Book a Week in 2014 - BW3

[Onceuponatime]

 

 

 

I love chocolate soft serve, which isn't easy to find. Our DQ has it, but for some reason the chocolate side is always broken.

 

 

 

 

You think chocolate soft serve is hard to find, trying looking for chocolate and vanilla swirl. That's my favorite. :drool5:

 

 

 

 

 

Back to the book talk. Geoffrey of Monmouth: boy history moves fast, and there's a whole lot of slaying goin' on.

[Pam in CT]

Do any of you write in the margins of your books?  I've never had the courage, except for note taking in college days, but through my own reading and the discussion of books on this thread I'm more understanding of the impulse and benefit of doing so.  I bring this up because of 2 delightful columns about marginalia and because of a book I got my son for Christmas.

 

I don't generally write in most fiction, which once I've finished I tend to pass on to my daughter or friends, or give to our library for its book sales; and obviously I don't write in borrowed books; but I do write, extensively, in "heavier" books that I have to engage in and think about... and in fact, if I suspect I am going to want to engage actively/extensively I generally buy the book rather than taking it out from the library, so that I *can* write in it.  

 

Over the years I've worked out a sort of system of TOC annotation, stars, asterisks and marginalia that allows me to pick up a book I read a while ago and quickly remind myself of what I thought about it.  And it's very fun to re-read a book and see how my responses have changed.

 

I grew up, though, with an absolute TABOO about marking up a book, which held me back for a long time!! But it was very liberating to let go of that fear!

 

 

 

On a different subject I am extremely pleased to report that I just found my lost audio CDs of Chinua Achebe's Things Fall into the Spare Tire Wheel...  I mean, Things Fall Apart... so hopefully I can finish that soon!

[JennW in SoCal]

I finished 'The Rosie Project' by Graeme Simsion. It was fun. :)

 

Could be the title of your homeschooling memoir one day :laugh:

[MelAR05]

I finished 'The Rosie Project' by Graeme Simsion. It was fun. :)

 

I am reading this right now.  :iagree:

[Mothersweets]

I saw this on Facebook and thought you all would enjoy it.

 

"What an astonishing thing a book is. It's a flat object made from a tree with flexible parts on which are imprinted lots of funny dark squiggles. But one glance at it and you're inside the mind of another person, maybe somebody dead for thousands of years. Across the millennia, an author is speaking clearly and silently inside your head, directly to you. Writing is perhaps the greatest of human inventions, binding together people who never knew each other, citizens of distant epochs. Books break the shackles of time. A book is proof that humans are capable of working magic."  (Carl Sagan, "The Persistence of Memory" Episode 11 of Cosmos: A Personal Voyage)

 

What a fantastic quote!

[Kareni]

 I bring this up because of 2 delightful columns about marginalia ....

 

 

 

Jenn, here is a link to another article about marginalia:

 

Book Lovers Fear Dim Future for Notes in the Margins

 

and a link to an older thread on the topic:

 

Please help me overcome my phobia...writing in books

 

Regards,

Kareni

[mumto2]

That's one reason I ds a Kindle. Well, not because he was germy. :) He kept wanting to borrow mine. I didn't mind, except we both like to read before bed. I hated to tell him no, but I also hated to give up my Kindle at bed time (he's older, and we head for our bedrooms around the same time). 

 

I hope your dd feels better soon, and that what you all had was close enough to give everyone some immunity.

Both dc's have their own kindles which are set up with a different amazon account with dh. It was a brilliant idea a couple of years ago when I really did not want ds reading some of my fluff. Now it is a pain but I normally use my fire and not the reader so it could be worse. She does seem better today and has laid claim to the reader. I am just glad library books load onto both devices.

[Pam in CT]

from Kareni's linked thread:

 

 

#29 Janice in NJ

Hive Mind Queen Bee

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Posted 16 May 2009 - 08:21 AM

An idea!
Go out to the bookstore and purchase an exact duplicate copy of one of the Penguin paperbacks that you would like to annotate - a new copy - that you can "destroy" by writing in it. Start by creasing the spine SOUNDLY. And then grab a pen and start reading. Find a particularly beautiful sounding sentence? Circle it. Big sloppy circle - or a nice neat circle with a fine-point pen. Draw a smiley face in the margin and write the word "Love the way this sounds!" next to it. 

