"Eating Animals" by Jonathan Safran Foer

Like author Jonathan Safran Foer, I have flip-flopped for years with the idea of being vegetarian. I've always thought of myself as not committed enough to make the effort to look at the contents of all of my food to figure out whether I'm able to eat it. I am also really uncomfortable with making other people change their menu for me, so I usually just eat whatever is prepared. I've never ever thought of myself as a vegetarian, but I do go through phases where I'm disgusted with the idea of meat. When I picked up "Eating Animals" it was only because it sounded interesting, but after reading it I feel more compelled to stop eating meat than ever before.

Yes, there is much discussion of the suffering of animals in here, but Foer also talks about the environmental effects as well as the possibilities for widespread infections caused by the conditions of factory farming. These two factors are what have really compelled me to question whether eating meat is really worth the effects it is having on our world.

Foer also discusses the conscientious farmers and slaughterhouses that make eating meat seem like a viable option. Unfortunately, these "old school" farmers are being put out of business in droves by the giant factory farming operations. This alone makes this book worthwhile reading because it explains how eating locally and knowing where your food comes from can help to make informed decision about the meat we do choose to eat.

While this book gets a little tedious toward the end, I found it a good and interesting read. I was especially impressed with the first chapter of the book in which Foer explains his reasons for looking into this subject in the first place and talks about his own struggles with the decision to become a vegetarian over the years. The discussion about why we eat some animals (cows, pigs, fish, etc.) and not others (dogs, cats, etc.) was something that really stuck with me. If you've ever considered becoming a vegetarian, but weren't sure why, this book may help you with that decision or push you over the edge to finally doing it.

Best,

Becca

Room by Emma Donoghue

I had the pleasure of reading an advance copy of Emma Donoghue's "Room," released today from Little Brown. While I thought the book was on fast forward at some points, I never tired of the genuine voice of little 5-year-old Jack, the book's narrator and main character. We hear Jack's thoughts as he discovers the truth about his first five years of life, which have been spent locked in a room with his mother. Room and the things in it are all he has ever known.

I'd love to go on about all of the amazing details of this book, but I fear that I will give away too much if I go into the plot of the book. For me part of the joy of reading this novel was that I had no idea what it was about when I received it as my first installment from The Nervous Breakdown's book club (sign up here). Partway through the book I started to read one of the descriptions of the book online and had to stop before finishing the first sentence because it gave away one of the things that had kept me curious through the first chapter (how and when his mother got put in Room), so I want to be careful about what I say here.

All I can say is that this was one of the best books I've read in a very, very long time. The author has perfectly pictured the innocence of youth and how the world of a toddler can be shattered by the realities of the outside world. Jack's voice comes across as genuine and I was fascinated throughout by his interpretations of the world, given that I had the knowledge that the games he and his mother were playing (games like Scream and Keypad) were more than just games. I highly recommend reading this one.

Shout-out to The Nervous Breakdown

Hi All,

I know it's been a long time since I've written, mostly because books are too expensive for me to buy here. I've actually just begun a project to start a "library" for international travelers at one of my local cafes here because I'm so desperate for some new reading material. In the meantime though, I've been really enjoying the pieces on the new and improved site of The Nervous Breakdown.

I know I talk about this site a lot. I do so partly because I'm one of the writers for the site, but mostly because there are a ton of great writers over there. If you haven't checked it out before, I highly recommend you do so. They just revamped the site last month and added a ton of new features, including a FICTION section. It's a great way to discover new and emerging authors.

Also, if you hate reading long essays online, you can check out the books by The Nervous Breakdown writers here. Some of them look really incredible and I can't wait to get home so I can order a bunch of them.

You can also read my reviews of a couple of the books: All About Lulu by Jonathan Evison, Pop Salvation by Lance Reynald, Sic by Brin Friesen, Totally Killer by Greg Olear, and Banned For Life by D.R. Haney.

Enjoy!

Discovering Rumi

The closest bookstore to my house here only has a couple of shelves of English literature in it, so my choices have been rather limited. I haven't had much time for reading anyway, but there are days when I go in and browse the books, hopeful that I'll find a hidden treasure. Mostly, the books are classic literature, like Oliver Twist, Little Women, or War and Peace; or the latest top sellers (the Twilight series). I was leaning toward buying Oliver Twist the last time I was in the bookstore, but then a section of Turkish lit translated into English caught my eye. For some reason I was drawn to Selected Poems by Rumi. I thumbed through the book and some of the prose popped out at me, so it was settled, I had to have it.

