Eric Kimmel & Greek myths

I reviewed The McElderry Book of Greek Myths a couple of months ago along with Charles R. Smith's The Mighty Twelve and Lynn Curlee's Mythological Creatures. At the time I was quite pleased to have three gorgeous books on myths and mythological creatures land in my lap and saw this as a renaissance for one of the standard subjects in children's and teen publishing.

Basically I was thinking that as the myths never go out of style and every kid in the world ends up learning them at some point, it was awesome to see publishers revising the rather dry standards we've all grown up with. (We all love D'Aulaire's but if you're looking for attitude in those retellings you won't find it.) Also, very young children (kindergarten age) are often ready for the myths, but colorful illustrations are pretty much mandatory for that crowd. While I enjoyed all three of the books I reviewed (and my son did as well), it was Eric Kimmel's retelling in the McElderry book, along with Pep Montserrat's outstanding illustrations, that really stood out. I naively thought that Kimmel was likely on his way to a whole series of books on the subject and happily settled back to wait for the next entry (hopefully on the Norse myths).

Unfortunately, my literary optimism this time was dead wrong.

I can't begin to express, as a reader and parent, how disappointed I am in Simon & Schuster for not continuing this series. Kimmel did a great job of including not only the "standards" (Persephone & Hades, Theseus & the Minotaur, Daedelus & Icarus) but also some lesser known myths such as Prometheus and Pygmalion & Galatea. He also retold them all in a manner that injected a lot of fresh blood into the tales. As I wrote last summer: Kimmel is not writing adoring tales but shows both the nobility and pettiness of everyone involved and will likely cause readers to identify quite a bit with his subjects. Midas truly is a ninny here, Medea is crazy, and Ariadne gets her due for providing her critical assistance against the Minotaur.

These are plainly 21st century versions of old stories - the tales have not changed dramatically but Kimmel allows himself to consider just why some of the characters behaved in a certain way. Theseus is a bit of a cad and Icarus not merely thoughtless for flying so close to the sun, but more wistful at the chance to attain great heights after years of imprisonment. Orpheus and Eurydice have a love that knows no bounds and this second meeting with Hades and Persephone merely solidifies what careful readers will have already gathered from their tale: that sometimes opposites do attract and Hell's ruler is a lot more complicated then you might think. (How this tale ended up with a happy ending I'll never know, but it did and is one of my favorites.)

Montserrat's deeply emotional and richly colored illustrations perfectly match the depth that Kimmel attains with his words. Altogether, The McElderry Book of Greek Myths was the sort of gift package that I could see as perfect reading aloud to young children (as I have done, more than once) while also working well for older reluctant readers or those just starting to learn about the myths and looking to get their feet wet slowly before diving into Edith Hamilton. This is a timeless book and I don't say that lightly. I could see Kimmel and Montserrat's work appealing to children over a period of decades just as those have come before them have managed to do. That is why I was so surprised to hear that the book is not going to have a sequel, a decision that seems remarkably short-sighted to me.

But then again maybe I shouldn't be surprised since no one seems to look beyond six months when planning anything in this blasted country anymore. (And I say with all the love of a true American.)

So here's the deal. The book has apparently not sold enough copies to justify another. Why anyone would look at sales figures in only one year for a book on myths and use that to predict future earnings I will never understand as it is a subject that everyone and their third cousin knows will never go out of style. I managed to pick up an out-of-print picture book on Norse myths while I was at Powells for the conference but although my son is happy to hear them, he has already mentioned that it is not as good as his favorite. You want to know the biggest irony? Powells had more than a dozen copies of The McElderry Book of Greek Myths facing out in the children's folklore section. Clearly they can see the book has a lot of appeal for their customers. Maybe someone should make a phone call to the powers-that-be at Simon and Schuster and suggest they reconsider their decision.

In the meantime we will return to Persephone, Hades and crew again in my house and wish that Eric Kimmel and Pep Montserrat were able to entertain us with other titles as well. When two talents fit together so well you would think a publisher would celebrate their synergy and reward them - and the reading public - with more chances to shine. An opportunity is being wasted here and I can't believe I'm the only parent to see it go by.

Read The Full Article:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ChasingRay/~3/412405621/eric_kimmel_greek_myths.ht
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Andrew Martin on BBC4

Andrew Martin who writes the Jim Stringer railway series set in the early part of the twentieth century is presenting a programme on BBC4, Between the Lines: Railways in Fiction and Film:

Novelist Andrew Martin presents a documentary examining how the train and the railways came to shape the work of writers and film-makers.

At the beginning of the railway age, locomotives were seen as frightening and unnatural - Wordsworth decried the destruction of the countryside, while Dickens wrote about locomotives as murderous brutes, bent on the destruction of mere humans.

