To Die for Dita

Hello Campers!!

So this is my first official blog post, but before I begin on the Queen of NeoBurlesque I want to give a tiny bit of background for the blog & what you should expect in the future.

I had the original idea for the blog (groan at the self promotion) because most of my good friends are avid readers like myself & a lot of our conversations evolve into discussions about what we are reading or what we just finished or what we think the other just HAS to read. Laaaadies (and books) is meant to be a kind book promotion & sharing blog – the actual “review” part of our blog is not actually very important to us at all; you will find no academic reviews here. What I mean by that is that instead of (or rather in addition to) telling everyone I meet about the fantastic book I just read I want people to know why they should actually pick it up. Because lets face it the majority of the time when a person tells you to read a book, even if it sounds interesting, you will not read that book. But now we have a forum & a discussion & a wide variety of books that we think that you should check out. & we would love Love LOVE it if you have some suggestions of your own. None of us has really written in a blog before (except Lady Aly. Go check it out!) but we are ladies who love books AND sharing.

That being said I introduce you to 

 My love affair with all things Dita began about two years ago when I stumbled across a documentary call A Wink & A Smile: The Art of Burlesque. Although Dita doesn’t appear in this film it sparked my interest into the history of burlesque & the neoburlesque movement of which Dita Von Teese is the reigning queen. & since my discovery I have become a bit obsessed & look forward to the day (coming soon I hope) when I might try my hat a little tease & strip. And who better to learn from than Dita herself.

The book is Fetish/Tease. Although what one might normally call a coffee table book (a particularly risqué type of coffee if you ask me) it is worth more than a quick glance. The book is comprised of two components Fetish & Tease; depending on your mood or your curiosities all you have to do is flip the book over & choose your adventure. I bought the book for the Burlesque initially so naturally I started there.

Tease is comprised of large glossy photos of her modeling some of her burlesque costumes, couture dresses & homage’s to past eras which are gorgeous naturally, but the best bits are the stories she tells & the gems of advice she gives. In chapters like Titilation & Tights in Time and A Time of National Undress Dita retells stories of the history of burlesque & the fabulous, dreamlike lifestyles they lead. Laced within these stories one can find boxes of counsel guiding the reader on the looks of particular era’s & the best songs to tease to. My favorite is the Burlesque Costume Musts! in which she list the items that “Every Exciting Enchantress Should Own!” Pasties & Stockings & Garters & Oh My! If you come for the pictures you’ll stay for the stories & vice versa. And when you’re feeling more dangerous…

Flip to Fetish where you can peruse Dita’s fetish photos. These include rubber, dominatrix, bondage, tight lacing & a particularly beautiful shoot in the fabulous Pere-Lachaise cemetery in Paris (my personal favorite photos of the entire book).  Like in Tease, Fetish is laced with stories & tips to the budding temptres. Unlike Tease, however, Fetish is a bit more personal & less focused on history (although there is some smashing info on Bettie Page). I love Fetish because of the honest & impactful way it addresses the fetish culture. It is complete respectful & sex positive. Dita dishes on how she made her way into fetish & her own personal favorites (tight lacing & damsel in distress topping the list). Not to mention the pictures are beyond hot & are super creative.

So although not a novel Fetish/Tease is defiantly worth more than a glance. Even if you are not particularly interested in Burlesque or the Fetish scene this book is so much more. Dita is the embodiment self awareness, acceptance & extravagance. She certainly does her own thing & she owns it on a level that is rarely seen today, especially in this world where our beauty standard is so fucked. (I love that she does her own makeup and hair before her shoots taking her beauty and image literally into her own hands.) She is a true inspiration and her passion & vivacity for life & the things she adores is inspiring in and of itself. So do yourself a favor & pick up (or peruse at B&N) Fetish/Tease. Buy the book for the stories & the priceless counsel on how to live a glamorous, kinky sex positive life & keep it out in public to entice others with the gorgeous glossies of Dita herself.

