TSS ♦ Let’s Talk About Nothing

The weather’s been crap lately. The air feels like breathing through three layers of cotton, sticky, hot, wet, everything feels damp to the touch. A lukewarm coating of liquid that wants to seep into your skin, slide into your lungs. The temperature is high, but the heat isn’t warm and soothing, it’s like standing over a stove-full of boiling-over pots. The sun can’t seem to even penetrate through the fog, the clouds, or are they smog? The only hope is that a thunderstorm will roll in and break this overbearingly, depressing atmosphere. The weathermen have been promising thunder, lightning, rain to come – hopefully soon.

Why am I blathering about the weather? Cause I feel like talking about nothing – and everything. Anyone know if there is any scientific theories that connect moods, emotions, human behavior with the weather? Because I’m positive there’s something going on there. I feel blah, in my head, in my body, just blah.


Yes, I’m whining, complaining, being so emo.

The weather makes me sleep badly. Instead of sleeping peacefully I sleep deeply and have the worst (best?) dreams. Those ones that are so vivid, that once you wake up it’s hard to get a handle of what’s real and what’s just a dream, or a memory – those are the ones that drive me crazy. Falling  asleep and reliving what already happened. In the morning the mind races with what ifs? and whys?

My life is good. I’m always happy with how things turned out and where things are heading. But at night I’m haunted by people and events from my past. Does the heart never truly forget?


This blog’s supposed to be about books, not my imbalanced state of mind, so now let’s head down another road and around the corner into reading.

Why do I read? No idea! But one of the many reasons is that it provides an escape. Reading a book about characters I’ll never meet, places I’m not familiar with. It’s a way to escape the thoughts fighting in my head to be heard, to be the loudest, to make me think. Words that shut out that inner dialogue that never stops.

I have a review coming up, it’s written and ready to go, but I keep going back and editing it. Adding something I want to say, replacing phrases that only say “read this now” with something a little less fan-girl. What’s the hardest review to write? The one where you love everything about a book, when you’ve read it twice cause it was just that damned good, the one you can’t wait for your friends to read so you can gossip. When a book matters to me, it’s hard to find satisfaction in what I write about it.

What book is it you ask? What book has me so excited? It’s a new urban fantasy, due for release in September, and it’s the very first chapter in a series! Which is another thing I’m so ecstatic about – a series that I’m dying to read more of. That’s the catch with new series’ that you love – the wait. But I have a feeling that these books will be more than worth the wait.

Oh right, I still haven’t mentioned what book it is – the author is Seanan McGuire, the series is The October Daye Novels and the title of the very first book is Rosemary And Rue. My review will be up soon, but here’s a little taste of the writing to whet your appetite. Seanan has a delicious way with words.

 

“I glanced back over my shoulder, watching the light play through the roses, and wondered why it couldn’t all be that way. Why can’t Faerie be the stuff of dreams, all courtly manners and glass roses, Courts and pageants? Why do we have to include murder, and mystery, and the stuff of nightmares?
Light glittered off the shattered petals on the path, answering me. It can’t all be dreams because a broken dream will kill you as surely as a nightmare will, and with a lot less mercy. At least the nightmares don’t smile while they take you down.”

 

Rosemary and Rue by Seanan McGuire


And just cause I love wallowing in my own depression, I was listening to some of my old skaterboys’  mixtape-songs from my younger, more punkish days. Avril can kiss my ass, she wasn’t even born when the real skaterboys ruled  :P



© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.

Review ♦ Wintergirls

“Dead girl walking,” the boys say in the halls.
“Tell us your secret,” the girls whisper, one toilet to another.
I am that girl.
I am the space between my thighs, daylight shining through.
I am the bones they want, wired on a porcelain frame.

Lia and Cassie were best friends, wintergirls frozen in matchstick bodies. But now Cassie is dead. Lia’s mother is busy saving other people’s lives. Her father is away on business. Her stepmother is clueless. And the voice inside Lia’s head keeps telling her to remain in control, stay strong, lose more, weigh less. If she keeps on going this way – thin, thinner, thinnest – maybe she’ll disappear altogether.

In her most emotionally wrenching, lyrically written book since the National Book Award finalist Speak, bestselling author Laurie Halse Anderson explores one girl’s chilling descent into the all-consuming vortex of anorexia.


Book Title: Wintergirls Genre: Young Adult Fiction
Author: Laurie Halse Anderson Type: Hardcover 288 pages
Publisher: Viking Publication Date: March 2009

I’m going to try something a little different this time. Instead of the typical review, I am going to answer some of the questions found in the Wintergirls Discussion Guide. So if you haven’t read this book yet, there may be spoilers ahead – if you don’t want to go any further I’ll just say Wintergirls is a wonderful book that I’d recommend to teens, parents, adults and anyone who has an interest in eating-disorders.


What do the crossed-out words and phrases reveal about Lia? Why can’t she allow herself to say or think some things? What is she afraid will happen if she does?

This creative use of textual strikethroughs was an excellent way to show how Lia was going through an inner battle with herself. It provided the reader with a way to experience how every thought that Lia had was a decision whether to be weak or strong. Almost like having the angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other. Lia edits these things in her mind, I think, because it gives her a sense of power, a feeling that she can control something.

My traitor fingers want that fudge. No, they don’t. They want a seven layer bar and some of those weird muffins and those pretzels. No, they do not. They want to squish the marshmallows and stuff them into my mouth. They will not.

Does Lia want to lose weight so she will look thin and pretty? What does her thinness mean to her? How does she think it gives her power?

