Review by JD: By Fire, By Water by Mitchell James Kaplan

 

 A very moving historical novel set in 15th Century Spain.

John’s Thoughts:   Set in fifteenth century Spain, this is a very moving and illuminating novel which is based on a solid foundation of historical facts. Apart from being a good read, it prompted me to dig a bit more into the history of that time, which turned out to be both interesting and rather surprising – to me at least.

Essentially four major events happened in Spain at the same time – the Spanish Inquisition came to a head (though it actually lasted for over 350 years); the Spanish finally defeated the Moors and returned the whole Iberian peninsula to Christianity; there was a mass expulsion of Jews from the country; and Christopher Columbus set sail across the Atlantic and reached the Americas.

Kaplan does a fine job of weaving these four events together and making them revolve around a central character, Luis de Santangel, who is a powerful chancellor and a friend of King Ferdinand. Despite being wealthy, powerful and well connected, Santangel becomes a target of the Inquisition. In a quest for religious purity the Inquisition employs truly horrific methods to help achieve their goals. They are particularly zealous in targeting “Conversos”, people who have converted from Judaism to Christianity or whose forefathers converted. They believe that many Conversos are either playacting or are at risk of being tempted back to Judaism. Santangel himself is a third generation Christian and the Inquisitor General, Tomas de Torquemada, is determined to bring him down. Initially frustrated by Santangel’s position of power, Torquemada gets at him by attacking his family and friends.

Meanwhile, once the last Moorish stronghold in Granada is defeated, the Inquisition finally convinces King Ferdinand and Queen Isabel to expel every single Jew from the country, unless they agree to be baptized and to adopt the Christian religion. Given that there was little doubt that new Conversos would continue to be targeted by the Inquisition, countless thousands of Jews chose expulsion and were forced to leave most of their wealth behind.

To help tie the historic threads together, Kaplan has Santangel develop a love interest with a beautiful Jewish woman living in Granada. While he knows that public knowledge of any relationship with a Jewish woman would put him at the mercy of the Inquisition, his disgust at their activities finally pushes him to overcome his paranoia. But can he reconnect with her before she flees the country?

And what of Christopher Columbus? He is a long-time friend of Santangel and has been trying to persuade him to use his royal connections to get funding for an expedition to find the new world. What at first seems like a crazy idea might just turn out to the best way for Santangel to strengthen his position at the royal court and protect him from the Inquisition.

Not only was this an enjoyable read, but I learnt a lot about historic events that I’d only been dimly aware of. Previously I’d had no idea that the Spanish Inquisition, in its first decades, was primarily targeting conversos accused of practicing Judaism, and I knew nothing of the Jewish expulsion from Spain. I suppose I’d have to say that the story is a little contrived in the way that it brings together the four major historic events, but Kaplan carries it off well. I was dying for something bad to happen to Torquemada, but I guess history just didn’t work out that way. I’d also have liked to read more about Columbus and his expedition. I’m not sure how much of the character is factual and how much is Kaplan’s invention, but he comes across as an intriguing person. Maybe that is being saved up for another novel.

Overall I’d rate this 4 stars and I’d thoroughly recommend it to anyone who enjoys historical fiction.

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• By Fire, By Water
• by Mitchell James Kaplan
• ISBN: 978-1-59051-352-1
• Pages 277: paperback
• Other Press, 2010

For more information on this title as well as a GIVE AWAY of this gorgeous book please link to the preview giveaway post for By Fire, By Water. Please stay tuned for the giveaway announcement combined with an author guest post where Mitchell Kaplan tells of the amazing process about how he came to write this intriguing story.

As always all comments for this review will be addressed by John aka JD. So don’t forget to check the follow up box.

Thanks for reading Layers of Thought.

Previews: The Devil’s Star; Buddha’s Orphans; Our Tragic Universe; The Bat Scientists; Shadow Bound; Fall of Giants; and Ubuntu!

 

Here are the books acquired over the past several weeks. As we add to the pile it becomes a mountain creating The Never Ending Book Collection. Life is sweet!

