as neurotic as am i often fall asleep on the subway on my way home from work . one of my co-workers says that the best sleep she gets is on the train.
once when i was on a train i briefly opened my eyes and noticed that everyone else was napping.
though i usually dont miss my stop if i nod off, occasionally i do. thats the worst. not only do i miss the stop, but i feel really groggy.
fortunately im not a restless subway sleeper, otherwise i would be finding my head on someone elses shoulder as i nap. very embarrassing. bubba might not like that.
i have found other subway sleepers heads on my shoulder. i usually wake them up and hope they dont have head lice.
Monday, March 30, 2009
10,000 hits!
my site meter has surpassed 10,000 hits! thank you for reading! its great to have reached this moment thanks to all of you!
Friday, March 27, 2009
Exclusive Blog Interview With Diana Spechler
I'm very excited to present to you dear readers this exclusive frum single female blog interview
featuring Diana Spechler author of Who By Fire .
FSF: What made you choose this topic for your book ?
DS : When I was a grad student, I wrote a short story about Bits Kellerman, a young woman who lives in Boston and whose brother, Ash , lives in Israel. At the beginning of the story, Bits hears news of a suicide bombing in Jerusalem. She calls Ash and he doesn't answer. Throughout the course of the story , the tension lies in the question of whether or not Ash is going to call his sister back. At the end of the story, he still hasn't called her. I finished the story and included it in my thesis, but it continued to haunt me. Why didn't he call his sister? It was driving me crazy. So I returned to the story and started writing from Ash's point of view. Then I returned to Bits, and then to Ash, and so in. That's how the novel was born.
FSF : Did you set out to write a book with a Jewish theme or did it just evolve?
DS : When I started writing Who By Fire , I had a lot of questions about Judaism--specifically about how I wanted to practice it. I was somewhat obsessed.The great thing about writing is that it provides an acceptable context for obsessions. By writing this novel , I was (perhaps not totally consciously) grappling with the questions that were most important to me at that time. When I finished writing the novel, I was able to unburden myself of the obsession to some extent. So I'm not sure I set out to write a book with a Jewish theme so much as I set out to write about something that mattered to me.
FSF: What kind of Jewish family did you grow up in?
DS : My family is really different from the family in Who By Fire . The Kellermans are so disconnected from one another. In my family, when someone goes to Israel, that person calls home. Period. We're all really close. Also , Judaism and Israel were big parts of my life throughout my childhood. My siblings and I went to Jewish summer camp. Jewish holidays were and continue to be big and fun and loud. My parents, like Ben and Ellie Kellerman, met in Jerusalem in the early 70's, so my perception of Israel has always been tinged with a little romance.
FSF: How has your book been received by secular Jewish readers as well as Orthodox Jewish readers?
DS : Of course, since I was writing , in part, about the conflict between secular and Orthodox Jews, I worried that I was going to offend people. The truth was, though , my novel doesn't voice just one opinion. Some of the characters are religious. Others are not. Some of the religious characters are a little sordid, others are great. Exploring my characters, all of whom are flawed. People-- Jewish , not Jewish, religious, not religious--talk about books all over the internet , and for the most part, no one seems offended by my book. The consensus seems to be that its a good read. Of course, I very much approve of that consensus.
FSF : At the end of the book in the q & a section, you say that you have a brother who is an Orthodox Jew. What does your brother think of your book?
DS : My brother loves the book and recommends it to everyone who will listen. He's a good brother.
FSF: What is the biggest lesson you feel readers should take away after reading Who By Fire?
DS: I'm not sure there's a lesson in it, but my favorite compliments I get are , "Your book made me want to go to Israel!" and " I stayed up all night reading your book."
Thank you so much Diana for this blog interview.
featuring Diana Spechler author of Who By Fire .
FSF: What made you choose this topic for your book ?
DS : When I was a grad student, I wrote a short story about Bits Kellerman, a young woman who lives in Boston and whose brother, Ash , lives in Israel. At the beginning of the story, Bits hears news of a suicide bombing in Jerusalem. She calls Ash and he doesn't answer. Throughout the course of the story , the tension lies in the question of whether or not Ash is going to call his sister back. At the end of the story, he still hasn't called her. I finished the story and included it in my thesis, but it continued to haunt me. Why didn't he call his sister? It was driving me crazy. So I returned to the story and started writing from Ash's point of view. Then I returned to Bits, and then to Ash, and so in. That's how the novel was born.
