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Popular School Age Childrens Books Part II

Despite its frequent banning, The Giver remains a popular book for school-age children. The subject matter may be a bit heavy for young readers--a tightly controlled dystopian future society a la 1984--but its creepiness resonates well with imaginative kids. Sure, I used to semi-fantasize/semi-worry that my eye color had marked me as the bearer of the worlds technicolor memories, but as of yet I have not been called to official Receiver duty.


The Sign of the Beaver


Elizabeth George Speares The Sign of the Beaver is another classic example of cultural and historical lessons cleverly disguised as fun reading. Well done, Speare. Like Hatchet, Sign allows our imaginations to run wild at the prospect of a preteen left to fend for himself. In this case, however, Matt comes upon a Native American family and befriends the young son, Attean. Attean teaches Matt about the ways of Nature, Matt teaches Attean to read, and we all share a heartwarming story of prejudices overcome.


Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry


Roll of Thunder was technically released in the mid-70s, but the last post brought on numerous requests for its placement on the list so I decided to make a rare exception. The books examines the life and hardships of a black family struggling to hold on to their land against the tumultuous backdrop of 1930s Mississippi. Like many of these books, the themes are heavy--racism, prejudice, injustice--but the storytelling style brings it to a manageable level for young readers.


Shiloh

I love me some Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, so theres a special spot in my heart for the book that introduced me to her writing. Shiloh tells the story of a young boy who takes in a stray dog in hopes of protecting him from his abusive former owner. Its heartbreaking in a quiet, non-earth shattering way, and sometimes I still imagine my adopted shelter dog was once under the iron fist of the unsavory Judd Travers.


Ramona Quimby, Age 8


The sixth installment in the Ramona series is an ode to the minorly mischievous but ultimately sensitive child, starting with Ramonas unfortunate cafeteria egg incident and her subsequent overhearing of her teacher calling her a nuisance. The book continues in other delightful non-sequiturs; unlike many childrens books that seem to be an adults take on the way children think, Beverly Cleary manages to tap into that mysterious child psyche and give us a story thats simultaneously about nothing in particular and something important. Depending on the age of the reader, that is.


Jacob Have I Loved

Katherine Patersons title references the biblical line, "Jacob have I loved, but Esau I have hated," regarding the story of Isaacs mismatched fraternal twin sons. Sarah Louise despises her position in the shadows of her prettier, better loved sister Caroline. The book is told from Sarah Louises ("Weezes") perspective, giving us insight into her jealousy and feelings of marginalization. The themes of sibling rivalry and intense envy can get a little depressing, but weve got some creepy romantic feelings between a 13-year old girl and 70-year old man to keep the pace exciting.


Island of the Blue Dolphins


This one is a bit of a cheat, too, as it was published in the 60s, but its popularity among young readers held steady throughout the ensuing decades. Its yet another tale of a child left to fend for himself, only in this case that "himself" is more of a "herself." The book is loosely based on the true story of Juana Maria, portrayed in Islands as Wonapalei, known secretly as Karana. After Karanas people are devastated by invading Aleuts, the tribe embarks on a ship for the mainland. Karanas brother is left behind, so her only logical solution is to jump ship and live with him on a secluded island. Did I say logical? Im sorry, I meant book-worthy. Her brother dies nearly immediately, leaving Karana to take on packs of wild but eventually lovable dogs and to take hold of her own survival. I wont give away the entire book, but suffice it to say its nice to see a female lead in these solo adventure stories every once in awhile.

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NY Fashion Week SS09 Wrap Up II

Proenza Schouler
The designers of all those super pretty and cute dresses last season (and that of the model silhouette of this blogs FW08 banner!) did a 180 this season and went hardcore on us, and maybe a little bit punk.
The one thing that stood out from this collection though was the silhouette. It is definitely unique and edgy. It is not an immediately ew. But it sort of looks like the models are pinned onto a wall with by their sleeves. Or like those flying chipmunks (or whatever they are) we see in cartoons. The model in the cream suit jacket looks like her left arm is disjointed. I highly doubt this unique silhouette will be as well received as the pretty dresses last season (or I hope not!).

