Peonies have several layers of petals that surround the stamens. They are fragrant and fresh. In a lovely vase, they droop elegantly like a shower of roses. I present those two lines I wrote, in the hope that you will in turn offer your lines or the lines of another writer. And since this is a blog about conversations in writing and literature, here comes the following: My daughter loaned me what I deem a masterwork. It's my opinion. It may not be the opinion of other avid readers. She and I discussed the standards we require in literary works. She looks for an important theme, a plot that retains her attention, characters she likes. I do too. But the quality of the writing is the most important factor to sustain my interest and stir my enthusiasm. The following is the first paragraph of Barbara Kingsolver,s Prodigal Summer , a book about the supreme excellence of nature and human love in the midst of the flora and fauna that surround the protagonists. Her body moved with the fr