FSF : Did you set out to write a book with a Jewish theme or did it just evolve?
DS : When I started writing Who By Fire , I had a lot of questions about Judaism--specifically about how I wanted to practice it. I was somewhat obsessed.The great thing about writing is that it provides an acceptable context for obsessions. By writing this novel , I was (perhaps not totally consciously) grappling with the questions that were most important to me at that time. When I finished writing the novel, I was able to unburden myself of the obsession to some extent. So I'm not sure I set out to write a book with a Jewish theme so much as I set out to write about something that mattered to me.
FSF: What kind of Jewish family did you grow up in?
DS : My family is really different from the family in Who By Fire . The Kellermans are so disconnected from one another. In my family, when someone goes to Israel, that person calls home. Period. We're all really close. Also , Judaism and Israel were big parts of my life throughout my childhood. My siblings and I went to Jewish summer camp. Jewish holidays were and continue to be big and fun and loud. My parents, like Ben and Ellie Kellerman, met in Jerusalem in the early 70's, so my perception of Israel has always been tinged with a little romance.
FSF: How has your book been received by secular Jewish readers as well as Orthodox Jewish readers?
DS : Of course, since I was writing , in part, about the conflict between secular and Orthodox Jews, I worried that I was going to offend people. The truth was, though , my novel doesn't voice just one opinion. Some of the characters are religious. Others are not. Some of the religious characters are a little sordid, others are great. Exploring my characters, all of whom are flawed. People-- Jewish , not Jewish, religious, not religious--talk about books all over the internet , and for the most part, no one seems offended by my book. The consensus seems to be that its a good read. Of course, I very much approve of that consensus.
FSF : At the end of the book in the q & a section, you say that you have a brother who is an Orthodox Jew. What does your brother think of your book?
DS : My brother loves the book and recommends it to everyone who will listen. He's a good brother.
FSF: What is the biggest lesson you feel readers should take away after reading Who By Fire?
DS: I'm not sure there's a lesson in it, but my favorite compliments I get are , "Your book made me want to go to Israel!" and " I stayed up all night reading your book."
Thank you so much Diana for this blog interview.
WHO BY FIRE
A few months ago I read the book Who By Fire by Diana Spechler. Who By Fire is a book about a Jewish family named Kellerman that is torn apart by tragedy and their journey toward closure and acceptance. Youngest daughter Alena was kidnapped. Dad Ben eventually flies the coop leaving his wife Ellie to raise their two remaining children Bits and Ash. Thirteen years after their sister's broad daylight kidnapping Bits has become a free-spirited wild -child type and Ash has become an Orthodox Jew who is studying at a right-wing yeshiva in Israel. Mom Ellie is none too keen on her son Ash's involvement in frumkeit so she devises a way to lure him away. This of course is where the fun begins.
What I really loved about this book is that includes a character who is a baal t'shuvah written by a non-Orthodox Jew. The story is divided by chapters which alternate between the standpoint of Bits, Ellie and Asher, it is not exclusively the story of a new baal t'shuvah and how he copes with his non-frum family, its also the story of what non-frum sister Bits and non-frum mom Ellie think about the whole deal.
Had this book been written in the early 1970's Ash may have been a Zen Buddhist instead of a new baal t'shuvah. I'm so glad this book was written in 2008.
From Diana Spechler's writing it is obvious that she has a relative or a good friend who is frum . WHO BY FIRE is not another PORTNOY'S COMPLAINT or some misguided Howard Fast novel. Thank goodness. Its an honest exploration of secular versus Orthodox Jews. There is dialogue and contemplation without negativity.
Last but not least WHO BY FIRE is simply an intriguing story about family dynamics. I couldn't wait to see what would transpire while at the same time I didn't want it to end.
NEXT POST: SPECIAL BLOG INTERVIEW WITH DIANA SPECHLER.
What I really loved about this book is that includes a character who is a baal t'shuvah written by a non-Orthodox Jew. The story is divided by chapters which alternate between the standpoint of Bits, Ellie and Asher, it is not exclusively the story of a new baal t'shuvah and how he copes with his non-frum family, its also the story of what non-frum sister Bits and non-frum mom Ellie think about the whole deal.
Had this book been written in the early 1970's Ash may have been a Zen Buddhist instead of a new baal t'shuvah. I'm so glad this book was written in 2008.
