I spend a lot of time on the train each day. Most of the time I read my book, but every morning as I arrive at my destination, I have a quick look at the Moving Melbourne poster that is beside the train door. It is a bit strange really. I get out of a train door four times in a day, and I only regularly look at the Moving Melbourne poster one of those four times!
Moving Melbourne's "aim is to reach and engage an extensive and diverse community in the course of daily life by ‘moving Melbourne through art’"
Today I saw this poem, and I really liked it, so tonight I needed to come home and find it so I could share. The poem is called Everything We Ever Changed Our Minds About, and is written by Sean M Whelan.
you told me you loved it when the trees changed their minds and covered the ground with a million veined post-it notes carefully detailing every reason why
you called it the transparent government of nature I called it one more reason to love you the trees had no strong opinion either way
You can see other poetry and/or art by clicking on the link above.
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
I have two teasers for you this week. The first one comes from Millie's Fling by Jill Mansell. The fact that I am reading this book at the moment is in a way surprising because I don't tend to do rereads too often, but I think I read this something like 7 years ago. Apart from a very memorable ending which I am eagerly anticipating reading again, it is pretty fresh still! My teaser comes from page 479;
"Hey, excellente, merci beaucoup madamoiselle. Actually, " Hugh reverted to his normal voice, "the reason I rang was because -"
My second teaser comes from a short story collection by Charles de Lint called Moonlight and Vines. This is part of the Newford series of books. I think I have read one of the stories before, but other than that they are all new to me. This teaser is part of the short story called My Life as a Bird and comes from page 341:
Why are we suspect for trying to love ourselves, for being true to who and what we are rather than what someone else thinks we should be? We're so ready to betray ourselves but we never call it that.
I have to say that I am absolutely 100%, completely surprised to see that I made it to the final round of voting for the BBAW votes in the category of Best Romance Blog, especially seeing as I don't particularly focus on romance. The genre makes up a lot of my reading and so I talk about reading romance in the same way I talk about reading historical fiction, or mysteries or YA.
Three of my fellow nominees are blogs that I read regularly, and there is one new blog to me that I will be sure to check out.
I know who my favourite to win the category is, and no, it is definitely not my blog! LOL!
I'm a bit late with my August wrap up! I had every intention of doing it on the weekend but with one thing and another it is only just now happening.
Reading wise I got through 17 books in August which is pretty reasonable. That figure is flattered by the fact that on the last Friday night in August I finished 3 books in a row and then another the next day. I think I needed a romance fix!
The reading highlight of August was definitely The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins! I had seen it mentioned so many times by people that I trust but still was a bit ho-hum about picking it up. Then I picked it up at the library and now I wish I had of read it earlier. What a fantastic read! Now I can't wait to read Catching Fire!
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare 4.5/5 Web of Love by Mary Balogh 4/5 Night Train to Memphis by Elizabeth Peters 4/5 The Rabbits by John Marsden and Shaun Tan 4.5/5 Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris 4.5/5 The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner 4.5/5 The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins 5/5 Lords of the Bow by Conn Iggulden 4/5 The Sins of Lord Easterbrook by Madeline Hunter 3.5/5 Death at La Fenice by Donna Leon 4.5/5 Royal Harlot by Susan Holloway Scott 4/5 Untamed by P C Cast and Kristin Cast 4/5 City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare 4/5 Shields of Pride by Elizabeth Chadwick 3.5/5 Wed Him Before You Bed Him by Sabrina Jeffries 4.5/5 Vision in White by Nora Roberts 4/5 Grand Finale by Janet Evanovich 3.5/5
So how am I going with my reading challenges? There is some good news and some not so good news really.
One piece of good news is that I have now completed the 100+ Reading Challenge. My complete list can be found here. Last year I had read 100 books by early July so it is pretty clear that my reading totals are going to be way down this year.
I have made good progress on the Reliquaue challenge this month as well having read four out of the required six books to complete the Haunted Nights challenge. The books I have read so far are City of Bones and City of Ashes both by Cassandra Clare, Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris and Untamed by P C Cast and Kristin Cast.
