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Posted: 26 Jul 2011 03:23 AM PDT

How a fantastical, award-winning children's book came into being.

PAM Munoz Ryan heard an intriguing story about one of the 20th century's greatest poets, Chilean Nobel Laureate Pablo Neruda (1904-1973). It seems that in his youth, Neruda passed a gift to an unknown and unseen child through a hole in a fence. This story, told to Ryan in 2005, so moved the children's author that she began thinking of writing about Neruda's childhood.

The Dreamer was the result. It began as a picture book but grew into an illustrated novel that was finally published last year.

The young adult book was picked as an American Library Association (ALA) Notable Book earlier this year and then won Ryan the ALA's 2011 Pura Belpré Award, which is presented annually to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work celebrates the Latino cultural experience.

The pictures in The Dreamer, by Peter Sis, have a fantastic and dream-like quality, depicting states of mind and flights of fancy rather than everyday situations. Like the novel's font, the illustrations are printed in green ink. Neruda saw green as the colour of hope (esperanza in Spanish) and, as he loved the natural world and collected objects he found in the forests, green seemed like the obvious and natural colour with which to give his story shape.

The following are excerpts from a recent e-mail interview with the 64-year-old Ryan.

In a recent survey of the 10 best poets in the world published in the New York Times, Neruda won the top spot. What is your reaction to this?

It doesn't surprise me. Neruda's work is evocative and approachable. Whether he wrote a love poem, a protest song, an epic history, or an ode to a sock, he had a remarkable ability to connect with the masses. When I read his work, I feel as if he has written only to me. Other readers often feel the same.

Has writing The Dreamer changed the way you read Neruda's poems?

I spent four years writing The Dreamer, so the background knowledge gave me perspective on his work. For instance, now when I read a poem he wrote about his father, I understand the emotion and the history behind their relationship.

In your research into the poet's childhood did you also find out about the seemingly contradictory man he became? For example, although he writes with affection about children, he was known to be quite a distant and neglectful father. How did knowing this about Neruda affect, if at all, your portrayal of him?

I read many biographies about him, as well as his memoirs, essays, and articles written about him. His adult life was sometimes glamorous, eccentric, and fraught with drama and darkness. I concentrated on his young life up to the age of 16. There were some childhood traits, like his collecting, that he continued through his lifetime.

So his adult behaviour corroborated aspects of his childhood. Knowing about his adult life did not affect how I wrote about his childhood, as much as understanding and researching his childhood helped me understand the man he became.

In your interview with bwibooks.com you talk about how you and illustrator Peter Sis had a 'traditional' approach to creating The Dreamer. How does this work?

I wrote the manuscript and my editor and art director took the manuscript to the illustrator. Peter worked with the art director and my editor.

I was kept abreast of all of the art stages. I saw sketches and layouts and was able to weigh in with my thoughts to my editor.

We were all very respectful of author/editor/art director/illustrator protocol, which is common in publishing. Peter and I communicated directly only when he might have needed a clarification on something for which I might have already done the research.

Was there ever a time when writers of books about Latin American life and culture were expected to portray Latin Americans in a way that pandered to stereotypes?

I've been fortunate. By the time I began my writing career in the early 1990s, my editor and publisher at Scholastic embraced my manuscript ideas, some of which reflected my Latino heritage, some of which did not.

I've never had an editor who expected me to portray a Latino character, or a non-Latino character, one way or another. If there was a time when Latinos felt the pressure to pander to stereotypes, then my freedom is due to their diligence and courage. And I walk on a path they cleared for me.

Tell us about your latest projects.

I have a picture book out this year called Tony Baloney (illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham), about a macaroni penguin who is smack in the middle of the brood, between Bothersome Big Sister Baloney and the Bothersome Babies Baloney. As the only boy sandwiched between too many sisters, Tony Baloney does not love trouble – but trouble loves him! In addition, I have two other novels in the works.

It seems that every other book these days is being turned into a movie – how about The Dreamer?

I would love for any of my books to be a movie someday, and although several of my titles have been optioned over the years, nothing has been developed as yet.

The Dreamer is on sale at major bookstores nationwide.

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John’s day job

Posted: 26 Jul 2011 03:22 AM PDT

An author of award-winning literary novels improves his craft by writing thrillers.

IRISH author John Banville has been lauded as one of the greatest literary stylists of his generation but his recent kick as a crime writer, churning out a murder mystery every year, has him giddy with excitement.

"I am in my 60s with a new lease on life. It's fun," Banville said in an interview to promote the recently released A Death In Summer, written under Banville's pen name Benjamin Black.

The book finds dour, bumbling pathologist Garret Quirke trying to get to the bottom of the apparent suicide of a Dublin newspaper owner. Banville tells readers, only partly in jest, to expect an "absolute masterpiece of crime fiction".