Martin traces how trains gradually began to be accepted - Holmes and Watson were frequent passengers - until by the time of The Railway Children they were something to be loved, a symbol of innocence and Englishness. He shows how trains made for unforgettable cinema in The 39 Steps and Brief Encounter, and how when the railways fell out of favour after the 1950s, their plight was highlighted in the films of John Betjeman.

Finally, Martin asks whether, in the 21st century, Britain's railways can still stir and inspire artists.

The first showing is 9pm Thursday evening but there are several repeats and presumably iplayer if you don't get BBC4.

I've also discovered an interview with Andrew Martin on his publisher, Faber & Faber's site.

Read The Full Article:
http://eurocrime.blogspot.com/2008/10/andrew-martin-on-bbc4.html

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Blog Blog Blog

Blogging is a tough business, and it's only getting tougher--projected drops in advertising could soon rewire the blogosphere.

Even book executives are pondering the future of this mysterious art. Debbie Stier, Associate Publisher at HarperStudio, confessed that she never imagined what sort of mental gymnastics authors endured following her digital evangelism:

"First of all, it's really hard. Do you know how many times I told authors, without batting an eye, 'Blog Blog Blog.' I feel so guilty now that I've discovered how hard it is to be 'on' when someone says 'go.'"

After a few weeks in the driver's seat of a blog, Stier is looking for blogging advice from the Internets. GalleyCat suggests this RSS feed primer from Yen Cheong. What do you think? Help Stier and her authors answer the question: "What makes a good blog?"

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media

Read The Full Article:
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/on/blog_blog_blog_96632.asp?c=rss

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AvantGuild: Alexandra Machinist Is Ready for Your
Queries

In this week's installment of mediabistro.com's "Pitching an Agent," M. David Hornbuckle visits the Linda Chester Agency, where Alexandra Machinist (right) is actively looking for new authors, with "a particular affinity for historical fiction, plot-driven literary fiction, women's fiction that straddles the line of commercial and literary, narrative nonfiction, and revealing (but not self-indulgent) memoir." She's willing to search through the slush pile, but if you're going to contact her directly, make sure to explain why you think she might be the agent for you.

This article is one of several mediabistro.com features exclusively available to AvantGuild subscribers. If you're not a member yet, you can register for $59 a year, and start reading those articles, receive discounts on mediabistro.com seminars and workshops, and get all sorts of other swell bonuses.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media

Read The Full Article:
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/agents/avantguild_alexandra_machinist_is_rea
dy_for_your_queries_96633.asp?c=rss

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The Smart Set: Lauren Cerand’s weekly
events

The Smart Set is a weekly feature, compiled and posted by Lauren Cerand, that usually appears Mondays at 12:30 pm, and highlights the best of the week to come. Special favor is given to New York?s independent booksellers and venues, and low-cost and free events. Please send details to Ms. Cerand at lauren [at] maudnewton.com by the Thursday prior to publication. Due to the volume of submissions, events cannot be considered unless the date appears in the subject line of your message.
 

MON OCT 6: Please join us for “Green is the New Black,” a talk on next-wave trends in architecture with s_Lab’s Steffen Lehmann and MoMA’s Andres Lepik. Part of the Goethe-Institut NY’s “What is Green Architecture?” series [which, full disclosure as always, is one of my publicity projects], this event will take place at the gorgeous new Galapagos Art Space in DUMBO — NYC’s first LEED certified “green” cultural venue! 7PM, FREE.

TUE OCT 7: “Lower Manhattan Cultural Council and Poetry Society of America present Poems & Pints, six evenings with premier American poets at the historic Fraunces Tavern in downtown New York City. Each evening, two poets read their own works and favorite poems by other writers. The selection of highly distinguished participating poets include current and past Poet Laureates as well as recipients of Pulitzer, Juniper, and Pushcart prizes and coveted awards such as the T.S. Eliot and Edgar Allen Poe Awards and Lamont Poetry Selection by The Academy of American Poets. The poetry readings will take place in the venerable surroundings of the Nichols Room at Fraunces Tavern, a well-known meeting place since 1762 as well as the site of Washington?s farewell address and the first State and War Departments. Admission to all readings is free.” The series kicks off with Anna Rabinowitz and Rosanna Warren. 6:30PM, FREE.

WED OCT 8: “Join Mosaic Literary Magazine as we celebrate ten years of presenting the literary arts by writers of African descent. This series of readings will display the diversity of content Mosaic has showcased since 1998.” On Wednesday evening, novelist Tayari Jones discusses her approach to fiction in conversation with poet Nicole Sealey [Full disclosure: Jones is one of my publicity clients]. At MoCADA - The Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts… “Brooklyn?s first museum devoted to utilizing the visual arts as a medium to address, discuss, debate and resolve contemporary social, political and economic issues affecting people of the African Diaspora.” 6:30, FREE.

