guiltless reading

Much Love Monday

2012-01-30T07:00:00.000-06:00

{Typography print by TheFoxandtheTeacup on Etsy.}

Love: ♥ Really good book-to-movie adaptations. (Like this, this, and this.)
♥ A cold that is finally going away.

♥ Random book stacks around the house.
(Yes, that's my photo)

♥ ... and sunny winter days!
(Another of my photos)

What are you loving?

Hugo, George Melies and Martin Scorsese

2012-01-29T11:08:00.000-06:00

Hugo is Martin Scorsese's tribute to the film maker Georges Melies. And Hugo is uncannily similar to Scorsese's personal life, according to an interview with CBS News.

Of course, Hugo is the film adaptation is based on the amazing book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick.

I can't wait to watch it on the big screen (yeah, I missed it this holiday season :( But I'm pretty sure it will be shown again.)

If the video above doesn't play, try this link instead: Martin Scorsese on Hugo: A Very Personal Film

Rockin' rolling shelf!

2012-01-29T10:00:00.001-06:00

Relax and read on this rocking shelf. Then lay back and get some exercises in!

Beware falling books!

{Via kamkam.org.}

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

2012-01-26T22:16:00.000-06:00

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore from Moonbot Studios on Vimeo.

Thank you Aspen for the link. I have officially fallen in love with this and I wanted to share this far and wide! Well deserving of the Oscar nomination.

“Morris Lessmore” is a story of people who devote their lives to books and books who return the favor. Morris Lessmore is a poignant, humorous allegory about the curative powers of story.

Friday 56's Lone Wolf

2012-01-26T21:52:00.000-06:00

"It feels like we are talking about a stranger. But then again, I guess we are. I don't really know my father any better than this neurosuregon does."
- p. 56 Lone Wolf: A Novel by Jodi Picoult

I recently won Jodi Picoult's upcoming release Lone Wolf: A Novel in Goodreads and I'm really excited to read this one! I've enjoyed My Sister's Keeper and Keeping Faith and I am sure that this one will be an equally engrossing read.

Here's a short synopsis:

Luke Warren has spent his life researching wolves. He has written about them, studied their habits intensively, and even lived with them for extended periods of time. In many ways, Luke understands wolf dynamics better than those of his own family.

Another tour de force by Picoult, Lone Wolf brilliantly describes the nature of a family: the love, protection, and strength it can offer—and the price we might have to pay for those gifts. What happens when the hope that should sustain a family is the very thing tearing it apart?

Hoping you have a wonderful Friday and a great weekend ahead!

Join in Friday 56 at Freda's Voice!

Cool vid: Bookmans' Book Dominoes

2012-01-25T21:44:00.000-06:00

Library candles to remind you of your fave authors!

2012-01-25T07:00:00.000-06:00

Library Candles ... not candles you put in the library ... but candles inspired by literary luminaries. Check out their scents and quotes by the author on the candles. Hmmm ... I wonder how they decided what an author smelled like? :)

Charles Dickens - tangerine, juniper & clove
Henry David Thoreau - juniper, cedar, moss
Jane Austen - gardenia, tuberose, jasmine
Leo Tolstoy - blackplum, persimmon, and oakmoss
Walt Whitman - grass, thyme & red clover
Oscar Wilde - cedarwood, thyme, and basil

{Via Paddywax.}

Patatras - the rolling bookshelf

2012-01-24T19:00:00.000-06:00

Patatras is a rolling shelf. According to the website, this could be interpreted as a

wheel of knowledge." I don't know about the profound side of it, but it definitely looks cool!

{Via Bihain.}

One Good Turn: A Natural History of the Screwdriver and the Screw by Witold Rybczynski

2012-01-23T21:46:00.002-06:00

You always need a screwdriver for something!

The book in one sentence: Let me take you on a quest to find out why the screwdriver is the best tool of the millennium.

My thoughts: I won One Good Turn: A Natural History of the Screwdriver and the Screw by Witold Rybczynski at a Christmas party (with some other goodies) and being the "read-anything" type of gal, I jumped into this one quite easily. This is so short (only a 143 pages) that I read it in two sittings.

