Book Review: Switched by Amanda Hocking

First let me say that I really love this story.  No matter what I say in this review, remember that I love this story.  I think that Amanda Hocking is a brilliant story teller and she is very bold for self-publishing.  (Although Amanda has recently had a series bought by St. Martin's Press.)  I'm going to start with the "worst things I found in the book" and then move on to the "best things I found in the book."  The worst thing I found is that the book seemed to lack a professional polish.  Perhaps this is due to not having an editor when Amanda first decided to self-publish. (I do not know that she didn't have an editor.  I am completely assuming she didn't.)  I found the book littered with over used words ("just" being the top of the list), over-repeated words (using the same word over and over in the same sentence, paragraph or page), and incorrectly used words (rod for wrought).  They all seemed to be common errors that an editor would have easily caught and corrected.  Not surprisingly, the biggest problem I ran into was that I was reading this on my Nook and I couldn't make editing notes in the book as I do with my paper copies.  (That's the former editor in me that insists that I can't leave a mistake unmarked.  I've even corrected grammar and spelling in a Tom Clancy novel - ooooooooo.  It happens.  Even to the best. But this is an e-reader issue, not Miss Hocking's issue.) 

Now for the best parts.  This is a wonderful story.  It is fresh, alive and unique.  The story moves you quickly through what is happening and Amanda doesn't let you forget about things left behind.  I was fascinated by her use of imagery and could easily envision the details in the book.  As I was reading I wasn't given unimportant information that didn't relate to the story.  So many times I am given far too much detail in a book and wondering why I needed to know that there was a bowl of grapefruit on the coffee table.  What does it mean?  Why grapefruit?  Amanda never once did that.  Every detail she offered was relevant in the story even if you didn't come back to it for several chapters.  I also loved reading a new look at an old idea.  I've gotten tired of vampires and werewolves that all seem to have the same sort of story as to how the creature came to be, how they live and how they die.  So many young adult paranormal stories have turned into watered down romances that just happen to have a vampire in them.  Switched is completely different.  I like this world Amanda has created and I look forward to finishing this series and moving on to some of her other work. 

If you are looking for a good quick read for the summer, this is an excellent pick.  Plus, most of Amanda Hocking's books are available through Barnes and Noble or Amazon e-books for the low low price of $2.99 and even 99¢ each.  So not only are they good, they are also very affordable.  Go support independent literature!

Currently reading: The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

Twisted German Cast On

I have fallen in love with a new cast on technique.  I had done it in the past on one or two projects, but never truly liked it.  This past Sock Madness competition had a sock that started with this cast on technique and amazingly I fell in love with it.  I'm not sure why, but I did and I've been using it ever since.  Perhaps it was all the Scandinavians who said, "Oh, that's the cast on we always use" or maybe it is because I realized how much stretchier it is than the regular long tail cast on.  Although, do be aware that this is a variation of the long tail cast on and takes just a wee bit more yarn than the regular long tail cast on. 

I have found that by using the Twisted German Cast On I don't fall too hard into the "Ooops, I cast on too tightly ... again" problem.  I also think it gives a much nicer look than the ordinary long tail cast on.

This is the long tail cast on:

Notice the bottom is kind of wimpy looking and not very stable.











Here is the Twisted German Cast On:

See how the bottom edge looks like a lovely braid or a row of knitting and the base is much more stable. Yet it is fairly stretchy.










Here's a wonderful video on how to do the Twisted German Cast on:

Ten on Tuesday: Independence Edition

Next Monday is the celebration of the Independence of the United States of America.  I need to say something right off the bat: I'm not an "oo-rah Go America USA USA kind of person."  Don't get me wrong.  I love this country and the principles on which it was founded, but I've been to other countries and I don't think that we are "number one."  I think that we have a lot going for us, but I don't think that we are supreme above all other countries.  If that makes you hate me or quit reading the blog, have a peaceful journey as we aren't made for each other.  I am an unrepentant liberal and for that I will never apologize.

