"The Crafty Kid" by Kelly Doust

My kids (especially my five-year-old) really love doing crafts.  We have a big craft box of their craft supplies, and they get used a lot to make everything from robots to fairies.  So when I saw Kelly Doust's book "The Crafty Kid" I figured it was worth having a look for some new ideas.

The book itself is well presented with clear instructions, big pictures, and a touch of personality.  I enjoyed just flipping through the book, and was inspired to start some new projects.  My kids and I made her feng shui bird mobile, and it turned out adorable.  They really like having it hanging up in their room.

It did seem to me, though, that for a book called "Crafty Kid", there were too many adult crafts related to kids rather than crafts for kids to do.  I expected more things that my kids would enjoy making themselves and with me, rather than a lot of things (adorable as they are) for me to make for them.  I think it might have more accurately been titled "Crafty Parent".  Also, there seemed to be an inordinate amount of projects involving oilcloth.

I'm glad I found this book, but overall I would say it's a good one to check out from the library (or maybe buy a second-hand copy) rather than paying full price for.

"Dracula" by Bram Stoker

I read a lot of vampire books, so I decided to go back to the classic and read Bram Stoker's "Dracula". 

Although it wasn't the first piece of vampire fiction, "Dracula" is the classic vampire novel.  The funny thing is, when I read it, I wanted more of the vampire.  I felt like for a book called "Dracula", there simply wasn't enough of Dracula (who also uses the name De Ville...later borrowed by Cruella of "101 Dalmations").  That was a major way in which vampire fiction has evolved since then.  In Stoker's "Dracula", the vampire is an evil, "unholy" creature that the main characters hunt down and abhor.  In most modern vampire fiction, the vampire is one of the main characters that in some way you like.

Traditionally, there is something seductive and sexy about vampires (even in old succubus folklore).  There are moments of this in "Dracula", but only moments.  For example, the vampire tells the group of men hunting him, "Your girls that you all love are mine already; and through them you and others shall yet be mine..."  Most of the time, though, Dracula is more of an eccentric old man or generic shape shifting evil.

Yes, "Dracula" is a classic, and I'm glad that I read it.  It made me interested in how vampire fiction has evolved, and showed how different culture was then.  As far as simple entertainment goes, though, I have to say that I prefer modern vampire books.

Ray Bradbury: The List

Here's the list of Ray Bradbury's books:

"Ahmed and the Oblivion Machines"
"The Anthem Sprinters and Other Antics"
"Bradbury Speaks"
"Bradbury Stories"
"The Cat's Pajamas"
"A Chap-book for Burnt Out Priests, Rabbis, and Ministers"
"The Climate of Palettes"
"The Complete Poems of Ray Bradbury"
"Dandelion Wine"
"Dark Carnival"
"Death Has Lost Its Charm For Me"
"Death is a Lonely Business"
"Dinosaur Tales"
"Dogs Think That Every Day is Christmas"
"Driving Blind"
"Fahrenheit 451"
"Farewell Summer"
"Fever Dream"
"From the Dust Returned"
"The Ghosts of Forever"
"The Golden Apples of the Sun"
"A Graveyard for Lunatics"
"Green Shadows, White Whale"
"The Halloween Tree"
"The Haunted Computer and the Android Pope"
"The Homecoming"
"The Illustrated Man"
"I Sing the Body Electric!"
"The Last Circus and the Electrocution"
"Let's All Kill Constance"
"Long After Midnight"
"The Love Affair"
"The Machineries of Joy"
"The Martian Chronicles"
"A Medicine for Melancholy" (also published as "The Day It Rained Forever")
"A Memory of Murder"
"The Mummies of Guanajuato"
"Now and Forever"
"The October Country"
"One More For the Road"
"Pillar of Fire and Other Plays"
"Quicker Than the Eye"
"R is for Rocket"
"Ray Bradbury"
"Ray Bradbury on Stage"
"S is for Space"
"Something Wicked This Way Comes"
"A Sound of Thunder and Other Stories"
"The Stories of Ray Bradbury"
"Switch on the Night"
"This Attic Where the Meadow Greens"
"The Toynbee Convector"
"Twice 22"
"The Vintage Bradbury"
"When Elephants Last in the Dooryard Bloomed"
"Where Robot Mice and Robot Men Run Around in Robot Towns"
"With Cat for Comforter"
"The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit and Other Plays"
"Yestermorrow"
"Zen in the Art of Writing"

If I'm not mistaken, that's 59 books.  The man really knows how to crank them out.
2 down; 57 to go.

List compiled from information on Ray Bradbury's website.

"Farewell Summer" by Ray Bradbury

Ray Bradbury is probably the best American short story writer ever, and certainly one of the most prolific.  Although short stories are his preferred genre, Bradbury also wrote novellas, poems, and essays.

Inspired by my sister (who is a huge Bradbury fan), I recently read "The Martian Chronicles" for the first time, and was completely blown away by it.  I had read other things by Bradbury before, although not for years, and so expected it to be good.  What I didn't expect was how powerful of an impact it had on me, and how incredibly well written it was.  As a result, I decided to either read or re-read all of Bradbury's books that I could get my hands on.  I enjoyed reading all of Austen's works, so why not do the same with Bradbury?  Of the many obvious differences between Jane Austen and Ray Bradbury, one particularly stands out in this endeavor. 

I could count all of Austen's novels on my fingers.  Bradbury wrote a lot, dozens even.  I was going to put in a list of his books, but Google seems to hate me at the moment.  I'll try again later when the internet's more agreeable.

