There has been a dramatic shift in my life in the past few months. Anyone who has had more than one small child in their home, knows how hectic life can be when you are faced with the mothering duties of tending to several or many small children. I cannot imagine how women function while caring for a whole slew of small children (say five children under the age of five). I found two to be exhausting and all-consuming.
But, towards the middle of August, my last little one finally began all-day school. Now, I find myself with a whole day spread out before me. The house is quiet. It is an absolutely amazing transformation.
I have been able to resume daily exercise. Every morning, I get the boys off to school and then head to the track to walk laps. This has been such a good thing for me. It is beneficial to my health and my prayer life. (The only thing I don't understand is why some people walk the track in the opposite direction of what I consider to be the natural flow ... this means I must pass them twice with each lap and sometimes they give a greeting or comment with each encounter, which detracts from my ability to focus my heart and mind on prayer.)
I am able to have morning quiet time, instead of squeezing it in at the end of the day when I am tired. This is such a blessing. When I am spiritually centered, I handle life's curve balls better. And there have been curve balls slung in the last month or so: automatic windows on the car needing to be repaired; the garage door suddenly refusing to go up, requiring the replacement of both springs on the door; Sean locking us out of the house one Saturday morning, resulting in the fee of a locksmith; and another boy, who shall remain nameless, leaving the refrigerator door open overnight, causing the loss of food and a thoroughly cleaned out fridge.
But, best of all, I am relishing the ample time for writing. I have been hard at work trying to finish my third young adult novel. In addition to the writing, I have been doing research into possible agents to pitch my work to, with the hopes of finally getting published. This means the honing of the first three chapters, writing queries and composing a synopsis for each book. It is all a bit overwhelming, but thrilling at the same time.
I am grateful for this gift of time. I recognize the blessing and pray daily that I will use my time wisely and to good purpose. I kind of thought I would accomplish more in terms of keeping the house clean, but for now, the writing is my primary focus and I'm content. I don't know how long this gift of time will be available to me, so I want to appreciate it fully and make the most of it.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Book Review: Cosmic
In Frank Cottrell Boyce's book, Cosmic, Liam is a boy who, at the age of twelve, already looks like an adult, thanks to his height and some early facial hair. This leads to all kinds of interesting mishaps, like when a new principal mistakes him for a teacher and when a car salesman almost lets him drive off in a Porsche. Since he's always being taken for a grown-up, Liam decides to take the trick to the next level (he's a big fan of the "World of Warcraft" game) and enters a contest to win the "Best Dad in the World" title. The prize is supposed to be a ride on the most awesome new thrill ride to be invented. What he doesn't know is that this ride will take him to space and he will be expected to act like a grown-up through the whole encounter.
Liam is truly stuck between two worlds - earth and outer space, childhood and adulthood. There were so many laugh-out-loud moments. At one point, I found myself replaying one section over and over again to hear Liam's co-hort, Florida Kirby, say "No, no, no, no" when he proposes driving a car because he's "the dad."
Full of genuine pre-teen insights, this book is sure to appeal to both boys and girls and was even fun for me, a grown-up. When the final sentences were read, I felt that wonderful glow one gets when a book has caused them to think in the middle of an enjoyable romp of a tale. It made me appreciate both childhood and adulthood more (especially the importance of dads) and gave me a good many laughs. I highly recommend this book and the audio version, read deliciously by Kirby Heyborne (who did an amazing job switching between a multitude of voices - although I didn't understand why Dr. Dracs [sp?], who is Asian, didn't have a more Asian accent). I can't wait to read another book by Frank Cottrell Boyce.
Friday, September 14, 2012
Jeffrey Hatcher's Adaptation of Jekyll and Hyde
(Image taken from Wikipedia)Last night, I braved the traffic of downtown Indianapolis on my own as I headed to the Indiana Repertory Theatre's presentation of Jeffrey Hatcher's adaptation of "Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde." Despite my apprehensions (I don't like to drive in unfamiliar territory or by myself in the evening), I made it smoothly into the Sun Garage (the cheapest parking option, within the Circle Center Mall - only $1.50 for the evening ... can't be beat) and across the street in time to not only claim my ticket but also hear the prologue presentation.
During the prologue, I was delighted to learn previously unknown facts about Robert Louis Stevenson. I was unaware he fell in love with an Indianapolis-born, married woman, named Fanny Osbourne, who was living in France. When he followed her back to the States (waiting for her to divorce her husband), he ended up "penniless, depressed, and near death ... [and] got lost near Monterey, California, where two ranchers nursed him back to health." (Taken from the playbill.) Interesting!
