Word Lily

Words from my reading

November 25, 2009 in books, reading, word | 5 comments

A few fun words that were new to me this week:

panoply, n A complete suit of armor; any protective covering; any complete or magnificent covering or array
page 60, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“Or more than that, like a panoply: both armour and weapon.”

cockerel, n A young rooster, less than a year old
page 62, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“He is a dirty vain old cockerel.”

chthonian, adj Designating or of the underworld of the dead and its gods and spirits
page 64, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“Poseidon himself then begot from Hera, other gods within the heavens, both celestial offspring of the stars and then the chthonian offspring of the spirits who are close by us …”

murex, n Any of a genus of flesh-eating snails, found in warm salt waters and having a rough, spiny shell (some species yield a purple substance formerly valued as dye
page 75, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“They would sail to Gythion, buy their souvenirs of purple murex and porphyry, and ride the twenty miles north to the city of King Leonidas.”

porphyry, n Originally, an Egyptian rock with large feldspar crystals contained in a purplish groundmass; any igneous rock with large, distinct crystals, especially of alkali feldspar, embedded in a fine-grained matrix
page 75, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“They would sail to Gythion, buy their souvenirs of purple murex and porphyry, and ride the twenty miles north to the city of King Leonidas.”

immured, v Shut up within or as within walls, imprison, confine, or seclude; to entomb in a wall
page 76, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“The elders ruled that the regent be immured.”

fillip, n The snap made by a finger which is held down toward the palm by the thumb and then suddenly released; a light blow or tap given in this way; anything that stimulates or livens up
page 76, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“A century ago, a potsherd was a fillip, an X marking the spot where true treasures might be buried.”
Defined in text, except that doesn’t seem to match the dictionary definition.

middens, pl n British, a dunghill or refuse heap; short for kitchen middens
page 77, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“The Dutch sieved the rivers and ransacked old middens, and the British — always the British — did all of that and came again to dig at the Basilica of Nikon the Repenter.”

mooks, pl n Disagreeable or incompetent people
page 96, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“Which made all us mooks happy, of course, more monkeys means less shoveling.”

sarky, adj British colloquialism, sarcastic
page 98, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“Don’t get sarky then, he said, rising to the bait despite himself, and Jason cackled and put up his hands.”

More words from The Hidden. More great words on my Words from my reading page.

Review of book cited here:
The Hidden by Tobias Hill

What new words have you found lately?

Lost Mission by Athol Dickson

November 24, 2009 in Christian Fiction, books, fiction, reading, review, review copy | 1 comment

Lost Mission: A Novel by Athol Dickson (Howard Books — a division of Simon & Schuster — September 15, 2009), 368 pages

Summary
In the 1770s Franciscan Fray Alejandro, along with his superior Fray Guillermo and young friar Benicio, are sent into California, to the northernmost, most remote edge of explored territory, to plant a mission.

Closer to modern day, Lupe sees a sign — smoke drifting north when the wind is blowing south — and heeds her call to take the Good News to the heathen Americans. A devoted father and husband, wracked by pain, makes a plan and acts.

All of these threads are deftly woven together by Dickson’s hand. New and old, graceful and sinful, guilt-stricken and redeemed.

Thoughts
The different story lines are grafted together physically, but as the book progresses, they grow to become more and more related.

Brilliant. Genius. Authentic, real. I found the writing exemplary, and the story both down to earth and filled with wonder. I felt alongside these real, sympathetic characters. Lost Mission raises questions and pointedly draws missteps while allowing the reader to reach her own answers and conclusions.

The book is definitely part thriller, but one I wanted to take my time getting through because it’s so beautiful.

Love it. I’ve added all of Dickson’s work to my wish list.

Lost Mission poses great spiritual questions about what is, versus what we perceive. It touches on the topic of immigration in the United States, as well as the idea of a Christian ghetto.

About the author
Athol Dickson is the author of Winter Haven, River Rising, The Cure, and several other books. His blog is What Athol Wrote.

Other reviews
Callapidder Days
Window to My World
Edgy Inspirational Author Blog
Into the Fire
A Well-Watered Garden

Have you reviewed this book? Leave me a link and I’ll add it here.

I received this book from the publisher, via the agent’s blog.

‘Words are not inert tools’

November 19, 2009 in Christian Fiction, books, communication, fiction, language, quote, reading | 1 comment

“Let us not become concerned with such distinctions here, except to note the role of language. Whether we are gods whose speech can form creation, or creatures formed by godly speech, all agree creative power emanates from language as heat does from the sun. Words are not inert tools to be wielded haphazardly like a hoe or spade. Words can heal a broken heart, or cut as deeply as a sharpened sword.”

—On page 304 of Lost Mission by Athol Dickson

I really loved this book, review coming soon.