I've never been a fan of poetry. I've always thought it was too complicated to understand and I've never been willing to look for deeper meanings and such. I know it's a narrow view, but everyone can't like everything, you know? Even so, I've really enjoyed reading Rumi. He's inspired me. I went out and bought a sketchbook and some colored pencils, then I wrote some of my favorite passages on different pages and began drawing scenes to accompany the prose. I'd love to paint something wonderful that will remind me of these poems when I return to the United States.

After having read quite a bit of this book, I've come to the conclusion that maybe one needs to be in a certain mindset when approaching poetry. I think that is the reason I've been more open to it at this point in my life than I had been previously. If you haven't read Rumi, I highly recommend it. He was full of insight.

Here are a couple of my favorites:

You kiss a beautiful mouth,
and a key turns the lock of your fear.

****

Out beyond ideas of rightdoing and wrongdoing,
there is a field. I'll meet you there.

****
Your task is not to seek for love,
but merely to seek and find
all the barriers within yourself
that you have built against it.

****

Enough Words

How does a part of the world leave the world?
How can wetness leave water?

Don't try to put out a fire
by throwing on more fire!
Don't wash a wound with blood!

No matter how fast you run,
your shadow more than keeps up.
Sometimes, it's in front!

Only full, overhead sun
diminishes your shadow.

But that shadow has been serving you!
What hurts you, blesses you.
Darkness is your candle.
Your boundaries are your quest.

I can explain this, but it would break
the glass cover on your heart,
and there's no fixing that.

You must have shadow and light source both.
Listen, and lay your head under the tree of awe.

When from that tree, feathers and wings sprout
on you, be quieter than a dove.
Don't open your mouth for even a cooooooo.

When a frog slips into the water, the snake
cannot get it. Then the frog climbs back out
and croaks, and the snake moves toward him again.

Even if the frog learned to hiss, still the snake
would hear throughthe hiss the information
he needed, the frog voice underneath.

But if the frog could be completely silent,
then the snake would go back to sleeping,
and the frog could reach the barley.

The soul lives there in the silent breath.

And that grain of barley is such that,
when you put it in the ground,
it grows.

Are these enough words,
or shall I squeeze more juice from this?
Who am I, my friend?

Totally Killer by Greg Olear

I finished Totally Killer, Greg Olear's debut novel, just in time for the semester to start here so now I won't be distracted from my school work. It was definitely good company for me on my bus rides to and from school in the past few weeks though, so I'm going to miss it.

Part murder mystery, part conspiracy, this book, which will be released Tomorrow (September 29), tells the story of how Taylor Schmidt came to be deceased at the tender age of 23 (Not a spoiler! We learn this in the first pages of the book). The narrator, Todd Lander, does all he can to take us back to New York in 1991, the fateful year of Taylor's death.

From talking about what life was like before the Internet (There was a time before the Internet?!), to Todd's sad attempt to win Taylor's love by making her a mixed tape, this book will take you back to the early 90's the way Bret Easton Ellis takes you back to the early 80's in Less Than Zero. It's funny because I never really think of anything really defining the 90's, not in the way that pop music, fluorescent clothing, and awesome hair defined the 80's, but Olear has really captured what the decade had to offer. I especially liked the talk of the economic downturn at the time and what the "slacker" culture really meant. It really got me thinking.

As for the story, I really liked Taylor Schmidt's character, if only because I felt like I really could relate to her (at least in the beginning of the book). I thought some of the book was predictable, but the ending threw me off, which I liked. I felt like I was really wrapped up in the conspiracy by the end, the same way Todd would have felt if he were a real person. I love that about conspiracy fiction. The author (or, more often, filmmaker) spends so much time building up this world and getting you to really buy into and then BAM! nothing is what it seems and you begin to question everything you've just read. I thought Olear did a great job of that.

