How to be a Good Wife by Emma Chapman

How to be a Good Wife
Emma Chapman
9781447218524



I sometimes feel as if it's best to read a book in a vacuum.

Knowing things about the author; their age, if they live locally, whether or not you'd love to raid their wardrobe will inevitably influence the way you feel about their book. ?I think this definitely happened with How to be a Good Wife. ?But I'll start at the beginning.

You may have seen a couple of posts ago that I saw Emma Chapman speak at the Perth Writers Festival. ?I was impressed by her focussed, almost quiet confidence (with the appropriate amount of timidity about said confidence, if that is possible) and by the way that her voice changed to a loving, calm tone when she read her own words to us. ?I find this happens with most writers when they read aloud. ?The book itself had been selling rather well as I understood it, due in no small part to the recommendation from none other than Hilary Mantel. ?Wow. ?No small achievement there! ?I'd sort of mentally made note to read this book, but I was in no tearing hurry until I heard Chapman speak about the novel and about her passion for writing it. ?So I think on some level my reaction to the book has been tampered with by my own expectations.

Coming into this novel straight off a weekend long reading binge, I immediately felt a slowing of pace. ?How to be a Good Wife is a psychological, character driven narrative, and the first one hundred pages or so document the main character, Marta, slowly losing her grip on reality (or 'reality'?) ?Interwoven with strange things happening in the present are recollections of the past- the narrative dips in and out of them in such a way that it sometimes seems as if the past and present are happening simultaneously. ?This was at times disorienting- I found myself having to backtrack in order to discover whether or not I'd missed something. ?However, Chapman has a skill for description which grounds the reader firmly in the eyes of the character, and it is easy to visualise the things Marta is seeing for yourself.

The book almost seems to have two parts to it. ?The first part of the book seems to be a slow moving drama about a mother's grief at her son leaving home, and her awkward relationship with her husband. ?This part of the book is easy to read in small chunks, simple to dip in and out of casually. ?I put the slow pace largely down to the awkwardness of writing from a first person point of view in present tense. ?A lot of sentences start with "I" or "My". ?The second half of the book- where Marta discovers the dark secret- is less willing to let you go. ?It's nearly impossible to review this book without giving spoilers, but suffice to say, this is the point in the book at which the genre becomes psychological thriller, and it is as if the pace of the story, like Marta has awakened. ?This part demands to be read in one sitting, and if you read this far, will change your opinion of the entire book. ?It's like an "oh, hello!" moment. ?So persevere.

Other minor gripes with this book include the very two dimensional insight into the married lives of older couples- troubles with the mother in law, a feeling of hopelessness after the child leaves- which is not ground-breaking, and offers no new insight. ?It is Marta's situation and the idea that all of it might be rooted in a lie and manufactured to brainwash her that make the book refreshing. ?I also really liked the way that Chapman has peeled back the dramatic edge of the story to make the mundane things seem spine chilling.

All in all, while I don't think that this book was as brilliant a debut as people were raving about I still thought it was a very good read, and I learned a lot about NOT overdoing it from reading it. ?Also, I do really really really want to raid Emma Chapman's wardrobe.

I give this book three out of five.

Source: http://elimy.blogspot.com/2013/03/how-to-be-good-wife-by-emma-chapman.html

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DEAR ABBY: My boyfriend, "Doug" (24), and I (22) have been in a long-distance relationship for a year, but we were friends for a couple of years before that. I had never had a serious relationship before and lacked experience. Doug has not only been in two other long-term relationships, but has had sex with more than 15 women. One of them is an amateur porn actress.I knew about this, but it didn't bother me until recently. Doug had a party, and while he was drunk he told one of his buddies -- in front of me -- that he should watch a certain porn film starring his ex-girlfriend. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/stock-index-futures-signal-more-gains-103747893--finance.html

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Do Low Doses of BPA Harm People?

Image: EPA

BOSTON ? Are people exposed to doses of bisphenol A in their canned foods and other consumer products that can harm them? Or are the amounts too low to cause any harm?

This is the crux of a vehement debate that is being waged as federal officials are trying to decide whether the chemical, known as BPA, should be regulated.

A group of toxicologists, including some who work for federal agencies, is questioning the likelihood that BPA is harming human health. But biologists studying the chemical?s health effects disagree, saying that what?s been detected in people is comparable to amounts that have harmed lab animals.

