Erika Mailman's Blog, page 17

Spring Book Recommendations

It’s time for my quasi-seasonal  recommended books list. Luckily, I’ve had a spate of happy reading lately so there are some great books to mention.
1. Someone Knows My Name by Lawrence Hill. I’m impressed beyond belief with this book and its deep, lengthy, complex look at one woman’s life. Aminata Diallo is only 11 years old when she’s snatched from her village in Africa and taken to Sierra Leone to undergo the Middle Passage to South Carolina. Moving from owner to owner and living through traumatic events, Aminata’s spirit and luminous grace carry her through. The author’s research was thorough to the point of Ph.D.hood, I’d think; the list of referenced nonfiction books in the Author’s Note was years’ worth of reading.
I enjoyed the fruits of that research: learning how indigo dye is made, what it was like to be a slave at the time of the American Revolution and all its rhetoric referring to Americans as “slaves” of Britain, learning about the different languages of Africa and having a Muslim woman as the protagonist, on and on. Every page is rich with information and a loving look at this intelligent woman (did I mention the author Lawrence Hill is male and writes this in the first person? What an accomplishment.)
With such a topic, you’d imagine the book might be too painful to read. It’s not. Hill has a deft touch so that while you agonize for the fates that befall Aminata, you continue hoping a good end will come. And you will cheer when one slender yet unforgettable piece of happiness comes (back) to her.
I honestly think this book should have received a Pulitzer or Nobel prize. Maybe both. I’ve never read such a thorough and heartfelt book about a slave. Hill truly did this fictional woman honor.
2. Splendors and Glooms by Laura Amy Schlitz. I LOVED this book. Pretty much perfect in every way, just like Mary Poppins. There are always books you read and enjoy, and then there are books that hit on topics that already fascinate you and seem tailor-made to you. For me, Splendors and Glooms was the latter kind of book. With Victorian orphans,  a mansion shrouded in snow, a locked tower, a character named Clara, dark magic, a smart and honest main character, inklings of romance and more….it was a sheer pleasure from page one to the end. I first learned of the book in the freebie magazine Book Page that my library carries; I dogeared the page it appeared on to remind myself, and then hunted down the book.  It’s considered a young adult book, but I relished it as an adult.
3. Mistress of the Revolution by Catherine Delors.The tale of a country noblewoman’s life in the years leading up to the French Revolution, this book follows her path through an arranged marriage to a brute, her necessary turn to courtesanship to support herself, and her imprisonment during the bloodthirsty days of revolution. I won’t give any plot spoilers, so will silence myself there. One thing I appreciated about this book is that it didn’t, as many books depicting the Revolution do, gloss over the fate of the Princesse de Lamballe. The viciousness of the Revolution almost seems apocryphal; did people really dip their bread in the freeflowing blood from the guillotine and exultedly eat it? Was the Princess of Lamballe’s story exaggerated and blown up out of proportion? If not, Paris was a desperately violent place, and how could you continue to trust your neighbor even after events calmed? The term “The Terror” best illustrates the era. This novel is unflinching.