Keep reading.
Find out some background info about a character. Draw an arrow to the sentence. In the margin write, "Hmm.... Bet THIS will be a problem!" 
Find a beautiful parallel triple phrase. Write "3x" in the margin. 
Read a string of really strong long, long, long sentences with loads of subordinating clauses followed by a 3-word sentence. Write "Why?" Stop. Think, "How do I feel right now? Tension. Nervous? Why? Why do I feel that way." Go back. Re-read the paragraph. Ahh... bet this is foreshadowing. This is here for a reason. What is the author going to do with this? Jot down your guess in the margin. "Jane is going to be a pain. Don't think I'm going to like her. We'll see!" 

Whatever you're thinking at the time. 
Feel free to get it wrong. 
Let the author hit you with something and whack it back. 
She writes. You write.
Enjoy.

AND if you get to the end of the book and don't feel like the back-n-forth helped you engage with the author at a deeper level, THROW the book in the trash can! Eight bucks WASTED! But now you know. You don't like writing in your books. 

...I suspect instead that you will slide you tattered annotated copy on the shelf next to your crisp, clean "brand new" Penguin copy; you won't want to give up the annotated copy because it holds a record of your conversation. The author's words and yours now lie between the folded black cover. When you come across the same character-development technique in another book, you'll ask yourself, "Now where was that? I remember this whole fairy-tale wicked stepmother thing." Flip, flip, flip through your annotated copy - ignoring the author's endless lines but searching for your colorful note, you'll remember what side of the page it was and most of what you wrote. When you find it, you'll re-read what the author said, what you said, and how you felt at the time. Returning to the book that you are currently reading, you'll write, "Jane Eyre pg 23. Nice connection today!" 

It really is great fun!

But consider spending $8 on an experiment. Nothing huge lost if you hate it. Be reckless!  :001_smile:

 

 

 

 

... what she said!   :001_smile:

 

[LostSurprise]

Before the Christmas break, someone had an illustration of a girl and a bear in their signature. 

 

 

 

And I loved it so much I found the illustrator, Gennady Pavlishin who illustrated one of Russia's most beautiful children's books Folktales of the Amur. Folktales of the Amur are fairy tales/cultural myths from the Amur people of Siberia who live along the coast north of China and Mongolia. 

 

So beautiful. 

 

 

 

 

 

I have a thing for Siberia already, so I had to order this book. I just wanted to say thank you to whoever got me started on this rabbit trail. 

[Robin M]

I liked this and then thought I hope she doesn't think I like the fact that her computer is driving her crazy! It is a sympathy like. Also an I do appreciate the time you spend on 52 books like. :grouphug:

 

 

 

 

Likes, wine, chocolate, or tea....gimme!  :lol:

 

 

from Kareni's linked thread:

 

 

#29 Janice in NJ

Hive Mind Queen Bee

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• Members
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• 2132 posts

Posted 16 May 2009 - 08:21 AM

An idea!

Go out to the bookstore and purchase an exact duplicate copy of one of the Penguin paperbacks that you would like to annotate - a new copy - that you can "destroy" by writing in it. Start by creasing the spine SOUNDLY. And then grab a pen and start reading. Find a particularly beautiful sounding sentence? Circle it. Big sloppy circle - or a nice neat circle with a fine-point pen. Draw a smiley face in the margin and write the word "Love the way this sounds!" next to it. 

 

Keep reading.

Find out some background info about a character. Draw an arrow to the sentence. In the margin write, "Hmm.... Bet THIS will be a problem!" 

Find a beautiful parallel triple phrase. Write "3x" in the margin. 

Read a string of really strong long, long, long sentences with loads of subordinating clauses followed by a 3-word sentence. Write "Why?" Stop. Think, "How do I feel right now? Tension. Nervous? Why? Why do I feel that way." Go back. Re-read the paragraph. Ahh... bet this is foreshadowing. This is here for a reason. What is the author going to do with this? Jot down your guess in the margin. "Jane is going to be a pain. Don't think I'm going to like her. We'll see!" 

 

Whatever you're thinking at the time. 

Feel free to get it wrong. 

Let the author hit you with something and whack it back. 

She writes. You write.

Enjoy.

 

AND if you get to the end of the book and don't feel like the back-n-forth helped you engage with the author at a deeper level, THROW the book in the trash can! Eight bucks WASTED! But now you know. You don't like writing in your books. 

 

...I suspect instead that you will slide you tattered annotated copy on the shelf next to your crisp, clean "brand new" Penguin copy; you won't want to give up the annotated copy because it holds a record of your conversation. The author's words and yours now lie between the folded black cover. When you come across the same character-development technique in another book, you'll ask yourself, "Now where was that? I remember this whole fairy-tale wicked stepmother thing." Flip, flip, flip through your annotated copy - ignoring the author's endless lines but searching for your colorful note, you'll remember what side of the page it was and most of what you wrote. When you find it, you'll re-read what the author said, what you said, and how you felt at the time. Returning to the book that you are currently reading, you'll write, "Jane Eyre pg 23. Nice connection today!" 

