Pearl of China by Anchee Min

This is a novel based on the life of Pearl Buck when she lived in China. It's told from the point of view of a Chinese girl who becomes her best friend.

It was interesting from the standpoint that I knew nothing about Pearl Buck's life. I always like learning more about people. Of course, it's fiction, so it is not completely true, but after checking a few facts myself, the book seems to be fairly accurate in most ways.

The last quarter or so of the book takes place during Mao's regime, when Pearl no longer lived in China, so I felt as though the book deviated from it's purpose a little bit.

I learned that Anchee Min grew up in China, and was required to denounce Pearl Buck as a young teen. She had no idea who Pearl Buck was at the time. After moving to America, Min read The Good Earth and was amazed at the accuracy with which Pearl Buck wrote of the Chinese people. She later decided to write this book.

The writing is a little inconsistent, and I think that is probably because English is not Anchee Min's first language. When my pile of books diminishes some, I think I will look into reading Red Azalea, Min's own biography.

I love the artwork on the front cover.

Flowers!

I love flowers. I need a yard full of them. My yard has too much green, not enough color. So when summer hits and water lilies grow in my pond, I relish the lift if gives me.

Thursday Workday

Audrey and Joseph had the nerve to go home this morning, and take their children with them. What were they thinking?

Audrey redeemed herself a little when she called to report Austin and Matthew's conversation as they pulled away:

"I just love Pa'a and G'ma"

"I love them all the way to Jupiter and back."

Thursday is, of course, workday. Trish and I quilted merrily away today, solving most of the world's problems as we stitched along. I managed to get the top to my Stoneworks quilt put together, except for the final border. This fabric is a delight to work with - it feels wonderful. And I love the colors. More on the pattern and quilt itself when it's done and I do my final post on it. I'm considering sending it out to be quilted instead of doing it myself this time. I'll decide once it's really done.

A bonus: Beth, Bruce and Rachel came over. Firehouse Subs just opened here in Sandy, and Bruce could not wait to go. Beth and Bruce went to lunch with Ray, and Rachel stayed home with me (napping). We had a nice visit, and Rachel actually came over and sat on my lap. She climbs on Ray's lap all the time. Usually she just tolerates me, but today she actually stayed with me for a few minutes.

Wednesday Was Bodily Fluids Day

Warning: If you have a weak stomach, or strong imagination, this post is not for you.

Wednesday, 8:15 am:

Audrey and Joseph are at the temple. Matthew is awake and playing. Austin is asleep. I hear Elizabeth playing in the crib. I go in, pick her up and give her a big hug before I smell it. An enormous diaper blow-out. (I'm tempted to call the Guiness people) I mop her up, and stick her in the tub (bath #1). Then I clean up her clothes and in the process realize mine don't look much better (Shower and change of clothes for me). Audrey and Joseph get home, Joseph kindly washes off crib mattress. Bedding and clothing in the washer (load #1).

Wednesday, 1:00 pm:

My next door neighbor comes over: do I know how to turn off the water in the house? Her upstairs toilet has overflowed, and water is coming down through the downstairs light fixture. I run over there. The toilet is no longer over flowing, but the floor has about an inch of water, and I'm sure there is at least one entire roll of toilet paper in the toilet (she has a 3 year old). I clean out the toilet, help mop up the floor (while she is madly cleaning and mopping other areas). We empty the light fixture of water (it was full to the brim). It looks as though the water issue is contained. Ray comes home and goes over and snakes the toilet. We leave the rest to the Rescue Rooter man. I come home and scrub as if for surgery.

Wednesday, 1:30 pm:

Audrey and Joseph went on a date and to lunch (they don't get out much in Wendover). Elizabeth wakes from her nap. This time I am cautious in picking her up. Safe! Sort of. Another foul diaper, but thankfully all contained. She is cheerful, and the boys are playing well.

Wednesday, 2:30 pm:

Snack time! I plop Elizabeth in her high chair and start giving the boys food. Elizabeth coughs. I look at her. She smiles. She throws up. A lot. She cries. Off for another bath - but first a rinse off in the shower (bath and shower #2). Ray (son) keeps an eye on Elizabeth while she cheerfully plays in the bath and I head back into the kitchen for HazMat duty. I mop up, eye the high chair and finally just take it into the shower for a full hose-down (shower #3). I notice my shirt. Hmm. Another change of clothes for me (#2). My shirt and Elizabeth's clothes into the wash (load #2).

