Tuesday, February 19, 2013

"broken things always have a story."

Listening To: Gone by The Head and The Heart
Line Obsession: "But then it struck me: if those girls looked over at me, they'd just see a plain looking eleven year old reading a book. They'd never suspect the secret I was hiding. I looked up and down the beach and wondered if maybe everyone could be hiding some big secret." - Sara Pennypacker, from Summer of the Gypsy Moths

  
Biscuit and I are up late because I'm on a novel reading binge. Poor Biscuit. She's snuggled up at the foot of the bed with her favorite squeaky dragon toy, and ever so often she'll stretch and blink a not-so-subtle reminder like ohmygoshit is 1 AM and why is the lamp still on?!


I'm a chronic night owl. Especially when I find a great book. 

I can sometimes go a week or two without reading much - a few chapters here, a few articles there, and so on. But then I have other weeks when I go straight-up cookie monster on books. I binge read. All nighters for novels. An hour in the library, just meandering around, trying to find love at first line. I load up on magazines. I fan out the newspaper across the table. Prose all night. Poems for breakfast. Nom nom nom.

So. I'm up late. Reading. Tonight I'm reading Sara Pennypacker's SUMMER OF THE GYPSY MOTHS and it's odd and bittersweet and so beautiful that I have to talk about it. It's a story about friendship and change and hope; it seriously feels like the author pressed a ray of warm summer sunlight into every page. In the beginning of the book, there's an ... odd scene. A sad scene. And it's a scene that I'm guessing some readers might be very sensitive to, so I'd recommend reading it before you pass it along to your sibs or your kids. The scene isn't inappropriate, but it deals with death in a way that I haven't read in a kids book before. So, obviously, different readers might respond to that in different ways. (The big positive, I would think, is that it opens a door to talk about an issue that's difficult to talk about it.)

But please know this: even if that initial scene startles you a bit, SUMMER OF THE GYPSY MOTHS is a lovely read, and it's so beautifully written.

This is one of my favorite passages so far: 
"I broke it," I said. "And it was so beautiful."  
"Oh, I like the broken ones fine," George said. He picked up a sand dollar. It was bleached white, at least four inches across, pretty as a sugar cookie. He snapped it in half, and I gasped.  
George held the palm of his hand out to me and tapped the broken shell over it. A tiny white chip fell out, and then another ."Look here," he said. "Inside here, these are the teeth. They look like doves, don't you think? A lot of folks take the sand dollar as a message about God and Jesus and all - the nail holes of the cross on the shell, the little doves inside, you see -- that's all right, I guess. But what I see are the doves being released. Now, I see a broken shell and I remind myself that something might have needed setting free. See, broken things always have a story, don't they?" (- Sara Pennypacker, SUMMER OF THE GYPSY MOTHS, Balzer + Bray, 2012. p.38)
Stella and Angel, the two main characters, are fantastic. Your heart breaks for them and with them, but you also get the vibe - very early on - that you're in the hands of an immensely talented storyteller who is all to happy to remind you that all broken things have a story. In this case, they have a seriously beautiful one.

Your turn! Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to grab your current read and share a favorite line or paragraph or a little bit about a character or overall story that you love. I can't wait to hear what you're into! I love your book recommendations. (And, as always, I'd love to hear how you're doing and ohMyLanta that Downton Abbey finale!!!! WHAT?!)

17 comments:

  1. YES! That finale! I finally got caught up and watched it with friends last night. Ugh. I had read a spoiler, so I knew what was coming but that didn't make it any easier to watch. :(

    On a happy note, it's nice to know I'm not alone in my reading habits. I'm a night owl too, and when I get into a book, it's usually very early when I finish it. sigh. I try to use my (nonexistent) willpower, but I can't seem to help myself. ;)

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    1. Agree! I knew and I was still so sad to see Matthew go. UGH. On the flip, since it's a whole YEAR before they'll show S4 over here, I'll probably have time to get kind of excited to see what happens next with Lady Mary. Have you seen the new guy rumored to be her love interest? ... I approve. I approve 100%.