First thing, isn't that title rather cute? And doesn't the topic seem quite trivial? Really, who cares about the screwdriver? Which is precisely the point: how did it become such a permanent fixture in all our toolboxes? It really got me wondering ... so where did the screwdriver and screw originate? Was it the Chinese (like so many things?)

When Rybczynski is asked to write the history of the most important tool of the last millennium, he couldn't decide what that tool was. Until his wife simply said: "You always need a screwdriver for something." And that's the germ of this book.

One Good Turn: A Natural History of the Screwdriver and the Screw feels like being on a scavenger hunt! Rybczynski gamely lets us all tag along as he turns detective - poring over old books, manuscripts and museums, and following up on little leads. He has such an air of excitement about him that I couldn't help but enjoy myself!

The history of the screwdriver and the screw is quite fascinating. My initial thought of the screw/screwdriver being invented by the Chinese was wrong - it is in fact the only major mechanical device that the Chinese did not independently invent!

Some cool bits of info, and this is just a smattering of what Rybczynski digs up:

Archimedes had a water screw which was used for irrigation.
Leonardo daVinci has sketches of a screw making machine!
Screws were used in the 15th century to secure breastplates, backplates, and helmets on jousting armor.
Screws were used widely in firearms, particularly the matchlock.
Screws were individually made and extremely expensive to produce before the First Industrial Revolution. Job and William Wyatt developed a method of producing the screw in a machine that cut the slotted head first, then carved the helix.
P.L. Robertson first commercialized the socket-head screw but was stingy with his patents. In stepped Henry Philips with the cruciform screw which were widely used in the automotive industry. (Yes, you guessed it, these guys are the namesakes of the screw types and screwdrivers.)

The book is peppered with detailed drawings and has a full glossary of tools (and notes) in the back.

Verdict: I will never look at the screw and the screwdriver as ordinary again. Fascinating, fun, and a satisfying read, great for trivia buffs and handymen (and women) alike.

Much Love Monday

2012-01-23T18:00:00.000-06:00

{I heart books by refashioned on Etsy.}

Love: The joy of referring a book that I enjoyed to a friend ... and her enjoying it as much as I did {Kathy, I'm so glad you liked The Book Thief! }

What are you loving?

Bookmark Monday: Ferns and leaves

2012-01-23T07:15:00.000-06:00

Beautiful wood veneer bookmarks with the garden lover in mind.
{Via Miltercraft on Etsy.}

Book of Life for the children of Chernobyl by David Kracov

2012-01-22T11:08:00.001-06:00

"Only 55, but you lived 2,547 lives."

David Kracov created this award called the"Book Of Life" given in honor of Rabbi Yossi Raichik, the beloved director of Chabad's Children of Chernobyl. The all metal sculpture is beautiful in itself, but it is very meaningful:

The sculpture depicts the "Book Of Life", each page filled with words from those he touched, with those pages and thoughts transforming into butterflies, each representing the 2.547 children he helped save and give new lives.

Find out about Rabbi Yossi Raickik and the Chabad's Children of Chernobyl, which has saved thousands of children's lives from the devastating effects of the Chernobyl disaster.

{Via David Kracov Creations.}

Ruth by Marlene Lewis

2012-01-21T22:13:00.004-06:00

We are the product of our times.

The book in one sentence: Ruth faces trial and tribulation while discovering the truth about herself and her family in Papua New Guinea.

My thoughts: This is inspiring, is historical, and it hits home. Ruth by Marlene S. Lewis is a story about an Australian woman who grew up in Papua New Guinea in the 1950-60s. It is a life story - of hardship and struggle - steeped in an era of stormy civil rights clashes and colonialism.

Ruth is the only daughter of coffee plantation owners John and Alice Madison. Coming home to the Owen Stanley Ranges in Papua New Guinea after a term in boarding school, she puzzles over why everyone is acting so strange. Until she witnesses her mother thus:

"Looks like the rain's going to set in," Bert said, as they glanced out through the trellis to watch the heavy downpour bucketing over the outbuildings.

