Booking Through Thursday and a Musical Christmas!

Decorum October 4, 2007
Filed under: Wordpress — --Deb @ 1:54 am

Do you have “issues” with too much profanity or overly explicit (ahem) “romantic” scenes in books? Or do you take them in stride? Have issues like these ever caused you to close a book? Or do you go looking for more exactly like them? (grin)

Books with profanity and explicit romantic scenes don't bother me. These things can have their place in books. Stephen King is one of my favourite writers and in the past he has used both in his books. James Herbert, while not a favourite, is also an author I have read plenty of who uses these things in all of his books. He's actually famous for them. So I guess yes I take them in my stride. I don't go looking for them though. Unless of course you include "Forever" by Judy Blume like every other curious teen in my class. If the profanity is pointless and out of place in a book then I am going to be more disappointed by the writer than anything else. If the book is solely based around explicit romantic scenes then I'm not interested. I would rather read a book that was decently written and has an actual story to it.

If I close a book it has to be really bad. I don't buy racy books such as your mills and boon or the racier black lace. To me they are a waste of paper. Give me a good sci fi or fantasy book any day. So I have had no reason to really want to close a book for those reasons. The closest I came to it was when reading "Gerald's Game" by Stephen King. For those of you who have read it you will know that it's based around a romantic scene gone wrong. I didn't enjoy it at all but I forced myself to finish it because I was such a big fan of his books at the time (still am). I don't think it was really the scenes that bothered me but more that the whole book was based around one. It was just so boring. Other books that I can think of are those written by Richard Laymon. The horror genre likes to use sex and profanity. I think it's for the shock value. They like to use extremes to make a book all the more horrific. I do like horror but Laymon's books had some horror and a lot of sex. It seemed almost that the genre was used as an excuse to write these scenes and lots of them in each book.

This little trumpet is a Mill Hill beads tree decoration. I know it is very early but I can feel the Christmas spirit building already. I love Christmas and every year I seem to be starting earlier and earlier. I was on the sew and sew website buying threads for a design I am considering stitching (funnily enough a Christmas one). While there I thought I would take a look at their Christmas decoration kits. Not really expecting to see anything new. The first thing that appeared on the page was these lovely Christmas musical instruments to hang on the tree. I tried to say no but I couldn't. Next thing I know four of them were in my basket. As soon as they arrived I made a start on this trumpet and finished it that evening. I thought they were a little different to the usual Santa's and snowmen (not that there is anything wrong with those, I love Santa's and snowmen). There are two more in the series which I didn't buy but I think I am kidding myself when I say that I will probably leave those. My mum is very excited to get a hold of them and put them on her tree when finished. I am just looking forward to getting them all stitched up.

I haven't forgotten about the little witch that I was stitching. I have just about finished and she should be ready to be attached to a pillow over the weekend. So expect a photo soon. Actually it might be a week or so before I am able to post again. I have a lot going on at work just now (nothing bad but I have a big project to do which is going to take up most of my time). It don't think that it will take me much more than a week. When I come back, as well as a pic of the finished witch, you can expect me to be talking about Dr Who, 4400's, DS9 and possibly more book reviews.

Booking Through Thursday and Some Stitching

Suggested by Marsha:
Buy a Friend a Book Week is October 1-7 (as well as the first weeks of January, April, and July). During this week, you’re encouraged to buy a friend a book for no good reason. Not for their birthday, not because it’s a holiday, not to cheer them up–just because it’s a book.
What book would you choose to give to a friend and why?

This is actually a difficult one to answer. I enjoy buying books for other people and have done so for many reasons. I did buy a friend of mine a while back a book that listed book winners of various awards in the past ten years. At the back it had a space to keep your own book journal. I happened to come across it and this friend was the person that popped into my head when I saw it so I picked it up for her. I also love talking to Lili about books and quite often she will ask me for recommendations. Since she has enjoyed most of the books I have recommended I have since sent her various books that were favourites of mine in the past. So I have bought friends books for various reasons and what I chose always depends on that person.

If I was to chose just one today though I would chose "Noughts and Crosses" by Malorie Blackman. The main reason being is that last week I read a book that very much reminded me of it (I'll be reviewing it next week). Although it is aimed at teenagers it's a book that I think most people can enjoy. I know that a lot of people I work with have read and loved it. It's just so different from most of the teen books that seem to come out these days. It isn't chick lit for teens or fantasy. The easiest way to describe it is that it's a different dimension of our world. One where white people were treated like second class citizens rather than black people. Where white people had to fight to be allowed to go to the same school as black people. It isn't just about that though. It's about two friends who try to ignore the boundary that has been built up. It's a great read and to be honest I think it should be part of recommended reading in schools

As you can see I finished the book bag for my friends birthday. She is a fan of punk and loves skulls hence the skull and cross bones design. I think if I was to design it again I would make it a little less square looking. My friend is also very girly and loves pink which is why I chose to stitch it in pink. I used black ribbon to set it off though. I'm glad I chose metallic threads for the bones. Took me a little longer to stitch because of that mind you. I even thought I wasn't going to get it finished in time. I hate stitching with metallics but like the effect too much to give it up. My friend loved it which is the main thing. Although she is considering using it for make up rather than to keep a book in. Not that I mind so long as she likes it.

