tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531Mon, 16 Nov 2009 03:31:09 +0000http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (K)Blogger361125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-2875504591307120596Mon, 16 Nov 2009 03:31:00 +00002009-11-15T20:31:09.971-07:00author: neil gaimantype: fiction (short)review: bookstype: fiction (young adult)Neil Gaiman's M is for Magic was a disappointment. I hate to say that because I love Gaiman and don't want to feel that way. And generally his books are so good that when I feel kind of iffy about something, I feel like it must be my fault rather than his. How could it be my fault when an author's book doesn't live up to my expectations? Well, in this case, I didn't notice that it was a http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/11/review-m-is-for-magic-by-neil-gaiman.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-826847342397127793Sat, 14 Nov 2009 04:26:00 +00002009-11-13T21:26:23.987-07:00type: fictionreview: booksauthor: william gibson When William Gibson first wrote his cyberpunk novels, Neuromancer and the rest, in the early 80s the idea of the internet, of cyberspace, was so new and unknown that it might have turned into anything. It was all (almost all) speculation then, what the technology might become. Now that the internet has become a ubiquitous presence in nearly everyone's life, I don't think there's so much room tohttp://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/11/review-pattern-recognition-by-william.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-3884855321677592039Thu, 12 Nov 2009 03:02:00 +00002009-11-11T20:02:37.776-07:00type: quilt blocktechnique: fabric origamiproject: origami gardenproject: modify tradition I spent a massive amount of time today crawling around hands-and-knees on the floor pinning this sucker back together. I did it once before, two years ago, but after leaving the quilt rolled up and/or stuffed into one of those zip-up pillow bags and/or shoved from one storage location to another, it was in very wrinkled shape. So yesterday, besides sewing all those blocks for Modify http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/11/origami-quilt-attempt-2.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-6546074312099402577Wed, 11 Nov 2009 02:28:00 +00002009-11-11T16:25:19.079-07:00type: quilt blockstatus: work in progressproject: modify tradition I've started following a new quilting blog called Modify Tradition, which is attempting to create a modern looking sampler quilt using traditional blocks. They're talking a lot about different elements that often appear in modern quilts, most of which has been pretty interesting. In any case, below the cut will be close-ups of each of the blocks and a little blurb about each. So first uphttp://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/11/modify-tradition.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-4277558045590655054Mon, 09 Nov 2009 00:41:00 +00002009-11-10T19:42:19.141-07:00it's all part of the processother: blog notesSo I decided to blend my three blogs here into one. I haven't been keeping any of them as up to date as I'd like, so I suppose I thought maybe I'd keep on top of it a bit better if I don't feel as if I have so many things to tackle. If I update once a week on any of my given subjects - books, crafts, or food - I think I'll be happier than if I feel that I need to do something with all three. http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/11/notes-about-this-blog.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-7021748659097228961Mon, 26 Oct 2009 03:23:00 +00002009-11-08T18:38:16.373-07:00type: fictiongenre: thrillerauthor: peter straub One of my favourite websites, The AV Club has a monthly book club (link leads directly there), which I've never quite managed to participate in because either the book hasn't arrived on time, I haven't been interested in the book, or I haven't finished reading the book by the discussion dates. (In that last case was the lovely Little, Big by John Crowley. I never did write about that book http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/10/review-ghost-story-by-peter-straub.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-637363305158256734Wed, 16 Sep 2009 05:49:00 +00002009-11-08T18:39:27.571-07:00food: side: potatofood: grains: ricefood: side: pilaffood: vegetarianfood: legumes So it's been a while. I don't know. You know, I cooked and took pictures and blah blah blah but I guess I needed a break. Maybe I still do. We'll see what happens, I suppose. I've had a craving for Indian food for a while and the last time I tried to make it - Butter Chicken from scratch - it really didn't work out. I mean, it was okay, but I do think my garam masala is dead (I don't make my http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/09/channa-masala-with-curried-potatoes-and.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-3856941932750715294Mon, 17 Aug 2009 22:39:00 +00002009-11-08T18:40:17.732-07:00author: orson scott cardtype: fictionreview: booksgenre: science fiction When I bought Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game (well, "The Ender Quartet," really) I knew next to nothing about it. I knew it is a highly regarded science fiction novel, originally published when I was a young child. (The story the novel was based on was published in 1977, the novel in 1985.) I knew too that it seemed to be a polarizing book – people loved it or hated it without so many opinions http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/08/review-ender-game-by-orson-scott-card.