BPA is arguably the most controversial chemical in consumer products. It is used to make polycarbonate plastic as well as food and beverage can liners and some paper receipts and dental sealants

What is widely agreed upon is that exposure is ubiquitous. More than 90 percent of Americans tested have traces of BPA in their bodies.

BPA acts like an estrogen, disrupting hormones In laboratory animals. it alters how their reproductive systems and brains develop, and sets the stage for breast and prostate cancer. People with higher levels of exposure have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, obesity and diabetes, according to some studies.

Nevertheless, the potential for human effects has been highly controversial among scientists who are debating whether the amounts in people?s bodies are in fact too low to be capable of inflicting harm.

On Friday, some of the toxicologists presented their arguments at the American Association for Advancement of Science annual meeting in Boston.

Do the math. Is it harmful?

On one side of this debate are toxicologists who specialize in analyzing data with mathematical models, producing information often used to set regulatory limits on chemical exposures. Their work focuses not on physical effects observed in animals or cells but on developing models that use numbers to make predictions, in this case to describe the amount of a chemical in the human body and how it may behave.

What is widely agreed upon is that exposure to BPA is nearly ubiquitous. It has been found in more than 90 percent of the Americans tested.On the other side are scientists who study BPA?s health effects in animals and people. They include specialists in genetics, endocrinology, physiology and epidemiology from various academic institutions whose work is supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. They have reported health effects in lab animals at very low levels of BPA exposure that they say are comparable to amounts people encounter through consumer products.

This debate, while arcane, is important because the scientific information is being used by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Food and Drug Administration in deciding whether to regulate BPA in consumer products, such as canned foods. Reacting to consumer concerns, some manufacturers already have stopped using BPA in plastic baby bottles, receipts and other items.

Justin Teeguarden, senior scientist at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and Daniel Doerge, research chemist at the FDA?s National Center for Toxicological Research, have produced modeling studies that cast doubt on whether levels of BPA compounds being found in people are having any effects.

At the science conference on Friday, Teeguarden contended that the levels causing effects in animal studies, particularly those caused by BPA?s interaction with estrogen receptors, are much higher than the levels his models suggest are plausible in people. He said he used several methods to examine exposure data from more than 100 studies.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=68de97c21e7720acf65699d085b632f2

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• 14 February 2013

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GOP warns Obama against tax increases, spending

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Republicans dismissed President Barack Obama's State of the Union address as nothing more than big government spending and more tax increases. But a brief sip of water may have gotten more immediate attention than any policy ideas.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's mid-speech swig from a small Poland Spring water bottle during his GOP response generated instant reaction in social media circles and on cable television, even as Republicans offered fresh appeals on the economy and promises to rein in federal spending.

Rubio appeared to wipe away sweat during his rebuttal from the Speaker's conference room in the U.S. Capitol. At one point he stretched out his left hand, grabbed a small plastic water bottle and took a brief swig of water. As the water break gained notice online, Rubio sent a photo of the bottle from his Twitter account.

On ABC's "Good Morning America" Wednesday, Rubio explained: "I needed water. What are you going to do? God has a funny way of reminding us we're human."

In his GOP address, Rubio urged Obama to "abandon his obsession with raising taxes" and said the president had shifted the nation away from free-market economic principles that had helped middle-class families achieve prosperity.

"Presidents in both parties ? from John F. Kennedy to Ronald Reagan ? have known that our free-enterprise economy is the source of our middle-class prosperity. But President Obama? He believes it's the cause of our problems," Rubio said.

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, in a separate tea party response, said both parties had failed voters by driving up trillion-dollar deficits. "Washington acts in a way that your family never could ? they spend money they do not have, they borrow from future generations, and then they blame each other for never fixing the problem," Paul said.

Republicans sought to characterize Obama as overly reliant on government, even as the president made his case to the nation that he could generate new jobs without raising the federal deficit. Defending his policies against GOP critics, Obama said the nation needed a "smarter government" instead of a bigger one and pledged to boost the minimum wage and increase federal spending to fix roads and bridges.