I also began stitching the Halloween witch from Quick and Easy. I plan on turning it into a little cushion for my sister. I think this is 18 count Aida I am using (possibly higher) which is why the design is turning out so small. If you go to San's blog you can see it finished on the size it's recommended. I am definitely in the mood for Halloween. This is the first time in years that I have stitched any Halloween designs and I am loving it.

Timewarden, I agree Jacqueline McKenzie is great in the 4400. I didn't enjoy Deep Blue Sea though. It's more my mums type of film than mine. No I won't be buying the Davros box set. I have all but one on DVD already and I don't see the point of buying it just so that I can get the audio story and the box they all come in. The DVD I don't have is being released on its own anyway. To be honest I like being able to put all my Dr Who DVDs in the correct order and with that box set I wouldn't be able to do that. I am even considering getting rid of the boxes of the box sets I already have so that they all look the same sitting on the shelf. I haven't done it though in case I regret doing it.

Booking Through Thursday

The reverse of last week’s question:
Imagine that everything is going just swimmingly. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and all’s right with the world. You’re practically bouncing from health and have money in your pocket. The kids are playing and laughing, the puppy is chewing in the cutest possible manner on an officially-sanctioned chew toy, and in between moments of laughter for pure joy, you pick up a book to read . . .

To be honest if it is that good a day I am more likely to want to go out and do something or sit down with a craft than read. To me that would be a perfect time to give a new craft a try. So if I had to chose a book it would probably be a new craft book. I love craft books and every time I come across a new one that I like the look of I can't help but pick it up. My recent craft book splurge has been on knitted toys. After making the sock monkeys I liked the idea of going back to knitting toys. When I was younger I knitted some dolls for friends. My mum has a great book for this although I can't remember what it is called. I have ordered one for fantasy knits but it is taking it's time on getting here. As soon as I have finished making something from each of these I will do a proper post on them (including my mums book).

If it is at the end of a great day then yes I will pick up a good book to read. Again I am more likely to try something new. Maybe and author I have never read before or even a genre I don't usually read. On those type of days it could be practically anything.

Lili, don't let me put you off. Rose is still a good character I was just a little disappointed with her in the end. Not at all the fault of Billie Piper as she played the part well. You may feel differently though. I am looking forward to hearing what you think.

Funnily enough I have only ever watched the first episode of Lost and then I wasn't really given much choice over it. I was over at the ex's and he wanted to watch it. I think all the hype has put me off (not like Heroes as I had already watched some of it by the time all the hype came out so knew it was good for myself). Occasionally I will hear a friend talking about it and I do think that maybe I will buy the first box set but then I forget all about it. Maybe one day I will watch it. Do you like it Lili?

Booking Through Thursday

Okay . . . picture this (really) worst-case scenario: It’s cold and raining, your boyfriend/girlfriend has just dumped you, you’ve just been fired, the pile of unpaid bills is sky-high, your beloved pet has recently died, and you think you’re coming down with a cold. All you want to do (other than hiding under the covers) is to curl up with a good book, something warm and comforting that will make you feel better.
What do you read?
(Any bets on how quickly somebody says the Bible or some other religious text? A good choice, to be sure, but to be honest, I was thinking more along the lines of fiction…. Unless I laid it on a little strong in the string of catastrophes? Maybe I should have just stuck to catching a cold on a rainy day….)

This is actually very easy to answer. If I was to chose a book purely for comfort I would probably chose one of Anne McCaffreys books from the Pern series. To me something that will make me feel better is an easy read but one that I have fun reading too. The Pern series fit that for me. I would probably chose one of the later ones since I have read the first few a couple of times. I am thinking possibly the Masterharper of Pern as it involved one of my favourite characters.

Crazee4books, thank you for your comments. I must admit that I too prefer those frogs than the other type of frogs involved in stitching. I first saw Earthshock years after it had first been broadcast so I knew that it was the one where Adric died. Even then I was pleased that he had left. He wasn't my favourite character. Still a good story though.

Thank you lili, lol. I will see what I can do with your cards. Glad you are enjoying the first season of Dr Who. That episode put a lump in my throat too. Glad you are also enjoying the Diary of Anne Frank. I can't even begin to count the number of times I've read it. My sister is reading it just now too.

