Getting Lively with Dead Poets

Poetry (Photo credit: Kimli)

Tuesday marked the start of our AP Poetry Unit.  I am so excited we are finally onto poetry!! Poetry is the curry of prose.  It’s the sprinkles found in exposition.  It’s the center of the Tootsie Pop because it’s that delightful surprise unexpectedly found in the middle of the everyday. 

Poetry is not just rhyme.  It’s not just meter.  It’s not slavering on about metaphor and simile.  It’s bounce, giggles, shock, and awe.  Poetry is the dance of words.  Poetry is that note of praise found nestled in the staunch flow of sentences, paragraphs, and text.

It’s sing.

It’s song.

It’s the azure found in the sky.

It’s the You before I.

It’s older than the page before you.

It’s Homer before he became a Simpson.

And the Dead Poets are the best because their words formed the path for the rest.

Oh, hello Emily, Robert, William, Byron, Coleridge, Sylvia, Langston, Gwendolyn–I’d like you to meet my students.  I’ve been telling them about you.  I can’t wait for them to know you like I’ve gotten to know you.  And I can’t wait to learn more about you as I learn from my students.

Poetry. Word colors of our world.

when I said “I ate all your tootsie pops” (Photo credit: hmmlargeart)

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Jane Eyrror

Disclaimer: my commentary (not to be confused with a diatribe) is by in no means a diss upon those authors who have achieved success in their ability to appease the hunger of a ready populace for further forays of their favorite literary characters. I applaud publication success, even though I may not applaud the content.

The Janes of my reading life have left me wanting.  Wanting more that is.  Having read through Jane Austen and desiring more of Jane Eyre, I have continued to found solace in the many continuations that are currently available.

As we all know, there truly is no satisfying replacement for the original.  However, when you crave a Godiva and only Hershey, sometimes you are willing to settle for less when the best is no longer available.  In my Search for More Jane (not a book title, but wouldn’t it be a fun one?) I have scoured my GoodReads lists to find plausible reads.  I attempted several titles and grew weary in my searches for a true Elizabeth and company.  Only JA knew Elizabeth best. Besieged by the plethora of Pride and Prejudice knock-offs, I have turned to other novels of classic inspiration.  Jane Eyre is one such hopeful.

I dutifully read Wide Saragossa Sea since it ranked a place on the AP Suggested Reading List. Touted as the prequel to Jane Eyre and hailed as a classic, I braved through the novel ever hopeful it would answer those nagging questions of how Edward Rochester became smitten and taken in by Bertha.  The novel turned out to be more of a stand alone than a companion read.

I then chanced upon Death of a Schoolgirl  by Joanna Campbell Slan at my local library on the new releases shelf.  Seeing it featured Jane Eyre in her married state of Mrs. Rochester I quickly plunked it into by book bag.  Overall, I enjoyed this as a weekend read with its premise that Jane’s curiosity and tenacity makes her a rival to Miss Marple in sleuthing skills. A fun read, granted, it offered only a shadow in terms of the depth of Jane.

image: amazon.com

 

I then remembered reading a book review about a contemporary version of Jane Eyre.  Setting the intrepid ET upon the search, she found Jane by April Linder. I too checked it out.  Here is the catalog summary:

Forced to drop out of an esteemed East Coast college after the sudden death of her parents, Jane Moore takes a nanny job at Thornfield Park, the estate of Nico Rathburn, a world-famous rock star on the brink of a huge comeback. Practical and independent, Jane reluctantly becomes entranced by her magnetic and brooding employer and finds herself in the midst of a forbidden romance.

image: amazon.com

I read it anyway.

No, Jane had not been what I had originally been looking for, and fortunately I found the lost review buried under my get-to-it-someday stack.  The Flight of Gemma Hardy, proved a much better replacement crave read and definitely proved the glowing review it received.

image: amazon.com

Set in Iceland and Scotland in the fifties and sixties, Gemma Hardy’s life parallels that of Jane Eyre’s in travail and hardships.  Gemma is a young woman who becomes an au pair for the precocious niece of a Mr.Sinclair, who infrequently visits his Scottish home.  Gemma’s journey and subsequent flight adequately pays tribute to that of Jane Eyre’s, yet manages to be a distinctive and well-written plot twist of its own merit.  I reluctantly finished Livesey tribute novel, quite satisfied with having found a glimpse of Jane through Gemma.  I am looking forward to discovering her other works.

