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tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77944963477051200692014-10-26T15:52:22.139-06:00Glorified Love Letters"These aren't reviews! All I see are glorified love letters."Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-55347590333301479372014-09-10T13:39:00.000-06:002014-09-10T13:39:18.568-06:00Comics! Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor #2 and The Eleventh Doctor #2

Talking about individual comics issues is somewhat difficult, for one does not want to spoil the story. However, let me continue to encourage you to look into the two new Doctor Who comics runs for both the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors with this brief look.

(For a basic background, do check out my thoughts on the first issues for both Doctors here.)

The Tenth Doctor and Gabriela are still fighting a strange creature in New York that has the ability to take on the warped appearance of familiar people, and Gabriela continues to be a capable woman. The Doctor features consistently in the story now, whereas in Issue #1, he didn't appear until halfway through. Nick Abadzis explores themes of fear and expectations without hitting one over the head with a moral, and Elena Casagrande's artwork continues to be very good:

Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor #2 (Titan Comics, 2014)

Meanwhile, the Eleventh Doctor has whisked Alice away on an adventure, hoping to help her feel better, but since TARDIS usually has other plans, they land on a planet taken over by a theme park. All of the workers are strangely happy, and none of the patrons are complaining. Rokhandi is supposed to be full of natural splendor, and instead the Doctor is being offered free Rokhandi floss.

Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor #2 (Titan Comics, 2014)

Al Ewing does a wonderful job writing Alice as a smart woman who is able to remind the Doctor of his gaps in human understanding. She doesn't put up with him patronizing her conclusions, and it's interesting to see the story talk about the unpleasant emotions we all have, playing off the happy-time Rokhandi World with Alice's previously mentioned depression.

After the beauty of Alice X Zhang's covers for both the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors' first two issues, I'm still somewhat let down by the artwork within the Eleventh's Doctor's story. I know that the comics are not entirely beholden to getting his face exactly right, but when you have such an iconic figure — especially compared with the job done in the Tenth Doctor's comics — I guess I just expected better. Alice and some of the scenery are drawn well, but I don't know that I have the proper comic-art vocabulary to say what specifically I'm looking for. That said, the artwork could evolve over the story arc, and it's not overly distracting in the meantime.

I think this might be the first time I've ever read a comics run starting with the first issue, as they were released, and I find myself impatient for more. How do the rest of you regular comics readers do it?

Full Disclosure: Titan Comics provided me with advanced review copies of these comics. I thank them for the gesture and I will continue to be fair with my reviews.Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-55545103147625360732014-08-23T12:21:00.000-06:002014-08-23T12:21:30.413-06:00Internal News as of 8-23-14

 Hello friends! Time for another massive update collecting the things I've written that have not appeared here.

First up, if you're not following me on tumblr, here's where I'm at. Prepare yourself for lots of Peter Capaldi because I don't have problems, you have problems.

ALSO! I've been named Blog Editor at Word Riot, so expect to see more over there that isn't just my Notes From Elsewhere. (There have been a few updates over there since I last did one of these roundups, so do check it out. Lots of good stuff, including the Twitter-published David Mitchell story.)

And with that, here's the Stuff I've Written at Persephone Magazine:

Record Machine

Pearl by Janis Joplin (a classic!)

The Community College Comes A'Callin,' Part 2 (In which I actually monetize being a strange obsessive)

Mirage by Fleetwood Mac (since I realized that I only have Tusk on CD and cassette)

Voodoo Doughnut Recording's "Triple Chocolate Penetration" (novelty 45s FTW)

New Sensations by Lou Reed (what an excellent album!)

Une Danse des Bouffons (A Jester's Dance) by Marcel Dzama (a French play on words and some excellent soundtrack music)

In The City by The Jam (one of my all-time favorites)

Book Reviews

The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez (quite good)

Copycat by David Yow (who is also the singer from Jesus Lizard)

Excavation: A Memoir by Wendy C. Ortiz (loved this book)

My reviews for the first issues of the new Doctor Who comics also appear at P-Mag now.

Twee: The Gentle Revolution in Music, Books, Television, Fashion, and Film by Marc Spitz (I had mixed feelings/concerns.)

ALSO! Since today is the day that we finally, finally get a new season of Doctor Who, starring my favorite Scottish boyfriend, it's only right that I wrote a post at P-Mag called "5 Fantastic Moments Since 'The Time of The Doctor.'"

(One of those 5 things is a very mild spoiler, be warned.)

I'm not going to round up every single news post I've made since the last Internal News update, but my most recent has lots of news sources for what's going on in Ferguson, MO, and also stuff on sharks, the ice bucket challenge, and my favorite Simpsons episode. Do click though.

Is that it? I think that's it, unless Quirk Books finally published that Book Arts post I sent them ages ago.... I should look into that. I am taking off September from P-Mag so I can work on both fiction and getting the WR blog looking shiny, but I do have a few book reviews I will be throwing here.

Also, with any luck, this week I'll be writing up some Record Machines that will post throughout September, so fingers crossed that I get myself ahead of the game.

Until next time, friends.

Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-5571853618078181772014-07-23T15:41:00.001-06:002014-09-10T12:03:17.333-06:00Comics! Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor #1 and The Eleventh Doctor #1 Lately I've been dipping into the world of Doctor Who comics with both the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors, but today I've read the brand new releases from Titan Comics: Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor #1 and Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor #1, which are such outstanding first issues that I am already itching for the collected volume.

The Tenth Doctor's first issue takes place some time after he has left Donna, but before Waters of Mars. Interestingly, he does not appear on a significant number of pages. Nick Abadzis' story focuses on Gabriella, a college-aged New Yorker who works at her family's laundromat and Mexican restaurant, and she takes business accounting classes — all of this at her father's behest. One day, something strange happens at the laundromat, and as this is indeed Doctor Who, life becomes increasingly more strange and chaotic. When the Doctor does appear, he is armed with one of his cobbled together gadgets, and in a nice nod to his lines (and at this stage, his future) in the 50th Anniversary special, he says, "I should have made this go 'ding.' I love it when they ding."

Elena Casagrande's artwork is leaps and bounds better than some of the other DW comics I've seen, and Gabriella, although confused, is ready to find out what exactly is going on, which is what the Doctor likes. The curious, intellectual sort are his favorites. The issue ends on an excellent cliffhanger, and I'm interested to see how it plays out.

The Eleventh Doctor, meanwhile, has recently left the Ponds to their newlywed life and is having some adventuring time to himself. First though, we meet Alice Obifune, who is having a hard time navigating through life after the death of her mother. On top of that, she's being evicted so her building can be converted into luxury flats, and cuts at work mean she's laid off.

Alice started to wonder if the grayness would ever end. If she would ever feel anything but numb and empty again. Maybe she needed to see someone.

And out of nowhere, a giant, rainbow-colored dog appears in the middle of the road with the Doctor chasing after it. The dog looks like a cross between a Chinese dragon parade costume and Falcor, the "luck dragon"/flying dog thing from The Neverending Story. As companions often are, she's sucked into the madness right away, and for the first time in a long time, she can forget how sad she is. I definitely want to see how her story progresses.

Al Ewing and Robert Williams capture the odd bleakness and surreality of depression, and although I didn't like Simon Fraser's art as much as Elena Casagrande's — for one thing, his Eleventh Doctor face doesn't look quite right sometimes — the rainbow dog looks great.

What's also great about both of these comics is that they featured women of color without congratulating themselves for doing so, something Russell T. Davies would do during his run on the show. Though I'm not a fierce Steven Moffat hater like some people are, I do find it somewhat irritating that when he has, for example, not-straight characters, they are presented in a way that's like, "Oh look, we made a joke because this is just sooooo unexpected. May we have a cookie now?"

I digress.

Both of these first issues offer an interesting, complex backstory that I hope continues to flourish. We need more of these kind of characters in comics in general, and also on Doctor Who, the show proper. Let us hope that with this new comics series and a new Doctor, a little cross-pollination is in order. We could be in for some fantastic results.

Full Disclosure: Titan Comics provided me with advanced review copies of these comics. I thank them for the gesture and I will continue to be fair with my reviews.Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-51186575362178987702014-06-18T07:00:00.000-06:002014-06-18T07:00:00.687-06:00Guest Post: The Best(?) Songs Sung By Robots by Mason Johnson
Glorified Love Letters always approves of making playlists, so let's have us a guest post, then:

 Despite having written Sad Robot Stories, I am not an expert on robots (or anything else, for that matter). Still, I'm fairly confident I could come up with a decent Side One to a robot-themed mix tape. Not the kind you give to a guy or gal in the hopes they'll sleep with you. This is more of an "I better sit in my room alone and listen to it mix tape."

It will not include the song "Mr. Roboto."

The Best(?) Songs Sung By Robots

Imogen Heap - "Hide And Seek"

To her credit, Heap is a more talented robot than most.

Her voice wasn't changed solely through the work of a computer, it was going through her keyboard which was turned into a vocoder. So at least she has to make sure to kind of hit the same notes as she both sings and plays.

I'm glad the "Hide and Seek" meme, first started by the O.C., has returned thanks to Game of Thrones.

I'm sad that my friends refused my requests to keep this song on repeat as we drove around the summer of '06. Haters gonna hate.

Lastly, it was difficult not to make every song on this list "Hide and Seek," examining it from a different angle several times, as some sort of cruel joke.

The Postal Service - "Against All Odds"

 Phil Collins once wrote an amazing song called "Against All Odds" for an amazing film by the same name. It starred a young, bearded Jeff Bridges. He was so hot in it.

So hot.

Years later, a government sponsored robot made to woo 20-somethings with electro-light indie songs that can make hit movie trailers out of awful movies was unleashed by the United States Postal Service. It created an entire album, but it's worst crime was to cover "Against All Odds."

Thanks, Obama.

Kanye West - "Coldest Winter"

For 808s and Heartbreak, Kanye abandoned his signature sampling style for a drum machine and autotune. While I'm sure T-Pain would like to take the credit for this style, it's the popularity of Kanye that created an autotune apocalypse.

Anyway, the use of a drum machine in 808s makes the album sound like a cacophony of robots. Not so much in the tribal "Love Lockdown," but it's definitely apparent in (surprise surprise) "RoboCop."

Then there's "Coldest Winter," the drum machines sounding like a mix of "Love Lockdown" and "RoboCop." There's the almost TV-like static sound interspersed between a driven drum beat. At times, the song sounds like grinding gears and kids beating buckets in the subway station simultaneously. The autotune on "Coldest Winter" finds a similar balance. Clearly Kanye is singing (or trying, at least) with a tinge of pain in his voice, but the autotune is still clearly present (though not as heavy as some of the other songs). Kanye's a lot of things, but he's no singer -- and he knows this. Autotune wasn't only an attempt to hide this fact (if it ever was at all), but is a tool that sets the mood/tone of the album. It offers a needed detachment to a series of heartbreak songs from the point of view of a guy who's not exactly into sharing his feelings.

If there were a "Coldest Winter" in Sad Robot Stories, it was probably when Robot dragged himself to the middle of Lake Michigan. It wasn't technically winter (if seasons still exist, post-apocalypse), but Kanye isn't talking about literal seasons when he raps about the coldest winter or a cruel summer.

Jonathan Coulton - Portal's "Still Alive"

 Still lol.

If you're one of the few who haven't played Portal, you're missing out on some of the best dark humor in the past ten years.

Weakerthans - "Virtue The Cat Explains Her Departure"

 I have 69 Weakerthans songs on my computer. Coincidence?

Those of you who've read my damn book (sorry) will understand the connection between the book and this sad cat story, however tangential.

Though this song was in no way an inspiration for any part of the book, it's the only song about a cat to ever bring me to tears. For a long time I spaced out during this song on the Reunion Tour album. At some point the words hit me, I obsessed over them and the stupid cat's journey in them, and after that would always be overcome with an immense pain of loneliness. Not like I was out of breath, but like something was physically in my chest holding the breath down against its will in the pit of my stomach, refusing to let it escape.

Seems sorta embarrassing.

Anyway, I didn't listen to the song for a long time. It was too sad. Eventually I started listening to it again, especially when I was writing something sad and needed to call up some genuine sad feelings (that weren't too sad).

I'm certain I did this while writing Sad Robot Stories. Though, again, it has no real bearing on the plot.

My mother always said that you should never end on a sad note. I disagree.