Booking Through Thursday

Goldilocks September 6, 2007
Filed under: Wordpress — --Deb @ 1:44 am

Okay, so the other day, a friend was commenting on my monthly reading list and asked when I found the time to read. In the ensuing discussion, she described herself as a “goldilocks” when it comes to reading–she needs to have everything juuuuuust right to be able to focus. This caught my attention because, first, I thought that was a charming way of describing the condition, but, two, while we’ve talked about our reading habits, this is an interesting wrinkle. I’d never really thought about it that way.
So, this is my question to you–are you a Goldilocks kind of reader?
Do you need the light just right, the background noise just so loud but not too loud, the chair just right, the distractions at a minimum?
Or can you open a book at any time and dip right in, whether it’s for twenty seconds, while waiting for the kettle to boil, or indefinitely, like while waiting interminably at the hospital–as long as the book is open in front of your nose, you’re happy to read?

I am not a Goldilocks reader. I can read just about anywhere. The only place I have difficulty reading is on a bus or car and that's due to travel sickness. I am one of these annoying people that can zone everything out to concentrate on what I am reading. Of course I can only do this if the book is good enough. If the book isn't good enough to catch my imagination then it won't happen. Many a time I have had people try to catch my attention and it takes a pat on the shoulder to drag me out of my book. Funny though, when it comes to sleeping I need total silence.

I do have ideal places to read though. I love nothing more than at the end of the day to sit in bed and read with a cup of tea. Or to soak in the bath with a book (lots of bubbles and a glass of red wine). Lastly I love to spend a day book shopping and then sitting in the cafe and reading something I have purchased while sipping a coffee. Unfortunately I very rarely get to do the last one. Especially since my favourite place to go has closed down.

I'm going to leave you now with some more sock monkey pics. Three of them are of Scarlett (the monkey I made for my mum) who has not long come back from Boston. Some pics of her were taken in a park. The last pic is of a new sock monkey. His name is Col. Pillage and he has went to the aid of a Viking.

Booking Through Thursday

Statistics August 30, 2007
Filed under: Wordpress — --Deb @ 1:59 am

There was a widely bruited-about statistic reported last week, stating that 1 in 4 Americans did not read a single book last year. Clearly, we don’t fall into that category, but . . . how many of our friends do? Do you have friends/family who read as much as you do? Or are you the only person you know who has a serious reading habit?

Not being American none of my friends fall into it. However, at school I was the only one amongst my friends who was an avid reader. A few of them did read occasionally but most of them only read when they had to for school. At school it was sort of considered uncool to be a reader. Not that I cared. I never hid the fact that I read and most of my friends accepted it. I did have one friend who read just as much as I did. However, she had been bringing back a book I had loaned to her and when someone asked her if she had actually read it she made some sort of sarcastic comment. It wasn't directed at me since no one really ever made fun of the fact that I was a reader. But she didn't want to be known as one and so scoffed to hide it. I remember being upset with her. Simply because she was one of the most intelligent girls in the school and was well known for being intelligent. Yet she decided she would rather hide it just because she was worried about what one person thought. I think I was more disappointed with her than anything else. I guess she just didn't like her whole persona of being the good girl who always studied. I met her a few years after we had all left school and we had both moved on to different Universities. After saying hello she told myself and the friend I was with that she was supposed to be in class right now and that she was going to be late with an assignment but had went shopping instead. After telling us this she said something about how she bet we would never have thought she had done something like that at school. Mind you she must have changed her mind about that image as she is now doing very well for herself.

Now most of my friends are readers. I still read more than a lot of them but most of them always have a book on the go like myself. We all really love talking about books and swapping them. I really missed that growing up (unless of course you count my parents). We all have at least one type of book that we like in common so we always have something to talk about when it comes to books. It's hard to describe to the non reader the excitement you feel when you find friends like that.

Booking Through Thursday

Indoctrination August 23, 2007
Filed under: Wordpress — --Deb @ 1:35 am

Using a suggestion from Erin today:
When growing up did your family share your love of books? If so, did one person get you into reading? And, do you have any family-oriented memories with books and reading? (Family trips to bookstore, reading the same book as a sibling or parent, etc.)

I think that I have probably answered this question or something like it somewhere before. So I am not going to do a big long post on this. The straight answer is yes I did grow up in a family that shared a love of books. My mum used to talk to me all the time about the books she read when she was little and all her trips to the library. My dad on the other hand didn't begin reading much until he went to college. Funnily that was round the time he started dating my mum so maybe she influenced him a little. When I was little going to the library was a family event. Even my sister who reads sporadically loved going. We would all come away with handfuls of books and the rest of the evening we would all be quietly reading together in the living room. My dad doesn't read quite as much now so it's mainly my mum and I who share a love of books despite our widely differing tastes.

Booking Through Thursday

Multiples August 9, 2007
Filed under: Wordpress — --Deb @ 1:13 am

Do you have multiple copies of any of your books?If so, why? Absent-mindedness? You love them that much? First Editions for the shelf, but paperbacks to read? If not, why not? Not enough space? Not enough money? Too sensible to do something so foolish?

