What are you reading?
We were at a Canada Day party recently (well, on Canada Day, duh) when a friend asked me what my favourite book was. And then LISTENED FOR A RESPONSE. A brave man, our friend. Or perhaps really, really bored. Asking me about books is like asking our spaniel about food. Specifics don’t matter. The answer is YES YES YES, GIMME GIMME, MORE MORE MORE.
My favourite book of all time is, of course, Barbara Kingsolver’s Poisonwood Bible, for many reasons. (Ask me, next time you’ve got a couple of hours to kill.) But I’ve read many other good ones lately. Last night, I finished The Marriage Bargain, by Jennifer Probst, and it was great! (I’m fond of her publisher, for reasons I will announce shortly. Stay tuned, fans.) I enjoyed Goodnight Tweetheart, by Teresa Medeiros – it’s a good story, AND I learned a bit more about Twitter. Sworn to Silence, by Linda Castillo, is a great, gripping thriller set in Amish country.
And then of course… there’s the Shades of Grey trilogy. I read the first two, grudgingly, as research. (It’s true! I’ll tell you more about that soon, too.) But I confess that part of me wanted to know just what all the hoopla’s about. Literary pop culture; I like to have one section in Trivial Pursuit that I have a chance at winning!
I won’t add to the plethora of scathing criticism about her wordcraft. (I try not to say bad things about other writers… we have feelings, you know.) It’s not my favourite book, HOWEVER, Ms. James has done a great job creating a multi-faceted, tortured hero in Christian Grey, so props to her for that.
Anyway… it’s time to get back to work. But I’m curious: what are you reading right now? What’s your favourite book of all time?
Take that, cholesterol.
- At June 07, 2012
- By Roxanne Snopek
- In Life, Roxanne Writes On
- 2
With all the comings and goings in our house lately, proper meals are a hit and miss affair. I know it’s typical of this stage of life; kids hopping up and down on the brink of the nest… dad finally trading his 60-hour work weeks for some fun stuff … and me with my predictably random schedule. (By the by, did you know that the term “freelance” comes from the Medieval name for soldiers who hired themselves out for whoever would pay them. Game of Thrones calls them “sellswords.” Boom. You’ve just been Clavened.)
But as I was saying, thank goodness for frozen thin-crust spinach pizza. And tortellini, without which I believe my youngest would have succumbed to starvation. Alone in her room. Neglected and forgotten, as last-borns always are. Or so they believe.
Yesterday, however, we are all around to eat at the same time, so I made a proper dinner. Salmon with lemon-dill sauce, my famous Kitchen Sink salad (don’t ask for the recipe, it changes every time) and fresh asparagus, grilled and tossed with olive oil and lemon juice. Check out the plate: more than half-full of veggies.
I feel so virtuous, I may have to go to Starbucks for a lemon-cranberry scone.
Go, Sisters!
Silicon Sisters Interactive‘s founders, Brenda Bailey-Gershkovitch and Kirsten Forbes, were nominated for the 2012 YWCA Women of Distinction award in the Science, Research and Innovation category. Since Brenda was out lollygagging in Sweden, Kirsten represented the company alone, and promised to name us all in her acceptance speech, should they win. Alas, the award went to another worthy over-achiever.
I am so proud to be part of this team! Here’s why I love writing for SSI:
Kirsten says: “Though it’s easy to pillory videogames as being responsible for some ill effects on today’s youth, at Silicon Sisters we’ve seen otherwise. Games can be a safe world in which to practice and rehearse skills that might otherwise be too stressful – from making friends to challenging the status quo to allowing yourself to fail and see the consequences. Silicon Sisters supports healthy choices for youth.”