This was a good read set in a time period I don't really think much about, even though it was the time when most of my growing up happened, so it was a refreshing read. It's obvious Olear did a lot of research on the 90's (or he has a unhealthy attachment to those years). I thought the book was fun to read and I loved the title's play on words (even if I did have the saying "Totally killer, dude" stuck in my head for days). Definitely a good one to check out if you're looking for a quick, fun read.

New Releases

I just got notified that Sue Monk Kidd has a new book out: Traveling With Pomegranates, A Mother-Daughter Story. I'm bummed that I won't be able to read it until I get back to the states, but I figured some of you out there might be interested. It was released on September 8, so it's in stores now.

Also, fellow The Nervous Breakdown writer, Greg Olear, has a book coming out on October 1. I'll be reviewing the book, Totally Killer, in a few days (just as soon as I finish reading it!). Until then, feel free to check out all of the nice things Amazon has to say about the book.

Oh, and I wanted to mention that I'm sorry if you've had trouble finding my blog as of late. Somehow Istanbul ruined my URL so I've had to switch back to a blogspot address. I'm going through the Interwebs today to try to find all of my links and change the URL. Fun stuff, let me tell you.

'Tis by Frank McCourt

After struggling through the first half of My Life in France by Julia Child, I finally put it down for good and picked up 'Tis by Frank McCourt, which I couldn't resist buying while in Dublin. 'Tis is the continuation of the story begun in Angela's Ashes, taking off right where Angela's Ashes ended - with McCourt landing in America to begin his new adventure in the Land of Opportunity.

While Angela's Ashes focused a great deal on the overwhelming poverty of the McCourt family, 'Tis instead focuses on the differences McCourt notices between Ireland and America. In addition, there are a great many stories about the mistakes he makes in his early days and his constant yearning for Something Better. We see him struggle through many menial jobs, many with humorous stories to accompany them, and eventually he makes it to college and his Something Better - even though he isn't sure it was worth it once he's got it.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book for two reasons. First, McCourt has a great sense of humor about the way things went for him and how things have turned out. His stories will make you cry with laughter at some points because these are all stories that would have made someone say at the time: "You'll laugh about this later. You may not think so now, but you'll laugh."

Secondly, I really bonded with McCourt's character. Here I am, reading this book in my first days in Istanbul, noticing all the differences between my new home and the United States, while reading about how McCourt went through the same thing even though he was moving to a country that supposedly speaks the same language. There are a number of times he comments on the different uses of words between American English and Irish English. But it wasn't only the moving abroad point that got to me. I find myself questioning the purpose of my education and what I'm really going to do with my future, much in the same way that the young McCourt did in this memoir.

McCourt is a true story teller and he'll make you laugh. Also, he fills in some of the background information that you'll need if you haven't read Angela's Ashes, so it's not absolutely necessary to read it before picking up 'Tis (but I highly recommend it!). Definitely a book to be picked up.

Side Note: I saw at the end of the book that Frank McCourt's brother Malachy has his own book, A Monk Swimming, which was co-authored by Frank and deals with Malachy's struggles with alcoholism and his years as a playboy and actor in New York City. I think I'll be picking it up as soon as I can find an English Bookstore here.

Travel Reading

When I'm on vacation, I really like to read books about the places I'll be visiting. Right now one of my best friends and I are backpacking through Europe, which means tons of time on trains and lots of time for reading.

I read Night by Elie Wiesel on our way through Germany. It made the trip to Berlin a lot more meaningful because we were there for the 20th anniversary of the fall of the wall and saw lots of exhibits about WWII, the Holocaust and the end of the Cold War. The book is a very short, quick read, but a story that really gets to you. Wiesel, who lived in Auschwitz for a number of years toward the end of WWII, won the Nobel Peace Prize for his literary works, which raised awareness about the horrors of the Holocaust. Night is the story of his journey from ghetto to concentration camp to liberation. Definitely worth reading.

I was a little sad about my choice though because I think far too much literature about Germany focuses on WWII. I know it's something that we all shouldn't forget, but I really wish I could read something uplifting about Germany, especially because the country has become so much more than that period in time. Germany is by far one of my most favorite countries to visit, but I think there are still a lot of negative connotations associated with it. Does anyone out there have any great recommendations for a book with the setting in Germany that's not about WWII or the Holocaust? I'd love to hear about it if you have.