There is only one book that I have multiple copies of and that's "Jpod" by Douglas Coupland. The reason I have three is that two of them are limited editions (in different formats). The third is also limited edition in the same format as one of the others but it is signed. I had no intentions of buying three copies of the book. It's one of my favourite books and while I am a collector of books I just never thought of collecting editions of one particular title. The first copy is actually a proof copy. Publishers give these out to book stores in the hopes that they will read them and therefore be able to sell them better when it comes to them being released to the public. They are also given to proof readers to spot any printing errors. I usually don't bother all that much with proofs. I have a couple but being such a Coupland fan I practically snatched this one out the reps hands when he handed it over. I had no intentions of buying a copy of the book but then they brought them out as a limited edition and I couldn't help myself. About 3 months after the release of the book and I had already bought my second copy we were sent signed editions and I couldn't resist then either. It's the only time I have ever done that though.

I do have a friend who actually collects editions of one book title. She loves books as much as I do but unlike me she can actually say that she has one ultimate favourite book. She's a "Pride And Prejudice" fan. She has always loved the story even before the days of the television adaption (although it did help fuel her addiction). I wouldn't even like to guess how many copies of the book she has. She once saw an edition of the book in a film. The leading lady was reading it. She took one look at the cover and then was straight on the net trying to hunt a copy down (luckily enough she did find it). She also reads the book again every time she buys another copy of it. I think it is sweet. I have loved many books but not enough to go out and do that. Or at least I couldn't single just one out to do that with. "Jpod" was an exception.

My sister has just about finished moving her things out and I have all but finished tidying and gutting out. Would have went a lot quicker if I hadn't been working. There are still things that I need to do but I am having crafts withdrawal. I am itching to work on something, anything, as it feels like days since I have worked on anything. I have decided that tonight I am going to take a break and do something crafty.

Lili, I am glad that you liked the mascots. I very much enjoyed making them. I have since made another which I will post later. I also found a bag of felt that I forgot I had so I will have to make more with that. "Magician" was a great read. I hope your DH likes it when you track down a copy of it. How are you getting on with "First Among Sequels"? I finished it last week. Plan on posting my thoughts on it soon.

Timewarden, I haven't read "Stark" or saw the adaption. I have to admit that I am not a huge fan of Ben Elton himself. I tend to switch over if I catch him on television. It put me off trying any of his books. The only reason I really read that one was that a friend has recommended it and made it sound interesting. I did like it and I will probably try more but who knows when that will be. I loved "Preemptive Strike" too. Ro was never a favourite character of mine (although she had a major role in some of my favourite episodes) but I loved this one and I did like her character in it. It was great to see. The main reason they did that episode was partly to tie up loose ends with Ro but also to introduce the Maquis. Chasing the Maquis was how "Voyager" started and they used both Next Gen and DS9 to add in the background they needed. I didn't actually realise that until I watched the extras.

Crazee4books, I loved Salem's Lot. I am also a bit of a King fan (I think that has probably come across in a few of my posts, lol). I am not a horror fan on the whole though. I think the genre is a very difficult one to write for. You either do it very well or very badly and King does it well. His books tend to stand out amongst all the others. I have tried James Herbert who I feel is a bit in your face with his books. The sex and violence stand out more than the story does at times which is off putting. I have also read a number of Dean Koontz and I now feel that after reading a few I could probably guess the rest just by reading the blurb. Richard Laymon is the same in that sense but he also uses sex as a bludgeon in his books. I would almost class his books as soft porn. Mind you I have heard the same said for a lot of horror writers. I tend to rarely bother with horror these days unless something really catches my eye or it's King.

Booking Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday
Have you ever written an author a fan letter?
Did you get an answer?
Did it spark a conversation? A meeting?
(And, sure, I suppose that e-mails DO count . . . but I’d say no to something like a message board on which the author happens to participate.)

No, I have never written a fan letter to an author. When I was younger it never occurred to me that I could otherwise I probably would have. I had heard of people writing fan mail to pop stars and actors. I remember one of those pop magazines showing addresses of where you could send various fan mail to. I was never teeny boppy enough to go ahead and write one of those letters.

I did consider writing a fan letter to an author a year or so ago. I had planned to write a letter to Stephen King. I had not long finished the last of the Dark Tower books and once I had I came across a lot of criticism on how he ended the series. I think it was because of those criticisms that I wanted to write a letter explaining how much I enjoyed his books. There was more to it than that although I don't think it was a gushy letter. I think I was annoyed about all the criticism (although I have to say that in some cases I could see their point) and I just wanted to show some support. Of course I only composed it in my head. It was one of those things that I had in my head to do before I went to sleep and then it didn't seem like such a good idea after I woke up the next day.

