Do not be afraid of semicolons, not at all!
Use a semicolon to separate two closely related independent clauses:
I like Joe's brother; he has yet to notice me.
Yes, you could punctuate with a period between them, but the semicolon is also correct. A comma would be a comma splice (think ugly, slice and dice!)
Do not use a semicolon if what is before or after it is not a complete thought AKA an independent clause:
WRONG: Running down the street; I fell and scraped my leg.
Running down the street is NOT an independent clause. Hello, running down the street??? You see; you need a subject and a verb.
We can look at the use of semicolons in lists with commas on a less portentous day.
Grammar 13--don't want to tempt the grammar gods!
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Book Review: The Other
Here's an oldie, a Halloween read you will never forget if you like thrillers with a high-creepiness factor.
Stephen King has cornered the market on our thoughts of the odd and the mystical today with another corner set apart for all things vampire and zombie, but I recommend one of King's predecessors as well: Thomas Tryon.
Tryon's Harvest Home (1973) focuses on the small New England town of Cornwall Coombe where the women belong to an ancient cult. The narrator, Ned, wants to know more about the cult. His wife and daughter make it clear: it's not for men to know.
The ensuing chase of the hero after information --even when the warnings are clear--builds to a closing scene of horror and sorrow. Sometimes, guys, there are things you should not seek to know.
Thomas Tryon: The Other and Harvest Home. It's "The Blair Witch Project" and "Children of the Corn" -- definitely something to read this fall.
Stephen King has cornered the market on our thoughts of the odd and the mystical today with another corner set apart for all things vampire and zombie, but I recommend one of King's predecessors as well: Thomas Tryon.
Tryon's Harvest Home (1973) focuses on the small New England town of Cornwall Coombe where the women belong to an ancient cult. The narrator, Ned, wants to know more about the cult. His wife and daughter make it clear: it's not for men to know.
The ensuing chase of the hero after information --even when the warnings are clear--builds to a closing scene of horror and sorrow. Sometimes, guys, there are things you should not seek to know.
Thomas Tryon: The Other and Harvest Home. It's "The Blair Witch Project" and "Children of the Corn" -- definitely something to read this fall.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Grammar 12: Pronouns by Popular Demand
It takes a fair knowledge of grammar to understand WHY pronouns are used as they are.
I will dispense with the diagramming and technical terms and offer this simple test:
When faced with a compound (name plus a pronoun), drop the name and insert the pronoun. If the pronoun sounds wrong alone, it is wrong in the compound.
This rule is most frequently broken by people trying too hard to sound correct.
Give the cake to Jim and I. ("Give the cake to I"?????????????)
Correct: Give the cake to Jim and me. (Give the cake to me).
This letter is from Grandma and she. ("This letter is from she"??????????)
Correct: This letter is from Grandma and her. (This letter is from her).
BETWEEN:
Joe kept the secret between he and I. (double ouch)
Correct: Joe kept the secret between him and me (between US)
Good luck with making this change in both speech and writing. People may correct you. Refer them to Warriner's and tell them the objective case follows a preposition.
I will dispense with the diagramming and technical terms and offer this simple test:
When faced with a compound (name plus a pronoun), drop the name and insert the pronoun. If the pronoun sounds wrong alone, it is wrong in the compound.
This rule is most frequently broken by people trying too hard to sound correct.
Give the cake to Jim and I. ("Give the cake to I"?????????????)
Correct: Give the cake to Jim and me. (Give the cake to me).
This letter is from Grandma and she. ("This letter is from she"??????????)
Correct: This letter is from Grandma and her. (This letter is from her).
BETWEEN:
Joe kept the secret between he and I. (double ouch)
Correct: Joe kept the secret between him and me (between US)
Good luck with making this change in both speech and writing. People may correct you. Refer them to Warriner's and tell them the objective case follows a preposition.
Book Review: Nature's End
The winds are blowing in Southern California. We look to the hills for signs of smoke. I remember when fire season came only in the autumn; it now lasts all year long.
Someone who predicted this turn of the weather is science-fiction (science fact) writer, Whitley Streiber in his 1984 novel, Nature's End, co-written with Kunetka.
This novel portrays the earth as an environmental disaster in the 21st century. The population is out of control in numbers and in attitude, with survival of the fittest taking on a literal meaning.
The hero of the novel, John Sinclair, tries to gather like-minded environmental humanists to take on the Depopulation Movement. The powerful will simply poison one of every three citizens.
Nature's End is a suspenseful and tragic view of our Earth's demise. The powerful message should resonate with a new generation of readers. The book is out of print, so try your library or second-hand web site such as Alibris. You will be well-rewarded with a new respect for the green movement going on today as well as the quality of the writing in this significant call to environmental arms.
Someone who predicted this turn of the weather is science-fiction (science fact) writer, Whitley Streiber in his 1984 novel, Nature's End, co-written with Kunetka.
This novel portrays the earth as an environmental disaster in the 21st century. The population is out of control in numbers and in attitude, with survival of the fittest taking on a literal meaning.
The hero of the novel, John Sinclair, tries to gather like-minded environmental humanists to take on the Depopulation Movement. The powerful will simply poison one of every three citizens.
Nature's End is a suspenseful and tragic view of our Earth's demise. The powerful message should resonate with a new generation of readers. The book is out of print, so try your library or second-hand web site such as Alibris. You will be well-rewarded with a new respect for the green movement going on today as well as the quality of the writing in this significant call to environmental arms.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Book Review: Amen, Amen, Amen
Abby Sher's honest and hard-hitting memoir, "Amen, Amen, Amen" is the best non-fiction I've read this year.She puts the reader into the moment, into the mind, of a person with obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Her small rituals begin the summer her favorite aunt dies. Then her father dies. Her rituals grow. She picks up litter, she says prayers, she kisses photographs. She believes she must increase the number of times she completes these tasks to keep more people from dying.Her mother wants to help, but she cannot.
