An Author Event at Los Gatos Library

This past Saturday, I went to the Los Gatos Library to see Emmi Itaranta, who wrote Memory of Water.  This was our February book for the Los Gatos Library Evening Book Club.  And the book and author are part of SV Reads for this year.  I wasn't crazy about the book - 2.75/4 - but she was very interesting.  I'm just going to list 10 different things that I learned about her and her book:

1.  Emmi is Finnish and moved from Finland to England 8 years ago.  She wrote the book in both Finnish and English.  She said that it definitely helped her to write the book in both languages.  She said that she had to pay more attention to her wording.
2.  She was in a writing class and thought her book was just going to be a short story.  It was her teacher and other students who said that it needed to be a novel.  It took her a year to convince herself that it should be a novel and another year before she publicly stated that it was a novel.
3.  It took 3 years for Emmi to completely write the novel in both languages.
4.  Emmi told us that translators picked up errors that all of the editors missed.
5.  The author did not pick the cover.  But, then again, authors rarely do.
6.  She got her book published in a very roundabout way.  In England, an author has to go through an agent.  In Finland, it's not required.  In fact, there are very few agents.  After getting a bunch of rejections, she entered the novel in a contest in Finland.  And won. Shortly after, one of the Finnish agents got in touch with Emmi and ended up representing her.  Ultimately, that led to publication in both countries and in both languages.
7.  Her book has been optioned by a movie production company.  But she said that the great majority of books that are optioned are never made.
8.  Her next book, The Weaver, is a fantasy.  It has already been published in Finland, and will hit the U.S. in May.  It's even been short-listed for top Sci Fi book in Finland.
9.  She was asked whether she ever considered a different ending for the book.  She said this ending was the one she conceived from the get-go.  As she got close to the end, she thought about another ending but dismissed it.
10. For those who have read the book (or intend to read it), Emmi said that she envisioned the story taking place 400-500 years in the future.

We had a great discussion in book club.  And I have to tell you that there were a number of people who liked the book much more than I did.  If you normally agree with my recommendations (you 1-2.5 people know who you are), this is one where you might want to take your own shot at it.

Devil in the Blue Dress, by Walter Mosley

Walter Mosley has won a bunch of awards, including the PEN American Center's Lifetime Achievement Award.  Devil in the Blue Dress is his 1st book in the Easy Rawlins series. And it was published in 1990.  So why would I start a series that is 26 years old?  A legitimate question, y'all.

Here's the story.  I'm on the email list for Keplers.  So I see all of their upcoming events (and there are a bunch of them year-round).  On June 16, Walter Mosley will be appearing, in conjunction with the NorCal division of the Mystery Writers of America.  I didn't think much about it when I saw it.  I had never read Mosley.  And, of course, there are dozens, maybe even hundreds, of events each year that I don't attend.  So why now?  The short version is that Nicole told me that if I want to go to the event, she would send me an ARC. She recommended that I read #1 and decide if I want to go ahead with the latest edition. Bottom line is that I liked it.  I didn't love it, but I did give it a 2.5/4.  Good enough to see the main character's development over 26 years and 14 books.

So who is Easy Rawlins?  Here's the blurb on the back cover:

Los Angeles, 1948:  Easy Rawlins is a black war veteran just fired from his job at a defense plant.  Easy is drinking in a friend's bar, wondering how he'll meet his mortgage, when a white man in a linen suit walks in, offering good money if Easy will simply locate Miss Daphne Monet, a blond beauty known to frequent black jazz clubs. 

Some observations-
1.  The book comes across a little hard-boiled, like the one Raymond Chandler book I read.
2.  I didn't find out until page 175 that Easy was planning on a new profession:  "It was those two days more than any other time that made me a detective."
3.  Easy learned proper English but had to speak in the dialect in order to mix with both the black and white communities.
4.  Mosley knows how to write:

"The dark cracks twisting through the light marble looked like a web of blood vessels in a newborn baby's head."

"...he had her in tow like a child's toy wagon."

"She sized me up, putting her nose in the air like a leery dog checking out the new mailman..."

"Mouse frowned for just a second.  It was like a small cloud passing quickly on a sunny day."

I have now signed up for Mosley's June 16 appearance.  And I have to say I'm looking forward to it.  Will I see (any of) you there?

