Summaries and etc

Possessing The Secret of Joy by Alice Walker was an eye opening book. Even though I am aware of what happens with female genital mutilation aka female circumcision (sp?), I wasn’t prepared for the psychological damage that these girls and women who have this procedure done to them. The book is divided into twenty-one parts with short sections  coming from three characters from Walker’s The Color Purple . It’s an amazing book.

I finished reading Edwidge Danticat’s Breath, Eyes, Memory . It is a moving and interesting story about a Haitian woman starting to make since of the shady areas of her childhood and dealing with her own demons while getting to know her mother and trying to help her. It didn’t resonate with me, but it was enjoyable because I got to learn something about the culture of Haiti from a small glimpse that she provided in her novel. I want to read her short story collection.

The Greenman anthology is filled with interesting stories so far. I haven’t finished it, but I will in the next couple of days. My favorite story that I have read yet is by Tanith Lee. It’s a high fantasy story which is what I’m interested in writing myself. It’s called " Among the Leaves So Green". I adore her writing style, and I might check out what her novels. If I’m not mistaken, I remember seeing her name on a few books in the fantasy section in Borders. However, I was overwhelmed by the sheer amount to pick from to actually buy something. I get intimidated easily by a daunting selection.

Does anyone else get caught up fleshing out possible characters while doing chores or things that don’t require much thought. For example, this happens when I’m knitting scarves.