Abby enjoys mystifying her psychiatrists with her silence and her lies.Her disorder follows her through high school, college, and into her career as a Second City Improv artist. Each time she falls in love, she believes her rituals will keep her love safe even as the rituals drive her lovers away. She must make the world safe. She increases her penances.
Her mother falls ill. Abby believes she can save her.
Without giving away the end of the book, I can say the gift of love is greater than the terror of death.
Her small rituals begin the summer her favorite aunt dies. Then her father dies. Her rituals grow. She picks up litter, she says prayers, she kisses photographs. She believes she must increase the number of times she completes these tasks to keep more people from dying.Her mother wants to help, but she cannot.
Abby enjoys mystifying her psychiatrists with her silence and her lies.Her disorder follows her through high school, college, and into her career as a Second City Improv artist. Each time she falls in love, she believes her rituals will keep her love safe even as the rituals drive her lovers away. She must make the world safe. She increases her penances.
Her mother falls ill. Abby believes she can save her.
Without giving away the end of the book, I can say the gift of love is greater than the terror of death.
Grammar 11: Commas and Quotation Marks
I know, I know, I know. "Jeopardy" uses quotation marks inside the comma or period. Alex Trebek is tired of hearing from American English teachers.
American usage: Tuck the comma or the period in at the end of your sentence by putting the quotation marks outside: "I came, I saw, I conquered," said Julius Caesar. (comma quote)
See the comma tucked in there? "Jeopardy" would say "conquered", (quote comma), but this is not correct American English.
I like the line from Hamlet, "To thine ownself be true." (period and then quotation marks.)
There are other rules for semicolons, but let's call it a day. Tuck those commas and periods in, right inside the quotation marks. Your proofreaders will thank you.
American usage: Tuck the comma or the period in at the end of your sentence by putting the quotation marks outside: "I came, I saw, I conquered," said Julius Caesar. (comma quote)
See the comma tucked in there? "Jeopardy" would say "conquered", (quote comma), but this is not correct American English.
I like the line from Hamlet, "To thine ownself be true." (period and then quotation marks.)
There are other rules for semicolons, but let's call it a day. Tuck those commas and periods in, right inside the quotation marks. Your proofreaders will thank you.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Book Review: Half-Broke Horses
Jeannette Walls has written a prequel to her memoir, The Glass Castle. Because she is writing in her grandmother's voice, Jeannette calls this book a true-life novel to avoid the Oprah vs. James Frey effect.
The story of Lily Casey Smith is inspiring. She is born during hard times in a cave carved out of the desert-lands of Salt Draw, Texas. She survives her father's schemes to raise money raising peacocks, flashfloods that land her in a cottonwood tree, and a 500-mile journey, alone on horseback, to her first job. She was 15.
What I liked best about this book is the no-nonsense approach to life. Yes, life has problems. So, use your noggin and overcome them! No whining! And we get to meet the infamous Rex and the wildly artistic Rosemary as young people in this book.
I liked The Glass Castle better, for the adventures were even more hair-raising, but this is certainly a fascinating book. And if you look around, you will probably see a number of people Lily would call nothing but "half-broke horses" themselves.
The story of Lily Casey Smith is inspiring. She is born during hard times in a cave carved out of the desert-lands of Salt Draw, Texas. She survives her father's schemes to raise money raising peacocks, flashfloods that land her in a cottonwood tree, and a 500-mile journey, alone on horseback, to her first job. She was 15.
What I liked best about this book is the no-nonsense approach to life. Yes, life has problems. So, use your noggin and overcome them! No whining! And we get to meet the infamous Rex and the wildly artistic Rosemary as young people in this book.
I liked The Glass Castle better, for the adventures were even more hair-raising, but this is certainly a fascinating book. And if you look around, you will probably see a number of people Lily would call nothing but "half-broke horses" themselves.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Grammar 10: Introductory Commas
I am feeding you your comma rules very slowly so that each one goes down easily.
Use a comma with an introductory word of one word's length. There are other comma rules having to do with introductories, but let's stick with the one word for today.
Yes, I would like chocolate ice cream!
Darn, that makes me mad.
Well, I disagree.
Amazingly, he was not late.
Sometimes the comma could be replaced by an exclamation point, depending on your choice of emphasis:
Darn! The car won't start.
Phooey! It's not Friday yet.
Use a comma with an introductory word of one word's length. There are other comma rules having to do with introductories, but let's stick with the one word for today.
Yes, I would like chocolate ice cream!
Darn, that makes me mad.
Well, I disagree.
Amazingly, he was not late.
Sometimes the comma could be replaced by an exclamation point, depending on your choice of emphasis:
Darn! The car won't start.
Phooey! It's not Friday yet.
Book Review: Gates of Fire
Steven Pressfield's "Gates of Fire" is the first of his many books that I fell in love with.
He presents the Battle of Thermopylae with the precision of an embedded reporter, a battle that took place in 480 BC.
After his book was published in 1998, the History Channel presented specials on the culture of the Spartans and a theater-length film, "The 300," revisited this entrancing collision between the overwhelming strength of the Persian army and the resolute warriors of Sparta.
Pressfield brings the reader into the Spartan home, with emphasis on the strength it took to be a Spartan wife. We watch the warriors train. When the Battle of Thermopylae sets 300 Spartans against 10,000 Persians and others, it is a suicide mission.
Even with the outcome never in doubt, Pressfield creates suspense and new admiration for the warriors of these ancient days.
He lets one "survivor" tell the story. Like Custer's Last Stand, the Battle of Thermopylae is timeless in its appeal.
He presents the Battle of Thermopylae with the precision of an embedded reporter, a battle that took place in 480 BC.
After his book was published in 1998, the History Channel presented specials on the culture of the Spartans and a theater-length film, "The 300," revisited this entrancing collision between the overwhelming strength of the Persian army and the resolute warriors of Sparta.
Pressfield brings the reader into the Spartan home, with emphasis on the strength it took to be a Spartan wife. We watch the warriors train. When the Battle of Thermopylae sets 300 Spartans against 10,000 Persians and others, it is a suicide mission.
Even with the outcome never in doubt, Pressfield creates suspense and new admiration for the warriors of these ancient days.
