In Neon Cola

In Granny’s Paper

In Comic Boom

In Gotham Noir

In Pastel Perfect

In Andy Pop

Have a great weekend and always remember to have fun with your TBR.

If you have finished The Marriage Plot, please be sure not to include any information in your answers that would spoil the remainder of the book for others. This moratorium isn’t forever. Next week Tuesday we can talk about it all.

I got overwhelmed with my own questions during Week 1, so I’m going to try to keep them short and sweet this time around. Once again, please feel to answer as few or as many as you’d like. If you have some of your own, let us know. I’m very interested in what you have to say about what took place.

Caution! If you have not yet reached the end of the section entitled Brilliant Move, which ends on page 293, the rest of this post and any comments will contain spoilers.

Pilgrims

I really enjoyed the title of this section. It very much captured the spirit of what was happening directly following graduation. Does the word “pilgrim” have the same meaning for Madeleine and Mitchell? How did Madeleine and Mitchell’s short meeting in New York City and the letter they exchanged impact their journey?

What are your thoughts on Larry and Claire’s relationship? How did they fit in the story? Would his experiences with Mother Theresa’s hospital have been the same had he not gone by himself?

Madeleine’s family again enters the picture. Were you surprised at the way in which Leonard’s condition was discovered? Would Alwyn and Phyllida have left Pilgrim Lake with the same impressions of Leonard had they been able to keep the trugth from them?

Brilliant Move

While there are many questions I could ask you about Leonard and his experiences with his mental illness, what I most want to know is how you reacted to the end of this section? (If you only answer one question, I want this question to be it!)

General Thoughts

At this point, we’re over half way through The Marriage Plot. What are you thoughts about what you’ve read? How does it live up to your expectations?

For those of you reading this book in audio, how has your experience been?

Have you finished it? If not, any thoughts on what the last sections of the book hold?

Thoughts:

House of Sand and Fog was incredible. It feels odd to say that because it was gut wrenching and dark. I will be thinking about this novel for a very long time to come. I’ll be posting a full review Friday, but I enjoyed the fact that this book was narrated by the author and his wife, Fontaine Dollas Dubus. While they are not the best narrators I’ve experienced, this story was ingrained inside them and I could sense that. Others could have better performed it, but I don’t think anyone else could have lived it they way that they did.

I am about a third of the way through The Violent Bear It Away. What stands out to me the most from this book is that I completely screwed up the title on Twitter not once, but twice. I started with The Violent Bare It All (porno version apparently) and then “corrected” it with The Violent Bear It All. I blame extreme exhaustion for the lapse, but it’s also true that I’m not very involved in the story. I last picked it up Friday night and haven’t had the desire to pick it up again. It isn’t that it’s bad, it’s not. I’m just not “there.” From what I’ve gathered from my tweeps, it’s best to start with O’Connor’s short stories. I have the audio version of Everything That Rises Must Converge. I’m contemplating reading A Good Man Is Hard To Find and going back to The Violent Bear It Away some other time.

Moving Forward:

I am chomping at the bit to get to some Stewart O’Nan. I got my eGalley copy of his latest novel, The Odds on my Kindle this very minute and it’s killing me to stay away from it. My original O’Nan plans were to read A Prayer for the Dying and Wish You Were Here, which leads up to Emily, Alone. With The Odds burning a hole in my Kindle, I think I’ll hold off on Wish You Were Here until next month, when my pre-oredered paperback copy of Emily, Alone is due to arrive. After the kids are in bed tonight, I’m going to be jumping into The Odds with both feet.

In audio, I’ve started Dr. No, the next James Bond book by Ian Fleming. It’s not part of 3, 2, 1, but it is part of my Shaken, Not Stirred Ian Fleming/Simon Vance challenge. Our November Twitter party is scheduled for 11/19, which will be here before we know it.

With Thanksgiving quickly approaching for us Americans, I’m curious to see how it will impact my reading. We’re planning a trip to Grand Rapids, so I may not get much read at all once we’re on the road to Michigan.

Now that you know what I’ve been up to on the bookish front so far this month, how has your month been? Have you read anything outstanding?

