A few years ago, when the new-and-better-resourced movie version of Stephen King's IT was about to come out, I was talking with my mom about, well, it. She and my sister had both re-read the book and then gone to see the movie. I mentioned that I was planning to do the same and my … Continue reading Going Off Book-ish: The ‘Shadow and Bone’ TV Series, a.k.a. What to do when “the book is always better”?
Stephen King
Lost Animals
The first poster was for a dog. Fluorescent green paper with a smaller white page laminated on top of it to protect it from the Oregon rain. Picture of a small, scruffy dog. Missing.“Jimmy”Terrier mix.Skittish, do not chase.If seen, please call 541-555-1234 I began to see these posters everywhere. And by “everywhere,” I mean frequently … Continue reading Lost Animals
Going Off Book: Quarantine Celebrity-ing, + Notions, Late April Edition
Celebrity-ing While Quarantining During the COVID-19 pandemic, while most of us #shelterinplace, celebrities have been putting out elaborately orchestrated videos to entertain the troops, as it were, and keep up morale. And generally speaking, call me "curmudgeon" if you must, I loathe what feels to me like being pandered to by rich and famous people. … Continue reading Going Off Book: Quarantine Celebrity-ing, + Notions, Late April Edition
The Wheelhouse Project: Story
Go here for an introduction to the Wheelhouse Project. I read a lot and fairly widely. I really like books. Which means that when thinking about which of Nancy Pearl's four Doorways to reading—Story, Character, Setting, Language—I react more with, "Yes, those," rather than identifying with one alone. That said, I find one of these … Continue reading The Wheelhouse Project: Story
Mid-Century Macabre: Shirley Jackson and Josephine Tey
I have a brilliant friend whose bailiwicks include mid-twentieth century fiction and depictions of madness. Shirley Jackson, unsurprisingly, is a favorite. The only things I'd read of hers before were "The Lottery," (#iconic) and The Haunting of Hill House (1959), which I read as a teenager and barely remembered. But inspired by my friend, I … Continue reading Mid-Century Macabre: Shirley Jackson and Josephine Tey
Dogs, Coffee, & Books 