tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4138999193549720532024-03-12T21:39:11.725-07:00Y REID BOOKS?Book review blogyolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-19173900180827504072017-05-17T06:25:00.001-07:002017-06-05T09:59:46.669-07:00THE LIFE AND POETRY OF ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">After
years of reading Elizabeth Barrett Browning's poetry, what I find most
astonishing about her is her intellectual brilliance.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">In a time when women were neither allowed to
attend university, nor encouraged to read classical literature, she was extraordinarily
well-read, even by modern standards. She wrote her first poem at age four or
six.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">By the time she was aged ten, she'd
read widely in world history, Shakespeare, Homer, and Milton.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In
addition, she convinced her father to allow her to 'audit' her brother's
sessions with his tutor, under whose tutelage she read classical works in
Latin, French, Greek, and Italian.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In
1820, at age fourteen, she published a book-length poem, <i>The Battle of</i> <i>Marathon</i>
(which she had completed two years earlier) and established herself as a
literary prodigy to the London <i>literatti</i>. She went on to publish several volumes of
poems: <i>An Essay on Mind</i> (1826), a
translation of Aeschylus' <i>Prometheus</i> <i>Bound </i>(1833), <i>The Seraphim and Other Poems</i> (1838), <i>Casa Guidi Windows: A Poem</i> (1851) and <i>Aurora Leigh </i>(1857), her <i>magnum
opus</i>, to name a few. Most were well-received
by the critics of her day. She was
famous, celebrated in England, and had achieved fame on her own merit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">For
much of her childhood (and later, as an adult), Elizabeth was delicate and
sickly, spending most of her days seated in the Barrett parlor or in her
room. She received guests—family and
friends—in this manner. Occasionally,
she took walks in the family estate's white rose garden or travelled to London
(which had air pollution that exacerbated her condition). A wealthy owner of Caribbean plantations, her
father, Edward Moulton Barrett, was a loving tyrant with antiquated ideas regarding
his mixed-race ancestry.* The family
secret was that not only did he own African slaves but was descended from one. As a result, he forbad all his 11 children
from marrying. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">What
saved Elizabeth, in my opinion, was her love of literature and books, her
determination to broaden her intellect.
A neighbor and scholar, Hugh Stuart Boyd, tutored and guided her
studies. Secondly, through an inheritance from her mother and aunt, she was
financially independent (wealthy by the time's standards). Thirdly, as assessed by Dr. Peter Dally in
his book, <i>Elizabeth Barrett Browning: A</i>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Psychological Portrait</span></i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">, she was mentally tough, with an admirable strength
of character.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In
1845, a less well-known poet named Robert Browning wrote her what is,
essentially, a fan letter: "I love your verses with all my heart, dear
Miss Barrett. . . . and I love you
too." She had read and liked his
poetry. A meeting was arranged at her
home. During the next twenty months,
they continued to meet, while Elizabeth secretly composed the forty-four
sonnets that chronicle their love story.
Writing them must have been emotionally cathartic for her. She declared her love for Robert to herself,
not even dreaming of a life together.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But,
at 32, Robert was handsome, bold, impetuous.
He persuaded her of his love. A
plan was devised with help from her siblings.
Robert and Elizabeth wed, then fled on September 12, 1846 to Italy. We know this because it is also the date of
their last letter (forming a total of 570 letters) before their elopement.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In
Italy, under a warm Tuscan sun, Elizabeth blossomed. Her health and physical strength improved,
and she was happy. She wrote a
tremendous number of letters to friends and family. The couple travelled
throughout Europe. In 1849, she gave
birth to their only child, a son named Robert Wiedemann Barrett Browning.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When
Robert, now a father, discovered the sonnets, he marveled at their beauty and
craftsmanship. He urged Elizabeth to
publish the poems. She, however, was
reticent of sharing what she perceived as poetic musings to herself—a sort of
diary in verse—at a time when, as she says in one sonnet, she had been glad to
just breathe his air.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">So
in order to obscure her authorship and give themselves a measure of privacy, they
concocted the story that Elizabeth had translated the love sonnets of an
obscure Portuguese poet. Hence, the
book’s title, <i>Sonnets from the
Portuguese. </i>(According to some
sources, the title came from his nickname for her—“my little Portuguese”—due to
her olive-toned/light tan complexion, of which Elizabeth was self-conscious.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In
1850, <i>Sonnets from the Portuguese </i>was
published and overlooked by most critics. Then, after eleven additional years living
out a happy existence in Italy, Elizabeth died on June 29, 1861, as Robert held
her.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I've
re-read these poems after many years and, for the most part, they still have
their lyrical beauty. In one sonnet,
Elizabeth ponders what her life will be like if she gives up everything to be
with him. In another sonnet, she
chronicles their first passionate kiss.
In yet another, he brings her flowers.
My two favorites are sonnets 22 and 43.
The classic lines, "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. . . ."—most people
in the US will recognize from high-school English class. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The
remaining sonnets are technically well-crafted, though some are without the lyricism
of the two sonnets mentioned. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I
admit that today I find several of the sonnets heavy-handed, very Victorian. But we must acknowledge that Elizabeth
Barrett Browning was of the Victorian era.
Even so, I admire her forward thinking. By modern standards, she was 'politically
correct' on most social justice issues of her day: she championed women's equal
rights, the 1833 Emancipation Act, which abolished slavery in England, and held
strong opinions on French and Italian politics.
And these issues are reflected in her poetry.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Overall,
I was thrilled to re-read these poems. I
love reading and re-reading sonnets 22 and 43 with their lyrical turn of
phrase, as much as I did as a teen:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Sonnet
22<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When
our two souls stand up erect and strong,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Face
to face, silent, drawing nigh and nigher,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Until
the lengthening wings break into fire<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">At
either curved point,--what bitter wrong<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Can
the earth do to us, that we should not long<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Be
here contented? Think! In mounting higher,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The
angels would press on us and aspire<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">To
drop some golden orb of perfect song<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Into
our deep, dear silence. Let us stay<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Rather
on earth, Belovѐd,--where the unfit<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Contrarious
moods of men recoil away<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">And
isolate pure spirits, and permit<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">A
place to stand and love in for a day,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">With
darkness and the death-hour rounding it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">____________________________________________________________<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">Yolanda
A. Reid is the author of two novels and a
debut poetry collection, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">Sonnets to the Japim Bird.</span></i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dKrJzPKKWhE/WRxYNxq-pnI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/-GyuzYCf0UMnteOkQ44lfyt52rcirv8aQCLcB/s1600/Sonnets-Bird-book%2Bcover%2B-%2Bmini.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dKrJzPKKWhE/WRxYNxq-pnI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/-GyuzYCf0UMnteOkQ44lfyt52rcirv8aQCLcB/s1600/Sonnets-Bird-book%2Bcover%2B-%2Bmini.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">______________________<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">To read <i>Sonnets from the Portuguese, </i>visit <a href="http://www.sonnets.org/brownine.htm#043">http://www.sonnets.org/brownine.htm#043</a></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman", serif;">.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems-and-poets/poets/detail/elizabeth-barrett-browning<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">*http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Elizabeth-Barrett-Was-Part-Black-<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">Book-Says-3045240.php<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">www.online-literature.com/elizabeth-browning/<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">www.victorianweb.org/authors/ebb/ebbio.html<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Barrett_Browning<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;">https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/elizabeth-barrett-browning<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-79958197067493909082017-04-28T13:27:00.000-07:002017-04-29T06:56:58.172-07:00ANNE LOCKE: A POET BEFORE HER TIME<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">Incredibly, the first
sonnet in English was written by a woman in 1560.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">Her name was Anne Locke (c. 1530-1590).</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">I'd never heard of her until two or three
weeks ago, while researching sonnets. All this time, I had believed
that William Shakespeare, the Bard, had invented the English sonnet.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">According to <i>Interesting Literature</i>, the Bard wrote his
sonnets thirty years<i> after</i> Anne Locke's version. Thirty years!
Basically, she is known to English scholars and unknown to the rest of
us. Perhaps the reason for her obscurity
is that, in her time, she risked imprisonment or death by writing poetry. After that, she may have been bypassed because she was a woman. In
any case, today let us give her the due recognition. Read about her life at</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://interestingliterature.com/2016/10/24/a-very-short-biography-of-anne-locke/"> https://interestingliterature.com/2016/10/24/a-very-short-biography-of-anne-locke/</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As for her sonnets, they make for terse
reading--of interest to very few people today besides literary scholars because the language is in
Elizabethan English (complete with spelling):<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> And
then not daring with presuming eye<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Once to beholde the
angry heauens face,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">From troubled sprite I
send confused crye,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">To craue the crummes of
all sufficing grace.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">With foltring knee I
fallyng to the ground,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Bendyng my yelding
handes to heauens throne,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Poure forth my piteous
plaint w[ith] woefull sound,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">With smoking sighes,
& oft repeted grone,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Before the Lord, the
Lord, whom synner I,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I cursed wretch, I haue
offended so,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">That dredyng, in his
wrekefull wrath to dye,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">And damned downe to
depth of hell to go,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Thus tost with panges
and passions of despeir,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Thus craue I mercy with
repentant chere.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">That said, you can read
all of Anne Locke's 26 sonnets at <a href="http://www.luminarium.org/renascence-editions/locke2.html">http://www.luminarium.org/renascence-editions/locke2.html</a> .
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">Lastly, for a really
interesting list of women poets who wrote sonnets in English over several
centuries, visit </span><a href="https://interestingliterature.com/2016/12/14/10-of-the-best-sonnets-by-female-poets/" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">https://interestingliterature.com/2016/12/14/10-of-the-best-sonnets-by-female-poets/</a><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Number one on the list
is, of course, Anne Locke.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">--Yolanda A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Yolanda A. Reid is the author of two novels and a debut poetry collection, entitled <i>Sonnets to the Japim Bird</i>.</span></div>
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-37096900787162439262017-04-18T11:10:00.000-07:002017-04-22T20:17:11.917-07:00A "SONNET NOVELLA" <div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="background: white;">Described as a "sonnet
novella" by its publisher, <i>More
Sonnets from the Portuguese</i> is the love story of a middle-aged woman and
her married ex-lover from college. In the very first sonnet, entitled "I
am a Sensible Woman," the protagonist sums herself up perfectly:</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">I--Zelia Nunes--sensibly married</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">only once. Forty-five, no longer young.</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Husband dead, four children, mortgaged, harried,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Holy obligations met, even sung.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">The title is from 19<sup>th</sup> century poet
Elizabeth Barrett Browning's classic,<i> Sonnets from the Portuguese</i> (which I've
read and loved, for many years). This, too, is a beautiful sonnet sequence,
adeptly written. In <i>More Sonnets from the Portuguese</i>, author Janet Eldred adroitly uses a centuries-old poetic form</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">and
brings it into the 21<sup>st</sup> century. She addresses modern-day issues
such as infidelity, religious guilt, reproductive rights, the environment,
aging, technology.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">Zelia also references Facebook and Twitter, which
makes sense because the bulk of the affair is conducted via e-mail. In
"After Years," Zelia says, "Your e-mail before me, my body sings/the
reply, One doesn't forget such things."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">In another sonnet, she says, "I am
officially a Kindle/girl...You pull me to you. You tempt me to stray--/Yes,
good Lord help me, I like you that way." In yet another sonnet, she
states, "You are the love of my life." </span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">The poems feature beautiful imagery that is
rich, sensual, complex. Once Zelia describes the California landscape as
covered with "almond trees that blossomed like moonlight,/perfumed crops
picked by bodies until broken." Her family ancestry is Azorean (from islands
off the coast of Portugal). As depicted, the details feel intimate, fully
developed.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">I preferred the first half of this sequence,
perhaps because in those sonnets the love was new and unexpected. In the second
half, Zelia's mood changes from moment to moment, veering from excited and
hopeful to despondent, all dependent on the vicissitudes of the relationship
(after all, he has a wife!). Also, she becomes more philosophical as she
grapples with her guilt and religion.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">That said, I liked and enjoyed reading <i>all</i> the
poems.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">In her acknowledgments, Professor Eldred states that <i>More Sonnets from the Portuguese</i> began
as a work of fiction, but that in poetry she found she could better tell
Zelia's story. By doing so, she breaks new literary ground. Hence, the term
"sonnet novella."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">At this point, I must mention the stunningly
beautiful cover art: a painting of a cobalt-blue peahen on a window sill. This
watercolor, it turns out, is by the author herself.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">Beautiful poems and beautiful art. Read these poems
in honor of National Poetry Month or just because it's spring! </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">--Yolanda A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span><span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Yolanda A. Reid is the author of two novels and a debut poetry collection, entitled </span></span></span><i style="font-family: "times new roman", serif;">Sonnets to the Japim Bird.</i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-small;"> </span><br />
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-40687391900825693822017-01-24T08:38:00.001-08:002017-01-26T05:14:51.262-08:00MY CHINESE YEAR<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">As
Chinese New Year approached, I began to reflect on the books I read this past
year. I had immersed myself in Chinese
culture and language, which I've been interested in for most of my life. So I thought I'd share three of the many
books I read. Each book is top-notch,
beautifully written, evocative, and picturesque. Each is a memoir that depicts a woman
triumphant, at times despite circumstances of misogyny so blatant and palpable
as to be shocking. I encourage readers
of this blog to sample one or two of these books, like salty, sweet, or savory
dumplings in this, the Year of the Rooster. <i> Nian nian you yü</i>!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">1. <i>Good
Chinese Wife</i> by Susan Blumberg-Kason<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">A
true love story set in China, <i>Good
Chinese Wife</i> depicts the author as an American graduate student at Hong
Kong University who meets and falls in love with her Chinese classmate. Curious about Chinese dating rituals, I found
the book compelling, well-written, and completely absorbing as it details the
rites of love, courtship and marriage in China as experienced by the
author. At one point, Cai, Ms. Blumberg-</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Kason's
future husband, explains that Chinese couples only date if they intend to
marry.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Once Cai and young Susan are
married, however, their cultural differences prove insurmountable.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Although I knew the outcome, I wished for a
happier ending.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">2.
