readerbuzz

Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 01:49:00 +0000

For more wordless photos,

go to Wordless Wednesday.

At The Top Of My Summer TBR List

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Two books.

Cloud Atlas.

East of Eden.

What are you hoping to read this summer?

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list that one of our bloggers here at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 10:00:00 +0000

What I Finished Last Week

(Reviews Coming Soon)

Summer is my favorite time of the year to read. It is so wonderful to wake up in the morning and know that you can sit in the same chair all day long and read a whole book. Or two, if you want. My Books Read numbers always go up dramatically in the summer. Here's what I finished last week:

Spiderwick: The Field Guide Hold Fast Doug Unplugged

Bad Boy Sorted Books Duel With the Devil

What Came in the Mail This Week

The Last Dogs: Dark Waters

(How's this for a story:

All the people in the world have disappeared!

Dogs are the only creatures left!)

What I'm Reading Now

The Vast Unknown The Road to Burgundy

And, happily, I have about forty library books awaiting me, too!

What are you reading today?!

I love being a part of this and I hope you do too! As part of this weekly meme Book Journey loves to encourage you all to go and visit the others participating in this meme. Book Journey offers a weekly contest for those who visit 10 or more of the Monday Meme participants and leave a comment telling BJ how many you visited.

Ready for Summer!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 10:53:00 +0000

No, don't worry. I'm not going to send you running to the Un-Follow button by posting photos of me in my newest bathing suit. That's not how I get ready for summer, anyway.

This is what I do: Two weeks before school's out I start requesting books from my three favorite libraries. I request a couple of books at Paperbackswap. I buy a few books at Amazon. I pick up a couple more books at Barnes & Noble. And there are always the usual books-to-review that seem to arrive rather steadily at three a week these days.

Here's some of the thirty or so books that I'm set to read this summer:

Some fun cookbooks.

Paris. Of course.

Writing. And drawing.

Origami stories. Philosophy. And poetry.

And an amazing book I request every summer:

The Most Beautiful Libraries in the World.

Saturday Snapshot is now hosted by West Metro Mommy Reads. To participate in Saturday Snapshot: post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post in the Mister Linky below. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don’t post random photos that you find online.

Best Beach Books

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 10:00:00 +0000

A teacher at my school dragged War and Peace to the beach a few summers ago. It was a disaster. Sand, sun, and 1,296 pages of complicated plots and characters with multisyllabic names just didn't work.

But maybe you are like me and you just don't do mindless. How about some titles that are somewhere past a Harlequin but just this side of Brothers Karamazov?

Here are a few possibilities.

It says it's a memoir, but I say it's a book of essays. Little essays. Little essays about things we care about.

I can't help suggesting Maira Kalman for the summer. Be prepared: it's a heavy book.

How about The Color of Magic or any of the other Discworld books?

I've been on a Michael Palin kick ever since I read this book some months back. Lots of these lovely Michael Palin travel narratives.

You knew I couldn't make a top ten list without including at least one Paris book.

Whew! Not my usual read at all, but what a ride.

Summer's a great time to work on getting better at what you love to do.

All the wonderful things we used to have in this world that we wish were still here.

We all could use a little more happiness. Let's start this summer.

And if you are set on reading a romance this summer, try this one.

It's Monday and It's the First Day of Summer Vacation!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 10:00:00 +0000

It's my first day of summer break.
I'm off to a technology conference today and tomorrow,
but then...
Let the reading begin!

What Arrived Last Week

The Vast Unknown: America's First Ascent of Everest

by Broughton Coburn

The Road to Burgundy:

The Unlikely Story of an American Making Wine and

a New Life in France

by Ray Walker

Duel with the Devil:

The True Story of How Alexander Hamilton and

Aaron Burr Teamed Up to Take on America's

First Sensational Murder Mystery

by Paul Collins

Morning Light: A Novel

by Holland Kane

Born of Persuasion

by Jessica Dotta

Bad Boy:

My Life On and Off the Canvas

by Eric Fischl

I'm thinking today about my reading plans for the summer.