Mason Johnson is a writer from Chicago who currently works full time writing and editing articles for CBS. You can find his fiction at themasonjohnson.com. His novel, Sad Robot Stories, was published by CClaP in August 2013. Also, he pets all the cats.
Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-14258605893451482322014-06-12T19:36:00.000-06:002014-06-12T19:36:20.497-06:00Massive Internal News Update: Book Tour, Reviews, P-Mag + More

Mea culpa. What an embarrassment to go this long without updating! DECEMBER is the last time I did an Internal News roundup, and that's inexcusable! Especially since I've had a few book reviews published since the last time I did one of these "Writing That Has Appeared Elsewhere" updates. Y'all aren't really interested in excuses, I know, but I've been busy with Electric City Creative events. Also, I was one of the organizers for Great Falls Festival of the Book, and I gave a talk on independent publishing and writing online. (It went okay. I think people left with greater knowledge, which is all one can ask for.)

Also! We went on a book tour for Saif Alsaegh's poetry collection, Iraqi Headaches, which was fun AND productive. We've sold through our first print run of the book, and maybe half the special editions (I don't have the numbers in front of me). The book is now for sale at all our tour stops, and also through our local Hastings, Powell's, Amazon, and of course Nouveau Nostalgia. Saif's on his summer break from the University of Great Falls, so he's traveling around (with books, of course), and he will be part of some sort of theatre-based events in Minneapolis, in August, I think. I don't have the details yet.

{We've also still got around 20 copies of Infinite Disposable by yours truly (and with Tyson Habein's photos) hanging about, and the cover is somewhat different now. Remember, these have hand-painted covers and once the 125 we printed are gone, that's it. This like purchasing both a book and a limited edition art print.}

Alsox2, I got myself a temporary job sorting a stash of old vinyl discovered in the local community college basement. It's mostly 45s from the '50s and '60s, and 10" shellac singles from the late 1920s onto the 1950s, I think. The newest stuff in any of the boxes appears to be from the early '70s. The college library is having me assess the approximate value of each record so they can decide what to do with them. It's my kind of tedious work, especially because I can work on it whenever I want, I can wear whatever I want, and they're paying me more than fairly for my trouble. It's pretty awesome, but I'm still working on finishing up the job.

OKAY! Now then, what have I been writing lately. Let's get into it:

At Persephone Magazine:

Record Machine

"Time of the Season" by The Zombies - A noteable 1968 single backed with the song "Friends of Mine."

Follow The Lights by Ryan Adams and The Cardinals - In which I finally rectify this gap in my Ryan Adams collection.

"Falling Down (A Monstrous Psychedelic Bubble Exploding in Your Mind)" by Oasis and Amorphous Androgynous - That has to be the longest title I've ever made P-Mag use on one of my posts. This 20 minute-long single is too unusual to stay unheard.

"Snoopy vs. The Red Baron" by The Royal Guardsmen - Peanut-themed novelty single with a weird post-2001 update.

Dream of Life by Patti Smith - AKA... Patti Smith is awesome.

Hunky Dory by David Bowie - An $8 antique store find! Hell yes.

The Art of Drowning by AFI - One of my favorite albums.

Led Zeppelin I - An original. We don't need no stinkin' reissues.

Odludek by Jimi Goodwin - I love this album so hard, and I feel like I'd been waiting for it for ages.

Auscultation of The Heart by J.B. Barlow and W.A. Pocock - Definitely one of the strangest records I own. DJs should sample from it.

"I Don't Wanna Be Around You" by The Innocence - a 45 I'd never heard until I decided to write about it, based on the record company name.

Rumours by Fleetwood Mac - Because I've had a lack of Fleetwood Mac related content in this column, and I plan to continue fixing that.

"Little By Little" and "She is Love" by Oasis - Underrated single from my favorite band.

The Community College Comes A'Callin' - In which I write a little bit more about sorting those records. This was written before it was an official job though.

Absolute Beginners/Funeral Pyre by The Jam - An EP smashed together from two different singles.

Avalon by Roxy Music - In which I get to obsess over "More Than This" again.

78 in The Shade by Small Faces - Blusey dance party.

"Leaving on a Jet Plane" by Peter, Paul and Mary - And written by John Denver.

"The Drugs Don't Work" by The Verve - I love this song so much.

Fleetwood Mac, "The White Album" - Sometimes I think this is my favorite Fleetwood Mac album.

Food/Booze!

Recipe of the Day: Double Beef Chili - It has lots of ingredients, but it's worth it.

Chocolate of The Day: Deep Dish Brownies - I may not bake much of anything, but I do bake these and they are awesome.

P-Mag's Ultimate Cocktails: The Russian Lit - AKA... BEST COCKTAIL EVER.

P-Mag's Ultimate Cocktails: Spicy Gin Cucumber Lemonade - ALSO ACCEPTABLE. (I feel strongly about gin, can you tell?)

Friday News Bites

I'm really not going to link to 6 months' worth of news (though I did sub for Karo and did News in Europe for 2 weeks), but here's last week's: Bowe Bergdahl, Amazon vs. Hachette, Political Facepalms + More

BOOKS!

Spun by Catherine McKenzie - I wasn't really a fan of this novella, but there were some highlights.

My review of Doctor Who: Last of the Gaderene by Mark Gatiss also appears at P-Mag now.

Interview with a Middle-Grade Reader + Book Review: Gameworld by C.J. Farley - in which my daughter also gives us her thoughts on this excellent book from Akashic.

My Top 5 favorite books published in 2013 - like it says on the tin.

Somewhere in France by Jennifer Robson - a decent set-during-WWI novel.

5 Books with Sara Habein - Slay Belle asks me for a specific set of book recommendations.

In February, The Rumpus published my review of Jessica Baran's poetry collection, Equivalents.

I'm also not going to link to 6 months' worth of Notes From Elsewhere posts at Word Riot, but here's the link to all of them, so you can peruse.

I don't think I'm forgetting anything, but please remind me to never let myself go this long without an update again.

Thanks for reading.
Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-61099235001297025242014-04-04T10:57:00.004-06:002014-04-04T10:57:40.690-06:00After I'm Gone by Laura Lippman

After I'm Gone
by Laura Lippman

The holes in our lives require energy. Everything after must be arranged around that absence, and that effort often continues the devastation. In After I'm Gone, Laura Lippman takes the disappearance of one shady businessman, Felix Brewer, and follows the repercussions on his wife, daughters, and mistress.

Facing a decade of jail time, Felix had his mistress, Julie Saxony, sneak him out of town on July 4, 1976. Ten years later, almost to the day, Julie disappears and later turns up dead. Felix's wife, Bambi, is periodically questioned for both cases, but decades later, both are unsolved. His three daughters — Linda, Rachel, and Michelle — have dealt with losing their father in varying ways, but only Linda and Rachel remember what it was like to have Felix around.

[E]ven as Linda was abandoning herself in the moment, she was also giving in to the pragmatic person she was meant to be. She would have to take care of both of them, she thought, circling her legs around his waist. She had to take care of everyone. That was okay; she was used to it. She remembered walking up the front walk, after the fireworks at the club. Her mother knew before they crossed the threshold How had she known? […] "Will we ever see him again?" Rachel had asked. Linda knew they would not.

We are also introduced to Sandy Sanchez, a Cuban-American former police officer now doing cold case consulting for the department. His own life is built up around absences, and after being reminded of the Felix Brewer and Julie Saxony cases, he feels compelled to work on them again. It's 2012, and memories are fuzzy — sometimes willfully — but he senses that something is the file that will finally solve these disappearances.

The books jumps around time periods and points-of-view, with large sections titled after lyrics to "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me," Felix and Bambi also meet at a dance where The Orioles play, a real life R&B group based out of Baltimore, where After I'm Gone is set. In 1952, they had a hit called "Baby Please Don't Go."

I'm not well-versed in modern crime fiction, but the book is different enough from that "one last case before retirement" trope to keep it interesting. However, I'm still not sure After I'm Gone was the book for me.

It's a bit of a slow-burn, this novel. Not until the last third of the book did it pick up the pace and have me trying to anticipate the ending. Prior to that, it's not as though I didn't care, but I wasn't very invested either. Some of this, I suspect, was having to juggle the different characters and time settings. Because of some health issues, I have trouble with that type of writing sometimes, and while this comprehension problem annoys me to no end, I want to emphasize that this will not likely be the case with most readers. My concentration-fogging issues are irritating for me, in no small part because they alter my perspective so.

And isn't that its own kind of absence? I remember what it was like to read in-depth and to read challenging work without much strain — and to recall details easily! And while I use review writing to exercise that part of my brain, I don't yet know if I'll feel any closure on the matter. For now, I must work around the brain fog, and maybe one day, I'll accept it.

Of course, having trouble with certain novels is not the same as mysteriously losing a father or a partner. After I'm Gone does well with sifting through all that simmering anger, jealousy, sadness and other damages. Every person is fighting to live well and never quite gets there. Perhaps the length of the book and its initially slow pace speak to that struggle. After decades, resolution seems like it might never come.

The more honest you were with yourself, the less you had to worry about the world's opinion. […] Tell the truth whenever possible, and start with yourself.

So while this wasn't one of my favorites that I've read lately, After I'm Gone is still enjoyable. Take stock in what you need in a story, and perhaps you will feel differently. The sum of our experiences influences all.

Full Disclosure: William Morrow provided an advanced review copy, so my pull quotes may differ slightly from the finished edition. I thank them for the gesture, and I will continue to be fair with my reviews.

This review is part of Cannonball Read (now in its 6th year!), a challenge in which participants read and review books in the name of raising money for cancer charities. Do click through for more information.Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-14167272317235454412014-02-25T08:00:00.000-07:002014-02-28T14:00:44.925-07:00Giveaway! Win the new paperback version of The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards by Kristopher Jansma

The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards by Kristopher Jansma very nearly made it into my Top 5 Books from 2013, but its Honorable Mention status makes it no less significant. To celebrate the book's paperback release today (and that lovely new cover), Penguin Books has very kindly offered me 1 copy of the book for a giveaway.

If you didn't catch my review the first time, here's an excerpt:

"The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards exists within the lies we tell ourselves and the lies others choose to believe. In this stunning first novel, Kristopher Jansma has accomplished a narrative feat by making the reader embrace bewilderment and questions of identity.

To properly summarize Leopards is to run the risk of spoiling its magic, but our young male narrator has yearned for notoriety ever since his flight attendant mother would leave him waiting in the concourse while she worked, depending upon other airport employees to watch him. The boy would write and write, desiring great words that would impress those around him. By impressing them, he wishes to earn their love.

We think we know his name, and then we are not sure. The process continues, and the boy ages — "growing up" is not entirely the correct term, for he still has not quite figured out who he is, or if the love he feels for a special woman is a love for her or just love for love's sake."

Read the rest here.

If you would like to be entered to win The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards, leave a comment telling me: What's one "grown-up" thing you have yet to master? Make sure I have some way to contact you (email, Twitter), too.

Mine is definitely cleaning the bathroom. The mister does it because I think it's icky and I don't wanna. So there. Etc.

One entry per person. Winner will be chosen via random number generator on the evening of February 27th.Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-51299716357865709062014-02-14T08:00:00.000-07:002014-02-14T08:00:05.197-07:00Story Time: "Carbon" by Dan Rhodes

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone. The fine folks at Europa Editions have passed along a story from Dan Rhodes' new collection of short fiction, Marry Me, and I like it a lot. So while I'm continuing to be slow about book reviews and updates and other writing, how about I just leave this here:

"Carbon" by Dan Rhodes

I asked my girlfriend to marry me, and she said yes. I couldn't afford a diamond, so instead I handed her a lump of charcoal. 'It's pure carbon,' I explained. 'Now, if we can just find a way to rearrange the atoms . . .'

She stared at the black lump in her palm, and I began to worry that ours was going to be the shortest engagement in history. She smiled. 'We'll put it under the mattress,' she said. 'Maybe we'll squash it into a diamond over time.'

It's been there ever since. We check up on it every once and a while, and it never looks any different. I think we would be a bit disappointed if it ever did.Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-65438345567135622322014-02-06T22:54:00.000-07:002014-02-06T23:30:37.768-07:00Books I Read in 2013: Part 2(Read Part One here. Includes Top 5 favorites published in 2013, lots of Doctor Who audio dramas, cats, and more.)

Before it gets any further into 2013, I want to continuing documenting the pile of books I read last year. Let us get to the "Not Among the Favorites, But Still Very (or Very, Very) Good."

Novels!

Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling: Continuing on with my "I am probably the last person of my age to read these," this was the first Harry Potter book where I became really distracted by things like, "said Ron grimacingly" or other stylistic choices that just aren't my writing cup of tea. Of course, it's still a great story, and I'm going to keep reading, but please forgive me for any snobbishness that my criticism implies.