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-1121286143161602335Sat, 15 Aug 2009 04:39:00 +00002009-11-08T18:40:54.146-07:00type: fictionreview: booksauthor: lawrence hill Lawrence Hill's The Book of Negroes was the winner of Canada Reads 2009 on CBC radio. Basically, the idea behind Canada Reads is that a panel of famous Canadians each choose a book by a Canadian author, which they think Canadians should read. On the radio program, the panellists defend their choices, eventually eliminating four of the books and choosing a winner. I'm not really sure where it http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/08/review-book-of-negroes-by-lawrence-hill.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-1479801321674563439Sat, 01 Aug 2009 04:19:00 +00002009-11-08T18:42:26.696-07:00type: fictionauthor: daniel handlerreview: books There's not a lot I won't try if given the right incentive, so when a co-worker friend offered me a hard-cover copy of Daniel Handler's Adverbs, free, since she couldn't remember either buying it or borrowing it, I decided to give it a try. I liked A Series of Unfortunate Events (with some reservations), so why not a novel for adults by the same guy? She did warn me that it was impossibly http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/07/review-adverbs-by-daniel-handler.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-6079943764237579410Sat, 01 Aug 2009 03:43:00 +00002009-11-08T18:44:43.402-07:00type: fictionreview: booksauthor: miriam toews So Miriam Toews' The Flying Troutmans. I was expecting, because of previous experience with Toews' work, that this would be a story about Mennonites and possibly also the clash between their culture and Canadian culture. I wouldn't have been bothered if that's what I'd gotten because I quite enjoyed A Complicated Kindness and it's something that Toews does well, that sense of connection to a http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/07/review-flying-troutmans-by-miriam-toews.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-3543859629904752489Fri, 31 Jul 2009 03:23:00 +00002009-11-08T18:45:31.712-07:00author: neil gaimanreview: bookstype: fiction (young adult)author: michael reavesgenre: fantasy Like a lot of people, I'm a sucker for mostly anything with Neil Gaiman's name on it. (Not so much movie tie-ins or merchandise, but otherwise.) My latest bout of Gaiman-induced spending resulted in my owning M is for Magic and Interworld, a novel co-written with Michael Reaves. Interworld is an adventure story for pre-teens (at least it read about that level to me) featuring Joey Harker, a http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/07/review-interworld-by-neil-gaiman-and.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-8551409749683592939Mon, 27 Jul 2009 03:13:00 +00002009-11-08T08:38:20.307-07:00type: non-fictionauthor: daniel tammettype: memoir/biographyTwo memoirs in such a short period of time is unusual for me, and two dealing with brain disorders no less. The first, of course, was The Man who Forgot How to Read, which I reviewed about a month ago, but read around the same time as this, Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet. This book deals with the way Savant syndrome, a form of Asperger's syndrome, and Synaesthesia combined in Tammet, record http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/07/review-born-on-blue-day-by-daniel.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-5348539481258594705Mon, 27 Jul 2009 01:00:00 +00002009-11-08T18:01:00.515-07:00type: fictionreview: booksauthor: douglas coupland[I wrote this review in 2007. Just digging up some old stuff to add to the collection here. It might be interesting to read some of these books again and see if I've got a different perspective now. Probably I won't bother though.] I read most of Douglas Coupland's Eleanor Rigby in one go last night, laying in the bathtub and letting the water get cold around me. I think I absorbed a pound of http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/07/retread-review-eleanor-rigby-by-douglas.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-8315188897351427552Mon, 27 Jul 2009 00:52:00 +00002009-11-08T17:59:26.775-07:00type: fictionreview: booksauthor: douglas coupland So jPod. jPod was my most recent favourite-new-tv-show-that's-bound-to-be-cancelled. And was. There were a lot of problems with jPod, mainly related to the fact that CBC was staffed by a bunch of poor-decision making tools. They advertised, but not enough that I ever learned what date/time the show as to premiere or even air. Then they moved it to a new night, mid-season, but once again didn't http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/07/review-jpod-by-douglas-coupland.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-1612574152850842898Fri, 24 Jul 2009 03:50:00 +00002009-11-08T08:38:20.314-07:00type: fictionreview: booksauthor: kurt vonnegutKurt Vonnegut is one of those iconic American writers who it feels like everything I know has read except me. I recently bought a boat-load of books (well, okay, 11 or 12 of them, which fit in a smallish box delivered from an online bookseller's warehouse in Ontario), including Slaughterhouse-Five. I don't know why I choose that book in particular and I didn't even read a synopsis before buying http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/07/review-slaughterhouse-five-by-kurt.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-4450529438157034602Fri, 24 Jul 2009 02:54:00 +00002009-11-08T08:38:20.317-07:00author: david sedarisreview: bookstype: non-fictiontype: humourtype: memoir/biographyWhen You are Engulfed in Flames is the 3rd book from David Sedaris that I've read. The first was Me Talk Pretty One Day, which had me laughing like a maniac in public places. It was a great experience and sing I'd come quite late to his books, I had several others to choose from to read next. Unfortunately, I picked up Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, which was only so-so. I can't really http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/07/review-when-you-are-engulfed-in-flames.