I had a good clamber over the new habitat island in False Creek last Wednesday, and caught all kinds of birds including this northern flicker, who was cleaning itself and soaking up the sunlight:
I am also flickering across the horizon at Benbella Books, guest blogging about last week’s Glee episode “Duets”. This is something of a tie-in to my essay “Who’s the Real Lima Loser? The Curious Friendship of Finn Hudson and Noah Puckerman“, which will be out in their unofficial Glee companion, FILLED WITH GLEE in November. And over at Tor.com, my third Quantum Leap rewatch, “The Color of Truth,” is live.
Another delight of the week gone by: Kelly read me The Uncommon Reader
, by Alan Bennett, the other evening. She is a fantastically expressive reader, and the novella itself is laugh out loud funny, so it was a thoroughly wonderful experience. The book is about making time for pleasure, about giving yourself a chance to grow, and ultimately about giving yourself permission to write… even in the face of considerable opposition.
The Uncommon Reader also reminded me that a couple months ago I saw a cluster of blog posts written by committed bibliophiles who were expressing frustration with the frequently-heard comment, “I never find time to read.” This observation seems, to them, to imply that reading (novels, especially) is a frivolous, even sinfully self-indulgent pursuit as opposed to one that is mind-expanding and worthwhile. This novella makes the counter-argument to that foolish idea very eloquently. I cannot recommend it enough.