<i>Leaving Mother Lake</i> by Namu Erche
Yang and Christine Matthieu<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">This
is a beautiful and poignant memoir (co-authored with Christine Matthieu, an
anthropologist). I'd never heard of the
Moso people and their matrilineal culture--with unusual customs and disbelief </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">in </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">marriage.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">So I thought this was a book I could not miss
out on.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">It depicts the author's
childhood and adolescence in a primitive environment that favors women.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Ms.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Yang reveals the fascinating</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">details
of her youth, steeped in the beauty of the Himalayan mountains and Lugo Lake,
her original homeland at the China-Tibet border. The book culminates in her running away from
love (though I wonder what happened to Geko, the young man she rejected) and
her village, ultimately to Beijing. It
is beautiful, eloquent, and rare. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">3. Journey Across The
Four Seas: A Chinese Woman's Search for Home</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> by Veronica
Li<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">As
a young girl, Flora Li asked her mother when she was going to school. Her mother said, "You're a girl. Girls don't go to school." That might have sealed her fate, except that
she was determined to better herself and her circumstances. A memoir of Flora Li's life as told to her
youngest daughter, Veronica Li, <i>Journey
Across The Four Seas</i> depicts Flora as she struggles to get an education and
attend college in China. Eventually, she
gets accepted into a college program, graduates and works at various companies with tenacity and diligence. What I liked most was that she triumphed over
many personal obstacles--from fending off her husband's girlfriend to raising
her five children. Flora Li is a woman
of valor. In addition, the book captures the tone and
events of the turbulent times: the Japanese invasion of Nanking, British
colonialism, World War II, with important historical persons such as Chiang
Kai-shek. I loved this memoir! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">--Yolanda
A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-28402193006309511862016-06-20T06:35:00.002-07:002016-09-02T10:06:22.381-07:00ON READING SYLVIA PLATH<br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">While
in college, I was an avid fan of the poet Sylvia Plath.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Years later, I made a summer jaunt to a book
reading by her biographer, Edward Butscher.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I had a dog-eared paperback copy of his book on my desk that I often
referred to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That day, Mr.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Butscher--a tall slender man with a mostly
dark-brown beard--was gracious and cordial.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was, perhaps, the most eager Sylvia Plath fan he’d<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>met in a long time, for I’d read most--if not
all--of her poetry, her novel <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Bell
Jar</i>, and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Letters Home</i>--a
compilation of Plath’s letters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">I
vaguely remember first reading about her in a women’s magazine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her life story struck a chord with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the time, I was reading and exploring an
assortment of poets and authors with a small group of friends and
classmates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all wrote poetry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once I discovered Sylvia Plath’s poetry,
however, I eschewed sharing her poems with the group.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I waded in on my own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">And
I was fascinated by her history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was
a young woman haunted by her German ancestry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The famous poem, “Daddy,” however, held no sway with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was too angry (like Thor in one of her
poems).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the poem explained Sylvia’s
need to overachieve: she won prizes and excelled academically, as her father
and taskmaster, a biologist, demanded.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“I learned, I learned, I learned elsewhere/From muses unhired by you,
dear mother,”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>she wrote in ”The
Disquieting Muses”--a lesser-known poem about her mother, a Boston University
professor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After graduating from Smith
College in 1955, Sylvia pursued graduate studies in England at Cambridge
University.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One night at a party, she
met a young man named Ted Hughes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Several weeks later, she wrote to her mother:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">“The
most shattering thing is that in the last two months I have fallen terribly in
love, which can only lead to great hurt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I met the strongest man in the world, ex-Cambridge, brilliant poet whose
work I loved before I met him, a large, hulking, healthy Adam, half-French,
half-Irish, with a voice like the thunder of God. . . .”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">On
June 16, 1956, Sylvia<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and Ted wed in
secret—both convinced that he was a poet-genius fated for greatness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She completed her studies and settled into
married life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Soon she had little time
to devote to her own writing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
promoted Ted’s writings and she worked odd jobs (with a brief teaching stint at
her alma mater, Smith).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nearly four
years later, the couple’s baby daughter was born.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">Ted,
now her handsome and brilliant husband, was quite popular on the Cambridge
campus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As they sought to sub-let their town
apartment, Sylvia<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and Ted met a young
married couple, the Wevills, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and invited
them to dinner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The young wife, Assia,
was a dark-haired beauty Ted no doubt found mesmerizing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Soon afterward, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>he<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>received a whispering phone call from her. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sylvia yanked the telephone cable from the
wall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">She made a scene.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
demanded fidelity, after all she had sacrificed herself and her talent for the
great future together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So she asked him
to leave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Almost immediately, Ted went
to Assia--who was, as he describes her in a poem, sheathed in “flame-orange
silks”—with champagne in hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">It’s
a woeful yet classic story of love gone awry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As in Sade’s song, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">This was no
ordinary love</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">Eventually,
it all became too much—Sylvia had lost (or thrown out) her <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">soulmate</i> who was now partnered with a woman who, by most accounts,
was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">just like</i> herself—beautiful,
bi-polar, a budding young poetess madly in love with a genius and now pregnant
with his child. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Except that Assia Wevill
did not long for fame: she seemed to only want Ted. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">In
late 1962, during her last winter in Devon, England, Sylvia’s days were dark
and grim.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was ill, had lost weight,
and was in between nannies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(In previous
months, she’d had a miscarriage after an appendectomy, followed by the birth of
her son.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In a letter to her mother
dated October 18, 1962, she wrote, “I guess my predicament is an astounding
one, a deserted wife knocked out by flu with two babies and a full-time job!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet, by waking up before dawn to write, she
had regained the confidence in her writing--which she had virtually lost during
the marriage:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I am a genius of a
writer. . . .<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am writing the best
poems of my life; they will make my name.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She was thirty years old.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">But
for all the emotion in Sylvia Plath‘s real life, and even in her poems, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">none</i> of it is reflected in her only
novel, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Bell Jar</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At least once, she referred disparagingly to
the novel as a “pot boiler”; for this reason, she’d published it under a
pseudonym.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, the timespan for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Bell Jar</i> occurs before Ted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And perhaps he had awakened emotion in Sylvia
that only emerged in her later work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(In
the months leading up to her death in 1963, Sylvia Plath had been writing a
second novel that was destroyed.)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">Nevertheless,
I found <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Bell Jar</i>’s lack of
emotion disturbing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For most of the
novel, Esther, the main character, is depressed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To quote Plath, it was “A time of darkness,
despair, disillusion. . . .”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and
“[Esther’s] warped view of the world around . . . seems the right way of
looking at things.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">In
contrast, the letters express Sylvia’s true personality and spirit in a more
well-rounded way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I've pondered on her
fate and what might have prevented it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It's true she had a brash happy side; but a dark mood also pervaded her
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Moreover, although today Sylvia
might have been categorized as bi-polar, Ted Hughes bears some
responsibility.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stated bluntly, he
behaved like a cad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His crass actions
sent Sylvia (and later, Assia) into a depression from which she never
recovered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">Years
ago, I read a long article by Sylvia Plath’s daughter, Frieda Hughes, about her
mother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hughes bears no rancor toward her father: to
her, he was a good dad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(In fact,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>he became the Poet Laureate of England.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not surprisingly, the writing gene manifested
itself in her, for she is a poet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">Whether
Sylvia Plath influenced a generation of young women--for good or ill--is
difficult to assess.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That said, her best
poems are masterfully crafted, beautiful, imagistic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a wordsmith, she is triumphant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For instance, her <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">superb</i> poem, “Pursuit,” is a personal favorite:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Flayed by thorns I trek the rocks,/Haggard
through the hot white noon. . . .”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
"Tulips," too, is a beautifully crafted poem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of the poetry books, my favorite is the
incandescent<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> Ariel</i>.*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">For
me, however, Sylvia Plath’s poetic legacy is inseparable from the
biography.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a twenty-year-old, I began
reading her poems only after I had learned a bit about her life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And since I wrote poetry back then, I must
admit to Plath’s influence (among other poets) on my own poems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I learned the merits of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unusual</i> word and the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">exact</i> word.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For instance, in “Channel Crossings,” she
uses the word <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">caterwaul</i>—which I
like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That taught me how to build a poem
as if I were laying bricks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">Today,
though, I no longer write poems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
reason is that poems demand a laser-like intensity that is unsustainable
long-term.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sylvia Plath hinted at this
in an interview: “Poetry, I feel, is a tyrannical discipline. . . . <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’ve got to go so far, so fast, in such a small
space. . . .<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I find that in a novel I
can get more of life. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps not such
intense life, but certainly more of life.” <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">So,
many years ago, I switched to writing prose exclusively.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I strive to infuse poetry into my prose, and
I find it is enough.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">--Yolanda
A.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reid<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">______________________________________________________<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
<br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><o:p>* </o:p></span>Since I wrote this essay, I've re-read <i>Ariel</i> and decided that I prefer <i>The
Colossus and Other Poems</i>--Plath's first poetry volume.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">For
more info on Sylvia Plath:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/sylviaplath">https://www.theguardian.com/books/sylviaplath</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><a href="http://allpoetry.com/SylviaPlath">http://allpoetry.com/SylviaPlath</a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><a href="http://allpoetry.com/TedHughes">http://allpoetry.com/TedHughes</a><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><a href="http://thequietus.com/articles/11350-sylvia-plath-fifty-year-anniversary">http://thequietus.com/articles/11350-sylvia-plath-fifty-year-anniversary</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sylvia_Plath">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sylvia_Plath</a><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><a href="https://dinadavis2015.wordpress.com/2016/03/06/elizabeth-sigmund-on-sylvia-plath-reprinted-from-the-guardian/">https://dinadavis2015.wordpress.com/2016/03/06/elizabeth-sigmund-on-sylvia-plath-reprinted-from-the-guardian/</a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2006/oct/28/featuresreviews.guardianreview8">https://www.theguardian.com/books/2006/oct/28/featuresreviews.guardianreview8</a><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><a href="http://thesecondpass.com/?p=2562">http://thesecondpass.com/?p=2562</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";">To
read a brief sample of my poetry, visit <a href="https://allpoetry.com/Yolanda_A._Reid">https://allpoetry.com/Yolanda_A._Reid</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt; text-align: justify;">
</div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-62336873018426913982014-10-18T08:09:00.001-07:002014-10-30T09:25:04.319-07:00ON READING THE GOLDEN NOTEBOOK<div class="MsoSubtitle" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<o:p> </o:p>In the summer or autumn of 1989,
I began to read Doris Lessing,
intermittently. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
As she is a prolific writer, I got her books from the local library. I read her novels in sequence, as they had
been written. I started with her first novel, <i>The
Grass Is Singing</i>, then proceeded to the big fat tome, <i>African
Stories</i>, then onto the <i>Martha Quest</i>
novels, five in all. Amid reading the
novels, I purchased a slender, burgundy paperback copy of her
essays—entitled <i>A Small Personal Voice</i>—and
read <i>all</i> of that.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Tucked in the book of essays was
the introduction to <i>The Golden Notebook</i>. A creative manifesto, the introduction explained the thoughts, feelings and ideas that went into the writing
of this ground-breaking 1962 novel about
Anna, a writer who captures the essence of her life in her notebooks. In addition, Ms. Lessing
discussed the novel’s themes, motifs,
her inspiration and writing process. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
By the following summer, Nelson
Mandela was touring the US. "Mandela
is in Atlanta," I wrote in my journal, in awe. <i>Everyone</i>
was giddy with excitement. "We are
at a juncture of history," Mandela said. So I began reading up on South Africa and Mandela,
to educate myself.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Also, I wrote : "I have a new idea for a novel. Something stunning and beautiful. I'd have to research the countrysides . . . .—I guess. I read Lessing and she is so <i>specific</i> in her descriptions—nature, leaves, etc. . . ."