Book Previews:

1. The Devil’s Star by Jo Nesbo
2. Buddha’s Orphans by Samrat Upadhyay
3. Our Tragic Universe by Scarlett Thomas
4. The Bat Scientists by Mary Kay Carson
5. Shadow Bound by Erin Kellison
6. Fall of Giants by Ken Follett
7. Ubuntu! by Stephen Lundin and Bob Nelson

There’s a mixed bag of different genres here. We have Mystery, Literary Fiction, Slipstream, Young Adult Science Fact, Fantasy, and Business Non Fiction. Hopefully you will find a few that are of interest.

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The Devil’s Star by Jo Nesbo (translated by Don Bartlett)

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: Harper (March 9, 2010)
• Language: English
• Genre: Translated Mystery

Blurb:   A young woman is murdered in her Oslo flat. One finger has been severed from her left hand, and behind her eyelid is secreted a tiny red diamond in the shape of a five-pointed star — a pentagram, the devil’s star.

Detective Harry Hole is assigned to the case with his long-time adversary Tom Waaler and initially wants no part in it. But Harry is already on notice to quit the force and is left with little alternative but to drag himself out of his alcoholic stupor and get to work.

A wave of similar murders is on the horizon. An emerging pattern suggests that Oslo has a serial killer on its hands, and the five-pointed devil’s star is key to solving the riddle.

It seems the city of Oslo has a serial killer on its hands, and Detective Harry Hole is assigned to the case. Only he is not happy with his colleague Tom Waaler, whom he suspects of arms smuggling and murder. A previous Jo Nesbø title was voted best Norwegian crime novel of all time.

My notes: The Devil’s Star is book #5 of the 8 book series with what looks like one these three being published in English. The Nemesis is book #4 (has been nominated for the Edgar Award  2010) and The Redbreast is book #3.

Check out Jo Nesbo’s incredible website. This is really cool!

• Amazon purchasing links are for US/UK/Canada for The Devil’s Star
• Amazon purchasing links are for US/UK/Canada for The Nemesis (Nemesis in Canada and UK)
• Amazon purchasing links are for US/UK/Canada for The Redbreast

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Buddha’s Orphans by Samrat Upadhyay (ARC)

• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (July 14, 2010)
• Language: English
• Genre: Literary Fiction

Blurb:  Samrat Upadhyay has been called “a Buddhist Chekhov” by the San Francisco Chronicle. His writing has been praised by Amitav Ghosh and Suketu Mehta, and compared with the work of Akhil Sharma and Jhumpa Lahiri, placing him squarely alongside our best-known South Asian writers and at the forefront of literary fiction writers today. 

Upadhyay’s new novel, Buddha’s Orphans, uses Nepal’s political upheavals of the past century as a backdrop to the story of an orphan boy, Raja, and the girl he is fated to love, Nilu, a daughter of privilege. Coveted by more than one woman, Raja is found and raised by a street vendor, kidnapped by an affluent housewife, and then found again by Nilu. Their love story scandalizes both families and takes readers through time and across the globe, through the loss of and search for children, and through several generations of this complicated family, hinting that perhaps old bends can, in fact, be righted in future branches of a family tree.

Buddha’s Orphans is a novel permeated with the sense of how we are irreparably connected to the mothers who birthed us—whether we know them or not, whether we embrace them or not—and of the way events of the past, even those we are ignorant of, inevitably haunt the present. But most of all it is an engrossing, unconventional love story that defies the stereotypes of a traditional South Asian culture, all in a seductive and transporting read.

SAMRAT UPADHYAY is the author of Arresting God in Kathmandu, which earned him a Whiting Award, and The Guru of Love, which was a New York Times Notable Book, a San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year, a finalist for the Kiriyama Prize, and a Book Sense 76 pick. He lives in Bloomington, Indiana, and teaches creative writing and literature at Indiana University. His eight-year-old daughter Shahzadi, is a published poet.

Pre-purchasing links for Amazon for US/UK/Canada.

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Our Tragic Universe by Scarlett Thomas (ARC)

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (September 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• Genre: Literary Fiction (slipstream? – I am hoping)

Blurb:  Can a story save your life? 

Meg Carpenter is broke. Her novel is years overdue. Her cell phone is out of minutes. And her moody boyfriend's only contribution to the household is his sour attitude. So she jumps at the chance to review a pseudoscientific book that promises life everlasting. 

But who wants to live forever? 

