What I've Been Reading: People of the Book

As some visitors to the Cafe may know, a number of us are finding ourselves with a bit more spare time than usual. I've been feeling incredibly distracted lately and so have attempted to find some respite in catching up on my reading. In the next few days I'll be posting some more about what I've been reading.
One particularly interesting read from the past 14 days is Geraldine Brooks's People of the Book. This novel is, as the promo material describes, "Inspired by the true story of a mysterious codex known as the Sarajevo Haggadah, People of the Book is a sweeping adventure through five centuries of history. From its creation in Muslim-ruled, medieval Spain, the illuminated manuscript makes a series of perilous journeys: through Inquisition-era Venice, fin-de-siecle Vienna, and the Nazi sacking of Sarajevo."
I was originally drawn to this book for its connections with book history and because it was dedicated "to the librarians." Having spent mornings engrossed in it, I think there is a lot more going on in this book than an interesting topic and a compelling read. Given a range of things happening both locally, nationally and internationally, I've spent a lot of time recently thinking about power: not only about the ways in which people take, use, and abuse power but also how ordinary people can find, reclaim and assert power in small yet deeply significant ways. In recent weeks, I've also thought about libraries, librarianship and the multiple roles libraries and librarians have played in the world throughout history and today. Brooks's book is one that I'm going to be thinking about quite a bit over the weeks and months to come.

Top Things from Todays' RSS Feeds

Digital cameras give us another way of enjoying art
"Everyone does it. Even I do it, and in theory I disapprove of anything that gets in the way of a pure contemplative experience of art. When I see other people doing it and I'm not, it makes me angry and contemptuous - can't they just look? But every so often I too reach for my digital camera or, if I haven't got it, my phone's built-in camera, and photograph or even film a work of art."

There are many mysteries in Wrest Park -" not least what precisely went on in the bedrooms concealed in the dome of the Georgian garden pavilion, a miniature party house with secret staircases hidden in the panelling - but the one that baffles the gardener is how such a spectacular place became almost forgotten."

MoreCowbell.dj is "a little Flash app that takes in any MP3, analyses it, and adds rhythmic cowbell and Christopher Walken samples, thus vastly improving it."


"It's not that they're not compelling, but sometimes those 'must read' books remain unread. There, I've said it.
This is a risky admission for someone in my line of work to make. But I have this as an excuse: I have to read a hell of a lot. And I also like reading a hell of a lot. But there are only so many hours in the day. Other writers and critics understand this."


What's in a Hot Beef Sundae? Apparently "Golden mashed potatoes covered with a generous portion of our roasted and seasoned-to-perfection top round beef. Then aged cheddar cheese, more golden mashed potatoes smothered with our special beef gravy, more aged cheddar cheese, a slice of buttered toast, and a cherry tomato on top."

McCain/ Obama Wordles Someone took "McCain's acceptance speech from last night's Republican convention and compared it to Barack Obama's acceptance speech from the Democratic convention and made wordles of each. John McCain's wordle is on top, Barack Obama's is on bottom."

From the "Is this April 1?" category: Michael Jackson and Robert Burns

I saw this yesterday and still have the feeling that I had a really weird dream where Michael Jackson recorded an album of Robbie Burns poems. But, alas, I don't think it's just a weird dream. According to a story in the Guardian, "the album is a modern musical take on some of Burns' classic poems." In case you were wondering, "There are no current plans to release the recording as an album." Read some of the aftermath.

Back to school

There's something about that hint of fall in the air that-- no matter how long I'm out of school--still gets me itching for new pencils. Here's a neat site that makes the average pencil a curiously compelling site of aesthetic inquiry. I'm particularly fond of the range of Dixon pencils. And, while you're thinking about things you write with, here's an interesting site about the physicality of writing.

Just read: The Invention of Hugo Cabret

I am grateful for Alec who never steers me wrong in his book recommendations (among other things). His latest suggestion is stellar: Brian Selznick's The Invention of Hugo Cabret. This book won the 2008 Caldecott Award.
In trying to find words to describe it, I stumbled upon this description on the book's website: "This 526-page book is told in both words and pictures. The Invention of Hugo Cabret is not exactly a novel, and it’s not quite a picture book, and it’s not really a graphic novel, or a flip book, or a movie, but a combination of all these things." Indeed, it's hard to know exactly what to call this book other than remarkable.
In doing some more reading about this book on the website, I was captivated by an essay by Remy Charlip called "A Page is a Door." Here, Charlip notes, "A book is a series of pages held together at one edge, and these pages can be moved on their hinges like a swinging door...Of course if a door has something completely different behind it, it is much more exciting. The element of delight and surprise is helped by the physical power we feel in our own hands when we move that page or door to reveal a change in everything that has gone before, in time, place, or character. A thrilling picture book not only makes beautiful single images or sequential images, but also allows us to become aware of a book’s unique physical structure, by bringing our attention, once again, to that momentous moment: the turning of the page."
These pages are a door you're going to want to open.

