I recently read a blog on Darcy Patterson's Fiction Notes which disgusted Jessica's book on why editors reject manuscripts. In Patterson's post she gave some common examples. Curious for more, I ordered the book from Amazon, and I was digging into the reasons why my novel might not be up to par within two days.
Whenever I read a book on craft, I insert my characters into the situations and examples given. Over the six years I've been working on my novel, I can't help but smile when I read about a basic writer's blunder I stumbled over--but I persevered and learned the correct process to fix it.
In the first few chapters Morrell gives examples of basic writing mistakes followed by examples of how to make your first paragraph sing as if it where a Siren calling, "Read on, and on, and on..." However, the reason why I'm taking time to ignore the call of Morrell's Siren, is to type an interesting blurb she says about plot on page 57.
"Plot is movement and a record of change. These changes--inflicted on the protagonist or group of characters--alter their fortunes, choices, and beliefs."
The above quote though, struck me as a vital part of my novel's circulatory system, and not just a means to an end.
My plot is the vein, and it carries my main character's experiences through its blood flow to Lucinda. She can be attacked by viruses and cholesterol. How she handles the experiences are what effect her overall health and well being as a character. So... I can have her take antibiotics (listen to advice of another character) or put a band aid on it, but whatever she does it effects her health.
Saturday, September 7, 2013
Friday, September 6, 2013
Author Review: Avi
Avi is another author who has won three Newbery awards. They include the following:
Crispin, The Cross of Lead, published by Hyperion, Copyright 2002.
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, published by Harper Trophy, Copyright 1990.
Nothing but the Truth, published by Harper Trophy, Copyright 1991
Crispin, The Cross of Lead won the Newbery Medal, along with various other awards and accolades. I enjoyed it for two reasons. One, it was a novel included on my list by Deborah Halverson to teach me about voice, and the second reason being it was on my list to read every Newbery book awarded—a lofty goal, to which I’ll be working on till I die.
Because it is set in 1377 A.D. England, I purchased thirty-five copies for my daughter’s 7th grade English class. Her teacher was attempting to match his reading selections to the history curriculum, since the students were studying the medieval period, this book along with most of Karen Cushman’s books would be a logical choice to add a little historical fiction to their studies.
Unfortunately, the books the teacher chose were, The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pile, which was dropped after the second chapter because the students couldn't understand the colloquialism of old English, and a book by Susan Cooper titled King of Shadows. Although my daughter thoroughly enjoyed the story of a modern day theater student, being transported though time to perform in a Shakespearean play, I don’t think it would have touched on the historical aspects the way Avi’s book does.
Here is a summary of Avi's Crispin, Cross of Lead: After his mother’s death, thirteen-year-old Christian is forced to flee his home to avoid being murdered. It is through his adventure to stay alive that he finds out who is really is.
~~~~
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle won Avi a Newbery Honor. For me, the voice of the main character stood out and demanded my attention more that Crispin, although I loved each one equally. It is the story about well-to-do family from Rhode Island who sends their daughter Charlotte, a thirteen-year- old girl to boarding school in England in the year 1832.It is on her way back to America when her adventure begins.
Many agents and editors bring their favorite books to conference and read the first paragraph to show how important voice is. This is one of the books I would use to prove my point. Here is the first few lines: “Not every thirteen-year-old girl is accused of murder, brought to trial, and found guilty. But I was just such a girl, and my story is worth relating even if it did happen years ago.”
Now, go buy this book and follow her adventure.
~~~~~
Another important book which any high school teacher would find relevant is Nothing but the Truth. This book was yet another Newbery Honor for this incredible author, and it deserves its own review, so please read the next blog to explore its importance in today’s school system.
~~~~~
Aside from these books, Avi has written many, many others. Another book I appreciated was The Fighting Ground, published by Harper Trophy, Copyright 1984. It is the story is about a thirteen-year-old boy who chooses to run away from home during the Revolutionary war.
As in most children’s books, adventures usually span a certain period in time. For Harry Potter, each stand alone book covers a school year. Other books cover a semester, or a summer. The Fighting Ground was the first book I've read where the adventure occurs within a twenty-four hour period, (A more recent book which covers a twenty-four hour period is 13 Reason's Why by Jay Asher. It is a serious subject YA book which I will give my thoughts in a separate review.)