Once Readers In Peril IV (RIP) was announced, there was no doubt in my mind that I would be signing up! I signed up for Peril the First, which means that I intended to read four books, and so far I have read three books that fit the challenge criteria. The three books are City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare, Legacy by Lois McMaster Bujold and Mariana by Susanna Kearsley.
I also signed up for a new challenge - the LJ Smith Reading Challenge that is being hosted by My Friend Amy. I had requested the first book from the library before the challenge was announced so it seemed to be an omen that I needed to sign up!
I am also taking this opportunity to confirm that I have signed up for the Books Alive 2009 Reading Challenge which is being hosted by Book Thingo. Books Alive is an annual event which is sponsored by the Australian Government to try and encourage people to read. Each year they bring out a booklet of recommended reads, and there is usually at least one book that you can get for free if you purchase one of the recommended reads. This year there are two books, one is a kids book and the other a short story collection.
Of course, I still have quite a few books to read in the series until I am up to that book, but given that Elizabeth Peters is now over 80 years of age, every announcement of a new book will be good news!
Now I am off to lunch for Father's Day. Given that I don't have to cook, and the person who is cooking is well known both for the quality and the amount of food I hope to do my August round up after I roll home from there!
September in Australia means the start of spring, Father's Day, and the very important fact that it is footy finals time!
I have no idea whether my boys will make it all the way to the grand final. Unlike the last couple of years where we lost the elimination finals which is the first game in the finals series, tonight we had a very impressive win and next week will have a big game at the MCG to try and make it further into the finals! I am going to try and get tickets for the next game, but I don't really like my chances!
The MCG and footy are very much part of the character of Melbourne, and this song from the early 90's certainly captures the feelings pretty well. Interesting to look at the video and realise how much the city has changed in the last fifteen or so years!
Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Eva and me that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries!
Wasn't it fantastic to have Eva back for Library Loot last week?
This week I thought not only would I share my loot, but I also saw a meme on Readerbuzz a few weeks ago that I thought it might be fun to do as something a little bit different. You don't have to do it, only if you want to!
First though, here is my loot:
The Conquest by Elizabeth Chadwick - my quest to read my way through Elizabeth Chadwick's back list continues! I hope you got a chance to check out all the fun we had during Elizabeth Chadwick Week over at Historical Tapestry during the last week.
The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters - I have been meaning to try this author for ages. I do own another one of her books, but haven't read it yet.
Gale Force by Rachel Caine - the latest release in the Weather Warden series.
The Iron Hand of Mars by Lindsey Davis - My only reloot this week. This is the fourth book in the Marcus Didius Falco mystery series set in Ancient Rome.
Her Secret Fantasy by Gaelen Foley - The second book in the Spice trilogy.
Library Habits Meme:
(1) If you don’t frequent your local library, why not?
I think it is fair to say that most of us frequent the local, and in this case I am not talking about the pub!
(2) If you do visit the library, how often do you go?
I go to the library probably about twice a week.
(3) Do you have a favorite section that you always head to first, or do you just randomly peruse the shelves?
Usually when I do go to the library it is to pick up books that are being held for me so I tend to go straight for where the held books are shelved. I do like to just quickly browse the books that are on the end stands to see what is there.
(4) How many books are you allowed to check out at one time? Do you take advantage of this?
Our maximum number of books that can be checked out is 60, and we can have up to 20 books on request at any one day. I tend to get very close to the check out limits quite regularly!
(5) How long are you allowed to have the books checked out?
If the book is a popular new release then we only have two weeks, but ordinarily four weeks.
(6) How many times are you allowed to renew your check-outs, if at all?
Assuming that no one else has requested the book then you can renew your request a total of three times, meaning you can have a book out for up to 16 weeks before you absolutely HAVE to return it!
(7) What do you love best about your particular library?
I love that they tend to have just about every book that I want to borrow. Occasionally there is something that they don't have, but for the most part there are no complaints on my part!
(8) What is one thing you wish your library did differently?