Friends’ Books: I’m lucky to be part of a writing community and to announce the release of books written by friends. Quest of the Warrior Maiden by Linda C. McCabe: Based on the legends of Charlemagne and featuring a strong woman warrior protagonist. I met Linda years ago at the East of Eden writing conference; we were assigned to share a room at Asilomar, and a year later we voluntarily shared a room at the next gathering. We’ve kept in touch over the years and had a strange friendship involving the repeated loss of keys! Once her husband had to fly down in a Cessna to bring spare car keys to her. To his credit, he greeted her with a big kiss. Linda’s book is available through Destrier Books. A Time to Cast Away Stones by Elise Miller: Elise’s novel is about the 1968 May Revolution in Paris, an event few talk about or know about. I heard snippets of it years ago in a writers group we both belonged to in San Francisco. Believe it or not, this group required writers to read their work aloudfor critique; I’ll never forget how much my hands trembled in the beginning holding up my pages. Elise was confident and continued honing her novel, now available through Sand Hill Review Press. Forged in Grace by Jordan Rosenfeld: Jordan’s novel is about a burn victim who learns she can heal people--but not herself--through supernatural powers. She also voyages to learn more about the events surrounding the fire, and the best friend who was there at the time. I met Jordan and was good friends with her during the time I lived in Gilroy and she was in nearby Morgan Hill. It was a bummer not to make her recent March 2 launch party, which I blogged about a few weeks ago. I read an early version of her novel, then called Little Alien, and thought it was great; I know the version she launched was much different and can’t wait to read it. Her novel is available through Indie-Visible Ink, a collective she formed with a wonderful roster of fellow women writers. (What a great name, a play on indivisible! Surprised it wasn’t already taken.) Up in the Air  by Ann Marie Meyers. Anne Marie’s book is a children’s picture book. I know Ann Marie from the same group that Elise Miller belonged to as well. Such a fun community of writers! Ann Marie is from Trinidad and now lives in Toronto. What a climate change. Ann Marie invited me to guest blog at her site in a few days; I’ll provide a link soon. Her book is available from Jolly Fish Press. P.S. I was in error; her book doesn't launch until July. I'll show the jacket jpeg then. Claws of the Cat  by Susan Spann: This is cheating, because Susan’s book isn’t out yet! But you can preorder it and then enjoy the best-ever summer beach read. Available through Minotaur, Susan’s novel is the first installment of a fantastic mystery series featuring a Watson and Holmesian combination: a samurai warrior (a shinobi, as I  learned, part of millions of fascinating facts Susan has hipped me to) and a Portuguese priest, set in medieval Japan. They’re great partners, because Hiro the shinobi is taciturn and very Japanese, hiding many secrets, while Father Mateo is a man of the cloth and concerned to do the right thing, even while violating cultural expectations. I’ve read two of her books in the series and am waiting expectantly for #3 (clearing throat)…they are wonderful books and I can’t wait for them to hit the world. Watch this space for lots of Hiro content as the launch date approaches. I met Susan at the Historical Novels Society conference in San Diego in 2011. We had a great time getting to know each other, and I was delighted to learn she lived near Folsom, a city my family was about to move to (and did). We’ve had many an impassioned breakfast talking about writing and publishing, many a hushed evening talking about the same, and a few great walks talking about…you got it…the same. Susan’s a dear friend and thanks to HNS for getting us together! (I’ll be blogging soon about the upcoming conference in St. Petersburg, Florida this June, which both of us will again be attending.)
Before I close, I want to say I saw an amazing documentary this afternoon, courtesy of my cousin who works at Intel, which sponsored the film: Girl Rising. It was emotional, stirring, and well worth its own blog post, which I’ll post in a few days once I get a chance to mull it over and think how to approach it. (This post on my book picks has been underway for weeks, a sad commentary on how slowly I create these posts.)
There is a connection between Girl Rising and this post: the idea that literacy, that reading, can change lives and improve lives. I’m so grateful that I live a life of words and joyous reading and happy writing. I wish this was a liberty people worldwide enjoyed.
More later!


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Forged in Grace launch

Good friend Jordan Rosenfeld’s book Forged in Grace launches tomorrow at Booksmart in Morgan Hill. This novel is about Grace, irreparably scarred by a burn accident when a teen. Now an adult, she reconnects with the friend who was with her when it happened, and finally gets closure on their friendship and the circumstances of that afternoon. It’s psychologically complex: a great look at female friendships at the age when competition taints even the closest of relationship, and later at the age when one starts to assess one’s life and what’s been accomplished.
There are some amazing lyrical passages, and a nice reflective tone to the whole book. I had the fortune of reading this book in its early stages, and am so excited it’s out in the world now, much like tremulous Grace. The cover is a dream come true, eyecatching and aesthetically compelling! I was reflecting as I wrote this, that the cover must depict Grace…but then I wondered if maybe it was Marly, Grace’s friend. Or maybe we’re meant to wonder. Maybe Jordan can come do a guest post and talk about the book cover decisions.
Booksmart is a fantastic indie bookstore in charming Morgan Hill, just a short jump south of San Jose. Jordan used to work there so it’s the perfect place to launch her novel, embraced by the wonderful husband and wife owner team of Brad and Cinda Jones.
I got to know Jordan when I lived in Gilroy nearby. Many’s the long, complex talk we’ve had about the writing life and the craft of writing (she’s also the author of Make a Scene, a fantastic Writer’s Digest book on how to craft scenes. I always recommend it to my mediabistro students.) She’s been a fun and thoughtful friend, and I wish her all the best in her book’s success. If you live in the Bay Area, please attend her launch. If you don’t, please order her book to come to you.
3:00 Saturday, March 2Booksmart80 East Second St., Morgan Hill, CA408-778-6467


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Repost: abuse of child witches on the rise

I originally posted this May 18, 2009. After my last post about the woman burned to death in Papua New Guinea, a commenter asked if there was anything we could do. I remembered this post contained a link to an organization helping children accused of witchcraft, so wanted to bring it up to the landing page again.

