Tuesday, April 21, 2015

R is for Reading

or What I'm reading now
or What's on my nightstand

I think that I am like many and read several books at the same time. I like to have one for every mood. Well, maybe not every mood, but I do like to have a few to choose from depending on what strikes my fancy at any one point in time. Or maybe what I'm trying to say is I can't always make up my mind. Or I don't know. Maybe I'm saying its time to look at the books. In the post that is.

Currently on my nightstand:


From bottom up:

A Gardener's Weather Bible by Sally Roth
I have not seen a book quite like this before. It describes different kinds of weather systems, how they form, and how to garden in them.  For example, there's a chapter on wind that starts with wind currents around the earth, how storms form, etc. and then moves on to how to build a wind break for your garden. I am finding it quite interesting reading.

Off the Beaten Path--Utah by Michael Rutter
This is one of the areas we're considering for our next vacation. I think the rest of the books on this subject are downstairs.

Why Did The Chicken Cross the World? by Andrew Lawler
This is a book that Wally gave me because he said it was my kind of book. And I think he was right. The book looks at the evolution of the chicken with a historical perspective. It is really quite fascinating and I had no idea how important chickens have been throughout time. I've learned some really interesting facts from it. Too bad, I can't remember any to share with you right now.

The Milly-Molly-Mandy Storybook by Joyce Lankester Brisley
These are read aloud stories about a little girl's everyday life with her friends and her family. I first heard about these books from Sarah at Everyday Life on a Shoestring. And one day out of the blue, they showed up in the mail from her. :) When I want a very pleasant, calm story to go to sleep by, I read from Milly-Molly-Mandy. I've also shared them with some of my younger friends.

A bit of trivia about Milly-Molly-Mandy. This is from a comment I found on Amazon by the author's granddaughter.
This book has been a staple in my family for generations, as I am the great-grandaughter of the author! I am thrilled to be sharing it with my OWN child. What a pleasure it is to see these wholesome tales (based on the adventures of JLB's daughter (my grandmother) as a young girl in Holland) stand the test of time. I would highly recommend these stories. Milly Molly Mandy was originally published on the Children's Pages of the Christian Science Monitor in 1925. It was assumed by many readers that the stories take place in England, because of the book's first mass publishing in Great Britain. I am very proud of my Dutch heritage (as well as my famous relative), & wanted to be sure the readers knew where the stories originated from.


Before the Poison by Peter Robinson
This is a mystery in which Chris, who is grieving the death of his wife, decides to get away from it all and buys a large house back in England where he grew up.  Sixty years ago, a man died there and his wife was convicted and hanged for the murder. Chris becomes curious (obsessed as other's see it) to find out what really happened and if the wife did indeed commit murder. This book is for my book club and I haven't quite finished. If you've read it, don't tell me the ending.


The Best of Archie Comics featuring Betty & Veronica
When I saw this book, I was feeling a bit of nostalgia, so I checked it out to read. I didn't realize it, but they've been writing Archie comics since the 1940's so I imagine that there are a lot more people out there who read Archie comics in their youth besides me. In addition to the comics, different writers comment on the comics and the stories that have been told with Betty and Veronica. I am enjoying my trip down memory lane, but does any one else wonder what Betty and Veronica see in Archie? Also, I've wondered this for a while. When did comic books become graphic novels?


Maybe next time, I'll show the pile of library books that are in the den. :)






27 comments:

  1. Good assortment of books to read :) I think I would like the one with the Archie comics; I remember liking the comic books in my youth :) I used to enjoy getting library books, then started reading books on a tablet; didn't think I would like it as much as I do but there is good variety there too :)

    Thanks for visiting :)

    betty

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    1. I got a Kindle for Christmas, but haven't used it much. However, my husband has used it for a few reads. Our library has e-books but not a great selection yet, so I usually end up with hard copies. I'm still not ready to pay for most of my books even for an e-reader. (Although, I know some are free. Those are the ones my husband has been reading.)

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  2. The Milly- Molly- Mandy books sound like my kind of thing. West Michigan has a large Dutch community (and my hubby is Dutch) so I think that would have some relevance for me.

    I finished a book by Kathleen Flinn called Burnt Toast Makes You Sing Good. It's a true story about a woman growing up in the midwest, and her family's connection to the local foods--imagine my surprise when I started reading it and realized she grew up in a neighboring town to where I was raised! She and her sister went to Sunday School at my old church (where my parents are still members) and her family went boating and fishing the same place we did ... she's about my age and many of her memories are similar to mine. The pictures of fashion and hairstyles are, too--ha! ... anyway, it was well-written and I particularly enjoyed the personal connection.

