Book News

Two book-related items of note today --

1. I got my proof copy of Haiku Miscellany today:

I was so excited to open it and hold it in my hands!! Now that I've approved it, it will be sent to various publishers' catalogs and online sellers like Amazon for listing. Of course you can already order a copy at Lulu:

2. I got this email today:

"Dear Cheryl,

We're thrilled to inform you that your submission, Rockbot plush robot, made the cut and is included in the Regretsy book, which will be published on April 6th.

During the weeks ahead, you'll receive your copy of the book, directly from Random House. We'll also be sending you information on the free week of advertising for your Etsy store or web site on Regretsy.com.

This has been a very exciting time for us and it would not have been possible without your enthusiasm, support and sense of humor. We greatly appreciate it and look foward to hearing your reactions to the book.

Best Wishes,

Team Regretsy"

If you are interested, the book can be ordered now through Amazon or your local bookseller: Regretsy: Where DIY Meets WTF.

Haiku Miscellany is ready for the world

The project I was working on that I didn't want to talk about until it was done is DONE! I think I annoyed hubby because I wouldn't even tell him what I was doing, but the tactic works so I may employ it again.

Anyhoooo, Haiku Miscellany is a collection of 25 haiku poems acompanying 25 photos of 25 of my creations from Creative Miscellany. It's available through Lulu.com in print or as a download.



Next on the to-do list: Craft Market this weekend, followed by spring break, then I can set up my Zibbet shop!

Poetic Preface

On Friday, I wandered over to the gardening books in the stacks, not sure what I was looking for really, but I found a gem.

The book is a reprint of a 1603 manuscript, "Profitable Instructions for the manuring, sowing and planting of kitchin gardens" by Richard Gardiner. References vary in the exact title and some sources list its publication as 1599. It is credited as being the first English text devoted to vegetable gardening.

The work opens with an author's preface, in which he humbles himself before both God and reader, imploring anyone who knows of better methods to share them with his neighbours for the glory of God.

Following that is another preface, in the form of a poem by Edward Thorne:

Reading it, I was immediately transported back to second year university, to my Medieval Studies class on manuscripts. Of course this book is not exactly Medieval but it is still printed in a typscript that poses a challenge to modern readers where the initial s looks like an f and the v and u are routinely interchanged. Add to that the lack of standard, accepted spelling, capitalization or punctuation and it can be quite a challenge. For the heck of it, I transcribed the whole poem/preface -- you can compare it to the original above (click to open it at Flickr) -- it's really quite a lovely opening for the book (which, itself, is an entertaining read). My transcription leaves the spelling in tact save for the v vs. u issue.

Edward Thorne Gent. in commendation of the worke and the Author thereof.

He that desires with skilfull hand,
to frame a Garden plot,
And to manure and make it apt
For Herbes that serve the pot,
Or choice to make of seeds and Plants,
and best of both to know:
And them in seasonable time,
to plant, to set, and sowe,
Let him peruse this little Booke,
which undertakes the charge,
Of all the fore recited points,
to shew the course at large,
Of Carrets first, and Cabbage close,
and how to keepe them sound:
And Parsnips also to preserve,
and Turnips faire and round.
Of Lettice next, and garden Beanes,
and Onions of the best:
Of Cucumbers and Artichockes,
and Radish with the rest,
These and such other hearbes and seedes,
hath Gardner, in good will:
Unto Sallopian neighbours his,
entreated of with skill,
His talent lent he doth not hide,
if all were understood,
But sets it foorth with willing minde,
to doe his neighbours good.

The poore which late were like to pine,
and could not buy them breade:
In greatest time of penury,
were by his labours fed.
And that in reasonable rate,
when Corne and coine was scant,
With Parsnip and with Carret rootes,
he did supply their want.
The rich likewise and better sorte,
his labours could not misse
Which makes them many times to thinke,
that Salop London is.
Then rich and poore in friendly sorte,
give Gardner all his due,
Who shewes himselfe in all his acts,
so kinde a friend to you.
And wish as he doth well deserve,
his welfare and his health,
That hath so greatly profited,
Salopians common wealth.

