July 13: Top Ten Summer Day!

Dawn by Elie Wiesel
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another reread for possible "Slant" AP reading, Dawn was more uneven than I had remembered. Its message is hard to follow in places, with apparent non-sequiturs that remind me of the Victor Frankl quote about an abnormal response to an abnormal situation being normal. I am thinking I will still pair this with Night as a slant on the issue of justice/injustice/heroism/terrorism, probably after we've read Hamlet. It's a quick read, and its tumbling, confusing, sometimes contradictory style fits the scenario well, as Elisha waits for dawn and the news if he will have to kill the hostage or not. Not as artistically strong as Night, Dawn still raises powerful and important questions. I'm interested in what my students will say.

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Got Dawn in the mail today and decided that our shady, breezy patio at the end of a lovely day was the best way to reread it. Done. Whew.

Lovely day: it was hot and sticky this am, and then about 9 there was an almost audible "click" and the breeze started, the air dried, and it became a stunning Maine summer day. It has remained so all day--I ran at around 11, and though it was hot, there was a lovely breeze and the shade felt great when I hit it. On Thursday, as I was walking to the outdoor movie, I was noticing how dense and damp and completely still the air felt--Friday was better, and today was even more lovely. Andy and I made a trip to pick up a book at Sherman's and ended up having a lovely time, getting N some books for his b'day and picking up a copy of Orphan Train for me (and a few others). Andy had inveigled me into leaving our gorgeous cool shady patio/favorite place on Earth by offering lunch out, and we ended up eating on the terrace at the Bar Harbor Inn, and then getting ice cream at Mt. Desert Ice Cream. . . The town was nicely busy but not frantic, and people seemed happy and relaxed. It was a great trip, and a great way for me to do summer a little bit. Once we contact Camilla and find out her arrival date, we can also plan some other summer "must do" trips.

Big family gathering next weekend--would it be too much to ask for next Saturday to be as lovely as this one?