From: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com (aml-list-digest) To: aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Subject: aml-list-digest V1 #285 Reply-To: aml-list Sender: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Errors-To: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk aml-list-digest Monday, March 26 2001 Volume 01 : Number 285 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 11:05:48 -0700 From: Barbara Hume Subject: Re: [AML] Questions for Anne Perry >This caused me to question my long-held position of "Damn the audience! >Full steam ahead!" I've said before that if someone were wrongly >influenced by something I wrote, then it would be entirely their fault. >On the other hand, if that someone turned out to be one of my children >... > >I'm not so sure anymore. I'm very happy that you are rethinking your position on this issue. I don't want it to be one of my children, either. barbara hume - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 11:39:11 -0700 From: "Brent J. Rowley" Subject: Re: [AML] Writing Schedules Rachel Nunes wrote: > > >5. Wear modest pajamas when you are writing. I can attest to the fact that she really DOES. I've been to her door at mid-morning, and she has very nice ... uhhumm ... modest ... jammies. (her hair was a disaster, but who's counting?) > Ronn Blankenship wrote: > This pretty much only works for women. When we men answer the door at > mid-day in our pajamas, we are asked "Are you sick?" (The assumption being > that you should be at a "real" job -- i.e., one not performed at home -- at > least between 8 am and 5 pm weekdays.) Sweats are a little better, but you > still look as if you are home sick (or worse, unemployed), especially if > you have not yet shaved that day. > My answer to that is: WHO CARES? When I get up, I put on sweats, a T-shirt, and thongs (the feet kind.). Those are my writing clothes, and I'm darn proud of it. And, since my REAL job is done mostly from home anyway, I can go a whole week sometimes without shaving and not even think about it. My real job pays the bills, but I'm proud to be a writer and proud to be "caught" in my writing clothes at the front door. - -BJ Rowley - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 12:52:07 -0700 From: "Scott Tarbet" Subject: [AML] Humor (was: Satire) Annette Lyon: > And President Hinkley himself is very funny on a regular basis, I think we're so used to seeing our leaders speaking at the Conference pulpit and reading their inspirational writings that we get a very one-dimensional impression of them. I was buds with one of President Hinkley's daughters in high school and was in and out of their home. The man is a hoot. You see glimmers of it in his public personna, but he's a genuinely happy, funny guy. > There ARE situations where humor is out of place. Laughing in sacrament > meeting is inappropriate, for example, Strenuously disagree. It might be inappropriate for the deacons to laugh and giggle and poke each other for no other reason that they are the age they are, but I can't see any way that it's inappropriate for a speaker to relate a funny story. Humor can teach and uplift every bit as well as tears. When I reported my mission I gave a talk I had carefully prepared to include both humor and pathos. I had several wonderful spiritual experiences to relate and I had a couple of pretty humorous ones that caused the congregation to laugh out loud. That night the bishop called me into his office and chastised me severely for causing laughter in church. And I do mean severely. Among other things he literally pounded the desk and yelled "Sacrament Meeting is a funeral for Jesus Christ!!" I was stunned absolutely speachless, an exceedingly rare condition for me ;-). After a long pause I said, "Bishop, my Savior isn't dead." I went home crying and shaking, left for BYU the next morning, and never attended that man's ward again. One of my personal heros, Bruiser McConkie, despite his monumental testimony, dour Conference stand demeanor, and huge intellectual attainments, drew a careful distinction once between reverence for things sacred and being what he called "long-faced Mormons". If God is love and we are that we might have joy, keeping ourselves artificially depressed is itself a species of sin. - -- Scott Tarbet - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 13:51:30 -0600 From: James Picht Subject: [AML] Humor (was: Satire) Annette Lyon wrote: > I'm not sure which leaders you refer to, but many of the leaders I am aware > of have a great sense of humor. Then you must have misunderstood them. We often treat as humorous those things we don't understand, perhaps as some sort of psychological defense mechanism. It's incongruous to think that a man with as many duties and as few years left as President Hinckley would dare to waste a second on the unnecessary or inconsequential. If he isn't preaching repentance and strengthening the church, he's wasting his time and the Lord's time, and surely he'll be smitten for it. He does have a nervous tic that occasionally makes it seem as if he's smiling or laughing, and so do others of the GAs, but it would be cruel and impious to laugh at them because of it. > Elder Oaks, although he can look quite stern (especially with his