Black Swan Green by David Mitchell: The first David Mitchell novel I didn't want to eat (for being so good), but that doesn't mean it's not worth reading. With its realistic young protagonist, it somewhat reminded me of Ciarán West's Boys of Summer, but with less murderin'.

Losing Clementine by Ashley Ream: I was pleasantly surprised by this one. Review here.

The Unseen by Katherine Webb: Also quite captivating, especially for a long book. Review here.

Fobbit by David Abrams: An outstanding novel about the various absurdities surrounding and contained within the Iraq War. I meant to review this awhile back, and never did. Abrams is from Montana, so I gotta let out that obligatory-but-deserved Woo! (We get really excited when people realize that writers do exist in Montana, and no, we don't all write about cowboys and "the range.")

It's Fine By Me by Per Petterson: Petterson does melancholy and lonely so well. Review here.

Father Gaetano's Puppet Catechism: A Novella by Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden: A recommendation from a friend I ended up enjoying very much, despite not being all that well-versed in Catholic symbolism. Review here.

A Winter's Night by Valerio Massimo Manfredi: A big, satisfying family saga that extends through both World Wars. Review here.

NW by Zadie Smith: My first Zadie Smith book. I know, I know, late to the literary party again. This was a library book, and I loved the characters and their unapologetic flaws and the various London settings. Right up my alley.

The Art Forger by B.A. Shapiro: I'm a sucker for heist stories and some portions of art history, so I'm glad that this was not at all disappointing. Review here.

The Ocean at The End of The Lane by Neil Gaiman: This is where I was triumphantly fist-pumping over my review copy contacts. Gaiman, of course, writes beautifully, in that full-on heart-swelling way that identifies tricky emotions that one could not previously name. The nightmares of children exist in a language that is often impenetrable to adults, but he writes with such a direct insight to those dreams that we begin to remember what it was like to have them. Review here.

Flimsy Little Plastic Miracles by Ron Currie Jr.: It's an unusual book, in its way. Review here.

The Golem and The Jinni by Helen Wecker: I guess you would call this a fantasy novel, or maybe in some ways, a magical realism novel, but however you want to classify a story about two mythic beings from two different cultures meeting in Ellis Island-era NYC, it's worth the read.

Manuscript Found in Accra by Paulo Coelho: I would almost call this a book of philosophy, but if Coelho and his publisher, Knopf, want to call it a novel, then okay. Still quite good though. Review here.

Maya's Notebook by Isabel Allende: Although the book is nearly 400 pages, it never feels like it goes on too long, and the diary premise never seems forced. Review here.

Grey Cats by Adam Biles: My first-ever Kindle-read novel, which I guess counts for something. Still, I did enjoy this surreal story set in Paris, made even more surreal by reading it in a very warm Florida house.

The Illusion of Separateness by Simon Van Booy: Not quite as "I WILL HUG THIS BOOK'S FACE OFF" as Everything Beautiful Began After, but still really good.

Girl Afraid by Ciarán West: In the same way readers moved past their shock to read Alissa Nutting's similarly-themed Tampa, I do hope people give this a look. Review here.

Short Stories!

One Hundred Apocalypses and Other Apocalypses by Lucy Corin: Another one of those "meant to review/got behind/ declared Review Bankruptcy instead." That shouldn't deter you. This is an odd, wonderful collection of little "apocalypses" with a really great cut-out hardcover.

Half as Happy: Stories by Gregory Spatz: You know a book is good if you only stop reading so that you can tell the author, at 1 AM via Facebook, how much you are enjoying it. Review here.

The Girlfriend Game by Nick Antosca: These aren't happy tales, but the confusion, loneliness, and yearning for change feels so authentic to each individual world. Review here.

A Simplified Map of the Real World by Stevan Allred: I wanted to review this for Word Riot because it is a short story collection from a small press, so it would be a good fit, but alas, I didn't write anything. Let this be my recommendation now: Allred writes wonderfully of loneliness, despair, and desire. The history and characters contained within the town of Renata, Oregon make this one of the most connected collection of short stories I've ever read.

NANO Fiction (Vol. 7 No. 1) edited by Kirby Johnson: Their collections of flash fiction are usually good, though this was the best one from them I read last year.

Poetry!

All-American Poem by Matthew Dickman: I first became aware of Matthew Dickman through a New Yorker profile of him and his twin brother, Michael, who is also a writer. In Powells, I purchased this while looking for poetry books in which my husband might be interested. It's very, very good, and he should read it. (She said, staring pointedly.)

Looking For The Gulf Motel by Richard Blanco: 2013 kind of became my year of reading poetry, probably helped tremendously by my well-documented love for Richard Blanco. His work and dem arms. I reviewed this collection of poetry over at The Rumpus. (I also want to read his memoir.)

100 Love Sonnets / Cien Sonetos de Amor by Pablo Neruda: Twas almost entirely full-on love. Review here.

Proxy by R Erica Doyle: Prose poems that are unafraid of the body, of queerness, and the messiness into which one can willingly dive. Review here.

Equivalents by Jessica Baran: I will have a review of this up at The Rumpus soon, so stay tuned, other than to say, y'know, I liked it.

Non-fiction!

Magic Hours: Essays on Creators and Creation by Tom Bissell: I also meant to review this one, but I also read it around the same time I met Johnny Marr, and that was quite... distracting. (And wonderful. And I'm not going to stop mentioning it.) While I didn't always agree with Bissell's points, his essays were always interesting and gave me something to think about regarding creativity.

Mountainfit by Meera Lee Sethi: A cross between journalism, memoir, and poetry. Review (and a guest post) here.

Sexy Business!

Suite Encounters: Hotel Sex Stories edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel: Probably one of the better erotica collections I've read. Review here.

Sexy Sailors: Gay Erotic Stories edited by Neil Plakcy: Thankfully, it's not only about Navy members. I think maybe this and Suite Encounters might set someone up for false expectations about the general quality of most erotic fiction compilations because this was mostly pretty good, whereas most others are variations on "just okay, with a couple highlights." Review here.

The Ultimate Guide to Prostate Pleasure: Erotic Exploration for Men and Their Partners by Charlie Glickman and Aislinn Emirzian: Definitely interesting in a "Huh. So that's how that works," scientific sort of way, but also interesting in a fun way. Review here.

Miscellaneous!

Boo: The Life of The World's Cutest Dog by J.H. Lee and Gretchen LeMaistre: AKA... The e-book went on sale for 99 cents, and how could I (or my kids) resist that? Look at him. He is pretty cute.

The Believer: Issues 99-103: If you like smart, arty magazines that somewhat read like a book, then you should just go subscribe already.

ANIMALS TALKING IN ALL CAPS by Justin Vallmasoi: I TOTALLY HAVE A PHOTO IN THIS BOOK, YOU GUYS.

John Varvatos: Rock in Fashion by John Varvatos: Sometimes the fashion-speak is not entirely my thing, but this is a great rock n roll book. I love the Paul Weller inclusions, and seeing Neil Casal's photos of Ryan Adams and Liam and Noel Gallagher (whom I've also met, Obligatory Mention #14353). It's a fun book to look at. More importantly though, SO MUCH BOWIE.

Reporter (Vol. 1, No. 1) by Dylan Williams: Pulled this out of my husband's old comic collection and even bothered to make a Goodreads entry for it, so it's worth a look. Might be a bit of a rarity? I'm not sure.

...
And that's all for now. In the final installment, I'll go over the good to "meh" to the one book that made me (probably irrationally) angry, and a few I didn't finish. Until then...Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-30662362097339527302014-01-30T21:53:00.000-07:002014-01-30T21:53:21.796-07:00Doctor Who: Last of the Gaderene by Mark Gatiss

Doctor Who: Last of The Gaderene
by Mark Gatiss

Last of The Gaderene was first published in 2000, five years before the modern era of Doctor Who and ten years before Mark Gatiss increased his workload to include Sherlock. What I'm saying is: Mark Gatiss is a better writer now, but Last of The Gaderene is still a decent Doctor Who story.

Let's get the bad bits out of the way first — In 2000, there wasn't an adjective or adverb that Gatiss wasn't keen to overuse, and the ensuing descriptions and dialogue tags suffer from that bloat. Now, I'm not an "all adverbs are evil" sort of writer/editor, but there are only so many "seemingly" and "nodded confidently" type things I can look past without rolling my eyes. Also, if he could quit emphasizing at every turn that the female villain is fat, that would be great. Cheers.

There are too many characters crammed into the story as well. I know the Doctor is all about everyone being important, but I don't need to hear the personal story and interior monologue of (what seemingly seems like) a dozen villagers in order to care about the village. Some of these characters are important, yes, but not all of them need soliloquy time. We can still have them be useful to the plot through the eyes of someone else.

Still, Mark Gatiss' sense of fun and great love for the Doctor is what makes Last of The Gaderene so enjoyable, despite its flaws (and is also why Gatiss is one of my favorite writers for the TV episodes). Placing us firmly in the 1970s world of the Third Doctor, we catch the Time Lord after his exile on Earth is no longer in effect, but he's still very involved in UNIT. Jo Grant and Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart are there too, and I'm quite fond of them both.

'My dear Brigadier,' said the Doctor, stretching back in his chair and folding his hands behind his head. 'Running errands is not my forte. If you want someone to pop round to see your old friends, I suggest you try the Women's Institute.' He put his feet up on the Brigadier's desk, the corners of his mouth turning up until a small smile. 'I believe they make excellent jam.'

The Brigadier raised an eyebrow and shot a venomous look at the Doctor who had now closed his eyes, completing the look of indifference.

He was glad the Doctor had returned, of course, and he was certainly looking back to his usual dapper self in an emerald-green smoking jacket, narrow black trousers, and bow tie. However, he was displaying his familiar contempt for the Brigadier's methods and seemed damedly disinclined to get back to work. Or, at least what the Brigadier regarded as work.

'Perhaps if you could explain a bit more, sir," said Jo helpfully.

'Oh very well,' sighed Lethbridge-Stewart. He sat down and leant forward over the desk, crossing his hands in front of him. 'Alec Whistler is an old friend. He was a pilot during the war — '

'Which war?" said the Doctor, still with eyes closed.

'Well, the last one, of course,' cried the Brigadier in exasperation.

'Oh, yes. I lost track. You have so many.' The Doctor settled himself further into the chair.

The Doctor enjoys winding up the Brig, of course. Eventually though, he and Jo agree to visit the village of Culverton, where some very strange things have been happening. A decommissioned air base is now swarming with workers — foot soldiers, really — clad in identical black uniforms, operating trucks and other equipment at all hours, and all are smiling in a very unsettling way. People have been disappearing, and though no one know what to make of it, something is definitely wrong to any of the residents paying attention, including the aforementioned WWII vet, Whistler.

The Third Doctor is his usual bombastic self, ready to roll up his sleeves and dive into the mystery with his trademark curiosity. Though I'm only semi-familiar with Jon Pertwee's portrayal, it seemed like Gatiss got his (sometimes very patronizing) voice right, as well as the Brigadier and Jo. Jo is feeling like less of a subordinate and like more of a colleague to the Doctor, and the Brig is not as disbelieving as he once was (though he does still favor armed resolution over conversation).

The Doctor enlists some of the villagers to help him gather information, and there's a bit of a domesticity we don't often see with him — playing house guest.

The Doctor was halfway through a plate of scrambled eggs which he'd rustled up when Ted Bishop came downstairs, looking refreshed and better than he had in a long while, except for his hair which was sticking up at the back in a cowlick.

One doesn't see the Doctor eating, much less cooking, very often. He's around people eating plenty, but someone would have to refresh my memory as to how often we actually see him putting anything in his mouth (that he doesn't spit out again).

The level of tolerance one has for the Doctor's occasionally dismissive attitude and "Not now" comments depends on the fondness one has for the Third Doctor himself, and how one feels about semi-campy '70s television. It's not Shatner-levels of Staggered. Dramatic. Dialogue. but it's different from other Doctors' eras. And that's all right, in my viewing/reading.

After the Second Doctor's forced regeneration via the Time Lords, it would make sense that his character would be resistant to any authority other than his own (for he believes his interference throughout the universe to be in the right), and that restless fighting spirit would be amplified after his previous incarnation's silliness. (The silliness, of course, being a reaction to dying of old age on the first go. The current regeneration is always borne from the circumstances of its predecessor.)

