Picture Book Monday: "Zen Shorts" by Jon J. Muth

Pandas, watercolours and Zen. How could I resist this book?
It’s also beautifully presented from every angles you watch it. It’s in a large format with a lovely cover and an even better back cover.
But what makes it really special is its stories.

One day three children find a panda in their backyard:

“I’m sorry for arriving unannounced,” said the bear. “The wind carried my umbrella all the way from my backyard to your backyard. I thought I would retrieve it before it became a nuisance.” He spoke with a slight panda accent.

And that’s how Addy, Michael and Karl meet Stillwater.
To each of them Stillwater has a story to tell, that will teach them to look at life in a new way. All the zen shorts are illustrated with black ink, in stark contrast with the delicate watercolours of Stillwater and his friends. They are famous Zen stories, about generosity and unpredictability of life, about tolerance and patience. My favourite is the last one. About the rude lady and the old monks. It teaches that it’s useless to bear grudges, because they are heavy burden belonging to the past. I should think about it every time a rude or patronising customers manages in five minutes to ruin my entire day.
Even though these are educational stories, they don’t feel preachy. They are gentle and calm like the peaceful panda bear. They instil a sense of serenity and quiet wisdom, enhanced by the illustrations and the inside graphics, featuring delicate cherry blossoms on purple and blue backgrounds.
It would make a perfect gift, and hopefully it will become a children’s classics in the years to come.

More informations about the author and his work can be found here.

Memes...

Aaaayges ago Melody tagged me for this meme that has been around a while, but I haven't done yet, so I'm doing it now!:D
It's the 1 2 3 pages meme.

here it goes:
1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people, and acknowledge who tagged you.

The Book is There's an egg in my soup by Tom Galvin. It's about the adventures of an Irishman in Poland in the 1990's. I just started it but it seems like I will enjoy it, even though I have no idea what to expect. Just to learn a bit more about Poland, I guess.

Page 123 - fifth sentence:

The dating game was all very old-fashioned. It kind of reminded me of tales of my parents, how they first met up and what they did on dates - sharing a single of chips, sitting and watching the river flow by, that sort of thing. In the background, of course, always lurked the mother, rather unfairly represented as the ogre figure that had to be dodged, bribed or softened up at all times.

Hmmm, I'm only at page 39, but I definitely want to get to the "date" part now :P

Now 5 people?? I have no idea!!! Let's see...

I tag: Mariel, Ranay, Alix, Trish, Alessandra.

Good. Done!

Now Nymeth tagged me for another meme which will take a bit more time, but I want to do it because it's interesting even though I've no idea what I'm going to write!

Its the 6 Random Things about Myself:

1) Today I've done some gardening for the first time in my life! I tried to have some pots on my balcony some years ago, but it never worked. Today, with my mum's input, who came to visit for few days, I've actually planted something in a real garden, and I'm pretty excited about it. They are all aromatic plants - mint, oregano, rosemary, thyme and rocket - which I will hopefully be able to use in my cooking, or for healing potions...finally feeding my "witches" ambitions :D

2) I think that quitting biting nails is harder than quitting smoking. I've basically quit smoking this year, but I've tried endless times to stop biting my nails, with no proper results. My fingers are awful looking...

3) I have a bike named Deirdre that is now lying abandoned in town, locked on a bicycle railing, because I've lost the keys and haven't thought about a way of releasing her. It's been sitting there for 9 months now...

4) The children's section that I look after in the shop is more than 100 square meters. It's the biggest in Ireland.

5) When I was a child, about 9-10 years old, I decided I had to learn to write with my left hand. My dad encouraged me because he said that very intelligent people like Leonardo Da vinci could write with both hands. So I was practicing in a notebook, coping texts from books, and having lots of fun. I never managed to master my left-hand writing till perfection, but I got pretty good. I stopped at some stage because I realised it was pointless.

