Emily of Deep Valley Prep Questions (Mother-Daughter Book Club)

School is out, and it's time to kick off reading for the Mother-Daughter Dim Sum Book Club! If you're participating virtually, here's the info I sent out to our little circle of participants. It's a pretty sweet, simple read, so I hope they all enjoy it! My 14YO is hip-deep in Gone with the Wind right now, so Emily will probably seem pretty retiring after Scarlett O'Hara, but Emily picks herself up and dusts herself off as much as Scarlett does, and with a heckuva lot less collateral damage!

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EMILY OF DEEP VALLEY is a pretty short book, written in 1950, but set back in 1912. The author, Maud Hart Lovelace, wrote several books inspired by her own life and the lives of friends she grew up with.  So although the book was technically historical fiction by the time Lovelace wrote it, she was writing about a time she lived through herself.

When we read, here are some things to consider:

Title. Why did the author call it what she called it? What significance is it where Emily is from? How would Emily feel about being called "Emily of Deep Valley" at the beginning of the book? How would she feel about it by the end?

Setting. When and where is the book set? Why does that matter? Do the time and place have any impact on the options available to Emily? Look at the micro-settings, too. How does Emily feel about her home? Her cousin's home? The slough? Where, in Deep Valley, does she belong or not belong?

Characters. Who are the main characters in the book? How do they see Emily, and how does she see them?

Character Development. How does Emily grow and change, over the course of the story? What triggers these developments? How does her view of herself and of Deep Valley change?

Conflict. The conflict is what drives the story. What's at stake. If there's no conflict, there's no real plot. The conflict in Frozen, for example, is, can Anna save Elsa and their country from the destructiveness of Elsa's own powers, and can she restore their lost relationship? What is the conflict in EMILY? What might happen to Emily, if she cannot overcome/resolve the conflict?

Themes. Look at some of the recurring ideas in the book. Old-fashioned versus modern. Growth versus stagnation. Insider versus outsider. Defining yourself versus letting others define you. Do you notice any others, as you read?

Symbolism/Foreshadowing. These are standard literary devices, where an author uses one thing to represent or hint at something else. Look, for example, at "Decoration Day." Why have it twice in the book, near the beginning and at the end? What is the same, and what is different? How is Emily's attitude the same or different? Also look at when Emily is at Roxey's drugstore and sees "an attractive-looking girl" in the mirror, who turns out to be herself! How does this moment represent what is going on with Emily?

Allusion. An allusion is a reference to another book or work of art. Lovelace alludes to the Slough of Despond from John Bunyan's PILGRIM'S PROGRESS. How does that add to our understanding of the story?

And finally, a paragraph question, for some writing exercise! Pick one:

1. Emily picks a Shakespeare quote as a self-motivator: "Muster your wits; stand in your own defense." Why is this appropriate for her? If she has to defend herself, who are her accusers? What would they accuse her of?

2. What is the significance of Emily's slough, geographically and symbolically? How does it compare and contrast with Bunyan's Slough of Despond?

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And a last little reminder: hope to see some of you at University Book Store Bellevue this Saturday (6/28) at 5:00 p.m. for some Regency readings and ramblings!

Da Da Da Bump Da Bum! Introducing A VERY PLAIN YOUNG MAN

Check out this handsome fella!

I am pleased to announce the impending arrival of A Very Plain Young Man, the second in my series of traditional Regency romances, The Hapgoods of Bramleigh.

If you caught the first book in the series The Naturalist, you might remember heroine Alice had an older sister Elfrida, and hero Joseph had an older brother Frederick. There's the hint of an interaction between these two elder siblings in the epilogue of The Naturalist, and now it's time for the full-blown story!

My cover designer and I had our usual to-doing and back-and-forthing, with this delightful result, which captures not only Frederick's most inappropriate handsomeness, but also his and Elfrida's mutual interest in embroidery. So pleased with the result.

Details will follow, but I've got two launch events planned so far:

Thursday, May 29 (evening) will be the likely Regency dance party version

and

Saturday, June 28 (also in the evening) will be the University Book Store Bellevue book signing, promoting both books in the series.

Mark your calendar for one or the other, and in the meantime, here's the back cover blurb:

Miss Elfrida Hapgood is the most beautiful of the Hapgood sisters, as well as the most practical. If she must marry eventually, she intends to choose a husband not with her eyes, nor even with her heart, but with her common sense. He must be respectable and steady--not given to gambling or wenching or idling like her scapegrace uncles. So naturally, Frederick Tierney, the rakish brother of her new brother-in-law, will never do. Not only is his chequered past not entirely in the past, but he is too handsome for his own good and takes delight in unsettling her. But when another offer comes her way which meets all of her supposed requirements, Elfrida finds choosing duty over desire not as simple as she imagined.