How about you? What are you reading today?
What do you hope to read this summer?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is where we share what we read this past week, what we hope to read this week…. and anything in between! This is a great way to plan out your reading week and see what others are currently reading as well… you never know where that next “must read” book will come from! I love being a part of this and I hope you do too! As part of this weekly meme Book Journey loves to encourage you all to go and visit the others participating in this meme. Book Journey offers a weekly contest for those who visit 10 or more of the Monday Meme participants and leave a comment telling BJ how many you visited.

Clotilde's Edible Adventures in Paris: Fougasse au Romarin (Rosemary Bread)

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 12:06:00 +0000

Fougasse au Romarin (Rosemary Fougasse)

from Clotilde's Edible Adventures in Paris

I was inspired this morning to try a new bread recipe after reading through Clotilde's Edible Adventures in Paris.

Rosemary from my garden

The directions say to make the dough into a "leaf-shaped oval."

Adding olive oil and fresh rosemary on top

Voilà! Amazing.

Fougasse au Romarin (Rosemary Fougasse)

INGREDIENTS

4 1/4 cups (18 ounces; 500 g) all-purpose flour, plus extra for sprinkling
1 1/3 cups (320 ml) lukewarm water
1 teaspoon granulated instant yeast
1 to 2 teaspoons fleur de sel or kosher salt, plus extra for sprinkling (see Note 1)
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, roughly chopped, plus extra for sprinkling (substitute 1 tablespoon dried rosemary)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for brushing

DIRECTIONS

Put the flour in a large bowl and form a deep well in the center. Pour the water into the well, sprinkle with the yeast, and leave to soften for 5 minutes.

Using the fingers of one hand and without going all the way to the bottom of the bowl, stir gently to combine part of the flour with the water to form a soupy paste.

Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let rest at room temperature for 25 minutes, until bubbles form at the surface.

Add the salt, rosemary, and oil, and, still working with one hand, stir the entire contents of the bowl to incorporate the rest of the flour, until the dough forms a shaggy ball.

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and springy, 12 to 15 minutes; you can also use a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. The dough will be rather sticky, but this is the key to a light-textured fougasse, so try to resist adding extra flour.

Clean the bowl and grease it lightly. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with the towel, and let rise at room temperature until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C) and sprinkle flour lightly on a baking sheet. Punch down the dough and divide it into two balls.

Shape each ball into a flattened leaf-shaped oval, about 5 by 9 inches (13 by 23 cm), and place side by side on the prepared baking sheet. Use the dull side of a knife to cut five or six deep slits in each fougasse, cutting all the way across the dough. Pull gently on the edges of each loaf to widen the slits, and use your fingers to open each slit widely enough that it won’t close during the baking. Cover with the towel and let rise for 20 minutes as the oven preheats.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until crusty and golden. Brush with olive oil, sprinkle with a little more fleur de sel and rosemary, and transfer to a rack to cool completely. The second loaf can be frozen for up to a month (pop the thawed loaf in the oven for 5 minutes at 400°F [200°C] to revive its texture), and any leftovers can be used to make bruschetta the next day.

Weekend Cooking is hosted by Beth Fish Reads and is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page. For more information, see the welcome post.

Top Ten Moving-and-Starting-Over Books

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Maybe it's because I've lived in the same town for most of my life, but one of my favorite genres is moving-and-starting-over books. You know this kind of book. A person gets tired of her boring life or his terrible life and decides to move somewhere fresh and start a new life. According to my list of books read at Goodreads, I've read 51 of these. Light & fun reading (as I mentioned in this post).

Here are some of my favorite moving-and-starting-over books:

Wait a minute. I see a crazy pattern here. All ten of these books are about people who move to Paris and start over. All ten. And they are favorites. They are favorites, however, not because they are amazingly well written and not because the characters meet fascinating people and see fascinating things and not because the characters' lives are transformed...no, these are my favorites for one reason only: the people move and start over in Paris. Crazy.