I received this book via the blog of the author’s agent.

Words from my reading

November 18, 2009 in books, reading, word | 6 comments

A few fun words that were new to me this week:

retsina, n A Greek wine flavored with pine resin
page 11, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“He found a boarding house by the Hill of Wolves and walked up to the summit each day, his heart hammering at the gradient, the groves of wet cypress and pine soaking him when the wind caught them head on, the air under them awash with the smell of retsina.”
The only thing I could come up with was resin.

conurbations, pl n Extremely large, densely populated urban areas, usually involving a complex of suburbs and smaller towns together with the large city at their center
page 12, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“He found two positions he might have filled, both menial by his standards, one in the harbour subcity of Piraeus and the other miles out in the industrial conurbations of Mégara; but both were taken when he telephones, with no expectation of further vacancies.”

eluvium, n An accumulation of dust and soil particles caused by the weathering and disintegration of rocks in place, or deposited by drifting winds, distinguished from alluvium
page 14, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“The windows were gummed shut with eluvium, and when they got going again he heat built up, pleasant at first, then uncomfortable and finally alarming, the metal frames of the seats too hot to touch.”
Seems like it might be close to alluvial, but apparently not.

thutter, n A dull, vibrating sound
page 24, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“The thutter and blurt of meat.”
Yay, an onomatopoetic word!

calyx, n The outer whorl of protective leaves (sepals) of a flower, usually green; in zoology, a cuplike part of cavity
page 24, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“Once, while Kostandin was teaching him how to gut squid — drawing the calyx from each soft body like a glass pen from a well of ink — the Albanian told him a story of Nikos.”

hoplites, pl n Heavily armed foot soldiers of ancient Greece
page 39, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“It was built on the backs of hoplites and helots.”
This was pretty well defined in the text.

helots, pl n Members of the lowest class of serfs in ancient Sparta; any serf of slave [derived from the Laconian town of Helos, whose inhabitants were enslaved by the Spartans]
page 39, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“It was built on the backs of hoplites and helots.”
This was pretty well defined in the text.

phalanx, n An ancient military formation of infantry in close, deep ranks with shields overlapping and spears extended; a massed group of individuals, compact body; a group of individuals united for a common purpose; the people forming a phalanstery; in anatomy, any of the bones forming the fingers or toes
page 39, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“A hoplite army fought as a phalanx, a massed force of spears, eight men deep and many men wide.”
I should have known this one on first reference, but by the end of the book, I think I’ve definitely got it down now.

runnel, n A small stream, little brook or rivulet; a small channel or watercourse
page 53, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“A runnel of hot blood slid over the hilt of the knife and he swore, turned past Kostandin and ran water over the new burn.”

fossicking, v Prospecting or searching, as for gold; searching about, rummaging
page 58, The Hidden by Tobias Hill
“We’re just fossicking over old ground.”

More great words on my Words from my reading page.

Review of the book cited here:
The Hidden by Tobias Hill

What new words have you found lately?

Skid by Rene Gutteridge

November 16, 2009 in Christian Fiction, Oprah, books, fiction, reading, review | 2 comments

skid Skid by Rene Gutteridge, Occupational Hazards, book 3 (WaterBrook, 2008), 336 pages

Summary
Hank, the member of the Hazard family who’s highlighted in Skid, is working for the airline, undercover, to help the airline improve its service. He plays the role of demanding passenger and takes note of the responses he receives. It’s the last flight for the pilot; she’s been known to be a little … strange. And then a passenger brings a pig on board, and must accommodated, as well as the other passengers. That’s not even the half of it. A comedy of errors full of the quirkiest characters.

Thoughts
This is the fifth book by Gutteridge that I’ve read:
• Scoop (Occupational Hazards, book 1)
• Snitch (Occupational Hazards, book 2)
• Boo
• Never the Bride, which is co-authored by Cheryl McKay

Skid was not a disappointment. A very funny book without being nonsense. I was surprised how different this book was from the other books in the Occupational Hazards series — well, the other Gutteridge books I’ve read across the board, actually — but only in a way that just shows how great a writer she is. Rather than really focusing on Hank’s life and story, the story was really about the plane and all its quirky characters. This necessarily condensed the time covered in the book to a very small window, rather than a few weeks or months.

I want to read every novel Gutteridge has written. (I sincerely wish she had a blog, too.)

About the author
Gutteridge is a comedy writer and novelist. She is the author of 15 novels including the Boo series, My Life as a Doormat, the Occupational Hazards series, and the novelization of the motion picture The Ultimate Gift. She lives in Oklahoma with her family.

The author’s website. Gutteridge is also author of the Boo series and the Storm series.

Other reviews
Book Critiques
Tree Swing Reading

Have you reviewed this book? Leave me a link and I’ll add it here.

