Yum & Yuk

Season 1 and 2 of "The Killing" were sometimes a slog for me, but it has ALL paid off in Season 3, which is almost flawless. The relationship between Holder and Linden, their relationship to their jobs and their pasts, the incredible casting of everyone involved, the plot involving street kids (and one particular actor whose story arc devastated me). Really just an incredible season.

A few articles on feminism and body issues: Feminists Have Food and Body Image Issues, Too: 5 Ways to Get Over the Shame, A Good Body Image Is Not Required To Be A Good Feminist, and Feminist Blogger Reveals Eating Disorder, Apologizes To Readers.

Wonderful image by Melanie Cervantes of Dignidad Rebelde

Institutionalizing Memory: The Creation of Sierra Leone’s First Peace Museum, written by the brilliant Mneesha Gellman

I recently took a vacation - Paris! with mom! for a week! - which meant I got to spend some wonderfully luxurious time reading. Some of the hits and misses: "Promise Land: My Journey Through America's Self-Help Culture" by Jessica Lamb-Shapiro (This book was a fairly enjoyable, easy read, a combination of memoir of the author's life with a father who worked in the self-help industry as well as her adventures and research as an adult exploring the field. I didn't get a chance to finish the book before I had to return it to the library, but I would recommended it if you're interested in a fairly cursory and entertaining history of self help, or if you just want a short-ish interesting read (particularly if you're interested in parent-child relationships)); "No Man's Nightingale" by Ruth Rendell (This was my first Wexford novel and, based on the reviews, it looks like I didn't chose the best of the series. However, I was still pleased by Rendell's wit and observations, and I would be happy to try another in the series. It's right up my alley - contemporary British mystery with wit and social commentary/observations.); "Whispers Under Ground" by Ben Aaronovitch (It's a testament to the writing that I read this book at all! The premise - half British police procedural, half...magic? - isn't up my alley. But the author is great - funny and whip smart. Unfortunately, it was hard for me to keep up with the invented world (perhaps because this is the third in a series) and I don't know that I would be inclined to read another. However, if the premise at all appeals to you, give it a shot - if anyone can pull it off, this author can. And if the author ever tries his hand at a straight mystery (no magic included), I will be first in line to check it out); "The Disappeared" by Kristina Ohlsson (A good mystery read. One plot point just stretches the bounds of credulity/coincidence too much, but otherwise a nicely paced, interesting police procedural with just the right amount of character back story etc. I was a little annoyed that I saw some of the "whodunit" answers coming half way through, but there were always a few details left to figure out. Will read this author again.); and, "The Bone Collector" by Jeffery Deaver (A perfect plane/travel read).

"To be a good human being is to have a kind of openness to the world, an ability to trust uncertain things beyond your own control, that can lead you to be shattered in very extreme circumstances for which you were not to blame. That says something very important about the human condition of the ethical life: that it is based on a trust in the uncertain and on a willingness to be exposed; it’s based on being more like a plant than like a jewel, something rather fragile, but whose very particular beauty is inseparable from its fragility." From a conversation between Bill Moyers and Martha Nussbaum.