Thanks, Publisher’s Weekly!

Juby, author of the Alice MacLeod books for young adults and a memoir of alcohol addiction (Nice Recovery), borrows from both genres for her first foray into adult fiction. The result is a sweetly cockamamie tale of the emotional, physical, and spiritual recovery of lost souls sharing a neglected farm, a seriously depressed sheep, a coop of fancy chickens, and a last shred of hope. In alternating voices, sunny optimist Prudence, who inherited the money-losing spread from her uncle; boozy blogger Seth; tween Sara, who raises poultry to console a life otherwise torn apart by two warring parents; and old-coot Earl, who has a mysterious and illustrious past, put their shaky lives and a dilapidated house together by discovering the best and forgiving the worst of each other. A wounded little girl and an indomitably hopeful big one book-end this lightly funny and touching yarn about an endearing band of social wrecks who are impossible not to love, at least a little.

Sweetly cockamamie! I’ll take that!

Which is to say that White Spot has been rude enough to move away from my gate.  I am squandering precious moments of my five hour layover by leaving the secure area in order to get my chosen high calorie meal.

On the plus side, the new White Spot digs are a wonderland of granite-work and tasteful sconces. There is also enough seating for everyone from Richmond in here and much of it consists of padded booths, which are the perfect way to tend imminent exhaustion.

As soon as I finish my meal, I will rush back through security to continue waiting and watching myself for signs of tiredness. This may be the trip where I finally buy one of those puffy neckbrace affairs made out of a bean bag. I will get one that looks good with cheese puff dust on it.

xo

About to head off on first leg of my epic trip to Windsor.

I’m one of those people who is afraid of being tired. I’m also one of those people who overeats when I’m tired. Not just that, but I have a tendency to hoard food when I fear tiredness may be in my future. I know: it’s not a pretty picture.

So, for my overnight journey I have packed the following:

1 medium package red Super Nibs

1 Green & Black chocolate bar with almonds

1 bag tamari-coated almonds

1 large bag of Barbara’s Jalapeno Cheese Puffs

I also plan to have dinner at the White Spot during my five hour stopover in Vancouver.

Already eaten: 1 pineapple upside down cupcake from the marvelous Wee Cupcakery. (I ate it in the parking lot of the airport when a yawn threatened.)

To get ready to be tired tonight, last night I had an enormous bowl of pasta. This morning I ate a hearty breakfast, probably three international flights-worth.

On a mostly unrelated note, right now I’m sitting across from a pilot. At first I was scared because he appeared to be studying a large blue bible.  The thought that he felt he had to immerse himself in the Good Word before each flight is only slightly less alarming than if he were reading a copy of How to Fly Planes Real Good. I was about to hit the cheese puffs when he lifted it slightly and I saw it’s actually Plague Ship by Clive Cussler. Whew!

Do you live in the Windsor area? I invite you to come out to my reading at the Windsor Public Library on Saturday morning from 11:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. (Budimir Library).

I will also be on a panel with the charming and hilarious Tim Wynne-Jones and Richard Scarsbrook with Percy Hatfield moderating. (7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the Wilkinson Room. We will be signing books afterward.) Our topic is growing pains, so I feel well equipped to contribute to the conversation, as my pains are ongoing and not related to my modest height.

Hope to see you there!

P.S. I’m taking an overnight flight from BC, so please be aware that I might not be at my most vivacious. I will instead be at my second most vivacious.