After finally finishing Lamb, I dove head first into something completely different, a historical novel called Bride of New France by Suzanne Desrochers, which had been recommended to me by my equally bibliophilic friend Jen.  Set in the late 17th century, it tells the story of Laure Beausejour, a fille du roi sent from France to Canada to become a soldier's wife and help populate New France.

I enjoy historical fiction so this was right up my alley.  Although I'm familiar with the filles du roi, I didn't really know very much about that period in history and the experience of those girls, so the subject was very interesting.  The main character, Laure, is a fiesty young woman who, torn from her family as an infant, has grown up inside the walls of the Salpêtrière Hospital, which at that time was used as a prison for prostitutes, the mentally ill, orphans, the poor and any other of French society's undesireables.  From one prison she is sent to another of sorts: by royal decree, young women are rounded up and sent overseas to New France, Laure among them. 

The story is very well written and the plot develops at a steady pace.  The characters are well drawn and interesting.  In particular, I found the description of her life at the Salpêtrière, and her relationships with two of the other orphaned girls, compelling and carefully nurtured.  Laure was instantly likeable and engaging and I became invested in her very quickly.  I think that the creation of such a character is no small feat for an author, and I wish I had the book in front of me to have a closer look at how it was accomplished.  In any case, I was pulled into the story and wanted to see what would happen next for Laure.

For me, though, things started to break down around the time that Laure learns that she is being exported, as it were.  I couldn't believe that she would go to Canada so willingly, given that she had a pretty good understanding of the life that awaited her.  I thought she would put up more of a fight.  I don't have half the confidence of the character of Laure, but even I would have had a few unpleasant words to say about the matter.  I expected there to be more of a struggle, an attempt to run away, more bargaining and pleading, the seeking out of other options as futile as it may have been.  She was upset, sure, and expressed her distress about the decision, but her overall complacency did not feel to me to be in line with the character. 

Or perhaps the fatalistic nature of such a decision wasn't made clear.  Perhaps there was just no escape and that was a well known fact and coming to terms with it was all there was to be done.  I don't know.  I would think that even still, in the face of a harrowing journey across the ocean, never to see your homeland again, to go marry some brute you've never met and live in an untamed land, I would think one might consider running away to Spain or something.  It's right there.  (Disclaimer: I know nothing about late 17th century Spain...perhaps it was not the awesome vacation destination I am imagining).

Once Laure reached Canada, the plot seemed to speed up, with jumps in time that took the story to its end much too quickly.  Having invested in the character of Laure, I wanted to know more about her life in the woods, how she coped with learning all she needed to know to survive, and her feelings about the whole thing.  These seemed to be brushed over rather quickly.  She develops a relationship with a native man, a promising plot development with an unsatisfying end.  I've read other reviews that say that this relationship plays out realistically, and that may be the case, but this is historical fiction for a reason.  Fiction requires drama and tension and the genre of historical fiction is so great because it allows for playing within the history.  I wasn't looking for a happy ending by any means, but when the sexual and dramatic tension is building for pages and then fizzles in a paragraph or two, that's disappointing, at least to this reader. 

What would redeem the ending is a sequel.  It's screaming for a sequel as there are a lot of loose ends which need picking up, and in addition to continuing Laure's story, there is an obvious choice for a second protagonist.  I just had a look online to see if there's any word about a sequel and all I can find are other people saying that they too would like to see one.

Faults aside (and what do I know really?), Bride of New France was a good read and I would recommend it.  And if you do read it, I'd love to know what you think, and if you agree with my criticisms or if you think I'm crazy (the two are not mutually exclusive I suppose).  And please keep the recommendations coming!

When I put out the call for book recommendations, my friend Colleen suggested I read Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore.  I got it from the library back in September and started reading, but then someone put it on reserve so I had to return it before I finished.  I didn't get it back until November, so my reading was a bit broken up, and it's been awhile since I've finished it, but let's see what I can remember.

