tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80890798819789965722024-03-14T04:09:58.038-04:00Sukasa Reads“A room without books is like a body without a soul.” ― Marcus Tullius Cicero .............................................
Follow on Twitter: @SukasaReads @ShilpaRaikarSukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.comBlogger615125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-28493742999796445432023-11-03T13:21:00.003-04:002023-11-03T22:37:09.925-04:00Q&A with Wayne Ng, author of The Family Code<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-family: verdana; font-size: 16px;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQjXjR40ylt4woS4-Ln3jqZjoZTIkNBflXZzZxrnhzwJfPOu9cyiU1erLezz_jeq-nqNX7gm0yTcwVYYJ_PoNQTY-WmJ-1oKg_ECI-RsUAnjpeORUlSY_5H4gWJrbOh-6UeZ1ONo38skHUKMm7DLdVIf_8iEDzjuHwTVJ1ySMolKt9lKi7nGiZdSmlZvM/s2700/THE-FAMILY-CODE-Cover.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2700" data-original-width="1800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQjXjR40ylt4woS4-Ln3jqZjoZTIkNBflXZzZxrnhzwJfPOu9cyiU1erLezz_jeq-nqNX7gm0yTcwVYYJ_PoNQTY-WmJ-1oKg_ECI-RsUAnjpeORUlSY_5H4gWJrbOh-6UeZ1ONo38skHUKMm7DLdVIf_8iEDzjuHwTVJ1ySMolKt9lKi7nGiZdSmlZvM/s320/THE-FAMILY-CODE-Cover.jpeg" width="213" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br />Full of grit and heart, Wayne Ng's The Family Code is one novel not to be missed. Not only does it </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">ground you in today's reality, but it features unforgettable characters that continue to live in your soul long after you've finished reading the book.</span><div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Hannah Belenko is a single parent whose life is wrapped around the Canadian welfare and social services system, and is perpetually just hanging on. Her every action seems to have a negative reaction, and invariably every decision she makes affects her children. </span><p></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Written from two perspectives - Hannah's and her son Axel's - the novel adds a layer of authenticity giving the reader a unique insight into the complexities of intergenerational trauma. </span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-family: verdana; font-size: 16px;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSsLGri8RadwY9PV_ZsZoXYpc5UiPi7QLYMJzVwOUBXoaTrJ2Hhx_NA1z80iIAdyPFjbRbrbhIexpvUDvFhOs-pP5kuOp-DsWz8wUEQwCkV0y5VkiNXf86iK1HheFgQnb2L2ERs0KMgy2vkt0LY_wkJYeARrLZeyIcVK_Vqne_Yzk_LkuOypLUSimwkXM/s1050/WayneNg-Photo.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="1050" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSsLGri8RadwY9PV_ZsZoXYpc5UiPi7QLYMJzVwOUBXoaTrJ2Hhx_NA1z80iIAdyPFjbRbrbhIexpvUDvFhOs-pP5kuOp-DsWz8wUEQwCkV0y5VkiNXf86iK1HheFgQnb2L2ERs0KMgy2vkt0LY_wkJYeARrLZeyIcVK_Vqne_Yzk_LkuOypLUSimwkXM/s320/WayneNg-Photo.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Wayne Ng </b></span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">Award-winning author, Wayne Ng, has experienced these issues head on in his 30-year career as a social worker, and in this interview we get some behind the scene insights as to what makes <i>The Family Code</i> such an important read. </span><div><br /></div><div><p><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-indent: -18pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">1.</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 7pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-indent: -18pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-indent: -18pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Family Code is a story that punches you in the gut. The story of Hannah, a single mother haunted by past traumas, and who never seems to get a break.</span></span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-eced70cb-7fff-f928-a7fe-489042c91c66"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">What’s the most important thing you want readers to get out of this book?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> I feel that many family stories are dominated by dissatisfied and disappointing white middle-class suburban narratives. <span style="background-color: #fafafa; color: #333333; text-align: justify; white-space-collapse: collapse;">I’ve enjoyed many of them, especially Ashley Audrain’s works.</span> I want readers to realize that there are many other types of families and stories out there. Hannah’s is only one of them. However, Hannah might be readily dismissed. She externalizes her pain without any filters and comes across as unlikeable and crude. Yet she is as deserving of our empathy as the family member, friend or neighbour who similarly struggles but lacks Hannah’s coarseness. That is to say, people carrying unhealed, unresolved traumas and unmet needs…all of which drive their behaviours and choices.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I also hope readers applaud themselves for getting through a gritty, authentic but engaging story. The Family Code is filled with feelings and scenes that while authentic, might be uncomfortable and challenging for some. Like life, getting through difficult moments makes us more resilient readers and people. So take a bow for coming out of the emotional wringer.
</span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; text-indent: 36pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">2.</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 7pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Love the theme of this book. A lot of times it’s heartbreaking, but there’s an undertone of hope. Hannah has hope that her actions will generate positive outcomes, even though history has been against her. As a social worker, what changes would you like to see in the system that would give better access to opportunities for people like Hannah and her kids.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The word hope is used about thirty-eight times in the novel and is the very last word. This was strategic…one must have hope even in the face of overwhelming adversity. As a social worker, we always had hope. Admittedly, it was dim at times. But, we believe in a world that could be better. We certainly would hope for more services and resources, and more respect and validation for mental wellness. We’ve made progress, but still have such a long road ahead. Sadly, the need, complexity and intensity have overwhelmed capacity, especially since the pandemic. Having said that, I don’t think hiring more bodies and creating more programs is in itself the only solution. We have core, systemic issues: the lack of affordable housing, growing economic disparity, a culture that values financial gain over community growth, and a continuing belief that we are only responsible for ourselves. The latter allows us to turn away from people like Hannah and Axel who barely survive in the margins.
</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">3.</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 7pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">This is not a typical story that falls within the immigrant/BIPOC diaspora. Hannah and Axel come from immigrant parents. It’s your first completed work of five, not featuring Asian protagonists. This is your first expression of your work. What do you looking to impart from The Family Code?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">True, this is my only work to date to not feature an Asian protagonist, yet my characters are very much products of immigrant parents. That is rarely mentioned by reviewers which implies immigrant stories are the purview of those who are racialized. I find that ghettoizing. Immigrants don’t all have the same stories or obstacles, nor do they all carry wounds and scars from places of origin. But make no mistake, past traumas and unhealed wounds can be carried by anyone and from any place. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I’d like to be a writer unafraid to take risks and explore as I develop my craft. Writing outside my lived experience is part of that, as is writing beyond Asian stories (not that there is anything wrong with that). Part of me is pleased that I was able to accomplish that. To be honest, I wonder if that comes from vestiges of my internalized racism or me just wanting to spread myself out as a writer.
</span></p><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; text-align: left; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">4. Speaking of writing outside of lived experiences, you wrote points of view from a white woman and biracial boy. What was it like constructing those and how do you feel about others approaching narratives so far outside their own?</span></h4><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">As a social worker, I worked with hundreds and hundreds of Hannahs and Axels. They were always the loudest and most challenging clients. They were also my favourite. I’d make time for them and support them in sharing their lives. They’re embedded into me, so constructing those characters was first a privilege; but was also fun and easy to write.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Writing outside lived experiences is a hot and topical issue, bringing elements of appropriation and exploitation. I used characters from many backgrounds not my own--for example Indigenous, Black, Lebanese, queer, white male. Some might see that as ornamental. I could have played it safer. Yet my world is broad, and I am a writer. We make stuff up, and we try and do it responsibly and with sensitivity. We may not always get it right, but if we don’t try, we don’t learn and everyone’s world remains smaller than it should. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I do believe it’s acceptable to write outside yourself if you meet certain conditions and ask yourself certain questions:</span></p><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">Proximity: Is my relationship to the material and subjects close or distant?</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">Are you reinforcing conventions/stereotypes/tropes or challenging them?</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">Am I fetishizing and glorifying the trauma of the characters, thereby objectifying them?</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #121212; font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">It has to be well-written.</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="color: #121212; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-wrap: wrap; vertical-align: baseline;">It must be written with integrity. </span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I’ve worked in a white female-dominated profession in schools dominated by white-female staff. I’m happily married to a white woman, and I have always lived in Canada. So I think I have the proximity piece down. Some of the details about the Chinese family working in a restaurant, Jimmy’s Indigenous roots, and the hard-drinking Russian father do not break new ground. But I don’t believe I’ve objectified them. If I’m wrong, I deserve to be called on it. As to whether it’s a work of integrity and is well written, I think so, but you the reader must also decide.</span></p><div><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</span></div><div><span style="color: #999999; font-family: verdana;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Thanks to Wayne Ng for taking the time to speak about The Family Code. </span><span style="background-color: white;">Connect with Wayne at <a href="http://WayneNgWrites.com">WayneNgWrites.com</a></span></span></div><div><span style="color: #999999; font-family: verdana;"><span style="background-color: white;">Special thanks also to <a href="mailto:chris@theideashop.ca" target="_blank">Chris Houston</a> of <a href="https://theideashop.ca/" target="_blank">The Idea Shop</a> for connecting me with Wayne. Stay tuned on <a href="https://twitter.com/ShilpaRaikar" target="_blank">X</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/sukasastyle/" target="_blank">Instagram</a> for short video bites with Wayne Ng. </span></span></div></span></div></div></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-69081405926252517962023-07-31T17:40:00.001-04:002023-07-31T17:40:41.978-04:00The Official Fablehaven Cookbook by Brandon Mull & Cherie Mull<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj21r0Wb4CSbwzukw24zwc76YYmldb_se1aZPlYaQPZUlgKn6j4h1n2Iz7La_b713x052PDxPlLi4ds9qfSIWoiv84-kKtZpg6axy19qePuey9LlTgu6b1MJe5T-AxiJXgUJAgmhQ8RA42qRgg9a27iujR-zoRyK0bsF78fKRG4WQ0potM_Oe8hEeGIX1U/s750/Fablehaven%20Cookbook%20Blogger%20Graphic.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="750" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj21r0Wb4CSbwzukw24zwc76YYmldb_se1aZPlYaQPZUlgKn6j4h1n2Iz7La_b713x052PDxPlLi4ds9qfSIWoiv84-kKtZpg6axy19qePuey9LlTgu6b1MJe5T-AxiJXgUJAgmhQ8RA42qRgg9a27iujR-zoRyK0bsF78fKRG4WQ0potM_Oe8hEeGIX1U/w320-h213/Fablehaven%20Cookbook%20Blogger%20Graphic.png" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Brandon Mull’s Fablehaven is a New York Times bestselling series about siblings Seth and Kendra who discover their grandparents are the caretakers of a sanctuary for magical creatures. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">For centuries mystical creatures of all description were gathered into a hidden refuge called Fablehaven to prevent their extinction. The sanctuary survives today as one of the last strongholds of true magic. Enchanting? Absolutely. Exciting? You bet. Safe? Well, actually, quite the opposite.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh6MNh1V_ed8lVpFPxubKHTkjROqH_TPqJVuV37NKJl2Z9PPw5bvonbdQy5HGNxgz9gIVtUGU70_ypNEf3qVtntrpolo4l5xpBKqz8xmS3h5NHbNw8tt7WUYZOWvJxTqF2M8vyg0P4f-MGXKZJkc9rlDsUCFVKWeB7Cy-jb65w2B5GOxiaGkDBWe0i_F0/s4032/IMG_6955.