Lettergirl

Wednesday Book Club (on Thursday).

I'm nearly finished with Feed, which I started because my daughter read it (or, more accurately, devoured it) for her Honors English 9 class.  Once past the frequent use of the word "like" and all the swear words (not my thing), I'm devouring it too.  I do like young adult lit; add a dystopian theme and I'm hooked.  Plus I needed to break out of the box after the last book I read, Hotel at the Corner of Bitter and Sweet.  (It was bitter! and sweet!)

With only about 20 pages to go, I feel like I'm on the backside of a hill, careening towards a turbid pool of muck at the bottom.  And yet, I also think that would be more satisfying than if the main character changed directions and redeemed himself (allowing me to land in a field of daisies instead).  Muck is more thought-provoking.  America, is this where you are really headed?

But since I haven't finished it yet, that's not a spoiler, right?

The Summer Reading Program has begun...get ready to send your book lists August 15-31.  Happy reading!

 

Wednesday Book Club.

Gluten-Free Girl Every Day
Here is a book I checked out from the library and had to buy for myself almost instantly. 

I picked it up at the library on Friday afternoon, woke up early on Saturday, and settled myself down on the parlor couch with a cup of tea and some scraps of paper to mark recipes I'd like to try.  So many slips of paper tucked in to mark pages that it was silly not to have my very own copy. 

I don't read Shauna's blog daily, I do more of a once-a-month check-in.  Although her photography is gorgeous (and makes you want to cook right away), too many of her recipes won't work with the restricted diets in our house and I just don't always have the energy to adjust/modify/play.  Also, her cooking philosophy is very spontaneous; I can admire that from afar, but I need (and enjoy) a meal philosophy that's plan-plan-plan.

And a note for anyone who doesn't need to/want to eat gluten-free:  it really doesn't matter with this book.  Many of the recipes are "naturally" gluten-free (that is, they don't contain gluten-substitutes), and the photography alone is worth a peek. 

I love to read cookbooks.  Have any on your nightstand (or kitchen counter)?

Summer Reading Program 2013.

When I was a kid, I always took part in the Summer Reading Program at our local library -- you know, read 20 books and earn a prize at the end of the summer.  Over the weekend my daughter asked if it was time to sign up at the library yet, and the wheels started turning for this year's version of the Summer Reading Program for Grown-ups.  Won't you join me?

The Details

Read any five books this summer and write a short paragraph review of each (a few sentences will do it).  Your books can be fiction or non-fiction.  (I even count cookbooks!)

The Deadline

Send me your list via email August 15-31st:  gina {at} ginasekelsky {dot} com.

The Prize

Everyone who sends a book list (complete with mini-reviews) will receive 5 quotation bookmarks, handwritten by me.  One prize per reader, please.

 

Stay tuned for updates throughout the summer (plus a sneak peek at what I'm reading). 

Wednesday Book Club.

Are you a re-reader?  I am.  My friend Kristi always reads the last chapter first when reading a new book, so that she won't have to bear the tension...and I guess that's a bit like the pleasure of re-reading.  I think the tension is compelling the first time through, but the second time is for savoring the details.

We recently got bookshelves in our parlour (which may now be called the library), which have been on my list for years (but not in my budget).  We spent a whole afternoon hauling tubs of books down from the attic, sorting through them, and filling the shelves.  I came upon so many titles I want to reread, starting with a stack of paperbacks by David Lodge.

In college I read a lot of David Lodge, after I spent a semester studying in London.  (When in Africa, read Love in the Driest Season; when in New York, read the Morningside Heights trilogy; when in England, read anything by David Lodge.)  I continued to read his books through my twenties, and made it as far as Thinks, which was published about 10 years ago (when I was definitely not in my 20's anymore).  I tried to get through his more recent novels, Author Author and Deaf Sentence, but they both were too dense for me with sentences that go on for half a page and dare I say it, a little boring.  I excused him (but didn't finish the books) because he's been writing so long, he deserves to indulge himself as he ages.

So when I set my old paperbacks on the new bookshelves, I decided it was time for a re-read of his classic academic trilogy, starting with Changing Places, which I first read 25 years ago.  Guess what?  The sentences are really long and parts of it so far are a little boring.  Sigh.  I guess he isn't the only one who's aging.  But I'm going to stick with it; I remember the third book in the trilogy, Nice Work, was my favorite and the most accessible.  

