Henna House by Nomi Eve

Henna House by Nomi Eve

I know virtually nothing about the Arabian Peninsula in the 20th century and even less about the practice of henna decorations so when I picked up this book at the library, I knew I was in for an interesting read  .I certainly was not disappointed. What I didn't know was that the book would have a great story as well.
It tells the story of Adela, a young Yemenite Jewess who lives with her parents in an area of yemen controlled by Muslims in the 1920s. They live  as 2nd class citizens in the area and although managing to make a simple living, always in fear. Adela, at the start of the story is only 9years old and  is especially fearful that she will be taken away and forcefully adopted by a Muslim family. Her mother is very strict and will not let her join in the local ritual custom of decorating her body with henna. This changes when her aunt, uncle and cousins  from Aden  then a British protectorate move to live with them. Her aunt is a skilled henna artist. The family story is fully of the history and traditions of the time as well as the eventual passage of the family to the new state of Israel.
It is also a love story and a tale of interfamily relationships, hardships and held my interest right through the book.
A most interesting book, well worth reading,

Challenge painting" Oranges and a red flower"

Challenge painting" Oranges and a red flower"

This is an acrylic painting that I did for the challenge group on Blogger. Paintanddrawtogether which you can see here.http://paintanddrawtogether.blogspot.com/
The original still life looked fairly simple but it turned out to be more difficult to get the correct shading. Plus I think it looks like my oranges look like they are floating. ( ghost technique for Halloween!)

Original challenge painting
"Still life with Oranges"

Every month or so  a challenge in the form of a photo is given and then artists from all over the world  respond to the challenge. Sometimes the artists will paint just part of the original but all will choose their own medium of paint /pastel or even pencil and their own style to make a painting to share with the others.It is most interesting to see the variety of paintings that come each month.

The film. "The Martian"

The film, "The Martian"      

played in the film by Matt Damon

To view the trailer go here:

The Martian | Official Trailer [HD] | 20th Century FOX ... 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ej3ioOneTy8

Yesterday I did something that I hadn't done for probably over 6years - I went to the movies!
I usually stay at home and watch any movie I want to see on " Netflix" or streamed onto my computer.Those movies are fine for me as I am really not into loud, thrilling-action, loud, fast moving, complicated, loud, overwhelming type movies. You did notice that I said loud, didn't you.? 
I find the sound in the large multi- theaters just overwhelming as is the film if you sit too close. 
I prefer movies where there is a definite plot and where people actually have conversations rather than either mumbled talk or besotted glares at each other or there is so much action you lose the story line.
So why did I go to the movies ? 

The Martian was being screened.  I had read the book  a few weeks back and really loved it so I wanted to see how this would be translated into a film and could it be done successfully.
I am very pleased to say I thought the book was captured extremely well in the movie.The plot was followed, the technicalities of the intricate space venture and equipment were easier to follow on the film than to imagine when reading.Also, Matt Damon acted the main character very well and was very believable.The book delved more into his thoughts and emotional processes.
The scenery on the film was very realistic, even though mostly imagined, but gave a great sense of what the red planet would be like if ever humans land on it.
I would certainly recommend seeing the film but go before you read the book or you will know how it ends !!
And by the way, it was loud, in some places but bearable!!

To see my blog on the book go to my blog archive  for September 9th

A Few Days in Fayetteville, Arkansas

 A Few Days in Fayetteville, Arkansas

With the very late arrival of Fall to this part of North Texas- it was still in the high 80s and even 90s , we decided to take a short road trip to the Northern Mountains of Arkansas. Surely the leaves would be changing there. We were not disappointed as in the high mountains the leaves were beautiful even though the weather continued to be still sunny and warm.It was worth the 7hour car trip it had taken us to get there to see it.

But what Mike really enjoyed were the winding lanes with steep hills and curves through the mountains around Boston, AK. You approach the mountains through the foothills  and then quickly you start to climb until you are on many small roads surrounded by the forest of trees,all blazing with color. From time to time you catch a glimpse of a spectacular view as you reach the top of one mountain and look over the valley to the mountains on the other side. Unfortunately there are not many places where you can pull over to the side of the road or overlooks to appreciate the views. That would have been really nice.

We also found a small lake just outside the college town of Fayetteville which was just so beautiful and peaceful. No one else was there and we could take photos and  walk on the boardwalks through the forested areas and enjoy our time.

I tried out my new Ipad air video maker on this one. Not sure what I was doing and it was difficult to actually see on the screen but here it is.
https://youtu.be/ny0pnp3wFUw. 

I can't make it play here. Oh well . I guess I did something wrong.

What the Fly Saw by Frankie Y. Bailey

What the Fly Saw by Frankie Y. Bailey

A detective led "who-done-it" novel about solving the crime of a mortician,  being murdered at his own funeral home. It happens in a bad snow blizzard that has shut down the city and the clues are complicated. He has been shot by his own crossbow, a very unusual murder weapon, but that clue will leads to an archery club run by the  local mega church and a wife who feels that her husband had been keeping something hidden from her. 
The murder victim is very involved in the various committees at the local mega church and is very friendly with not only the minister but the counsellor, who is a psychiatrist. No one can think of anyone who would want to kill the victim who everyone seems to have loved and respected.
It is up to Detective Mccabe and her partner, Mike Baxter to sort through the evidence which seems in some way to be linked with another case and has  a sexual component.
Quite complicated to read and not totally engaging but the answer to the murder comes as a  total surprise.

"Metamorphosis" challenge painting

"Metamorphosis" challenge painting

I forget if I did a blog on this painting as I know I was rushed for time when I was painting it. so here it is.
 Just couldn't find an original idea to convey a "deep" topic. So I settled on the easy idea of the frogspawn, tadpole that turns into a frog. I know it was always a wonder to me every spring when I would fish frogspawn into a jar and watch as the metamorphosis began. Just occasionally they tadpoles would actually turn into frogs which in itself was amazing as I had no idea what tadpoles ate!!
I painted this in acrylic on matt board, not a great idea as the acrylic paint soaks into the board too readily and the color gets diffused.Lesson learned !
Some of the other paintings from the other artists were very creative and if you wish to see them go to the facebook page, Monthly Painters challenge. I always love to see what the other artists make of the topic.

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

A great book written by a Pulitzer Prize novelist is an epic tale of a girl/boy,- a hermaphrodite who grows up in a Greek immigrant family that settle in Detroit.
Calliope is the teller of the tale and she tells the tale with stories within her own personal story of her Greek family.
 It is full of drama, starting with the fleeing of her grandparents from Smyrna  and then continues with the interesting tales of the whole family as they settle, prosper and try to understand the ways of American life through the 20thcentury. 
During the book, Calliope , later Cal, her masculine persona, tells of her family background and the mixed genetics which has resulted in her being born as a hermaphrodite. Unfortunately,  Callie,  or her family have no idea or understanding of the problems she will encounter or face .
It is a multifaceted book  that touches not only on biology and science  but on the love and emotional aspect of immigrant and family life and the history of a large city in America.
Not a book you can read quickly but a book that holds your interest and is a real page -turner.