At the time I found it very easy to imagine what I would say in this letter. Now though I can't imagine it. At least I can't imagine writing something that he probably hasn't heard before. "Hi, I really enjoy reading your books. They really mean a lot to me. Hope there is more to come." I am sure he and most authors have had many letters like it. I think King actually puts a lot of himself in his books. Many of the main characters are writers or have had drinking problems. In "Lisey's Story" the husband of the main character was a writer. Some of his fan mail was mentioned in it where people saw things in his books that weren't there. One particular fan took it to the extreme and it ended in the writer being shot. I think that there is some truth in this. Not that the author has ever been shot but that he has received some very strange mail too. I think for any author it must be frustrating to receive letters like that and I think King showed that in this book (as well as a hint of amusement).

I've kind of went off track there. I would be interested to hear if any of you have ever written to a favourite author and what you said. Or if you haven't what would you say?

Booking Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday

Well, after last week’s record-breaking number of responses (92 last time I checked–an all-time BTT record), I was tempted to use this week’s question to ask what you all thought about Harry Potter 7–but since a decent proportion of you weren’t going to be reading it at all, that seemed unfair. So instead . . .

Who’s the worst fictional villain you can think of? As in, the one you hate the most, find the most evil, are happiest to see defeated? Not the cardboard, two-dimensional variety, but the most deliciously-written, most entertaining, best villain? Not necessarily the most “evil,” so much as the best-conceived on the part of the author…oh, you know what I mean!

These days I read very few books where there is an absolute villain. I find this question quite difficult. Most people I know have fictional characters that they love to hate but I find it difficult to feel that passionately about most bad characters. Out of some classics that I have read in the past I can think of Dracula, Uriah Heep and Heathcliff. While I disliked their characters as the reader was supposed to I don't think they were the most entertaining of villains and I'm not sure how I would class a character as such. Of course if I was talking sci fi it would be the easy choice of possibly the Daleks or the Cybermen. I am sitting here looking at my piles of books and although there are a number of classics, horror and fantasy amongst them nothing springs to mind. Maybe I have the discovery of my favourite villain to look forward to.

Still speaking of books I got the cutest craft book on how to make soft toys. All it takes is a little felt, a little stuffing and some hand stitching. I am going felt shopping today and hopefully make a start on at least one. Once I have made my first I will show you an image of the book with a mini review. On an aside here is a word of advice. Never say (however innocently you might have meant it) "I need to get felt" amongst a group of people who clearly have dirty minds. The comments I got after I said it would make anyone blush.

Booking Through Thursday

This weeks booking through Thursday is Harry Potter related. I suppose it makes sense but had I thought about it I would have left the last post until now. Not to worry, I'll answer them anyway;

Booking Through Thursday
Okay, love him or loathe him, you’d have to live under a rock not to know that J.K. Rowling’s final Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, comes out on Saturday… Are you going to read it?
If so, right away? Or just, you know, eventually, when you get around to it? Are you attending any of the midnight parties?
If you’re not going to read it, why not?
And, for the record… what do you think? Will Harry survive the series? What are you most looking forward to?

The first few questions you already know the answer to. Yes, I will be reading the book. I am too nosey not to read it. I want to know how it all ends and reading about it on the net isn't good enough for me. That and I have enjoyed them for the most part anyway. I will be attending one of the midnight parties although it will be for work. I probably wouldn't if it wasn't for that. Before I worked where I do now I didn't attend any although I did buy the books. Lastly no I don't think Harry will survive. JK Rowling has dropped so many hints that she has ended the books in such away that she won't be able to continue the story after book seven. If any of the other characters were to be killed off the story could possibly go on. Even if Voldermort were to die Harry could still have other adventures and face more foes. Mind you another way to kill off the story would be if Harry lost his abilities. There are a few people I know who are so sick of Harry Potter that they are hoping he will be killed off.

Basically I am most looking forward to seeing how it ends. I am looking forward to seeing if some of the things I thought might happen after reading book 6 will happen. I am also hoping that once the Harry Potter mania has settled down that other new children's authors can get some of the lime light. It would be nice to see authors who deserve it getting some attention too. I don't that there will be anything like that again though in terms of media coverage and parties on release night. Still it would be nice to see other authors getting almost as much attention.

Cheeser, I think it's the details that children love most about these books. All the little things like the moving pictures, the jumping chocolate frogs and the wizarding sport of quiditch.

Timewarden, I can see Asda's point about the price of the book being expensive for children. However, most places won't sell it at that price. They will have it on some kind of promotion. I don't believe that the supermarket is really concerned about that though. They are planning on selling the book at almost half price. Their discount from the publisher will not be as high as that. Therefore they are going to take a loss by selling the book. They can probably afford to do this but I am sure they would rather make a profit from it. I think that's where the criticism came from. Still it's almost like biting the hand that feeds you. Bloomsbury can afford to refuse to distribute to a retailer. People aren't going to stop buying the book just because Asda doesn't have it. They'll go else where.

My favourite children's authors growing up were Judith Kerr, Shirley Hughes, Dorothy Edwards, Enid Blyton and Roald Dahl. I've read a larger selection of kids books now than I did then.