Lamb is a highly, highly fictionalized account of Jesus' life from his childhood to his crucifixion, told from the point of view of his best friend Biff.  Jesus is trying to understand exactly what he's meant to do as the Messiah and so he sets out, with his friend in tow, to find the three wise men. 

The story is funny and quite blasphemous.  The Jesus in this telling swears and drinks, and while he doesn't fornicate he's pretty curious about what he's missing; his best friend Biff, without the burden of being the Son of God, is happy to experiment on his (His?) behalf. 

Not being Christian, none of this really bothered me.  In fact, if anything, I thought the story made Jesus very likeable, in no small part because it humanized him; in the story he is special, yes, chosen but he also has human worries and curiosities and doubts.  I rather like that in a religious figure.  I suspect that, not having read the Bible, I also missed out on a lot of in-the-know Christianity references (although I did catch the joke in a quick passage about some guys from Turin with a cloth).  But the funny thing is, I found that this satirical imagining of Jesus' life made me kind of interested in learning more about his real one, not so much from a religious point of view as an historical one.

I'd be curious to know what Christian readers think of this book.  Of course, opinions would differ amongst members of the Christian community, I'm sure, but I'd be particularly interested to know, setting aside the plot, if Christopher Moore's characterization of Jesus is that far removed from the popular view (if there is one particular popular view) of Christ, who he was as a man and, I guess, what it would have been like to hang out with him, other than awesome of course.

In terms of learning something from this book to take into my own writing, Christopher Moore is daring, not only in his choice of subject, which is gutsy to say the least, but also in the approach he takes to his characters and plotlines.  In reading Lamb, I got the feeling that the author just let the story take him wherever it wanted to go without second guessing it.  "How about Jesus meets a yeti?  Fuck yeah!"  I imagine him thinking.  It was probably more thought out and structured than that, but the writing is just so playful and witty and creative that it comes across as easy.  And honestly, after reading Lamb, I feel empowered to just write the story as it comes, the dialogue as I hear it in my head, and let go and trust my own voice.  Because if Mr. Christopher Moore can write a bestseller with a drunken, swearing Jesus as a main character and get away with it, then what's holding me back?

All in all, a very entertaining read and I'm glad that Colleen recommended it because I'm not sure if I would have chosen it off the shelf otherwise, which is what these recommendations are all about!  I have two more recommended books to write up, both completely different than Lamb and each other, which is awesome.  And I'm looking forward to diving into a new book tonight.  So stay tuned, book lovers.  As for you book haters, I'll return to writing about other topics soon.  In the mean time, please return to your internets and TVs and...sudoku?  Dragonboat racing?  What do you do?  How do you not like books?!

It's only nearly half way through the month.  Better late than pregnant, I always say.

Some Things I made progress on in December:

• I finished two books recommended by friends (Thing 8): Lamb by Christopher Moore, recommended by my friend Colleen, and Bride of New France by Suzanne Desrochers, recommended by my friend Jen.  They are both excellent reads.  I had been toying with the idea of doing away with Thing 5 "Write a book response on my blog for every book I read" and replacing it with something else, because they're annoying to write and boring to read.  But I think I'll keep with it and see them as opportunities to practice the art of brevity in writing.  So two quick and dirty book responses coming your way soon (well, not too dirty...although perhaps if I made them dirty they'd be more exciting to read).
  

• I tried at least five new recipes in December (Thing 43).  I say "at least" because I'm pretty sure there were more than five, but I only seem to have written five down.  Ah well.  The best one was this recipe for Cranberry Apple Jam.  It made the perfect amount for three little jars for gifts, and a little left over for me to try.  Yummy!  So I have now tried 37 new recipes of 101.

