July, 2009 | Valya Dudycz Lupescu

One Book

Posted on 23 July, 2009

“Walden is the only book I own, although there are some others unclaimed on my shelves. Every man, I think, reads one book in his life, and this one is mine. It is not the best book I ever encountered, perhaps, but it is for me the handiest, and I keep it about me in much the same way one carries a handkerchief – for relief in moments of defluxion or despair.” (White in The New Yorker, May 23, 1953)

A friend recently invited me to be interviewed on a new literary site (info to come later). He asked me a bunch of questions about reading and writing. When thinking about the answers, I wanted to look back at books I own, but I couldn’t find many of them. Right now my books are scattered around the world, and I feel slightly unsettled because of this.

Some of my books are en route from Germany. Others are in Chicago, while others are in storage. I don’t like having them in three different places.

This got me thinking about beloved books and the above White quotation.

I would have to say that the most constant literary touchstone for me over the last 15 years has been Louise Glück’s First Four Books Of Poems.

Other books have moved me greatly and have shaped my writing and thinking more, but I find myself returning to the poems in this collection again and again like comfort food for thought.

So I wonder, what’s your “one book”?

One Book

Posted on 21 July, 2009

"Walden is the only book I own, although there are some others unclaimed on my shelves. Every man, I think, reads one book in his life, and this one is mine. It is not the best book I ever encountered, perhaps, but it is for me the handiest, and I keep it about me in much the same way one carries a handkerchief – for relief in moments of defluxion or despair." (White in The New Yorker, May 23, 1953)

Some of my books are en route from Germany. Others are in the Oak Park Apartment, while others are in boxes soon to be placed into storage. I don’t like having them in three different places.

This got me thinking about beloved books and the above White quotation.

So I wonder, what’s your "one book"?

Easter Eggs in July

Posted on 16 July, 2009

Tonight I had dinner with . Moments like this make me so happy to be home. One of my favorite things to do is sit and talk with friends over food and drink–those meaty conversations that nourish your whole person. Sometimes the conversations are mundane and earthy, sometimes they are provocative and philosophical. They are always treasured.

And speaking of treasures, swampwitch brought me a gift–an egg that she purchased because it’s a "Valya Egg."

It was actually labeled as a Valya Egg! And it’s purple and sparkly, and it opens like a Fabergé egg. The egg has already been claimed by this mini steampunk poppet (one of Lisa Snelling‘s creations) seen gazing longingly above.

Because I have an uncommon name, I was never able to find any of those personalized gifts that kids sometimes had in the 80s: bracelets, bookmarks, or mugs. There may have been a Valerie or a Val, but I was neither of those. A friend once made me a wooden sign of my name, I have it to this day because it was the only thing with my name.

And now this egg.

Plus swampwitch knows me well enough to know that I am fascinated with eggs as symbols, a part of folklore and tradition, and as a storytelling tool. Eggs by their very nature hide something precious inside. They connect generations. They hold their stories hidden inside the shells. They are a perfect symbol of potential.

(Painted eggs, called pysanky, are an important (and one of my favorite) part of Ukrainian culture. To read more about them from a previous LJ post, click here.)

I wanted to write more about friendship and hidden treasures, but I’m falling asleep on the keyboard.
More later.
Night all.