Booking Through Thursday

Who is your favorite female lead character? And why? (And yes, of course, you can name more than one . . . I always have trouble narrowing down these things to one name, why should I force you to?)

Don’t forget to leave a link to your actual response (so people don’t have to go searching for it) in the comments—or if you prefer, leave your answers in the comments themselves!

Hurray! I finished a book! I had to take a break from Mansfield Park. I'm finding this Austen tough. I have a theory, but I'll save it for when I finish it. Anyway, I read Ask Again Later by Jill A. Davis in two days. A nice change of pace and an easy read.

After a trip to a local toy store to buy a birthday present for a friend, my daughter was frustrated with the fact that I would not buy plastic toys, yet those are the ones she is most drawn too. On the drive home, she composed a letter to Disney, asking them to become more eco-friendly. The letter was entirely her inspiration, and I was quite proud. Here is the letter she wrote when we got home:

Dear Disney,

50 Ways to Hex Your Lover is a paranormal romance, so leave your disbelief at the door. It's pure escapist fun. Jazz is a 700 year old witch who wears her clothes tight and drives her classic, haunted car fast. Jazz is just an ordinary working girl. She drives 'special' clients for a car service and is paid well. Still, she always seems to be broke and looking for a quick way to make cash. After a successful curse elimination job, she runs into her old flame, vampire Nick Gregory. Words, and fire balls, are exchanged but not before Nick reveals that vampires are disappearing and fears a Dorian Gray-ish character named Clive Reeves is behind it. Jazz finds herself facing an old nemesis and a situation that requires all her power and more.

The following is an excerpt of a letter I received from Jay Kogan just prior to the holidays. Three weeks later everything he wrote has either come to pass or still holds true. To read the letter in its entirety click here. And be sure to check out the video Jay shot called, "As Long As It Takes."

The strike, which could have been avoided if the producers wanted to actually negotiate, has

Senator Biden just asked the Attorney General how it could be that the legality of waterboarding depends on the "circumstances," as Mukasey wrote in his letter. Mukasey's response was revealing: He pointed to the "shocks the conscience" test under the Due Process Clause and the McCain Amendment, under which, Mukasey argued, the "cruelty" of the technique must be weighed against the potential benefits. Biden did not understand how such sliding-scale variables could affect whether the technique is torture or not. Mukasey began to respond that he was not talking about the torture statute.

This week’s question is suggested by (blogless) JMutford:

Sometimes I find eccentric characters quirky and fun, other times I find them too unbelievable and annoying. What are some of the more outrageous characters you’ve read, and how do you feel about them?

Don’t forget to leave a link to your actual response (so people don’t have to go searching for it) in the comments—or if you prefer, leave your answers in the comments themselves!

Yesterday my girl had a day off from school so we took a trip to the library. I picked up Olivia by Ian Falconer and talked my girl into taking it home. She's a picky reader. I hadn't read it before but I loved the look of that little pig. I think I must have read it to my girl a dozen times yesterday. We both love Olivia!

I think what I love most about Olivia is how much she is like my girl. I kept stopping while I was reading to say, "You do that too!" Olivia is quite energetic; she wears her mother out. I've said that many a time to my girl. She loves to dance, dress up and sing very loud songs as does my darling daughter. It's always dinner and a show at my house.

Inspired by what Dorothy at Of Books And Bicycles did with her Nov.7th posting, I am going to do a meme-thing involving the letters of my blogname.
Here is the criteria, the rationale, the raison d’etre:

I was away over the weekend. It was a trip that was both fun and aggravating. Five year olds don't like to shop unless it's at Toys-R-Us.

Dana asked:

My question is, is there anything you wouldn't be able to stand your significant other reading? Or are you ok with anything? Let me know

...after reading this NY Times article. Aquatique, a single lady, had an interesting discussion about it in this post.

For myself, my husband doesn't read anything unless it's a manual for some electronic thing-a-ma-jig. This is in no way a reflection of his intelligence. Actually, it might be, because I can never understand manuals. I usually end up tossing them and using trial and error. Hubby never liked reading. Math and science is his thing. He's probably the smartest person I know (don't tell him that). I've always found intelligence attractive.

I didn't know much about A Complicated Kindness when I picked it off the shelf a few days ago. I knew it won the 2006 Canada Reads competition but that's about it. If you're like me, I'll enlighten you.

Nomi Nickel is a 16 year old living with her father in a Mennonite community in southern Manitoba. Three years previous, her sister and mother left town, separately, and she's hasn't heard from either since. Her father, a quiet and kind man, raises Nomi in a style he calls benign neglect. Really, he's as shell shocked by this fracture as Nomi is. Although Nomi worries about her father, she lives recklessly, skipping school and getting high.

Trying to read, Child wiggles in my lap.

Me: Can you be good, please?

Child: I was good one day.

Me: One day? In your whole 5 years on this earth?

Child: Well, maybe two.

I had some preconceived notions about the spy/thriller genre: gadgets, guns, cars, machismo and bad puns. So I was pleasantly surprised when I read Laura Caldwell's The Good Liar.

Kate is devastated when her husband leaves her. After months of moping, Kate's friend Liza sets her up with a suave older man, Michael. Before she knows it, she's swept off her feet, married and living in Quebec. While Michael is busy opening his new business, the Twilight Club, Kate wonders how well she knows her new husband.

