Hello, friends. I've been reading a light, slick, funny book of cultural observation and enjoying it very much. And it's a - gasp! - parenting book. Doesn't that seem like a contradiction in terms? It's Bringing Up Bébé by Pamela Druckerman (in the UK, it's called French Children Don't Throw Food). It was published earlier this year, to a predictable squawk of gossip, defensiveness, and some … [Read more...]
On performance
Yesterday, my almost-four-year-old had a birthday celebration at his preschool, to which his whole family was invited. It was absolutely beautiful: thoughtful, focused, loving, and joyful. And yes, I wept. But I'm more interested in my son's response, which was an intense blend of pride, excitement, the need to control his own surge of emotions, and stage fright. It's all completely logical, and … [Read more...]
Yes. THIS.
I have the most interesting, keen-eyed friends a girl could ask for. A few days ago, my fellow Master of Arts (that's what they said at our convocation: "Rise, Master of Arts!") Jo Valin sent me this link to some photos of Smiling Victorians. The photos are all borrowed from a Flickr group called - you guessed it - The Smiling Victorian, but Retronaut does a great job of explaining why the … [Read more...]
The Traitor in the Tunnel!
Hello, friends! I'm so thrilled today to share with you the North American cover for The Traitor in the Tunnel: Those of you with an editorial eye will now be wondering, "The Traitor and the Tunnel" or " The Traitor in the Tunnel"? Why are you so inconsistent, Ying? Don't you know the title of your own book? In fact, there are two slightly different titles. I originally chose "and" because I … [Read more...]
A Walk in the Void & Kat, Incorrigible
Hello friends! This month, Mondadori publishes the Italian edition of the second Agency novel. It's called La Detective. Passeggiata nel vuoto, which translates to The Detective: A Walk in the Void. I really, really, really wish I could read Italian. Here's the cover: And the full dustjacket: What do you think? I also have a few lovely announcements. Some French readers have … [Read more...]
Notorious Victorians, farewell
This is it, the last post in the Body at the Tower blog tour, and it features the Edinburgh Seven. Sound like a group of revolutionaries of some sort, doesn't it? And they were. They were rich, educated young ladies who had the nerve to decide that they wanted to study medicine. Obviously, trouble ensued. You can read more about their story at Booksmugglers. Then, Booksmuggler Thea reviews … [Read more...]