He lets one "survivor" tell the story. Like Custer's Last Stand, the Battle of Thermopylae is timeless in its appeal.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Book Review: The Art of Racing in the Rain
Border collie, bearded collie, labrador, golden doodle, plain muttlie mutt. If you've ever truly loved a dog, "The Art of Racing in the Rain" will delight you. Garth Stein gives his narrator, Enzo, both great heart and great intelligence. This is not just another anthropomorphized "my dog talks" story; the narration is quite natural to the story. As the main character, Denny, goes through all the heartache of a family in crisis, his dog Enzo is there to love him and to keep him moving forward when the odds are against him. Denny's daughter, Zoe, is presented with a a good balance of a beloved child who is both a child and a mini-adult, with the pressures of trying to please all the adults, all the time. The motif of auotracing, the knowledge imparted by Enzo about racing and about life, it just does not get any better than this.
Grammar 9: Commas
Easy rule for a Monday:
Use a comma to set off a noun of direct address. A noun of direct address has nothing to do with where you live. It means when you call someone by name or by any other endearment or epithet, the name (etc) goes between commas, set off from the information.
I am asking you, Joanie, to take out the trash.
Please hurry, Mr. Postman.
Who would believe your luck, you brainiac!
Use a comma to set off a noun of direct address. A noun of direct address has nothing to do with where you live. It means when you call someone by name or by any other endearment or epithet, the name (etc) goes between commas, set off from the information.
I am asking you, Joanie, to take out the trash.
Please hurry, Mr. Postman.
Who would believe your luck, you brainiac!
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Grammar 8: Boring, Overused Language
The cliche has had its day. Could we move on to some fresh expressions, please? We'll get back to commas soon.
Williams: 'Whatever' gets our goat
Posted using ShareThis
This fine article appeared in The Signal today, but is also online through Scripps Howard News Service.
Every era has its buzz words. These have gotten worn out!
Williams: 'Whatever' gets our goat
Posted using ShareThis
This fine article appeared in The Signal today, but is also online through Scripps Howard News Service.
Every era has its buzz words. These have gotten worn out!
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Book Review: The Glass Castle
I am late coming to Jeannette Walls' memoir, The Glass Castle. I found it on my reading list for my class at UCLA, started it yesterday and finished it this morning. Need I say more about how compelling, funny, sad, true, and life-changing Jeannette Walls' story is?
The three Walls children live with parents who are free spirits. The father has good intentions in teaching his children all he knows of life. He believes that the universe is unendingly fascinating and beautiful, that children's questions matter enough to be pondered, and that cities and jobs and conformity ruin us. Unfortunately, he is also an alcoholic; he cannot keep a job. The family endures times of terror and poverty as they run from the law when they have to do the "skedaddle" after one illegal enterprise or another. Mountain Goat (Jeannette) thinks it's all hilarious unless she's hungry. Being hungry is not to be complained about, but is is a problem.
The memoir begins with Jeanette seeing her homeless mother rooting through dumpsters in New York. Jeanette ducks out of sight. Her mother is beyond help.
Mom is not alcoholic, but she too lives off the grid. Her art is her world. Her children should fend for themselves. A three-year old boiling her own hot dogs is considered a good thing; a classroom running amuk is the way schools should run.
All of us have lives worth the telling, but not all of us can treat poverty and despair without being maudlin or guilt-ridden. Not all of us were given the stars instead of presents at Christmas time or laughter after breaking our snot locker or a Glass Castle to dream for.
This memoir is one I will cherish for its wisdom and insouciance. The book radiates with family love.
And you thought your family was strange? HA!
The three Walls children live with parents who are free spirits. The father has good intentions in teaching his children all he knows of life. He believes that the universe is unendingly fascinating and beautiful, that children's questions matter enough to be pondered, and that cities and jobs and conformity ruin us. Unfortunately, he is also an alcoholic; he cannot keep a job. The family endures times of terror and poverty as they run from the law when they have to do the "skedaddle" after one illegal enterprise or another. Mountain Goat (Jeannette) thinks it's all hilarious unless she's hungry. Being hungry is not to be complained about, but is is a problem.
The memoir begins with Jeanette seeing her homeless mother rooting through dumpsters in New York. Jeanette ducks out of sight. Her mother is beyond help.
Mom is not alcoholic, but she too lives off the grid. Her art is her world. Her children should fend for themselves. A three-year old boiling her own hot dogs is considered a good thing; a classroom running amuk is the way schools should run.
All of us have lives worth the telling, but not all of us can treat poverty and despair without being maudlin or guilt-ridden. Not all of us were given the stars instead of presents at Christmas time or laughter after breaking our snot locker or a Glass Castle to dream for.
This memoir is one I will cherish for its wisdom and insouciance. The book radiates with family love.
And you thought your family was strange? HA!
Grammar 7: The Comma
First, it's a comma not a coma. And if comma rules put you into a coma, I'm only going to give one a day for a few days to help you avoid what my best friend, Orval, calls the "salt and pepper" approach: finish a paper and then shake the commas on!
Comma rule one: Use a comma for NON-ESSENTIAL information.
Delete the comma if the information is ESSENTIAL. Almost any information introduced by the word that is ESSENTIAL. Do NOT use a comma with the word THAT.
The paper that I lost had an important phone number on it. (essential--no comma)
Our friend dislikes women who wear too much make up. (essential--he doesn't dislike all women, only those who wear too much make up).
Our friend, who lives in Cleveland, is a loyal follower of the Browns. (non-essential: he lives in Cleveland)--use commas.
Another thing about non-essential who/which clauses is that you can change the emphasis in the sentence: Our friend, who is a loyal follower of the Browns, lives in Cleveland. (still non-essential, just the opposite information)
A who clause following a proper noun (capitalized noun) is always NON-essential and REQUIRES commas:
Edgar Allen Poe, who died in poverty, would be amazed at his continued place in poetic history.
Chapel Hill, which is a delightful college town, rocks on Halloween night.
That's it for today's easy comma rule. Happy writing. No salt-and-pepper commas, please.