The story unfolds in 1950s Dublin, the time of Banville's childhood when he thought the Irish capital was an exotic place – a setting he says he is still transported to in his mind every time he smells the whiff of diesel from a passing bus.

In his latest page-turner – the fifth book written under the Black name in as many years – Quirke's assistant David Sinclair has an affair with his daughter Phoebe.

"There is a childish pleasure in it. It's like playing with toy soldiers," says Banville. "When I wake at four in the morning, instead of thinking about death, or sex, or my bank balance, I think, 'What will I do with Phoebe or Sinclair?'

"I am making up stories," Banville says. "This is the great pleasure of writing.... It's the making of yarns, which I was never interested in before."

Banville makes it sound like childish fun, but critics are smitten. Janet Maslin wrote in The New York Times that "his Black persona has been such a success that he looks increasingly like the Superman to Mr Banville's more literary Clark Kent."

Explaining the difference between Banville's finely crafted fiction such as The Book Of Evidence or the Man Booker Prize-winner (in 2005) The Sea and his work as Black, Banville speaks in the third person and calls Banville an artist and Black a craftsman.

"Black was able to help Banville," he says, explaining that the Banville novel he just completed, Ancient Light, was improved by his crime fiction.

"Black has got used to doing plots and keeping all that balanced, and Banville has learned some of that from him," he says.

In Ancient Light, Banville revisits his novels Eclipse and Shroud. Narrator Alexander Cleave thinks about the suicide of his daughter Cass and a sexual affair he had as a teenager with a friend's mother in a small Irish town.

As Banville, he says, he writes with a fountain pen at a pace of a few hundred words each day, while as Black, he churns out more than 1,000 words daily on a computer.

As Black, Banville now has the unusual pleasure of outselling his own Banville books in some countries.

"This is partly why I started being Black – to give Banville a day job," he says.

Banville says he is turned off by graphic depictions of violence both in crime novels and in Hollywood movies. He derides the hugely popular Stieg Larsson (Millennium trilogy) novels as crude stories "written with the blunt end of a burnt stick".

Black's leading man Quirke will soon be on television, thanks to a planned series by the BBC of three 90-minute mysteries. And, Banville says, he is planning more crime books until he can conjure some redemption for Quirke.

"If I get to a point, five, six, seven books from now ... where Quirke is in some way redeemed, then I will probably stop," he says.

Meanwhile, he will keep eking out his Banville books in the hope of writing what he is striving for: the perfect novel.

"My books are better than anybody else's. They are just not good enough for me," he says with easy arrogance. "What any writer is after is perfection, but that is not available.

"I will never achieve perfection, so I will keep on and on and on and I will die with a pen in my hand and I will feel as I am dying, 'Now, maybe, I will go to a place where I can write the perfect one,'" he says, adding with a smile, "Fat chance!" – Reuters

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Look before you leap in stock investing

Posted: 24 Jul 2011 08:20 PM PDT

This is the last of a three-part series featuring extracts and information from Faces Of Fortune, a new book that 'reads' the faces of 20 of Asia's most prominent tycoons.

UNDERSTANDING why we behave the way we do has never been more important in business than now. Time and again, behaviourists have pointed out that, in a given situation, people continuously react in the same way.

Success in investments does not correlate with IQ, What is needed is the ability to control the impulses that often get people into trouble in investing.

Why? Because the stock market, with its allure of easy money and fast action, impels people into senseless mismanagement of their hard-earned money.

So how does one decide which stock or company to bet on?

In Faces Of Fortune, author Tee Lin Say uses mian xiang (face reading) to pick out 20 of Asia's most prominent tycoons, and then explain why investors should place money on their companies over the next 10 years.

Tan Sri Francis Yeoh, YTL Group

He recently told Malaysians to say "Yes" to YTL Communication Sdn Bhd's 4G wireless broadband service.

Who hasn't heard of Tan Sri Francis Yeoh, head honcho of the YTL Group of companies, who has his hand in businesses involving power, utilities, cement, construction, real estate, information technology and leisure?

The group has grown multi-fold from just a construction firm founded by his father, Yeoh Tiong Lay, some five decades ago.

Although Yeoh senior built up the company to a respected level, it wasn't until Francis (as he is popularly known) – the eldest of his seven children – introduced power and utilities to the stable that it began to draw investor interest.

So, among his seven listed companies, which one should we pay close attention to?

If you knew face reading, the answer is simple enough – YTL Land Bhd.

When it comes to gauging how many properties a person can amass in his lifetime, we always look at his Property Palace (located between the eyebrow and eye), together with the Wealth Palace (the nose).