6) I still don't know what I want to do when I grow up. In primary school I wanted to be in order: an astronaut, a writer, a builder. Then in middle school a writer again, a translator, an interpreter, a bookseller. In secondary school a flight assistant. In college a scholar, a translator and an editor. Now? I want to open my own special café. I would make my cakes and tarts, have concerts, a library made by the people, internet, big comfy couches, film shows, exhibitions, parties... I'm still thinking about the name.


I can't think of anyone else to tag so I would tag the same people as above, but only if they feel like and have time to do it. All the rest of you, feel free to do it, it's fun! except that it takes ages to think of something to write :P

About Andrea Camilleri and Inspector Montalbano

I’ve been busy lately and I had to skip my “Picture Book Monday” for the first time, even though I had the perfect book! But I’ll leave it for next week:)




Today the spotlight is on Andrea Camilleri and his most famous creation, inspector Salvo Montalbano. His most recent book in the series is called Il campo dei vasai, which was a good one, even though I didn’t think it was one of his best. It hasn’t been translated in English yet, anyway, so there isn’t much point in reviewing it here. What I want to do now is talk about the series in general and explain why I love it so much.

I’ve only discovered Montalbano two years ago, when I was living in Urbino studying for my MA and sharing a lovely country house with another Italian girl. She introduced me to the TV show which is based on the books and I was immediately hooked. Tuesday night became our special night. If anything bad happened on Tuesdays didn’t matter, because there was always Montalbano to watch in the evening!



One day I decided it was time to read the books.
It’s a strange phenomenon, in Italy, the popularity that Camilleri’s books have achieved. His books became popular only when he was almost 70. He had worked on tv and theatre but never managed to be successful as a writer, until, in 1992, Sellerio, one of the most revered Italian publishing houses, decided to give him a chance. His first Montalbano book, The shape of water was a major success and from then on he established himself as a bestseller author.

The peculiar thing about his books is that they’re written in a mix of Italian and Sicilian, his native dialect (or language, someone would argue). I would have thought this to be a problem for those readers not familiar with Sicilian words and expressions, but obviously it’s not. I feel privileged because I can speak and understand Sicilian, since my father is from Sicily and I’ve spent many years there. But how other people can fully understand it, is a mystery to me!
This said, the books are not only well-crafted mysteries, but, more importantly for me, they are a great way to go back to Sicily for a while and enjoy its language, its food, its sense of humour. Yes, what I love most probably about these books is that they’re incredibly funny. Sometime when I read them I can’t stop myself from bursting out laughing, sometimes really loudly! Or I just giggle throughout the whole book, making people around me really curious or really embarrassed.



I consider these books comfort reading. They don’t deal with comfortable issues, but I love meeting the same characters again, laughing at the same jokes - or at new ones. I know that the usual stunningly-beautiful-woman-looking-for-help will make her appearance, leaving Montalbano to struggle between his moral values and his lust. I know that Catarella will mess up names, that Montalbano will go for a swim no matter the weather, that Livia, his girlfriend, will be obnoxious and jealous, and that Fazio will collect his lists of names, dates of births and addresses when looking for informations…
The only thing that I’m not comfortable with is that Camilleri is subtly but unmistakeably sexist. The most obvious example is the way he portraits Livia. Nobody likes her, for good reason. Why does she have to be so annoying? Sometimes I’m amazed at how much she is impossible to bear. She is not the only annoying female character. Often women are mischievous (The Paper Moon, La vampa d’agosto, Il campo dei vasai etc…) or cruel, adulterous. Always, in some way, guilty.
But if you are not bothered by this, or if you manage to ignore it, Camilleri touches important issues such as immigration, exploitation of children and women by illegal organisations, mafia, political corruption. And Montalbano is always on the people’s side, often challenging the authorities he is supposed to represent in order to defend true justice and real values.
I particularly appreciated what Montalbano (and Camilleri, I take it) had to say about the riots in Genoa during the protests against the G8 in 2001. He wanted to resign, because he was ashamed by what his colleagues did at the Diaz school, breaking in during the night, beating up the protesters who were sleeping there and accusing them of having weapons. Later on it was proved that the weapons that were found were actually brought there by the police itself. It was a vicious and extremely violent attack on innocent people, that hasn’t been properly investigated yet. A lot of these protesters were transported to Bolzaneto prison and there physically and verbally abused. It was a shame committed by those who are supposed to protect us, and I was really happy when Montalbano took a stand against it.