In The Fighting Ground, Avi also sets an example of how to incorporate foreign speaking dialogue into a novel. Instead of writing the German word followed by the English translation directly after with commas, Avi puts his translation as an addition in the back of the book. I think this added to the confusion the main character experienced at not understanding what the German soldiers were saying along with the reader.
Crispin, The Cross of Lead, published by Hyperion, Copyright 2002.
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, published by Harper Trophy, Copyright 1990.
Nothing but the Truth, published by Harper Trophy, Copyright 1991
Crispin, The Cross of Lead won the Newbery Medal, along with various other awards and accolades. I enjoyed it for two reasons. One, it was a novel included on my list by Deborah Halverson to teach me about voice, and the second reason being it was on my list to read every Newbery book awarded—a lofty goal, to which I’ll be working on till I die.
Because it is set in 1377 A.D. England, I purchased thirty-five copies for my daughter’s 7th grade English class. Her teacher was attempting to match his reading selections to the history curriculum, since the students were studying the medieval period, this book along with most of Karen Cushman’s books would be a logical choice to add a little historical fiction to their studies.
Unfortunately, the books the teacher chose were, The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pile, which was dropped after the second chapter because the students couldn't understand the colloquialism of old English, and a book by Susan Cooper titled King of Shadows. Although my daughter thoroughly enjoyed the story of a modern day theater student, being transported though time to perform in a Shakespearean play, I don’t think it would have touched on the historical aspects the way Avi’s book does.
Here is a summary of Avi's Crispin, Cross of Lead: After his mother’s death, thirteen-year-old Christian is forced to flee his home to avoid being murdered. It is through his adventure to stay alive that he finds out who is really is.
~~~~
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle won Avi a Newbery Honor. For me, the voice of the main character stood out and demanded my attention more that Crispin, although I loved each one equally. It is the story about well-to-do family from Rhode Island who sends their daughter Charlotte, a thirteen-year- old girl to boarding school in England in the year 1832.It is on her way back to America when her adventure begins.
Many agents and editors bring their favorite books to conference and read the first paragraph to show how important voice is. This is one of the books I would use to prove my point. Here is the first few lines: “Not every thirteen-year-old girl is accused of murder, brought to trial, and found guilty. But I was just such a girl, and my story is worth relating even if it did happen years ago.”
Now, go buy this book and follow her adventure.
~~~~~
Another important book which any high school teacher would find relevant is Nothing but the Truth. This book was yet another Newbery Honor for this incredible author, and it deserves its own review, so please read the next blog to explore its importance in today’s school system.
~~~~~
Aside from these books, Avi has written many, many others. Another book I appreciated was The Fighting Ground, published by Harper Trophy, Copyright 1984. It is the story is about a thirteen-year-old boy who chooses to run away from home during the Revolutionary war.
As in most children’s books, adventures usually span a certain period in time. For Harry Potter, each stand alone book covers a school year. Other books cover a semester, or a summer. The Fighting Ground was the first book I've read where the adventure occurs within a twenty-four hour period, (A more recent book which covers a twenty-four hour period is 13 Reason's Why by Jay Asher. It is a serious subject YA book which I will give my thoughts in a separate review.)
In The Fighting Ground, Avi also sets an example of how to incorporate foreign speaking dialogue into a novel. Instead of writing the German word followed by the English translation directly after with commas, Avi puts his translation as an addition in the back of the book. I think this added to the confusion the main character experienced at not understanding what the German soldiers were saying along with the reader.
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Book Review: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
For this review, I will let quotes from the book explain character development, plot, setting, and theme.
Charles Wallace slipped his hand confidingly in Meg’s, and the sweet, little-boy gesture warmed her so that she felt the tense knot inside her begin to loosen. Charles loves me at any rate, she thought. (Ch 2: Pg 30: ¶ 8)
This quote shows how much Meg loves her little brother and that Charles is a good little kid.
“What gives around here?” Calvin asked. “I was told you couldn’t talk.”
“Thinking I’m a moron gives people something to feel smug about,” Charles Wallace said. “Why should I disillusion them? How old are you Cal?” (Ch 2: Pg 33: ¶ 9-10)
These quotes show that despite what other people at school think, Charles Wallace is a really smart kid.