It's Monday! Whatcha Reading?

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 10:00:00 +0000

What I Read Last Week

Martin & Mahalia:
His Words, Her Song
by Andrea Davis Pinkney & Brian Pinkney

The Soul of All Living Creatures:
What Animals Can Teach Us About Being Human
by Vint Virga

The Hottest Dishes of the Tartar Cuisine
by Alina Bronsky

The Obituary Writer: A Novel

by Ann Hood

This is What Happy Looks Like
by Jennifer E. Smith

Relish: My Life in the Kitchen
by Lucy Knisley

What Came in the Mail Last Week

Spiderwick: The Field Guide
by Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black

What did you finish last week?

What do you hope to read this week?

The Improvisational Cook

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Sat, 01 Jun 2013 11:35:00 +0000

First sign of a good cookbook: You check it out not once, not twice, but three times from the library.

Second sign of a good cookbook: You read the introduction and immediately add it to your Amazon wishlist.

Third sign of a good cookbook: You find yourself wanting to share this book with all the wonderful cooks you know.

Fourth sign of a good cookbook: You write a blog post about the book.

Fifth sign of a good cookbook: You discover that all you really need to do to share it is to list the table of contents...How to Use This Book and Begin Improvising...The Creative Mind-Set...Learning What Goes With What...Some Classic Flavor Affinities...Making Flavors Come to Life: Salt and Other Absolutely Essential Seasonings...The Essential Pantry: Long-Keeping Ingredients as Opportunity...Some Strategies for Improvising....

Sixth sign of a good cookbook: You find that you are so impatient to stop writing about the book and to start trying it out that you abruptly stop right in the middle of your post and hit publish....

I'd really like to read more cookbooks like this. Any recommendations?

Weekend Cooking is hosted by Beth Fish Reads and is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend.You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page. For more information, see the welcome post.

Wish My Grandma Ashley Could See This

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Wed, 29 May 2013 01:25:00 +0000

For more wordless photos,

go to Wordless Wednesday.

Amazing Poetry Books for People Who Say They Don't Like Poetry

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Tue, 28 May 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Amazing Poetry Collections

for People Who Say They Don't Like Poetry

Start with these early-on and

we won't have any sad, poetry-less souls in the world.

Aimed at teens. Good for anybody.

Favorite poems.

Good poems.

Great poets read their own poems in their own voices.

Quirky short poems.

Short enough to appear on subways and buses.

You know what they say...

"A poem a day keeps the doctor away."

It's not just the best.

It's the best of the best.

Not only beautiful words,

but beautiful words written in beautiful traditional forms.

Book titles arranged to make poetry.

The book that first sold me on poetry.

What did I forget?

It's Monday! (But It's a Holiday Monday!)

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Mon, 27 May 2013 10:00:00 +0000

What I Reviewed Last Week

Eleanor & Park
by Rainbow Rowell
It’s been a long time since I first fell in love. This book brought it all back...more

Flambards by K. M. Peyton
Horse fever? Downton Abbey fan? Yes...more

The World is a Carpet:
Four Seasons in an Afghan Village
by Anna Badkhen
Yes, sometimes the world is a carpet, but mostly it’s not.
This book is about a world that’s not...more

Give and Take
by Adam Grant
There are givers. There are takers.
Who wins? Who loses?...more

A Curious Man: The Strange & Brilliant Life of
Robert "Believe It or Not!" Ripley
by Neal Thompson
You may have suspected that Robert Ripley was an odd fellow. If so, you were right...more

Y by Marjorie Celona
There are times that I think it might be a good idea to have warning labels on teen books...more

Marbles, Mania, Depression, Michelanglo, & Me:
A Graphic Memoir
by Ellen Forney
Read this extended title. It is a perfect description of this little book.
And that's all you really need to know about it.