Onion Flatbread at the University Book Store

Some of my dear readers! (Couldn't fit the folks on the side bench--sorry!)

Thanks to all who turned out for a very fun evening at the University Book Store in Bellevue. You can't tell in this picture, but Andrea set us up in their lovely fireside area. (Hearths are a good addition to any Northwest business because they can be used eleven months of the year, sadly.) University Books also expects to add The Essential Baking Company sometime soon, so they can serve up treats like the Mill Creek store!

Told you it was a book reading.

Anywho, the only treats on offer last night were my Caramelized Onion Flatbread (some pieces slightly charred under the unattended broiler) and Blackberry Jam Thumbprints. Both were recipes from friends, and here are the recipes:

Sarah's Caramelized Onion Flatbread
1Tbsp butter
1Tbsp olive oil
2 medium sweet onions, sliced thin
1/4 cup dates, chopped
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1 cup shredded cheese of choice (I used Golden Glen Creamery's White Cheddar)
1/4 cup shredded parmigiano reggiano
1 16 ozs Boboli or your own baked crust

Preheat the oven to 450F.

Heat butter and oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onions; cook until soft and brown, stirring often. Stir in dates, brown sugar and vinegar. Cook 5 minutes more. Remove from heat.

Combine cheeses and sprinkle over crust. Top with onion mixture. Bake about 8-10 minutes until cheese is melted. Let stand 5 minutes. (I broiled mine for a couple minutes to brown the cheese.)

Nice poster from the Univ Books folks!

Charlene's Berry Shortbread Dreams

1 cup butter, softened
2/3 c sugar
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 c flour
1/3 to 1/2 c favorite jam

Cream butter and sugar in a bowl. Add extract and beat. Gradually add flour until dough forms a ball.

Cover and refrigerate 1 hour to firm up dough.

Roll into 1-inch balls. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Using the end of a wooden spoon handle, make an indentation in the center of each cookie and fill with jam.

Bake at 350F for 14-18 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool on wire racks. (Makes 3-4 dozen)

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I appreciated the questions, encouragement and support! Thanks for coming out.

California friends and readers, the next party is planned for Monday, August 27, in Menlo Park. Contact me for details!

Blanking Out

(This scene of emptiness courtesy K. Cadigan)

Some writers' nightmare might be the empty computer screen--that expanse of white, without form and void as the pre-Creation deep, nothing to be seen but the cursor blinking, blinking, blinking. Other writers most dread human interaction; they would prefer to hole up out of sight, spitting the occasional bestseller through the mail slot without having to open the door.

In my case, I dread the empty chair.

Last night was another bookstore event, and I could feel the anxiety building. Honestly, who would come to the thing besides the couple long-suffering friends I begged, one of whom already had the stinking book and even hosted a launch party for me? The other I called up at 25 minutes till, to discover her stir-frying away because she thought the thing began later than it did. To make matters worse, a reader had asked me earlier in the day where I got my inspiration for Everliving's setting (the California redwoods). I stared at her. "I--I don't know." Only when I was driving home did I remember that, yes, in fact, there had been a source of inspiration and I could now recall what it was. Then I had to actually pick up the book to review the first chapter, since I hadn't looked at it in several months, and lo--! I realized the thing was possibly the worst novel ever written in the English language.

You might file all these anecdotes under "Crisis of Confidence."

There's a happy ending to this. Faithful readers did show, and not just the stir-fry friend who blew out of her house after I lit a fire under her. Faithful readers did show and were gracious enough to buy the Worst Novel Ever Written in the English Language (maybe as a collector's item), only one person dozed during the reading (my next book better have explosions in the first chapter, to keep everyone on their toes), and no one threw up (as per my last reading at University Book Store Bellevue). Goodness all around.

Do I look relieved? (K. Cadigan)

Speaking of "all around," the Bellevue store is undergoing a high-speed remodel. Right next to the event area stood stacked trash bins and orange cones, and the lights directly overhead no one could find the switch to. I was relieved there was an event space, since the week before all was dust and chaos. Once complete, however, the store should rival the Jewel in the Crown, a.k.a. Mill Creek. If you bemoaned Borders going out of business and the general demise of bookstores, pay our friends at UBS Bellevue a visit. As always, free gift-wrapping, free shipping and flavored Altoids. Thank you, Carolyn, Kim, Kiki, and the rest of the staff. You are awesome.