One is unlikely to read Last of The Gaderene without already being a fan of Doctor Who, but I'm unsure of how it compares to other DW-novels, except in the case of the Eighth and Ninth Doctors' novels re-released for the 50th Anniversary, which I'll review soon. However, this Third Doctor story, despite its problems, feels very much in the spirit of Jon Pertwee's time on the show. It's interesting to see Mark Gatiss at an earlier writing stage, and it's to our viewing benefit that he's progressed so well. I still recommend Last of The Gaderene to fans of the show, and I'm hoping to further expand my knowledge of the Doctor's literary universe.

This review is part of Cannonball Read (now in its 6th year!), a challenge in which participants read and review books in the name of raising money for cancer charities. Do click through for more information.Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-28236989567626816842014-01-15T17:22:00.001-07:002014-02-12T14:13:57.885-07:00Books I Read 2013: Part One (incl. Top 5 Favorites)It's a little late into 2014 to be doing one of these posts, but I spent nearly the first two weeks of January in Disney World with a bunch of family, so here we are. In past years, I've run the stats of how I acquired the books, the gender of the author(s), and other matters, but this year I'm just going to list them somewhat in terms of how I enjoyed them. If you're really curious about how I acquired a book, just ask. And you can run the gender stats yourself this time. I read 100 books, so it should be pretty easy, though perhaps tedious.

Because 100 books is a shit-ton of books, I'll break my list in to a few posts. This is Part One.

(Read Part 2 here.)

Top 5 Favorite Books Published in 2013:

The Middlesteins by Jami Attenberg (I only did a short review of this one because I got way behind on reviews this year, but this was covered far and wide. You don't need me to go on about it, I suppose. Just read it.)

My Education by Susan Choi (I still plan on reviewing this one because this book has received a bit of hate, and I was somewhat baffled by it because I loved the book.) Edited to add: Further thoughts about this book now appear on Persephone Magazine.

Unknown Pleasures: Inside Joy Division by Peter Hook (Catch my review here.)

Still Writing by Dani Shapiro (I also intend to talk about this one more too, but in the meantime, here's what David Abrams has to say about it.) Edited to add: Further thoughts about this book now appear on Persephone Magazine.

Blue Plate Special: An Autobiography of My Appetites by Kate Christensen (The book I loved but never finished the last 30 pages because it had to go back to the library and I was going out of town. Will rectify that soon, I promise. Go read all of it now, please; it's outstanding.) Edited to add: Further thoughts about this book now appear on Persephone Magazine.

Two Favorite Stories that were not technically "books:"

Doctor Who: The Light at The End by Nicholas Briggs (Released for the show's 50th Anniversary, this Big Finish audio drama features Doctors Four through Eight, as well as snippets from One through Three. Past companions are involved. On headphones, it is beautiful, and it's a fantastic story.)

Doctor Who: Embrace The Darkness by Nicholas Briggs (Briggs is not the only Doctor Who Big Finish writer, but I think it's telling that my two favorite audio dramas I listened to this year were written by him. This one features Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor and the audio format really works here to make it an unsettling, spooky story.)

Other Excellent Books Read This Year:

Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's [Philosopher's] Stone by J.K. Rowling (I'm joining the rest of the world, finally.)
Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

Sandman Vol.2: The Doll's House by Neil Gaiman (Again, joining the rest of the world, finally.)
Sandman Vol. 3: Dream Country by Neil Gaiman

The Body's Question: Poems by Tracy K. Smith (Review here)

The Cows by Lydia Davis (Already sort of talked about this when I reviewed Electric Literature #2, but I bought the separate chapbook and enjoyed it all over again — this time with photos!)

Are You My Mother? by Alison Bechdel (My first foray into her work. I really want to read her other graphic novels now.)

Papercraft 2: Design and Art With Paper edited by Gestalten Verlag and Birga Meyer (Review here)

Tiny, Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life by Dear Sugar by Cheryl Strayed (Sugar is magic. Review here.)

Divergent by Veronica Roth (Perfect vacation reading, but I haven't read the following 2 books yet.)

Familiar by J. Robert Lennon (I really meant to review this one, and never got to it. Just take my word for it, and go read it. Spooky, ambiguous, yet very real. And I'll further embarrass J. Robert Lennon by saying he's a fox. *cough* What? Let's move on.)

More Baths, Less Talking (Stuff I've Been Reading #4) by Nick Hornby (I own all of these collections now, and this was one of the first volumes that I'd read a lot more of — or at least was familiar with — the books he had.)

Stories For Boys: A Memoir by Gregory Martin (Involves Spokane, which made it extra-familiar for me. Review here.)

This Close: Stories by Jessica Francis Kane (Review here)

The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards by Kristopher Jansma (Honorable Mention for Favorite Books Published in 2013. Review here.)

Dora: A Headcase by Lidia Yuknavitch (I wanted to hug this book's face off. Review here.)

Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh (Oh my god, the stories of Simple Dog and Helper Dog. This whole book is hilarious, and she expands many of the original posts from her site.)

Mastermind: How To Think Like Sherlock Holmes by Maria Konnikova (Really interesting stuff. Review here.)

Great Books Having to Do With Cats Because I Have Cat-Deficit Problems

Lost Cat: A True Story of Love, Desperation, and GPS Technology by Caroline Paul and Wendy MacNaughton (I already loved Wendy MacNaughton's illustrations, so to pair it with a cat subject? Sign me up. Touching, funny stuff.)

Simon's Cat vs. The World by Simon Tofield (Might have been the last cat-person on Earth to have never seen the YouTube videos until after I read this book. Review here.)

I Am Pusheen The Cat by Claire Belton (Loses a little something not being in .GIF form, but my son and I have read this together probably 10 times already.)

Did I Mention I Also Have Doctor Who Obsession Problems, particularly when it comes to Paul McGann? (...AKA Shut up, I don't have a problem, you have a problem.)

Doctor Who: Invaders From Mars by Mark Gatiss (I quite like War of the Worlds, so combining it into this story was fun)

Doctor Who: Storm Warning by Alan Barnes (My very first audio drama. It takes some acclimating to do that sort of active listening, but I've got the hang of it now.)

Doctor Who: Minuet in Hell by Gary Russell (This one includes Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart! Worth the price of admission, right there.)

Doctor Who: The Chimes of Midnight by Robert Sherman (One of the stronger Eighth Doctor adventures. Goes back to the ongoing Doctor theme of "I've never met anybody who wasn't important.")

Doctor Who: Seasons of Fear by Paul Cornell (This one was funny, and ended on a cliffhanger.)

Doctor Who: The Stones of Venice by Paul Magrs (The first half was much more interesting than the second. The second more or less spelled out the ending, but there were still 15-20 minutes to get through. Good story, but not outstanding.)

Doctor Who: The Time of The Daleks by Justin Richards (It was good, but not great. Relevant in terms of the ongoing story arc with Charley, but certainly not my favorite out of those I've heard.)

Doctor Who: The Sword of Orion by Nicholas Briggs (Okay, a Nicholas Briggs one I was less crazy about. I think it's the Cybermen. I rarely get super-enthralled with Cybermen stories.)

The Doctor Who Character Encyclopedia by Jason Loboreik, Annabel Gibson, and Morey Laing (Kind of aimed more towards a younger reader, but still quite enjoyable and includes a good mix of classic and current Who characters, up until "The Snowmen.")

Star Trek: The Next Generation / Doctor Who: Assimilation 2, Vol. 1 by Scott Tipton (Strikes me that the writer is a bigger fan of Star Trek than Doctor Who, and until I read the second volume, I'm unsure of this story just yet, but this is an amusing crossover graphic novel. Involves the Borg and those bloody Cybermen.)

Doctor Who: The Star Beast Saga #1 by Pat Mills and John Wagner (My 6-year-old son and I enjoyed reading this before bedtime several nights in a row. 1984's printing + a lot of text made some speech bubbles a strain to read, but this was still enjoyable, and I'm glad I stumbled across it in my local comic shop.)

--

Part 2 of my Books Read in 2013 will deal with other very good things I read that were not cat- or Doctor-related. Promise.
Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-81553980074330920892014-01-12T13:54:00.001-07:002014-01-12T14:19:04.516-07:00Girl Afraid by Ciarán West

Girl Afraid
by Ciarán West

What makes Ciarán West's books interesting is how they confirm that "page-turner" is not just a cover blurb cliché. Even when one might have other things they should be doing, they can be done after "one more chapter."

Girl Afraid centers around the kidnapping of Poppy Riley, daughter of a well-known actor, Tom, who is away filming. Poppy had been left in the care of Alice, her father's trusted assistant, and Magda, the girl's recently hired nanny. Alice wakes up to a phone call from a man who claims to know what happened, but first she must get out of the house and follow his directions — and off we go into a fast-paced story with multiple points of view, bit by bit discovering what has and what will happen.

The multiple points of view are from a whole host of characters — everyone from Alice, to Alice's ex-boyfriend Dylan, to Poppy herself, to several different men who want to do normally unspeakable things to the girl. (We'll get to that in a moment.) And several others. The only complaint I have for Girl Afraid is that sometimes the head-hopping could be hard to follow, especially with how the Kindle formatted the paragraph breaks, if the point-of-view change happened after a page-swipe. Perhaps an asterisk was in order to delineate the change.

Now, my brain is sometimes more foggy than your average attentive reader, so this might not be an issue for everyone. It's not exactly a case of too many characters — though Dylan's storyline added the least to the overall plot — but without another read through, I can't say what besides an asterisk would have made the POV shifts more clear to me.

Perhaps I needed to quit blowing through page-swipes and to slow down, but with the OMG-Factor set so high, I doubt most readers are taking a leisurely stroll through the book.

Now back to that phrase "normally unspeakable:" Often when it comes to the sexual abuse of children and pedophilia (pedophilia differentiated here as someone who enjoys the thought of underage sexual content, but has not necessarily committed the act), we hear about it secondhand. It's often from the person trying to stop it (Alice), or the investigating officer (don't trust the police in this story), or through the dramatic irony of the clueless character who hasn't yet realized what's going on (in this case, a man-for-hire called Bob).

Bob lit up a cigarette. There wasn't an ashtray; he had been flicking them into an old peanut packet he found in his coat. It wasn't the sort of place you could put ash on the floor, he thought. It was a beautiful house, and immaculately clean. He hadn't seen the outside. He had been working for their outfit for almost a year, but he knew little about who they were. He had never met the boss, or heard a name mentioned.

A van had picked him up at eleven from outside The Crown. The text had said to get in the back when it came. He hadn't talked to the driver. No windows either, so he had no idea where they'd taken him. He was sure that that had been a deliberate thing. They were professional and discreet. He hadn't made many friends, but the money had been good.

He had spoken to a Polish woman when he arrived. She had told him what to do. He was to sit outside the room at the table and watch the blue light. They'd given him a tray with some food and drink on it. When the blue light came on, he was supposed to unlock the door and bring it into the room. He wasn't to let the child see or hear him, and he shouldn't engage her in any way. He was in and out in quickly, when the time came. He heard her singing to herself in the toilet. Baa, Baa, Black Sheep, or something with a similar tune. He felt a pang of guilt as he let himself out. He was fond of kids, and always had been.

West takes us into the mind of not one, but several pedophile characters, each with a very different profession and history behind their interest in Poppy Riley. Yes, it's disturbing, and yes, we're not meant to like these characters, but that doesn't necessarily mean we shouldn't hear from them. We are all the more invested in Poppy's rescue this way, and certain aspects of the plot are most efficiently revealed when told through the voices of these awful characters.

But no, that doesn't mean that this book is for everyone. It is both physically and psychologically violent at times, and it's up to the reader to say if their discomfort outweighs their interest.

The box was full of clothes, and other things which were unfamiliar to Poppy: a small wooden paddle with three holes in it; a long silver object which she thought resembled a bullet, and the toothpaste tube which didn't say 'toothpaste' anywhere on it. Poppy held the silver thing in her fingers; it was big for a bullet. She thought it might be a tank bullet. She twisted the cap to see if she could look inside, but instead of coming off, it made a buzzing sound and began to shake. She dropped it in the box and it rolled around in there, making a noise against the wood like her father's phone did when he got a call. She picked it up and twisted it again to turn it off. This time the lid came away, and inside she saw some batteries; one on top of the other, like in a flashlight. She put the lid back on carefully and put the thing away.

It was mostly clothes in the box. Bras, knickers, tights; and a few things she recognised, but didn't know the names for. They looked like adult clothes to her, but they were so small, a child might have fit them. She held one of the bras up against her and giggled. She wondered would it be okay to try them on. She liked costumes and dressing up. And having something to do might take away her frightened feelings, the same way it took away bored ones. She sorted through the silky pants and stockings, choosing what to try on first. They felt nice to touch, so they'd probably feel even nicer when you had them on, she thought.