Miscellaneous Stuff

I saw a trailer for Me Before You.  It looks really good.  I still want everybody to read the book.  But if you prefer movies to books (or if you've already read the book), it will be hitting the theaters in June.

Queen Sugar, by Natalie Baszile, started filming last Thursday in LA.  They are moving to New Orleans in the next few days.  Filming will take place there through late June/early July.  Natalie doesn't know yet when it will air on the OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network).  In case you didn't know, Natalie was our RBC author in December of 2014.  All of us who had a chance to meet her are thrilled.

We've now got some more details for Litquake at the JCC in Palo Alto.  Their keynote speaker/author is none other than Joyce Carol Oates.  But besides her, there will be a bunch of other big-name authors.  Get there if you can.  It's heaven for us bibliophiles.  (Sorry that there is overlap from my blog home page.  But you can still read it.)

Litquake Palo Alto is Back View this email in your browser. LITQUAKE PALO ALTO IS BACK! 36 AUTHORS • 10 LITERARY SALONS • WORKSHOPS FOR KIDS • AFTER PARTY San Francisco’s legendary literary festival is returning to the Oshman Family JCC on Sunday, March 13. We're excited to bring talented guest authors including Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket), Joyce Maynard (Under the Influence), Kevin Sessums (I Left It on the Mountain: A Memoir), Chef J. Kenji López-Alt (The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science) and many more. Kids ages 8+ can participate in literary workshops and teens will have their own space with panels on young adult authors and self-published teen writers. After the literary salons, guests are invited to our “Blues, Booze & Schmooze,” a no-host social where participants and authors can continue to mix and mingle. THIS JUST IN: We are excited to announce that our 7:00 PM headliner will be literary legend Joyce Carol Oates, the acclaimed author of over 40 novels and countless short stories. More to come on this prestigious guest soon. Share Tweet Forward FEATURED AUTHORS Joyce Maynard Joyce Maynard journalist and bestselling novelist. Her latest novel, Under the Influence, will be released this spring. Maynard has written 15 books and the best-selling memoir At Home in the World. She will be joined by Linda Gray Sexton, nonfiction author of Half in Love: Surviving the Legacy of Suicide in a salon called Addictions and Remembrances. All Author Bios J. Kenji López-Alt Celebrity chef J. Kenji López-Alt is the managing culinary director of Serious Eats, author of the James Beard Award-nominated column The Food Lab and a columnist for Cooking Light. His first book, The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science, is a New York Times Bestseller. Don't miss him in conversation with Sunset Magazine editor Margo True. All Author Bios Kevin Sessums Kevin Sessums wrote the New York Times bestselling memoir Mississippi Sissy, which won a 2008 Lambda Literary Award, and 2015's memoir, I Left It on the Mountain. He was a contributing editor for Vanity Fair, Allure and Parade. He will be joined in our MEN-moirs salon by Greg Archer and Jaimal Yogis. All Author Bios JUICY SALONS Topics Include:  MEN-moirs: Life Stories from the Male POV  Evil Lurks in Silicon Valley: Technothrillers If Not Now, When? Women in Politics Time Travelers: Haunting Historical Fiction On the Border: Culture Clashes and Melting Pots Moment Magazine Presents: Mysteries of the Cairo Codex And more! FOR THE KIDS Workshops for Ages 8-12 Register now to reserve your child's spot! Make Your Own Book Trailer Convince your friends and classmates to read your favorite book by making a video about it! More 3:00-4:00 PM Bookopolis Mini Book Club Kids will discuss a short story and discover new books with Kari Ness Riedel of Bookopolis. More 4:00-5:00 PM Improv Your Own Story This story-based improvisation class will get your kids to think on their feet! More 3:00-4:00 PM or 4:00-5:00 PM Illustration Demonstration with Bestselling Author/Illustrator Lisa Brown Lisa Brown will do a memorable presentation for kids based on her book Mummy Cat, which involves a slide show, a reading, and a drawing demonstration. No registration required. More 5:00-6:00 PM Stay Tuned for Updates Join our Facebook event, keep an eye on #LitquakePaloAlto and visit www.paloaltojcc.org/litquake for updates about the event! BLUES, BOOZE & SCHMOOZE Guests 21+ are invited to hang out with our fabulous authors at our legendary after party! Free food will be served. Cash bar.