"Oh my goodness, who on earth is that?" Myrtle said as her hand swept to her mouth. "Oh heavens above, it's a white woman with no clo..."

Everyone stared in horror. There was Alice, sitting on an oil drum in the pouring rain.

And with that dramatic ending on page 32, Marlene Lewis had me up until 2:00 am!

The whole book is about Ruth from young woman to adulthood. We follow her from one calamity to another - innocent young girl, pregnant young woman forced to deal with hardships way beyond her years, settling down, and finally reinventing herself. I thought that the story would end there but no, there is more. Believe me, what this woman went through is nothing to scoff at.

Ruth is a tough woman, reminiscent of the pioneer women, and anything life throws at her, she deals with and moves on. But she doesn't escape unscathed, and she retains an emotional vulnerability that I am sure many people can relate to. In the midst of all these trials, Ruth relies heavily on her family and her friendships. Marlene Lewis does a wonderful job of keeping Ruth and her reletionships both believable and inspiring.

What I found most fascinating about this book: it is based on the history of Papua New Guinea, a country that has a colonial past - under the Dutch, the British, and the Australians (during which this story is set in, in the 1950s-60s). This makes for the rich, and rather explosive dynamics between the locals and the colonizers. There is the master-servant attitude with abuse commonplace, accepted, and even taken for the norm; an unspoken segregation and discrimination; a taboo of relationships between these two groups; and lastly the conflicting views of either resignedness to or challenging the status quo. {Sidenote: I grew up in the Philippines which also has a strong colonial past and the similarities resonate with me.}

Ruth's naive picture of her idyllic life in Papua New Guinea is painfully shattered. Without giving out too much information and spoiling things for you: the milieu plays such a critical role in these truths; it permeates these truths. She finds out why her mother was acting so strangely that day, the events that led to her father's suspicious death, the reasons for her brother's longstanding hostility, and the true identity of her beloved childhood sweetheart. I was in probably in shock mode for the most part, as I was learning history in a much more realistic way through these characters' lives.

♥

First line: Friday 14th December 1956 had arrived at last.

Random quote: "You know, Ruthy, Christmas can be one of the saddest times as you get older. We lose people along the way of life, people who have been special to us; then Christmas comes and they aren't with us, and it's like losing them all over again." - p. 237

Verdict: This is an engrossing read which gives plenty of food for thought about womanhood, family relationships and friendships, and the cultures which shapes us into the people we become and the lives we live.

I received this book through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers.

Friday 56 and Warren Buffett

2012-01-19T22:02:00.000-06:00

Buffett was interested in what made one business better than another and wanted to pursue it. But [Benjamin] Graham, who mistrusted corporate managements, discouraged Buffet from visiting companies. And his formulaic approach cost him. - p. 56, Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist by Roger Lowenstein

Yes, a bit of serious reading for me. I am fascinated by this man!

Here's a quick overview of the book.

Starting from scratch, simply by picking stocks and companies for investment, Warren Buffett amassed one of the epochal fortunes of the twentieth century--an astounding net worth of $10 billion, and counting. His awesome investment record has made him a cult figure popularly known for his seeming contradictions: a billionaire who has a modest lifestyle, a phenomenally successful investor who eschews the revolving-door trading of modern Wall Street, a brilliant dealmaker who cultivates a homespun aura.

Journalist Roger Lowenstein draws on three years of unprecedented access to Buffett's family, friends, and colleagues to provide the first definitive, inside account of the life and career of this American original. Buffett explains Buffett's' investment strategy--a long-term philosophy grounded in buying stock in companies that are undervalued on the market and hanging on until their worth invariably surfaces--and shows how it is a reflection of his inner self.

Join in over at Freda's Voice!

Old sink = new shelf

2012-01-19T19:31:00.000-06:00

Called "Sinkhold" (errr, why does the word sinkhole come to mind?), Alex Fethiere's ingenious way to reuse and get a funky, industrial bookshelf in the process!