Though the craft of the writing itself takes a few chapters to hit its stride, West keeps all his plot pieces moving together effortlessly. From the beginning, we're invested in Alice and Poppy's safety, and the story avoids Lifetime Movie over-dramatics. Perhaps what is most disturbing about Girl Afraid is how very real it all is. No one is a caricature, and the people who are interested in Poppy all appear "normal" to the public. That any person you see, no matter how put-together and successful they might seem, could be capable of terrible things is where some readers might find it too much to bear.

And it is scary. What Ciarán West has written is not exactly a thriller — it's a horror story. The monsters are here, and they're on TV, on sports teams, around the corner, and on the police force. Anywhere. No wonder some reviewers have been shocked.

In the same way readers moved past that shock to read Alissa Nutting's similarly-themed Tampa, I do hope people give Girl Afraid a look. In those uncomfortable places, we learn about our own character, and we learn how to process the shadows that we're normally all too keen to ignore.Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-46892364558472468202013-12-30T22:39:00.001-07:002013-12-30T22:39:53.080-07:00Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes by Maria Konnikova + Giveaway!

I confess a weakness for the most brilliant person in the room. People who are great at what they do, whatever their "thing" may be, are my favorites. Excellence is dead sexy, especially when it comes to intelligence and the desire to improve. For this reason, I'm interested in the character of Sherlock Holmes.

Oh, sure, he's maddening to deal with — abrupt, insensitive, and distant at times — but the skill with which he gathers and assesses information is why his character has endured since Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created him in 1887. In Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes, Maria Konnikova examines what goes into Holmes' process, the way he can block out all other distractions in order to solve his cases, and how ordinary people can use these skills in their everyday life.

Besides being interested in Sherlock Holmes, I wanted to read Mastermind for another reason — to push through my own brain fog. I suffer from both chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia, two illnesses with concentration and memory problems as symptoms. The severity of the brain fog varies from day-to-day, dependent on a few factors I've managed to identify so far (amount of sleep, activity level, etc.), but I wanted to know if there were ways I could retrain my brain to regain some of its previous ability.

And besides all that, increasing my powers of observation will make me a better writer. Being able to effectively take in my surroundings is just putting the work in, and Mastermind appears that it can help with such matters. Writers are not exactly known for being logical and reasoned, and we must remember that the tales of Sherlock Holmes are indeed supposed to be written by one Dr. John Watson.

Most psychologists now agree that our minds operate on a so-called two-system basis. One system is fast, intuitive, reactionary — a kind of constant fight-or-flight vigilance of the mind. It doesn't require much conscious thought or effort and functions as a sort of status quo autopilot. The other is slower, more deliberative, more thorough, more logical — but also much more cognitively costly. It likes to sit things out as long as it can and doesn't step in unless it thinks it absolutely necessary.

 […]

 I'm going to give the systems monikers of my own: the Watson system and the Holmes system. You can guess which is which. Think of the Watson system as our naïve selves, operating by the lazy thought habits — the ones we've spent our whole lives acquiring. And think of the Holmes system as our aspirational selves, the selves that we'll be once we're done learning how to apply his method of thinking to our everyday lives — and in doing so break the habits of our Watson system once and for all.

Konnikova points out that most people cannot be operating as system Holmes all the time. Sherlock Holmes has spent his whole life practicing his way of thinking and is already unusually gifted, especially considering that psychology was still a very new study when the original stories appeared. He's made his way of thinking his job, not a mere mental exercise. Older Holmes has acquired more skill through practice over his younger self, and by witnessing this practice, Watson also manages to become more circumspect. Is he always successful? No. Holmes certainly loves pointing out all the ways his friend has erred. However, Watson has learned how he might start to change his initial thinking, and that is progress.

Most references are to the actual Arthur Conan Doyle texts themselves, though Konnikova does mention the popular BBC show a couple of times. (Sorry, Elementary fans. No love for you in this volume, I'm afraid.) Though I haven't read many of the stories, I've seen several of the films (old and new), and in reading Mastermind, I see how much the BBC show gets right and how much from the original stories, down to exact dialogue, that the writers include. That those details and conversations hold up over a century later is amazing and so much fun. Despite all the advanced technology now available to a modern Sherlock, it all comes back to his mind. His "brain attic" is where all that information is cataloged.

Yes, it's a "brain attic" originally, not a "mind palace." Not nearly as funny, but the concept remains the same:

Whatever it looks like, it is a space in your head, specifically fashioned for storing the most disparate of objects. And yes, there is certainly a cord that you can pull to turn the light on or off at will. As Holmes explains to Watson, "A fool takes in all the lumber of every sort that he comes across, so that the knowledge which might be useful to him gets crowded out, or at best is jumbled up with a lot of other things, so that he has a difficulty in laying his hands upon it. Now the skillful workman is very careful indeed as to what he takes into his brain attic."

[…]

The attic can be broken down, roughly speaking, into two components: structure and contents. The attic's structure is how our mind works: how it takes in information. How it processes that information. How it sorts it and stores it for the future. How it may choose to integrate it or not with the contents that are already in the attic space. […]

The attic's contents, on the other hand, are those things that we've taken in from the world and that we've experienced in our lives. Our memories. Our past. The base of our knowledge, the information we start with every time we face a challenge. And just like a physical attic's contents can change over time, so too does our mind attic continue to take in and discard items until the very end.

Konnikova uses both Sherlock's methods paired with scientific studies to show how our minds work — how they jump to conclusions — and how to parse out what is relevant information, the facts, and what is conjecture. How many times have we been put off a person because they reminded us of someone annoying in our past? How many times have we been more likely to unconsciously indulge a person because we think they are pretty? And if we're the sort to love it when people are very, very good at what they do, do we put up with or completely ignore their frustrating personality quirks?

System Holmes asks that we pause and ask, What's really going on here?

Inspectors Lestrade and Gregson also get their time in Mastermind. Konnikova points out the times when the police see the "facts" as they want to see them, all for the benefit of having a speedy, open-and-shut case. What we want to believe is not necessarily true. And also, "When we try to recall something, we won't be able to do so if there is too much piled up in the way. Instead, competing memories will vie for our attention." Long hours, similar cases, evidence that fits well enough — all these factors can make Lestrade think he has captured the right man.

We may insist that we are not biased to think one way or another, but upon further examination, that will not be true. A "bias" is merely the direction we have programmed our brains to take, to the point that we have programmed our brains to interpret the word "bias" as a negative, undesired concept.

Rather than be biased towards, for example, a person's appearance, Konnikova references "The Adventure of the Norwood Builder," where Watson remarks that, "Surely his appearance would go far with any jury?"

"That is a dangerous argument, my dear Watson. You remember that terrible murderer, Bert Stevens, who wanted us to get him off in '87? Was there ever a more mild-mannered, Sunday school young man?"

What it comes down to is engagement. Why Sherlock Holmes is good at what he does is because he is fully engaged with the observation at hand and nothing else. He is taking in everything presented before he goes on to decide what that means compared to the information he has gathered previously. He is not allowing himself to be distracted in the moment, and he does not let his thoughts wander, and because he has trained himself to be mindful in all that he does, he does not often slip up in his cases. (Mastermind points out where Holmes does slip up as well.)

The takeaway for my own brain after reading this book is twofold: One, I need to reread the book because the trouble with reading a book on mindfulness before bed is that one's mind tends to drift off and lose the thread even more so than usual. Two, I need to quit trying to multitask.

When we multitask, we are not actually being more productive — we're just doing two or more things at the same time, badly. We are not fully engaged and focused, and it is near-impossible to do anything well when we are not concentrating one thing alone. In terms of my illnesses, for example, I've found that if I'm trying to cook something, it can be more difficult to follow a conversation. Measured ingredients are hard to keep track of, and all for, what, getting three-quarters of what is being said to me? No, no, let me get all these things into the pot, and then you can tell me what you need to tell me.

Mastermind references and re-references different case studies, Sherlockian and scientific, and does so in a simple, straightforward way. In order to relearn how to think, we need to have the new ideas presented again and again for them to really sink in. I suspect that anyone who finds the book repetitive might want to check their bias that they are already perfectly smart and know plenty just fine, thanks.

Are you sure?

Well, maybe there are a few real Sherlocks walking among us, but I'm guessing that they might be using lived experience and the specific case studies themselves, and not necessarily Mastermind to know if their powers of observation are up to snuff.

While I'll definitely reread Mastermind at some point, Konnikova's enthusiasm for the original stories (plus wanting to notice more of the details on the show) make me want to delve into that source material. My brain may never get back to what I think it "should" be, but I can certainly try to improve.

Penguin Books provided me with this book for review purposes (and I thank them), and they have also generously provided one more copy to give away to one of you fine readers.

To be entered into the giveaway, leave a comment answering the following:

Have you read any of the original Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle? Or are you more of a film/TV-version connoisseur?

Please also provide a way to contact you in the comment. (Email, Twitter handle, etc.)

One winner will be selected via random number generator and will be announced the evening of January 1, 2014.

Thanks!Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-46520481294610180332013-12-18T21:24:00.001-07:002014-04-03T09:08:49.942-06:00Internal News: Book Release, Record Machines, Word Rioting, Rumpusing + Quirkilicious

(Today's Internal News Post is sponsored by Grammarly, the site that checks your work for better spelling and grammar usage, helps you cite sources correctly, and will also allow teacher-types to say things like, "I use Grammarly's plagiarism checker for students because laziness is never endearing.")

And now the news:

If you didn't already know, I'm the publisher/editor for Nouveau Nostalgia, a micro-press that specializes in book with handmade elements. We've just released our third title, Iraqi Headaches: Poems by Saif Alsaegh. It's available directly from NN or through Amazon, presently.

Let's catch up on things I've written that haven't been here. Despite the lack of updates here (what with bringing a book into the world), I have kept busy.

The Rumpus has my review of Proxy by R Erica Doyle. It's a great book of poetry.

Quirk DIY has my post on Adventures in Book Arts: Three Places to Buy Beautiful Handmade Notebooks. It includes a TARDIS notebook. I'm hoping to have similar book arts-type posts over there in the future.

RECORD MACHINE at Persephone Magazine:

"Sad Song" by Lou Reed (R.I.P., You Legend.)

Live at The Tower Philadelphia by David Bowie (One of my all-time favorites.)

All Mod Cons by The Jam (I want to hug this album's face off.)

"Mrs. Robinson" by Simon and Garfunkel (Doot-do-do-doot...)

"Mellow Yellow" by Donovan (AKA... To 80s kids, the song behind the soda jingle.)

Songs of Love and Hate by Leonard Cohen (Let's get more literary in our songwriting now.)

Blood on The Tracks by Bob Dylan (Also includes an excerpt from my novel that I'm [still] editing.)

"Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" by Steam (Oh, that marching band staple.)

FRIDAY NEWS BITES at Persephone Magazine:

12-13-13: Tributes to Nelson Mandela and Paul Walker, gun death statistics, LGBT issues and more.

12-6-13: Frosty weather, Nigella court news, stranded whales, and more.

11-22-13: Equality updates, typhoon damage... annnnd John Hurt wearing a baggy velvet suit, drinking champagne, and leaning against a Dalek.

11-15-13: In which I flail about because the Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann, was featured in a Doctor Who 50th Anniversary prequel video. Oh, right, and some other news.

11-8-13: The corgis in danger? And Mexican Coke? IS NOTHING SACRED?! Also, the Whig party still exists. Huh.

11-1-13: Marriage equality news, and an 80-year-old Russian Man vs. a Russian Bear: Involves falling off a cliff. Guess who wins?

10-25-13: Rogue cows, racial bias and more. ROGUE. COWS.

Other posts at P-Mag:

Look at him, though.
Ready my swooning couch.

3 Facts You Might Not Know About My 3 Favorite Doctors: In which I make the (perhaps controversial) claim that the Eighth Doctor is the best-looking Doctor.

Book Review: Half As Happy: Stories by Gregory Spatz (Cross-posted from this site.)

10-Second Anecdotes That Reveal Way Too Much About Me: I am my own overlord! (Incidentally, that's the title of my tumblr.)

We Try It! Homemade, Lactose-Free Pumpkin Pie: In which I make the World's Ugliest Pumpkin Pie, but it still tastes good.

Notes From Elsewhere at Word Riot:

11-9-13: Lou Reed tributes, self-promo tips, Montana writers and more.

11-22-13: Calls For Writers, Recent English History, National Book Award Excerpts + More

And hopefully another one this Friday because I need to quit slacking (again) in this department.

