Richardderus breaks into double digits: #10

Agnes Martin's 1963 painting, "Starlight". Serene. It invites the same sort of wistful inhabitation that actual starlight in the sky does...points and space, that's all, and the space is both empty and waiting, as well as replete with meditative color.

I love Agnes Martin's canvases. Better than a meditation class.

THIS thread is for NEW books read, those published from 2009 to the present.




The Books off the Shelf thread for 2011 is up, though sort of nekkid. My goal there is now 30 books from my shelves read and donated, shared, or generally gotten out of the house.




This thread is for any book I review that was published in 2008 or before, whether I own the book or not, and for whatever reason isn't a book I will get off the shelves.




Review #1: ...thread 3
Review #2: thread 4
Review #3: thread 5
Reviews 4 & 5: thread 6
Reviews 6-8: thread 7
Reviews 9 & 10: thread 8
Reviews 11-13: thread 9

Books are reviewed in post:

17. Swamplandia!...#245.

16. Frances Farmer: The Life and Films of a Torubled Star...#203.

15. Masques for the Fields of Time...#176.

14. Senestre on Vacation...#164.

Fast draw McStay!

Found you! ((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx

I never realized how *true* "Field of Dreams" was: If you build it, they will indeed come!

Hi Richard.

keeping pace (huff, puff, huff, puff).

hey, I even waited a minute and reloaded the page to make sure that you didn't need another message box ...lol

*Waves* Hi Richard. That is some truly beautiful graphing paper, do they sell it at Walmart or do I have to go to one of the fancier stores...like Staples? :P

Good Morning, another great painting.

>5 alcottacre: *smooch* to Miss Stasia!

>7 calm: What a great GIF, calm! Hi there, BTW.

>8 ffortsa: Careful, Judy...there's rough spots, don't trip!

>9 mckait: LOL

>10 Ape: Tasteless little Philistine.

>11 cindysprocket: Hiya Cindy! THANK YOU for noticing how beautiful that painting is. Unlike SOME. >10 Ape: o.0

*smooches*

Hey, I believe I used the word beautiful in my sentence...

I was very impressed with the physical form of Where We Know, not so much with the content. I lived there for 3 years in the early '70's, and a lot of what was expressed in the book had nothing to do with where I knew. I'm so afraid of what I would find after all this time and so much change, that I don't think I want to go back.

>13 ronincats: *smooches* back, dear Roni!

>14 Ape:

>15 laytonwoman3rd: Hmmm...New Orleans is so, well, so vast of content that I can see the book striking someone who lives there today exactly as it has you. There are some places that are uncapturable. New York. London. Tokyo. They contain history and they aren't contained by history, unlike Paris or Rome or Hong Kong. They have roots, unlike Los Angeles or Atlanta or Chicago or Sydney. So there will always be something sui generis about them.

De-lurking long enough to just say hi. Hi!

Hi RD!
Nice new thread - but where are the stars???? I don't see any stars!
THESE are stars -

glitter-graphics.com

I'm with Stephen... looks like graph paper to me... or maybe looking at the partly cloudy sky through chicken wire mesh. ?????

>17 cyderry: Hi Cheli!

>18 -Cee-: Nice stars...artistic philistine...which one wins....

what's the prize?

*waving feebly*

like the painting...

The painting is the view my guinea-pig gets when he looks up in his hutch......absolutely spot on.

RD- Big wave! Like the New Digs!

The painting looks like the fabric of my kindergarten uniform, Ricardo.... brought back some happy memories.

If you squint your eyes, it is very reminiscent of low-quality threadbare denim, I think...

>20 -Cee-: Wouldn't YOU like to know.

>21 Chatterbox: Hiya Suz! xoxo

>22 lunacat: *silence*

>23 msf59: Hi Mark-a-doodle-doo!

>24 cameling:, 25 *more silence*

Hmph. Apparently some people were asleep or passing notes during Art Appreciation class.

I like your selection, Richard. It's meditative and quietly powerful. It also fetched a nice sum for its former owner at a recent Christie's sale ($542,500).

Ignore the philistines, bro. ;-)

Yawn. Someone paid $540,000 for that? I guess I need to analyze the 'art' again. Oh wait, I get it, they were on psychedelic drugs. Yep, it all makes sense now. But wait, where did they get $540,000 from? Hmmmmm, well, how mysterious! Not nearly as perplexing as to what exactly makes that picture art in the first place, though. ;)

I have some aging construction paper with similar discoloration though, do you think if I draw a grid on it I could fetch something like that?

Oh well, I'm not well-versed in art like Richard, so he's the better judge. Maybe after I finish the DK Art Book on Rembrandt I'll have a better appreciation for it. Probably not though...

>27 kidzdoc: Thank you, Darryl. I've always said you were a scholar and gentleman of rare discernment. Ask anyone.

>28 Ape: Oh, well, Darryl, I meant ask anyone who can *pronounce* "discernment." Not like the aptly nicknamed "Ape" here.

Whew! Glad to see that I;m not the only one who thinks the painting is a great big old NO!

did you forget what you were going to say?

To me art is like books. We don't all have to like or appreciate the same book or the same painting. But it sure is fun reading all the comments and non comments.8-)

I have to admit, with all of the sewing I'm doing I see rows of stitches and a quilted square...

LOL, Luxx!

OK... I will admit that whatever this work of art is or is not, it definitely IS better than others from the past and NOT offensive. So.... I like it. But not enough to pay $$$. Yikes.

Love ya anyway, RD. *smooch*

>34 cindysprocket: While that is true, dear Cindy, one simply *must* see the spectacular beauty and deathless creative perfection of Agnes Martin, or else reveal one's direct descent from revenant Neanderthal stock, unable to produce speech or create abstract thought.

>35 London_StJ:

>36 -Cee-: Oh well, put it that way then. *smooch*

Just a quick pop-in to say hello, i miss you, hope all's well, must sleep.
*big ol' hug*

Back to your last thread--your review of Where We Know: New Orleans As Home made me do something I almost never do--I went directly to Amazon and bought it. I lived in NO for 18 years (and have deep family roots on my mother's side in Louisiana). I haven't been back to NO since Katrina, but will be going next spring for a niece's wedding. I'm half-dreading, half-hopeful of what changes I will find.

(P.S.--rarely post here, but often read).

I'm heading to New Orleans the first weekend of June for a publication conference. I'm anxious to see the progress post Hurricane Katrina. I was there two years after the flood and the city was still very devastated.