I don’t think it has anything to do with looking thin and pretty in the obvious way. At first I think she followed Cassie’s lead. Cassie was tormented by their classmates for developing breasts earlier than the others, and learned from camp friends that skinny was better. So the two girls together developed this ideal in their minds that skinnier was better, if they weighed less than the other girls they would be seen as stronger, better people. This type of thinking at such a young age seems to have negatively changed their outlook and perspectives, along with the help of their competition, evolving into a dangerous journey to perfection that took over their every thought. Later as teens, they both experienced problems like divorce, pressure from parents, loss of friendship, stress from school etc. and they turned their eating disorders into something different. It was no longer about their looks, it was a way to say “screw you” to the world. They may not be able to control the things happening to them in their lives, but they could control themselves. Parents can tell them what to do, society can tell them how to be – but no one except Lia and Cassie themselves can control their own bodies.

When Lia is eating in front of her family, she feels the power she has over her family. Lia can tell they want to make her eat more, but they won’t push the matter because they are afraid she will eat nothing if they do.

I spread my napkin in my lap, then cut my turkey into two pieces, then four, then eight, then sixteen white bites. The Brussels sprouts are quartered. I scrape the cheese off a sliver of potato – which will not kill me, potatoes rarely cause death – and shove it into my mouth and chew, chew, chew, smiling across the tablecloth. Dad and Jennifer watch the division on my plate, but they don’t say anything about it. When I first moved in, this would have been called “disordered behavior” and Jennifer’s voice would pitch up high an Dad would twist his wedding band around and around his finger. Now it falls under the category of “battles not worth fighting, because at least she’s sitting at the table eating with us, and her weight hasn’t dropped into dangerland.”

The night Cassie dies, why does she call Lia? Would it have made a difference if Lia had answered? Why or why not? Could anything have saved Cassie?

Cassie calls Lia on the night she dies, over and over she calls, until the calls stop just before she dies. It’s not clear why Cassie was calling Lia, perhaps she wanted Lia to help her. The two girls started out together and maybe she felt that Lia was the only one who would understand what was going on. Maybe Cassie finally realized just what they were doing and how bad things could get. Or maybe she had hit rock bottom and only wanted the motivation that Lia always gave her, the encouragement to keep going. Whatever direction Cassie hoped Lia would help her in, I think it was their former friendship that prompted Cassie to call that night. Would anything have saved Cassie? I’m not sure anyone could have done anything, both her body and her mind were so severely injured. Then again maybe the two girls together could have found the answers they needed to overcome their weaknesses. Maybe if Lia had gone to Cassie and seen how far she’d fallen, Lia could have found the strength to pull both of them back up. Or maybe they both would have died.

We held hands when we walked down the gingerbread path into the forest, blood dripping from our fingers. We danced with witches and kissed monsters. We turned us into wintergirls, and when she tried to leave, I pulled her back into the snow because I was too afraid to be alone.

Discuss Lia’s relationship with Elijah. When she first meets him and lies about her identity, why do you think she chooses to give her stepsister’s name as her own? What is Elijah able to give Lia that the other people in her life cannot?

Elijah seems to give Lia the freedom to be who she wants to be. Around him she can be whatever and whoever she wants. He allows her to live a fantasy life as a normal girl. Lia does not have to be what he wants, there are no expectations to fulfill. It isn’t what Elijah gives to Lia, but what he doesn’t ask for. So in a way, Lia gets personal freedom from being with Elijah and that’s something she never feels with her family.

I am almost a real girl the entire drive home. I went to a diner. I drank hot chocolate and ate french fries. Talked to a guy for a while. Laughed a couple of times. A little like ice-skating for the first time, wobbly, but I did it.

In the newspaper article about Cassie’s death, the superintendent of schools says, “Most teens today struggle with something.” Do you agree?

Yes, I fully believe that adolescence is itself a struggle. Even the teens who seem to be the most well-adjusted kids in the world must have worries. Not to say that all struggles are the same, but I think it’s human nature that we all have some weakness, something that bothers us. Stress over grades, pressure to achieve goals, peer pressure from friends, bullying, cliques, societal expectations to fit in, the constant barrage from all types of media to be this or be that. At a time when teens are finally starting to develop their own identity, they are bombarded by demands to be what they should, could, need to be. I think all kids go through a struggle and the people around them need to be more respectful in allowing them to just be. As a parent I feel that forcing my children into pre-formed molds in the most dangerous thing to do to them. My job is to make them feel comfortable in their own skins, not force them into the ideal. They need equal amounts of guidance, acceptance, freedom and love.

“Cassie had everything: a family who loved her, friends, activities. Her mother wants to know why she threw it all away?”

Why? You want to know why?
Step into a tanning booth and fry yourself for two or three days. After your skin bubbles and peels off, roll in coarse salt, then pull on long underwear woven from spun glass and razor wire. Over that goes your regular clothes, as long as they are tight.
Smoke gunpowder and go to school to jump through hoops, sit up and beg, and roll over on command. Listen to the whispers that curl into your head at night, calling you ugly and fat and stupid and bitch and whore and worst of all “a disappointment.” Puke and starve and cut and drink because you don’t want to feel any of this. Puke and starve and cut and drink because you need an anesthetic and it works. For a while. But then the anesthetic turns into poison and by then it’s too late because you are mainlining it now, straight into your soul. It is rotting you and you can’t stop.
Look in a mirror and find a ghost. Hear every heartbeat scream that everysinglething is wrong with you.

“Why?” is the wrong question.
Ask, “Why not?” 

 

Other Reviews
Have you reviewed this book too?
Let me know and I’ll add your link.


© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.