I'm hoping to get a bit more caught up on book reviews before the end of the year, so do stay tuned.

In the meantime, go add Iraqi Headaches to your Goodreads shelves, and then head on over to Nouveau Nostalgia to buy a copy. Only 100 of those special editions will be made, ever, and many of them are already spoken for.

Until next time!Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-33818478489202598122013-11-18T15:43:00.000-07:002013-11-18T15:43:01.221-07:00For Your Reading Pleasure: 3 Books on Vulnerability and Bad Decisions

Flimsy Little Plastic Miracles by Ron Currie Jr.

I read Flimsy Little Plastic Miracles right after Kristopher Jansma's The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards, and they complimented each other to the point of Miracles almost reading like a sequel to Leopards. Both deal with unreliable male protagonists speaking to the reader, men who need some enlightening on matters of women and healthy relationships.

I preferred Jansma's book, but Miracles is still quite good. Currie's self-named character somewhat accidentally fakes his own death in the Caribbean, and as a result, his novel becomes a bestseller. He misses the woman with whom he'd lived "pre-death," and eventually coming "back to life" makes the public unhappy with upending their Lost Genius fiction they'd constructed in his absence. We all have stories we tell ourselves, and facing their inaccuracies is startling.

The earliest known mention of a person enhanced with a prosthesis, believe it or not, comes from the Vedas. We're talking 1500 B.C., or thereabouts. A female warrior loses her leg, and is given a replacement. We've had 3,500 years to get used to the idea, yet when I talk about the Singularity, people still get an indulgent look on their faces, like they're humoring me and my absurd notions of human beings with brain/computer interfaces and titanium exoskeletons. I mean, they're polite about it, usually, which I appreciate. But, you know, 1500 B.C. The first time a person was joined with a machine, however primitive. Consider that, I tell them, then ask yourself: Who's being naïve, do you think?

Maya's Notebook by Isabel Allende

Also dealing with questions of identity and existing in hiding is Maya's Notebook by Isabel Allende, released this past May. In it, Maya Vidal alternates between writing about living in Chile with a friend of her grandmother's, and also the self-destructive path that brought her there. The scenery shifts between Berkeley, the Pacific Northwest, Las Vegas, and Chiloé.

Although the book is nearly 400 pages, it never feels like it goes on too long, and the diary premise never seems forced. Maya's story hurtles along, and Allende, no matter the location, immerses you in a way where you can nearly taste the weather. And there's a fair dose of humor too:

The cousin showed up an hour later than he said he would in a van crammed to the roof with stuff, accompanied by his wife with a baby at her breast. I thanked my benefactors, who had also lent me the cell phone to get in touch with Manual Arias, and said good-bye to the dog, but he had other plans: he sat at my feet and swept the ground with his tail, smiling like a hyena; he had done me the favor of honoring me with his attention, and now I was his lucky human. I changed tactics. "Shoo! Shoo! Fucking dog," I shouted at him in English. He didn't move, while the cousin observed the scene with pity. "Don't worry, señorita, we can bring your Fahkeen," he said at last. And in this way that ashen creature acquired his new name[.]

Both present and past storylines are riveting, and I can see this book also becoming a good movie. It wouldn't surprise me if the rights have already been sold.

Harley Loco: A Memoir of Hard Living, Hair, and Post-Punk, From The Middle East to The Lower East Side by Rayya Elias

Yes, that title is a mouthful, but this New York memoir from Rayya Elias is an interesting portrait of redemption. At this point in my reading life, I admit to tiring of the addict memoir, but that doesn't mean that these stories aren't worth telling. It comes down to the surrounding environment, when I decide on giving the book my attention. It was the post-punk angle that sucked me into this one.

Elias and her family left Syria when she was young, and the rebellious teenager took to drugs in order to impress her tougher classmates:

For the first time I had earned street credibility — not because of my cool cousin, but because of what I had done. I was christened into the club of the psychos[.]

She joins a lot of bands, learns how to cut and style hair, and eventually moves to New York during the 1980s. She rises and falls multiple times, including a stint in prison. Although Elias isn't the strongest writer, I appreciate that Harley Loco isn't one of those "hit rock bottom/ climbed out/ everything is fine now" stories. Rayya Elias, though many years sober, shows the reality of her struggle, and how art can transcend addiction.

Full Disclosure: Viking provided me with review copies of both Harley Loco and Flimsy Little Plastic Miracles. Harper provided the review copy of Maya's Notebook. I thank them for the gesture, and I will continue to be fair with my reviews.Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-75405236257898104242013-10-24T08:00:00.000-06:002013-10-24T11:01:12.278-06:00Guest Post by Meera Lee Sethi: Fika with Mountainfit: A Swedish Recipe to Enjoy While Reading

Today we're going to do Glorified Love Letters' very first guest post. I've had offers for writers to do blog tour-type promotion before, and up until now, I've turned them down. The reasons why vary, but when it came to Meera Lee Sethi's book Mountainfit, something about the idea intrigued me.

Sethi's book is a beautiful meditation on her travels to Sweden, where she assisted in the tracking of various species of birds. While I'm not much of a nature-book reader, nor do I particularly know anything about birds, I really enjoyed Mountainfit. Sethi's openhearted enthusiasm for what she learns and encounters is contagious, and the way she writes is closer to poetry than journalism. You can find more of her writing on her site, Dispersal Range.

For today's post, I left the topic up to her. Since I am somewhat obsessed with food and coffee breaks, her contribution today is perfect. Enjoy:
*

Mountainfit is a book about science, nature, place, mythology, and identity—but it's also, at heart, a book about Sweden. And you can't go to Sweden without having your daily schedule taken over by several leisurely instances of what Swedes call fika. Fika is a kind of backwards version of the Swedish word for coffee, and is usually translated as "coffee break"—but it always, always involves not only a cup of (extremely strong) coffee, but also a plateful of small and most often sweet treats.

Fika is a truly pervasive cultural phenomenon—at some offices, I was told, fika might take place as many as four separate times between clocking in and clocking out. It is a wonderfully institutionalized system of pauses during the work day, dedicated to resting, consuming something delicious, and connecting with friends.

I don't, however, see why the company you keep over your fika shouldn't be a book.

Jennie, a very dear human being whom you'll meet a few times if you read Mountainfit, made a batch of these kanelbullar (cinnamon rolls) on the spur of the moment the very last time we were together at the observatory. She wrote down the recipe for me, but she did it from memory, and my conversions may not be the most accurate.

Kanelbullar are a classic Swedish pastry, and you should note that they are very much less cloyingly sweet than American cinnamon buns. Instead, they are subtle and fragrant with cardamom. I hope you enjoy both them and Mountainfit.

Kanelbullar (Cinnamon rolls)

60 g butter (a little over 2 oz.), warmed to 37 °C (98.7 ° F)

25 g fresh yeast (0.35 oz. instant, or 0.5 oz. active dry)

2.5 dL (1 cup) milk, warmed to 37 °C (98.7 °F)

0.5 mL (1/4 tsp) salt

7 dL (13 oz.) flour

0.5 dL (1/4 cup) sugar

Sweetness and shine

More sugar

More butter

1 egg or egg white, beaten

Ground cinnamon

Ground cardamom

Pearl sugar (optional)

Mix together the yeast, milk, and warmed butter in a large bowl.

After the yeast foams, add the sugar and salt; then whisk in the flour slowly.

When the dough is thick and not sticky, let it rise covered by a damp cloth for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, turn out the dough onto a floured surface and roll it out into a rectangle (a little thinner than the cover of a hardback book).

Spread a thin layer of butter all over the dough—you can either melt the butter and brush it on, or wield a slightly softened stick of butter like a paintbrush.

Sprinkle sugar, cinnamon, and cardamom generously onto the butter.

At this point, you have two choices: A: Roll the dough up like a cream roll and cut it into small segments, Or B: Cut the dough into narrow strips. Then, cut a slit almost all the way through each strip, leaving an edge at the end. Braid/tie/creatively twist the two strands into a knot or knot-like shape. This need not be a precise process.

Brush a layer of egg over the top of each kanelbulle, followed by a sprinkling of pearl sugar if you have any; ordinary sugar will do in a pinch.

Let the kanelbullar rise for another 30 minutes on a baking sheet.

Bake for about 6-8 minutes at 250 °C, or about 9-12 minutes at 480 (this conversion assumes your U.S. oven is not a convection oven). Or just until they're beautiful and brown.

Enjoy with very strong coffee and a good book.

*

Full Disclosure: Sethi's publisher, CCLaP (Chicago Center for Literature and Photography), provided me with the eBook for review and were also the ones who contacted me about this guest post. I thank them, and I will continue to be fair with my reviews.

Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-35310054147303611362013-10-23T16:15:00.001-06:002013-10-23T16:15:17.092-06:00Internal News as of 10-23-13: Record Machine, Massive Notes From Elsewhere + More

Good lord, once again I've waited a long time to do one of these update things. All right, let's get right to the boatload of things I've been up to when I haven't been posting things here.

First off, two weeks ago, I went to the Montana Festival of the Book in Missoula. That photo up there has my acquired goods, more or less:

Blasphemy: Short Stories by Sherman Alexie (didn't get it signed because that crowd was madness and I had a friend to catch up with.)

What I Didn't See and Other Stories by Karen Joy Fowler (signed)

Rough Day: Poems by Ed Skoog (signed)

Godforsaken Idaho by Shawn Vestal (signed)

Then I already owned these, but I brought them along to get them signed:

Familiar by J Robert Lennon

Fobbit by David Abrams

Half as Happy: Stories by Gregory Spatz

So, yes, I did buy 4 books even though I have 100 sitting here waiting to be read. WHATEVER, MAAAN.

Anyway, while I was there, I was in the audience for J Robert Lennon and Ed Skoog's podcast, Lunch Box, for Episode 42. I'd visited Montgomery Distillery instead of having lunch that day, so I'll just say that it was the gin that made me shout out something about Brooks and Dunn, just before the 17 minute mark.

And at the 33 minute mark, I mention my stylish son while also not realizing my family is sitting behind me.

(My voice does not sound that high-pitched in my head.)

Seriously though, both Festival of the Book and Montgomery Distillery's gin are well worth your time.

Moving on.

At Quirk Books: DIY, I wrote about necklaces made about typewriter keys. I own one with an S key, and I like it a lot.

My review of The Queen: A Life in Brief now also appears at Pajiba.

Okay, let's get to what I've written at Persephone Magazine:

Record Machine: "Sweet Caroline" by Neil Diamond (and the Legendary Piano Pat)

Record Machine: Let It Be by The Beatles: Team George.

Record Machine: Reign of Terror by Sleigh Bells: Music that was new to me.

Record Machine: "Euphoria, Take My Hand"/"Georgia, Walk With Me" by Glasvegas: I love them so much.

Record Machine: The Inherited Collection: I talk about the full collection that I inherited from my dad.

Record Machine: "Love in the Cemetery" by Lord Kitchener: A little a calypso single for you.

In newsy P-Mag matters:

Friday News 9-20-13: Surprise Pope Moves, Animal Adorableness, and More

Friday News 9-27-13: Banned Books! Suing Cosplayers! Marriage! Oh My.

Friday News 10-4-13: Shutdown Ramifications, Healthcare, and More

Friday News 10-18-13: Money For Nothing

Other P-Mag Posts:

Book Review: The Girlfriend Game by Nick Antosca: Satisfyingly surreal.

3 Facts You May Not Know About Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Here's a fact for today: The memory foam mattress topper I bought significantly helped my rest last night.

Fall Crabapple Tree: Sometimes P-Mag likes to post pretty pictures. This one's mine.

5 Recipes I Totally Need To Make: Cold Weather Edition.

Birthday Giveaway: Iraqi Headaches by Saif Alsaegh: How about a little poetry? You can still pre-order the book, even though the giveaway is finished. Just head on over to the Indiegogo page.

And now onto Notes From Elsewhere posts at Word Riot:

9-17-13: 8 Literary Lists and Poet Tributes

9-20-13: The Perils of Book Publication and More #Franzenfreude

9-28-13: Time to Work! Prompts, Contests, Submissions, more

10-9-13: Word Riot Author News, "Urgent, Unheard Stories," more

10-13-13: Bowie, Slush-Pile Avoidance, Man Booker 2013, etc.

10-20-13: Personal Stories, Prizes, Publishing News

I am reasonably sure that is all. Thanks for reading.

Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-2685363809706025582013-10-18T13:29:00.000-06:002013-10-18T13:29:06.333-06:00Simon's Cat vs. The World by Simon Tofield

Simon's Cat vs. The World
by Simon Tofield

We're going to do something a little different this time because, well, to be honest, the idea amuses me. While I am certainly a great lover of cats and comics/cartoons, Simon's Cat vs. The World struck me as something my six-year-old son and nine-year-old daughter would also enjoy. Anyone who knows my son knows he operates in his own amusing, creative universe, and my daughter is a voracious reader who can't believe I'm not blowing through the Harry Potter series just once while she's gone through it three times. (I'm about to start Book 4, at her insistence. Yes, I'm late to the party, as usual.)

So while I can tell you that Simon Tofield's kitty creation is both very funny and full of detail, I wanted to know what my kids had to say.

Jack: "I like the part with the couch because he's like AAAHHH!! with his paw. And the bird box is funny because the bird pops out and the birds are just like Yeah! I like the sticker with the arrow pointing into cat's mouth because it's like the cat is saying, Feed me."

Grace: "I like the drawing lessons in the back because I like drawing a lot and I like cats. The book is really funny. The Godzilla part was my favorite."

Jack: "And how could you conquer the Godzilla?"

Grace: "I don't know, it was the shadow of the Godzilla toy. And Simon looked fiercer the dinosaur toy's shadow."

Jack: "Well, I don't really see how that's conquering it."

(I think the cat's ongoing war with the hedgehogs is my favorite.)

The included stickers and drawing lessons are also a great inclusion with the full color illustrations. The way Tofield explains his relatively simple way of drawing different animals is something even a semi-inept artist such as myself could handle. My daughter, on the other hand, could practically do it in her sleep. The kids got right to work on their own Simon the Cat artwork:

Grace's kitty illustrations. The top three were tutorials in the book; the bottom two she did on her own.

Jack has the kitten and the birds watching the gnome do a little fishing. The sticker with the cat and the arrow, he stuck on the back of his NintendoDS.

As far as the original YouTube videos go, I'd never seen them before reading the book, yet somehow my daughter had already caught a few through some of the sites she visits. They are also funny and so very "essence of cat." I watched a few after reading, and I saw so much of my cats in them.

Simon's Cat vs. The World is one of those books that manages to stay interesting for both parent and child (or just a kitty-loving adult in general), and while I'd say the videos have a certain edge over the book — the sound effects are perfect, for one thing — this internet-cat book does not disappoint.

Full Disclosure: Akashic Books sent me this book. I thank them for the gesture and I will continue to be fair with my reviews.Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-36156876592435779862013-10-15T17:04:00.000-06:002013-10-15T17:04:14.721-06:00Half As Happy: Stories by Gregory Spatz

Half as Happy: Stories
by Gregory Spatz

You know a book is good if you only stop reading so that you can tell the author, at 1 AM via Facebook, how much you are enjoying it. The evening I began reading it, I'd plans to watch Doctor Who, which, if you know me, is serious business. I thought I would read a little, then turn on the TV. No, I kept reading. Let it be known: Gregory Spatz's new story collection, Half as Happy, is a wonderfully gratifying little book.

This is the passage, from the story "Happy For You," that had me thinking, Jesus, this guy is good at opening paragraphs, and that's when I jumped online to tell him so:

For the moment, she is asleep — an ethereal gray sleep, something like the color of brain matter or of wet cement at dawn, or of the light seeping across her ceiling. A window fan at the foot of her bed whisks air into the room — wet, early spring air — furls and unfurls it around her, keeping her aloft in her dreams.
[…]The phone rings, jerking her from this gray ethereality, aches in her joints and muscles all previously dissolved out of reason magically reasserting themselves.

Spatz takes what is normally a somewhat clichéd story opening — a character awakes — and creates something so perfect and true that it could never be any other way. I know what it is like to be (for once!) deep into an all-encompassing sleep, only to come back to the world with the unceasing reminders that I will likely never be pain-free.

However, the woman in "Happy for You" is much older than I am. She's a mother, divorced, and constantly worried about her gay son. "Half their relationship since he'd finished high school — no, more than that, seventy, eighty percent — has taken place over the telephone," she thinks as they discuss Easter plans. It's a great story.

Many of the stories have a lovely tenderness amidst loneliness, and many also concern music. Spatz plays in two different bands himself, so this influence comes as no surprise. Where they overlap is something that interests me greatly, so when music is written about well, it makes me want to get to work.

Another opening passage, this time from "No Kind of Music":

He sat in one of the lower rows of the balcony section, high enough that the musicians in their black and white appeared to him diminished and foreshortened, but not so distant their sound was lost or tone compromised. He like to imagine that being this elevated raised his own position within the music, Godlike, and that the distance between himself and the players might erase mistakes and mismatched pitches, causing the notes to arrive to him sweetened and more perfectly blended, more purely themselves; and he watched the players for evidence of a divine or magical connection to some essential truth within the music moving so uniformly through them, innervating them. He knew this was a fiction — any player up close was a lot of suffering joints and contradictory impulses, bad breath, weak eyesight, creaky digestion […] ; if there was evidence of magical or divine connections to be beheld in them it showed in their fingertips, bitten nails and torn cuticles, chapped mouths — all the places where they'd worn through themselves trying and trying and loving the music so habitually, so imperfectly. They were only human, after all — mortal, mutable. Nothing in the world was ever otherwise.

Having played viola and then cello in school orchestras, as well as playing with Great Falls' youth symphony in high school, I know that difference between the individual and the whole when it comes to large groups of musicians. I've spent a lot of time listening to our professional symphony — one I've found to be superior to some other cities', despite our out-of-the-way location — and the theater in which they play is a beautiful 1930s structure with a full balcony. One does feel different while listening from above.

Questions of intimacy, of friendship, and of just how far a person can push a situation — all are themes Spatz explores with deft clarity. I liked or completely loved every story in Half as Happy, and it made me want to read more of his writing.

Middle of the night declarations, the desire for more, and the knowing uplift one feels during music? Yes, of course I recommend Half as Happy. It is a book just dying to wedge itself into a small corner of your heart.

Full Disclosure: Engine Books sent me an advanced reading copy for review. Because of this, my pull quotes may differ slightly from the finished version. I thank them for the gesture and I will continue to be fair with my reviews.

 #30 (Yes, since reviews #23-29 appeared on sites other than this one.)

 This review is part of Cannonball Read V, in which participants attempt to read and review 52, 26, or 13 books in a year. A charitable donation is made for those who complete 52 reviews by December 31, 2013.Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-74676659595726203972013-09-13T13:05:00.000-06:002013-09-13T13:16:43.677-06:00Bonus Internal News Update!

I forgot to tell you all the other day something quite amusing/awesome: See that photo up there? It is featured in the new Animals Talking in All Caps book. I took this photo when we visited the grizzly observation center in Yellowstone last year, and shortly after we returned, ATIAC was asking for photo submissions to include in the book.

Unfortunately, my last name is misspelled in the credits ("Habien" instead of Habein. E-before-I!), but I'm still very pleased to be included. I won't spoil the caption that Justin Valmassoi wrote, so you'll just have to check out the book.

In other news, I have a new post up at Persephone Magazine today: We Try It! Sharknado Cupcakes.

Oh yes. Sharknado. Cupcakes.

Also, I've finally updated my e-book reviewing policy. I'm only a little bit speedier about reading them.

Now, off to finally finish this book review I started...Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-63256237976373852472013-09-11T18:17:00.000-06:002013-09-11T18:17:53.425-06:00The "Good Lord Am I Behind on Everything" Internal News Update as of 9-11-13

Wow, has it really been since JULY that I've updated this page? I do apologize, for I have been doing lots of things writing and otherwise, and everything has gotten away from me.

First off, The Next Best Book Blog was kind enough to interview me for their Would You Rather? series. Twas a lot of fun.

Now here's the list of recent P-Mag updates, not quite as long for the time elapsed because they had to move servers not once, but twice:

Record Machine: Style Council's My Ever Changing Moods. No one commented on this one. Probably because I'm the only one who cares about this band anymore. Go listen/read anyway.

Record Machine: Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds/UNKLE: "AKA... What a Life!" 12 inch single. Fantastic stuff.

Record Machine: Michael Jackson's Off The Wall: Don't stop 'til you get enough, man.

Record Machine: "The Roller" by Beady Eye, limited edition numbered single: The Oasis-like coverage never stops with me.

Record Machine: Joy Division, The Peel Sessions: Because it is outstanding.

Record Machine: The Monkees vs. The Beatles: In which I discuss my dad's preference for the "fake" mop-tops over Lennon/McCartney.

5 Book Recommendations For Your Reading Pleasure: Short reviews of good books I've read lately by Cheryl Strayed, Gregory Martin, Jami Attenberg, B.A. Shapiro, Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden.

Book Review: The Ocean at The End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman: Only the second Gaiman book I've read, if you can believe it.

At Word Riot, there are only two Notes From Elsewhere entries:

8-2-13: In which I talk about Calvin & Hobbes, non-literary hubs, Chloe Caldwell, submission news and more.
8-17-13: With the best explanation of the traditional publishing process I've seen yet, "Strong Female Characters," blurbs, book dealbreakers, and more.

Because of some server/security issues, I've had trouble logging into Word Riot lately, so between that and my...uh.. laziness, there haven't been too many posts. I plan on remedying that as soon as the issue is resolved with a lot of posts, partially because I've been bookmarking a ton of links and it would be a shame to not share them. Stay tuned for that.

I think that's everything. I promise to get back on the reviewing train here soon. Thanks for reading.Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-56113970874149335712013-07-29T16:18:00.001-06:002013-10-23T14:16:52.656-06:00The Queen: A Life in Brief by Robert Lacey

The Queen: A Life in Brief
by Robert Lacey

With a newly arrived Royal Baby (capitalization probably required), it seems appropriate to read about the child's great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. What got me picking up this indeed brief book, however, was The King's Speech. I'd finished watching it on Netflix and remembered seeing screenwriter David Seidler on Charlie Rose when the film was first released. He said that he'd wanted to explore the story of King George VI's stutter and relationship to his speech therapist, Lionel Logue, but that the Queen mother asked him to wait until she died. Then, of course, she went on to live a total 102 years. Nine years later, The King's Speech won 4 Oscars, 7 BAFTAs, 1 Golden Globe, and 2 SAG awards. It is an outstanding film, and I wanted some additional information about the family.

I've never really been a royalist, but my interest stems from how odd their insular experience must be. In The King's Speech, the Queen Mother, then the Duchess of York (played by Helena Bonham Carter), makes a joke that being royalty is like "indentured servitude," which isn't too far off — though it's still a very pampered, privileged life, despite its obligations. The Queen: A Life in Brief condenses much of the information found in Robert Lacey's other book, Monarch (also known as Royal, in the Great Britain edition), which was the basis for the Helen Mirren film, The Queen. When a family is so private, the sources all seem to feed into one another.

Despite being a slim book with thick pages and fair amount of photos, Lacey still provides plenty of information about Elizabeth Windsor, from her birth on April 26, 1926, to her irregular ascension to the crown in 1953, then on to all the Diana-Charles-Camilla chaos, and her current existence up until last year's Diamond Jubilee. The impetus for publishing this biography was probably because of that anniversary and the subsequent renewed interest in royalty — a move I can't begrudge, given my timing for publishing this review.

There's a little bit of background information on Queen Elizabeth's father, Prince Albert, who would eventually become King George VI, when his brother David (Edward VIII) abdicated the throne. I found myself wanting more than what was mentioned, but I suspect I will have to choose another book listed in Lacey's bibliography for any more information. Other family members get more time — not so much Elizabeth's sister, Margaret (who died in 2002), but certainly her children and her husband, Prince Phillip. Lacey recounts her courtship with Prince Phillip as a long and drawn out affair, punctuated by interference from family in the name of "duty." He also talks about the strained relationship she's had with her children, Charles and Andrew, and the grandmotherly way in which she renewed public support after Princess Diana died.

Lacey writes in a simple way that's not overly fawning. He points out the difficulties and criticisms the Queen has faced over her reign, but he does not become gossipy or overly malicious. He's a very good biographer in that there is not much conjecture. The facts are presented, he cites his reference material, and he makes it all interesting.

Only six months older than the Queen, Margaret Thatcher was Elizabeth's first Prime Minister of her own generation, and would turn out to be her longest-serving premier ever. For the entire decade of the 1980s, male chauvinist Britain was unique in the world in having a female head of state alongside a female head of government. But they were women of very different styles. A prime minister who loved a row was teamed with a monarch who would do anything she could to avoid one.