Comma rule one: Use a comma for NON-ESSENTIAL information.
Delete the comma if the information is ESSENTIAL. Almost any information introduced by the word that is ESSENTIAL. Do NOT use a comma with the word THAT.
The paper that I lost had an important phone number on it. (essential--no comma)
Our friend dislikes women who wear too much make up. (essential--he doesn't dislike all women, only those who wear too much make up).
Our friend, who lives in Cleveland, is a loyal follower of the Browns. (non-essential: he lives in Cleveland)--use commas.
Another thing about non-essential who/which clauses is that you can change the emphasis in the sentence: Our friend, who is a loyal follower of the Browns, lives in Cleveland. (still non-essential, just the opposite information)
A who clause following a proper noun (capitalized noun) is always NON-essential and REQUIRES commas:
Edgar Allen Poe, who died in poverty, would be amazed at his continued place in poetic history.
Chapel Hill, which is a delightful college town, rocks on Halloween night.
That's it for today's easy comma rule. Happy writing. No salt-and-pepper commas, please.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Grammar 6: its / it's
How can a three letter word be such a troublemaker?
The duo of its /it's leads the list of misspellings in corporate writing and student papers. And I left out ITS' because it is not a word, it does not exist except in papers with more misspellings than seem humanly possibly. Again, there is no word its'.
To keep the error out of your writing, again, employ translation from English to English.
If you are throwing in an apostrophe on an it's, it's because the apostrophe means is.
If something belongs to any pronoun, the high-strung little creatures do not employ the apostrophe: The books are hers. My opinion differed from theirs.
You would not write hi's for his, so do not write it's for its!
I leave the pronoun world to you. When in doubt, translate it!
Its is an adjective. The dog licked its paw.
It's is a subject and a verb together: It's too cold today (it is too cold today).
The duo of its /it's leads the list of misspellings in corporate writing and student papers. And I left out ITS' because it is not a word, it does not exist except in papers with more misspellings than seem humanly possibly. Again, there is no word its'.
To keep the error out of your writing, again, employ translation from English to English.
If you are throwing in an apostrophe on an it's, it's because the apostrophe means is.
If something belongs to any pronoun, the high-strung little creatures do not employ the apostrophe: The books are hers. My opinion differed from theirs.
You would not write hi's for his, so do not write it's for its!
I leave the pronoun world to you. When in doubt, translate it!
Its is an adjective. The dog licked its paw.
It's is a subject and a verb together: It's too cold today (it is too cold today).
Book review: They Call Me Coach
Happy birthday to John Wooden, who turns 99 years young today.
His book, They Call Me Coach, will never get old. It is filled with Wooden's classic wisdom, everything from pre-game meals and lessons in the proper way to tie a tennis shoe to his famous "Pyramid to Success."
The book is filled with anecdotes of coaching those with immense talent, those with immense pride, and those whose greatest gift was the ability to commpete, like a Hemingway hero, with grace under pressure.
I was lucky enough to be a student at UCLA while Coach Wooden led UCLA to championship after championship, with Lew Alcindor, Lucius Allen, Mike Warren, Curtis Rowe, Sidney Wicks, and on into the Walton years.
Though They Call Me Coach is a nostalgic read for me, it is also the kindness and the purity of his vision that makes John Wooden one of the great men in sports and in humanity.
His book, They Call Me Coach, will never get old. It is filled with Wooden's classic wisdom, everything from pre-game meals and lessons in the proper way to tie a tennis shoe to his famous "Pyramid to Success."
The book is filled with anecdotes of coaching those with immense talent, those with immense pride, and those whose greatest gift was the ability to commpete, like a Hemingway hero, with grace under pressure.
I was lucky enough to be a student at UCLA while Coach Wooden led UCLA to championship after championship, with Lew Alcindor, Lucius Allen, Mike Warren, Curtis Rowe, Sidney Wicks, and on into the Walton years.
Though They Call Me Coach is a nostalgic read for me, it is also the kindness and the purity of his vision that makes John Wooden one of the great men in sports and in humanity.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Grammar 5: Spelling Hint for Prejudice
People use this word frequently, but its spelling is often a source of concern.
When one feels prejudice in the air, it is because someone has PRE-JUDged. So there's a first hint: make sure you have a PRE (as in BEFORE) and the opening of JUDge.
The other problem is that people will spell the word without using the participial ending even when they are using the word as an adjective. I am a purist, and I prefer ICED tea to ice-tea, but it is simply incorrect for people to write:
That man is plain prejudice.
Right: Actually, he is prejudiced.
Prejudice is a noun. Prejudiced is the adjective form of that noun. This is a tough one, but remember the idea of judging before to help, and try to add the ed ending if you choose to use it as an adjective. Add ed for the ADjective!
When one feels prejudice in the air, it is because someone has PRE-JUDged. So there's a first hint: make sure you have a PRE (as in BEFORE) and the opening of JUDge.
The other problem is that people will spell the word without using the participial ending even when they are using the word as an adjective. I am a purist, and I prefer ICED tea to ice-tea, but it is simply incorrect for people to write:
That man is plain prejudice.
Right: Actually, he is prejudiced.
Prejudice is a noun. Prejudiced is the adjective form of that noun. This is a tough one, but remember the idea of judging before to help, and try to add the ed ending if you choose to use it as an adjective. Add ed for the ADjective!
Book Review: The Possibility of Everything
I follow Hope on SheWrites, and this book sounded like a mysterious, revelatory journey. Although I often grit my teeth through syrupy books about the joys of motherhood, "The Possibility of Everything" has more to offer than the delicious smell of baby powder.
Edelman's daughter, Maya, at age 3, begins interacting with an imaginary friend. Well, I've been through that, and we remember the multitude of friends our daughter played with, so I didn't understand why Hope was so terrified. But as Maya, her funny, sweet, imaginative daughter begins to act out with hits, bites, and vicicousness under the influence of “bad Dodo,” it became apparent that Hope was up against more than just your average imaginary friend. Convincing people this is more than a phase in growing up became her quest.