You'll note Thorne's use of italics for proper nouns: the author's name, shown here as Gardner instead of Gardiner and Salop/Salopians which I couldn't figure out at first. Turns out, Salop is another name for the county of Shropshire, where Shrewsbury is located, and Salopians refer to the people who live there.

I'm not done with this book yet, it's fascinating, so you may see more clips here, or elsewhere.

Kudos...

... to the New Zealand Book Council for this effective (and lovely stop-motion) ad:

The Opposite of Chick-Lit

Summer is the time of the year when bookstores inevitably cram their shelves with fluffy quick-reads about romance, friendships, travel and shopping. Sure, I've been guilty of reading the odd chick-lit tome (Confessions of a Shopaholic springs to mind) but it's not my favourite genre.

Instead, I find myself reaching for the stuff on the other end of the scale. Is there an industry term for this type of book? Think spies, mafia, murder and mayhem. Thrillers or suspense, I suppose.

Anyway, I have been reading Charlie Huston's Hank Thompson books (downloaded for free -- thank you Random House & Stanza -- to my iPod) and also snuck in the quick-to-read Dark Harvest which takes place somewhere between Sleepy Hollow and the Twilight Zone.

I started the Charlie Huston books in order with Caught Stealing. The book introduces the reader to Henry "Hank" Thompson, an alcoholic bartender who agrees to do a favour for a neighbour that lands him in a world of trouble. It is confusing at times and brutal throughout. Plenty of people die. The pages are filled with fist-fights, guns, drugs, booze, blood, cars, and sports -- I almost expected a waft of Old Spice -- but man, it is a good read. I'm working my way through Six Bad Things now, which picks up where Caught Stealing left off, and I am already looking forward to A Dangerous Man, the third in the series.

I picked up Dark Harvest by Norman Partridge during our trip to Vancouver last month, on sale at the Book Warehouse. I got sucked in by the cover that features a menacing pumpkin-headed monster and pull-quotes promoting the author as the next-best thing in horror. I trusted that Peter Straub and Stephen King would not steer me wrong and took the Bram Stoker Award as further validation. The story is as twisted as the vines that make up the October Boy (the monster from the cover). Again I found myself reading about guns and gore and men with some serious rage issues but it wasn't gratuitous. OK, maybe some of it is gratuitous but it's still a good read.

Want to add these to your bookshelf? Here's more info:

Art of Nicholas Galanin

The Good Book Vol. 15
Originally uploaded by www.nicholasgalanin.com

I can't resist art made with books -- maybe because I have to discard so many. This piece appeals to me on many levels. It uses books (which of course come from trees), it uses Tlingit carving motifs, and the book in question is the Bible. I think it's amazing and I am stunned that it escaped me until now -- this piece was shown in 2006 as part of an exhibit called "What Have We Become"

Galanin's current work is for an exhibit called "The Imaginary Indian" an equally interesting look at the way cultures can be collected, absorbed, and obscured. The pieces each feature Tlingit motifs covered in Victorian wallpaper. The artists statement however, shows yet another side,

The Tlingit art form continues to evolve though purists resist. This conservative shift has left a modern skeletal ruin of ghost like objects which hang on gallery and collection walls, most of which mimic a romantic cultural lifestyle, while shunning current cultural growth. Though this transformation is not entirety negative, it tends to suffocate progress, something needed for cultural survival.

This reminds me of Brian Jungen's sculpted "masks" made from deconstructed and reconstructed Nike shoes. Brilliant, thought-provoking, and something I would love to have in my home.

Reading and Writing.

bedside_reading
Originally uploaded by triviaqueen

I have been trying to make an effort to read a little more these days. The iPod/Stanza combo really helps -- I just finished reading Rudy Rucker's Postsingular which I quite enjoyed.

These books have been at my bedside recently:

Stephen King On Writing
TC Boyle Talk Talk
Beck & Bineti Gardening Month by Month in BC
Pete Allen (ed.) Amityville House of Pancakes
Peter Biskind Down and Dirty Pictures (on floor/not pictured)
...plus whatever is on the iPod.

