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Jules<\/strong>: So, I’m going to try to keep things short this week, since the last two illustrator-feature portions of our kicks lists were loooooong<\/em>. Interesting, but long. And that’s not to slight illustrator Rotraut Susanne Berner<\/a><\/strong>, whose illustration (one of many) from Jutta Richter’s<\/a><\/strong> The Cat: Or, How I Lost Eternity<\/a><\/strong><\/em> is featured here. If you’re not familiar with this German illustrator, I wouldn’t be surprised. I wasn’t, but I saw her illustrations in this unusual, little book, which I just finished, published by Milkweed Editions<\/a><\/strong> and translated from German by Anna Brailovsky, and I liked them. Not to mention I like to highlight international illustrators when I can, though I’ve done a rather pathetic job of it this year, despite my best This is a quite distinctive, very philosophical-in-nature read, technically categorized in intermediate fiction but definitely an adult cross-over title as well. I love how Joyce Carol Oates described it as being not unlike “a Grimm fairy tale recast by Franz Kafka.” It’s about Christine, an eight-year-old girl, whose daily walk to school takes her past a talking alley cat, whose insights always give her something to ponder. I like this review<\/a><\/strong> of it I found after reading it (I love to read my reviews when I finish a book) and what they call the book’s striking and “odd starkness.” The book was named one of \u201cThe Best Seven Books for Young Readers for November 2006\u201d by German Radio. <\/p>\n Richter — apparently a household name and celebrated author in Germany and with many books to her credit — has won several awards, including the German Youth Literature Award (Germany’s only state-sponsored prize for works of fiction), the Herman Hesse Prize, and the Pied Piper’s Prize of Hamelyn. Her other title, The Summer of the Pike<\/em><\/strong><\/a>, looks very, very intriguing to me (I did a web search and read about it here<\/a><\/strong> — why did I do that? It looks so interesting!), but it’d be sheer buffoonery for me to add it to my way-past-toppling-over, starting-to-take-over-my-house to-be-read pile. Anyone else read it (it was published last year in the U.S., also by Milkweed)? <\/p>\n By way of explanation for any new folks (who we hope will leave their lists), our weekly 7 Kicks list is the meeting ground for listing Seven(ish) Exceptionally Fabulous, Beautiful, Interesting, Hilarious, or Otherwise Positive Noteworthy Things from the past week (whether book-related or not) that happened to you. <\/p>\n First, happy birthday to my grandmother, Grace (“Mom-Mom”), who turns 96 today! She was born on 11\/11\/11. Dig that numerology. Here are my kicks:<\/p>\n 1). Alkelda<\/a><\/strong> sent me a great CD of songs to jump around to! Wahoo! We were going to be exercise accountability buddies and report back to one another when our bit of exercise for the day was done, and though she is kicking ass on regular exercise, I am not. But, since I told her that the only excercise I seem to be able to sneak in is dancing around with my daughters (like Sara<\/a><\/strong> dancing around the room to many of the tunes on “Graceland”<\/a><\/strong>), she sent me a CD of very awesome songs — Dead or Alive, Men Without Hats . . . oh my, it’s fun!<\/p>\n 3). When Jon Scieszka said in our interview<\/a><\/strong> this week that what turns him off are “dickpipe adults who underestimate kids.”<\/p>\n 4). Phyllis Root’s answer<\/a><\/strong> to the Pearly Gates question. <\/p>\n 5). Naomi Shihab Nye<\/a><\/strong>. She was lined up for an interview this week, but she is unable to do it right now after all and was so. incredibly. nice. about. it. that you just wouldn’t believe it. I mean, long story, but her kindness was overwhelming. It was seeping through cyberspace into her emails to me. Am I surprised? No. <\/p>\n 6). The new series “Project Song”<\/a><\/strong> on NPR’s All Things Considered<\/em>: “The challenge: Write and record a song \u2014 in two days. (We provide the studio and the inspiration.)” . . . The first challenge was undertaken by Stephen Merritt<\/a><\/strong>, and I heard it last week. Fascinating. <\/p>\n . . . {speechless} . . .<\/p>\n Um, how exactly am I supposed to focus on my kicks with a big-red-hearted-Barry Manilow staring at me? Dude<\/em>. Stop it! Stop staring at my kicks!<\/p>\n Anyway.<\/p>\n I actually had a really great week. Lemme tell you about it:<\/p>\n 1* I got a phone call from a local college about a librarian position that I hadn’t even applied for. They’re a member of a regional network, and I’d applied for an office position there, so someone passed along my resume. I had a phone interview this week, and they’ve already asked me back for a 2nd, in-person interview.<\/p>\n 2* And one of the positions I actually did apply for also called and asked for an interview. Woo! Finally, after four months, I’m starting to feel like I might actually be a librarian again soon.<\/p>\n 3* In the meantime, that financial firm I’m temping in asked me to stay a couple more weeks. Everyone there is so nice to me and so complimentary – it’s incredibly gratifying, and has been exactly what I needed to boost my confidence back up during this long, soul-sucking spell of unsuccessful job hunting.<\/p>\nintentions. <\/p>\n
2). Seeing “Donnie Darko”<\/a><\/strong> this week, though I’m six years late in getting to it. Whoa. And, dude, I want that soundtrack. <\/p>\n
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7). Getting a random review copy of this drawing\/painting\/
coloring book<\/a><\/strong> by Taro Gomi<\/a><\/strong> from Chronicle Books in the mail. I didn’t ask for it, so I was a bit surprised. But, man, it takes me back to the Anti-Coloring Books<\/a><\/strong> I used to color in and draw in as a child. Anyone else remember these? I think I still have some. Barry Manilow was featured in a lot of my drawings then (I outed myself here<\/a><\/strong> as a childhood fan of Barry — wait, who am I kidding? I was hugely crushing on him — and Eisha told my Barry-winked-at-me story here<\/a><\/strong>). Here: I just made a Barry image for us all. I feel like I’m ten again . . . <\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/blaine.org\/jules\/barry12.jpg\")
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4* B. and I went to a lovely dinner party at one of his fellow prof’s farmhouse out in the country. It was a “newbie” dinner for new faculty, and the food and company was excellent. Also, since they’re waaaaaaay out in farm country, when we came outside to the car we just had to stand around in the cold for a while and stare at the stars. We even saw the Milky Way. Amazing what you miss by living in a city.<\/p>\n
Apparently the Finger Lakes wineries are known for their rieslings, which just so happens to be my favorite kind of wine. And this one is really, really good.<\/p>\n