Wednesday 4:30 pm:

The Hanks' have all gone swimming. I sit for a moment and relax. What an afternoon. I just can't shake that sour smell that's been following me around all day. I don't know a day when I've cleaned myself more. Still, that sour smell is persistent. I finally resort to smelling my arms and hands. It's my watch! Off comes the watch, and Ray thoroughly cleans and scrubs every link. Another wash of my arms. At last no more sour odor. Time for some powerfully perfumed lotion!

Welcome Sights, Welcome Sounds

These dinosaur flip-flops have spent the day just inside my front door. Sometimes I walk over there just so I can see them again. They are Matthew's, and he slips them off as he comes in. When the flip-flops are here, he is here too. Lucky for me his whole family is here with him.

Audrey had a couple of doctor's appointments, so the whole family came. They got here yesterday afternoon, and I revel in every minute. The house has a certain liveliness when they are here - lots of elaborate plots are hatched, and toys are out that have been stashed in cubbies for a couple of months now.

As I work in the same room with the boys I hear about all kinds of things:

Bull Snakes

Helicopters

Hammock adventures

and the ever-present Bad Guys dangers

Austin draws pictures. Matthew hangs over my sewing table as I zig-zag a hem onto some tablecloths - "Look, g'ma! You're sewing all M's right in a row!"

My Thoughts on the Fourth of July

I love this country, and the freedoms it affords us. I was proud to stand and sing The Star-spangled Banner in church today, and the last verse really struck a chord for me.

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
(Last verse of The Star-spangled Banner by Francis Scott Key)

I have two nephews in active military service right now. Josh (read about him here) is in the Army, currently serving in Afghanistan, and Joseph who is in the Air Force and currently serving at Hickam AF Base in Hawaii. Thank you to them and their willingness to serve and defend our rights and our country.

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman

I cannot for the life of me remember where I heard about this book. I've got to make a list of books I request from the library, and why I requested them. Did I read a review? Did someone I know tell me about it? Did I pick it up somewhere and think I'd like to try it? If I just keep a list on my computer then after I read the book I can remember my "source" of recommendation.

I do know that I read somewhere that the book was "laugh out loud" funny in parts. I did not find that to be true. There were parts that I thought were humorous, but I did not laugh out loud one time. The better parts of the book were the thought-provoking, emotionally touching parts of the book.

I liked the book. I thought it was a good read, and the writing was often very good. Actually the acknowledgements at the very beginning were the best I've ever read, and gave me high hopes for the book.

Here's my only real criticism (and I'm not sure I can really put it into words): the books highs and lows were not extreme enough. Or rather, there was some potential for more suspense that Hoffman never took advantage of. Parts that had me on the edge of my seat wondering how they'd be solved just sort of melted away mildly. Too bad.

I did like the characters, and I liked the sense of family that she creates. I just wish it all felt a little more filled out. Not necessarily longer, just a little fuller. This sounds a lot more critical than I feel about the book. I've just been trying to put my finger on exactly what more I wanted from the book.

I'll have to keep thinking about it. In the meantime, if you're looking for a decent read, give it a try.

The Total Tragedy of a Girl Named Hamlet by Erin Dionne

I should not have read this book right after my last book. It paled in comparison. So much so that it was almost irritating to read.

The main character of both books is in junior high school. Both books are set mainly at the school, although family time at home does factor in the stories. Both books center on the angst of being in junior high and all that that entails: mostly teachers and fellow students. Both books have Shakespeare and/or his works as a focus.

But--and it's a big but--one book was written so well, and this one wasn't. The Wednesday Wars seems like it will still be a wonderful read in twenty years. The Total Tragedy of a Girl Named Hamlet will seem dated in two years.

They're both juvenile literature. I wonder how a junior high student would compare the two books. I'll have to ask some of my nieces and nephews to read and compare them and let me know.

We're reading both of these books for my book group this month. It should prove to be an interesting discussion. Although I hate to waste time discussing this book when The Wednesday Wars has so many better things to talk about.

Can you tell how I really feel about these books?