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh6MNh1V_ed8lVpFPxubKHTkjROqH_TPqJVuV37NKJl2Z9PPw5bvonbdQy5HGNxgz9gIVtUGU70_ypNEf3qVtntrpolo4l5xpBKqz8xmS3h5NHbNw8tt7WUYZOWvJxTqF2M8vyg0P4f-MGXKZJkc9rlDsUCFVKWeB7Cy-jb65w2B5GOxiaGkDBWe0i_F0/s320/IMG_6955.HEIC" width="240" /></a></div></div>But if you are a fan of the series you know that already. The latest instalment brings something deliciously different to the table. The Official Fablehaven Cookbook features nearly fifty wonderous recipes inspired by characters from the series. There’s something magical to enjoy from the time you wake up in the morning to the last slumber. </span><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Picture this: The sun streaming through your kitchen window on a summer morning. On your counter is not the usual cereal you scarf down routinely. Instead on the menu today is Dragon Egg Cupcakes and Singing Sisters Bubbling Brew. One sip transports you into the realm of possibility where you are the master of your own domain. </span><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SrXtEbjbehff74Tgs0hGV4Xx-gt58yqCEYWV0wZMqrGxVOk1u9wYrsvmCzwn_Ssi5imgao0EV96kq0BEhJAeWs-AODgnoddiwy5WIm3_aqAlx-tmyj3Q-xsattJjl05PO4W9Ho-3ERHKX_zrVFURoDeJ0G7HRoX3ZIwLggjUkrQE7SWFYy1necx10Ro/s4032/IMG_6954.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SrXtEbjbehff74Tgs0hGV4Xx-gt58yqCEYWV0wZMqrGxVOk1u9wYrsvmCzwn_Ssi5imgao0EV96kq0BEhJAeWs-AODgnoddiwy5WIm3_aqAlx-tmyj3Q-xsattJjl05PO4W9Ho-3ERHKX_zrVFURoDeJ0G7HRoX3ZIwLggjUkrQE7SWFYy1necx10Ro/s320/IMG_6954.HEIC" width="240" /></a></div><br />And if you have kids, the more magical the domain. They'll most likely crown you the wizard of wonder, because any of these out-of-the-box treats will blow them right out of their minds. My fave summer recipe is </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Midsummer Strawberry Salsa with Cinnamon Sugar Tortilla Chips, just the right potion to celebrate with after surviving the chaos of Midsummer’s Eve. </span></div><div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">The book includes an original, never-before-published story about the Fablehaven woodland brownies, that are known for coming into the kitchen at night and baking delightful treats as a surprise for caretakers and their guests. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPDhVB-UIR1ZbDXypZFaA2_lzVFObn3HfZHkUWHSlj5HSDF9eyckT-2eNuIJda2t838gBo0_P9nsV1lV8Tnun1PtlpKGPCXu2GC4V1_k4Gcjp6UWRvR_7Vl-pdOR6QOQI1OGk9V2jxl8wsXPKaBhrTYCyCjaDrUWJekl_Dhe8M2KE8uht87GvX1RHyiWA/s4032/IMG_6957.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPDhVB-UIR1ZbDXypZFaA2_lzVFObn3HfZHkUWHSlj5HSDF9eyckT-2eNuIJda2t838gBo0_P9nsV1lV8Tnun1PtlpKGPCXu2GC4V1_k4Gcjp6UWRvR_7Vl-pdOR6QOQI1OGk9V2jxl8wsXPKaBhrTYCyCjaDrUWJekl_Dhe8M2KE8uht87GvX1RHyiWA/s320/IMG_6957.HEIC" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">This cookbook is truly unique and does an amazing job of tapping into the magical world of Fablehaven. Each recipe includes a Fablehaven original story and full-colour food photography. Bonus: also includes a few of Brandon Mull’s favourite desserts. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">A handy cookbook to have in your back pocket for Halloween. Some of those spooky treats are certainly going to be the envy of the town. </span></p><p>-----------------</p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU2fAXRBmLYbDhRomciCFmq4PJirgKFHxfYbvaTMIPbejx2Zq_IaK7ADXhK1msxGz1SJrjYgP36QZTlPGOBbTCQ-n_RIByoejNflL0H4OHKUKX-bMD_U5SumlgHzj-zc1Bxavq0MvXAcek6hKneJbxzLfQ_BALfSZ7okLF6Ec6p1o5Tg7Pd4rBLAnW7tE/s4032/IMG_6952%202.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU2fAXRBmLYbDhRomciCFmq4PJirgKFHxfYbvaTMIPbejx2Zq_IaK7ADXhK1msxGz1SJrjYgP36QZTlPGOBbTCQ-n_RIByoejNflL0H4OHKUKX-bMD_U5SumlgHzj-zc1Bxavq0MvXAcek6hKneJbxzLfQ_BALfSZ7okLF6Ec6p1o5Tg7Pd4rBLAnW7tE/w150-h200/IMG_6952%202.HEIC" width="150" /></a></div><br /><h4 style="text-align: left;"><p style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;">Thanks to Shadow Mountain Publishing for re</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">introducing me to the world of Fablehaven and bringing the magic into my home with </span></i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>a copy of this book. </i><br /><br /></span></p><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></h4><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><p></p></div></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-18193043569311285972023-06-27T14:20:00.001-04:002023-06-27T14:43:58.461-04:00The Art Thief by Michael Finkel<p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue";"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Y4hcqPt3t4N-QoLnJpN81fc1WPn69kNTgtiJZoJcUdkBVUucBQZ9UJj-PebXHnAxqDbUVFgs6LkOsbvFcUC-8VSgMWzGcwUTu7seD73GXLBHb6nXUnoyqDOsjKPJ4NGbVwQuXKTr-ONuRFgHY0wL4xjo1MpXSlMUU52RrZgvdON98JK8miahXIC58pk/s2388/IMG_1943.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2388" data-original-width="1668" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Y4hcqPt3t4N-QoLnJpN81fc1WPn69kNTgtiJZoJcUdkBVUucBQZ9UJj-PebXHnAxqDbUVFgs6LkOsbvFcUC-8VSgMWzGcwUTu7seD73GXLBHb6nXUnoyqDOsjKPJ4NGbVwQuXKTr-ONuRFgHY0wL4xjo1MpXSlMUU52RrZgvdON98JK8miahXIC58pk/w280-h400/IMG_1943.JPG" width="280" /></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br />This is a true story of how one couple pulled off over two hundred brazen heists over the course of ten years. Breitwieser along with his girlfriend, scoured museums and churches across Europe and stole more than three hundred artworks, worth an estimated $2 billion in total.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><p></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Better than any movie, The Art Thief by Michael Finkel is spellbinding and taps into that same curiosity that baffles us all - how do art thieves risk it all when they attempt such magnificent heists.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Contrary to popular theories that art thieves steal art to sell it off and earn a hefty sum of money, Breitwieser’s sole motivation for stealing was to surround himself with beauty. He stole works that stirred him emotionally and generally felt no remorse as he felt that museums were just prisons for art. He studied every item and perhaps considered himself as an art liberator. His accomplice Anne-Catherine was more pragmatic and perhaps if you were to describe their relationship, his head was always in the clouds, while she preferred her feet planted on the ground.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So what did the duo do with the hundreds of artworks they nabbed? Surprisingly, not sell them. Instead they adorned their attic (at Breitwieser’s mother’s home) with them, so that they could bask in their beauty all the time.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The irony of their endeavours is that on the one hand the couple was surrounded by priceless art, while on the other, they were perpetually broke. Breitwieser was an unemployed freeloader and lived in his mother’s house rent-free. How they managed to fool his mom and the rest of the country is incredible. This true story is definitely a page turner.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The genius in the storytelling is described via the details of the heists. The reader will marvel at the art thief sourcing the the right tools to unscrew a tabletop and nip a delicate piece of ivory, or the sleight of hand to remove complete paintings from their frames and carry them out hidden in a coat. The intent here isn't the glorification of crime but Breitwieser and Anne-Catherine stealing art for the love of art alone. There was never an endgame. Perhaps Breitwieser wanted to steal to fill a void inside of him. But alas, his unending hunger for timeless art was never satiated.</p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span face="-apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px;">.</span><br style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span face="-apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white;">Pairs wonderfully with the rich bold </span><a class="x1i10hfl xjbqb8w x6umtig x1b1mbwd xaqea5y xav7gou x9f619 x1ypdohk xt0psk2 xe8uvvx xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r xexx8yu x4uap5 x18d9i69 xkhd6sd x16tdsg8 x1hl2dhg xggy1nq x1a2a7pz notranslate _a6hd" href="https://www.instagram.com/wolfblasswines/" role="link" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; background-color: white; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" tabindex="0">@wolfblasswines</a><span face="-apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white;"> Shiraz Cabernet, with flavours of black plum reduction and lifted aromas that hints of luxury.</span><br style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;" /><span face="-apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white;">.</span><br style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;" /><span face="-apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white;">The Art Thief hits bookshelves today. Published by </span><a class="x1i10hfl xjbqb8w x6umtig x1b1mbwd xaqea5y xav7gou x9f619 x1ypdohk xt0psk2 xe8uvvx xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r xexx8yu x4uap5 x18d9i69 xkhd6sd x16tdsg8 x1hl2dhg xggy1nq x1a2a7pz notranslate _a6hd" href="https://www.instagram.com/knopfca/" role="link" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; background-color: white; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" tabindex="0">@knopfca</a><span face="-apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white;">. Thanks to </span><a class="x1i10hfl xjbqb8w x6umtig x1b1mbwd xaqea5y xav7gou x9f619 x1ypdohk xt0psk2 xe8uvvx xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r xexx8yu x4uap5 x18d9i69 xkhd6sd x16tdsg8 x1hl2dhg xggy1nq x1a2a7pz notranslate _a6hd" href="https://www.instagram.com/penguinrandomca/" role="link" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; background-color: white; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" tabindex="0">@penguinrandomca</a><span face="-apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white;"> for a copy.</span><br /></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-34463883175575579972023-04-12T21:26:00.003-04:002023-04-23T19:50:31.640-04:00Preconceived by Zale Mednick<h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Preconceived <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKslh8-O7MiQoXBA_s2LCsxZc_js011UcYJVYcPhrjDVYbc6ha-TkneAYgqndBUIkteIyhQJPBgVbNsVQrIyP-f-_gOiJmMgJYy4mjWT1m6qghbqUSRs7IIY7Z4Bsp-5p9tItXcqWu4BriNNW4e-VKDmyFhJLMCXRkHBS88QD43ndsMAtDmdvugb0d/s906/Book%20Cover%203D.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="906" data-original-width="744" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKslh8-O7MiQoXBA_s2LCsxZc_js011UcYJVYcPhrjDVYbc6ha-TkneAYgqndBUIkteIyhQJPBgVbNsVQrIyP-f-_gOiJmMgJYy4mjWT1m6qghbqUSRs7IIY7Z4Bsp-5p9tItXcqWu4BriNNW4e-VKDmyFhJLMCXRkHBS88QD43ndsMAtDmdvugb0d/s320/Book%20Cover%203D.jpg" width="263" /></a></div></span></h2><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Before the book, there was the podcast.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #4d5156; font-family: helvetica;">Hosted by ophthalmologist Zale Mednick, </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><a href="https://www.preconceivedpodcast.com/" target="_blank">Preconceived</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #4d5156;"> challenges the </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #5f6368; font-weight: bold;">preconceptions</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #4d5156;"> that shape our world and the paradigms by which we live our lives. The book is a lens on what he chats about in his award-winning podcast. Naturally, I was curious as to how the idea for the podcast came about.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #4d5156; font-family: helvetica;"><span style="background-color: white;">Zale was gracious to chat about this and all the other pressing questions I had about the book. Enjoy this Q&A session and look forward to your thoughts about the interview. </span></span></p><div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: helvetica;">1) Your background is medicine. How did you venture into the world of podcasting and assembling an anthology?</span></b></h4><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The idea for Preconceived came about as I was facing a crossroads in my own life, on the verge of completing my medical education after fourteen years. When I initially pursued medicine, I always knew that I did not want my job to fully define me and become the extent of who I was. While I enjoy practicing as an ophthalmologist, I’ve always had other interests, hobbies, and potentially even other career paths I’ve hoped to pursue at some point in my life. As I came to the end of my medical training in 2019, I decided it was the time to create a lifestyle that was authentic to that vision. I had a few ideas in mind, but a podcast seemed like a fairly straightforward project I could embark on at my own pace without too many barriers. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The concept of preconceptions dovetailed well with where I was at in my life. Preconceptions are in many ways tied to the status quo, and society tends to dictate a certain status quo of how we should go about our lives. The ‘preconceived life’, so to speak, involves a ‘typical’ childhood, a K-12 education followed by college or a work experience, a string of monogamous relationships until you find ‘the one’ and get married, a stable career for thirty-or-so years, having kids at some point along the way, followed by this concept of retirement as we enjoy our older years and spend time with our grandchildren. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">There is nothing wrong with such an aforementioned path, but the important thing is that we make conscious decisions about each of those steps as opposed to just following the status quo. As I faced my own junctures in this typical life paradigm, specifically starting my own ophthalmology practice and getting involved in a serious relationship, many of these questions related to ‘Is this what I really want in life?’ flooded my mind. That was the impetus for this podcast, which aims to challenge the preconceptions that shape how we view the world and the paradigms by which we live our lives. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Initially, podcast episodes centred on one of these key decisions that determine the arcs of our lives. Eventually, the podcast’s themes expanded to encompass a range of topics regarding which people tend to have preconceived views, some controversial – religion, drugs, abortion, and guns – and a smorgasbord of more seemingly innocuous topics – fame, life extension, Disney, and Shakespeare. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: helvetica;">2) Preconceived is a unique collection of stories, thoughts, and beliefs of over fifty guests from the podcast. Spanning topics such as crime, parenthood, mental illness and more, it makes for an interesting and diverse read. How did you choose the themes that make up the chapters of the book?</span></h4><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">I started off by reaching out to many of the guests who had previously been on the show. I was positively overwhelmed by people’s willingness to contribute to the project. Luckily, the range of guests who agreed to write a chapter spanned so many different themes, accurately reflecting the breadth of topics covered on the podcast. One of the unique features of Preconceived is the diversity of the episodes – one week we might be talking to a sex therapist, and the next I might be speaking with someone who spent eighteen years in prison for a murder they didn’t commit. It was important that the book chapters reflected this diversity. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">I also wanted to take the readers on a journey, so to speak, through the different stages of life. There are chapters focused on childhood and education, love and relationships, parenthood and the decision to have kids, and society and culture. And just like life itself, the book ends with a series of chapters that discuss death and end of life. </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzJfvP_-RbY2YZ6VpOwP9sEJYY-UKWAXd_-V4L5VGAtDoKeMal7-KhvDdk5drSi_mTl03ChBolDV4m40L4xGQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></h4><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: helvetica;">3) Preconceived general premise is that opinions and viewpoints are overly influenced by society at large. Is this your preconceived notion in and of itself? If so, do you think those ingrained perceptions can be changed?</span></h4><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Yes – I agree that the general premise of Preconceived is that our opinions tend to be overly influenced by societal trends and the status quo. Our lives are often dictated by a set of pre-determined expectations, and our opinions are often a product of even subtle indoctrination. The point of Preconceived, however, is not to say, “Go against the grain at all costs” and “The status quo is bad”. Not at all. The purpose of the podcast and the accompanying book is to have people make their own choices and to reflect on why we do the things we do and to question whether we truly believe in the values that tend to govern our lives. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It is okay to follow the status quo. I would argue that the only thing that is not okay, is if we simply follow the status quo without making conscious choices about it and constantly re-evaluating our decisions as we navigate the course of life. Preconceived urges people to live a life that is authentic to their true goals and values in life, and to form opinions that are based in meaningful contemplation and an understanding of the facts. </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: helvetica;">4) What’s the most important thing you want people to get out of the book?</span></h4><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">One thing that I think is important to clarify is that this book is not prescriptive. It is not meant to tell people how to live their lives. It isn’t even intended to change people’s preconceptions, life choices, or opinions. After four years of running this podcast and speaking with almost two hundred guests, I’ve come to realize that it is exceedingly challenging to actually change our preconceptions, and even harder to enact change in our lives once we acknowledge our preconceptions. If listeners and readers can take one thing away from Preconceived, it is that they should at least be aware that preconceptions exist and play a prominent role in how we live our lives. Sometimes, such realizations will have profound impacts on us and indeed alter our behaviour. Other times, the mere recognition that our lives are influenced by preconceptions can be powerful in itself. </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: helvetica;">5) Can you name one chapter or essay that was transformative for you personally? </span></h4><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The chapter on The Baby Decision was particularly impactful on me. Merle Bombardieri was one of the first guests I ever interviewed on the podcast, and she is a therapist who works with couples debating whether to have kids. Like many people, I have contemplated this very important choice in life, so it naturally resonated with me. But perhaps what stuck with me most from her chapter (and my conversation with her) was her framework for making a decision in general. There is a misconception that we need to have absolute certainty when making major life choices – be it regarding marriage, a career choice, or having kids. Merle believes that therein lies the flaw. Most of us will never achieve such certainty when making a decision of such gravity. But that is okay! As she explains, “60/40 is a decision…Don’t hold your breath waiting for 100%”. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">I find that concept so liberating. Life is hard, especially when confronted with the task of making a potentially life-altering decision. Society often romanticizes certain aspects of life, insisting that we should have 100% certainty about certain things. But searching for 100% certainty can ultimately lead to paralysis. It’s okay to have doubts. It’s okay to not be sure. And sometimes, you just have to make the most educated decision based on your own self-reflection. Doubt is normal, and having uncertainty does not mean you are making the wrong decision. Sometimes you just need to jump in, take a leap, and make the best decision you can, with all the hesitation that comes with it. </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: helvetica;">6) Do you have a favourite essay that came out differently than you expected? </span></h4><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The chapter on Strippers blew my mind. I absolutely loved speaking with Paige on the podcast, and while I shouldn’t have been surprised after our conversation, I couldn’t help but be a bit shocked (in the best of ways) at how boldly unapologetic she was about being a stripper. It’s a fairly short chapter, but it’s punchy and makes its point unequivocally. I love how she owns her stance on why stripping should be seen as a viable career and doesn’t seem at all affected by the preconceptions and stigmas that the profession garners. </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: helvetica;">7) The Preconceived anthology has of 50 unique essays - but which two or three do you think would make the best introduction to the Preconceived podcast?</span></h4><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">This is a tough one, but I’m glad you’re forcing me to choose. If I had to choose three chapters as an introduction to Preconceived, I’d choose Veganism, Circumcision, and Polyamory. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Veganism is controversial, something which people tend to have strong opinions about. The status quo is that eating meat and animal products is normal. But in this chapter, the author turns the tables on the reader; is veganism really that extreme, or is it rather the way we raise, kill and eat animals that should be considered the extreme? I think Preconceived is at its best when it takes a controversial topic and makes one wonder whether the status quo is actually more extreme than the stigmatized viewpoint.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFVltCCFoLi7pcC2DEeVJZASknpKsz6s7lJ2QVKy37eFn8R5heHdiE2J0f7aIJFX7PECKF5qkUlwMFcfM6TV_ctchHnBRrTLdILmC_WxvN4wZhwcvowHxTvpviqdxMezcUAOHvMJ9RGZrC6YBPxZC0zXpmqtZ-aBtZlTLj8vyGUtBhbe_wjPIKoXQO/s397/zale%20mednick%20photo%20(1).jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Preconceived by Zale Mednick is an award-winning podcast. Book now available." border="0" data-original-height="397" data-original-width="373" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFVltCCFoLi7pcC2DEeVJZASknpKsz6s7lJ2QVKy37eFn8R5heHdiE2J0f7aIJFX7PECKF5qkUlwMFcfM6TV_ctchHnBRrTLdILmC_WxvN4wZhwcvowHxTvpviqdxMezcUAOHvMJ9RGZrC6YBPxZC0zXpmqtZ-aBtZlTLj8vyGUtBhbe_wjPIKoXQO/w293-h312/zale%20mednick%20photo%20(1).jpg" title="Zale Mednick" width="293" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Zale Mednick</td></tr></tbody></table>Circumcision is an interesting chapter because it’s seemingly innocuous. As opposed to obviously controversial topics like abortion and guns, many people probably haven’t even considered circumcision as something worthy of debate. But in this chapter, the author asks the reader whether this seemingly benign practice that most of us don’t even give a passing thought to, is actually a harmful form of genital mutilation that we should be very concerned about. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Lastly, I chose polyamory because it relates to a core feature of most of our lives: love and relationships. The traditional paradigm of love is based on romanticized adages such as ‘finding the one’ or Hollywood movies idealizing what a perfect monogamous couple should look like. In reality, love and relationships are obviously very complicated. The chapter on polyamory is not powerful simply because it showcases a different form of relationship, but more so because it makes the reader question the very way they look at love and asks one to contemplate what they are really looking for before they enter a romantic relationship. </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: helvetica;">8) Because of my background as a creative writer, one of the things I love about Preconceived is the actual titles of the chapters:<br />Ageism: Is Happy Birthday an Oxymoron<br />There’s no such thing as “normal” skin<br />I’m curious, how did you come up with them?</span></h4><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The credit here – as does credit for the whole book – goes fully to the authors. The authors chose their own titles, and I’m so glad they did. I probably would have picked some boring more descriptive titles, but their creativity in choosing the titles elevated their pieces tremendously. I am so grateful for all the time and effort the authors put in to creating their pieces and for embarking on this journey with me.</span></div><div><br /></div></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-26522276280826944062022-11-08T12:44:00.000-05:002022-11-08T12:44:57.687-05:00Novelist as a Vocation by Haruki Murakami<p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhFnufKbkCExDMznK_ylQge-VrlDPgWPqNS1dAdKYoqa6CfY01Ylt1m9xNZnjNdXTYJrhvSlDcGYnZCAQOlKrnCeg5iFOES9Gc85vMJbKzWjpGj-1I2KqDsLaX9pvB48Af2qp-JUp58XFfYxcqLq7EBGIM0rrbW1-N4K9ILJmf4A7zCI8IBGygVaOcz" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhFnufKbkCExDMznK_ylQge-VrlDPgWPqNS1dAdKYoqa6CfY01Ylt1m9xNZnjNdXTYJrhvSlDcGYnZCAQOlKrnCeg5iFOES9Gc85vMJbKzWjpGj-1I2KqDsLaX9pvB48Af2qp-JUp58XFfYxcqLq7EBGIM0rrbW1-N4K9ILJmf4A7zCI8IBGygVaOcz" width="180" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br />Haruki Murakami has a way with words. No one can deny that. But did you know that he isn’t a trained writer in the conventional sense? I’ve been a fan of this incredible writer for years and this revelation floored me, especially given the magnitude of his success in the literary world. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><p></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In his latest book, Novelist as a Vocation, he speaks about his journey as a a writer, a path that was accidental. It is raw and humble, not unlike his other writing styles. His voice resonates with authenticity. Most novelists who’ve written books about writing, go into depth of the craft and their journey in “making it”. Not Murakami.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The first time Murakami sat down to write a novel he remembers being completely stumped. He goes to hypothesize that he felt he lacked that experience of emotional angst that’s is long believed drives writers. In his first novel Hear The Wind Sing, he professes that he had no choice but to write about having nothing to write about. He equates this with what the phrase writing with what you have at hand implies.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The book is part memoir and part journey of reflection into one’s own writing path. Is writing for everyone? In his famous style, Murakami muses questions about types of writers, why some are a one hit wonder while others endure the foggy course.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">There are two types of writers according to him. One, like Ernest Hemingway take strength from their material. Perhaps it’s why he led the life he did, moving from one war to another. This legendary life of experiences most probably finally zapped the energy out of him. The second type of writer (and this probably is more in line with Murakami’s own) is one who draws upon one’s own daily lives.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">He has a rule to only write only a handful of pages in one sitting. Why? He believes in the importance of maintaining a steady pace, and writing on a daily basis. This momentum forward is how to keep on writing. He also emphasizes the constant need for improvement..rewriting.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">For writers who have struggled to keep at it, or those who have lost lustre after writing their first novel, you may want to take a peek into this insightful book from a master storyteller.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Humble, poignant, and absolutely relatable…Haruki Murakami’s book on writing, is a great read, bit it may even be the inspiration you need to look above the surface and continue to tread water as you move closer and closer towards your final destination.