THU OCT 9: “Cassandra Wilson, the iconic vocalist, discusses her prolific career as a bandleader, songwriter, and producer with Gary Giddins. Over the course of nineteen solo outings, including the Grammy Award-winning New Moon Daughter, Wilson has pushed the boundaries of jazz song and captivated audiences with her original improvisations and a repertory ranging from avant-garde jazz to funk. Gary Giddins is the author of nine books, including Natural Selection: Gary Giddins on Comedy, Film, Music and Books; Bing Crosby: A Pocketful of Dreams-The Early Years; and Visions of Jazz: The First Century, for which he won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Criticism.” At the Elebash Recital Hall, The Graduate Center, CUNY, 365 Fifth Ave (btwn 34th & 35th). 6:30PM, FREE.

FRI OCT 10: “Between the world wars, no two cities engaged in a more fertile conversation than Paris, capital of 19th-century refinement, and New York, the upstart challenger that represented 20th-century dynamism.” Explore the factors that led to your crush on the Chrysler Building at Paris/New York: Design Fashion Culture 1925-1940at the Museum of the City of New York.

WEEKEND: Don’t miss the “I Kiffe NY” festival of French urban culture of-the-mo’, at venues all around the city.

Read The Full Article:
http://maudnewton.com/blog/?p=8929

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Video: Writing and Eating in a Recession

Mingling with writers, producers, and a legal bordello owner, authors Patrick Buckley and Lily Binns celebrated the release of their new book, The Hungry Scientist Handbook on Friday.

Subtitled Electric Birthday Cakes, Edible Origami, and Other DIY Projects for Techies, Tinkerers, and Foodies, the book was the brainchild of an engineer and his creative friends. As the country shuffles into a recession, these two famished authors hope that their science book can help readers.

At the Manhattan party, favors included liquid nitrogen ice cream, edible lingerie, and a wired pastry. The party was hosted by pioneering editor, Judith Regan, Buckley's proud mother. Among the guests was Bunny Ranch owner Dennis Hof, the brothel owner featured on the HBO show, Cathouse.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media

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http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/party_hopping/video_writing_and_eating_in_a_
recession_96603.asp?c=rss

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Enter The Daily Beast

Former New Yorker editor Tina Brown’s The Daily Beast — which takes its name from Evelyn Waugh’s Scoop — has launched.

As a longtime admirer of Brown (in a city where contempt for powerful women who are actually smart sometimes seems de rigueur), I was excited when my friend Bryan Keefer invited me to be part of the site’s Buzz Board. Today’s recommendations include Bill Clinton on “three bailout-related books: Michael Heller’s Gridlock Economy (about hoarding resources), David M. Smick’s The World Is Curved (why things could get much worse), and Larry M. Bartel’s Unequal Democracy (on how partisanship has hurt the poor).”

Also on the board: Christiane Amanpour, Qubad Talabani, and many others, including, from the looks of it (top right), Rachel Maddow(!).
 

Rather than starting a new post, while we’re on the subject of the bailout, I’ll just tack this here: Be sure to read about the 2004 SEC meeting in which investment bank leaders — including Paulson — convinced the agency to “unshackle billions of dollars held in reserve as a cushion against losses on their investments.”

The fox, Max observes (in email), is guarding the henhouse. Yep, says GMB, and “he’s hungry for his chicken dinner.”

Read The Full Article:
http://maudnewton.com/blog/?p=8928

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Enter The Daily Beast, a Tina Brown production

Former New Yorker editor Tina Brown’s The Daily Beast — which takes its name from Evelyn Waugh’s Scoop — has launched.

As a longtime admirer of Brown in a city where contempt for powerful women who are actually smart sometimes seems de rigueur, I was thrilled when my friend Bryan Keefer invited me to be part of the site’s Buzz Board. Today’s recommendations include Bill Clinton on “three bailout-related books: Michael Heller’s Gridlock Economy (about hoarding resources), David M. Smick’s The World Is Curved (why things could get much worse), and Larry M. Bartel’s Unequal Democracy (on how partisanship has hurt the poor).”

Also on the board: Christiane Amanpour, Qubad Talabani, and many others, including, from the looks of it (top right), Rachel Maddow(!).
 

Rather than starting a new post, while we’re on the subject of the bailout, I’ll just tack this here: Be sure to read about the 2004 SEC meeting in which investment bank leaders — including Paulson — convinced the agency to “unshackle billions of dollars held in reserve as a cushion against losses on their investments.”

The fox, Max observes (in email), is guarding the henhouse. Yep, says GMB, and “he’s hungry for his chicken dinner.”