I received this book from the publisher via a Twitter giveaway.

White Picket Fences by Susan Meissner

November 13, 2009 in Christian Fiction, blog tour, books, fiction, reading, review, review copy | 2 comments

White Picket Fences: A Novel by Susan Meissner (WaterBrook, October 6, 2009), 368 pages

Summary
From the outside, the Janvier family looks white-picket-fence, 2-kids-and-a-dog perfect. But, like most families, things are not always as they appear. The story opens as Amanda and Jason are attending the funeral for their niece’s grandmother. Amanda’s brother Bart, Tally’s father, is in Europe and unreachable, so Amanda and Jason are taking the teenage Tally home with them, having been granted temporary custody by the county.

Thoughts
I’ve heard really great things about Meissner’s The Shape of Mercy, so I was eager to read this one when I had the chance. White Picket Fences offers good writing and an emotional journey. The book was not what I expected it to be when I picked it up.

I loved the Holocaust threads of the story — how this was both woven into and reflective of the storyline set in present day was brilliant.

At times I wanted to yell at the characters, but in this I wasn’t alone — other characters took up my cry — so that offered some respite.

White Picket Fences is a strong book, but I feel like I’ve read so many books about secrets recently that I wasn’t really prepared for another. Still, I definitely want to read more of Meissner’s work.

About the author
Susan Meissner is the author of The Shape of Mercy, Blue Heart Blessed and In All Deep Places.

Other reviews
Luxury Reading (with a giveaway)
Book Nook Club
Books, Movies, and Chinese Food
Genre Reviews

Have you reviewed this book? Leave me a link and I’ll add it here.

I received this book from the publisher.

The Hidden by Tobias Hill

November 11, 2009 in TLC book tour, books, fiction, mystery, reading, review, review copy | 8 comments

The Hidden: A Novel by Tobias Hill (Harper Perennial, October 13, 2009) [first published in Great Britain in 2009 by Faber and Faber], 368 pages

Summary
Ben Mercer runs away from Oxford to escape his failed marriage. He eventually ends up at a dig in Sparta, which is appropriate, since he’s been studying archaeology; maybe he’ll actually write a thesis after all? But the dig, like so many small groups are, is fraught with drama. One side says the other people can’t be trusted, the other says the same about the first. Nothing is as it seems….

Thoughts
I really wanted to love this book. It’s about archaeology, it’s set in Greece, the author is a poet, and the book was originally published in England. What’s not to love, right? Well, a few things, unfortunately.

The Hidden reminded me, at least in some ways, of that Barry Unsworth book I read earlier this year, Land of Marvels, in that: 1) it pretends to be a mystery/thriller but there’s no action in the first half, at least; and 2) it’s more about relational drama.

It also has pages and pages of history thrown in in spots, which disrupted the rhythm of the narrative for me. The content was needed for the story to succeed, but I wish it had been integrated more effectively.

I got really irritated by Ben. He’s filled with self-doubt and -loathing. The emotional timbre of the book struck me as very adolescent.

A couple notes on format: The Hidden has some very long chapters; I counted one at 50-plus pages. The book doesn’t have quote marks — dialogue is usually prefaced by a dash — and for the most part is lacking indicators such as he said/she said.

On a more positive note: The Hidden has a strong sense of place. Sparta is kind of a character in the book. It was evocative. Also: The concept for the book is incredibly clever and so much fun. These are really big pros. Unfortunately, though, they didn’t outshine the cons for me.

About the author
Tobias Hill is a British poet and author. His earlier novels look interesting to me: Underground, The Love of Stones, and The Cryptographer; I’d be interested in reading another book by Hill.

Check out the rest of the TLC Book Tour stops for The Hidden by Tobias Hill.

Other reviews
Book Magic
BooksPlease
Bloggin’ ’bout Books
Luxury Reading

Have you reviewed this book? Leave me a link and I’ll add it here.

I received this book from the publisher, as part of the TLC book tour.

Words from my reading

November 11, 2009 in books, reading, word | 4 comments

A few fun words that were new to me for this week:

rictus, n A sustained gaping, as of a bird’s beak or an animal’s mouth; the opening so produced; a fixed, gaping grin
page 92, In a Perfect World by Laura Kasischke
“The rictus of cacti, bleached to bone.”

sinecure, n Originally, an endowed church office providing a living for a vicar, rector, etc., not involving the care of souls; any office or position providing an income or other advantage but requiring little or no work
page 54, “The Queer Feet,” in The Complete Father Brown Stories by G.K. Chesterton
“The attendant of this place was temporarily absent, probably because the only guests were at dinner and his office was a sinecure.”

excrescences, pl n Normal outgrowths, natural appendage, as fingernails [this definition is now rare]; abnormal or disfiguring outgrowths or additions, as bunions
page 62, “The Queer Feet,” in The Complete Father Brown Stories by G.K. Chesterton
“In this, as in Hamlet, there are the rococo excrescences — yourselves, let us say.”