Review ♦ Wings

Browse Inside Wings

Laurel was mesmerized,
staring at the pale things
with the wide eyes.
They were terrifyingly beautiful -
too beautiful for words.

Laurel turned to the mirror again,
her eyes on the hovering petals
that floated beside her head.
They looked almost like wings.

 

Laurel has never been the kind of girl who believes in fairy tales and myths, fables and legends … until the day she learns the stunning truth about her own identity, forever changing her world. In this extraordinary tale of magic and intrigue, romance and danger, everything you thought you knew about faeries will be changed forever.


Book Title: Wings Genre: Young Adult Fiction
Author: Aprilynne Pike Type: Trade Paperback 295 pages
Publisher: Harper Teen Publication Date: May 2009

My Thoughts  
Ever have one of those books that get you all excited just thinking about them? Wings was that book for me. Faeries, magic and mystery all together in a new young adult novel. Sounds great! But in the end this story just didn’t work for me – and seeing all the stellar reviews this book is getting makes me feel like I’m missing out on something.

Maybe I just expected too much, because I didn’t find anything all that original here. There’s Laurel, whose not only starting out at school as the new girl but as the girl whose been home-schooled all her life, is a very picky eater and is a little weird about being stuck inside for 8 hours a day. So there is the awkward main character whose trying hard to fit in. No need to worry though, because now David makes his entrance to the story. David is the typical, popular, all around nice, high school guy that everyone likes. And he welcomes Laurel into his circle of friends right away.

Now that Laurel seems to be heading in the direction of normal teenage life, a problem pops up (literally) She starts growing petals out of her back! So of course she freaks out, and after confiding in David he runs some tests on her blood using his microscope and discovers she’s a plant! And that was when I knew that this book would be a bit of a stretch for me. Seriously I can deal with faeries – they’re awesome – but I didn’t care much for this particular re-imagining of the fey.

From there on out, it was pretty predictable – throw in some bad guys, a hot male faerie to threaten David’s relationship with Laurel and some family problems. I've no idea why Wings didn’t work for me, was it only because of the whole turning into a plant thing, or was the plot outline just too similar to many other young adult fantasy books? Another thing that bothered me is that it was marketed as a young adult book (ages 12+), but I would say this would be more appropriate for ages 9-12. There was really nothing overly objectionable in terms of language, violence or sexuality. I also felt that the writing and pace were more suited to younger readers.

Basically, I didn’t enjoy this one. But others love it – I’ve included links to other reviews below so be sure to check those out. However I would recommend this to younger readers, as a fun, quick read.

 

About The Author

Aprilynne Pike has been spinning faerie stories since she was a child with a hyper-active imagination. At the age of twenty she received her BA in Creative Writing from Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho. When not writing, Aprilynne can usually be found at the gym; she also enjoys singing, acting, reading, and working with pregnant moms as a childbirth educator and doula. Aprilynne currently lives with her husband and three kids in Utah, and dreams of warmer climates.

Other Reviews
Have you reviewed this book too?
Let me know and I’ll add your link.


© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.

Sookie Stackhouse Reading Challenge

WhatSookie Stackhouse Reading Challenge
Who – Hosted by Beth F 
Where
Beth Fish Reads
When – 7/1/09 through 6/30/10
How – Read, listen, re-read or catch-up on the Southern Vampires series by Charlaine Harris.
Why – Because Sookie is a cool chick and the books are fun and easy reads.

As I make progress through the series, I will add links to my reviews in the titles below.


Book 1
Dead Until Dark
2001
Book 2
Living Dead In Dallas
2002
Book 3
Club Dead
2003
 
Book 4
Dead To The World
2004
Book 5
Dead As A Doornail
2005
Book 6
Definitely Dead
2006
Book 7
All Together Dead
2007
Book 8
From Dead To Worse
2008
Book 9
Dead And Gone
2009
   

Short Stories featuring Sookie Stackhouse or Characters from the Series

Bite
“One Word Answer”
2005
Powers Of Detection
“Fairy Dust”
2006
My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding
“Tacky”
2006
Many Bloody Returns
“Dracula Night”
2007
Wolfsbane And Misletoe
“Gift Wrap”
2008
Unusual Suspects
“Lucky”
2008
 


© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.

Music Mundays ♦ Track 4

After taking part in the Bloggiesta over the weekend, I’m so tired out that this week’s Music Mundays post is gonna be a really easy one!

Last week our oldest son went to his first grad formal – it was extremely exciting and a little scary! But we made it with no problems and got about a million photos on the way.

So for today, I thought I would show-off some pics of my handsome son and his gorgeous girlfriend – the two of them clean up pretty nicely ;) And as musical accompaniment I included some of my favorite songs that go with some of those 80’s teen movies that I’m so terribly addicted to.


They started out the evening looking quite happy … even with 4 cameras flashing in their eyes!
The Movie
Pretty In Pink
1986

The Song
If You Leave
OMD
Still smiling but after half an hour, they are just about ready to head out.
The Movie
The Breakfast Club
1985

The Song
Don’t You (Forget About Me)
Simple Minds
  Now they think if they get in the car we will stop taking photos …
The Movie
Heathers
1989

The Song
Smells Like Teen Spirit
Nirvana

*This song wasn’t in the original movie but it fits the clip perfectly!*
But we hustled them out of the car in order to take some nice outdoorsy shots :)
The Movie
Less Than Zero
1987

The Song
Hazy Shade Of Winter
The Bangles
   

Hugh thanks to Chris of Stuff As Dreams Are Made On… 
the creator of the awesome Music Mundays!



© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.

Bloggiesta Results

Bedtime for me! But I got a lot accomplished in the Bloggiesta!