Ellen Kirschman at the RBC

This past Wednesday night we had Ellen Kirschman at the RBC.  Ellen was there to answer questions about her 2nd book in the Dot Meyerhof series, The Right Wrong Thing (book 1 is Burying Ben).  Ellen is a 30-year police psychologist.  I have seen her at the launches for the 1st 2 books in the series.  And I never cease to be fascinated by what she has to say. Here are a few gems that I learned at our meeting:

1.  There are 900,000 law enforcement officers in the U.S. and 30,000 firefighters.
2.  10% of the law enforcement officers are women.
3.  Ellen does 4 6-day retreats a year as a volunteer for the First Responders Support Network (FRSN).  This is an organization designed to work with first responders and their families to help them reduce stress.
4.  Ellen has written several non-fiction books, including I Love a Cop, written in 1994.  Now she is writing a 2nd edition.
5.  Over the years, Ellen has provided counseling in 22 states and 4 countries as an independent contractor.

If you ever have a chance to see Ellen (Kirschman, not DeGeneres) in person, do it.  You will come away with a greater appreciation for her work and for first responders in general. We've all seen what can happen in  Ferguson and with victims like Eric Garner.  But this doesn't change the fact that the vast majority of our 1st responders are doing the job that we all expect them to do.  And, as Ellen has pointed out, it's a very stressful job.

A Review of Mulberry, by Paulette Boudreaux (Paulette is the author, not the reviewer!)

One of the things that I love about living here in the Bay Area is getting so many opportunities to meet local authors.  In this case, I went to the opening event of this year's Silicon Valley Reads.  I was meeting my son, Josh, there.  He is on the community board for the SVR organization.  When I got there, he was standing with 2 people.  One of them was Paulette Boudreaux, the author of Mulberry.  Although it doesn't happen in every case, I usually try to read books written by authors that I have met - especially those of the local variety!

That brings you up to date.  And boy am I glad I met Paulette.  Her book, Mulberry, is really good and grabbed me on page 1.  It's that rare combination of literary but very readable (kind of like Pat Conroy).  And her writing is extremely visual.  I'll get to some examples in a minute.  First, here's the synopsis from Goodreads:

Mulberry is a gripping and beautifully written tale of family crisis and personal strength that focuses on Maddy, an eleven-year-old girl struggling to keep herself and her three younger brothers, afloat in small-town segregated Mississippi in the early 1960s.

Okay, here are some examples of how visual her writing is:

1.  "'Oh, yeah,' she said, gazing out through mulberry leaves braised by the late August sun."
2.  "...but I also felt slow-growing anger.  The feeling curled inside, whipping around like a lizard's tail."
3.  While watching her house on fire - "There was something glorious but pitiful about being singled out by a fire."
4.  "The neighbors parted away from my brothers and me like a receding wave, exposing us like minnows washed ashore."
5.  "She stood over me now, her thick, well-fed body like a cotton bale on legs..."
6.  I won't quote a long paragraph here, but just go to page 230 and read about a fight between Miss Glenda and Mrs. Hazel.  You will feel like you are watching them in person.

There are a million examples.  In fact #3 and #4 came from the same page!  Pretty impressive, don't you think?  As we all know, a book is more enjoyable when you can "see" what's happening.  The other impressive element of Mulberry comes from something Barry Eisler said at his launch.  This really stuck with me.  He said that he "gets to know" his characters before he worries about the plot details.  I never could understand why I connected with the protagonists in some books and not in others.  And in many cases, I have connected with protagonists in books with mostly local exposure and didn't connect with those in nationally prominent books (sorry, but The Girl on the Train is definitely one of the latter!).  I get it now.  Paulette obviously worked on getting to know her characters, because I connected with all of them.

In case you haven't figured this out, I highly recommend that you read Mulberry.  And in case you want to meet Paulette, buy a book, and get it signed, she will be out in front of Recycle Books in Campbell on Sunday morning, May 1, from 9:15:-12:15.  (I'm also working on having her be our RBC author for June.  Fingers crossed.)

I Get My Own Shelves!