I started with "The Martian Chronicles".
Next I read "Farewell Summer".  My order is completely arbitrary based on what I can find in the library when I visit.  I just keep checking the "B" shelf for his books.

"Farewell Summer" is one of Bradbury's novellas, and--although it works well on its own--it is really a sequel to "Dandelion Wine".  It is genius because it accomplishes so much in so few works.  It is a sparce novella and Bradbury uses an absolute economy of words, and yet...it doesn't read like it is short.  It doesn't have the pared back feeling of Hemingway, for example.  It feels lush and atmospheric.  It seems horrible to limit it to a single title, but "Farewell Summer" is a great coming-of-age novel (no matter what age that may happen to be).

For my review of "Farewell Summer", click here.

"Goddess of Light" by P.C. Cast

I've been reading P.C. Cast's "Goddess Summoning" series, and I've already blogged about two of the books: "Goddess of Legend" and "Goddess of Spring".

"Goddess of Light" fits in well with the other books in the "Goddess Summoning" series.  It features a successful modern woman who goes an a business trip and discovers excitement, romance, and love.  What she doesn't at first know is that her new lover is actually the god Apollo.

This isn't going to be the best or even most memorable book you'll ever read, but it does definitely offer entertainment while you're reading it.  This is a perfect summer vacation book.

For a longer review of "Goddess of Light",  click here.
To visit P.C. Cast's official website, click here.

Jane Austen's Winchester

 I feel as though I've gotten to know Jane Austen over the past few months as I've read her novels, fan fiction, some critical essays on her work, and a few biographical bits.  Through Jane Austen I've gotten to know not only the extraordinary author herself, but her time.  One of the reasons that Austen's novels are still so popular is because they open up a doorway for us to experience life in a different time.

For me, it is life in a different time, but not a different place.  Austen was from Hampshire, England.  At the end of her life, Austen lived in Winchester.  She died in Winchester, and is buried in the cathedral there.  Before I was married I lived in Winchester for a year, and could hear the cathedral bells from my flat.  This week I was able to spend a day in Winchester with my children.  It was a spontaneous decision to spend the day there, and we enjoyed wandering around the city exploring together. 

At one point we happened to walk by Jane Austen's house (luckily I had my camera on me, so you can see pictures).  It struck me at that point how much of Winchester is the same as it was when Jane Austen lived there.  We had explored the Wolvesey Castle ruins, walked along the river and by the water meadows, and meandered around the cathedral.  These are all places that Austen would have been familiar with, and probably walked around the same way that we did.

Winchester is a beautiful town that is still very vibrant (there was a bustling market and fashion week events while we were there), but it's also a city deeply seeped in history.  Winchester still lives, but it is also still Jane Austen's Winchester.  If she could somehow visit now she would surely be shocked by many things, but I think she would still recognize and feel at home in Winchester.

"Emma" by Jane Austen

If you've been reading this blog, you already know that I've been reading (or re-reading, as applicable) all of Jane Austen's novels.  I left "Emma" for the last, and just read it.

There are a lot of ways that you could approach this novel.  I read a critical essay about "Emma" discussing it in terms of anthropological significance and the detailed, realistic portrayal of English country life during the period.  It would be easy for me to start analyzing "Emma" from a feminist perspective (especially regarding Mr. Knightley and Emma's relationship and his role as brother/informal tutor to her before being her acknowledged suitor).  Post-colonialists can have a ball with Austen's works.  I'm not going to dive too much into any of these, but you can click here for some good resources for a critical/academic approach to "Emma".

The thing is, Austen wasn't an academic.  She was smart and observant.  She observed not only life around her, but trends in literature and readership.  In fact, finishing the last of her books led me to notice some of the themes that have carried throughout her books.  They all have that classic Austen feel, and there are definite story and character similarities that carry through all of her works.  A less obvious thread, though, is the theme of reading that goes throughout all of the books.  Stuck into her novels are little discussions on reading and what we read.

In "Emma" there are many moments that embrace books: Emma always means to read more; Harriet recommends books to her friend/suitor; letters that are written, read, re-read and shared.  Austen encourages us--as we read--to consider why we read.  What role does reading play to us individually and as a society?  How do our reading choices both reflect and help to shape us?  In a very post-modern way, Austen inserts a gentle play of books within books and questions the nature of reality for her subject and readers.

I have to admit that I've enjoyed reading all of Austen's novels in a relatively short period, and it was a bit bittersweet to finish the last one.  There's still plenty of Austen fan fiction out there to enjoy though... look forward to "Mr. Darcy, Vampyre" soon.  I checked it out from the library too.

"Jane Austen Stole My Boyfriend" by Cora Harrison

I admit that there's been a Jane Austen theme to my reading lately, and I've been reading both Austen's novels and Austen fan fiction.  (It all started back in March when I won a copy of "Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict".)  So although I'd never heard of this book or the author (Cora Harrison), when I saw the title on the shelf at the library, it was enough for me to bring it home.

The title worked to grab my attention, but isn't completely accurate to the book.  It's more catchy than fitting, but it does capture the light-hearted tone of the book.  "Jane Austen Stole My Boyfriend" is a fun romp through a story of teen romances and family dramas, society expectations and friendships, and--of course--it has a spunky teen Jane Austen.  It's not a biography, but the novel does have some basis in historical information.  It may not be the best novel you'll ever read, but it is a fun piece of fan fiction.  I enjoyed it for what it is.

For my full review of "Jane Austen Stole My Boyfriend" by Cora Harrison, click here.