We took way too long on Beowulf--but the girls enjoyed it! The next book on our list is 1001 Arabian Nights by Geraldine McCaughrean. The girls don't comprehend well unless we take it slow and easy, so which chapters would you say we shouldn't miss, and which chapters are okay to skip? FWIW, I noticed that the Beautiful Feet Medieval Guide suggests reading only ch.1-8, 16-17, 23-26, and 30-35. Another reading guide (I can't remember which one right now) suggests reading only ch.1-5, 23-26, and 33-35. What do you think?

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We took way too long on Beowulf--but the girls enjoyed it! The next book on our list is 1001 Arabian Nights by Geraldine McCaughrean. The girls don't comprehend well unless we take it slow and easy, so which chapters would you say we shouldn't miss, and which chapters are okay to skip? FWIW, I noticed that the Beautiful Feet Medieval Guide suggests reading only ch.1-8, 16-17, 23-26, and 30-35. Another reading guide (I can't remember which one right now) suggests reading only ch.1-5, 23-26, and 33-35. What do you think?

In positively LOVED the chocolate factory books (especially the first one) and The BFG. Roald Dahl's children's books are some of my favorites. I've also read some of his writings for adults/young adults, and those are definitely NOT for children. I'm thinking of the short story Skin, in particular.

If so, please share! Thanks!

Great suggestions! Thanks to everyone who posted. :)

I forgot about runny eggs! Blechhhh!

I have problems with the arch of one foot (posterior tibial tendinitis), and I need stability & motion control shoes. I MUST have good arch support and a shoe with a fairly hard, inflexible sole. This summer I have been successfully wearing these http://www.amazon.com/White-Mountain-Womens-Carly-Leather/dp/B000CD9WW2/ref=sr_1_1?s=apparel&ie=UTF8&qid=1438348138&sr=1-1&keywords=carly&refinements=p_89%3AWhite+Mountain, and I have them in several colors, but I can't wear them on the beach because they aren't suitable for getting wet. Crocs won't work because they are too squishy and bendy. Any other ideas?

It is (or at used to be around here) a staple among hospital foods. During a hospital stay of about a month after I was in a car accident some years ago, I was served all kinds of congealed salads: lime Jello with fruit cocktail mixed in, orange Jello with shredded carrots, lemon Jello with pineapple tidbits, etc. It was years before I could tolerate Jello again, even without other stuff in it.

For me, it's a very short list! Almost everything that people have mentioned in their posts are foods that I really like, and some--like raw tomatoes, green olives, cheese--are among my favorite foods. But... What do I NOT like? Hmmm... MARSHMALLOWS. I do not like marshmallows right out of the bag, but I will eat melty marshmallows (s'mores, Rice Krispy Treats, floating in hot chocolate) BAKERY FROSTING / ICING. It tastes... well, like grease and sugar mixed together, because that's what it is. Disgusting. I scraped the frosting off and eat the cake. Same with the "stuff" inside Oreos. It tastes like compressed bakery icing to me. Nasty. CHOCOLATE *FLAVORED* ANYTHING. Don't get me wrong. I LOOOOOVE good chocolate, but chocolate FLAVORED candy or drinks is just plain WRONG. I really cannot think of any common foods that I absolutely WILL NOT or CANNOT make myself eat. Even the ones listed above are things that I COULD eat if I had to for some reason.

When my children were younger, YES! I would tell my dh that I needed some time to myself, and he would say, "You go shopping and I'll keep the kids." And I remember telling him that I didn't want to go shopping alone; I wanted to be HOME alone so I could be completely by myself for just a few hours. So he would occasionally take the children out for lunch and maybe a trip to the mall, and I would just veg.

I do teach only girls, and I think I like the girly sound of Inkheart. But I also like Inklings. Except that it HAS already been done. ;) Still thinking...

I really like this!

I thought about that but then decided I liked it anyway. ;) And these girls are the ones I teach every day, so they'll be here anyway. But yeah, I might run it past their moms just to be sure, if I decide to go with one of the names I mentioned. Thanks!

Okay, the Inklings comment got me to thinking... What do you think of Inkheart or Inkspell (but not Inkdeath ;)) as a book club name? I found this (about the Inkheart book series) and I think it fits the way I want our book club to be perceived. It points out that the main characters "have the unusual ability to bring characters from books into the real world when reading aloud. ...The central story arc concerns the magic of books, their characters and creatures, and the art of reading." (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inkheart_trilogy)

Ah, yes, the Inklings. I love them. ;)

I don't want the name to contain the words "book," "read(ing)," or "literature." I want it to be something that my reading-phobic students will think sounds "mature" and not silly or juvenile, and at the same time, I want the name to at least HINT that it is, indeed, a book club / reading club / literature club. FWIW, I think it's really more of a guided reading group than a book club, but the connotation of something that's "exclusive" like a club should go over pretty well. We will be reading and discussing the books together--no outside reading, but perhaps some simple outside writing assignments, such as predicting what a particular character will do, or listing a few questions they'd like to discuss. Tall order, I know!

"Interesting and fun are not synonyms." I completely agree.

Outlook won't auto-complete some of the names in my address book. And it's driving me crazy!!! I have a contact for each of moms whose daughters I teach. I've saved each of their names in my contacts: Cindy, Debby, and Mary. If I start typing "Mary" into the to: field in the message form, everything is fine. The program auto-completes and inserts Mary's name/address. But when I type in "Cindy" or "Debby," Outlook says it has no idea who this person is, and has no suggestions, yet I can click "Check Names" and there is the name! What is going on?

Aw, thank you! :)

Anyone?

I've heard about Goodreads and Library Thing but I don't know anything about them. I want to be able to scan ISBNs (or type in the titles of older books without ISBNs) and sort books into categories by topic, reading level, and so forth. What are your recommendations?

Same here. I leave mine on all night because I am the parent of young adults and I have an elderly mother who lives alone, and we all generally text or talk using our cellphones.

I definitely would buy new. My dil just bought a Pro and she loves it! I think I'll play around on hers and see how I like it. I already piddled a bit with EK's sweetheart's Air, and I thought that was what I wanted, but apparently the Pro is more of a workhorse. I'm just afraid that if I got the Air, which I love because of how light it is, I might not get the productivity that I need.

Oops! Double post!