Happy with Oscar

I suppose it's not entirely fair to be thrilled that Slumdog Millionaire won out last night over the other four movies nominated for best picture: I 've only seen one of the others also nominated. But truth be told, that really only means I can't say it's the best of the bunch. I can still say it was the best movie I've seen in a long time. So I will say it. It was.

And I am thrilled it won.

An article appeared in Sunday's San Diego Union Tribune, before the Oscars aired, of course, that described some of the angst Indians feel about the depiction of life in Mumbai, as if this movie was a commentary on India's woes and nothing was said of its virtues. But there is poverty in nearly every country. And mean streets. And abusers of children. And crooked cops. This wasn't a story about India. It was a story about love. It was a story about an Indian boy and an Indian girl and the people around them - both good and bad - that took them to the edge of love's defining moments.

I loved how the Who Wants to be a Millionaire? backdrop was a metaphor for so many other questions. Who wants to be cared for? Who wants to rise above the thumb of oppression? Who wants to live in peace? Who wants to risk everything for love? Who wants to believe we are more than what someone else says we are? This movie excelled on so many levels. A well-told story about the extravagance of sacrifical love often makes the best kind of movie.

It's not often my pick gets the Oscar. I am content.

A deep lake

I don't know how I managed to get through high school without reading To Kill a Mockingbird. I blush even to write such a thing. I read other classics: Brave New World, A Farewell to Arms, The Grapes of Wrath, The Bell Jar, A Separate Peace, but not the Mockingbird.

I've had many opportunities since high school to read it, of course. No good reason for not having done so, and it's funny because I've always wanted to read it. Watching Gregory Peck become Atticus Finch's flesh and bone on screen is not the same thing.

I am proud to say the deed is done. I finished it last night, sated, intrigued and wondering. It was different than I expected. I had always thought this was a book about a white lawyer who defends an innocent black man in the pre-civil-rights South. It's actually about a young girl watching her father practice law in the pre-civil-rights South. It's a story about a girl who watches, wonders, interprets. And that is the persona of every writer I know, including me.

I told the members of my book club that this book is driven by its characters not its plot and that the story thread is subtle. It is more like a deep lake than a moving river. Both are wet, both can be big and imposing. One is quiet and still, though, while the other is all about its destination.

Most people know To Kill a Mockingbird, which took the Pulitzer Prize for fiction the year I was born, is Harper Lee's only published novel. Here are a few other things I learned in recent days about her. Lee's first name is Nelle. Her grade school playmate was Truman Capote. She spent a year at Oxford University. She worked briefly as an airline reservations clerk.

And while she granted few interviews, she had some amazing things to say about writing. Here are some gems attributed to this remarkable author:

"Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing." Love that.

"I think the thing that I most deplore about American writing, and especially in the American theatre, is a lack of craftsmanship. It comes right down to this-the lack of absolute love for language, the lack of sitting down and working a good idea into a gem of an idea. It takes time and patience and effort to turn out a work of art, and few people seem willing to go all the way."

"There's no substitute for the love of language, for the beauty of an English sentence. There's no substitute for struggling, if a struggle is needed, to make an English sentence as beautiful as it should be."

And this one is my favorite because I totally get this. I close with it and wish you all a safe and peaceful weekend:

"I never wrote with an idea of publishing anything, of course, until I began working on Mockingbird. I think that what went before may have been a rather subconscious form of learning how to write, of training myself. You see, more than a simple matter of putting down words, writing is a process of self-discipline you must learn before you can call yourself a writer. There are people who write, but I think they're quite different from people who must write."

New from Terri Blackstock

My good friend Terri Blackstock, one of the loveliest and gentlest souls on planet, has a new book out that I am happy to chat about today. Terri is a gifted writer of suspense and knows her stuff. Here is the scoop on Double Minds:

Were the bullets intended for her?
As talented singer/songwriter Parker James struggles to make her mark on the Nashville music scene, she finds the competition can be fierce – even deadly. When a young woman is murdered at the recording studio where Parker works, Parker is drawn into a mystery where nothing is as it seems. Unraveling the truth puts her own life at risk when she uncovers high-level industry corruption and is terrorized by a menacing stalker. As the danger escalates, Parker begins to question her dreams, her future, and even her faith. Does stardom even matter anymore?

“Blackstock’s superior writing will keep readers turning pages late into the night to discover the identity of the culprit in this amazing mystery. The unique setting and peek into the Nashville music scene are fascinating. Suspense lovers are in for a delightful treat.” Romantic Times, February 2009.

Terri Blackstock’s books have sold six million copies worldwide. Known for her “Up All Night Fiction,” Terri has had over twenty-five years of success as a novelist. Terri makes her home in Mississippi, where she and her husband Ken are enjoying their empty nest after raising three children.

See the Video Trailer for Double Minds at www.terriblackstock.com

The mockingbird flies in for a visit on Friday. I promise.

New clothes!

Sometimes change is a little hard to get used to, especially when no one asks you for your opinion first. When Pluto was excommunicated from planetary status I was pretty ticked no one asked me what I thought. If they had, I would've told them please, don't change a thing. But no one asked, and change it they did. To me, Pluto will always be the cute little planet at the edge of our starry niche. I don't care what anybody else says.

So, if you miss the white-on-black here on the blog and the unfrumpy EDGEWISE in all caps, sorry. But I hope you think the new digs make up for the visual assault. I have a new website design which I really am excited about, and hence the blog got new clothes, too. It was all part of the makeover. Click over to the website and let me know what you think.

The look is a mix of historical and contemporary, which is becoming my brand, and that's why you see ancient abbey-ish features in faded tans and browns with a zippy font and warm pink accents. Old dovetailing with new. That's what I like. When I worked on The Shape of Mercy, this is what I realized about myself - I like blending some - or a lot - of the past in my contemporary settings. We learn so much from what has gone before. We're supposed to.

My upcoming fall release, White Picket Fences, which you will hear more about in weeks to come, is a blend of a current day drama and the Warsaw Ghetto. I think you will like it. . .

I know I promised you the reason why you never want to kill a mockingbird but I didn't finish reading Harper Lee's masterpiece this weekend like I had hoped. Come back Friday- if you're not having Pluto-like reservations about the new Edgewise and I'll tell you then.

Thursday at Warwicks

It's picture day here at the Edge. Last night I had a booksigning and speaking event at one of my favorite places - Warwicks Bookstore in lovely LaJolla.

I don't want to have a "it's all about me" moment here because that kind of stuff drives me crazy so instead, I will express how wonderful it was be in the company of a store full of booklovers. I had a great time talking about the research for The Shape of Mercy, and what I learned along the way about why we are so quick to cast judgment, and what made me use the Salem Witch Trials as a backdrop to tell a story above love, mercy, and redemption.

But I have to say one of the nicest elements of the evening was being surrounded by books and people who love them. Especially the Warwicks staff. I've yet to meet someone who works in a bookstore who doesn't love the inventory. At least I haven't found this same level of passion with anyone who works in a shoestore. If I needed a different day job, I think I'd be quite happy spending my nine-to-five in a bookstore, happily trying on all the shoes. . . I mean reading all the books.

Have a great weekend. On Monday I will tell you why you should never kill a mockingbird.