“Do you think things always have an explanation?” [Meg said]
“Yes. I believe that they do. But I think that with our human limitations we’re not always able to understand the explanations. But you see, Meg, just because we don’t understand doesn't mean that the explanation doesn't exist.” (Ch 3: Pg 46: ¶ 6-7)
These quotes show Meg’s character as being someone who always wants an explanation so she understands things. It also shows that Meg’s Mom is a person who can believe in something that hasn't been proven yet.
Charles Wallace looked steadily at Mrs Whatsit. “Are you afraid for us?”
“A little.”
“But if you weren’t afraid to do what you did when you were a star, why should you be afraid for us now?”
“But I was afraid,” Mrs Whatsit said gently. (Ch 6: Pg 95: ¶ 7-9)
These sentences show that Mrs Whatsit was afraid when she had to give up her life as a star to fight the evil darkness. She is also afraid for the children as they go off to do the same thing.
“Well, then, someone just tell me how we got here!” Calvin’s voice was still angry and his freckles seemed to stand out on his face. “Even traveling at the speed of light it would take us years and years to get here.”
“Oh, we don’t travel at the speed of anything,” Mrs Whatsit explained earnestly. “We tesser. Or you might say, we wrinkle.” (Ch 4: Pg 60: ¶ 6, 7)
Mrs. Whatsit is explaining to Calvin how they move through time and space in order to get to the different planets that they must visit to save Meg’s father.
“You see,” Mrs Whatsit said, “if a very small insect were to move from the section of skirt in Mrs. Who’s right hand to that in her left, it would be quite a long walk for him if he had to walk straight across.”
Swiftly Mrs Who brought her hands, still holding the skirt together.
“Now, you see.” Mrs Whatsit said, “he would be there without that long trip. That is how we travel.” (Ch 5: Pg 73: ¶ 8 – 10)
These sentences continue to explain how the kids will travel through time by giving an example that the children could see for themselves.
Meg looked. The dark shadow was still there. It had not lessened or dispensed with the coming of night. And where the shadow was the stars were not visible.
What could there be about a shadow that was so terrible that she knew that there had never been before or ever would be again, anything that would chill her with a fear that was beyond shuddering, beyond crying or screaming, beyond the possibility of comfort? (Ch 4: Pg 70: ¶ 3, 4)
These sentences show Meg’s reaction and how scared she was when she saw the dark shadow.
Calvin turned, rejecting the dark Thing that blotted out the light of the stars. “Make it go away, Mrs Whatsit,” he whispered. “Make it go away. It’s evil.” (Ch 4: Pg 70: ¶ 8)
This sentence shows Calvin’s reaction when he saw the dark shadow.
“Wwee musstt ggo bbehindd thee sshaddow.” [Mrs Which speaking]
This sentence reveals the purpose of the story which is to fight the shadow. The other plot quotes show how the characters move along in the story, but this shows what they must do.
Again Mrs Which’s voice reverberated through the cave. “Therre will nno llonggerr bee sso many pplleasanntt things too llookk at iff rressponssible people ddo nnott ddoo ssomethingg abboutt thee unppleassanntt ones.” (Ch 5: Pg 83: ¶ 2, 3)
This shows the importance of good people standing up for what is right.
Below them the town was laid out in harsh angular patterns. The houses in the outskirts were all exactly alike, small square boxes painted gray. Each had a small, rectangular plot of lawn in front, with a straight line of dull-looking flowers edging the path to the door. Meg had a feeling that if she could count the flowers there would be exactly the same number on each house. In front of all the houses children were playing. Some were skipping rope, some were bouncing balls. Meg felt vaguely that something was wrong with their play. It seemed exactly like children playing around any housing development at home, and yet there was something different about it. She looked at Calvin, and saw that he, too, was puzzled.
“Look!” Charles Wallace said suddenly. “They’re skipping and bouncing in rhythm. Everyone’s doing it at exactly the same moment.”
This was so. As the skipping rope hit the pavement, so did the ball. As the rope curved over the head of the jumping child, the child with the ball caught the ball. Down came the ropes. Down came the balls Over and over again. Up. Down. All in rhythm. All identical. Like the houses. Like the paths. Like the flowers. (Ch 6: Pg 98: ¶ 5 and Pg 99: ¶ 1, 2)
The setting shows that the people in this world have no creativity or freedom to do what they want.