So now you know why I love these books. I can’t imagine how much is lost in translation, but they are still worth reading. The tv series is also very well done. i like all the actors, and of course they are the faces I imagine for the characters when I read the books. Recently an Italian newspaper has released the DVDs, so now I own the whole collection :)

Picture Book Monday: "The Mousehole Cat" by Antonia Barber and Nicola Bayley

Today’s feature is a delightful tale that would make a perfect bedtime story.
Inspired by a Cornish traditional festivity, Tom Bawcock’s Eve, it tells the story of Mowzer, a cat living in a small harbour called Mousehole, because of its narrow entrance. Mowzer lives in an old cottage overlooking the harbour, and has her own pet, old fisherman Tom.

Old Tom was very well behaved. He never spilled the cream when he was filling her saucer. He always stoked the range to a beautiful golden glow. He rocked the rocking-chair at just the right speed. He knew the exact spot behind her left ear, where Mowzer liked to be tickled.

They live happily until one year a terrible winter arrives and The Great Storm-Cat takes control of the sea. For days and days the fishing boats can’t go out fishing, leaving the town with no food. When even the last vegetables and salted pilchards are eaten, Mowzer and Tom know that they have to do something before everyone starve to death.
That’s when they decide to challenge the fierce Great Storm-Cat and try to save their town.


This is a moving and inspiring tale of courage and love. A pleasure to read aloud, so elegantly written and illustrated. It’s different from the picture books I’ve reviewed so far, because it sticks to the traditional way of presenting a picture book: one page for the text and one for the illustration. This suits perfectly the mood of the story, which is a reinterpretation of an old folk tale. Nicola Bailey did a wonderful job in decorating every page with strips of images from the sea, creating a book that’s both stylish and comforting. The illustrations are warm and soft, almost tactile. The text is utterly charming, telling the story from the cat’s point of view and presenting the sea storm as a big angry cat, who can be soothed with singing and purring.
It’s also a great introduction to Cornish food and culture. At some point the author tells us the mouth-watering weekly menu of Mowzer, with exotic (for me) but promising names. And at the end, we’re told that ever since the day Mowzer and Tom saved the village from the famine, the people of Mousehole hold a fish-feast on the night before Christmas Eve, to remember their deeds. And every year people from all over Cornwall come at Christmas to see the town all lit up with thousands lights shining their message of hope and a safe haven to all those who pass in peril of the sea.
Browsing the internet, I found out that it’s actually true. I never heard of Tom Bawcock's Eve nor of Mousehole, but now I really wish I can go visit the harbour one day, it looks like a beautiful place!

This picture book was named Illustated Children's Book of the Year, was nominated for the Kate Greenaway Medal and shortlisted for the Smarties Book Prize and the Children's Book Award. It's been made into an animated film, which I can't find on the internet so I might buy one day on Dvd, and it has also being staged as a ballet on theatre.

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That's it, today I'm off to Italy for three days, I'll be back at the end of the week. My blogaversary is coming up soon and I'm thinking of hosting another giveaway!

War for the Oaks - Emma Bull

I’m really glad I came across this book. It sounded good, it looked good, it was recommended by Neil Gaiman. It was about fairies and rock and roll. It had to be good!
It took off slowly, because despite the great start, it takes a while to get into the story. But once you’re in it you would never want to get out.