Some of these I've been reading on and off for some time, others are more recent additions to the pile.

Of course, on the other side of the coin is writing. I received word today that I did not make the semi-finals for CBC Canada Writes 2009 but I am still pleased to have been in the top 10 of 1500 entrants.

No worries. As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I will soon have my hands full of movies to review and now I can focus on finishing some other writing projects, too. I might even enter more contests.

Holding History

Today, I got a rare treat. I got to hold this early 17th century hinged book. Inside, it holds two texts: commentaries on the books of Ruth and Judges from 1609 and another set of commentaries by the same author on Kings, Chronicles and Samuel printed in 1617. The book is part of a collection which is housed in our library but is owned by the Catholic Diocese of Victoria.

My inner bookgeek and inner historygeek both got very excited seeing the book hinges still both in tact and the binding still flexible enough that the hinges can be used.

More photos:

The full record can be found in our catalog. To give you an idea of the value, a volume by the same author bound in a similar manner in 1604 (but with only one hinge in tact) is listed on Abebooks for a little over four thousand dollars Canadian from a seller in Zurich.

So, yeah. Really our library is full of stuff like this -- most academic libraries are -- so when patrons used to come to the desk with a book published in 1898 insisting that it be placed in Special Collections we would tell them it wasn't old enough. This is old enough.

Garden of Senses!

Well, it was not perfect, but I was still pleased with the finished product and I now know what I would do different with future cloth books. For starters, I would actually measure and mark the base fabric, har-har.

My only real regret is that I finished sewing it just a few minutes before we had to leave for the party (actually about 4:55 but Hubby was working on Cthulhu, so we were still 15 minutes from leaving) so I didn't have time to really appreciate it, or show it around as much as I normally would.

I took a bunch of photos though, and I made a Flickr set for Garden of Senses, but here's a peek at the finished inside of the book:

The birthday girl was a bit too overwhelmed, but the bee on the "ears hear" page got a smile, so I figure it will be a hit.

This might be interesting....

Some time ago, I was lucky enough to get my hands on a copy of Temple of Cod, Adrienne Jones' novella which forms the first third of her full-length novel Brine. Despite not being drawn in by the cover art, I found myself unable to put the book down. (My original review is over at the Media Nook, should you wish to read it.)

It remains high on my list of fantasy/horror tales and I am curious to see where she takes the story next. It is available for pre-order now but if you visit the Brine site, you can also listen to the audio version of Temple of Cod for free, or download it once you register.

Photography, books, and good food.

First of all, some Happy Mothers' Day wishes to all the maternal parents in the audience.

This morning, Hubby made me savory stuffed french toast at my request (mmMMMmm) and I'll be going out to the Keg for dinner this evening for dinner. Until then, I plan to have a hang day, doing very little.

This weekend has been all about hanging, actually. I had Friday off and it was the first flex day in a while where I had nothing really planned. I took Kiddo to school (on the bus, which makes her very happy) then went into town.

I wandered around the waterfront taking photos before starting my shopping wanders. I was happy to get a pretty good photo of the Johnson Street bridge in action, from the parking lot beside the Janion hotel.

My shopping day included visits to Sally Ann (found a copy of Dark is Rising (which I've never read) for a buck plus a bag of rick-rack), Solstice Cafe (for Kicking Horse coffee!), BeadWorld (beads, of course), Capitol Iron (hardware supplies), and Value Village (big bag of buttons and some kids' books).

Had lunch with a co-worker, took a few more photos in town, went to the Market on Yates for dinner ingredients, then hopped on a bus home. I was happy to be using the bus on Friday because I am pretty sure every road crew in the CRD was out working -- road work, sewers, utilities, you name it -- tearing up the road and blocking traffic all over the city.

Saturday, we went to the GVPL Friends of the Library book sale -- billed as the "biggest ever" I think they may have exaggerated, but it was big. For the past few years they have been having more frequent, small sales in the meeting room of one of the branch libraries. I went to one in that location and swore I would not go to others because it felt like being led like cattle through a series of gates. There was no room to really browse (elbows everywhere) and little choice.