 

It really is great fun!

 

But consider spending $8 on an experiment. Nothing huge lost if you hate it. Be reckless!  :001_smile:

 

 

 

 

... what she said!   :001_smile:

 

 

This is great and don't remember seeing the conversation before. Also a wonderful way for a writer to anaylze an author's writing style or a story.  Thanks for posting this. 

[Rosie_0801]

I am reading this right now.  :iagree:

 

There really is a hardware shop in Shepparton. :p

[Robin M]

Hey Gang - this looks like fun - International Correspondence Month.  I'm signing up and going for it.  PM your addresses to me because I'd rather write to friends than strangers. Although that will be an interesting aspect of it.  Momofonefunone started a thread about it.

[Guest]

 

Have you all heard of the book with the simple title S., yes, just the letter S?  It is by JJ Abrams of tv's Lost and the recent Star Trek reboot, and by Doug Dorst.  It is very "meta" as my son would say, a story within a story, told through the marginalia of 2 people make in an adventure book which is bound like an early 60s library book, complete with call number and due date stamps.  There are slips of paper in the book -- theater tickets and newspaper clippings, and the comments by the 2 people span several years.  I gave it to my ds for Christmas and he loved it, taking notes and really studying each chapter to keep track of all the elements and to figure out the mystery.  But did he leave it for me to enjoy when he left to return to campus?  Oh no.  He wants to share it with his friends -- I'm left to buy another copy for myself!

 

Oh, man, that looks great! I just went to buy it on Amazon and it's out of stock. Bummer! I want it today! My B&N stores locally are all out of it, too. I'm imagining we'll be hearing more of this book this year.

 

To answer the original question, no, I don't write in the margins of books. I am not into journals, either. I don't like to share my thoughts. I will, however, underline in non-fiction self-help type books (i.e. parenting books).

[Onceuponatime]

Well, Winter's Tale is not grabbing me. I put it down and picked up a discarded library book that I found in the thrift store: Emily Dickenson is dead. I think it is a murder mystery. I don't care. It doesn't have anything to do with winter, which I am tired of at the moment.

[Stacia]

.

[Stacia]

.

[Jane in NC]

Before the Christmas break, someone had an illustration of a girl and a bear in their signature. 

 

 

 

And I loved it so much I found the illustrator, Gennady Pavlishin who illustrated one of Russia's most beautiful children's books Folktales of the Amur. Folktales of the Amur are fairy tales/cultural myths from the Amur people of Siberia who live along the coast north of China and Mongolia. 

 

So beautiful. 

 

 

 

 

I have a thing for Siberia already, so I had to order this book. I just wanted to say thank you to whoever got me started on this rabbit trail. 

 

 

Ohhhh. Gorgeous. (Just looked on amazon & the used copies are expensive!) I find Siberia/Mongolia fascinating too, so this looks like something I'd love. Thanks for sharing.

New BaW travel fantasy:  the Trans Siberian Railway!!

[Jane in NC]

I'm in too for the InCoWriMo.  Stacia, I have your address.  You'll be hearing from me!

 

If anyone else wants to PM their addresses, I will enjoy mailing a letter/note/postcard.

 

Jane

[Stacia]

In addition to Russian Winter, I have also started Serena by Ron Rash. (I found it on Robin's linked list of 16 Books To Read Before They Hit Theaters This Year.)

 

So far, it is spare & brutal. Very good writing. Don't know if it will be too harsh for me or not, but so far I'm finding it quite compelling.

[Stacia]

.

[AmandaVT]

I need to do a catch up post here! 

 

This week I'm up to: 

 

1. A Woman of Independent Means

2. The Mysterious Affair at Styles

3. Working it Out - Abby Rike (former Biggest Loser contestant)

4. Outlander - Diana Gabaldon (reread-trying to time a reread of the series for the release of book 8)

5. Mint Juleps and Justice - Nancy Naigle  (Kindle First book and I did not enjoy it very much)

 

Still working on

 

Autobiography of Ben Franklin

Dragonfly in Amber - Diana Gabaldon

 

[shukriyya]

Hey Gang - this looks like fun - International Correspondence Month.  I'm signing up and going for it.  PM your addresses to me because I'd rather write to friends than strangers. Although that will be an interesting aspect of it.  Momofonefunone started a thread about it.