A Pirate and His Wench (and booking through thursday)

This sock monkey is going to my best friend although she doesn't know it yet. She doesn't actually know I have been making them as I haven't seen her in a while. We have both been busy with work and attempts to meet up have had to be cancelled for various reasons. I thought I would make her one of these as a surprise. Since I don't know when I will get to see her next I am thinking of sending it out to her. It's always nice to get a parcel you aren't expecting and I hope she will like her/him. For some strange reason the socks were a little wider than all the other pairs I have used. So when I had finished it looked a little on the plump side compared to all the others which is why I pictured it in the cake tin.

This one was specially requested although he doesn't have a name yet (I have already named him Pete but his new owner may call him something different). I decided to picture him here with his wench. The reason only one eye is showing is that he is wearing an eye patch. Under that pitch I stitched a grey cross where his eye should be. You can't see too well but he also has a knitted sword (I used a straw to stuff it), a little green parrot (was taken from a pattern in a book belonging to my mum and was originally designed as a sparrow) and a gold hoop earring (I bought those rather than made). I also knitted a little red sash to hold his sword and a red bandanna. When he isn't with Barbie here is can be found looking for treasure or drinking rum.

Thanks everyone for your lovely comments. I really do appreciate them. Lili, I am glad that you liked Madleen Ross. I liked your post on her. Crazeeforbooks, thanks for the link. I love the look of that book. I will have to look it up. The escaped prisoner monkey was for someone I worked with who left to join the police. I am afraid all other projects have been left to the side. I keep getting more requests for sock monkeys. I am making one for my mum at the moment (she already has a name and a story). I have another to make and send away to a friend and two others have requested them.

Booking Through Thursday

What with yesterday being the Fourth of July and all, I’m feeling a little patriotic, and so have a simple question:What, in your opinion, is the (mythical) Great American Novel? At least to date. A “classic,” or a current one–either would be fine. Mark Twain? J.D. Salinger? F. Scott Fitzgerald? Stephen King? Laura Ingalls Wilder?
It doesn’t have to be your favorite book, mind you. “Citizen Kane” may be the “best” film, and I concede its merits, but it’s not my favorite. You don’t have to love something to know that it’s good.
Now, I know that not all of you are American–but you can play, too! What I want from you is to know what you consider to the best novel of YOUR country. It might be someone the rest of us haven’t heard of and, frankly, I think we’d all like to get some new authors to read.

This is a hard one. What do I consider to be the greatest book of my country? The obvious answer to that would be Shakespeare. His works are probably the most well known and the most influential. There have been so many takes on all of his books. Authors, playwrights, film and television writers are still influenced by him. I think most people would chose Macbeth out of all of his plays. For me though it has to be Romeo and Juliet. It was the first one of his plays that I actually enjoyed studying at school (Merchant of Venice was the first one I studied and I didn't like it at all). I think part of my enjoyment of it was that growing up I had always loved the musical "West Side Story" which was an interpretation of the play. Later I also enjoyed the 1996 film "Romeo and Juliet". Sad to say I have yet to see it in a theatre or even the ballet, both of which I would love to see. Is it the best loved? If you were to follow the Big Read then sadly no that would be Lord Of the Rings (I still believe that had more to do with the films released at the time). However, I would bet that there are very few people who have not at least heard of Shakespeare of Romeo and Juliet (excluding Brain from BB8 of course).

Of course I am from Scotland and there are many famous Scottish writers too. Sadly my knowledge on Scottish literature isn't that great (something I have always meant to rectify). However one author I very much enjoyed studying at school was the poet Robert Burns. My favourite poem was Tam O'Shanter. I loved the humour in it. Again there are few people who wouldn't have heard of Robert Burns (few in Scotland anyway, I would hope). We even celebrate his birthday on 25th January. It's traditional to have a Burns Supper of Haggis, Neeps and tatties (something I can live without eating) during this you recite poems and then follow it up with a Kailey. You are even encouraged to recite something of your own on these occasions. The seniors at my school took part in these events and it was always fun. The students were left to do most of the reciting and a boy had to write an ode to the lassies whilst a girl would give a reply from the lassies. Could be very funny if done right.

Lili, a graphic novel is a novel written in the form of a comic book. There are a lot of very popular ones out there and there have been films based on them. Sin City is probably the most well known and there are plans to write a film based on the Preacher graphic novels. I plan on writing a post on these at some point as I have only got into them.

Booking Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday
Do you cheat and peek ahead at the end of your books? Or do you resolutely read in sequence, as the author intended?
And, if you don’t peek, do you ever feel tempted?

No I don't cheat. I have a friend who does though. She always has to know how a book ends. Sometimes she even decides on whether or not she will read a book by those last few pages. It drives me up the wall. When I loan her books I make her promise me she won't read the end first. I just don't see the point of it. The main enjoyment of the book is the journey itself. Not every book has a great ending which can spoil the rest of the book a little. But you still got enjoyment out of what lead up to it. Plus you could be reading something out of context. What sounds like a bad ending could be a good ending for that particular book. The only example I can think of is the Dark Tower series. The ending was awful! It tainted the rest of the series a little but I still enjoyed reading them. Had I read the ending first I might not have bothered and missed out on so much.