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
It was a Faulknerian summer—long,
languid, hot. That July 4<sup>th</sup>, we
sat in the backyard. A turquoise
umbrella gave us shade. Fire sparklers
lit up the air. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
I had purchased my own paperback
copy of <i>The Golden Notebook</i>, with its
peach-and-black cover and a pencil sketch of Doris Lessing, in profile. And, once I started reading, I knew it was
good. I'd known she was a good writer, but this novel confirmed it. I was a bit annoyed, though, that she was <i>so</i> rational, cerebral and analytical. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
But most of the time she was on
target—not about me personally, but for many women. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
I did <i>not</i> like the <i>Free Women</i>
section—not enough to read more than once. It's hard to say why. Maybe that it seemed so artificial, so
perfect. They did <i>not</i> seem like real women. Or any of the women <i>I</i> knew. But perhaps that was
the point: the novel was artifice. Life
was raw, messy, shambolic, with a seemingly random pattern that is hard to
discern when you’re living it, and more difficult to convey in a work of art. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
However, I liked the other
sections. In <i>The Golden Notebook</i>, Lessing conjures so many different tones and
characters. It's hard not to think of it
as a <i>tour de force</i>. During this time, I remembered that she had once been asked why her novels mostly have no
black Africans. She answered that she
did not wish to portray a character infused with her own white African limitations.
For Ms. Lessing, it would have
been inauthentic to give the character thoughts and feelings
she had no scope of knowing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Even so, I was fascinated by
Africa as she described it. As a young woman
with a stubborn artistic sentiment and sensibility, she lived in cloying
surroundings she describes as a
"backwater." Rebelliously, she
dropped out of school as a teenager, then set about, at turns, rambling the African
steppes—strewn with <i>kopje</i>
trees—and educating herself in The Novel.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Ms. Lessing writes of this time in some of her autobiographical
essays. Later, she escaped to the city, got
a job as a secretary and began her first
novel.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
I did not realize it then, but I
had claimed Doris Lessing as my literary
mentor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
So reading <i>The
Golden Notebook </i> changed my
life. Thereafter, I regarded the novel and
novel-writing in a different way. I
learned I could say <i>anything</i> and not
make things all neat and pretty in my writings. There was beauty in the truth, to paraphrase
Keats and author Anchee Min.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
When I began writing my
second novel, I felt I could say the <i>unsayable</i>. I could
show the <i>verboten</i>, the hidden. I could know the <i>unknowable</i> and share dark nebulous areas of the spirit—the sublime <i>and</i> the subliminal. The consciousness of beauty and the
super-consciousness of one woman's life.
I sought to get all the tiny details correct—foods, historic details,
vernacular. I wanted to create a world
for the reader, and re-create a world for myself—on the page and on the pc screen.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
--Yolanda A. Reid</div>
<div style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; mso-element: para-border-div; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in; padding: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
For more info about Doris Lessing and her writings,
visit <a href="http://www.dorislessing.org/">www.dorislessing.org</a> and <a href="http://www.thegoldennotebook.org/">www.thegoldennotebook.org</a>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Note: At one time regarded as controversial, <i>The Golden Notebook </i>may contain topics offensive to some.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-86443661241698091862014-08-01T22:40:00.000-07:002014-08-01T22:44:41.892-07:00CHINESE CINDERELLA by Adeline Yen Mah<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Chinese Cinderella</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> is the vivid
memoir of Dr. Adeline Yen's bitter and
lonely childhood. She had four brothers
and two sisters, but her days were lonely as she was alienated from her family
because they blamed her for her mother's death. She was bullied and tormented and physically
abused, and experienced “a dreadful loneliness.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">This
book is mostly set in Shanghai, China, during the years of Japanese
occupation. At the time, young
Adeline's father was a wealthy businessman.
Soon after his first wife's death, he
married Adeline's stepmother--a young, sophisticated, cruel woman,
who was merciless, even as she
was kind to her own children.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Dr.
Yen's tone and writing are, in my estimation, pitch-perfect. With beautiful prose, she creates the setting, dialogue, pacing, and
descriptions that depict little Adeline's quandary--she was a brilliant,
well-behaved little girl among people who had no appreciation for her gifts and
talents. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">This
book is sure to draw any reader in. It's
certainly the most poignant book I've read this year. Little Adeline was
remarkably tough and showed great character and spirit. <i>Chinese
Cinderella</i> is a book about a triumphant little girl. Though it's a book almost anyone with a heart
will appreciate, I especially recommend it for schools and YA book clubs.
(Countless scenes could start great
discussions with young adults.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Chinese Cinderella</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> is destined to be a classic.--Yolanda A. Reid <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-12731699546337192182014-05-31T11:11:00.001-07:002014-08-23T22:54:59.924-07:00MY SUMMER READING LIST<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As summer approaches,
I’ve begun making a list of books I’d like to read this summer.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">My summer reading list</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">this year is separate from the </span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">never-ending</i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> list of novels, memoirs,
and biographies that I usually accumulate.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So I read the book synopsis, critics’ and readers’ reviews,</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">as I make up my mind about the book.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Often, I will surf</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">through the author’s website.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">These are the books on
my summer reading list, so far:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1<i>—The Invention of
Wings </i> by Sue Monk Kidd--This
title kept crossing my path: online book clubs, e-forums. It seems everyone is either reading, or has read,
<i>The Invention of
Wings</i>; so I decided to read it as well. I’ve read the first couple of chapters. To me, the first page is stunning and
beautifully-written. <i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2<i>—Beautiful Day </i> by Elin
Hildebrand. I’ve read and liked the first chapter. <i>Beautiful
Day </i> is the story of a wedding, a
bride, a groom and the notebook the bride’s late mother left her. This story begins with the bride’s mother’s notes for the wedding preparations,
and details of their lives unfurl. So
I’m pretty sure I’ll get to read it this summer.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">3-</span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Chinese Cinderella</i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">by Adeline Yen Mah--This memoir is the
author's vivid recounting of her childhood in Shanghai, China.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">She had a cruel stepmother, but also had no
family support or encouragement.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Dr.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Mah blames Confucius, the
Chinese philosopher, for the cruel treatment girls received in China.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In Dr. Mah's case, her mother died while
giving birth to her, so little Adeline's fate was sealed from that moment.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4—<i>The Goldfinch </i>by Donna Tartt--This book is over seven-hundred pages
(rivaling <i>War and
Peace</i>--which is one thousand pages, or more). A few months ago, I read the synopsis and
about 3 chapters of this book. I was
smitten. I decided then that I’d
put <i>The
Goldfinch </i>on my list. And that was <i>before</i> it won a Pulitzer Prize. My hope is that this novel about art,
mystery, and a youngster’s life of hard knocks will sustain me. I just have to remember that I managed to
read <i>War
and Peace, </i>so I can do this!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">5<i>—Mastering the Art of French Eating</i> by Ann Mah. I read Mah’s first novel, <i>Kitchen Chinese</i>, and liked it. This, her
second book, is a food memoir on her forays into French food and culture.
I love food memoirs, so this should be a fun read. Check out my review of<i> Kitchen Chinese </i>at
http://www.yreidbooks.blogspot.com/2013/01/in-author-ann-mahs-first-novel-<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">kitchen.html.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">6—<i>Hope Runs </i> by Claire
Diaz-Ortiz--This memoir chronicles Diaz-Ortiz’ trip to Kenya. There she met a young boy nicknamed “Sammy” in an orphanage. Samuel Ikua Gachagua (“Sammy”) is the co-author,
in chapters that alternate. This
memoir--described in the subtitle as a tale of “Redemption”--ought to be a
really interesting and inspirational read.
www.clairediazortiz.com/hope-runs-nonprofit/<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">7<i>—An American Girl In Italy </i> by Aubrey Dionne. I read the author’s article on the
inspiration for this novel. She herself
travelled through Italy. Since I love
reading travel memoirs and novels set in exotic locations, I look forward to
reading <i>An American Girl In Italy</i>.<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">8<i>—100 Places Every Woman Should
Go </i> by Stephanie Elizondo
Griest. I loved Griest’s first memoir, <i>Around
the Bloc,</i> in which she chronicles her peripatetic journeys through
Russia, China, and Mexico. <i>100 Places Every Woman Should Go </i> purports to be a travel guide for any woman
who wants to globetrot. It should be an
informative and fun read! To read my
review of <i>Around the Bloc</i>, go to
http://www.yreidbooks.blogspot.com/2012/10/around-bloc-my-life-in-moscow-beijing_10.html.<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">9<i>—Ines of the
Soul </i> by Isabel Allende. I’m a fan of Isabel Allende’s writings.
Infused with both reality and magical realism, her work has inspired me. <i>Ines of
the Soul </i> is actually a historical ‘novel’ based on the
life of Ines Suarez, a 19<sup>th</sup> Century woman who helped found and
colonize Santiago, Chile. Sounds
interesting! www.isabelallende.com<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">10<i>—Rat Girl: A Memoir</i> by Kristin Hersh. To me, the title alone is intriguing. The book description promises a book about a
life filled with isolation and longing.
Kristin Hersh is a musician, songwriter, and a member of the rock band
Throwing Muses. <i>Rat Girl </i> inspired a
‘musical’ of sorts by the same name.
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat_Girl<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Bear in mind, this is a
list of my intentions. I’ve no idea what
I’ll have actually read by summer’s end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">--Yolanda A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-18135742253388162242013-12-31T13:37:00.002-08:002013-12-31T13:38:45.717-08:00 Q & A with AUTHOR YOLANDA A. REID<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
Favorite authors?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A:
I go through books and authors in phases.
That said, I remember how accomplished I felt after reading <i>The Golden Notebook</i> by Nobel laureate Doris Lessing. A true masterpiece. So she's a favorite. I
also love <i>Wuthering Heights.</i> Emily Bronte wrote one of the most original
books in English literature. Among
contemporary authors, I really like Elizabeth Gilbert. She inspires me. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
Favorite book?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A:
<i>Wuthering Heights</i>. <i>The
Golden Notebook</i> is a close second.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
Favorite genres?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A:
Memoirs and biographies. Novels, too.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
What inspired you to write <i>The Honeyeater</i>?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A:
I really don't know, except to say that I felt compelled to write it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
We've never seen a negative review by you.
Why?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A:
I make an effort to write reviews of books I really really like (4 stars) or
absolutely love (5 stars). I made a
conscious decision to do that. I just
don't want to be panning a book or an author.
I've actually started to read a book for review and halfway through
decided I did not like/love it, or it wasn't what I expected, or whatever. When this happens, I change books.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
Chick lit? or Contemporary romance?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A:
If I thought too long about it I might be offended by the term 'chick
lit'. But I don't. It's a term that
emerged from our culture. 'Chicks'. Of course, there's no such thing as 'guy
lit', as far as I know. That's something
to ponder. But I don't dwell on it. It's best to focus on more important issues,
like global warming/climate change, starving children, world peace, etc.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
In your essay, "How I Wrote My Second Novel", you write that you did
research for <i>The Honeyeater</i>. What kind of research?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A:
I wanted the book to feel authentic, so I was scrupulous about all the
details. I researched the news
events. I wanted to depict all the
historical/news details accurately. I
researched furniture and art. One character in the book is very stylish,
elegant, regal in a Chanel-type suit. So
I researched that. Also, foods--a
recipe. I researched names of places and
characters. I also consulted a world map, to guide me
throughout. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I'm
very detail-oriented, in general, so it was second-nature to me to be very detailed
as I wrote <i>The Honeyeater</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
To Sequel or not to Sequel?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A:
That is the question! A sequel hadn't occurred to me until recently. That there might be something else to say
about these characters. Earlier this
year, I began to think about Eulalia's life after <i>The
Honeyeater </i> ends. So who knows? I've jotted down a few notes.
That's all I care to say. I like to take
a long time germinating ideas for a book.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
Do you have a favorite character from the book?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A:
Eulalia is a favorite, of course. I love
how she grew and changed and developed.
She was so in love, but very naive. What she lived through might have
broken any one of us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
How did you prepare to write this novel?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A:
I had reams of paper, folders with newspaper and magazine clippings. Journal entries. Huge envelope filled with notes. From those notes, I created my outline and
synopsis. In addition, I researched
online and offline: the encyclopedia and dictionary are invaluable resources to
me as a writer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Also,
all of my reading helped prepare me to write <i>The Honeyeater</i>. And I don't think I could have written it before I
wrote my first book. Although they are
different genres and styles, I needed the experience of having written <i>Porridge
& Cucu</i>. I learned so much as I
wrote it, and those lessons helped me to write <i>The Honeyeater</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">For
more details, read my essays "How I Wrote My First Novel" and
"How I Wrote My Second Novel."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
Who influenced your writing? What
authors are you indebted to?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">A:
Doris Lessing, Elizabeth Gilbert, Emily Brontë, Isabel Allende, Louise
Erdrich, Shakespeare.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Q:
At one time, you wrote poetry. Could you
explain how you transitioned to writing fiction?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">A:
I wrote poems from the time I was a child</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">through highschool, but it was all hidden.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">My friends knew about me writing but they
never got to see any of it.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I had two
professors in college who encouraged me to write poems. The first taught me the
craft of writing poetry.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">And the second
encouraged me to send the poems out to magazines/literary journals.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I
was a bit timid about sending my poems out.