Sometimes the best way to find a continuation of a familiar voice is to discover a new acquaintance.

Conclusion: There is real no “eyrror” in finding replacement reads for Jane; it’s only a matter of discernment.

Related articles

• Jane Eyre (cynsworkshop.wordpress.com)
• Jane Eyre (integrated4.wordpress.com)
• “The Flight of Gemma Hardy” brings new twists to a beloved old classic (thejkreview.wordpress.com)
• Just Another Gothic Girl (cricketmuse.wordpress.com)
• Does Jane Erye Live on? (gerrileclerc.com)

 

TaDah and NaNa!

International edition (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Bette Midler had a great hit with her rendition of “Friends.”  Friends are right up with there with dark chocolate, a good book (okay, a couple of those), and a sky of blue to make it through tough times.

It’s friends like you that saw me through NaNoWriMo this year.  Yup, I just printed out my certificate. Tonight I punched in 50, 316 words and received my prize.  I think I used up all our color ink cartridge printing it out.  It’s a real pretty one this year.

Since my house is small, the hour late, and I’m all out of ginger ale, I will toss out a virtual “Happy NaNo Over Party.” You supply the hats and confetti on your end and I will supply the thank yous on this end.

If there were a NaNo Happy It’s Over and I Finished Party, and we all had the opportunity to step right up to the microphone, here’s what I would say:

“First of all, thanks for stopping by and taking the time to like my posts.  That helped encourage me to keep going and it definitely brightened my day. Secondly, I enjoyed getting to know new bloggers and visiting new sites. Thirdly, what?  My time’s up already? Phooey.  Okay, really fast.  I don’t know what I’ll do with my NaNo novel, but seeing how you hung with it, you’ll be the first to know if anything does happen with it i.e. published, sold the movie rights, t-shirts, bumper sticker quotes–the usual fame route.”

The last post Vera made was about the value of friends, and so here is a tribute about that very subject.  Bettte surely knew what she was singing about: you got to have friends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fan (of) Fiction

Caterpillar using a hookah. An illustration from Alice in Wonderland (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

With six days left Vera has finally started her NaNo novel.  Her inspiration is a hybrid of Hamlet and Alice in Wonderland with a bit of Lost in Austen thrown in. It’s fan fiction at it’s *finest*.  Okay, cut the kid a break–she’s only fifteen and has never written anything of length beyond the required English essay.

Actually, I’m a bit of a snob when it comes to fan fiction, even though I’ve come across some which is entertaining and well-written, I can’t help but think, “Couldn’t you come up with something original?”  Then again there is something to be said for being inspired by good writing.

For example, Wide Sargasso Sea is on the AP suggested reading list and can be considered the prequel to Jane Eyre.  What?  Fan Fiction considered classic literature?  Told you I was a literary snob.

An ardent admirer of Ophelia of Hamlet and Alice of Wonderland fame, and totally grooving on the Lost in Austen premise of switching places with Elizabeth Bennett, I couldn’t help but have Vera weave all of them together.

 

NaNo–the most grueling, yet satisfying form of writing under pressure.  Sissies need not apply.

 

 

Related articles

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• Fan fiction allows teenagers to explore their sexuality freely | Sam Wolfson (guardian.co.uk)
• The New Wave of Writing? (cultofajracewood.wordpress.com)

Yes, it’s NaNo time…

VIA Nano Chip Image (top) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

November is a great time for writers.  The weather is chilly enough to no longer tempt outdoor activity, there is a coziness to the house with the crackle of the fire, and NaNo is on.

Two years ago, when I finally decided to leap into NaNo I managed to meet the 50,000 word challenge with a day or two to spare.  I’m still editing that manuscript.  Writing quantity instead of quality is whole different way to write.  I tend to edit as I write and editing is a luxury when it comes to the National Novel Writing Month.

There are a plethora of blogs about NaNo and how it works, so I shall not perpetuate redundancy.  Instead I will bravely leap once again into NaNo; however, this time it will be with a bit more panache.  This time I have created a separate NaNo blog site and will air my daily writings. Warts and all shall be bared to those interested enough to witness the daily grinding process of trying to produce 1,600 words daily.  I take NaNo founder Chris Baty’s words to heart, “No plot? No problem?” I am hopeful my daily outpourings will not be merely NaNonsense.

