Aloha from Hell and Reckoning

Third in the Sandman Slim, I'm loving it. Find myself sad I'm getting to the end. It's like a spaghetti western in hell... and LA, but that's sorta redundant. Nicely gritty without losing it's edge and going all Die Hard explode-y.

Another gritty series for teens that I think it readable for all audiences (you'll just have to add in a heavy sex scene, otherwise it's like her regular sci fi series) Reckoning the latest in the Strange Angels novels. These authors are similar in writing realistic yet fantastic things well. I mean, sure, vampires don't exist, but the fear and the fighting they write about is realistic. Lili the author has a dynamite love triangle going with her characters that blows Team Edward/Team Jacob out of the water. Again, it's Teen, but it's better than lots of adult fiction I read.

J. K. Rowling Interview

An interview with J. K. Rowling the author of the Harry Potter books aired on Oprah a week ago. Here is the first in a six part conversation:

Thank you, Michael, for letting me know about this interview!

The Real Jane Austen

I am currently enjoying a series of videos on YouTube called The Real Jane Austen. This television documentary originally aired in 2002.This show reminds me of some dramatizations that I have watched about Shakespeare.

What author documentaries have you enjoyed?

Peter Watts Won!!

Peter Watts one of my all time favorite writers just won the Hugo! Yay!

The Creative Family by Amanda Soule

One of my all-time favorite activities is creating with my niece and nephew. The miraculous color combinations they come up with, squeals of laughter, and the innovative ways they use supplies makes the process a joy.

While hunting for more activities, I discovered Amanda Soule's wildly popular blog about her adventures as a DIY homeschooling mother of four. Her book The Creative Family is more than just a craft book it is a philosophy. When I first read it I immediately started thinking about all of the people for whom I wanted to buy this book. Reading The Creative Family gives me a very deep warm, happy feeling inside. An emphasis is put on quality time and reusing art materials. Amanda advocates for families to set aside time each evening to draw as a family. The Creative Family is a great resource for anyone wanting to foster creativity in their own life and the lives of their children.

All of the projects are designed to foster a connection among the children, between the mother and children, and with the family as a whole, but no importance is given to being creative with one's partner exclusively. When I was in art therapy this connection was neglected, as well. Lowenfeld did posit a stage theory of children's drawing development, but how a person develops artistically in adulthood was likewise ignored. There is a branch of art therapy interested in family therapy, but again in all of the research I looked at none of it focused specifically on the romantic couple. There seems to be a paucity of research and interest in this area.

Is being creative with your partner important to you? Why or why not?

Please, Jane, Don't Be Shy

"The person, be it gentleman or lady,

who has not pleasure in a good novel,

must be intolerably stupid."

Several of my friends did't enjoy Northanger Abbey, so I wasn't expecting much when I began it. Abbey was actually the first novel Jane ever completed, but was published only after the author had died. I am loving it. Mr Tilney cracks me up!

Penguin Love

In honor of Wednesday's momentous decision, I am going to tell you about on of my all-time favorite picture books, And Tango Make Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell. When I first heard of the book I thought it would be too simplistic and rhetorical. Instead, And Tango Makes Three is a very sensitive and sweet story about Roy and Silo, two male penguins, who adopt a baby chick named Tango. The illustrations are adorable and the story is delightful. It made me tear up at the end. Who can resist adorable little chubby flightless birds? The story behind And Tango Makes Three can be found here.