Merry Christmas and Merry Happy Jolly to all! (and Part 2 of Gift Giving)

Let's face it, a full time job and a busy life at home does not leave much of a margin to read a book. But I am managing one at the moment. A long one, in fact. Why I do this every holiday is beyond me, last year it was The Goldfinch, this year it's A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. I. Love. This. Book.

I was smart this time, I left a piece of paper in the book writing down one or two  sentences of what I was reading and/or characters so I could jump back. This book is engaging from the start. Not a book that soars into your heart right off but it's a big book lead in, interesting characters, eating cheaply in the city, finding an apartment or space to move into, four male friends, that NYC vibe. 

Lots of great comments on the book group about Nightingale by Kristen Hannah. I bought this and put it aside for after I am finished with A Little Life. In between those books, however, I am fortunate enough to read an author's book before it comes out!  I won't say anything now. I will be writing much later when I am able. 

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What do you buy your book friends besides the usual Amazon, B&N or <insert another book store> gift card? Here is a great start for those readers who will tackle any book, or read a book JUST because you simply gave it to them.. high trust factor and all that...

I have posted all of Man Booker Long List  books on my book group which usually means I have gone further by reading up on all the reviews.Great list, great books, check them out.

And THEN! The annual Goodreads readers poll for the best books of the year, 2015! This is ALWAYS the best list of books for gifts. It is the best list of books for a book group, a book club, you name it! If you are not on Goodreads, please, take a looksee, it is the best way to track books, track what your friends are reading,  track authors, and much more, go. Go now.

And book totes! Here are five from Amazon. (And probably elsewhere, you can check out the original sellers on Amazon.)

Here is the blog I found the totes on, it's a really great blog too. Linking it up here:

 http://book-delight.com/2014/08/bd-friday-five-book-totes.html/

Bookmarks, book ornaments, gift cards, buying a stack of books  and throwing them in a tote (that's a GREAT gift) or a Kindle, a Nook, an iTunes card! We never tire of the Literary gifts and if you want to go one step further go to Amazon or elsewhere and check out Literary jewelry and clothing. 

May you all have a very very safe holiday, be good so Santa can stuff that stocking with more books!

Cheryl


I am signing my name so it's more personal, just pretend I am writing a letter to you. :) 

The goings on: 
I love my new job, being a discharge planner, AKA Home Care Liaison is a great job, to see patients rolling out the door of the hospital going home to the best  care be it home care of hospice, it is what makes my heart feel better, knowing they will be in good hands. 

 Life is a bit chaotic getting our daughter into a day program which will start after the New Year. 

Our new puppy! Well, she's not new and certainly not a small fluffy dog like some think! Bindi is one of the greatest dogs we have ever owned. She's sturdy, like a tank. You know it when she jumps on you. Great personality, I recommend a Havanese if you need compainionship. LIke, stalker, safe stalker companionship, they are called Velcro dogs for a reason. 

And most of all, we are finally moving forward with "late bloomer" planning (we have been unable to do anything the last ten years for various reasons.) Much to do, life is so short, friends, after seeing hospice patient after hospice patient, please, love one another, forgive if you can (unless they are toxic) and just... read the books you wanted to read, eat off the coffee table if you feel like it, wear all the "good" clothes you keep in your closet to walk the dog or clean the house,, just get out there! Live!

May God Bless you all, Merry Christmas and Holly Jolly Merriment~~!  xo

Holiday Book Gifts for 2015 Part 1

Every year it's getting harder to buy  for your book nerd family members and friends unless you know exactly what they want. And usually they have eight hundred plus books in their Kindle making them sigh with a mournful face while whispering, "I for real, seriously, totally (insert a word like that) don't know what book I want" leaving you with that awful, what do I buy this person??? They are the impossible readers. So I found a few books here and there under many sites with the blaring:  "Great Gifts" for 2015. 