She consulted with her friends, her pediatrician, and her very understanding husband. Of all the parts in this book, I enjoyed the way Hope bring's Uzi, hre husband, into the circle of healing and allows his patience and love for her and Maya to shine a light on the "new" fatherhood, replacing the aloof authoritarians of a by-gone age many a grandma uses as her protocol. Hope starts to think she is the one losing her mind.
When Uzi suggests an opportunity to travel, Hope chooses Belize, with encouragement from their Nicaraguan nanny. Uzi is willing to travel anywhere, try anything, having faith in the natural healing powers of plants and spirits. Hope is not sure, but she really want for Maya to ditch Dodo without cosmic intervention.
The journey from LAX to Belize reads like a traveler’s nightmare of of the impossible and foolish quest. Maya, sick with the croup, adds tension to nerves already frayed.
Once they arrive in Belize, Hope is still not sure of this path. She harbors deep fears that she is participating in harming her own child.
The book weaves in historical facts about the indigenous Mayan culture (the coincidence of the child's name and the native culture lead to some surprising situations. One cannot travel to Belize without observing its natural beauty, which Edelman provides in abundance. "The Possibility of Everything" leaves the reader open to the mystical and the arcane. This family traveled a long road, literally and spiritually, to find out what went wrong in their world. Hope’s epiphanies are many, imbuing her readers with the belief that they too can find more possibility in everything.
Edelman's daughter, Maya, at age 3, begins interacting with an imaginary friend. Well, I've been through that, and we remember the multitude of friends our daughter played with, so I didn't understand why Hope was so terrified. But as Maya, her funny, sweet, imaginative daughter begins to act out with hits, bites, and vicicousness under the influence of “bad Dodo,” it became apparent that Hope was up against more than just your average imaginary friend. Convincing people this is more than a phase in growing up became her quest.
She consulted with her friends, her pediatrician, and her very understanding husband. Of all the parts in this book, I enjoyed the way Hope bring's Uzi, hre husband, into the circle of healing and allows his patience and love for her and Maya to shine a light on the "new" fatherhood, replacing the aloof authoritarians of a by-gone age many a grandma uses as her protocol. Hope starts to think she is the one losing her mind.
When Uzi suggests an opportunity to travel, Hope chooses Belize, with encouragement from their Nicaraguan nanny. Uzi is willing to travel anywhere, try anything, having faith in the natural healing powers of plants and spirits. Hope is not sure, but she really want for Maya to ditch Dodo without cosmic intervention.
The journey from LAX to Belize reads like a traveler’s nightmare of of the impossible and foolish quest. Maya, sick with the croup, adds tension to nerves already frayed.
Once they arrive in Belize, Hope is still not sure of this path. She harbors deep fears that she is participating in harming her own child.
The book weaves in historical facts about the indigenous Mayan culture (the coincidence of the child's name and the native culture lead to some surprising situations. One cannot travel to Belize without observing its natural beauty, which Edelman provides in abundance. "The Possibility of Everything" leaves the reader open to the mystical and the arcane. This family traveled a long road, literally and spiritually, to find out what went wrong in their world. Hope’s epiphanies are many, imbuing her readers with the belief that they too can find more possibility in everything.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Book Review: Eat Cake!
Take time out from the rush, rush, rush of fall activities with this delightful concoction, Jeanne Ray's Eat Cake.
Ruth Hopson, mom, finds herself under siege: her mother has moved in with her after an acrimonious divorce; her teenaged daughter is "finding herself"; her father is injured and needs a place to stay while he recovers. Sam, her husband, is suddenly unemployed.
Can things get any worse?
When Ruth is upset, she doesn't just eat chocolate; she bakes chocolate cakes and carrot-ginger cakes and walnut cakes. Her house begins overflowing with cakes that she can no longer foist off on her neighbors and friends.
Eventually, one of her cantankerous family members decides to act by getting Ruth involved in catering her cakes. One by one, each family member comes to the rescue in a role in her new business.
Plenty of pratfalls and complications block the road to happiness, but through it all, Ruth finds a way to love her family, appreciate what she has, and not lose her mind.
This is a delightful little romp to prop you up when you're feeling blue. Discover Jeanne Ray, and you've made a new connection to the human comedy of family. Plus, the book includes recipes!
Ruth Hopson, mom, finds herself under siege: her mother has moved in with her after an acrimonious divorce; her teenaged daughter is "finding herself"; her father is injured and needs a place to stay while he recovers. Sam, her husband, is suddenly unemployed.
Can things get any worse?
When Ruth is upset, she doesn't just eat chocolate; she bakes chocolate cakes and carrot-ginger cakes and walnut cakes. Her house begins overflowing with cakes that she can no longer foist off on her neighbors and friends.
Eventually, one of her cantankerous family members decides to act by getting Ruth involved in catering her cakes. One by one, each family member comes to the rescue in a role in her new business.
Plenty of pratfalls and complications block the road to happiness, but through it all, Ruth finds a way to love her family, appreciate what she has, and not lose her mind.
This is a delightful little romp to prop you up when you're feeling blue. Discover Jeanne Ray, and you've made a new connection to the human comedy of family. Plus, the book includes recipes!
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Book review: Cowboy and Wills
One in 58 boys will test into the autism spectrum. One of these boys is my grandson. One is Dan E. Burns' son as his wrote about in his memoir, Saving Ben.
Another is Monica Holloway's son Wills. Her book, Cowboy and Wills, hit the bookstores yesterday. I was lucky enough to read this memoir in an advance reader's copy from Amazon's Vine program.
The logo for autism (see upper left of this page) is a puzzle piece, for every child with autism is in a different place on the autism spectrum and will require a different set of therapies.
Holloway's son, Wills, is verbal, which helps in her quest to bring Wills back from the world that terrifies him. Toilets that flush, people who talk to him on the street or in the classroom, and any change in his routine set him off into tantrums and refusals.
People, some who mean well, try to explain to Holloway what she lacks in parenting. Over time, she almost believes she is the cause of Wills' problems.