Your review was excellent Richard!

34, To me art is like books.

Yes, here we go. Let's say an author has this great idea for a book. They can picture it in their head. It's called "Starlight". Serene. It invites the same sort of wistful inhabitation that actual starlight in the sky does...points and space, that's all, and the space is both empty and waiting, as well as replete with meditative color.

Yes, genius! So, what they do is, they write that exact paragraph on page 1, and then they publish it with 300 blank pages. Now, you see, it's an interesting idea. In theory, it is good. However, this author didn't write anything. It's perhaps brilliant in concept, but if I were to buy this book through Amazon and received 300 blank pages, I would be quite disappointed. I would wonder why the author was incapable of doing more than that. Did the author really think I would enjoy this book, or were they just an bad author with a good idea?

And if the book became a best seller? Widely celebrated as one of the better books of our time? Uhhh...no... I love books, but I wouldn't love that one.

So, while the painting above is interesting in concept, the artist didn't paint anything. Good idea, poor execution.

Love ya Richard. *Smooch*

rendered you speechless, eh? My work here is done.

#42

Well, to be fair, she did paint SOMETHING, let's give her some credit. It's just what a kid with some blue wishy washy watercolour could paint onto graph paper. And then give a title that has little to do with that blue watery scene.

If it had been called 'What a fish can see out of one eye, having been hauled onto deck in a net' then perhaps opinions might be slightly....altered?

I went to an art show at my son's college one time. Someone had painted a canvas white. Philistine I must be, but....

And talk about putting ones foot in ones mouth.. Same son, years later.. went to a local gallery. There was an installation. There was a bunch of stuff just .. scattered on the floor. I said something along the lines of what is this meant to be, it looks like someone knocked over a trash can.. then turned around to my son.. who introduced me to the artist ( ? ) who was standing behind me.
sigh

eta
in my defense, there were rusty cans, torn paper, broken toys, chunks of wood.. etc

Art, drawings and paintings *sigh*

Grew up hearing my father mock me for not being able to draw a straight line without a ruler and my skills run equally thin when it comes to appreciating arts.Some things in life, I guess, are just not meant to be!

((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx for today

#46: Piyush, I really have no art appreciation either which is why I am going to try the Dorling Kindersley books that Stephen recommended on his thread. You might give them a try too :)

ETA: I actually like the painting at the top, RD. Seems to me a scene that you might envision lying on your back on the grass and staring at the clouds. That is just me though.

>39 tloeffler: TLo!! Long time no see, come back more often! xoxoxo

>40 arubabookwoman: Well, Deborah, I think it could be time to post more often, eh what? My maternal grandmother's family was Coonass (as the locals call it), from Opelousas. Though Mamaw grew up in Three Rivers, Texas, she lit out for Louisiana regularly.

>41 Whisper1: Thank you, my dear Linda. And have fun! I think the changes will hearten you, though there's still plenty to make you sad.

>42 Ape: *sigh* I give you points for analogistic creativity. I give you more points for exposing yourself to art via the DK series. So I really shouldn't complain about your dislike for this piece, despite the fact that it shows a deplorable lack of taste and a regrettable absence of aesthetic sophistication.

>43 mckait:

>44 lunacat: LOL @ Philistine's funny

>45 mckait: Oh god, those stupid installations. Yes, yes, commentary on consumer culture, nature of art is ephemeral, "a carrot freshly observed..." blah blah blah. Ew. Shut up and bring me the dustpan and a bag, you silly little poseur. Marcel Duchamp did it in 1917, you think this is trenchant? *snort*

Amazing the ways the young can find to be foolish, isn't it? >42 Ape: o.0

>46 PiyushC: Piyush! Tell me you're joking! Your father didn't really belittle you for not being able to draw a straight line, no! Can't be!

>47 alcottacre: Hi there Stasia! *smooch* right back at'cha! And listen, n o one on earth can tell you you're wrong about what you see in an artwork, not even the creator of said work. You see what you see, you like what you like. It's dismissiveness that is indefensible..."this isn't art" or "my kid could do that"...not "WTF did this yo-yo **mean**" or the like.

>48 Abigailjane:-50 Oh dear gussie, another troll attack. *fires up flamethrower*

(I like the serene blue art)

I was at the Art Institute on Sunday with my brother and a visiting friend of his (thank you Chicago Public Library for free museum passes...awesome service, but I digress). I had never seen this apparently quite famous painting before, but fell madly in love with it. It's huge, and it apparently took the artist something like five years to complete, layering color over color. Although you can see this intricate detail is amazing in person, the essence of it carries through well to the on-line picture:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:A_Sunday_on_La_Grande_Jatte,_Georges_Seurat,_1...

Now, that painting of the naked women that had dangly bits in their nether regions? That one I did not get.

Hey--My grandma's name was Mamaw too! She was from St. Francisville, in West Feliciana.

Re the painting above, it does remind me of a quilt, but that's not a bad thing, since I make art quilts.

I'll buck the trend Richard. I love the painting and find it inducing a feeling of serenity and peace, a very good thing.

Oh Richard.....my niece who lives in NO has been bugging us to come back, (we had a short term with a commuter marriage with him in NO and me in DC---lots of airline time) Your muffaletta pic, brought back all the bon temps....must go see how many airline points I need to go get a good coffee, beignet, some good gumbo, and enjoy some of that great music.

slinks off to buy lottery ticket....or at least re-read Confederacy of Dunces

#52 Pffft! I can draw them reasonably well now and not-so-dented circles too!

>54 ty1997: (Good!)

Seurat and Pointilism...amazing technical virtuosity, impressive scientific eye, and the sheer SCOPE of the thing...! I admire him for doing it. As for women with dangly things: Ew.

>55 arubabookwoman: I used to think that Mamaw was a Southren name for grandmas, but then found out that no one whose family has no Louisiana connections uses the name! My grandkids call me Papaw, and I expect my daughter will morph into Mamaw when the day dawns (preferably long after I'm dead).

>56 brenzi: THANK you, Bonnie! Serenity is amazingly valuable to me today. I drove into Manhattan last night for book circle, and it was ***HELLISH*** for no obvious reason. The drive there took an hour and a half (34mi) and then the drive uptown took an hour (8mi)!!! Driving home? 47min. *rips few strand of hair left out, notes grey in them, heads for seppuku knife drawer*

>57 tututhefirst: Likin' the lottery ticket idea...can I come visit?

