Enough Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 I finished The Creative Habit (#17) and Life of Pi (#18) this week. The Creative Habit- a gem. I need to own this book! I don't consider myself an 'artist', per se, and woo-woo artist talk makes me shudder, but I am interested in nurturing my and my children's creativity and not being a slave to my reptilian/Type-A brain, but respecting it nonetheless. In particular, I'm interested in how creativity applies to (and can enrich) homeschooling. Tharp really challenged my assumptions about creativity. In her view, creativity is not an either-or thing- you don't (can't, in fact) choose between discipline/habits/WORK and talent or raw creation- both aspects are necessary. Some quotations from the book that made me (and are still making me) think: "After so many years, I've learned that being creative is a full-time job with its own daily patterns." "The box [a system for planning/preparation] is not a substitute for creating. The box doesn't compose or write a story or create a dance step. The box is the raw index of your preparation. It is the repository of your creative potential, but it is not that potential realized." "Your creative endeavors can never be thoroughly mapped out ahead of time. You have to allow for the suddenly altered landscape, the change in plan, the accidental spark- and you have to see it as a stroke of luck rather than a disturbance of your perfect scheme." "But working in real time in the real world eventually showed me the error of my ways [of over-planning]. I began to see that overplanning can be as pernicious as not planning at all. There's an emotional lie to overplanning; it creates a security blanket that lets you assume you have things under control, that you are further along than you really are, that you're home free when you haven't even walked out the door yet." "Creativity is an act of defiance. You're challenging the status quo. You're questioning accepted truths and principles. You're asking three universal questions that mock conventional wisdom: Why do I have to obey the rules? Why can't I be different? Why can't I do it my way?" "Skill gives you the wherewithal to execute whatever idea occurs to you. Without it, you are just a font of unfulfilled ideas. Skill is how you close the gap between what you can see in your mind's eye and what you can produce; the more skill you have, the more sophisticated and accomplished your ideas can be." "Without passion, all the skill in the world won't life you above craft. Without skill, all the passion in the world will leave you eager but floundering. Combining the two is the essence of the creative life." I approached Life of Pi with trepidation, but ended up enjoying it very much. It is fantastical and graphic- very, VERY graphic- but it did not crush my soul the way I feared it would. I think someone else on this thread mentioned wanting to read it again as soon as they finished it, and that was my feeling exactly- partly because there was a major plot twist on the last few pages that put the entire previous story into question, but also because the writing was beautiful and the main character was so endearing to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvnlattes Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 The Creative Habit- a gem. I need to own this book! This sounds interesting. Thanks for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanceXToo Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 Finished my Stephen King book (11/22/63) last night...it was really, really good! Then I went back to reading The Traveler, by John Twelve Hawks today, which I had put aside for the S.K. book, and finished that one, too. Turns out it's book one in a trilogy, so I've reserved the next one from my library, but in the meanwhile, I'll be able to read the very last book in Karen Marie Moning's "Highlander" series this week, which I've had sitting here from interlibrary loan for a while, then I'll be done with that series. It's pretty short, only 102 pages, so I'll probably be able to get a bit ahead this week and read something else, too, even. We'll see! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LostSurprise Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 18. A Thread of Grace by Mary Doria Russell~great novel of the people of Italy (Jews, priests, partisans) in their resistance during the final years of WWII. Both realistic and inspiring. Thousands of of Italians hid Jews during the German occupation after Italy left the axis. A novel that investigates the good and evil available in every person. 17. A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge~'hard' science fiction, imaginative novel about a resurrected (and evil) AI and the people (humans, pack-mind creatures, sentient trees, transcendent Powers) who travel the zones to find its counter-measure. 16. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card~classic science fiction, read aloud. 