From today's CNN wire, the article "Abuse of Child 'Witches' on the Rise, Aid Groups Say" addresses the horrible plight of children stigmatized by the name witch. It follows in particular the story of 14-year-old Christian Eshiett of Nigeria, whose "rambunctious" ways led him to be repeatedly beaten, and to run away from home as a 12 year old, spending the next two years on the streets.

The article states:

“Children accused of witchcraft are often incarcerated in churches for weeks on end and beaten, starved and tortured in order to extract a confession,” said Gary Foxcroft, program director of Stepping Stones Nigeria, a nonprofit that helps alleged witch children in the region.... The states of Akwa Ibom and Cross River have about 15,000 children branded as witches, and most of them end up abandoned and abused on the streets, he said.

Link here to Stepping Stones Nigeria, should you wish to donate.

Interestingly, Foxcroft feels the belief in witchcraft should be permitted to remain. I strongly disagree. As long as anyone believes another person wields supernatural powers, especially demonically-endowed powers, there is danger.

This is a very sticky issue for Africa and other parts of the world: Westerners don't wish to insist that such beliefs are superstititious or primitive. Medieval Europe found a way to extricate itself from such egregious beliefs (without the interference of colonializing forces). I honestly think the key is for economic conditions to improve. Crime rises when people are desperate--and accusing someone of witchcraft is a crime.

I don't support the belief in witchcraft. However, perhaps Foxcroft feels his best bet is to improve the system from within, allowing the belief to remain while removing children from its target:

“It is not the belief in witchcraft that we are concerned about,” Foxcroft said. “We acknowledge people’s right to hold this belief on the condition that this does not lead to child abuse.”

What do you think? I welcome comments--is the belief in witchcraft harmful in itself, or a benign belief system?

The image accompanied the article on CNN, with the caption "Children branded as witches protest on February 26, 2009, in the southern Nigerian city of Eket."




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"Witch" burned alive in Papua New Guinea

How I hate, hate, hate to write this post. It's been a long time since a modern-day witchcraft execution showed up in the news...and this time it was more brutal than usual.

We think of witchcraft as a belief abandoned in the Dark Ages.

It wasn't.

The Associated Press reports today that a woman was attacked by a mob, tortured by being burned with a hot iron, doused in gasoline and set on fire on a pile of tires. Sound familiar? Yes, in two ways. One, the description of the torture sounds exactly like the torture applied centuries ago to medieval people accused of witchcraft. Two, a "witch" was burned atop of tires only about a year ago in Papua New Guinea. Here's the link to my blog post (and another) about that. It seems tire burning is their favored method there. Burning rubber to cover the stench of burning flesh? Perhaps.

Either way, it's horrible and kills me to read. Hundreds watched this woman's suffering and did nothing to stop it. They say it looked like fifty different people "had hands on her" during her time of torture. Imagine being the one small person in the middle of all that anger directed at you?

It is said she was accused of causing the death of a six-year-old child through sorcery. She herself was the mother of two, and it's said her husband was the main attacker against her.

I'm not a praying sort, but tonight my heart and my prayers go to her soul.



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Sutter's Mill

David Nicolai, former director of the Pardee Home Museum now living in China, was here visiting this last weekend and I took the opportunity to do some more history tourism with him, just like when he visited about nine months ago.

We now live in Gold Country, so it was a quick jaunt over to Sutter's Mill. Why is this place important? It's where gold was first discovered (well, by the people who cared) in California, setting off the Gold Rush and forever changing the landscape and way of life here. John Sutter had set up a mill simply to create timber...yet one day in the mill race (the water current running the water wheel) a big nugget sat shining and ready for the plucking. It was plucked and the world changed.

Here is David and my husband in front of a replica of the mill. The original was a bit further down the river and fell prey to time (it was understandably abandoned in favor of gold mining) and water deterioration. Here at the wonderful Sutter's Mill State Historic Park, there is a glassed enclosure of several beams from the original mill.

