Krista Clark Grabowski's Blog

The Barbellion Prize - Something New and Wonderful!

It will probably come as no surprise to anyone that I watch LOTS of YouTube videos about books. I discovered BookTube (as they call the many YouTube videos created by and for booklovers) thanks to my dad. I probably inherited my love for books from him. He loved books and was an avid reader, especially later in his life. He was also very intelligent and curious. He loved to learn every day of his life. If I remember right, he mentioned BookTube during maybe two or three visits I made to him and my mom. It was a day that he showed me some of his favorites that I decided to check it out for myself when I got home. I did and I was hooked!

I now subscribe to several BookTubers and watch them regularly. I’ll probably talk about some of them here now and then. One of my favorites is Jen Campbell. She is an author and book reviewer who lives in England (in or near London I think). She is also “disabled”. (I really hate that word to describe people. They aren’t disabled. But that’s a topic for another day.) Her channel is unique, and I think interesting, because she shines a light on what “disabled” means in her life and the life of other writers. She seeks out, reads, and talks about books written by “disabled” or chronically ill authors, and it’s fascinating.

In her most recent video, Jen talks about the longlist for a book prize I didn’t know existed - the Barbellion Prize. It was founded recently, in 2020. On their website, they state that they look for work that looks at:

. . . life with a long-term chronic illness or disability, whether that be in the form of blindness, MS, cystic fibrosis, dwarfism, or another comparable condition that may substantially define one’s life.

Authors - such as those in a carer's capacity - who themselves are not disabled may be considered for the prize if their work is truly exceptional as an articulation of life with illness, but authors who themselves deal personally with illness or disability will take priority in any selection for the prize.

. . . What is important to us is not just any particular moral or message in a given work... but more so a greater visibility for, and a genuine illustration of, life with illness, disease, impairment, or disability.

Awesome!

In her video, Jen reads and reviews most of the books that are on the longlist (not too long - just 8 books) for the 2023 Barbellion Prize and then chooses which ones she would put on her shortlist (aka her favorites).

I highly recommend Jen Campbell’s YouTube channel. Along with her content about books, she also talks about her boyfriend (she calls him Mr. M) and shares beautiful footage of the places she goes for walks, the scrumptious-looking food she makes, and her adorable dog (whose name I can’t recall at the moment). It’s just a nice cozy, comforting place to be. You can watch her video below or click here to watch it on YouTube.

"The Housekeeper and the Professor" - Book Review

The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yōko Ogawa

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Just finished reading this and loved it. An elderly man, who was once a very respected mathematician, was in an accident years before the book begins that damaged his memory. He now can remember only the events of the most recent 80 minutes of his life at any given time. In a life that is constantly new and unfamiliar to him, he connects to the world and his sense of self through math.

A woman who is hired by his sister-in-law as his housekeeper has a son. The two of them navigate forming and sustaining a relationship with him. They change his life in ways he’ll never remember and he changes theirs in ways he will never know.

It’s about loneliness, connection, baseball (the man and boy bond over baseball), math, and more. It has its weak spots, but overall I really enjoyed it and will probably read it again at some point.



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"Christmas With You" by Sheila Flanagan - Book Review

Christmas With You by Sheila O'Flanagan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I picked up the Kindle version of Christmas With You because I wanted to read something light that had a Christmas theme. It was also on sale and had great reviews. I had never read Sheila O'Flanagan before and was a little afraid this would be a sappy, boring book, but my fears were unfounded. It does have its sappy moments, but you have to expect a certain amount of that in a Christmas story, and despite those sappy moments, I had a lot of fun reading Christmas With You.

This is really a collection of short stories, but they all take place at the same location - The Sugar Loaf Lodge - at Christmas time. Each story is about a person, couple, or family that decides to spend their holiday away from home for a variety of reasons. There are divorces, affairs, bored housewives, boyfriend/girlfriend relationships, and friendships. There are secrets and even a bit of a ghost story. The ghost story surprised me because it was a total change from the stories that came before and after it, but it worked in this collection because it added another layer to the overall story.

Although this is a collection of short stories, in each one there are references to someone who was a character in another of the stories. For example, several of the stories mention a character noticing a woman in a pink dress and high heels. The people who notice her theorize about why she looks angry or sad and why she keeps looking at the door to the lobby and checking her phone. We know her story, and some of the characters were close but missed the mark.

One fun thing about this collection is the peek we get into the minds of different characters and their opinions about other people they see at The Sugar Loaf Lodge. A running theme throughout the book is the expectations that come with Christmas. All of the characters decide to break with the tradition of spending the holiday with family and friends, having tables full of homemade food, and all the other things we've come to expect in the Christmas season. Each character's reason for breaking with tradition is different, and "listening in" on their thoughts about why other people at the lodge are not at home is interesting.

Christmas With You was a very enjoyable read. Next time I want something light and easy to read, I very well may reach for something else by Sheila O'Flanagan. I'd recommend this to anyone who wants something fun to read and enjoys a cozy Christmas story.



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Tim Ferris Interviews Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman has written graphic novels, short stories, comic books, novels, nonfiction, films, and probably more. He’s brilliant. If you haven’t listened to him reading his book The Graveyard Book on Audible, listen to it now. His voice is calming, and it’s perfect for this sweet story about an orphaned boy who is raised by the dead who inhabit the graveyard located near his home, where his family died. It sounds twisted and terrifying, but it’s not. It’s heartwarming and wonderful.