This is the story of the singer and musician Eddi and how, one night, she finds herself unwillingly thrown in between a fairy war. The Seelie and the Unseelie Court are about to start their seasonal field battles, but they need a human to do it. Without, they wouldn’t be able to kill each other, while a human presence would allow the spilling of blood on both parts. That’s what the Phouka tells Eddi, after having moved into her house and declared himself her bodyguard. Eddi doesn’t have much choice in the matter. Someone has already chosen for her, and nothing she does or says can get rid of him. So now she is stuck with a Phouka who can change into a dog and looks like Prince, while her band has just fallen apart and her boyfriend has decided to act like a complete idiot.
Likely, she has her friend Carla, who smokes like a chimney, but is always there when she needs her.
The story for me started to get interesting when Eddi, following the Phouka’s advice, decides to start a new band. That’s when I realise that this book was as much about music as it was about fairy wars. In fact, music is a key element in the story, not just a background addition. Some of the best-written scenes are music scenes. I had to use youtube a lot to help me with the song references because I didn’t know any of them! David Bowie, Joan Jett, Prince, Kim Carnes… You can definitely feel that it was written in the 80’s.
But even if you don’t know the music, you can still enjoy the writing..

Then, in precisely the right place, the bass came in. It began as if the Rocky Mountains had begun to walk. It sounded like the voice of the magma under the earth’s crust, and it picked up the whole song and rolled it forward like water exploding out of a breaking dam. They were suddenly tight, all four of them, as if they were a single animal and that monster heartbeat was their own

Emma Bull constantly surprised me with her way of finding new ways of describing things and emotions. Her writing was lyric, funny and moving, always at the right times. Her description of the Folks was really believable, so detailed and rich, that it wasn’t hard to picture them in my mind.
But what I loved most was probably the Phouka. I loved his chivalry, his courtly manners, his “humanity”, his sense of humour. I would have loved to have him as a bodyguard…
It’s true, though, that I loved all the main characters, and even some of the side ones, like Meg the brownie. I was really sad to part from them at the end.

This is one of the first examples of Urban Fantasy and it deserves to be read just for that. But it’s so much more. It’s rock and roll, romance, magic, battles, surprises, fun. It’s everything I want from a book.
This edition has also an introduction written by Emma Bull herself, about the futility of introductions and about what this book means to her. There’s also an appendix with the screenplay. Because it’s true, it would make such a good movie!

other blog reviews:
needs more demons or not
Eloisa and James

May Bookworms Carnival is up!

... and I didn't sumbit anything, damn it! It's such a cool theme this month: urban and contemporary fantasy. I will definitely browse all the submissions with great pleasure. I wanted to post my review of War for the oaks by Emma Bull but I didn't find the time. It's such a good book and one of the first (or The first?) urban fantasy ever written and I really really REALLY enjoyed it.
Next month's Carnival will be exciting as well, whith Fairy Tales being celebrated at Things Mean a Lot!

Weekly Geeks #2 wrap up!

I'm late again, I don't think I'll never be able to post my weekly geek on time...
I've really enjoyed this experiment and I'm gonna keep it for the future, too. I think it's a simple and fun way of connecting us all, and give us the opportunity to read more points of view. I do sometimes choose to read a book just because of one review, but more it's always better. The first few days I've gone through some blogs and looked for common reviews, but as much fun as it is, this links-crossing takes a lot of time, so I won't do it that much in the future.
I've also come across Maw's great idea of a Blog reviews' database! It sounds like a lot of work, but I do hope that it will become a starting point for anybody looking for non-professional reviews of a particular book or author. Whenever I will feel like I'll go there and search for common reviews or just look for some possible good reads.

I won't participate this week though. I don't feel the need to go and revisit my childhood's reads because I feel like I do that every day in work. Looking after the kids sections and giving recommendations, I usually choose the books I enjoyed as a child. I also read way too many YA and children's books so, let's face it, I've never left childhood...Or maybe I have for a while,but now I'm back there, and I don't have much intention of leaving it again:)