God bless you, every one! (K. Cadigan)

 
And thank you, once again, friends and reading public, for coming out to support me and share the love of story.

Now I can enjoy one day of peace before the anxiety kicks in again and I get back on the roller-coaster. Come put me out of my misery?

University Book Store Mill Creek

7:00 p.m.

Mill Creek Town Center
15311 Main Street
Mill Creek, WA 98012
425.385.3530
(plenty of time to finish stir-frying before you hit the road)

Up a Creek

He would have been there, if he were a woman--and alive

Mill Creek, that is, and I found it an exceedingly pleasant place to be.

Thanks go out to the warm and welcoming Mill Creek Women's Club for hosting me at their March Luncheon yesterday. The Club members have been long time contributors and volunteers to the YWCA's Pathways for Women and Working Wardrobe. Through their efforts, a couple local women's shelters have been able to furnish their rooms with family-style bunk beds, and many people starting over have found job-interview-style clothing at the Wardrobe. Even my author event was a fundraiser, thanks to University Book Store Mill Creek's donation of 15% of the book sales to Pathways! Hooray! If you live up that direction and would love to get involved and make fabulous friends, I highly recommended hanging with these classy women.

I'm happy to report that, in addition to having generous hearts, the ladies also generous attention spans, alertness, and senses of humor, and I managed to get through the event with no major disasters besides sitting in water and blotting one reader's book. (When I hoped you would "enjy" the book, that was pirate-talk for "enjoy." Go with it.)

As always, when I gather with avid readers, we swapped reading ideas. I'm thrilled to have turned people on to Maud Hart Lovelace's Betsy-Tacy series and Sydney Taylor's All-of-a-Kind Family. In turn, Jessica Perez, who runs the YA Book Club at University Book Store Mill Creek (among her many responsibilities there), suggested local author Justina Chen's North of Beautiful and Rachel Hawkins' Hex Hall series for me and my sixth-grader. Tellingly, Jessica reports that the YA Book Club is made up entirely of adults and one brave teenager...

An Chinese-Irish blessing for all this Saint Patrick's Day:

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
May you "enjy" Christina's books
and recommend her to friends.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand!

Piece of Cake

Two outta three ain't bad.

Many thanks to stalwart fans young and old who made it to University Bookstore in Bellevue this morning for our Mia and the Magic Cupcakes event! I woke up at five stinkin' a.m. this morning having dreamt that it was Monday and I'd totally forgotten to show up. Yeeks! I thought. I didn't show and Margo had the flu, so I hope Teri went. Plus I was supposed to bring the cupcakes and cookies, so that means there weren't even any treats! In my dream I had to face the bookstore staff, weeping and apologizing.

I am relieved and happy to report that I did remember to go, and I did bring the sweets. The bit about Margo having the flu was real, unfortunately, not just because it meant she couldn't be there but also because it meant I picked up the cupcakes at Pinkabella, and not only did I get the two dozen minis, but I absolutely had to try today's Blueberry Pie flavor!

Front side of the display

And the back!

The staff at University Books outdid themselves again, from the adorable poster to the impressive display of Cupcakiana gathered from all UBS locations. Cookbooks, lip gloss, tote bags, knit caps, tissue paper, pins, Kleenex holder, Valentines, cupcake-making kits, and one very discreet volume entitled Kinky Cupcakes. These photos show the displays before they were mauled and manhandled by all the children at the reading.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to Carolyn, Abby and Don--and Christian at the register! Abby went above and beyond because--wouldn't you know it--you gather any group of more than ten young children, and one of them is sure to pee his pants or throw up. In this case, we had barfing (this happened before I read the book, so don't blame Mia), and Abby valiantly took care of it because the show must go on.

And on it went. All the kids managed to follow and pay attention. We did some impromptu polling as we read. The results:

100% liked cupcakes
10% liked vegetables
0% knew what a rutabaga was

Thanks again for being a great audience and for your support of the book(s). I say books because two women showed up to buy my novels--for them the cupcake reading was pure frosting, so to speak. As a parting shot, I leave you with our book's placement. Uh huh, right next to Barack Obama's Of Thee I Sing. The Leader of the Free World and your neighborhood authors and illustrators!

Hangin' with the President

You Could Have Sharks Launching Themselves at You

We all are prone to self-pity at times. Take my eleven-year-old, for instance, who was upstairs the other morning shedding copious tears (accompanied by dramatic sobbing) because she had chosen to do her Kumon packet before school and didn't think she'd finish before the bus came. Meanwhile, her deeply sympathetic mother went into the kitchen and nuked her oatmeal, taking care to stand very close to the microwave, not just to fry her inner organs but also to drown out the performance.

