A thought: if Matthew Paul Turner and Sarah Cunningham went on tour together, would it be the Evil Dandelions Tour? Because that's what I was tempted to call this post. Thankfully for them, they are two separate writers, with separate books, on separate blog tours. And even if they did tour together, they wouldn't have me naming it with title mashups... though Evil Dandelions is fun to say and kind of sounds like a band name... right?
Umm, right. Anyway. A preview of two wonderful tours coming to my little corner of the Internets in the next couple months:
First up is the Hear No Evil Blog Tour, coming to Div Sense on Feb 17th! I'm loving Matthew Paul Turner's newest book about "innocence, music, and the Holy Ghost," a funny new spiritual memoir according to "life's soundtrack." As one of those evangelical kids who grew up with Christian music, I can so relate, and I can't wait to share my review-ish thoughts with you. (Rumor has it I might have a copy to pass along too. Free book. Tell your friends.) The book will be in stores Feb 16th, but in the meantime, if you aren't reading Matthew's blog Jesus Needs New PR... go. do it. now. If the words "Paces" and "Saxon Math" conjure up scary memories, you'll love yesterday's post. (Pre-order Hear No Evil here)
Next is the lovely Sarah Cunningham's Picking
Dandelions Blog Tour on March 24th. I've mentioned Sarah a couple times here already, and I'm really excited to help spread the word about her new book that released today! (Looks like I'm in good company for this tour too...) If you enjoy spiritual memoirs with a good dose of humor a la Anne Lamott or Elizabeth Gilbert, then you should definitely check this one out. Expect a review, and perhaps even an interview come March 24th... and if you can't wait, I'm sure she wouldn't mind if you went ahead and ordered her book from Amazon since it released today and stuff. :) You can find more info, excerpts, and of course her blog on her website, sarahcunningham.org
I'm happy and honored to be a part of two great tours so close together. I'm also slightly stressed, because now I kinda feel like I should clean up my blog and make a good impression. Post interesting stuff... dust the furniture and all that, y'know? Ah well.
But for now... reading away, and working on my next review for JFH. (Fireflight - For Those Who Wait. Lake County rock n' roll FTW.) That's enough to keep me busy.
Speaking of, the JFH Staff's picks for Most Anticipated New Music of 2010 is up, if you want to see what we're all giddy about in Christian music this year.
Annnnd.... I watched the Grammys for the first time last night. But that.... ah, that deserves an entire post in itself. :)
Blog Touring = woot!
Problem.
There is only one problem with used/cheap bookstores: it's harder to resist dollar books than 15+ dollar books. And sometimes, accidents of duplication happen.
Today I found a paperback of Blue Shoe by Anne Lamott at the library bookstore for a dollar, and I grabbed it because it was cheap and the cover is pretty and I adore Anne Lamott even though I've never read one of her novels. (Traveling Mercies and Bird by Bird, however, amaze me every time.) I had a niggling feeling that I already owned it though.
Sure enough, I found it in the bottom of a bag of used bookstore finds. In hardback even.
Lame.
And I haven't read it yet, which kind of explains why I don't remember buying it.
Lamer.
So hey, anybody wanna read Blue Shoe by Anne Lamott? First person to speak up gets it.
Edit: I have a taker as of 1 am-ish. Proof that sometimes late night Facebook time pays! :)
No. Seriously. You can have it. I don't know if it's any good because, um, I haven't read it yet. And the reviews are pretty split on Amazon, so that kind of scares me. But you can still have it. Just leave a comment with your Twitter or e-mail address and we'll talk.
And then we can read it together. :)
huzzah, non-boring mail!
Look what I got in the mail!
Book I won from Sarah Cunningham's 25 Days of Giveaways, in all its lame Photoboothed glory. (Why do webcams always make the colors so wonky?) Jesus for President by Shane Claiborne. I've always been curious to read something by him, because he seems like an interesting dude. Looks like it should be a thought-provoking read.
Well, that and the pages are all pretty inside.
Um, yep. Free books make me happy. :)
Music Monday: Some Mini Reviews
Quick blurbs on my new music of the year so far... technically, they came out last year, but I found them late enough to count for this year. :)
Genre: Acoustic-based singer/songwriter folksy pop
Where I got it: At Melody's CD release show in Orlando, January 30, 2009 // Buy online here!
Background: After several years touring as a backup singer for Sara Groves, Melody Olson releases a debut album of her own songs. The Groves factor is unmistakable, but the songs shimmer with Melody's youthful voice and personality.
Verdict: Okay, I admit. I was probably inclined to take an interest in her music since her sister in law is my friend. :) But when I saw her performance, I was in for something far more than I ever expected! Melody has a beautiful voice and a gift for songwriting, and every track sparkles in its own way. Fans of Sara Groves and the more singer/songwriterly side of Christian music owe it to themselves to get to know her now. I'm excited to see what the future holds for Melody!
Highlights: "All These Things," "Gone," "Let Love Win," "Too Late"
Leiahdorus - Sirens EPGenre: Swoontastic, oddly organic synthpop
Where I got it: iTunes (yay gift card!) // Buy online at iTunes!
