January 22, 2016

Book Review: Destroying the Tangible Illusion of Reality; Or, Searching for Andy Kaufman

Katie January 22, 2016 0Comment

I’m not sure exactly what drew me to this book – maybe the colorful cover, maybe the mention of Andy Kaufman.  But this book was pretty much as weird and out there as I was expecting it to be.  I started reading this book twice.  The first time I couldn’t get into it and left it hoping it might expire before I got a chance to read it so I’d have an excuse not to.  The second time I was able to get about halfway through it before taking a break to catch up on some other books.  I did finally end up finishing it, though.

Most of the reviews I found say that it is a good book. But don’t say why.  I wondered why, at first. Then I finished the book and it’s kind of hard to describe it? It’s good. It’s interesting. It’s different. The book starts with Anthony storing his sperm as he is started treatment for cancer.  Anthony’s friend thinks that he kind of looks like Andy Kaufman and they end up finding out that Anthony’s mom was one of the women that Andy had wrestled.  Then they go on a bit of a journey to find Andy, since they now believe that Anthony is his son.  There are a lot of interesting characters that they meet along the way. The book ended up being just as colorful and wild as the front cover is.

I received a free e-copy of this book in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.

About the Book

In this surreal road novel, Anthony searches for the father he’s never met: Andy Kaufman, the legendary song-and-dance man from the ‘70s. There’s a few problems here, of course. A) Andy Kaufman died in 1984, and B) Thanks to a recent cancer diagnosis, Anthony doesn’t have much longer to live, either. However, new evidence has come to light that questions whether or not Kaufman is actually dead. Could he be in hiding, after all these years? Anthony is determined to discover the truth before his own clock runs out. During his travels, he will encounter shameless medicine men, grifters, Walmart shoppers, the ghosts of Elvis and Warhol, and the Devil himself.

An introduction from T. Fox Dunham, author of Destroying the Tangible Illusion of Reality; or, Searching for Andy Kaufman

These are the most important words I’ve written, and if you don’t listen, your life is an illusion. I was the tenth person in the world to be diagnosed with composite lymphoma—a rare combination of large cell lymphoma and hodgkins. The survival rate didn’t exist. I came through it. I don’t know how. Friends tell me it’s amazing I did. No. It’s just some shit that happened to me. Chemo wrecked my body, then daily radiation for five months to my head, neck and chest devoured me slowly. People never ask me what dying was like. They don’t want to know. People live in the false pretense that they are immortal. Death happens to people on the news.

This book is what it felt like to die.

I bonded to Andy Kaufman in spirit because he shattered the illusion of reality, though losing himself as he did. Reality is a construct, created by humans to give value to a system, to provide meaning to their lives. When you’re dying, meaning drains out of much of it, and you realize you created and fed into forces like fear.

Love is real. When I was burned down to nothing, a stub of my life, all I had left was love.

This summer, I married the woman of my dreams, Allison, and she has given me a future. A few weeks ago, I was diagnosed with the return of my cancer, and anon I will need treatment again, probably surgery and radiation. It will never be gone.

Read this and understand death so you can know how to live.

Book Review: Over-Scheduled Andrew

Katie January 22, 2016 0Comment

Over-Scheduled Andrew is about a Penguin named Andrew. He likes to act so he joins drama club. Then he joins a bunch of other clubs to help his performance in the drama club get better, like debate club, dance, karate, chess, etc.  But when he starts to fall asleep when he is hanging out with his best friend – in the 15 minutes he has managed to carve out for her in his week that doesn’t interfere with all his clubs he realizes he may be taking on too much.  And when his falling asleep ends up making something else terrible happen… Andrew decides to cut back on the clubs and involvement and add more time hanging out with his friends having fun!

A cute book that teaches you that even though you want to do it all, sometimes you just can’t. And spending time with your friends and having fun is important.

I received a free e-copy of this book in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.

About the Book

Andrew loves putting on plays so he decides to join the drama club at school. Determined to make his performance the best it can be, he joins the debate club to practice his public speaking. He signs up for dance and karate to help with his coordination. Then he’s asked to play for the tennis team and edit the school newspaper. Before long he’s learning to play the bagpipes, attending Spanish classes and joining the French film club. Suddenly Andrew doesn’t have time for anything or anyone else, not even his best friend Edie. And he definitely doesn’t have time to sleep. Will Andrew figure out how to balance all his favorite activities and his best friend at the same time? A hilarious, over-the-top look at a common issue many kids today face.

Book Review: Clay Play! Jewelry

Katie January 22, 2016 0Comment

Clay Play! Jewelry is a craft book with over 40 awesome clay projects included.  Making something out of clay has always been a bit of a bucket list item for me, but I’ve never managed to get the supplies to actually do it.  With this book, now I know what kind of tools go into it as well as have many ideas for things that I can make!  The first part of the book is all about your tools and supplies as well as how to keep everything organized and what hardware you need to turn your clay creations into jewelry.  It then goes into the basics of using Polymer clay and then the basics of making jewelry.

The book then shows you all the different designs that you can make, starting with tasty treats. Hope you’re not hungry because some of these look good enough to eat! (Don’t eat them. They are clay.)   The section for each item has what kind of clay you need as well as a size chart so you can make your clay pieces as big as you need followed by the step by step directions.  There are also photo instructions included so you can follow along to make sure that your clay looks how it should.   Other sections of projects include: Animals & Birds, Seasonal Sensations, Beads, and finally Jewelry Design Ideas.

I don’t know about you, but now I have a ton of ideas! If only I had some clay…

I received a free e-copy of this book in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.

About the Book

Transform simple balls and coils of polymer clay into fabulous wearable art! Just follow these full-color, step-by-step photos and clear directions to create more than 40 whimsical jewelry projects plus 10 types of beads. Playful possibilities include tempting food charms (cupcake, burger, and other favorite snacks); cute critter earrings and pendants (butterfly, dog, frog, penguin, and more); plus other fashionable tiny treasures.
Projects are graded according to level of difficulty, and each comes with a list of materials consisting of colored clay and common household products. Instructions feature numbers that correspond to color photos of easy-to-follow examples. Crafters of all ages will love these fun-filled projects and their charming results, which make great keepsakes and unique gifts.