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-61755547450900298812022-10-03T15:09:00.000-04:002022-10-03T15:09:04.360-04:00The Book of Boundaries by Melissa Urban<p> </p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><h2 style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: left;">The Book of Boundaries by Melissa Urban</span></div></h2></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwdo-CL-wx1y6sCudhonmDkb5dwvD-X-sPC9auxRzppi2spBvVIDSHnBEssl5verTWOkS6MX0j4zIVowb_MSum5Nc1FbF0taj-48wx3HJBQnsG0zWmMuSc_Wm4-zroDgbPmkGVfb1DSQdXhQjg-AxkyikQF-tQxLwB1meOXlUKxtNBlgQwAqn1eCWm/s4032/IMG_5357.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwdo-CL-wx1y6sCudhonmDkb5dwvD-X-sPC9auxRzppi2spBvVIDSHnBEssl5verTWOkS6MX0j4zIVowb_MSum5Nc1FbF0taj-48wx3HJBQnsG0zWmMuSc_Wm4-zroDgbPmkGVfb1DSQdXhQjg-AxkyikQF-tQxLwB1meOXlUKxtNBlgQwAqn1eCWm/s320/IMG_5357.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhI4EalSGIjLQcEImRbbX30e6yaBVPm6zUoNlCjJclb1yWQO0GFmoZqjxvPVMY6RTwnKxXpietJssJMLXdQxTDy5KIP7fMBW6ZloTt3q9kmliYI7u3qDFJue_S2k1louel8vGYN3BCdk_aFnh665HLkjp4POPFhtxcWScn4CHW-kqnDAwv1ifqXvfMC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: #999999;"><img alt="" data-original-height="674" data-original-width="936" height="458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhI4EalSGIjLQcEImRbbX30e6yaBVPm6zUoNlCjJclb1yWQO0GFmoZqjxvPVMY6RTwnKxXpietJssJMLXdQxTDy5KIP7fMBW6ZloTt3q9kmliYI7u3qDFJue_S2k1louel8vGYN3BCdk_aFnh665HLkjp4POPFhtxcWScn4CHW-kqnDAwv1ifqXvfMC=w637-h458" width="637" /></span></b></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><br /><br /></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-1414217347293713912022-09-15T14:58:00.002-04:002022-09-15T14:58:42.829-04:00An Advent Carols Countdown<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span></blockquote></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCU0GhBY169gdnJfa8EqcC_9_CP1X3PjgTJqfJIMPkzr_f6GFslcEi7vTvkUjSvukqnhwX9guyAziaffFVp6LPSLdaLwNZgcdzumhVzBdFTh77pzD7kuoHWdAwNlB6_vnidfr8ft83-fyJKjP4L1zb0Y66pHm3pRG3OZ3TGPPwJSOZOlBj6q8bM6KF/s1102/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-15%20at%202.50.50%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1102" data-original-width="844" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCU0GhBY169gdnJfa8EqcC_9_CP1X3PjgTJqfJIMPkzr_f6GFslcEi7vTvkUjSvukqnhwX9guyAziaffFVp6LPSLdaLwNZgcdzumhVzBdFTh77pzD7kuoHWdAwNlB6_vnidfr8ft83-fyJKjP4L1zb0Y66pHm3pRG3OZ3TGPPwJSOZOlBj6q8bM6KF/s320/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-15%20at%202.50.50%20PM.png" width="245" /></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to the holidays this year. After the last few years of isolation I’m looking forward to having family over and having a jolly old time.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Singing carols around the piano (hope I can play a few tunes by then) is one of my fave things to do and The Advent Carols Countdown by Michael D Young is just the perfect way I can brush up on my times. The coolest thing about this book is that it’s so interactive. You can scan the QR code to watch a musical performance.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">There’s even a story behind each carol, for those history buffs out there.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Available September, but I have a snake peek thanks to </span><a class="qi72231t nu7423ey n3hqoq4p r86q59rh b3qcqh3k fq87ekyn bdao358l fsf7x5fv rse6dlih s5oniofx m8h3af8h l7ghb35v kjdc1dyq kmwttqpk srn514ro oxkhqvkx rl78xhln nch0832m cr00lzj9 rn8ck1ys s3jn8y49 icdlwmnq notranslate _a6hd" href="https://www.instagram.com/shadowmountainpub/" role="link" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; background-color: white; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" tabindex="0">@shadowmountainpub</a> </p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-84726803381792970562022-06-02T21:46:00.000-04:002022-06-02T21:46:45.706-04:00Good Husbands by Cate Ray<div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTiyFiq80J-yCU8h3mIxAhvZ-4sDZTHyy2uMdaoIiNF0TLWvfUvdOGCEZw8XgX3jMsjPox2I6LogcQWChLpQyFDr1mudEFTkK2TvtlbXJNIBvlW6rFhGKfYKf9ZERQmRBpdpBEsjA1aYr9NSROdrM294Ge3zrV6Nj7uZbUuPPc00K_Lzrk-Ib3-GXp/s648/Good%20Husbands%20by%20Cate%20Ray_sukasareads%20blog%20book%20review.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="428" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTiyFiq80J-yCU8h3mIxAhvZ-4sDZTHyy2uMdaoIiNF0TLWvfUvdOGCEZw8XgX3jMsjPox2I6LogcQWChLpQyFDr1mudEFTkK2TvtlbXJNIBvlW6rFhGKfYKf9ZERQmRBpdpBEsjA1aYr9NSROdrM294Ge3zrV6Nj7uZbUuPPc00K_Lzrk-Ib3-GXp/s320/Good%20Husbands%20by%20Cate%20Ray_sukasareads%20blog%20book%20review.jpeg" width="211" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;">A storyline that is layered with nuance and suspense, <i>Good Husbands</i> is not your average beach read. It is a powerful conversation that will clench your heart and shoot it down a spinning vortex. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;">The novel moves deftly between the lives of three women, all complete strangers, but who have something in common...each of their husbands may be harbouring a secret, of a sexual assault that happened over two decades ago. Whether they choose to ignore the letter or act on it, one thing is for sure...their marriage is forever going to change and be filled with a new imagined elephant in the room, that will forever haunt them. </span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;">The woman who sent the letter is dead, so what's the point of it now</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;">? What has she got to gain</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;">? Contrasted with the wives who seemingly</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;"> have everything to lose. Whatever decision they take, has repercussions, for not just themselves but also their husbands and children.</span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;"><i>Good Husbands</i> forces the reader to experience a gripping moral dilemma that sheds a light on issues in present society but which are arguably timeless. This in turn will help one gain a better perspective and insight into how people think, why they behave the way they do, and the logic they use in justifying the truth. It’s what makes Cate Ray characters relatable. We see them in our friends and neighbours; perhaps we see these traits in those close to us. Oddly familiar, and yet, when it really comes down to it, do we really know them at all?</span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;">When they say don’t judge a book by its cover, they are right. The cover of Cate Ray's <i>Good Husbands</i> is not to my taste, and had it not been an arc provided by the publisher, I may been reluctant to pick it up on a whim during a Saturday afternoon visit to the bookstore. But I’m glad I did get a chance to read this book. The story kept me up way past my bedtime, but more importantly left me in a predicament about society's viewpoints on sexual assault survivors and a better understanding of the predicament that haunts jurors. It’s well-written and the pace is consistent. The theme lends to a lot in the sub-text in the book, making it far from the light read that you may judge from the cover. Be prepared to be moved and come out on the other side with more questions than answers. </span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;">Cate Ray is the author of four previously published books in the UK as Cate Weeks. She was named as “Author to watch” by ELLE. </span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;">---------------------------------------------------</span></div><div><span style="color: #666666; font-family: verdana;">Thanks to <a href="https://www.harpercollins.ca" target="_blank">HarperCollins Canada</a> for the Arc of Good Husbands by Cate Ray. </span></div></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-5196275108576781892022-05-23T16:36:00.003-04:002022-05-23T17:57:16.594-04:00Never Coming Home by Hannah Mary McKinnon<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYrra5wHPdGl5BfLKYH-XSwJoEnKztHlDZSXsAPkVStb091qufalSj4Kwu5Tm3sk-QYo2lGZRzk2ejOtnrsIWECzmttxPCA_h59MmK7SwUeXdBfSKaeO68kxMMGOFKgghtYmPHFpL8x31OPQJWMgjTxbBRglCt9AODF6uh_LOj6Yi0epXGMIAsTz7t/s614/1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="614" data-original-width="408" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYrra5wHPdGl5BfLKYH-XSwJoEnKztHlDZSXsAPkVStb091qufalSj4Kwu5Tm3sk-QYo2lGZRzk2ejOtnrsIWECzmttxPCA_h59MmK7SwUeXdBfSKaeO68kxMMGOFKgghtYmPHFpL8x31OPQJWMgjTxbBRglCt9AODF6uh_LOj6Yi0epXGMIAsTz7t/s320/1.jpg" width="213" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Lucas Forester's wife has gone missing, presumed dead, and he is about to win the lottery and inherit everything. Well, almost. There are complications, of course. He’s waited patiently for several years, and a minor delay isn’t about to let his spirits down. He’s prepared to play the grieving husband for a little while longer. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">His wife Michelle was beautiful, sophisticated, and truth be told, a tad bit entitled. His plan to inherit her fortune had been in the works since the day he met her. And he thought he’d covered all his tracks. When a cryptic note and a partial photograph of what appears to be his dead wife appears on his doorstep, his confidence wavers. Who knows about his plan and what do they want?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">The pacing of this story is on point. Lucas Forester is a likeable guy by all accords, except that he’s just ordered a hitman to kill his rich wife, so that he can inherit her fortune. We even feel some sympathy for him when we understand his backstory of his childhood and his dad’s alcohol and gambling habits that dug them all into a bottomless, financial, and emotional hole. His philosophy on life is that good things don’t come to those who wait, but to those who make them happen. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">As Lucas goes from hunter to prey, the mystery thickens. How could things have gone wrong when he planned everything perfectly to the tee. From GPS navigation, to the hitman he hired on the dark web, Lucas had made sure that nothing couldn’t be traced back to him. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">Never Coming Home is written in a witty tone, with undertones of terror perfectly intermingled. Hannah Mary McKinnon is a brilliant storyteller. A master of her words, with a knack to tap into the nuances of her characters, she brings a novel that’s rich with suspense as it is believability. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;"> ---------------</span></p><p><br /></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-21073258363500114182022-05-23T16:27:00.005-04:002022-05-23T18:08:43.207-04:00When We Fell Apart by Soon Wiley<p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAq8-4x3lfbO5xDACYOxvQmx8H5E_6Rgt68_k0ruE4-R2vVZOR37kj3YP6sABH88AD0jMTD4erUjQqJmPsZSgK5DWPUajm5V4Gla-Mg-AInfgvxe0TODuboag1a-bpgRCScvezONe3LPZ-a0jT8J3h9VBEqL7h7mhL8futjTWcZH8EofAd7rAs7CbG/s400/when%20we%20fell%20apart_sukasareads.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="265" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAq8-4x3lfbO5xDACYOxvQmx8H5E_6Rgt68_k0ruE4-R2vVZOR37kj3YP6sABH88AD0jMTD4erUjQqJmPsZSgK5DWPUajm5V4Gla-Mg-AInfgvxe0TODuboag1a-bpgRCScvezONe3LPZ-a0jT8J3h9VBEqL7h7mhL8futjTWcZH8EofAd7rAs7CbG/s320/when%20we%20fell%20apart_sukasareads.jpeg" width="212" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">A title that compels us to read on and a debut novel that moves precisely at the right tempo, slowly intertwining the past with the present. </span><p></p><div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">A girl has committed suicide and the last person who was with her is her boyfriend Min. The circumstances seem mysterious, strange. The evening before Yu-jin and Min had a wonderful date. According to Min, Yu-jin seemed her normal self, nothing seemed off, so the events just don’t add up. What could have happened between the time they were together the previous evening to the morning when she was found strangled. Did she live another secret life that Min didn’t know about? What did her father’s high profile political job as a high-ranking military officer, hand-picked by the President, have to do with anything? </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Min is American and has only been in Seoul less than a year. He comes from a mixed background; his mother was Korean. But, no one in his mom’s generation had ever been to Korea and Min was determined to embark on the trip to understand the parts of himself that made him so decidedly un-American. Yu-jin on the other hand had lived her whole life in the shadows of Korea, growing up in a smaller town, and more recently studying in Seoul. It brought her much pleasure to be in the city and secure her anonymity in a city of millions, far away from her father’s watchful gaze. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">There’s a lot to piece together and the Seoul police are cracking down to nail Min as the main suspect. But what’s really going on? What are Yu-jin’s two roommates hiding, and how did the police know to come to the apartment that morning, if no one called them. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Soon Wiley’s debut novel is a coming-of-age novel, that taps into obligations, expectations, and rebellion. What it means to truly belong, and live in freedom, and the consequences of veering away from society’s expectations. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">-------------</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">When we fell apart by Soon Wiley is published by Penguin Random House. <br />Thanks to the publisher for a copy. </span></div></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-3900126992329002952022-01-23T21:20:00.002-05:002022-01-23T21:20:59.270-05:00One ring to unite them all <div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj3n82JpyooExje7hpS4lZ589KQvifne_QafIjP2xgOIS0qJd2MIDjqRA2UyvV70KTPxydGMndHIn-C-PKprp1ksZOF5t9z6GE4b3S2KGxvPAdvakXfr-OUtiaYsRSZANx0bRlQvuF5jdDhsleP6i6--4b3gW0lHN09A6PVMBCG-WxqXqp6cqYCNu9u=s4032" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj3n82JpyooExje7hpS4lZ589KQvifne_QafIjP2xgOIS0qJd2MIDjqRA2UyvV70KTPxydGMndHIn-C-PKprp1ksZOF5t9z6GE4b3S2KGxvPAdvakXfr-OUtiaYsRSZANx0bRlQvuF5jdDhsleP6i6--4b3gW0lHN09A6PVMBCG-WxqXqp6cqYCNu9u=s320" width="240" /></a></div>All around my world, engineers scurry by. My sister is one, as is my better half. Engineers rule the world, I’ve heard my sibling say on many occasions as we were growing up, especially when there was an argument to be won. Rarely did I have a comeback, because over the years I came to see how true those words rang.