I will have a link in my column www.veranano.wordpress.com as well as periodic updates on the process.  I still hope to keep up with my Cricket Musings.

If you are NaNo-ing, please let me know.  The solitary tapping of the keyboard is much more comforting knowing I tap not alone.

 

Related articles

• NaNoWriMo is eating my brain and my time … and it’s only day one (irreverentreview.com)
• A NaNoWriMo Compromise: Daily Posts for a Month (kseniadv.wordpress.com)
• NaNoWriMo: Can you write a novel in a month? (telegraph.co.uk)
• Beginning NaNoWriMo (cheilt.wordpress.com)
• Not quite NaNoWriMo (yesterdaylucas.com)
• Beemind Your NaNoWriMo Progress (beeminder.com)
• Participating in NaNoWriMo? (ctwesting.com)
• Into the Cocoon (emmiemears.com)

iphone, uphone, we all phone

English: New Mobile Cell Phone Technology (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Feeling like a dinosaur with a jet pack, I have succumbed to family proddings and have joined the iphoniacs. If you can imagine a dinosaur zooming about, then it’s possible to see me, a relic of telecommunications, thumb flipping through countless apps and haphazardly navigating the gateways of iphonese.

I grew up with the ubiquitous black desk phone that only went as far as the cord was long.  I also remember party lines, when heavy breathing only meant your neighbor was listening in on your conversation.  Phone prefixes started out as JU or some other distinctive alpha combo.  Ma Bell ruled the telephone lines.

Then telecommunications became liberated with decommissioning and phones came in colors, styles, and eventually didn’t even possess cords.  Zipping past cordless phones to cell phones,  lands me to about ten years ago with kids learning to drive and living far away on their own.  Staying connected took on relative importance. Caving into signing up with a cell phone carrier took place in a mall kiosk.  How did we ever survive without being available 24/7?

A self-proclaimed gregarious hermit, I am striving to the adjustment of being only a moment away from anyone who desires to reach out and talk to me. I grimace when faced with  ”I tried calling you–didn’t you have your phone with you?”  Well, actually no. I didn’t use to haul the phone around while mowing the lawn, or washing the car, or even going shopping.  Now it’s a requirement.

Marlene had it right–I vant to be alone. Alone sometimes involves being alone with my thoughts. The problem is the i in iphone also includes u.

As much of a convenience cellulars have become, I have a real problem with  how society has gone disgracefully downhill in public decorum when it comes to phones.  A recent speaker at our school put it this way, “We have evolved so quickly with technology we haven’t developed proper etiquette.” Pig’s eye.  My momma taught me good public manners and I don’t think they have gone out of style.  I don’t comb my hair in public, nor do I floss in public, and I certainly don’t talk about my latest gynecological report in public.  Yet, I have had to listen to people share all kinds of interesting aspects of their life, simply because the ease of phone technology allows them to talk anywhere and at anytime.  Apparently their phones are smarter than they are.

All this instant, instantaneous communication compunction  is the reason why my choice of reading contain little cellular referencing.  I like books from the days of letters and tea-table conversations versus text bubbles and “can-you-hear-me-now” connections.

Would Jane Austen or Jane Eyre be bemused by the i before u when it comes to talking?  But then again, if everybody is doing it we simply evolve, right?  Then why aren’t there more dinosaurs with jet packs…

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Author Snapshot: Carson McCullers

Cover of Heart Is A Lonely Hunter

As a writer and a reader I am curious about authors.  I like to poke, prod, and discover who they are to understand how they write. Some authors definitely have backgrounds which influence their writing.  One such author is Carson McCullers.

It was a bit of deja vu when I began reading The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. I then realized I had read it so long ago that I couldn’t really recall the story, so it was similar to revisiting a place attached with faded memories.  After reading the book I looked up Carson McCullers and immediately became fascinated by her background. Amazingly enough Heart was her debut novel–at 23.  The book registers such emotions and craftsmanship it is  unbelievable it came from the pen of a woman so young.

If you aren’t familiar with Carson McCullers here is a snapshot of an author who produced some fine writing despite the setbacks in her life.  Then again, maybe her writing is a result of the impediments she encountered.