When setting up this readalong, I had every intention of reading just ahead of the group so that I would be able to come up with questions to start our discussion. The truth is that once I got started, I couldn’t stop reading. I wasn’t even sure why. By the time I figured it out, I had finished it. If you had the same or similar experience, no problem. I’m finding that reviewing the book brings the experience back. For those of you strong willed enough to follow the schedule, I hope you enjoyed A Madman in Love.

Note: The questions in this post assume that you’ve finished reading A Madman in Love. If you haven’t read the first section of this book, do not read any further if you want to avoid spoilers.

Answer as many or as few of the questions below as you’d like. If you have questions of your own, please ask them in the comments. My answers will appear in the comments as well.

Getting Acquainted

Since this is the first week, tell us a little about yourself. What made you decide to join the readalong? Is it your first Eugenides read or have you read some or all of his other work? What were your expectations when you started reading? In what format are you reading the book (print, eBook, audiobook)?

A Madman In Love

During the opening scenes of The Marriage Plot, the content of Madeleine’s bookshelves serve to describe her evolution as a person, a reader and an acedemic. Did that introduction work well for you? How telling do you feel a person’s bookshelf is? What would yours say about you?

This section of the book is set on the campus of Brown University during the early 1980s. How did this setting impact Madeleine, Leonard and Mitchell? Why do you think they chose to attend that particular school? What did they hope to gain from the experience?

What is it about Mitchell that didn’t appeal to Madeleine? What is it about Madeleine that appealed to Mitchell? What was it about Leonard that captured Madeleine’s heart.

How does family impact Madeleine, Leonard and Mitchell? How does each set of parents view college life? What are their expectations for and after graduation?

Madeleine’s education was pretty standard until she enrolled in Dr. Zipperstein’s Semiotics 211 class. What was it about that class that appealed to her? Does it help prepare her for what lies ahead after graduation?

While Madeleine and Leonard are taking Semiotics 211, Mitchell’s education has become focused on religion. Why does this course of study appeal to Mitchell? What did you think of Professor Richter’s opinion of Mitchell and his future?

If you knew of Leonard’s hospitalization before Madeleine, would you have kept the truth from her like her roommates did or, like Leonard’s friend, would you have called her? Who do you think had Madeleine’s best interests at heart?

Overall, what are your opinions about The Marriage Plot after reading this first section? What do you think about the characters? The novel’s structure? The author’s writing style? The overall tone?

Warning (stolen from Carl): For those of you who are not reading the novel but want to, following along after the jump is something you do not want to do. Spoilers are present in abundance.

Here are my responses to this week’s questions:

1. The title of this book is The Lantern, and a lantern makes an appearance in both of the stories. In Benedicte’s past, it had a meaning, but what do you think the lantern signifies in her future and in Eve’s story?

It is so very interesting how Benedicte and Eve’s stories are coming together. I’m tempted to think that an item so meaningful to Benedicte being seen by Eve is a sign that Benedicte is trying very hard to have someone learn the truth about her family and about the farm. Eve is also allowing herself to live in the dark when it comes to Dom. While there are signs everywhere that she doesn’t belong with him, she never allows a harsh light to shine on the situation for long. If it’s not Benedicte, it is the universe trying to get her attention.

2. Carl mentioned scents in last weeks questions, but they have been addressed even more in these sections. What significance do you think scents have in this story overall?

I really wish that this book came with a scratch and sniff card. They talk about such wonderful sounding smells. Scent is very much a character in this book. Scent changes people’s lives. It’s what gave Marthe a break after she became blind. I would love to know what Marthe’s perfume smells like. It’s the clue to Eve that something’s not right. Is the scent that awakes her Marthe’s perfume or something else?

3. What do you think of the combining storyline of Marthe? She connects Benedicte, Eve, and Rachel. What do you think will be revealed about this connection in the next sections?

Although I assumed the stories had to intersect at some point, it was this connection that finally brought about my investment in the novel. This book got off to a slow start for me because the book was so atmospheric. The connection between the two woman added the spark of action and excitement In needed. I wouldn’t be surprised if this was a matter of history repeating itself. Could Dom in some way be related to Pierre? I wouldn’t be surprised.

4. Now that things are beginning to move along, what do you think of the characters? Are any standing out for you? Do you particularly like any? Dislike any?

While I still don’t care for Eve, I like Benedicte even more than I did during the first two sections. Benedicte is a woman trying to make the best of the world into which she was born. She jumps at the chance to help Marthe, for example. She does seem to blame herself for everything. Even where Marthe might blame her, she’s not to blame.