I had bought myself  Pioneer Girl as seen above. It's huge, like, text book huge and quite lovely if you are a Laura Ingalls Wilder fan. I think I have read every book out there explaining her life over and over but this book is solid. A huge sit down and read what you want to read anywhere in the book kind of book, like say, a text book! Your recipient will be quite happy with your gift. Forever.

The roots of the Texas Stoneware. Hard to get book (as it said on one website) but worth it if someone you love likes a bit of history on stoneware, personally, I would love to have this book. Recommended by the NYT book critics.
 

I JUST looked this book up, Jenny Lawson hails it among other writers (in advance) so it must be good, it must be funny and I am going straight to her blog to check her out. Every year a book lover must receive one funny book for the holidays. It's usually the first book I will read in desolate January when life seems like the Grinch has sucked out all the twinkle lights and sparkly cookies for the rest of time. I will definitely hint hint hint for this one to arrive in my stocking. (Though I must confess, I am becoming weary of snark but sometimes.. just some.. times... you need it.)

This audio collection seems to be a pretty good deal for when you are gathered around the fire while the gloom in the winter is hanging over you like death. You know, those moments in life where you feel like you are in the early forties gathered ye all together freezing to death, hungry, in your stone hut listening to a family member tell everyone a five hundred mile story on war and loss? Yes, this is it. I think it's great. I wish I had a longer commute to work (not really but for this, yes.) And that description above? I think I have lived through a few of those family gatherings.

Pic from Bloomies, full credit there. This is an adorable book. A baby touchy feely book about being an owl. Love the stuffy toy too AND the cover. (I am sucker for book covers that's just how it is.)

I have no idea what this is about. None. I will look it up right now....... this is what Amazon had to say...

Rajiv Joseph is one of today’s most acclaimed young playwrights. The winner of numerous awards, including an NEA Award for Best Play and a Whiting Writers Award, he is an artist to watch. This volume gathers together for the first time his three major works to date.

Included herein are his latest play, Gruesome Playground Injuries, which charts the intersection of two lives using scars, wounds, and calamity as the mile markers to explore why people hurt themselves to gain another’s love and the cumulative effect of such damage; Animals Out of Paper, a subtle, elegant, yet bracing examination of the artistic impulse and those in its thrall, which follows a world-famous origamist as she becomes the unwitting mentor to a troubled young prodigy, even as she must deal with her own loss of inspiration; and Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, a darkly comedic drama that looks on as the lives of two American soldiers, an Iraqi translator, and a tiger intersect on the streets of Baghdad.

I would read this. Yes.

This is a gorgeous book. A special needs child opens up the world to a giant who refuses to have children in his garden. You. Can't Go. Wrong. Here.

First of all, I adore the cover. Second. It's a family drama and to be honest, it's not the best book to give at the holidays, never mind,  but know this! It's on sale for Kindle! (TBR for sure.)

This is fabulous, and I think it would be a perfect gift. I will copy the Amazon description here (I am pressed for time, I apologize.) 

This historic volume showcases tribal cultures around the world. With globalization, these societies are to be prized for their distinctive lifestyles, art and traditions. They live in close harmony with nature, now a rarity in our modern era. Jimmy Nelson not only presents us with stunning images of customs and artifacts, but also offers insightful portraits of people who are the guardians of a culture that they--and we--hope will be passed on to future generations in all its glory. Nelson's large-plate field camera captures every intricate detail and fine nuance for posterity. What's more, this splendid pageantry is set against a vivid backdrop of some of the world's most pristine landscapes. English/German/French edition.

Just a few books to start your list for giving to those that are hell to buy for. I used to go to B and N when they had fabulous coffee table books during the holidays. I always found one for every single book lover I know. I wish they still had zillions out there but sadly, they don't. So it's a big job looking for them online, but Amazon, B and N and other big places do have a nice collection. Moving on to my fourth week of my new job which is keeping me from online life, and from reading but not from keeping my nose into what is up around the book world. Have a good one!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving! So much to be grateful for, family, friends, a job (especially for me) among a million other things. I am still thankful for books, well, what reader wouldn't be thankful for books, right? 