bald head), > is hilarious. Be very careful, and remember what happened to the children who noticed Elijah's bald head. There's nothing funny about baldness - it's a gift from God to those who have perfect heads (Jake Garn testified to that fact on the floor of the Senate), a disfiguring curse to those who don't. It's worse to notice your neighbor's bald head (unless it's a perfect head, in which case it's always appropriate to comment on it) than to make fun of a cripple or mock a Swede (not all of whom are lumberjacks, and the percentage of those who are and who actually wear women's underwear is smaller than you might think). > The point is that humor has a proper time and place. Of course. The place is in the privacy of your own home, and the time is after the children have gone to bed. You can legitimately tell all the jokes you want to then, and even draw smiley-faces on your spouse's tush, but wouldn't your time be better spent reading the scriptures and giving your children's toys to orphans? > There ARE situations where humor is out of place. Laughing in sacrament > meeting is inappropriate, for example... Well, further agreement. And why is laughter in sacrament meeting inappropriate? Because it drives away the spirit. Don't we want the spirit with us always? Then why drive it away during our other meetings? No joke has ever escaped my lips during a sacrament meeting talk, and I've occasionally been pained by the inappropriate laughter that's greeted my remarks. And neither have I ever used humor in an EQ lesson or in Sunday School, and I've started vigorously to chastise those who do. I think in the future we should focus on our Savior's passion, and when irreverant thoughts arise, we should mortify our flesh until they stop. To that end I've suggested to the bishop that a paddling room be designated where children might be disciplined. Not wishing good paddlings to be entirely wasted on children, I expect to make use of that room myself. > But in other settings, I'm willing to wager all the higher-ups crack jokes, or > at least laugh at others' jokes. Our leaders are not serious old coots, and we > don't need to > be, either. Hmm, you probably think they've known (biblically) their wives, too, for purposes other than procreation. They're really much better than that, and we should strive to be more like them. Now, if you'll excuse me, I feel a smile coming on, so it's time for my afternoon spanking. Jim Picht - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 12:57:11 -0700 From: "Scott Tarbet" Subject: RE: [AML] Mormon Reading of Poetry (was: Satire) > Other than the Moderator, how many here actually read the poetry in _Lord > of the Rings_ the first time through? > > -- Ronn! :) > > [MOD: I must confess: not me either. But then, I was 10 years old at the > time...] Me! Every word. Over and over until I got it. I was 13 or 14. Then I tried to write some like it. PU. - -- Scott Tarbet - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 15:07:23 -0600 From: Linda Adams Subject: [AML] Las Vegas Booksigning Hi all, I will be doing a booksigning (my first official one) at the Las Vegas Deseret Book Ladies' Night March 31st, 6-9 p.m., on the coattails of far more noted authors Margaret Young and Darius Gray. I'm pretty excited! I'll be thrilled to meet you, Margaret! (and Darius, but I don't think he's on the List, though?) I'll have my baby Rebekah with me too. Anyone on the list in the Las Vegas area who might come, let me know and I'll look for you, too. Linda Adams adamszoo@sprintmail.com http://home.sprintmail.com/~adamszoo - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 11:03:17 -0700 From: "Sharlee Glenn" Subject: Re: [AML] Writing Schedules I've been debating whether or not to jump into this conversation. Like Linda, and I would guess, like most mothers-of-young-children who are also trying to be writers, I have struggled with this issue. But I think I have finally come to peace with it--largely as a result of last year's vigorous "Women and Art" thread on this list. My own (very personal) solution has been to pull back from the writing--at least for the time being. I'm not advocating that this is THE answer, that this is what everyone in a similar situation should do. But it's what I'm doing. It is only three more years until my youngest child starts school. I can wait that long to get serious about a writing schedule. I really can. I have tremendous admiration for mothers with infants and toddlers who can maintain a writing schedule. Kudos to them! And I mean that sincerely. But I can't do it. And I've accepted that fact. I can't write for two to five hours every morning, stopping only to meet the demands of my young children. I'd be stopping every five minutes, and for hour-long stretches! After all, young children have more than physical demands. Children need to be played with, read to, tickled, and just plain watched (some, every waking minute!). The last time I tried to work on a project at the computer while my three year old was awake, he dumped an entire box (42 loads) of Tide into the washing machine, then climbed in after it! Oh, I still write. I have five different manuscripts at various publishing houses right now. And I just sold three stories to _Cricket_ magazine. But I don't write