It's the little things we do for our friends

It all started with a picture a friend posted of something at work. It grabbed me for many reasons: my love of nature, of surprise, and of the downright squeeable elements in the photo.  That it had distinct bawdy elements also delighted me. It was too much to resist.

So, I began to paint. And fiddle with details. And tweak this, fix that.  But soon, my painting was ready. Now I needed a title. I could have gone simple, basic, but there was the obvious earthy humor staring me in the face. Since I intended on gifting the painting to my friend, I needed her input, but wanted to keep the element of surprise, so I included her in a group chat with a number of wonderful women, all of whom I have met through the world of The Wheel of Time. The question I posed was simple: 

For a project I'm working on, I need a slang/pet name for vagina. Lady Bits just doesn't work in this situation. Help, please!

The resulting conversation, which has now stretched on for two days has been hilarious. Wonderful. Bawdy. Enlightening. Charming. Fun.

I realized that one word wouldn't suffice for my title. So, I took a large selection of words, and put them on magnetic tiles, and placed a magnet, serving as a space in the title, where my friend can add the word of her choice, depending on her mood.

Lady Bits by other names

But the whole process was so enjoyed by this marvelous cadre of women, that they wondered what the project was. My original idea had been to bring the painting to JordanCon, and gift my friend there. You know, the whole idea of seeing someone's face when they open a package. But, I really adore all these other women, too, and I hate to make them wait, particularly if they won't get to JordanCon (plus, it's often hard to make sure everyone gets included when you're mingling with 500+ people.) But, wonder of wonders, my friend's birthday is coming soon, so, there's really no reason to wait. Sure, I'll miss her expression, but she can fake it and send me a picture. (And then again, she might not like the end result, so I'm spared seeing her fake looking like she likes it.)

Sooo.... below is the original photo, and my rendition. 

It's called "Racoochie; or Raccoon in a _____ Tree".

Happy birthday (several days early), Jen. Face it. You're loved.

 



And for fun, here's how the back looks:

 

This may be the start of a new career!

Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen

Lost chances, lost ways of life, Lost Lake; a little story about finding, forgiving, moving on, and healing. Sarah Addison Allen's most recent novel doesn't have quite the same magic as some of her previous novels, but it still delivers a gentle story, for one that starts out with Kate coming out of the frozen period that defined her first year of widowhood. Staring an existence mapped and planned by her calculating mother-in-law, all it takes is the discovery of a postcard from her Great Aunt Eby to make her grab her daughter Devin and flee to the refuge of Lost Lake. It was a spot where she spent a happy summer as a child, at lakeside cabins owned by Eby. But instead of a thriving retreat, she finds Eby on the verge of selling the place to a sleazy realtor. As Kate unthaws, and the regulars who've come to Lost Lake try to figure out what to do, a little of Allen's magic slips in. Some of the characters are a bit forced, but others, like Lissette, and Devin in her mismatched clothing, the costume of childhood, were lovely.

The book interweaves several stories starting with Eby's magical honeymoon trip to Paris decades ago. From there, other points of view follow Kate, and also several of the "regulars" who've come to the lake for years, and Wes, who Kate met as a boy the summer she came to Lost Lake. Like Allen's other novels, to date, this one is set in the South, in Suley Georgia, a land originally settled by people who'd moved up to Georgia from the Everglades. I loved that the name of the lake represents not the fact that it's hard to find (it is), but that , with cypress knees and murky waters, it reminded the early inhabitants of their home left behind.

My favorite Sarah Addison Allen? No. But still a decent read on a summer's afternoon.

Tags: a-favorite-author, audio, magical-realism, read, set-in-my-stomping-grounds, set-in-the-south, southern-author

The Queen of Tearling by Erika Johansen

Clearly there's something wrong with me, because I liked this book. Maybe it's because I stumbled upon it on the shelf rather than hearing all the hype and predictions of "book of the century". I will admit that I am a little annoyed that this now appears to be the first in a trilogy (how unusual) and I'll have to read on to have a couple of questions answered, if the books come out in a timely fashion.  But even knowing that, the story interested me.

Essentially, something caused the world as we know it to cease, and the survivors got in boats and sailed to the new world (okay, this part could have used a bit more explaining, or a map, at least, as there are references to an old America on one side of the ocean and to New Europe on the side where the story takes place. Yes, a map would actually be nice.) Once there, a sort of feudal/ medieval  society started up, and of course went amok. Tearling, a small country, with not much of value besides farming and Tearling Oaks, has become subservient to Mortmesne, ruled by the Red Queen. (Okay, eye rolling is acceptable. I'm not sure if names were chosen as tribute, foreshadow, or what. Seriously, even without a Red Queen, you know that Mortmesne is gonna be the bad guy.) Tearling has a lazy, weak regent, in power since his sister died years before, but not before she sent her infant daughter Kelsea safely into hiding. But now, Kelsea is 19, and it's showtime!

The story is that of Kelsea claiming her throne and making the first salvo into getting Tearling into a better place. There's the Queen's Guard on her side, and a mysterious Robin Hood type character, named Fetch, and some rescued souls. But there are also the requisite baddies: evil do-ers,  schemers, workers of magic, traitors. It's not a genius tale, but it's not bad. And Kelsea is not a beautiful, strong, athletic young woman, but she grows to overcome her shortcomings.

But my greatest pleasure in this book? All the references to books -- books we know and love, or know and despise. Books! And Kelsea's greatest joy in life is reading. Books!

