fine because she IS a teenage girl, it's just that the triangle feels so ridiculous in the emotional weight given to it. And Rose's little speech to Jeremy was so silly. I get what they think they are going for here...Damon=a risk. But like...I don't know that Jeremy deserves a speech like that. And besides sometimes there are things more important than Elena and her love life! And Stefan saying all the stuff he's done to get himself under control doesn't mean anything if Elena has feelings for someone else is annoying, because yes, Stefan there is a reason. You were doing it for yourself! Aargh.

I loved Tyler and Caroline's reunion, but I wasn't surprised Tyler was upset that Caroline hadn't told him about Klaus. He was just away torturing himself basically, to break a bond with Klaus that he didn't want in the first place, and meanwhile Klaus was crushing on Caroline, and she was liking it despite herself. I totally get why she didn't tell him, though. It's just saaaad. Also their relationship still feels so imbalanced to me, it's weird.

Klaus, yawn. Alaric, yawn. I did perk up a little bit with the talk about the darker parts of ourselves happening in the same episode Elena is throwing herself at Damon, since I think Damon is sort of representative of the darker side of Elena that's drawn to the supernatural (and Stefan's love is pure, so...) but I don't know, the triangle is just annoying me so much right now. Like I think there's a solution and it's this--they turn Elena and the three of them live happily ever after. Damon and Stefan will just have to share her, the end.

One thing I actually liked was the Rebekah stuff. How sad it was that Matt tried to tell her he wasn't playing her (even though he was) and how she softened up. And then telling her mom she hadn't really lived right before she possessed (killed?) her. It was sad.

Other TV
Scandal--Against all my better judgment I've been watching this show. Things I like about it=Kerry Washington/Olivia Pope. And that's it. Seriously, but I kind of really love her. But like whyyyy does that girl with the long red hair always have to talk about women being sluts and whores? Why does this story line with the president exist? (I hope I'm not supposed to ship them because I ABSOLUTELY DO NOT) There are like a million other things that bug me (an episode about rape including a sexual harassment joke, sigh) so I don't know. I'm so bored with the state of TV right now that I'll probably keep watching for Kerry but I'll also probably continue to be offended on a weekly basis. It's too bad because I kind of love the concept, and I love how competent and fierce Olivia is. Anyone else watching?

The Secret Circle--I watched tonight since the second Blackwell child was supposed to be revealed. It was kind of predictable, in that they made us think it would be Faye, but it was really Diana. I was hoping it would be Melissa so she could have an interesting story line and give me a reason to watch again. Oh well.

Let me know what you guys thought!

Small Updates

mypalamy@gmail.com — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 00:00:06 PDT

Now that Pottermore is open to the world, I signed up to get sorted and landed myself in Gryffindor. I now believe I am brave! Yay me! Just kidding, I don't know if that's really the right sorting, but I'll take it so I can hang out with the Weasleys. Come be my friend if you like! My name is KnightIce7721. Just let me know in a comment or tweet who you are so I can know who my friends are. I don't know how much I'll really do with it, I'm not the most patient person when it comes to leaning games, but we'll see.

When I first set up tumblr I thought it would be my anti-blog, a space where I didn't have to care about all the pesky stuff about blogging I hate, and I named it accordingly. But...no one knew who I was, so I finally caved and changed it to myfriendamy. I really can't separate out identities, I should just be thankful I'll never have a stalker. If any of you are still doing the tumblr thing, I'd love for you to follow me. I mostly just reblog pretty TV gifs of whatever show I'm into at the moment, but I also post some quotes from whatever book I'm reading and some book blogging related biz that I don't really feel like making a whole post about here. Just so you know what to expect. Oh and I turned on anon questions so if you've ever been to shy to ask me something you can do it freely on tumblr. :) Also let me know who you are on tumblr!

Beth Kephart announced yesterday that Handling the Truth, a book about writing memoir, will be published by Gotham Books. This is really exciting news for anyone that loves Beth's writing!

Hope all is well in your corners of the world!

Interview with Sarah Pekkanen

mypalamy@gmail.com — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 22:41:21 PDT

I'm happy to share an interview with the fabulous Sarah Pekkanen. I really enjoyed, These Girls and Sarah's insights into the process of writing the book!

These Girls is your third book. What are some of the differences in writing/working on a third novel and what have you learned along the way?

The biggest difference is These Girls is the first book I ever wrote under a deadline. I had a contract for it before I typed a single word, and I felt the tiniest bit anxious about that. Even though I don't get blocked when I write (years of training as a journalist keep me from ever feeling like I can't put words down on a page), I worried a bit about making my deadline. But I turned the novel in two days early! One of the things that helped is I studied plotting very, very carefully and thought through the entire novel before beginning to write. I detailed scenes on index card, using a different color card for every main character (Abby got blue, Renee was yellow, and Cate was rose) and laid all the cards out in order on my dining room table so I could see the structure of These Girls at a glance. I've never done that with a book before, and I think it really helped me see problems before they cropped up 100 pages into my manuscript.