Eve, on the other hand, annoys me. I want to like her, but it’s as if she prefers to live with her head buried in the sand. She’ll investigate Dom and Rachel, but only so far. When the truth is within reach, she calls it a night. I find that frustrating.

5. What do you think really happened to Marthe and Annette? What do you think the significance of the bones in the pool are to the story? Especially now that it has been revealed that Rachel is also dead.

I believe the bones beneath the pool are Marthe and Annette. Whether that happened while Benedicte was away or she only imagined them alive when she woke up, I’m not sure. I do not believe that Rachel died of cancer. Noting that I despise Dom, I think the pregnancy had something to do with it. Eve had better look out.

6. Do you have any other things you think are significant to talk about? Are there any other predictions to be made for the last two sections of the book?

I predict that Dom will not be happy when he discovers Eve’s pregnancy. That Rachel, Benedicte and Eve have/had been pregnant is interesting to me. There almost has to be something there or why would it have been mentioned in Benedicte’s story?

7. Lastly, what do you think of this book overall? Other than for the read-along, why are you reading it? Is it meeting your expectations?

I requested an ARC of this novel from Harper because I love Gothic fiction. The Lantern definitely fits the genre. I think I would like it as a whole more if it had more going on in the first two sections, but I’m enjoying it now. Can’t wait to get back to it.

I usually write about books I have read, so I thought it would be nice to highlight three books I’m looking forward to reading in the early fall.

Domestic Violets by Matthew Norman

Date of Publication:  August 9, 2011 (less than a week!)

If you’re an avid reader, chances are you have at least a couple “go to” publishers or imprints for excellent and engaging reads. Harper Perennial is just such an imprint for me. Most novels they publish appeal to me on some level. Some appeal to me on all levels (Hello, Simon Van Booy!).

A while back I received an email informing me about author would be making an appearance at One More Page Books and More in Arlington, VA. As much as I wanted to attend the event, DC is too far to travel round trip in one day. I was very disappointed. Not only Domestic Violets published by Harper Perennial, it sounds fantastic. Here’s an overview from the publisher:

Tom Violet always thought that by the time he turned thirty-five, he’d have everything going for him. Fame. Fortune. A beautiful wife. A satisfying career as a successful novelist. A happy dog to greet him at the end of the day.

The reality, though, is far different. He’s got a wife, but their problems are bigger than he can even imagine. And he’s written a novel, but the manuscript he’s slaved over for years is currently hidden in his desk drawer while his father, an actual famous writer, just won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. His career, such that it is, involves mind-numbing corporate buzzwords, his pretentious archnemesis Gregory, and a hopeless, completely inappropriate crush on his favorite coworker. Oh . . . and his dog, according to the vet, is suffering from acute anxiety.

Tom’s life is crushing his soul, but he’s decided to do something about it. (Really.) Domestic Violets is the brilliant and beguiling story of a man finally taking control of his own happiness—even if it means making a complete idiot of himself along the way.

Speaking of Harper Perennial, in August they have 20 of their backlist eBooks on sale for 99 cents! I already have Bad Marie, which is a steal at 99 cents. So far I’ve picked up Who By Fire by Diana Spechler (loved Skinny!),  The Gospel of Anarchy by Justin Taylor, Postcards from a Dead Girl by Kirk Farber and Town House by Tish Cohen. Check out Harper Perennial’s Facebook page for the full list!

If Jack’s In Love by Stephen Wetta

Date of Publication:

For those of you who missed my wild adoration for Peter Bagnanni and The House of Tomorrow on Twitter or in my review, I absolutely adored this story about a teenager coming of age despite his rather odd and cloistered upbringing. After reading Miss Entropia and the Adam Bomb soon afterwards, I have come to realize that there is something about a coming of age novel that works well for me, especially if the young man is quirky.

After mentioning my love for The House of Tomorrow on Twitter last month, my friends at Putnam turned me on to a fall book coming out from the same imprint as the House of Tomorrow, Amy Einhorn Books. I checked out the summary and I was sold. I have my ARC sitting right next to me on my nightstand and I can’t wait to dive in. Here’s an overview from the publisher:

It’s 1967. Jack Witcher is a twelve-year-old boy genius living in a Virginia suburb at an address the entire neighborhood avoids. Jack’s father has lost his job-again-and he’s starting fights with other fathers. Jack’s mother, sweet but painfully ugly, works as a cashier at a local market. Jack’s older brother is a long-haired, pot-smoking hippie.