I have felt tempted in the past. When there is a character I like who does something that I feel is out of character or even might die I want to skip ahead. Either in the hopes that maybe that out of character action was done for a good reason or in the hopes of finding that character is alive. I don't though. It spoils the excitement of finding out the answers in the order the reader is supposed to. Jumping right to the end you miss that build up.

Booking Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday
Almost everyone can name at least one author that you would love just ONE more book from. Either because they’re dead, not being published any more, not writing more, not producing new work for whatever reason . . . or they’ve aged and aren’t writing to their old standards any more . . . For whatever reason, there just hasn’t been anything new (or worth reading) of theirs and isn’t likely to be.
If you could have just ONE more book from an author you love . . . a book that would be as good any of their best (while we’re dreaming) . . . something that would round out a series, or finish their last work, or just be something NEW . . . Who would the author be, and why? Jane Austen? Shakespeare? Laurie Colwin? Kurt Vonnegut?

This is actually a hard one. I read this challenge last night and I could not think of a single author. Most authors that were springing to mind were ones who are still writing but I am just impatient when it comes to waiting for their next book.

This morning however, I was talking to someone about an author who has passed away. A friend had mentioned a film she remembered seeing and it was "Village of the Damned". This of course is based on "The Midwich Cuckoos" by John Wyndham one of my favourite authors. I have not yet read all of his books but I have read the vast majority of them. Wyndham had been writing most of his life. In his early life her wrote under a variety of names of many different genres. He didn't start writing the books he was better known for until after WWII. These books are generally classed as science fiction but Wyndham himself classed his writing as "logical fantasy".

Despite having been written 50 years ago his books do have the ability to scare me. The main one is "The Day Of the Triffids". I first came across it in the form of a film when I was little. I have never recovered from it. There are plants out there today which I watch closely to see if it's going to move (one of which my mum insists keeping in the back garden). At school we had to read the book. This was the first time I had read Wyndham. My first reaction was horror. There was no way I wanted to read a book that film had been based on. It had scared me that much. What surprised me though was that I enjoyed it. Once I ignored that fear I realised how good the writing actually was (and made the film look so very poor). I then made a point of reading "The Midwich Cuckoos". I remembered that film well too (was called Village of the Damned) although it hadn't scared me quite as much. This book is probably one of my favourites. I have also went on to read The Chrysalids, The Seeds Of Time and Chocky.

Why would I want him to produce one more book? Wyndham died in 1969. I would be very interested to see what form a book by him would have taken had he been alive now. I wonder what he would have written had he known about computers, the Internet, reality shows, today's political unrest and everything else that has happened since then. The same could be said for most authors I imagine but Wyndham is one I would be truly interested to read.

Lili, Timewarden answered your question amongst my comments. As he said you can print it out but it will use a lot of paper. This book was probably over 200pgs in novel format.

Timewarden, I never thought of comparing Human nature with Inner Light but I agree. Both gave people the opportunity to see what a different life would be like. Both main characters are interested only in travel and discovery and so don't have time for families. Both saw that given half a chance they could be happy in that alternative life. Very much the same concept.

Booking Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday
Do you read e-Books?
f so, how? On your computer, or a PDA?
Or are you a paper purist? Why?

I don't read e-Books and I am a paper purist. I even dislike audio books (although I will listen to stories made for audio). I'm not sure why I became such a paper purist. I do like gadgets, I take after my dad like that. So it is surprising that I am so against non paper books.

I can tell you why I am a paper purists. For a start I work with paper based books. If I want to keep my job I can't help but hope that e-books never replace paper. The main reason though is that I just don't believe that it is the same. I love books. I love the new smell. I love thumbing through the pages. I love books that are beautifully illustrated and spending as much time pouring over those as I do the words. I love the feel of turning a page. I love opening a book for the first time and I love closing a book after I have finished a fantastic read. I love the way they sit on my shelf and at anyone time I can pick one up and flick through it. Can anyone seriously get the same satisfaction out of e-books? I don't care what anyone says, it just isn't the same. A lot of the time a book will catch my eye because of the cover. I doubt e-books have that same impact.

I can understand why people would like them. They are more environmentally friendly (think of all those saved trees). They don't take up physical storage space and it would be easier to carry around than a book. Still, they aren't for me and if e-books do ever replace paper books I will be very upset.

Booking Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday
Here’s an idea from Julie:
I had an idea for a BTT question when I was taking a peek at one of my bookcases yesterday and spotted my old copy of the Aeneid in Latin sitting there. Maybe this question has already been done—but if not… Do you have any foreign language books and if so can you (still) read them?