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">How I envied that Iron Ring that sat proudly on an engineer’s finger. It signified a close-knit community, one that I was clearly excluded from. My own degree in molecular biology never gave me a sense of camaraderie that my sister shared with her classmates long after she graduated. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgpHwak2hDTmLEfFpjnvQjBEK5l3BCQkIEvaGh4zmDL3yfFawsNAS1dq8WwMRcE-EEUxn9j8NN9T3X3ObE5cGNKYtIoHNRkgh7S-l6Xvrdlgy1n2ABrfG9o-u6wzdEBx_ZDQCxGOtaUjRPU706PXCUp4nbv5NbAgKdeiLdLUYHfuiyKQhVvlkHIewkr=s2048" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgpHwak2hDTmLEfFpjnvQjBEK5l3BCQkIEvaGh4zmDL3yfFawsNAS1dq8WwMRcE-EEUxn9j8NN9T3X3ObE5cGNKYtIoHNRkgh7S-l6Xvrdlgy1n2ABrfG9o-u6wzdEBx_ZDQCxGOtaUjRPU706PXCUp4nbv5NbAgKdeiLdLUYHfuiyKQhVvlkHIewkr=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br />Until Dan Levert’s book <i>On Cold Iron</i>, I’d never really investigated the true history behind that Iron Ring. I did not really know about the “<i>Ritual of the Calling of an Engineer</i>”, the solemn oath that Canadian engineering students take when they are about to graduate. This is an eye opener of a book for those who sit on the sidelines, but a purposeful reliving for engineers. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>On Cold Iron</i> is a remarkable story that will tug at your heartstrings and a reminder of how powerful words can be and how they can take a life of their own within you, inspiring greatness, and protecting mankind. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">The story begins with Herbert Edward Terrick Haultain, a remarkable Canadian mining engineer, inventor and professor. He had a reputation for being a great mentor and was notorious for his messy desk. Maria Kondo, take note. In his own words: “an empty desk denotes the barrenness of soul.” But this is not a story about décor and messy desks. This is a story of an idea, that Professor Haultain had, one that would inevitably change the course of how engineers viewed themselves and their profession. It is also a tome about the importance of “the narrative” to inspire and move a new generation of engineers to change the world. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">At a key luncheon in 1922, Professor Haultain heaped praise on women for their extraordinary efforts and successes, and then told his audience about the “Girls in Green” who banded together during WW1 to help Canadian casualties in hospitals and convalescent wards. In his view, these women saved men’s souls “not from the hell-fire of the future but the hell-fires of today”. In conclusion, he had a word of advice, or a suggestion, or rather a statement of fact. He wanted the young men graduating each year from the university into the profession, to be conscious of an engineering soul. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">And so, the seed was planted. Professor Haultain drafted up a proposal to develop an oath or creed, akin to the Hippocratic Oath that young graduating engineers could subscribe to. In 1923, he decided to get Kipling involved and wrote him a letter that ended with these words: </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>“We are a tribe – a very important tribe within the community, but we are lacking in tribal spirit, or perhaps I should say, in manifestation of a tribal spirit. Also, we are inarticulate. Can you help us?”</i></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Anyone who is aware of Kipling’s works, know that his short stories and poems all carry a moral or lesson, and always end up leaving an indelible impression on the reader. That’s exactly the kind of “soul” that was needed and it made him the ideal choice. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">“<i>The Ritual of the Calling of an Engineer</i>” arrived at Professor Haultian’s office in Canada on November 27, 1923. The text was handwritten in Old English lettering. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">“</span><span style="font-family: UnifrakturMaguntia;">The package included the Obligation, the text and a description of the Ceremony, a detailed description of the Iron Ring and how it was to be worn, together with notes about the Ritual.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">” </span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjlvfT9Ym3P0D5CtRvf8_z1eEklGtOIMuzBMgDXtPyqeCjZnkWfEIUBj3tvYfuGUBCq1_xHkcwCAJZQ2T6DjOzvIiFOsLiea1mm95GihZNHgcDbgatZZHAFqZJ7fagGwSgZzKBC3wI5ndR_BTqBnnlYdY09nnLFEZXFxOQ9-q--VqW2PKMOysOPHZsA=s4032" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3021" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjlvfT9Ym3P0D5CtRvf8_z1eEklGtOIMuzBMgDXtPyqeCjZnkWfEIUBj3tvYfuGUBCq1_xHkcwCAJZQ2T6DjOzvIiFOsLiea1mm95GihZNHgcDbgatZZHAFqZJ7fagGwSgZzKBC3wI5ndR_BTqBnnlYdY09nnLFEZXFxOQ9-q--VqW2PKMOysOPHZsA=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div><br />On Cold Iron</i> also is a historical and technical study of an avoidable human tragedy. The Quebec bridge disaster is a key moment in Canadian history, and the incident weighs heavily amongst engineers. Dan Levert is himself an engineer and construction lawyer, and his in-depth analysis of the bridge collapse is the kind of compelling read that every engineer or historian looks forward to. From the early warning signs to the collapse, Dan Levert writes with a technicality that is precise and <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjmiNw--ts4uEFlx5iAc0tJvquDbyy-x43qNM64I8GcJfxWQ9OYXHNK0QEGvDLpr_3Src6odk0ifmwvmDpWHNGRqaveqJKMoDrbpXwBZqMTfcQKs80KgPG4UBD4Saq0uNC49MaIl9gqkNYs0ct4QuFhKkunq9AW3lOEvI7ae3cH8DjbT5QJcAdOv62z=s4032" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3021" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjmiNw--ts4uEFlx5iAc0tJvquDbyy-x43qNM64I8GcJfxWQ9OYXHNK0QEGvDLpr_3Src6odk0ifmwvmDpWHNGRqaveqJKMoDrbpXwBZqMTfcQKs80KgPG4UBD4Saq0uNC49MaIl9gqkNYs0ct4QuFhKkunq9AW3lOEvI7ae3cH8DjbT5QJcAdOv62z=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div>well researched. For some readers this level of eerie intensity that forces one right into the heart of the action, can be jarring but it’s an honestly that historians and hardcore engineers will appreciate. It is a story of one of the most horrific engineering disasters to face our country, one brought on by missteps, poor policies and hubris, that culminated with the death of seventy-six men. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>On Cold Iron </i>will anchor every engineer, give historians a deeper understanding of the 1907 Quebec Bridge collapse, and enlighten the general population (me included) on the importance of that Iron Ring that quietly rests on the little finger of someone they are close to. </span></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-68791477503491782662022-01-05T14:05:00.000-05:002022-01-05T14:05:22.437-05:00Wish we could go back to the beginning of the holidays when we were naive and innocent. <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEii2EnW-qmgMexTidcRQnOvqzz7a3FbXqZpi_40sHmakiqxVenAqDk2UYebn1DaYTs8TXiuPOfGpRVIw66EIuReB855O_DmbDP41ul8RNmVkMAcvUSP3GLqDiDhTmPCA2Qvd5XaCp-Hi83AS5IUE_E3ivqpoGg89cvR7ktQdZs1EhYO16cSFjta2cbw=s2048" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEii2EnW-qmgMexTidcRQnOvqzz7a3FbXqZpi_40sHmakiqxVenAqDk2UYebn1DaYTs8TXiuPOfGpRVIw66EIuReB855O_DmbDP41ul8RNmVkMAcvUSP3GLqDiDhTmPCA2Qvd5XaCp-Hi83AS5IUE_E3ivqpoGg89cvR7ktQdZs1EhYO16cSFjta2cbw=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></div><br /> <p></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-63982194558604757152021-05-19T05:00:00.001-04:002021-05-19T17:48:33.819-04:00Dawn Raid by Pauline Vaeluaga Smith<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn3q6Y5HNBcFDxmAAy2wIxg_85106C8uivRKKu6iT_jYc2osplPDxJSBzJeesuJH8rXUjzf3XAQruw7mxqYF0sGWK6uscv4iBaTVQ68tUpmaq95Dogb0Thx19F8WcjmcYrmxyVpOt0gEY/s400/54817883.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="281" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn3q6Y5HNBcFDxmAAy2wIxg_85106C8uivRKKu6iT_jYc2osplPDxJSBzJeesuJH8rXUjzf3XAQruw7mxqYF0sGWK6uscv4iBaTVQ68tUpmaq95Dogb0Thx19F8WcjmcYrmxyVpOt0gEY/w281-h400/54817883.jpeg" width="281" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Like any girl growing up in the 1970s, Sofia worries and stresses over the things around her. The speech she has to give in school, and how she can earn extra money so she can buy the go-go boots that are all the rave at the moment. She documents her daily trials and tribulations in her diary, that become the backdrop of Pauline Vaeluaga Smith's middle grade novel, Dawn Raid. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">Set in New Zealand, the book is inspired by the efforts of the Polynesian Panthers as they encourage immigrant families to stand up for their rights. Sofia's dad is from Samoa and her mom is Pākehā born in Napier. Growing up, she is privy to the subtle distinctions in race and status, but it isn't until events in her life force her to confront what is happening around her, that she starts to take notice. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">Sofia's older brother Lenny, brings light to protests happening in New Zealand against the Pacific Islanders and how the government is trying to get rid of the overstayers. As Sofia learns, her brother is right in the middle of it all. What ensues is history.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">Dawn Raid attempts to capture a page in the history of New Zealand. Although it is a vividly imagine account of the actual event, it is applause-worthy that these kinds of stories are told to the younger audience, so that they arouse a curiosity that inevitably strengthens the mind with values such as equality and respect. </span></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-40804340683936151362021-05-04T20:38:00.003-04:002021-05-04T20:38:29.718-04:00Gutter Child by Jael Richardson - a conversation you can't ignore <div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkXMXYx1ue-R3ZFXIDbIXFC_qPmBkU5lfbn8NCT3euSsDHh87gzrs5oBMFqHW0VapfidOnQaoWIe1zuW-z2Rjsp_D3E0a_nSeTZiwwcDswQILknFNI_wJV7d1RoHlsyq3z8K_2osWrI4o/s2048/Gutter+Child_Jael+Richardson_sukasastyle.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Book review of Gutter Child by Jael Richardson" border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkXMXYx1ue-R3ZFXIDbIXFC_qPmBkU5lfbn8NCT3euSsDHh87gzrs5oBMFqHW0VapfidOnQaoWIe1zuW-z2Rjsp_D3E0a_nSeTZiwwcDswQILknFNI_wJV7d1RoHlsyq3z8K_2osWrI4o/w300-h400/Gutter+Child_Jael+Richardson_sukasastyle.JPG" title="Gutter Child by Jael Richardson" width="300" /></a></div><br />Gutter Child by Jael Richardson provokes a conversation about class and system. The novel is set in an imagined world, but is routed in some familiar aspects of history, namely colonialism, class and institutionalized racism. In this dystopian world, there are two distinct places. The distribution of wealth and privilege, rests solely in the palms of those who are light-skinned and who live on the Mainland. There are some who have been some dark-skinned citizens who have been able to enjoy this wealth, but they are far and few, and even they don’t have access to all the privileges that those born with a silver spoon in their mouth have. </span><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Sure, there is a system in place. But, if history is to repeat itself, then you know that the system is not designed to be fair, and the distribution of wealth and hardship remains divided. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Elimina Dubois is one of these 100 babies taken from the gutter and raised in the land of opportunity, as part of a social experiment led by the Mainland government. Her new mom is light-skinned, and kind and loving, but even she cannot protect her from the roving eyes of other mainlanders, who snicker and point whenever they see the mother-daughter pair in public. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Elimina’s life of privilege doesn’t last, and she finds herself back in a system, she’s not equipped to maneuver. The Gutter world is unlike the Mainland. It’s the flip of the coin. Here things are policed. But things aren’t black and white. You are born with a debt to society that you have to pay off throughout your life. If you are lucky, then through years of service, you may be able to get out of this, and perhaps even take a family member with you. But how much debt you owe is not set in stone, and so there is no clear passage to a better life. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Jael Richardson has taken on a monumental task, of writing a novel that attempts to tackle the underpinnings of a social system that is flawed and unfair. Gutter Child is an amalgamation of themes that some may find familiar, weaved from generations of stories from Canada and around the world, that historically hold a dark place in our society. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Even the fictional and dystopian nature of the novel does not gloss over the horrific cruelty that young children experienced in the residential school system in Canada. You may also notice more than just a passing similarity to another dystopian novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, which caused a sensational fan following over the past few years on HBO. The resemblance of the headstrong Alfred and Elimina, and even an uncanny resemblance to one other character in the TV adaption, Janine Lindo, who had her right eye is removed as a punishment for her initial non-compliance. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is clear that Jael Richardson has poured her heart and soul into her debut novel. </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Read it because it will enrich your view of the world. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">The world needs saving, and she has achieved a commendable feat in trying and nudge it along. </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-73287480086466054382021-04-16T17:53:00.000-04:002021-04-16T17:53:01.319-04:00Lockdown anxiety? This is the best possible time to pick up this book. <div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs2kOk4W5eKrHk-J-vQnc0U7YXeoo9xunFgWu84c3jhGMNFvvZLgp0eTGofkBfcCJPI9zVhXmdHQT_WTRsPZGVieBdHVxd8ekB6MzGsLxPcDHuma6ZBo-0EmXkfEqaMS-GsO48peYYxK4/s2048/Jenny+Lawson_Broken_book+review_SukasaReds.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs2kOk4W5eKrHk-J-vQnc0U7YXeoo9xunFgWu84c3jhGMNFvvZLgp0eTGofkBfcCJPI9zVhXmdHQT_WTRsPZGVieBdHVxd8ekB6MzGsLxPcDHuma6ZBo-0EmXkfEqaMS-GsO48peYYxK4/s320/Jenny+Lawson_Broken_book+review_SukasaReds.JPG" /></a></div>With a razor sharp wit, and an uncanny ability to tug at your heartstrings, Jenny Lawson brings her new book Broken (In the best possible way) to readers. For those who have read her other bestsellers, <i>Furiously Happy</i> and <i>Let’s Pretend This Never Happened</i>, you’ll be interested to know that this is her most personal book yet. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Fans of Jenny Lawson already know that she suffers from depression, and in this book, she brings her signature style of humour to provide another perspective of how living with anxiety takes control of someone’s life. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">In one story, she describes a time when she was on book tours and while she was moved by the fact that people came in droves, and told her how much her book helped them, she was dealing with her own secret of isolation. When fans told her, that it was the first time in months that they’d ventured out of the cocoon of their homes, she felt a deep sense of guilt, because she was anxious to just leave her hotel room. During a signing in New York City, Jenny Lawson had a hotel room that overlooked Times Square, and as she watched the tourists walk by, she was feeling down because she wondered what Carnegie Hall looked like from the inside. It was then that someone special happened. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Down below, there was a fountain, shaped like a dandelion; a giant ball of pipes that dwarfed the people walking by it. Each pipe ended in a fountain, like a firework made of metal and water. She’s seen it before, but at that exact time and place, the light shone on it and it created an enormous rainbow wall that waved with the water, like fire made of colours. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">This beautiful display not only took her breath away, but she realized something important that day. If she hadn’t been trapped in her hotel, having a small breakdown…if she hadn’t been at that spot, right at that moment, then she would have never seen it. Serendipity! She concluded that it was all about perspective, literally and figuratively, and considered that it a sign that perhaps there was a path that she was supposed to be on. The path is different for everyone, and it can be hard and lonely, but it’s a reminder of the amazing things she’d never see with “normal eyes and other paths”. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></div><div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Broken (In the Best Possible Way) is a rambling of thoughts, jokes and anecdotes. If nothing else, this book will help you lose yourself, so that you find an outlet for your own anxiety. A sole chapter is dedicated to these random facts, that readers can gather a laugh or two. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">She challenges random musings like people referring to the phrase “blood being thicker than water”. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">“But when does thickness equal importance?” she argues.</span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Marriages are challenging in the best of times, and Jenny Lawson shares some advice from her own experience. The secret to a successful marriage, she suggests, is memory loss and well-meaning lies. You'll just have to read the book to understand how she came up with this conclusion.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">While Broken (In The Best Possible Way) is hilariously funny, it is also deeply moving, and during this pandemic when everyone is experiencing that heightened bit of anxiety, this book will address your fears, but also give you an escape. </span></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-24699019921353085862021-04-05T17:16:00.000-04:002021-04-05T17:16:01.075-04:00 Jack & Bet by Sarah Butler<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #454545; font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" dir="rtl" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #454545; font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHriMaslJyZCo3jn560vESuhzemg66eH5Jc4XZYLbooxrZol1647WUCMNE6b6SuD2XcDeyP-D3X7nBW9ZMGhhi0YR15bUWYeFuocLtwm2OtZB2uVFpWNIEFfgDnmyUblkyPzPMNOYJvFg/s2048/Jack+%2526+Bet_Sarah+Butler_SukasaStyle+Blog.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHriMaslJyZCo3jn560vESuhzemg66eH5Jc4XZYLbooxrZol1647WUCMNE6b6SuD2XcDeyP-D3X7nBW9ZMGhhi0YR15bUWYeFuocLtwm2OtZB2uVFpWNIEFfgDnmyUblkyPzPMNOYJvFg/w400-h400/Jack+%2526+Bet_Sarah+Butler_SukasaStyle+Blog.JPG" title="Jack & Bet by Sarah Butler book review" width="400" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #454545; font-family: verdana;"><br />Choices. As humans, every single day, we are bombarded with them, each choice propelling us in one direction or another</span><span style="color: #454545; font-family: verdana;">. Some decisions are more serious, with repercussions that cause more than just a mere ripple, while others insist on haunting us for the rest of our lives. Sarah Butler explores the impacts of fate and opportunity, in her novel Jack & Bet.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="color: #454545; font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Jack and Bet are celebrating seventy years of together. The sheer magnitude of this, seems like an outstanding feat in and of itself, an aspiring achievement that we all admire. When we see a couple that has been together for that long, we tend to generally make an assumption that it has been a perfect union, a love that's lasting.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> But even the longest marriages have their secrets...and this one is about to come out. Will it break the couple, or only make them stronger?</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">All Jack & Bet want to do is spend the rest of their days in the flat they have tried to make their home. Their son Tommy has other ideas; he wants them to live somewhere with round-the-clock care, hot meals and activities. He’s worried about them; which son wouldn’t be?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The premise of the novel was what got my attention. It felt a bit close to my heart. I have aging parents and in-laws, and perhaps I was intrigued by the concept of the book to enlighten and guide my situation about how to navigate the dynamics of relationships and family. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I don’t want to give too much away of the story, because the gradual reveal of each character, flaws and all, is what makes Jack & Bet by Sarah Butler interesting. The prose is tender and moving, and the narrative, a reminder of how quickly life comes at us, giving us abundant choices to dive in wholeheartedly. It is up to us to seize those choices and make the most of them. This is generally the advice we give to the young. Go out, seize the day. Follow your heart, and it will not lead you astray. This is where, Sarah Butler looks at things a bit differently. </span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana;">The reader gets an appreciation of their life and complexity of decision-making from three different perspectives. This merely enhances the appreciation of the novel, and a deeper understanding of the characters themselves. You will repeatedly have questions to the likes of, "what would you do if you were in this situation?" </span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Does keeping a secret justify its purpose? How far would you go to protect the ones you love? </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">As you approach the final days of your life, would you regret some of those choices, especially if they impacted your loved ones?</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">J</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">ack & Bet by Sarah Butler poses more questions than it answers, but it also brings light to a harsh reality, that marriage rarely is picture perfect. Keeping a marriage together requires a commitment, hard work and sometimes, a need for secrets to be buried deep down where the light cannot shine on it. But that is all humbug, of course. Despite the seriousness of the topic, there is also a tenderness to the novel, and a story of survival and ultimately owning your choices. </span></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-57652051618855353902021-02-15T12:42:00.003-05:002021-02-15T12:58:34.811-05:00Melanie Finn's The Hare needs to be part of today's conversation<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="color: #454545;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD2uZkKvTWoGnPipjo_NMwxKKtRwuNzJA3y2nFZmr9GXg5Fi4CDKxwJ40acZonlF2tCA095lz9tX5vs7sd5jlNJjEVHPOwwmxdweHHr2toa9B5ORXrjbtNoxyi1k1gtIc7wIhjVckmlzQ/s640/The+Hare_Melanie+Finn_book+review.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD2uZkKvTWoGnPipjo_NMwxKKtRwuNzJA3y2nFZmr9GXg5Fi4CDKxwJ40acZonlF2tCA095lz9tX5vs7sd5jlNJjEVHPOwwmxdweHHr2toa9B5ORXrjbtNoxyi1k1gtIc7wIhjVckmlzQ/w400-h400/The+Hare_Melanie+Finn_book+review.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">What must it feel like to feel so damn sure? Rosie Monroe thought of the story that Bennett had told her, the one of him defacing his parents Picasso. This abashed confidence, paired with his dashing looks, is a recipe for disaster. But like all things that are bad for us, it was this defiant and reckless behaviour that over time would slowly, but surely, take bite-sized bits of her soul.<span class="Apple-converted-space" style="color: #454545;"> </span></span><p></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Bennett Kinney had a toxic air of confidence, easy to get swept up in, so who could blame young, naive, Rosie. Only a year into art school, she was miserable, and wondering if she had met the greatest mistake of her life, when she defied her strict grandmother and secretly applied for a scholarship at a prestigious school in New York City. There was no way, that her grandmother would have been able to pay the fees. NYC was the far cry from her blue collar upbringing in Massachusetts, and Rosie was starting to feel like she just didn’t seem to fit into this big city, with the pretentious people who partied all night, wore black and had more piercings than you count count on one hand.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Meeting Bennett at the MoMA one afternoon changed everything. Two weeks later he took her on their first date to The Stanhope Hotel on Fifth Avenue for tea. The room was unexceptional, pea-green wallpaper and fusty furnishings, and the Bennett fussed over the old women patrons. It was a world that was all new to Rosie, and it intrigued her. Bennett was different. Twenty years her senior, he seemed worldly and she was infatuated by the picture he painted of his own life and the high society life he lived in. He said he was an appraiser of fine art and spent his days steeped in paintings, jewellery and porcelain figurines. He had grown up in the upper crust of New England Society, or at least that’s what he told her. Rosie Monroe assume he came from money, but she didn’t know where or how much. She was eager to escape from her own world, into his, and he willingly led the way.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Rosie moved in with Bennett to a swanky boathouse on Connecticut’s Gold Coast. After giving birth to a daughter called Miranda, thing take a drastic turn for the worse. There were always questionable things she wondered about Bennett. Why did he disappear for nights and reappear as if nothing had happened. Where are all these people he seems to know, and what is he always up to? The more she gets to know him, the more questionable his lifestyle appears. He seems to have a lot of disdain for his rich friends. Was Bennett pretending to be on the inside, but was in fact, outside, giving the finger?</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">When their daughter Miranda is born, things change drastically. His current con seems to have gone awry, and without much explanation, tells Rosie that they must leave immediately, in the middle of the night, for an undisclosed location somewhere in Canada. They end up in an uncared for, cabin, in the middle of northern Vermont. Bennett abandons them without supplies, and limited funds, barely enough to buy necessities, for weeks on end.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">What unfolds is a story of resilience, heartbreak and survival. The Hare by Melanie Finn will make you angry, and hopefully more wiser. You will replace the black and white in your colour palette, to different hues of grey. Complicit is not a term that you will be comfortable with. This is by far one of the best literary novels that I’ve read in 2021, and it’s one that will affect my decisions for the rest of my life. A literary masterpiece, that feels so personal, yet removed.