Book Review, Reading List 0 comments
Good as Gone. Mystery fans: grab the debut novel from Austin writer Amy Gentry asap because everyone will be talking about this one. The title invites comparison with that best selling phenomenon, Gone Girl, and sure enough, the mystery opens with the horrifying premise that a stranger has abducted the victim, this time a thirteen-year-old girl, […]
etymology, Word of the Week 0 comments
The official language of the U.S Virgin Islands is American English. British Virgin Islands uses the Queen’s English. But that’s not what you’ll hear on the street. Native born citizens of the islands speak Virgin Islands Creole, known locally as “dialect,” incomprehensible to you and me. To linguists, it’s not really an English dialect, it’s […]
recipes, Uncategorized 2 comments
Susanna, my protagonist, has spent some time in de Islands, where dinner is served on the veranda with a balmy breeze and a dessert that makes the guests want to lick the bowl. You can make this recipe for any number of diners. Ingredients per customer: ½ banana, sliced lengthwise, then in half (in the […]
etymology, Word of the Week 0 comments
The term spinmeister, also known as the spin doctor, arose in the 1990s, meaning the one who provides a favorable slant to an item of news or a potentially unpopular policy. Meister is a suffix suggesting expertise, frequently ironic, derived from the German for master. Different origins are given for of this use of spin. Wikipedia […]
Reading List, Uncategorized 1 comment
Another mystery set in Houston, recommended by Sally Woods at Murder by the Book. This one is Amy Gentry’s debut novel. She’s a Houston native, now living in Austin, returning to sign her book at Murder by the Book on Friday, July 29, 2016 at 7:30 PM. I’ve already got my copy.
etymology, Word of the Week 2 comments
In this political season there’s plenty of rhetoric on all sides claiming the patriotic high ground. The suffix, “-ism” is used to form nouns that refer to a set of political, or religious beliefs, studies, or ways of behaving: patriotism, feminism, globalism, and jingoism. Referring to another person’s “isms” frequently introduces a criticism. For example, […]
Let’s talk about dirty words. A euphemism is a mild or indirect expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt. It’s derived from the Greek term meaning “use of words of good omen.” Any place for that in modern fiction? Some colleagues in my critique group objected when I allowed my protagonist, […]
Houston writer Babette Hale’s new story, Motes, appears in the new Southwest Review, vol. 101, no.2.(http://www.smu.edu/SouthwestReview/CurrentBackIssues) Her fans will be delighted to see the landscape and people of Central Texas, where Hale lives part time, come alive in her vivid imagery and telling details. One of her previous stories, Drouth, set in the same countryside […]
Recently I wrote about how Americans give away their backgrounds with a word choice. (Word of the Week – doodlebug.) At the grocery store, do you put your food in a bag (East)? Or a sack (everyone else except the South)? In the South you might carry groceries in a “poke.” Think of buying “a […]
Another great thing about a university town: downtown Santa Cruz, CA has not one, but two fantastic bookstores within a block of each other. Take a look at www.bookshopsantacruz.com and www.logosbooksrecords.com.