>58 PiyushC: Porgress has been made! But wait...aren't you like what 25 now? Permaybehaps not such an achievement.... ;-P

I called my grandparents mamaw and papaw actually... *shrug*

The fact that you headed for the seppuku knife drawer just proves you got SOMETHING out of last night's discussion... *grin*

>60 Ape: Are either of them in any way connected to Louisiana? Or is this the exception that proves the rule?

>61 Chatterbox: I got A LOT out of the discussion! I got to complain about being held to a different standard re: background info relevant to works of lit'ra'cher, worth more than the book's weight in GOLD to me!! And the very notion that people felt so passionately about the book was intriguing to me, I expected more of them to be of The Divine Miss's dismissive bent. KNowing her as I do, I was completely unsurprised by her dislike of the book, and surprised by Cheryl's and Susan's degree of liking for it.

IN the end, though, Thousand Cranes will be the Kawabata I recommend to people.

Have you Kindled Sketches from a Huntsman's Notebook yet?

Yup! I got a Penguin Classics version; I think Cheryl got a different Garnett translation on her Nook. I haven't looked to see who translated my copy. Sadly, this is one parallel text in Russian I DON'T have.

It's interesting -- for a book that so few people liked, it did provoke a lot of discussion. It animated people; they didn't want to just dismiss it (mostly). I think it's fun to throw in a wild card every so often -- even if people don't like it (and Kawabata WAS on that list...) it reminds us that there are other worlds. Sadly, I don't think your complaint registered or was understood in the context that it was uttered... Blind spots???

Blind spots???

Ya think?

But the words have been spoken, and in a context that can be recalled later. That's as much as I expect to happen ever!

xo

Richard: An exception that proves the rule, I suppose. My grandfather was from West Virgina and my grandmother from Indiana, and they moved together to Ohio.

Well, would you look at that! I have a copy of the Hunting Sketches on my bookshelf. First printing was August of 1962, although I probably didn't buy it until 1968 or so. cover price, 75 cents. The translation is by Bernard Guilbert Guerney, whoever he is, and the pages are coming out of the binding, so after I read it I can toss it guilt-free into the trash.

edited to capitalize first person singular, so as not to be a pretentious as e.e.c.

LOL.....skimmed and thought you said your grandkids called you 'pawpaw' ..had a vision of you with a papaya shaped head, Richard. *snigger*

((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx for today. Sorry to hear about the hellish drive last night.

#59 I am approaching 27, and I can hire art interns if any drawing needs to be done! Humph, how about that!

#62 I have been considering reading Thousand Cranes, you recommend?

>65 Ape: Huh. That's very odd. Kinda nice, though, to kow that there is always a sprout somewhere.

>66 ffortsa: Oh the joy of guilt-free disposal of a faithful servant! I wonder if we can do the same for people. Oh wait...Make Room! Make Room!

>67 cameling: More of a grapefruit, I think, than a papaya.

>68 alcottacre: *smooches* right back!

>69 PiyushC:, 70 Interns: The dogsbodys of the world, poor lambs. And yes indeed, recommended!

Caro ... there is a fruit called Paw Paw, just a point of info. They are sort of Banana like and I am not a big fan. My great grandmother grew them.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pawpaw

Drive-by hugs and smooches, RichardDear!

Horrible

Hi, Richard! Just skimming through . . .

You must be busy, very quiet here. 8-)

((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx for today

Hi y'all! It was a busy day yesterday, preparing for that whole Rapture thing that (darn it!) didn't sweep away the Christians so I could have their stuff. I had my eye on the noxious church lady in the next block...her Cadillac is *pristine* and could use some sinnin' and sexin' to break it in. Alack and welladay, will have to wait. *sniff* I never get to have any fun!

But Richard, why would you want all the Christians to be swept away! The younger twenty-something ones are so sweet and innocent...and corruptible! :D

A Cadillac would be nice though...

I've leached such fun as there is to be had from corrupting the young, dear. I'd rather crack the tougher nuts: Old guys think they's straight. Hah. Nothin' easier to bag than a man whose wife doesn't want to do the chores anymore.

D'oh! I suppose...

But I like having at least a few Christians around. They make me look less innocent in comparison, which makes me feel much less pathetic about myself. :P

You may have them, then. All of them, though. I don't want to be bothered. You have to walk them, and feed them, and brush them even when it's cold or rainy or snowy, now! Or back to the pound they go.

Do you think if I walk them in the park they can help me pick up chicks?

Nothin' easier to bag than a man whose wife doesn't want to do the chores anymore. *Snicker snort!*

Stolen from Luxx without the merest hint of guilt! Too hilarious not to share.

*snerk* This one made the rounds at church today.

LOL!

*grin*

Love it.

Hehehe. Makes me wish we had billboards in the UK!

No....you don't wish you had billboards in the UK. We'll be happy to share the good ones with you, but you should be very grateful your roadsides and vistas are not cluttered up with these things.

This is very true. We have to squeeze our vistas into a much smaller space as well, so I dread to think how crowded it would look with them.

#81: I still love you even if you want to return me to the pound. ((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx for today.

>92 alcottacre: *smooch* But what makes you think, my love, that you wouldn't be walked and fed and brushed by Stephen? I suspect he'd be johnny-on-the-spot!

>90 laytonwoman3rd:, 91 I think *American* vistas, all squillion miles of them, are cluttered by most of these dratted things. Less worried about urban ones, since there's very little one can do to make urban blight uglier. *thinks of Chicago* Yep, not a lot. *ponders Los Angeles* Nothing, in fact.

#93: Well, for one thing, as near as I can tell, Stephen never leaves his cave!

Well...perhaps not, but I'll be sure to let you out the back door whenever you need to go. If you walk through the mud puddles with Shyanne, though, you'll have to stay out until you're dry.

I love the billboard! :)

Thanks, RD!

{{{hugs}}}

Think about how prim and proper and British billboard for strip clubs and adult video shops would be though. It would be almost endearing.

Hi all! Another gloomfest of a day, with clouds and what-not. It's already warmer now than it was all day yesterday, though, on the way up to about 78. Comfortable enough, I suppose....

coolish ( nicely so ) here... did you sleep well?

eta

all these changes.. still can't get a like button

I didn't sleep well at all. Many aches and pains, plus a furry dog smashing as much of her hot and itchy self as possible up against me. IDK why she's so clingy!

I still do not understand the virulent opposition to the like button. If you don't like it, don't use it. If others use it on one of your messages, ignore it. Let the rest of us have what we want.

sorry to hear...

