dtrpath27

The Phantom Tollbooth is truly wonderful. I'm about a quarter of the way through Legendarium. The jury is still out on this one. I love the idea of it, but... I am a little disappointed that I didn't realize it was a novella and paid almost $3 for it in the Kindle store. (I know that sounds incredibly miserly of me, but I really ration my book purchases.) We'll see how it goes. I'm also taking a leisurely stroll through Shadow of the Wind. I just read a bit every night or so and am enjoying it immensely.

Great minds must think alike! I had not even seen your post when I posted mine. How funny! The other thought I had was just for whomever wants to do so to post a poem an then we all discuss. Pontalba seems to have gotten the ball rolling.

Here's an idea...even if it's a rubbish idea, maybe it will spark a great idea from someone else. Apparently about fifteen or so countries carry on the tradition of having a Poet Laureate -- or so says the infallible Wikipedia. What if we take turns or whatever (or someone could organize it all) Picking one poet from each country and finding one of their publicly available (ahem, free and no worries of copyright infringement) poems to post/link on here for everyone to discuss. When discussion on that one peters out, we can move onto a new country and new poet laureate. Frankie, you could sort of moderate the whole thread, you know? The reason I've been afraid to suggest specific poets/poems is because I've read so little poetry that I couldn't begin to determine what is rubbish and what is not. I figured that with poet laureates, at least their work had to be quality.

I would choose The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis. As children, both my husband and I loved the Chronicles of Narnia, and The Dawn Treader had been each of our favorite book by far. We discovered this, and our mutual passion for reading, on our first date. Since it was the first thing I loved about him, I think it's only fitting that it would have been the book handed out at our wedding.

January 2015 Every Day is a Holiday By George Mahood 326 pages Every Day is a Holiday is about exactly what it sounds like: all the little made-up holidays that are celebrated by someone, somewhere every day of the year. Author George Mahood challenges himself to celebrate as many of these holidays as possible over a six month period of time. Written in a blog-like style, this book chronicles his experiences and musings along the way. Witty, quirky and downright funny, Every Day is a Holiday was definitely worth the 99¢ I paid for it in the Kindle store. I had more than a few laughs while reading it, and the bite-sized entries fit nicely into my busy work week. If you're looking for something fun and light to keep your reading mo-jo going, give this one a try.

I bought it as well as I enjoyed his other book. It does have to get in line though behind one or two others.

Happy reading to you, too! I have to be in love with the characters to be able to follow a series. For example, I really loved the plot, pace and setting of Ender's Game, but as Speaker for the Dead was a completely different situation and I wasn't attached to Ender himself, I wasn't motivated to continue beyond the sequel. In the Flavia series, however, it is she who is the star. The stories could be set on the moon for all I care, because I just love being privy to what's going on inside her head. Thank you! May your reading time be plentiful and your books be riveting! To me, that's the best part about coming to the Flavia series so late. I can just sit down and read them all without waiting for the next installment. That works extremely well for someone as impatient as I! Thank you. You, too! It seems like many of us are off to a good start.

January 2015 The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag By Alan Bradley 358 pages Mystery This is book two in my new mystery series obsession about eleven year old chemist and sleuth, Flavia de Luce. With a puppeteer, a madwoman and layers upon layers of secrets and lies, Bradley provides plenty for his Flavia to discover in the little village of Bishop's Lacey. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and am glad that I own it so I can revisit it as often as I like. Although one would think that the value of a re-read is all but lost once it is discovered whodunit, it couldn't be further from the truth. The murder is a backdrop, a vehicle crafted by Bradley to display the beautiful mind of his precocious heroine. What one falls in love with is not the intrigue, but Flavia herself. I, for one, will happily follow her anywhere.

I'm also on the apparently quite long list of people who have The Miniaturist on the list. First one to finish wins. On a different note, Willoyd, I hope you love The Humans. I found it to be so clever! Isn't Jonas Jonasson the one who wrote The 100 Year-old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared? I liked that one well enough. How do you like this one?

Kylie - Thank you so very much for the link. Now I'm not only obsessed with Flavia, I am also obsessed with Alan Bradley. I loved the interview and all the insight it provided. I've already found my way to his website and fan page, and am just nerdy enough to sign up.