These Girls looks at the tentative formation of female friendship. Why is this a subject you wanted to write about?

I wanted to write a novel celebrating female friendships for a number of reasons: First, it seemed like the natural progression in my books, since all of my novels focus on the important relationships in a woman's life. My first book, The Opposite of Me, is about sisterhood and my second, Skipping a Beat, is about marriage. These Girls, my third novel, is about female friendships, another vital link for women. And because friends are so important to me personally, I was eager to plunge into the creation of three very different women who become roommates in New York City and form an incredible friendship. My novel is told from alternating points of view of Cate, Renee, and Abby, and each of these women is carrying a painful secret. They end up finding the emotional lifelines they need in each other, just when they need it the most.

Which of the girls do you most relate to?

There are bits and pieces of me in all three girls. My characters are never based on anyone I know (even though people have suspected they're the inspiration for them!) but in terms of how I relate to my characters, I"d have to say that I'm probably the most like Cate. She and I both love writing and stories, and we're both pretty driven with regard to work. Sadly, though, I lack her love of exercise! My editor once asked me which character was my favorite, and I had to tell her it was whichever one I was writing at the time!

A lot of women express how difficult it is to form meaningful friendships as adults. Do you have any tips for making friends in your late twenties, early thirties?

It is hard! But my two closest friends now are women I didn't meet until my 30s. One is another writer I went to high school with (Laura Hillenbrand, whose fabulous book Unbroken is soaring atop the bestseller lists) and another if a fellow Mom from my kids' school. Laura and I had our old school connection to reunite us, but with my friend Rachel (who These Girls is dedicated to), I took a chance and invited her out for a drink. I was probably as nervous as a guy asking a girl out on a date for the first time! But she seemed warm and funny and nice, and we'd been sitting in the back of school buses together on field trips and had gotten to know each other a bit. We hit it off like crazy, and now I'm so glad I took that chance. So my advice: if there's a woman who seems friendly, invite her out for coffee or a drink!

These Girls is set in the magazine world. Have you worked there before? What is your favorite magazine?

I interned for The Washingtonian magazine years ago, but never worked for one full-time. But I did get to sneak into the headquarters of a glossy New York-based magazine for research for These Girls! A staff writer took me in one morning before the office opened, and I got an amazing tour and some even better inside information. You can bet some of that worked its way into my novel! My favorite magazine... hmm... for guilty pleasure, nothing beats People. I also like O Magazine because I feel really good when I read it!

Can you give us a tease about your next book?

Sure! I'm thrilled to say my editor called me just this morning to say she'd finished reading my manuscript and really liked the book! I felt so relieved....Here's the description I sent her along with the manuscript:

When a messenger knocks on their doors to deliver a once-in-a-lifetime invitation, a group of friends from college leap at the chance to spend a week at a private villa in Jamaica, celebrating the 35th birthday of one of their old classmates. Tina desperately wants to reclaim the part of herself that is drowning under the demands of mothering four young children. Allie, who has just received some shattering news about a genetic mutation that runs in her biological family, needs to escape from the knowledge that her life might take a sharp turn in a dark, new direction. Then there's Savannah, who discovered private messages on her husband's Blackberry that led to their separation - something she hasn't yet told her friends from college, even though she knows showing up for the vacation without her spouse will force a conversation she isn't ready to have. Rounding out the group is Pauline, who spares no expense to throw her husband an unforgettable birthday celebration, hoping it will gloss over the cracks that have begun to form in their new marriage. Even though the women's lives couldn't be more different, the week begins idyllically, filled with languorous days of soaking in the sun, gourmet dinners, and late nights of drinking and laughter. But as a hurricane approaches the island, turmoil builds within the house, too, forcing each of the women to re-evaluate everything they've known about each other - and themselves.

Review: These Girls by Sarah Pekkanen

mypalamy@gmail.com — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 22:10:18 PDT

Cate and Renee are roommates that work for the same magazine company but haven't really become close friends yet. They are both going through identity crises of sorts...Renee is trying to get a coveted position at the magazine and Cate, who has just been promoted, is unsure of the real reasons why she received the promotion. They both feel they need to prove themselves in different ways.

When Trey, a guy Renee used to like and Cate currently likes asks if his sister can stay with them for a bit, they agree. Abby has her own past that she's running and a truth she doesn't want to face.