Stay safe, give your keys to a sober friend tonight if you have one too many and to those of you who are home and not hanging out with the Fam or your friends I hope you find a comfy place to sit among the pillows to read a good book. 

I am thankful for all of you, thank you for reading this blog, it means the world. xo

Fall, books and what's blogging got to do with it?

First, I wanted to thank you for following me! For those of you that are not professional writers, the bloggers like me going out on a limb to blog publicly, we are brave! And it's truly like jumping off a cliff.  You have this itch to write, you have things to say or review or show people and that should be the parachute for your jump. With your bag of goals strapped to you back and your followers, no matter how big or small, lifting you up to help you find yourself in a perfect place to write about the things you love the most. No matter how scary it is, do it. Jump. I am so grateful that I had the nerve to do it. Being here is a lot of fun.

My goings on (and it's a bit rushed, sorry!)

• The Girl in the Spider's Web is ticking along. As I said before to someone somewhere, it doesn't have the complexity but it's a good story so far. Lullaby Girl by Aly Sidgwick is a real book (the former is on my iPad) which I read at night. I am enjoying both, and they can be read simultaneously. 
• Tomorrow is a Library book sale. I am going to hit that up with a friend. They have used new hardbacks that were just published. I had a give-away on my book group and it was wonderful to send off a book in mint condition. This library is the next town over. I have joined our own library a couple of weeks ago! Talk about thrilled! I may have mentioned it here. 
• My goal is to save money and still get the books I want so patience, looking into library book sales and the used bookstore plus going online for Bookperks and Bookgorilla, is a huge money saving adventure. That way, when I do go to Barnes and Noble for a hardback "I have to have" is not such a horrible matter when I buy it for a few more beans. It makes it special. 
• I borrowed The Paris Winter by Imogen Robertson (see photo) which isn't my kind of book but it jumped out at me when I signed up at the library. I figured it's not a book I would buy so the library is a perfect place to try new genres! Just take them back if you don't like them! Win Win for everyone!
  
• Fall is a great time to read with the chilly weather bound to come in. And it will be the holiday season soon enough. I have said to some friends on FB (in a group) that it's okay to take time out for yourselves, the holidays are not the be all end all of who you are. I will plan to write a couple of blogs like I did last year about savings and books you can buy for whom and all that fun stuff. 
• I hope everyone has a great week. I will probably return with The Lullaby Girl as the first review in a week. Have a good one. Again, thank you for being here, it means the world!

My Goings On July 2015

I hope "youse" US peoples had a great July 4th!

~That's for you, Robin~

Reading.. I could write a paragraph of  my not-getting-to-read woes but I will spare you the gory details, okay well I will say something about it. The problem is, when we have no time to read, to us book lovers, we get antsy, we long for quiet (lucid) moments with our books, and we try to read but either fall asleep or cannot concentrate very well. The older I get the harder it is to sit down to read without falling into a coma.

That will change soon enough...

I have a few pages left of Station Eleven, a very good book. I will review that book when I am finished, I have had Robin Cook's book, Nano at my bedside and read a bit from it every night and the latest and greatest is, The Inverted Forest by Josh Dalton:

For some crazy reason this book is expensive in paper and on Kindle so I went to Half.com and paid a couple of beans from a very good book dealer, like I've said before, used books are alright with me! It has started out with a slight bit of a bnag but the kind that grabs you around the neck.

Those are the life happenings and  books going right now. I hope I can set some time aside this week to get more reading done. I feel that things are calming down.

Read on friends, and enjoy your summer! I will return when I am feeling better to review some books.

A big huge PS, on Saturday I am meeting a few of my book group friends, I cannot even begin to tell you how excited I am to meet the very people that has encouraged our book group into what it is. I will post pics and anecdotal tales next week!

Easter Sunday, my first Bible

Happy Easter! 