 

Hmm, I'm having a little pen, ink and paper geek out at the thought of this. The possibilities for different kinds of paper (handmade, rough-edged, smooth, cream, ivory, white...) and pens (calligraphic, fine nib, ball point...) and ink (sepia, black, navy, aqua, gold...) have me musing on the visual and luddite loveliness of it all.

 

Still working my way through CofB and enjoying it as well as my mystery. Some of you read at the speed of light.

 

 

[Kareni]

I just finished the rather angsty new adult book Left Drowning by Jessica Park.

 

"What does it take to rise from life’s depths, swim against the current, and breathe?

 

Weighted down by the loss of her parents, Blythe McGuire struggles to keep her head above water as she trudges through her last year at Matthews College. Then a chance meeting sends Blythe crashing into something she doesn’t expect—an undeniable attraction to a dark-haired senior named Chris Shepherd, whose past may be even more complicated than her own. As their relationship deepens, Chris pulls Blythe out of the stupor she’s been in since the night a fire took half her family. She begins to heal, and even, haltingly, to love this guy who helps her find new paths to pleasure and self-discovery. But as Blythe moves into calmer waters, she realizes Chris is the one still strangled by his family’s traumatic history. As dark currents threaten to pull him under, Blythe may be the only person who can keep him from drowning.

 

This book is intended for mature audiences due to strong language and sexual content."

 

That last sentence is very true.

 

While it was a gripping read, I felt that it could have been a tad shorter.  I did enjoy the author's earlier book Flat-Out Love.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[shukriyya]

I love reading this thread, but you all are too fast for me. I can't keep up! 

 

 I'm reading Jane Hirschfield right now and sometimes I just want to share with you all too. 

 

Please share! If not here then pm me and we can dialogue that way. I love hearing what lines and images and necklaces of words move folks.

[Robin M]

Hmm, I'm having a little pen, ink and paper geek out at the thought of this. The possibilities for different kinds of paper (handmade, rough-edged, smooth, cream, ivory, white...) and pens (calligraphic, fine nib, ball point...) and ink (sepia, black, navy, aqua, gold...) have me musing on the visual and luddite loveliness of it all.

 

Still working my way through CofB and enjoying it as well as my mystery. Some of you read at the speed of light.

 

 

Somehow I knew it would have that affect on you. :)

[LostSurprise]

New BaW travel fantasy:  the Trans Siberian Railway!!

 

I've always had that fantasy too, but Paul Theroux burst it in The Great Railway Bazaar. Of course, he was probably burned out after train travel through Europe, the Mid-east, India, southeast Asia, and Japan. He made it sound cold, depressing, and boring...with terrible food and worse attitudes. 

 

So sad. I used to love that dream. 

[Stacia]

I've always had that fantasy too, but Paul Theroux burst it in The Great Railway Bazaar. Of course, he was probably burned out after train travel through Europe, the Mid-east, India, southeast Asia, and Japan. He made it sound cold, depressing, and boring...with terrible food and worse attitudes. 

 

So sad. I used to love that dream. 

 

I haven't read that book, but I think he's probably on target. Train travel looks much more romantic in the movies than in real life. (It's efficient & convenient in Europe if you're just traveling a short time/distance, but longer than an hour or two & I'd prefer some other mode of transportation....) Jmho.

 

:lol:

 

ETA: Keep the dream! Enjoy the dream! (And just don't try it in real life so your dream can remain alive!)

[shukriyya]

All this travel talk puts me in mind of a book I read years ago called, in typical British understatement and setting the tone for the dry wit of the book, 'A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush' by Eric Newby. From Amazon...

A classic of travel writing, ‘A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush’ is Eric Newby’s iconic account of his journey through one of the most remote and beautiful wildernesses on earth.


I laughed out loud so often with this book. I read it and then I listened to it as an audiobook which was even funnier. Alas, the audio version is $80 and only available as cassettes. But the book is highly recommended to all the travelogue lovers here.

[Rosie_0801]

Three days on the train from Melbourne to Perth was better fun than I expected it to be. I can't comment on the food though, I couldn't afford to buy it. :p

[Jane in NC]

I haven't read that book, but I think he's probably on target. Train travel looks much more romantic in the movies than in real life. (It's efficient & convenient in Europe if you're just traveling a short time/distance, but longer than an hour or two & I'd prefer some other mode of transportation....) Jmho.

 

:lol:

 

ETA: Keep the dream! Enjoy the dream! (And just don't try it in real life so your dream can remain alive!)I

I have had some great train trips--even here in the US where one cannot expect the trains to arrive or depart as scheduled.  But I still love trains.  Shrug...