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    1. I love books that have a local connection. I've seen the Burnt Toast book at the library, but I haven't read it. Have you read her other books?

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    2. No, I haven't, but now I'm curious about them. I like her down-to-earth style. Very midwestern. :)

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  3. You have some interesting titles going on. I am glad I am not the only one who book juggles. I am always reading at least 5 books at a time.

    I have gone over to the Dark Side and do just about all my reading on Kindle (via Ipad) There is a wonderful website Ereader News Today http://ereadernewstoday.com/ and they offer 8 free books daily. I snag about 3 per week linking through their site to Amazon. Most of them do not appeal to me but I have read some nice writing that I would never have known about otherwise.

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    1. On the Ereader News site, do you keep to the free books, or they just free for a time?

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    2. You keep them. Most of the titles don't interest me, but I average about 3 per week form them. Since I have paid nothing for them, if I read 2 chapters and still am not interested I delete them. I have read several that I really do like. They also have 99 cent books often and I have snagged a few of them. To me it is just part of my morning ritual to take a look at the day's offerings

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    3. Amazon has a several free titles also. I'll have to see if Ereader News has a different set.

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  4. Wow! I'm quite impressed. I've never been very good at reading. I know people say that when you get good at it, you just look at the words and understand the thoughts, but try as I might, summer school for years, I just could never get there. I do enjoy reading though, I'm just really, REALLY slow, because I basically have to read out loud to myself in my head. CatMan reads to me though, and I totally LOVE it!

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    1. It probably won't be as good as CatMan reading to you, but do you ever listen to books on CD? I know several people with reading difficulties that "read" all of their books that way. The library, of course, is a great resource for these.

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    2. I've happened upon a few of those in my travels and really enjoyed them - I have yet to seek them out though. But perhaps I should see what's available at the library.

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    3. My nephew had/has reading problems and made it through school by doing his English reading with books on tape.Some of my friends always have one going while they're cooking dinner of knitting or some such thing. Others have read many books while listening during their commutes. I usually only listen to them while on a trip, but I have to pick a story that's not too complicated so it won't distract me from my driving. :)

      Our library has a good selection of both fiction and nonfiction. After DVD's and new books, books on CD's are the next most checked-out thing. You should give it try.A word of warning, the reader sometimes makes or breaks the book. Most are good, but when they authors try to read their own books, they're not always so good.

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    4. We checked out The Hobbit a few years ago for a road trip, and it ended up being a recording of a BBC radio version of the book, which wasn't exactly what I was looking for. It was entertaining in its own way, but that made me realize I need to be more attentive to what I am checking out.

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    5. I was driving to Virginia several years ago and had an audio book to listen to. By the time I got to my destination I still had about 45 more minutes of listening, and I really did want to hear the end of the book. Since I was in the car alone, I just kept driving for 25 minutes, then headed back to my original destination. Of course I was in West Virginia when I turned around. #noonehasheardmeadmitthis before

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    6. Your secret is safe with us.:) Do you remember what book it was? Sounds like a good one.

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    7. Sadly I don't remember and it was turned back into the library years ago

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  5. I love that the Archie comics are at the top of your stack in the photo!

    I'm always thrown when one of my kids refers to a comic book as a graphic novel. Because a graphic novel means something totally different to me!

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    1. We weren't allowed to have comic books when I was a kid, but I did somehow manage to read Archies. That was more my style than super heroes.

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  6. Oh my! I love books and have over 1,000 in my library upstairs, which doubles as my office. I wish I had more space.

    Utah is where I live in the SW corner near the NV border. It's a pretty state with all the parks around here. It gets very hot in the summer though.

    Sunni
    http://sunni-survivinglife.blogspot.com/

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    1. We have a lot of books around here also. However, over the last few years, I've tried to pare down the collection. There's only so much room.

      When do the hot summer temperatures go away? Would early September be a good time to visit Utah?

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  7. I love my Nook! I hardly ever pay for a book. There are so many free ones there. Our library in starting to have a lot of e-books but I haven't yet learned how to download them!

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    1. Unfortunately, all of my books for book club are still in the pay category. I have downloaded a library e-book just for practice, but I'm still on a hold list for the other ones I want.

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  8. I love to read too. I haven't gotten the courage to go to Kindle or Nook. I like my free books at the library :) Interesting assortment of books!

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    1. Libraries are the greatest. We're so lucky to have them.

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  9. Yes, I too have several books in various stages of reading most of the time. I'm going to have to find the Gardener's Weather Bible as that sounds very interesting.

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    1. I think you would like the Gardener's Weather Bible. Hope you can find it. I got the one I'm reading from the library.

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What do you think?