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;">--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Hare-Melanie-Finn/dp/1937512975/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1613410492&sr=8-1" target="_blank">THE HARE</a> by <a href="http://www.twitter.com/melanie_finn" target="_blank">Melanie Finn</a> is published by <a href="https://twodollarradio.com/" target="_blank">Two Dollar Radio</a>. Copy provided by <a href="https://www.pgcbooks.ca/">Publishers Group Canada</a>. Thoughts are my own. </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-20515770654266701902020-12-15T17:35:00.000-05:002020-12-15T17:35:04.612-05:002020 Best Books<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1uUmnty9IHCrEhUd2Oob2N_U7Lk8aBNHckmExQ4r4I1ZDY5OoHlc8Cd7lHjcpMUsg6nPaYK3AIg4LHJGrzWvgiqOkGHfoBB5vmWWdQJ659zmbi6LWREcG8_xk6EQTz8ULdr3bdnEkJeY/s2048/3F0BAB03-BA5C-490A-90F8-9EF03E194A33+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1uUmnty9IHCrEhUd2Oob2N_U7Lk8aBNHckmExQ4r4I1ZDY5OoHlc8Cd7lHjcpMUsg6nPaYK3AIg4LHJGrzWvgiqOkGHfoBB5vmWWdQJ659zmbi6LWREcG8_xk6EQTz8ULdr3bdnEkJeY/w640-h640/3F0BAB03-BA5C-490A-90F8-9EF03E194A33+2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The year was unexpected. My reading was equally chaotic. But in the midst of all the unrest, a few books brought me a sense of comfort and familiarity, if not a much needed distraction. These are the ones that stood out for me.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">.</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">.</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>John Cleese Creativity: A Short and Cheerful Guide<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">If you think you aren’t creative, read this book.</span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Remarkable Diaries</b> by DK</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Features the world’s greatest diaries, journals, notebooks, and letters.</span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Polar Vortex</b> by Shani Mootoo<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">A Giller Prize finalist...need I say more.</span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>How To Pronounce Knife</b> by Souvankham Thammavongsa<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">A Giller Winner. A new voice in Canadian and World literature.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Seven</b> by Farzana Doctor</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">An taboo topic to talk about, but written with a personal intimacy. She makes an uncomfortable topic, approachable.</span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Dear Child</b> by Romy Hausmann</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">One of the best debut novels this year. A chilling read that will keep you up at night. For lovers of a good mystery.</span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>The Well of Being</b> by Jean-Pierre Weill</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">An illustrated inquiry into the art of happiness and what it means to be radically alive in our daily moments.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-83914453959171633772020-11-24T20:03:00.009-05:002020-11-26T15:46:18.232-05:00Unlike 2020, you won't want to say goodbye to Dear Child <p><span style="color: #454545; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Dear Child, I’d promise to protect you and love you forever. Mom.</span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV-000eTAdaOgVrXeDxJUnxGAL-jT4cd_L4XRbmxN80eqnHmqB8uSyu_6-eE-fJ8YBf4fDtHKaGVXgUcsSeDnadaoJMa_va6mHD5doV4QWTD0althM7xBtewobhCSm58qTEqD0VDPgSpE/s2048/IMG_0971.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV-000eTAdaOgVrXeDxJUnxGAL-jT4cd_L4XRbmxN80eqnHmqB8uSyu_6-eE-fJ8YBf4fDtHKaGVXgUcsSeDnadaoJMa_va6mHD5doV4QWTD0althM7xBtewobhCSm58qTEqD0VDPgSpE/w400-h400/IMG_0971.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">If you’ve read, or watched the movie Room, then you’ll be interested in reading <i>Dear Child</i>. While your initial thoughts may be somewhere along the lines of "why bother", perhaps since you perceive it to be a rehashing of a story that went on to be an Oscar contender, let me assure you, that it is not.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><p></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">A woman emerges from the woods and has been hit by a car. As she is being transported to the hospital in an ambulance, with her daughter, the authorities learn that her name is Lena. As the novel progresses, Hannah, the daughter, continues to reveal snippets of information that creates ripples of doubt as to who this woman really is. Could she be Lena Beck, the girl who went missing 14 years ago? </span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">As the cops and family try to put the pieces together, Lena's father claims that she is not his daughter. But, with the incredible evidence unfolding, the line between truth and lies becomes blurry. Even he is completely flabbergasted by the resemblance of the young girl, Hannah, to his daughter as a child. </span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The writing is phenomenal. Piecing the bits, little by little, you really don’t know what’s going to happen next. For a debut novel, this one blew my mind. It gave me jitters, yet I couldn’t put it down. For a number of days straight, I ignored my strict bedtime protocol, and motored on, reading without sometimes realizing that I'd momentarily stopped breathing. </span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Seamlessly blending in various characters and voices<span class="Apple-converted-space"> that meld in to tell a story that's complex and intriguing, <i>Dear Child</i> is 2020's novel that you will not regret diving into. </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">While the novel is overall twisted and deeply disturbing, it is the characters that continue to haunt you with Hannah, the young girl, being at the centre of it all. This is my favourite pick for 2020 best books of the year. </span></p><p class="p1" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">A chilling read that will keep you up at night and voices that will haunt you in your dreams. </span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-68300584085779316242020-11-24T19:59:00.000-05:002020-11-24T19:59:12.879-05:00Ready or not, Peter James is going to Knock 'em Dead<p><span style="color: #454545; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #454545; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf99YkibrR9S6Eo_nK24DdDPG6Gy-CThtAUuncRa0pzd-3IqJZ7VpybPzxQi4UyxcmWz6gEVYtiehgjAtB8k0mW-YZ8TThFGHKdBl7MhjEmU3LzYTjyIB1HAlIbv60CpqrI5Il3Va4iQE/s2048/B4E5186D-0361-4B2C-AC77-0F24EEFBEEC6.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf99YkibrR9S6Eo_nK24DdDPG6Gy-CThtAUuncRa0pzd-3IqJZ7VpybPzxQi4UyxcmWz6gEVYtiehgjAtB8k0mW-YZ8TThFGHKdBl7MhjEmU3LzYTjyIB1HAlIbv60CpqrI5Il3Va4iQE/w640-h640/B4E5186D-0361-4B2C-AC77-0F24EEFBEEC6.JPG" width="640" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #454545; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #454545;">I claim to have a long charming history with Peter James. The renowned mystery writer's detective sleuthing in the Roy Grace mysteries has been sweeping me off my feet for years. Just in time for the holidays, a new novel hits the shelves. But if you think this is another Detective Superintendent Roy Grace novel, you're dead wrong. </span></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #454545;"><br /></span><span style="color: #454545;">With riveting storylines and murder mysteries set in small town picturesque locations within the UK, Peter James has cornered the market and maintained his status as the Sunday Times No. 1 bestselling author...</span><span style="color: #454545;">17 times and counting.</span><span style="color: #454545;"> </span><span style="color: #454545;">If you have read any of his Roy Grace series books, you know what you're in for. It’s akin to watching your favourite crime drama unfold, day after day. The details lurk in the shadows, but the structure remains the same...it's about solving a murder mystery after all. </span><span style="color: #454545;">While the predictability is oddly satisfying, the hint of something new, just may steer you away. </span></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #454545;"><br /></span><span style="color: #454545;">It’s 2020, and while things are certainly in disarray around the world, it seems that this unruliness of the energies has also carried over into the life of Peter James. If an autobiography of Peter James is released in the future, it would highlight this monumental year, when he stepped out of his comfort zone, and did something utterly out of the norm, with a little help and inspiration from his wife. </span><span style="color: #454545;"><i>I Follow You...until you are mine,</i> is the new standalone novel that will make you think twice about putting your trust in anyone, especially in the medical profession. Now that in itself is a scary thought. </span></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #454545;"><br /></span>The story starts off with an almost accident. A distracted doctor, in his high-end vehicle, who almost runs into a runner at the train tracks. There’s something about the runner that reminds him of a girl he used to like in high school; one he never got over.<br />Movie lovers (especially those in love with the psychological thriller) will easily put two and two together to realize that the plot of <i>I Follow You...until you are mine</i><i> </i>heads down a seriously dangerous path. Obsession is not a virtue to aspire to. But when that behaviour is paired with a sophisticated, but rather easily available piece of location-tracking technology, it becomes all the more deadly and inevitably plunges the reader into a state of unease. <i>Need You Dead </i>will make you think twice about what apps you are running on your phone. </span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br />While there were aspects of the book I enjoyed, I also felt that it lacked the familiarity of a normal Peter James novel. Perhaps that may be considered a good thing. One may want to snap out of the expected. So do I. But as an avid reader and lover of psychological thrillers, I yearned for much more. Turning the pages of <i>I Follow You</i> I wanted my pulse to race and blood pressure to go off the charts. Knowing what a good writer Peter James is, my expectations were sky high. Plus, I couldn't help comparing his writing style with others who have written award-winning books of a similar genre, such as Gillian Flynn, author of Gone Girl.<br /><br /></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Let me explain. While I could be made to believe that a surgeon at the top of his game could be deceptive and manipulative, what I couldn't fully grasp was the motivation and impulse of the character. The internal monologues were flippant, and decisions nonchalant. I had a hard time getting into his headspace and believing in the authenticity of his actions. With a deeper dive into the character, Peter James just may have been able to create a more convincing persona. My intuition is that after writing in the voice of Detective Roy Grace for so many years, perhaps moving to another character may have been a bridge too far. </span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br />I have to also confess that I let a significant amount of time pass from the time I read <i>I Follow You</i> and writing this review. In between the pages, I committed to reading another book, <i>Dear Child </i>by Romy Hausmann. While these are two very different books, there is a thread of commonality inherent in their subject matter, making a comparative analysis of the books inevitable.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span>For fans of Peter James, I do encourage you to read this standalone novel, and let me know what you think. I you do pick up <i>Dear Child </i>by Romy Hausmann, I'd be curious if you also made an active comparison of the two.</span></div><p></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-34134223915701546832020-10-20T10:48:00.000-04:002020-10-20T10:48:23.171-04:00What can you do with grains of sand? Simple. Grow beach umbrellas...<p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqRn8SF43-tedaU5MV0RIqzwIIujgULUIl7W-I_eFK6xfDCNHvS4lscbC0RS_8JdUI-ilIsGfFsPrhj0Lu05rdl2r51m_Xx2HXwpb0NqgPJPeickGcO4bQHewrebo82nXj3ZAlf6Y3ua8/s640/F5528CA7-0F03-4D6C-B1F5-889C4BCF4F6B.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqRn8SF43-tedaU5MV0RIqzwIIujgULUIl7W-I_eFK6xfDCNHvS4lscbC0RS_8JdUI-ilIsGfFsPrhj0Lu05rdl2r51m_Xx2HXwpb0NqgPJPeickGcO4bQHewrebo82nXj3ZAlf6Y3ua8/w640-h640/F5528CA7-0F03-4D6C-B1F5-889C4BCF4F6B.JPG" width="640" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br />This weekend, a friend told me about a book he would read to his daughter when she was young. It was about a yellow umbrella. Apparently, it didn’t have any words, but his daughter loved this book, interpreting it in the way that made the most sense to her.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">This is not a doodling from that book. I just happened to pick up this lovely book by Sibylle Delacroix to inspire me today, and stumbled upon this double spread that just lifted my spirits. It was my own interpretation of happiness. As a kid, the beach was my favourite place to go on holiday (still is). And in this pandemic year, I miss it even more. But the memories of sand in between my toes, and walking along the beach, admiring the footprints I’d leave behind, still brings me so much joy.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Sibylle is the writer and illustration of this children's book called GRAINS OF SAND, and what an enchanting tribute to the carefree vacations of childhood. It’s a story about a young girl who comes home from vacation with a shoeful of sand. When her brother asks her what she will do with the little golden grains, she thinks for a moment.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></p><blockquote><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I know! Let’s plant them!</span></blockquote><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Perhaps a field of beach umbrellas will sprout up...