Good Books

Upon the Occasion of Reading THE SHELTERING SKY

admin — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:58:00 +0000

The Sheltering Sky, a powerful novel written by Paul Bowles, presents a disturbing narrative in which an American husband and wife, Porter and Kit Moresby, travel in North Africa at some time in the late 40s or early 50s of the last century. At first glance, by looking at the language of the text, readers may see the novel as one built around a postcolonial theme “all having to do with the juxtaposition, sometimes tragic, but usually ludicrous, of the two incongruous and incompatible cultures” (i.e., American/European versus Arab/African). Or perhaps readers will see the novel focusing more acutely on the peripatetic Americans (i.e., people from a society that prided itself on making the world safer through their sacrifice in World War II) and their “faint thrill of excitement [. . .] to be riding past such people [as the less-than-modern North Africans] in the Atomic Age.” However, to this reader, The Sheltering Sky is a rather depressing novel about existential angst—“the perfect knowledge that there [is] no hope” and there is no possibility of “any knowing or any certitude” about life. It is about living a Godless existence about which you cannot show fear: “The mistake you make is in being afraid. That is the great mistake.” Porter (who dies of typhoid) and Kit (who disappears mysteriously at the end after a harrowing odyssey in the desert) reluctantly confront their existential terror. Porter remarks that “[d]eath is always on the way, but the fact that you don’t know when it will arrive seems to take away from the finiteness of life. It’s that terrible precision that we hate so much. But because we don’t know, we get to think of life as an inexhaustible well. Yet everything happens only a certain number of times, and a very small number, really. [. . .] And yet it all seems limitless.” Readers who want to understand Bowles’ novel, in my view, are left with the key question: Can Porter and Kit (or anyone else without hope, optimism, or faith in a higher power) find hope in their predicaments? Perhaps “[t]he coming of [each new] day promises a change; [but] it is only when the day has fully arrived that the watcher suspects it is the same day returned once again—the same day he has been living for a long time, over and over, still blindingly bright and untarnished by time.” This kind of diurnal despair is not a view of life that I choose to embrace. So, for me, The Sheltering Sky, in spite of all of its strengths and notable qualities, remains an unappealing and depressing novel.

Review- KATYA

admin — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 11:20:00 +0000

Katya

A Novel by Sandra Birdsell

Milkweed Editions, September 2004

ISBN: 1571310436

This superb lyrical novel of the Russian Revolution, first published in Canada by McClelland & Stuart as The Russlander, portrays the harrowing life of Katya Vogt. When the story begins in 1910, eight year old Katya lives on the Russian steppe with her family in a peaceful Mennonite community where Katya’s father works as the foreman on the prosperous Sudermann estate. Katya’s father is a patient and pious man who has learned to control his anger; his patience, however, is about to be severely tested when he learns that his lifelong hope of someday owning and farming his own land may never be realized. The Sudermanns, although having previously promised to sell Vogt the land, are reneging on their commitment. Katya, unlike her father, lacks patience and has not yet learned to control her anger; like her father, though, she faces disappointments which will test her patience and temper, but extraordinary challenges to her courage and survival are lurking on the horizon.

Generations of Mennonites had lived in Russia, and the character, dignity, and successes of the Vogt family and other families in the community have been defined and determined by their preoccupation with and adherence to religious and cultural traditions of their past, but tensions in the Russian social and political environments in which the Mennonites live in the early years of the 20^th century threaten to destroy all their hopes and dreams for the future.

As the novel progresses—using flashbacks, correspondence between the characters, and Katya’s point of view as the narrative strategies—the tensions build up to the cataclysmic events of 1917. A succession of anarchists, armies, bandits, and revolutionaries unleash a reign of terror throughout Russia, and the peaceful people on the Sudermann estate and the surrounding communities, the Vogts and other Mennonites among them, soon become victims of unspeakable prejudices, deprivations, atrocities, and murder.

Katya’s story of miraculous survival in a desperately dangerous Russia and her ultimate resettlement in the promised-land of Manitoba, Canada, is a highly recommended coming-of-age story as well as an adroitly crafted fictionalized account of an important period in world history. Katya’s story will invite readers to ponder the wisdom of the paradoxical Russian proverb: “Dwell on the past and you’ll lose and eye. Ignore the past and you’ll lose both of them.”

Something New from Library of America

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:16:00 +0000

Steven Riddle (at his superb blog) offers readers (including me) this wonderful discovery: The Library of America has been posting short stories (and other short works) for readers. Check it out through Steven’s site, which you can access here.

