Some positive messages.
I hope your today is special.
You are unique.
Feel free to share these memes on your social media.
Two Great Books for Middle Grades Readers and Older
The Eyes and the Impossible, by Dave Eggers
I didn’t think I would like this book, because all the characters are animals. But once I got used to these animals talking like humans, using phrases I wouldn’t expect from an animal, I allowed myself to suspend my disbelief and just enjoy the story. (Those of us who are of a certain age might remember Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach, which rocked the literary world in 1970, about a seagull with a passion for flying fast.)
Johannes is a free dog (as opposed to a kept dog) who loves to run fast. He lives in a large urban park, where he plays an important role–he is The Eyes, who sees all that happens in the park, and reports to the three wise bison who live within a fence and who are the Keepers of the Equilibrium. They decide what to do if something disturbs the equilibrium of the park. All the animals contribute to restoring the equilibrium.
Of course, several things happen to disrupt the equilibrium. I don’t want to spoil the story for you, so I will be very vague. Johannes finds out that he has a mixed heritage. The animals discover that there is a much wider world than exists in their park.
The beauty of the book is the wisdom of the animals, and their concern for each other. (Well, all the other animals think the ducks are stupid, but mostly they care about each other.) They make elaborate plans to do two impossible tasks on behalf of Johannes and the bison.
The book is beautifully illustrated. Shawn Harris added Johannes to 10 classical landscapes. The originals are credited in the backnotes.
The Eyes & the Impossible won the John Newberry Medal for the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. But you do not have to be a middle grader to read this book. As an adult, I thoroughly enjoyed Johannes’ world. I was in awe of the beauty, the suspense, the humor, and the philosophy. Go ahead, treat yourself and read it, no matter your age. Also, the print in the hardcover is large enough to read without reading glasses.
Wonder, by R.J. Palacio
I bought this book because I remembered the buzz about it when it was first published in 2012, and especially in 2017 when it came out as a movie:
I didn’t read it then or see the movie because I was afraid it would break my heart.
You will feel for Auggie, but you won’t be heartbroken.
The story is told from several points of view–Auggie’s, Via’s (Auggie’s sister), Summer’s (a girl who decides to sit with Auggie in the cafeteria), Jack’s (who becomes Auggie’s best friend), Justin’s (Via’s boyfriend), and Miranda’s (Via’s former best friend). All of these kids have wonderful, believable voices. Even when they make unfortunate choices, you forgive them because you understand.
Palacio does a wonderful job of making the book realistic. She doesn’t pull any punches. She shows just how unkind the world can be toward someone who looks disturbingly different. She portrays mixed feelings very well. But it’s not all harshness. There’s much laugh-out-loud humor and just plain good storytelling. The book also offers hope, and models how to be kind. And even though this book was written for children, teens, adults, parents, teachers, and oldsters will also find it engaging and a worthwhile read. I surely did.
Here’s an interesting interview with R.J. Palacio.
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Tagged Wonder, The Eyes & the Impossible, Dave Eggers, R.J. Palacio
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Review of My Name is Barbra by Barbra Streisand
The whole time I was reading My Name is Barbra, I pretended that Barbra Streisand was my dear friend and she was telling me all these stories about her life in person. That’s what her voice is like in this autobiography-like a dear friend who is trusting that she can open her heart and I will accept her, whether she’s talking about a great experience, a terrible regret, or a funny thing that happened.
Of course I know what her voice sounds like. She’s about ten years older than me, and I was a young teen when she took New York City by storm. My mother loved her music, and together we listened to her on the radio and watched her television appearances and specials. I remember the media coverage of Funny Girl. I saw The Way We Were in the movies with my then-fiancé, and Greg and I danced our first dance at our wedding to “The Way We Were,” even though people protested that was not an appropriate song for a first dance. (Since we celebrated our 52nd anniversary this year, from my current perspective it seems just right.) I’ve always loved Barbra Streisand, .
Yet, when her autobiography came out five months ago, I didn’t know if I wanted to read it.
But the clincher was when I read an excerpt.
It took Streisand about 10 years to write this book, referring to her journals (Everyone should journal! If you aren’t already, start now! I wished I’d been more consistent about it, not that my life is anything as exciting as Streisand’s.) and calling on her assistants and past collaborators for details and corroboration. You’d think that somewhere in those 966 pages the pace would lag a little, but I can honestly say it did not. I was fully engaged, laughing and crying all the way through. My admiration for her has grown due to her commitment to excellence.
The book covers her entire life, starting with her early childhood. Her father died when she was 15 months old, and her mother was not skilled at showing affection to her daughter.
She always loved to sing, and she got her start performing as a singer, but her dream was to be an actress.
Whatever project she was working on, she had a vision for. Sometimes, especially in the beginning, her suggestions were not appreciated, and she met a lot of resistance. But she kept trying. For example, when she was recording her albums, she knew exactly how she wanted them to sound, how the instruments should be balanced, which songs should be included. She worked closely with the sound technicians, and ultimately learned how to get the effects she wanted. She would call songwriters and ask if she could change lyrics. Some of them embraced her ideas wholeheartedly and cooperated with her wishes.
On Broadway and also in the movies, she had ideas about how scenes should be staged, how sets should look, and how lines should be delivered. She often had to fight, and she didn’t always get her way. Eventually, her contracts had clauses that gave her artistic control over her productions. She grew to direct and produce many of her shows (and write them or parts of them) in addition to acting and/or singing in them.
And yet, being in charge wasn’t the point; making the best possible recording or show was. Streisand says:
When I finally became a director . . . when I got that power . . . I felt a deep calm. I no longer had to struggle to be heard. It wasn’t about making people listen to me . . . it was about listening to everyone else. And I discovered that the most powerful thing you can do with power is to share it. The giving of power enhances your own.