McCuller’s style focuses on the loneliness and isolation of individuals of the South employing imagery which pinpoints an emotion, a moment which simple, yet breathtaking accuracy. Her writing has a sense of musicality, due no doubt to her interest in it.  The words flow and swirl much like notes in a recital piece.  In fact, she once described The Member of the Wedding as a fugue, and it actually reads much like a fugue would be played out.

What have I gained from reading Carson McCuller?  It is this: a realization that it is discovering a sense of beauty even when we are living out our imperfections, and that we often gain the most growth through adversity.  McCullers has a way of peeling back the façade and intensely scrutinizing the individual beneath. Once there, a realization occurs—other people have the same thoughts and feelings as I do.  Then again, do they?  This admission is daunting since her explorations tend to leave an undefined rawness, a discomfort, a vulnerability. And this can be uncomfortable.

Novels/Novella

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter (1940)

Reflections in a Golden Eye (1941)

The Member of the Wedding (1946)

Clock Without Hands (1961)

The Ballad of the Sad Café (1951)

 Other Works

The Square Root of Wonderful (1958), a play

Sweet as a Pickle and Clean as a Pig (1964), a collection of poems

The Mortgaged Heart (1972), a posthumous collection of writings, edited by her sister Rita

 Passage from The Member of the Wedding

Yesterday, and all the twelve years of her life, she had only been Frankie. She was an I person who had to walk around and do things by herself.  All other people had a we to claim, all other except her…Now all this was suddenly over with and changed.  There was her brother and the bride, and it was as though when first she saw them something she had known inside of her: They are the we of me.

A couple of noted facts:

• First novel The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter at age 23
• Planned to study piano at Julliard, but lost tuition and worked instead
• Became invalid due to illness
• Friends with Tennessee Williams
• died at age 50

Her works have been adapted into plays and movies, and though she is no longer with us, her writing definitely  continues to influence the literary world. She is a stellar definition of the Southern gothic genre.

Related articles

• “Carson McCullers” – Charles Bukowski (biblioklept.org)
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Honk If You Love Books

That’s right…Honk if you love Books!

Passing through a town I spotted this in a parking lot:

And what made it extra delightful was how a Goodwill store  was just one parking lot over, a bit of  a conceptual juxtaposition tickle to see a promotion to recycle used reads instead of used clothing and sundries, a new way of thinking against the standard. I looked up the site and discovered a few things from their FAQs:

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Discover Books? Discover Books is a for-profit corporation with a social mission.  They are in the business of collecting used books from thrift stores, library discards, residential curbside pickups and collection boxes located throughout North America.  They sell used books online at discounted prices to be read again, or donate them to literacy-based or community service organizations greatly in need of free reading materials. When books cannot be sold or donated, they are recycled, diverting millions of pounds of books from landfills each year.
What will happen to the books placed in my hosted bin? The books placed in the collection boxes have always followed three pathways: they are resold to other readers, donated to children, families and literacy organizations in need, or responsibly recycled.  This has always been the case and will not change.  If you would like to talk to a Discover Books representative to learn more, please email us at info@discoverbooks.com or call us toll-free at 888-402-BOOK(2665).

All this brought to mind my original idea back in February when I began blogging how I wanted to gather a cavalcade of readers, those folks who promote books through voracious reading and reviewing.  Book Boosters was born and although I had hoped to have 500 BBs by June I can’t complain about having 35 so far.  Especially since I haven’t done any active promoting (I don’t Tweet, Face, Stumble, Link or such–old-fashioned, maybe–time deprived, very much so).

So if you are reading this and find you fit the Book Booster profile and don’t see your name on the list, please let me know and voila, you will be added. There are no dues, annoying ads, or newsletters.  I am working on a secret handshake.

Happy Pages,

CricketMuse

Are you a Book Booster?

• Do you love books?
• Do you have favorites you read, recommend, and even re-read?
• Are you a frequent flyer at the local library?
• Are you an on-line regular of book sites, be they promoting to buy, review, or boast books?

1001 Children’s Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Perchance you operate on a need to read basis–you have to have a book in hand, by the bed, stashed in the car, or have one nestled in the backpack.