Crossed off 8½ of 11 Goals,
Completed 10 of 12 Mini-Challenges,
Gotten more organized,
Learned a lot of new things,
And had FUN doing it!

My Total Time Spent On Bloggiesta = 17 Hours 45 Minutes!!

My goals

  1. Get at least ten reviews written up to keep for the future. I’d like to always have a bank of posts available to withdraw from. Almost had it - 6 out of 10 Isn’t Too Bad
  2. Place my review books in order of publication date to make it easier for picking out what needs to be read, and when.
  3. Update my list of books reviewed on my blog.
  4. Update my challenge progress for this year. I’ve been terrible at keeping track of what books fit into what challenges.
  5. I already have templates for most posts but I need to clear out the old and unused ones from my blog publishing program.
  6. Also de-clutter, delete or finish up posts that are sitting in my drafts folder.
  7. Clean-up, re-organize my sidebar.  Fix dead links.
  8. I’ve been playing with some logos to use in my blog, header, other social sites. I’d like to either come to a decision or look into some of the artists I know and order something.
  9. Try to find a more recent picture of me that miraculously doesn’t have me wearing a hoodie, making faces, or looking like a punk. Not Much Luck Here – I Seem To Like My Hoodies!
  10. Update About Me and perhaps think up something in terms of review policy/guidelines. Any help or recommendations on policy would be so, so welcome! Yeah I Left The Hard One Till Last
  11. Google Reader. I cannot even put into words how much of a mess that damn thing is. I need badly to remove old subscriptions, read interesting posts I’ve starred and add blogs that I read but forgot to subscribe to.

 

Bloggiesta Mini-Challenges

  1. Rebecca at The Book Lady’s Blog - Getting out from underneath the feed reader.
  2. Beth from Beth Fish Reads - On lists and opinions.
  3. Jill at Fizzy Thoughts - Just when you thought the feed reader was halfway managed.
  4. Emily from Emily’s Reading Room - Are you talking about me?
  5. Deborah from Books, Movies, and Chinese Food - You have a blog?  So tell me about it.
  6. Lynn from Chronicle of an Infant Bibliophile - Get listed.
  7. Jen from Devourer of Books - Wow. I wrote that when?  Let’s update.
  8. Amy from My Friend Amy - I need a friend.
  9. Trish from Hey Lady! Watcha Readin’? - On favicons and gravatars.  Huh?
  10. Michelle from GalleySmith - Anchor text.  You mean there’s a way this *should* be done?
  11. Andrea from Book Blather - Authorities?  What authorities?
  12. Ruth from Bookish Ruth - You’re going to analyze what?

Time Spent & Goals Accomplished On Friday

2:00 – 4:00
(2hrs)

Startup post, update reviews lists, cleared out drafts, updated templates.

4:15 – 5:15
(1hr)

Visited and commented other bloggiesta participants. This will also help to complete a mini-challenge of Jill at Fizzy Thoughts - Just when you thought the feed reader was halfway managed.

6:00 – 7:00
(1hr)

Wrote 2 reviews for future use.

7:30 – 8:30
(1hr)

Drafted out 2 graphic novel posts for future use.

11:30 – 1:30
(2hrs)

Cleaned up, re-organized and added folders/tags to google reader. This worked to complete the mini-challenge of Rebecca at The Book Lady’s Blog - Getting out from underneath the feed reader.

Time Spent & Goals Accomplished on Saturday

8:30 – 9:30
(1hr)

Took some time and read through some articles on blog improvement/strategy that were part of the mini-challenge of Andrea from Book Blather - Authorities?  What authorities?

1:00 – 3:00
(2hr)

Worked out exactly what I’m looking for in regards to a logo/brand pic. Sketched something out, searched for examples or style/color, wrote a description of what I want. And sent out an email to a few creative minded friends. Also looked into local freelance artists. I also asked for some smaller graphic component to use as a favicon which was part of the mini-challenge hosted by Trish from Hey Lady! Watcha Readin’? - On favicons and gravatars.  Huh?
Feeling good about this, even if I don’t have a finished product, it’s one step closer.

4:00 – 5:00
(1hr)

Did some more bloggiesta blog-hopping.

5:15 – 5:30
(15min)

Re-did my google alerts using tips from the mini-challenge by Emily from Emily’s Reading Room - Are you talking about me?

5:30 – 6:00
(30min)

Updated all my listings on various blog catalogs which completed the mini-challenge by Lynn from Chronicle of an Infant Bibliophile - Get listed!

6:00 – 6:30
(30min)

Gathered up, organized and shelved all my review books in one place.

7:00 – 8:00
(1hr)

Wrote 2 more backup reviews for future use.

8:15 – 8:30
(15min)

Analyzed my blog to find out problem areas and how to improve as part of the mini-challenge put forth by Ruth from Bookish Ruth - You’re going to analyze what? I learned the importance of meta-data and that my domain expires in 8 months. And I need to figure out more about a 301 redirect – which basically means that my blog name is recognizable with or without the www. before the main title. My total grade = 85/100

8:30 – 8:45
(15min)

Learned all about anchor text and how it is very useful to use when posting links. This was part of the mini-challenge presented by Michelle from GalleySmith - Anchor text.  You mean there’s a way this *should* be done?

9:00 – 10:00
(1hr)

Took advantage of another mini-challenge and went back over some of my older posts to fix up spelling errors, unaligned pics and broken links. Thanks for this challenge go to Jen from Devourer of Books - Wow. I wrote that when?  Let’s update.

11:30 – 1:30
(2hr)

Tackled my challenges and updated everything, discovered I had signed up for challenges and not read anything yet (o.O) Now I am more organized and have a better idea of what I need to do!