If all of that isn’t bad enough, Jack’s brother suddenly becomes the main suspect in the disappearance of the town’s golden boy. And to make matters even worse, Jack is in love with the missing boy’s sister, Myra. Mr. Gladstein, the town jeweler and solitary Jew, is Jack’s only friend; together, they scheme to win Jack Myra’s love. But to do that, Jack must overcome the prejudices, both the town’s and his own, about himself and his family.

When She Woke by Hillary Jordan

Date of Publication: October 4, 2011

Hillary Jordan’s novel Mudbound was one of the first audiobooks I read after becoming a more serious listener. It was an engaging story. So much so that I wanted to shoot one of the characters dead. He made me that mad. When I finished the book, I wanted to read more from her. Since it was her first novel, I had to wait. I’ve been on the lookout for another book ever since.

When the fall catalog from Algonquin Books arrived in the mail, my prayers were answered. Not only has Jordan published her second novel, but the premise of the book gave me the shivers. I knew that every second I waited for another novel was well worth it. I stopped looking through the catalog and requested a copy of the book immediately. It is also sitting on my nightstand waiting to be devoured. Her is an overview from the publisher:

Hannah Payne’s life has been devoted to church and family, but after her arrest, she awakens to a nightmare: she is lying on a table in a bare room, covered only by a paper gown, with cameras broadcasting her every move to millions at home, for whom observing new Chromes—criminals whose skin color has been genetically altered to match the class of their crime—is a new and sinister form of entertainment. Hannah is a Red; her crime is murder. The victim, according to the State of Texas, was her unborn child, and Hannah is determined to protect the identity of the father, a public figure with whom she’s shared a fierce and forbidden love.

When She Woke is a fable about a stigmatized woman struggling to navigate an America of a not-too-distant future—where the line between church and state has been eradicated and convicted felons are no longer imprisoned and rehabilitated but chromed and released back into the population to survive as best they can. In seeking a path to safety in an alien and hostile world, Hannah unknowingly embarks on a path of self-discovery that forces her to question the values she once held true and the righteousness of a country that politicizes faith.

Those are three books I’m salivating over between now and early October. I hope your TBR pile has grown by three if those books weren’t already there. And, since turnabout is fair play, what’s on your list? I’d love for my pile of must reads get bigger. What do I care if there is an avalanche? My husband is a good man. He’ll dig me out.

At first glance, these things don’t seem to have any connection at all. Heroine Love deals with fictional women who have come to hold powerful meaning in our lives. The Decemberists are a fantastic contemporary American band. Atiq Rahimi’s novel deals with the impact of coups and the impending Soviet invasion on life in Afghanistan in 1979. In all actuality, there may be no connection between heroines, The Decemberists, and 1979’s Afghanistan other than the life experience and education I brought to the table. That is one of the beauties of being human. We are each able to take in what’s around us and gather from it what we will.

Here’s how it all converged for me:

After Erin honored me with her request to take part in her Heroine Week festivities, it took me a while to decide which heroine I was going to write about.  Looking back, the choice was never in doubt. My heroine was destined to be Lisbeth Salander. Over the course of Stieg Larsson’s Millennium trilogy, she became a treasured friend. After spending weeks thinking about her and finishing my Heroine Love letter to her, it still feels odd to say that. She’s a far cry from the first character anyone would associate with me.

I definitely struggled that post for Erin. I normally never get nervous about writing a post. I get into a zone and I’ve always written well under pressure. Not so for this. It feels as though I spent more time on that short letter to Lisbeth than I did on any of my college or grad school papers. It was while I was editing drafts, tossing drafts out completely, and beginning a new draft all over again that I discovered The Decemberists. I downloaded a copy of The Kind is Dead the morning it was released and have been obsessed with the song “This is Why We Fight” from my very first listen. Whatever the intended meaning behind the song, some of the lyrics brought Lisbeth’s character into sharp focus:

When we die
We will die with our arms unbound

What a passionate and beautiful way to view death and the life one leads before it. That sentiment summed up for me why Lisbeth didn’t simply give up when horrible things continued to happen. To her, life holds meaning only when she’s free to be herself. Death isn’t something to be feared when you make your life fulfilling and worthwhile.