[mlbuchina]

Well, Winter's Tale is not grabbing me. I put it down and picked up a discarded library book that I found in the thrift store: Emily Dickenson is dead. I think it is a murder mystery. I don't care. It doesn't have anything to do with winter, which I am tired of at the moment.

 

I read one book for winter, and that is enough for me.  The books I've got in my stack now are travelogues in the Caribbean, or around the world.  I have some from Japanese authors for the around-the-world challenge, but those aren't calling to me as much as the Caribbean books are.   :lol:   I could so easily fly south for the winter, if I had the money.

 

I need to do a catch up post here! 

 

This week I'm up to: 

 

1. A Woman of Independent Means

2. The Mysterious Affair at Styles

3. Working it Out - Abby Rike (former Biggest Loser contestant)

4. Outlander - Diana Gabaldon (reread-trying to time a reread of the series for the release of book 8)

5. Mint Juleps and Justice - Nancy Naigle  (Kindle First book and I did not enjoy it very much)

 

Still working on

 

Autobiography of Ben Franklin

Dragonfly in Amber - Diana Gabaldon

 

I've gotten through Voyager, but I don't think I'm going to make it by the time the book comes out.  I have so many other books I want to read that I've never read before, and they keep getting in the way of my re-read.

 

Please share! If not here then pm me and we can dialogue that way. I love hearing what lines and images and necklaces of words move folks.

 

In middle school, we had to do a poetry project where we looked for examples of different styles of poetry to put in a hand made collection with hand made illustrations.  I still have mine, and will leaf through it every once in a while, remembering.  There is one poem, by William Blake, I chose for my project that has never left me.  It pops up randomly in my mind from time to time, and always makes me smile.

 

Love to faults is always blind.

Always is to joy inclined.

Lawless, winged, and unconfined,

And breaks all chains from every mind.

 

I'm not a huge poetry fan, although I might could be if I knew more about it, but I do love e. e. cummings.  My favorite poem by him is "somewhere i have never traveled, gladly beyond".

 

Actually, thinking on poetry brings to mind probably my most favorite of all, "Sea Fever", by John Masefield.  It sings to my soul.

 

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,

And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,

And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,

And a grey mist on the sea's face, and a grey dawn breaking.

 

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide

Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;

And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,

And the flung spray and the blown spume, and sea-gulls crying.

 

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,

To the gull's way and the whale's way, where the wind's like a whetted knife;

And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,

And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.

 

 

I typed all that out just so I could hold the words in my hands.  I love it.

[Pam in CT]

I've always had that fantasy too, but Paul Theroux burst it in The Great Railway Bazaar. Of course, he was probably burned out after train travel through Europe, the Mid-east, India, southeast Asia, and Japan. He made it sound cold, depressing, and boring...with terrible food and worse attitudes. 

 

So sad. I used to love that dream. 

 

Oh, Paul Theroux - pish.  That guy's a grump.

[LostSurprise]

Please share! If not here then pm me and we can dialogue that way. I love hearing what lines and images and necklaces of words move folks.

 

:thumbup1:

 

As the house of a person

in age sometimes grows cluttered

with what is

too loved or too heavy to part with,

the heart may grow cluttered.

And still the house will be emptied, 

and still the heart.

 

As the thoughts of a person

in age sometimes grow sparer, 

like a great cleanness come into a room, 

the soul may grow sparer;

one sparrow song carves it completely.

And still the room is full,

and still the heart.

 

Empty and filled,

like the curling half-light of morning,

in which everything is still possible and so why not. 

 

Filled and empty,

like the curling half-light of evening,

in which everything is still possible and so why not. 

 

Beloved, what can be, what was, 

will be taken from us.

I have disappointed.

I am sorry. I knew better. 

 

A root seeks water. 

Tenderness only breaks open the earth.

This morning, out the window,

the deer stood like a blessing, then vanished. 

 

~"Standing Dear" by Jane Hirschfield

 

So zen. I must admit the last stanza muddies that koan like quality for me. Is tenderness enough or is it only the beginning? Does the heart need more? Is she telling us to be satisfied by these lone moments we can appreciate with age ("one sparrow song carves it completely")? The moment is so elusive. 

[shukriyya]

Actually, thinking on poetry brings to mind probably my most favorite of all, "Sea Fever", by John Masefield.  It sings to my soul.

 

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,

And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,

And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,

And a grey mist on the sea's face, and a grey dawn breaking.

 

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide

Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;

And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,

And the flung spray and the blown spume, and sea-gulls crying.