The next picture is my husband being a miner at the American River steps away. Glumly, he found no gold. We couldn't believe how blue and sparkling the water was. It is truly a gorgeous river, but we wouldn't want to stand in its icy waters all day to pan for gold, as the Gold Rushers did.


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Quotes

Often, a few perceptive quotes are all you need to get through your day. Here are a few that have recently arisen in my life.

Alan: My dreams are understaffed. I need five bunnies to drive the tractor, not four.
Student in my class: What would unite our world?
Another student: Brainwashing.
And in case you can’t read my teabag, it says “Advertising may be described as the science of arresting the human intelligence long enough to get money from it.” –Unknown. 
Please note the Lake Merritt Breakfast Club mug, a gift for presenting to them long ago for the Oakland Hills book. The club is a hugely benevolent group in Oakland, responsible for establishing and maintaining Children's Fairyland and fundraising to reinstate the necklace of lights around Lake Merritt. Club members start each meeting with a rousing rendition of Oh What a Beautiful Morning from Oklahoma...and yes, they meet really early. For breakfast.

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Witchcraft panel

What will you be doing on the afternoon of June 22? Will you be in the environs of St. Petersburgh, Florida?

If so, please consider signing up for the Historical Novels Society conference, where I'll be part of a witchcraft panel titled The Witchcraft Window: Scrying the Past. It takes place at 1:30 p.m. on June 22 . . . right after lunch. I don't think I'll be able to eat a thing.

My fellow panelists are Kathleen Kent, Mary Sharratt and Suzy Witten. I'll be discussing some of the choices I made in the writing of The Witch's Trinity, my novel set in medieval Germany about an old woman accused of witchcraft by her own daughter-in-law. And I can't wait to hear what the others have to say. From Salem, Massachusetts, to Pendle, England, and Tierkind, Germany: we all have different settings and approaches to our novels.



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Sacramento train station

This weekend I picked up an old friend at the train station in Sacramento, David Nicolai, the former director of the Pardee Home Museum and the inspiration for one of the characters in my current work in progress. He now lives in China and was visiting for a few days before returning back.

I made a point of parking so that I could go inside the train station and wait for him...and I was rewarded by the sight of a vaulted ceiling and what was once a very grand station indeed. It needs some work--and that scaffolding looks like it's been there a while. But I could see past all that to something beautiful that just needs a little rehab work.

There was also a fantastic mural depicting the arrival of the first transcontinental train. I asked David if George Pardee (Oakland mayor and Calfornia governor) would have been in the picture, and he scoffed and said no, far too early. And maybe even too early for Enoch Pardee, George's father and also an Oakland mayor. More on my adventures with David soon.



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Pardee porcelain on display

The Pardee Home in downtown Oakland---home to California governor George C. Pardee and his globetrotting, antiques-collecting wife--is hosting an afternoon tea with the chance to look over Mrs. Pardee's wonderful collection of porcelain. If tea isn't your thing, simply take a tour to see the exhibit.

The home itself is well worth exploring, with intact furnishings from the time of the Pardees (turn of the century collections that the Pardee daughters never changed. The last of the Pardee line died in the 1980s, and the home was then turned into a museum.) "You won't want to miss Miss Helen Pardee's collection of exquisite demitasse cups, teacups and tea pots." www.pardeehome.org.




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NEXT BIG THING: Blog Hop

Welcome to the NEXT BIG THING blog hop. This is a way for readers to discover new authors. Although the title “next big thing” sounds a little over the top, we all need to believe in our writing…and we can only hope that readers will share our enthusiasm.



Thanks to dear friend and writer Susan Spann for tagging me to participate in the blog hop. Her book Claws of the Cat, coming out in July 2013, is a fantastic read truly destined to be the next big thing. It’s set in medieval Japan and features a murder-solving team of a shinobi (the actual word for ninja, and knowing that makes me feel about 80 percent cooler) and his buddy the Portuguese priest. Holmes and Watson, anyone? Here’s her Next Big Thing post from last week.
In the Next Big Thing blog hop, authors answer 10 questions about a book or work-in–progress to give readers a sneak peek. The answers also include some behind-the-scenes information about how and why we write –I hope you enjoy it. Without further ado, here’s all about my project.