Read The Full Article:
http://maudnewton.com/blog/?p=8928

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Republicans vs. words

An interesting piece in the New Yorker on how the Republican campaign downstairs has moved from battling certain words (like “liberal”) to reviling all “words” in a quest to discredit Obama, that shameless user of words. They’re trying to divide the populace into those who value “words” and those who… um, what, exactly? Scratch their armpits and hoot as they fling poo? Isn’t this a little insulting? Listen, we’re going to use our elitist “words” to tell you how much we appreciate that you’re an illiterate, lever-pulling monkey who’ll do anything we say because of the state and era you were raised in. But don’t get us wrong, despite the fact that we’re using them, we are fully aware they suck and that you hate them as much as we do. Don’t you, Bobo? Good boy.

In recent elections, the Republican hate word has been ?liberal,? or ?Massachusetts,? or ?Gore.? In this election, it has increasingly been ?words.? Barack Obama has been denounced again and again as a privileged wordsmith, a man of mere words who has ?authored? two books (to use Sarah Palin?s verb), and done little else. The leathery extremist Phyllis Schlafly had this to say, at the Republican Convention, about Palin: ?I like her because she?s a woman who?s worked with her hands, which Barack Obama never did, he was just an élitist who worked with words.? The fresher-faced extremist Rick Santorum, a former Republican senator, called Obama ?just a person of words,? adding, ?Words are everything to him.? The once bipartisan campaign adviser Dick Morris and his wife and co-writer, Eileen McGann, argue that the McCain camp, in true Rovian fashion, is ?using the Democrat?s articulateness against him? (along with his education, his popularity, his intelligence, his wife?pretty much everything but his height, though it may come to that). John McCain?s threatened cancellation of the first Presidential debate was the ultimate defiance, by action, of words; sure enough, afterward conservatives manfully disdained Barack Obama?s ?book knowledge.? To have seen the mountains of Waziristan with one?s own eyes?that is everything.

Doesn?t this reflect a deep suspicion of language itself? It?s as if Republican practitioners saw words the way Captain Ahab saw ?all visible objects??as ?pasteboard masks,? concealing acts and deeds and things?and, like Ahab, were bent on striking through those masks. The Melvillean atmosphere may not be accidental, since, beyond the familiar American anti-intellectualism?to work with words is not to work at all?there?s a residual Puritanism. The letter killeth, as St. Paul has it, but the spirit giveth life. (In that first debate, McCain twice charged his opponent with the misdeed of ?parsing words.?) In this vision, there is something Pharisaical about words. They confuse, they corrupt; they get in the way of Jesus.

Read The Full Article:
http://www.bookninja.com/?p=4575

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Judge for Yourself: Jewel of Medina in U.S.
Bookstores

The controversy surrounding Sherry Jones's The Jewel of Medina, a novel in which the youngest wife of the Muslim prophet Muhammad tells the story of their marriage from her perspective, intensified last week, after an attempt to firebomb the book's British publisher created momentary uncertainty about whether that edition would go forward (it will) and raised security concerns at the offices of Beaufort Books, the novel's American publisher. Ultimately, Beaufort—which picked up the book after Random House, citing its own security concerns, dropped it—decided to move the publication date up so that it would be available in bookstores starting today. "There's a lot of talk about what is and isn't in the book by people who haven't read it," Jones explained as we chatted in a café near Beaufort's Manhattan offices Friday afternoon. "Until people read it, the dialogue can't move on. The discussion cannot progress."

When American forces invaded Afghanistan seven years ago, in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks of 9/11, as supporters declared that the intervention would end the repression of women under the Taliban's interpretations of Islamic doctrine, Jones wanted to learn more. She read the first two books she could find on women and Islam—Geraldine Brooks's Nine Parts of Desire and Jan Goodwin's Price of Honor—both of which mentioned the story of A'isha. "I was just fascinated by her tale," Jones recalled. "I was drawn to her immediately; I felt empathy and compassion for her." She began writing the novel that became The Jewel of Medina in an effort to better understand A'isha: "I asked myself, how does a young girl whose life is completely controlled by men transform into the leader and warrior and scholar that she became? So I gave her obstacles and temptations in the course of imagining how she would grow."

The problem (as we see it) stems from the flagrant mischaracterization of the novel by Islamic studies professor Denise Spellberg, whom Ballantine Books had approached hoping for a blurb, as "soft core pornography" and anti-Muslim propaganda; Spellberg's zealous efforts to alert Muslims to the book's impending publication were particularly effective in giving the public a distorted impression of its contents. And we do mean distorted: Now that we've read the novel for ourselves, and seen precisely two paragraphs that might be construed as sexually explicit (and that's being extremely generous to one of them), Jones deserves a public apology from Spellberg for her public misrepresentations. (Jones has asked Spellberg to recant; she told us Friday that repeated efforts to contact her detractor have met with silence.)

continued...

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media

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http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/authors/judge_for_yourself_jewel_of_medina_i
n_us_bookstores_96577.asp?c=rss

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