For this sale, though, the Friends of the Library rented space at the Archie Browning Centre in Esquimalt. There were no lines to get in and dozens of tables overflowing with discarded and donated books. I picked up a half dozen books ranging from cookbooks to graphic novels; adding in Kiddo's and Hubby's choices the total came to an amazingly affordable $14.50. My favourite find of the day is probably Little Lit: Strange Stories for Strange Kids. I got another one in the series a while back -- paying full price -- so a buck for this book was a fantastic bargain.

After the sale, we stopped in to John's Noodle Village on Bay Street. I had low expectations for what looks like a hole in the wall but I think we found the best ginger fried beef in the city! The other foodie treat I got yesterday was a yummy fresh-baked batch of raisin scones, complete with Devonshire Clotted Cream and strawberry jam. MmmmMMM!

Weekends like this make it very difficult to go back to work... sigh.

I am Generation X, but there may be hope for me yet.

Even if you didn't know my age, you might have guessed I was Gen X from my obsession with pop culture, my steady stream of sarcasm, and the fact that I am surrounded by shiny gadgets and action figures.

Douglas Coupland gave us our name then moved on to other subjects; demographers refer to us as little more than a blip between the larger boomer and echo populations; but according to Jeff Gordinier, author of X Saves the World: How Generation X Got the Shaft but Can Still Keep Everything From Sucking, my generation has been working quietly on the sidelines to change things.

At least that's what it sounds like he's saying... I haven't read the book yet -- just a review and interview with the author on the Tyee -- but it's on my wish-list and I hope it is as interesting as Helaine Olen makes it sound.

Too cool not to share...

Honestly, I haven't cared about Douglas Copeland's writing since Microserfs (which is one of my favourite books, btw) though I will admit I haven't read J-Pod. His art, on the other hand, amuses me and makes me think. In Hey Nostradamus! there is a photo of one of Copeland's art installations called Tropical Birds (2003) which basically illustrates the disarray in the cafeteria following the Columbine High School Massacre. It's called Tropical Birds because of the "birdsong" created by all the cell phones and pagers "chirping" in the backpacks strewn around the cafeteria. Very haunting.

This little video clip, commissioned by Randomhouse.ca according to the small print, made me want to find out more about The Gum Thief and/or Glove Pond.



As it turns out, Glove Pond is the novel within the novel The Gum Thief, Copeland's latest. Glove Pond is written by a bitter would-be novelist who is stuck working at Staples. I shall have to read this book as I do have a soft-spot for that kind of metafiction.

Oh. I needed that.

When I came home yesterday, my head was pounding from what was beginning to feel like the never-ending sinus congestion. I got home, made dinner, then put what effort I had into crafting. I was still feeling miserable at bedtime but I woke up feeling somewhat better. I'm still coughing but it isn't constant any more and neither is the sinus pressure. Yay.

So anyway... today I went out. Mostly shopping. I even drove this morning! Wheee! I got lots done and in between the morning trip to the mall with big retailers and the afternoon leisurely wander through downtown Victoria, I met up with Hubby and went to Chikara Sushi for lunch. MMmm (I had the bento box lunch with nigiri sushi and tempura).

I took lots of photos this afternoon -- the day was chilly but bright -- and indulged in a few things just for me (some extra yarn, most of which will go to making baby hats; a dark chocolate mint meltie bar from Purdy's; and a whole lot of window shopping).

Tonight, I bound a few more of the Coffee Haiku books -- easy peasy now since I found a great Japanese Binding tutorial.

It felt good to go out on my own again, not too worried about how long I could go before I would have to sit down and not relying on other people to get me from A to B and back again.

Fan-freaking-tastic book art

This is the kind of art that gives me that fluttery happy feeling inside. On one hand, it's completely destructive (though now I know of another use for those old biology texts that SubText is always giving away); on the other hand, the results are stunning, unique pieces of art which both literally and figuratively add another layer to the way we view books.