Every now and again they only buy parts of series, so I would like to see that stop, and I wish that they were a little bit faster at exploring new ideas and technologies, for example time limited audio books. Come to think of it their audio book range is a little limited as well.
(9) Do you request your books via an online catalogue, or through the librarian at your branch?
Always online. I can't tell you how many times a day I check out the library catalogue!
10) Have you ever chosen a book on impulse (from the online catalogue OR the shelves) and had it turn out to be totally amazing? If so, what book was it, and why did you love it?
Every now and again I check out a book on impulse, but generally because I am always so close to my check out limits I have to come home and add it to my list and then request it later.
Want to share your library loot this week? Please add your link to Mr Linky!
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
This week my teaser comes from Mariana by Susanna Kearsley. I loved The Winter Sea when I read it earlier this year, and so it is no surprise that I am reading another book by this author! The teaser comes from page 118:
I had not chosen this house, as others choose, with a free and rational mind; the house had chosen me. And if I had indeed been drawn here for a purpose, then I had better do my best to find out what that purpose was, starting today. Starting now.
My history of participating in Weekly Geeks rather sporadically has continued! Most of the time it isn't because I don't like the theme. Usually I start a post but never actually get around to finish it. This week's theme is tailor-made for me! I am always buying books and not reading them.
I think just about every reader has a least one book that they've been meaning to read for awhile (months or even years) but, for one reason or another, they just haven't gotten around to it. Maybe it's a book a friend recommended last year, or a title you've flirted with in a bookstore on more than one occasion, or maybe it's a book that's sitting right there on your bookshelf, patiently waiting for you to pick it up -- but the thought is always there, in the back of your mind: Why haven't I read this yet?This week, tell us about a book (or books) you have been meaning to read. What is it? How long have you wanted to read it? And, why haven't you read it yet? When you have written your post, be sure to come back and leave a link to the post's URL (not your blog's main URL) to Mr. Linky. Be sure to visit other Geeks and see which books they've been meaning to read. Have a great week everyone!
I have a list of books a mile long that I have been meaning to read! Far too long in fact for one post. In order to try and narrow done the list a little I have decided to only focus on those books that I own that I have been meaning to read and not think about all the books that I know that I can get from the library. Some of these books I have owned for six or seven years and I still haven't read. Others are books that I really, really wanted to read more recently but still haven't been able to get to.
Even with only that criteria there are still a LOT of unread books around my house! In fact, I just shocked myself and all my workmates when I discovered that there are actually more than 300! Obviously I am not going to list them all here. I thought that instead of just listing the books here, I would make this an informal poll! Every year I always try to read some of the books that I owned before the start of the year so that I can kid myself that all these unread books are not completely taking over my bookshelves. Below are the 10 books that I really MUST read, and so if you all vote on which book you think I should read by leaving a comment, then I will promise to read the winning book before the end of September. So here are the choices:
To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis - I bought this book more than 4 years ago. I think I first heard of it after reading the early Outlander books by Diana Gabaldon and looking for more time travel novels.
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova - Bought this one when it first came out. Never read it.
Time and Chance by Sharon Kay Penman - I love Penman's writing, but I had been waiting to read this one until it was closer to the release date of the third book in the trilogy, The Devil's Brood. That book came out nearly a year ago. Whoops!
Tully by Paullina Simons - I am a huge Paullina Simons fan, but I still have two books by her to read. With a new one coming out in November, maybe now is a good time to read this one as well.
Frenchman's Creek by Daphne du Maurier - I loved Rebecca when I read it, but really haven't managed to read any more of her books. Every time I read a review of one I think "I really must read more".
Winter in Madrid by C J Sansom - One of those authors I fully expect to love to read, when I get around to actually giving him a go!
Tangled Webs by Anne Bishop - I was so excited when I heard this book was coming out. I actually won it in a contest which possibly makes it worse that I still haven't read it.
Fire Study by Maria V Snyder - The third book in the Study trilogy. This author has now moved onto a spin off series that I really, really want to read.
The Huntress by Susan Carroll - I was so excited at the prospect of this book being released. The next book in the series has recently been released which makes it worse that I haven't read this one yet.