Ten things I like about the "Fourth of July"

1. Fireworks  (I love fireworks.  Any fireworks.  They are so pretty!)
2. Waffle House will be open (I know, my foodies, but this Southern Girl loves Waffle House)
3. That red, white and blue (and their related colors) go well together
4. Yankee Doodle Dandy with James Cagney (I love musicals and George M. Cohan wrote such memorable songs that are short and fun.)
5. Apple pie (but I also like it on July 5th and September 19th, and February 23rd)
6. Grilled hot dogs (normally I'm not a hot dog person, but on Independence Day I feel this urge to eat a hotdog with sweet relish, catsup and mustard on a white bun with a side of baked beans)
7. People seem a bit kinder to each other in this country on that day
8. Baseball (Go Cubbies!)
9. That we live in a country where we are free to worship (or not) any god (or goddess or nothing) that we feel called to worship (or not) without federal or state persecution and that I have the freedom to say that as well
10. That I will be working in a bookstore on this day where people are free to write and read books of their choosing. (So go read a banned book just because you can.)

Twue Love!

This past week I have had a couple of reminders about my favorite movie.  This is not a cinematic masterpiece.  It doesn't have an astounding (or even surprising) plot.  It has no major wonderful special effects.  The dialogue is cheesy, the costumes impractical and the cast was virtually a bunch of nobodies or half-knowns.  However, if I were stuck on that proverbial deserted island with only one movie to watch (no one has told me yet how I would play it) it would be Princess Bride.  Yep.  The movie with fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles... (Doesn't sound too bad.  I'll try to stay awake.) 

This past week Peter Falk died.  He was the grandfather who tells the story to his grandson, stuck at home sick.  And yesterday on TeeFury Fezzik was the subject of their daily shirt. (Buy it so the artist won't hurt.)  (If you don't check out TeeFury on a daily basis you should because they only release a single design each day for one day only and then it's gone.  The topics range from Firefly, Star Trek, Star Wars, Doctor Who, TMNT, LOTR, POTC, Harry Potter, Buffy, comics, basically anything that strikes a fancy with current or nostalgic pop culture - today it's Calvin Ball.)  And from that (I'm assuming) there was a flurry of tweets on Twitter quoting Princess Bride.  It also didn't help that the question of the week last week was "If you had a million dollars what would you buy?" and someone wrote down "Andre the Giant's left hand."  (Don't ask.  I don't know.)

So if this movie isn't a cinematic masterpiece, what is it that makes it my favorite movie?  Simple.  It's brilliant.  It has fantastic witty and quotable dialogue that can be used in so many different situations.  I can't think of another single movie that has so many quotable lines than Princess Bride.  Off to the store to do a little swim suit shopping?  The line that chases you out is "Have fun storming the castle." To which you are then obligated to call back, "Do you think it will work?"  It will take a miracle.  As you wish is the exact same in our family as I love you.  And I have learned over the years to never end a sentence with "I mean it" because one of my children will respond with "Anyone want a peanut?"  Even when I am angry and about to explode.  In a hurry to leave for something and the others in your party are not fast enough for you?  Out comes the fake Spanish accent and "You donna suppose you could speed things up?"  That guarantees the response, "If you're in such a hurry, you could lower a rope or a tree branch or find something useful to do."  When the oldest teen sleeps in until afternoon they are usually greeted with "You've been mostly dead all day." 

I love the score for this movie.  There are lots of Dun-dun-dun-duh's that are so reminiscent of old westerns.  It's climatic when there is fighting and swoony when it is romantic.  And there is kissing (They're kissing again.  Do we have to read the kissing parts?)  A movie with kissing can't be all that bad and because the kissing is generally made fun of in this movie even a seven-year old boy can watch it without being grossed out. 

There is much to be learned from this movie as well.  For instance if someone is all dead then the only thing you can do is go through their pockets and look for lost change.  There is nothing better than true love (except for a nice MLT where the mutton is nice and lean and the tomatoes are ripe).  Life is pain (, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something). There are no R.O.U.S.'s in the Fire Swamp (Rodents of Unusual Size?  I don't think they exist.  THUMP!  And there always has to be a thump after I don't think they exist otherwise it isn't funny).  Mawwiage is a bwessed awwaingement.  (Do not try to quote the Impressive Clergyman unless you can do it correctly.)  And always remember: never go against a Sicilian when death is on the line!  Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Thunk!