I have a total of one book in another language. When I attempted to learn French (studying and my unpredictable shift patterns didn't go together) I bought a copy of "Animal Farm" by George Orwell in French. I was pretty limited to choosing between some crime books or Harry Potter in French. I decided to chose something I thought I would enjoy and something I hadn't read before. I could read parts of it but I never did finish it. Lili, I'm afraid I'm not as good as you with languages. I still have the book but it hasn't been touched since that first attempt at learning another language.

Booking Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday
It happens even to the best readers from time to time… you close the cover on the book you’re reading and discover, to your horror, that there’s nothing else to read. Either there’s nothing in the house, or nothing you’re in the mood for. Just, nothing that “clicks.” What do you do?? How do you get the reading wheels turning again?

I never have nothing to read. I am bad for collecting books. I always have a huge pile to chose from. Occasionally I am good and work my way through some of it. It doesn't last long though. Every few months I will go on a book buying binge. Usually some of those books will be read straight away and the rest will be added to the book pile to be read later on. There have been times though where I have finished a book and I look to the pile and nothing there appeals to me at that moment. This usually happens when I have read a good book and I want to read something similar but I don't have anything like that there. Or if I have a particular book in mind that I want to read but I don't have it there and none of the others will do as a second choice. When that happens I can usually go away and do something else. By the following day I will either have gotten over it and finally chosen a book from the pile. Or I will have bought the book that I have been really wanting to read.

There have been very rare times where I just don't feel like reading at all. As I said this is very rare but when that happens I will again just go and do something else.

Book Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday
So, judging by last week’s answers, apparently the question I should have been asking was:
Where DON’T you read??

I don't read on the bus or in cars as I get travel sick. I don't think there is anywhere else I wouldn't read. I have even read in cinemas. If I have been book shopping before I go I won't be able to help myself. I put the book down once the trailers start though.

Booking Through Thursday

I haven't done one of these in a long time. As I have no pics to post (the last place I was at wasn't exactly picturesque for a pic of Mr Sparkles) and I have no craft updates or book reviews I thought I would do one of these.

Booking Through Thursday
No, not THAT kind of R.I.P.
Reading. In. Public.
Do you do it? Why or why not?

Yes, I do read in public. I can't read on the bus as I get motion sickness but I do like to read when travelling by train or plane (takes my mind off flying). Also I love nothing more than to read in a coffee shop. Occasionally when I have a day off and I am between books I like to go book shopping. I will take my time in choosing a book (I usually pic out one or two). Once I have bought them I will go get myself a coffee in the bookshop cafe and will sit down and read a chapter or two. In the shop I used to do this in you would find most people are reading rather than chatting with friends. It's just such a nice atmosphere. I am a nosy reader though. I will have a sly look around to see what other people are reading. Mainly to see if I can spot anything interesting which might be worth checking out later. Unfortunately that shop has closed now. I could do it at work but it really isn't the same.

I was watching Evolution of the Daleks again last night, actually I caught the last half of it. I like the fact that while the old man in the park was giving his speech the Daleks were watching his reaction. Then when Sec was giving his speeches they were continuously looking to each other. It amused me.

Yes, I agree that when Nancy was blackmailing the homeowner it did seem a little out of character. But then she was living on the street during the war and looking after all those kids so it didn't bother me that much.

Booking Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday
A couple weeks ago, we asked about how you take care of your books, with one of the questions asking whether you write in your books. Well, what about books that are meant to be written in? Like, say, a journal or diary? Do you keep one? Obviously, if you're answering this, you have a blog--do you just let your blog be your journal? Or do you also keep one for private stuff also?

I do keep a journal. My first journal dates back to when I was 9 or 10. A friend and I decided to start a diary while studying "The Diary Of Anne Frank" at school. that and we also had a diary at school (along with everyone else in the class) that we enjoyed writing in and then reading the comments left by the teacher which we would then reply to. I have kept one on and off since then. I hate looking back on most of the journals when I was younger. I read them and think 'surely I wasn't like that'. Now I have read a lot of books on journaling as my interest in them has grown rather than wained. I love the idea of illustrated journals and have tried to keep a few of those. I also love the idea that anything can be a form of journal. If that is the case then I also have a crafts journal and one for books. I also try to keep my regular journal light. I know everyone needs to rant now and then but looking back over pages filled with nothing but complaints is embarrassing. It is one of the reasons I hate looking back on ones from when I was younger.

As for the notebooks themselves not a single one are the same. I love looking out for a new notebook. I have a tendency still to not wait until a notebook is completely finished. I have many a journal with a few blank pages at the back. In the past it would be the cover of the notebook themselves which would call out to me. Now though all I want is for it to be thick and lined. The cover I can always decorate myself although I have yet to do this.

Timewarden, I passed that episode of The Tomorrow People and I didn't realise it was them. I didn't particulalry like that storyline which is probably why I didn't really notice. How could I have not recognised that voice?