Pretty things

Visitors to the cafe may know of my fondness for pretty things, fonts and fabrics. Amazingly, here they all are in one neat-o site. Here are some of my favourite items: one two three four.

Richard Serra in London: Or, Reason 412 that I'd like to be in London this fall

We saw this exhibitin Paris in May and I became a fan.
I'd love to go see Richard Serra's installation in London.. See more of his work here.

Heidi's Adventures in Wonderland (or Cleveland...)

This past week, D and I went to Cleveland to see the Tigers play two away games. Those two games were the best of times and the worst of times. If you follow the team, you know what I'm talking about. Aside from baseball, we also went to see what we could see of Cleveland. Although our travels to Cleveland met with a few raised eyebrows ("you're going to Cleveland because....?"), we saw a few remarkable things.

The first is the stunning Cleveland Botanical Garden. I saw a lotus flower in full bloom for the first time, walked among butterflies, saw an actual baobab tree, and felt transported to another world.

Perhaps the most amazing part of my visit was seeing the children's garden. I left feeling thoroughly enchanted. So often children's spaces are built according to what adults think children want. This space struck me as an entirely different kind of space. I wasn't surprised to read later that the designers of this space asked
children what they wanted to see and do and then designed a space according to what they said.


The resulting space looks like something out of The Hobbit with child-sized paths, archways, buildings, plants and activity centres. While many children's spaces are heavy on text and guided activities, the designers of this space seemed to understand that, given ample stimuli, children are happy to explore what they want in the way they want to explore it.

While we were there, three little kids studiously filled small watering cans with water they drew from a hand pump and then watered whatever plants they wanted. Another sat in the shade on a blanket with a grandparent and another squealed to see real live frogs in a pond. Meanwhile, another amused himself by filling his shoe in the fountain and another just looked at flowers and a range of growing vegetables that were all at her height. I think we all took away something magical that day.

After leaving the garden, we stumbled upon this exhibit by Jerry Uelsmann and Maggie Taylor. I have seen some of Uelsmann's work in books before but, as one might expect, found his work even more impressive in the gallery. I'd not seen anything by Maggie Taylor before and left wanting to see and know more about her work. I bought the exhibit catalogue and remain wowed and intrigued. Maggie Taylor has just published a gorgeously illustrated version of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
Who knew Cleveland could be such a wonderland?

Green onions on my cutting board and my radio

I'm just waiting for dinner to cook and am hoping the dish fairies will come and dry my dishes. A few moments ago, while chopping green onions, CBC Radio 2 just played Booker T and the MGs Green Onions, a song which never fails to put me in a great mood. This week, while hiding from the humidity, I've become an addict of CBC Radio 2 or, as it's been called, the New Radio Two. I sought it out last week when I wanted someone to give me something new to listen to and to show me something that I would not find on my own. Radio has, I realize, always been a huge part of my life but I'd forgotten about it recently. It's easy to get distracted by podcasts, web radio, and iPods. Lately, though, I've been thinking a lot about radio and have been trying to think about what makes radio so magical. I think it's that element of surprise, delight and intimacy. Even though some shows are podcast now, there's still that sense of the fleeting moment of radio. Once it's passed, it could be gone. One never knows what's coming next: it could be great, it could be ok, it could make you run for the volume (either up or down). Last week, I found myself doing something with CBC 2 that I've never done with a podcast or web radio. Even though I was exhausted and needed to be up in a few short hours, I couldn't bring myself to turn it off. I wanted to know what was coming next. I felt like my brother must have when he was about 10 or 12. Most nights, I'd hear my parents at his door: "Is your radio off??" and he'd offer a weak "Yeah..." Through our shared wall, however, I could hear the tinny sound of music coming out of cheap little white earphones he attached to his little pocket radio. Often I could hear it until the wee hours of the morning.