What's also refreshing is that Lacey talks about the recession and awful practices Thatcher employed, but he doesn't do it in a way that criticizes Thatcher because she's a woman. Blessedly little page space is given to things like clothing and style matters — though with Princess Diana, some of that is unavoidable. Everyone is talked about in regards to their actions, not their gender.

I finished the book in about two nights, and it nicely sated my curiosity about the Queen. I don't know that I'm so enamored with British royalty that I'll pick up Lacey's other books, but I would definitely recommend The Queen: A Life in Brief to anyone looking for a basic rundown of recent history. This book accomplishes exactly what it set out to do, and for that, it is worth mentioning.

Full Disclosure: Harper Perennial sent me this book. I thank them for the gesture and I will continue to be fair with my reviews.

#22

This review is part of Cannonball Read V, in which participants attempt to read and review 52, 26, or 13 books in a year. A charitable donation is made for those who complete 52 reviews by December 31, 2013.

This review now also appears on Pajiba.Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-44831729824599391792013-07-20T23:34:00.000-06:002013-07-20T23:34:24.733-06:00Massive Internal News Update as of 7-20-13

Wow, we have a lot of catching up to do, don't we? July has been a rather busy month for me, so let's get right to what I've been doing when I haven't been posting here.

At Persephone Magazine:

30 Years of Music: 2011! Featuring Adele, Beady Eye, Bush, Elbow, Fleet Foxes, Florence and the Machine, Glasvegas, Gotye + Kimbra, Kasabian, Lady Gaga, Lykke Li, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, PJ Harvey, St. Vincent, and The Civil Wars.

30 Years of Music: 2012! Featuring Air, Blaqk Audio, Brother Ali, Fiona Apple, Frank Ocean, Garbage, Jack White, Jake Bugg, Ladyhawke, Lana Del Ray, Macklemore + Ryan Lewis + Mary Lambert, Marina and The Diamonds, P.O.S., Regina Spektor, and The Mars Volta.

30 Years of Music: 2013 (So Far): Featuring Beady Eye, Daft Punk + Pharrell Williams, David Bowie, David Lynch + Lykke Li, Dessa, Glasvegas, Johnny (Fuckin) Marr, Laura Marling, Ryan Johnson and The Dreams, and Tegan and Sara.

30 Years of Music, The Bonus Round: 1982! Featuring Bruce Springsteen, Fleetwood Mac, INXS, Marvin Gaye, Men Without Hats, Prince, Roxy Music, Talk Talk, The Clash, The Jam, The Waitresses, and Willie Nelson.

Record Machine: Wendy Carlos and The Well-Tempered Synthesizer: My BRAND NEW music column. This is a reworked version of a post that previously appeared on this site.

Record Machine: The Rolling Stones' Sticky Fingers: Complete with the original Andy Warhol-designed real zipper album cover.

Book Review: The Ultimate Guide to Prostate Pleasure by Charlie Glickman and Aislinn Emirzian: Feminist sex guides exist, y'all.

Book Review: Pain, Parties, Work: Sylvia Plath in New York, Summer 1953 by Elizabeth Winder: I didn't love this book.

Book Review: The Unseen by Katherine Webb: An interesting story set primarily in the early 1900s involving a "theosophist," the vicar and his wife, and a housemaid with a difficult past.

Book Review: This Close: Stories by Jessica Francis Kane: This review now also appearing at P-Mag.

"Knowledge:" A poem for Father's Day.

Impermanent Stardust: The Story of a Tattoo

This Week in Misogyny: Exasperated Sigh Edition: I subbed for a writer on vacation and covered a handful of stories that deserve so many facepalms.

-whew-

And now for so many Notes From Elsewhere at Word Riot:

June 7th: Featuring cool Poe book art, writing fantasies, good interviews, Scrabble and more.

June 15th: literary cats, gendered covers, more good interviews, Patricia Highsmith and more.

June 28th: Jess Walter being awesome, Jami Attenberg being awesome, other people being awesome, MORE Patricia Highsmith, etc.

July 5th: More book arts, Neil Gaiman, foot-in-mouth on Twitter, Adulting, other things.

July 20th: Contests! Advice! Lists! Oh My!

Geez, that better be all, shouldn't it?

Until next time!Sara Habeinhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-3980506149660666842013-07-16T22:25:00.000-06:002013-07-16T22:25:19.634-06:00Supernatural Strategies for Making a Rock 'n' Roll Group by Ian F. Svenonius

Supernatural Strategies For Making a Rock 'n' Roll Group
by Ian F. Svenious

What a delightfully odd little book this is. Presented as an old manual mixed with a narrator that's rather Lemony-Snicket-meets-Ted-Wilson, Supernatural Strategies For Making a Rock 'n' Roll Group manages to be just as funny as it is strange. Throughout, Ian F. Svenious injects enough knowing truth that anyone who has ever involved themselves with musicians will recognize.

The idea is this: During a séance, the ghost of The Rolling Stones' Brian Jones offered advice on forming a group, "accompanied by a vague scent of Moroccan spice and the rustling sound of suede on corduroy." I let out an audible Ha! when I read the following:

Can we somehow become renowned without dying?
Faking one's death is an obvious route, and is often accomplished — albeit in a metaphorical sense — in collusion with the PR Industry. First one must create a record which is sensationally acclaimed. Then one must explode at the apex of its career.
[…]The La's, the Stone Roses, My Bloody Valentine, the Sex Pistols, and The Specials all successfully used this virtual death technique to ensure renown, as did David Bowie when he fired his group Spiders From Mars onstage while their concert was being filmed at the Hammersmith Odeon for theatrical release.

Which is, of course, completely true until festival season 25 years from that "death," when the living members of three-quarters of those bands reunite for a bit of Rock 'n' Roll Church at Glastonbury or Coachella. A tidy profit and a bit of personal nostalgia — They can be loved as before.

(Lest you think I'm making fun: With Noel Gallagher as my witness, I would succumb to my own metaphorical perishing if I could see the Stone Roses live.)

Eventually the spirit of Brian Jones signs off, and this séance group contacts Richard Berry (composer of "Louie, Louie"), who tells them all about how rock 'n' roll relates to the history of the US and its military industrial complex. Somehow, it makes a certain sort of sense. The spirit of Mary Wells continues these thoughts while also tying them to the music's origins within blues and doo-wop. "Her spirit (or what announced itself as such) communicated by spelling out letters in cooked spaghetti on the wall."

Of course she does.

As Mary Wells was neatly explaining the origins of the group model, a ghost claiming to be Sir Paul McCartney interrupted and began to fill us in on the next stage of historical development. "So the rumors where true!" we joked, but he assured us it wasn't so. He explained that, though he is not dead, he does spend a lot of time in the spirit world while meditating or tending to his garden in Scotland.

What, was George Harrison not available? Or is he too busy to offer his thoughts on the British "colonizing" rock music? (That colonization has to do with "the founding fathers' teenage tantrum called 'The American Revolution," by the way.)

The spirits and the advice and the historical context continue, and I suppose it's meant to be funny that every spirit speaks in a dry, lecturing way and not in their own voices. That trick gets a bit old as the book goes on, so blessedly, the book is not very long.

Still, I did really enjoy all the talk of bands to which I listen. Besides the Stone Roses, The Small Faces get a mention, and then there's a whole rundown of musicians and their astrological signs. Identities within the band, their outward image, sex and drugs are all discussed, and perhaps what I found most amusing was that I'd already written about a fictional band that quite mirrored these traits.

Bass players are usually picked for their style and are often quiet and/or affable. Guitar players are often controlling, temperamental, and fastidious. Singers, insecure because of the highly personal nature of their contribution, behave like politicians. Drummers are gregarious, but have style and anger issues.

Did I write about a band this way because I have studied real life counterparts, decades' worth of bands, and therefore had absorbed this "supernatural" knowledge? It's very funny to me, though I understand that it probably isn't as much to you reading this.

However, if you've been in a band, managed or dated a musicians, or have just spent a lot of time thinking about music, this book is worth a look. The pairing of ridiculousness with facts makes the theories all the more plausible. While I didn't love this book, I liked it, and it reminded me of all the great rock 'n' roll stories I love to hear about, and all the analysis I love to provide.

Full Disclosure: Akashic Books sent me this review copy. I thank them for the gesture and I will continue to be fair with my reviews.

#21

This review is part of Cannonball Read V, in which participants attempt to read and review 52, 26, or 13 books in a year. A charitable donation is made for those who complete 52 reviews by December 31, 2013.Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7794496347705120069.post-52424360464464842272013-06-27T16:43:00.001-06:002013-06-27T16:43:45.141-06:00Suite Encounters edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel

Suite Encounters: Hotel Sex Stories
edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel

In more than one magazine article or online advice post, I've seen writers suggest that, if one is having trouble with their usual sex life, that they try mimicking the hotel room environment at home. No laundry laying around, no family photos — as much as possible, make the bedroom as utilitarian and not "you." The idea is that the blank slate will take you out of your regular life and open up new possibilities, and perhaps — no, hopefully — that will translate into super hot sex.

Let's be real; hotel sex is pretty great. One does not have lingering thoughts like, Did I pull dinner out of the freezer? or Is the dog getting in the trash again? The articles often make the suggestion that, if the couple can afford it, checking into a room for the night can do wonders. And even if a couple's sex life is just fine, really good, or even great, a hotel room is a fun change in scenery.

Suite Encounters is an erotica collection that encompasses all sorts of sexy ways people make use of hotel and motel rooms, with a variety of gender pairings, sexualities, and scenarios. Ages, locations, and backstories vary enough to offer a little something for everyone, but not so much that the changes are jarring. Not every story was for me, but the book is one of the better erotica collections I've read.

The story title that intrigued me right away was "Air Conditioning. Color TV. Live Mermaids" by Anna Meadows. I live in a city with a bar that does indeed feature "live mermaids." Did someone write about the O'Haire Motor Inn and the Sip 'n Dip lounge?

MERMAID HOTEL. HOME OF DIVE IN THE DESERT.

Ah, curses! Montana is not so much the desert. The story itself seems to be more about the novelty of someone who works as a mermaid. At one point, the woman says that the hotel uses salt water instead of chlorine because it's "cheaper," but I'm not sure if that's true. Yes, this is a fantasy, and here I am fact-checking, but I guess that since I was disappointed that this wasn't the Sip 'n Dip and that the sex was written about in a more restrained way (when it comes to erotica), I noticed more things about which to quibble.

Speaking of quibbles and what we allow in fantasy — I really dislike reading descriptions of characters that feel like survey answers put into sentence form: "Six feet three inches of dark-haired, blue-eyed Australian hunk." I do not fucking care how tall he is down to the inch. Does it make a difference in how he has sex? If this story is not about a height fetish, then it does not matter. That and rampant adjective abuse is a problem in a lot of erotica, and it takes me out of the story.

Let's talk about the good: "Soundproof" by Emily Moreton features a bisexual man who gets off on hearing a couple having loud sex in the next room. Bisexual men — full-on, acknowledged bi men who are not at all conflicted about it — are such a rarity in any media that this story immediately became one of my favorites. Moreton even uses the phrase "equal opportunity," which made me want to high-five the page.

There are stories where the people already know each other, stories with strangers who just can't help themselves, and also ones with co-workers making business more fun. I liked that not everyone is a skinny, hot 23-year-old, and not every room was a swanky suite. None of this "Let's pretend we're rich and have nothing better to do." Rachel Kramer Bussel has edited this collection well, and one can tell that it's a topic that not only excites her, but that it excited enough submitting writers to where Suite Encounters does not appear to have filler. Cleis Press puts out a shed-load of books per year, many edited by Bussel, and finding quality erotica writers that match the theme needed must be a challenge sometimes. Because of that, I'm always more impressed when the collection feels balanced. It's not kink-heavy for those who are a little BDSM-averse, but it is not free of kink either. Those stories are introductory Dominance and submission, if you will. Other stories are more "traditionally" romantic, and then there is the offering from Delilah Devlin, "Tailgating at The Cedar Inn," which is all about the hookup (in a two men-one woman configuration, no less).

I can't tell you your own desires, but I can tell you that I liked it. The hotel room is a fantastic setting around which to assemble a short stories (erotica or otherwise), and Suite Encounters (if you'll forgive my word play here) provides above-and-beyond service.

Full Disclosure: Cleis Press sent me this book. I thank them for the gesture and I will continue to be fair with my reviews.

#19

This review is part of Cannonball Read V, in which participants attempt to read and review 52, 26, or 13 books in a year. A charitable donation is made for those who complete 52 reviews by December 31, 2013.Sara Habeinhttp://email@example.com