Really Random Tuesday #62: Mosaics and a Book Winner

I know some of you are still waiting for spring and I don't mean to rub it in, but yesterday was a gorgeous spring day here.  It was so nice out--I had to take a walk.  I strolled around the Arts Center and was inspired to take some pictures with my iPhone.  I love the camera on my iPhone!  I photographed some of the mosaic sculptures by renowned artist  Niki de Saint Phalle.  I have a wonderful book of her work from the Mingei International Museum, Niki de Saint Phalle Insider/Outsider World Inspired Art.

Update, April 2015: Another place to find photos of her work is on Artsy.

Cat

Seal

Seal eye

Other details

Colorful painted wall

Another wall

I have barely scratched the surface here.  I could've posted more photos; I could've taken a lot more photos.  The iPhone is an incredible, all-in-one phone that's invaluable in numerous ways.  Most of the photos I now use for my blog are iPhone photos.  In fact, I rarely use a regular camera anymore.

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Please help me to congratulate Kelly from The Well-Read Redhead.  She's won a copy of The Paradise Guest House, a riveting new novel by author Ellen Sussman. Congratulations, Kelly!  If you didn't win this book giveaway, please take a look at the right side of my blog, where other giveaways are featured.

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Appearing on random Tuesdays, Really Random Tuesday is a way to post odds and ends--announcements, musings, quotes, photos--any blogging and book-related matters you can think of.  If you have miscellaneous book news to gather up and are inspired by this idea, "grab" the button for use on your own blog, and add your link to the "master" Mister Linky on the Really Random Tuesday page.

As always, your comments are welcomed!

The Paradise Guest House: Review and Giveaway

Published in 2013, The Paradise Guest House is the latest novel by Ellen Sussman, author of French Lessons and On A Night Like This.  This book is based on true events, the horrific 2002 nightclub bombings in Bali.  In the book, the protagonist, Jamie Hyde, returns to Bali for the anniversary ceremony of the nightclub bombings which took over 200 lives, including the life of her boyfriend, Miguel, who had just proposed to her.  Although she survives, these bombings change her life in an instant. The vision of Bali as a paradise has been obliterated, replaced by devastation, suffering, and loss.

The Paradise Guest House is divided into three parts, and is easy to follow.  In Part One (2003), Jamie Hyde, 32, a tourism guide for Global Adventures, returns to Bali from Berkeley, ostensibly for an anniversary ceremony; she also hopes to see the man who rescued and helped her after the bombings, Gabe Winters.  During her return trip, she stays at the picturesque Paradise Guest House in Ubud, which is run by a handsome native, Nyoman, who lost his wife in the bombings (he is comforted, somewhat, by the idea that his unborn child will have her soul).  Outside on the street, Jamie meets a boy, Bambang, who walks around with his dog, Tuk Tuk.  Bambang needs a job to survive and insists that he will help Jamie.  Although she is suspicious of the boy, she does accept his help.

This book is all about the setting, and all about the characters.  The setting is beautiful--it's Bali, after all--and excluding the site of the bombings, the locale is altogether stunning, lush, tropical, and exotic.  Due to the author's tremendous talent, I traveled to Bali, vicariously.  I was there. I also met the same people as Jamie did, Nyoman, Bambang, Gabe, Dewi, and others.  I loved how quickly and convincingly the main characters--Jamie, Nyoman, Bambang, and Gabe--sprang to life, and secondary characters are also well depicted.  (Larson, Jamie's boss and best friend, is kind of between a main character and a secondary character, whereas I saw Miguel, Jamie's deceased boyfriend, Dewi, Nyoman's niece, Rose, Jamie's mom, and Molly, Gabe's sister, as secondary characters.)  The feelings of the characters seem authentic and are understandable throughout the story.  Jamie experiences a lot of guilt because Miguel died in the bombings.  Larson, who has pancreatic cancer, feels guilty because he sent Jamie to Bali on a job assignment.  The book led me to consider a few things.  How do we reconcile our true feelings with what others want to hear?  How do we heal after such a traumatic event?   