• Instead of buying flowers for myself this month (Thing 98) I decided that the money would be much better spent, and result in even more joy, if I used it to accomplish Thing 82: Send Anonymous Flowers.  I had been struggling with this one, wondering how creepy it would be to receive flowers anonymously.  I myself would be kind of weirded out.  But I think I figured out a way to do it that wasn't creepy:  the week before Christmas, Isla and I bought some gorgeous roses and brought them to the seniors home near us, and asked the people at the front desk if they could please pass them on to a resident who could use a pick me up this holiday season.  We left the flowers with them to deliver, so it was kept anonymous, and I felt such happiness imagining someone receiving those beautiful roses out of the blue (didn't get a photo of them to share though, unfortunately).  Isla had been really reluctant to give up the flowers, but I explained to her what we were doing, the importance of giving to others and so forth, and I think she understood.  I think I'd like to make this a tradition, although maybe next year we'll see if we can deliver them ourselves, so that Isla can see the impact of the gift.  In any case, another Thing completed!

Things I will admit I didn't do:

• Go out on a photo shoot (Thing 14).  Folks, it's too damn cold, and when I'm inside I'm too busy taking care of kids or cleaning up after kids or preparing food for kids to take any photos.  I'll see if I can carve out some time to do some photography indoors, but I might have to rethink this Thing for the winter months.

• No date night (Thing 51), but we did go out for dinner with some friends so that accomplishes Thing 53, Get Together with a Friend.  I'll see what I can do to arrange a date night this month.

• I don't think I managed any chunk of time to myself (Thing 92).  Must do better at that (I accomplished January's today thanks to the babysitting services of my mom.  Thanks Mom!)

I have to get a move on with these 101 Things.  The Things I'm setting my sights on over the next few months are:

• Writing.  There are two writing contests coming up that I would like to submit to, if I can make the time to write.  I also want to finish the first draft of the children's story I'm meant to be working on with my sister and her boyfriend.

• Reading more books and listening to more albums recommended by friends.  Morning dance party to Alice in Chains?  Why not, I say.

• I am going to finish (and start!) Evy's name drawings before I do anything else.  It must be done.  The mom guilt is too much.

• I'm working on establishing a regular exercise routine but it may be awhile before I can consider this one complete.

• My mother-in-law may have already perfected allergen-free bread for me, but I have yet to attempt her recipe myself.  But I will do it and hopefully it will fit the bill because I miss bread like the deserts miss the rain.

• I'd like to get my office and the bedrooms organized and decorated soonish.  A little less chaos, a few more pictures on walls.

• I'm trying to find a time when I can donate blood but Canadian Blood Services seems to only have availability at the worst possible times for my schedule.  But I'll keep checking back with them.

• As for my Joy/Well-being Things, I think I'll be going to a concert in March, and I would like to get out to a play soon (perhaps for a date night or an outing with a friend).  I'm still on the hunt for the most wonderful pyjamas, and I hope to try a meditation class sometime soon.

• And I would dearly love to travel somewhere warm with my husband right about now but I don't see that happening any time soon.  Perhaps next winter. 

So that's the low down.  Exciting stuff, no?  I'd also really like to become interesting, if possible.  I'm sure that reading about my self-improvement projects isn't the most fascinating part of your day, so I'll try to do more interesting things and write about them, or become insightful or funny or something.  But I make no promises.

Now I'm pretty sure one of my 101 Things is Eat Tortilla Chips and watch Parenthood.  If not, it should be. 

So yes.  2012.  Nice to see you.

December came and went quickly, much like the whole of 2011 itself.  We had a nice holiday with family although some audacious kindergarten punk had the nerve to give Isla a cold right before Christmas, so we passed that gift around.  The littlest one, Ev, not only had a cold but was also teething, which resulted in a few not so silent nights.  But halls were decked and we were, for the most part, merry and bright.  I even survived my first Christmas without stuffing.  That's some willpower, right there.  My mother-in-law made me some allergen-free bread, BREAD I COULD EAT, which was possibly the best gift of all, so that softened the blow.  