 

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,

To the gull's way and the whale's way, where the wind's like a whetted knife;

And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,

And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.

 

 

I typed all that out just so I could hold the words in my hands.  I love it.

 

Oh yes! I remember this from years ago, in school perhaps? I love the 'mustness' of his need to go down to the sea again...and again. But honestly I like that last line of yours even better...'so I could hold the words in my hands' Beautiful!

 

:thumbup1:

 

As the house of a person

in age sometimes grows cluttered

with what is

too loved or too heavy to part with,

the heart may grow cluttered.

And still the house will be emptied, 

and still the heart.

 

As the thoughts of a person

in age sometimes grow sparer, 

like a great cleanness come into a room, 

the soul may grow sparer;

one sparrow song carves it completely.

And still the room is full,

and still the heart.

 

Empty and filled,

like the curling half-light of morning,

in which everything is still possible and so why not. 

 

Filled and empty,

like the curling half-light of evening,

in which everything is still possible and so why not. 

 

Beloved, what can be, what was, 

will be taken from us.

I have disappointed.

I am sorry. I knew better. 

 

A root seeks water. 

Tenderness only breaks open the earth.

This morning, out the window,

the deer stood like a blessing, then vanished. 

 

~"Standing Dear" by Jane Hirschfield

 

So zen. I must admit the last stanza muddies that koan like quality for me. Is tenderness enough or is it only the beginning? Does the heart need more? Is she telling us to be satisfied by these lone moments we can appreciate with age ("one sparrow song carves it completely")? The moment is so elusive. 

 

Love this and love all the questions that the poem gives rise to in you. That feeling of muddiness, for me, is often where the real poetry begins, where the stanzas of my soul lie waiting to be mined not necessarily with answers but with openings, musings, confusion. And that line 'one sparrow song carves it completely' also jumped out at me on first read though I read it as 'curves' which is such a tactile feeling, the sense of space being curved, generosity in the form of a sparrow song, generosity as a shape that is curved which seems to have a kind of truth to it.

[Kareni]

Please share! If not here then pm me and we can dialogue that way. I love hearing what lines and images and necklaces of words move folks.

 

This one was a favorite of mine in high school, and I still like it.

 

The Preacher: Ruminates behind the Sermon

by Gwendolyn Brooks

 

 

I think it must be lonely to be God.

Nobody loves a master. No. Despite

The bright hosannas, bright dear-Lords, and bright

Determined reverence of Sunday eyes.

 

Picture Jehovah striding through the hall

Of his importance, creatures running out

From servant-corners to acclaim, to shout

Appreciation of His merit's gaze.

 

But who walks with Him?--dares to take His arm,

To slap Him on the shoulder, tweak His ear,

Buy Him a Coca-Cola or a beer,

Pooh-pooh His politics, call Him a fool?

 

Perhaps--who knows?--He tires of looking down.

Those eyes are never lifted. Never straight.

Perhaps sometimes He tires of being great

In solitude. Without a hand to hold.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[shukriyya]

I'm not a huge poetry fan, although I might could be if I knew more about it, but I do love e. e. cummings.  My favorite poem by him is "somewhere i have never traveled, gladly beyond".

 

 

Swoon................................

[Negin]

When it comes to Kindle skins and I-phone covers, this company has gorgeous stuff. Just thought I'd share that. My only problem is that it's hard to see and fully appreciate the back part (the artwork), since my Kindle's in a case. I wish I could find a more attractive case for my Kindle. My daughter has a gorgeous one on her Paperwhite, but mine is just basic and the covers are just boring. 

 

No.  Every once in a while I think I should open an Etsy shop but it might suck the joy out of making things.  I would love to send you one though if you PM me with your address.  Stacia actually got me started on the notebooks when she posted a Richard Scarry illustration that I found to be irresistible. 

 

 

Jane, yes, I think you're right about creating something for the sheer joy of it versus the pressure of something like Etsy. Thank you so much for offering to send me one. I'd love that. I'll PM you my address. Yes, I'm crazy about Richard Scarry also. :)

I love chocolate soft serve.

 

 

 

You think chocolate soft serve is hard to find, trying looking for chocolate and vanilla swirl. That's my favorite. :drool5:

 

Me too. At this point, any soft serve sounds good. :)

[mumto2]

I finished "Wake to Darkness" by Maggie Shayne which was the second in a two part series. Quick read. The first one is titled Sleep with the Lights On. Both are highly improbable and very creepy, not in a fun way. I honestly wouldn't recommend to anyone here but I have read Maggie Shayne for years so wanted to read these just because....good fluff author with not the best (organ donation based) twist for her storyline.