“Even a book can be dangerous in the wrong hands, and when that happens, you blame the hands, but you also read the book.” 

I'll read on, because  I 'm kind of curious to find out who her father was and why it's so important.

Graveyard Shift (Lana Harvey, Reapers Inc. #1) by Angela Roquet

We were big fans of the TV show a decade ago called "Dead Like Me". When a book that had a reaper as a main character showed up for free for my e-reader, I figured I'd give it a whirl, especially when I saw it had a number of good reviews on various places in the readers' portion of the internet.

Angela Roquet has made a kingdom or two out of the afterlife. I felt like I needed a guidebook and a map to keep everything sorted. The underworld here is an amalgam of every sort of human belief in what happens after death, and where you go depends on what you believed in life. It's the reaper's job to collect your soul and get you to where you need to be. There's even a spot for atheists, which amused me no end:
<blockquote>The Sea of Eternity used to be a river, but that all changed when humans began dabbling in science. More atheists and agnostics die every day. It's their souls that fill the sea, making my job even grimmer.</blockquote>

All is not well in the underworld, though, and Angela is caught in the middle of it, when her boss (yes, the Grim Reaper, generally known as Grim) gives her the chore of finding a special soul who will help keep eternity in order. The bad guys want that soul too, and soon it's angels, reapers, demons, and gods all in a tumble.

I feel that this could actually work as a series, if the reader doesn't get too lost amidst the varying characters, particularly those who appear with vastly different personalities than normally given them. I got lost in the details at times. But the setup is there, and the main characters are set.  With time and space to develop this would probably feel a little less like a short story run amok.  Rounding this up to a 3 from 2.5 because I liked quotes used as chapter heads, the author's note at the end, particularly where she thanked her editors and proof readers for making sure all her heroes had "shiny black hair not shiny back hair". Humor goes a long way with me.

Tags: e-book, ok-but-not-great, read, thought-i-was-gonna-like

What Strange Creatures by Emily Arsensault

When I finished reading Miss me when I'm gone, I immediately looked for another Emily Arsenault novel. Her latest, What Strange Creatures fell into my lap. Another well-crafted story, centering on Theresa Battle, an ABD (all but dissertation ) PhD candidate. She's got thee cats and a dog (she  acquired one after each breakup, starting with her divorce), a slightly dysfunctional family, and a totally boring copy-writing job at the local candle company. She has been given a deadline to finish her dissertation (which she's been writing for 7 years) on Margery Kempe, the Medieval mystic and pilgrim, who also wrote the first known autobiography. But at the same time, her brother, (brilliant, a bit hapless, jobless, and somewhat of a drinker) finds himself being accused of the murder of his girlfriend. What's a loving sister to do? Theresa sets out to find the truth.

I've somewhat butchering my summary, but let me just say I really enjoyed this book. The characters felt real, the plot revolving around them, not them around the plot. And there was all this stuff about Margery that was absolutely fascinating.

Have already started scouting for the remaining Arsenault left for me to read. Yay!

Tags: an-author-i-read, books-about-books, great-title, literary-mystery, made-me-look-something-up, read, thank-you-charleston-county-library, will-look-for-more-by-this-author

The New Colored Pencil, by Kristy Ann Kutch

I'm currently experimenting with different ways to satisfy my artistic muse. I'm a pysanky artist, and only recently have begun to explore other mediums. My arsenal has several types of colored pencils, which I use only sparingly. Somehow I knew there were other ways to employ the simple colored pencil, but hadn't unlocked the secret. When Blogging for Books offered this book as a selection, I immediately jumped for it, and hauled out my collection of colored pencils in eager anticipation.

The book itself is beautiful, and quite thorough. It explores different types of pencils. and provides many references for identifying quality of materials in colored pencil art, from the pencils itself, to paper, to accessory tools, thoroughly examining the strengths and weaknesses of each. To be honest, I was a bit overwhelmed by it all, as a novice, but think this book will have a happy home on my art reference shelf, and that as I get more comfortable with my own artistic abilities, I'll refer to it more and more. It may be a while though, because, as the book stresses, quality counts. Sadly, only one set of my pencils even made the list, and was moderate at that. If I want to indulge in the techniques explored in this book, I would want to upgrade and to supplement with good quality paper and accessary tools, etc, and my wallet is not yet ready. Even so, there are many techniques and tips that I can apply to pen/marker art and even acrylic painting. Having never taken any sort of art class, this is like having my own private instructor in a book.

Thank you Blogging for Books, the publisher and author for sending a copy of the book my way. I hope someday to be able to fully employ all that it offers.

Tags: blogging-for-books, i-liked-it, not-my-usual-read, read, read-for-review, taught-me-something

The Ink Readers of Doi Saket: A Tor.Com Original by Thomas Olde Heuvelt

 I've often heard it's best to be careful what you wish for. That's the case for a young boy from the village of Doi Saket in Thailand. On the full moon of the 12th month (Thai festival of Loi Krathong), the people of his village collect the krathong, as well as a wishes, launched down the river, and try to grant them. The boy has no wishes, and he journeys to seek the head monk to ask him what he should wish for. What he discovers is that the altruism of the villagers is not universal, and there are nefarious actions afoot. Just like the butterfly that flaps its wings in New Mexico causing a hurricane in China, one boy's quest to find out what he should wish for causes a string of reactions in his own land.

Told in a gentle, Thai-like style by an author of Dutch descent, this short story is another Hugo nominee, made possible for free e-download by the publisher, Tor.

Tags: Tor, short story, magical realism