Can you see how wide Francis' Property Palace is? He also has an extremely favourable Wealth Palace – it is long and bulbous, and the nostrils are not visible from the front.

His nose wings are also wide, indication of a strong ability to generate plenty of income, and not just from core channels. He clearly has the makings of a successful property developer.

Francis also has what is called "chicken beak ears" (commonly associated with thinkers) – the top part is much larger than the bottom. These ears show that he thrives in fields that involve technical details.

He is very careful and may often ask "unnecessary" questions or be unduly anxious about his work. But, at the end of the day, the results he produces tend towards perfection.

Francis is now 57, or 58 in Chinese years. Over the next few years, his age points will move to his mouth, which looks favourable. The size of his mouth corresponds with the scope of his influence and success.

So it really isn't just talk. He is likely to succeed in turning Sentul in Kuala Lumpur into something akin to New York's SoHo district!

Tan Sri Tony Fernandes, AirAsia Group

Last month, AirAsia Bhd ordered 200 new A320s worth some RM54.6bil – the largest airline order ever. An analyst says the move will help it become the second largest carrier in the world, after Southwest Airlines.

Are we surprised that AirAsia has inked this deal?

No! Based on the face of its flamboyant group chief executive officer, Tan Sri Tony Fernandes, no one comes close to nudging him off his pole position.

Fernandes, who is also the founder of Tune Air Sdn Bhd, introduced the first no-frills airline to Malaysians using the tagline, "Now everyone can fly".

The former record company executive had to mortgage his house, dump in all his savings and rope in a few friends as investors, to set up AirAsia.

What is in his face that shows his enterprise?

First up, Fernandes' nose is long and broad, and his nose wings (which represent age point 49 and 50) are sturdy. This is assurance of stability in character and wealth.

A big nose denotes a person with a big ego, someone who is very sure of himself. Fernandes, who will be 48 in 2012, or 49 in Chinese years, is definitely ambitious and has an unwavering belief in his ideas – he had forged ahead with AirAsia even when everyone thought he would fail.

Character-wise, he is magnanimous and honourable. The Chinese would say he has "no poison in his heart".

In mian xiang, the main source of one's wealth is seen in the nose tip, while nose wings typically show one's ability to amass wealth through multiple streams. As Fernandes' nose wings are wide, he will flourish in his other ventures, although his core business will continue to make the most money.

You will notice that his eyes are small and long – they appear as two streaks of light peeping above his chubby cheeks.

Well, these eyes have it. They show that he is capable and determined – give him any task and he will complete it to the best of his ability. They also "speak" of his foresight when it comes to planning ahead.

Fernandes' eyes also reveal a touch of cunning. But this should not be viewed negatively; one could even say that this characteristic has helped him make AirAsia the best budget airline in the region.

Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, Genting Group

The late Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong took seven years to complete the construction of Genting Highlands Resort, which opened in 1971. Four decades on, the Genting Group has evolved into a multibillion ringgit gaming entity, with operations in Malaysia, Singapore, Britain and the United States.

Its latest project is a resort in Miami, which came after the company won the bid last August to build a video lottery facility at the Aqueduct Racetrack in New York City.

At the helm of the Genting empire is Lim's second son, Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay. What is it in the latter's face that shows the group will continue to flourish?

The answer clearly lies in Kok Thay's eyebrows. He has what is termed "double eyebrows", which are very rare. On a leader, they are an assuring sign that he will succeed in whatever he sets out to do.

Kok Thay will be 60 in 2012, or 61 in Chinese years. The age point for 61 is the centre of the lower lip, also known as the Cheng Jiang.

Kok Thay's position 61 is smooth, with no indentations or scars. Furthermore, it is complemented by a very wide mouth; that alone works in his favour. Furthermore, his lips are thick and have clear borders.

These physical attributes confirm what is already evident – he is influential and has the required skills to take his organisation to the next level.

His big mouth also indicates that by nature, he is energetic and ambitious, and sets high targets for himself. More importantly, he has the stamina and passion to drive his aspirations.

Anyone with such a large mouth would surely want to be in control. In Kok Thay's case, he is likely to succeed. We say this because he has an extremely strong chin, which is not only broad but protruding, and a very favourable Wealth Palace; his nostrils are covered and his nose tip dips downwards.

Thus, we are convinced that Genting's plans to become a much larger entity are rock solid.

Faces of Fortune: The 20 Tycoons To Bet On Over The Next 10 Years will be available at Joey Yap's 'Wealth & Destiny' seminar in Kuala Lumpur on July 31, and leading bookstores from August. Visit masteryacademy.com or call 03-2284 8080.

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Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

Isnin, 25 Julai 2011

The Star Online: Lifestyle: Bookshelf

The Star Online: Lifestyle: Bookshelf

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