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    2. Why yes, I have seen the new guy and if it's true, that would absolutely get me on the train to watch season 4! (I probably would anyway, but that would just guarantee it. He's quite handsome. ;)

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  2. This one sounds interesting...I'll have to add it to my to-read list! As if it weren't already long enough. :)

    I'm currently rereading Pride and Prejudice, so I don't think there are many quotes from there that most people don't already know. :) I recently read The Tutor's Daughter, by Julie Klassen, and really enjoyed it.

    ~Kristin

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    1. I read your review on The Tudor's Daugther! It sounds very interesting. Have you read a book called Glamorous Illusions by Lisa Bergren? I think you might enjoy it - historical, sassy heroine, gorgeous clothes. The girl is plucked out of poverty (essentially) by a rich father she didn't know existed to go on her grand tour. It would be a fabulous movie. :)

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  3. Oh I love reading at night! There have been times though where I've looked up from the last page at 5 AM :) I just read Where'd You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple and I loved it!

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    1. I haven't read that one yet, but I've read so many great reviews. And I LOVE the cover!! I'll definitely have to check it out now!

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  4. "I could introduce myself properly, but it's not really necessary. You will know me well enough and soon enough, depending on a diverse range of variables. It suffices to say that at some pint in time, I will be standing over you, as genially as possible. your soul will be in my arms. A color will be perched on my shoulder. I will carry you gently away. At that moment, you will be lying there (I rarely find people standing up)." -- The Book Thief

    Found this line and loved the humor! The book is (spoiler) from the point of view of death. Very intriguing.

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    1. THE BOOK THIEF is one of my favorites. So unique and heartbreaking and beautiful. It's such a classic. I've tried to blog about it so many times, and I can't. It's so hard to describe, isn't it? But SO amazing.

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  5. Yes. Downton. I knew. Naughty me. I'll be posting about in the next couple of days, so keep your eyes open. ;)
    Like you sometimes I read all day every day, I can't get enough and I just fly through books. But other times I just don't read much, I am in one of those phases sadly, nothing good to read. I have recently started Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress and it seems promising.
    LF

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    1. I knew the spoiler too and I'm kind of glad I did. I think I'd had enough time to prepare myself - haha :) Can you imagine watching it and not knowing?! In some ways, I think it was a very soap opera way to end a season. But Downton kind of is soap-opera, and still so fun. And I don't think he could have just suddenly left. Their commitment was pretty solid, so it made sense that it had to be a permanent end. I'm so interested to see where Mary's story goes from here.

      I've never heard of the book you're reading but I just looked it up. Totally intriguing. You'll have to let me know if I should check it out!

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    2. Just finished Balzac, it was quite good. A nice, easy read. I wasn't blown away by it but I'm glad I read it. It had a very...poetic ending.
      Yes! Such a soap opera, but I don't care!
      LF

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  6. I'm reading Crime and Punishment right now for school and I'm actually enjoying it so far! I just can't let the length get to me. Taking it page by page :) I thought this line was really interesting: "And the wise and learned will raise up their voices, saying: 'Lord! Why dost thou receive them?' And He will say unto them: 'Because they none of them ever believed themselves worthy of it.'" Of course, salvation does not come from solely that, but I liked it - often we think we somehow deserve God's grace and love because we take it for granted.

    OHMYGOODNESS! I still am in shock over Downton. I knew someone was going to die, but I never ever guessed it could be that person. I mean, that person was one of the last truly good, kind people on the show besides Anna and Sybil! Ahhh. Have you seen these? It ALMOST makes that last episode bearable. http://www.happyplace.com/21471/downton-abbey-facebook-recap-season-3-episode-7

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    1. That made me LAUGH! So, so funny!! Thanks for sharing! :)

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  7. "We don't learn to love each other well in the easy moments. Anyone is good company at a cocktail party. But love is born when we misunderstand each other and make it right, when we cry in the kitchen, when we show up uninvited with granola bars and magazines in an effort to say, I love you." From Bread & Wine by Shauna Niequist. I received an advanced copy and am LOVING IT! So good. :)

    I'm also reading "Faithful Place" by Tana French. I am in love with her books.

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  8. I really like the cover change for this one! I need to get my hands on it-it sounds wonderful.

    And Downton-I knew about the ending early too thanks to internet spoilers, but I was still very upset. Still mad it had to happen that way.

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