Ooo Child, What HAVE You Been Readin'?
Lately, when I blog, I have had scenes of Jane Austen books meandering through my head. So much so, that it has been rather distracting me from what I was trying to get through with my own words. Which according to my fortune cookie, "I have a charming way with words." Hmm. Some people would differ, I am sure.
In the last 12 months I've managed to get quite alot of reading done. Last November on our first trip out to L.A., I started the very first of the Jane Austen novels, "Sense and Sensibility" from there I plowed my way lovingly through each book until I was finished with every last word of her wonderful works. "Pride and Prejudice" and "Northanger Abbey" were my favourites! I do think my mind is telling me that it is time to "re-visit" these pages. Start at number one and go clean through to the end of the last one. That's the way I like to read. Leave no page un-turned!
After reading J.A. I read "The Inheritance" by, Louisa May Alcott. I was moved by the story, someday I'll get around to reading the other novels written by her.
Then I delved into the Borrowers' series, very entertaining. Then I rambled through "The Chronicles of Narnia". It took me a long time to get through these books, but admittedly not as long as it took me to get through all of Tolkien. The book that I loved the best was "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" and "The Last Battle" ( I feel that "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" goes without saying...). I did have to take a break from this series to continue the on going saga of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince". I sprinted through that one and got back to the books at hand (CoN).
Then going onto the last of the Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice, "Blood Canticle". I have been a fan of hers since 'Interview With A Vampire" came out in paperback. We saw the movie & I bought the book. I was hooked. Since then, I have read almost everything she's written with few exceptions. (I never could get through "Cry to Heaven".) I really think that Annes' heart was not really in "Blood Canticle". It was lacking the passion she had in her other books from the Vampire Chronicles. You could really tell that her focus had shifted. She has written a work of fiction about my Lord and Saviour, Jesus the Christ. It is about his "lost years", as I call them, his childhood. We all speculate and wonder what his child hood was really like, so I am interested to see what she has to say on the matter.
I went back through and read HP#6 again, to make sure that in my zeal to soak up all the details, I didn't miss anything the first time. I like to read these books multiple times. You start to really see the patterns of the plot when you do this. IMESHO (in my ever so humble opinion.)
Before I travel in to the life and times of Jesus, which I am going through them anyway in bible class, I have to get through my current read and the next one in the cue.
I am currently reading a very academic book about the book of Revelations from the Holy Bible. It was written by a good friends grandfather who was either a pastor or a professor of Theology. I've always been fascinated by Revelations and am pretty good with symbolism, but I really thought that I needed some guidance with this book and in Bible class, we are only up to Ezekiel. Not too bad for having gone from Genesis 1:1 to Ezekiel in about 2-3 years. I love my pastors class. He has a real gift for teaching. He makes it enjoyable, informative and relatable. He's brilliant!
When I am done with this one, I will move on to Phantom of the Opera. A paperback copy of the novel came with the DVD and being one who doesn't like top waist things, I will read it. It doesn't hurt that I have seen Phantom in several film versions and have the CD, DVD, and sheet music to Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera AND I have seen the stage production. MIL & PIL bought me tickets for my birthday one year. They truly are dears!!! I also have a cup that changes colour when a hot beverage is put into the cup to show the mask.
So, if you have done the math, I've read almost 25 books this year. That's a lot of reading in anyone's book. Pardon the unintended pun... I have also started blogging this year as well, so mhn has been a busy minded girl.
Unsolicited advice from MHN for short is, go out a pick your self up a book and start reading!! Love to ya! m.
In the last 12 months I've managed to get quite alot of reading done. Last November on our first trip out to L.A., I started the very first of the Jane Austen novels, "Sense and Sensibility" from there I plowed my way lovingly through each book until I was finished with every last word of her wonderful works. "Pride and Prejudice" and "Northanger Abbey" were my favourites! I do think my mind is telling me that it is time to "re-visit" these pages. Start at number one and go clean through to the end of the last one. That's the way I like to read. Leave no page un-turned!
After reading J.A. I read "The Inheritance" by, Louisa May Alcott. I was moved by the story, someday I'll get around to reading the other novels written by her.
Then I delved into the Borrowers' series, very entertaining. Then I rambled through "The Chronicles of Narnia". It took me a long time to get through these books, but admittedly not as long as it took me to get through all of Tolkien. The book that I loved the best was "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" and "The Last Battle" ( I feel that "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" goes without saying...). I did have to take a break from this series to continue the on going saga of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince". I sprinted through that one and got back to the books at hand (CoN).
Then going onto the last of the Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice, "Blood Canticle". I have been a fan of hers since 'Interview With A Vampire" came out in paperback. We saw the movie & I bought the book. I was hooked. Since then, I have read almost everything she's written with few exceptions. (I never could get through "Cry to Heaven".) I really think that Annes' heart was not really in "Blood Canticle". It was lacking the passion she had in her other books from the Vampire Chronicles. You could really tell that her focus had shifted. She has written a work of fiction about my Lord and Saviour, Jesus the Christ. It is about his "lost years", as I call them, his childhood. We all speculate and wonder what his child hood was really like, so I am interested to see what she has to say on the matter.
