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Monday, January 28, 2008Luscious LanguageLast night, I learned a new word. Orgulous. Read it. Speak it aloud. Let it roll off your tongue. Orgulous. Orgulous. Delightful, isn't it? Granted, it's archaic. I doubt you'll hear it in conversation. I stumbled upon it while reading the forward to my Easton Press edition of Pride and Prejudice. As a side note, no, I don't normally read forwards. It's just that I'd finished the novel, and, like a lover reluctant to part from her beloved, I didn't want to close the cover for untold months, until the next beck and call of my favorite author's masterpiece. So, in desperation, I turned to the forward, just to have a few more delicious pages to feel beneath my fingers. That's where Lady Catherine de Burgh was aptly described as "orgulous." Readers of Pride and Prejudice -- or, at the very least, viewers of a decent movie rendition of the same (which immediately excludes the 2006 travesty) -- will be able to deduce the meaning of "orgulous." For those without the pleasure of Lady Catherine's acquaintance: orgulous means haughty. Proud. But doesn't "orgulous" say it so much better? Doesn't the very onomatopoeia of the word spell it out with more depth, more flavor? Orrrrrrrrgulous. Why do the best words in our language die away? Orgulous doctors. Orgulous college professors. Orgulous church ladies. Orgulous administrators. Orgulous female senators. I could really start having some fun here. Naturally, I won't dare to use this word in my writing. For one thing, nobody would know what I meant (except you, my dear readers). For another thing, Eric would ridicule me till the proverbial cows came home. No, seriously. He still quotes some of my absolute-worst, edited-out-sentences from previous drafts. In this house, bad writing dies hard. Orgulous of him, don't you think? And that was my treat for the week. Slim pickings, perhaps. But in my book, a nice, juicy, not-oft-heard word goes a long way. Pun sort of intended. Feel free to share your favorite, lip-smacking words! Wednesday, December 12, 2007Jane Austen: Another Heart CapturedThere's a hard-and-fast rule in this household: You can't watch the movie until you've read the novel. There's one exception to this rule: Eric. It is sometimes painfully true that you can't teach an old dog new tricks. And while I'm certainly grateful for my husband's passionate enjoyment of various period movies, there is a part of me that views him as -- well, almost blasphemous. How can one continue, in good conscience, to enjoy film adaptations of novels by Austen and Dickens and Forster and such, and still refuse to read the books? However, I digress. For in whatever way Eric may be falling short of literary bliss, my daughter Maggie is certainly stepping to bat. It's true. My thirteen-year-old daughter has fallen in love with Jane Austen. Admittedly, the love affair had a rocky start. At my encouragement, Maggie began reading Emma several months ago. "Then you can watch both versions with us," I said, "and let me know which one you think is truer to the book." She got a few chapters in and stopped dead. I don't know what killed it for her, but something certainly did. I was brokenhearted, but I knew that nagging would not produce an Austenite, so I let it be. Strangely enough, the book that supplanted Emma was Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell -- a tome three times as long and wordier than Dickens. Maggie read it from cover to cover in record time. Okay, slight confession here. We all watched Wives and Daughters prior to having read the novel. But I've got a simple explanation. I didn't know it was a novel. I mean, have you ever heard of Elizabeth Gaskell? Anyway, it took me seven months to wade my way through Wives and Daughters, and after being blown out of the water by my speedreading daughter, I casually pointed out that Jane Austen would seem like a much easier read now that she'd tackled Gaskell's masterpiece. Wonder of wonders -- Maggie picked up the spurned Emma and read it. And loved it. So we watched Gwyneth's version, and we watched Kate's version, and I watched my daughter fall in love with some of the best actors and actresses to ever grace the screen. She has some fairly strong opinions about the different versions, too. And she won't mince her words if you ask her about it. Just like her mama. So now she's reading Pride and Prejudice. Oh, the joy of asking her, "So, where did you stop reading? What just happened?" and hearing her respond, "Well, Charlotte just said she'd marry Mr. Collins!" And then joining together in shrieks of disgust and horror at the thought. Ah! I've hatched an Austenite! My life is just that much more complete. Daddy (the inveterate non-reader of Jane Austen) is excited to watch A&E's magnificent Pride and Prejudice with our newly Austenized daughter over the Christmas holiday. Will she swoon over Mr. Darcy? Clench her lips indignantly at Lady Catherine de Burgh? Fall in love with the breathtaking views of northern England? Long for the days of silken gowns and proper courtship? I'm confident that she will. Will Eric ever actually read the book? I doubt it. But at least he was smart enough to buy me a red leather Easton Press copy of it a few years ago. And if you count his enjoyment of my reading the book out loud to him in my best British accent, I suppose you can safely say that he does, after all, appreciate the genius of Jane Austen's writing. I love being a book snob. Really, I do! Wednesday, May 16, 2007Book PollOkay, as a young adult writer, I've often got questions burning on my brain, and now you'll be privy to some. Please take a moment and post your answers in the comment box -- I'm seriously interested in reading them! 1. If you have children, work with children, or enjoy reading young adult novels -- who are you favorite authors and why? 2. How do you feel about today's trend of more "sex and stuff" in novels labeled "young adult?" 