You then, my friend, are a Book Booster.  And you are in good company.  Add your name to the list and welcome to the shelf of those who appreciate and advance the cause of books.

Join the continuing ranks of Book Boosters:

1.  www.BookWrites.wordpress.com

2.  www.eatsleeptelevision.wordpress.com (adambellotto)

3.  www.homeschoolhappymess.com

4.  www.carolinareti.wordpress.com

5.  www.opinionatedmama.wordpress.com

6.  www.jessileapringle.wordpress.com

7.  www.wcs53.wordpress.com

8.  www.spookymrsgreen.wordpress.com

9.  www.cecileswriters.wordpress.com (Samir)

10.  www.HannahBurke.wordpress.com

11.  www.thecoevas.wordpress.com

12.  www.Jayati.wordpress.com

13.  www.collecthemomentsonebyone.wordpress.com

14.  http://scriptorwrites.wordpress.com (scriptor obscura)

15. http://jinnyus.wordpress.com/

16.  http://1000novelsandme.wordpress.com/

17. http://literarytiger.wordpress.com/

18.  http://chicandpetite.wordpress.com/ (Bella)

19.  http://booksandbowelmovements.com/ (Cassie)

20. http://bookrave.wordpress.com/

21. http://fromagoraphobiatozen.wordpress.com/ (Marilyn Mendoza)

22.http://bibliophiliacs.wordpress.com/

23.  http://thoughtsonmybookshelf.wordpress.com/

24. http://shelovesreading.wordpress.com/

25.  http://ajjenner.com/

26.  http://artsandyouthlove.wordpress.com/

27. http://readingreviewingrambling.wordpress.com/

28. http://365amazingbooks.wordpress.com/

29.  http://beckysblogs.wordpress.com/

30.  http://bookpolygamist.wordpress.com/

31. http://aliciadevoursbooks.wordpress.com/

32. http://readinginterrupted.com/

33. http://bundleofbooks.org/

34. http://bitsnbooks.wordpress.com/

35. http://justonemonkeytyping.wordpress.com/

I hope your peruse the above blog sites, especially if you favor reading, and adore books.  And next time you are done with that read, consider donating it to the friendly little parking lot box.

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• Inspiration: (cricketmuse.wordpress.com)

Musings of a Voracious Reader: Children’s Authors

http://www.clipartpal.com

Do you remember when you opened the door to reading?  When all those dark squiggles on the page made sense as they revealed themselves as words which you slowly understood when connected with other words formed entire ideas known as sentences leading into paragraphs filling the entire page? The bumbling, stumbling, tumbling of phonetics to get it all to connect. Then suddenly it became less work and it seamlessly flowed until it happened without you realizing it how the true joy of opening a book and falling in love with the story within suddenly filled your days.  You had become a reader.

As you discovered reading, you found certain books appealed to you for some reason. Those first authors, those books of our childhood, are the ones we tend to remember forever.  Who doesn’t always remember his or her first love?  Below are some of my favorite children’s authors, a mixture of classics and newly established. I hope you will add your own.

wikipedia.com

http://www.patriciapolacco.com

http://www.goodreads.com
(all further images from goodreads)

Whew! That’s barely a thimble full of books and children’s authors that have left an impression on me as a reader.  While I could fill pages upon pages of children’s authors musings, I must give credit for where it all started:

http://www.wikipedia.org

So, Book Boosters and other voracious readers–what books do you remember from your childhood?

A few contributing suggestions:

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The Secret is Out: Happiness Happens

As I browsed through the newest Costco Connection I found on the Member Connection page an article about Happiness Happens.  The Secret Society of Happy People proclaims August as “Happiness Happens Month” with August 8th as “Happiness Happens Day.”

Pamela Johnson kicked off this organization as a response to how people tend to talk about misery more than the happiness in their life.  So far there are more than 21,000 members in over 30 countries.  Johnson is quoted in the article as saying, “Happiness happens and when it does, embrace it.”

Big hugs for happiness!  Get ready to embrace the day and some happiness throughout August (but I say why stop with August–make it a year round celebration) and gear up big time on Wednesday the 8th.   For ideas on how to celebrate check out the website.

The Secret Society of Happy People says there are 31 types of happiness. Really?  I would think there are more.  Can we come up with other happiness types? I nominate Serendipity.

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