TC Tidbits: Rushdie To Write and Produce For Showtime

Read article from The Independent here.

Normal Is WAY Overrated

Janie Gorman wants to be normal. The problem with that: she’s not. She’s smart and creative and a little bit funky. She’s also an unwilling player in her parents’ modern-hippy, let’s-live-on-a-goat-farm experiment (regretfully, instigated by a younger, much more enthusiastic Janie). This, to put it simply, is not helping Janie reach that “normal target.” She has to milk goats every day…and endure her mother’s pseudo celebrity in the homemade-life, crunchy mom blogosphere. Goodbye the days of frozen lasagna and suburban living, hello crazy long bus ride to high school and total isolation--and hovering embarrassments of all kinds. The fresh baked bread is good…the threat of homemade jeans, not so much.

It would be nice to go back to that old suburban life…or some grown up, high school version of it, complete with nice, normal boyfriends who wear crew neck sweaters and like social studies. So, what’s wrong with normal? Well, kind of everything. She knows that, of course, why else would she learn bass and join Jam Band, how else would she know to idolize infamous wild-child and high school senior Emma (her best friend Sarah’s older sister), why else would she get arrested while doing a school project on a local freedom school (jail was not part of the assignment). And, why else would she kind of be falling in "like" with a boy named Monster—yes, that is his real name. Janie was going for normal, but she missed her mark by about ten miles…and we mean that as a compliment.

Frances O’Roark Dowell’s fierce humor and keen eye make her YA debut literary and wise. In the spirit of John Green and E. Lockhart, Dowell’s relatable, quirky characters and clever, fluid writing prove that growing up gets complicated…and normal is WAY overrated.

Jackie says:
"Okay, so it might have been Janie's suggestion that her family move to a farm, but there is a lot of differences between what a 9 year old thinks is cool and what a 14 year old freshman in high school thinks. She's tired of being called "Skunk Girl" just because of some goat poop on her shoe one morning on the bus. She's tired of hiding out in the library because the lunch room is just too embarrassing--she doesn't have the same lunch period as any of her old friends, and barely any classes with them. And she's REALLY tired of her mom's blog, where she talks about all sorts of stuff about the farm and the family that Janie would rather not have shared with anyone, ever. But then she meets Verbena, the Tattooed Girl (okay, they are only Sharpie tattoos, but she has a LOT of them), and Monster (his real name, proving to her that perhaps her parents are not the MOST terrible people on the planet) and learns to play the bass, and she comes to see that being 'ten miles past normal' is not such a bad thing to be. This book is lots of fun and fits nicely among Dowell's acclaimed and award winning other titles."

Suze Orman and The American Dream

What does it take to create your New American Dream?

Suze Orman, the woman millions of Americans have turned to for financial advice, says it’s time for a serious reconsideration of the American Dream—what promise it still holds, what aspects are in need of revision, and how it must be refashioned to fit our lives so that we can once again have faith that our hard work will pay off and that a secure and hopeful future is within our reach.

In nine electrifying chapters, Orman delivers a master class on personal finance for this pivotal moment in time. She addresses every aspect of the American Dream—home, family, career, retirement. She teaches us that in order to create lasting security we must learn to stand in our truth. We must recognize, embrace, and be honest about what is real for us today and allow that understanding to inform the choices we make. The New American Dream is not the things we accumulate, says Orman, but the confidence that comes from knowing that which we’ve worked so hard for cannot be taken away from us. In The Money Class, Orman teaches us how to take control over our present—right here, right now—in order to build the future of our dreams.

Whether navigating the complicated mix of money and family, offering the most comprehensive retirement resource available today, or delivering a bracing dose of reality when it comes to recalibrating our expectations and our goals, Orman educates us with her signature no-nonsense approach and laser-like clarity. She empowers us to live a life of integrity and honesty that will create an enduring legacy for future generations—a New American Dream that lies in truth, security, financial freedom, and peace of mind.

TC Tidbit: Movie Adaptation of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan Coming Out July 15

Doggone Good Reads: Judy S. Gives This One a 4 Kleenex Rating*

Now including a wonderful new photo insert chronicling Merle’s life, this national bestseller explores the relationship between humans and dogs. How would dogs live if they were free? Would they stay with their human friends?

Merle and Ted found each other in the Utah desert— Merle was living wild and Ted was looking for a pup to keep him company. As their bond grew, Ted taught Merle how to live around wildlife, and Merle taught Ted about the benefits of letting a dog make his own decisions.

Using the latest in wolf research and exploring issues of animal consciousness and leadership and the origins of the human-dog relationship, Ted Kerasote takes us on the journey he and Merle shared. As much a love story as a story of independence and partnership, Merle’s Door is tender, funny, and ultimately illuminating.

Judy says:

"Imagine you were an outdoorsman and a skier and you found a companion dog who loved to slide down on his stomach through fresh powder with you. Then you'd become as ecstatic about and in love with Merle as Ted Kerasote did. He chronicles the day to day life of the gregarious Merle, from campsite crasher to unofficial Mayor of Kelly, Wyoming. A character who became known and beloved by nearly everyone in that small community--due to the freedom of having his own door.

You as reader will develop an affinity for Merle also. You can't help but love him because the writer puts him right there in front of you--head cocked, tongue panting and tail wagging--welcoming you back home to each chapter of his memoir. By the end of the book you cherish this dog's quirky mannerisms nearly as much as the writer. In fact, you'll come to think of Merle as one of your own."

* 4 Kleenex Rating=Don't finish this one on the Light Rail--it could be embarrassing.

Upcycling Books Into Art

In these pages, Jason Thompson has curated an extensive and artistic range of both achievable upcycled crafts made from books and book pages and an amazing gallery that contains thought-provoking and beautiful works that transform books into art.

The content encompasses a wide range of techniques and step-by-step projects that deconstruct and rebuild books and their parts into unique, upcycled objects. The book combines in equal measure bookbinding, woodworking, paper crafting, origami, and textile and decorative arts techniques, along with a healthy dose of experimentation and fun.The beautiful high-end presentation and stunning photography make this book a delightful, must-have volume for any book-loving artist or art-loving book collector.

Some of the projects in the book:

TC Tidbits: Great Expectations Is What This Literary Mixtape Is About

flavorwire.com muses about what Philip Pirrip, better known as Pip in the book Great Expectations, would have on his iPod .