I went back through and read HP#6 again, to make sure that in my zeal to soak up all the details, I didn't miss anything the first time. I like to read these books multiple times. You start to really see the patterns of the plot when you do this. IMESHO (in my ever so humble opinion.)
Before I travel in to the life and times of Jesus, which I am going through them anyway in bible class, I have to get through my current read and the next one in the cue.
I am currently reading a very academic book about the book of Revelations from the Holy Bible. It was written by a good friends grandfather who was either a pastor or a professor of Theology. I've always been fascinated by Revelations and am pretty good with symbolism, but I really thought that I needed some guidance with this book and in Bible class, we are only up to Ezekiel. Not too bad for having gone from Genesis 1:1 to Ezekiel in about 2-3 years. I love my pastors class. He has a real gift for teaching. He makes it enjoyable, informative and relatable. He's brilliant!
When I am done with this one, I will move on to Phantom of the Opera. A paperback copy of the novel came with the DVD and being one who doesn't like top waist things, I will read it. It doesn't hurt that I have seen Phantom in several film versions and have the CD, DVD, and sheet music to Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera AND I have seen the stage production. MIL & PIL bought me tickets for my birthday one year. They truly are dears!!! I also have a cup that changes colour when a hot beverage is put into the cup to show the mask.
So, if you have done the math, I've read almost 25 books this year. That's a lot of reading in anyone's book. Pardon the unintended pun... I have also started blogging this year as well, so mhn has been a busy minded girl.
Unsolicited advice from MHN for short is, go out a pick your self up a book and start reading!! Love to ya! m.
posted by M at 9:06 PM
12 Comments:
Cool. Will have to give it a look. :-)
Just wanted to reiterate your last comment: read people.
Also, do you realize how VERY similar we are in reading and musical taste?
Anne Rice (as you know already) is my favourite author. I HAVE read everything by her at LEAST once, plus supplementary materials written by others (Katherine Ramsland's Vampire Chronicle Encyclopedia for example). I have the books on tape (some) as well for discussion purposes with those that can't be "arsed" to pick up a book. I agree. Blood Canticle was (and I hate to say it truly) a bitter attempt by Ms. Rice to satiate her Lestat hungry congregating masses. She admitted time and again on her website here that she was through with ALL her vampires and yet, we, her fans, bombarded her with requests for more. Cry to Heaven was actually one of my more favourites of her works. Her sister (though now harder to find) Alice Borchardt, is an amazing writer and dare I say more talented ? with the written descriptive word, but her storytelling may be too "periodesque" for some. I like her. My husband prefers her.
As for Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader and the LAst Battle are my favourites too! Funny you should mention these as my daughter is reading TLTW&TW this year for her assigned reading in school and we'd bought her a boxed set of the movies for her birthday and we've been enjoying them immensely together, even prompting me to dig out my copies of all the books and comparing the differences and dictating to S how they changed this and that in the films.
Phantom is a WONDERFUL novel. i read it before seeing either the play or movie...I WAS already familiar with the music due to my playing in a youth orchestra of the many pieces, but yes, the book offers a much more detailed story than movies or plays and explains the back story of the phantom and his "haunting" so very much more.
I haven't read any austen I'm afraid, my husband has. I enjoy the bronte sisters however...I hear there are similarites.
Since I've taken over your comments, I'll close with: I cannot wait to purchase anne's latest holy book. It's a bitch rich for my blood at the moment.
WHOOPS!
My apologies, I meant to say:
a BIT rich for my blood at the mo'
Very sorry Mhn!
I don't read as much as I used to. Too many distractions.
I can feel a new year resolution coming on.
My library has exstenively added to their books on tape selection. They've become so popular that they have their own section now. Wow!
I've read a handful of books m'self this year.
Mhn, I MUST recommend "His Dark Matrials" by Phillip Pullman, if you haven't read it already.
It's a 3-part series (can be purchased as a box-set) and is one of my two all-time favourite books. The other being Stephen King's Dark Tower series.
Herge recommended it to me after hearing the radio version, and like I said, it's excellent.
Thanks Ro for the clarification. darn typos... :-)
I absolutely love to read. It keeps my mind busy and sharp. The side effect is that, I think, it makes my writing better. maybe/maybe not.
I've seen the books for His Dark Materials and Herge has also recomended them to me. I just need to find them. I like to read hardback books only, (kind of picky that way...) so I've been looking for them at Half-Price Books stores all over. They must be very popular because I'm having a hard time finding them in hard cover. Paperbacks fall apart too easily. Perhaps after the holidays, I'll go and look for them again. :-)
Revelation to phantom of the opera? Brilliant!
You MUST read His Dark Materials, there is no argument about this. Do it, they are simply some of the finest books I have ever read. There's a bit of theological questioning in there too and you'll probably find that aspect very interesting and challenging.
I love to read too, and agree you should read the Mitford series. Quick little reads and pretty humorous to boot.
I'll have to try some Jane Austen and others I've seen recommended on this blog and others. I like a wide variety of stuff as well. I have a list of my favorite authors on my blog if you want to check them out!
Blogs are about all I read these days. But I've always had a soft spot for technical manuals and business process documents.
Ha, ha! I've ready my fair share of blogs this year too. I just can't fall asleep without ready a bit before bed.
interesting.
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