Each poem was like a baby I couldn't bear to part with. And there's a
fear of bearing one's soul for all to see; but nervous as I was, I persevered.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">One
day, I remember looking over my papers. I had compiled my poems into a book
(rejected by several publishers, sometimes with a beautiful note from the
editor--i.e., These poems are lovely, well-written. But we're booked for five years. Maybe you could send them to Publisher X). I
counted between seventy to a
hundred--about eighty or so poems. Those
were the good ones. I read them in sequence, and when I finished I felt I'd
said everything I wanted to say in poems.
I wanted a larger canvas, so to speak. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I'd
already kept my journal for many years.
I also wrote stories, sketches and essays. My mom pointed out that the poems, though
well-crafted, were not commercial. She
said that one always heard of bestselling novels/novelists (think Jackie
Collins). Maybe I should do that. So I
decided to put all my energy into fiction writing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-56446236609796590422013-08-18T07:43:00.003-07:002013-08-24T08:31:51.927-07:00ON THE LIFE AND POEMS OF ANNA AKHMATOVA<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Anna
Akhmatova discovered a lyre-shaped charm when she was a young child.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a result,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>her nanny predicted that little Anna would grow up to be a poet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When she decided <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">to be a poet</i>, Akhmatova’s<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>father, Andrey,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>demanded that she
choose a different surname so as not to tarnish the Gorenko family name.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Akhmatova herself explains his concern, and
her high-born family ancestry:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="background: white; line-height: 170%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 170%; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;">No
one in my large family wrote poetry. But the first Russian woman poet, Anna
Bunina, was the aunt of my grandfather Erasm Ivanovich Stogov. The Stogovs were
modest landowners in the Mozhaisk region of the Moscow Province. They were
moved here after the insurrection during the time of Posadnitsa Marfa. In
Novgorod they had been a wealthier and more distinguished family. Khan Akhmat
[was] my ancestor. [...]<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was well
known that this Akhmat was a descendant of Genghiz Khan. In the eighteenth
century, one of the Akhmatov Princesses – Praskovia Yegorvna – married the rich
and famous Simbirsk landowner Motovilov. Yegor Motovilov was my
great-grandfather; his daughter, Anna Yegorovna, was my grandmother. She died
when my mother was nine years old, and I was named in her honour.*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">So,
for a pen name, she chose the aristocratic name <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Akhmatova</i>—the name of her<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>great-grandmother, who had been “one of the Akhmatov<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>princesses.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She then ventured into the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>life
of,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>in her father’s words, a<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“decadent poetess.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">***
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">One
spring years ago, I first discovered Akhmatova<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>when<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I saw the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>beautiful Cubist painting, “Portrait of Anna
Akhmatova,” by Russian artist Natan Altman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Clothed in a long royal blue dress, her legs crossed, Akhmatova bears
her characteristic solemn<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>expression in
the painting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(She <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">never </i>smiles.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her shoulders
and arms are enveloped in a shawl the color of mustard; her face, with an “aquiline
profile”; her neck and collarbone are pallid, nearly transluscent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She looks regally<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">away</i>
from the observer, unbowed yet weary.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In
the poem “A string of little beads at my neck,” she gives an accurate
self-portrait:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A
string of little beads at my neck, <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In
a broad muff<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hide my hands, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
eyes stare vacantly, <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">They
never shed a tear. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And
the face appears pale,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Against
the lavender silk, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">My
straight bangs <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Almost
reach my eyebrows. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And
how dissimilar to flight <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Is
my halting step, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">As
if it were a raft beneath my feet, <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Not
these wooden parquet squares. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And
the pale lips are slightly parted,<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
breathing laboured and uneven, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And
over my heart tremble <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
flowers of a non-existent meeting. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">***<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A
grey-eyed beauty with a wistful solemn expression, Akhmatova was eleven years
old when she began writing poetry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Anna of All the Russias</i>, biographer
Elaine Feinstein states that by age sixteen, a deep melancholy<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>pervaded Akhmatova’s<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>personality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She published her first poem—entitled “On his hand there are many shiny
rings”—one year later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then, at<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>age twenty-one, she married Nikolay Gumilyov,
a fellow poet she knew<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>from
childhood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had loved her with an
unwavering love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once she’d decided to accept
Gumilyov’s marriage offer, she wrote in a letter to a friend, “I believe that
it is<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> my</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">fate </i>to be his wife.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whether
or not I love him, I do not know, but it seems to me that I do.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Eight
years later, in 1918, they divorced.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two
lines from her poem, “Departure,” might describe how Akhmatova felt in the
months that preceded the divorce:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I
cannot say if it is our love,/Or the day, that is ending.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In
search of love, she wed twice more—to men who did not truly understand or
appreciate her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or they may have loved
her but <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not </i>in a way she <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">needed</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“He loved three things, alive”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>is
the first line of one visionary poem that hints at her predicament: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">He
loved three things, alive: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">White
peacocks, songs at eve, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And
antique maps of America. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Hated
when children cried, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And
raspberry jam with tea, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And
feminine<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>hysteria. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">…And
he had married <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">me</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Of
one lover, she writes,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“He talked of the
summer and said,/How <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">absurd</i>—a woman
poet!” Nonetheless, she was sought after as a beauty; and so had several
relationships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To a former lover who had
recently wed someone else, she wrote: <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I
won’t beg for your love. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">It’s
safely laid aside…. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I
won’t be penning jealous <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Letters
to your bride. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">But
be wise, take my advice: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Give
her my poems to read, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Give
her my photos beside – <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Be
kind to the newly-wed! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">***<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Many
of the poems are self-revealing, yet understated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Akhmatova gives a woman’s perspective in a
time of misogyny in Russia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A wife was
basically a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">commodity</i>: women were
often reviled and abused.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Incredibly,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Russian proverb was:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“The more you beat your wife, the tastier the
soup will be.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Luckily,
Akhmatova did not witness such brutality as a child.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Several poems evoke sentiments from her
sheltered childhood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“the wild girl”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>that jumped into the Black Sea with scant
hesitation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> T</span>he beautiful poem,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">At the
Edge of the Sea</i>, draws on this magical time in her life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Northern
Elegies</i>,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Akhmatova describes her
mother, Inna, with tenderness:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">She
had an uncommon name, white hands</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And
a kindness that has come down to me:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Though
it has been a useless inheritance<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In
this harsh life of mine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">At
the bottom of her well of sorrow is, perhaps, that Akhmatova <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">never actually</i> raised her son, Lev.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At her husband Nikolay’s insistence, Lev grew
up with his grandmother and only saw his mother in summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lev the child—beloved <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">in absentia</i>—she wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I
know you won’t be able to<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Remember
much about me, little one:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I
didn’t hold you, or even scold you,<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Or
take you to Communion.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Sadly,
Lev in later years expressed that he did not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">feel</i> loved. He wrote, “If I were not her son, but the son of an
ordinary woman, I would have been before anything else a blossoming Soviet
professor. . . .”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> During his lifetime, he was a well-regarded historian of Eurasian subjects, and wrote poetry. </span>Not surprising, however, his relationship with Akhmatova was<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>turbulent; and he
never<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>forgave her.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">***<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The early poems are simple, brief, ethereal in
nature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They describe real moments and
loves in her life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think of an
Akhmatova poem, phrase or image long after I’ve read it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The image—of “raspberry jam with tea” or<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“lavender silk”—floats into my consciousness
and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">stays</i> with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
later poems are longer, more complex in imagery and ideas/ideology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are the poems of a mature “poetess”;
they evince <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">masterful</i>
craftsmanship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Akhmatova wrote some of
these later poems in hardship, during a turbulent era in Russia. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the months before the Bolsheviks came into
power, women stood in ‘bread lines’ for hours, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">daily</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Requiem</i>,
she states that she<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“stood [in line] for
three hundred <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hours</i>”;<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and she refers to herself in an ironic
situation:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">They
should have shown you, little teaser, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Little
favourite, friend of all,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Sylvan princess</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">, happy charmer,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">What
situation would be yours – <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">As
three-hundredth in the line <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">You’d
stand. . . .<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Thus,
these later poems transformed Akhmatova into the voice of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“a hundred million people.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">That
said, I ‘enjoy’ the shorter<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>poems
more—mostly because they are subtler, seem more personal and heartfelt, are
infused with<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>genuine emotion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These shorter poems reflect a “lyrical
soul”—as Akhmatova’s friend described her; but they also make one reflect on
one’s own life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Five
original volumes of poetry are the core of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Akhmatova’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">oeuvre</i>: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Evening</i> (1912),<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> Rosary</i> (1914), <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">White Flock</i>
(1917), <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Plantain</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(1921), and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Anno
Domini</i> MCMXXI (1922). <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>Each volume flung out into the world, like
a blue frisbee.<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For this essay, I read<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anna Akhmatova: Selected Poems Including Requiem</i>,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>with<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>poems compiled from each of the Russian poet’s major works; it is
brilliantly translated by British scholar A.S. Kline and an excellent
introduction to Akhmatova.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">***<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In
an homage to artist Boris Anrep, the love of her life, Akhmatova laments<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>aspects of her life and asks her lover to
forgive her:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
evening light is broad and yellow<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Tender,
the April chill.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">You
are many years late,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Yet
I am glad you are here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Sit
down now, close to me,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And
look with joyful eyes:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Here
it is, the blue notebook,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Filled
with my childhood poems. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Forgive
me that I lived in sorrow,<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Rejoiced
too little in the sun.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Forgive,
forgive that I mistook <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Too
many others for you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="border-color: currentColor currentColor windowtext; border-style: none none solid; border-width: medium medium 1pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; mso-element: para-border-div; padding: 0in 0in 1pt;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="border: currentColor; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in; padding: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">--Yolanda<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="border: currentColor; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in; padding: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Feinstein<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">, </i>Elaine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Anna of
All the Russias</i> (2007).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>http://www.elainefeinstein.com/Anna-Akhmatova.shtml<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">*“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;">Biography Of Anna Akhmatova”
(article).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>http://www.poemsclub.com/biography-of-anna-akhmatova.html#ixzz2cF759Quk</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">For
the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>FREE<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>ebook of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anna Akhmatova</i>: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Selected Poems Including Requiem </i>(translated by scholar A.S. Kline), visit
http://www.poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Russian/Akhmatova.htm<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://self.gutenberg.org/eBooks/WPLBN0002171667-The_Selected_Poems_of_Anna_Akhmatova-by_Akhmatova__Anna.aspx<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">For
more info:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.poemhunter.com/anna-akhmatova/
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/anna-akhmatova<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">To
view the painting “Portrait of Anna Akhmatova” by Natan Altman, visit
http://www.auburn.edu/~mitrege/russian/art/altman-akhmatova.html<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">To
view the art Akhmatova inspired, visit
http://artoftherussias.wordpress.com/2012/05/04/akhmatova-in-art/<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<o:p> </o:p></div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-83199513024120005982013-08-11T16:06:00.007-07:002013-08-11T16:06:56.988-07:00ELIZABETH GILBERT: AN INTERVIEW
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Eat Pray Love</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> by Elizabeth Gilbert is one of my favorite
books.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I loved the courage Gilbert
showed in transforming herself and her life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Now, she has written a new work--a novel entitled <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Signature of All</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Things--</i>due
for an October 2013 release. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here's an
excerpt from her interview with Chantal Pierrat.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Chantal
Pierrat: What is it right now that is stoking your passion? What perspective or
practice is setting you on fire?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Elizabeth
Gilbert: Returning to writing fiction after 13 years away from it. Returning to
the rootstock of my whole life as a writer. It’s what I had wanted to be for my
entire life, since I can remember, since my particular time immemorial. It’s
how I got my start as a writer. My first two books were a short story
collection and a novel. Then I took this weird, sharp left turn away from that
aspect of my imagination, and very much into the world of the real. For the
entire decade of my 30s and the early part of my 40s, I didn’t write a word of
fiction. I just left that behind, this dream of my life. It wasn’t a bad idea--<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Eat Pray Love </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>came out of it. I moved into journalism,
biography, memoir (in that order), and started to feel like I had left behind
something really important. I made myself come back to it, even though it was
frightening and intimidating. I wasn’t sure if I still even knew how to do it
or why you do it. I felt like I had to return or else it was going to be gone
forever. So that’s what I’ve spent the last few years doing and what I’m going
to spend the next few years doing. It’s such a homecoming. I feel all abloom
with excitement.<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">CP:
Do you feel that there’s any real in the unreal? Or vice versa?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">EG:
I think there’s more real in the unreal than there is in the real. I think the
thing that I lost in myself when I stopped writing fiction and the thing that I
rediscovered and started mining again is, for lack of a better word, magic.
