Alexander Stuart

Enjoy a Valentine-themed treat at the Central Sierra Arts Council's next FRIDAY NITE FLICK on Friday February 17th , when you will be swept away to a "Night in France" with Lasse Hallstrom's highly acclaimed romantic comedy, Chocolat - together with a live performance by members of Sonora's own home-grown, heavily French-influenced jazz ensemble, Swing Gitane ...plus additional treats, including wine, port, cheesecake squares...and, of course, chocolat! The musicians of  Swing Gitane  start performing at 6pm, while the treats and refreshments are served, then I will say a few brief words about the making of Chocolat , and the movie will begin at 7pm - with a new, improved projection system, thanks to the ever-generous sponsorship of Ridge Schneider of Sonora Subaru. Tickets are just $5 per person. Wine or port is $3, cheesecake squares are $2...and the chocolates are on the house, courtesy of the Central Sierra Arts Council. Amusez-vous bien!

Paradise's paper-bag penguin, made at a craft session at the Sonora library. We love the Sonora library, a great resource not just for books but for storytelling, crafts and other activities.

Photograph: Alexander Chow-Stuart.

Terrence Malick's Tree of Life. I was thinking about last year's Oscars and how my main interest in them was whether British street/guerrilla artist  Banksy  might make a surprise appearance (given that he doesn't "do" appearances) at the ceremony to collect the award I was certain he would win for his documentary  Exit Through The Gift Shop  (as so often with my Oscar predictions, I was wrong about the award - and the likelihood of his presence). This year, I just wish there were some kind of potential controversy that could enliven the proceedings. There are some good films among the crop of Oscar nominees - and one great film in Terrence Malick's  The Tree of Life , but there is nothing  that I can get really excited about, other than the possibility of it winning, which somehow doesn't seem as sure a thing as it should. Maybe it's a reflection of the state of the industry, or my tastes - or both - but I long for the days when more movie

Charong Chow: photo by Alexander Chow-Stuart. This Friday evening, January 27th, between 6pm - 8pm in the private room at the Starbucks at The Junction in Sonora, Charong Chow will be hosting her book launch party for her first novel, Random ...and I will be celebrating one thousand years on the planet (or something like that): my birthday! Inspired by the death at 26 of our best friend, Jeremy, who first introduced us at one of my book readings in Miami's South Beach, Random is a Young Adult "teen noir" love story and thriller, set in contemporary Los Angeles. Tierney is a sixteen year old high school co-ed who's neither the Bad Girl in school, nor exactly your average student, either. Excited by the arrival of Tom, a handsomely mysterious new kid, Tierney skips classes with her best friends, Jeremy (who's openly gay) and Maya, taking Tom along for a drug-fueled truancy that foreshadows darker things to come. Written with an energy and razor-sharp d