2:00 – 3:00
(1hr)

Drafted out an opinion blog post for the mini-challenge by Beth from Beth Fish Reads - On lists and opinions. I also worked on a few list style posts using notes from my various scraps of notepaper I found throughout the house!



© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.

Bloggiesta Update #1

Time for an update! So below I have a list of my goals, a list of all the awesome mini-challenges that are positive to help out along the way and a list of what I’ve actually accomplished. Even though I only managed to scratch off a few things from my list, the sense of satisfaction that things are getting done is fabulous! Later on today I hope to get busy again and spend more time visiting other participants – seeing all the goals people had set themselves gave me so many more fantastic ideas and it was fun to discover all those new to me blogs!

My goals

  • Get at least ten reviews written up to keep for the future. I’d like to always have a bank of posts available to withdraw from. 4/10
  • Place my review books in order of publication date to make it easier for picking out what needs to be read, and when.
  • Update my list of books reviewed on my blog.
  • Update my challenge progress for this year. I’ve been terrible at keeping track of what books fit into what challenges.
  • I already have templates for most posts but I need to clear out the old and unused ones from my blog publishing program.
  • Also de-clutter, delete or finish up posts that are sitting in my drafts folder.
  • Clean-up, re-organize my sidebar.  Fix dead links.
  • I’ve been playing with some logos to use in my blog, header, other social sites. I’d like to either come to a decision or look into some of the artists I know and order something.
  • Try to find a more recent picture of me that miraculously doesn’t have me wearing a hoodie, making faces, or looking like a punk.
  • Update About Me and perhaps think up something in terms of review policy/guidelines. Any help or recommendations on policy would be so, so welcome!
  • Google Reader. I cannot even put into words how much of a mess that damn thing is. I need badly to remove old subscriptions, read interesting posts I’ve starred and add blogs that I read but forgot to subscribe to.

Bloggiesta Mini-Challenges

Time Spent & Goals Accomplished On Friday

  • 2:00 – 4:00
    (2hrs)

Startup post, update reviews lists, cleared out drafts, updated templates.
  • 4:15 – 5:15
    (1hr)

Visited and commented other bloggiesta participants. This will also help to complete a mini-challenge of
Jill at Fizzy Thoughts - Just when you thought the feed reader was halfway managed.
  • 6:00 – 7:00
    (1hr)

Wrote 2 reviews for future use.
  • 7:30 – 8:30
    (1hr)

Drafted out 2 graphic novel posts for future use.
  • 11:30 – 1:30
    (2hrs)

Cleaned up, re-organized and added folders/tags to google reader. This worked to complete the mini-challenge of
Rebecca at The Book Lady’s Blog - Getting out from underneath the feed reader.

Time Spent & Goals Accomplished on Saturday

                 ♦ ♦ ♦ coming soon ♦ ♦ ♦

 
 
 
 



© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.

Bloggiesta Time!

Bloggiesta has officially started and I was happy to learn that I’m not too late to join in! Everyone probably knows all about the Bloggiesta, but for anyone who wants to know more head over to Maw Books Blog where Natasha has all the details and information to get you started.

The basics of Bloggiesta are simple, easy and sure to improve your blogging experience.

Oh and that little guy in the Bloggiesta button –  he’s Pedro and his name says it all.

Plan.  Edit.  Develop.  Review.  Organize.


I’ve got a list of things (in my head, and on scraps of paper) that I’ve been wanting to get done for awhile now. This afternoon I discovered I would be having some free time this weekend – woohoo! So here is a list of goals for my Bloggiesta weekend.

  • Get at least ten reviews written up to keep for the future. I’d like to always have a bank of posts available to withdraw from.
  • Place my review books in order of publication date to make it easier for picking out what needs to be read, and when.
  • Update my list of books reviewed on my blog.
  • Update my challenge progress for this year. I’ve been terrible at keeping track of what books fit into what challenges.
  • I already have templates for most posts but I need to clear out the old and unused ones from my blog publishing program.
  • Also de-clutter, delete or finish up posts that are sitting in my drafts folder.
  • Clean-up, re-organize my sidebar.  Fix dead links.
  • I’ve been playing with some logos to use in my blog, header, other social sites. I’d like to either come to a decision or look into some of the artists I know and order something.
  • Try to find a more recent picture of me that miraculously doesn’t have me wearing a hoodie, making faces, or looking like a punk.
  • Update About Me and perhaps think up something in terms of review policy/guidelines. Any help or recommendations on policy would be so, so welcome!
  • Google Reader. I cannot even put into words how much of a mess that damn thing is. I need badly to remove old subscriptions, read interesting posts I’ve starred and add blogs that I read but forgot to subscribe to.

So yeah, I think that’s it. It’s a big list, and like always I have a lot I want to accomplish. But honestly if I only get 4 or 5 things done from here I will be extremely satisfied.


Good luck to everyone else participating, and thanks so much to Natasha and all the lovely bloggers who are holding mini-challenges during this great event!

The starting line, mini-challenges, sponsors and more can be found here.

And for all you twits out there, here is the twitter hashtag #bloggiesta.



© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.

Review ♦ Two To Six: A Sex Offender’s Story

About the Book

From the “duality” of Strauss’ Zarathustra to the “perfection” of his teenage lover, hop aboard as the author takes you on a wild ride to and through the “ineffable.”

Mr. Cornelio spent over 20 years of his life as a corporate attorney in Manhattan. On December 12th, 2003, he was arrested and charged with crimes alleging child sexual abuse. This is his story of how he struggled to cope with those devastating charges. It begins when he receives a phone call from a woman claiming to be the mother of a teenage male prostitute. It ends when he hears the recording of a phone call used by the police to obtain his criminal indictment. In between, Mr. Cornelio seeks to uncover the truth about his crime, about his life, about himself. Only you can decide if he does so with the searing honesty such a quest demands.