It’s the way you can brush up against the inexplicable and the mystical. I’ve
always thought of my writing as a spiritual practice. But I think that fiction
is the most supernatural kind of writing that you can do -- or that I can do --
because of the ways that the real and the unreal weave together to create
something that feels more true than anything. It feels like a collaboration
between yourself and inspiration, a collaboration between the facts upon which
your book is based and the lives you invent around those facts. There’s this
great kind of spooky dance that happens that I can’t access any other way. I
think most of us are given kind of one pathway to that dance, and that’s why
I’m a writer -- it’s the only way I can get there. I can’t do it through art, I
can’t do it through singing, I can’t do it through mothering, I can’t do it
through invention. There are other ways that people participate in that
collaboration. This is the only way I can do it. What happens and what you
encounter, what you collide with -- it’s so exciting and revealing about how
much more interesting and tricky the universe is than we think in our daily
lives.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">CP:
Since you are coming from the world of memoir with your last two books, how are
you represented in this new work?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">EG:
Somebody said once that when you write fiction, you’re writing memoir, and when
you’re writing memoir, you’re writing fiction. When you write a novel, there’s
a level at which you are much more revealing about who you are because you’re
less self-conscious about how you’re presenting yourself. You are accidentally
leaving your DNA all over everything in a novel because it’s all coming from
you. I had a wonderful conversation with my friend, the novelist Ann Patchett,
after she read this book, and she said, “It was so exciting to read that
character and see bits of your hair and fingernails growing out of there! I
think that what I personally know about you was showing up in this person who
you invented. Who you can also embolden to do and be things that you would
never do or be.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">It’s
funny. So I’m all over this book. It’s about a 19th century botanical
exploration. My character, Alma Whittaker, is a botanist who is the daughter of
a great botanical entrepreneur, and she’s looking for nothing less than the
signature of nature. She’s a real scientist and she’s stubborn about her quest.
At the same time, this novel is a love story, and there are great
disappointments in the love story. All of women’s stories in the 19th century
had either one of two endings: you either had the good Jane Austen marriage at the
end and you were happy; or you had the terrible Henry James savage downfall
because of your own hubris as a woman, or you’ve made some great error leading
you down a path to ruin. One is the story of love that’s successful and the
other is the story usually of reckless love that goes terribly wrong that
destroys the woman.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">But
the reality, certainly in my life, is that we all have love stories that go
terribly wrong; we all have horribly broken hearts. And somehow we endure.
We’re not destroyed by it. We endure and go on to do interesting things and
have worthy lives, even though we carry our heartbreaks with us. That’s a kind
of personal story of mine that I don’t think I would tell in memoir but I do
think I can tell in fiction.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">CP:
How has disappointment changed you?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">EG:
It softens me. It makes me be a more sensitive, kinder person. I know what it
feels like to be bruised; I know what it feels like to carry things around with
you that never totally heal. There’s closure and then there’s stuff that’s kind
of like, Well, I guess it’s going to be in the minivan forever. And you carry
it with you and you continue on your journey with your minivan full of stuff,
which I think most of us do.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">All
the parts of us that we ever were are always going to be with us. You make
space to carry them and you just try not to let them drive. But you can’t chuck
them out either. I think I have more compassion than if I had led a life where
everything worked out exactly as I had planned or if I had never been wounded or
if I had never been betrayed or I had never been harmed. I don’t think I would
be as good a person. I’m still aspiring to be a better and better person, but I
think those disappointments have made me gentler with other people and their
disappointments, the stuff that they have to carry around and endure.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">CP:
In <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Signature of All</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Things</i>, the character is looking for
meaning through plants and nature. Is this a reflection of a connection that
you might have?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">EG:
My mom is a master gardener and I grew up on a farm. I came back to it really
late in life and discovered that despite how lazy and inattentive I was as a
child, I had managed to accidentally learn quite a bit about gardening. This is
a nice metaphor, too, about mothers and daughters -- that when it came time for
me to make my own, I was making a completely different garden than the one that
my mom has. They don’t look like they came from relatives. Hers is a very
productive and pragmatic vegetable garden, and mine is a ridiculous
overabundance of useless plants. It doesn’t feed anybody, it doesn’t serve any
purpose. I guess it feeds hummingbirds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">It’s
definitely a question of following your fascination. When you want to do
something creative and you want to do something new, you have to start with the
thing that’s making you want to jump up out of bed in the morning, and for me
that thing was gardening. I thought, this book is going to have to be about
plants, otherwise I’m not going to want to spend three years with it; I’ll
resent it if it’s taking me away from the garden.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">CP:
What do you think the world needs from women right now?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">EG:
I think the world needs women who stop asking for permission from the
principal. Permission to live their lives as they deeply know they often
should. I think we still look to authority figures for validation, recognition,
permission.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I
see women who have this struggle between what they know is right, what they
know is necessary, what they know is healthy, what they know is good for them,
what they know is good for the work that they need to do, what they know is
good for their bodies, what they know is good for their families -- all too
often ending that statement with the upturned question mark: “If it’s okay with
everyone?” Still asking, still requesting, still filing petitions for somebody
to say that it’s all right. I think that, myself included, that has to be
dropped before we can take our place in the way that we need to and the world
needs us to.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
best and most powerful things that I’ve done in my life were when I decided
that I don’t f***** need somebody to tell me that I can do it. To just go and
make it myself, do it myself, build it myself, do the project first and not
bother along the way to get the requisite paperwork. That requires faith.
Primarily it requires a faith in the condition that you are allowed to exist.
You are here and you are allowed to be here and therefore you are allowed to
make decisions about yourself and the people in your life; rather than sort of
backing up and making sure it’s okay with everybody at every turn.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">CP:
Hallelujah! Do you have a consistent practice or a perspective that helps you
through times of contraction?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">EG:
I do. It all comes down to these two words: “stubborn gladness.” It’s from a
poem by my favorite poet, a guy named Jack Gilbert. He’s sort of the poet
laureate of my life. He has a poem called “A Brief for the Defense.” In the
poem he says, “We must have the stubbornness to accept our gladness in the ruthless
furnace of this world.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Which
is not to edit him but I guess that’s how I took him in. He carefully put those
words in the order that he wanted them, but somehow in my mind they just go
into the furnace and come out like two ingots, sort of melded together, these
two words that I keep together. Stubborn gladness.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">What
I love about the line is that it doesn’t deny the reality of the ruthless
furnace of the world. That God wants us to be in joy, God wants us to be happy.
Because of this extraordinary consciousness and this great ability for wonder
and marvel, and without denying any of the terrors and horrors of the world, we
also have an obligation toward joy and toward miracle and excitement. I feel
like if I were to get another tattoo, it would probably be those two words.
Just stubborn, stubborn, stubborn gladness.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">For
more info, visit:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.elizabethgilbert.com<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/11/elizabeth-gilbert-interview-origin-magazine_n_3733069.html?ref=topbar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.originmagazine.com/2013/05/25/elizabeth-gilbert-interview-beyond-eat-pray-love/<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-2639454439625794112013-07-25T10:43:00.002-07:002013-07-25T10:43:37.201-07:00HOT, SOUR, SALTY, SWEET by Sherri L. Smith<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> by Sherri L. Smith is, perhaps, the <i>cutest</i> book I’ve ever read. It’s the charming YA novel about Ana Shen, a smart
and sassy young girl of African-American/Chinese-American heritage, upon her
graduation from junior-high school. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
book displays fourteen-year old Ana as she copes with her many issues—her younger brother, her parents, her nemesis at school. Her junior-high graduation is a near ‘disaster’. Though she has no boyfriend, Ana does have a
huge crush on a boy in her class.
Thankfully, she has a loyal best friend, Chelsea, to help her navigate
life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
book has a contemporary feel as it depicts, in Ana’s teacher’s words, a
“‘marvelously biracial, multicultural’ family,” as they prepare for and
participate in a celebration dinner.
Among the likable characters are Ana’s parents, grandparents, and best
friend—featuring dialogue that sounds modern and authentic. For instance, when Ana says:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">“We’ve
had exactly three family meals with both sides together. . . We eat out together. We <i>have</i>
to eat out together, or else there’ll be a fight or a disaster, or the end of
the world. . . . This is no longer a
dinner, it’s a competition. That means
you’ve made my life hell for the next’—she glances at her watch—four
hours. Four hours! Holy crap, I’ve gotta go!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> is a YA novel
that will resonate with both older and YA readers, alike. This is a book I’d have loved to have read as
a young adult. I found myself
reminiscing on my own junior-high/high school
graduations, and that time in my life. I
think <i>Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet </i>will
evoke pleasant memories for other readers as well. (This is a book both mothers<i> and</i> their daughters will empathize with
and enjoy reading.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I
<i>so </i>enjoyed reading this book! Young adult readers will just think, This book
is<i> awesome</i>!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A
delightful little book, <i>Hot, Sour, Salty,
Sweet </i>is by an award-winning author.
It’s witty, engaging; its cuteness knows no bounds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">--Yolanda
A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">For
more info:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.randomhouse.com/teens<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-19514966698728433772013-07-16T11:20:00.000-07:002013-07-19T07:47:06.962-07:00VINTAGE CISNEROS by Sandra Cisneros<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Vintage Cisneros</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> is the <i>perfect</i>
introduction to the legendary writings of Sandra Cisneros. A graduate of the prestigious Iowa Writers’ Workshop,
Cisneros is a poet and novelist. <i>Vintage Cisneros</i> is a compendium of her poems, stories and several
chapters from her first novel,<i> The House
on Mango Street</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">This
YA novel is the story of Esperanza, a Mexican-American girl growing up in
Chicago. The thirteen-year old’s tone and language suffuse the book with
authentic emotion. In a series of
vignettes, Esperanza assesses her block, her friends, her universe. Though her name means ‘hope’ in Spanish, she
says: “I would like to baptize myself a new name, a name more like the real me,
the one nobody sees.” Of the world, she
says, “You can never have too much sky.”
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Vintage Cisneros </span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> also bears
selections from Cisneros’ poetry and stories, such as “Eyes of Zapata” (a long story in the voice of his beloved
that serves as a form of tribute to Emiliano Zapata), “All parts from Mexico, assembled in the USA
or I am born,” “Someday my Prince Popocatépetl will come,” “Love Poem for a non-believer,” “You bring
out the Mexican in me,” and others.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
writing is personal, specific, with beautiful imagery and sentiments that are <i>searing </i>in their honesty. Most times, <i>Vintage Cisneros </i>reads like a
memoir<i>.
</i> For example, in “Preface from <i>My Wicked Wicked Ways</i>,” Cisneros writes,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">“What
does a woman <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">willing
to invent herself <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">at
twenty-two or twenty-nine<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">do?
A woman with no who nor how.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">And
how was I to know what was unwise.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I
wanted to be [a] writer. I wanted to be
happy.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">--Yolanda A.
Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.sandracisneros.com<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emiliano_Zapata</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-27756848753831410342013-07-09T11:40:00.000-07:002013-07-10T10:11:02.298-07:00THE COOKED SEED by Anchee Min<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">The
most poignant moment in <i>The Cooked Seed</i>
is when Anchee asked her lover, Qigu,
“Do you love me?” They had been
in a relationship for several months, but he had never said the words, I love
you. It was not “the Chinese way,” he said. “You know how I
feel about you, . . . and I know how you feel about me. Isn't that enough?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">They
wed, had a child and remained together for six years. Qigu, an artist, was the grasshopper to
Anchee’s worker-ant (although, she also was an artist).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">Born
into a middle-class family in Shanghai, China, Anchee Min survived a painful
and heartbreaking chidhood. This was
during the Cultural Revolution. Min’s
parents “were teachers, and thus regarded
as bourgeois sympathisers.” They lived
in cramped quarters, in which the kitchen doubled as a bathroom, used not only
by Min’s family but also by several neighbors.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">Anchee
as a child subsisted near starvation. Her
mother pawned the family’s clothes and
“the backs of her feet bled” as she walked in the snow. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">Later—once
Chairman Mao’s formidable widow, Chiang Ching, lost political clout—Min became
a pariah. “I was considered a ‘cooked
seed’—no chance to sprout.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">So
Min was determined to emigrate to the US, in order to expand her life
opportunities. She applied to the
School of the Art Institute of Chicago, was accepted and managed to obtain the
necessary visa.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">In
Chicago, armed with her “English-Chinese dictionary and English 900 sentences book,” she struggles to learn English. Once her college classmate explains the
meaning of “What’s up, dude?” Min
switches from the stuffy “How do you
do?” she had learned in language class and which <i>no one</i> used. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">Early
on in the process of learning English, Min makes many language mistakes. Once, she tells Qigu he is “full of booloony”
(she means baloney). “The big moving
room—the elevator” fascinates her, but she confuses the word with
“refrigerator.” One of the first phrases
she understands fully is from Mr. Rogers:
“The best gift you can offer is your honest self.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">A
happy moment in the book is when Lloyd, her beau and husband-to-be, says he loves
her and she says she loves him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">In
<i>The Cooked Seed</i>, Min offers us an
unflinchingly honest self-portrait. She
does not exclude anything unflattering.