Through sheer energy and perseverance, Holloway battles the system to find a school that can and will work with Wills. Part of the equation for her son is his connection with animals. He loves animals from fish to turtles to rabbits and finally, the beautiful golden retriever, Cowboy. With Cowboy by his side as his aide at school, Wills finds his classmates drawn to talk to him. With their attention focused on Cowboy, Wills can relax and relate to the other children.
This is an inspiring story of love. It is not a cure-all for every child with autism. It is one therapy that worked for this family, one more child rescued while the government, the health care companies, and many schools choose to look the other way.
Autism is an epidemic in America. There will be more books about families coping with autism, but few will touch your heart as deeply as this one by Monica Holloway and the previously reviewed, Saving Ben by Dan E. Burns.
Another is Monica Holloway's son Wills. Her book, Cowboy and Wills, hit the bookstores yesterday. I was lucky enough to read this memoir in an advance reader's copy from Amazon's Vine program.
The logo for autism (see upper left of this page) is a puzzle piece, for every child with autism is in a different place on the autism spectrum and will require a different set of therapies.
Holloway's son, Wills, is verbal, which helps in her quest to bring Wills back from the world that terrifies him. Toilets that flush, people who talk to him on the street or in the classroom, and any change in his routine set him off into tantrums and refusals.
People, some who mean well, try to explain to Holloway what she lacks in parenting. Over time, she almost believes she is the cause of Wills' problems.
Through sheer energy and perseverance, Holloway battles the system to find a school that can and will work with Wills. Part of the equation for her son is his connection with animals. He loves animals from fish to turtles to rabbits and finally, the beautiful golden retriever, Cowboy. With Cowboy by his side as his aide at school, Wills finds his classmates drawn to talk to him. With their attention focused on Cowboy, Wills can relax and relate to the other children.
This is an inspiring story of love. It is not a cure-all for every child with autism. It is one therapy that worked for this family, one more child rescued while the government, the health care companies, and many schools choose to look the other way.
Autism is an epidemic in America. There will be more books about families coping with autism, but few will touch your heart as deeply as this one by Monica Holloway and the previously reviewed, Saving Ben by Dan E. Burns.
Write Right 4: Definitely
Quick tip for spelling this word:
When things are definite, they are FINITE, meaning absolute and with a clear end.
When you are definite in your opinions and definitely not changing them, you have to have a FINITE in the word definite or definitely or it's definitely misspelled.
NO A's in definite. Think I I I: I think, I believe, I am DEFINITELY ready to sign in ink about this opinion.
When things are definite, they are FINITE, meaning absolute and with a clear end.
When you are definite in your opinions and definitely not changing them, you have to have a FINITE in the word definite or definitely or it's definitely misspelled.
NO A's in definite. Think I I I: I think, I believe, I am DEFINITELY ready to sign in ink about this opinion.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Book Review: Tijuana Straits
Kem Nunn's Tijuana Straits pounds with violence just as the winter high surf in Imperial Beach, California, pounds the coastline. The novel follows Fahey, once the pride of IB in his surfing excellence, now a has-been, a cynical recluse. He lives for the big waves that form at the California-Mexico border along the Pacific Ocean.
One night his isolated meditation is disrupted by screams. A girl is running through the estuary, chased by wild dogs and by human menaces from the drug cartels.
As Fahey and Magdalena attempt to free her from those who would prefer her environmental activism to go away, Fahey is drawn back into life. His feelings for Magdalena are tempered by his long years of betrayal in the life he has led.
Magadalena, though saved the first night, continues to be stalked. Fahey too becomes a target. Magdalena refuses to give up her fight on behalf of the peasants who slave in foreign-owned factories, their sweatshop labor polluting the land and the rivers, including the Tijuana River that runs through the U.S. to the sea.
There are passages of savage violence, and those of tender beauty.
The beach's pollution and its natural beauty are highlighted in an epitaph to what once was and still can be: "big, open ocen waves, perfectly shaped upon a low tide with a light off-shore wind brushing their faces--and the surfer rode them in great carving turns top to bottom. . .The unbroken part ran on for another hundred yards, twice the sive of anything they had yet ridden. . .it was a vision they would carry to their graves. . .The face of that immense wave was turned to the light of the still-rising sun. . . ."
Nunn does not hold back in his despair of the changes to this unique ecosystem. He notes the flesh-eating bacteria in the water after storms, the iron fence built out into the breakers to keep illegals out.
But the descriptions of the ocean's power, the beauty of the land, and the smell of the estuary bring back my entire childhood in Imperial Beach, a time before drugs and U.S. attitudes towards the vast tide of Mexican immigration sullied the neighborhoods, the marine estuary, and the sea itself.
One night his isolated meditation is disrupted by screams. A girl is running through the estuary, chased by wild dogs and by human menaces from the drug cartels.
As Fahey and Magdalena attempt to free her from those who would prefer her environmental activism to go away, Fahey is drawn back into life. His feelings for Magdalena are tempered by his long years of betrayal in the life he has led.
Magadalena, though saved the first night, continues to be stalked. Fahey too becomes a target. Magdalena refuses to give up her fight on behalf of the peasants who slave in foreign-owned factories, their sweatshop labor polluting the land and the rivers, including the Tijuana River that runs through the U.S. to the sea.
There are passages of savage violence, and those of tender beauty.
The beach's pollution and its natural beauty are highlighted in an epitaph to what once was and still can be: "big, open ocen waves, perfectly shaped upon a low tide with a light off-shore wind brushing their faces--and the surfer rode them in great carving turns top to bottom. . .The unbroken part ran on for another hundred yards, twice the sive of anything they had yet ridden. . .it was a vision they would carry to their graves. . .The face of that immense wave was turned to the light of the still-rising sun. . . ."
Nunn does not hold back in his despair of the changes to this unique ecosystem. He notes the flesh-eating bacteria in the water after storms, the iron fence built out into the breakers to keep illegals out.