I think I’ll spare you (and me!) from photos of these words. The two that could be easily pictured don’t sound too appealing.

More great words on my Words from my reading page.

Books cited here (links to review(s):
In a Perfect World by Laura Kasischke
“The Queer Feet,” in The Complete Father Brown Stories by G.K. Chesterton (Note: I haven’t figured out how I’m going to handle reviewing this stories/this book. If we keep the pace of reading one story each week, it will take a year to get through the mammoth book. Bottom line: I don’t read enough short stories to have a good idea how I want to handle them for the blog. What do you think?)

What new words have you found lately?

Spinning in the Old Way by Priscilla A. Gibson-Roberts, part of the Green Books Campaign

November 10, 2009 in books, knitting, nonfiction, reading, review, review copy, spinning | 12 comments

Green Books, button by Susan Newman I talk about books here all the time, but I don’t often talk about the paper those books are printed on / consist of. This review is part of the Eco-Libris Green Books Campaign.

Spinning in the Old Way: How (and Why) To Make Your Own Yarn With A High-Whorl Handspindle by Priscilla A. Gibson-Roberts (Nomad Press, 2006), 176 pages

Summary
Spinning in the Old Way is an introductory guide to making yarn. Gibson-Roberts focuses on high-whorl handspindles, as the tool of choice, for a number of reasons. She delves into the history of spinning and gives clear, step-by-step instructions for the beginning spinner.

Thoughts
One of the first things I learned in this book is that my spindle (my one and only spindle) isn’t good for much. Just one example: My spindle weighs 42 grams (1.48 ounces), less than the 2 to 2.6 ounces recommended in this book. While this makes me a little sad, I didn’t spend much money on it and I do most of my spinning on a wheel. I also knew I wasn’t a top-of-the-line spindle when I purchased it — I just wanted something to play around with, that would allow me to try my hand at spinning.

The book is good at explaining the myriad vocabulary of the craft. It’s also good at giving tips to allow the reader to maintain proper body alignment and thus prevent injuries. It’s optimized for easy reference, with subheads and summaries in the outside margins, as well as lots of illustrations. The history of spinning and knitting Gibson-Roberts uncovered through her research is fascinating.

Overall, though, it wasn’t as helpful to me as I hoped it would be. I think I encountered this book at the wrong stage of my spinning journey. I’ve mostly moved past spindling to using my spinning wheel, and while this book tempted me to give spindling a try again, I wasn’t ready to buy a quality spindle just to try it.

Nomad Press is part of the Green Press Initiative. They honor this commitment by using paper that contains at least 30 percent recycled fiber and is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (simplified: Not from endangered forests or an area of social conflict and doesn’t result in native forests being turned into plantations; designing for efficient use of inks and papers; printing their books in North America; planning to minimize use of energy in transporting books; and making decisions about everyday practices that minimize consumption of resources.

About the author
Priscilla Gibson-Roberts discovered high-whorl handspinning after she had used spinning wheels for years. She has opened the way to the craft and artistry of fiber for many thousands of spinners and knitters; she’s the author of Knitting in the Old Way; Simple Socks, Plain and Fancy; and Ethnic Socks and Stockings.

Other reviews

Have you reviewed this book? Leave me a link and I’ll add it here.

Today 100 bloggers are reviewing 100 books printed in an environmentally friendly way. This campaign was organized by Eco-Libris, which is working to green up the book industry by promoting the adoption of green practices, balancing out books by planting trees, and supporting green books. See here for more Green Books Campaign reviews.

More information about green printing and the publishing industry.

Earlier this year I reviewed Only Milo, which also meets the standards of the Green Books Campaign.

I received this book from the publisher.

Death of an author

November 10, 2009 in Northwest Arkansas, Siloam Springs, The South, reading | Tags: author, news | 2 comments

I was sad to read this morning in Shelf Awareness that author Donald Harington has died.

Donald Harington died last Saturday at the age of 73 after a long illness in Fayetteville, Arkansas. All but one of his novels took place in the fictional Ozark town of Stay More. Born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, Harington taught for many years at the University of Arkansas. His titles are available from Toby Press.

I read one of his books, for the book club held at my local library, while I lived in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. That book: The Choiring of the Trees.

While I didn’t love the book, I did love its connection to that place, the Ozarks, Northwest Arkansas. When I first read it, it was actually quite disturbing, but the book has definitely stayed with me, and not in a bad way.

The local newspaper’s news article about Harington’s death. And the Harington obituary, from that same paper (he’s the second one down).