Maurice Sendak

I awoke yesterday to the sad news of the death of Maurice Sendak, author of Where the Wild Things Are, among other children’s books. I’ve developed what is a genuine appreciation for the author since watching his hilarious two-part interview on The Colbert Report in January and also getting excited about reading Where the Wild Things Are and Chicken Soup with Rice to the baby girl soon. Yesterday, I heard a clip from an interview on Fresh Air, in which he recounted how much he hated book signings because he made kids cry without realizing it and because book signings are inherently confusing for kids who are told not to write in books. In both interviews, Sendak seems to have a unique appreciation for the minds of children. And, as one commentator put yesterday, his books free kids to identify darker, more difficult emotions, rather than just happiness and fairy tales. If you have a few minutes, watch the clips (Part 1 and Part 2) from his interview with Stephen Colbert–they are quite entertaining.

Update:  Colbert released another portion of the interview on his show last night. Very moving. Watch it here…

Photo via geektyrant.com

Book Report: Good Enough is the New Perfect

Authors: Becky Beaupre Gillespie & Hollee Schwarz Temple

How I came to pick up this book: My brilliant mother loaned (and eventually just gifted) this book to me after helping to run a women’s leadership conference where it was sold and where one of the authors spoke. I read the back-of-the-book synopsis and was hooked: it’s all about balancing work and motherhood, an issue I’m mulling over a lot these days.

Basic scenario: Two women who were linked by the experience of motherhood changing their planned-out career paths collected data from women across the country about how they approach motherhood. The authors used surveys, interviews, and focus groups to gather information. Basic results of the study: there are two types of women–(1) the good-enoughs and (2) the perfectionists. They found that women who let go of being perfect–in work and as a mother and as a wife–led much happier lives. The book discusses some of the findings and uses various women’s experiences to show the complexities of navigating these issues.

Favorite quote: “We see her everywhere, that specter of maternal perfection…she’s at work, exuding the healthy glow of a woman who has never arrived in the office with Cheerios in her hair and someone’s empty juice box in her handbag. It doesn’t matter that this woman exists only as a composite. In our minds, she’s there, and she’s succeeding where we fail.” (p. 57)

Strengths: The authors manage to capture the complex dilemmas that “our” generation of mothers and mothers-to-be continue to face. On a personal note, it was relieving and validating  to read about the multiple pressures that women feel these days, not just relating to work and motherhood but also to how to be a mom and a spouse/partner.

Weaknesses: The book has a few cheesy, cliched moments that may seem overemotional.

Where I found myself reading this book: Before bed–one chapter at a time, in very manageable chunks.

Exhale.

At once, I love and hate finishing a good book. I relish the sense of accomplishment but hate being at the other end of the story, no longer engulfed in the mystery of it unfolding. This week I finished Tom Wolfe’s A Man in Full. I think it’s one of the longest books I’ve read since Ho Chi Minh for Vietnam class freshman year. Before I got to the bookstore today to purchase Room, which is on the top of my list, I grabbed Lolita to give it a spin. I’m liking it! Give me a good book and a cozy blanket and I am a happy girl.

I’m also liking September, one day in. I’m ready for a long weekend and ready for autumn, my most favorite of all the seasons. It is still 100+ degrees  here. But I am transporting myself to some more genuinely autumnal destinations in the next month–namely Birmingham (slightly cooler, yes?) and Virginia.

September…take me away!

Hope you all have a divine Labor Day weekend. PS – Don’t you love the J.Crew ballerinas featured in the September catalogue?

 

Images via Automatism, Fallon Elizabeth, and This is Glamorous.

On my list…

Read the review.

Read the Review.

Read the review.

What books are you looking forward to reading this fall?

The Help

I’m off to see The Help tonight! Did you read it? Are you going to see it? Read the reviews here, here and here.

Images via Christian Science Monitor and Teaser-Trailer.