Meg shook her head violently. “No!” she shouted. “I know our world isn't perfect, Charles, but it’s better than this. This isn't the only alternative! It can’t be!”
“Nobody suffers here,” Charles intoned. “Nobody is ever unhappy.”
“But nobody’s ever happy, either,” Meg said earnestly. “Maybe if you aren't unhappy sometimes you don’t know how to be happy.” (Ch 8: Pg 136: ¶6-8)
Meg is talking about free will, which the people of Camazotz don’t have. If you don’t have sadness then you won’t know what is it to be happy.
“All right, I’ll go!” Meg sobbed. “I know you want me to go!”
“We want nothing from you that you do without grace,” Mrs Whatsit said, “or that you do without understanding.”
“That it has to be me. It can’t be anyone else. I don’t understand Charles, but he understands me. I’m the one who’s closest to him. (Ch 12, Pg 187, ¶ 1, 2, 5)
Meg finally understands that she must be the one to sacrifice her safety in order to save her brother and she must do it willingly.
“Who helps you?” [fight against the Dark Thing] Meg asked.
“Oh, dear, it is so difficult to explain things to you, small one. And I know now that it is not just because you are a child. The other two are as hard to reach into as you are. What can I tell you that will mean anything to you? Good helps us, the stars help us, perhaps what you would call light helps us, love helps us. Oh, my child, I cannot explain! This is something you just have to know or not know.”
“But—“
“We look not at the things which are what you would call seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal. But the things which are not seen are eternal.” (Ch 11: Pg 178: ¶ 7; Pg 179: ¶1,2)
Theme is explained here as being eternal, like love. You can’t see it or explain it, but you just know it exists because you feel it. Compare to Hebrews 11:1 KJV in the New Testament.
And that was where IT made Its fatal mistake, for as Meg said, automatically, “Mrs Whatsit loves me; that’s what she told me, that she loves me,” suddenly she knew.
She knew!
Love.
That was what she had that IT did not have.
She had Mrs Whatsit’s love, and her father’s, and her mother’s, and the real Charles Wallace’s love, and the twins’, and Aunt Beast’s. And she had her love for them. (Ch 12: Pg198: ¶11; Pg 199: ¶ 1, 2)
This shows the eternal theme of love and how important it is for people to love and care for each other.
Quote 1: Character
Charles Wallace slipped his hand confidingly in Meg’s, and the sweet, little-boy gesture warmed her so that she felt the tense knot inside her begin to loosen. Charles loves me at any rate, she thought. (Ch 2: Pg 30: ¶ 8)
This quote shows how much Meg loves her little brother and that Charles is a good little kid.
Quote 2: Character
“What gives around here?” Calvin asked. “I was told you couldn’t talk.”
“Thinking I’m a moron gives people something to feel smug about,” Charles Wallace said. “Why should I disillusion them? How old are you Cal?” (Ch 2: Pg 33: ¶ 9-10)
These quotes show that despite what other people at school think, Charles Wallace is a really smart kid.
Quote 3: Character
“Do you think things always have an explanation?” [Meg said]
“Yes. I believe that they do. But I think that with our human limitations we’re not always able to understand the explanations. But you see, Meg, just because we don’t understand doesn't mean that the explanation doesn't exist.” (Ch 3: Pg 46: ¶ 6-7)
These quotes show Meg’s character as being someone who always wants an explanation so she understands things. It also shows that Meg’s Mom is a person who can believe in something that hasn't been proven yet.
Quote 4: Character
Charles Wallace looked steadily at Mrs Whatsit. “Are you afraid for us?”
“A little.”
“But if you weren’t afraid to do what you did when you were a star, why should you be afraid for us now?”
“But I was afraid,” Mrs Whatsit said gently. (Ch 6: Pg 95: ¶ 7-9)
These sentences show that Mrs Whatsit was afraid when she had to give up her life as a star to fight the evil darkness. She is also afraid for the children as they go off to do the same thing.
Quote 5: Plot
“Well, then, someone just tell me how we got here!” Calvin’s voice was still angry and his freckles seemed to stand out on his face. “Even traveling at the speed of light it would take us years and years to get here.”
“Oh, we don’t travel at the speed of anything,” Mrs Whatsit explained earnestly. “We tesser. Or you might say, we wrinkle.” (Ch 4: Pg 60: ¶ 6, 7)
Mrs. Whatsit is explaining to Calvin how they move through time and space in order to get to the different planets that they must visit to save Meg’s father.