Who's got time to pity someone else, when there's so much pitying that must be done of oneself? It's Thursday, the Mia and the Magic Cupcakes bookstore event is Saturday, so I've been occasionally going down the what-if-no-one-shows-up-and-University-Book-Store-decides-I'm-such-a-loser-they-never-want-me-back road, but I haven't even been able to give that self-pity-party my undivided attention because the very Saturday after that potential Humiliation Fest is the Seattle University Book Festival, where I'm slated to speak in a break-out session after everyone who came to hear Anne LaMott has already gone on home. Plus they've put me opposite Lyanda Haupt, whose book Crow Planet I've actually heard of and read! Waa waaa waaaaaah.

Wait--before you close this window in disgust, I wanted to say that I've found the cure to self-pity. At least temporarily. It's found in Laura (Seabiscuit) Hillenbrand's new book Unbroken. I'm halfway through this amazing survivor story, and our hero Louie Zamperini is floating on a half-deflated raft in the Pacific with two other survivors, dying of starvation and thirst, and having to beat off flying sharks with oars. Now, Google all you like, and you will see there's no such thing as a flying shark. But these darned creatures, after circling their raft for weeks, have finally grown impatient and are hurling themselves out of the water, onto the raft, wide-open jaws first!(!!!!!) Could it honestly get any worse? The amazing thing is, it does.

Anyhow, "You could have sharks launching themselves at you," is a useful mantra to combat self-pity. Not to mention a handy way of refusing invitations to other people's pity parties. I used it on my husband last night. And, sure enough, he agreed that what Louie went through was definitely worse. (To make up for my lack of co-suffering, I did relate some of the amazing twists and turns in the book which would make excellent sermon fodder and which you might hear from the pulpit in coming months.) Take my word for it. Try it out on yourself or loved ones this week. And in the meantime, READ THIS BOOK!

***University Book Store, Saturday, January 29, at 11:00 a.m.***
***Seattle University Book Festival, Saturday, February 5, at 2:15 p.m.***

Wide World of Book Signings

Thanks to all readers and auditors who came out to University Bookstore Mill Creek last night. Your presence was extremely welcome and appreciated. Crossing my fingers, I emailed Jessica there to set up 25 chairs (up from the 15 I had talked her down to several days ago), and she even had to grab some more! Thank you, thank you, thank you.

First, some Awards, and then some Lessons Learned:

Most Long-Suffering: I count this as at least a three-way tie among the several people who were doing this with me for the 3rd or 4th time. I don't know what treasure you'll reap in heaven for this (probably none), but you have secured my lasting gratitude.

Most Male: Congratulations to the four unknown men in the audience, plus that guy who spent almost the entire reading looking at ONE nearby sweatshirt rack. (You know you were listening--you should have just pulled up a chair.) Unfortunately, not a single guy bought a book, unless they sent a woman up to do it for them.

Most Diligent: One of the after-party attendees reports that the group of unknown 20-somethings next to her was taking notes throughout (!). I can't imagine on what, so either (1) they were wedged in by people and chairs, couldn't escape, and resorted to doing homework; or, (2) their actual assignment was to do a critique of an author event? I shudder.

As for lessons learned, I did a little reading up on doing book signings before I went, figuring this event needed all the help it could get. One writer suggested button-holing people as you walked around the store, thrusting your book in the unsuspecting person's hand so that she felt a moral obligation then to sit down and hear you or--if she were particularly susceptible--to purchase a copy. This sounded too scary a practice, even for me, so I compromised with hunting people down to lay a bookmark on them. My apologies to University Bookstore because I think I chased three women out of the store. Bookmarks in hand, they headed straight for the exit. Oops.

Fortunately there was no need to apply lesson #2: how to handle a heckler. No hecklers in sight. Very friendly crowd. I had my box cutter at the ready, though.

Lesson #3: have a few questions prepared, in case the audience can't come up with any on the spot. This one really worked! By putting a few seed questions out there myself and answering them, that led to others. Unlike the 7th and 8th graders at the school I visited, however, no one at Mill Creek bothered to ask me if I like pie, so I felt obliged to volunteer that information.

And I didn't read this anywhere, but it'll be my new tradition: Lesson #4: have an after-party. Several of us hit Azul, one block down from the bookstore, and with the temperature in the 20s it was nearly our last night on earth, but the sangria and company were wonderful!