The Cynthia Steffe collection on the other hand is very wearable and pretty (as usual). Ive always had a liking for them ever since I picked up something from this brand during Thanksgiving sale at Neiman Marcus.
Two things I love about this collection. First, it is very put together and neat, like this very chic dress here (left). This black/white circular print is is interesting and very versatile (it was used very prominently on the runway). Second, I love how wearable every piece is. Not only is this all white outfit (right) gorgeous in its own right, but individually these pieces are incredibly versatile. Besides the neat and the structured, they also offered the flowy and the floral. Ok, I probably wouldnt pair the blue floral outfit (right) as it is, but Id definitely wear those two pieces seperately. And Im simply LOVING those genie capris!

The Jill Stuart collection is not exactly the most original or fashion forward show on the runway this season. Admittedly certain looks even reminds one of the Marc by Marc Jacobs runway a few years back (remember the long sleeved ribbed thermals layered with a very colorful array of other ballerina-esque items?). But this collection has its charm.

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Plight of a bumble bee Part II

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OUTLANDER PART II

Picking back up on the Starz – Outlander series: Part II

Once the Outlander story moves away from filming at Castle Leoch, there are several great sets.  The first is Geillis Duncan’s townhouse in Cranesmuir. 

Geillis Duncan seen here wearing one of the more beautiful costumes designed by Terry Dresbach.  Dresbach is so incredibly talented.  I never realized how much work goes into costume designing, but it looks exhausting!  I don’t know where Terry gets here energy from!!

This dress is actually Geillis’ widow or mourning dress that she wears after the death of her husband (whom she murdered with her secret potions!!)   Dresbach found this beautiful feathery black fabric, then she added the white linen which she sheared with scissors – and the crowning touch is Geillis’  lace necklace.  A second copy of this dress was made for when it becomes dirty after Geillis spends time in the dungeon.  

Two identical costumes were created:  one clean and pristine – and one that looks filthy dirty:

Geillis, at her witch trial, wearing the second copy of the dress that has been dyed and torn to look filthy dirty.

The character – Geillis Duncan - is a mysterious woman; she is accused of being a witch and, like Claire, she works with herbs, flowers, and barks; but, unlike Claire, she makes poison in addition to medicine.  Her library is part laboratory and part fantasy. 

Culross – on the River Forth in Scotland.

The producers chose the tiny village of Culross in West Fife to stand in for the fictional town of Cranesmuir where Geillis Duncan lives.   In Culross, time has stood still for the past four centuries and it looks almost as it did in the 17th century.     Culross is on the banks of the River Forth  and Outlander used its town square for several exterior scenes.  

REALITY:  The town square of Culross as it usually is with its houses painted white and its original cobbled streets.  Geillis’ house is the tall three story building in the corner.

OUTLANDER SET:  And here, the same square with the houses painted dark gray.  Geillis’ house is behind the orange flower pot.

The set decorators painted all the white buildings a dark gray and when they were through filming, they asked that the buildings remain gray for a few more months in case reshoots were needed.  The Trust for Scotland announces the painting of the buildings:

Apparently the National Trust for Scotland owns many of the houses/buildings in Culross.   Unlike the United States, Great Britain is very much involved in the protection and restoration of their architectural history.

REALITY:  Before there were automobiles:  The horse stands directly in front of Geillis’ townhouse. 

REALITY:  Amazing!  This photograph looks almost exactly like a scene from Outlander – except it was taken a 100 years before.

OUTLANDER SET:  The town square filled with extras in costume and buildings painted gray.

REALITY:  The back side of Geillis’ townhouse.  The tall, skinny building is known in Culross as “The Study.”

OUTLANDER SET:  Geillis and Claire look out of the window of the exterior of her townhouse.

CULROSS PALACE:

An early drawing of Culross Palace, one of Culross’ biggest tourist attraction.

REALITY:  Culross Palace, in bright yellow with its large front lawn, overlooks the River Forth.  It’s centuries old garden is out back.

One of the most important houses in Culross is the Culross Palace, named for its visitor King James VI in 1617.  The house was built in the late 16th century and became a part of the National Trust for Scotland in 1932, when it was totally renovated after the years of neglect.  The house is noted for its interior decoration – there are extensive murals and biblical sayings painted on the walls and ceiling.   The gardens were also restored by the Trust.

Culross Palace faces the River Forth.

While the exterior of Geillis’ townhouse was the gray painted building on the town square, the interiors of Geillis Duncan’s house were inspired by Culross Palace.  In fact, her dining room was actually filmed in the house, while her library was filmed on a sound stage.

