inbrief

Favorite Short Story Collections Read From 2013-2014

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Science Fiction / Fantasy Short Story Collections 

Image of Blood ChildBlood Child and Other Stories, by Octavia E. Butler (July 2003) – This is an excellent collection of five short stories and two essays from Ocativa Butler—including her “male pregnancy” story. Her writing is deceptively simple, and her stories contain clever ideas in worlds that are so well-developed, in just a few pages, that I wished most of them had been developed into novels. I also liked her reassuring essays about writing.  Reading this collection makes me even sadder that Butler died in 2006, when she was only 58 from a fall/stroke.

Image- Near and FarNear + Far, by Cat Rambo (September 2012) – The paper version of this short story collection is two books in one.  On one side is a collection of “near” future short stories, flip the book over and it’s a collection of “far” future stories. Cat Rambo is probably one of my favorite current speculative fiction short story writers.  Her stories tend to be clever, imaginative, and often feminist, with literary touches.

 

Young Adult Short Story Collections 

Image- KaleidoscopeKaleidoscope Story Collection: Diverse YA Science Fiction and Fantasy Stories (August 2014) –  A good collection of YA science fiction and fantasy stories with an emphasis on diversity.   The first story about a disabled super hero is probably my favorite. It’s just so cheerful and charming. There are a number of other good stories though, including one about an Olympic ice skater using future technology, and a story about a young woman befriending alien students at her school.  There is a heavy emphasis on young women as protagonists, which I liked, but I thought the collection might have been more well-rounded if there were also one or two more stories featuring diverse young men as protagonists as well.

Image- My True Love Gave to MeMy True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories (October 2014) – I read this YA holiday romance short story collection over winter break. It features stories from Stephanie Perkins, Rainbow Rowell, and a host of other bestselling YA authors. There’s really not a bad story in the bunch—though I certainly liked some of the stories more than others. Overall, it’s a charming collection of holiday cheer and romance that I highly recommend.

Back After Two Years

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It’s almost two years since I posted on my blog. 2013 and 2014 were full of health problems! I finally have a whole team of good doctors to help me figure out my complicated thyroid/parathyroid illness. I’m not totally better yet—and probably am going to need parathyroid surgery sometime this spring—but I’m healthy enough that I want to blog regularly again.

Over the next two weeks I’ll post several catch up posts with reviews of my favorite books, shows, and whatnot from 2013-2014. Today I’ve summed up my health saga and what goals I was still able to accomplish while sick.

 2013 Health Saga:

-Went on special allergy limitation diet (GAPS diet) to improve food allergy problems.

– Consulted a nutritionist and a certified diet nurse because I wasn’t making progress on the GAPs diet, but they weren’t very helpful.

– Discovered on my own that I have histamine sensitivities and can’t eat fermented foods (a huge part of the GAPS diet).

– Felt worse and worse into the December of 2013.

2014 Health Saga:

– Discovered I was severely hypothyroid at the end of January and went on thyroid meds.

-Discovered I’m super sensitive to the thyroid meds and spent 6 months figuring out the best stable dosage for me—to avoid a list of horrible side effects. I finally figured it out in August.

– Went to 1 horrible family practice doctor, 2 horrible endocrinologists, 1 decent endocrinologist—not on my health insurance, —and finally found 1 good endocrinologist that does take my health insurance.

-Went to a good family practice doctor, who referred me to her Naturopath colleague who specializes in diet and nutrition counseling.

-Had numerous blood tests and scans to figure out my health issues.

-Added rice and then Quinoa into my diet, so I can now eat 8 foods. Whoo-hoo!

-Switched over to another family practice doctor in the same practice, who is just as nice as my first doctor but also specializes in diet issues.

-Was diagnosed with hyperparathyroidism and referred to a parathyroid surgeon.

-Have an appointment with parathyroid surgeon for the late January 2015.

2014 Life Accomplishments: 

Despite being super sick from January-April, somewhat sick from June-August, and a little bit sick from August – December, I accomplished a lot more in 2014 than 2013—though I read fewer books because I actually had a life.

-Subbed 33 times

-Read 40 books (33 fiction, 7 non-fiction)

-Read 84 short stories

-Took 5 writing classes and 1 writing workshop

-Took a performance dance class and an Improv Theater class

-Went to dance class an average of 1 time a week from April -June

-Went to dance class an average of 2.5 times a week from June – December

-Took my youngest child to college in Portland, Oregon

-Wrote 5 short stories

-Read several books as research for new YA novel idea

-Began outlining my new YA novel idea to prepare for drafting

-Visited Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA) and spent some time in Burlington, VT

-Applied and was accepted to VCFA’s MFA program in Writing for Children and Teens

-Set up a writing office in Maryland

-Still haven’t touched my middle grade novel at all this year—hmmm…

2013 Life Accomplishments  (I posted this on Facebook last year so I’m putting it last)

-I subbed 11 times

-Read 79 books (55 fiction, 24 nonfiction)

-Took 5 writing classes and 2 writing workshops

-Went to 2 writing conferences

-Wrote 7 short stories

-Wrote 1 YA novel draft

-Planned out the revised plot for my middle grade novel

-Bought furniture for the condo in Vermont

The Magnificient Twelve, Titanic, and New TV

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TV Quote of the Week: "Just because I tell you things doesn't mean you're allowed to know them," Caroline on The Vampire Diaries.