[Stacia]

More etsy fun for bibliophiles:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/Frostbeard?ref=l2-shopheader-name

 

Dumbledore's Office, The Shire, Oxford Library, Sherlock's Office, etc...

(Wonder how the candles smell???)

[Stacia]

Decided to stop reading Serena after a review I read on Goodreads. As I suspected, this book is too harsh for my liking. The parts I did read were spare, harsh, & beautiful, but the content is not something I really want to read for 300 pages....

 

Ugh. I'm having a hard time settling into books this month, it seems! :glare: 

[mlbuchina]

More etsy fun for bibliophiles:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/Frostbeard?ref=l2-shopheader-name

 

Dumbledore's Office, The Shire, Oxford Library, Sherlock's Office, etc...

(Wonder how the candles smell???)

 

I love scented candles!  I must have Cliffs of Insanity, Don't Panic, and Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey.   :D

[Paisley Hedgehog]

.

[Jane in NC]

Greetings BaW'ers!  I've been quiet since the wrap-ups but I have been lurking and staying current with the discussion. 

 

<snip, snip>

• Believing the Lie  (Elizabeth George) -- From the Inspector Lynley series (#17 or 18; I've lost count).  Several of us have read / are reading these books too and this was the best entry in a while.  Though Deborah St James is the most bratty, annoying fictional character ever, I managed to keep my eye-rolling to a minimum and enjoy the story.

 

Good to see you again Paisley!

 

Glad to hear that there is hope for the Lynley series.  This Body of Death has been accumulating dust next to the bedside for some time. 

 

For the record, This Body of Death is George's 16th Lynley while Believing the Lie is her 17th.  Just One Evil Act is the 18th.

 

P.S.  I count me in the Deborah St James is Despicable Club too!

 

[Stacia]

I love scented candles!  I must have Cliffs of Insanity, Don't Panic, and Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey.   :D

 

If you do end up getting any, you must report back about how they smell!

 

Greetings BaW'ers!  I've been quiet since the wrap-ups but I have been lurking and staying current with the discussion.  Only three weeks into the year, I have so far been successful in my commitment to make reading from my own shelves a priority.  However, the newest Flavia book has been calling my name and I've been stalking Overdrive for the past two days waiting for it to come available.  Ah, well .....  :p

 

Completed:

• The Abominable (Dan Simmons) -- This was my first book of the year and it was absolutely. awful.  I hated it.  I hated it so much I can't believe that I finished it.  I had high hopes for this book when I treated myself to it back during Spooky October (even breaking my buying ban on ebooks +$9.99), thinking it would be a companion piece to The Terror.  All the elements were there:  Mt Everest, a small expedition heading out to find lost climbers, the hint of yetis.  But in the end there was a lot of miscellanea about climbing and Nazis and no (real) monsters.  What a letdown.  After this book and the unreadable Drood, Mr Simmons has fallen off my "Buy" list and onto the "Get From Library ... If Ever" list.
• Desolation Island (Patrick O'Brian)  --  #5 in the Aubrey/Maturin series that several of us have been reading.  I really, really am enjoying these books and this one is my favorite so far.
• Believing the Lie  (Elizabeth George) -- From the Inspector Lynley series (#17 or 18; I've lost count).  Several of us have read / are reading these books too and this was the best entry in a while.  Though Deborah St James is the most bratty, annoying fictional character ever, I managed to keep my eye-rolling to a minimum and enjoy the story.
• Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children  (Ransom Riggs) -- This was a reread in preparation for the sequel released this week, Hollow City.   I enjoyed this book (though not as much as the first time), and will be eventually getting the follow up from the library.  Maybe.

 

I currently have several books going:  The Fortune Of War  -- #6 Aubrey/Maturin.  I am enjoying this series so much that I am having a hard time pacing myself. :blush:

 Sunlight At Midnight: St Petersburg and the Rise of Modern Russia  -- good piece of nonfiction focused on Russian history as reflected through the city

The Way to Xanadu  (Caroline Alexander)  --  a travelogue / history piece about the author's "quest to experience firsthand the places that collectively inspired Coleridge's legendary poetic vision of the mythic seat of pleasure" (book jacket) in his poem "Kubla Khan."