Mariana by Susanna Kearsley - This is a relatively new acquisition. One of my favourite books so far this year has been The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley, and I really want to read more of her books.
That only leaves 290+ more books that I have wanted to read enough to buy!
There's no cover image yet, but we do have a book description for the new Paullina Simons book which is due to be released here in Australia on 1 November:
How well can you ever really know someone?
If anyone asked Larissa′s husband, children or friends if she was happy, they would say yes. Sometimes too busy, sometimes irritable - but really, what in her wonderful life could be wrong? She has a happy marriage, a dream house, and everything she ever wanted at her fingertips.
Yet a chance encounter with a young man new to town hits her like a lightning bolt. Their connection is electric. Suddenly her lovely home life seems claustrophobic, and the familiar mundane. Irresistible passion drives her to contemplate the unthinkable. But if she dares to make the impossible leap, what will her life be then? Whatever choice she makes, someone will be betrayed...
This is one book that I will be buying the first time I see it! Can not wait!
Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Eva and me that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries!
After being quite controlled with my library loot for the last couple of weeks, I seem to have had a bit of a blow out this week! Lots of books out, and most of them are new loot, not books that I have borrowed before and had to return unread.
This week the Mr Linky is at Eva's blog, so please be sure to add your link where you have shared all of your loot.
My new loot this week:
Death in a Strange Country by Donna Leon - the second book in the Guido Brunetti series set in Venice. I read and enjoyed the first book in the series just recently.
Bones of the Hills by Conn Iggulden - the third book in the Genghis Khan trilogy. I just finished the second book last week and I am looking forward to once more riding the plains and hassling the Chin with Genghis in this book.
Undone by Rachel Caine - the first book in the new YA series that has been spun off from the Weather Warden series by this author.
A Distant Shore by Peter Yeldham - a couple of years ago I read my first book by Peter Yeldham called Barbed Wire and Roses and absolutely loved it. I have borrowed some of his earlier books before but didn't actually even start them. I have high hopes for this book.
The Night They Stormed Eureka by Jackie French - As part of YA Appreciation month mentioned that I was surprised that I hadn't read much YA that was either historical fiction or written by Australian authors. This one fits both of those criteria.
Valiant by Holly Black - this one will be going back as I didn't realised that it was book number 2 in the series. Next time I will borrow number 1.
The White Queen by Philippa Gregory - Whilst I am not prepared to part with my hard earned cash to get hold of this book I am interested to see what happens what PG can do with the War of the Roses.
Duchess by Night by Eloisa James - This is the third book in this series.
And my reloot:
Vision in White by Nora Roberts - this is the first in the new series from the very prolific Nora Roberts, and I am very much looking forward to reading it this time before I return it.
Remember When by Nora Roberts/J D Robb - This is the next book in the In Death series.
Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver - More YA. This book has been on my radar for quite a while now.
I was just thinking to myself this morning that it must be about time to start thinking about the next RIP challenge, and lo and behold, as I was doing my blog hopping I started to see posts around the place about that very thing!
Carl from Stainless Steel Droppings has announced RIP IV. RIP is Readers in Peril, where the idea is to read books that might have a dark or gothic feel to them mainly from the following genres:
Mystery. Suspense. Thriller. Dark Fantasy. Gothic. Horror. Supernatural
Carl's challenges are so well organised and thought out and this year's RIP is no exception. There are a number of different levels to choose from. I think I am going to try and complete Peril the First, where I commit to reading 4 books from any of the above genres. We can read the books from now until the end of October.
The books that are going to be in my pool of potential reads for RIP this year are:
City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare Legacy by Lois McMaster Bujold Undone by Rachel Caine The Likeness by Tana French Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray Kissing Sin by Keri Arthur Devil May Cry by Sherrilyn Kenyon The Suspect by Michael Robotham Grave Goods by Ariana Franklin An Expert in Murder by Nicola Upson The Golden One by Elizabeth Peters Grave Peril by Jim Butcher Death in a Strange Country by Donna Leon
I am also seriously considering putting in an ILL request for King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner and I am thinking about buying Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins when it is released.
