Pig Island by Mo Hayder

Trudi and I recently attended a cocktail party at the gallery of SoHo artist Alex Beard. While there, we met Bryan Adams, a Publicist with FAB Communications. When the conversation turned to books, Bryan mentioned that he always has one with him. Since Trudi and I share his passion for page turning, we felt an immediate connection.

Bryan suggested that we read Pig Island by Mo Hayder. He described this novel as "interesting dark fiction". I just finished it, and he was right.

Pig Island is dark - but without buckets of blood or supernatural characters. It is macabre in the psychological sense, which is infinitely more frightening. A good scary story messes with your head by planting the seeds of fear and then letting your mind cultivate them into full blown terror. The devil that you imagine is far more horrifying than the devil that you can see.

That's why the movie "Jaws" was such a nail biter. You didn't even get a glimpse of the shark until the third reel. But just knowing that he was out there under the waves, hunting for human hors d'oeuvres, petrified moviegoers.

Pig Island is the story of working class British journalist Joe Oakes, who makes his living by exposing supernatural hoaxes. Now in his late 30's, Joe's realizes that his writing is never going to make him a superstar (or even a star) author. His stories are barely paying the bills - and his marriage to Lexie Oakes is disintegrating. I envision Joe as a brutish character, a literary Tony Soprano - but without guns or gangsters to give his life direction. Not quite an antihero, but living somewhere in that neighborhood.

Joe is offered an assignment to visit a secretive religious community - the Psychogenic Healing Ministries. They are headquartered on the island of Cuagach Eilean (Pig Island in Gaelic) in Scotland. The PHM's leader is Malachi Dove, who Joe tangled with years earlier. At that time, Joe exposed one of Malachi's healing sessions as trickery, and damaged the leader's reputation. Years later, after suffering a nervous breakdown, Malachi has withdrawn from his flock and exiled himself to a remote corner of Pig Island.

The Ministry invites Joe to the island because they are seeking positive publicity to mend their reputation. PHM's image has been tarnished by rumors of Satanism, and other wickedness. These rumblings are further fueled by a fisherman's video, which appears to show a devil-like creature wandering the island.

The book continues with engaging story lines that held my attention on every page. And the plot twist at the end would make Agatha Christie envious!

Mo Hayder has written a number of novels, including Devil of Nanking, Birdman, and The Treatment. You can check these out at the Mo Hayder Website. In addition to compelling plots, I am captivated with her prose style. She often uses short sentences to build story structure. These are easy to assimilate because each sentence usually contains one idea. Hayder builds these terse elements into a complex drama the same way that a mason builds a brick wall - by carefully placing one unit on top of another.

The author also excels at description. She creates powerful imagery, which substantially enhances the narrative thread. For example Hayder depicts a small coastal bay as "a cup of tea". And the sky - "tendrils of cloud were splitting like mercury, running away in fragments across the moon." This is pure poetry.

Summary: I give Pig Island 4 bananas on the Monkey Prose Literature Scale. This rating system runs from 0 bananas (It's not even good enough to line a bird cage.) to 5 bananas (God handed me this book on Mt. Sinai.) This novel grabbed me in the first few pages, and I couldn't put it down. I read it in a weekend. And the shocking revelation at the end is unforgettable. If you enjoy a gripping psychological thriller, then I highly recommend Pig Island.

Julia Blaukopf - Artist and Photographer

"If you're photographing in color you show the color of their clothes - if you use black and white, you will show the color of their soul."

~Author Unknown

Last week, Trudi and I met artist and photographer Julia Blaukopf during a cocktail party at the studio of SoHo artist Alex Beard. Julia was discussing her recent trip to Ghana.

Julia was invited there by Women in Progress, a group who defines their mission as "working at a grassroots level to develop small, sustainable women-owned craft jewelry, clothing, and batik businesses, and, at the same time, establish mutual understanding among people of diverse cultures." Julia's photograph (above) shows an example of their work .

Julia's website gives further information about this project. "With the support of fiscal sponsor, First Person Arts, Blaukopf worked in Ghana for four months. She photographed and designed the 2007 Global Mamas catalog. Her images will become a promotional tool for Women in Progress. In November 2007, Blaukopf will exhibit the images as a part of the Annual First Person Arts Festival."

If you go to Julia's website, click on Gallery to see her portfolio. I am particularly intrigued by her sepia toned pictures, which exude an aura of antiquity. They remind me of Matthew Brady's work. His American Civil War images took photography out of the parlor and transformed it into a fundamental component of journalism.

Sepia photographs evoke a powerful emotional response. The brown hue transports these images into another world. I imagine that I am looking through a time portal. Considering how fast paced and stressful modern life is, they make me nostalgic for a time when we didn't have to deal with cell phones, websites, computer passwords, e-mails, and TiVo.

This simpler life, although not ideal (no antibiotics or pre-natal care) was far better suited to human biology. Our bodies haven't evolved fast enough to keep pace with the quantum leap in technology.

And even though Julia's Ghana portfolio was created recently, the sepia overtone reminds us that we are viewing a part of the world that we have known for a very long time. Africa was our first home, where we became human.

During the cocktail party, Julia showed us some of her mixed media work, where she applies photographs to non-traditional surfaces - like shells. It was interesting to see an art form that blends natural materials with a modern technology.

Julia's work can currently be seen at The Center for Emerging Visual Artists. They have a show called Small Wonders, which is running from June 14 through July 12. The address is:

Morgan, Lewis and Bockius LLP

1701 Market Street

Philadelphia, PA 19103

There will be a reception on Friday July 15, from 5:30 - 7:30 PM.

I am certain that this talented young artist will continue to produce perceptive and compelling photography!

Monkey Bob Discovers SOHO Artist - Alex Beard

Today my wife Trudi and I visited SOHO in New York City. For those not familiar with The Big Apple, SOHO stands for South of Houston Street. This is a section of the city in lower west Manhattan that is known for art studios, bistros, and eclectic retail stores. While there, we came upon the studio of Alex Beard, which was a wonderful discovery

This artist uses color in a bold and captivating style. Many of his paintings have the same visual impact as a neon sign. But instead of just splashing chroma onto his canvases with the wild abandon of a child's finger painting, Alex controls his use of color to create images which have a powerful immediate impression. But then, as you study the paintings, you can focus in on the symmetric complexity of his designs. This allows you to view his works on at least three or four different levels. I could easily study some of his paintings for half an hour or more, and still be discovering new information.

Alex's work is also whimsical. Many of his paintings represent animals and people in new and refreshing ways. I really enjoy artists who can present familiar objects from a different perspective. It makes me realize that the zebra or flamingo (that I thought I knew so well) can still teach me something about nature and life.

Some artists prefer to work in solitude, and then present their finished works to the world. However, Alex devotes a significant amount of his time to running childrens' workshops and other participative activities. He also encourages visitors to come and see him in his studio, while he is working. The Beard Studio also hosts cocktail parties and intimate dinners. Instead of seeing these interactions as an impediment to his work, I am guessing that Alex enjoys meeting people and that they increase his creative energy.

The bio in his brochures offers some background on Alex: "Born in 1970, Alex was influenced to think creatively from a young age by his uncle, Peter Beard, the photographer, and his mother Patricia Beard, an accomplished author and magazine editor. Alex grew up as a child among some of the world's most interesting and influential people. Andy Warhol, Truman Capote, and their Pop World cohorts were familiar faces in the Beard Household."

So if you are in SOHO, then I believe that you will enjoy a visit to Alex Beard's studio. It is located at:

Alex Beard Studio

77 Mercer Street

New York, NY 10012

Phone: (212) 274-0326

Website: Alex Beard Studio.