 

And here's an interesting tidbit ...  Remember last year (I think it was last year) when we were discussing 'found bookmarks,'  interesting things left in previously owned / library books?   I made a cool find when I pulled one of my dusty books off the shelf in January.   It was a pb copy of HMS Surprise by Patrick O'Brian  (yes from that series I've mentioned twice now) that I picked up from either a library sale or Goodwill, I can't remember which.  Inside was a gorgeous, heavy paper printed promotional bookmark from the WW Norton Co about the Aubrey/Maturin novels of Patrick O'Brian!  One side had promo blurbs from NYT Book Review and Chicago Sun Times; the other side had all the novels listed in order to date (the last being The Wine-Dark Sea, #16 of 21).  That was pretty awesome, but even awesomer was the postcard inviting me to be part of the Patrick O'Brian Newsletter mailing list.  Mailing list, like snail mail.  And I let them know my interest by mailing (with a stamp!) this postcard back to Norton Co.   LOL.  Ha!  Times have certainly changed.

 

So good to see you, Paisley. We're also waiting on the Flavia book here in our house. Not even sure if the library has their hard copy in circulation yet, but it was in the system a couple of weeks ago, so I put myself on the waitlist then....

 

The Abominable does sound pretty awful. Sunlight at Midnight sounds pretty interesting. Looking forward to your full review of that one. Very cool about your book find & old-fashioned mailing list. LOL.

 

Maybe I need to start the O'Brien series. I want a book I can be passionate about but am having a hard time the past week or so getting settled into something. I want something fun, exciting, nothing dark or brooding right now. Just not in the mood for that at all. Would love to find something postmodern/experimental/surreal that's fun/happy too. Anyone have any ideas?

[Onceuponatime]

I love scented candles!  I must have Cliffs of Insanity, Don't Panic, and Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey.   :D

 

The Shire sounds lovely to me. This is a great Christmas idea. I'm going to bookmark.

[mumto2]

I have rejected a stack of books this week myself. Partly because my stack needs to be returned to the library because of our trip to the States.

 

 

One book that I gave up on was The Teleportation Accident. http://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/jul/26/teleportation-accident-ned-beauman-review it still sounds good. I think the problem was my ability to concentrate on it was not there. I only made it 10 or so pages before giving up. Stacia, this might appeal to you but I really can't recommend it. The cover was cool and made me think of you.

[Jane in NC]

One book that I gave up on was The Teleportation Accident. http://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/jul/26/teleportation-accident-ned-beauman-review it still sounds good. I think the problem was my ability to concentrate on it was not there. I only made it 10 or so pages before giving up. Stacia, this might appeal to you but I really can't recommend it. The cover was cool and made me think of you.

 

The reviewer makes an interesting note on his marginalia in this book:

 

 

It's lucky, as the book is built on likenesses, that Beauman has such a talent for metaphor and simile.I started underlining and asterisking the quotable ones and now my copy is pretty much unreadable.

 

[Stacia]

One book that I gave up on was The Teleportation Accident. http://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/jul/26/teleportation-accident-ned-beauman-review it still sounds good. I think the problem was my ability to concentrate on it was not there. I only made it 10 or so pages before giving up. Stacia, this might appeal to you but I really can't recommend it. The cover was cool and made me think of you.

 

As soon as I clicked your link, I realized I tried it at some point about a year ago (probably when it came out on the Booker list). I remember reading about 30 or so pages, but couldn't get into it. Thanks for the idea, though!

[LostSurprise]

I want a book I can be passionate about but am having a hard time the past week or so getting settled into something. I want something fun, exciting, nothing dark or brooding right now. Just not in the mood for that at all. Would love to find something postmodern/experimental/surreal that's fun/happy too. Anyone have any ideas?

 

Can post-modern be happy? 

 

I know what you mean though. Sometimes it's hard to get into anything and you don't want anything too sad but you still want to be engaged. You want scintillating narrative with enough intellectual muscle to back it up but not too much.  :tongue_smilie:

[welovetoread]

 

 

I finished "Wake to Darkness" by Maggie Shayne which was the second in a two part series. Quick read. The first one is titled Sleep with the Lights On. Both are highly improbable and very creepy, not in a fun way. I honestly wouldn't recommend to anyone here but I have read Maggie Shayne for years so wanted to read these just because....good fluff author with not the best (organ donation based) twist for her storyline. 

Of course, this sentence sent me straight to amazon for reviews etc.  I have it on my wish list because this sounds right up my alley.  As I was poking around I noticed that one of the books in that series is free on kindle.  I am not sure if you own it but here is the link for it: http://www.amazon.com/Dream-Danger-Brown-Luca-Novella-ebook/dp/B00FHKS1KO/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1389901856&sr=8-4&keywords=sleep+with+the+lights+on  Sorry, I think the link is actually a sample of the book.