</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">This is the perfect bedtime story. There's a dreamy element to it, with a tone and rhythm in the words that will just put kids into a wonderful happy slumber. The last page of the book, perfectly sets the mood for bedtime. The sleepy heads will 💤 as the listen to the story wind down. The illustrations seem to fall into place with the words, as they show a father carrying the sleepy girl, and leading her brother Ulysses, to their room for bedtime. </span></p><p><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></p><blockquote><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Before I drift off. I hear Daddy promise that we'll go back to the beach next year and harvest new grains of sand. </span></blockquote><p></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">GRAINS OF SAND is published by Owl Kids Publishing, who provided a copy for review. I loved the nostalgic aspect of this book, brought alive by simple old school pencil illustrations with just a pop of colour, blue and yellow, here and there, to bring you happiness all through the year. </span></p><div><br /></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-39140104754326354892020-09-28T09:47:00.000-04:002020-09-28T09:47:29.357-04:00When you love someone, you never let them go.<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #8e7cc3; font-size: medium;"> <br />They say there's a fine line between love and hate. But I don't think there's a line at all. They're the same thing. What we love we hate for loving. What makes us more vulnerable than love? What hurts so much? It's a tightrope that we walk. Wavering from one side to the </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">other. Sometimes it </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">tips and </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">there's nothing you can do.</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYtiBQ9INdyjWQbiIfBTqRL3yFWFwf-hrOriKdBIg7C_lyTCSIhn47bUssawvEEVHqV4_y7KYUIh3JNQDfrvw4A4MXYym3s27Gj15FD35WyQ7NyCHL-qAeri3IMbeTJZz8bvQDvNVZxqg/s2048/IMG_0293.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1643" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYtiBQ9INdyjWQbiIfBTqRL3yFWFwf-hrOriKdBIg7C_lyTCSIhn47bUssawvEEVHqV4_y7KYUIh3JNQDfrvw4A4MXYym3s27Gj15FD35WyQ7NyCHL-qAeri3IMbeTJZz8bvQDvNVZxqg/w514-h640/IMG_0293.jpeg" width="514" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">It's a title that's telling, one that foreshadows an ending that perhaps most critics would agree is the polar opposite of a traditional love story. The plot of </span><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">If I Can't Have You</i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> by Charlotte Levin, may seem predictable, but it's one the reader just may find themselves obsessed with, as it succeeds in highlighting a character and storyline that amuses, and to some, even feel strangely familiar. It is perhaps this familiarity that readers will be able to relate to; jealousy inevitably moulds the character into something more interesting, and oddly relatable. </span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: x-large;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The inclination to read <i>If I Can't Have You </i>is somewhat akin, to that feeling you had when you read Gone Girl, or Girl On The Train. </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Swimming with seductive themes of obsession, entitlement, betrayal and, need I whisper "love", this debut novel is well on it's way to becoming one of this season's most juiciest pick-me-ups. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Constance, the protagonist, is the young receptionist at a doctor's office who is dealing with a lot in her life, including the death of her mom, and a new job. Then her world is turned even more topsy turvy, with the sudden demise of her boss, the doctor who hired her. His replacement (drum roll please) is a handsome fellow, called Dr. Stevens, and well, you can imagine what happens next. A torrid affair, which inevitably means more to her, than him. But, can you blame her, when he keeps reeling her back in. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">While the story is somewhat predictable, what makes <i>If I Can't Have You</i> quite engaging, is the writing. Isn't it always? Witty internal dialogues and somewhat logical, but outlandish acts of defiance, makes Constance more of a character one may empathize with, rather than scoff at. Her behaviour, somewhat warranted, considering how she's been treated, is characteristic of someone going through an emotional turmoil of being tossed aside like a rotting vegetable, by a lover...who really doesn't have an ounce of emotion for her, except for his own ego-boost</span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">. </span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Even through her acts of insanity, you care about Constance, sometimes even feel that her actions are justifiable. Until they go too far. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Skeptics, put your opinions aside, until you read this book. Then we'll talk. Charlotte Levin's debut novel is a guilty pleasure that you just can't afford to miss out on. </span></div>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-34093194504717489752020-09-05T18:27:00.001-04:002020-09-05T18:27:24.246-04:00Geraldo Valério cracks stereotypes in The Egg<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-S4u8l6IDBaoGsFgxKh93SzbGL160fKH2AYvnT9VwFwdGWrKBvhPNjpj20FKXZb5-VswMSIERJ2OBe9Fpcj8ROZABCJ1acZdSE6cdUzaGNpZLbR5lTaucgseu9CF3fh-30vO7CZyiBPo/s640/IMG_0788.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-S4u8l6IDBaoGsFgxKh93SzbGL160fKH2AYvnT9VwFwdGWrKBvhPNjpj20FKXZb5-VswMSIERJ2OBe9Fpcj8ROZABCJ1acZdSE6cdUzaGNpZLbR5lTaucgseu9CF3fh-30vO7CZyiBPo/w640-h640/IMG_0788.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">How do you teach kids to be inclusive and respect people around them? With books like this one. Think of Geraldo Valério’s THE EGG as a teaching moment, a reminder, that families come in all shapes and sizes.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">This book has no words, literally. It’s an inditement to the fact that pictures speak louder than words (just don’t tell a writer that).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">The story:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">An egg falls from a crane’s nest leaving her devastated. The grieving crane takes flight, only to find another egg in deed of a home. The hatchling that emerges is .... a surprise. But that does not bother the crane who is delighted, and showers the little one with 💕.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">The teaching moment: Families come in all shapes and sizes.</span></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-39217469115703778842020-09-04T12:08:00.003-04:002020-09-04T12:08:22.956-04:00Get your kids back to school with Raj's Rule <p> <img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkIRJ7UvgvZUZoPE6SupQQRtZcj_pzUhGf4-kztj9nODhE-GuOVOZQl5FTMm_lQfsyD-fR6HuwfWxurxAhhqIOqFztcnz1dhtVr-aVxog4dJZGo60o3UfRGXqaVW8xXloH57Mt7FyzMuk/w640-h640/IMG_0795.JPG" width="640" /></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A page from Owl Kids' latest picture book is the perfect antidote to prepare kids going back to school in a couple of weeks. This book not only will alleviate their anxiety, but will have them laughing to bits. Illustrator Hatem Aly has captured Raj in the perfect sense possible. (I don’t do it enough justice in my sketch). Hilarious story by Lana Button of a kid called Raj, who is a master at “holding it”.<br />.<br />But then<br />.<br />AHHHHHH AHHHHHH CHOO!!!<br />.<br />.<br />What unfolds is a kid who self reflects and realizes that school isn’t so bad after all.<br />.<br />Absolutely loved this book. The double entendre on the title of the book, is absolutely genius. The name Raj indicates a ruler, a king, who in traditionally ruled over India. In this case, Raj is the name of the child, and he has one rule. It's hard to capture a book that encapsulates diversity, without overly being the "diverse book". <br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Recommend: Read it to your kids before they head back to school.<br /><br /></span></div><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089079881978996572.post-1748693759039736792020-08-25T10:50:00.000-04:002020-08-25T10:50:09.040-04:00Using mythology to bridge the gap between humankind<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTsCGVdAYstruDr3jJUhWjX0FY1L5RhAgRVAr1zjdmsj5bd_HnPDYz6odJLFiNj81S1poQoteqWtcp3ZSlYObBguPwxRQTumdKc_-4sHkjCbqqAOEqcYo8NIeNKtvm3HbXPmM4mIjNaek/s751/the+mythology+book_spread_18.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="449" data-original-width="751" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTsCGVdAYstruDr3jJUhWjX0FY1L5RhAgRVAr1zjdmsj5bd_HnPDYz6odJLFiNj81S1poQoteqWtcp3ZSlYObBguPwxRQTumdKc_-4sHkjCbqqAOEqcYo8NIeNKtvm3HbXPmM4mIjNaek/s640/the+mythology+book_spread_18.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br />A self-proclaimed voracious reader since I was a child, I am embarrassed to admit that I know very little of Greek mythology. Perhaps I could blame it on the fact that I grew up in Africa, where the curriculum had other priorities than making me cram the stories of the ancient myths of the world. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">As an adult, I cannot claim to have an excuse, except the excuse of time itself getting in the way of satiating my hunger and curiosity. Then DK Canada sent me <a href="https://www.dk.com/ca/search/The%20Mythology%20Book/" target="_blank">The Mythology Book</a>, which is comparable to the Coles notes of mythology covering every corner of the world (almost). Sadly, I won't be able to learn about ancient cultures and the stories that surround them all in one day, but the reader in me cherishes the opportunity to digest bite-sized chunks of information on a regular basis. Who knows, one day I just may find myself on Jeopardy, trigger happy, pressing the buzzer with such speed on that million dollar question about the origins of Gaia. </span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpGXSe7AhtFy8WfJksfY7XUmMOIobZGejHOY7uXQHhH02_cy-oAX46xHs1rubslMlRRGPwvDkCQMr03jUyQF3FwcyB4ItTQJDA_bRzRvPNyjcCTz3e2dz9sSQbiS8UTu64kdRxFiivj-Y/s975/the+mythology+book_cover.jpg" style="font-family: verdana; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="975" data-original-width="820" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpGXSe7AhtFy8WfJksfY7XUmMOIobZGejHOY7uXQHhH02_cy-oAX46xHs1rubslMlRRGPwvDkCQMr03jUyQF3FwcyB4ItTQJDA_bRzRvPNyjcCTz3e2dz9sSQbiS8UTu64kdRxFiivj-Y/s640/the+mythology+book_cover.jpg" /></a></p><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br />The Mythology Book is condensed enough for an adult to read, while being light enough to ignite the curiosity of younger audiences. In case I wasn't clear, the book explores more than just Greek mythology. As many as 80 myths from around the world are covered. Because DK seamlessly marries visuals with engaging content, <a href="https://www.dk.com/ca/book/9781465473370-the-mythology-book/" target="_blank">The Mythology Book</a>, stays true to this series of books from the publisher that promise to deliver "Big Ideas Simply Explained". </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi63KhENGDjW8oGlIWSz-VvKT_v6JP3RD7adVdY1u98KRK6D65v3hpMz7EFzeIukQsCO6OJqzFy657SZA3QCSjIISwCleH9x9naS0flZfpB2WIaZQGb0_cCIRXeewD_C7_98FXIN3ROCbQ/s997/greek+myths_cover.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="997" data-original-width="820" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi63KhENGDjW8oGlIWSz-VvKT_v6JP3RD7adVdY1u98KRK6D65v3hpMz7EFzeIukQsCO6OJqzFy657SZA3QCSjIISwCleH9x9naS0flZfpB2WIaZQGb0_cCIRXeewD_C7_98FXIN3ROCbQ/s640/greek+myths_cover.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Speaking of Greek mythology, DK Books has another gem that </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">may do the trick in getting younger readers interested in myths emanating from the land of Zeus, Poseidon, Hercules and the Kraken.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> Definitely would have been one of my prized possessions, had I received a copy of this as a kid.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> <a href="https://www.dk.com/ca/book/9780241397459-greek-myths/" target="_blank">Greek Myths</a> written by Jean Menzies and illustrated by Katie Ponder, are stories of the very first gods and goddesses, the mystical beings who forged the Earth. J.R.R. Tolkien believed that "legends and myths are largely made of truth", and perhaps the ancient Greeks also adhered to this ideology, believing that all of </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">the fantastical events in the great mythological stories really did occur once upon a time. Whatever the case, one thing you can bank on is that Greek Myths makes a great addition to your kids' bedtime reads collection. If you follow us on Instagram, then you may come across a IG Live reading of Greek Myths.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">But whether we believe Tolkien or historians, about the authenticity of the stories relating to the ancient gods and goddesses, there is an understood universality that all cultures hold in passing on their fascinating tales to the next generation. And <a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Mythology-Book-Ideas-Simply-Explained/dp/1465473378/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=the+mythology+book&qid=1598366809&sr=8-1" target="_blank">The Mythology Book</a>, is an appropriate introduction to the classic traditional stories of the human imagination. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">If I could applaud this book one more time, it would be for its apt </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">introduction to the classic traditional stories of the human imagination. It takes a fresh look at myths and what they mean to the cultures that created them. From Loki, to Thor to Viracochia and Cüchulainn, each entry explores the colourful characters and their deeds, as well as the themes and meaning embedded in the stories. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">From ancient Egypt and Africa to Asia, the stories of Lord Ganesh and Shiva, are at your fingertips. When we speak about becoming more in tune with other cultures, what better than becoming acquainted with the stories of their lives to help us better understand one another. </span></p>Sukasahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863914523255116826noreply@blogger.com0