Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Sitting on Reviews and Current Distrations

Where are the reviews?
There haven't been a whole lot of book reviews here lately. I've missed the last two nonfiction Mondays. I have a stack of books for review that stands nearly as tall as my desk. So, what gives?

Well, I'm actually holding a huge number of them for April and National Poetry Month. Georgia Heard's book Falling Down the Page: A Book of List Poems arrived today. Page 23 has a poem by our very own Wild Rose Reader, Elaine Magliaro! The book opens vertically and contains delightful poems from cover to cover.

I also recently received a copy of Bella & Bean by Rebecca Kai Dotlich, which received a rave review at A Year of Reading and a lovely mention at Laura Purdie Salas' blog. I've been swooning over the photographs taken by Jason Stemple in one of Jane Yolen's newest books, A Mirror to Nature: Poems About Reflection. (Jason is Jane's son, by the way.) The poems are pretty swoon-worthy too! In the car William and I have been listening to a selection of poems from Kenn Nesbitt's soon-to-be released book My Hippo Has the Hiccups: And Other Poems. They are giggle-inducing and there are several that have been played over and over again.

I also have an enormous stack of books from interlibrary loan on the couch in my office. (Don't get all excited, it's a really old piece of cargo furniture.) There are close to 70 poetry books from Adoff to Yolen with lots of amazing writers in between.

This is my way of saying I'm working really hard on my super secret poetry project for April, so it's stealing a bit of my regular blog time now.

Distractions
There's another reason my blogging has been a bit slow (besides my day job taking up an inordinate amount of time right now). I've been spending my evenings rehearsing for How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, the university musical in which I have a small role. We just finished blocking the first act last night. Woohoo! Given the fact that our first performance is April 10, this is a very good thing. I'm tired and sore (lots of singing and dancing), but having LOTS of fun. The cast is largely composed of undergrads and they are terrific.

So, that's why the pages are cluttered with poetry these days. It's easy to read and write in the little bits of time I can steal away each day. However, something BIG is coming. I hope you're ready for it, because I know I am!

5 comments:

  1. Okay, I'm STILL totting up the list... Gymnast... Singer... Dancer... Poet... Again: Is there anything you can't do?!

    Looking forward to April!

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  2. Oh Tanita, there are MANY things I can't do! I have such a strong math and science bent (that good old left-brain stuff) that I think the writing and singing is the yin to my yang.

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  3. Tricia,

    I am so far behind with all my plans for National Poetry Month...with writing and posting books reviews, etc. I'm spending so much time writing poetical rants for my new blog Political Verses. I just can't help myself. I had a writing dry spell for so long! Now, I'm feeling inspired to write again. I don't want to ignore the poetic writing urge when it comes my way. I'm feeling pumped!

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  4. Break a leg, Tricia. That's awesome that you're onstage. Have fun!

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  5. Tricia,

    I really haven't a clue how you accomplish so much. I'm retired and I can't seem to do half as much as you.

    I'm looking forward to National Poetry Month at the Miss Rumphius Effect!

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