REALITY:  Culross Palace – the dining room.  The house is tiny with tiny rooms but they are quite special.  The furniture is antique and the paneled walls are painted a mossy green.  Hanging on the walls are oil paintings and antique Staffordshire  plates.  Notice the chandelier – the same was used on the set of Geillis’ library room.

REALITY:  Another view.  It’s a shame Outlander could not or did not want to use this furniture or the wall hangings.  They are much finer than what is used in the series, and the Trust may have forbidden their use for fear the furnishings might have been damaged.

Now – realize this charming house was built in the 16th century!  And, honestly, it looks almost current.   It’s just amazing to think that some people did live this well.

REALITY:  Another view of the dining room showing the table and chairs.

A close up of Sir George Bruce, the first owner.  Notice the body is female!!  Apparently portraits were painted by adding the head on at a later time. 

OUTLANDER SET:  And, here is a picture of the scene in Geillis’ dining room.  All the furniture and accessories in the house were removed and the production team brought in their own furniture.  The chairs used here are leather tooled.   As you can see the wall hangings can not compare to the oils and porcelains that normally hang here.

OUTLANDER SET:  Another view –  notice the firebox, how pretty it is!  Besides the English army’s uniforms, Geillis’ red shoes are the only red seen during Season One.

OUTLANDER SET:  And the view of the other side of the room.  The crew brought in the tapestry and the gate leg table, along with all the accessories.   Culross Palace is a noted 16th century Scottish house and it is significant that this room is featured in Outlander, even if it is seen only for a few minutes.  I’m sure that many tourists and Scottish citizens recognized this room when they watched the episode.

REALITY:  The drawing room at Culross Palace is filled with William and Mary furniture.  It is noted for its barreled ceiling which is painted with biblical scenes and sayings.  Notice the niche in the wall on the right filled with an antique box and plate.

REALITY:  The drawing room again – less furnished.

Close up of the stone fireplace and the barley twist chair with cane back.  The stone mantel is remarkably current.

Close up of the painted biblical scenes.

This drawing room in Culross Palace was used as the inspiration for Geillis’ library – as opposed to the dining room next door which was the set.   I’m assuming they didn’t actually film in the drawing room, as they did in the dining room, because the scenes here were much longer and took place over several episodes – which would have been harmful to this delicate 17th century room.  In contrast, the dining room scene was probably filmed in just one short day.

Here is the set of Geillis library – see if you can see the inspiration:

OUTLANDER:   And here is the set of Geillis’ library that was built on the soundstage.  The set was actually built on the second floor of Castle Leoch’s Great Hall – under the rafters.  Can you see how the set decorators used Culross Palace as their inspiration?  This ceiling is also barreled and the paneling is painted – just like at Culross Palace.  And notice the chandelier – which is the same one as in the dining room at Culross Palace.

It does look as if a witch or an eccentric person might live here.

The gate leg table divides the long library into two halves.

The chaise looks to be an authentic antique, almost identical to this museum piece above.

To the right you can see one of the paintings on the wood walls – just like the murals at Culross Palace.  In his podcast, producer Ron Moore said this set was designed to resemble a ship – turned upside down.  Ron and his wife Terry Dresbach had once lived in a house like that in California and this set was said to be an homage to that “ship” house.  While that may certainly be the case – the vaulted ceiling closely resembles the drawing room in Culross Palace and it’s obvious (to me at least!) that was the inspiration behind the set. 

Here are the actual windows waiting to be installed in the set.

Here is a close up of the murals.   While the ones in Culross Palace are based on biblical scenes, the ones on the set clearly are not!  Still, the production team went to quite a lot of trouble to paint all those scenes – even when they are barely visible during the show.

Here a worker constructs and ages the rafters for
Geillis’ library.

Here you can clearly see the ceiling with its “upside down ship” construction.

Since many of the Outlander sets are used for multiple scenes, it’s fun to figure out if a particular set was used twice.   For instance, Geillis’ library closely resembles the bedroom used in the wedding scene.  Both rooms have the unique vaulted ceiling and rafters, but without any confirmation, it is just a guess that those two rooms are in fact the same set.

The back area of Geillis’ library with its two small apothecaries and one large chest.  Notice the candleholder with the magnifying glass.  The glass would greatly increase the strength of the light.

REALITY:  Behind Culross Palace is its restored 17th century garden.   A scene where Geillis and Claire were out seeking medicinal herbs and flowers outside Castle Leoch was actually filmed here at Culross Palace.

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