Book Report: The Pioneer Woman: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels

So, I got a little sidetracked from my summer reading list. (I’m really soaking up my non-student status– besides being in the real word–I can read what I want!) I’ve read Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand and The Postmistress (both great). I’m working on Unaccustomed Earth, which I’m liking so far. But since then, I’ve also found myself immersed in Cutting for Stone and a more lighthearted text, the subject of this book report. What can I say? It’s summer. It’s not a time for structure or rigidity. (This reminds me: my friend Josie used to use the phrase, “It’s college! No parents!!!” Ironically, I’m sure our parents would have been fine with virtually all of our activities.).

Another confession before I begin: I’m late in the game with this trend, yet again. My friends have always raved about The Pioneer Woman’s blog; until now, I wasn’t a follower, blog-follower that is. But now, I’m hooked: I’ve added her to my reader.

Author: Ree Drummond, aka “The Pioneer Woman”

How I Came to Pick Up this Book:  It was on the “new fiction” shelf at our local library and seemed like a fun, uplifting story.

Basic Scenario: This is the love story of Ree (after reading the book, you feel like you can call her a friend and therefore by her first name) and her husband, aka Marlboro Man. Ree is a suburban young woman, who loves clothes and high heels, and MM is a for-real cowboy, a rancher. The unlikely couple  fall madly in love but also encounter bumps in the road as they begin their relationship.

Favorite Quote: [After the couple's first pre-marriage counseling session...] I hated every minute of this. I didn’t want to be examined. I didn’t want my relationship with Marlboro Man to be dissected with generic, one-size-fits all questions. I just wanted to drive around in his pickup and look at pastures and curl up on the couch with him and watch movies. p. 187

Strengths: Ree is witty. Her writing is clever, lighthearted and funny. She is self-deprecating and sarcastic, without being bitter. I found it hopeful and uplifting. Also, the book is a page-turner: I read it 2 days (and I’m a slow reader).

Weaknesses: If one really wanted to pick apart her portrayal of their relationship, one could do it. But that was also one of the purposes of the book–to show how their relationship transformed and matured over time.

Where I Found Myself Reading this Book: Before falling sleep and over one long, hot afternoon drinking a smoothie.

Picture via www.thepioneerwoman.com.

Two Great Book Lists

Two fabulous book lists to pull you out of your mid-summer reading rut.

(You may not be in one, but I am.)

(1) Tory Burch’s Tastemaker’s Reading List – Features 3 great categories: reading now, books that changed my life and books to give as gifts.

(2) As If You Didn’t Have Enough To Read, Fiction Edition – This is the New York Times Magazine staff members’ list of their 5 favorite novels each. Grouped together by staff member, this is a solid compilation of must-reads. Check out the nonfiction version as well.

Plus – Check out this website, What Should I Read Next? You can type in an author or book you love and the site will produce recommendations accordingly.  Genius.

Photo via To Be Shelved.

Book Report: The Postmistress

I am making headway on my summer reading list, at least so far. Here are some thoughts on my latest read: The Postmistress, a historical fiction novel.

Author: Sarah Blake

How I Came to Pick Up this Book:  I discovered this book on the NPR bestsellers list, and it looked exciting (especially because Kathryn Stockett endorses it on the cover).

Basic Scenario: Set during World War II, several storylines  weave together, each telling a different perspective of a woman dealing with particular challenges. It’s written from the perspectives of a journalist, a doctor’s wife, and a postmistress (one in charge of delivering letters).