everyday. And that's okay. For me. For now. Michael Martindale wrote: "You may need a paradigm shift that will redefine some of the things you're spending time on as less important than writing." I guess what I experienced was a paradigm shift that helped me see that writing (consistent, scheduled writing, that is) is just not as important right now as being there (physically, mentally, emotionally) for my young children. Sharlee Glenn glennsj@inet-1.com - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 14:18:36 -0700 From: Christopher Bigelow Subject: [AML] Publishers Weekly Item on Darius GRAY >From the Publishers Weekly e-newsletter: Sender: owner-aml-list@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: aml-list Slave Genealogies Release Gives Deseret Author High Visibility Late last month, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced the historic release of Freedman's Bank records on CD, making fruitful genealogical research a possibility for millions of African-Americans. After the Civil War, former slaves deposited more than $57 million in the Freedman's Bank, providing extensive personal and family information as they did so. Although the bank collapsed in the 1870s, the records of 484,000 depositors survived and have been the focus of a painstaking 11-year extraction process. The CD, which retails for $6.50, is now the largest single repository of African-American genealogical records. One of the two directors of the Freedman's Bank project, Darius Gray, has been in the media spotlight since the announcement, doing television interviews on CNN and ABC News and print interviews in the "New York Times," "Essence," "Jet" and other publications. Bryant Gumbel interviewed Gray on March 7 on CBS's "The Early Show." Gray, a Latter-day Saint who is descended from Missouri slaves, is also an author. His fictional trilogy Standing on the Promises (Deseret), co-written with BYU creative writing professor Margaret Blair Young, highlights the trials and triumphs of early African-American converts to Mormonism. The first installment, "One More River to Cross," was released last September and has exhausted its initial print run of 7,000. Nearly 1,000 copies of the book were distributed to key media personnel and African-American dignitaries who attended the February 26 press conferences, held in 13 cities. Deseret Book plans to go back to press for a printing of 4,000 copies. The second book in the Standing on the Promises series, which addresses the experiences of African-American Mormons during the Civil War, will be released in January or February of 2002. Tom Haraldsen, publicist for Deseret Book, says that while the first book was promoted only regionally, the company is now considering a national marketing plan for the series. "In light of Darius Gray's involvement with the Freedman's Bank project, his visibility will increase," Haraldsen told BookLine. --Jana Riess - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 14:37:04 -0700 From: Jacob Proffitt Subject: Re: [AML] Writing Schedules [MOD: As I think everyone recognizes, we're a little outside our normal sphere of topics here for AML-List. Given the direction that the conversation has taken, I think it's okay for people to put out their various child care/chores/etc. ideas, since that so clearly has application to working conditions for many of us. The point where I'm planning to draw the line is if it goes beyond sharing ideas to the point of debating different viewpoints. This may be irrelevant given that the List is about to go offline for several days, but I thought I should give fair warning.] On Mon, 19 Mar 2001 23:49:07 -0600, Linda Adams wrote: >I would really like to know your secret for HOW you motivate them to = work.=20 >This may not be 100% AML-topic, but it's part of this whole deal. I also= =20 >have chore lists and do chores with the kids to train them (mine are 10,= 9,=20 >8, 4, and infant); I give them things they reasonably can accomplish; = but=20 >they almost never actually DO the chores unless I stand there and make=20 >them, like a policeman. If I move off to get other work done (computer = or=20 >my own house chores), they stop working. I've tried positive rewards,=20 >negative consequences (I prefer positives and emphasize those much = more),=20 >etc., and they just won't do it unless they're pushed. They don't seem = to=20 >care much whether they get to watch TV or not, or play with friends or = not,=20 >etc. > >I should also say I've only been at teaching them the chore lists for a=20 >year or two, I'm a slow starter. Just never give up, right? Anyone have = a=20 >good system that works for encouraging sluggish children? I didn't have=20 >chores growing up; I don't think it was useful not to, and want to = change=20 >that for my children, but I also don't have a solid, built-in system I=20 >remember from childhood. > >My kids are expected to (daily) pick up one room each after school, = their=20 >own rooms, help with dinner (cook's helper, set, clear, wash), and do = two=20 >other cleaning jobs sometime during the week (doesn't have to be = Saturday,=20 >but they can't play Saturday unless/until the weekly jobs are done.) = They=20 >wind up in angst Saturday 5 pm when they're "finally" done with jobs = that=20 >should take 1 hour (maybe two) and it's too late to play. Drives me = nuts.