You are currently browsing the archives for July, 2008.
It’s so hot here in Colorado, my AC can’t keep up. And outside, all the green has turned to brown! It’s not so much fun taking a walk these days, because of the heat and mosquitos, so I haven’t gotten out into the park much. I did catch a few pics this week.
A sunflower at night.
There are nine photos in the Flickr set with a few
The beautiful violet thistle has turned brown.
Sky Pond is rather shallow now.
Summer sunset.
A Self Portrait
I was home sick yesterday, but at least I had my kindle. I bought and read a whole book. My Kindle = true love.
The Book
Susan Vreeland’s The Passion of Artemisia was the book. Though I admit there was something small missing in places, a depth of scene I suppose, I still loved it. I highlighted a bazillion quotes. It’s about the sacrifices one makes (or doesn’t make) for one’s art.
The amazing thing about her was her art; she painted strong heroines at a time when women were never portrayed that way. She painted “real” women, with crows feet and all. In her Susanna, painted when she was only 17, she showed a woman rejecting sexual advances rather than flirting back and appreciating them. (What a concept!) Vreeland’s website shows the paintings.
Artemisia had an amazing life. She knew Galileo, Michealangelo’s nephew and the Medicis. She was admired in some circles for her talent but scorned as a prostitute (because of the rape trial) in others.
I’m so glad Vreeland has other books out. *buys* *reads* My TBR pile is beefing up again. (Thanks, too, to those who gave me recs on the last post. I’ve downloaded samples already!)
Sooooo. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle wasn’t really for me. It felt too conventional, I guess, and the subject matter didn’t speak to me. Apparently, a lot of other people really enjoyed it, so don’t take my word for it.
And, oh horror… my TBR pile is down to one book!!! What the heck? I’m having trouble finding reading material. Recommend, plz? Here are a few books I adore. Have you read anything similar?
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
Anything by Margaret Atwood
Anything by Tracy Chevalier
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
Anything by Hemingway
In the Company of the Courtesan by Sarah Dunant
The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
See any patterns? Got any ideas? Help a sistah out!!
The husband and I waltzed past the Dark Knight crowds–which wound around the building–into our movie of choice, The Happening. Critics *hated* this movie, but we love M. Night, so we had to take a look for ourselves. Glad we did… It was freakin’ brilliant. Difficult, yes, challenging, graphic and low-budget, yes. But brilliant.
This movie was *actually* scary, not just gimmicky with substance-less surprise gore. It was masterfully suspenseful throughout. It also had a thought-provoking sci-fi premise and beautiful, emotionally-realistic writing. I can’t for the life of me figure out how anyone could give the big-budget action movie of the week an ‘A’ while giving The Happening ‘C’s and ‘D’s. I seriously don’t get it.
M. Night refers to Hitchcock quite a bit in this one. He *is* the Hitchcock of our generation, I believe. I suspect his movies will endure. (Surely. o.o)
Did anyone else see it? Like it? Have any idea why the critics slammed it? (Okay, it was graphic, but so are a lot of horror movies.) *srsly confubbled*
Escape (by Laura Palmer) is quite the intense read. It’s the true story of a woman who grew up in a fundamentalist religious sect that believed women were property/slaves. She was forced to marry a man in his fifties when she was eighteen, becoming his fourth wife. She had to churn out babies because the man wanted to keep his wives pregnant. She eventually escaped to become the only woman ever to get out of the cult with custody of her children.
It’s hard to believe this sort of thing could really go on in modern day America. It’s slavery and rape. It’s a real life Handmaid’s Tale.
I totally recommend reading the book. Beware, it’s intense.
David Guterson’s Our Lady of the Forest was frakking brilliant. Literature. Full of substance and universal themes. It’s about a fourteen-year-old druggy girl who sees the virgin Mary deep in the forests of Oregon. Guterson explores many aspects of religious belief, from the perspective of… well, I don’t want to spoil it if anyone wants to read it.
I highly, highly recommend it. It’s literary because it’s deep and rich, but it’s also fast-paced and easy to read. Although, beware, there are some graphic and very disturbing scenes.
Anyone else read it? His other books (Guterson wrote Snow Falling on Cedars)?
Life Stuff
The husband and I planted a tree! And a lilac bush!
Our baby Blue Spruce
And, what happened when I hit it with my ice ray. Couldn’t wait ’til December.
We’re planting a few more things, a red maple, a couple of evergreen column-like trees and some peonies. I’ll post pics when I have them.
Books
Holy crap, I have discovered the most amazing author. Has anyone else read Laura Lippman? I’m reading What the Dead Know, and it is brilliant. You know some authors are good with characterization or plot or writing or narrative voice or story or whatever? Well, she’s brilliant at all of them. I’m in love. *recommends*
The premise of the book has enough punch to hook you–a very disoriented woman shows up in a small town 25 years after two young sisters were abducted and presumed dead, and when pressed, the woman claims she’s one of the sisters. Then there’s the way the story is told: it’s perfect and luxurious. The sort of book you can’t put down and don’t want to skim because the experience of each chapter is so lovely.
I shall buy all her books now. Yep.