NOTE TO MYSELF: SOME PEOPLE WIN PRIZES FOR BAD SEX - IN FICTION
The object of writing and/or authoring a book is for people to read it and for the book to be noticed. In this case, the book was definitely noticed but not for the usual reasons.
Irish author, Rowan Somerville, was awarded the "Bad Sex in Fiction" prize for his novel, "The Shape of Her."
A sample of the writing says it all:
“Like a lepidopterist mounting a tough-skinned insect with a too blunt pin he screwed himself into her."
What can one say, comment or write after reading such - um - uniquely-expressed words? In winning the award, Somerville beat British Columbia author, Annabel Lyon, who was nominated for her book, "The Golden Mean, which explored the relationship between Aristotle and a young Alexander the Great. Sure - why not. Sounds good to me.
Last year's winner was "The Kindly Ones" by American author Jonathan Littell, which described a sex act as "a jolt that emptied my head like a spoon scraping the inside of a soft-boiled egg." Oh my...
The annual award was created 18 years ago by the British literary magazine, Literary Review, to draw attention to the crude, tasteless, often perfunctory use of redundant passages of sexual description in the modern novel, and to discourage it".
To see a list of other finalists, drop by here:
http://www.literaryreview.co.uk/badsex.html
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Monday, February 18, 2008
PENGUIN BOOK BARRED FROM LIBRARY SHELVES: PC GONE AWRY?
NOTE TO SELF: A FAMILY IS A FAMILY IS A FAMILY...SOME PEOPLE SEE SUBVERSIVE PLOTS EVERYWHERE, ESPECIALLY IN LOUDON
Given the fact that this is a place where there is reading matter covering a wide variety of subjects, one parent whose sensitivities were obviously jarred by the prospect of gay penguin parenting, has managed to get a book pulled from the library shelves. Some people see subversive plots at every turn, even within the pages of a children's book.
A children's book about two male penguins that hatch and parent a chick was pulled from library shelves in Loudoun County elementary schools this month after a parent complained that it promoted a gay agenda.
The decision by Superintendent Edgar B. Hatrick III led many parents and gay rights advocates to rush to the penguins' defence. Many say that the school system should not have allowed one complaint to limit children's literary choices. Some are calling for an overhaul of the book review policy. Besides, many say, what could be wrong with a book about penguins?
"The book is based on a true story . . . of what happens in the animal kingdom," said David Weintraub, director of Equality Loudoun, a gay rights organization. "It's about the joy of being part of a family. These penguins love each other. They take care of each other. The book, "And Tango Makes Three," by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell, draws on the real-life story of Roy and Silo, two chinstrap penguins at the Central Park Zoo in New York. It also appears to make a point about tolerance of alternative families.
As the book says, Roy and Silo were "a little bit different" than the boy and girl penguins who noticed each other and became couples. "Wherever Roy went, Silo went too." After they tried to hatch an egg-shaped rock together, a zookeeper gave them a fertilized egg to nurture. Experts say male chinstraps typically share incubation duties with females.The 2005 book, written with simple words and colorful pictures and dedicated "to penguin lovers everywhere," topped the American Library Association's list of banned or challenged books in 2006. Parents challenged the book in Shiloh, Ill., and Charlotte. Administrators in Charlotte initially yanked the book but later restored it, according to news reports.
Read the whole story here:
http://loudounextra.washingtonpost.com/news/2008/feb/16/tango/
Extra Information regarding penguins found on the Sea World site: http://www.seaworld.org/infobooks/Penguins/hatching.html:
"Care of the chicks
1 . Chicks require attentive parents for survival. Both parents feed the chick regurgitated food. Adults recognize and feed only their own chicks. Parents are able to identify their young by their chick's distinctive call (Marchant, 1990; Simpson, 1976).
2. Male emperor penguins exhibit a feature unique among penguins. If the chick hatches before the female returns, the male, despite his fasting, is able to produce and secrete a curdlike substance from his esophagus to feed the chick (Marchant, 1990; del Hoyo, et al., 1992) allowing for survival and growth for up to two weeks (Pr6vost and Vilter, 1963-1 Stonehouse, 1975).
Given the fact that this is a place where there is reading matter covering a wide variety of subjects, one parent whose sensitivities were obviously jarred by the prospect of gay penguin parenting, has managed to get a book pulled from the library shelves. Some people see subversive plots at every turn, even within the pages of a children's book.
A children's book about two male penguins that hatch and parent a chick was pulled from library shelves in Loudoun County elementary schools this month after a parent complained that it promoted a gay agenda.
The decision by Superintendent Edgar B. Hatrick III led many parents and gay rights advocates to rush to the penguins' defence. Many say that the school system should not have allowed one complaint to limit children's literary choices. Some are calling for an overhaul of the book review policy. Besides, many say, what could be wrong with a book about penguins?