Consulting cosmology and physics, tarot cards, koans (and riddles and jokes), new-age theories of everything, narrative theory, Nietzsche, Baudrillard, and knitting patterns, Meg wends her way through Our Tragic Universe, asking this and many other questions. Does she believe in fairies? In magic? Is she a superbeing? Is she living a storyless story? And what's the connection between her off-hand suggestion to push a car into a river, a ship in a bottle, a mysterious beast loose on the moor, and the controversial author of The Science of Living Forever? 

Smart, entrancing, and boiling over with Thomas's trademark big ideas, Our Tragic Universe is a book about how relationships are created and destroyed, how we can rewrite our futures (if not our histories), and how stories just might save our lives. 

SCARLETT THOMAS is the author of several novels, including PopCo and The End of Mr. Y. She was named one of the twenty best young British writers by the Independent on Sunday and Writer of the Year at the 2002 Elle Style Awards. She teaches at the University of Kent and lives in Canterbury. Visit her online at www.scarlettthomas.co.uk.

Amazon pre-purchasing links for US/Canada and purchasing link for UK.

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The Bat Scientists by Mary Kay Carson (ARC)

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
• Hardcover: 80 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children (September 6, 2010)
• Language: English
• Genre: Science

Book Blurb:  Dr. Merlin Tuttle and his colleagues at Bat Conservation International aren't scared of bats. These bat crusaders are fascinated by them, with good reason. Bats fly the night skies in nearly every part of the world, but they are the least studied of all mammals. As the major predator of night-flying insects, bats eat many pests. Unfortunately bats are facing many problems, including a terrifying new disease. White-nose Syndrome is infecting and killing millions of hibernating bats in North America. But Dr. Tuttle, with the help of his fellow bat scientists are in the trenches—and caves—on the front line of the fight to save their beloved bats.

Author Mary Kay Carson is a Goodread’s author,  and has a website with many science based book for children, wildlife, nature, space, weather, and more!

Amazon pre-purchasing links are for US/UK/Canada.

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 Shadow Bound by Erin Kellison

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Not Avail (June 29, 2010)
• Language: English
• Genre: Urban Fantasy/Fairy Tale

Blurb:  Death - Some people will do anything to avoid it. Even trade their immortal souls for endless existence.

Wraiths - Secretly, inexorably, they are infiltrating our world, sucking the essence out of unsuspecting victims with their hideous parody of a kiss.

Segue - Adam Thorne founded the Institute to study and destroy his monster of a brother, but the key to its success is held in the pale, slender hand of a woman on the run. There is something hauntingly different about Talia O’Brien, her unknowing sensuality, her uncanny way of slipping into Shadow.

Twilight - This is the place between life and what comes after - a dark forest of fantasy, filled with beauty, peril, mystery. And Talia is about to open the door.

About Erin Kellison:   Stories have always been a central part of Erin Kellison's life. She attempted her first book in sixth grade, a dark fantasy adventure, and still has those early hand-written chapters. She graduated summa cum laude with a degree in English Language and Literature, and went on for a masters in Cultural Anthropology, focusing on oral storytelling. When she had children, nothing scared her anymore, so her focus shifted to writing fiction. She lives in Arizona with her two beautiful daughters and husband, and she will have a dog (breed undetermined) when her youngest turns five.

Erin Kellison is a Goodread’s author, and has a website. Amazon pre purchasing links for US/UK/Canada.

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Fall of Giants (Book 1) by Ken Follett (ARC)

• Hardcover: 1008 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Adult (September 28, 2010)
• Language: English
• Genre: Historical Fiction

Blurb:   Fall of Giants is his magnificent new historical epic. The first novel in The Century Trilogy, it follows the fates of five interrelated families-American, German, Russian, English, and Welsh-as they move through the world-shaking dramas of the First World War, the Russian Revolution, and the struggle for women's suffrage.

Thirteen-year-old Billy Williams enters a man's world in the Welsh mining pits...Gus Dewar, an American law student rejected in love, finds a surprising new career in Woodrow Wilson's White House...two orphaned Russian brothers, Grigori and Lev Peshkov, embark on radically different paths half a world apart when their plan to emigrate to America falls afoul of war, conscription, and revolution...Billy's sister, Ethel, a housekeeper for the aristocratic Fitzherberts, takes a fateful step above her station, while Lady Maud Fitzherbert herself crosses deep into forbidden territory when she falls in love with Walter von Ulrich, a spy at the German embassy in London...

