Yes, I'm trying the Blog IT application on Facebook to simultaneously post to my Vox blog and my Facebook mini-feed.
Unlike For the Love of Anne and some other nonfiction parent-child stories about autism, this is not the saga of a struggle to overcome the problems of autism.
This book intersperses descriptions of the harsh yet beautiful Norwegian scenery with episodes from the life of father and son. Most of the scenes take place over a few months, although a few flashbacks recount earlier stories, such as when the author and his family first moved from Oslo.
If you are familiar with autism, it will seem that Gabriel is high-functioning. He is able to go to school and seems to communicate a lot verbally. During his treasure-hunting expeditions with his father, playing pirate, it is easy to forget he is autistic. Until the next scene in which he might start screaming inconsolably.
His parents (at least his father - the mother is barely mentioned) is tender, sensitive, and loving. This book could almost be about any tender father-son relationship.
This short book is a quick enjoyable read. I recommend it to anyone interested in autism, to people interested in the non-tourist areas of Norway, and to fathers and sons.
You can find out more about the book, and read an excerpt on her web site.
More importantly, the characters have depth, seem plausible, and captivated my interest. And they're not all white! Actually, most are shades of brown (being either Aztec or Afro-Caribbean).
The preface to this book intrigued me, but then the first thirty pages seemed to drag. I started wondering if this was really a fantasy novel, and a bad mish-mash of cultures. I kept reading, however, for the promise of the preface, and was rewarded in spades, as the steam punk kicked in, adventure kicked into gear, and explanations that made sense were provided.
I'm looking forward to reading his second book, Ragamuffin.
But in recent years I found myself reading almost exclusively novels. I stumbled upon the Vision anthology accidentally--My friend Kate Baggott won second prize in the 2007 University of Hertfordshire Writing Award, and I won a copy from her blog.
Since reading these stories, I now have a renewed interest in short stories. I picked up an issue of Maison Neuve, and might start reading science fiction short stories again.
Vision is an interesting anthology. The prize-winning short stories are all excellent. I loved some of the short-listed stories as well, but others not so much. Even when reading stories that did not work as well, however, I liked seeing what the author did with the vision theme. Sometimes the vision is an integral part of the story, as in the first prize "The Snow Child" by Nathalie Abi-Ezzi, about a Finnish woman's vision of a child. Other times the vision is only one piece of the story, as in Kate Baggot's "The Three Wives," in which the third wife taps into the world of visions.
I read about Crystal Rain on Pat's Fantasy Hotlist. I couldn't resist the idea of Caribbean pirate steampunk. I read about The Lies of Locke Lamora on many blogs, including Pat's. I don't know if I needed to read another fantasy about a thief, but how could I resist reading about the leader of the Gentlemen Bastards?
What I didn't expect was such a fast-paced emotional read. I finished this book in less than a week, which is unusual for me these days. At first I was drawn to the story of this boy who is trying to figure out who murdered the neighbor's dog. And I loved the quirkiness - he decides whether he's going to have a good or bad day based on how many red and yellow cars he sees on the way to school - after all, it's no less arbitrary than someone deciding based on the weather (if that person spends the day inside).
But this book is much more than a mystery. Although we do learn "whodunit", we also go on an emotional roller coaster, as Christopher learns the truth about his family and explores outside his comfort zone.
But I found too often that the writing itself annoyed me. For example, the book starts with a chase through a crowded market. Nice action scene. Except when the action stopped for a brief paragraph describing someone's clothing. That might have fit if a character had also stopped, but in the middle of a chase, I expect description to be woven into the action.... a detail here and there as the action proceeds. Other places I felt like the writing could have been tighter and with fewer "X was Y" constructions. But maybe that's just me being a writer.
Of course, I read this story as soon as the book arrived. I loved the story and felt I could read a novel about these three interesting women. I keep finding myself wanting to know more about them.
I'll read the other stories as well, but maybe not right away.
What about other books I was expecting? I've given up on receiving the Scalzi book and Marjorie Liu's ARC. I don't know if they were mis-delivered, if my postman wants my books, or if they were never sent, but after a couple of months, I'm giving up.

Thank you so much, Michele, I'm one lucky woman to have met you two-and-a-half years ago and to become good... read more
on If you might be interested in starting an art teaching business