I recently saw a story somewhere online about a farmer in Siberia who has a colony of cats on his property who have evolved to thrive in such cold weather as they have in that part of the world. (See above for a representative photo.Wouldn’t you think their little paws get a bit cold?)
I can’t seem to track down the original story right now, but trust me, these kitties are TOUGH.
My main question is whether perhaps (fat) Cowboy really has life goals of being a Siberian cat. The only downfall is that Cowboy has short fine fur, so perhaps she’s bulking herself up to make up for that loss. š
Whatever you might think about (Sir) Elton John, heās not boring and this autobiography (written with help from Alexis Petridis, a British music critic) brings descriptions, one after the other, of how Eltonās life was so far from normal in so many ways. And yet, this well-written book also brings to the surface how pretty typical Elton is himself as a person. Itās fascinating. Itās intriguing. Itās utterly hilarious in places. (I adored Eltonās self-deprecating comments.)
A few years ago, I was lucky enough to buy some tickets to see Elton John on tour locally when he came through our particular city. I wasnāt that jazzed to see him: āā¦but come on ā itās SIR Elton John and I bet itāll be a laughā sort of thing. As it turned out, my mum was also in town for this so we took her for her first rock concert.
And I have to admit that Elton John was superb in his performance that night. He plays for a long time ā much longer than others have ā but you look forward to every song since heās got such an impressive songwriting collection (along with Bernie Taupin) that the odds that youāll hear the same song twice is remote ā and he was an excellent performer. My mum was thrilled to this day.
So, I was already predisposed to liking this autobiography since Elton had given us such a professional concert performance and thus, you may not be surprised that I loved this read.
Iām not an Elton John superfan. I donāt have every song on vinyl, I donāt know his music history particularly (outside the typical Top 40 stuff)ā¦ so the fact that I really enjoyed this read just underscores how interesting and superbly-written this autobiography was. There was no need for any grammatical nit-picking of any kind, so it was a well-crafted book.
I think what really pulled me into this read was my perception that Elton (in the voice/perspective used in this book) comes across as a pretty decent guy who is an experienced musician who has trodden down some (self-made, at times) hard roads and has learned something along the way. Itās an education that I trusted because, from his recollections in this book, his life has had such twists and turns that it would be impossible to continue being untouched by it all.
And there seems to be everything in this book, from his pretty awful parents and his mumās (must be) mental illness to his search for love to addiction troubles to where he is now, and the logical and well-organized content flows from one incident to the next. Itās very well done. Thereās a lot of content ā it must have been exhausting to actually live it! ā but itās never overwhelming and although some of these situations are really negative, itās presented in a manner by Elton so that you know heās knows (and recognizes) how OTT some of this is and thatās how he is. (Heās not arrogant about it, but more as though he rolls his eyes and looks skyward with chagrin when he thinks about his earlier life.)
I just loved this read, and I wouldnāt be surprised to see this, early days though it may be, on the Favorites List at the end of the year.
Wandering around the library stacks the other day, I ended up in Kās in Fiction and, in trying to find another book, came across this one and its really lovely book cover. (Gorgeous colors! It mentions stationery!) Not being familiar with either the title or the name of the author, I read the cover copy and was intrigued. It was a library book. It was by a person other than a white one. And I was in the mood for something from another country, regardless which country that was. So ā with nowt to lose, I checked this copy out.
So whatās it about? Itās fiction set in Iran in both 1953 and present day (2013), and focuses on the lives of two characters in particular: two young people (in 1953) whose lives were impacted and interrupted by both Iranās revolution and its cultural mores.
Kamaliās plot revolves around the stationery shop in the title and its bookseller owner as he comes into contact with his customers. Itās quite a clever structure to make the whole plot revolve around this handful of characters who overlap with this bookkeeper in some way, so it was an effective approach.
Two young Iranian lovers arrange to meet and get married at a certain time and at a certain place. To their dismay, their meeting location also turns out to be the same place as where a large political demonstration occurs at that very same time. Chaos ensues, the couple miss each other, wonder what happen but go on to live their lives apart anyway. Much regret of each about the lost opportunity but life sorts itself out ā untilā¦. Pivot. Then comes the twist.
Structurally, the book has some jumping around in it, flipping (as it does) from the chaos of the ongoing revolution in 1953 to modern-day Iran and the US, and at first, I had it fairly sorted out but, as the book continued (and I must admit, I let some days pass in between readings), the time jumps were a little disorienting for me. Linked with that, it seemed as though there were an inordinate number of intimately-related characters who kept popping up.
I admit. It could have been my fault for having a Monkey Mind and for letting a few days pass (and brain cells live and die) between the reading. It wasnāt that it wasnāt well written or anything bad like that because when I finished the read, it was as a satisfied reader. So no doubt itās a good book, but I think I had to sort of gear myself up a bit to refocus on all the strands of the plot and to try and weave some unity out of it all.
Although this might sound like rather a lukewarm review, this was a book that I ended up enjoying after Iād read it all, as opposed to during the actual reading process. I would certainly pick up another of Kamaliās books if that tells you something! š
The Getty Center up in the hills just outside LA. Definitely worth a visit.