"The book is based on a true story . . . of what happens in the animal kingdom," said David Weintraub, director of Equality Loudoun, a gay rights organization. "It's about the joy of being part of a family. These penguins love each other. They take care of each other. The book, "And Tango Makes Three," by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell, draws on the real-life story of Roy and Silo, two chinstrap penguins at the Central Park Zoo in New York. It also appears to make a point about tolerance of alternative families.
As the book says, Roy and Silo were "a little bit different" than the boy and girl penguins who noticed each other and became couples. "Wherever Roy went, Silo went too." After they tried to hatch an egg-shaped rock together, a zookeeper gave them a fertilized egg to nurture. Experts say male chinstraps typically share incubation duties with females.The 2005 book, written with simple words and colorful pictures and dedicated "to penguin lovers everywhere," topped the American Library Association's list of banned or challenged books in 2006. Parents challenged the book in Shiloh, Ill., and Charlotte. Administrators in Charlotte initially yanked the book but later restored it, according to news reports.
Read the whole story here:
http://loudounextra.washingtonpost.com/news/2008/feb/16/tango/
Extra Information regarding penguins found on the Sea World site: http://www.seaworld.org/infobooks/Penguins/hatching.html:
"Care of the chicks
1 . Chicks require attentive parents for survival. Both parents feed the chick regurgitated food. Adults recognize and feed only their own chicks. Parents are able to identify their young by their chick's distinctive call (Marchant, 1990; Simpson, 1976).
2. Male emperor penguins exhibit a feature unique among penguins. If the chick hatches before the female returns, the male, despite his fasting, is able to produce and secrete a curdlike substance from his esophagus to feed the chick (Marchant, 1990; del Hoyo, et al., 1992) allowing for survival and growth for up to two weeks (Pr6vost and Vilter, 1963-1 Stonehouse, 1975).
Monday, April 23, 2007
TEACH THE CHILDREN AND THEY WILL SHOW THE WAY
Note to self: "If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in."
(Rachel Carson)
Today being the day following Earth Day, I bought two books related to recycling and being kind to the earth. The books, "Recycle Every Day" by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace and "The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss, are for this Saturday's "Story Hour" to take place at our local public library. Every two weeks me and my friend, Marilyn, volunteer our time to read stories to kids from 3-6 years of age who drop by with a parent/grandparent or an adult. We insist that an adult be present. We try to use a theme and it's never too early to focus on the environment.
According to the blurb on the back cover of Recycle Every Day: "Children often feel that they can't make a difference in the world they live in. This is not true. Teaching children to be environmentally conscious is one of thebest ways to empower them. Recycle Every Day will show children how to become socially aware of their surroundings and help them make our world a better place to live."
The book has some very cute and colorful illustrations, which is a must for young children.
All Dr. Seuss books are favorites but it was a pleasent surprise to discover that The Lorax has an environmetal angle, as per a blurb on Amazon.com: "Long before saving the earth became a global concern, Dr. Seuss, speaking through his character the Lorax, warned against mindless progress and the danger it posed to the earth's natural beauty."
At the end of the Story Hour, the young bibliophiles will be receiving living mini trees/saplings in a container, donated by our municipality as a souvenir to think green and to be friendly to Mother Earth.
CHINESE PROVERB: "One generation plants the trees; another gets the shade."
Writers & Friends
www.jrslater.com/forum
(Rachel Carson)
Today being the day following Earth Day, I bought two books related to recycling and being kind to the earth. The books, "Recycle Every Day" by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace and "The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss, are for this Saturday's "Story Hour" to take place at our local public library. Every two weeks me and my friend, Marilyn, volunteer our time to read stories to kids from 3-6 years of age who drop by with a parent/grandparent or an adult. We insist that an adult be present. We try to use a theme and it's never too early to focus on the environment.
According to the blurb on the back cover of Recycle Every Day: "Children often feel that they can't make a difference in the world they live in. This is not true. Teaching children to be environmentally conscious is one of thebest ways to empower them. Recycle Every Day will show children how to become socially aware of their surroundings and help them make our world a better place to live."
The book has some very cute and colorful illustrations, which is a must for young children.
All Dr. Seuss books are favorites but it was a pleasent surprise to discover that The Lorax has an environmetal angle, as per a blurb on Amazon.com: "Long before saving the earth became a global concern, Dr. Seuss, speaking through his character the Lorax, warned against mindless progress and the danger it posed to the earth's natural beauty."
At the end of the Story Hour, the young bibliophiles will be receiving living mini trees/saplings in a container, donated by our municipality as a souvenir to think green and to be friendly to Mother Earth.
CHINESE PROVERB: "One generation plants the trees; another gets the shade."
Writers & Friends
www.jrslater.com/forum
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