Need a new insult?  Princess Bride has got some good ones including:  you wart-hogged faced baffoon,  miserable vomitous mass, unemployed in Greenland (I mean really, that would be so horrible!) and my favorite "Humperdink! Humperdink! Humperdink!" 

If you have never seen it, I pray you, get a copy.  Invite some of your most silly (or better yet serious) friends over and eat chocolate (it makes it go down easier) and drink a bottle of brandy.  Learn the lines. Quote the lines.  And above all live for True Love!  It's inconceivable that someone wouldn't. 

Share with me some of your favorite quotes.

Spiritual Sunday: Rain

We've been having a drought where I live.  Days and days without rain in an area that normally has rain almost every afternoon this time of year.  It makes people grumpy.  While they say that they are enjoying all the time that they have to get out and go play in all the sunshine and that they don't miss the rain, they really aren't having any fun and they are getting grouchier with each passing day or no rain.  Our cars are dusty.  Our yards are dry and brown. We have to water our gardens to get the little produce we can.  The berries aren't as sweet.  The air even feels dry, which is odd for living along the Gulf Coast as we do. 

Then on Wednesday night it started to rain.  We had a really nice storm come through and it rained throughout the night and into Thursday.  It even was raining Thursday night and I didn't have to play my white noise machine (which is programmed to play rain with thunder) to go to sleep.  I had the real thing playing outside my house.  And while the air felt wet and heavy and it became steamy on Friday when the temperatures started rising again, it felt fresh and new outside.  Things seemed cleaner.  Even the houses seemed fresh from the new rain.  It was simply lovely.

It's odd how weather affects our mood.  And it is different for each of us.  I love rain (and snow for that matter, but we don't get snow here in the south often - which is a good thing).  On rainy days I feel fresh and clean.  The rain is soothing and the thunder's rumbling is peaceful.  I've never been afraid of thunder.  My grandmother told me that I was born during an extremely violent thunderstorm and that when I was a baby they could always count on me taking a nap when a storm would roll in.  I like that story.  I don't know if it is true or not, but I like to think it is.  None of my children are afraid of thunder either and rarely will they even wake at night from a storm.  If they do, they simply sigh and snuggle deeper into their blankets and are lulled back to sleep. 

Rain, for me, means a good day or reading.  It is curling up in bed or on the couch with a new book or an old familiar and letting the rain play the soundtrack for the book I'm reading.  Since beginning work at Barnes and Noble (a bookstore for those who don't know) I have found that rain also makes other people become readers.  When it is raining outside people tend to stay longer in the bookstore.  On Thursday I found all the over-stuffed chairs filled, the cafe full and people curled up on the floor throughout the store with books propped, enjoying the forced captivity and the time to enjoy a book. 

Rain has played a role in many different religions.  In the Judeo-Christian story of Noah's Ark, God cleansed the earth with rain.  He washed the impurities away.  The ancient Aztec had a rain god called Tlolak.  He wasn't a very nice god, but he was revered because the sacrifices to him were thought to bring about the rains needed for a plentiful harvest.  Zeus is the god of thunder (and with that comes rain) as are the Roman Jupiter and the Norse Thor.  The Inca has a god of rainstorms called Pariacaca (which when you say it almost sounds like rain pitter-pattering on the window).  The Egyptians had Tefnut who was the goddess of rain.  Many cultures had devotions or rituals they performed to their gods and goddesses to plea for rain (and in some cases to stop the rain).  Rain has even played a role in our religious structures.  Masons knew that water running across mortar would weaken it and cause structural damage, so gargoyles were built to divert the water and thus save their work.  (It should be noted that gargoyles date back to pre-Christian cultures and are found throughout the world including Greece, South America and Japan.)