Favorite Quote: By now, death had long since lost its power to shock. Everyone had  a story: there were thousands piled up in London’s heart. But ever since the first of the year, Hitler had been playing with London’s nerves. There were three nights of bombing in January, then nothing for a week. then again, and heavier. Then nothing. One day, then another in March, then nothing long enough for daffodils to appear and grass to start sprouting on the banks along the Thames. The city slid into April on a month of quiet. Then came the bombings of the Wednesday and the Saturday—bombings so bad, Ed Murrow joked, you wore your best clothes to bed in case your closet wasn’t standing in the morning. And since then, the memory of those nights had settled into everyone’s crouch, everyone’s quick steps, everyone’s fixed attention on the sky. Would they come again tonight? Or was it over? You didn’t know. You went bed ready to run. P. 151

Strengths: I absolutely loved the various storylines and voices that were used throughout the story. This kept it interesting to read and made for a more complex plotline. Also, I really enjoyed reading about London in World War II—I learned a lot. Finally, the complicated emotions and situations of the female characters were fascinating and complex—I appreciated the strength of these characters and appreciated their differences.

Weaknesses: At points, this text was difficult to follow because of the various storylines. At times, it was unbelievable, a bit far-fetched for a real storyline.

Where I Found Myself Reading this Book: Before falling asleep, of course. But also, I read a chunk of it on the plane on my way to Cashiers this past weekend. Flight delays = good reading time.

Image via amazon.com

Book Review: Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand

Author: Helen Simonson

How I Came to Pick Up this Book:  I first heard about this book here, on one of the delightful blogs that I follow. Then, my kind brother-in-law gave it to me as a graduation gift. I started reading it immediately.

Basic Scenario: A story about the friendship between a widower and a classic elderly Englishman who both live in a quaint English village. Despite the fact that this is a mostly humorous, lighthearted love story, lots of issues emerge that relate to family dynamics, cross-cultural relationships, prejudice, and more.

Favorite Quote: She laughed again, and the Major felt that there was no more important and fulfilling work than to make Mrs. Ali laugh. His own troubles seemed to recede as their steps took them beyond the ice cream stalls and ticket booths of the pier. p. 65

Strengths: This is one of those books where I was so eager to find out the ending, but I did not want it to end. Helen Simonson is a poetic writer–like Cleave’s Little Bee, this book is enjoyable to read because the words are strung together so elegantly. I also found this book to be delightfully humorous, particularly in the dialogue and the Major’s thoughts about the more eccentric characters. Finally, as I have mentioned, I really enjoy a lighthearted, yet meaningful story. This text was just that. It struck me in the same way as The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, one of my favorite novels of all time, which has made it onto SB’s book list as well.

Weaknesses: I truly loved this book, though it was predictable in certain respects

Where I Found Myself Reading this Book: Before falling sleep. In the hotel lobby as I waited for the hubs in Orlando. Early in the morning, too excited to find out the ending.

Book Report: Little Bee

Author: Chris Cleave

How I Came to Pick Up this Book:  My dear friend Josie sent it to me, as she does from time to time with books she enjoys. (It’s one of my favorite things about our friendship.)

Basic Scenario: Two drastically different characters collide in London at low points in their lives, both needing something from their growing friendship. Little Bee, an asylum-seeker from Nigeria, and Sarah O’Rourke, a magazine editor, enter a complicated, yet redemptive friendship.

Favorite Quote: There are so many beautiful sentences, paragraphs. Here’s an example. It was exhausting, prospecting for grief like this, unsure if grief was even there to be found. Perhaps it was just too soon. For the moment I felt more pity for a trapped fly that buzzed against the window. I opened the latch and out it few, vulnerable and weak, back in the game. p. 87

Strengths: Cleave’s poetic stringing-together of words is just beautiful. He does an elegant job of painting the picture for the reader–I had no problem imagining the most poignant scenes of the novel. Also, I was touched by Cleave’s portrayal of the complicated nature of emotions and relationships (see previous quotation).

Weaknesses: Unfortunately, I found the book too sad and realistic to be consistently enjoyable.  Most people to whom I spoke about the book, including SB, loved the story, even found it a page-turner. Realistically, I think the book did not provide me with happy, positive escape that I needed reading to be this spring. And so, this portion of the review is not a criticism of the text itself.

Where I Found Myself Reading this Book: I tried to read it before bed, but found myself not wanting to end the day that way. Eventually, I began to simply pick it up at various points during weekends and evenings.