The House at the End of Hope Street
by Menna Van Praag
Alba Ashby, after suffering a humiliating defeat,
arrives unexpectedly at the house at the end of Hope Street
and finds a way to heal...more

What Came in the Mail Last Week

Martin & Mahalia:
His Words, Her Song
by Andrea Davis Pinkney & Brian Pinkney

The Soul of All Living Creatures:
What Animals Can Teach Us About Being Human
by Vint Virga

What I'm Reading Now

The Hottest Dishes of the Tartar Cuisine
by Alina Bronsky

My book club chose a mystery-of-your-choice for June.
Any suggestions?

What did you finish last week?

What do you hope to read this week?

Judge-a-Book-by-Its-Cover Covers

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Sometimes you can judge a book by its cover.
Here are some I love.

The no-title cover...

And the just-a-title cover...

Is it the Very Cool Cover or the Very Cool Title?

The wonderful integration of cover art with title...

Life (and, thus, good stories) are always about walking precariously, I think...

You somehow know this book is going to be very, very helpful...

The wacky Murakami covers can't help but intrigue...

I wanted all three flavors.

Perfect.

Time for It's Monday!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Mon, 20 May 2013 10:00:00 +0000

It's Monday and it's time once again to share what we read and acquired and are reading.

What I Read Last Week

Whew. Sometimes I wonder if authors realize that their target audiences could be suffering from depression that is exacerbated by their novels. Should these books have warning labels for the emotionally susceptible? If so, then slap some warning labels on these two books.

What I'm Reading Now

In an attempt to counteract the effects of reading two Dark & Painful books in a row.

How about you? What are you reading today?

Dark and Painful: Best Books Dealing With Tough Subjects

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Tue, 14 May 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Here's my list of top ten books dealing with tough subjects:

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

We Need to Talk About Kevin

The Color Purple

Where the Red Fern Grows

Of Mice and Men

The Fault is in Our Stars

Revolutionary Road

The Year of Magical Thinking

Flowers for Algernon

Maus

Room

I won't say more, to avoid spoilers.

Your thoughts?

Yes, It's Monday!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Mon, 13 May 2013 10:42:00 +0000

What I Finished Last Week

Eleanor & Park

Flambards

The World is a Carpet:
Four Seasons in an Afghan Village

What I'm Reading Now

The 5th Wave

Give and Take
by Adam Grant

A Curious Man: The Strange & Brilliant Life of
Robert "Believe It or Not!" Ripley

What did you finish last week? What do you hope to read this week?

International Reading Association Conference in San Antonio

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Wed, 08 May 2013 10:00:00 +0000

San Antonio!

Spent the first morning at the Institute of Texan Culture...

betcha didn't even know there was such a thing as Texan culture!

I was eyeing this dress as potential attire

for the Queen of the Library.

A woman making her own yarn from cotton.

My husband was drawn to the cowboy wagon.

Of course.

Then we were off to La Villita,

a little village of artists and craftsmen.

Look at his amazing work.

You gotta eat Mexican food along the Riverwalk.

And be serenaded by a mariachi band.

A persistent duck kept pecking my husband's booty.

So beautiful.

Time for the conference.

The incredible Rick Riordan.

I love Jason Chin's work.

I got this autographed for the library

David Ezra Stein.

Tom Lichtenheld.

Reading Rainbow's LeVar Burton.

And the one-and-only Mo Willems.

Fabulous time was had by all. As they say.

When You Need Something Light & Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Tue, 07 May 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Yes, I love to read literary fiction and,

yes, I love to read massive nonfiction tomes,

but, trust me, I love Light-&-Fun, too.

When the world gets Too Serious,

when we have heaps of books to shelve in the library,

and children are trying to read-read-read and come to the Chapter Book Picnic,

and inventory's not quite done,

and everyone's cranky,

I turn to Light-&-Fun.

You can't do better than Alexander McCall Smith's The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series.