It seems Fanny was seminal to his success as she nursed him, protected him from taxing visits from friends, and served as his chief editor. They stated that Stevenson wrote "Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde" over the space of three days and when Fanny read his manuscript she claimed he nailed the horror aspect but failed in the moral instruction department. Thus, he tossed the manuscript in the fire and rewrote it in another three days, producing the book, Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, as we now know it. Amazing!
Sadly, I also learned that he died at the young age of 44. He had always suffered from lung issues and was a smoker. Just think of all the further writing he could have produced!
The IRT's production was well done. I appreciated the stage design, where characters appeared from above, below, and the sides. The actors did a superb job. Hatcher's decision to use four characters to represent Hyde was intriguing and well-executed. At one point, all four Hydes are reverberating in the brain of Dr. Jekyll quite effectively.
Although a tad raunchy (remarking over the private parts of the deceased body of a prostitute), I felt Hatcher's adaptation presented well the general theme of the good and evil living in us all. The audience certainly came away with plenty to think about.
I was most grateful for the humor presented in the adaptation. There were several times when I laughed audibly at the jokes included in the script. Without the humor, the story might have come off with a darker tone and feel.
On the whole, I enjoyed this production of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." I failed to re-read the novel before attending (as I had done with the production of "Dracula"), but imagine that, as with movies, the book is always better than the play. Still, for a night out at the theater, the IRT's "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" was a delightful experience.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Book Review: The Uninvited Guests
This was a moderately enjoyable read. Set in the Edwardian era, the Torrington family is preparing to celebrate Emerald Torrington's twentieth birthday with a dinner party that evening. Unfortunately, a near-by train derails and a motley band of disheveled rail passengers show up seeking temporary shelter. When a more refined (first-class) passenger turns up as well, Emerald's brother decides to invite him to the dinner party. Amidst the chaos of birthday dinner plans gone awry, this new interloper brings a whole new level of discomfort to the band of party revelers. Add in an additional twist of the youngest daughter's decision to bring a pony into the house, to pose for a portrait, and you have a regular comedy of errors.
The story itself was fun and faithful to the era. There were only a few aspects which left me confused. Towards the end of the book, the author suddenly includes a wild, sexual romp between a member of the serving staff and a member of the dinner party. This seemed incongruous. Not only was it unnecessary to the story line, it didn't seem to fit with the characters themselves. The man is interested in Emerald and the housekeeper is Emerald's mother's age. He is already mortified by his continued presence in the house. I believe he just wanted to get out, not to romp and carry on with a member of the serving class. My opinion only. Indeed, a total of three couples pair up right at the end of the book. Hmm.
Plus, there were a few minor details that didn't seem to add up for me. One was that the youngest daughter left her locked room via the roof, yet they enter the room with no difficulty later in the story. Also, she re-enters the house through her mother's bedroom window, into a rather unbelievable conflict. Furthermore, if the interloper left through the window, it didn't seem to add up to me that he would make another appearance under the mud on the stairs. These are just questions that loomed in my mind as I read. In addition, all the loose ends were tied up a bit too neatly.
If you are interested in British fiction set in the Edwardian era, you might enjoy this romp of a tale. Despite my questions about details in the novel, I did somewhat enjoy this read. The cover of the book was also a perfect touch to match the story, giving the feel of an Edwardian tale.
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Book Review: The House I Loved
So, a few months ago, I found the DVD of the movie, Sarah's Key, available at our library and brought it home to watch. First, I watched it alone and cried through it, loving every minute of the beautifully, sad story. Then, I convinced my husband to watch it with me and he loved it just as much as I did. I highly recommend the movie. It caught you from the beginning and held you all the way along.
Thus, when I noticed The House I Loved, another book by deRosnay, I jumped at the chance to read it. I cannot say that I appreciated it nearly as much as the movie version of the author's other book.
It tells the story of Rose Bazelet and her deep and abiding connection to her house, which is about to be torn down for the development of a new road system in Paris. It is meant to be suspenseful, but the book took so long getting to the secret buried in the walls, that the secret ended up feeling anticlimactic and even a bit disjointed (the secret, in my opinion, would have lessened her connection to the house, rather than strengthened her resolve to remain in the house).
