I finished She Sings of Old, Unhappy, Far-off Things a few days ago, but needed some time to think about it. The writing is most definitely lovely and the story compelling. There is a lot going on in the novel and the author's style makes you want to savor every single word. The characters talk to themselves way more than I'm used to in fiction, but don't many of us do that in real life?

She Sings can dig down deep and pull at the reader's heartstrings. Though nothing like this has ever happened in my life, I relate all too well to Wyck when she says: "I don't want this, damn it."

You can find yourself feeling things you never wanted in your heart, things that are better left outside of it. Wyck has a philosophy that speaks to anyone who finds humanity a bit too much sometimes: “Plants and animals – give them enough time and attention and love, and they’ll never let you down." But, telling yourself you won't fall for somebody doesn't actually keep that from happening, would it be that it could.

The distinct differences between Wyck and the woman she grows to adore, Margaret, drive this novel, making it both oddly endearing and exasperating. Margaret, supposedly older and wiser, had me putting down my Kindle a few times to blow off some steam. I get how hard it is for her to give up the life she has known for decades for a love that her own relatives find hard to accept. I do get that. Homophobia hurts most when it comes from family.

But I also understand Wyck's disillusionment with Margaret's reluctance to come out: “When was the last time your life was threatened because you were a lesbian, Margaret? Oh, that’s right. It would never happen to you because you’ll never acknowledge the truth of who you are, right? You’ll lie and deny and get married so no one will know."

It's these heartache and struggles swirling through the story that make it both believable and less sappy when Margaret finally (and genuinely) finds others' attitudes about love bewildering: “What scandal? I’m a fifty-three-year-old widow who fell in love with someone else after my husband died. Where is the scandal in that?”

I will definitely keep this on my Kindle to be reread someday soon. :)

 

Yesterday was my mom's birthday. My parents and I had a nice time and we got along better than we have in ages. I was so happy my mom liked her presents and we joked like we used to in the old days.
For the first time in months I actually felt anxiety-free.

When we parted, my mom said, hugging me fiercely (which isn't something she usually does), "Are you sure you don't mind that you're not married?" I didn't get mad because she asked it in a light tone. I answered that I was fine with it, that I had gotten used to being a spinster and kind of liked it.

My mom looked horrified and told me not to talk about myself that way. But I think sometimes if we use a word that isn't necessarily flattering, we can take away its power over us. And I don't mind. I am (using a very antiquated word) a "spinster." Dictionary.com refers to it as "disparaging" and "offensive," but Urban Dictionary has this comment:

Note* A woman who never enters marriage contract is so smart.

Of course, Urban Dictionary can sometimes be brutal so some of the other definitions for spinster aren't so nice. Some of them, like the one below, make me laugh:

 A woman who kept on believing in fairytale-like love stories for too long.

 

This article on the same topic is rather intriguing:

 

http://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199270606.001.0001/acprof-9780199270606-chapter-6

 



For the first time in weeks I had a really nice dream. It was more memory than made-up so that might have had something to do with why I didn't feel disappointed when I woke to reality, but I think it was more that having the dream reminded me that once upon a time things were pretty good in my life and they can be good again. I think I just have to reset my self and my attitude.

Plus, I see pins like these on Pinterest and I find comfort in them:

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm reading a book so sad and frustrating (the deliberate cruelness of one character toward his wife had me so indignant on her behalf I was shaking) I needed to take a break. So I moved from my comfy chair and went to my bookshelf, thinking Dorothy Parker would be safe, little knowing I would open the book to this:

I have always thought of her writing as witty and biting, but this seems so sad that it's not helping me break the mood.

 

Still, I just looked up information on her and had no clue she co-wrote the script for the 1937 film A Star is Born.

 

Here is a link to lots of neat sites about her:

 

http://www.dorothyparker.com/dotlinks.htm

Friday music notes...

I'm listening to Dionne Warwick's new album, featuring duets with artists such as Cyndi Lauper, Jamie Foxx, Billy Ray Cyrus (seriously!) and Ceelo Green. Many of the tracks are covers of the Hal David/Burt Bacharach songs that first made her famous in the early 60s.

Since I'm a huge Dionne Warwick fan, I may be biased here, but I think it's a very solid album, a very cozy listen on a cold day.