In the interview at the link below, Tim Ferris talks to him for over an hour and a half. I know it’s long, but click on it instead of bingeing Netflix for a while, especially if you’re a writer. It’s fascinating. He’s down-to-earth and forthcoming. You’ll be glad you watched.

He also has a great website, which you can see if you click on his photo above.

Tim Ferriss Interview with Neil Gaiman

“No Coward Soul is Mine” by Emily Bronte

No coward soul is mine

No trembler in the world's storm-troubled sphere

I see Heaven's glories shine

And Faith shines equal arming me from Fear

O God within my breast

Almighty ever-present Deity

Life, that in me hast rest,

As I Undying Life, have power in Thee

Vain are the thousand creeds

That move men's hearts, unutterably vain,

Worthless as withered weeds

Or idlest froth amid the boundless main

To waken doubt in one

Holding so fast by thy infinity,

So surely anchored on

The steadfast rock of Immortality.

With wide-embracing love

Thy spirit animates eternal years

Pervades and broods above,

Changes, sustains, dissolves, creates and rears

Though earth and moon were gone

And suns and universes ceased to be

And Thou wert left alone

Every Existence would exist in thee

There is not room for Death

Nor atom that his might could render void

Since thou art Being and Breath

And what thou art may never be destroyed.

Evan Guilford-Blake's short story "Balloon" to be featured on No Extra Words Podcast

A big thank you to Kris Baker Dersch for featuring Evan Guilford-Blake's short story "Balloon" on the January 27 episode of her podcast No Extra Words. No Extra Words is a weekly podcast of great English language short stories from all over the world that are under 2,000 words.  "Balloon" is one of the stories that will be included in Love and Loss and Love, a collection of short stories written by Evan. It's the story of someone dealing with the increasingly frequent deaths of people in his life and the funeral of one in particular.

Evan Guilford-Blake's article "Exit 271" published

an article accepted by the Georgia Writers' Association's Magazine, "Exit 271," which will appear in its November issue. (And, they pay!) The last can't be posted anywhere until October 25th, the issue's pub date.

Luke Spooner - Artist for Upcoming Verto Publication, "Love and Loss and Love"

Illustrator Luke Spooner created both the cover art and two interior illustrations for Verto's soon-to-be-published Love and Loss and Love, a collection of short stories written by Evan Guilford-Blake. Luke has designed album artwork as well as cover art and interior illustrations for both books and magazines. His contributions to Love and Loss and Love truly enrich the reading experience. 
He shows an incredible ability to adapt to a variety of themes and, in addition to artwork for general fiction and horror, has masterfully created cover art for children’s books, creating pieces that spark a child’s imagination. Patch Bear From "The Boy Who Once Chased Cats" by Russell Whitehead Luke developed his artistic skills while studying at University of Portsmouth, where he earned a First Class degree in illustration. Through years of applying his craft and taking in inspirations from the realms of science-fiction, horror, and even the titillating Lovecraft, Mr Spooner has won numerous awards for his art and his work has been on display not only with online retailers but also in high-end street shops and various major retailers. From chapbook "Lovely Island" published by Myth Ink Books After showcasing his craft in other places, we are thrilled that Luke is bringing his creative talents to Verto Publishing.  We're so excited to bring his work to a new audience. Be it chilling, scary, noir, or even light hearted, lovable and innocent as in his “Patches” pieces, Luke’s work is destined to captivate and enthrall those who experience it.

Examples of his work can be found at both of the following websites. 

​www.carrionhouse.com

www.hoodwinkhouse.com

Article written by Shayne Harden, edited by Krista Clark Grabowski

Evan Guilford-Blake's "Balloon" to be featured by EMU Theatre

November 13, 14, and 20 EMU Theatre presents the stories of people, one character at a time, as written by some of their best area playwrights, F*ck You I'm From Kansas's Will Averill, off-Broadway playwright Catherine Trieschman, Dan Born, Nick Stock, Robert Baker, Everette Robert and In the Trenches contributor Evan Guilford-Blake. The show runs at 8:30 p.m. all three days at the Percolator Lawrence, located on the alley behind the Lawrence Arts Center. Tickets are $8 at the door.

Evan's short story "The Invasion" appeared in In the Trenches and Love and Loss and Love , a collection of his short stories, will be published by Verto Publishing in January 2016.

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In the Trenches is on the shelves at Carmichael's Bookstore!

Verto Publishing is thrilled to announce that the Frankfort Avenue location of Carmichael's Bookstore in Louisville, KY now has several copies of In the Trenches on their shelves.

Carmichael's is the oldest independent bookstore in Louisville. From the time they opened the doors to their first store at Bardstown Road and Bonnycastle in 1978, Carmichael’s has been committed to being a neighborhood gathering place by being open seven days a week and every evening. They now have two locations, both on corners that hum with activity – walkers, joggers, dogs and children, families and couples – lively streetscapes never darkened by the shadow of a big box store. As a founding member of the Louisville Independent Business Alliance, Carmichael’s is actively committed to Keeping Louisville Weird and spreading the word about the importance of buying from locally-owned businesses.

Verto couldn't be happier about being part of this community treasure.