=20 >Solutions? I'm positive it's not the jobs themselves, but the = motivation.=20 >I've got something wrong somewhere that I can't place. Can I interject? Children need regularity and this doesn't look regular. Giving them two chores to do sometime in the week doesn't work for people with no sense of the future (most children don't get a concept of the = future until their mid twenties--I'm still working on it). Your other chores = sound kind of fluid, too. Help with dinner? You need to define both the chore and the time it needs to be done (before you can play isn't going to work because while it may pay off to do the work so you can go play, procrastination pays off right now). Then work with them a couple times = to show them how. After you've shown them a couple times, give them a clear time to do it and let the do it. Consequences follow immediately if they aren't done by your deadline--active consequences. I like Rachel's = weekly review on Saturdays, too. Good idea. I know this sounds really fascist, and it kind of is, but this kind of regularity is vital to children learning that getting the work done first= is a benefit. They won't learn that lesson until *after* they've done it a couple million times and can see the post-work freedom themselves. The other thing you need to do is remove as many dependencies as you can. If job B can't be done until job A is finished, make sure that the same = child does both jobs A and B instead of providing them a scapegoat by assigning job A to a sibling. Working together is nice, but children don't work together as much as they procrastinate together. =46inally, remember that removing privileges only goes so far. = Eventually a child will draw the equation that if they learn to care less about fun stuff, they can get away with working less. It's easier to learn to not care if you don't play with other kids than it is to clean your room--at least in the futureless world of children. Kids' capacity for withdrawal seems limitless. Eventually, you are going to have to introduce pain = into your child's life. This is tough for a parent to do, but the alternative= is to end up with kids that don't care about anything because anything can = be taken away by wrathful parents--in the end, this is more damaging than brief, but timely episodes of concentrated pain because it sets the = parents up as antagonistic removers of all things pleasant. It helps to remember that there are a lot of different kinds of pain. = The boredom of time out is good for times when the chore involves something active. Time out doesn't work real well when the chore is to get ready = for bed (when the whole goal of the child is to put off going to bed as long = as possible) so some other motivator needs to be found. It also helps to = know your personal limits. For example, I have to watch my temper and not = yell as much as I want to. Yelling is a great motivator because it is = immediate pain for the child, but it isn't really a great way to treat your = children. Some people have to watch spanking because they are prone to violence and they need to avoid a precipice they don't control well. The key to delivering pain to kids is to make sure it is controlled, well-explained, and consistent. Make sure that pain is a consequence, not random sadism. >As for the shopping; I admit I'm a control freak when it comes to the=20 >grocery shopping. This is due to my hubby coming home with Weird Things=20 >when I send him to the supermarket. Weird meaning, things not on my = list,=20 >brands I never buy for specific reasons, things that blow the budget, = etc.=20 >It would take me more time to write out a store list specific enough to=20 >prevent all these Weird Things, than it would take to meet my week's=20 >writing quota. :-) Do I just learn to cope with it? He's also in night=20 >school two nights a week; another reason I'd rather not ask him to do = the=20 >shopping. But shopping does take far more time than I like. This may be something you have to work out with your spouse. Our society= is very busy. We cram our lives full of a lot of things for a lot of = different reasons. We work a lot, and then pile more work on top of that in order = to get more work. I have real trouble getting volunteers in my ward because everybody is so busy. It's not uncommon for a man to work two jobs *and*= go to night school. Those who don't have two jobs have a long job and = hobbies to fill in the gaps. There is a certain prestige in our LDS culture for being so busy that any additional work is an enormous imposition. It = allows you to turn down assignments or to do them with added points for = martyrdom. I can attest that husbands *can* learn all the details about shopping, = but they need the information--probably repeatedly. The trick is to figure = out that it is important for you to learn that stuff. You have to work as a team to figure out what needs to be done by whom. Make all the goals = family goals. A husband will tend to hold career goals personal and sacred. We don't really want to be told that extra hours at work need to be cut back= in order to go shopping and fix dinner. Our responsibility is to provide = for our family and we don't want any interference