From Diana Spechler's writing it is obvious that she has a relative or a good friend who is frum . WHO BY FIRE is not another PORTNOY'S COMPLAINT or some misguided Howard Fast novel. Thank goodness. Its an honest exploration of secular versus Orthodox Jews. There is dialogue and contemplation without negativity.
Last but not least WHO BY FIRE is simply an intriguing story about family dynamics. I couldn't wait to see what would transpire while at the same time I didn't want it to end.
NEXT POST: SPECIAL BLOG INTERVIEW WITH DIANA SPECHLER.
and the plot thickens....
for years ive wanted to attend a free gotham writers workshop at barnes and noble but i never managed to get to one. perhaps this is because they are free. anyway, a few weeks ago i attended a book reading at barnes and noble at lincoln triangle and i saw a big ad for the upcoming gotham writer's workshop featuring the author diana spechler whose book who by fire i read a few months ago. well... need i say more? i was an attendee. meeting authors of books i really dig is on my ten most favorite things to do list.
the gotham fiction writing workshp was amazing. though it was a teaser class, alot of solid writing exercises were featured.
since diana spechler was giving a fiction writing course instead of a book reading it was even more interesting. she spoke of her style of writing fiction instead of the plot of her fictional book. very cool. she said that her writing is very heavy on character development. i would agree.
after the writers workshop diana spechler fielded questions about the class as well as signed her book. im not sure if i was the only one in attendance who had read her book but i did tell her that i had read her book and that i liked it. normally i don't mention to authors that i write a blog, but in this case.... after taking a writers workshop i was compelled.... so i did. well folks ... my next few posts will include a book review of who by fire as well as a blog interview with diana spechler. TO BE CONTINUED....
the gotham fiction writing workshp was amazing. though it was a teaser class, alot of solid writing exercises were featured.
since diana spechler was giving a fiction writing course instead of a book reading it was even more interesting. she spoke of her style of writing fiction instead of the plot of her fictional book. very cool. she said that her writing is very heavy on character development. i would agree.
after the writers workshop diana spechler fielded questions about the class as well as signed her book. im not sure if i was the only one in attendance who had read her book but i did tell her that i had read her book and that i liked it. normally i don't mention to authors that i write a blog, but in this case.... after taking a writers workshop i was compelled.... so i did. well folks ... my next few posts will include a book review of who by fire as well as a blog interview with diana spechler. TO BE CONTINUED....
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
writing
ive always enjoyed creative writing . ive also always had the penmanship of a brain surgeon . MESSY. typing on an old fashioned typewriter was a pill . it took me forever to type without looking.
im so glad computers are around now. they make writing so much easier. they make correcting typos so much easier. in this sense i am not nostalgic for the old days. i may be addicted to my computer, but my writing has increased and my typing has improved. yay technology!
im so glad computers are around now. they make writing so much easier. they make correcting typos so much easier. in this sense i am not nostalgic for the old days. i may be addicted to my computer, but my writing has increased and my typing has improved. yay technology!
Monday, March 23, 2009
i love you man
i saw the funniest movie i love you man featuring two of my favorite actors - paul rudd and jason segal.
the premise of the movie is that men tend not to have alot of male friends, especially if they are in relationships with women. paul rudd's character is engaged and is trying to make some same gendered friends. this movie is silly, but it is also REALLY funny.
rashida jones who is the daughter of jewish peggy lipton and black quincey jones plays paul rudd's wife. she is a brunette version of christine taylor of marcia brady fame. its nice to see another movie where the shiksa goddess doesnt get to play the wife of a cute jewish actor.
anyway, paul rudd's character meets many guys before he finds jason segal . their rapport is great as well as completely hetero.
i do admit that alot of why i enjoyed this movie was because i relish gazing into paul rudd's blue eyes , but seriously, if you need a mindless pick-me -up , this is the movie to see.
the premise of the movie is that men tend not to have alot of male friends, especially if they are in relationships with women. paul rudd's character is engaged and is trying to make some same gendered friends. this movie is silly, but it is also REALLY funny.
rashida jones who is the daughter of jewish peggy lipton and black quincey jones plays paul rudd's wife. she is a brunette version of christine taylor of marcia brady fame. its nice to see another movie where the shiksa goddess doesnt get to play the wife of a cute jewish actor.
anyway, paul rudd's character meets many guys before he finds jason segal . their rapport is great as well as completely hetero.
i do admit that alot of why i enjoyed this movie was because i relish gazing into paul rudd's blue eyes , but seriously, if you need a mindless pick-me -up , this is the movie to see.
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