You get Africa, delightful characters, a little mystery, and the soothing idea

that those of us who are bigger girls are nothing more than "traditionally built."

There's the whole Moving-and-Starting-Over genre that I love to read.

You know this kind of story.

Person buys a house in a place where he barely speaks the local lingo

and begins a brand-new life.

Almost always a catastrophe, but that just adds to the fun.

How about the kind of books I call Challenge Books?

A person takes on a big challenge and tries to do something difficult

for a set period of time, usually a year. These are always interesting and snappy.

And the people usually end up failing to meet their challenge or just becoming slightly better,

so it makes those of us who don't attempt to become happier or healthy a little smug.

And there are always the traditional Light-&-Fun books, like little mysteries,

or gentle romances, or escapist action and scifi tales, or wonderful travel narratives.

Any recommendations for me? What do you turn to when the world is Gray and Cold?

23 Book Reviews!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Mon, 06 May 2013 10:00:00 +0000

23 Books Reviewed!

Who isn’t intrigued by the sinking of the Titanic?

As Brewster reminds us, even people who have never heard the old Greek myths

know the mythic...more

It was that phrase “invisible women” that made you pick up this book, wasn’t it?

Yes, and I suspect that you know what that means. I do. I think all...more

It’s a confusing world. Nathan Lochmueller drifts into professional birdwatching,

earning just enough money to make it...more

You probably know this story.

A young woman loses her job and decides

to try what she does best and open a cupcake cafe.

You know there will be a Bad Boy...more

This is Not a Book, and This is Not a Review.

This is a Dance. This is a After-Dinner Mint.

This is a Cupcake. But This is Not a Book, and This is Not a Review.

If you love picture books, old or new,

you will love this book of interviews with picture book illustrators.

They are all here, all the artists you love...more

Mem Fox keeps things simple and that’s exactly what I needed

after listening to experts harangue the schools and teachers last week

at the International Reading Association conference...more

Maya was grumpy. We all get grumpy sometimes.

But then we get over it. Good book to share with children.

If it says Disney, you get Disney.

If it says My Little Pony, you get My Little Pony.

If you like...more

When you have been raised by wolves, you tend to be a bit incorrigible. That’s okay.

It gives you a bit of strong-minded-ness that is often lacking in...more

Yes, go ahead. Write this book. You can do it. P. Bosch will help you.

It will be fun. Maybe even more fun than reading a book. Go ahead. Write it.

I’ve read all the short holiday Jack Prelutsky poetry books...

It’s Halloween!...It’s Valentine’s Day...It’s Christmas!

But I’ve never taken on one of...more

Creatures so odd that no one can really believe they exist.

I could share some of these details but that would ruin the fun.

Read it. You will like it...more

Zany. A pudding that everyone wants to steal.

You better not take your eyes off that pudding for one second.

Even people you trust will do anything to...more

Lovely little board book that tells the story of an oak tree for our youngest readers.

Another 1001 book read.

Adventure. Action. Pirates.
Cannibals. Murder. Treasure. Mystery.
What more does a book need?

Daily life in frog families is a hectic time.
Imagine dealing with 999 offspring...more

This graphic novel takes traditional giant-battling knight stories and

turns them on their heads, throwing in a powerful giant-battling girl and...more

I’ve been wanting to read this book for months.

I’ve seen its mysterious cover on tens of blogs.

I’ve read tens of reviews of it, all of them raves....more

Oh, the voice in this story! Snarky. Clever. Delicious. Perfect.

What if Hitler had a daughter?

And what if this daughter was born with imperfections?

And what if this daughter was hidden away from the public...more

The Nargun isn’t happy and that’s is not good.

Men are tearing up the lovely forest and the Nargun will not put up with this.

A lovely ecology-minded...more

The apocalypse has happened and Ben has survived.

He has a gift; he can whisper to animals.

Somehow, he makes his way to Taronga Zoo where he discovers...more

What are you reading today?!