Book Title: Two To Six Genre: Memoir
Author: James Cornelio Type: Trade Paperback 370 pages
Publisher: Booksurge Publishing Publication Date: December 2008

My Thoughts   
The thoughts that ran through my head before beginning this book were all over the place. Here I am a mother to two teenage boys, and I am about to read the memoir of a man whose been convicted of crimes against male children. I thought perhaps I may be angry, or disapproving or even disgusted, but I never expected to feel proud of this author for having the strength and courage to tell his story. But I did. Does that make me a bad person? No, I don’t think so. And I also don’t think that James Cornelio is a bad person either. Regardless of what he was accused, convicted or guilty of. Reading this memoir gave me the view from the other side, having read a few stories of survivors of abuse, Two To Six: A Sex Offender’s Story was the first I’d read from the perspective of the accused. And it changed how I think of convicted sexual offenders, it made me realize that behind that title there is indeed a person, and a story.

James Cornelio’s story seems a simple one, but becomes complex as more details become apparent. A respected, successful lawyer with a loving family and a close circle of friends and acquaintances. But he seemed to be leading a dual existence, bringing home young male prostitutes was his secret pleasure. Prostitution is something that goes back to the beginning of time, and happens in every culture. Whether trading sexual services for money, goods or social stature, it is something that has been going on for ages and is likely to continue, regardless of laws. My views on prostitution are probably more lax than the average person, I don’t support it, but I also don’t rally against it. Women, men and children being forced into prostitution is wrong. But there are those out there who decide to do it, whether for the quick cash or enjoyment of it. And not all of these people are able to live in places that allow it, or to find a safe house to work out of. So they end up on the streets hustling for money. And so James was a regular customer in certain areas where young men were offering their services. The young men were willing to sell something that Mr. Cornelio wanted. A business exchange, although not the type most people think is appropriate. But what can you do?

Making the situation a little more complex is that, just like everyone, James Cornelio had a certain type of person he was attracted to. He preferred younger men. However he stresses throughout his book that this does not include children or pre-pubescent boys. He likes young men. Which to me isn’t all that strange, considering that everywhere one looks we are bombarded by the sexual embodiment of the young, the beautiful, the strong. Billboards, commercials, movies, music, television, even video games – they all seem to be saying that youth equals sexy. But regardless of what society and the media tell us we want, we all have a responsibility to behave in a morally and socially acceptable way. We need to take charge of our desires and control them with responsibility and thought. We cannot allow our passions to take over and cloud out judgments.

A loss of control is what I believe led Mr. Cornelio to find himself facing charges that would change his life forever. I think he got so caught up in the pleasures of his life that he was unable to clearly see what was happening to him. Or perhaps his subconscious mind didn’t allow him to fully comprehend the dangerous terrain he was entering. The sexual desire for young people just coming into man (or woman) hood is a trait known as Hebephilia. It seems to be a tricky thing to define however, since all people mature differently. So a young man of twenty could very well be mistaken for fourteen and vice versa. But this is still no excuse for having sexual contact with a minor. This is where responsible behavior comes in. If Mr. Cornelio was going to consort with male prostitutes who appealed to his taste, he should have been more careful. Granted he was already breaking the law, but why not be that much safer and comfort yourself with the knowledge that the person consenting to the transaction was legally able to consent? Perhaps this could have saved James from falling into the legal, personal and spiritual disaster he found himself in.

Such is life though, what happens in the past cannot be changed. All we can hope for is to learn from our mistakes, to grow stronger with the pain of regrets and to try to live a better life, become a better person. After reading Two To Six and seeing what James went through, I do believe that he has done all that. At the beginning of the story he vehemently denies being a sexual offender, but bit by bit he comes to see that what he did was wrong, his control was gone and he needed to find a new way to live. I talk a lot about enjoying fiction that displays character development and personal growth, and this work of non-fiction has some of the most powerful insights into these things that I’ve ever seen. I truly believe that this author has laid himself open mind and soul, in order to help people understand that just because someone has done wrong in the past, it does not mean they are evil, inhuman and bound to continue doing wrong. Yes, there are those who will never learn from their mistakes, who are damaged beyond repair, who will continue to re-offend at every instance. But there are also those who can change, who realize only too late that they may be going too far. James Cornelio will forever be known as a sex offender, but that doesn’t mean he will always be one. I believe that with his supportive, loving family, his faith and his spiritual and personal rebirth, Mr. Cornelio is a new person.

Two To Six is a wonderfully presented memoir, the author has written this in a way that feels he is personally relating his story to you. It does not come across as a defense of his actions nor as an apology for his crimes. It is straight-forward, honest and informative. It’s also a tale of one man’s spiritual journey, complete with stumbles, wrong-turns and despair. While I don’t condone Mr. Cornelios’ past behaviors I do recommend this book for it’s ability to give a different perspective on a situation. With the National databases of sexual offenders available to the public in the USA (often with incorrect information) many people have become targets of violence. But just as you cannot say all Republicans, all country singers, all giraffes are the same – you also cannot say all sexual offenders are the same. Each has varying details to consider. Before, if you had asked me if I would allow a convicted sexual offender into my home, to sit at my table, to eat dinner with my family – I would have said Hell No! But now I’ve come to see that we cannot allow all-encompassing titles and past actions to overpower our judgments. Everything is not black and white – and to ignore the gray will only show the desire for ignorance.