Postscript: I am particular fond of Library of America books, and I have promised myself that someday (when I win the lottery) I will buy the complete catalogue of LOA editions.

Note: The direct link to the LOA site is here.

Review -ROOFWALKER

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 11:21:00 +0000

Roofwalker

Stories and Creative Nonfiction by Susan Power

Milkweed Editions, December 2004

ISBN: 1571310398

Paperback: 216pp; $14.95

The author of this beautiful collection of short stories and creative nonfiction is—as is noted on the dust jacket of the 2002 hardcover edition—“an enrolled member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe,” a former “Ms. Indian Chicago” descended from a Sioux chieftain on her mother’s side and the Civil War governor of New Hampshire on her father’s side, and author of The Grass Dancer (winner of the PEN/Hemingway Award).

Drawing upon her mixed Anglo and Native heritage, Power creates a unique combination of “stories” and “histories” in which she explores the fascinating but sometimes disturbing ways in which Native Americans’ traditions collide with urban American pressures. In the title story, an unhappy 9 year old girl living in Chicago and abandoned by her father, learns from her grandmother the ancestral story of the ravenous Roofwalker, the pernicious spirit who lives only to eat people’s dreams. In other stories, a Mexican-Polish 16 year old is pregnant with the child of her (and her mother’s former) lover, a 30 year old Chippewa of questionable loyalties; a writer of sorts who is half Winnebago and half Sioux is surprised by conversations he begins having with a plastic statue of Saint Jude; in a nursing home in North Dakota, a melancholy widow surrenders herself completely to memories; a guilt-burdened woman is preoccupied with making sure her dead husband has the traditional moccasins for his dance on the air in his journey to heaven; a student at Harvard reflects upon her experiences in opposition to the university’s obscure history as a 17^th century Indian college; and a family is destroyed by the father’s alcoholism and the daughter’s suicide. In the creative nonfiction offerings which she calls “histories,” Power provides tributes to family and ancestors, an elegy to a father, a look at family history through documents and letters, and memories of swimming in Lake Michigan.

In conclusion, to state it simply, Power is a very good storyteller. Her collection is filled with sharp characterizations, vivid imagery, compassionate humor, profound themes, and crystal clear prose. Each “story” and “history” by itself is reason enough for me to enthusiastically recommend Power’s writing; when considered together as a uniformly well-written whole, the pieces in this collection lead me to the unassailable conclusion: You will enjoy this book!

Stephen King Talks About Short Stories

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:55:00 +0000

Some people enjoy reading short stories, and some people–for a variety of reasons–avoid them. What about you? Why?

Before answering, consider the following:

Go to the link listed below, and view the brief video and hear prolific writer Stephen King talk about why people tend not to read short stories any more:

http://www.simonandschuster.com/multimedia?video=27791775001

POSTSCRIPT:

My rapidly shrinking attention span (which perhaps has something to do with aging) makes me a devoted reader of short stories, and novels often require more of me than my mind can lately muster. Perhaps someday–as the attention span shrinks even further–I will be found reading the same short story over and over again (without having remembered that I had read it previously). Given that scenario, I wonder which short story it should be. Perhaps it would be Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral.” Or it might be Katherine Anne Porter’s “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall.” Or–more likely–it will be one of Flannery O’Connor’s late (final) stories. Do you have one short story that stands out above all others?

Idaho Author, Terry Rich Hartley, Returns To Fiction Writing

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:12:00 +0000

Dr. Terry Rich Hartley is a former research psychologist, psychology professor, and journalist who has recently returned to his first love of fiction writing.

In the early 1980’s he sold seven science fiction stories and worked as a writer and copy editor for the Twin Falls, Idaho, Times-News. He then went to The Glens Falls, New York, Post-Star, where he earned two first-place awards for his satirical column and a third one for business/finance editing by the New York State Associated Press Association.

Among Hartley’s academic achievements are a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Skidmore College, a doctorate in social psychology from the University of Nevada, Reno, and a postdoctoral fellowship in biological psychology from the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine.

In the 1990s Hartley was a research psychologist at the Behavioral Sciences Labs in Oklahoma City and, from 2000-2005, an adjunct assistant professor in the Boise State University Dept. of Psychology.

He’s an avid outdoorsman who currently lives in Idaho’s Hagerman Valley along the Snake River with his wife and their Labrador retriever.