Poolish: The Mother Dough

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Wed, 01 May 2013 01:56:00 +0000

Poolish

(pronounced POO-leesh)

Starting the poolish.

Flour, water, and a little yeast.

Sits out for 5-6 hours.

Nice and bubbly.

Used a cup or so of poolish for my pizza dough.

My favorite pizza.

Jalapeño pepper and pineapple.

Wonderful crust.

And enough poolish left over to make a couple of loaves of ciabatta bread.

Trying out some ideas from these two books.

Weekend Cooking is hosted by Beth Fish Reads and is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend.You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page. For more information, see the welcome post.

For more wordless photos,

go to Wordless Wednesday.

Books I Can't Pass Up

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Here are some words in book titles or in book blurbs I like:

"Happiness"

"Schools"

"100 Best..."

"Travel"

"Bread"

"Philosophy"

"Poetry"

"Drawing"

"Photographs"

"Cooking"

What are the books you can't pass up?

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

It's Monday, Everyone! What Are You Reading?

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:17:00 +0000

I had a great week. I got a new book in the mail almost every day and I finished a book almost every day. What more can one ask of life?!

What Arrived Last Week

The World is a Carpet:
Four Seasons in an Afghan Village

Loki's Wolves

Sugar by Jewell Parker Rhodes

A Curious Man: The Strange & Brilliant Life of
Robert "Believe It or Not!" Ripley

Give and Take
by Adam Grant

What I Finished Last Week

This is Not a Book

by Keri Smith

Show Me a Story!

Why Picture Books Matter

Reading Magic by Mem Fox

It All Changed in an Instant:

More Six-Word Memoirs

Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage:

The Titanic, Her Passengers and Their World

Unusual Creatures:

A Mostly Accurate Account of Some of Earth's Strangest Animals

The Magic Pudding
by Norman Lindsay

What I Reviewed This Week

I'm working on reviewing a huge stack of fifteen books.

What are you reading today?!

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is where we share what we read this past week, what we hope to read this week…. and anything in between! This is a great way to plan out your reading week and see what others are currently reading as well… you never know where that next “must read” book will come from!

¡Vamos! It's Time for Dewey's 24-Hour Read-a-Thon! Let's Go!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 11:29:00 +0000

POST-HOUR 24

End of event meme

A Readathon tradition!

Which hour was most daunting for you? Hour 16, 'cause that's when I fell asleep!
Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? Graphic novels. Picture books. Browsable books (like Guinness Book of World Records). Poetry books. Audiobooks. A play. Short stories.
Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? It was perfect.
What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? Everything.
How many books did you read? Two.
What were the names of the books you read? Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage. More Six-Word Memoirs.
Which book did you enjoy most? I liked them both.
Which did you enjoy least? NA.
If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? NA.
How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time? 99.99% likely. Co-host was very, very fun.

A big gracias to Andi and Heather who organized everything

and to all you bloggers who created mini-challenges

and to all you bloggers who were cheerleaders

and to all you bloggers who provided prizes

and to all you bloggers who participated!

HOURS 16-24

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....

Just couldn't stay awake any longer.

But, hey, I got in fifteen good hours of reading

and I'm happy.

HOURS 13-14-15

Reading again.

Eleanor & Park.

Two chapters in.

HOURS 9-10-11-12

Time to get behind the steering wheel!

Time to co-host. Wish me luck.

I'm a little nervous.

Luckily, Elizabeth Michelle's Clear the Cobwebs and Recharge Yoga Mini-Challenge

came along at just the right time!

I tried every pose, but my favorites were

Resting Child's Pose and Savasana.

And who could resist Kristen's Picture It! Mini-Challenge?!

Here's my favorite reading spot,

complete with inspirational Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus posters,

snuggly dragon pillow, and reindeer puppet.