3. What do you feel differentiates between an "adult" and a "young adult" novel? 4. What kind of stories do you feel most comfortable allowing your children (or students) to read and why? 5. It has often been said that fantasy is an excellent genre for encouraging the "reluctant reader" to READ. Do you agree or disagree? Labels: books Friday, March 23, 2007A Friday Meme: ONE BOOKI know, I know, I don't "do" memes. But I really like Tarie, and this meme is LITERARY! So here goes (with thanks to Tarie for tagging me): 1. One book that changed your life Hmm. Well, God's Word has changed my life and continues to do so, but for the sake of this meme I will stick to fiction. I would have to say that it was probably Deryni Rising by Katherine Kurtz. Her books are the ones that propelled me into the world of fantasy novels. And since that's what I'm writing now, I guess that would be fairly significant. 2. One book you have read more than once Just ONE? Well, I'll have to choose Pride and Prejudice, then, since Jane Austen is my favorite author. But for the record -- I've read most of my favorites at least twice. I mean, that's what favorites are for, yes? 3. One book you would want on a desert island Assuming I'd feel like reading in that oppressive heat, it would have to be a one-volume edition of the entire Lord of the Rings. That would keep me busy for a good, long time while I waited to be rescued. 4. One book that made you laugh. Okay, now I'm breaking my own "fiction only" rule, but I'm going to have to say Eats, Shoots, and Leaves by Lynne Truss. 5. One book that made you cry Well, I've mentioned this before, but I cry every time I read The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey out loud to my children. Every time. 6. One book you wish had been written I wish that Jane Austen had lived long enough to complete Sanditon. I have read the novel as it was completed by another author, but it was horrible. It wasn't my Jane speaking. I would like to know how she would have fleshed out the book herself. 7. One book you wish had never been written Wow. There's an awful lot of stinky schlock out there for middle graders and young adults. I wish there were more quality children's authors, like Diana Wynne Jones and Kate Constable. 8. One book you are currently reading I'm reading (slowly but surely) Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell. 9. One book you have been meaning to read I've never read Anne McCaffrey and feel as though I ought to, being a fantasy reader/writer and all. Except that, every time I go to Borders and start reading her jacket flaps, they don't draw me in. So I haven't begun. I've got some Dickens on my "to be read" list as well, but I have to be in a particular sort of mood to read Dickens. Okay, dear readers, it's your turn. I refuse to tag anyone, so here's my request: Take a few moments and answer the meme right here in the comment box! I look forward to reading your responses. Happy Weekend! Wednesday, January 24, 2007Will I Ever (EVER!) Simply Enjoy A Novel Again?I taught myself to read when I was four and haven't stopped since. I found my "writer's voice" at age six, lost my way for a while, but ultimately returned to my true passion and haven't looked back. Sounds like the two should go well together, right? Any writer worth his salt is also an avid reader. Reading (good stuff) improves our writing. And writing feeds our need to keep reading. Except, I've run into a problem. I find that, ever since I've tackled writing on a "this is my lifelong career" level, I have trouble reading novels uncritically. And it stinks. Right now I'm reading Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell (a nineteenth century British author). I'm loving the dialogue, the character portrayals (she's a master), the British-ness of it all. But Elizabeth Gaskell does something that drives me crazy -- something I'd never even thought about until I started writing novels myself. Elizabeth Gaskell shifts her point of view. Constantly. Twice on the same page, even. First we're in Molly's head, then her father's, then Mrs. Hamley's. Then we're back to Molly again. It's beyond distracting, particularly because modern writers are encouraged to stick to one point of view, period. Stay in your protagonist's head, we're told. Don't jump about or you'll confuse your reader. Right. Nobody told that to Mrs. Gaskell. Harry Potter is an excellent example of this modern-day "stay in your protagonist's head" thing. Except for the opening chapters of several of her books that expose a scene that doesn't include Harry (an omnipotent point of view, that), the stories in their entirety are told from Harry's point of view. Not Ron's, not Hermione's, not Hagrid's. Not ever. Everything is beautifully described through Harry's eyes and perceptions. It's "textbook." That's what is expected of writers these days. Maybe it's a dumbing down of society, or maybe it's just a good technique for creating consistency in a story. I haven't decided. I only know that my awareness of point-of-view is destroying my enjoyment of reading-for-pleasure. I recently read one of the most beautifully written young adult novels I've ever laid eyes on: The Singer of All Songs by Kate Constable. Ms. Constable