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-9188878553042742616Sun, 19 Jul 2009 23:06:00 +00002009-11-08T08:40:04.957-07:00type: bag or pursestatus: complete A while back now, I made a set of hand bags for a craft exchange I was doing online. I could make anything I wanted, and when I found this gorgeous collection of fabrics - August Fields from Amy Butler - it sort of snapped right into place. What I loved about it, especially, is how summery it is. The colours are gorgeous and the prints fun and if I'd made the bags a bit bigger, they're the http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-fields-handbags.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-9064798097501916358Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:55:00 +00002009-11-08T08:38:20.319-07:00type: fictionreview: booksauthor: ali smithI haven't got a particularly interesting story about how I came to read Ali Smith's The Accidental. I've never read any of her novels or stories before and I only got the book because it was free in a Buy 3 Get 1 Free sale. I couldn't find a fourth book I was interested in, but this one had a cover that reminded me of the cover of Jeffery Eugenides' The Virgin Suicides, so why not?It's quite http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/06/review-accidental-by-ali-smith.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-2481967040207009620Mon, 29 Jun 2009 22:13:00 +00002009-11-08T08:38:20.322-07:00author: trenton lee stewartreview: bookstype: fiction (young adult)I've been trying for two weeks to write a review of The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart, but I invariably wind up with three pages that say nothing at all. Then I start over and the same thing happens again. It's driving me a little bit mad. The book is a children's or young adult adventure novel with elements of detective fiction and science fiction. It's a kind of hybrid I http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/06/review-mysterious-benedict-society-by.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-2753046095062897123Mon, 29 Jun 2009 22:03:00 +00002009-11-08T08:38:20.325-07:00review: bookstype: fiction (young adult)author: rick riordangenre: fantasyI pretty well always like young adult fantasy. Even though they're often very predictable, adventure stories are just fun. So the entertainment value is high and they let me indulge in the things I like about all fantasy – world creation, interesting magic (even if it's not called that), even the comfort of archetypal characters and the tropes of the genre and seeing them played with – without http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/06/review-lightning-thief-by-rick-riordan.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-6432197920181404486Sat, 27 Jun 2009 16:54:00 +00002009-11-08T08:40:04.976-07:00type: quilt blockstatus: work in progressproject: botm 08-09community: livejournal We've fallen a little behind in our block of the month on Livejournal due to some family problems with the person who has put together the BotM. It seems like things are getting better for her, so hopefully the rest of the year will be an improvement on the beginning. In any case, she recently posted blocks for April and May, so those two are included in this collection of eight blocks. http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/06/200809-block-of-month-first-eight.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-7243529721247412726Sat, 20 Jun 2009 20:37:00 +00002009-11-08T08:38:20.327-07:00review: booksartist: jillian tamakiauthor: mariko tamakitype: graphic novelI tend not to read a lot of graphic novels. I enjoy some of them and I love the combination of art and story, but so much of what I encounter seems either to be men's wank fodder or anti-social in a way that annoys me or too much the superhero thing or… or… or… So on CBC's website, I saw that the online book club was reading Skim, a graphic novel by cousins Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki. Theirhttp://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/06/review-skim-by-mariko-tamaki-and.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-9147173452423356923Sat, 20 Jun 2009 19:26:00 +00002009-11-08T08:38:20.329-07:00review: booksauthor: howard engeltype: non-fictiontype: memoir/biographyI have occasional, passing bouts of interest in memoirs and auto/biographers, but generally only in cases where I'm already a fan of the author or subject. I quite loved Michael Ondaatje's Running in the Family, for example, but it's pretty unlikely that I'd have read it if I hadn't already read and loved his novels. A month ago, I'd never heard of Howard Engel, so The Man who Forgot How to Read http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/06/review-man-who-forgot-how-to-read-by.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4131868705831631531.post-8947256943137224911Sat, 20 Jun 2009 02:05:00 +00002009-11-08T18:24:35.860-07:00food: side: potatofood: protein: beeffood: vegetarianfood: protein: fish/seafood Tonight's dinner (not pictured) was a comedy of errors, without any of the redeeming comedic value. (Meat gone off, a burned sauce, boiling water spilled on my tummy...) I started my evening tired, hungry and not feeling that well, and now I've lost two hours, am still tired, still hungry, still don't feel well, AND I have a burned stomach. Plus a sink full of dishes to wash. Sigh.I've not http://cayennesea.blogspot.com/2009/06/vegetarian-spring-rolls.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (K)0