These characters and many others find their lives inextricably entangled as, in a saga of unfolding drama and intriguing complexity, Fall of Giants moves seamlessly from Washington to St. Petersburg, from the dirt and danger of a coal mine to the glittering chandeliers of a palace, from the corridors of power to the bedrooms of the mighty. As always with Ken Follett, the historical background is brilliantly researched and rendered, the action fast-moving, the characters rich in nuance and emotion. It is destined to be a new classic.

In future volumes of The Century Trilogy, subsequent generations of the same families will travel through the great events of the rest of the twentieth century, changing themselves-and the century itself. With passion and the hand of a master, Follett brings us into a world we thought we knew, but now will never seem the same again.

Here is a link to Ken Follett’s web site. Amazon pre-purchasing links are for US/UK/Canada.

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Ubuntu! by Stephen Lundin and Bob Nelson

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Broadway Business (March 30, 2010)
• Language: English
• Genre: Business/Fable

Blurb:  A powerful story about the African philosophy of teamwork and collaboration that has the power to reshape our workplaces, our relationships with our coworkers, and our personal lives, written by the bestselling coauthor of Fish! and the bestselling author of 1001 Ways to Reward Employees.

John Peterson, a new manager in the credit department at a major big-box retailer, is struggling in his job. The people under him are not working as well or effectively as they need to, and his department is falling behind in meeting its goals. His only solution is to take on more work himself, burning the midnight oil and coming in most weekends to pick up the slack and keep his department above water.

When one of the employees stays behind to help him—a young man who came to America from a small village in Africa—he learns of the ancient wisdom and hidden power of the African philosophy of Ubuntu. Before long, it begins to change the way he thinks about the people he works with, about himself, and about how he runs his department and his life.

In an engaging and completely fresh narrative that holds a unique message for today’s business world, Ubuntu! shows us a way to overcome our fears, insecurities, and the “me-ism” that so often permeates our workplaces, and replace it with a culture of genuine respect and collaboration. It promises to take its place alongside Fish! and other business parables as the next bestselling classic in the business category.

About the Authors:  Stephen Lundin, Ph.D., the bestselling author of the FISH! series of books, with over 7 million copies in print, has an inventory of work experience ranging from dishwasher to think tank executive; teacher to business school dean; golf caddy to camp director; and small business owner to national sales manager.

Bob Nelson is one of the world’s leading authorities on employee motivation & management and president of Nelson Motivation Inc., a management training and consulting company that specializes in helping organizations improve their management practices, programs and systems.

Here is the authors’ web site, and more about the Ubuntu philosophy from Wikipedia. Amazon purchasing links for US/UK/Canada.

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All the above titles received by request via Shelf Awareness, PTA Interactive, and Net Galley.

Have a great Monday everyone! Which titles are you interested in?

Review by Shellie: Dirty Little Angels – A Novel by Chris Tusa

 

This a page turning coming of age story with a dark Southern Gothic tone and an intriguing twist.

Mini Synopsis:   A realistic tale centered in a pre Katrina New Orleans, the main character  Haley is a 16 years old girl whose family is having financial difficulties among other sad things. Mom has had a recent miscarriage and is bedbound. Pop is out of work, is spending his time and what little money they do have at the local bar/pool hall, and is involved with a local stripper/waitress.

With all these elements we can see the main character is caught in a situation which is less than ideal. It is a slippery slope as she tries to emotionally balance the events occurring around her and manage her own maturation and the realizations which adolescence provokes.

The story includes a variety of motley characters, and when Haley gets sucked into some gang like activities, the events conspiring against her culminate into an original, intriguing, slightly paranormal, and heart wrenching ending which is connected to the title – Dirty Little Angels.

