The Beast and the Hummingbirds by Madison McSweeney

A beauty and the beast retelling by Madison McSweeney is in Rhythm & Bones: A Literary Magazine.












https://www.rhythmnbone.com/single-post/2018/06/25/The-Beast-the-Hummingbirds

Sharp Objects and its subtext

Sharp Objects' subtext suggests that everyone needs mentors to guide them. Without mentors, people end up hard-edged and damaged. They can even, in some cases, become monstrous.

Mothers are a child's natural and first mentor but as the novel makes clear some people are terrible at mothering. 

As Camille wryly points out, "I just think some women aren't meant to be mothers. And some women aren't meant to be daughters."

According to Adora, Camille wasn't "good." What Adora means is that Camille wasn't vulnerable or weak the way Marian was. 

Marian dies when Camille is thirteen--a circumstance that further estranges her from her mother. Camille says, "Its impossible to compete with the dead." 

Camille has always felt unloved by her mother. She engages in risky behavior and becomes a cutter--perhaps purposely putting herself in danger to find maternal love. 

Like her half-sister Amma will find out, Camille's hometown is oppressive.

Camille decides to write about pain; that is, become a crime reporter.

After she leaves her hometown, she vows to never look back. She revels in the role of "cubby" or that of cub reporter. With her editor, Camille has finally found the mentor she needs.

But then Curry sends her back to her hometown to report on a story that he thinks will "make" her career. 

Sharp objects by Gillian Flynn

Gillian Flynn's debut novel, Sharp Objects is mesmerizing. The protagonist, Camille, returns to her hometown, a small, suffocating town in MO, to report on a couple of horrific crimes.

Two young girls have been murdered and in both cases their teeth have been removed. Both girls are tomboys yet otherwise have little in common. 

Camille is a Preaker, one of the leading families in the town yet she feels completely alienated from her family and their sprawling Victorian home.

Beneath a veneer of hospitality, Wind Gap is beseiged by bullies. Camille's half-sister, Amma, is one of the prettiest and meanest of the blondes.

Camille develops a relationship with one of the investigators but refuses to let her guard down. Like everyone else in the town, she holds on to her secrets. 

Many are convinced that one of the deceased girls' brothers, John Keene, is the killer. 

Sharp Objects has been turned into an HBO miniseries with Amy Adams. 

Borne by Jeff VanderMeer

This is an absolute stunner in every sense of the word--rich prose, tight plotting, and imaginative twists and turns. 

The Company has manufactured biotech that wreak havoc upon the City. The actions of Mord, a man-made bear-like creature, and his proxies cause the Magician and her pseudo-children to rebel. 

Even before the rebellion, however, the City has been wrecked, leaving many scavengers. Rachel, who lives in the Balcony Cliff with Wick, has learned the art of scavenging. 

Though there is a gap in her memories, Rachel remembers once living on an island. Later, as the waters rose, she became a climate refugee and moved to the City.

Perhaps she sees something of herself in the creature, Borne, who helplessly clings to Mord's flank. She nurtures him yet she doesn't know exactly what he is. 

No one does, not even Borne himself. For a time, he ponders if he is a biotech weapon created by the Company. Wick suggests that they deconstruct him to see what he is but Rachel feels outraged. He is a "person" in her eyes yet he at first seems little more than a plant with eyes. 

Handling the Truth: On the Writing of Memoir by Beth Kephart

I took a memoir writing class at the University of Kentucky. I wish we had Beth Kephart's book, Handling the Truth.

One of the class discussions at the life writing class I took was how people react to memoir. How they react to seeing themselves portrayed in memoir?

Often their recollection is different, which is natural, but sometimes the people that populate your memoir feel affronted.

Kephart deals with this early on, "Its obvious, isn't it? Memoir making is a hazardous business. People are involved. Their feelings. Their reputations. Their relationships to you..."

Decoding the Weather

If you're showing PBS's Decoding the Weather at your public library, keep this list of eco-themed books in mind. 

These "climate change" themed books would make excellent book discussion or common reads:

Bacigalupi, Paolo. The Water Knife.
Jemison, N.K. The Fifth Season.
Mandel, Emily. Station Eleven. 
Miller, Sam. Blackfish City.  
Roberts, Nora. Year One. 
Wright, Alexis. The Swan Book.