Quote 6: Plot
“You see,” Mrs Whatsit said, “if a very small insect were to move from the section of skirt in Mrs. Who’s right hand to that in her left, it would be quite a long walk for him if he had to walk straight across.”
Swiftly Mrs Who brought her hands, still holding the skirt together.
“Now, you see.” Mrs Whatsit said, “he would be there without that long trip. That is how we travel.” (Ch 5: Pg 73: ¶ 8 – 10)
These sentences continue to explain how the kids will travel through time by giving an example that the children could see for themselves.
Quote 7: Plot
Meg looked. The dark shadow was still there. It had not lessened or dispensed with the coming of night. And where the shadow was the stars were not visible.
What could there be about a shadow that was so terrible that she knew that there had never been before or ever would be again, anything that would chill her with a fear that was beyond shuddering, beyond crying or screaming, beyond the possibility of comfort? (Ch 4: Pg 70: ¶ 3, 4)
These sentences show Meg’s reaction and how scared she was when she saw the dark shadow.
Quote 8: Plot
Calvin turned, rejecting the dark Thing that blotted out the light of the stars. “Make it go away, Mrs Whatsit,” he whispered. “Make it go away. It’s evil.” (Ch 4: Pg 70: ¶ 8)
This sentence shows Calvin’s reaction when he saw the dark shadow.
Quote 9: Plot
“Wwee musstt ggo bbehindd thee sshaddow.” [Mrs Which speaking]
This sentence reveals the purpose of the story which is to fight the shadow. The other plot quotes show how the characters move along in the story, but this shows what they must do.
Quote 10: Theme
Again Mrs Which’s voice reverberated through the cave. “Therre will nno llonggerr bee sso many pplleasanntt things too llookk at iff rressponssible people ddo nnott ddoo ssomethingg abboutt thee unppleassanntt ones.” (Ch 5: Pg 83: ¶ 2, 3)
This shows the importance of good people standing up for what is right.
Quote 11: Setting
Below them the town was laid out in harsh angular patterns. The houses in the outskirts were all exactly alike, small square boxes painted gray. Each had a small, rectangular plot of lawn in front, with a straight line of dull-looking flowers edging the path to the door. Meg had a feeling that if she could count the flowers there would be exactly the same number on each house. In front of all the houses children were playing. Some were skipping rope, some were bouncing balls. Meg felt vaguely that something was wrong with their play. It seemed exactly like children playing around any housing development at home, and yet there was something different about it. She looked at Calvin, and saw that he, too, was puzzled.
“Look!” Charles Wallace said suddenly. “They’re skipping and bouncing in rhythm. Everyone’s doing it at exactly the same moment.”
This was so. As the skipping rope hit the pavement, so did the ball. As the rope curved over the head of the jumping child, the child with the ball caught the ball. Down came the ropes. Down came the balls Over and over again. Up. Down. All in rhythm. All identical. Like the houses. Like the paths. Like the flowers. (Ch 6: Pg 98: ¶ 5 and Pg 99: ¶ 1, 2)
The setting shows that the people in this world have no creativity or freedom to do what they want.
Quote 12: Theme
Meg shook her head violently. “No!” she shouted. “I know our world isn't perfect, Charles, but it’s better than this. This isn't the only alternative! It can’t be!”
“Nobody suffers here,” Charles intoned. “Nobody is ever unhappy.”
“But nobody’s ever happy, either,” Meg said earnestly. “Maybe if you aren't unhappy sometimes you don’t know how to be happy.” (Ch 8: Pg 136: ¶6-8)
Meg is talking about free will, which the people of Camazotz don’t have. If you don’t have sadness then you won’t know what is it to be happy.
Quote 13: Theme
“All right, I’ll go!” Meg sobbed. “I know you want me to go!”
“We want nothing from you that you do without grace,” Mrs Whatsit said, “or that you do without understanding.”
“That it has to be me. It can’t be anyone else. I don’t understand Charles, but he understands me. I’m the one who’s closest to him. (Ch 12, Pg 187, ¶ 1, 2, 5)
Meg finally understands that she must be the one to sacrifice her safety in order to save her brother and she must do it willingly.
Quote 14: Theme
“Who helps you?” [fight against the Dark Thing] Meg asked.