You Know why

I don't, actually, because I can't believe, based on the thread for "@"tagging that the consensus model doesn't hold true here too. Some deeper antipathy is at work, or simply an absence of clamor among the "pro" group. I hate going over there among the scary mean people, or I'd restart the clamor.

I hate going over there among the scary mean people, or I'd restart the clamor.

me too. I refuse to clamor when it is silent.. and some of us can only hope for silent clamor

Rd, I suspect the pooch is reacting to Vickie's demise just as you are.

::Headache::

Hatin' on this brighter white.

Hugs - and offers of paracetemol and a large glass of wine. Oh wait... no, that's my dinner plan...

>107 BekkaJo: LOL

I want to publicly apologize for bringing you into the fray... knowing full well it would not matter.
When I said all opinions are equal, what I meant was.... never mind.
:P

((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx and hopes that the headache is gone

I'm hitting reply to #108, which was a reply to #107, just to see where my comment winds up...

And the lucky number is #112!! That was so much fun! Guess it still puts it at the end, which makes sense, otherwise you'd have to keep checking for inserted comments here, there and everywhere. : )

Smooch!

>109 mckait: No worries, my dear. You also revealed Your Terrible Secret, so harm = good.

Happy World Tarot Day!

at least I was in good company ...... hehehe

de-lurkedy lurk lurk lurking

(for a long passed subject, at that) I'm impressed that Agnes Martin can paint dots and dashes in a straight line. I could not do that to save my life.

re-lukedy lurk lurk lurking

> 113 I gave Judy a good book on Tarot a few years back - I think it's still somewhere on the far slopes of Mount TBR.

I find the images stimulating and conducive to meditation.

>116 magicians_nephew: Tarot is a beautiful meditation for me, too. I think a lot of people, pro and con, get hung up on the answers-to-questions misuse of it. Better questions to ask, yes. Fruitful avenues of contemplation to pursue, hell yes. Randomness does not equal meaninglessness, o skeptics....

too late to comment sensibly

.......but, i do own the Rider-Waite deck...bought it in a creepy head shop in Pittsburgh, PA in 1970!!!

can't keep up with your threads...but, you're still a Sweetie

;-}

Tarot is fun + thought-provoking + the cards are pretty. Anyone looking for more than that should re-evaluate. Perhaps with a tarot reading?

No comment on the tarot discussion. ;)

Except that I do agree the cards tend to be pretty.

I reviewed Finding Serenity on my thread...post #92. For Browncoats, a must-read...for civilians, a giant waste of time.

Yay for creepy head shops! lol

I went to a head shop in Cardiff.. and brought home stash boxes for my kids for souvenirs.
I like to keep them wondering.

Hey Richard, I've been AFK for a while and wanted to stop by, say hi, and wish you a Happy Towel Day.

It's never Towel Day again already? How did that sneak up on us so fast?

>122 mckait:

Kathy...maybe you shouldn't say that...maybe on LT you're safe

Head Shops were always creepy...specially the one where I actually "worked"

;-}

Worked? now that sounds like a story starter :)

>123 sgtbigg: Hi Mike! Glad to see you around and about! I suspect you of Browncoat sympathies, so plese check my link in #121 above....

>124 laytonwoman3rd: I know! Towel Day roars around fast, eh Linda3rd?

>125 jdthloue: *gets chip bowl and salsa* ...and? And?

>126 mckait: Yeah, you tell 'er!

Brings popcorn and OJ

waits for story

#127 - You are quite correct. I have Finding Serenity around here somewhere, but have never gotten around to reading it. Since I fall into the 5 star category, I'll have to dig it out.

Since I know nothing whatsoever about Firefly, I will give the book a pass. Thumbs up for the review though, RD. Oh and here are your ((hugs)) and xx smooches xx for today.

*smooch* and {{{hug}}} right back!

My hubby is totally hooked on Firefly so I watched a couple of episodes with him. Huh?? Ok it's apparently an acquired taste.

>132 brenzi: Bonnie, I think it's something like historical fiction: The more you know, the better it can be. I liked it immediately because I truly, genuinely can't watch another antispetically clean living-room-in-space show without screaming. LIFE ISN'T TIDY!!! Why would it be in the future?! It never, ever, ever has been in the past!

Plus, unlike other space shows, the only ambassador here is a *real* whore.

For many of the same reasons, I also like "Battlestar Galactica" as rebooted. Grit, grime, sweat, coveted rewards of toothpaste, rationed water and food...and the backdrop of ancient pagan culture was very fun! It was culturally inaccurate, based on what we know of ancient times, but so what, it's not non-fiction, it's science fiction! I can let go and let the Gods rescue me from dreary sitcom retreads and pallid dramas that rely on ick-factor, woo-wooness, or pretty faces (pretty men in some state of undress will keep me glued to the set for about 20min...after that, they'd better be saying something interesting or doing something I can't, or off I go).

Hi RD!
Do you think the way you write? Just curious... :)

I had to give up on BSG because it was too unrelentingly dark, and it got under my skin. I admired it, but I felt like I was asking to be booted in the head each week. Firefly was a little more humane.

I have never seen Firefly.

I have, however, seen Nathan Fillion.

Which makes me wonder why on earth I'm not watching Firefly? Because that's a sexy little Canadian right there.

>134 -Cee-: I guess so...how can I tell, when it's only me in here?

>135 Cynara: I was more upbeat than you about the show. I saw, in each disaster, the hope...after all, not *everyone* died!

>136 ty1997: Full monty Nathan in "Trash". Netflix streaming video. Just sayin'

Oh...and he has a tattoo on his hip. It's green.

Have you seen Mr. Fillion in PG Porn? It's quite silly. It may be more PG-13 than PG, though ;P

Fearless. He's fearless.

Who is Nathan Fillion? Or should I even ask? Too busy with my nose in books obviously.

((Hugs) and xx smooches xx for today.

Stasia: Ummmm... *Shrug* Apparently this is Nathan Fillion. Once again I'm faced with the reality that I have no idea what makes men attractive. *Scrutinizes picture* Nope, no idea. He does have pretty big muscles in 1 picture, though. *Shrug*

#142: Oh, the Castle guy. Now I know who he is.

Castle is pretty good too.. Stas, you might like Firefly
I did... a lot.

#144: I have not watched Castle since the show's premier a couple years back, but I recognize the face.

I will give Firefly a shot!

Good! And find Serenity, too.. you won't be sorry :)

I think I have Firefly in my Netflix queue because someone else raved about it. Off to check. . .