Moreover, the book depicts an<i>
extraordinary</i> metamorphosis, from loyal Chinese worker to an American woman. The book also depicts Min’s struggles as a
single parent, and later, how she and her husband, Lloyd, prepare her daughter
for the SAT’s and other college entrance exams. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">The Cooked Seed</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"> is a compelling portrait of life in contemporary China and of the US immigrant experience. It is also the story of a strong pragmatic
woman as she perseveres from “Chinese fatalism” and a propensity “to dwell on
the literature of misery, exile, imprisonment, and despair” to American
optimism, the “tomorrow-is-another-day attitude” of Scarlett O’Hara.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">“Truth,”
Min writes, “would lead to real beauty.”
In <i>The Cooked Seed</i>, the
language is spare, utilitarian, and true.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">--Yolanda A.
Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">For
more info, visit these websites:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">http://www.ancheemin.com<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4WY24y-7Es<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">https://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiang_Qing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-67737312137962018352013-06-15T15:06:00.001-07:002013-06-15T15:06:16.624-07:00LUNCH IN PARIS by Elizabeth Bard<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Memoirist Elizabeth Bard
states that there are two kinds of croissants.
The first is a “brioche”; the
second, flaky. “I like flake, a croissant with an outer
layer so fine and brittle that you get crumbs all over yourself from the very
first bite.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Bard’s delectable
memoir, <i>Lunch in Paris</i>, features
multiple recipes—for swordfish, ribs with honey, mackerel, duck and
blackberries, French onion soup, carrot soup, and salmon. Also, “Fennel Salad with Lemon, Olive Oil, and
Pomegranate Seeds,” “Goat Cheese Salad with Fresh Figs,” “Choux Pastries,” “Summer Ratatouille,” and more. To top it off, an essay on French cheeses and
<i>lots </i>of chocolate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But the main course of <i>Lunch in
Paris</i> is the story of how Bard met, romanced and wed her French husband, Gwendal,
in Paris. She was twenty-five years old
at the time, a graduate student in art history, in London. Gwendal was a graduate student in computer science,
who longed to be a filmmaker.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Their first meal together—at
his tiny studio apartment—was an impromptu lunch concocted of onion, carrots,
ham, and <i>tagliatelle</i> pasta. “It was the best thing I’d ever tasted,” she
writes. “This is <i>amazing</i>,” she said. “You have to give me the recipe.” “ ‘There is
no recipe.’ he said, smiling. ‘I use
whatever I have. It never tastes the
same way twice.’”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That first lunch, on their
first date, was one of many featured in the book. There is a sumptuous lunch at <i>L’Hermès</i>—a fancy restaurant with an
offering of “duck with braised cabbage and apples.” There is lunch with his parents. There are lunches during Bard’s stint as a
tour guide, and a pre-wedding dinner with both sets of parents, at which—except for the
bride and groom—no one spoke the other’s language.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Even so, Bard purports
to have decoded the reason French women are slim. <i>Petite</i>
portions. “A French portion is half of
an American portion, and a French meal takes twice as long to eat,” she
writes. She concluded this after she analyzed her slender French mother-in-law’s
eating style: no snacks, drinks lots of
water, no soda, drinks wine, and eats <i>petite
</i>portions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">During the courtship, as
Bard shuttled back and forth between London and Paris, she was a bit
off-kilter: “The boys I’d been out with before went to the same schools, came
from the same towns. . . . Although
[Gwendal and I] were roughly the same age, we didn’t have the same cultural
references.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It’s a tale of love in
two cities; but <i>Lunch in Paris</i> is <i>not </i>a<i> </i>Charles Dickens novel. For this is a modern story, a modern love
(he cooked for her!). It’s love, dating, a wedding and marriage,
Parisian style. When he proposed,
Gwendal said, “I know what I want.” He
just wanted to be happy, and to share
his life with her. (Bard and her friends
wanted success.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Lunch
in Paris</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> is a delectable, delightful hybrid memoir—travel <i>and</i> food. (The language is wonderfully descriptive—not
just white, but “the color of warm milk.”)
A chick-lit memoir—with recipes <i>and
</i>romance—that depicts the realities of living in Paris, and the romantic
ways of one Frenchman.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">--Yolanda A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Check out these
websites: www.elizabethbard.com<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">www.facebook.com/LunchinParis<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Dickens<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-47812267775937487582013-06-09T15:50:00.001-07:002013-06-24T08:35:17.841-07:00WAITING TO BE HEARD by Amanda Knox<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Waiting
To Be Heard</span></i><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> is the
eagerly awaited memoir by Amanda Knox.
In 2009, Knox was convicted—then later acquitted—of murdering her housemate,
Meredith Kercher, while both lived and studied in Italy. During the trial, one reporter dubbed Knox
the “angel face,” because she projects uncanny innocence, truth and
beauty. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The story of Knox’s life—in
the Northwestern part of the U.S., before she landed in Perugia, Italy—makes
for interesting reading. A
self-described “quirky kid” of divorced parents, Amanda had been a teenager who had dabbled in new
experiences. Because she kept a journal,
she describes with seeming accuracy her conversations with family, friends and
boyfriends, at home and later in Italy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Surprisingly, Knox wrote <i>Waiting To Be Heard </i> herself, and her writing is exceptional. (I had expected a co-authored book.) She aspires to be a professional writer, so
we can look forward to more of her writings.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A causal factor in Knox’s circumstances was that her beginner-Italian
could <i>never </i>match the Italian of a <i>native</i>—so she misunderstood, misread and
misspoke. When her two Italian housemates
consulted lawyers, Amanda was interrogated
mostly <i>without even an</i> <i>interpreter</i>. Her exasperation and bewilderment are almost
palpable. The consequence is that, upon acquittal
and despite her innocence, she spent four mind-blowing <i>years</i>
in prison.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now aged twenty-six, Knox is
candid in the book about her lifestyle and relationships at the time. Also, she reveals mistakes in a few of her personal choices. For example, her Myspace photos and writings were
used in court—to her detriment. “Looked
at together,” she comments, “these latter images would have portrayed a typical
American girl, not as tame as some, not as experimental as many, but typical
among my age group—a group that had the bad judgment to put our lives online.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Waiting
To Be Heard</span></i><span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">
projects a three-dimensional image of Knox as a mostly “typical American girl” who
stumbled into a harrowing experience in Italy.
But she is also resilient, intelligent and—after this experience—might
make an excellent lawyer. Knox’s
father’s statement, before she left for Perugia, sums up what was then a
serious flaw: “I worry that you’re <i>too </i>trusting
for your own good, Amanda.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Readers—especially law enthusiasts—who wish to
psychoanalyze Amanda Knox, or parse the facts and events to “re-try” the case,
should read this riveting memoir.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">--Yolanda A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For more info: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Garamond","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Knox<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Note: Linda Kulman helped to write <i>Waiting To
Be Heard</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/linda-kulman<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/26/books/review/trial-and-error.html?pagewanted=all<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/12/books/review/amanda-knox-by-the-book.html?pagewanted=all</span></div>
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-82637677787283310172013-06-08T04:58:00.004-07:002013-06-09T15:26:20.455-07:00ON READING YA BOOKS<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">As a teenager, I used to read lots of
books. Our basement had bookcases that lined the walls,
end to end. Alongside the bookcases were
a couple of boxes filled with
books. The basement was our private
family library. I'd descend to its
nether world, peruse the bookshelves, then bring books—sometimes a batch at a
time—up to my room, to read. Sometimes,
I’d pick a book from a bookshelf and sit as I read or skimmed its pages, at leisure.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">So the following is a list of YA books
that I’ve read and been comforted by.
Each book is beautiful and a classic.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"> 1. <i>The Woman Warrior </i> by Maxine Hong Kingston.--I read <i>The
Woman Warrior</i> years ago, and was moved
and inspired by it. It is the story of
Maxine Hong Kingston, the author, as she grows up in California. The book describes the stories of her
childhood. One monumental character is
Brave Orchid, Maxine’s mother. The subtitle defines the book as a memoir;
but some readers might consider this a
novel rather than a memoir, as some of the stories are<i> fantastical</i>, larger than life.
It is, after all, a “girlhood among ghosts.” Nevertheless, <i>The Woman Warrior </i>contains beautiful imagery, and poignant vivid
scenes. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; line-height: 115%;">2. Home to India</span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; line-height: 115%;"> by Santha Rama
Rau—At age 16,--after living in England
for ten years—author Santha Rama Rau and her family returned to India. Her father was a diplomat during the time of
Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violent coup d’e</span><span style="line-height: 115%;">́</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; line-height: 115%;">tat. The modern/Westernized Rau had to get
re-acquainted with her relatives, who espoused classic Indian customs and
traditions. Eventually, she attended
Wellesley College and wrote <i>Home to India</i> while there.
The result is a poignant, well-written story imbued with the time and
magic of India—amid political intrigue.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">3.
<i>Fifth Chinese Daughter</i> by Jade
Snow Wong.--<i>Fifth Chinese Daughter </i> is the delicately told memoir of Jade Snow
Wong during the 1950’s. Born into a poor
family in California, she was inspired to go to college—despite being a
girl. The book chronicles Jade Snow’s
hardships and struggles—with neither help nor encouragement from her
family. Ultimately, Jade Snow triumphs
by graduating from Mills College; she went on to become an internationally-known ceramist. <i>Fifth
Chinese Daughter</i> reminds us that
education—now considered a right—was once thought of as a luxury. In some parts of the world, even today, girls are shunned or worse for wanting to be
educated.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">--Yolanda A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">www.uncp.edu/home/canada/work/canam/kingston.htm</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/24/arts/24ramarau.html?_r=0</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jade_Snow_Wong</span><br />
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-3083625741809575552013-05-29T05:13:00.000-07:002013-05-29T05:45:07.325-07:00LEAN IN: Women, Work and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; line-height: 115%;">Lean In</span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; line-height: 115%;"> is author Sheryl Sandberg’s handbook for contemporary women, to guide us in
the 21st century work force. A graduate
of Harvard, Sandberg's own resume is impressive: she was the director of global
sales at Google, and is currently
Facebook's COO. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">In
the book, she reveals her own challenges in the workplace. For instance, <i>Lean In</i> begins during her second pregnancy, while at Google.
She had to “waddle” from the
parking lot to her office. When she
learned that Yahoo had special parking for pregnant staff members, she requested special parking at Google. She got her request. (Google has a reputation for being a <i>phenomenal</i> place to work at: free food from several
scrumptious menus; you can bring your pet to work; and first-rate child care. So it’s surprising that no one anticipated the
parking lot issue.) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; line-height: 115%;">Lean In</span></i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; line-height: 115%;">
is the expanded version from a TEDtalk
speech Sandberg gave in 2010. Some of the anecdotes she shares are of how she settled her Facebook contract,
her first “formal review,” and an episode of sexual harassment.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">The
book, Sandberg says, is a “feminist manifesto.”
She asks women to “lean in”—or
assertively pursue—their careers, since women tend to be less comfortable with
leadership positions. As a result, fewer
go on to become leaders. She argues that women should be less fearful
to take on career challenges—despite issues of
“gender-bias,” sexual harrassment, and work/family balance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">Sandberg acknowledges that we have made strides, but
that we need <i>more</i> gender equality in a wide array of industries. In addition, the job market has changed so
that, as her Facebook colleague says, “Careers are a jungle gym, not a ladder.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">Moreover, she advises women that “adopting two concurrent goals: a long-term dream
and an eighteen-month plan” is a good idea.
Both young and mature women should establish goals and learn new skills. Also, they should get feedback; build
relationships; get good advice; and reach
out by offering to help. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">For women,
the problem of getting a mentor is especially challenging, according to
Sandberg. She also addresses the issue of honest
communication in the workplace: to illustrate that point, she cites another
Facebook colleague, who told CEO Mark Zuckerberg, “My manager is bad!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">“Communication,”
she concludes, “works best when we
combine appropriateness with authenticity. . .”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">On
finding a spouse, she writes: “When
looking for a life partner, my advice to women is to date all of them: the bad
boys, the cool boys, the committment-phobic boys, the crazy boys. <i>But do
not marry</i> <i>them</i>. . . . When it comes time to settle down find
someone who wants an <i>equal </i>partner. Someone who thinks women should be smart,
opinionated, and ambitious.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">Lastly,
Sandberg shares the anecdote of the
little girl who wanted to be an astronaut when she grew up. The boy she liked, however, <i>also </i>wanted
to be an astronaut. Even this
five-year-old girl recognized an ever-present issue adult women grapple with every workday: "When we go into space together, who will
watch our kids?"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">--Yolanda
A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">For more info, visit these websites:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">http://www.leanin.org<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">http://www.facebook.com/leanin.org<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-38079863990569761252013-05-22T13:10:00.003-07:002013-05-24T17:09:20.600-07:00AT HOME IN THE WORLD by Joyce Maynard<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;">At
Home in the World</span></i><span style="line-height: 115%;"> is the mesmerizing memoir by Joyce Maynard that chronicles
her devastating, all-consuming relationship with renowned novelist, J. D. Salinger.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">On the surface, it seems inexplicable:
why would an eighteen-year-old girl 'fall in love' with a fifty-three year-old
man? But now, having read the book, I
feel I understand.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">Salinger’s first letter <i>seems</i> innocent—he was a fan of
her New York Times essay, "An Eighteen-year old Looks Back on Life"
and "cautions that a glimpse of fame can distract a writer."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">The letter‘s sentiments made her feel as if he <i>saw</i> her spirit, gave her a feeling of value, validated her talent
and herself. This is <i>intoxicating</i>. In a sense, too, Salinger tries to save her from—to quote Lady Gaga—"the
fame monster" (of which he knows plenty).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">But Maynard also had much in common
with Salinger—both writers, both from New England, both felt like outsiders. Moreover, "this stranger . . . seems to<i> know</i> <i>me</i>," she writes.