I am also thinking about participating in Short Story Peril, as I know that I have Moonlight and Vines by Charles de Lint here to read shortly as well.
Chances are that I will end up reading completely different books than those listed below, but those kinds of surprises are part of the fun of these challenges!
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
Two weeks ago I said something about having read a few YA books recently, and that continues to be true. In fact, with starting City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare today I have just started my fifth YA book in the last month, and I still have a couple out from the library to read in the next few weeks!
My teaser comes from page 144 (which is coincidentally where I am up to. Who knew that having a bookmark in a page would help the book open at that page!)
"Underground?" said Simon worriedly. "Nobody said anything about underground."
It's been a very emotional week for me! I mentioned briefly that I have resigned from my job. When you say it like that it's very matter of fact, but I have been with my current employer for just under 10 years, and I have a connection with them that goes back to when I was 14 years old. I started with them with the idea of doing a couple of weeks of data entry and here, I am, only just leaving now. I have moved locations several times, including a move from Adelaide to Melbourne, and I have moved through several different systems as well.
Whilst I was excited to hear that I got my new job and very relieved, it is also hard because I have worked with some of these people ever since I moved to Melbourne. When I resigned I cried (and so did my boss's boss), and there is a 100% guarantee that I will again on my last day. All the staff who work for me are calling me all sorts of names (mostly traitor), and assuring me that I will be back again, but I really don't think I will. We are still waiting to hear the final funeral details of my colleague as well. Hopefully that will happen next week.
This move has been on the cards for a while now. When I did my reading goals past at the beginning of 2007 I adjusted down the number of books that I was aiming to read for the year because I was hoping to reduce my commute time down. At the moment my commute takes up over 3 hours each day. When I start the new job it will drop down by just over an hour. Still not 5 minutes from home, but definitely more reasonable.
I was also very excited this week to find out that this blog has been nominated for several BBAW awards and so was Historical Tapestry.
I was very amused to see that both were nominated in the same category. It will be interesting to see what happens in that category because I read quite a lot of really great historical fiction blogs who are also nominated. Speaking of historical fiction and Historical Tapestry, we have got a huge week lined up over there on Monday, so if you like historical fiction with a medieval setting, or would like to try some, please be sure to pop over there during next week as there will be lots going on!
Can I just say that I am so thrilled to be nominated to Most Chatty. Over the last couple of years in particular I think that the content on my blog has changed quite a lot, from being only book reviews and book related posts to being lots of book things, but also a bit about my life, a bit of craft and a bit of whatever else I fancy. I have not always been sure that that change has always been welcomed, but it has enabled me to continue to feel enthusiastic about blogging. I have been doing this blogging thing for quite a while now, so you would think that I would feel relaxed about what happens here, and I do enjoy it very much still, but like everyone, every now and again I have my doubts!
I was also pleased this week to be given the BINGO award by Allie from Histfic Chick for being N(eighbourly). Allie is a relatively new blogger, but we share a passion for historical fiction. Thanks Allie!
I would like to pass this award onto the following people:
Beautiful : Alex from Le Canape, not only for her own blog, but also the work that she has done on other's blogs like Aneca's World and Historical Tapestry. Have I mentioned that I am thinking about revamping my template Alex?) *wink*
Informative - Reading the Past - Whenever Sarah posts, particularly the seasonal previews, I always end up adding lots of books to my TBR list!
Neighbourly - Aarti from Booklust. I have known Aarti for a long time now, and have always enjoyed her blog. Just recently she has also started the excellent new series, Rosie's Riveters. Besides, if I suck up enough, maybe she will smuggle me in her suitcase when she goes away!
Gorgeous - Michele from A Reader's Respite. You can really see Michele's personality shining through in every post!
Outstanding - Literate Housewife - I love visiting this blog and seeing what is going on there! And Jennifer is so creative as well!
Oh and in completely unrelated matters, I was very excited to see that Girl who Kicked a Hornet's Nest, the third book in the Millennium trilogy by Stieg Larsson is going to be released here in Australia in October. Not sure about the cover though. I know that the second book has only just been released in the US and don't get why the published dates are so different, but I am happy for me at least!
