… so please do come and spend some time in the company of wondrous words, puppets, sexy floozies and all the rest of the crew Under the Poppy – and me – at one of these events, if you’re in a nabe that’s local.  And if not, feel free to get in touch and let’s see if we can bring our traveling roadshow of nouns and verbs to where you are.  (PS, at right please see Book Signings and Appearances, where the venues exist in PDF form for your downloading pleasure.) So far for the various events we have the shadow puppets from the trailer, and actors, and a musical accompaniment, and new film(s) planned, so really all we need now is you.

Lisa Hura at When Falls the Coliseum reviews Under the Poppy – it’s long and it’s perceptive and I’ll quote just a teaser:

“Good historical fiction makes you feel time period; with Under the Poppy, I felt it, I smelled it, I heard it.  I was completely immersed in a fascinating landscape of characters and I became engrossed in their stories … There is also plenty of humor — there are puppets, horny puppets who say naughty things as a big part of the story — and romance, even in the bleakest winter. … Under the Poppy was engrossing from beginning to end. I love a story that grabs hold and keeps you turning pages, even when you should be working or sleeping.  I will happily trade a few hours of sleep for a good book any day.”

What I’m especially delighted to read is that praise for the sense details.  So much of how we experience the world around us, every moment of every day, comes through those sensual pathways; conjure the sweet envelopment of honey in the mouth; the scent of your lover’s skin, or your child’s; the thick, miserable suck of wet wool … To juggle and conjure with these flavors, and blend all into one fictive elixir – oh, that is fun, that’s why we read, and write, to plunge as deeply as we can into the world. Thank you, Lisa, for taking the plunge Under the Poppy.

What do you get when you add six passionate readers to one immersive Under the Poppy script? And throw in some delicious pasta puttanesca? You get an evening of close reading, discussion, and debate: like for instance, is Decca a stalwart soul doing her best navigating the shoals of circumstance, or is she a big ol’ bitch? Is the bond of trust between lovers more, or less, or equally sacred as the blood bond between siblings?  What does it mean to be amoral, and how might that amorality correlate to addictive behavior? How sordid exactly was Istvan’s past? or for that matter, his present? How charismatic is Rupert?  Will sexy hats be worn to the show’s premiere? … That last prompted a shared and resounding yes, but all the rest was a tussle, and enormous fun was had by hostesses/Friends of Floozies Judy Hudson and Kathy Humphrey, and Ellen, Carol, Robin, and Susan, and Rick of course, and me. Thank you all for an evening of real theatre!

For the second week, Under the Poppy is a font of wondrous words – I love this! Writing is the drive of the story, the attempt to parse the human heart, but it’s also the opportunity to get drunk on language, and why miss a chance for a party?

Anthony Burgess, Cormac McCarthy, Kit Marlowe, Emily Dickinson – what a go-to list, and all of them lapidary, as the saying goes.

Another fine review to share, from Library Journal: love that the love story is at the heart of this review, as it is at the heart of the book.  And the comparison to Fingersmith and Slammerkin is a delight.  

Koja, Kathe. Under the Poppy: A Novel. Small Beer. Oct. 2010.
In an unnamed 19th-century European town about to be overcome by war, Rupert and Decca, who run a brothel that specializes in stage shows, await the return of Decca’s brother and Rupert’s lover, Istvan, a master puppeteer. When Istvan does appear, he and the brothel crew must perform in several ways to keep their lives safe from the military, the ruling elites, and the endemic violence. The ornate prose has a sometimes confusing syntax, but the chapters told in first person by Rupert, Istvan, and their acquaintances are clear and draw the reader into a web of relationships, betrayals, love, spies, and murder. Despite all the trappings of puppets, sex shows, stabbings, and drawing-room treachery, this is a love story about how, sometimes despite themselves, Rupert, Istvan, and their friends have created a family. VERDICT Koja has written several YA novels and horror-tinged fiction (The Cipher; Skin) for adults. Here, she creates an atmospheric tale for those who like their historical fiction on the dark and lurid side. Those readers who enjoyed Emma Donoghue’s Slammerkin or Sarah Water’s Fingersmith will find similar themes.—Devon Thomas, DevIndexing, Chelsea, MI

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And LaMaMa, thank you for this marionette Chopin. Maestro, if you would…?

. . . though I did reference it fondly in this new interview with BookPage. Not all creation is done with a keyboard, especially when puppets are involved.

Or two, or …. Under the Poppy is rife with wondrous words. “Alive on the shelves,” what more can we ask of our books?

Cockling! Burse!

I also learned a naughty word in Latin, but I’ll spare you, unless you ask.

Lambda Literary says it: “This is easily the most exciting trailer we’ve seen all year,” and aren’t we happy to hear it? Thank you, LL, and thanks once again to our visionary and talented team: Diane Cheklich, Al Bogdan, Aaron Mustamaa, Joe Stacey, actors Madison, Jon, and Julanne, and puppet wranglers Fred and Randy … oh, and the naughty puppets too, of course.  We’re nothing without them.

Herewith, we acknowledge our early pledgers, the Friends of Floozies. We salute your faith in our vision, and your appetite for fun in all its naughty and theatrical guises.  Thank you for believing in our show!

THE FRIENDS OF FLOOZIES

Connie Jacobs   ***  Kathy Humphrey & Judy Hudson

Jennifer Goulah   ***   Zita Gillis ***  Gavin Grant & Kelly Link

Meighen & Bill Jackson   *** Laura Lamberti   ***   Anne Harris   ***  Denice Brown

Marissa Goodell   ***   Joel Zakem   ***   Susan Chase   ***   Kathy Landy

Anca Vlasopolos   ***   Salli Christenson   *** Ed Collins   ***   Jane Kelley

Steve & Libby Palackdharry   ***   Constance & Bob Bruner

Susan Radzilowski   ***   Martha &  Gary Shea   ***   Carole Sullivan & Jan Lavacek