“Oh, dear, it is so difficult to explain things to you, small one. And I know now that it is not just because you are a child. The other two are as hard to reach into as you are. What can I tell you that will mean anything to you? Good helps us, the stars help us, perhaps what you would call light helps us, love helps us. Oh, my child, I cannot explain! This is something you just have to know or not know.”
“But—“
“We look not at the things which are what you would call seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal. But the things which are not seen are eternal.” (Ch 11: Pg 178: ¶ 7; Pg 179: ¶1,2)
Theme is explained here as being eternal, like love. You can’t see it or explain it, but you just know it exists because you feel it. Compare to Hebrews 11:1 KJV in the New Testament.
Quote 15: Theme
And that was where IT made Its fatal mistake, for as Meg said, automatically, “Mrs Whatsit loves me; that’s what she told me, that she loves me,” suddenly she knew.
She knew!
Love.
That was what she had that IT did not have.
She had Mrs Whatsit’s love, and her father’s, and her mother’s, and the real Charles Wallace’s love, and the twins’, and Aunt Beast’s. And she had her love for them. (Ch 12: Pg198: ¶11; Pg 199: ¶ 1, 2)
This shows the eternal theme of love and how important it is for people to love and care for each other.
Author Quote: Madeleine L'Engle (A Wrinkle In Time)
"I believe that good questions are more important than answers,
and the best children's books ask questions, and make the readers ask questions.
And every new question is going to disturb someone's universe."
Book Reviews: Our Only May Amelia and The Trouble with May Amelia by Jennifer L Holm
Our Only May Amelia and The Trouble with May Amelia
Published by Harper Collins, Copyright 1999, this book is one of Jennifer L Holm's Newbery Honor books. This books, like many of the author's other novels weaves a little bit of family history into her fictional tale.
The main reason I love this books is for the humor she adds to each family member. Each character is believable including May Amelia's wicked grandmother, and her negative and often verbally abusive father.
The Trouble With May Amelia, Atheneum Books For Young Readers, Copyright 201l, is the sequel to to Our Only May Amelia, and in my opinion, I liked the it better than the original. This book had me laugh and cry within paragraphs of each other.
Set in the 1899's in Washington State, the story brings to life a Finnish Pioneer family's desire to make it in the United States along the banks of the Nasel River. May Amelia is the only girl to be born in this little Scandinavian settlement, and it is her determination to fit and be treated as an equal helps to make her voice strong.
However, one thing I've noticed in some of the books by this author is the easy way problems seem to be wrapped up in a quick, neat little bow. Sometimes in the publishing industry it is referred to as Deus Ex Machina, which is Latin for God From the Machine.
Currently, I am struggling with this in my novel, where all of a sudden my main character finally understands why she loves her family. In The Trouble with May Amelia, it is an "ah-ha" moment where Amelia has an idea that saves her family from financial ruin, and everyone (especially her father) all of a sudden appreciates her.
Published by Harper Collins, Copyright 1999, this book is one of Jennifer L Holm's Newbery Honor books. This books, like many of the author's other novels weaves a little bit of family history into her fictional tale.
The main reason I love this books is for the humor she adds to each family member. Each character is believable including May Amelia's wicked grandmother, and her negative and often verbally abusive father.
The Trouble With May Amelia, Atheneum Books For Young Readers, Copyright 201l, is the sequel to to Our Only May Amelia, and in my opinion, I liked the it better than the original. This book had me laugh and cry within paragraphs of each other.
Set in the 1899's in Washington State, the story brings to life a Finnish Pioneer family's desire to make it in the United States along the banks of the Nasel River. May Amelia is the only girl to be born in this little Scandinavian settlement, and it is her determination to fit and be treated as an equal helps to make her voice strong.
However, one thing I've noticed in some of the books by this author is the easy way problems seem to be wrapped up in a quick, neat little bow. Sometimes in the publishing industry it is referred to as Deus Ex Machina, which is Latin for God From the Machine.
Currently, I am struggling with this in my novel, where all of a sudden my main character finally understands why she loves her family. In The Trouble with May Amelia, it is an "ah-ha" moment where Amelia has an idea that saves her family from financial ruin, and everyone (especially her father) all of a sudden appreciates her.
