It's been too long to recap, so I'll just move forward from here. Like you do.

About a year ago, my eldest graduated high school and I got some time back. She had a medically difficult high school experience which wound up being time-consuming for everyone, especially her. I didn't realize this until she was done and off to college. She's now ( Read more... )

Books abandoned are sad vestiges of misplaced trust. This ocurred to me today, or perhaps I only remembered something I’d read. How deeply a reader-author relationship is based upon trust. There have been a number of books which I have read and while reading, have only elicited a lukewarm response in me. I soldier on, hoping and trusting that this ( Read more... )

I read "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho this week, and spent most of the time reading it trying to decide how I felt about the tone of the book. It's a translation from portugese, so the slight preachiness could be a fault of translation. Regardless, I'm not sure I object. It's a good story about journeys, both within and without, and the need or ( Read more... )

Summer vacation is in full swing and so far, I've been reading. For the most part, it's been kid/teen fiction with one old classic - "Wuthering Heights" - which I read because this other book of short stories referenced it. "Geektastics", edited by so-and-so and written by many other Somebodies, is a collection of coming of age stories from the ( Read more... )

I cannot WAIT for the semester to be over so I can delve into "The Lacuna" by Barbara Kingsolver, and any number of other novels and/or books with a latin flair. Playing this Villa Lobos bassoon concerto has awakened a love of all things latin in me. There is something about the writing, even translated into english, that transports one to an ( Read more... )

Is anyone else here familiar with Danny Kaye? I grew up on his movies and have an intense love for this man. He was a comic-musical genius ( Read more... )

Jumping on the bookreading bandwagon:

Complete
In Progress
Abandoned

The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett( **** review )

Cut for those who could care less about my Un Lun Dun adoration.

( Favorite sentence so far: )

I forgot to mention. We've found these lovely books at the library by Ursula K. LeGuin called "Catwings", about a small family of winged cats. My kids love them and it's spurred me to check out some of her other stuff. I realized my kids might be a bit more inclined to just grab up a book and read if we (the parents) showed a bit more interest in ( Read more... )

Wonderful book. The last two pages had me sobbing, and I mean gasping, crying, wiping my eyes sobbing. I am a pushover. I admit it. But it isn't often that something affects me THAT strongly. To say anything more would completely give it away. It was by the same author that wrote "Chocolat" and I would absolutely recommend it.