I really enjoyed this book! I liked all three characters a lot and I could sympathize with their situations. I loved how Cate's uncertainty with her boss was handled, and I felt for her so much since the one time in her life she had loved someone she'd been taken of advantage of in a way. And I liked how Renee also struggled with her identity in light of learning she had a half sister she hadn't known about and her issues with her weight. And I even thought Abby's situation was very sympathetic, as she tried to create something for herself she'd never had.

The truth about the past impacting the present and each girl struggling to come to terms with their lives makes for pretty compelling reading. But of course the real icing on the cake is the way they slowly open up to each other and become friends. The female friendships are the center of the book hopefully and that makes it fabulous.

These Girls is a nice read about professional women at a crossroads in their lives.

Slight Disclaimer: Sarah Pekkanen is one of those people I have known for so long on the internet and met in real life. She's super fun and kind. None of these are reasons I would lie and say nice things about her book, but it's up to you to decide!

Rating: 4/5
Things You might Want to Know: I think there was some profanity and a little sex
Source of Book: ARC received from publisher
Publisher: Washington Square Press

Class of 2k12 Interview with Eve Marie Mont, Author of A Breath of Eyre

mypalamy@gmail.com — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 22:44:30 PDT

Throughout the year I'll be bringing you some interviews with the authors over at the Class of 2K12! I hope you will enjoy getting to know these authors and thoughts on their books better. Today I'm bringing you an interview with Eve Marie Mont. Her book, A Breath of Eyre, is out now!

If you had to describe your book in one word what would it be?
Dreamy

How did you react when you saw the cover of your book?
The first thing that struck me was the model’s eyes—deep, brown, and so direct—just like Jane Eyre’s gaze. Then add a sumptuous Victorian dress in that beautiful dusky purple color? I was enchanted.

Who is your ideal reader?
I think A Breath of Eyre would appeal to readers who like their books a little bit Gothic, a little bit literary, and a lot romantic with a dash of magical realism thrown in. I’d recommend it to fans of A Great and Terrible Beauty, Nevermore, and, of course, Jane Eyre.

Why do you write for young people?
In some ways, I still feel like a teenager—insecure and hopeful and edgy and excited— sometimes all within the same day. I teach high school English, and the teens I meet so seldom resemble the teens portrayed in the media; these kids are smart, talented, compassionate, and complex. And as jaded as they may seem, they see the world with a sense of newness and possibility that’s inspiring. That’s why I love writing for young people—anything seems possible.

What was your favorite book as a young person?
My favorite childhood book was The Secret Garden. I love Burnett’s moody descriptions of the moors, the Gothic house Mary gets banished to, the garden that transforms from an overgrown reminder of loss to a healing place of love. The characterizations are so lovingly rendered.

What’s the last book you read?
I am devouring the Hex Hall series, having just finished the sequel, Demonglass. Now I, along with some rabid fans on GoodReads, are awaiting the final installment, Spell Bound, which promises to be another wild ride. Rachel Hawkins is a master at building tension and suspense, but she also has the rare ability to make you laugh out loud. Her books are like Harry Potter meets Bridget Jones’ Diary—pure fun from beginning to end.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure food?
Trader Joe’s dark chocolate & sea salt caramels

What are you working on next?
I am working on the sequel to A Breath of Eyre called A Touch of Scarlet, in which Emma dreams herself into The Scarlet Letter and becomes increasingly torn between remaining the good girl she’s always been and becoming the rebellious woman she longs to be.

About A Breath of Eyre: Emma Townsend has always believed in stories—the ones she reads voraciously, and the ones she creates in her head. Perhaps it’s because she feels like an outsider at her exclusive prep school, or because her stepmother doesn’t come close to filling the void left by her mother’s death. And her only romantic prospect—apart from a crush on her English teacher—is Gray Newman, a long-time friend who just adds to Emma’s confusion. But escape soon arrives in an old leather-bound copy of Jane Eyre…

Reading of Jane’s isolation sparks a deep sense of kinship. Then fate takes things a leap further when a lightning storm catapults Emma right into Jane’s body and her nineteenth-century world. As governess at Thornfield, Emma has a sense of belonging she’s never known—and an attraction to the brooding Mr. Rochester. Now, moving between her two realities and uncovering secrets in both, Emma must decide whether her destiny lies in the pages of Jane’s story, or in the unwritten chapters of her own…

Visit Eve Marie Mont on her website, like her on facebook, follow her on twitter, read her blog, friend her on goodreads, and watch her youtube channel!

Review: Dirt by David Vann

mypalamy@gmail.com — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 00:17:38 PDT

I did not like this book.

I was warned that I might not like this book in the pitch from the publisher. They said it was dark and gritty and about all the darker, perverse parts of humanity. But the thing is that while you can say that, it all boils down to the writing. It boils down to how much of my own experiences I can find in the misery and sometimes I find hope where other people don't. And this author has received so much acclaim, I wanted to read the book anyway.

