Back to Normal

by Carol2 Comments
I have been so busy the last couple of weeks that I haven't been at the computer much at all. We've had a lot of fun, but I'm kind of glad to get back to my regular schedule this week. Two weeks ago was Vacation Bible School at our church, so all three of us were there every evening from 5:30 to between 8:30 and 9:30, which cuts a lot of time out of the day. This past week, I drove Amber up to Pittsburgh for a day camp. She had a blast spending time in the Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History, learning and making projects. It's definitely worth the time and I did get some reading done, and some shopping. Somewhere in there we went to a Pirates game, too, and we actually won- always surprising. And David's softball team is into the play-offs now. They won the first game but tomorrow they play the best team in the league, so...
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The Tiger, the Brahman, and the Jackal

by Carol6 Comments
"The Tiger, the Brahman, and the Jackal" Today's folk tale comes from India, but once again we see a large, strong animal simply outwitted by another. A tiger is trapped in a cave. A Brahman comes by and the tiger begs and pleads to be let out. The Brahman eventually releases him after the tiger promises not to eat him. Of course once the tiger is loose, his story changes. "What a fool you are! What is to prevent my eating you now, for after being cooped up so long I am just terribly hungry!" The tiger finally agrees to allow the Brahman to tell the story to three things and the tiger will abide by what the three things say. The Brahman asks a tree, a buffalo and the road, but all three agree that the Brahman should expect nothing from the tiger, that it is reasonable for the tiger to eat him. Finally, the Brahman talks to a jackal, who pretends not to...
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Masked edited by Lou Anders

by Carol5 Comments
Masked edited by Lou Anders I loved this collection of superhero fiction. Some of the stories are flat out superhero versus evil villain, yes you know who's going to win, but how does it all happen. Others are not so black and white, the moral line between hero and villain is not always that clear cut. Still other pieces are about people with super powers who are really still dealing with the same issues we all face. In the intro Anders says: The anthology you have before you is just that - an attempt to explore the superhero genre in prose form; not as a pastiche or a parody, or a bunch of writer slujmming it and having a lark at the genre's expense,. but an honest exploration, with the integrity and level of storytelling that contemporary readers of comic books and graphic novesl, as well as fans of films like Iron Man and The Dark Knight, appreciate and demand. You know, "real"...
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My Favorite Man – Made from Gingerbread

by Carol5 Comments
Once your man has come out of your oven, you may have trouble hanging on to him. Men made this war are apt to take off down the road, on motorcycles or off them, robbing convenience stores, getting themselves tattooed, and hopping up and down and singing, "Run, run, as fast as you can, you can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!" Attaching a string to his leg before the oven procedure may help, but — alas — in our experience, not for long. (pg. 40, Good Bones and Simple Murders by Margaret Atwood) This collection is a reread for me, but one I always enjoy. The brief stories, poems and essays are always quirky, often funny. Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Play along. The rules are easy and I only cheated a little. Grab your current read, open to a random page, and give us...
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The Devil Amongst the Lawyers by Sharyn McCrumb

by Carol27 Comments
The Devil Amongst the Lawyers by Sharyn McCrumb This was a good story, although not the story I expected. In 1935, a young school teacher in the remote mountains of Virginia is charged with murdering her father. Because she is beautiful and the story sensational, national reporters are sent to cover the trial, and the young woman's brother seeks exclusive rights to her story, with the money supposedly going to her defense fund. The national reporters don't find the hillbillies living in run down shacks that they expect, so they fabricate them.  Carl Jenkins, a recent college-graduate, is a reporter from Tennessee, who realizes that the star reporters are not actually reporting the truth, more perpetuating myths about Appalachian life. Truth is the main issue here. Reporters shape what they know and see into a story their audience wants. But what is the truth? Is there a truth? The commonwealth's attorney warmed to his topic. "I had one of those reporters ask me...
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