Part Two (2002) goes back in time, and focuses on Gabe, and his meeting with Jamie after the bombings, when he rescues her and helps her to recover from her physical wounds.  Gabe has moved to Bali to start a new life for himself as a teacher in Ubud, because his 4-year-old son, Ethan, has died of spinal meningitis, and his wife, Heather, leaves him subsequently.  Part Two also features the brief yet intense romance between Gabe and Jamie. (Des'ree sings that "love will save the day".  Will it save Jamie and Gabe?) This book is a poignant and powerful love story, about romantic love, familial love, love of place, and love of life.  Part Three (2003) is what happens when Jamie and Gabe meet again, in Bali.  Have they both healed, physically and emotionally, at least in part, from the tragic events and loss in their lives?  Do they belong together?

The Bali bombing memorial, courtesy of Wikipedia

The Paradise Guest House is a stirring and well-crafted novel.  I raced through this book--not to get it read, but because it captured my whole attention, immediately (no texting or playing Words with Friends on the side).  The author spent a month in Bali researching the bombings, and met with many survivors and widows who shared their stories.  Ellen Sussman's writing seems effortless and flows beautifully.  Through her finesse with words, the author bestows this novel with honesty, intelligence, and liberal amounts of humor (for example, Jamie wishes her mother had "turned cougar", rather than marrying a relic).  The book inspired me to Google "Bali", and I viewed stunning pictures online, some of actual, appealing guest houses for travelers.  Ellen Sussman is a supremely gifted writer, and although the bombings described in this book are unspeakably awful, I was genuinely riveted by The Paradise Guest House.  I'd definitely like to read more of this author's work.

Wonderful news! Ballantine Books, an imprint of Random House, is generously offering a copy of The Paradise Guest House as a giveaway (U.S./Canada only).

• To enter this giveaway, simply leave a comment.
• For another chance at winning, become a follower of this blog, or let me know that you're already a follower.
• For an additional chance, post about this giveaway on your blog, Facebook, Pinterest, or Twitter.

Enter by 5 PM PDT on Monday, April 22.  One winner will be selected randomly and announced on Tuesday, April 23.  Good luck! 


Special thanks to Lisa from TLC for sending me an advance reader's edition of The Paradise Guest House (which is why I haven't quoted from the book).  For more reviews of this novel, please visit the other stops on TLC's book tour of The Paradise Guest House.

Mailbox Monday, Etc.

Nothing beats getting packages in the mail! The sight of boxes and padded envelopes in my mailbox or at my doorstep always makes me smile.  Pictured are the new books that were recently delivered to my "mailbox".

Tim Rowland's Creature Features arrived for an upcoming book tour with Premier Virtual Authors Book Tours.  The Gunners of Shenyang by Jihui Yu traveled all the way from Signal 8 Press in Hong Kong to my home.  I also received Blue Jeans and Coffee Beans, the new book by Joanne DeMaio, for an upcoming book tour, as well as The Paradise Guest House by Ellen Sussman, for a TLC book tour.  I'm looking forward to reading each of these, and to participating in the book tours over the next few months.

With Valentine's Day is just around the corner, why not treat someone special--maybe yourself--to a wonderful gift from GoneReading?  My readers will now get 20% off any purchases made from GoneReading; simply use the coupon code SUKOS20 during checkout.  GoneReading has some glorious gifts "just for her".  And GoneReading donates 100% of after-tax profits to fund libraries and reading programs around the world--another great reason to shop at GoneReading!  I may need to buy myself a little something.  I especially love their cute T-shirts (wearing them grants you extra "permission" to read),  pretty book journals, and lovely note cards featuring paintings of women reading.

Mailbox Monday is a fabulous way to showcase new books and reading-related items.  Created by Marcia, who has set up various book blogs as well as a Mailbox Monday blog, this meme has been "on tour" for the past few years. Audra from Unabridged Chick is hosting Mailbox Monday for the month of February. What new goodies did you find in your mailbox recently?