The day I'm going to remember that day in January

There's always a day in July that I think "I'm going to remember this day come January" and there's always a day in January when I remember that particular day in July and don't feel so cold. Today is one of those days in July. It's 33o and the air is so thick I feel like I'm walking under water. It's also one of those days (like those days in January) when I'm happily hermit-ing inside reading fiction. Some of my neighbours meanwhile are basking in the gooey heat. In my self-imposed exile, I've been thinking a lot about "the great read" and keep returning to two major questions: what is the allure of a good novel and how does one find a great read?
I've run into two interesting articles today which may also be of interest to Cafe visitors. The first is a recent G&M article that describes how "a group of Toronto researchers have compiled a body of evidence showing that bookworms have exceptionally strong people skills. Their years of research - summed up in the current issue of New Scientist magazine - has shown readers of narrative fiction scored higher on tests of empathy and social acumen than those who read non-fiction texts." Fiction, the researchers suggest, "is really about how to get around in the social world, which is not as easy as one might think." Interesting.
The other interesting article comes from the beloved Nancy Pearl (you may know her from her action figure with real shushing action) who offers a great list of "perfect carry-on books" for summer travel. One of the things I love about Nancy Pearl is her Rule of 50 that she describes in Book Lust: "Believe me, nobody is going to get any points in heaven by slogging their way through a book they aren't enjoying but think they ought to read. I live by what I call 'the rule of fifty,' which acknowledges that time is short and the world of books is immense. If you're fifty years old or younger, give every book about fifty pages before you decide to commit yourself to reading it, or give it up. If you're over fifty, which is when time gets even shorter, subtract your age from 100. The result is the number of pages you should read before deciding." I wished I had Nancy Pearl's sage advice when, years ago, I thought a 14 hour flying day would be a perfect way to get through a book I could not stand. And yes, Peter, it is that one.

Just finished: An Illuminated Life

Sometimes a day with the flu is a gift. Because of this cold/flu, I was finally able to finish Heidi Ardizzone's absolutely fabulous biography of Belle da Costa Greene that I've been reading for quite a while. It's rare that I get enthralled in non fiction but this one kept me turning pages. In 1905, Belle Greene was hired by J.P. Morgan to organize his rare books and manuscript collections. Over time, she acquired what became the Morgan Library, one of the finest collections of rare books and manuscripts anywhere. Her story is remarkable and fascinating and the book is meticulously researched and beautifully written. It's part biography (of Belle da Costa Greene), part history (social and political context early 20th century America), part social history (how exactly did race and gender work its way into almost every facet of life and how did Belle da Costa Greene negotiate her way into and through this matrix?), part intellectual history (about the art and rare book world of early 20th century New York and Europe as well a who's who of the New York art, theatre and literary worlds). And, it's also sort of a romance too. In the winter I was able to get to the Morgan Library and see some of the works I read about in this biography. It's a beautiful, magical place. Most recently, they've added a very nice Renzo Piano addition.  Thank you flu/ cold (don't hurry back though....).

Just read: The Sealed Letter

A good novel is a treat; a great novel a delicacy. This past week or so, I've been enthralled with Emma Donoghue's great new novel The Sealed Letter based on "the details of a scandalous divorce case that gripped England in 1864." It's by far one of the best novels I've read this year. Reading The Sealed Letter had me thinking about the genre of historical fiction (of which I read a lot). As with anything, there's great historical fiction, interesting historical fiction and what seems like gratuitous historical fiction. Gratuitous historical fiction is often fun to read and can usually be identified by the recurrence of lines like "The nurse put the baby in the perambulator, a remarkable new device that had been invented just last year." Good historical fiction conveys the time, place, and ideas evocatively, accurately and convincingly and uses historical detail deftly. Sometimes good historical fiction is better history than fiction; sometimes the needs of conveying history seem to override the needs of a well-crafted novel. I'm starting to think that great historical fiction not only recreates a time, place or character evocatively but that it also guides you through the nebulous areas of doubt, contradiction and ambiguity of that time. I think one of the recurrent shortcomings of historical fiction is that it suggests that eras before our own were simpler: that life made more sense, pieces fell into place and everything added up. Donoghue is clearly a gifted fiction writer but she's also a gifted historian. At the end of the novel, we understand that nothing has ever been simple. We are not offered answers but questions. We need to think not only about the events and characters she has brought back to life in this fine novel but also about the very act of telling and conveying history and how we shape and are shaped by history or histories.

Guerilla Gardening

When I was in Bruges last month, I saw a little patch of pansies on the street which struck me as a lovely random act of gardening. Today I've been reading about Guerilla Gardening (read more about it here) which is a great idea. Hmm...

American History and the Cracker Jack Prize

Today I purchased some Cracker Jacks at the ballpark as I root, root rooted for the home team. I was delighted to find this mini biography of George Washington as the prize. It reminds me of a Simpsons episode my pal N, a historian, often cites:
Bart: "Gee, how come you know so much American history?"
Grandpa Simpson: "I pieced it together…mostly from sugar packets."