“Paranoia on River Road” is a 1-hour audio story read by Sean Pratt that tells the story of when a dispatcher sends Deputy Sheriff Lita Echeveria to a ghoulish burial site. A professor isolates himself in Mystic Canyon after apparently going mad. A wealthy retired farmer lives in denial of child abuse. A mysterious blonde girl and a dog point the way to criminal evidence before disappearing. The interaction of these characters cracks the boundaries of normal/abnormal psychology and criminal justice/cosmic punishment. Hartley’s psychological knowledge and experience is infused in the storyline and makes it a compelling account that captures the listener’s attention to the very end.

The audio recording is performed by Sean Pratt who has recorded more than 500 books in almost every genre and is a six time winner of AudioFile Magazine’s, Earphones Award and two time nominee for the prestigious Audie Award.

“Paranoia on River Road”, released Feb. 7, 2010. The story is available on CD for $5.49 and MP3 download for $4.99 at http://www.mindwingsaudio.com/. Electronic copies can be purchased at various eBook locations on the web and are listed at the Mind Wings Audio website.

Two sci-fi blog fiction authors get creative and re-write the book on fiction online

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:09:00 +0000

Using the power of online publishing and the viral nature of social networking, storytellers Andy Scearce and his Kansas-City-based brother, Steve, have created a speculative science fiction tale of time travel, deep space exploration, and dangerous genetic tampering that has captured the attention of readers across the globe in just over two months from their first posting.

Beginning with a small online collaboration in December of 2009, blog fiction writers Andy Scearce and Steve Scearce, have quickly created a science fiction phenomenon. Their science fiction story is told in blog format, in which their two separate websites represent each end of the story arc. The Station 151 blog site represents the story in present-day Antarctica. The Unknown Transmission site represents the opposite end of the story 176 years in the future.

The two blog sites update with new story segments and chapters nearly every day of the week. To date, their two sites have thrilled thousands of online readers in over fifty countries world-wide. More amazing is the fact that these previously-unknown writers have leveraged the power of social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, and Mixx) to attract targeted readers, and generate masses of repeat traffic from online science fiction enthusiasts everywhere.

Interested readers can find the whole story at the websites for Unknown Transmission and Station 151 via the following URLs:
http://www.unknowntransmission.com/
http://www.station151.com/

About The Authors:
Brothers Andy and Steve Scearce developed an interest in fiction writing, during their internships at an arts and entertainment magazine based in the Midwest. This is their first collaborative project.

The Adventures Of Ford Fairlane Author Launches Story Sequel Website

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:05:00 +0000

A newly launched Website marking the 20th anniversary of The Adventures Of Ford Fairlane, the controversial 1990 motion picture released by 20th Century Fox, directed by Renny Harlin, and starring Andrew Dice Clay, is offering Ford Fairlane fans for the first time the original stories on which the movie was based. The website, http://www.fordfairlanethesequel.com/, also promises a story sequel if 1001 emails are received by May 1, 2010.

Unavailable since first publication in 1980 as serialized weekly episodes in the New York Rocker and the LA Weekly, the stories were written by journalist and screenwriter Rex Weiner. In the two gritty tales, private eye Ford Fairlane, the music industry’s “rock n roll detective,” solves cases involving the punk rock and new wave scenes in New York City and Los Angeles in the late-1970’s.

“The Adventures of Ford Fairlane has become a worldwide cult classic with a dedicated fanbase around the world,” said Rex Weiner. “In response to many requests, I’m pleased to offer these stories in which I created the character played on the big screen by Andrew Dice Clay–and a new story sequel if enough fans demand it.”

Review – THE GREAT NORTHERN RAILWAY: A HISTORY

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:16:00 +0000

The Great Northern Railway: A History

Ralph W. Hidy, et al

University of Minnesota Press, March 2004

ISBN: 0816644292

Paperback: 360 pp; $29.95

The Great Northern Railway: A History is an immensely readable story of regional railway development and entrepreneurial adventure in 19^th and 20^th century America. This well-written and generously illustrated history—supplemented with tables, appendixes, and endnotes—was originally published in 1988 under the Harvard Business School Press imprint. That earlier single volume hardcover edition was a reader-friendly abridgment of an expansive two-volume edition prepared principally for scholars and researchers. The abridged version has now been republished in paperback by University of Minnesota Press and is available for general interest readers and history specialists.