The second book I finished on this trip was Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. This book has been on my reading list for years, but I could never get past the first pages. But, with a trip to Ireland on my itinerary, I zipped through it in a matter of days. McCourt's Pulitzer Prize winning memoir details his early childhood and teenage years in Limerick, Ireland, where his family lived in poverty. McCourt is able to detail the horrendous living conditions of his childhood with a sense of humor that makes you almost want to laugh at the absurdity of the situation if only it weren't so tragic. Although this book describes a less than desirable existance in Ireland, it did make me want to go to Ireland immediately. The descriptions of the place and the people were vivid and colorful. And, of course, the accented dialogues throughout the book made me want to hear the accent for myself asap. I'm really looking forward to my trip there and will hopefully find a copy of 'Tis, the sequel to Angela's Ashes, while I'm there.

Will write again when I have Internet access.

-Becca

Interview with author Brin Friesen

After reading Sic, the debut novel by Brin Friesen, I had a couple of questions for the author, which he kindly (and promptly!) answered. Below you will find my interview with him. You can also find a review of his book here and more of his writing here.


First, I'm curious about the name of the book. How did you come up with it and what does it mean?

The name of the book referred to the idea of Jasper Finch telling his story, an admittedly disturbing one, and knowing most adults don't have any clue what their kids are doing (despite their own childhoods) and most likely would blame anybody who told/exposed the truth about it. Galileo and Rosa Parks weren't thanked for their efforts in revealing the truth about an ugly situation: they were thrown in jail. With the subject matter of school shootings looming over this story, the aftermath nearly always leads to the knee jerk reaction of blame and attribution of fault. However, the profile of a school shooter is that there is no profile for a school shooter. There's poetry in that fact. My protagonist is willing to tell his story but he doesn't want to be blamed for the telling the truth.

And yet, not too many people know what "sic" even refers to, so it was probably a lousy choice. They assume I'm talking about calling for a dog to attack someone. Sic is about fault. Blame. If you talk about troubled kids you blame long before anyone attempts understanding. All the killings at schools and universities are called "senseless" at one point or another. Any rudimentary examination of the facts and invariably they immediately start making a whole lot of sense. They only way they don't is through cognitive dissonance and negligence.

You mentioned in one of your TNB posts that the first part of the book is based on a similar experience you had in elementary school. Did you stay friends with your Norman Apple afterward? And, how did the fight effect your later school years?

I was lured out to watch a fight and swarmed once I was out there by everyone in attendance to one degree or another. I did patch things up with the real Norman Apple. I think the fight served me the way any traumatic event serves an artist: they're unable to cope with their given reality and find the necessity to create for themselves a new one. Fiction has to make sense where real life doesn't. So you're obliged to make the details in the story something which for yourself and the reader can have more traction than real life. The impetuous for this is of course an attempt to rewrite your own history. I gave myself a fictional first kiss on the same day as the worst day of my real life. The details of the story have in many ways overtaken the real details of my life. Which is good, because that was an ugly space to occupy. People often forget that the three most popular kids authors for kids are Roald Dahl, Lewis Carrol, and JD Salinger. The three most banned books FOR kids are by Roald Dahl, Lewis Carrol, and JD Salinger. Innocence isn't Disney. It's complicated.

How much of the book is autobiographical? Please tell me there was no real-life Fresa.

There was indeed a Fresa; though I took from another incident that actually happened and combined the person with the event that killed him. The curbing happened while I was in 8th grade and the perpetrators were never found while 100's of kids knew exactly who they were. It was a scary time. The real life Fresa went on to become a paramedic, which seems entirely appropriate. A great deal of the book is autobiographical, however I used an extensive amount of composites. Once I had my finger on the pulse of the story much of it wrote itself.

What inspired you to write a book like this? Did you set out to write a book that focused so much on the state of mind of a bullied teenager?

High school is very attractive to me as subject matter since most people who leave it spend a tremendous amount of energy either clinging to or running from who they felt they were perceived to be during that time in their lives. I'm interested in a time where the events that mark people mark them for life. First kiss, first beating, heartbreak, etc.

That's where I started with this story: give a kid his worst day and best day on the *same* day.

