The Study of Animal Languages
I read The Study of Animal Languages by Lindsay Stern in one day. I couldn’t put it down, and that alone made me so happy. Lately, I am so easily distracted that I can’t read more than a few pages without picking up my phone. Any book that can keep me away from the warden of my choosing earns five stars. Ivan is a detached philosophy professor famous for solving a problem no one knows exists. Prue is a well-regarded professor of biolinguistics who studies the language of finches. The Study of Animal Languages tells the story of two gifted academics of knowledge and communication who fail to understand each other. Their marriage reaches a fork in the road when Frank, Prue’s father, who lives with bipolar disorder, arrives during one of his manic episodes.…
The Story of More
I am reading a lot of books in preparation for The William Morris Project in 2021. Books on stewardship and climate change are, particularly on my radar. My latest read is The Story of More by Hope Jahren. The Story of More traces the history of climate change as a result of our excessive consumption.…
The William Morris Project and Other Goals
On the 30th of November, I turned 48; my blog turned 12. Both numbers seem impossible. For the first time that I can remember, I set birthday goals: love my family BIG, become a better/less lazy photographer (use my DSLR, for starters), save money for a big goal, and reboot The William Morris Project. Years…
On Anger
I am spending more time on social media again, which is both good and bad. I get to interact with a community of like-minded individuals, I am exposed to new perspectives and points of view, and I learn from those more experienced and more knowledgeable than I am on a host of issues. Social media…
Race to the Sun
Race to the Sun is the new book capturing my 4th and 5th graders’ hearts, but not without controversy. First, the positive. You know Rick Riordan of Percy Jackson fame, yes? Yes. Riordan is as synonymous with mythology as Rowling is with wizardry. He has fictionalized Greek, Egyptian, and Norse mythology in a way that…
Mostly, I do Small Things
Mostly, I do small things. I work from the studio in our backyard, and when I finish, I head back inside to work on dinner and monitor homework. At the end of the day, if there is still time, I pick up a book and hope to find solace. We spend the weekends at home, the boys…
Niko Draws a Feeling
The only time my mind settles lately is when I am reading to my first graders. Reading to them books like Niko Draws a Feeling, even over the grainy video of a Google Meets, are my very favorite moments of my work week. You can hear a pin drop, and sometimes, when I look up from…
