Vivica and Nora from Next Door Written with my Thursday group with the prompts: well then, a most sarcastic talking man, coal and a thousand colored pencils, she was starving herself, days without mail, she was a spoiled child, worried, Vaseline on the mirror, status quo, remembering her roots, hostility with dignity and love, my own … Continue reading Vivica and Nora from Next Door
Written with my Thursday group with a list of melodramatic prompts: in this economy, is this why fate brought us together?, there is no escape from destiny, that’s just what_______would have said, this is odd, so it has come to this, so let it be written so let it be done, but at what cost?, as … Continue reading Natalie’s Assignment
Written with my Thursday night group with the prompts: soaking it all up, whose feet would you wash, aren’t you hungry, do not listen to that person, not ready to sleep that sleep, prior work was painting fingernails, do not believe the news, should, time moving like a wave, the feel of spandex, man orchid, Gertrude the … Continue reading Princess Gertrude the Goat
April is National Poetry Month! I've dug down deep for this one, written for my Mom at least 30 years ago when she was the age that I am now. For My Mother and Other Collectors of Strays I want you to contradict me. When I shiver in my cavernous apartment complaining that autumn … Continue reading For My Mother and Other Collectors of Strays
Alive in the Moment Written with my Thursday night group with the prompts: urge to be alive in the moment, sound of waves lapping around the house, whipping like an energetic tornado, longing for a perfect moment to move you, manage, strolling, pollen, cheat, skins, lines, big giant plane, tired of hearing Dad’s stories, Tower of … Continue reading Alive in the Moment
Goodreads had a Facebook post a week or so ago asking readers to “describe the book you’re currently reading in one word.” I’m generally too verbose to succeed with such restrictions, but this time it was easy. The Earthseed Series by the late African American science fiction writer Octavia Butler is like nothing else out there—and … Continue reading Earthseed, a review
Fall On Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald is a larger than life story, a convoluted tale of family secrets and lies. At least three times in the novel the action occurs in clumps, and over the course of a few days or even a single night, there is more family melodrama than all of Shakespeare’s … Continue reading Fall On Your Knees, a book review
Helen followed her older sisters from the kitchen to the family room. To anyone else, her sisters were unremarkable in size and form, but Helen saw herself reflected in the width of their hips, the pronounced shape of ankle and calf, the length of their necks. Blair and Bianca strolled comfortably together, shoulder to shoulder, … Continue reading Outgrown
When I was 21 I went to Europe on a five-week student tour with my best friends. On our last day we were in England, and we went on a boat ride down the Thames to Greenwich. I have several memories of that day, a few funny stories, conversations, photos, but there was one image … Continue reading Sheltering-in-Place
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng is a well-written, topical book, an engrossing read, and the basis for a brand-new series starring Kerry Washington and Reese Witherspoon on Hulu. I want to tell you what I think about it, but let’s face it, I’m sure you can go online or pick up a TV guide … Continue reading Little Fires Everywhere, a consideration of race and class in America