>142 Ape: bahahaha the very first suggested related search is "nathan fillion shirtless". SO true.

148: Haha, I didn't even notice that! *Clicks* Nope, still don't undestand. :(

#149 Me either. He's just not my type. Sort of a naughty Michael J. Fox; not a working combination for me.

Summer. Ugh. Couldn't we have had some real spring first?

Everyone has to watch Firefly. You'll either love it, or shrug your shoulders and wonder what the fuss is about. Either way, it has to at least be tried.

Predicted 90F + here for the weekend. Dislike.
Crazy damned weather. First it tried to kill my tree with
hard frost when the buds were budding.. and now
it want to bake my A$$

Dislike.

I remember the exact moment I decided I loved Firefly. We were watching the train robbery episode, and a mobster gave an 'I will track you down' speech. What happened next made it eminently clear that we absolutely had to watch the rest of this series.

"Damn." *kick* "Now this is all the money..."

"Oh yeah, I see it, best for everyone, right there with ya..."

Have a great holiday weekend, Richard!

>156 jnwelch: Thank you, Joe, and the same to you and the memsahib!

Hi Richard hope your house guests are behaving themselves and that you enjoyed your porn Movies!

Happy Memorial Day weekend, Richard. What's cooking?

>158 mckait:

>159 calm: They're off doing something, I know not what. Suits us all! And he it was delightful, thanks.

>160 cameling: Hi Caro! Plain ol' chicken, acksherly. Grilled with bottled BBQ sauce, by guestly request, and served with cornbread and my greens-n-rice numminess (also by guestly request). Boooooooooorinnnnnnnnnnnnnnng

((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx

I hope your houseguests leave you alone :)

Review: 14 of seventy-five

Title: SENESTRE ON VACATION

Author: Z. K. BURRUS

Rating: 3* of five

The Book Report: Newly minted police lieutenant, newly middle aged, and eternally insomniac Thomas Senestre of the bright lights and fleshpots of Jackson City, North Carolina, gets a really weird, smelly letter from a woman who claims to be an old friend of his neglectful, estranged (and very strange) mother the serial monogamist. Please, she begs, come to Pantego and find whoever is stalking me! I'm a scared old lady, wafts on a cloud of lilac perfume into Thomas's sleep-deprived brain cells. He doesn't remember his mother mentioning the lady; but then again, he doesn't think much of his mother, nor about her either. He is fresh from failing to identify a revoltingly mutilated floater that washed up on a reedy stretch of beach, and that's not helping his insomnia. His best friend/fellow lush is the town mortician, who steadfastly refuses Thomas's pleas to let him see the floater again. So, well, since he's so fixated on this urpsome subject, he sees the sense of traveling up the coast to help his mother's friend with her problem.

Which, from the minute he gets out of his weird French car in Pantego, he strongly suspects is a fake, a put-up job to commandeer attention by a gracelessly aging once-beauty. So off he goes, our hero, tromping the streets of a rainy tourist town just before the season officially begins. In his wanderings he meets a member of the local constabulary, a couple of tourists, a couple of bartenders, a chatty old man with a dribbly old beagle, the tough, Amazonian lesbian lover of his supposed client, a *seriously* strange ex-TV star, and an unnervingly perky room clerk from Hell. There's a parade, a sub-lethal poisoning, a cat-kicking (go Thomas!), a claustrophobic freak-out, and no sleep.

What happens at the end of the book is a grisly surprise. No spoilers. But it's grisly.

My Review: What never happens in this book is an investigation conducted by Thomas of anything much. He suspects, rightly, that his client is lying about being stalked. Thomas exerts no effort to look into the matter, but wanders from pillar to post and talks to people in monosyllables and grunts. He meets the local cop, chats with him, asks no questions of any import, and then wanders away. He does this with several people. He solves nothing, really, since events unfold in a dire and tragic way in front of his and the town's eyes, no thanks or blame attaching to him.

This, ladies and gentlemen, isn't a mystery.

But it is, and very much so, a great set-up with an engaging character, set in a fresh venue, and postiviely creaking with quirks and oddities for the main character and his hometown Scooby-group. It's written in a snappy, punch noir-ish style, and it's got some wonderful snark built right in. All these things I liked. Oh, and the cat-kicking was pretty cool too. But, I kept whimpering, what about...and where is...didn't she say...doesn't that make him...ad nearly infinitum.

I like the book in spite of my crotchets with the missed opportunities. In the end, well, if you would like to travel to an unfamiliar small-town milieu with dark and rainy streets, mean and nasty people, a confused and damaged protagonist, and some gruesomely dead bodies, c'mon in! Water's fine!

I do not do grisly, so I think I will give the book a pass. Thumbs up for the review, RD!

>165 alcottacre: Very good call, Stasia. I suspect you'd dislike this book heartily.

A Facebook friend just called that ignorant flibbertigibbet Sarah Palin "Caribou Barbie"! My sides hurt from laughing.

yeah.. good review, but I am not a big fan of grisly

Good review, there...i might have to give the book a look/see!! I don't mind "grisly", as long as it has a purpose (or a porpoise).

I saw that Caribou Barbie thing on FB.....at least no Cougars were insulted!

Have a good weekend...and for gawd's sake, try to keep cool...

;-}

Richard, bless you for reminding me again about Firefly, when I spotted your review of Finding Serenity on the hot reviews a few days ago (I own that book, and read most of it a few years ago, when I couldn't get enough of Firefly).

As a result, I couldn't resist starting to watch my way through my boxed set again - for the third time, I think. Meant to be rationing myself to one or two episodes a day since there are so few, but I've just watched four at a sitting this afternoon, ending with Jaynestown for now... I've been laughing out loud and almost crying, practically simultaneously.

People often describe Firefly as a blend of space opera and western; it occurred to me this time (even before being reminded of the explicit 'steals from the rich, gives to the poor' references in the Jaynestown episode) that t it has strong resonances with the Robin Hood myth also. All of that thieves with honour and loyalty among outlaws stuff - but with lots of different strong women characters instead of one Maid Marion!

Why do I love the show so much? I agree with you it has a lot to do with the fact that LIFE ISN'T TIDY!!! Why would it be in the future?! It never, ever, ever has been in the past! I love the moral ambiguities and physical messiness (down to cow-pats in the ship's hold!), and the depth and complexities of the relationships between these characters who are somehow creating between them a sense of alternative family and home out of next to nothing in the back of beyond.