I'm still working on getting back into the swing of things around here.  There are new toys that need homes and laundry that needs doing but all I really feel like doing is eating chips and watching TV and sleeping.  Is that so wrong?  I may possibly be in a bit of a post-holiday slump.  It doesn't help that it is winter and I cannot get warm and wrangling children into an ungodly amount of snow gear is enough to make anyone want to kick themselves in the face. 

So this seems like a good time to focus on some happy things, yes?  I have plenty to be thankful for and overall 2011 was a pretty terrific year.  In no particular order, these are my top 11 HappyMakers for 2011:

1) My Children
An easy one.  I may gripe about the day to day frustrations of life as a mom but my kids are two seriously amazing tiny people and the frustrations are far, far outweighed by all the joy they have brought into my life. Every measure of time that passes with them sees some pretty wonderful moments and milestones, but 2011 was particularly eventful.  Our four year old, Isla, started school and is learning new things at lightning speed.  This was the year her imagination really took flight and the most incredible ideas and insights and hilarious songs come out of her mouth.  And as for our Miss Ev, well, there's a pretty huge leap between 6 months and 18 months old, which she'll be next week.  From barely sitting up to climbing and dancing, from the odd "dada!" to a constant stream of "thank you! again! open! up! dance! fuffin!" (that last being "muffin") and her current favourite "a nose!".  Seeing her personality reveal itself has been amazing and watching the love develop between the two girls has been very happymaking indeed.

2) Other People's Children
Several friends welcomed new tiny people into their lives this year, all baby girls as it happens.  There seems to be a baby girl trend, at least with the people in my life (amongst my closest friends, we have one boy and six girls).  But babies of any sort are most lovely and I'm so thrilled about the safe and healthy arrivals of these little ones.

Mirror Lake, Lake Placid NY, April 2011

3) My Husband
"Get a room!" I hear you shout.  I know.  At the risk of being all sentimental and embarrassing, I have to admit publicly that I do actually like my husband.  You might not know it, given that I don't mention him all that often, but I am in fact rather fond of him.  We celebrated 15 years of couplehood back in November and, while I dearly miss his adorable accent, I still think he's as awesome and funny and cute as I did back when I was 18.  He works damn hard for our family and he comes home every day and looks at his daughters like they're the centre of his universe, which they are.  And that's all I can really ask for.  I'll even forgive him for teaching our daughter the phrase "fish toots", although he's going to have to deal with any phone calls home from her teacher. 

4) Other People's Husbands
Jokes!  Aside from anything else, when would I have the time?

Forest Walk, Charleston Lake Provincial Park, May 2011

4) Family, near and far
I have a pretty fantastic family and they don't hear it enough.  Especially those who never contact me (burn!).  The ones who do though, and especially the ones who visit, are very appreciated.  We had several visits this past year from relatives from afar, some of whom we hadn't seen in 10 years, and I hope to have the opportunity to reconnect with others this year.  As for family closer to home, I'm incredibly grateful for my amazing in-laws and my mom and her partner for all of their love and support and tremendous kindness.  Oh, and the free babysitting.  Many, many thanks for that (and thank you in advance for your continuing support). 

5) The Adirondacks
Last spring, D and I took a trip to Lake Placid, New York with some friends for a few days and had a great time.  We did a little bit of hiking, a fair bit of drinking, and a whole lot of eating.  It was pretty awesome.  It was nice to have some adult time and to see a new place and to sleep in a little.  Oh my goodness the sleeping in.  Glorious.

The River at Marcy Dam, near Lake Placid NY, April 2011

6) Camping
A few weeks before Ev arrived in the summer of 2010, my husband announced that he had bought a camping trailer and he hoped I liked it.  There had been no time to consult with me on the purchase, you see, as it had just been posted on Kijiji for an insanely low price and he had to pull the trigger.  Lucky for him, I approved.  It's an awesome little trailer, just the right size for our family, although I will admit moments of frustration when I've been overwhelmed trying to do everything I do at home but in a significantly smaller and colder space.  For the most part though it has brought us much joy and we managed to get out camping four times last year.  A lot of amazing memories were made and in particular I will never forget my daughter Isla singing The Saw Doctors' Only One Girl by the campfire.  Amazing.