Bullying was obviously a major theme also, but also examining bullying not just from the main bullies but those complicit and rooting it on. The German's were fairly recently allowed to join in on the VE Day celebration which was very interesting when they expressed the argument that they were "liberated too" from Hitler. Finally the legacy of what happened during WWII will be Hitler bullied everyone into it. The real lesson, in my view, is how regular, decent, law abiding, family loving people were persuaded of the legitimacy of genocide. In schools suicide is one the major leading causes of mortality, especially among boys. And naturally it's an under reported statistic also. Newspapers print murder stories but not suicides.

In a society that holds the "pureness" and "innocence" of children above all else, I don't have a sense that society even *likes* kids. They can be tried as an adult for a crime but can't vote. They can be legally assaulted.

Growing up the kid of a child protection lawyer a lot of this stuff has been discussed at length.

How did things end up with your Marie? Or are they still in the happenings?

Ten years later she contacted me about whether or not I became a writer and asked if I'd written anything. I said yes. She asked what it was about. I said, YOU. She read it in a night and flew from Scotland to move with me the week after that. I'm not going to spoil the ending. I
think without ever having a meaningful conversation with the real girl I didn't come up with such a misguided stand-in. But I never wrote the book to find her. It just ended up that I did.

Lastly, can you tell me a little more about And/Or Press?

And/Or Press was started by my friend Dan Starling. D.R Haney's book Banned For Life is the latest book with the And/Or stamp of approval. We're both crazy about D.R Haney.

(I'm crazy about D.R. Haney too!)

Again, to read more by Brin Friesen (or D.R. Haney), you can visit www.thenervousbreakdown.com. And, no, I don't get paid to promote the website (nor to write for it), I just love the authors and their stories there.

Best to you all,

Becca

Sorrow Wood by Raymond L. Atkins

Sorrow Wood is kind of a difficult book to explain. The book centers on the lives of Reva and Wendell Blackmon, documenting much of their life together. The two live in Sand Valley, Alabama, where Wendell is the town sheriff and Reva is the local judge. Throughout the book we are transferred from the present time (1985) back to previous times in the Blackmon's lives, as well as into their past lives (as seen in Reva's dreams). Mostly, the book is the story of their current life together, their difficult childhoods, and how they eventually came to be together. In the midst of learning about the destined love of the Blackmons, there is also a murder committed in Sand Valley with Wendell Blackmon trying to track down the murderer.

I really loved reading the stories of the two main characters. Much of the book takes place during the World War II era, with Wendell Blackmon serving in the Navy at the time. Raymond L. Atkins did a wonderful job of re-creating the feeling of duty many Americans felt at that time, as well as showing the sacrifice that many people made. There were also scenes from the Korean and Vietnam Wars in the book as we moved through the decades.

As with his debut novel, Atkins has created a cast of colorful characters with his latest novel. I really enjoyed his choices of words and the overall love story found in the book. I found the second epilogue to be a little bit over the top, but I think it was probably the quickest way to wrap up one of the storylines found throughout the book.

Movies Based on Books

I know, I know, this is a common complaint among those of us who read, but I'm going to bring it up anyway. I just saw Angels & Demons in theater and I just couldn't believe the number of things they changed while making the movie. I realize that some of it was to make the story flow better, but, even major things were changed (like having Cardinal Baggia live). I also recently saw the new Harry Potter movie and I was just really not impressed by it. However, it has been quite some times since I read that book so I wasn't able to pinpoint the major changes they made while turning the book into a movie.

I know I can't expect the movie to be the same as the book, but why am I always so disappointed by the big screen version of books I loved? It really, really makes me not want to go see The Time Traveler's Wife or My Sister's Keeper. I just know they'll let me down. I mean, honestly, how could they possibly make The Time Traveler's Wife into a movie and keep the major story line the same? Has anyone seen these new ones? What did you think?

Sic By Brin Friesen

Brin Friesen's debut novel, Sic, is a harsh look at the reality of the bullying that takes place in schools everywhere. Through the eyes of younger Jasper Finch, one of the bullied, we see the complete desperation and anxiety some children face when going to school each day where they are forced to interact with their tormentors. While I'd like to think that bullying doesn't ever get as far as it did in this book, I'm sure it really does. Otherwise we wouldn't have school shootings and teen suicide, both of which are addressed in this novel.