To read more of James Cornelio’s writing you can also check out the articles he has written at Salon.com Of particular interest and relevance to his memoir is the article entitled I Am A Sex Offender.



© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.

Review ♦ Dismantled

About The Book

Henry, Tess, Winnie, and Suz banded together in college to form a group they called the Compassionate Dismantlers. Following the first rule of their manifesto – “To understand the nature of a thing, it must be taken apart” – these daring misfits spend the summer after graduation in a remote cabin in the Vermont woods committing acts of meaningful vandalism and plotting elaborate, often dangerous, pranks. But everything changes when one particularly twisted experiment ends in Suz’s death and the others decide to cover it up.

Nearly a decade later, Henry and Tess are living just an hour’s drive from the old cabin. Each is desperate to move on from the summer of the Dismantlers, but their guilt isn’t ready to let them go. When a victim of their past pranks commits suicide – apparently triggered by a mysterious Dismantler-style postcard – it sets off a chain of eerie events that threatens to engulf Henry, Tess, and their inquisitive nine-year-old daughter, Emma. Is there someone who wants to reveal their secrets? Is it possible that Suz did not really die – or has she somehow found a way back to seek vengeance?


Book Title: Dismantled Genre: Fiction
Author: Jennifer McMahon Type: Hardcover 432 pages
Publisher: Harper Collins Publication Date: June 2009

My Thoughts  
After turning the last page, and closing this book, my first thought was how had I not read this author’s other books. If Jennifer McMahons’ two previous novels are even half as good as Dismantled,  then I have been missing out on something truly amazing.

We, The Compassionate Dismantlers, Hold Five Truths To Be Self-Evident.

Reading Dismantled is like seeing the before and after shots from a person’s (well more like a small social circles) life. Alternating between memories of the past, flashbacks provoked by diaries and Polaroid photos, and present day goings-on, Dismantled is a story that sucked me in right from page one. I wanted desperately to know what had happened, and what those past events would bring about in the future.

1. To Understand The Nature Of A Thing, It Must Be Taken Apart.

The main characters are Henry, Tess, Winnie, and Suz. They were closer than any group of friends could be, until Suz dies. Then they go their separate ways, Winnie taking off on her own, Henry and Tess getting married, having a child and trying to keep their past buried. But although these four friends may start out as the main story-tellers, it’s Emma, Henry and Tess’s daughter, who brings the past into focus and steals the story.

2. We Oppose Technology, Hierarchy, Rules And Laws, And All Forms Of Government.

Emma also stole this readers heart, she seems such a shadow of a child. Her thoughts, feelings and actions make it clear that as much as a couple may try to pretend, children can feel when something isn’t right within their family. Emma’s imaginary friend, her inability to socialize with other kids her age and her compulsive habits, are all proof that a child can suffer from the secret regrets, loves, obsessions and envies of parents. It’s heart-breaking to see Emma try to make sense, make right and make whole, while the people around her always thrived on taking apart, creating chaos and dismantling.

3. The Universe Was Created In Chaos, And The Only True Creative Force Is Chaos.

There is just too much that made Dismantled an excellent novel. Every character receives their own space to develop, regress and explain their motivations. Relationships that appear simple at first, are revealed to have a depth that crosses from friend to lover and back again. The importance of art, the reason for art and the purpose in someone's life for art is investigated with the character’s personal insights. I was particularly fascinated by the dynamics within the group, the feelings each member felt, the desire, or lack of desire, to be the one with all the power. How a group can seem to be held together by shared ideas, concepts and beliefs – but with secrets that brew beneath the camaraderie.

4. Dismantlement Is An Act Of Compassion As Well As An Act Of Revolution

Dismantled kept me up till morning, because once I started reading, I had to finish. Books that make me feel that need are the greatest for me as a reader. It had so many ideas running through my mind, and left me thinking that there were so many angles that I may have overlooked. It’s a book that I will return to, read again focusing on a different perspective. But first I need to read McMahons’ other books – which I admit I ran out and bought immediately the day after finishing Dismantled. 

This passage is what had me hooked from the first page, so full of teasing power and hopelessness.

“You never really got it, did you, babycakes?” he hears her whisper in his ear.

“No,” he tells her, slipping the rope around his neck, pulling the postcard from his pocket to look at one last time. “But I do now.”

He steps off the chair.

The postcard falls from his hand, drifts to the floor in slow motion, turning: moose, words, moose, words --until it lands, the carefully printed words facing up, the last thing he sees before losing consciousness:

5. DISMANTLEMENT = FREEDOM

 

About The Author

Jennifer McMahon grew up in suburban Connecticut, and graduated from Goddard College in 1991. Over the years, she has been a house painter, farm worker, paste-up artist, pizza delivery person, homeless shelter staff member, and has worked with mentally ill adults and children in a few different capacities. She is the author of Island of Lost Girls and Promise Not To Tell. Jennifer McMahon lives in Vermont with her partner Drea, and their daughter, Zella.

 

 
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© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.

Music Mundays ♦ Track 3

Have you ever read a book and a certain song seems to pop into your head?

That happens to me all the time. Or I’ll be listening to music and a song comes on that reminds me of something I’ve read.

I thought for this week’s Music Munday I would share a couple of songs/books and the books/songs they remind me of.


The song that has the biggest book connection for me is One by Metallica. Every time I hear it I can’t help but think of Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo. It’s a book I first read in Junior High, and it is the story of Joe, a young man who has been severely injured during his time served in World War I.