But the descriptions of the ocean's power, the beauty of the land, and the smell of the estuary bring back my entire childhood in Imperial Beach, a time before drugs and U.S. attitudes towards the vast tide of Mexican immigration sullied the neighborhoods, the marine estuary, and the sea itself.
Write Right 3: O! More A's and E's
Everyone's favorite grammar bugaboo: effect / affect
The best way to work with these two words (assuming you are taking the time to proofread and check) is to TRANSLATE them from English to English.
Affect is a VERB. It means "to influence." If you are going to add an "ed" to your word, you probably want a form of affect.
How will this storm affect our travel plans?
His positive attitude affected the audience's negative vibe, and soon everyone felt better.
Effect is almost always a noun. As a now it means "thE rEsult." Notice the E's, say EEEEEE for ThE rEsult = Effect.
I like thE Effect of having enough sleep.
People should know the effects and interactions of the drugs prescribed for them.
Exception (It's English, so of course there is one exception).
Effect (in about 1% of your uses of it) CAN be a verb. As a verb, it means "to bring about." If you are going to add "ed" to effect, ask yourself, TRANSLATE, does it mean "to bring about"?
The student council hoped to effect changes in school spirit through more rallies and inclusiveness.
Our boss says the new rules on dress code effected our sales numbers.
As a generality, I would say drop the use of the exception and simply use "bring about" and stick with effect as a noun, affect as a verb.
Happy writing, grammar warriors!
The best way to work with these two words (assuming you are taking the time to proofread and check) is to TRANSLATE them from English to English.
Affect is a VERB. It means "to influence." If you are going to add an "ed" to your word, you probably want a form of affect.
How will this storm affect our travel plans?
His positive attitude affected the audience's negative vibe, and soon everyone felt better.
Effect is almost always a noun. As a now it means "thE rEsult." Notice the E's, say EEEEEE for ThE rEsult = Effect.
I like thE Effect of having enough sleep.
People should know the effects and interactions of the drugs prescribed for them.
Exception (It's English, so of course there is one exception).
Effect (in about 1% of your uses of it) CAN be a verb. As a verb, it means "to bring about." If you are going to add "ed" to effect, ask yourself, TRANSLATE, does it mean "to bring about"?
The student council hoped to effect changes in school spirit through more rallies and inclusiveness.
Our boss says the new rules on dress code effected our sales numbers.
As a generality, I would say drop the use of the exception and simply use "bring about" and stick with effect as a noun, affect as a verb.
Happy writing, grammar warriors!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Grammar 2: O! Those A's and E's
This grammar lesson comes to you by request for someone's workplace!
Here is a simple trick to remember the difference between two commonly misused words. The question for people seems to be a or e?
accept / except
Think of ACCEPT as something positive, such as earning A's!
For a student to be ACCEPTED at an ACC university, a GPA filled with A's will help.
Think of EXCEPT in the negative, such as many EX's!
Everybody liked her, EXCEPT her EX.
I hope this helps.
Here is a simple trick to remember the difference between two commonly misused words. The question for people seems to be a or e?
accept / except
Think of ACCEPT as something positive, such as earning A's!
For a student to be ACCEPTED at an ACC university, a GPA filled with A's will help.
Think of EXCEPT in the negative, such as many EX's!
Everybody liked her, EXCEPT her EX.
I hope this helps.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Book Review: One True Thing
I gave myself an unusual gift this year for my birthday: I re-read Anna Quindlen's One True Thing.
I had read this book twice the first time I brought it home, read it again with my mother, and read it again when my mother died. As you can see, this book made quite an impact on me.
The story is of a young professional woman, Ellen, who returns home from New York City to care for her mother as her mother, Kate, undergoes treatment for ovarian cancer. The treatments are painful, and Ellen is restless. She never wanted to be a nursemaid. She loves her mothers, but she respects her father. What has her mother ever accomplished except keeping a clean house, making meals from scratch, and doing all kinds of domestic crafts? Ellen has dismissed her mother as a person all her life: Kate is a mother. That is all Ellen knows of her mom.
Ellen learns about her mother, her mother's passion for books, her deep and abiding understanding of her husband, the professor. Ellen learns more in six months than she has in the past twenty-two years as a stellar student.
And what she learns is what matters most. A mother's love is intrinsic to our characters, the quiet beat of our pulse, unconsidered until is goes missing from our lives. The entire novel is a thing of beauty. It is a suspenseful story and an awakening. Published in 1994, the novel may not be in the spotlight now, but I urge you to read Quindlen's controlled, exquisite, graceful story of a scholastic daughter finding a meaning for life only by losing the "one true thing" that matters.
I had read this book twice the first time I brought it home, read it again with my mother, and read it again when my mother died. As you can see, this book made quite an impact on me.
The story is of a young professional woman, Ellen, who returns home from New York City to care for her mother as her mother, Kate, undergoes treatment for ovarian cancer. The treatments are painful, and Ellen is restless. She never wanted to be a nursemaid. She loves her mothers, but she respects her father. What has her mother ever accomplished except keeping a clean house, making meals from scratch, and doing all kinds of domestic crafts? Ellen has dismissed her mother as a person all her life: Kate is a mother. That is all Ellen knows of her mom.
Ellen learns about her mother, her mother's passion for books, her deep and abiding understanding of her husband, the professor. Ellen learns more in six months than she has in the past twenty-two years as a stellar student.
And what she learns is what matters most. A mother's love is intrinsic to our characters, the quiet beat of our pulse, unconsidered until is goes missing from our lives. The entire novel is a thing of beauty. It is a suspenseful story and an awakening. Published in 1994, the novel may not be in the spotlight now, but I urge you to read Quindlen's controlled, exquisite, graceful story of a scholastic daughter finding a meaning for life only by losing the "one true thing" that matters.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Writing Right: Less/Fewer
Many of the words I will be discussing on my blog are so frequently misused in the media that I have had students, parents, and other teachers challenge the lesson provided. In a query letter, agents and editors ask that not a single error appear. Don't count on your computer's spellcheck to catch every error. You too can become a grammar warrior!
When in doubt, I suggest either of these excellent books: The Lively Art of Writing (Payne)
Warriner's Complete Course
Today, let's look at fewer and less, amount and number.