We decided to stay home and chill out before a long week of paperwork, appointments, and entertaining my daughter who is off for Spring Break. 

That Bible shown in the photo was given to my by my aunt, my mom's sister. I used to marvel over my aunt's discipline and love for her church. She, among other family members, rooted me into the fabric of faith. I've traveled through many religions and wrapped up my journey with a plain love and faith in God and Jesus. Easy. 

Okay we won't go there, faith and a relationship with God can be anything but easy. 

But that's not for here. 

My aunt gave me a children's Bible and it still means more to me than any book I own. My first reading was about Adam and Eve, then the Christmas story,  lastly, Revelations. I wanted to know the ending even if  I had to piece together some wild symbolism and metaphors. 

The beginning, the middle and the end. 

My love for reading grew larger from that first moment flipping through this rich book, my first Bible while I sat at Gan's table, with her and my aunt beaming with joy over this very solemn but interesting book they passed on. 

I search through all my books. I want to know why people do what they do, why things are as they are and what are those hidden messages. In all genre reading., I want to know. 

I'm curious as a detective. 

I have faith as a child. 

I contemplate as a thinker. 

I think we are all that way, people who love books. And it's a grand thing. 

Enjoy your holiday! 

P.S. To my Mother~ you may not have given me my first Bible but you taught me forgiveness, discipline and being kind to others. You are a faithful marathon runner. 

Thank you and I love you. 

Happy New Year! 2015

Thank you for being a part of this blog, it means so much! Have a wonderful New Year filled with lots of love, good health and peace.
And many many books to read!
~Cheryl~

~Merry Christmas~2014

 A tree that almost made me lose my religion. It's a fake true, I have no time to kill a real one so I figured fake is safe and easy. The lights, on the other hand, gave me a very hard time. After three blow outs, I gave up and threw the top of the tree down on the floor. And it remained there for 24 hours. I left the rest of the "bush" up with the lights that did work and watched a movie. The next night proved to be more successful and it ended up being one of my favorite trees.

 Anna Lee has made a comeback over the last few years and I wanted in. So I got in. Charming and completely Christmas I decided to add a creature every year all over again. Thanks to my mother she got me started this year with three, bless her heart.

 The food! The candy and coolies and pies! All geared for a ticket to Diabetes. Delicious, I preferred the little White Russian you see there. ;)

The books that came in, Anne of Green Gables with beautiful gold leaf pages and a book from a friend in Massachusetts. Lovely books, I can't wait to read them (second go-round on Anne of Green Gables.) Thank you to my two bookish book giving friends :) I was happy to receive them as it was a practical gift year from my family due to me not currently working. And my mom (there she is again) bought me perfume, bless her heart all over again!

I wish you all a Very Happy New Year filled with love, health and books, of course, books! See you soon!

Passing on our legacy... in a stocking.

The magic of book/bookish gift giving at Christmas! Being a book lover and giver yields wondrous bookish things. It's those books and bookish gifts that makes my holiday the most special, especially the giving part. I do my very best to give books to family and friends, even if they are not readers, and all these neat things? Many will fit right into a stocking.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/165942108/book-lovers-christmas-stocking-a-custom

How fabulous is that? 

And no. I don't know that person but she makes some pretty cool things.

My mom gave me a butterfly made out of book pages (try not to groan, I know this makes people crazy.) It is  beautiful and has a prime spot on my tree. Here is a close up:

Thank you, Mom.

My daughter had her Scholastic Book Fair a couple of weeks ago and these books are what she picked out:

For a long time I had filled out the order sheet  for her, as she has Cerebral Palsy. . I  found out a few years back that she wanted to pick out her own books. I felt such elation, this was a child who wasn't supposed to talk, see, or hear. She does all three (a bit too much most of the time, but who is complaining?) 

I am not digressing, I needed to share that. (smile.)