If you want more Dita I would suggest picking up Striptease featuring three flip books of her burlesque acts. Not to mention the many magazines that feature articles about her including this months Instyle which features a fantastic article that takes us into the eclectic home of Dita Von Teese & sheds a little light on what this Queen is like at home (the kitchen is AMAZING. Super envious). & keep a look out for her up coming DIY book in which she will teach us how to achieve that flawless red lip & vintage curl. I for one cannot wait!!

Explore your wild side.

Yours Exceptionally,

Lady Alexis

(Currently Reading: Eleven Minutes, Wuthering Heights, Jane Sexes it Up, Lolita, & The Mammoth Book of Scottish Romance --- I have a short attention span. With me you never know what you’re going to get…blog wise anyways ;-)

More Moore

I’ve been craving adventure lately; I just want to suck it down like I did with literature on the American Pioneer. Probably something to do with the fact that I just want to fly away and leave all this to yesterday, (think Nicole Kidman’s character in Moulin Rouge)…except without the prostitution, beautiful elephant to live in, and Ewan Macgregor ogling me from a swing while I die from consumption. I just love stories. I love stories of personal growth that you can put on a map with as well. Growth in your mind, body, and soul…..with the capability of being like, “Oh yea, remember when I was in the swamplands and I realized that I am hiding from the realization that I am becoming my mother”. Or, “Remember when we were trying to find that elderly man with the prophecy and I realized that I didn’t like avocados that much, but pretend I do because it’s the trendy new thing to like.” Or, “Remember when we were in the temple of pig carcasses when I realized I liked women?


That’s what I like. Self-growth and actualization that can be associated with a specific part on your journey. IT’s just such a nice combination.

I am not on a journey; I am living in Rogers Park, working a silly job, and getting drunk on my couch.

But, this is not meant to be a pity party, it’s good. And we talk about books here.

Enter Lamb, by Christopher Moore. I just…... adored this book. I love the idea of it, I marvel at his courage as a writer to hold such a respect for an age old story, but also make me giggle in bed, (while reading people….gosh dirty minds) but also make me cry from the deep, deep running friendship themes. I also didn’t feel like a moron reading it because it forced me look things up, and wonder about that book called the Bible, which actually turns out to be full of awesome stories…and wonderful life lessons. This is ironic because our generation LOVES bashing the Bible. But I’m serious. I like the book as a book. No. I like the book as it is associated with centuries and generations of different takes on spirituality, because that is just beautiful.

Sorry, that’s not the book this entry is about.

Lamb is s a coming of age story, an adventure, freaking hilarious, and painfully heartfelt. You first-handedly experience the struggles that two young boys experience as they realize that suffering and disappointment is just as real as a sense of security and the idea of peace. Moore mixes an ancient religion with an accurate human viewpoint on life. His writing may indicate a lack of respect for Christianity and religion in general, but he really ends up validating all ways of thinking, and pays a tribute to Jesus Christ. (In my opinion)

Biff accompanies Joshua on his quest for knowledge and understanding, with the hope that Joshua (Jesus) will learn how to actually BE the messiah for his people. That, and he is scared that Joshua’s kind way and trust in the good of people will get him killed. This following passage is taken from when Joshua is learning the ancient art of meditation from his teacher Gaspar, who is one of the Magi that was present at his humble birth. I just love it, and think it illustrates Moore’s style perfectly.

“Sitting was what we did. To learn to sit, to be still and hear the music of the universe, was why we had come halfway around the world, evidently. To let go of ego, not individuality, but that which distinguishes us from all other beings. ‘When you sit, sit. When you breathe, breathe. When you eat, eat.’ Gaspar would say, meaning that every bit of our being was to be in the moment, completely aware of the now, no past, no future, nothing dividing us from everything that is.


It’s hard for me, a Jew, to stay in the moment. Without the past, where is the guilt? And without the future, where is the dread? And without guilt and dread who am I?"

Beautiful, no?