Background: Leiahdorus stole my heart years ago with it's unique marriage of synthpop and acoustic piano sensibilities. After releasing an amazing debut and an okay follow up on indie synth label A Different Drum, Leiahdorus seemed to drop off the planet, until a mysterious little song called "They Have Eyes" appeared on MySpace, heralding signs of life.
Verdict: Sirens EP reintroduces Leiahdorus with a new label and bigger sound than ever, and if these five songs are any indication, their third album is going to be epic. I've been listening to "They Have Eyes" on MySpace for so long that hearing the full quality version from iTunes was a huge treat, and though this could quickly be pegged the best track, the songs that follow are every bit as good. "Snow in July" almost has a retro synthpop vibe, "Forward Blindly" thumps with energy reminiscent The Echoing Green, and the almost-seven-minute "Blankets" brings back some of the beautifully moody piano melodies they're known for. Worth the wait for fans; dirt cheap enough that it's worth a try for those closet synth lovers out there.
Highlights: "They Have Eyes," "Snow in July," "Blankets"... oh, just buy the whole thing, k?
So, how's this format? I figure as new music comes into my life, these mini-reviews will be fun to keep me in practice when I don't have a JFH deadline staring me down.
Though um... I am working on my Fireflight review for February 9. Really. Promise. :)
In the meantime... I still got ten bucks left on that iTunes card I need to use. Suggestions? I have tons of albums that I want in mind, but picking just one is so hard.
Return to Hogwarts
Just wrapped up round 1 of the Harry Potter Reading Challenge with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Third read for this book, actually. I'm so happy none of the magic is gone.
I have to say, it's really fun to revisit this series a couple years after finishing it, mostly because when you know how it ends and who's who and all the secrets are out, you can pay more attention to the little details and nuances that show that J.K. Rowling didn't just sit down and bang out a bunch of books one after another. Her attention to detail without making it any less than a fun, easy read of an adventure tale show that she has earned her success for sure! (Not to be confused with other wildly popular series that I will not mention by name lest the sparkly vampires and hormonal werewolves hunt me down... oops. I've already said too much.)
Sure, it's a neat, quick, light read, and in hindsight, certainly not the best of the series. Some parts fell really rushed and simplified, especially after the depth of the later books. But it's a great introduction that's fun for kids and adults before the darker twists in the tale begins. It's also great to see how much the writing and storytelling improve over the years, and how deftly Rowling allows the characters to grow and mature without sacrificing the identities she showed us in the first book.
What I learned about writing: Stay true to your characters. Let them grow and move and change, but never forget who they are. Details and subtle foreshadowing work wonders (ugh... guess that means I should outline! :)). And there's a lot of power in a simple story of good and evil, even for (as Dr. Seuss lovingly put it) "obsolete children."
Yay, first completed part of a reading challenge! Six months + six more HP books... um, gotta read faster! :)
Just as long as you stand by me
Some things in life just make me happy. Like when TWLOHA posts video of the Heavy and Light Encore.
Put a bunch of musicians on stage at 12:30 in the morning, and awesome happens.
And for fun... here's the song that started it all. Beatles cover for the win.
Devastation and Hope
I can't stop thinking about Haiti.
Ever since hearing about the earthquake, the climbing death toll, the devastation, I can't stop thinking about it. My friend Melony was there on a mission trip when the earthquake hit (still there, actually), and somehow, I guess that makes it more real to me. She and her group are safe and trying to get home, but I don't imagine anything could prepare them for this.
And at the same time, I find it strange -- and sadly typical -- that while thousands have been devastated and are struggling to pick up the pieces, we're buzzing about Pat Robertson's commentary. You know... the bit about the nation being so poor and wrecked because of a pact with Satan a couple hundred years ago?
Yeah.
I should be really infuriated by it, but somehow, I'm starting to believe there are deeper things that should concern us. Maybe a little religious-with-a-dash-of-political controversy helps take our minds off the pain? While I certainly don't want it to appear that he speaks for all of us, at the same time, I'm kind of tired of these controversies popping up every time there's a disaster and dividing us over ideologies.
I'm tired of these fights that are small skirmishes compared to the greater tragedies. Donald Miller had some pretty good thoughts on the Robertson debacle that I would rather share than add my two cents to the noise. A sane, grace-filled response if I ever saw one.
"Then the singing began. Those gathered outside tents, on lawn chairs, sitting in the middle of empty streets, sang their hymns. One phrase in Creole could be heard repeatedly both inside and outside the hospital walls, as if those voicing the words were trying to make sense of the madness around them.
'Beni Swa Leternel,' they sang. 'Blessed be the Lord.'" (NY Times)
Beautiful things are happening too. Organizations are immediately jumping in with aid, Twitter was abuzz with calls for donations and help and prayer. Hope's kind of like that, creeping into the darkness to fill it with light. I want to believe that in the end, love and grace win.
I'm sure we all want to help... and I'd encourage you to first, pray. Then give something away... to The Red Cross (you can give $10 just by texting Haiti to 90999!), World Vision, Compassion International, or Samaritan's Purse to help with the relief effort.It may not seem like much, but anything and everything helps.