7) Halifax
I've written endlessly about the trip to Halifax my daughter Isla and I took in October, so I won't say much more.  But, setting aside the distinct lack of whales, the trip really was a highlight for 2011, most importantly because of the one on one time Isla and I got to spend together.  Hopefully someday we'll get back out that way as a family of four.

Closeup of Water, Charleston Lake, May 2011

8) Good Health
For all my complaining about having to breakup with dairy and eggs and sugar, I'm thankful that I became aware of my food allergies because it provided me with something positive and proactive I could do to take control of my health and reduce the frequency of my arthritis flareups.  Which I believe it has.  My RA flare-ups were always kind of intermittent anyways, so it's hard to know for sure if my diet changes are keeping the pain at bay, but I do know that when I have a flare-up it is pretty uncannily connected to my "cheating" and eating something I'm allergic to.  So I think I'm on a good path.  I began medication for the RA this year too, which I wasn't too thrilled about, but I think it was another good decision.  Although I definitely need to get exercising more, overall I'm feeling pretty good.  I'm grateful too for the good health of my loved ones and I hope that 2012 will only see more of the same.

9) Writing
I am so, so pleased that I started writing again this past year.  It has been a terrific outlet and so fantastic to feel creative again, and to give myself time for something that is only for me (although the positive feedback has been nice too, and I appreciate you all for reading).  I am feeling excited about some ideas I have for things to write this year and I don't think I would be writing at all, let alone feeling confident and happy about it, if I hadn't had pushed myself to start this blog and to submit something to a contest and just take the time to do it.  So now I just have to carve out some more time for it and keep the momentum going.

Killbear Provincial Park, June 2011

10) Morning Dance Party
For my last HappyMaker, something that has truly brought nothing but pure joy.  This year our family began the tradition of what we call "Morning Dance Party", taking some time most mornings to put on some good tunes and dance our butts off in the living room.  Both girls love to dance and their eyes light up and their feet get moving as soon as any bit of music comes on.  Such a fun way to start the day (and the cardio doesn't hurt either).With Isla in school, and our trip and then the holidays, Morning Dance Party kind of got put on the back burner for awhile but I plan to reinstate the tradition beginning tomorrow morning.  MmmBop?  Yes, I think so.

11) My Old (Golden) Girls
Ha.  I posted this entry and then realized that there were only 10 things in my "Top 11".  And its a good thing I have one left over because I neglected something pretty darn important: my pretty terrific friends.  I'm lucky to have a great group of girlfriends who have known and loved me (ha) for a very long time (hidden in between the scathing insults there is genuine affection, I'm sure of it).  I consider them my family and can't imagine my life without them.  For one thing, I don't know if anyone else would power secondhand shop with me with quite as much glee.  They are truly the Dorothy, Blanche and Sophia to my Rose (I'm pretty sure I'm Rose guys).

2011 was a pretty great year but onwards to 2012 I say.  So far so good and I'm looking forward to the rest.  Particularly the warm weather part.  That will be nice.

I will update again soon with my 101 Things recap for December and my plans for the project in 2012.  And other thoughts and musings and insights and brilliance.  Or, you know, haikus.  Perhaps some haikus. 

Footprints (Mama and Isla), Killbear Provincial Park, June 2011

The happiest of new years to you and yours.

There are fabulous words fashioning themselves into thrilling and thought-provoking blog entries in my head, but my brain is too rattled by post-holiday exhaustion and dealing with a sick, teething, possibly demonic toddler to get any of them out with any coherence this evening, so I ask you to bear with me as I get off on the right foot with 2012 by yet again procrastinating and apologizing. 

Please stay tuned.  And in the mean time...snowman!