Biff is like that guy in high school that made corny jokes and wanted to be a kick ass ninja that you rolled your eyes at. But he was also that friend you could ALWAYS count on to be rational, to cover your ass, to never doubt your methods…ever. I mean, his best friend is a pretty big deal. He is jealous at times sure, but he also makes fart jokes with Christ and tries to teach him about sex.

I love this book because it draws attention to something that always intrigued me about the Christianity. Jesus was human. He grew up. He doubted his life. And his humanity is what makes people worship him, not his omnipotence…In theory anyway….Moore takes the holiness, and sacredness, and delicacy away from the whole period surrounding Jesus of Nazareth. He compares God to James Earl Jones, he makes his Christ character a likeable dude who is just SO naïve about the evils of the world. He makes Jesus QUESTION God, his father, like any young person questions their parents. And he does it in such a gosh darn charming way. Like dude, Christ says fuck all the time in this book.

Moore-over (ha, see what I did there) I loved the idea that Jesus sacrifices himself to rebel against God. We all know the God of the First Testament was a total dick. (Really no offence meant here) He always asked for people to be sacrificed and killed, and flooded the earth and all that stuff. Moore brings up a point that maybe Jesus sacrifices himself to show his pops that things need to be changed. By sacrificing himself maybe God will realize that there need not BE any more sacrifices, and change the way things work in terms of worship.

One beef with the book, but not really beef because I understand it, but as a reader just makes me frustrated. The abrupt ending. Moore ends all of the books I’ve read so far in just…..an ending. I won’t really ruin it. And there really is no other way of ending it, because we know Jesus does eventually die. But I guess it’s really MOORE of a good thing. I was sad when it was over.


Peacfully and Forcibly Yours,
Lady Emily

(Currently reading: Stardust by Neil Gaiman)

The Dapper Men and the Blood Lily

Hello Laaadieeees and internet!

Friday was my day off. I hadn't really made plans, except to do some minor laundry and sort out my schedule for the coming month. Life! (Don't talk to me about life.) (...anyone? ...anyone?) So instead of actually making plans with other people or to go window-shop the Magnificent Mile like I usually do, I curled up at home with a few books I had been meaning to read. I'll preface this with the fact that I read very, very quickly. I don't read fast because it looks cool to read fast. I read fast because I just read damn fast. In preschool, I talked my teacher into private tutoring me on reading a whole year before the other kids. By the time kindergarten hit, I was bringing in "Stuart Little," "Charlotte's Web," and things like that while the other kids were bringing in "Go Dog Go" and "Red Fish, Blue Fish, One Fish, Two Fish." When I brought in Louisa May Alcott's classic novel "Little Women" to read, my teacher felt it was the last straw and sent me home with a note that day which politely but firmly requested I no longer bring outside reading from home as it was becoming demoralizing to the other children.

Happily indifferent to these social mistakes, I continued to read things bigger and more difficult as I grew older, and it is the founding factor (I believe) in my book addiction. (You recently read about Erin's addiction, so I thought I'd give you an overview of mine.)

ANYHOW. Back to Friday. I sat down to read a recently published graphic novel/picture book called "The Return of the Dapper Men" - by Jim McCann and Janet Lee. The trailer is below:

First, I would like to take a small detour and say that anytime anybody writes something whimsical, fantastical, and deeply honest in the memory of our childhood magic, SOMEBODY always compares it to or categorizes it with "Alice in Wonderland." This, I feel, is a grave mistake. "Alice" is certainly an outstanding example of all of those things, yes, but it is its own beast, and just because something is childlike and full of mystery doesn't mean it's anything like "Alice." Here, especially, I don't think "Dapper Men" is anything like "Alice." Just wanted to say that there are other things you can compare things to than that ONE BOOK everybody is supposed to have read. Ahem. I will put away my little soap box now and continue.