in that and it is made = easier because our spouse has really no idea what our work requires and what we take on ourselves for whatever reasons. But the sole-reponsibility = position is a false one. Our career is as important to our spouse as it is to us. Our attempts to hold it separate are selfish and in the end can be very destructive to the things we supposedly hold more important. I'm not = saying that this is the case in your situation, but it is something that we need= to monitor well as a people or risk being overcome by our culture. Anyway, Those are my thoughts. Subject to the usual caveats for = emptors... Jacob Proffitt - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 14:49:10 -0700 From: Jacob Proffitt Subject: Re: [AML] Richard Dutcher Interview On Sat, 17 Mar 2001 22:01:53 -0800 (PST), William Morris wrote: >So my question is: Is there a way to deal with this >sadness that Dutcher is speaking about without falling >into the old dichotomies, the dashed Utopian dreams >(either works that are already out there, or theories >about how they could be produced)? I think our culture has a unique view of this Utopian longing. We have = the sad desire, but we openly and intrinsically recognize that realizing the Utopian ideal will be impossible without vast, world-wide changes and we have no unrealistic ideas of bringing that to pass. The LDS world-view = is therefore unique and I think that is something that LDS artists can mine = as Dutcher suggests. We are pragmatic idealists. What a wonderful world = view to have! We hold to our ideals, but we don't agonize over it when other people don't live up to them. We know we ourselves don't live up to = those ideals, and that provides us some discomfort, but we can be happy anyway = by working them out and uplifiting others as much as they'll let us. = Pragmatic idealism needs some artistic exploration. We need an anti-Voltaire... Jacob Proffitt - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 17:07:03 -0500 From: "Tracie Laulusa" Subject: [AML] Humor (was: Satire) I'm thinking, Annette, that you meant laughing during the actual sacrament portion of a sacrament meeting. Heaven forbid we should sit through week after week of sacrament meeting talks that never gave a reason to chuckle. I'm not sure I totally agree, at any rate. While I don't think I would laugh at something pertaining to the passing of the sacrament, I have been known to laugh, however silently it was, at something one of kids did, or some blooper on the part of someone or other. I know that prayers are often considered solemn occasions. But, there have been times that we have found ourselves laughing-and out loud, too (gasp) during a family prayer. Sometimes things are just funny. We just tell the kids that we're sure Heavenly Father appreciates the humor of the situation as well. We had our little temple dedicated a few years ago, and Pres. Hinckley cracked jokes through practically the whole thing-the cornerstones ceremony, the beginning of the actual dedication. I think not after that. Not during the prayer and stuff like that. Tracie L. - -----Original Message----- There ARE situations where humor is out of place. Laughing in sacrament meeting is inappropriate, for example, and I can picture President Hinkley giving a good look to quiet those deacons. But in other settings, I'm willing to wager all the higher-ups crack jokes, or at least laugh at others' jokes. Our leaders are not serious old coots, and we don't need to be, either. Annette Lyon - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 18:32:04 -0700 From: LuAnnStaheli Subject: Re: [AML] Fame and Ego Eric, Believe me, I know all about celebrities. I worked for Alan Osmond Productions for ten years and I've met hundreds of celebrities. Some have been nice, others are jerks. David Letterman was trying to break into the comedy world when I saw him in LA doing a TV Gameshow pilot. He was there for the purpose of gaining national exposure. My friend and I tried to strike up a conversation with him, talking about our mutual homestate. He wanted nothing to do with being friendly to anyone in the audience. It certainly soured me on him. Of course, he's not the only celebrity I've known to be rude: Bill Cosby, Mary Lou Retton, and Melissa Gilbert were all EXTREMELY rude when I met them. A few have been aloof--The Beach Boys, Nick Nolte, Bruce Willis--but their aloofness was not rude. I can understand how differing situations result in differing responses. The other hundreds I've met have all been wonderfully warm and gracious, even in situations surrounded by rude fans where they had no reason to return the rudeness with kindness. Speaking of rudeness, was that your column in the Daily Herald that completely lambasted Donny Osmond a few days ago? Shame on you! Donny is one of the hardest working and absolute nicest people I've ever met, and that's not just because I worked for his brother. I have seen Donny be kind to people who have never given him a reason to be kind. I've seen him be gracious to fans who would not step two inches away from his face. I've seen him treat people who would not leave his wife and children alone with dignity and respect. As I've heard from numerous celebrities, when they put themselves into a public situation, then