New recordings in the works for the New Year!

I've started recording again and now have a short story, The Fulness of Life, by Edith Wharton in post production.  It should be for sale on Audible in a few weeks.  Continuing with more Edith Wharton, I've just begun recording a novella she wrote called Sanctuary. 

My narration of Emile Zola's classic, The Ladies' Paradise, has been doing very well on Audible.  Many thanks to my buddy, Linda, who is also a first-class proof-listener! 

Stay tuned for more recording news, estate sales, yarn projects and anything else that pops up.  Hope everyone is having a great New Year (so far)!

Tomorrow is Duane's birthday so Linda and I are taking her to lunch at a new place we haven't tried yet along with a little shopping.  After that we're heading back to my house for red velvet cake (courtesy of BJ's -- I can not tell a lie) and pressies.  Happy Birthday, Duane!

The Ladies' Paradise now on sale!

I'm happy to announce that my latest recording, The Ladies' Paradise by Emile Zola, went on sale today at Audible.  A nice Christmas present for me!

Young country girl Denise Baudu arrives with her two younger brothers in Paris where she expects to secure a position for herself as a salesgirl in her uncle’s clothing shop.  Instead she discovers that her uncle’s business along with other small shops on the street are struggling to survive.  This is mostly due to the large store on the other side of the street — The Ladies’ Paradise –  which is swallowing up the small specialty stores by offering “one-stop shopping” at discounted prices.  Nineteenth-century Paris is experiencing the dawn of the department store.  Despite her loyalty to her uncle, Denise needs to work to support herself and her brothers.  She applies and is hired at The Ladies’ Paradise.  Her path will not be an easy one but Denise finds herself drawn to the progressive department store and it’s owner, the driven but charismatic Monsieur Mouret.

This book was the basis for the PBS Masterpiece Classic series, The Paradise. 

To listen to a clip from the book and/or to purchase, please visit Audible here.

Knitted Christmas tree ornaments and a new audiobook on the way...

Last year I decided to start making the Christmas ornaments that I attach to the gifts of my three young nieces who are now 7, 6 and 4 years old.  I crocheted an Amigurumi Santa ornament last year (see this post) and this year I knitted Christmas trees.  These were a little bigger than I thought they would be although the size does match what's listed in the pattern.  The pattern from Yarnspirations  is here.  I made three of these and the only problem I encountered was the best way to sew the back and front of the tree together.  The pattern isn't very specific so I used the main color of yarn and a large smooth pointed silver needle to whip around the edges.  I don't think that's how it was done for the ones in the picture of the pattern but that's what I did. I would have preferred for the edges to look a little neater but wasn't sure how to do that unless I used an actual needle and thread to sew them up.  Oh well, here's a pic of one of them -- all done!

My other bit of news is that my recording of The Ladies' Paradise by Emile Zola is now in post-production and should be for sale on Audible soon.  This is the book that the PBS Masterpiece Classic series "The Paradise" was based on.  I'll post here when it's officially for sale.

Recording update

I've been crazy busy working on a recording that has required more 'prep' time than any other book I've done thus far.  The title is The Ladies' Paradise by Emile Zola.  If that title sounds slightly familiar it's because it's been adapted for the screen and is currently being shown on PBS Masterpiece Classic as "The Paradise."  I love the series and became curious about the book.  After beginning the book, I just knew that I wanted to record this story.  However, since the book was originally in French (the location was moved from Paris to London for the Masterpiece series), there are a ton of French place and surnames to research.  So, I read the book first without worrying about the French.  Then I began a second reading to note each French word (and a few other words here and there) that needed to be checked for proper pronunciation.  Thank goodness for sites like forvo.com!

"The Paradise."

My publisher is good with my taking the time to narrate this one and I'm really glad about that since I hope to introduce audiobook listeners who liked the series to the original story.  The book is much grittier than the world shown in the series and, of course, there's a lot more background on the characters and their lives.  However, I feel that the series definitely caught the spirit of Mouret and Denise!

I'll post again on my progress and when it's available for sale on Audible.  At this point I've recorded approximately 1/4th of the book.  Lots more to go but the story is well worth it.