And, of course, I couldn't pass up the Mid-Event Survey:

Mid-Event Survey

1) How are you doing? Sleepy? Are your eyes tired? Oddly, I feel good.
2) What have you finished reading? Two books.
3) What is your favorite read so far? Loved book about the rich people on the Titanic.
4) What about your favorite snacks? Almonds. Pizza is coming soon.
5) Have you found any new blogs through the readathon? Lots!

HOUR 8

I didn't get much reading done this hour,

as I had to get busy for Hours 9-10-11-12,

when I will be co-hosting! Woo hoo!

HOUR 7

Here's my response to the Best and Worst Cover Challenge.

I'd have to call this Worst, Worst-er, and Most Worst Cover:

Sorry, but as much as I love the text of WIT, I hate the covers. All of them.

HOUR 6

I finished my first two books last hour:

Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage (Titanic)

More Six-Word Memoirs

Encouraging.

I think I'll spend Hour 6 reading.

HOUR 5

Time for the Self-Portrait Mini-Challenge!

For this one, I have to share

one of my favorite self-portraits,

with my book haul from the library conference:

Back to my book! Thirty pages to go.

HOUR 4

Felicia at The Geeky Blogger challenges us this hour

to rename our current read.

I'm currently reading Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage:

The Titanic's First-Class Passengers and Their World.

That title's a little long, I think.

I'll rename it:

Immersed First-Class Morass

Back to the book!

HOUR 3

Whew! I was worried because

I'd scheduled (accidentally) a time to give blood today,

but it went really fast and now I'm back (sans one pint of blood)

with a new t-shirt and water bottle and two packages of snacks.

The mini-challenge this hour is from Book Journey.

Sheila invites us to create a menu for the book we are reading.

Easy-peasy. I'm reading a book about the rich people on the Titanic.

Here goes:

1. Book title and author: Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage: The Titanic's First-Class Passengers and Their World by Hugh Brewster

2. The menu, food, beverage, you can even go as far as background music, decorations: How about recreating the last dinner on the Titanic? Lobster Thermidor, Quail's Eggs in Aspic with Caviar, and Poached Salmon with Dilled Mousseline Sauce and Cucumber. A nautical theme, perhaps, with life rafts for seating? And we could dress to the hilt, with furs and jewels and, of course, life vests.

3. You will receive an additional entry if you create a drink to go with your book event and give it a name: Apparently, the most popular drinks while on board were a Champagne Cocktail, a Manhattan, or a Martini. Or we might choose to pass out little vials of whiskey; one passenger's survival was credited to the enormous amount of whiskey he drank after boarding a lifeboat. Water might be a cruel choice.

Off to read a little more of my Titanic book! Hope you are all having a great time.

HOUR 2

Book Spine Poetry

This was truly found poetry,

a stack of books I plan to read before I visit Italy (one day!)

And I'm off to give blood! I'm taking a book

and my iPhone with me...be back as soon as I can!

HOUR 1

AAANNNDDD...We're off!

Introductory Questionnaire

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today? An itty-bitty town in Texas.
2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to? Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage: The Titanic's First-Class Passengers and Their World
3) Which snack are you most looking forward to? Almonds
4) Tell us a little something about yourself! Primary school librarian. Blogger. Reader.
5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? I like to visit blogs. And do a little reading.

PRE-HOUR 1

My delightful Meditation Room? Check.
Candle? Check.
Relaxation fountain? Check.
Reading music? Check.

Comfy reading clothes? Check.

Coffee? Check.
Snacks? Check.

Enormous stack of books to read? Check.

How about you? ¿Esta lista? Ready?

What are we waiting for? ¡Vamos! Let's go!

Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon! It's Almost Here!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 01:53:00 +0000

Here's what you need to know:

Date: 24 hours, beginning at 7 am Central Time on April 27th

Activity: Read and blog, read and blog, read and blog

Prizes: There will be a contest almost every hour. There will be many, many prizes.

Where to Sign Up: 24 Hour Readathon

For More Info: Readathon FAQ

Are you signed up? No? What are you waiting for? Go sign up right now. I'll see you at the Readathon!