My Life:
 I like having one of my kids at college.  The daughterling gets to enjoy the benefits of being an only child (something my son got when he was young), and I love texting with my son and reading about his new adventures in college.  I've successfully kept to my writing schedule and already had my first sub job. I had subbed for many of the same kids last year so I was called, "Mrs. Evil Octopus," all day by a bunch of happy second graders. Teaching is a lot more fun with a heaping dose of silliness.

Book Review:
The Magnificent Twelve: The Call, by Michael Grant [2010] (*** 1/2) – The Magnificent Twelve is a good choice for fans of The Wimpy Kid series and other fans of irreverent humor or lots of action.  Middle-schooler Mack has a lot of phobias. The only thing he isn't afraid of is the school bullies.  It's this quality that gets Mack selected to save the world from some ancient villain called, The Pale Queen, who had been sentenced to hell for 3000 years and has just been released.  This middle grade fantasy is packed with humor, quirky characters, and lots of action.  Apparently it's the first book in the series because the ending is pure cliffhanger.  [For ages 8-12.  Read the eBook on Nook for Droid.]

Movies:
Titanic (****) – Titanic is one of the many  popular movies I didn't see in the early to mid-90's, when my kids were young and needy.  The story pulled me in and made me care about these characters. It dealt with a lot of issues that are becoming problems again, like class inequality  and the dangers of capitalism without regulation.  Mostly, the movie made me feel like I was right there on the ship while it was sinking and suddenly I cared about the 1,500 plus people that died in this tragedy long ago.

TV:
Doctor Who, season 6, pt. 2 (*** 1/2) – I am liking the second half of this season a lot more than the first half.  The emotional level has simmered down to realistic levels,  Rory is fun and reasonable, and there have been a number of good plots.

New Girl, pilot (** 1/2) – Quirky Jess (played by Zooey Deschanel) decides to get over her breakup with her cheating boyfriend by living with 3 guys she met through a Craigslist ad. I liked the actors in the show and I enjoyed some of Jess's odd quirks (like how she has her own theme song), but there were a ton of tired gender stereotypes in the pilot. Plus, Deschanel's Jess is pretty much a  manic-pixie dream girl (kind of like the modern dumb blonde updated for a new century.).  I'm willing to give the show a couple more chances to see if they iron out some of these problems.

Ringer, pilot (***) – Sarah Michelle Geller (Buffy) stars in this noir-mystery soap opera about twin sisters.  There was a lot of exposition in the plot but I was intrigued enough to keep watching and see what the writers do with these characters.

The Vampire Diaries, season 3 (****) – The season premiere was as fun and exciting as the first two seasons.  Can't wait for the next episode!

The Secret Circle, pilot (***) – This soap opera about a town of secret witches is written by the same people that wrote The Vampire Diaries, so the plot speeds along with secrets and intrigue, though so far, it lacks the zany fun of its sister show.  Instead the show has a very CW vibe about with plenty of beautiful people and soapy teen happenings.  The Vampire Diaries also started off overly soapy for the first 6-8 episodes, so I'm willing to give  it a few more chances to impress me.

Up All Night, pilot (*** 1/2) – I enjoyed this show about new parents.  While the pilot wasn't laugh aloud funny, it did make me smile a lot. I love how Christina Applegate's and Will Arnett's characters manage to be a caring couple, totally in love with their baby daughter, without being saccharine or clichéd.  The show explores work-home issues in a fresh way with lots of respect for both the working parent and the stay at home parent.  Part of the freshness is accomplished by having the man stay home and the woman go to work — a trend I see a lot more in real life too.

What I Did With My Winter Break

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Life Highlights:
An Eloise Vacation – This winter break the daughterling and I decided to vacation inside the new hotel we watched being built near our house.  We studied their website carefully, wrote ourselves a schedule for our visit, packed up a few clothes, books, and toiletries, and walked over.

Our favorite activity was exploring the hotel, checking to see if the vending machine selections differed from floor to floor — they did — then gazing out each hall window and comparing the view.  The daughterling told me she’s glad to have a "childish mother".  "Child-like," I suggested.  That sounds better, doesn’t it?