The artist is Brian Dettmer and this is from his series of Book Autopsies.

Another new book

starting_a_new_book
Originally uploaded by triviaqueen

Got this book, Count Karlstein by Phillip Pullman out of the library this evening and started reading it while kiddo played in the park.

I know I have dozens of other books on the go.... well, maybe not dozens, but enough... but none of them are going to be fast reads... I wanted something that might compare to the "high" of finishing Deathly Hallows in a hurry. So, kidlit was in order, and this is one of Phillip Pullman's earlier youth novels. I hope it will not disappoint.

One of the other books I am reading is Everything is Miscellaneous: The power of the new digital disorder. It is brain-bendingly amusing, leaping through time with little tales of those who really built the order of the world as we know it, all the while trying to explain why it's all about to crumble (allegedly). An interesting read, at the very least.

World keeps a-spinnin.

Well, the moral majority moved even closer to a minority this week with the loss of founder Jerry Fallwell. I probably can't sum it up any better than Tinky Winky.

Meanwhile, BookSwim.com is winding back library lending about 150 years by charging for book loans because (apparently) every library closes at 5:00. Really? Not the ones I've worked at. Anyway they want to be the Netflix of books. Good luck. I'll stick to BookCrossing or check out free groups like TitleTrader, FrugalReader, BookMooch .... or, heck, maybe my local library or thrift store.

At least we don't have zombie slaves though. We saw Fido last Friday night, and honestly the care and maintenance of zombies seemed like a lot of work. (No, really, it's amusing.)

At least the weather has been lovely. I've taken probably 400 photos this week.... here's one now:

Uniformity

I found a new blog recently, by repeatedly hitting "next blog" past a bunch in languages I couldn't read until I found KJ's Bulletin Board of the Brain. I knew I was going to blogroll it when I found her rant about an odd design trend -- turning books backward on the shelves (spine-side in) to create a uniform look for a room. Oh. My. God. One day, an intelligent race of beings is going to send along the equivalent of small-pox infected blankets to wipe out interior decorators; I hope I live to see it.

Further up the Blogger dial is Tim, over at derivative works. I was looking back at older posts when I came across his thoughts on FM Radio. For me, FM radio lives only in the van... I flip between a half dozen pre-programmed stations hoping one will refrain from pissing me off long enough to get me to my destination, or at least a traffic light. It seldom happens. Most mornings, I listen to Kool FM (107.3) which describes its sound as "hot adult contemporary." Their morning hosts are the least annoying without putting me to sleep (hello? CBC? I'm looking at you!), but eventually their promotional blather starts to build up crud on the dial and I flip to a Vancouver station 94.5 The Beat, which plays top 40 dance. I seldom get through an entire song before flipping away to 100.3 The Q (annoying guitar rock with fun DJs and decent news info) or 98.5 The Ocean (sometimes I luck into a half-decent 80s tune). By then, it's usually safe to flip back to Kool FM for the last few minutes of the drive in.

Home is a different story. Generally for the 4-4:30 drive, I listen to C-FAX 1070 on the AM dial (yeah, seriously old school). They call themselves "Victoria's News Authority"; I tend to call them "the angry old guy channel" because they have listener call-in shows where folks call in and give the guest their opinions. However, I can usually suffer the afternoon call-in show because it is liberally peppered with news, traffic and weather updates -- all of which are key for getting me the hell home.

If you read Tim's rant, you'll note there's one station not programmed into our radio: JACK FM. When they first started broadcasting, I really enjoyed the mix, but it has steadily narrowed to a blend of almost a perfct cocktail of The Q and Kool FM -- but those stations have real people; they take requests; and they are still passingly local. The Victoria JACK FM is no different than the Vancouver JACK FM or any of the other JACK stations all over North America. JACK FM is no different than McDonalds, The Gap, or WalMart in its mission of standardization, creating a sameness that keeps the masses from developing any kind of personality or opinion. Perfect for a nation that needs soldiers.

And yeah, I took my conspiracy theory meds today. How about you?