I adore Hal David and Burt Bacharach so I especially love the songs written by them. "Message to Michael" (with Cyndi Lauper) and "This Guy/This Girl's In Love With You" (featuring Phil Driscoll) are stand-outs, though I wish the music itself were closer to the original arrangements.

Most of the reviews have been either positive or at least pretty decent. I was lucky enough to get to see Dionne Warwick perform live with Burt Bacharach in the late 90s and will always consider it one of my favorite musical memories.

One of the reviews from the allmusic website:

Steve Leggett  [-]

Dionne Warwick's singing is a unique version of urban pop -- not jazz, although it is jazzy, and not R&B, although it has soul and sway, and not rock or blues, although her voice can ache with a weary intensity. Matched from the early '60s through the early '70s with the songwriting team of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, she produced numerous hits, including "Walk on By," "Alfie," "I Say a Little Prayer," "Do You Know the Way to San José," and "I'll Never Fall in Love Again," among others. If she isn't critically regarded as a legendary icon in quite the same league as Aretha Franklin and other contemporaries, it's really more of a style thing, perhaps because Warwick isn't really a fiery gospel shouter. Be that as it may, Warwick has sold over 150 million records through her five-decade career, and placed nearly 60 singles in the Billboard Hot 100 over that time, so she obviously knows what she's doing. This set, her 28th studio album, includes tracks variously produced by Swizz Beatz, Jack Splash, Jesse "Corporal" Wilson, and her son, Damon Elliott, whose new label, Bright Music Records, is home for this project. It's essentially a duets album that takes a look both forward and back; Warwick is paired with a wide array of guests -- Alicia Keys, Ne-Yo, Stevie Wonder, Cyndi Lauper, Gladys Knight, Jamie Foxx, CeeLo Green, Ziggy Marley, Eric Paslay, Billy Ray Cyrus, Mýa, and Warwick's granddaughter Cheyenne Elliott among them -- on revisited versions of some of her hits. Led by the lead single, a new version of "A House Is Not a Home" that features Ne-Yo (an extended version of the single is also included here), Feels So Good doesn't break new ground so much as it affirms and reaffirms Warwick's quiet stature as a steady and urbane pop singer who has never really bothered to follow the music industry's trends and fashions. She just sings elegantly, and it appears to have gotten her through the decades just fine.


Also on my player today:

I just really like the sound of Andy Gibb's voice. It's a lot like his brother Barry's, but more gentle and sweet. I forgot I have the entire Shadow Dancing album on my iTunes and after "Good Feeling" Shuffled on, I selected the entire album to play and it just fits right into the mood I'm in now.

Shadow Dancing review:

Amy Hanson  [-]

As the youngest brother of the massively popular Gibb siblings, otherwise known as the Bee Gees, it's no wonder that Andy Gibb was a superstar in his own right. An accomplished vocalist and writer, Gibb shot to the top of the charts with his 1977 debut Flowing Rivers. Shadow Dancing, released just one year later, effortlessly confirmed his ascension to the top of the pop pedestal. Working with his brothers again, Gibb wowed audiences with his easy-on-the-ears passionate pop. He was well-suited to the era. The title track, which kicked off that year's string of hits, was nothing short of pure, smoldering disco. Written by all three of the Bee Gees (who also added backing vocals to the song), it hit the top of the charts, giving Gibb his third number one single and even more maximum exposure. "An Everlasting Love" and "(Our Love) Don't Throw It All Away" quickly peeled off the LP and landed on the charts. And while many may argue that Gibb's success was received on the backs of the Bee Gees' own stellar reputation, it must be acknowledged that he was certainly not without talent. It's also true that the charting songs on Shadow Dancing all bear the mark of one or more of his brothers; however, Gibb's own material shows great, if as yet unrealized, promise. "Fool for a Night" is a bittersweet, up-tempo piece of pop, and "Melody" works as a wistful love song, while "I Go for You," smarmy as it may be in hindsight, was still better than many of its contemporaries. Laugh if you must, dismiss if you're so inclined, but no matter what anyone may argue, it cannot be disputed that Andy Gibb realized many of his aspirations across this LP and, in so doing, became a vital part of the late '70s music scene.