My Thoughts:   I devoured this short novel, it was a definite page turner! Chris Tusa captures the confusion of a teenager spiraling out of control, writing of her confusion, contemplations, and angst. In doing so he uses a simple language appropriate for the background of the characters. Here is an example which is in part both funny and dark. Haley and her brother Cyrus are being questioned by a local detective:

When we got there, the officer brought Cyrus and me into a white room with glass walls. A few minutes later, another man came in and sat down. He was an older fat man with a stubbly chin and a bald, liver spotted skull. He had tiny baby teeth that looked like someone had plugged little white Chiclets into his gums, and you could smell Old Spice seeping from his pores. His hips where someone else’s hips welded onto his skeleton, and his chest looked like Brandon Piggert’s chest the summer he’d grown little midget boobs after shooting up a batch of steroids.

This novel asks the questions: How does one become involved in situations we know are not quite right? Where does one fit in within a world that values unreal perfection? And although not a religious book, it examines the concept of whether saving ourselves is right even if it conflicts with our religious beliefs (or lack thereof) or those of others.

The ending, which is connected to the concept of the title, is the clincher, where the title is not at all what it seems. The connection is dark, a bit other worldly, has a touch of insanity, and is something I keep thinking about. I give this great little book 3.5 stars. I am really looking forward to more of this author’s work.

For more information on the book, the author, as well as purchasing links, please see Layers of Thought’s preview for Dirty Little Angels by Chris Tusa.

Happy Friday everyone! Thanks for reading Layers of Thought.

Bloggiesta Ole! – let the blog improvements begin!

 

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Pedro! - Plan.  Edit.  Develop.  Review.  Organize.

Lets hear it for our Mascot – lets Party!!!

(Badge links to the beginning post for the blog improvement extravaganza at Maw Books Blog. A big thanks to Maw!)

The third event of its kind, and my second time joining in the festivities, it is where a bunch of bloggers will set goals, enter mini challenges, win prizes, and connect with one another via posts, RSS feed, twitter and more. All the while improving their blogs. With a a variety of very experienced and knowledgeable bloggers hosting mini challenges and contests, you can still check them out even if you do not participate. My motto is that lurking and linking works.

My involvement will for today only, since I do need to unplug a bit each week. The last Bloggiesta I came to some dark realizations (example – I had a ton of links leading nowhere, which I still have not fixed) about my blog and tried to do more that I could possibly complete. This time a bit wiser, I am going to use the KISS strategy – keep it simple SHELLIE! and set just a few “easier” goals for the day and perhaps more for the next six months as I become more aware of the things we bloggers can do to improve our blogs.

And to remind myself of my true nature, here is my little personal avatar for the challenge (that's me snail shell Shellie - without the tequila):

My Simple Goals (I am still kidding myself *twisted smile*):

1. Create a Blog roll invitation post. (started)
2. Credit new header to the artist.
3. Update review policy.
4. Examine categories and update as needed.
5. Update reading challenge posts.
6. Back it up!

3.5 down 2.5 to go!

Beyond Bloggiesta Goals and Mini Challenge Participation (to be added as the day progresses):

1.  Embracing Community at Bonjour, Cass!   - mini challenge comment on 10 or more blogs from the challenge
   • Taylor (The Library Lurker) – 16 year old new YA blogger
   • Charlotte – Speculative Blogger – mostly YA
   • Bobbie( Til We Read Again)
   • Fiona (The Book Coop) – new blogger with a cute owl theme
   • Shelley (Book Clutter)
   • Christina (Ardent Reader) – simple layout and reviews classics
   • Laurel- Rain Snow's Collections – author and mega blogger, she has so many blogs that I cannot keep track. Last check it was 20?
   • Chrisbookarama - established and very organized blogger
   • K A B L O O E Y – creative self recriminating mom/blogger with a killer header
   • Kerry @ Entomology of a Bookworm – new blogger very cute blog name
   • Kailia (Reading The Best of The Best) -  interactive YA site, almost trilingual author
   • Sherrie( Just Books)
   • Courtney@ Stiletto Storytime – what a blog name and header!
   • Jennifer (Reading with Tequila) – eclectic, kick a@# reader, she reads an amazing amount each month!
2. Girls Gone Reading – Your Review Policy – mini challenge has been updated ( this is an excellent post with some great tips!)

Updates:

Friday – 6/11/2010

8:11 am – beginning blog post

9:43 am – fixed funky wording on this post, started blog roll invitation, started end post for this challenge, and added some helpful links to share.

10:32 am – found loads of great links and ideas for end post, commented on 3 blogs and found the little start icon header added above!

