I took a quick clip of this baby opossum, found in the flower beds beside the beach side Holiday Inn at Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. I was most impressed with the fauna there. I saw crows, pelicans, gulls, snake birds, turtles, alligators, a snake over a metre long, cardinals and woodpeckers who seemed quite […]
Over dinner, a friend who knows I’m going to South Carolina, compared me to a Southern Belle. Not sure what this meant, I guessed he was referring to my tendency to be “slightly evil,” that is to say, not bland. Canadians are known for blandness in conversation. As a child I was taught to avoid
I hope to return with a story to tell Read More »
There’s been a pattern to my recent reviews. The books are tending to be YA more than adult. That’s because I’m starting to think about fall. I’ve just been notified that I’ll have an Intermediate class next year. In the special program where I teach, many of my students will be reading at the high
Clockwork by Philip Pullman Read More »
I recently watched the musical We Will Rock You, and the opera Elektra. I know I won’t be getting any Brownie points for excellent taste when I tell you I loved the first and didn’t care much for the second. To be fair, I knew every song used in the Queen musical, right down to
Since his post-modern picture books: The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by A. Wolfe and The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales, I have looked forward reading more by Jon Scieszka. Today, I refer to three short novels in his Time Warp Trio series. I have read: Knights of the Kitchen
Three by Jon Scieszka Read More »
I’ve been looking up Hilton Head, South Carolina, trolling for authors. I’ve already found two, without expanding my search beyond Hilton Head Island itself: Patricia Cornwell has multiple websites, including some scary-looking promo videos for her mysteries. Great fun. Portrait of a Killer: Jack the Ripper, Case Closed was fairly contentious when it came out.
Author outta Carolina Read More »
Now reading: The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins. I took out the 30th anniversary edition of this book from the library. I’ve only read the first 80 pages and already it’s changing my view of evolution. Dawkins uses game theory and mathematical models to prove that many of the evolutionary advantages we might assume are
The Selfish Gene — Richard Dawkins Read More »
I went to see the Rocky Horror Show on March 28. As a teen I was given the soundtrack by my parents but forbidden to see the movie itself. I have since watched it on DVD. My husband hadn’t seen any version of the Rocky Horror Show when I took him to see it. It
Rocky Horror Stage Show Read More »
I know, I know, artist types can be so boring when they talk about themselves but… humour me. I’ve been stuck for months now on the ending to my dystopian YA novel. Every time I would try to push the plot forward, the action would deviate from the protagonist’s ideals. It’s fun to create a
I was very sceptical when John Grisham‘s The Client was recommended to me. I once read one of his lesser books on an air flight and it felt more like work than pleasure to finish. The Client is a fascinating read. Mark, an eleven-year-old boy, tries to prevent a suicide and ends up knowing too