Metallica actually created their song based upon the novel, and bought the rights to the film version in order to include snippets of it in their music video. Johnny Got His Gun is an extremely disturbing book about the effects of war on the young men enlisted, or basically forced to give over their lives for the cause. Metallica’s video effectively presents the emotions that the injured soldier must deal with in his solitary and terrifying existence. It is one of the most powerful songs I have ever heard.

I cant remember anything
Cant tell if this is true or dream
Deep down inside I feel to scream
This terrible silence stops me

Now that the war is through with me
Im waking up I can not see
That there is not much left of me
Nothing is real but pain now

Hold my breath as I wish for death
Oh please god,wake me

Back in the womb its much too real
In pumps life that I must feel
But cant look forward to reveal
Look to the time when Ill live


Fed through the tube that sticks in me
Just like a wartime novelty
Tied to machines that make me be
Cut this life off from me

Hold my breath as I wish for death
Oh please god,wake me
Now the world is gone Im just one
Oh god,help me hold my breath as I wish for death
Oh please God help me

Darkness imprisoning me
All that I see
Absolute horror
I cannot live
I cannot die
Trapped in myself
Body my holding cell

Landmine has taken my sight
Taken my speech
Taken my hearing
Taken my arms
Taken my legs
Taken my soul
Left me with life in hell







This was no ordinary war. This was a war to make  the world safe for democracy. And if democracy  was made safe, then nothing else mattered--not the  millions of dead bodies, nor the thousands of  ruined lives...

This is no ordinary novel. This is a  novel that never takes the easy way out: it is  shocking, violent, terrifying, horrible,  uncompromising, brutal, remorseless and gruesome...but so is  war.


One by Metallica
Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo


The next song, Bring Me To Life by Evanescence came to me while I was reading Andrew Davidson’s The Gargoyle. For me the connection is in the way the song is sung by both a female (Amy Lee) and male (Paul McCoy) and I found myself thinking of the lead characters from The Gargoyle, who were soul mates, and I thought only together could the two of them fully bring one another to life. Corny yeah?!



 

On a burn ward, a man lies between living and dying, so disfigured that no one from his past life would even recognize him. His only comfort comes from imagining various inventive ways to end his misery. Then a woman named Marianne Engel walks into his hospital room, a wild-haired, schizophrenic sculptress on the lam from the psych ward upstairs, who insists that she knows him – that she has known him, in fact, for seven hundred years. And so Marianne Engel begins to tell him their story, carving away his disbelief and slowly drawing him into the orbit and power of a word he'd never uttered: love.

Bring Me To Life by Evanescence
The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson

How can you see into my eyes like open doors
leading you down into my core
where I’ve become so numb without a soul
my spirit sleeping somewhere cold
until you find it there and lead it back home

(Wake me up)
Wake me up inside
(I can’t wake up)
Wake me up inside
(Save me)
call my name and save me from the dark
(Wake me up)
bid my blood to run
(I can’t wake up)
before I come undone
(Save me)
save me from the nothing I’ve become

Now that I know what I’m without
you can't just leave me
breathe into me and make me real
bring me to life

Bring me to life
(I've been living a lie, there's nothing inside)
Bring me to life

Frozen inside without your touch without your love darling only you are the life among the dead

All this time I can't believe I couldn't see
kept in the dark but you were there in front of me
I’ve been sleeping a thousand years it seems
got to open my eyes to everything
without a thought without a voice without a soul
don't let me die here
there must be something more
bring me to life


And this last one, I think maybe I only made the connection because it’s a song I’ve always loved and I just wanted another excuse to overplay it. John Green’s young adult novel Looking For Alaska brought to my mind, within the first 20 or so pages, The Freshman by The Verve Pipe. While I don’t normally enjoy music with this poppish of a sound, the first time I heard it my heart nearly broke. It’s just so full of hopelessness and that’s how I felt when reading Looking For Alaska.





Miles "Pudge" Halter is abandoning his safe-okay, boring-life. Fascinated by the last words of famous people, Pudge leaves for boarding school to seek what a dying Rabelais called the "Great Perhaps."

Pudge becomes encircled by friends whose lives are everything but safe and boring. Their nucleus is razor-sharp, sexy, and self-destructive Alaska, who has perfected the arts of pranking and evading school rules. Pudge falls impossibly in love. When tragedy strikes the close-knit group, it is only in coming face-to-face with death that Pudge discovers the value of living and loving unconditionally.

 

The Freshman by The Verve Pipe
Looking For Alaska by John Green

When I was young I knew everything
She a punk who rarely ever took advice
Now I'm guilt stricken,
Sobbing with my head on the floor
Stop a baby's breath and a shoe full of rice

My best friend took a week's Vacation to forget her
His girl took a weeks's worth of Valium and slept
And now he's guilt stricken sobbing with his
Head on the floor
Thinks about her now and how he never really
Wept he says

I can't be held responsible
She was touching her face
I won't be held responsible
She fell in love in the first place

For the life of me I cannot remember
What made us think that we were wise and
We'd never compromise
For the life of me I cannot believe
We'd ever die for these sins
We were merely freshmen

We've tried to wash our hands of all this
We never talk of our lacking relationships
And how we're guilt stricken sobbing with our
Heads on the floor
We fell through the ice when we tried not to
Slip, we'd say

I can't be held responsible
She was touching her face
And I won't be held responsible
She fell in love in the first place
For the life of me I cannot remember
What made us think that we were wise and
We'd never compromise

For the life of me I cannot believe
We'd ever die for these sins
We were merely freshmen
For the life of me I cannot remember
What made us think that we were wise and
We'd never compromise
For the life of me I cannot believe
We'd ever die for these sins
We were merely freshmen




© 2008-2010 Joanne Mosher of The Book Zombie. All rights reserved.