the public has the right to meet with them. I've seen this be true with LDS authors as well. Rachel and Marilyn have both spoken at writer's workshops I've sponsored and they were willing to speak, sign autographs, and chat with people for as long as there were people who wanted to meet them. Bravo to you both! Lu Ann - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 15:19:51 -0700 (MST) From: Ivan Angus Wolfe Subject: [AML] VIP Playwriting Competition I don't think I've seen it announced here, but I may have missed it - but I clipped the article from the Daily Herald. Anyway - the fiddler in my band Organic Greens, Nathan Christensen, won the VIP arts playwriting competition for his musical "Here in The Heartland." The article I clipped mentioned Marylin Brown as invovled with it. Nathan says there's going to be a reading of it at the Villa playhouse, but he's not sure when. I'd like to know. Anyone have the info? - --Ivan Wolfe - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 20:58:54 -0600 From: Larry Jackson Subject: [AML] MN Card's "Sarah" Reviewed in Jerusalem Post: Jerusalem Post From: Kent Larsen To: Mormon News Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 16:00:00 -0500 Subject: MN Card's "Sarah" Reviewed in Jerusalem Post: Jerusalem Post 18Mar01 A2 [From Mormon-News] Card's "Sarah" Reviewed in Jerusalem Post JERUSALEM, ISRAEL -- The Jerusalem Post published Sunday an unabashedly positive review of Orson Scott Card's "Sarah: Women of Genesis," calling the book, part of a projected trilogy on the women of Genesis, "a lively novel that enlarges our appreciation for this complicated matriarch." While admitting that the orthodox may reject the book because it uses the bible as the basis for a novel, most readers will "simply appreciate the book as a good yarn," says reviewer Morton Teicher. In "Sarah," Card 'fleshes out' the story of Abraham's wife from a fictional visit by Abraham and Lot to Sarah's family when she is 10 to her death at age 127. While the bible uses no more than 20 pages to tell her story, Card takes nearly 400 pages in his account, adding dialogue, characters, scenes and motivations to the biblical narrative. Card has had practice at this "flat-out manipulation for fictional purposes" (Card's words) of other narratives. In two previous science fiction and fantasy series, Card fleshed out stories well known to Mormons. His 'Homecoming' series retells much of the Book of Mormon in a science fiction setting, while his 'Tales of Alvin Maker' series tells the life of Joseph Smith in an alternate world. Card even retold, and even changed, the life of Christopher Columbus in his 1992 book, "Pastwatch." The Post's reviewer, Teicher, is clearly impressed with the results in "Sarah." He says "Sarah fully demonstrates [Card's] remarkable versatility and his rich imagination, attributes that contribute considerably to his recognized accomplishments . . . " He also credits Card with producing "an impressive tribute to contemporary feminism." Source: A strong woman married to a Patriarch Jerusalem Post 18Mar01 A2 http://www.jpost.com/Editions/2001/03/18/Books/Books.23117.html By Morton I. Teicher >From Mormon-News: Mormon News and Events Forwarding is permitted as long as this footer is included Mormon News items may not be posted to the World Wide Web sites without permission. Please link to our pages instead. For more information see http://www.MormonsToday.com/ Send join and remove commands to: majordomo@MormonsToday.com Put appropriate commands in body of the message: To join: subscribe mormon-news To leave: unsubscribe mormon-news To join digest: subscribe mormon-news-digest ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 22:13:28 -0600 From: Linda Adams Subject: Re: [AML] Mormon Reading of Poetry (was: Satire) At 10:53 PM 3/19/01, you wrote: >Other than the Moderator, how many here actually read the poetry in _Lord >of the Rings_ the first time through? > > >-- Ronn! :) > >[MOD: I must confess: not me either. But then, I was 10 years old at the >time...] Uh, me. :-) Is that weird? I didn't know that was weird. Am I the only one? I can't stand to skip things when I read, I might miss something important. Linda Adams adamszoo@sprintmail.com http://home.sprintmail.com/~adamszoo - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 23:23:48 -0600 From: Linda Adams Subject: Re: [AML] Writing Schedules At 02:10 AM 3/20/01, you wrote: >You mentioned something about >stressing out over appointments. What the heck are these? I hope you're >not letting others dictate your schedule for you. If you had a "real" >job, you would just tell people no, you can't come during those hours. >Set hours for your real writing job and tell people no during those >hours. Oh. You have little kids, don't you, D. Michael? Appointments? You must ask what appointments a mother of five young children has? dentist appointments (x5), doctor check-ups (x5), ortho appointments (x2), chiropractor appointments (x3); parent-teacher conferences (x3), school parties (x3), school functions (x3), music lessons (x3), all at varying times, weeks, and on different schedules, half of which, I have to find babysitters for the younger kids (another stress, for various other reasons), because if I don't I'll be *really* stressed