keep calm and crayon
This is my own version of the WW2 poster...I like the fact that I could make the word 'crayon' using letters from 'carry on' - just one 'r' to spare. Of course it doesn't have to be crayonning; anything creative is fine. I have been doing a lot of 'crayonning' in the last week or so, being on leave from work and actually having time to make things - this has included a messenger style bag and another two journals. But this post is mainly going to be about reading, shopping and books.
What I've been reading and buying
from Mrs Flannerys
but I could see how this could become tedious quite quickly.
I have been reading one of the books I bought, The Emperor of all Maladies: a Biography of Cancer, by Siddharta Muckherjee, who is a cancer researcher and oncologist in USA. He has a fantastic name, and is also a fabulous writer, despite the gruesome, somewhat chilling subject matter. I am so pleased I found this, I had read several good reviews, but hadn't remembered to write down the name of the book, and despite searching for cancer and health books in several places (including a real bookshop) I had been unable to find it, until it just appeared on the table at Avid Reader the other day, and I knew it was 'the one' I had been looking for.
In 1995, three of my friends were diagnosed with breast cancer; thankfully two of them are still alive. Susan, one of my oldest friends from school, didn't make it: she died a few months before her 40th birthday. We all have many similar stories - my dad had prostate cancer for many years (although it probably didn't kill him), and my father-in-law had lung cancer (although he died of a heart attack, after living for some time with only one lung). Indeed, cancer has us all in its crabby grasp, one way or another. Its good to 'know your enemy'...and the history of cancer research is fascinating. The egos of the surgeons, doing radical mastectomies on women, although it was contra-indicated, and the blindness of the (smoking) doctors, who stubbornly disputed the link to lung cancer...a surprisingly good read.
And, at Avid Reader, I was served by Chris Currie, who told me I had $15 in rewards to claim, which was a bonus, as I usually refuse to join these schemes. Chris, I since discovered, has just had his first novel The Ottoman Motel published (I recognised his photo in the paper). I couldn't have had that experience with the B**k Depository.
I am now forcing myself to buy (some) books in real bookshops, not just online, as I am concerned about the survival of Australian bookshops. It was sobering to go into my local Borders last week, and to find that they were selling off all their stock. A few weeks ago, Angus and Robertson did the same thing, and they are now closed. I was tempted to buy a marked down Borders' electronic book reader, Kobo, but thought that if they close down, the reader may no longer be operational. The free 100 classics was tempting, but having looked into it, I think the Be-book is a better bet, as it is not tied to any particular franchise, and apparently downloads are much quicker. I haven't bought it yet though.
I also read an article in Q-weekend, by a British journalist, Will Storr, which compared British and Australian culture, something I have written about in earlier posts. Basically he says that Aussies are friendlier, but more (outspokenly) racist. Brits are cynical, miserable, but more politically correct (and I mean that in a good way). I agree with most of what he says.
Went to the amazing William Robinson retrospective at QUT Art Museum and Old Parliament House. Fantastic paintings of the rainforest. This is fig tree from the city botanical gardens, next door.
And so bin Laden is dead. Perhaps the end of an era, time will tell. Hopefully this will boost Obama's chances of re-election, although possibly for all the wrong reasons.
More later.
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