Oh, and of course, Nathan Fillion can come and captain my ship any time!

I shall be bereft when I've reached the last episode again. I tried one of the graphic novels, but that did not really work for me. Still, you can't take the sky from me. I'll probably have another look at those essays after this...

I have it on good authority that the caribou up in Alaska are planning a stampeding protest at the insult.

Richard- Good review of Senestre on Vacation. You gotta thumb!
Caribou Barbie joke: "When asked about the Rapture last week, Sarah Palin replied " I thought they were the scariest dinosaurs in Jurassic Park ".
Have a good day!

LoL @ 171

>167 mckait: The cat-kicking would do you in. Avoid!

>168 jdthloue: I think you'd like this one, Jude. No one's a hero. Very realistic.

>169 gennyt: Today's my day to review Serenity Found, Genny...another collection of essays about the Dear Departed. I really didn't like the comics. Something that takes me ~5min to read does NOT constitute a satisfactory substitute for the show.

>170 cameling: LOL I suspect you're right there!

>171 msf59: LOLOL

#173 - I didn't know there was a second volume. I look forward to your review!

Proving there is no such thing as enough when it comes to "Firefly", BenBella Books publishes books about the 'verse. Being an addict, I read and also reviewed the follow-up essay collection Serenity Found...my thread, post #99.

Review: 15 of seventy-five

Title: MASQUES FOR THE FIELDS of TIME

Author: JOE TAYLOR

Rating: 3* of five

The Book Report: Thirteen richly imagined stories in a fourth collection of same from Alabama's weirdest living writer, Dr. Joe Taylor. 'Nuff said.

My Review: Full disclosure: I liked Joe Taylor's writing so much that, twenty years ago when I was a literary agent, I took it on and flogged it all over New York. Then as now, safe sells, so Joe and I parted company sadder but wiser. Well, I was, anyway, and not to mention highly entertained by getting to read his stuff first.

Well, Joe's still Joe, albeit older'n dirt and about as pretty these days (really, dude! that author photo!); his eye is still sharp as a flensing knife, though. Stories truly are everywhere in Joe Taylor's world. God help you if you're expecting them to be predictable, or soothing, or bland. They're as unsettling to read as Magritte's paintings are to study. They're packed tight and extra-full, like any good shot that's got to take out the elephant of complacent reading; this book is a laser-sighted musket, focused and powerfully loaded but using for its own ends the fine, old-style craftsmanship of storytelling.

My recommended starter story: "Highway One, Revisited" (despite the fact that it's not the first story of the collection), which begins:

"Sooner or later, it's a dead end, you might philosophically assert. You might say this even as you hear glass shatter ahead, even as you later come upon a six pack of beer bottles snapped across that highway like gaseous stellar matter novaed across the Crab Nebula."

That's pretty much what you are in for; buy the ticket for a mere $20, spend the day surfing the waves and crests of Joe's skewed (his word! his word!) imagination instead of the Internet. Time well spent.

>176 richardderus: Yes, yes, yes...and a thumb, to boot!

;-}

Doing a driveby hello! Off to check in with some others!

((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx for today

Sorry to be weeks and threads late, I've just caught up with thread 8, sorry to hear about Vicki.

How are you today rdear?

>177 jdthloue: Oh boy, Jude, you're in for a treat with these stories. I think you and Joe are twin sons of different mothers. (It's a colloquialism, can't change the genders, sorry.)

>178 bohemiangirl35: SACIL! How the heck are ya?! Glad to see you here, come on back any time!

>179 alcottacre: Hey there Stasia, and thanks for my daily dose! *smooch*

>180 elkiedee: Thank you, Luci, her passing was all I could have hoped for. She was home, she was comfortable, and she was surrounded by loved ones.

>181 mckait: Okay. You?

170 & 171 -- rolling on the floor in fits of laughter. laughing too hard for it to be reduced to all-caps LOLs. Poor, hapless caribou...

Richard

I'll be in New Orleans from Thursday-Sunday. Friday evening the Publishing representative is taking our group to a place called The Two Sisters. Have you heard of this restaurant?

I'm looking for a reasonably priced place to take the students to dinner Saturday night. Do you have any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

Oh my, the Court of the Two Sisters! Nice jazz brunch. Excellent fine dining, and a decent muffaletta for casuals. The rep's taking you to dinner, so it's about $25 an entree and $10 for an appetizer.

What constitutes reasonable, and what meal are we talking about? Lunch for $14 an entree? Dinner for $14 an entree? HUGE difference! Are you going to be Uptown or Downtown? Which night? All these are important factors before recommending, because some places otherwise fine are HELL on weekends in tourist season. A wee scoche more info and I'll burst forth with an idea or two.

Morning, Richard!

Another hot-as-hell day here in central NC - it's supposed to be about 96.

Have a super day!

hot. ugh.

#184 Oh, Lucky Linda! The Court of the Two Sisters---when we lived down there we dreamed of going, but finances at the time limited us to the (also fantastic) little gumbo and sandwich shops tucked into alleys, that catered to locals. Enjoy it for me, too, will you?

>186 karenmarie: Predicted to get to 85 here...but afternoon thunderstorms to cool us off. *shrug* August.

>187 mckait: Ugh.

>188 laytonwoman3rd: Linda3rd, it's one of New Orleans's charms, the restaurant discovery known to locals but hidden from casual visitors. I can think of few places with so many of them!

>189 richardderus: the restaurant discovery known to locals but hidden from casual visitors I think that's true of any city. We always try to hunt down the spots where the locals eat. They're always the best and seldom over-priced.

Richard

There will be seven in our party for dinner Saturday night. Reasonable for Lehigh would be about $50 per person. I'm looking for something in the French Quarter.

Someone mentioned Galatories, but that might be a bit pricy.

Thanks for any help you could give.

I like The Gumbo Shop - reasonably priced, right on Jackson Square.

http://www.gumboshop.com/

GALATOIRE'S! ON $50?!? Oh no no no. Not unless you're planning on paying to sniff the plates as they come out the kitchen, no not happenin'. Besides, you're going to The Court of the Two Sisters! Who needs another night of fancy? And that won't be no $50 a person, either.

Royal Cafe, 700 Royal Street. (504) 528-9086 Make a reservation! It's a balcony restaurant, just right for the Ol' Nawlins Feel, and there's usually a competent pianist there. Good solid Creole, but you're there for the atmo. Which is sigh-inducing.