{Via alexfethiere.com}

T-shirt time: Words Create Worlds

2012-01-18T21:47:00.000-06:00

{Via Threadless.}

Sidenote: 25% of the sale of this tee will benefit 826 National's nonprofit writing and publishing workshops and tutoring programming for kids ages 6 to 18!

Nobel Quotes / 1

2012-01-17T22:58:00.000-06:00

Delaura, with Garcilaso, told her in an ardent voice: "For you was I born, for you do I have life, for you am I now dying." Sierva Maria smiled without looking at him. He closed his eyes to be sure she was not an illusion of the shadows. When he opened them the vision had disappeared, but the library was saturated with the scent of her gardenias.

- p. 88, Of Love and Other Demons by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

I have a rather ratty copy of this, which I won many many Christmases ago. I have read it probably four or five times now. I will probably reread it still many more times! Gabo fan, and hope to be able to read more of his work.

Check out Nobel Quote and the perpetual challenge Read the Nobels!

Babel shelf

2012-01-17T21:18:00.000-06:00

Not exactly sure why it's named Babel but its sleek modern looks evokes a sculpture of sorts.

{Via Bonaldo.}

Bookmark Monday: A feather for light reading?

2012-01-16T19:03:00.000-06:00

Isn't this just gorgeous?

Handmade leather feathers to mark your place in some light (or heavy) reading!

{Via leatherandcopper on Etsy.}

Hugo Cabret on the big screen (and a Golden Globe for Martin Scorcese)

2012-01-15T21:32:00.004-06:00

I adore the book, The Invention of Hugo Cabret. Trolling Twitter, I just found out that Director Martin Scorsese just won a Golden Globe for Hugo! I can't wait to watch this on the big screen!

Much love Monday

2012-01-15T20:03:00.000-06:00

{The Heart Book, Denmark 1550s.}

Love: Lazy weekends to just relax and get ready for the week.
Nothing beats just staying at home during a cold winter day with the family.

Have a wonderful week!

Classics on grains of rice!

2012-01-15T12:00:00.000-06:00

Trong G. Ngyuen transcribes classics on to grains of rice.

Look for all 48 chapters of Roland Barthes's La chambre claire. Chapters of other classics like The Wizard of Oz, The Prince and The Pauper and a Tale of Two Cities get the same treatment.

I'm not too sure of what to make of this. The profound side: equating words to food (thanks for the Asian reference, by the way)? Or is it simply a case of someone so uberly bored?

Care to read some rice?

{Via.}

More fun in the Philippines - for book lovers!

2012-01-14T13:07:00.000-06:00

Breaking Dawn. More fun in the Philippines.

I have no idea where this is, but the Philippines is rife with beautiful views like this.

{Via.}

More fun in the Philippines, read my first post here.

Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter references after the jump!

Mordor. More fun in the Philippines.

I swear I thought the same thing when we drove by. Quezon Memorial Circle, Quezon City.

{Via.}

End of days. More fun in the Philippines.
Bataan.

{Via.}

Quidditch. More fun in the Philippines.
Broom (walis) festival, Bataan
{Via.}

Manga farming

2012-01-14T12:10:00.000-06:00

Not mango farming - manga farming. Manga - as in Japanese comic book manga.

More pics after the jump!

The Japanese are quite the recyclers! And the vegetable lovers!

Manga is used for germinating all sorts of vegetable seeds like radish, basil, sesame, cabbage, broccoli, name it, it's probably been tried. This sure beats dumping these old comics into the recycling bin!

{Via koshikawachi.}

Of Friday 56 and her father's guns

2012-01-13T22:07:00.001-06:00

"Once I sweet-talked a Japanese middle manager into giving me a copy of an internal report my clients wanted a look at. Then I realized I'd eaten my way through a two hundred dollar meal without even tasting it. I guess I was living the good life."

- p. 56 All Her Father's Guns by James Warner

Care to join in? It's simple!

Grab a book, any book.

Turn to page 56.

Find any sentence that grabs you. Post it.

Add your (url) post in the Linky on Freda's Voice.

Add the post url, not your blog url.

Happy weekend everyone!