1. What is the working title of your book?
House of Bellaver


2. Where did the idea for the book come from?
I used to volunteer at a house museum in Oakland, the Pardee Home Museum (pictured). This was the home of George Pardee, an early California governor who was in office at the time of the 1906 earthquake and fire, earning him the title, “The Earthquake Governor.” The home is still decorated with original furnishings because Pardee’s daughters stayed in the house, not touching anything, until they died in the 1980s. I was fascinated by the house and its appointments. The house is reputed to be haunted, and I began fashioning a novel around the idea of a mystery from the past to be solved by the museum’s modern-day staff members.



3. What genre does your book come under?
Literary fiction. Oops-I almost wrote “literary historical fiction” because I’m so used to thinking of myself as a historical novelist. But while there are plenty of Victorian-era scenes in the book, it features a split-chronology where the rest of the novel is modern.



4. Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
I love this question. I teach writing through mediabistro.com, and in one of my lectures I encourage students to do the same. It helps when writing to see a literal face—and you can cut them out and tape them above your desk. I see Daniel Craig as Campbell, my asexual museum director (hey, wouldn’t he want a chance to play someone very different and show his acting chops?). He’s actually the only one I had thought about before, so I’m going to do some quick googling to come up with a few other main characters.



[back].



For the governor’s wife Alta, Michelle Dockery. She plays Lady Mary on Downton Abbey.
 

For the governor himself, Ben Stiller comes to mind (in a beard!)—but he’s so comedic, would it work to have him in a serious role? Maybe Matthew McFadyen.


For Claudine, the goth girl who can see ghosts at the property, Jennifer Lawrence.



For the governor’s son, I would think of someone like Macauley Culkin although he is no longer the teen that the book requires. While flipping through daguerreotypes and cartes de visite at a flea market in Maine, I came across a fellow I think could easily be the governor’s son; I’m posting his photograph here.


5. What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
(All I can say is, thank god for semicolons.) Rumors about an early California governor’s child’s untimely death persist a hundred years into the future, when his house is now a museum; the modern-day director fights to save his job at an ailing facility, teaming up with the new docent, a Goth girl who claims to see ghosts, to learn the truth about a century-old murder that took place in the historic house.


6. Is your book self-published, published by an independent publisher, or represented by an agency?
I’ve been previously published by Crown/Random House and by Heyday Books. This manuscript is represented by literary agent Marly Rusoff, who is about to submit it.


7. How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
I didn’t keep track, which is funny because I kept very close tabs on previous books. I do know that it’s been years off and on, because I was working on it when I was pregnant with a child who is now old enough to talk. 


8. What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
I think there’s a nice screenplay comparison with Downton Abbey by Julian Fellowes. I know, everybody and their cousin is now writing a Downton Abbey book! My twist is that it’s American and that it takes place in the Victorian era rather than Edwardian.


9. Who or what inspired you to write this book?
This is very similar to Question 2; I had to scroll up to make sure I was still keeping sharp tools in the toolshed. I can add that there is a person who helped inspire the book. The Pardee Home Museum’s former director David Nicolai served as serious inspiration for the corresponding character Campbell in the novel (he reports that he chooses Sean Connery to play him). David now teaches English in China and loved the manuscript of House of Bellaver. Thank God. I couldn’t have gone forward with it if he didn’t like it. David actually lived in the Pardee Home as a caretaker, sleeping on a futon mattress in what was once a maid’s room. His situation seemed 
rich with drama. 


10. What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
Let’s see. Besides the allure of ghosts, antiques and museums, the book looks at California’s suffrage history. In fact, the governor vetoes suffrage at the same time his wife is secretly holding suffrage meetings in his parlor. There’s adultery, fiscal mismanagement and fashion design. And just as in Downton Abbey, the servants’ lives are just as compelling and fully explored as their wealthy counterparts upstairs.


Here are some other authors joining the blog hop next Wednesday:
1.          Linda McCabe
2.         Ann Marie Meyers
And an author participating today:
Travis Heerman

Are you an author writing THE NEXT BIG THING? Leave a comment and let us know how to find you!


By the way, I’ve been trying to trace Next Big Thing back to its originator and have to say it’s been entertaining to read all the posts in the chain moving backward…this thing has been hopping for months now. I’ve discovered a few books I definitely want to track down, like Ghost Signs by Elizabeth Mosier and Coma Girl by Andrea Jarrell. And after some pleasant searching, I found Zoe Brooks who started the meme in August 2012.  Here is her kick-off post. Thanks, Zoe!


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