Friesen's book really made me think, but it was incredibly uncomfortable to read. First, because I was one of the mean girls in elementary school so it pained me to read about the girls (and boys) like me who relentlessly taunted the less popular children. Back then I thought it was hilarious, but now when I think about my behavior between ages 10 and 12 I feel terrible. At one point in the book, Finch is kicked in the shins by one of the mean girls and I literally cringed because I cannot even count the number of times I kicked little boys in the shins back in elementary school.

Later, the book became easier for me to read because I understood Finch's anxiety upon entering high school. Right before I began middle school my family moved to a new town. And then moved again just before my high school years, so I know longer had the luxury of being one of the mean girls. I didn't fit in and did my best to be invisible during those years. Unfortunately for Finch, he wasn't able to be invisible because he moved up to high school with the same people who had beat him up and hated him in elementary school.

This book is very "Lord of the Flies," only worse, because it's all happening in a place where children are expected to feel safe and are under the eye of protecting adults. It's definitely worth reading and will really make you think, but it will also make you cringe and squirm. Some of the fight scenes are particularly brutal and reading about children talking so much about sex was hard for me to read. I want to believe all children are innocent and pure, but I know that's just not the case. As I've mentioned, this book made me think back to my own childhood - many times - and no matter how much I tried to debunk it, saying children don't do this or children don't do that, I knew, from my own experience, that this really was how (some) children act. I think often children are worse than adults when it comes to fowl language and talking about sex, and that really comes through in this novel.

I don't recommend this book if you're looking for something light and cheery. This is definitely not a pick-me-up type book. It feels like it is at one point toward the end, when you're cheering for Jasper Finch and you'll think, "Yes! Let's end on a high note! I knew this was leading to a happy ending!" But then, just as with real life, Jasper (and the reader) are only able to revel in the glory for a short time before the joy of it fades and we're plunged back into reality. The last section of the book makes the other two parts worth reading, so definitely keep going even if it feels a little slow in the middle. You won't regret it.

Sunday Salon: Surprise Delivery

I stopped by my apartment yesterday to get the last of my things and start cleaning for the next tenants and was surprised to find a book on my back porch. It was a delivery from Medallion Press. They shipped me a copy of Sorrow Wood, the new book by Raymond L. Atkins that will be released on August 1.

I'm so super excited about this book because I really liked Atkins' first book, The Front Porch Prophet, which I reviewed here. The good news too is that I've got a plane ride coming up this Friday so I'll have a great opportunity to read it!

Here's the plot blurb from Amazon:

When the charred body of a promiscuous, self-proclaimed witch is discovered at a farm called Sorrow Wood, nearly everyone in the sleepy town of Sand Valley, Alabama, is drawn into the case. As the murder probe continues, a multitude of secrets are revealed, including one that leads back to the rock castle home of Wendell Blackmon, Sand Valley's police chief, and his beloved wife Reva. The town's inhabitants ruminate on the true meaning of commitment, love, death, hope, and loss as they delve deeper into questions such as Who was this woman? Where did she come from? and What did her presence mean to Wendell, Reva, and the townspeople of Sand Valley?

Review to come soon!

Interview with D.R. Haney on The Nervous Breakdown

So, I was planning on doing an interview with D.R. Haney, author of Banned for Life, which I reviewed here, but I've been super busy with packing for Istanbul and moving out of my apartment so I haven't had time. THEN, today I looked on The Nervous Breakdown and there's a fab interview with him and one of the other TNB authors, so I thought I'd just post a link here for any of you who are interested. I think the interview will give you more insight about the book. And, really, who doesn't love reading interviews with authors?

ALSO, D.R. Haney will be doing a reading in L.A. this weekend. If you're in town, you should check it out. Here's the details:

Date: July 25, 2009, 8:00PM

Venue: Stories

Location: 1716 Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA

Description:D. R. Haney will read from his recently-published novel about punk rock, "Banned for Life," along with other guests, including singer-songwriter Tif Sigfrids, who'll charm and disarm with dainty song.

Free book direct from the author

I just heard about Stephen Elliott's lending library experiment over at The Nervous Breakdown. He's sending out free copies of his book, The Adderall Diaries, to readers, so long as they commit to send the book on to the next reader on the list once they've finished reading their copy. Sounds like a great idea to me. It's even available to people outside of the U.S. as long as you're willing to pay the postage. For more information, you can check out his website or read about the book and read an interview with the author here.