"Dapper Men" is more of the vein of Antoine de Saint-Exupery's delicate children's-story-for-adults "Le Petit Prince" than it is "Alice in Wonderland." The world of the "Dapper Men" is quite simple, but as time has gone missing and there are only children who never grow old (no time) and robots who never stop working (no time) it becomes a conundrum that nobody can remember what they have forgotten about themselves and their world. When the clock begins to tick and tock again, time comes back, and with it the Dapper Men descend from the sky to fix all that has fallen to waste in their absence.

The charming 41, the Dapper Man who greets the hero Ayden and his best friend, robot girl Zoe, is immediately likened (in my mind) to the Doctor (of Doctor Who) -- he is cheerful, caring, and here to fix everybody's problems. His humor is also very Doctor-like, and in fact, it would not be too far of a stretch to compare the other Dapper Men to Time Lords.... But I won't get into it.

The book is beautifully written by Jim McCann and absolutely jaw-droppingly illustrated by Janet Lee --it is worth it for the artwork alone, but the story is absolutely wonderful. I am really glad I didn't wait to borrow it from someone and got my own copy, because it is gorgeous. A must have for any would-be steampunk's coffee table array, and certainly a must-have for lovers of the fantastic.



The second book I read on my day off was Lauren Willig's "The Betrayal of the Blood Lily." Willig has a series of historical fiction/espionage/romance novels, which started with "The Secret History of the Pink Carnation" -- which obviously I highly recommend. I found it (as I do most of my favorite books) quite by accident and have read all through the series now except for the most recent, "The Mischief of the Mistletoe." Yes, they all have clever flower names in titles. That's part of the thing. You'll see.

I don't want to give anything away, since the books are rooted in mystery and sort of an ongoing fictional history of the same set of characters and their friends, but "Blood Lily" is delicious. It starts a bit slow, though, and the present-day storyline with research student Eloise and her recently acquired British boyfriend Colin sort of staying out of the spotlight in this book -- generally the books are dual storylines, cutting from present day Eloise to the past she is researching, spies in Britain and France during the 18th century. Even so, the historical storyline is wonderful. Penelope is not quite wicked and not quite noble, but she is feisty and admirable nonetheless. Her adventures in India seem to kindle her true self, just as the handsome Captain Alex Reid kindles a true emotion in her where her husband (the unfortunately boring Freddy Staines, whom she was found compromised with and forced to marry) fails.

Again, I highly recommend Willig's books -- the mysteries are addictive and the humor is very smart, but beyond all that, the romance is terribly romantic and well-written. At no point does anything reach absurdity, which is the sign of a writer who can write several genres at once and do it well.

That's all for now, and I'm sure this post is obscenely long.

Ta!

Lady Alyson


(currently reading: The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler; next up: The Tower, The Zoo, and the Tortoise by Julia Stuart.)

Free is Always the Best Price

Hello, my name is Lady Erin. And I am addicted to books.

This is not just a slight or passing addiction. I am hardcore addicted to books (which turns out to be decidedly convenient since I am also a hardcore reader). And let me tell you, it is a job in and of itself acquiring as many books as I have over my long running obsession. I will search and hunt and scrape up books from every possible source. There is no simply walking into Barnes & Noble and poking around to satisfy my need for books. Will I walk into Barnes & Noble with no plan to buy anything and inevitably leave with half a dozen books that I never knew I could not live without? Yes. Would some people say this is unhealthy? Yes, but... whatever.

But it does not end there.

My addiction to finding and attaining books started when I was very young. I remember very clearly getting the Scholastic catalogs in elementary school. I would take my allowance that I'd earned from doing horrible things like emptying the garbage and setting the table and other horrible tortures designed to humiliate and destroy the soul of 9 year olds, and every time a Scholastic came I would search through it and find all of the 50 cent and dollar priced books and order every single one, almost regardless of what it was about. And when they were finally delivered to the classroom I would get so excited and promptly read each and every single one of them and absolutely love it.

And thus began two of my life goals: 1. Own (and read) as many books as possible, ideally enough to have my own library at some point in the distant grown-up future 2. Never ever pay full price for anything, ever.