Scholastic Books are a cheaper way to stock up on holiday book gifts for the kids you know. And the selection is always spot on for any age/kid's taste.

http://www.scholastic.com/home/

We like to have our book piles on floors or standing up against things here in our home, visual accessibility is a high priority. We can each grab a book at any time, look at them and think of the person that gave us that book and sit back with a nice hot cup of tea and read.

And how many of those books were gifts? Lots!  I can list off ten people who had given me some of those books. 

There are also socks. Yes, Socks. My friend, Anne, found a place that sells socks for the book lover. Check them out!

(Great stocking stuffers!)

http://store.bookriot.com/collections/socks

So, we covered book decorations, children's books, piles of gift books that were given to me, and socks. Socks!

A good start to your list making.

The holiday (all of them represented) is a perfect time to buy book items for the stocking, no matter how small or large it may be. As in each person's life, a book should be presented to them by you so they have a chance to say, "I may like this. I may not." Each time you give a book or bookish gift, they may not cave or maybe they will come back to you and say, "Hey, that Nelson DeMille you gave me? I read four of his other books since then, thank you, and those socks? Perfect!"

And you will weep.

Trust me. You. Will.

I have one more blog to write and then it's a very Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah and Happy Kwanzaa. I wish you all the best for your holidays, with good family, good friends, good food, good conversations and most of all, good books! May you be blessed always. ~Cheryl

Holiday Book Buying

It can nearly impossible at times to buy a book lover a gift. Sure, a gift card is much appreciated (more than anyone knows) but sometimes, you just want to give a book that means something more.

A couple of years ago a close co-worker gave me this children's book. It's called The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore by William Joyce, illustrated by Joe Bluhm. 

 Beautifully written and illustrated I highly recommend this for someone you know that will unwrap, hug the the craziness out of the book and then leave you alone to read it, straight away.  I was also overcome with appreciation and gratitude that my friend understood me well enough to know I would love this. 

Since the holidays are coming, and you probably know plenty of book lovers (or you wouldn't be reading this) take a look at what is out there in the children's section. I would also ask (without giving yourself away) what books your friend(s) liked as a child or teen. Ask them if they still have a copy. Buy it used or new. It doesn't matter, (see last blog) it's the thought (and it's a HUGE thought) that counts. And they will adore you forever, as I do my friend. 

Description from Amazon: 

Book Description

Publication Date: June 19, 2012 | Age Level: 4 - 8 | Grade Level: P - 3

The book that inspired the Academy Award–winning short film, from New York Times bestselling author and beloved visionary William Joyce.

Morris Lessmore loved words.
He loved stories.
He loved books.
But every story has its upsets.
Everything in Morris Lessmore’s life, including his own story, is scattered to the winds.
But the power of story will save the day.
Stunningly brought to life by William Joyce, one of the preeminent creators in children’s literature, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore is a modern masterpiece, showing that in today’s world of traditional books, eBooks, and apps, it’s story that we truly celebrate—and this story, no matter how you tell it, begs to be read again and again.

Happy Shopping.

Buy it: for you and your friends!

Happy Halloween!

I downloaded a few photo apps and had a bit of fun today making books look creepy for Halloween. I did pull out Ghost by Alan Lightman as I wanted to stop what I was doing and read something "ghostly" and this is a light book so I should be finished in no time. Hopefully  completed by the time the candy bowl is empty, the candles are liquefied down to their wicks deep in the carved pumpkins and the last child has left the neighborhood  sidewalks drowning in the glow of an exorbitant mount of sugar.

I actually threw this book down in the wet leaves for this shot.

No lie. 

I have been fussing with photography for a while, a few family members and friends of mine are into the Fat Mum Slim photo a day on Facebook. Mainly, I wanted to make sure my own photos are used on this blog. You know, copyright laws and all that.

So my pics are my own on this blog.

I encourage a click or two over to Facebook to check out FMS, it's creative and fun.

Happy Halloween!

Link to Fat Mum Slim on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/FatMumSlim?fref=ts
FMS Blog:
http://www.fatmumslim.com.au/