Recent Book Activity

I love movies but almost never watch television... comes from not owning one for 18 years as I was earning my way through college, so the habit never stuck. I have always been an avid almost insatiable reader.... when I can get time. I love any book that is well written. I read mostly fiction but lots of non-fiction, as well. I read mostly in English but have read a lot of French (I am a high school French teacher who went as far in college as passing the Ph.D. exams; I adore teaching teenagers). My two favorite books of all time are One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (which I read in both English and French, thinking that the French might better capture the original Spanish word flow, and my Spanish not good enough to read in the original) and, one that most people haven't heard of but which in my mind deserved to become a classic, Mark Helprin's A Soldier of the Great War. I also think Nancy Huston (married since the 70's to Tzvetan Todorov) is brilliant, writing in French, her adopted language, and then doing her own translations into English (she was originally Canadian). I also love historical mysteries... they are usually wonderfully written, and I learn so much from them. I regret the realization that one gets in middle age that you just aren't going to be able to get all the books read that you want to.... but I have no intention of not giving it or life my all!

Biopic for those who are interested: I have lived in Kansas, Missouri, Washington state,Florida, New Hampshire, New York State, 7 total years in France, and in Maine since 1987, with trips back to Paris every summer until quite recently. I teach in a private high school, French (surprise, surprise) and will begin my 42nd year of teaching this Fall of 2011. I have one dog left, Grissom, a silky Terrier who is 8 and three cats Jacques. Luna and Coco; also a parrotlet (miniature parrot) named Beep. All my animals were rescues; I volunteer at the local animal shelter some Sunday mornings. My only daughter Dorothée who is now 27 was raised by her single mom (that is me, of course). She has recently been accepted to the NYU School of Nursing, accelerated program! In addition to movies, I adore theater and film, do cross stitch when I have time (mostly on airplanes)and like to cook and live gastronomically intense moments. I belong to one book club, two dinner groups and run a Foreign Film Club at my school. Voilà.

My Wish List