Old Nawlins Cookery. 729 Conti. (504) 529-3663 Ain't no fine dinin' up in here. It's tourist heaven, fer shure fer shure, but it's got a LOT of food for the money! And the food is good ol' Creole. Etouffe is good, seafood beignet superultranummy. (Cajun martini. 'nuff said.)

Just have to know...what goes into a Cajun martini?

Gin.

I have heard of Two Sisters. I've been to Mulate's a couple of times when down there: http://www.mulates.com/. Good food, and the prices are not too bad. It's not exactly in the Quarter, but it's not far either.

I have been to Old Nawlins. Wonderful food!

((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx

BTW - I did not see you on my thread this past weekend, so I think you missed my 'Thank you' for Eromenos, so I am posting it here too.

I've taken students to Mulates where two of them ate alligator. We joked that perhaps the owners simply clubbed the critters as they floated down the street during the huricane.

The hotel is not far from the convention center.

I will second Jim's nomination of The Gumbo Shop!

I third the Gumbo Shop!

Having perused all menus of named restaurants..........I'm now hungry :/

#195 Very funny, Richard. I looked it up, so there. I suspected Tabasco, but I was wrong.

Review: 16 of seventy-five

Title: FRANCES FARMER: The Life and Films of A Troubled Star

Author: PETER SHELLEY

Rating: 3* of five

The Book Report: Librarian and film fanboy Peter Shelley takes a new tack on explaining the waste that was the life of Frances Farmer: He gives a lot of background in a biographical essay, then analyzes quite thoroughly the actual work turned out by Frances Farmer in her short career. He goes on to bring us the details of the various post-mortem biopics made about her, with analysis of their merits aesthetic and factual. It's quite a lot of work, this, finding and screening and mulling over entertainments long unseen. Kudos for caring so much.

My Review: Because I certainly don't. This is amazingly dense stuff. Since I, a mere civilian, can't get most of these films, I have no context to put them in. I trust Mr. Shelley a little less with each sloppy mistake, like I do all authors. The one that came close to causing me to put the book down permanently came in the biographical essay, where Frances was was fobbed off with a car. A Plymouth Dusenberg.

THIS IS A PLYMOUTH:



THIS IS A DUESENBERG:



Google is your friend. Use it. Duesenbergs were huge, luxurious cars not made after 1936. Plymouths were cheapiemobiles sold to Aunt Mildred and Uncle Cyrus to get them from the farm to the church on Sunday. Mr. Shelley's Australian, it's true, but a quick check would've told him what was what. Why, even a car-phobic friend to whom I bleated disgruntledly said "you're kidding" when I mentioned this!

There were others much more minor that I caught; but I find that, when I catch one or two howlers like this, I wonder what howlers I'm too ignorant to catch, and trust the book I'm reading less and less. So why give it three stars? Why not simply consign it to the local cathedral's charity bin, as I do with books I detest and don't ever want to see again? Because of Farmer and her enduring mystique. She's famous if you know who she is, she's got that tragic queen of Hollywood thing, she's forgotten by all but the few who, in this day and age, seek out Jessica Lange's memorable portrayal of her from 1982 in the film "Frances". I batten on obscure grandeur. This book limns it for me in klieg lights. I like that enough to hold my nose and add a star to what I feel the book, solely on its merits, deserves.

fancy

Amen!

*smooch* nighty night

*smooch* back c-ya tomorrow

A thumb for that review, Richard. Farmer is a fascinating story and so sad. You're right on target with the evocation of the dear dead days and "obscure grandeur".

Thanks, Gail!

Good review, great pics of wonderful old cars.

Glaring inaccuracies like that make me want to borrow Mark Twain's "pen warmed up in hell". You did a fine job with it, Richard.

I love the pictures of the cars and the book review, RD. I am passing on the book itself since it sounds like I would enjoy the pictures of the cars and your review more than the book :)

((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx

>> 193 I thought it was the Court of the Three Sisters. Most amazing brunch I ever ate. But after a week in N'awleans you get so you want to pick up the next street musician you see by his shirt collar and say "Now you're NOT going to play 'When the Saints go Marching in', ARE you?" accompanied by a few sturdy shakes from side to side

Richard- Good review of the Frances Farmer. Too bad, it wasn't a more satisfying read. I remember loving the Jessica Lange film, way back in the 80s.

>210 karenmarie: Thank you, Karen! I love old cars...it's in the blood. My Uncle Nate had a large collection of them, which he started before WWII. He bought a Duesenberg for $75 in 1939! It was a wreck, but he restored it during WWII when scrap drives wanted the cars for steel recycling. He had that car until he died.

>211 laytonwoman3rd: Linda3rd! That is such a compliment I don't know what to do!

>212 alcottacre: Passing is a good idea unless you're in love with the Hollyweird of the age.

>213 magicians_nephew: How nice to see you here, James, and thank you for leaving a comment. Hope you'll be back soon!

>214 msf59: Thanks, Mark! Glad you're here.

I am drooling over the keyboard at the mention of seafood beignet...

Seems like the heat has eased up a bit -- long may it last!!! Although you can always pop Miss Stella into the car and head for a shaded part of a beach and enjoy the sea breezes, at least.

The only beach around here that allows dogs has a horrible dog-run where we're segregated. It's AWFUL! but we have the patio, where I am right now, with breeze/72F/wireless access. Am I a bad person for reveling in this?

Thanks for the recommendations! Day two of the conference and we haven't left the hotel yet. Tonight will be the night we head to the French Quarter.

Have fun at the Court of the Two Sisters!

today is a day.. just sayin'

Hi Richard, thumbs upped that howler of a review of the Frances Farmer book. And wow look at those cars. In those days, a car was a car if you know what I mean.

#217: Yes. It's borderline gloating. If the temp were over 85, there would be no borderline about it!

((Hugs)) and xx smooches xx for today, RD

#217 Grrr - not a bad person but you might get some cranky vibes sent your way. Weather here is stunning at the moment, but the kids aren't really letting me relax and enjoy it. Though that is pretty much my own fault. Still, watching your very blonde three year old pelt around in water fountains in the sun has its perks :)

Add a nice glass of wine/cocktail and enjoy it for us. X

Good one here today again.. I think Dunkers and I will be porching a bit...
and he needs a good brushing..

>223 alcottacre: *smooch* right back!

>224 BekkaJo: Wine. Yes, the perfect accompaniment. Good idea, Bekka!

>225 mckait: *aaah* Porching. Almost as good as patio-ing.