Almost final thing...I signed up for a LJ Smith reading challenge earlier today but didn't copy the link down before I closed the page. I know who I think is hosting it, but I can't find it on the blog! The idea is to read The Vampire Diaries and watch the TV series. Anyone know who is hosting this challenge?
Really final thing...I changed the title of this post just so it made sense to put this video up! If you can imagine it, I am totally dancing in my chair while this is playing! An oldie, but a goodie!
Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Eva and me that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries!
I am a bit late putting up Library Loot this week! Sorry about that.
In terms of my loot, I had a pretty quiet library week. I am not sure what is going on but it seems like transfers between sites are taking ages as there are two books that have been in transit for more than three days. What will most likely happen is that all my holds will come in at once. That's what normally happens anyway.
Counting the Stars by Helen Dunmore - I cannot tell you how many times I have borrowed this book and returned it unread.
Grand Finale by Janet Evanovich - I think I have read all the other rereleased romance and thought some were better than others. Hopefully this is a good one.
City of God: a Novel of Passion and Wonder in Old New York by Beverly Swerling - I have been waiting for this book to both be released and for my library to get it in. I am the first person to borrow it so it will have that lovely new book smell!
Last night I went to the movies to see My Sister's Keeper with some friends. The movie itself wasn't bad, and certainly wasn't the worst book to movie adaptation going around even with the fact that the ending of the movie was changed significantly. And yes, I cried loads!
When I said that I was going to see it, the people around me were interested but the biggest reaction I got was when I said who I was going with rather than what I was going to see. I went to see this movie with a group of three ladies who are my train buddies. All the people I work with think it is very strange that I have train friends, but I do. These are people who I generally end up seeing on the train every day at least one way and so after a period of time we started talking to each other about various things from kids and family, to social life, to personal issues, and of course I have to talk books with at least one of them!
What I wonder though is why is this so strange? I find it harder to make friends now than I did when I was very young, both from building a new friendship once you have met someone new, but also in that meeting new people phase. Where do you meet new people? The most obvious place is work, but hopefully there is some stability in your workplace so that there are not constant changes to the staff members. Kids sporting events are another possibility, or maybe a craft group or something, but even then the opportunities to move beyond acquaintance to friendship can be limited. I certainly don't know many people who started talking in a cafe for example and are still close friends years later.
Over the years I have got to know quite a few people that I met initially online. There are a group of ladies that I see semi-regularly that I met at PaullinaSimons.com, then there are the people in other states and countries that I count as my friend even though we have never actually met and there's every chance we never will.
I guess one of the questions to ask is that will I still be in contact with my train buddies if for some reason I started catching different trains. Maybe, maybe not, but I do know that if when I get on the train tonight, one or all of them are on the train, then they will have brightened my day just a little bit!
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
My teaser this week comes from Royal Harlot: A Novel of the Countess of Castlemaine and King Charles II by Susan Holloway Scott. I read the third book in the series a few weeks ago and really enjoyed it, so now I am going back to the beginning to read the first book. The teaser comes from page 262:
This passage was ordinarily overseen by Will Chifflinch, the Page of the Bedchamber, who used it to squire in every manner of secret visitor, from actresses to couriers from King Louis. Now I'd hoped to employ Chifflinch myself to find Charles without being seen by the others still carousing in the privy chamber.
To explain the post title, whenever anyone in our office does or says something incredibly stupid, the punishment is to have to put on the fire warden's hat, and stand and say a line in front of everyone else. I think the line comes from What's Eating Gilbert Grape, although I could be wrong there and it is something about climbing a water tower.
So in my recent analysing my YA reads post, I said:
As for mystery, are there even YA mysteries around?
I think that perhaps I meant any new YA mysteries around, because there was plenty around during the years when I really was YA. These days I am way past target audience range, but like so many other adults I still enjoy reading YA novels.
The big three were probably the Nancy Drew books, the Hardy brothers, and, my favourite, Trixie Belden and her friends. I cannot tell you how many times I read through the Trixie Belden series.