15. Flour by Joanne Chung~cookbook, baking 14. Home to Woefield by Susan Juby~light fiction, humorous 13. Making the Most of Shade by Larry Hodgson~non-fiction/gardening 12. Growing Perennials in Cold Climates by Mike Heger~non-fiction/gardening 11. Case Histories by Kate Atkinson~mystery 10. Letters from Yellowstone by Diane Smith~historical fiction 9. The Circus in Winter by Cathy Day~fiction 8. The Alphabet in the Park by Adelia Prado~poetry 7. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman~non-fiction/medical 6. One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus~speculative fiction 5. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Hidden Gallery by Maryrose Woods~juvenile 4. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Jester~(read aloud) juvenile 3. The Alienist by Caleb Carr~Mystery 2. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton~Fiction 1. The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt~Fiction In progress: Twelve Owls (Erickson) Flora Mirabilis (Howell) Putting Down Roots: Gardening Insights from Wisconsin's Early Settlers (Carmichael) Gudrun's Kitchen (Sandvold) Corvus: a Life with Birds (Woolfson) Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood (Sacks) Redwall (Jacques)-read aloud Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparkle Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 I finished #21 Death in the Stocks by Georgette Heyer. It was decent, but none of the characters were very likeable, so probably not one I would re-read. #22 Swimming to Antarctica: Tales of a Long-Distance Swimmer by Lynne Cox - fantastic book, this woman is just amazing. I think she has superhuman powers. #23 About half-way through The Maze Runner by James Dashner - YA dystopian fiction; pretty interesting so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laundrycrisis Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 1. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children; Celestially Auspicious Occasions 2. The Mysterious Benedict Society; The Invention of Hugo Cabret 3. The Picture of Dorian Gray 4. Wuhu Diary 5. The Secret Life of the Dyslexic Child 6. Kingdom of Children 7. Values: Lighting the Candle of Excellence : A Practical Guide for the Family by Marva Collins; Natural Medicine Guide to Bipolar Disorder, The: New Revised Edition by Stephanie Marohn 8. Ordinary Children, Extraordinary Teachers by Marva Collins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 #22 Swimming to Antarctica: Tales of a Long-Distance Swimmer by Lynne Cox - fantastic book, this woman is just amazing. I think she has superhuman powers. That looks like a cool book. I love reading about real-life adventurers. Looks like my library has it, so I'm happy! :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thessa516 Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 I'm not going to finish a book this week. I'm in the middle of A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin. It's a pretty big book; I hope to have it finished next week. It's so much fun to immerse myself into another world. I'm also about halfway through Memories Before and After the Sound of Music by Agathe von Trapp. I got the recommendation from someone here on TWTM. Thank you! I'm enjoying it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maus Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Slowly working on: "The Wives of Henry VIII" by Antonia Fraser (It had to go back to the library, so I'm not currently working on it.) "The Life and Teachings of The New Testament Apostles" ed. by Richard Neitzel Holzapfel & Thomas A. Wayment Completed: Book #10 - "The Pig in the Pantry" by Rose Godfrey. I chuckled a lot, and felt like maybe my life as a homeschooling mom isn't so insane. Book #9 - "The Virgin in the Ice" by Ellis Peters Book #8 - "The Leper of St. Giles" by Ellis Peters Book #7 - "St. Peter's Fair" by Ellis Peters. Book #6 - "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" by Amy Chua. Book #5 - "Monk's Hood" by Ellis Peters. Book #4 - "Flash and Bones" by Kathy Reichs. Book #3 - "Spider Bones" by Kathy Reichs. Book #2 - "One Corpse Too Many" by Ellis Peters. Book #1 - "A Morbid Taste for Bones" by Ellis Peters Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VeganCupcake Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 I finished The Creative Habit (#17) and Life of Pi (#18) this week. The Creative Habit- a gem. I need to own this book! I don't consider myself an 'artist', per se, and woo-woo artist talk makes me shudder, but I am interested in nurturing my and my children's creativity and not being a slave to my reptilian/Type-A brain, but respecting it nonetheless. In particular, I'm interested in how creativity applies to (and can enrich) homeschooling. Tharp really challenged my assumptions about creativity. In her view, creativity is not an either-or thing- you don't (can't, in fact) choose between discipline/habits/WORK and talent or raw creation- both aspects are necessary. Ooh, I'm excited to read this, too. It sounds wonderful. I'm still reading Little Dorrit, and still enjoying it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin M Posted February 26, 2012 Author Share Posted February 26, 2012 Link to week 9 - please continue conversation in new thread Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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