I am finishing up a book with a character in it that reminds me of you. One of these days I will make it up there to see you again. Just be forewarned :)

Come on over! Your invitation is open. I'm not doing much of anything that can't be interrupted.

Ah well. I have to work the weekend. If not this year, then maybe next April when Linda is having her big shebang.

Well, I should hope to kiss a pig! If you get *that* close and don't visit, I shall Take It Personally!

I would expect no less from you, RD! I will be visiting one way or another. Or you could just come to Linda's party. . .

I expect I'll be invited, so I expect I'll go.

I have to go - a got a royal edict from Lady Linda. I know you will be invited.

Hi RD!
How nice to envision you on the patio reveling in good weather and peace! Another nice day today for us... hope the same for you! hugs.

Stas! what is the book? Must know!

oh.. hi Rd :)

#235: Children of Chance by Elizabeth Pewsey, Kath.

>233 alcottacre: I feel sure I will be. Linda likes me.

>234 -Cee-: Hey-ho, Claudzilla! It's been cloudy all morning, but it's breezy and cool, so fine by me. Only one person in-house today, plus TDM and her Man, so it's a doddle compared to last weekend!

>235 mckait: *mmm*desultory wave*

>236 alcottacre: Oh dear. A girl book. *flees*

#237: A girl book? I did not realize books had genders. . .

What? You didn't know there are girl books and boy books? Girl books ooooooze empathy and tearful sobs as the Heroine Suffers and the Nasty Menfolk abuse and ign{b}ore them. *snore*

#239: Girl books ooooooze empathy and tearful sobs as the Heroine Suffers and the Nasty Menfolk abuse and ign{b}ore them. *snore*

I would probably snooze through that too! Actually, the book was not like that. It was more a coming-of-age tale than anything else. I very much enjoyed it.

*wince* So glad you did! *shudder*

xo

Hi Richard- I hope you enjoy your quiet day! We pick up the daughter this afternoon and then a house full of company tonight (Boo!) to greet the young princess.

#241: LOL @ RD

#226 Kids pretty much in bed and I have a margarita. Life makes sense again :) Oh and I have 100 new novels to upload on to my e-reader. Sweet!

Review: 17 of seventy-five

Title: SWAMPLANDIA!

Author: KAREN RUSSELL

Rating: 3.625* of five

The Book Report: The Bigtree family, two-generation swamp folks, have reached the end of their useful lives as purveyors of alligator wrestling and mild amusements to the tourists of fictional Loomis County, in the Ten Thousand Islands. Chief Sam Bigtree loses his wife Hilola, and after that the will to make his living there in the swamps with his three children, 17-year-old Kiwi, 16-year-old Osceola, and 10-year-old Ava. The book follows the misadventures of Ava, who is left alone on the island with the older, but seemigly tetched, Osceola, a girl who believes with all her heart that she is in touch with the spirit world, and specifically with a dead teenaged dredgeman from the 1930s called Louis Thanksgiving. Ava, older in spirit than Ossie, pokes fun at her sister's new beau the ghost. Things turn scary when Ossie, in the grips of what she insists is a spirit possession, abandons Ava and sets out for some Calusa Indian mounds which are locally believed to be a gateway to the underworld. Kiwi, meantime, has gone to "the mainland" (a place of fear and derision to the Bigtrees one and all) to work at the competing theme park. His journey from odd man out to local hero with self-confidence is about 1/3 of the book, told from third person limited PoV. Ava's hunt for Ossie through the swamp country, as aided by a tall, skinny stranger called the Bird Man, is the bulk of the book, told in first person as a flashback. What happens to Ava in the swamp is terrifying, what with the belief she has of traveling a spirit landscape into the Underworld in search of Ossie. What happens to Ossie on a similar journey is harrowing when we finally hear it from her mouth. All is finally put right in this weird and fractured family, the deus ex machina unfolding its long and shining arm to bring forth happiness and contentment. Of a very mitigated sort.

My Review: Well, now. Where to begin. Lushness and loveliness of language? Yes, there is that. Resonant Hero's Journey to the Gates of Hell, complete with safe return? Check. Obligatory abuse of women and children by older men? Sadly, that's here too, though God knows I wish it wasn't.

This is a first novel by a talented writer. I am sorry to say that it relies a little too much on currently fsahionable tropes to merit a good rating. I am sick unto death of novels by women that use adult males as bogeymen, from neglectful father to deceitful and abusive "helper." Stop it. It's boring. And, in case any of you women writers want to think outside your comfort zone for a second, what message is this sending to the girls in the world? Be afraid of men? And to the boys, you are intrinsically bad and evil and not to be trusted by women? Are these little details not immediately obvious to you, and if not, why not?

But the book in question is, as noted above, lush and lovely of language. Its phrases are smooth and silken in my mental ear. Its images are beautifully crafted. Its mythic structure is nicely handled, though I could have done completely without the whole Kiwi thing. One hopes that Karen Russell will see past this lazy co-opting of trendy shibboleths and create something as beautifully thought out as it is written.

Should you read this book? Yeah, well, they're your eyes, blink 'em at whatever makes you happy. Me, I'd go to the liberry to get the book, not shell out most of $30 to procure it.

fabulous review as always.. Thumb

Query: are coming-of-age books female or male? Does it matter what the protagonist gets up to? Intrigued now as to where the line falls!!

Don't tell anyone, but if a book is described as a coming of age story, I run like the wind.
( Or hobble away as quickly as possible, anyway)

I hate to break this to you, but I think you might have just told a few people. Perhaps. Maybe.......

>246 mckait: Thanks!

>247 lunacat: Mostly female, no matter the gender of the protagonist or author. All sorts of angsty don't-fit-in, people-don't-like-me twaddle. Exception: I Am Not A Serial Killer.

>248 mckait: Moi aussi, soul sister.

oops

Ack - need to keep up on threads better so I don't miss Firefly discussions! (And add me to the list of those who can't do the graphic novels - I want regular novelizations! I did sit in the store and "read" the Shepherd Book one because I HAD to know his backstory, but I still just can't stand graphic novels!)

Amen, YGL. Once upon a time, I wrote a backstory for book over in the Blue Sun Room. It was instrumental in getting Mal and the crew to find Miranda, but since I didn't like the Joss version or the deaths that it required (for no damn good damn reason damn it!), I felt no compunction about completely ignoring it. MY version also introduced Inara's father...the head of the Companions' Guild, a Companion and even the personal Companion to the head of Blue Sun...a woman. (NOT Inara's mother.)