And the winner is: the Chocolate Digestive

According to a BBC story, "about four out of five UK businesses believe the type of biscuit they serve to potential clients could clinch the deal or make it crumble." The survey of 1000 business types found that "the chocolate digestive was deemed to make the best impression followed by shortbread and Hob Nobs." I would have voted for the HobNob. On the topic of biscuit etiquette more than half of respondents looked down on dunking biscuits in tea or coffee during a meeting. On a related note, a survey of 7000 people last year revealed that the custard cream was the nation's favourite biscuit.

Sir Walter and Amy W

According to a story in the Guardian, "Cambridge University finalists have been asked to demonstrate their three years of intensive study at a world-class institution in an exam question that compared the poetry of Sir Walter Raleigh with the lyrics of the pop singer Amy Winehouse." A spokesman for the university said "the question was not 'usual', but added that it showed the university was firmly rooted in the 21st century." Ah. Yes. This comparison is pretty easy if you compare Winehouse's lyrical musings with Raleigh's very little known poem "Roanoke" : "They wanted me to go to Virginia and I said sure, sure, sure".

Two Photos

My poor cafe. I have been neglecting it. I've been a bit pre-occupied with todayphoto but I think I can get back to doing both. While sorting the candidates for today's today photo, I was struck by a few similarities that I would not have noticed had they not been side by side in iPhoto. One was taken while waiting for my bus on campus and the other while I poked around my garden. I'll let them speak for themselves.

Facebook Haiku: Volume 4

Heidi thinks it's good to know that both the Modern Language Association and the Meat and Livestock of Australia both use the acronym MLA.2:42pm

Heidi is amused by the New Yorker referring to Amy Winehouse as "the Marge Simpson of junkie retro soul".11:36am
Yesterday

Heidi had a fabulous guys' weekend: one can sure watch a lot of Jane Austen movies and try on a lot of shoes without them. AND get the remote.9:08pm
May 25

Heidi spent some time in the Mudville Nine.5:23pm

Heidi is, like the bank commercial says, 'richer than she thinks.' It's true. She just found 2.50 in Canadian Tire Money.9:22am
May 24

Heidi was wrong in thinking dashing out to grab a coffee would motivate her to read her icky book. Talking with Dave and Ron was a lot more fun.3:08pm

Heidi is wondering if she suffers from "techno-romantic idealism" or if she's just reading too much theory.1:58pm

Heidi is continuing her jet-setting by traveling to Chatham on Monday.11:17am

Heidi is participating in Take Your Giant Ferns Home From Work Day. D will join her. But he will mutter curse words. She will not.2:31pm

Heidi is living on the edge and microwaving her lunch!1:13pm

Heidi is not so vain as to think this song is about her.12:30pm

Heidi does not regret staying out til 1 AM on a school night. She might, however, regret it at 6:30 AM.1:01am
May 21

Heidi is not a geranium.9:22pm

Heidi still needs 2,026 delegates. Come on Puerto Rico!8:36pm

Heidi loves the statement she heard at a workshop: "as far as I'm concerned, if you're up @ 3AM wine & dancing should be involved; Foucault should not be." 12:25pm

Heidi is half the man she could be.8:09am
May 19

Heidi distrusts the email she just got promising she can be twice the man she is now.9:43pm

Heidi shouldn't be surprised to discover that standing in her backyard and whining "warm uuuupp!!!" doesn't achieve much.5:19pm

Heidi would really like to be sipping Campari on her front deck while neighbours ask "hot enough for ya?" Instead she's shivering and sipping tea inside.2:22pm

Heidi is grateful for the leads on butlers.7:03pm
May 17

Heidi is wondering if people still hire butlers these days; she thinks she would like one.3:50pm
May 16

Heidi is considering practicing random acts of microwaving.3:40pm

Heidi is baffled as to why, an hour after wondering why she's still here, she's still in her office on such a nice day. How did she miss lunch?? And coffee...3:21pm

Heidi is baffled as to why she's still in her office on such a nice day. How did she miss lunch??2:43pm

Heidi has been on the phone since 9:20...11:07am
May 15

Heidi is surprised that she is surprised to realize that emoticons lack subtley and precision.12:00pm

Heidi is wondering if her Tigers jersey would be considered business casual....10:43pm

Heidi has just been given a pair of brown argyle socks as a gift. Really.3:14pm

Heidi can't stop thinking about her lunch.12:25pm

Heidi feels like librarianship's Jim Leyland.11:16am

Heidi wishes she had a pain au chocolat for breakfast.9:04am
May 13

Heidi is not expected to win the West Virginia Primary. Things also don't look great for her in Kentucky, South Dakota, Oregon or Montana. Puerto Rico however...8:03pm