Pop Box Contest!

Lance Reynald, author of Pop Salvation, is putting on a contest in which you can win a box filled with books and goodies related to pop culture. All you have to do is get your photo taken in one of those old school photo booths, scan the photo strip into the computer and email it along with a short description of where you were and what you were doing when the photos were taken. Examples can be found here. More information about the contest can be found here. And, to see what's going into the box, follow Lance Reynald on Twitter.

Contest ends August 1, so get to it!

Just Arrived: Sic by Brin Friesen

So, I just finished reading Angels and Demons by Dan Brown, but I decided not to review it because I figure pretty much everyone on the planet (except me, until now) has already read it and/or seen the movie, yes? I really liked the book though and finished it in only two days despite its length (almost 700 pages!). I'm looking forward to seeing the movie, even though I know it won't be nearly as good as the book (they never are!). Plus, Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon just doesn't do it for me, but whatever. I'm not a casting director, am I?

Instead, I wanted to introduce you all to my next book, which is Sic by Brin Friesen. I wasn't able to find the book on Amazon, but you can get information about ordering it here. The book is a debut novel published by and/or press in 2006. As with many of my recent books, I first heard about this one on The Nervous Breakdown, when Friesen put up a post giving the background of the novel, which is "about the the young boy, Jasper Finch, and his vicious junior high school years." Friesen's post gives a more detailed account of what the book is about, saying the book is based on a particularly horrible day he had in junior high where he was jumped by several boys. However, the lead up to that awful day is a story of love and longing, which only came full-circle for the author once he was an adult. Having read several of Friesen's posts on The Nervous Breakdown, I'm really looking forward to digging into his book.

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

In California, Steinbeck is required reading throughout high school so most people my age have already read his greatest works, but somehow I was never assigned East of Eden in my high school years. I have to say that I'm grateful I wasn't assigned it then because I don't think I would have appreciated the beauty of this book. The first Steinbeck book I ever read was Of Mice and Men in the 9th grade and it almost turned me off of reading Steinbeck altogether. Had it not been for me picking up The Grapes of Wrath on a whim a few years back I probably would have written him off completely. But I fell in love with John Steinbeck when I read The Grapes of Wrath and last week when I finished East of Eden, I fell in love with him all over again.

As with many of Steinbeck's books, East of Eden takes place in California's Central Valley, with the second half of the book taking place almost entirely in Salinas. The book follows three generations of two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons. The Hamiltons are Steinbeck's own ancestors and he even makes a couple of appearances in the book which I thought was interesting. However, for the most part the book focuses on Adam Trask, who begins his life in Connecticut, joins the military when the U.S. was exterminating Native Americans and eventually moves West to start a family with his beautiful wife who has a hidden sinister side.

Throughout the book, Steinbeck explores the human ability to choose to be good or evil. The story of Cain and Abel is a recurring theme throughout the book and really got me to think about the nature versus nurture argument. There is a cast of colorful characters throughout the book and, as always, whether he's describing something beautiful or something awful, Steinbeck creates a vivid picture for the reader. Steinbeck is said to have thought of East of Eden as his greatest work, and I have to say that I agree. His natural talent for storytelling really comes across in this book. I know it's a long one (695 pages!) but it's well worth the time.

Author Groupie: Meeting Lance Reynald

I went to San Francisco to see Lance Reynald read from his book, Pop Salvation, on Thursday evening. (That's me with the short hair and big earrings). There were only a few of us in the audience, which made it cool because we were all able to ask questions from the author and had more time to talk to him than if there had been a hundred people waiting to get a signature. I was a little bit starstruck though. I got all nervous and fidgety for some reason. This seems to happen to me whenever I meet authors I've talked to online. I don't know why. Does this happen to any of you?

Check it out

Hey there, I just wanted to direct you to a fab interview with Lance Reynald, author of Pop Salvation, which I reviewed here. He was interviewed at LitPark today, so hop on over and take a look.

Also, just a reminder that Lance Reynald will be doing a reading tomorrow evening at Books, Inc. in the Castro (San Francisco). Details:

Thursday, July 09, 2009
Location: Books Inc. in the Castro, 2275 Market Street, San Francisco, CA 94114
Phone: 415-864-6777