Kelly's Non-Fiction Monday

Since I didn't come close to having anything ready for a Non-Fiction Monday post this week (still trying not to add up the total time spent in my car this weekend), I was delighted to see Kelly of Big A little a put a twist to her post:

1. Choose any one of YOUR OWN manuscripts. It can be a picture book, MG novel, an adult novel... It makes no difference.
2. Turn to page 30 of your novel or page 3 if it is a PB
3. Find the 5th sentence.
4. Post the next 5 sentences of text.
5. Then tag 5 writer friends to do the same.
6. See if you can visit Your Tagged Friends and the Person who Tagged You to read their short excepts.

So here's the fifth sentence on page 30 of the WIP (the current page 30, at least - playing with fonts is always a good way to procrastinate:


Maude laid her head on my shoulder.

And the following five:

"Want John to play with me."

Not Maude too. I swallowed my groan. Who thought it would be a good idea to send Maude my way because she was pining away? Did my entire family blame me for the fact that John had to go back and tend to his future?

Non-Fiction Monday: Amelia Peabody's Egypt

Amelia Peabody's Egypt: A Compendium, by Elizabeth Peters (and various others)

I know I'm not alone in enjoying the adventures of the Peabody-Emerson family. In this companion book, Elizabeth Peters shares some of the factual basis for her mysteries (all set in its appropriate fictional context, of course).

Meet the author: AmeliaPeabody.com

What stuck with me: Peters has a doctorate in Egyptology, so I shouldn't be surprised that the woman knows how to research. Still, it's amazing to look at this from the perspective of an (aspiring) historical novelist - the writer's knowledge base (there's my software background talking) has to range from establishing the setting (servants, schooling, theories of childhood) to the specific (control of Egypt from one century to the next, historical figures who become characters).

Makes me want to read: Laurie R. King has written about all the research that goes into her works - I'd love to read her version of this compendium. In the meantime, I'll work on the Peabody-Emerson books I haven't gotten to yet.

Makes me want to reread: Well, the Peabody-Emerson books I've already read. It's kind of like watching a movie after reading the IMDb trivia section - you get so much more out of it. (What? You mean I'm the only one who does that? You jest.)

Non-Fiction Monday: Naked in Baghdad

Naked in Baghdad, by Anne Garrels

Okay, if you've looked through some of these posts lately, you'll notice that I have a thing for NPR. It's been that way for a long time. Working there is still one of my dream jobs (along with full-time writer, general counsel for a totally law-abiding company, and just about any of the recurring roles on The West Wing).

One of the things I love about Naked in Baghdad is that it reminds me that, while working for NPR may happen someday, I'm never going to be a war correspondent. (Yes, I do occasionally need the reminder.)

Other reviews: Bookloons, A Modest Construct, Curled Up With a Good Book

Meet the author: NPR bio

What stuck with me: I can't say enough great things about this book. I will say that I listened to the audio version, so my take on the book is shaped by listening to Garrels and her husband Vint Lawrence read their respective sections. Both of them have a wonderful way with words, along with just the right touch of sarcasm and irony.

Naked in Baghdad also makes me want to re-learn Russian, which the non-Arabic-speaking Garrels was able to fall back on again and again. Not that I expect to spend a lot of time in countries that were once supported by the Soviet bloc, but you never know.
Where this book is going next: My copy, being audio, isn't going anywhere. But there are two types of people I recommend the book to - those who want to read about the Iraq war, and potential journalists.

Makes me want to read: Thomas Ricks' Fiasco has been on my TBR list for a long time, along with Imperial Life in the Emerald City. I also want to read The Punishment of Virtue, another book with an NPR connection.

Makes me want to reread: Noah Adams' All Things Considered.

Bonus: I didn't think about it when I set out to write this review, but this weekend marks the fifth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. In the New York Times, there's a retrospective by John Burns, who makes a few appearances in Naked in Baghdad. The Washington Post's book section is also devoted to war analysis this week.

The Non-Fiction Monday roundup is at Picture Book of the Day.