I read A Thousand Rooms of Dream and Fear in order to participate in the book club established by Jenn from Devourer of Books and Nicole from Linus’ Blanket. In the beginning, Farhad, a young man from Afghanistan, is in hiding from the government. He believes that he is dying and he is paralyzed with fear over the afterlife. He recalls all of the religious laws and superstitions his grandfather taught him as a means of quelling his anxiety and, perhaps, changing his fate. I completely related to him in this state. I could easily see furiously trying to make up for not saying novenas, the rosary, going to confession, etc… by reciting prayers in a desperate attempt to avoid the flames.

I wondered if this reaction to the end of life is a human trait or something that might be particular to certain religious traditions. I tweeted this question, not anticipating any response at all. It’s not something easily discussed in 140 characters or less.  I was surprised when it did spark a conversation with someone I respect. We discussed the role of guilt, about the meaning of life, and about how important it is to love the here and now with all your heart.  It was that conversation that made the connection back to Lisbeth and “This is Why We Fight.”  It wasn’t until those three things came together the way that they did that I was able to finally write my post for Erin and feel satisfied with it.

Call it God, fate, or simply being open to new insights, it’s pretty interesting when things in your life converge into something new and powerful. I am looking forward to the day I turn 40 (I admit the cruise to the Bahamas with my best friend doesn’t hurt). It begins a new chapter in my life. A chapter where I will let go of my innate desire to please others. A chapter where I choose to love myself for who I am, warts and all. A chapter where I make taking care of myself a priority. A chapter where I choose to learn from guilt instead of being ruled by it. A chapter where I resolve to live so that I may die unbound.

The Winner of my gently read copy of Not That Kind of Girl is Kristin from BookNAround! Please send me your mailing address and I’ll have that sent off to you this weekend.

The Winner of my Penguin’s 75th Anniversary Contest is Allison!

She selected In the Woods by Tana French, an excellent choice I must say. I finally chose my book from Penguin – Lady Chatterly’s Lover. I really like those comic covers and I’ve not read the book. It will make a good read for Banned Books Week coming up the week of September 25th.

The Winner of Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon is Kathy! Please send me your mailing address and I’ll pass that along to the powers that be. I hope you enjoy it!

If you remember, I asked people to tell me who their favorite Super Couple was when they entered that drawing. I had 18 entries and with the exceptions of these two, there were no duplicates.

I thought it might be fun to share the list.

Eve Dallas & Roarke
Bo and Hope
Oh, man, it’s embarrassing, but it’s totally Joey & Pacey from Dawson’s Creek.
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert
Ross and Rachel
Elizabeth Bennet and Darcy
Bo and Hope
Luke and Laura!
Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock
Meredith and Derek
Holden and Lily (As the World Turns)
Michell & Barak Obama
Richard Burton & Liz Taylor
kate and jack from lost
Scarlet and Rhett
Luke and Laura
grew up on Batman and Robin!
Jeff & Jordan (BB11) hehehe

I knew I was in my danger zone when I was scanning satellite each evening for episodes of any of the Law & Order series or Criminal Minds and I’d watch them until after 1 in the morning.  One thing I’ve learned about myself since those quite literally crazy years following Allison’s birth was that police procedurals are like a narcotic for me.  It numbs me to whatever turmoil I might be feeling and provides a kind of oblivion.  Why police procedurals?  They follow a pretty common story flow.  Bad thing happens, cops work through the clues, and the crime is solved.  You would think that the terrible things that are being depicted in those shows would be too disturbing to an already anxious person, but it’s that comforting formula that apparently does the trick.

Book blogging and reading is supposed to be fun, right?  It’s my primary hobby, so why in the world was a nose diving?  Well, it’s all about ARCs you can say.  I felt like I was drowning in a sea of books I agreed to have sent to me.  As of that Monday morning, I knew that I had 40 books that I’d accepted.  While they may have sounded good at the time of the pitch, each and every one of them was a turn off to me because they reminded me of the 39 others waiting expectantly on my shelves, demanding my attention.  I truly want to take a match to the whole lot, but I asked that they be sent to me and I feel obligated to read them.  Given my reading speed and life situation, I felt like even Don Quixote would have admitted defeat.  When I got home from that work that night to find two more, I nearly broke down and cried.