We ended up walking about eight miles on Monday ā so our little legs were tired at the end of the day. Tuesday, however, was a brand new day and we elected to take an Uber to the Getty Center up in the hills of LA.
There are actually two Getty places in LA, both different so if I were you, Iād research both and see which one meets your needs. One is more of a villa-type place (with some museum stuff) and the other is a giant research museum with unbelievable architecture high up in the hills. Thatās the one we went to and we ended up spending five hours there just piddling around looking at the various exhibitions and taking one of their docent-led architecture tours with a very entertaining person in charge. (All free, btw, and really recommended.)
One of the views at the Getty…
Loads of things to look at, ranging from photography to Old World Artists, alongside contemporary work and the most amazing architecture (by Richard Meier). The brilliant white of the walls and corners contrasted brightly with the blue sky and it was fantastic.
And then inside one of the buildings of the Getty… And some innovative landscaping as well… It looks rather stark here, but it’s a perfect complement with the architecture.
The hotel we stayed with the wonderful Marina del Rey Hotel, a renovated 1964 hotel on the end of one of the many boat piers around Venice Beach. Super service, lovely people, walkable to a lot of places (including our first Trader Joe experience!) and just loved it.
I have to thank my mum for the trip! š
Some of the contemporary art in the Marina del Rey Hotel.
My lovely mum has been staying over Christmas here in the States, first some time with me here in Texas and then a few days up in Northern California with my sister. As that trip with my sister was coming to a close, mum suddenly phoned me up and invited me to come with her on a whistle-stop visit to Los Angeles, and who am I to say no to that? So, I didnāt. š
We had a fab time. In the end, it was two days in the City of Angels but we got to see a load of things in that short time. Letās proceedā¦
You know how I like to research before I go anywhere interesting, but with this quick turnaround, I hadnāt had that much time to do much more than actually visit the library to pick up some info there. On the plane out to the West Coast, I learned more about the history of LA, and more specifically, the history of Venice Beach (which was the area where we would be staying).
Beside one of the canals in the Venice Beach neighborhood. You might need to search hard for this area, but it’s so worth it. It’s a quiet and relaxing world. just steps away from the streets of LA.
This area of town was started, I think, by a man who happened to be a very wealthy tobacco magnate and who was enamored with Venice, Italy, after his travels there. Wanting to replicate this city on the West Coast, this guy developed some of the wetlands (on which LA was being built) and designed a neighborhood with great architecture and on the pattern of Venice, complete with actual canals and gondolas and small curving bridges to get from one side to the other. Only about three miles of these original canals still exist after all this time, and they happen to be in ā guess where? ā Venice Beach.
So, after quite a bit of tromping around not really getting anywhere useful, we finally asked a friendly local walking his dog if he knew where these canals were and he kindly took us there. (It turned out that this friendly local was actually an expat from Texasā¦ Huh. Small World.)
So mum and I spent quite a bit of wandering around this neighborhood being amazed at the whole thing. The canals are still there, with water and with occasional watercraft, but the waterside does need a general spruce-up. (The real estate prices were unbelievable: one place was going for $3.6 MILLION. Another place could be rented for $12,000/month. You know, if youāre interested.)
So that was fun. We then spent some time wandering along the Oceanfront Path at Venice Beach, people-watching and beach-walking and admiring the sea. Bliss. Then, my mumās sharp eyes spotted a tiny little bookshop (naturally!). Tucked in a corner of a bigger building, mostly a restaurant, there was the Small World Books shop, a small but excellently-stocked bookshop in between t-shirt and henna shops. A little blissful world of books, which we ended up supporting (as you do). Definitely worth a visit, but youāll need to keep your eyes peeled as itās quite easy to miss if youāre looking the other way (at the beach, for example).
Then, after all that, our legs got tired so we walked to the hotel to chill out a bit and then have a bit of a supper. We ended up walking about eight miles on this first day. :-}
The view outside out hotel’s location. Boats, boats and more boats.
Well, hello there. I hope you and your lives are all back in balance after the rather discombobulating holidays at the end of last year, and I hope youāre all getting some good reading done.
The Superhero and I decided to take a quick break just prior to Christmas and jetted down to New Orleans (or the Big Easy, as itās sometimes called) for a few days. It was gorgeous and we stayed at a fantastic renovated B&B (called The Monrose Row Bed and Breakfast) which was managed by a very friendly and excellent person called Cindy. If you ever need a cool place to stay in NOLA, we highly recommend this B&B. Itās close to everything (walkable for most), Cindy is a font of information about the city and where to go, and she is a great cook as well as being very friendly.
View to our room at the B&B…
Itās an old B&B located in one of New Orleansā many historical quarters and Cindy has made this place so welcoming. Truly. Itās also located very close to most of the places a visitor may want to see on his/her trip, and if not, thereās also Uber available throughout the city. (Assume that most trips will average out about $20+ – or at least that is what we found out.)
The last time weād been to New Orleans was ages ago and not that long since Katrina had hit and devastated parts of the city. Now, years later, itās hard to see any long-lasting damage on the buildings although there are now new-and-improved neighborhoods and the city itself feels a little better managed. (It might not be, but on this trip, I definitely felt it was a lot less anarchic than the last trip.)