Both Obama's address to Congress and the Republican responses around the Capitol sought to position each party as the champion of average Americans in a nation still grappling with high unemployment and a slow economic recovery. Republicans noted that the nation's jobless rate ticked up to 7.9 percent in January and the economy shrank at an annual rate of 0.1 percent in the final months of 2012.

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Obama offered the American people "little more than more of the same 'stimulus' policies that have failed to fix our economy and put Americans back to work. We cannot grow the middle class and foster job creation by growing government and raising taxes."

Ohio Sen. Rob Portman accused Obama of promoting "the same big-government policies that have failed to get our economy up and running again."

Paul, a tea party favorite, said both parties had been guilty of "protecting their sacred cows" and engaging in "backroom deals in which everyone up here wins but every taxpayer loses." He said he would propose to balance the budget in five years and urged lawmakers to return to their duty of passing budgets. If not, Paul said, voters should "sweep the place clean. Limit their terms and send them home."

Rubio, a rising star in the Republican party and a potential 2016 presidential contender, pointed to his Miami roots to address Obama's frequent portrayal of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney ? and his party ? as only caring about the wealthiest Americans. Rubio said he still lived in the "same working-class neighborhood I grew up in" and his neighbors "aren't millionaires" but retirees, workers and immigrants.

"His favorite attack of all is that those who don't agree with him ? that we only care about rich people," Rubio said.

Rubio pre-recorded his speech in Spanish for Spanish-language networks, a nod to Republicans who have said that they must do more to address their deficit with Hispanic voters. Obama won 71 percent of Hispanics last year against Romney, prompting concerns about the party's ability to compete with Democrats in future elections.

___

Follow Ken Thomas at: http://twitter.com/AP_Ken_Thomas

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/gop-warns-obama-against-tax-increases-spending-034411766--politics.html

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Teaching Jobs That School Teachers Can Sign Up - Article Submitter

Just like students, teachers also look forward to the summer vacation. It's practically the only time of the year when they can recharge, regroup and enjoy themselves away from the demands of the classroom. However, there are some who anticipate the school break to be able to take on other teaching jobs. School teachers- well, some of them- find summer as the perfect opportunity to augment their income by doing what they do best: teaching. A survey conducted among teachers revealed that a large number of them take advantage of the school break to earn extra money to set aside for possible early retirement or as a financial cushion lest another global economic shift transpires again. Apparently, necessity is mainly what propels these teachers to take on summer teaching jobs but there are some who claimed that summer teaching jobs actually revive their joy in what they do.

These "special" teachers who choose to work during the summer vacations not out of necessity claim that the season manages to inject more fun to their classes as typical summer classes are not very formal. Aside from this, they also say that a lot of summer teaching jobs are like moderated play; their presence is required not merely as repositories of knowledge but rather as mere overseers or witnesses to unique learning processes. Such teaching jobs for them are greatly enjoyable and the best thing about them is they get paid while having fun.

Meanwhile, there are other jobs that particularly require teachers. So for those who are looking for enjoyable and non-traditional teaching gigs over the vacation, here are some cool ones to look into.

1. Performing arts instructor - Communities across the country hold summer enrichment programs (SEPs) for young children where they're exposed to the different forms of art. Performing arts like dancing, singing and acting rank high among SEPs as they use up the children's energy in a productive manner. Aside from skills, the only other thing teachers need to bring along with them is patience.

2. Camp counsellor or director - These jobs typically require the strong character of an educator but the relationship teachers forge with campers is definitely more friendly and laidback. There's a lot of teaching done for these jobs especially for arts and crafts, drama, sports, life survival, et cetera.

3. Swim coach - So many parents enrol their children in swimming classes at the local Y or clubhouse. Teachers who know the basics of swimming just need to make sure that kids learn how not to drown and paddle their way to the safe end of the pool. Rates are considerably attractive for swim coaches.

4. Tour guide - It takes a confident and knowledgeable person to provide tours of the city and museum. A lot of teachers go for this summer job because aside from using their teaching skills in providing information to tourists, they get to enjoy the sights and learn as well.

Teachers in London can enjoy other teaching jobs even during the summer time from being a performing arts instructor to swimming coaches as well as being a tour guide.

Source: http://articles.submityourarticle.com/teaching-jobs-that-school-teachers-can-sign-up-for-during-summer-vacations-316731

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