I suppose if you are a lover of all things Parisian, you would find enjoyment in this book. It paints a picture of Paris in the 1860's. I'm sure it was a troubling time for home-owners who suddenly found themselves expropriated out of their homes, the very canvas of their lives being altered around them.
I can sympathize with their plight, but I just couldn't get connected enough to care all that much. I kept wondering how many more pages it was going to take before we learned something other than her endless pining for her deceased husband and son and her affection for "the house". At page 50, and then at page 100, I still held no more clues about the supposed secret. Only something about an intruder, vaguely mentioned from time to time with the words "I cannot bear to speak of it yet." By the time the secret was revealed, it was not only expected, but it seemed an unlikely thing to keep from someone who is supposedly your deepest love.
Anyway, I was not terribly impressed with this book. I do think I would be willing to read Sarah's Key because I'm thinking the author probably did a much better job with that book. If you haven't seen the movie, it is most definitely worth your time. So, kudos to Tatiana deRosnay, even if I didn't particularly care for this book.
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
How I Hate Cleaning House!
I can remember a time when I enjoyed the feeling of accomplishment when something went from dirty to clean. I remember visiting my husband's younger brother, Rob, and spending a good twenty minutes cleaning his coffee maker because it was just too dirty for me to look at. Of course, this gave my husband the impression that I was a keeper.
Somehow, that feeling of accomplishment never comes anymore. The cleaning is just something that has to be done and is then destroyed before it can even be appreciated. Plus, who really appreciates it, besides my husband? My sons are perfectly happy to live with the clutter, toys and books strewn around them. When it gets to me, I pick up. But, when I HAVE to clean the house, it feels like such pointless work to me.
Granted, one must remember that I am living in a house which belongs to my mother-in-law. Thus, when she visits, she is perfectly entitled to expect that it is being cared for in a much more effective way than I usually muster. She is quite vocal about the fact that we have "too many things." So, when she comes, I have to scramble to find a place to hide those numerous things. Then, after hiding them, I forget where I put them. So when that important paper for school (right now it is the annoying one-time-fundraiser form for PTA where they are expecting every student to send in at least 15 different addresses to as many different states as possible to send a walk-a-thon form to - this is another rant, in and of itself, because the person on the receiving end gets absolutely nothing for their involvement and yet our PTA has pinned all of its hopes on this one fund-raiser for the year, even making you feel guilty because each fund-raising packet cost the school $1.50 - and I hate the idea of petitioning my friends and relatives to give money to a cause they feel no sense of connection to. And this is only the beginning, because Trevor just joined the Cub Scouts. Ay-yi-yi!) is due to be turned in, I will be at a total loss as to where I hid the stack of papers it was once in. If I could keep my stack, I'd know exactly where things were.
Alas, this problem is not going to go away. I must face it head-on. I must stop my blog-whining and get down to work this morning. Who knows? Maybe I'll be able to keep it looking spiffy for the three hours between when my kids get home from school and when my hubby gets home from work, so at least he'll be impressed, even if my mother-in-law isn't. And hey, at least I no longer have a dog underfoot. That eliminates the endless problem of dog-hairs! So things aren't really as bad as they seem, are they?
Monday, September 3, 2012
Book Review: Uglies
Tally Youngblood is about to turn sixteen. In her world, this marks the point where her life will truly begin, because in her world once you are sixteen you are given an operation which turns you pretty and the purpose of your life becomes one big party. Sounds inviting, right? Who wouldn't want to be pretty and fun? Well, Tally's friend, Shay, for one. Plus, there's a whole group of runaways who have chosen exile rather than undergo the operation which might change more than just your appearance. Tally must decide which side she's on. In fact, she's forced by the Special Circumstances unit to reveal Shay's location or remain an "ugly" for the rest of her life.
Although I can understand the appeal of this book for young readers, I found it a bit too convoluted. The premise was interesting, but the execution was less so. The characters didn't reel me in. Plus, so much of it seemed unbelievable and inconsistencies bothered me (they keep saying that Tally is the only one to find the runaway hideout on her own, yet Shay left alone just a few weeks before Tally). The idea that a whole society would consider themselves ugly unless fine-tuned with cosmetic surgery was a bit much for me to swallow. Still, I did find it somewhat compelling. I read the whole thing in the space of a few days. And, I felt disappointed that the loose ends weren't tied up more for the conclusion of this first installment. At this point, I can't say whether I'll give the rest of the series a whirl or not, but I do know the character in my novel is not caught up in this particular book.
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