The fascinating American success-story adventure in The Great Northern Railway: A History—presented by the authors in clear and efficient prose—begins in 1849. The Minnesota territory has just been organized, and a challenging western frontier waits beyond the Mississippi River in Saint Paul. The vast northern American region, extending all the way to Seattle, remains empty and waiting for settlement and development. Enter now a group of visionary 19^th century businessmen ready to build a new railway and to exploit the frontier’s potential. After a few years of turbulent planning and financing, the first ten miles of tracks are installed, and service to rail passengers and freight traffic begins on June 28, 1862. Benign and hostile forces of economics, politics, technology, climate, and geography combine in the following century to create the progressive, difficult, and sometimes tragic history of the ways in which the first ten miles of track ultimately becomes the railway giant of the American north. Along with empire-builders James Jerome Hill and (his son) Louis W. Hill as well as John M. Budd and (his son) Ralph Budd, thousands of railway entrepreneurs, managers, and laborers leave their imprint on the different railroad companies that ultimately combine to become the Burlington Northern on March 3, 1970. This book is their story.

The Great Northern Railway: A History is a wonderfully detailed and intriguing story of railway workers, business tycoons, government officials, and millions of American men and women affected by the railway’s progress. The book never fails to entertain and inform. Readers who enjoy reading about American history, business, technology, transportation, and specifically—of course—railroads will want to check out this comprehensive yet easy-to-read history.

Fantasy in Death

admin — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 17:28:00 +0000

By J.D. Robb
Average customer review:

Fantasy in Death

In the latest novel from #1 New York Times-bestselling author J.D. Robb, it is game over for the criminals pursued by NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas.

Bart Minnock, founder of the computer-gaming giant U-Play, enters his private playroom, and eagerly can’t wait to lose himself in an imaginary world, to play the role of a sword-wielding warrior king, in his company’s latest top-secret project, Fantastical.

The next morning, he is found in the same locked room, in a pool of blood, his head separated from his body. It is the most puzzling case Eve Dallas has ever faced, and it is not a game. . . .

NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas is having as much trouble figuring out how Bart Minnock was murdered as who did the murdering. The victim’s girlfriend seems sincerely grief-stricken, and his quirky-but-brilliant partners at U-Play appear equally shocked. No one seemed to have a problem with the enthusiastic, high-spirited millionaire. Of course, success can attract jealousy, and gaming, like any business, has its fierce rivalries and dirty tricks-as Eve’s husband, Roarke, one of U- Play’s competitors, knows well. But Minnock was not naive, and quite capable of fighting back in the real world as well as the virtual one.

Eve and her team are about to enter the next level of police work, in a world where fantasy is the ultimate seduction-and the price of defeat is death. . . .

J.D. Robb : Fantasy in Death

Fantasy in Death

Published on: 2010-02-23
Original language: English
Number of items: 1
Binding: Hardcover
368 pages

Customer Reviews

The beginning of the end…
This, my fellow Eve and Rourke fans, is the the beginning of the end. Not in a horrible, “OMG, this series has totally gone downhill” but in the slow, beautiful way stories about couples come to a resolution. As Roberts says in the video on this page, people grow and change – Eve has had made amazing personal and emotional leaps from the first In Death novel and Rourke has been right beside her. “Fantasy” shows what happens when that growth starts to pay off. The entire time I was reading “Fantasy in Death”, I felt like I was reuniting with friends I hadn’t seen since their wedding and was now watching them interact as a couple that is deeply and passionately in love. Granted, Roberts sets it up way with a consistent narrative thread around relationships but not once did I feel she was pushing Eve and Rourke as a couple in the reader’s face. Each time it emerged, it made perfect sense and was delightful to read. This is a series about Eve and Rourke and some books have been relationship-lite and cop-heavy. “Fantasy” is the ideal balance. Because it is book 30, the ending scenes gave my heart a bit of a stutter but the resolution only reinforced the consequences of Eve’s growth as a woman and a wife. There is one meta-moment that I read as a shout out to fans (an Eve and Rourke conversation echoes comments that Nora Roberts has made about the end of the series) that made me chuckle and the technology has gone into truly science fiction, reinforcing that this is a series set in 2058. Like any good scifi author, Roberts/Robb has given us enough science to make is plausible and enough fiction to make it cool.

Fans of the series will no doubt read this book because that’s what you do when a new one comes out. If you are new to the series and wondering if this is a good starting point, I say yes. Joining Eve and Rourke and Peabody (who I argue is one of the best written sidekicks in fiction) this far in their relationships will only make the journey from the beginning that much more enjoyable.

As an aside, all authors (romance or not) can learn so much about Roberts/Robb’s skill with dialog. At a pivotal moment, when in the hands of a lesser author, Eve might scream, shout, beat her fist against her breast – she simply said three words and that sentence did more to communicate the depth of growth, emotion, and change in character than would seem possible.

See more details: Fantasy in Death

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