(I am very good at both of these things)

Now, gathering the books for what will some day be an obviously epic library while remaining true to your life goal of "Never spend money" turns out to be rather difficult if you're not willing to work for it. Which I am. It involves lots of time committed to combing the 99 cent books on Half.com and Amazon, to searching through the (mostly crap) in the discount sections of Barnes and Noble, Schuler's, Borders and any other store you can find, and convincing all of your friends to give you all of the books they no longer want or have no desire to read or re-read.

It's a job.

But the end result is that you 1. are exposed to many, many, many books that you may never have even imagined would cross your path, 2. have spent virtually no money while somehow acquiring an awesome collection.

And now we come to the whole point of this blog.

Last night I went to a bar for the first time (which is less than a block away from my house, and so is somewhat amazing that I still had not managed to once go there before last night), and discovered my own personal jackpot.

A thing that occurs sometimes, much to my great surprise and delight every time, is that people give away books. Free! For nothing!!

And, it just so happened that of all of the places I could have possibly gone last night, at this bar less than a block away from my house, sitting at a table with my friends I look over and there next to me is a small bookcase, full of books, and a box underneath it labeled free books. And so obviously I dug through all of those books (mostly crap) and walked away with four books (an anthology of Roman drama, a memoir of a man coming of age in the 50's, a book about a woman in her 30's discovering herself, and ... something else that escapes me at the moment, but I'm sure it was awesome) and a feeling that I had accomplished something. Part of that something of course was convincing my friends who kept saying "Are you sure that you're allowed to take these?" that "Hello, the box said free! If they didn't want me to take them they should never have put such false advertising on  it!"

So what does this mean to you?

It doesn't mean anything. Except that I love books. And that if you want to send me your old, no longer wanted books, I will gladly accept them.

Best wishes,

Lady Erin

(currently reading: Dr. Nina and the Panther by Shirley P. Wheeler)

You Should Give a Fuck

I am not a blogger. I am just a person who loves to read. I also love parenthesizes.

With that being said, I'd like to introduce myself to you with an author named Christopher Moore.

My love affair with Christopher Moore began in 2007 with a book called A Dirty Job. If you haven't yet discovered Christopher Moore or read A Dirty Job then I don't know what you've been doing with your lives, but you need some to do serious literary re-prioritizing.

In the three years since my discovery I have made my way through all 12 of the books in his canon (yes, I did use the word canon, deal with it), making him the second author for which I have done so, following only Chuck Palahnuik. Having just finished my last book to reach this milestone, I found it only appropriate to start your love affair with my reading list over The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror.

The Stupidest Angel is a hilarious Christmas novel set in Pine Cove, CA (also the setting for The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove) and is a brilliant mashup of characters from all over Moore's canon -- a specialty of his just happens to be cross cutting characters, leaving easter eggs for readers with almost any book you pick up (with the exception, ironically, of my favorite: Fool) -- including The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove, Lamb, and The Island of the Sequined Love Nun.

We find our hero, Theo Crow, former mega-stoner and star of Lust Lizard, once again in Pine Cove (apparently the epicenter of the world for paranormal and fantastical activity) just in time for the holiday festivities. However, the stupidest angel in the history of creation, Raziel, has come to fuck shit up. The Christmas season quickly turns into an almost slapstick game of Theo trying to manage the town (and out of town) crazies, the murder of Santa Claus, a suspicious possible robot and/or child molester, and, prepare yourself, motherfucking zombies.

Because, what's a decent Christmas novel if it doesn't include any zombies?

The Stupidest Angel was the perfect capstone to my Christopher Moore experience, and left me eagerly awaiting his next novel (which cannot come soon enough).

Links!

Christopher Moore's site: http://www.chrismoore.com/books.html

Buy his things on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Christopher+Moore&x=18&y=12

So, yeah, that's kind of who I am. I love Christopher Moore, but I also love a lot of things and will read pretty much anything. I may not be totally great at this whole "blogging" thing  but stick with me, and I'll get there. And hey, if nothing else my reading list will blow your mind.