Confession time - over the years I have felt quite an affection for quite a few auburn/red haired men in fiction. Yes, Jamie Fraser is right up there, but my first ever love in literary terms was Jim Frayne, adopted brother to Trixie's best friend Honey Wheeler. I always thought Marty was really funny and older Belden Brian very serious, but to make a young girl's heart flutter then Jim was the man for me.
I wonder if tweens or teens who read this series now would find the books dated? I certainly didn't despite the fact that I would have been reading these in the early 80s (*ahem*) but the first of these books was originally published back in 1948. They certainly experienced a bit resurgence twenty years or so ago.
I was a little surprised to see that there were 39 books in this series. I know that I owned the first twenty or so, but no idea if I read the whole series or not. As an aside, over the last few days I have been thinking about doing a post on the series that I am reading. Apparently my love of ongoing series of books started early and has continued all through my reading life!
This next part of the post is only connected to the first part because it relates to my teenage life. I was watching Pretty in Pink tonight. Such good music, such fun fashion. I do have one question. Why on earth was Andrew McCarthy such a huge teenage heart throb? I will say that Jon Cryer made me laugh in this movie, and he still does now! Here's the Duckie dance just for fun.
As promised in my last post, in honour of YA Appreciation Month which is being hosted over at The Book Smugglers, I am reposting my review of this book. The review was originally posted over at Historical Tapesty in September 2007.
It is 1939, Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier and will become busier still.
Liesel Memminger and her younger brother are being taken by their mother to live with a foster family outside Munich. Liesel's father was taken away on the breath of a single unfamiliar world - Kommunist - and Liesel sees the fear of a similar fate in her mother's eyes. On the journey, Death visits the young boy, and notices Liesel. It will be the first of many near encounters. By her brother's graveside, Liesel's life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger's Handbook, left there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery.
So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordian-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor's wife library, where ever there are books to be found.
But these are dangerous times. When Liesel's foster family hides a Jewish fist-fighter in their basement, Liesel's world is both opened up, and closed down.
The Book Thief is a story about the power of words to make worlds. In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.
The Book Thief is one of those books that you see overwhelmingly positive reviews for around the place. There was therefore a sense of some anticipation, but also some trepidation on starting this book because if so many people like it, it must be good right? But what if I don't? I shouldn't have worried because this was a good book - a very good book!
Just the set up of the book is intriguing, let alone the content. The narrator of the book is Death, and the setting is inside Nazi Germany during WWII. We hear from Death throughout the book, as he injects his own thoughts on life and death throughout the book. He first meets the main character of the book, Liesel, when her younger brother is dying by the sides of the train tracks. Liesel and her brother were being taken to a new foster family who live on the outskirts of Munich. With their father having already been taken away for being a Kommunist, her mother lives in fear, and has decided that it will be safer for her children to be cared for by others...just in case.
Liesel ends up living with a couple by the name of Rosa and Hans Hubermann. They have older children, boys who are off fighting the fight. Rosa is a woman with a tough exterior, but as the book goes on we find that she really has a heart of gold, and Hans is the one who shows Liesel the tenderness that she needs, the one who sits up during the night teaching Liesel to read and comforting her when she can't sleep. Along with the Hubermann's, there are also the other families who live on the street like the next door neighbour who has been feuding with Rosa Hubermann for years and the Steiners, most especially Rudy who becomes Liesel's best friend and fellow adventurer.
There are many subjects that are dealt with in this book. Death is just a few minutes away, the time it takes a bomb to fall, there are food shortages, there is the need for ordinary Germans to join the Nazi party, and the consequences of not joining, young love, loss, and for Liesel there is the thirst to read, to own books, regardless of how she comes to possess them.
Whilst the subjects sounds somewhat depressing, the observations in the novel are sharp, and there are many funny and poignant moments through out the novel. Death (the character) provides many moments where he makes fun of himself, and his own job, but without making it a complete joke. We get to see his own torment as he collects the souls of many people through out the book.
I had not read any of this author's books before, but if all of his other books are of a similar quality to this one, I will definitely be reading more!