We also ate dinner in the hotel restaurant and soaked in the hot tub.  The rest of our stay we lounged in our room, reading books, watching a bit of TV, and eating our room service dessert until it was time to cuddle up in our comfy beds and sleep.

Movies:
Easy A (*** 1/2) – [2010] Socially invisible Olive (Emma Stone) starts with a simple white lie to spare her friend’s feelings and accidently invents an entire tale about an imaginary one-night stand.  The school gossip eavesdropping thinks the story is true and suddenly Olive is thrust into her high school’s spotlight.  When a gay friend asks her to pretend to have sex with him to keep him from getting bullied, she decides she might as well continue getting attention.  As Olive helps more guys build their credibility with fake sex sessions, she starts regretting the type of attention she’s getting.

Olive is a smart, fun character, as are her parents.  The movie does a fairly good job pointing out the hypocrisy in American sexual mores — though the introspection is more glib than truly thoughtful.  Also, the abstinence-only Christians are presented as pretty cartoonish villains.  Still, as mainstream teen films go, this one is smarter and more fun than most. [Watched as an iTunes rental. Rated PG-13.]

Going the Distance (*** 1/2) –  [2010] This is one of the few current romantic comedies that actually seems romantic versus just stereotypically bland and sexist.  Thirty-somethings Erin (Drew Barrymore) and Garrett (Justin Long) cute-meet while playing a video game at a New York bar and hit if off so well that they both want to continue the relationship the next morning.  Both of them know Erin’s only in New York for six more weeks — when her journalism internship ends and she returns to San Francisco to finish her degree — but they decide to see where the relationship will go anyway.  By the end of six weeks, they’re getting along so well they decide to try out a long distance relationship.

Going the Distance is refreshingly realistic about the pitfalls of being apart while managing to be funny and romantic at the same time.  Erin and Garrett seem like actual, well-rounded people and the movie takes both of their careers and points of view seriously.  Instead of the movie simply having the girl give up her life for her boyfriend, the couple grapples with finding a fair solution for both of them or deciding if they should just break up. 

The one flaw to an otherwise enjoyable movie is their stereotypical friends and family.  Though they’re completely unoriginal, they all are well-intentioned, actually seem to care for the main characters, and don’t take up too much of the movie’s time.  [Watched as an iTunes rental. Rated R for language and brief male nudity.]

Scott Pilgrim versus the World (*** 1/2) – [2010] A fun movie about a twenty-something guy (Michael Cera) figuring out relationships.  I never read the graphic novels the movie is based on, but from what I’ve read on the Internet, the movie pares the story down to just Scott’s point of view and leaves out the perspective of Ramona (the girl he’s pursuing). 

Though the women in the story are pretty much just goals or obstacles for Scott, the whole saga told as a video game is awfully charming and entertaining, as well as insightful.  It did go on about 10 minutes longer than my interest held, but I enjoyed its celebration of the 90’s indie music scene all the same.  The playful style reminded me of a modern Wayne’s World.  [Watched as an iTunes rental. Rated PG-13.]

December 11 – 17, 2010: In Brief

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Young Adult Fiction:
Anna and the French Kiss, by Stephanie Perkins (****) [2010] – This is one of those addictively good books you might accidently stay up all night reading.  Seventeen-year-old Anna Oliphant has lived her entire happy life in Atlanta, Georgia until her father decides on a whim that she should spend her last year of high school at an American boarding school in Paris. 

While Anna would love to visit Paris, she hadn’t planned on leaving her best friend, possible boyfriend, and entire life to live in a country where she doesn’t even speak the language. Meredith, the girl next door, hears Anna crying in her room on her first night of boarding school and offers sympathy, hot chocolate, and an invitation into her group of friends. One of Meredith’s friends turns out to be the boy every girl in the school has a crush on.  Though St. Clair has charisma, great hair, and a British accent, Anna warns herself not to fall for him and instead to just be his friend.

Anna’s a likable character.  Her life in Paris is both realistically charming and difficult at the same time, as is her friendship with St. Clair. [For ages 12 and up.  I read the eBook on Nook for Droid Phone.]

Life Highlights:
"Mrs. Evil Octopus" and Other Names I Should Totally Consider Using –  I subbed this past Friday and Monday for a delightful first grade class.  Their teacher found out she needed surgery unexpectedly a week before.  So by Friday, when I arrived, they were mighty tired of subs.

I commiserated with them about how hard it is having a parade of substitute teachers when all they wanted was their own teacher back.  Then I noted that it must be especially hard for them today because I was sure they were looking at me and noticed that secretly I was an evil octopus.  Having an evil octopus for a sub is sooo annoying.  They perked right up when I said this.

Apparently first graders are pro-evil octopus.  Who knew?  I had a fun two days being their teacher.  I especially got a kick out of the students who raised their hands and said, "Mrs. Evil Octopus, can you explain this problem to me?"