Your faithful reader,

Lady Erin

(currently reading: Dr. Nina and the Panther by Shirley P. Wheeler)

Meet Your LAAAADIES

Lady Atra

Born and and raised in Chicago, and now residing in Vaguesville where the streets are kind of cold but also kind of warm, and the houses are there, and the word love is used sometimes a little bit, she works as a professional shrugger.

Atra's first book was Thomas the Tank Engine (the one where the cows get stuck on the railroad and he tells them to move, and they just Moo, and he goes "No, not 'MOO!', MOVE!" comedy gold.) Her favorite book is the Dictionary. It is cozied up to her pillow every night.

Dream: "To be so rich that I can move anywhere in the world for as long as I wish and only pack books (and gold bricks.)"

Some Secrets: Hates the phrase "Shut up" in every way. (yeah, that could be a set up.) Loves parentheticals. (a lot.) And finds it a little weird when she has to use quotes when referencing herself in first person, in her own bio, that she is writing in 3rd person. "Ew."

Lady Erin

Erin is a strange sort of woman who enjoys many oddball things. In addition to having read 106 books in 2010 she also moved across time zones to pursue her dream of no longer living in Michigan. She has a passion for information and for cheese. When she makes cat noises, they are surprisingly accurate. Most importantly though, she will read anything about any topic.

Lady Alexis

Alexis is at best described as eclectic. Her book shelves are brimming with books ranging from Star Trek mystery novels to the history of the courtesans. Although she reads more than the average bear she buys more books than her eyes will tolerate (a habit she is desperately trying to rid herself of to no avail). She enjoys being laced in corsets and sipping tea while fantasizing about the various menfolk she reads in these books.

Alexis likes smut and if reading a book with no smut she secretly inserts a smutty line (or chapter) to spice up the read.

She has many tattoos, is an actress in Chicago, worships the trees, thinks her cat is a drag queen, wishes she was Welsh, is proud of her lady bits, loves lists & ampersands, writes terrible poetry and is admittedly a Shakespeare snob.

(For the record Alexis is the one with poor spelling and grammar. Reviews on comics, romance novels and children’s books to be expected.)

Lady Alyson

 

Aly Grauer is sometimes called Alyson, and she has finally come to peace with both versions of her name. You can pick and choose. She lives in Rogers Park and writes a great deal of fiction as well as reading all sorts of sci-fi, fantasy, steampunk, historical fiction, plays, memoirs, and contemporary fiction. She is a tea snob, plays the ukelele, and has a deeply ingrained instinct to become a time traveler and-slash-or vigilante of some kind. That is to say, she has a running list of people to meet and things to witness when she acquires a time machine. She has her own blog Worthy Cogitations. She writes TV recaps of Grey's Anatomy and The Chicago Code at The Faster Times and she also writes fashion commentary for Glee and The Vampire Diaries on You Know You Love Fashion.

Lady Emily

 

Emily Bates discovered reading in the womb when her mother accidentally swallowed part of a snickers wrapper. CKERS meant something in that world out there, and Emily couldn't wait to find out what it was. She is a neat person who is always looking for an adventure. Read. Just read.

Lady Elise

this is my bio.

i am not very good at writing.

but i am really good at sitting on couches. similarly, reading is a strong suit. 

Welcome to Our Blog

This is a blog about books & ladies. Specifically ladies who read books -- lots & lots of books. Six fabulous female bibliophiles who read everything from Chekov to Rowling, from steamy to steampunk, from classics to…well not classics. Some of us are writers, some poets, some hate to write (but love to read!!), some are very bad at spelling & grammar and some are brilliant. Some will write academic reviews, some artsy reviews, some will barely write words.

Enjoy, comment, follow, suggest books, and if you must be rude please be considerate enough to be cheeky.

Love Yours Always,

LAAAADIES (and books)