Apr. 30th, 2006

blue_lotus13: (littleprince)
Yesterday I helped usher during a talk about contemporary Greek dance. The presenter played some video clips; my favourite was a clip from a piece called "secret supper." It was obviously influenced by The Last Supper, and there were images of Jesus and the crucifixion. I'd love to see the whole piece. I'm coming to terms with dance as just another way to tell a story, and I think that will help me to understand more of all the dance performances I'll be seeing this year.

After this, I ran into my friend Mike downtown, and spent more time with the Chickliterati . I danced today, and now I'm doing errands and writing.

This week has been very different for me, but I've realized one thing during this week of full-time work. I have an intense fear of becoming someone who just watches other people create art. I love art in all forms, but I need to be a creator and not simply an observer. I am truly blessed because I have always seemed to attract other creative types and have had some many good, artistic friends in my life. I know writers, cooks, visual artists, photographers, dancers, actors, musicians, craftspeople and filmmakers and they all add to my understanding of art and the world in general. I need to produce in order to understand and feel truly alive. It's been a good thing to realize this week.
blue_lotus13: (book)
1. In Cold Blood- by Truman Capote- I was inspired to read this one after I saw the movie "Capote", and learned how influential this book was in the world of creative non-fiction. It's probably not something I would have picked up if it hadn't been for this, but I really enjoyed the book nd was quite impressed by the structure and the way the events were conveyed. An interesting critical exercise for me.

2. Blue- by George Elliot Clarke- a collection of poetry that I read in small bits. I love how George Elliot Clarke can take so many influences from the work of other writers, and creates homages or work in the style of others.

3. Three Day Road- Joseph Boyden- This book was a big departure for me, because I don't generally read a lot of war fiction. However, I'd heard a lot of good things about this book from booksellers when I was working at Raincoast. It's the story of two First Nations men and their experiences during World War 1. It was a disturbing and compelling read, and I really wish it had gotten more attention this year, as it's quite good and deserves more recognition than it's gotten. It was nominated as a "Canada reads" selection, but didn't win. I was still thinking about it later. A few booksellers felt that this was going to be a Canadian classic. I'm not sure about that, but it does deserve more attention.

4. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norman Juster- This was B*'s favourite book when he was a kid, but I'd never read it. I picked up a copy to see what it was all about. I completely understand why B* loves this book; it's got lots of wordplay, strange circumstances and puns. It's a clever little fantasy book. Very cute.

5. The Time Traveler's Book- by Audrey Niffeneger- Perhaps I'm starting to get over my fear of long books, because I read this one rather quickly. I can't say that I loved it, but I felt compelled to read. The concept is fascinating, and I find myself still thinking about the story. I do have a lot of problems with the book, but I won't discuss them here. If you want to know the kinds of problems I had with it, read the corresponding thread on the forumsat chicklit I agree with many of the arguments discussed there.

However, I must admit that there were some scenes in this book that I found very beautiful.

6. Undead and unwed- MaryJanice Davidson- The first book in the Betsy vampire series. I really wish I'd been able to read these books in order, but unfortunately my library did not deliver them this way. These books are cute, frothy chicklit, with a vampire twist.

7. Mismatch- Lensey Namioka- Andy Suzuki and Sue Hua are teens in a suburb. They get into a relationship, and their parents have problems because Andy is Japanese and Sue is Chinese and they have to get through their prejudices, blah, blah, blah. Then Sue and Andy go to Japan with their school band. Some interesting cultural tidbits, but not the best book I've read about this kind of thing. I have to write a review about it for Ricepaper.

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