out *during* the appointments keeping my 4-yr old from tangling himself in blood pressure cuffs, staying out of the drawers, off the doctor's swivel chair and away from the stirrups tucked in to the table (whassat for Mommy??), this all while tucking a reluctant screaming infant in and out of her dreaded car seat and detested car ride just after she fell asleep for the ONE nap she might take that day... not to mention if it's for school or a professional office I can't go in my jammies or sweats with holes in them, I have to look semi-normal or be judged as an unfit parent (which means at least combing my hair, deodorant, make-up); I have to make sure my 4-yr old's clothes and shoes halfway match (not to mention my own) and that he's scraped off whatever jelly, mud, etc. he's gotten on himself so far that day. If I wake up and I know I HAVE an appointment to go to that day, whatever it is, I'll be stressed in some way until it's over with. I also lose track of time easily and tend to forget appointments. I hate appointments. Can you tell? It doesn't matter what time I make the appointment for. I'd rather just walk in when I'm good and ready. But the professional world doesn't work that way. So. No. Nobody's dictating my schedule for me. I choose the times. But with five little kids somebody ALWAYS has somewhere to go. (The list above doesn't even take emergencies into consideration. And we don't even TRY to do soccer or karate or Little League or dance or... you get the picture.) And going ANYWHERE causes me stress. Also, there is no social validation from Others that my writing time is actually important (except my husband, and a close friend or two). It is not, as you say, considered a "real job." Even if I treat it that way, others will not. I liked Ronn's very funny post on this. People don't understand. And I haven't published enough with enough success (yet) to be socially allowed to be eccentric and weird. (I am anyway... that's another story.) And when people say, "Hey, are you busy?" I'm learning to say, yes, sorry. I do use my answering machine. It helps a lot. On the female side, again (though Ronn made excellent points from the male perspective), I also belong to Relief Society which is an organization committed to service, so I am committed to service, so when calls do come in for help, so & so needs a meal, so & so needs their kids babysat, etc. in a ward where I am one of few stay-home mothers, I do get called on for service. I can't say no to these without tremendous guilt. Because, after all, I *am* home, and it is my obligation to provide Relief to my Sisters, and in all honesty I don't mind doing it. Oh, and don't forget Visiting Teaching. Three more appointments every month, that on my route can't all always be done on the same day. I have to go. I have two appointments tomorrow, first thing in the morning. (No, really, I do!) Linda Linda Adams adamszoo@sprintmail.com http://home.sprintmail.com/~adamszoo - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 23:28:09 -0700 From: "D. Michael Martindale" Subject: Re: [AML] Satire Rob Lyon wrote: > There ARE situations where humor is out of place. Laughing in sacrament > meeting is inappropriate, for example I've laughed in sacrament meeting, and I've generated laughs in sacrament meeting. They haven't disfellowshipped me yet. - -- D. Michael Martindale dmichael@wwno.com ================================== Check out Worldsmiths, the new online LDS writers group, at http://www.wwno.com/worldsmiths Sponsored by Worlds Without Number http://www.wwno.com ================================== - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 23:29:30 -0700 From: "D. Michael Martindale" Subject: Re: [AML] Mormon Reading of Poetry (was: Satire) Ronn Blankenship wrote: > Other than the Moderator, how many here actually read the poetry in _Lord > of the Rings_ the first time through? Not me. Nor the second time through, nor the third. I also don't read the poetry in Irreantum. Sorry, poets. - -- D. Michael Martindale dmichael@wwno.com ================================== Check out Worldsmiths, the new online LDS writers group, at http://www.wwno.com/worldsmiths Sponsored by Worlds Without Number http://www.wwno.com ================================== - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2001 00:59:22 -0700 From: "D. Michael Martindale" Subject: [AML] Alan Rex MITCHELL, _Angel of the Danube_ (Review) ANGEL OF THE DANUBE by Alan Rex Mitchell 2000, Bonneville Books Trade paperback, 197 pages $12.95 "Quest for Contacts, Indian Underwear, and Magic" 197 pages in one day. Need I say more? (I got very little sleep that day.) I hate books that have a diary/journal format. It's like reading an endless stream of tiny short stories, and I don't handle short stories well. It's hard for me to get into a story, so I struggle when I have to pop in and out of them every few pages or so, like in an anthology. Mitchell's _Angel of the Danube_ looked like it was going to be such a book. The first page starts out looking like this: Chapter 1 Kaiser Karl's Ravens April 18 When you meet a humble servant of God... "No," I lamented. "It's in journal format!" But to my great relief, as I paged through the first part of the book, I saw that this was the only journal-entry-like