11:15 am – completed mini challenge number one – off to fix lunch!

3:01 pm – updated review policy via mini challenge, checked out a few other recommendations for example a firefox add on which I have yet to use called easyComment. 

4:03 pm – added artist credit for new header, and got lost in the art of flickr for an hour – Oh Dear!

4:43 pm – checked out rss feed info not what I needed, added fb link for subscribers

5:27 pm – commented on a few other blogs, did some perusing on older bloggiesta posts, also created a list of my categories to examine and simplify

5:41 pm - over and out – I may be back for more tomorrow - Time for Margaritas and burritos!

Saturday – June 12, 2010

Completed Categories for this session – thinking about other ways to shrink the huge list.

Over and out!  Unlpugging….

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There is still time to join in, link, think, and do. I will be updating this post as the event progresses so no Bloggiesta spam this weekend. I will also attempt to do an ending post for the event on Monday.

For new visitors – Hello and welcome!  We respond to all comments here at Layers of Thought – all suggestions and encouragements are greatly appreciated!

Review by JD: Pretty Birds – a novel by Scott Simon

 

A Harrowing Novel based upon the War in Bosnia through the 1990s

John’s Thoughts:  While I would normally hesitate to say that everyone should read a certain book, I might break the rule for this one. This is a really good book on an important subject. And don’t be misled by the title; it is a gritty, brutal, touching and tragic story about one of the most shameful acts of the 20th century – the siege of Sarajevo which took place during the war in Bosnia.

While it is a work of fiction, much of the framework and the many of the details woven into the story are factual. Simon was a journalist covering the war in Bosnia (and many other wars) and he has received a host of major awards for his work, which has featured on the radio, television and in newspapers

The story revolves around Irena, a sports-mad teenager who lives in Sarajevo with her parents and her pet parrot – Pretty Bird. Despite the ethnic tensions caused by the splintering of Yugoslavia into several different states, Irena and the people of Sarajevo do not feel threatened initially. Sarajevo has always been proud of its multi-ethnic background and indeed seems to thrive on the mix of cultures. As one of the characters says when asked about her ethnicity and religion:

I am Muslim. I may have a touch of Jew. I know I have a touch of Serb. I also refuse to eat animal flesh – a touch of Hindu. You will find that here in Sarajevo we all have a touch of something.

Sadly, whatever the people of Sarajevo may feel, the city is quickly swept along by events far bigger than the city itself. The Serbian army and paramilitaries crash into town and almost overnight the city is arbitrarily split into two halves divided by the river, with the well armed Serbian forces on one side, and the largely unarmed Muslim civilians on the other. Irena’s family, while not really religious at all, are deemed to be Muslim, and they have the misfortune to live in the part of the city that is claimed by the Serbs. They are forced to flee and suffer terribly as ethnic cleansing takes over a largely secular neighborhood.

The Muslim half of Sarajevo is now surrounded by Serbian forces and so begins the terrible siege of the city. No-one is safe anywhere as they are subject to daily and indiscriminate bombing and sniper fire. Starved of all basic needs and of the means to fight back effectively (they were subject to a UN-imposed arms embargo), the mainly Muslim Sarajevans engage in whatever acts of defiance they can – and Irena eventually becomes a sniper too.

The story takes you through the terror and deprivations of the ordinary people, and describes their remarkable resilience. But there is humor too, as they try to maintain some semblance of normality. It is full of interesting and rich characters, and the plot twists and turns in ways you do not expect. You root for the main characters but you know that in the world that they are forced to live in, things cannot end well for all of them.

There are a couple of things about the book that didn’t quite work for me, but I’d be nitpicking to describe them. This is a very good book – moving, illuminating and thought-provoking. I’d rate if 4.5 stars and I’d recommend that you make a point of reading it.

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• Pretty Birds  by Scott Simon
• ISBN: 0-8129-7330-5
• Pages 345: paperback
• Random House, 2006 (hard cover 2005)
• Genre: General Fiction

Amazon purchasing links for US/UK/Canada.

This book is from our personal library collection. Where John (aka JD) as always, will be addressing your comments for this book. So don’t forget to check the follow up comment box to get his reply back.

Happy Thursday folks and thanks for reading Layers of Thought!