Do you have any favorite re-reads?

Wednesday Book Club.

I know I mentioned this book last fall when it first came out, but at the time I wasn't ready to read Happier at Home and I had set it aside until the time felt right.  I had a lot going on at the time, still adjusting to my daughter's celiac diagnosis and wanting to focus on taking care of my family more than adding new resolutions.  

I'm glad I waited, because I'm in a much better place to absorb (and possibly even act on) what Gretchen Rubin has to say.  In a nutshell, I like that she is smart.  And she admits her mistakes & shortcomings.  I was afraid that in reading this book I'd feel compelled to set more goals (when I already have plenty), but in fact, it is just plain good reading:  reassuring me as often as it encourages me to go out on a limb.  I'm about 2/3 through and I'm going to start reading slower so it won't end as quickly (which is ironic, since Gretchen is obviously a fast reader; I'm jealous of all the reading she mentions in the book).

I actually heard about Gretchen's first book through the comments on a giveaway here three years ago, when I asked my readers to share their favorite non-fiction book of the last year.  That giveaway was part of my anniversary week, and I'm excited to reveal my new batch of giveaways for 2013 in May (right around the corner!).

Wednesday Book Club.

My beach read last week was Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones, which was thought-provoking but not too taxing for spring break.  The story is told in two sections, by two narrators, and you start the second part of the book prejudiced against that second narrator, but then learn to love her too.  It's a compelling story, the kind that leaves you still wondering about the characters a few days after you've closed the book.

The link is for a review on Goodreads.  Do you use Goodreads?  I dutifully read their monthly email about what's new, but can't seem to get myself on board with using the site itself.  It seems taylor-made for me, a reader and a diligent listmaker.  If you use it, I'd love to know how and why.

Wednesday Book Club: wish list.

On my wish list:

Creative Thursday by Marisa Anne Cummings.  I've been needing a creative push lately and thinking about "challenges" that some artists use to keep their head (and hands) in the game.  I always felt like time spent on those sorts of projects was -- for me -- spinning my wheels. Too many other ideas to work through!   But I'm trying to rethink that and get my feet wet with plain old creative play for the sake of play.  This book may be the manual I need to get started.

Embellish Me by Laurie Wisbrun.  Even the cover is inspiring!

New from Sarah Fielke:  Hand Quilted with Love.  If you need more encouragement, I reviewed another of her quilting books here.

A Month of Sundays by Cheryl Arkison.  I don't really need another book of family craft projects, but they're always good for inspiration in one form or another.

Wednesday Book Club, Nourish:Spring.

The darling Anna Dvorak has done it again:  a simply amazing cookbook devoted to the flavors of spring (second in her Nourish series).  Inspired by her world travels and years of recipe development (not to mention local cooking classes), Anna provides recipes that a) sound fabulous and b) sound like something I could actually make on a weeknight.  Vegie sushi rolls, anyone?

Try a sample recipe on Anna's blog.  Read more about the cookbook series here.

Wednesday Book Club.

"It's not about ideas, it's about making ideas happen." 

While my shop is closed next month, I'm hoping to get the ball rolling on launching a new product and developing a new way of sharing my textile projects with a bigger audience (which is to say, bigger than my daughter and me, as we're the only ones who get to wear them so far).  Making Ideas Happen by Scott Belsky assumes you have the ideas already (I do!) and just need the right nudge to execute them.  Although it may sound a little dry, it's actually quite inspiring:  concrete ways to change the way you work, especially for creatives.  I am fairly left-brain driven for an artsy girl, always trying to work smarter, more efficiently.  Frankly, I love to prioritize.  But my real goal is to manage my time so that I have more time to create. 

Have you read any helpful business books lately? 

Wednesday Book Club.

Since it's January, and I'm all devoted to restoration-inspiration-investigation, I've got a lot of art/business books on my nightstand.  I checked this one out of the library nine weeks ago and finally got around to paging through it yesterday.  Lots of eye candy (photos of studios in Brooklyn, Stockholm and Tokyo), and interesting (if light) interviews with the artists.