Margaret Atwood just keeps getting better. I didn’t have a lot of time to read in the fall of 2006, but one of the books I did read was delightful. The Penelopiad, is a retelling of Homer’s Odyssey from Penelope’s and the twelve hanged maids’ points of view. Deliciously funny, it sent me in search of Andrei Konchalovsky’s movie The Odyssey starring Armand Assante and Greta Scacchi. Weighing in at a mere 192 pages, this was a fast read and came at just the right time since my current work in progress, The Secret of Aspen Grove aka The Waiting Game, is a story about three generations of Foster women who define themselves by the men they love. Another book I enjoyed reading is Cruddy, an illustrated novel by Lynda Barry my college professor son Trevor Dodge introduced me to last fall. Trevor uses it in some of his classes. I enjoyed Barry’s style and wit, and will definitely look at more books by this author. Alice Hoffman’s latest book, Skylight Confessions is now available and at the top of my To Read List, as well as Charles Frazier’s Thirteen Moons .
