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Sharman Apt Russell

Sharman Apt Russell Biography

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“Cabeza de Vaca had wrapped her in his arms and in his language, whispering about a life she did not understand although understanding seemed to form just beyond the sea and sand, waiting there for her to grow older. Even when the story confused her, she had caught words or phrases, ideas like fish, bold and surprising, tasting of her father’s mind. She had learned quickly to nod and speak because he needed her to do this, because his need surrounded her like the blue sky. She was his bastard, and he had loved her. Yes, he had loved her. That was the memory she couldn’t bear.”

HistoryFantasyYoung AdultPlagueSouthwestFather Daughter RelationshipsSixteenth CenturyCabeza De Vaca
Book:Teresa of the New World
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“The women in the kitchen sang: Sarampión toca la puerta. Viruela dice: ¿Quién es? Y Escarlatina contesta: ¡Aquí estamos los tres! The cook would sometimes shout a little madly, “Sing it again!” And the women would sing again: Measles knocks at the door. Smallpox asks, Who’s there? And Scarlet Fever replies: All three of us are here!”

HistoryFantasyYoung AdultEpidemicsMeaslesSouthwestSixteenth CenturyCabeza De Vaca
Book:Teresa of the New World
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“Now she could smell what the jaguar could smell, odors deeper and richer than anything she had experienced before, layers of smell she could read like Fray Tomás had read the words in her father’s book: the wet decay of leaves, the death fear of a mouse, the poisonous cloy of datura, water and mud and insects, the wind carrying the smell of other animals, the wind itself, and the girl, of course, always the girl with her juicy flesh. The girl smelled incredibly good. Should the jaguar do this? Should Teresa eat herself?”

HistoryFantasyYoung AdultSouthwestJaguarsShape ShiftingSixteenth Century Cabeza De Vaca
Book:Teresa of the New World
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“I will help-but only so much, only so far. It is not that I believe these children are less than my own. It is not that I believe I do not have a responsibility for them. It is just that in a world of haves and have-nots, I do not want to give up too much of what I have. I do not want to diminish the complexity and diversity of my life. Instead, I will choose to spend another seventy-five dollars on myself rather than send another child to school, and I will choose to do this over and over again. I no longer think of myself as a good person. I have adjusted to that.”

ThinkingWorldWantGivingBelieveChildrenPersonsHelpingSchoolI BelieveMy OwnResponsibilityFiveToo MuchGiving UpDiversityDollarsComplexityPhilanthropySeventiesDiminishGood PersonHaves And Have Nots
Author:Sharman Apt Russell
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“Flowers are not symbols of power. Flowers are too brief, too frail, to elicit much hope of eternity. In truth, flowers are far removed from the human condition and from all human hope. For a moment, in that moment, flowers are simply beautiful.”

HumansMomentsBeautifulConditionsFlowerEternitySymbolsThat MomentHuman ConditionFrailSimply Beautiful
Book:Anatomy of a Rose: Exploring the Secret Life of Flowers
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