Vacation Reading

When we were getting ready for vacation last month, I spent as much time selecting my reading matter as I did clothes. Clothes -- everything layered, rain gear, boots, jacket. It was 95+ in VA when we left but only 60 in Alaska.

Books and magazines were another challenge. I usually take magazines for airplanes to jettison along the way. I packed an inch of magazines and came home with none. Books. Well, I love to indulge in guilty pleasures of really trashing novels. This time I didn't, thereby breaking a long-standing rule: Take nothing that will make you think. That means no literary novels, no non-fiction, etc. So, what did I take?

Kathleen Grissom's The Kitchen House and Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point. Finished them both.

Gladwell's was a good read with many ideas to contemplate. I left it with my cousin in Anchorage.

I raced through Kathy's book, flipping pages as fast as I could. The plot and character development are outstanding. It's hard to realize that this is her debut novel. As I neared the end, I realized I had deprived myself of the best part of the book -- the language. This literary novel is rich with description, strong on dialogue. I was missing out on that.

Thus, I broke another rule: I reread the book. Yes, this from the woman who has 100+ books in her analog slush pile. I set The Kitchen House aside for a week, then sat and reread it. S-l-o-w-l-y. It was a true treat. This time I nibbled on the language, her word choice, and let my mind linger on particularly savory bits.

Rules are made for breaking. I'm glad I broke both. I encourage everyone who loves literary novels to pick up The Kitchen House. It's the most delicious dessert.

Sedalia Conference Wrap Up

Once again, Darrell Laurent pulled off a terrific conference at the Sedalia Center tucked into the Blue Ridge mountains. A small group gathered on Friday for refreshments and "grip and grins." We chatted over wine and cheese and got to know each other.

The "keynote" speaker, Kathy Grissom, has recently published her first book. She talked about how long it took her to write her novel, her trials with getting an agent, and finally getting picked up by Simon and Schuster. She read some selections and set the mood for the next day's meeting.

And what was the mood? Almost otherworldly. It was clear that Kathy channelled a spirit who told her to tell her story. And what a story it is. When Kathy read the next day, she had many of us in tears from the beauty of her language and the seriousness of some of the passages she shared. I do not like historical fiction, but I bought two of her books: one for me, one for my daughter. I want to try and schedule Kathy to come and speak to my critique groups. She is willing.

The group here is Karen Wrigley from Lake Writers, Kathy Grissom, moi from Lake Writers and Sally Roseveare from Lake Writers. Aren't we a clever group?

So, at the end of the conference, it was like saying farewell to old friends I just met. Awesome.