The other day I received a phone call from a NY Daily News writer who was charged with writing about the new "Joe Millionaire" that's about to air on Fox. She wanted to know what I thought about the show, and shows like it. I must say, although in the book Sarah at least gets to understand why women go on reality "mating" shows, I'm not as understanding. I can't name a single friend of mine, all intelligent, attractive women, who would go on a show like this. First of all, how do you walk up to your boss with a straight face and tell her/him that you need a few weeks off to go on a show and try to win a man? I'm not sure that's the best way to climb the career ladder - although if your career aspirations include becoming an entertainment correspondent for a tabloid TV show or pitching Kentucky Fried Chicken, then maybe it is the career move of choice. In any event, I spouted my five minutes of insight, and it was published in today's Daily News - here's the link if you're interested: http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/126876p-113576c.html

After a week of Indian summer, it looks like it's back to the realities of fall. I'm heading back to Connecticut this week for my friend Lisa's wedding (I'm a bridesmaid and my dress is gorgeous), and looking forward to visiting places I haven't been in over twelve years. I'm going to make a stop at my old high school (they just did the nicest piece on the book in our alum magazine, and I owe them a personal thanks) and drop in on my English teacher who used to wield a very big stick when it came to writing well. Speaking of high school English, I'm always asked about my favorite writing influences, so here are the three books that pretty much made me into the male-bashing loon my husband thinks I am:
- The Awakening by Kate Chopin
- The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
- The Women's Room by Marilyn French

Let's see, besides the fact that I read them in a Women's Literature class my senior year in high school, can you find any similarities there (not exactly cheerful endings, for starters: two women kill themselves in the end, and one ends up living a solitary existance in Maine walking the beaches pondering her decisions in life)? In any case, I've read all of these more than once, and they never fail to completely enthrall me. I completely recommend them to anyone looking for a great read about strong, and yes, tragic, female characters.

Those are the books I loved, but the author that really set me up to become the nutty chick I am would have to be Norma Klein. I devoured her books as a kid (kid meaning 12-15). Remember Mom, the Werewolf and Me? That was Norma Klein. But, she also wrote amazing coming of age stories about smart, independent teenaged girls in NYC who had typical growing up problems. The thing that was so cool about them was that the girls were super smart, poets and biologists who ultimately ended up at Yale or Swarthmore after they got the high school thing figured out. They're all out of print now, but I bought a whole bunch of her used books off of Amazon for my daughter to read some day. I hope she loves them as much as I did. Norma Klein passed away years ago, but I wish I could have told her how much I loved her books.