Rain is important.  We need rain to fill our rivers and reservoirs.  We need it to grow crops, to clean, to cool, and, especially, to quench our thirst.  Rain may inconvenience at times.  Weddings have had to be rescheduled or moved because of rain.  Ball games have been called due to rain.  Rain has caused floods and when paired with the winds of a hurricane has been known to devastate cities.  Rain isn't predictable.  We can't forecast very far into the future when we will have rain or when it might stop.  Our powers of prediction are truly limited to just a few days at best.  Yet as infuriating as it is and as fickle as it seems, we still should be glad when we do see it as living without it would be a terrible world that would be dry and parched. And I don't want to live in that kind of world.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love a good simple cookie sometimes.  Chocolate chip is just that perfect cookie.  There isn't too much chocolate, just the right amount of vanilla cookie and, when fresh out of the oven, speak to my inner child.  Over the years I have toyed with a variety of cookie recipes.  Through a process of trial and error I have mished and mashed several recipes together to get the best dough and my favorite cookie.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1/2 cup of butter softened
1/2 cup of vegetable shortening (although I usually make them with all butter.  Half shortening tends to make them a bit more chewy)
3/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. brown sugar packed
2 eggs
2 T. milk (trust me on this)
1 t. vanilla extract (if using artificial vanilla use 2 t.)
1/2 t. salt
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
2-1/4 c. flour (although this varies anywhere from 2 cups to 2-1/2 cups depending on humidity)
1-1/2 c. mini chocolate chips (although you can use any, I like the way that mini chips spread through out the dough)

Using a mixer add all the ingredients in order, mixing well before adding the next.  You can add 1/2 - 1 cup of chopped pecans, although I seem to be the only one in the house that likes nuts in my cookies, so I rarely get to have them.)  When the dough is thoroughly mixed, using a spoon.  Eat it.  OK, don't.  OK, do.  OK, technically you aren't supposed to eat cookie dough that has raw eggs in it, but in all my forty-something years of eating cookie dough I have never had a bad reaction.  And cookie dough is just so yummy.  But if you insist on baking cookies (which you really should because if you ate that much cookie dough you will get a tummy ache and it won't be because of raw eggs) heat your oven to 350°F and bake them on a baking stone for 12-14 minutes.  If you don't have a baking stone, then I recommend using parchment paper on a metal sheet.  It won't be as good as on a stone, but it will make clean up easier and you don't have to worry about your cookies sticking to your pan.  After they have baked eat them as fast as you can.  Have a glass of ice cold milk with them or a cup of tea.  It's best that way.

Today I shall write

Today I shall write.  I shall write the most stunning prose ever.  My words will rival those of Milton, Mitchener, Rowling and King.  Sentences will flow with ease and every word will appear as though it was meticulously planned when in reality they spilled onto the page to tempt and delight.  My characters will be so well-formed that the reader will feel as though they are their best friends.  My villains will be heinous and my heroes strong, bold, and deliciously beautiful. The heroine will be no femme fatale, but a confidant and capable woman who is still sexy and alluring.  The plot will be riveting and the reader will languish in bed captivated by each chapter or, sadly, the reader will be stuck at work wishing the hours to whisk away so that they can get back to the book that is calling to them from their coffee table.  It will cross gender lines and be adored by both staunch conservative and radical liberal alike.  My writing today will be hailed as this decade's most entertaining and important work of fiction.  The Washington Post will announce that it is a
"Must Read!"  Yes! Today the words themselves will be my muse!

Actually I'm probably going to write a whole lot of shit today that will be edited and slashed and rewritten tomorrow, but the above paragraph is how I want to write each day.  I wake up with the intention of writing well and when I review it later I wonder what idiot sat at my computer and put that stupid drivel in my book.  But that is what the writing process is about.  I am sure that there are few authors who are a pleasure to edit.  Whose manuscripts are clean and polished and ready for the world.  I have had the pleasure of talking to quite a few published authors (some of them even well-known and well-read) who have griped about having to go through the editing process.  The authors I follow on Twitter remind me daily that writing is not something we do, but something we perfect.  It is a continuous work in progress until it has been printed and delivered to stores.  And by that time there is more work to be done on the next book.

So today I most likely will not channel Shakespeare or Goethe or even Austin.  Today I will regurgitate a couple thousand words and hopefully they will form some kind of sentence structure and arrange themselves into paragraphs and when I look at it again tomorrow it would look like a two-year old pounded on my keyboard.  And I shall be thankful for spellcheck.