If you're coming to Parkplace Books this Thursday, the after-party will be at Purple! Hope to see you.

She's Come Undone (at Least Halfway)

***Meet me in Mill Creek at University Bookstore, Monday, 12/7, at 7:00P!***

The life of a self-published author is almost too glamorous to write about.

It was time to pick up more copies of MOURNING BECOMES CASSANDRA, so off I drove with a friend (read fellow book-loader) to Centralia, Washington. It's not like I was out of books. My husband would tell you we'd finally managed to reduce garage inventory to a sane level, but with two book signing events on the horizon in December, I didn't want to risk running out. ("Running out? Ha!" laugh the evite gods, as I look at the six confirmed attendees for the Mill Creek book signing. Hey, I won't even need to bake a dozen cookies. A half dozen will do...I haven't yet worked up the nerve to call Jessica at the store to tell her to set up eight chairs: six for guests, one for me, and one for the staff person wondering why she has to work late.)

The school bus pulled up as I was unloading the eleven, 25-lbs.+ boxes, shoving aside plastic sleds and containers of hand-me-down clothes, and the kids were in fine form. Even after they went inside, I could hear them fighting with each other. (Did I tell you I try to apply C. S. Lewis's THE GREAT DIVORCE as a parenting book? Just like the people in hell, I think the easiest answer to any conflict is for my children just to get away from each other. Far away. Far, far away.)

Sure enough, Jackson comes running out. "Holly called me a Dumbo!"

(Fill in the blanks with my reply. As any parent knows, it really doesn't matter what I say in response here.)

A minute later, it's Holly out to rat on him. "Jackson is hitting everyone, and he won't leave us alone!"

(More ineffectual peacemaking attempts on my part.)

Two minutes later, Jackson's back out, wailing dramatically like Anakin Skywalker when he lost Padme. "Holly hit me and my glasses fell off and the lens POPPED OUT!!!!"

To paraphrase Francesca in Dante's INFERNO, "we unloaded no more books that day."

At least Francesca was only stuck in hell with her lover Paolo. Unrelenting storm and all, how hellish could that be? Of course, the adulterous lovers were only in Circle Two of the Inferno. Parents of three young children probably were at least two more circles down, right next to Vainglorious Would-Be Authors Who Hound Their Friends Constantly to Buy Books.

The Eagle Has Landed

Yippee-kay-ay! Thanks to all you readers and friends out there who made my first legitimate book event in a legitimate location look legitimate! You are the best. I'm happy to report that MOURNING BECOMES CASSANDRA is now officially in the black, which means I can dig into the savings account to do this again in the future. Good news, since I have so many books I'm writing or dying to write.

The University Book Store staff in Bellevue was wonderful and even took a few extra stock copies at the end of the evening so I can spread like a virus up to the Mill Creek store. I'm no swine flu, but it's a start. I'm so in love with UBS right now that I am letting my Barnes & Noble membership lapse, thank you very much. (For you owners of a Chinook Book, you'll be happy to know there's a 20% off coupon for UBS in it.)

If you have any friends in Northern Latitudes, let me know, because UBS might want to do an event at their Mill Creek location. I can think of one sister-in-law, and one friend in Monroe, and one in Duvall. If they each bring a friend, that's six people. Let's not go nuts here, folks.

I'm on My Way, I'm Making It Big Time

Kidding about the title of this post, although I'm positive there is a line of '80s music for every occasion in life. And the big occasion I'd like to announce is...(drumroll, please)...my first actual Author Appearance in a Legitimate Place!

Mark your calendar for:

Wednesday, September 30
7:00 p.m.
University Bookstore in Bellevue
990 102nd Ave NE
Bellevue, WA 98004-4196
(425) 462-4500
www.bookstore.washington.edu

I'll be there to promote MOURNING BECOMES CASSANDRA, sign books, bribe people with cookies or other giveaways, and just generally grovel.

If you're reading this blog, chances are you've already read the book. Feel free to bring a newbie friend. Promise great things.

Cheers to independent bookstores! University Bookstore actually contacted me to ask if they could carry books because people had been asking. After considering for a millisecond, I tore over there, books in hand, to get them out immediately. Pop in and you'll find MBC on the "New Fiction" table.

On the dependent bookstore side, a friend and fan went into Lifeway to encourage them to carry my book, only to be told that they were "a big corporation, and buying decisions were made at a higher level." Just as well, since Lifeway might take one look at the 20+ f-words in the book and draw somewhat-unjustified conclusions about me.

See you in September?