Brilliant, thoughtful, charming Salinger was an artist and a devotee of
alternative medicine and vegetarianism. He
had a sophistication and knowledge of the world he wished to bestow on her.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">As for Maynard, she had a
precociousness and a maturity beyond her years, along with her sense of
alienation. She is also needy (who among
us does not need or want love?). She is
anorexic <i>and</i> bulimic. Yet she wins prizes and accolades, writes
magazine articles; gains kudos from New York intellectuals.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">All that said, Salinger—the grown-up—should
<i>not</i> have allowed this ‘friendship’ to
go further.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">One wonders what Maynard's parents (her
mother, especially) were thinking. She
wonders, too, in the scene before her first weekend trip to Salinger's home:
"I have tried to imagine what was going on in my parents' minds. . .
. Nobody suggests this is a bad idea or
questions what might be going on in the mind of a fifty-three year old man who
invites an eighteen-year-old to come and spend the weekend."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">Perhaps they were naive or, as Maynard
says, filled with pride. This was in
1971. As a society, we now more quickly
recognize child abuse or the potential for it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">As a reader, I am fascinated by the
poetic symmetry in Maynard’s life, which can only be regarded as <i>fated</i>.
For instance, her description of her father might also describe Salinger
in the early stages: "courtly and dapper and charming."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">In its essence, theirs is a
father-daughter relationship: Salinger
gives young Joyce advice about her writing career, about life. He makes suggestions. Then, later, they are commandments—he
controls what she eats (very little), wears, writes, whom she befriends. <i> Everything</i> is subject to his approval.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">When<i>
he</i> abruptly ends the relationship,
Maynard <i>desperately</i> tries to convince
him otherwise. (In truth, I read of the
break-up with <i>relief</i>.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">Add to the mix, a flirtation of sorts
between Salinger and Maynard's mother—which <i>may
have</i> contributed to the "dissolution" of the relationship—and you
have a sad, distressing situation for <i>all</i>
concerned.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">At fifty, Fredelle Maynard—an author and “a Harvard Phd”—was at “an age more appropriate</span><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="line-height: 115%;">for receiving the
attention of a fifty-three-year old."</span><span style="line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="line-height: 115%;">Years
earlier, when <i>she </i>was nineteen, Mrs.
Maynard had wed a man who was twenty years her senior. Slim, tall, and blond, Max Maynard was
"courtly and dapper and charming." That marriage was now also headed
for “dissolution.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">The writing is in the present tense,
which heightens the book’s intimacy.
This tense—the historical present—also gives a sense of immediacy, of overwhelming
understatement. Once you begin to read <i>At Home in the World</i>, however, you will not stop. The book is <i>so</i> engrossing. It is a cautionary
tale young girls/women ought to read: the lessons related in this book, we may <i>all</i> benefit from. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">In the afterword, Maynard states that she
auctioned off J.D. Salinger's many letters to her. But, I wonder, what happened to <i>her</i> letters to <i>him</i>? Does she know? Or can we guess that Salinger burned or
destroyed them?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;">At
Home in the World</span></i><span style="line-height: 115%;"> forever links Joyce Maynard's name with J. D.
Salinger’s. We can perceive it as
tarnishing his literary legacy; or that the book provides <i>a more
complete portrait of him</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 115%;">"If I tell what I do, nobody else
can expose me,” Maynard writes. “If I
live my life in a way I'm not ashamed of, why shouldn't I be able to talk about
it? I am surely not the only woman who
made herself throw up every day, or flew into a rage at her children, or felt
abandoned by love.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">--Yolanda A. Reid</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">For more info, visit these websites:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">http://travel.nytimes.com/2012/09/16/travel/in-guatemala-a-torturous-drive-to-a-remote-eden.html?pagewanted=1&ref=joycemaynard</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Maynard</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/books/29salinger.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0</span></span><br />
<div>
<div style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">http://www.umanitoba.ca/libraries/archives/collections/complete_holdings/ead/html/</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">maynard.shtml#series7</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">http://books.google.com/books?id=veTPZA9TWxsC&pg=PA50&dq</span></span><br />
<div style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-55259368945933302302013-05-17T09:13:00.003-07:002013-05-19T07:01:27.634-07:00DOMESTIC AFFAIRS by Joyce Maynard<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Reading
<i>Domestic Affairs </i>by Joyce Maynard is
like being enveloped by a big warm blanket for the duration. The book is based on Maynard's essays written
for her then-syndicated newspaper column.
She writes about her children, diapers, potty training, the time her
mother knit a miniature sweater--</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">with</span><i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">
toothpicks--</i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">for a toy bear</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Her
writing is amicable, soothing, warm--as if we were seated in a kitchen, nibbling
on a Sunday brunch of warm cocoa and orange marmalade on French toast, as we
chat about our lives. And yet, it is
cogent and cohesive; her themes, perceptive, well-developed. Her writing is a bit <i>wordy</i>. But I like it. She
writes that her writing is <i>just </i>about
her life. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">“Now,”
she writes, “I document <i>ordinary</i> daily life.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">But
it is charming and absorbing, to peek into Maynard's life. She grew up in a
small New England town, more rural than suburban. Making pie crusts was both a hobby and a
passion. (“I know by heart the<i> Joy of Cooking</i> recipe for blueberry
muffins and the names of all the seven dwarfs and eight reindeer.”)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Maynard
writes about the births of her three
children, the perennial balance of work and family, and her childhood home. A few of the chapters include other topics,
such as "Babysitter Problems,"
Christmas in her household, tomato sauce, dolls and doll-houses, "How
I married Steve," "Baby Love," and a wistful look back at her
sixteen-year old self.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">In
an iconic anecdote, Maynard describes her first meeting with Peg, the woman who
was to make her slipcovers: </span><span style="line-height: 115%;">“.</span><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="line-height: 115%;">.</span><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="line-height: 115%;">. Because
I was still pretty busy getting the children out the door to preschool and
second grade, getting the lunch boxes packed, the library books gathered up, I
had to ask Peg to wait a minute.”</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Once
the kids were dispatched to school, she said to the slipcover maker, “I'm
sorry. . . It's pretty hectic around
here in the mornings. Getting three
children dressed and out the door. . .”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">To
which Peg replied, "I know. . . I had <i>nine</i>."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> A precocious child, Maynard first published at
age fourteen. At eighteen, she wrote the
celebrated <i>New York Times</i> <i>Magazine </i>essay<i>,</i> "An Eighteen-year Old Looks Back
on Life"--to be perceived thereafter as the ‘voice of her generation.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Later,
her memoir <i>At Home in the World </i>revealed
she had lived with renowned novelist J. D. Salinger for almost a year. He was fifty-three years old; she was <i>nineteen</i>!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;">Domestic Affairs </span></i><span style="line-height: 115%;">is a lovely, likable book that “validates”—to use
Maynard’s word—mothers, babies, children, family life—all things domestic. The anecdotes are endearing: when she makes
tomato sauce, or spends an hour readying the kids to play in just-fallen snow
only to return indoors after “exactly <i>eight</i>
<i>minutes.”</i> Or when she reads the story of Babar the
elephant to her young son. The book<i> </i>feels warm, cuddly, comfy—like a teddy bear or like “the
Lazy-Boy” recliner chair she once coveted.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Whether
unconventional or traditional, Joyce Maynard’s life is full, rich, interesting.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">--Yolanda
A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Check out this article by Joyce Maynard:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joyce-maynard/joyce-maynard-novel_b_685191.html</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And her website:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">http://www.joycemaynard.com</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-24252568599817268992013-01-23T06:20:00.000-08:002013-01-23T07:03:16.323-08:00FINDING MY BALANCE by Mariel Hemingway<br />
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<i>Finding My Balance</i>
is the bittersweet memoir of Mariel Hemingway, an author, </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
yogini and former actress.
The granddaughter of the renowned adventurer and </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
novelist Ernest Hemingway, the author recounts watershed
moments in her life, </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
as she morphs from young adulthood into adulthood. We get
to see her at </div>
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age 12 as she cares for her chronically ill mother. </div>
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<br /></div>
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As a teen, she starred in films like“Manhattan”--with Woody Allen--and </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Personal Best,” in which
she plays an athlete, and “Lipstick”--with sister Margaux, </div>
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a model and
actress. Unfortunately, as a consequence of Mariel’s success in films, </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
her relationship with Margaux
becomes estranged. In fact, the only familial relationship </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
in the book that’s not dysfunctional
is with her father, Jack, an outdoorsman, who instilled </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
in Mariel a love of nature.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Each chapter begins with a yoga pose: Warrior, Eagle, Rabbit,
etc. Mariel describes </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
herself as she assumes each pose. In one chapter, she details her devotion to
her </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
guru, Paramahansa Yogananda and how he changed her
life. She also details her </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
stringent/extreme diets: “I routinely skipped meals in favor
of iced, blended espressos </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
with vanilla—no milk, no sweetener.” Another guru (though a reluctant one) is
Dr. Peter </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Evans who got her to give up coffee and to re-vamp her diet.
“Two buttered eggs for </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
breakfast with fruit or buttered toast.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We get to experience Mariel’s intense heartache as she copes
with the deaths of her </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
mother, sister, and father.
Throughout these crises, yoga and meditation saved her life. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The last crisis in the book is that of her husband’s illness
and how she survived that. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The last chapter is comprised of a series of yoga poses.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Finding My Balance</i>
is the wonderfully readable story of a woman as she teeters, at first, </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
within her life and
then, through yoga, stands grounded on the earth, within her skin. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Mountain Pose.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
--Yolanda A. Reid</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Check out Mariel Hemingway’s website at <a href="http://www.marielhemingway.com/">www.marielhemingway.com</a>. Also check out </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
an article on her new documentary, "Running from Crazy", about her family history at http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/21/health/hemingway-film/index.html.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-69085662881852769422013-01-14T20:09:00.000-08:002013-01-18T18:34:12.568-08:00KITCHEN CHINESE by Ann MahIn author Ann Mah's first novel, <i>Kitchen Chinese</i>, the main character
gets fired from her job<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
and dumped by her boyfriend of eighteen months--all in the same
week. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A hip and savvy New Yorker, Isabelle Lee is an independent,
fashionable, modern young woman<br />
who works for <i>Belle</i> magazine. After being fired, Isabelle follows her mother's advice and<br />
moves
to Beijing, where she shares an apartment with her sister, Claire.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In Beijing, Claire arranges for an interview so that
Isabelle becomes "the dining </div>
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editor at Beijing NOW. . . an English-language magazine for
expats." </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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The <i>Kitchen Chinese</i> of the novel's title is
Isabelle's rudimentary Chinese--which she defines<br />
as "Just basic conversation. . . .
Simple words I picked up in the kitchen, spending time with<br />
my
mom." Throughout the book, she struggles to fully understand what
people are saying to her.<br />
In one scene,
she overhears two women in the community bathroom talking about
her.<br />
She flees the room.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Though she looks like everyone else, in Beijing Isabelle
regards herself as American.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
She is constantly having to confront this issue: as she
chats in the cab, with her </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
date Charlie, the cab driver realizes she is a
"laowai" or a foreigner. When Isabelle is introduced<br />
to Kristin at a restaurant, and
Kristin compliments her on her English, Isabelle's companion<br />
explains,
"Isabelle is American. She grew up
in New York."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Isabelle wonders, "Though I've only been in China for a
few months, has my Americanness </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
been erased?"