has restored my faith in the modern writer's ability to write truly good, truly lovely, truly well-written prose. It's the first in a trilogy and I'm chomping at the bit to read the remaining two stories. And if you've got a reader in your life who falls into the ten-to-fourteen-year-old category, and who happens to enjoy fantasy, grab this book immediately and throw it in the child's lap. It's a must-read. The Singer of All Songs tells the tale strictly from the viewpoint of Calwyn, the protagonist -- except for the chapter in which Calwyn is stolen by pirates. There's a scene that takes place on a separate boat, where Calwyn's comrades are being held captive. Calwyn isn't there, but suddenly we are thrust into the hold and exposed to the story from someone else's eyes. It is jarring. Deeply disturbing, even. There I was, experiencing the entire, marvelous tale through Calwyn's eyes, and when someone else took the reigns, it bothered the bananas out of me. I don't think it would have fazed Elizabeth Gaskell. Thing is, Ms. Constable probably gave a lot of thought to how she was going to handle this particular scene. She might have done it differently. The scene in the hold might've been recounted to Calwyn later, as backstory. But there was something about the tension, the immediateness of the scene, that ultimately led the author to choose the viewpoint switch. If I weren't a writer, I don't think I would have noticed. As it stood, I found myself gasping for figurative breath and trying to rectify this woman's beautiful, almost flawless writing with the fact that she had unabashedly switched her point of view. See what I mean? I'm ruined for life. I guess it's this way with a lot of things. My dental hygienist, who is divorced but hoping to find Mr. Right, claims that she is not interested in men with bad teeth. My husband, who manages a group of fellow computer geeks, is often heard exclaiming that he hates computers. And I'm sure that the folks who design the rides at Disney World have long since lost the sense of "magic" those rides are supposed to offer. Still. Reading is such a simple pleasure. I've got to find some way to reclaim it. Don't even say it. I already know I'm anal retentive. There's got to be another explanation. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Monday, October 09, 2006Books, An Endangered SpeciesPrepare yourself for a Monday Afternoon Rant. I was standing in the check-out line at Kohl's department store. Nothing too exciting, just a pair of pantyhose for some upcoming weddings (yes, it's true; until this past Saturday, I did not own any pantyhose). Kohl's always has some kind of gimmicky, five-dollar, buy-it-for-your kid display near the check-out registers. Right now, it's a display of "Collector's Edition" hardcover Dr. Seuss classics, along with some cheesy stuffed characters from each story. Front and center was one of my favorites, How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Yep, that one's almost older than I am. So a woman with two children took her place in line behind me. Her daughter, who looked about nine or so, gasped and pointed emphatically to the nearest Grinch book. "Mama! They have a book now!" I continued to eavesdrop despite the loud noise of my jaw hitting the linoleum. "Well, I think there was a book..." Mama didn't sound too sure. "NO." Daughter knew Everything. "There WASN'T." That did it. There was no possible way I could keep my mouth shut for another nanosecond. "Yes, there was," I said in my most Educated Voice. "That was a book when I was your age." The child simply gaped. Really, it was an all-out gape. "I thooooought it was a book," said Mama in her lazy drawl. "I don't remember if we got it or not..." No, madam, you most certainly didn't "get" it. You didn't "get" the fact that children should read books first and enjoy the videos afterward. You didn't "get" your daughter to realize that books are treasures, wonders of the imagination; that they're an integral part of every child's education. A child who can read can learn anything. A child who watches videos will become a passive learner. Yes, my children have watched How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Heck, it's one of my favorite Christmas specials. But you'd better believe we've read the book, too. Same goes with Narnia, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and The Secret Garden. Book first, movie second. I know we live in a "click the remote" society, but I'll admit that I'm flabbergasted. It blows me away that a child would be completely unaware that The Grinch is a classic Dr. Seuss book. That she's never read it, okay. But that she didn't know it existed? That she insisted this was a brand new phenomenon, ready for the taking at the incredible price of five dollars? Oy. And the worst part? Her mother wasn't even sure! How can you be thirty-something years old, live in the USA, and not know that Dr. Seuss wrote a book about a Grinch? That scares me. Okay, I'm a writer. Writing for youngsters is what I do! One day, when my wildly popular fantasy series hits the big screen, I will shrivel up and die if I hear a child say, "You mean this was a book?" A. A. Milne and Beatrix Potter are rolling in their graves. Labels: books |
About Me
I am: Mother to five stunningly individualistic children... Writer of young adult fantasy... Passionate advocate for Women At Home... Madly in love with my husband... In need of Organic Gourmet Chocolate on a regular basis. I've got a Paypal account if you'd like to contribute to the cause....
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