Heidi is not expected to win the West Virginia Primary. Things aren't looking great in Kentucky, South Dakota, Oregon.8:00pm

Heidi is not set to win West Virginia either but will take aim at McCain nonetheless.5:18pm

Heidi 's feelings of invincibility have been dashed. She just got a phone call from the circulation desk asking if she'd returned her own DVDs with her books. Ah.9:26am May 12

Heidi is feeling invincible! She can outsmart jetlag by ignoring it!8:21pm

Heidi is home! Her cats are happy; her inner vegetarian is joyous but her inner aesthete is singing a sad song by Edith Piaf.5:02pm
May 9

Heidi is sufficiently self aware to realize she is naive in believing Dale is charmed by her encyclopedic knowledge of dog breeds in Paris.4:50pm

Heidi is amazed at what looking at classical sculpture for a morning can do for one's body image.10:56am
May 7

Heidi is fond of Paris in the spring time.11:27am
May 6

Heidi is in Paris. She is happy to no longer be hearing the Eagles everywhere she goes. Really, Belgium, what gives??3:40pm
May 4

Heidi apparently has allergies that work in the European Union as well as NorthAmerica. Oh well.2:59am

Heidi now knows where bad American pop songs from the 70s went.8:36am
May 2

Heidi is in Brussels; Bruges tomorrow; all well.10:39am
April 28

Heidi is not married to Seal.3:47pm
April 25

Heidi is taking on 418 words. She might take Renee's advice and get rid of all words starting with T. Would anyone notice?9:25am
April 24

Heidi has 418 words to expunge and 72 hours to do it. But she also has a date with Curtis at 1:05. 418 words can wait.11:40am

Heidi has 682 words to expunge before first pitch.10:27am

Heidi is discovering BobbleHead Curtis's forte is not open ended questions.10:17am

Heidi is trying to delete 913 words before first pitch.9:18am
April 23

Heidi has lost her strathspey.10:31pm

Heidi is home and more mirthful.5:21pm

Heidi is looking a lot less merry than BobbleHead Curtis after a long day of editing.4:33pm

Heidi and BobbleHead Curtis only need to get rid of 961 words now. He's so agreeable.3:18pm

Heidi and BobbleHead Curtis are ecstatic that the AC is kicking in at work!1:52pm

Heidi has found that while BobbleHead Curtis is a very agreeable co-writer, he's not very speedy. She still needs to get rid of 1,164 words.1:24pm

Heidi is going for a walk and leaving BobbleHead Curtis with her revisions. Hopefully he'll delete 1300 words by the time she gets back.12:20pm

Heidi and Bobble Head Curtis are deleting 175 words per hour.12:14pm

Heidi is happy Bobble Head Curtis has agreed to help her rid her article of 1,438 words.9:17am
April 22

Heidi is amused R said it must be baseball season because "all the boys are coming to see you." I didn't want to say "they're actually here to see BobbleHead Curtis".2:28pm

Heidi is worried that her evilness has escaped her fragile facade of innocence.1:55pm

Heidi has just come back from a lunch where she shared many of her pranks over the years. She feels the need to apologize to everyone she's ever known. Sorry...1:44pm

Heidi still hopes to woo superdelegates, elected legislators and party insiders.11:25pm

Heidi is attempting to dispel rumours that she has a crush on a certain center fielder.11:17pm

Heidi is glad to hear she's appearing tactful.2:21pm

Heidi is not exactly as illustrated.2:04pm

Heidi finds that watching Curtis' bobble head bobble is a lot more fun than tending to some of her work email.1:54pm

Heidi would like you to know that Bobble Head Curtis is in the Leddy house.9:20am

Heidi regrets mentioning the baseball and is surprised people are emailing to say "are you ok" rather than "you got a Curtis Bobblehead? WOW!!!".10:08pm

Heidi sustained no major injuries after getting hit by a Toledo Mudhen baseball. She also now has a Curtis bobble head doll. EEEEEE!!!!7:50pm

Heidi is sort of weepy after seeing La Rondine at the Detroit Opera house. Poor Magda.10:45pm

Heidi has been researching shoes and finds the recurrent claim "where style and comfort meet" spurious.3:51pm
April 18

Paris photos

As many of you know, I've been in France and Belgium the past 2 weeks and am working through my photos.  I found this very lovely site this afternoon; sigh... it's not helping me adjust to work life but it's nice to look at.  

When Obama Wins

This is a site worthy of a visit and a few dozen clicks. I think my contribution to this would be "When Obama Wins, people will stop wearing UGG boots." Thanks to PB for passing this along.