So, tons of lovely architecture to look at and admire, much of which was specially decorated for Christmas and was just gorgeous to seeā¦
And then, because itās New Orleans, thereās lots of history so naturally we hit up some museums. There was one that featured an exhibit on Mardi Gras and its history (along with some actual costumes ā which are amazing!) and then, we wanted to visit some plantations but only see it from the slavery perspective ā not from the colonial white-man view.
After a quick chat with Cindy, the B&B proprietor, she recommended an all-day tour of two different plantations which met this requirement: one plantation from a (white ā of course) woman-owned perspective (which is pretty rare) and another plantation from the perspective of African slaves who were imprisoned and forced to work there. Both of these historical experiences were so informative and really emotionally moving, especially when you learned more about the actual people who were enslaved in each place. Itās horrifying that it was real and actually happened, but perhaps people have learned from thisā¦ (One can only hope.)
That was a sobering experience for us, and after researching these plantation trips, I recognized a picture of one of the most famous white-man plantations except the pic of the place was used as an example of āglorious southern hospitalityā on a Visit Mississippi ad on TV. (People ā research the pics before you use them in your campaign!)
Yassum, I kin tell you things about slavery times dat would make yo’ blood bile, but dey’s too terrible. I jus’ tries to forgit. (Amy Chapman, former slave.)
The plantation that was wholly (white) woman-owned and run…
All in all, a fantastic trip for us, especially in the winter months when the humidity is way down and the temperatures arenāt way up (as they are in the summer months). Totally enjoyed the trip and will be back at some point in the future. Highly recommended.
So many plantations with slaves up and down the Mississippi River… š¦And finally, this guy (above) was a “Poet for Hire” and for a donation, he would write you a short poem on his old typewriter!! Some more gorgeous architecture to gaze at…
Like so many others in the book-blog sphere, I enjoy taking a look back at what I’ve read over the past twelve months of 2019 – some have been complete winners and some not, but overall, I’ve been happy with what I’ve read.
Big trends in choosing my titles have been mostly in choosing POC titles and topics and preferably the combo of both titles/authors of color. This has been eye-opening for me, and is a trend that will definitely continue over the future. I’d like to get to the point where I don’t really have to search out names and topics… Until then, I’m going to carry on this special effort to continue that focus until it’s a habit. It’s up to me to educate me, after all.
To the Top Ten Reads of 2019 (in no particular order):
The Rotter’s Club – Jonathan Coe (2001) (F). A novel written around the time that I grew up in England so brought back many happy memories. Plus written in a very creative structure and approach. I have the sequel on the TBR. <rubs hands with anticipatory delight>
Barracoon: The Story of the “Last Cargo” – Zora Neale Hurston (1931) (NF/African-American/History). Just an amazing piece of historical lit… Should be required reading.
There, There – Tommy Orange (2018) (F). An excellent fictional read written about Native Americans in the modern world by a young Native American writer.
Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI – David Grann (2017) (NF/history/Native American). True tale of a series of early 20th century murders in a First Peoples tribe which happened to own large swathes of land with oil reserves on it…
Greengates – R.C. Sheriff (1936) (F). A lovely straightforward mid-century British novel.
Golden Handcuffs: The Secret History of Trump’s Women – Nina Burleigh (2018) (NF/biography). Very useful in trying to understand (if I can) our perplexing president. If this is how he treats his spouse(s)… <smh>.
The Emperor of All Maladies – Siddartha Muhkerjee (2010) (NF/Science/Medical). Fascinating history and biography of cancer.
Why are all the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? – Beverly Daniel Tatum (2003) (NF/sociology/African-American/race). (No blog post [only due to job busy] but you might check out this list of related AfAm NF titles I’ve read…) A timely NF that looks at race and how it plays out in the country today. Valuable on so many levels. We also saw the author speak – wonderful as well.
The October Country – Ray Bradbury (1955) (F/short stories/spec pic). A collection of different spec fiction stories written by a master writer.
The Parable of the Sower – Octavia E. Butler (1993) (F/spec fiction/sci fi). Really good sci fi novel by one of the first (and best) sci fi authors of color (also a woman). Try it even if you’re “not into sci fi”. It’s a good read, however you categorize it.
Other annual reading-related statistics:
Total pages read: 25,253 (average: 275 pp).
Total number of titles read: 94. (Compare with 2018: 77.)
DNFs for the year: 4.
Male: 42.
Female: 41.
Mixed gender (e.g. an anthology etc.): 11.
POC: 30 (for a total of 32%). Close to one in every three titles. Go me. š
NF: 54 (57%)
F: 40.
TBR Titles: 60 off the TBR (of 64% of the total read).
Look at what we spotted at Target in the post-Christmas sales! Diverse Father Christmas/Santa Claus and diverse The Nutcracker characters. Perhaps in other (more metropolitan) cities, seeing diverse holiday decorations is a very commonplace experience, but here in my city (and definitely in my part of the city), these sightings are not that common.
So kudos to Target Corporation for being inclusive in its holiday merchandise! I hope this pace is maintained. Fingers crossed!