I'm very interested. Thank you! I'm not really on Goodreads all that often, so I likely would have missed it. Thank you! He's becoming one of my favorites, as well. I'm refraining from borrowing the series from the library because I want to be able to justify buying them for my own collection.

Mine is really not so bad. I try to keep more of a "to be read next" list as opposed to an infinite, ongoing list. I keep in mind a short handful of books of different genres so I can have a choice that suits my mood when I finish my current read. Also, if there's a series I'm working on, I don't put all of the books on my list, just the next one. I would feel so behind trying to keep track of dozens.

What an interesting idea! I don't know of anything that early, but off the top of my head, here are a few things set in the South or written by Southern authors: Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell The Color Purple by Alice Walker Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams Br'er Rabbit by Alcée Fortier Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg Forrest Gump by Winston Groom Eudora Welty and William Faulkner are two well-known Southern authors. Good luck with your challenge!

An overabundance of books -- quite a lovely problem to have! I'm glad you enjoyed my little thoughts on the book, and I hope you enjoy the series! Thanks so much! I do love to read when it's cold out. I hope my momentum continues throughout the entire year, though!

Thank you! It's really going quite well. So many people on here have had positive things to say about it; I can't imagine it not going well.

Hmm...it's good to know about your experience. I don't know anyone who owns one, so I've only seen online reviews. I'm curious as well. How's it going?

Thanks so much! It's a good one to read when you have a rainy afternoon. Happy reading in 2015 to you, too. Happy reading year to you, too, and thanks so much for the recommendation! I'm enjoying the heck out of it. I was hooked, as well! I'm stalking used book stores looking for the third one. I don't know if I can wait to read it though, and will probably borrow it from the library first.

My poor challenge has been much neglected! The experience with The Dubliners got things off on the wrong foot, and Anna Karenina, although something I honestly do want to read, was a bit heavy. I really think I needed to go with something lighter or more contemporary at the time. Not doing so made it all feel a bit like homework. With the new year, however, comes new resolve. I am reigniting my literary challenge with a visit to Spain and a book that I am truly excited about: The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. I lucked across a copy in a used book shop for only $3.00 so I took it as a sign. I've only read the first five chapters so far, but I can't wait to read more! I love the beauty and richness of it all, and the mysterious undertones. So far it seems to be the perfect book to take me away to Spain. I'm sure this selection won't disappoint!

That is definitely cold! Down here, when the meteorologists call it an Arctic blast, it usually means it's in the 40s.

Thanks! The day was great, but I'm exhausted. I jumped right back into it working 11 hours today. Enjoy your last week off! Even though you have to get up early to take her, hopefully you can go back to bed for a bit! Blast those bills! I keep trying to find someone who will accept my good looks and charm as sufficient payment. Alas, no luck!

Thanks so much. You, too! I do feel like I'm off to a good start, but I also had a nice long break. I hope I can keep the momentum going.

As it's Monday, I just had red beans and rice for lunch. Delish!

Sigh...it's 5:30 a.m. here and I'm heading back to my full-time job after two glorious weeks off. I do like my job, but I've become a bit spoiled about ignoring the alarm clock! It's a little chilly this morning, so that doesn't make getting out of bed any easier. Oh wait, it's a bit later than I thought. 6:00 a.m. -- I suppose I can't put it off any longer. I'm off to greet the day!

January 2015 The Remarkable Courtship of General Tom Thumb By Nicholas Rinaldi 384 pages Set on the backdrop of the U.S. Civil War, this fictional memoir is loosely based upon actual events in the P.T. Barnum-fueled career of real-life Tom Thumb, Charles Stratton. To be honest, this book is one that I selected based solely on the cover, but then I read the first few pages and had to read more. It was really quite fascinating, not just because of the voyeuristic nature of it all, but because of the way the author seamlessly wove together fact and fiction, giving a sense of intimacy and familiarity to these larger-than-life people, places and events. Rinaldi did so much research that even the fictional aspects are quite believable. Apparently, some of the most unbelievable parts are the ones which are complete, unembellished truth! Life really is stranger than fiction, and nowhere is that more apparent than in Nicholas Rinaldi's tale of General Tom Thumb.