I saw this meme at Fraternity of Dreamers. It's a weird one but it'll give you an interesting view of my world:

What kind of soap is in your shower right now? Ivory Body Wash and Dove Bar Soap (with the little nibblets in it).

Do you have any watermelon in your refrigerator? No but I do have a Pomelo.

Independent producers are not the final "P".
Over 80 producers, in a letter to the LA Times, have asked the press to correct and clarify the use of the term "producer" when referring to the AMPTP.

In their closing paragraph they state:
"It serves the studios’ interests to pretend to represent individual producers instead of corporate entities. We would ask that you, as responsible members of the media, stop abetting this charade and call upon your reporters to cease equating independent producers (who are not negotiators or direct stakeholders in this process, and the vast majority of whom side with the writers) with international conglomerates."

I complained over the weekend that no media source had posted Attorney General Mukasey's letter to Speaker Pelosi concerning the referral to the U.S. Attorney of contempt of Congress citations against Harriet Miers and Josh Bolten.

Well, with thanks to the House Judiciary Committee for forwarding it, here it is.

The merits of Mukasey's letter are a bit beside the point, since nothing I or anyone else says will persuade DOJ to refer the citations to the grand jury, and because now the real action is, as predicted, in the civil suit that the House will soon file. Nevertheless, a few things are worth noting briefly:

This letter was just sent out to SAG members by Doug Allen (Executive Director and Chief Negotiator) and Allen Rosenberg (President). Emphases in red are from us at UH -- LK.

Dear SAG Member:

Everyone hopes the WGA strike will end with a fair deal for the writers. There has been much speculation about the impact on the WGA strike of the tentative agreement between the Directors Guild of America

The full title of this book is Marie-Thérèse, Child of Terrror: The Fate of Marie Antoinette's Daughter by Susan Nagel.

Marie-Thérèse was born into the world already a celebrity. The first born child of the vivacious Marie Antoinette and the very reserved King of France, Louis XVI, all eyes were on her. Louis wasn't disappointed that she was a girl. She became the apple of his eye. She always spoke of her parents as loving and kind. They taught her about duty and charity even though they would be accused by enemies as being greedy and cold hearted. The Reign of Louis XVI was doomed from the start. Years of opulent living by previous rulers angered the masses who also hated the foreign Queen. By 1789, it was all over for the Bourbons.

Booking Through Thursday

• Writing guides, grammar books, punctuation how-tos . . . do you read them? Not read them? How many writing books, grammar books, dictionaries–if any–do you have in your library?

Don’t forget to leave a link to your actual response (so people don’t have to go searching for it) in the comments—or if you prefer, leave your answers in the comments themselves

I do have a few books on writing and grammar:

The Grammar Bible: I haven't read it through but it's definitely more entertaining than the average grammar book. The writer worked for a grammar hotline, if you can imagine such a thing, and the book is peppered with anecdotes from that time.

(From Writer's Assistant, Ed Fowler)

Saturday I went to my mailbox and discovered a very plain envelope with the return address of NBC Universal. Inside it held a simple, single page letter. At the very top, centered in some kind of Helvetica or Ariel font (at least it wasn't Comic Sans) was the very business like heading of:

I remember trying to read Mansfield Park years ago and not finishing it. I wondered why. I wonder no more.

Congress today officially sent a letter to the Justice Department, and recommended that they launch an investigation into the possibility of bringing perjury charges against Roger Clemens. They said nothing about investigating Brian McNamee. It was a bi-partisan letter to the DOJ.

The Texas Con Man was expecting it, as was the rest of the country. Clemens continues to try to blow off the media as he pitches batting practice to Houston Astros players at spring training in Kissimmee, Florida.

It's the beginning of the end for Clemens, and he knows it.

The following letter was written by Carlton Cuse and sent today to members of the WGA. His candor and honesty are deeply appreciated by all of us here at UH. The AMPTP is counting on us becoming more divided as time goes on. But we believe the opposite will happen -- is happening, right now. We are staying strong.

To my fellow WGA Members,

I want to clear up any misunderstanding about where I stand.

On November 16 I, regretably, was quoted by a Wall Street Journal reporter saying I was going to perform some of my non-writing, post-production duties on episodes of LOST to protect the show for the fans. However, I'm sure to the delight of the AMPTP, my statement became the story and gave the false impression that there was disunity among showrunners over the issues of this negotiation.

Most of Carol Shields work that I've read can be described as "women's fiction", meaning that the protagonists are women. Larry's Party is a not unpleasant change from the norm.

Checking it twice. Okay, I'm making my book lists for 2 future challenges:

The 2nd Canadian Book Challenge hosted at The Book Mine Set. I'm picking The Free Spirit approach. I don't like being boxed in. Well, mostly it's because I still have a bunch of books I haven't finished for the last challenge. I will do better this time. Here's my list:

The Winter Rose is the book everyone is buzzing about. I've seen it on several blogs and it even got itself a spot on Estella's Revenge this month. Donnelly's publishers should work for Stephane Dion; they run an aggressive campaign. I'm not complaining though. I wasn't saying no when they offered it to me to review.

Seldom will I flagrantly endorse a book.
Seldom will I compel you to RUN to the store and buy a book.
Seldom is one as god… I mean as good as this one is, though.
And, it has just been issued in paperback format, [not only in the U.S., but also here in the Great White North, I saw it just tonight, in all of its shiny paperback glory, at Chapters…] so…. now you have no excuse.