Use fewer when it's things that you count: I have fewer vacations than I used to; I have fewer responsibilities, too. (Note that both things counted are plural, ending is s).
Less is used for things that you measure: I have less energy after staying up too late. Jen, please put less sugar in the lemonade!
Amount is used with less (The amount of energy needed for that new project is amazing).
Number is used with fewer (The number of students packed into that classroom defies description).
When in doubt, I suggest either of these excellent books: The Lively Art of Writing (Payne)
Warriner's Complete Course
Today, let's look at fewer and less, amount and number.
Use fewer when it's things that you count: I have fewer vacations than I used to; I have fewer responsibilities, too. (Note that both things counted are plural, ending is s).
Less is used for things that you measure: I have less energy after staying up too late. Jen, please put less sugar in the lemonade!
Amount is used with less (The amount of energy needed for that new project is amazing).
Number is used with fewer (The number of students packed into that classroom defies description).
Book Review: The Writer's Journey
Christopher Vogler's The Writer's Journey, first published in 1998, lays out the commonalities of the heroic quest. For those in screenwriting or fiction (short or long), the step-by-step advice provides a framework for the tale that is in your head.
Vogler based much of his work on the mythic analysis by Joseph Campbell. He renders the arcane and philosophical into workable, understandable chapters. His reference points are most often classic films that the reader will know well, from The Wizard of Oz to Star Wars.
His points carry clear sub-headings; each chapter focuses on an aspect of journey and heroic stature.
If you are writing a novel, whether it has a hero or an anti-hero, a literal journey across the galaxies or a mental journey from despair to joy, Vogler's book will help you think about your plot and characters in a compelling way.
Vogler based much of his work on the mythic analysis by Joseph Campbell. He renders the arcane and philosophical into workable, understandable chapters. His reference points are most often classic films that the reader will know well, from The Wizard of Oz to Star Wars.
His points carry clear sub-headings; each chapter focuses on an aspect of journey and heroic stature.
If you are writing a novel, whether it has a hero or an anti-hero, a literal journey across the galaxies or a mental journey from despair to joy, Vogler's book will help you think about your plot and characters in a compelling way.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Adverbs are OUT!
Adverbs are
"No adverbs," the teacher said adversarily.
No one wants writing that sounds like a Tom Swifty: "Breathe deeply," the doctor said patiently.
Writing teachers and writing books say, "Drop all adverbs!"
I do proofread for unnecessary adverbs. I can find a better way to express what the adverb is saying:
She spoke sternly.
She frowned, her voice stern with fear.
Rule #1 in my high school composition classes was "just say NO to SO." Sentences reflect more energy without that tired, old so.
Rule #2, from Payne's The Lively Art of Writing: Avoid sentences that begin with Here or There. These two expletive adverbs cause an inversion of the subject and the sentence falls flat.
When you see either of them, try another way:
There was a big pond at the north of the park.
A big pond lured us to the north of the park.
See the difference? Easy as adverbs.
Eileen
"No adverbs," the teacher said adversarily.
No one wants writing that sounds like a Tom Swifty: "Breathe deeply," the doctor said patiently.
Writing teachers and writing books say, "Drop all adverbs!"
I do proofread for unnecessary adverbs. I can find a better way to express what the adverb is saying:
She spoke sternly.
She frowned, her voice stern with fear.
Rule #1 in my high school composition classes was "just say NO to SO." Sentences reflect more energy without that tired, old so.
Rule #2, from Payne's The Lively Art of Writing: Avoid sentences that begin with Here or There. These two expletive adverbs cause an inversion of the subject and the sentence falls flat.
When you see either of them, try another way:
There was a big pond at the north of the park.
A big pond lured us to the north of the park.
See the difference? Easy as adverbs.
Eileen
Submissions, Submissions!
I spent the summer submitting my new novel, Stairs of Sand, to small presses and major literary agents.
I had done my homework, on the web and with the Writers Market catalog, about the kinds of work particular agents were seeking as well as the kinds of work handled by the publishers I wrote to. I used "literarytracker.com" for extra suggestions.
So far, my record is 0-fer; that is, zero for forty.
Some of the rejections were personal and kind. Most were mass-produced, unsigned, generic rejections. I most-appreciated the rejection written in New York, but mailed from Maine, a sign to me that this agent had taken my work with her on a weekend, considered it, and then chose not to go with my work.
I am not finished sending out this novel. I know it can be published. In the interim, I have also sent out, during September, a short story to a contest at Glimmer Train, a set of vignettes for A Cup of Comfort for Couples," and a tribute to my beloved Labrador, Clayton, who died a year ago. Bark magazine accepted the latter and time will tell on the rest.
My favorite advice from my UCLA Writers' Program teacher, Van Khanna, is "Keep submitting." And Coach Jim Valvano also said it well in his fight against kidney cancer: "Never, never, never give up!"
In publishing, as in most things, persistence is key.
Happy submitting. Eileen
I had done my homework, on the web and with the Writers Market catalog, about the kinds of work particular agents were seeking as well as the kinds of work handled by the publishers I wrote to. I used "literarytracker.com" for extra suggestions.
So far, my record is 0-fer; that is, zero for forty.
Some of the rejections were personal and kind. Most were mass-produced, unsigned, generic rejections. I most-appreciated the rejection written in New York, but mailed from Maine, a sign to me that this agent had taken my work with her on a weekend, considered it, and then chose not to go with my work.
I am not finished sending out this novel. I know it can be published. In the interim, I have also sent out, during September, a short story to a contest at Glimmer Train, a set of vignettes for A Cup of Comfort for Couples," and a tribute to my beloved Labrador, Clayton, who died a year ago. Bark magazine accepted the latter and time will tell on the rest.
My favorite advice from my UCLA Writers' Program teacher, Van Khanna, is "Keep submitting." And Coach Jim Valvano also said it well in his fight against kidney cancer: "Never, never, never give up!"
In publishing, as in most things, persistence is key.
Happy submitting. Eileen
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