While working with Emma on her homework that night, I spilled my heart out in an email and sent it out.  It was an impulsive thing, but it was the best thing I ever could have done.  Just verbalizing my feelings lifted my spirits and the warm words and suggestions I received back were exactly what I needed to start breathing some life back into my blogging life.  As a life-long reader, I should have known never to underestimate the power of words.  Instead of those dreaded books on my shelves, I became more and more thankful for the community in which I hope to always find a home.

One thing that became readily apparent to me.  I am most certainly not alone in my blues.  Much of the suggestions and support I received has come through the experiences of the other book bloggers.  They have come through with some wonderful words of wisdom that I’ve been contemplating ever since.  I think it’s going to take some for me to pick myself back up fully and brush myself off.  I’m not going to rush anything, but that doesn’t mean that I haven’t been thinking about my future and how I would like to live it especially in terms of my book blogging.

There are a few things I’ve acted upon since this has all hit the fan:

Tuesday’s Temptation ~ I’ve started a new meme called Tuesday’s Temptation yesterday as a result of a wonderful suggestion I received on creatively highlighting books before reading them.  While this probably won’t be my only outlet for bringing some of the books I’ve requested into the light, it’s a great start.  Most importantly, I had FUN thinking about it and preparing for it.  Having fun with my favorite hobby – imagine that!

Book Blogging Blues ~ I don’t want any other blogger to get to the point that I got to last week if I can be of any help.  As with everything else, I wasn’t alone in these feelings either.  Marcia from The Printed Page had been toying around with an idea for creating a place on the web for book bloggers to gather and let it all hang out so to speak.  She approached me about working together to get this site up and I jumped at the chance.  After a round of emails, we chose to create a ning instead of another blog.  Within the ning, we have added several different groups.  My first group was ARC Overload, within which I compiled all of the wonderful insights I received.  I separated them by topic and created a discussion for each one.  I’m excited to see this grow and hope that it can help people from ever approaching the cliff I was on.  If you’d like an invitation to this ning, please let me know and I’ll get you set up.

I do plan on highlighting everything I’ve learned about this over time here as well.  In the meantime, please bear with me as both The Literate Housewife Review and I grow and change.  For now, let me close here with some encouragement that brought tears to my eyes:

I hope you can get back to enjoying reading, Jennifer.  It’s the saddest thing ever that book blogging might become a reason for you to resent reading.  The best most ethical you can do is to preserve your love of reading.

When I first conceived of Neverwhere and Beyond month, I decided that I would read Neverwhere, American Gods, Stardust, The Graveyard Book, Coraline, and Fragile Things. To date, I’ve read all by American Gods and Fragile Things. I had been saving American Gods for last because I’ve heard it is amazing. Fragile Things get’s iffier reviews overall, so I fear that reading it might put me full-fledged into a Neil Gaiman funk. I don’t want that. Also, I don’t want overload to take away from my reading experience with American Gods. More than anything else, I want to be in full-on anticipation mode when I pick up that book.  I don’t want that to change.

So, I think I’m going to hold off reading those until later to give myself some time and space. This will also be a lesson learned for next year. I’m hoping to make October or November a spotlight month for a new-to-me author. I enjoyed my spotlight on Erika Mailman in 2008 and I have enjoyed Neil Gaiman this year. Going forward, I might spread it out over two months or just select fewer books. The key thing is to keep things interesting.

Leave a comment to this post for a chance to win one of the last two WWNR (I decided in the end that “What Would Neil Read” was better than WWND) bookmarks I’ve made. I promise to publish the pictures this weekend. If you leave a comment you can also enter to win one of the many prizes available during Neverwhere and Beyond Month. Use code: N&B-2Much.

Related articles by Zemanta

• TSS ~ Neverwhere and Beyond Prizes (literatehousewife.com)
• Neverwhere and Beyond: The Literate Housewife Discovers Neil Gaiman (literatehousewife.com)
• #215 ~ Stardust (literatehousewife.com)
• #211 ~ The Graveyard Book (literatehousewife.com)
• #214 ~ Coraline (literatehousewife.com)
• #212 ~ Neverwhere (literatehousewife.com)