Book Review: Penny from Heaven by Jennifer L Holm
I enjoyed this book for many of the same reasons why I enjoyed Weedflower by Cynthia Kadohata. It shares a little bit of American history with the reader. I was not aware that Italian Americans were also rounded up--not to the same degree as the Japanese--and taken away from their families during WWII and many possessions, like radios, were taken away.
As mentioned in the Author Review of the author, this story was based of experiences in Jennifer’s own family.
Published by Yearling, Copyright 2007, this book is one of Jennifer’s three Newbery Honor books. It is told in first person, present tense which brings the intimacy I enjoy when reading historical fiction. The story is about an eleven-year-old girl named Penny, who through a series of events finds out how her father died.
One of the things that makes this and all of Jennifer’s novels great is the character driven family-dynamics. Each character has their flaws, and there aren't stereotypical characters. The emotions and actions of the characters are believable.
As mentioned in the Author Review of the author, this story was based of experiences in Jennifer’s own family.
Published by Yearling, Copyright 2007, this book is one of Jennifer’s three Newbery Honor books. It is told in first person, present tense which brings the intimacy I enjoy when reading historical fiction. The story is about an eleven-year-old girl named Penny, who through a series of events finds out how her father died.
One of the things that makes this and all of Jennifer’s novels great is the character driven family-dynamics. Each character has their flaws, and there aren't stereotypical characters. The emotions and actions of the characters are believable.
Monday, September 2, 2013
Bad Joke: Don't take OFFENCE to this Post...
This weekend we are finishing the installation of a fence, with over 60 steel posts. City ordinances say that the poles must be dug at least 36" into the ground, and above ground can only be 4 feet high, to withstand high winds that Tornados in the area offten bring. At first we planned on filling the holes with one 80 lb. bag of concrete, but 36" is a deep hole so we added an extra 80 lbs. Bring it on Tornados.
The fence will be a split rail and it seems we've picked the most hot and humid weekends to build it. Our adventures here in Texas never get dull. Last weekend, when we dug the holes, we thought a gas one-man operated hole digger (its like a sledge hammer with a drill) would be suffice and it would only take a day for my gorilla of a husband to knock them out.
HA!
After one hole and twenty minutes digging in North Texas clay earth--not to mention the imagery flashing through my mind of Lorne cutting off his privates, I insisted on rented a Bob Cat to drill the holes.
Fast forward, two hours... we returned the manual drill and finally figured out how to take the tractor drill off the trailer, and Lorne is drilling his third whole--including the manual one--when he hits the main water pipe to our neighborhood.
From the second the white water rapids, flowed into our street, neighbors poured onto our onto our property to watch the waterworks, while Lorne continued to dig the rest of the fifty-seven holes.
We called the water company and they were at our house within the hour, but until that time there was nothing we could do to stop the flooding, so Lorne kept to his digging--after all, renting a Bob Cat isn't cheap.
The water company shut off the water to our whole neighborhood, and repaired the pipe within three hours, all the while my kind and understanding neighbors kept me company the whole time.
Although it's hard to see, there are fifty additional poles to finish.
The fence will be a split rail and it seems we've picked the most hot and humid weekends to build it. Our adventures here in Texas never get dull. Last weekend, when we dug the holes, we thought a gas one-man operated hole digger (its like a sledge hammer with a drill) would be suffice and it would only take a day for my gorilla of a husband to knock them out.
HA!
After one hole and twenty minutes digging in North Texas clay earth--not to mention the imagery flashing through my mind of Lorne cutting off his privates, I insisted on rented a Bob Cat to drill the holes.
Fast forward, two hours... we returned the manual drill and finally figured out how to take the tractor drill off the trailer, and Lorne is drilling his third whole--including the manual one--when he hits the main water pipe to our neighborhood.
From the second the white water rapids, flowed into our street, neighbors poured onto our onto our property to watch the waterworks, while Lorne continued to dig the rest of the fifty-seven holes.
We called the water company and they were at our house within the hour, but until that time there was nothing we could do to stop the flooding, so Lorne kept to his digging--after all, renting a Bob Cat isn't cheap.
The water company shut off the water to our whole neighborhood, and repaired the pipe within three hours, all the while my kind and understanding neighbors kept me company the whole time.
Back of house with wood put up, but we still need to put on trip and paint.
These ten poles took over five hours to attach the wood.
Although it's hard to see, there are fifty additional poles to finish.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)