This leads to an identity crisis--for Isabelle, all of China is a social
experiment<br />
that elicits themes worthy of existential philosophers and posits
the question:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Are we who we perceive ourselves to be? Or are we whomever others perceive us to be?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“As Isabelle, I am articulate, confident, even sometimes,
witty; as Li Jia [her Chinese name]</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I feel . . . slow, able only to understand the edges of a [Chinese] conversation."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ann Mah, the author, is adroit and expert in her use of
English. I loved savoring the language,</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
the information on
Chinese food, the sense of living in contemporary Beijing. <i>Kitchen
Chinese </i><br />
feels authentic (especially if you've always wanted to visit China).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Each chapter opens with a quote that references Chinese food
or history, and is sprinkled with </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Chinese phrases and an eclectic vocabulary. Of the handful of recipes at the end of the
book not<br />
one is for Chinese food. And despite the Chinese phrases, Isabelle seems <i>so</i> American.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Moreover, I liked that the novel rendered the inner dynamic
of a Chinese family--mother to </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
daughter, sister to sister. (As a reader, I’d like to see what happens to
Isabelle and Claire<br />
in a novel sequel.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Kitchen Chinese </i> is a wonderful first novel, suffused with the
ambience of Beijing,</div>
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and I eagerly await <i>any</i>
second book author Ann Mah publishes.</div>
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---Yolanda A. Reid<br />
<br />
<br />
Check out Ann Mah's blog at <a href="http://www.annmah.net/">www.annmah.net</a>.</div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-8361988799560810842013-01-06T07:47:00.000-08:002013-01-06T08:15:07.517-08:00EAT PRAY LOVE by Elizabeth Gilbert<br />
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<span style="color: #333333;">Lately, Elizabeth Gilbert is my new favorite author. Her
book,</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast;"> </span></span><i><span style="color: #333333;">Eat Pray Love</span></i><span style="color: #333333;">,</span> <span style="color: #333333;">chronicles her journey
out of an unhappy marriage, as well as her inward journey</span> <span style="color: #333333;">through meditation as
she travels Italy, India, and Indonesia. </span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast;"> </span></span><i><span style="color: #333333;"> Eat Pray Love</span></i><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast;"> </span></span><span style="color: #333333;">unfolds</span> <span style="color: #333333;">with an assortment of truly interesting characters, amid
the author's personal revelations</span> <span style="color: #333333;">and tidbits of information on each country. </span></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333;">Gilbert experiences eating-bliss in Italy with delectable
pasta and pizza; devotion</span> <span style="color: #333333;">through meditation at her guru’s ashram in India;
and true love in Indonesia.</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast;"> </span></span><span style="color: #333333;"><br />
<br />
Two characters emerge, both in Bali. First, Ketut Liyer, a medicine man who
exudes</span> <span style="color: #333333;">mystery,wisdom,
surprising us most when he reveals that he "shares" his wife Nyomo</span> <span style="color: #333333;">with his brother.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333;">In
their first encounter, Ketut reads the author’s palm. He sums up her
past, present,</span> <span style="color: #333333;">and
future—then adds, “Someday soon you will come back here to Bali.”</span> <span style="color: #333333;">So she sets out to help fulfill the prophecy by planning
a return trip to Bali.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333;">Upon Gilbert’s return, Ketut assigns her the "smile
from liver" meditation.</span> <span style="color: #333333;">Gilbert
was a good student: the book's cover photo features her smiling a</span> <span style="color: #333333;">deep sentient
smile--from the heart.</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast;"> </span></span><span style="color: #333333;"><br />
<br />
The second character is Wayan, an herbal doctor in her thirties. Like Gilbert,
she is</span> <span style="color: #333333;">a
divorcee; unlike Gilbert, she was once a battered wife. Wayan said,
"To lose balance</span> <span style="color: #333333;">sometimes for love is part of living a balanced
life."<br />
<br />
Finally, what I love about</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast;"> </span></span><i><span style="color: #333333;">Eat Pray Love</span></i><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast;"> </span></span><span style="color: #333333;">is exemplified when the author writes,</span> <span style="color: #333333;">"I was not rescued
by a prince; I was the administrator of my own rescue."</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; vertical-align: top;">
<span style="color: #333333;">—Yolanda A. Reid</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333;">_____________________________</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
Copyright
© 2013 by Y.A. Reid<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Note:
This article first appeared on my other blog a couple years ago. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Eat Pray Love</i><span class="apple-converted-space"><i> </i></span>is such an
inspirational story and book, however, that I am publishing it here as well. This is a book I read at least once a year.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<u1:p></u1:p>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-74169403172046014042012-12-30T09:26:00.000-08:002012-12-30T10:39:09.311-08:00ON BOOKS I READ IN 2012<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As
the end of 2012 approaches, I 've</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">re-assessed the books I read throughout the year.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Some
of the books I read were biographies
of Cleopatra and Audrey
Hepburn, an <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 80.15pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">assortment
of business books, a self-help book and
a fairy tale about a girl who saves <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">her
eleven brothers. None of those books is
mentioned on this list, however. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 80.15pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Furthermore,
only two of the books on this list were previously reviewed on this blog. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 80.15pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Lastly,
the list includes Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs. Though
this blog is <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 80.15pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">about
women authors/subjects, I chose to make an exception of Steve Jobs as he was </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 80.15pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">such a </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">cultural
icon—changing </span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">all</i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> of our lives,
including my own.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 20.25pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 20.25pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">1.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ali in Wonderland</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> by Ali Wentworth—This book is a candid,
witty, heartfelt, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">at times amusing take
on TV/media personality Ali Wentworth’s life (especially when <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">she finds herself in absurd
situations). <i>Ali in Wonderland</i> begins
with the author’s <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">break-up with her fiancé
(who had proposed in an Irish castle).
She left <i>him</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Imagine her distress
when, six weeks later, she discovered a
message on his answering <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">machine that implied
that he’d gotten married and was departing on a trip to the <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Bahamas.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 20.25pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 20.25pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">2.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Married to Bhutan </span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> by Linda Leaming--the author's well-written
memoir of a <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 2.25pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">year-long
stay in Bhutan, which is—according to
Leaming--“a tiny Buddhist country” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 2.25pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">that
borders India and China. There she
taught English, learned and struggled with the <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 2.25pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Bhutanese
language, got acquainted with their
customs and met and wed her husband.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 20.25pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 20.25pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">3.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My Berlin Kitchen </span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">by Luisa Weiss—My
complete review may be viewed at <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">http://yreidbooks.blogspot.com/2012/12/my-berlin-kitchen-by-luisa-weiss.html.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 20.25pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 20.25pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">4.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Sempre Susan</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
by Sigrid Nuñez--I really enjoy Sigrid Nuñez' writing. She has a <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 2.25pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">thoughtful,
cultivated--one might say, intellectual—approach to writing. She rarely <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 2.25pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">chooses
the obvious word. I like that. The night I was reading this book, I had <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 2.25pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">to
look up <i>ungemutlich</i>--although I spent
a summer trying to learn beginner-level <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 2.25pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">German,
years ago<i>.</i> It's a German word for messy or nasty. So I learned <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 2.25pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">something
new (though I doubt I'll EVER use this word).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Moreover, no one should
be put off by the title. "Sempre"
just means always (in <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Italian). That said, the book is a memoir of Nuñez'
non-romantic relationship with <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">author/writer Susan
Sontag. Nuñez was Sontag's personal
assistant, even as she <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">dated/lived with
Sontag's son, David.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A well-crafted and
bittersweet tale, <i>Sempre Susan</i> is a
sort of "All About Eve" for the <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">literati or literary
set.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 20.25pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 20.25pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">5.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Steve Jobs</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> by Walter Isaacson--I'd been a fan of Steve
Jobs from the time my <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">mom bought our first
family PC (an Apple). So when this book
was published, I felt <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">compelled to read it. I got to re-live Steve Jobs' brilliant
meteoric life. Also, the dark <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">moments. Though I did not know him personally, I liked
Steve Jobs. But--as with <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">every biography I’ve
ever read--the subject (Steve Jobs) is revealed as flawed and <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">imperfect. Nevertheless,
I loved this book.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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Gretchen Rubin--I read and really liked this book earlier <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">this
year. My complete review is posted at http://www.yreidbooks.blogspot.com/<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">the-happiness-project-by-gretchen-rubin.html.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">--Yolanda A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">_______________________________<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Copyright ©
2012-2013 by Y.A. Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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yolandaareidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14625226693770861985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-413899919354972053.post-10843682587122631042012-12-04T19:19:00.000-08:002012-12-06T15:34:06.990-08:00MY BERLIN KITCHEN by Luisa Weiss<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">"I was born in Berlin in 1977, back when it was
still known as West Berlin"--so writes</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">author Luisa
Weiss in her memoir, <i>My Berlin
Kitchen. </i> That Berlin bore <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">"the pockmarks from mortar fire in the façades
of many buildings and the air <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">smelled of coal smoke."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Three years after young Luisa was born, she and her
father returned to Boston. For years,
she <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">traveled intermittently--spending “summers in Italy with my mother’s family,” and
winters <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">in Boston. At
age ten, she moved back to Berlin to live with her mother, attended high <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">school, then returned to Boston for college, then
went onto Paris for graduate school.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It is an eclectic, international, peripatetic life.
"So I looked for home in [my] kitchen."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As a child, Luisa spoke Italian with her mother,
English with her father and the nanny--<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">while speaking German to the outside world. As an adult, she speaks four languages <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">and seems remarkably well-adapted, flexible, and
self-aware.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">"As I grew up," she writes, "moving
around from Berlin to Boston to Paris to New York,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I discovered that cooking was the reliable way to
feel less alone."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">"...By summoning the flavors of Berlin and the
foods of my loved ones, my kitchen became<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">my sanctuary, the stove my anchor."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Major themes of Weiss' life and character are
flux--movement from city to city,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">constantly adapting--and a "perpetual homesickness." The author acclimates herself <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">in each new city through food. "And just like in Paris," she
writes, "whenever I needed <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">some quiet time alone, I'd head to the grocery
store."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">From the recipes at the end of each chapter, one
sees that Weiss often favors rustic</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">food with peasant origins. Her favorite dish as a child was a potato
vegetable soup—<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">"Braised Artichokes and Potatoes"--from Italy
that her grandmother used to make. Then </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">there's </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">“Depression Stew,” her father's concoction. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Two kinds of pizza--Sicilian </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">and
Neapolitan--are </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">featured, as well as recipes for "Tomato </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Bread
Soup," "German Pea Soup," "Potato Salad" </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">(which they seem to eat quite often in </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Germany). </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Also, "</span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Flammkuchen</i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">” or flatbread, "Apple
Tart," </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">"Quark Cheesecake," </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">and "White
Asparagus </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Salad."</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My
Berlin Kitchen </span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">introduces us to German cuisine. Snacks, foods, lore, customs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">How Berliners celebrate Christmas--with lots of Christmas
cookies, fruit bread, goose, and<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">plum cake.
Their surprising friendliness and reverence for neighbors. How Berliners </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">gorge at </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">breakfast time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">German cuisine?
Previously, my knowledge of German cuisine was that I'd eaten <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">sauerkraut and hot dogs as a kid, I'd heard of <i>wiener schnitzel </i> and have a faint
childhood <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">memory of biting into liverwurst and not liking
it. So this is foreign territory for
me. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But as I read <i>My
Berlin Kitchen</i>, I found myself thinking of trying out some of the yummy </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">recipes </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">(despite the fact that cooking is not my forté).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Moreover, I had the sense that the foods and recipes
and love story comprised a modern-day<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">German fairy tale--in which Berlin is a romantic
city, filled with Quark and <i>Flammkuchen</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">To</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Weiss,
Berlin is "the linden-scented city."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">She writes, "When the days start to lengthen
and the trees bloom and the air fills <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">with the scent of linden blossoms, warming earth,
and budding leaves, it <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">comes as such a relief, such a much-deserved reward
for having survived another <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">bone-cold winter, that one could almost believe that
Berlin was an equatorial paradise."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A beautiful portrait of the author's life emerges
alongside the formerly beleaguered Berlin—<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">"with its overcast winter skies and inescapable
history often gets the short end of the stick <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">when it comes to capturing the imagination of food
lovers and romantics." </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To the
skeptics, Weiss </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">answers: Berlin
</span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">is</i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> romantic </span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">and</i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> a food lover's delight. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">After all, she found two loves:
Sam (who </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">believed true
love was "a fantasy") and Max </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">(whom she met in high school in Berlin, fell in love with in </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Paris, and </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">wed in Italy).</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Ultimately, </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Weiss </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">found</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">happiness, fulfillment, friends </span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">and</i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
true love in Berlin--</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">by </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">following her self-declared</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">motto, "Be brave."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At one point,
chameleon-like Weiss discusses breakfasts as they differ in each
country.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">"Italians eat dry little cookies [<i>krumiri</i>] for breakfast," she
writes. In Boston, she eats <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Raisin Bran "bathed in cold milk" or
"hot cream of wheat for breakfast."
In Berlin—<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">where a <i>smorgasbord </i>of ham, Quark, liverwurst,
cheese is the norm--she eats German <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">"sourdough bread" shaped like "a
dozen Princess Leia buns fused together in a pan."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My
Berlin Kitchen </span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">is
beautifully written, poetic as well as introspective. As readers, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">we become privy to Weiss' feelings and thoughts as
she decides, for example, to leave one <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">wannabe-fiancé (Sam) because she was unhappy. And, of course, there is the food--<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">at once sumptuous and exotic and rustic.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In summation,
"When you grow up all mishmashed like I did, with an American passport </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">and </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Italian citizenship and a birth certificate issued
in West Berlin it might take a </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">little longer </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">than usual to figure out your place in
the world. You're this strange </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">little hybrid of a person, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">easily adaptable, fluent
in many languages, an outsider everywhere."</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My
Berlin Kitchen </span></i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">would go on my list of <b> </b></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Best Books of 2012.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">---Yolanda A.
Reid<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Check out Luisa Weiss' blog at
www.thewednesdaychef.com and her photostream of <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">the many cities in <i>My Berlin Kitchen </i>at www.flickr.com/photos/74932844@N00/.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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