I won't say it was a huge mistake, it was really readable. But it wasn't pleasant. I sort of found myself rushing through to the end because I didn't care about any of these fools. There was like, a few times I thought I might start liking it but they went away quickly.

Basically this book is about Galen who is kind of...well a loser. He lives with his mother and we're led to believe she stole all the inheritance from his grandma, and her sister and her daughter really resent that fact. And his grandmother isn't actually dead, she lives in a home and has pretty much lost her memory. And he's attracted to his cousin, who loves that he's attracted to her and their sex acts are described in some detail. Which I found a little revolting.

But mostly it's about how Galen has convinced himself that everything is imaginary, not real, something he must overcome so to say. I don't know some sort of Buddhist teaching or something? And so whenever he's bothered he just tells himself they are manifestations of his inner pain he must overcome or something. And you get hints of what's really going on, of how his family used violence to deal with their issues and covered everything up without ever talking about it, through Galen's narrative.

And then the ending is really awful, too.

So that's Dirt! I think there are Ideas and stuff in here that you are supposed to be able to talk about but I couldn't get past the horrific surface enough to care.

Rating: 2/5
Things You might Want to know: profanity! violence! sex!
Source of Book: ARC received from publisher
Publisher: Harper

The Sunday Salon -- Blue Like Jazz, LATFOB is coming, etc.

mypalamy@gmail.com — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 00:00:03 PDT

Hey everyone I hope you've been having a fabulous week! It's hard to believe that that we are at the midpoint of April and tax day is this week! Thankfully my taxes are done, hope yours are too.

Next weekend is the LA Times Festival of Books. I had to miss it last year, but I'm planning on going Saturday this year and really looking forward to it. I miss you Southern California book bloggers so much, if you're planning on being there please let me know! My plans at present are basically to see the panels with John Green and Patrick Ness and hang out with Danielle.

Reading

My reading has been so weird lately, but I did manage to finish Sarah Pekkanen's These Girls which was a really nice read. I read the first chapter of Cheryl Strayed's memoir, Wild and it was so brutal I haven't managed to read on, but I really want to. When I say brutal I mean she captures the raw ugly emotions of grief so well, I just...I don't know. I actually need to finish the Chaos Walking Trilogy so I might try to do that this week before seeing Patrick Ness at The Festival of Books!

Blue Like Jazz

The Blue Like Jazz film was the first project I ever helped to fund through Kickstarter, and it was actually the way I first heard about Kickstarter. (and then all these singer/songwriters I like started using it to fund their projects, so...)

It's based on Donald Miller's best-selling memoir and was turned into a story with an actual narrative. His later book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years talks about the process of telling a good story (through working on developing the Blue Like Jazz film) and is super inspirational if you ever get the chance to read it, it will make you want to do all sorts of different things with your life in order to tell a good story with it.

Anyway, I didn't think I'd be able to see the movie, but as luck would have it, it opened at a theater just 30 minutes away from me. I was inundated with emails from the BLJ people telling me how important it was to go opening weekend, so I went ahead and made plans to go Friday.

For the most part I really liked it. I mean there were times when I was sitting there feeling so many things. I guess part of it is that a story with a character who has a life I can sort of relate to. Not so much his family background, but being a part of a church that forms a lot of your identity. And then suddenly being thrust into an environment where all these people you think are smart and funny and cool and really lovely hate the very background you come from. I think the film is a little bit confusing in its resolution...what exactly was Don wrestling with? Was it being ashamed of God or actually wrestling with the ideas he'd been taught? But even so it was so nice to find so much relatable on screen. That feeling of trying to figure out a balance between believing in God and loving Him and also rejecting some of the ideas you've always been taught is somewhat present in the film. And it is a really confusing intense thing to go through and I think the movie shows some of that.

People aren't god, but that doesn't mean God doesn't exist is the idea I took away from the film. I really did like it so much--it's nice to find stories about your kind of people on screen. And it's rare! Really interesting stories and characters of faith barely exist in film or television. So for that reason alone, Blue Like Jazz is well worth seeing. Also the cast is really pretty good and for anyone that just likes that, "awww college" feeling, it's satisfying. ;)

TV

TVD comes back this week, yay! Still kind of hoping this season manages to redeem itself. I haven't hated it actually, it has just not been as good? And it has been hard to find a real direction. So hopefully these last episodes will move the story in a direction I want to follow.

Um..other than that I got nothing. I am kind of glad we're getting closer to May and news of what shows will be airing next season, but dreading things like Nikita being cancelled. Oh yeah Nikita comes back this week, too. Yay!

Don't forget to let me know if you'll be at LATFOB and I hope you all have a great week!