date in the book. I didn't know why he decided to start chapter one that way and not continue with the format, but I didn't care. I was just glad he didn't. The story begins calmly enough with a pair of missionaries stationed in Austria, written in first person with Elder Barry Monroe as the narrator character. As foreign missionaries are known to do, Monroe weaves a lot of German words into his speech. But he's also from California and speaks with a strong surfer dialect. If you don't think that combination is weird! For example: "Dude had transferred Vidic and me at the same time. Sure, we'd been together an Ewigkeit, but it was enjoyable." Relax. By now you know that "Ewigkeit" means "eternity"--Mitchell doesn't leave you high and dry with undefined foreign terms. Oh, and by the way, "Dude" refers to the mission president--this time. We learn quickly that Austria is one hell of a mission to work in--literally. No contacts, no teaching appointments, no baptisms. Just endless, useless tracting. Discouragement runs high. As the quirky daily events of a missionary's life unfold--with some very strange missionaries indeed (in other words, par for the course)--the overriding plot begins to take shape: the quest for the effective contacting method in Austria. But in the meantime, survival is necessary. During a moment of utter boredom during some utterly fruitless tracting, Monroe decides to pick a fight with his companion, whom he lovingly calls Unts: Told him that he spoke lousy German and that's why we weren't getting in any doors. He said he thought the real reason was my orange moon boots. I corrected him--they were blue and white with a little orange. He said all that chocolate was making me go color blind. "Me? You're a chocolate addict!" I said. "No," he said, "You're a chocolate junkie!" "You Canadians think you are so smart, eh?" I told him, "Why don't you say the =91o' in =91sorry' or =91progress' correctly." "Soooow-ree," Unts stressed the weird pronunciation, and bumped me with his hip. "Are not!" I bumped him back. He flicked my tie. I pulled his ear. He stepped on my moon boots. I grabbed his belt. He put me in a headlock. I lifted his leg and we both went tumbling. It was a blast. And away we go. You start out reading with a raised eyebrow, begin to chuckle louder and louder as scenes like the above unfold, and before long you are ROFLMHO ("rolling on the floor laughing my head off," for the emoticonically challenged). The zaniness of this book sneaks up and grabs you like Indian underwear. But it's not just a book of crazy missionary antics. Woven throughout is a tapestry of magical cultural touches that bring Austria to life. At the same time you're feel the drabness of doing missionary work there, you feel the charm of the Austrian mindset, a people who seem to define their whole existence by centuries of traditional legends and fantasies. Moving like a slow, majestic river behind everything else is a metaphor for the whole book tied up in one of those legends, the Angel of the Danube, which is immortalized in Vienna with a mermaid statue, pictured on the book cover. If all this isn't enough for you, there's the love story thrown in, as Monroe grapples with his love for the girl he left back home and the love he feels for a gorgeous contact he calls Magdalena--all subconsciously, because he doesn't even recognize his love for Magdalena. And there's the serious side, such as when the most unorthodox elder in the mission discovers a new and effective way of contacting, involving a bar and a band and some girls he gets a little too cozy with. But the spice of the book, the frosting on the cake, are the bizarre Monty-Pythonesque moments that keep cropping up. Pinball proselytizing. The date with two female contacts to the State Opera. The day they tracted out a for-real Herr Hitler ("Hitler seemed profoundly interested in the book. But I cringed every time Scotty said his name in the discussion format. Like, =91Do you remember what question Joseph Smith wanted to ask God, Herr Hitler?' "). The day the clowns (the missionaries of the Vienna district) broke into Captain Scotty's apartment (the wierdest elder in the mission), photocopied his journal, and read it, because he wrote in it constantly and never showed anyone what it said, and they were all dying to find out. The contest for the most bizarre contacting moment. Clear the floor around you before you start to read, because you'll be rolling on it. Then I get to the last chapter and find to my horror that the journal-entry format came back. That nasty Mitchell got me again, like Indian underwear, throwing that despised format in with a vengeance right when I'm racing ahead with my reading and don't want to stop. It's too late now. I have to read on and enjoy it, because I'm so engrossed I can't stop. Besides, I need to catch a little sleep before work, and that ain't going to happen until page 197. - --=20 D. Michael Martindale dmichael@wwno.com=20 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Check out Worldsmiths, the new online LDS writers group, at http://www.wwno.com/worldsmiths=20 Sponsored by Worlds Without Number http://www.wwno.com=20 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ End of aml-list-digest V1 #285 ******************************