Okay, you have all seen (ad nauseum) my recommendation table at Recycle Books in Campbell.

But something you have NOT seen yet is my own bookshelves inside the store.  Yep, Stacy decided to give me 8 shelves in the back left hand corner so that (I think) I would leave her alone about where I could store my rec table books for Sundays!  Actually, I think it's really cool that she gave me that space.  Here's how it looks:

So I've got the bottom 3 on the left and all 5 on the right.  And do you notice that the shelves are marked with The Book Sage.  Do you know how I got that name?  Here are the most common answers:

1.  Stacy at Recycle Books

2.  The West Coast sales rep from Random House

3.  The President of the RWA (Romance Writers of America)

4.  Margie, the co-owner of the Books, Inc. chain

5.  President Barak Obama

6.  None of the Above

Which one do you think it is?  The answer is (drum roll, please) - #6, None of the Above. That's right, I named myself The Book Sage.  Regardless of how it came to be, though, I am really happy and proud to have my own place in the book store.  Next time you're in Recycle, take a look at my shelves.  I'll bet you see a bunch of books that you've all read.

Rosemary, The Hidden Kennedy Daughter, by Kate Clifford Larson

1st of all, when was the last time I read a biography?  Not often, right?  So why did I read about Rosemary Kennedy?  I've got an obvious answer:  It was a book club selection.  In this case, it's for  the February meeting of the Books, Inc. 4th Evening Tuesday Book Club. And since this was a month that I would be able to attend, I figured what the heck.

I often get accused - nay, lambasted - for reading so little non-fiction.  To be fair, I read 8 non-fictions last year.  And several of them were not even memoirs.  But, alas, it is true that 8 out of 65 is only 12.3%.  Not a lot.  And Rosemary is my 1st one of 2016 (also 1 of 8).

Let's get to it.  I gave this book a 3/4.  It was dry and somewhat tedious at times.  But it was very informative about the entire Kennedy clan, especially Rosemary and her parents, Rose and Joe, Sr.  I learned about Montessori schools; Catholic vs. Protestant prejudice; Eunice's incredible work with the intellectually and physically disabled and her role in establishing the Special Olympics; and even lobotomies!  That's a lot to learn.  And speaking of the Special Olympics, look at this:  1000 participants in 1968, and 4 million now in 200 countries!

But lest I give you the impression that it was only a dry and unemotional read - not so fast! I had a 16 page stretch where I had the following out-loud reactions:

1.  "Wow!"
2.  "Wow! Wow!"
3.  "Wow!  Wow!" plus tears

I mentioned lobotomies.  It turns out that they were very popular in the 30s and 40s.  In those 2 decades, there were tens of thousands performed!  Isn't that crazy?  The pace of surgery slowed with the advent of antipsychotic and antidepressant drugs in the early 50s. We all remember when Jack Nicholson gets lobotomized in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.  It doesn't look like much, does it?

And no review would be complete without a few personal connections (no, not with the Kennedy's):
1.  Larson tells us about quintuplets born in 1934 in Ontario, Canada.  They were born without fertility drugs, which was unheard of at that time.  They ended up living in a house in which tourists and the media could watch them around the clock.  Remember Jim Carey's movie, The Truman Show?
2.  In 1927, the Kennedy clan rented a home in Riverdale, NY.  My aunt and uncle actually lived in Riverdale.  It's a very upscale community.  But since my aunt and uncle were Jacuzzis (yep, THE Jacuzzis - one of my mother's sisters married into the whirlpool clan), they could pretty easily afford it.
3.  On Rosemary's 53rd birthday, she was given a canary named Lollie.  This has double significance for me.  First, Atul Gawande, in his book, Being Mortal (reviews 12/9/15 & 12/13/15), talks about the benefits of having a bird in the room of someone with an intellectual or physical disability.  He was specifically talking about the elderly.  But it seems that the same concept works for any age.  It sure made Rosemary happier.  Second, Lollie is the nickname of a very close friend of ours.  Coincidence?  Of course!

Finally, I want to quote Anthony Shriver, Eunice's son.  He kind of summed it all up when he said:  "The interest (Rosemary) sparked in my family towards people with special needs will one day go down as the greatest accomplishment that any Kennedy has made on a global basis."  I would say that's pretty powerful stuff.