The Sunday Salon: Variety is the spice....

I'm jumping ahead a bit here, it's still Saturday night, but almost midnight! And I'll be moving the clocks ahead an hour before I head off to bed, so it is pretend-Sunday. And I probably won't have much time to write here tomorrow. I was excited to write my first Salon journal.

I just finished a remarkable kid's book (which I rarely, if ever, read) - The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick.


Hugo is an orphan who lives and works within the walls and tunnels of a Paris train station. He keeps all the clocks oiled, wound and working. He has a knack for mechanics and an interest in magic. And he has a fantastic secret - a mechanical man that, when fixed properly, will write an important message for Hugo. Or so he believes.

What a delightful, beautiful book! This is a finely illustrated kid's book that any adult would find wonderful. I consider it a graphic novel, though it probably doesn't fit a strict definition of one. The writing is good, the illustrations are fabulous and the story kept me interested from the beginning. Great afternoon read. (4.5/5) Book website.

I'm also still reading War and Peace (see post below) and, to keep myself from getting too bogged down with that heavy tome, I started reading Geraldine Brooks' novel about the plague in 17th century England - Year of Wonders. I was drawn in by her writing from the first paragraph. I haven't read any of her books yet, though I've reached for March a couple of times. I chose this one because I'm so interested in medical history and love a good historical fiction. When I write my first novel, I imagine it will be about this subject!

I finished Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat yesterday. Haven't been able to comment on it yet. Powerful book. I was happy to see she won the Nat'l Book Critics Circle award for Brother, I'm Dying.

Today, before reading, we spent some hours getting our reading nook set up with new shelves. Very satisfying.