You can get a little inkling of her directing style from this video:
I learned a lot about Streisand that I didn’t know. For example, she loved vintage clothes, and especially in her younger years bought a lot of her clothes in thrift stores. She also designed many of her clothes, sometimes taking something she already owned and transforming it; or sometimes sewing something new from scratch. Many of the beautiful costumes she wore on stage or to awards ceremonies were made by famous designers from her own sketches.
My Name is Barbra is illustrated with gorgeous photographs of Streisand and all the important people in her life (and her album covers).
This is one of the best autobiographies I have ever read. If you like Barbra Streisand, you’ll love My Name Is Barbra.
Video of the Day: I Know That my Redeemer Lives
Ringing Praise, the handbell choir at my church, Easter 2025. I’m the lady on the right wearing black and white.
May you have a blessed Easter. He is risen!
In the Meme Time
Some positive messages to brighten your day. Feel free to use these on your social media.
Review of The Judge’s List by John Grisham
We last met Lacy Stoltz, an investigator for the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct, in Grisham’s The Whistler.
She is still investigating complaints of improper conduct by judges in Florida. She’s tired of the job and is thinking of finding a new one.
Then she’s approached by Jeri Crosby, a woman who claims a judge killed her father 22 years ago. And she believes he was the second of six victims.
Jeri’s father had been a well-loved law professor who could be very tough on his students. A student with an arrogant attitude and a habit of showing up for class unprepared took offense at being dressed down several times and withdrew from law school. He sent letters complaining about the professor to alumni, politicians, and other professors, and entered a mental health facility, supposedly for a nervous breakdown caused by his law professor. Ultimately, he recovered and finished his training at another law school.
But he continued to hold a grudge against the professor. And then Jeri’s father was murdered.
Jeri is terrified that she’s being surveilled, but over the course of several meetings, she reveals to Lacy all the victims she’s identified, killed in the same way: blunt force trauma, then asphyxiation with a nylon rope tied off in a double clove hitch. She explains what she believes the connection between the victims and the student-now-judge is, and what the motivation for each murder is. She has no evidence, yet her stories are compelling.
Lacy doesn’t know how her board can help. They certainly don’t have the ability to investigate murders in six different states, especially since all of the cases have been classified as cold in their jurisdictions. But Jeri is persistent, sure that if they don’t stop the murderous judge, he’ll kill again.
And then, Lacy is appointed interim director of her office. Jeri officially files her complaint under a pseudonym, and Lacy and two assistants begin their investigation.
This book had me at the edge of my seat all the way through. Though Lacy is committed to being as surreptitious as possible, Jeri does something stupid that alerts the judge that someone has connected him to some of his murders. The judge is very intelligent, and he soon identifies the people on his trail. Will they stop him–or die trying?
This is another of Grisham’s best legal thrillers.
10 Podcasts for Creative People
I started listening to podcasts a couple of years ago. I don’t listen consistently, but when I’m working on something in my writing/quilting room that only requires part of my brain (like cleaning), that’s when I think to go to the Podcast app on my computer and check out my feed.
Here are some podcasts for creative people that I particularly enjoy:
- Creativity Matters Podcast. I first discovered Amy Cowan on Instagram and fell in love with her quirky portraits. I followed her there for years before I noticed that she has a podcast. She has an amazing speaking voice, so calming. Now, she hasn’t posted anything in a whuile but there are at least 500 episodes to listen to, so give her a try. Or check her out on Substack.
- DIY MFA Radio. Are you a word nerd? If so, you might know Gabriela Pereira from her DIY MFA website. The podcast has been temporarily on hiatus since the end of 20234, but again, there are 485 episodes in the can, enough to keep you listening for a long time.
- 1 Minute Writing Tip. These are quick podcasts on the craft of writing, under half an hour long. The host, Katelyn Silva, often interviews guests, and the topic often relates to Christian writing, though not always.
- A Muse’s Daydream. These podcasts are even shorter, under a quarter hour, which I like, because I don’t have a lot of time to devote to listening. (I also have a short attention span, and my thoughts wander.) Jill Badonsky, the host, also has a very calming voice, and her podcasts are almost like a meditation. The podcast is subtitled Creative Journeys to the Present Moment.
- Christian Publishing Show. I first became aware of Thomas Umstatt, Jr., the host, on the Steve Laube Agency blog, which consistently places among Writer’s Digest’s 101 Best Websites for Writers. He is an author and a popular conference speaker and very knowledgeable about the world of Christian publishing and the craft of writing.
- Fiction Writing Made Easy. These podcasts vary in length from short to over an hour, so you can pick and choose episodes on the basis of how much time you have to listen. The host, Savannah Gilbo, has a pleasant voice and a professional delivery.
- Immaterial. This is/was a limited run podcast produced by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, about the materials used to make art. The host is the poet Camille Dunghy. Only 10 episodes, the podcast ran from May through September 2022 and covered materials like metal, linen, jade, shells, and paper.
- Poem-a-Day. This is just what the name says, a poem each day, generally read by the poet. Most episodes are just a few minutes long, but occasionally there will be an interview of about 15 minutes. This podcast is produced by the Academy of American Poets.
- The Creative Shift. Dan Blank talks mostly about writing and writers but also about other artists. He is interested in how creative people grow.
- WORDTheater Weekly. Short stories read by professional actors.
All of these podcasts are available through the Apple podcast app, and probably through any of the usual outlets.
Now it’s your turn. Are you familiar with any of these podcasts? How do you like them? Do you know of other podcasts for creative people? Please share in the comments below.
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