Monday, June 18, 2012

I Feel Bad About My Neck

I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being A Woman
By Nora Ephron
Knopf  2006

Reviewed by Julie Abowitt


This is a group of essays by a very witty, urbane, woman.  The stories are her take on getting older and living in New York. It took me back to the years I lived in New York.Ephron chronicles her life as an obsessed cook, passionate city dweller, and hapless parent. She recounts her anything-but-glamorous days as a White House intern during the JFK years (“I am probably the only young woman who ever worked in the Kennedy White House that the President did not make a pass at”) and shares how she fell in and out of love with Bill Clinton—from a distance, of course. But mostly she speaks frankly and uproariously about life as a woman of a certain age.
The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman,is pure fantasy and fun.  It is well written and provides very inventive ways for  the young heroine to battle forces of evil.  I loved the species that used seed pods as wheels on their feet.

Lois Allan's book, Contemporary Printmaking in the North West, highlights the work of local artists.  As a printmaker myself, I appreciated this  beautiful prints.