Everything is blooming most recklessly; if it were voices instead of colours, there would be an unbelievable shrieking into the heart of the night.
~Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters of Rainer Maria Rilke

Reading in the Garden

by Peder Severin Kroyer (1851-1909)

Books and Flowers

image source

I opened a book and in I strode.
Now nobody can find me.
I've left my chair, my house, my road,
My town and my world behind me.
I'm wearing my cloak, I've slipped on the ring,
I've swallowed the magic potion.
I've fought with a dragon, dined with a king,
And swam in a bottomless ocean.
I opened a book and made some friends.
I shared their tears and laughter.
And followed their roads with its bumps and bends
To the happily ever after.
I finished my book and out I came.
The cloak can no longer hide me.
My chair and my house are just the same,
But I have a book inside me.
~Julia Donaldson

Reading Notes

If I had the time to participate in the Dewey Read-a-Thon going on this very weekend, I'd pick these most excellent books. I'm almost finished Edward Rutherfurd's Paris. I could knock that out by lunch; Cormac McCarthy's Suttree is just because I'm in the mood for some Cormac McCarthy - it's been a while since I finished The Border Trilogy, so. And Dante's Inferno because DAN BROWN! Brain candy, I'm just saying. Dark and chewy brain candy.

Happy Weekend, everyone.

It's spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you've got it, you want - oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!
~Mark Twain

Book Nook Love

Oh glory! The long, low-to-the-floor, benches with simple, firm cushions are perfect for stretching out on while reading something fabulous pulled from the bookshelf. I'd start off in the sunny window then perhaps move over to the other side when it gets too warm. I could get a lot of reading done here.

We don't want to feel less when we have finished a book; we want to feel that new possibilities of being have been opened to us. We don't want to close a book with a sense that life is totally unfair and that there is no light in the darkness: we want to feel that we have been given illumination.
~Madeleine L'Engle, Walking on Water

Nude Reading at Studio Fire

by Lindsay Bernard Hall (1859-1935)

[I'm listening to Cathy Buchanan's The Painted Girls where Marie models in the nude for Degas. I can't imagine how chilly those 1870s studios must have been!]

Awake, thou wintery earth - 
Fling off thy sadness!
Fair vernal flowers, laugh forth
your ancient gladness!
~Thomas Blackburn

Vintage girl reading

in springtime. 

by Kate Greenaway

When I am attacked by gloomy thoughts, nothing helps me so much as running to my books. They quickly absorb me and banish the clouds from my mind.
~Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592)

Vintage Reading Woman

Unknown images source

believed to be in the public domain

I was raised among books, making invisible friends in pages that seemed cast from dust whose smell I carry on my hands to this day.
~Carlos Ruiz Zafon, The Shadow of The Wind

The books - the generous friends who met me without suspicion - the merciful masters who never used me ill.
~Wilkie Collins

Reading Girls

by Maurice Perdergast

Of course, reading novels was just another form of escape. As soon as he closed their pages he had to come back to the real world. But at some point Tengo noticed that returning to reality from the world of a novel was not as devastating a blow as returning from the world of mathematics. Why should that have been? After much deep thought, he reached a conclusion. No matter how clear the relationship of things might become in the forest of story, there was never a clear-cut solution. That was how it differed from math. The role of a story was, in the broadest terms, to transpose a single problem into another form. Depending on the nature and direction of the problem, a solution could be suggested in the narrative. Tengo would turn to the real world with that suggestion in hand. It was like a piece of paper bearing the indecipherable text of a magic spell. At times it lacked coherence and served no immediate practical purpose. But it would contain a possibility. Someday he might be able to decipher the spell. That possibility would gently warm his heart from within. 
~Haruki Murakami, 1Q84

Tragedy should be utilized as a source of strength. No matter what sort of difficulties, how painful experience is, if we lose our hope, that's our real disaster.
~Dalai Lama

Flowers, Books and a Candle

For you, Boston

image source

Hope 

Knows no fear.

Hope dares to blossom

Even inside the abysmal abyss.

Hope secretly feeds

And strengthens

Promise.

~Sri Chinmoy

When I think of all the books still left for me to read, I am certain of further happiness.

~Jules Renard

Rainy Days

by Deborah DeWit

An Award!

How sweet is this?! RubyBastille picked me as one of her Sunshine Award recipients. Her blog is all about 'Books~Style~Food~Fantasticness' and well worth lingering over. I especially enjoy checking out her weekly links and fashion tips, book quotes and gratitude lists.

Okay, so. I'm supposed to answer ten questions and then forward the award on.

Here goes:


1. Who is your favourite philosopher? I don't know if he is considered a philosopher but I'd have to say the Dalai Lama is one of the wisest and most remarkable human beings on the planet. Imagine if everyone adhered to his words of compassion and tolerance, how different the world would look: 

~There is no need for complicated philosophy, doctrine, or dogma. Our own heart, our own mind, is the temple. The doctrine is compassion. Love for others and respect for their rights and dignity, no matter who or what they are - these are ultimately all we need.~  

It's so simple, really.

2. What is your favourite number? 5 because with three sons, a husband and me it is our family's number.

3. What is your favourite animal? Parrots because they are intelligent and funny. We used to have a noisy, hand raised, blue-crowned conure named José who could mimic the phone ringing and the kitchen timer beeping to bring me running in from outside. Naughty bird! He was cuddly, playful and full of personality. Did I mention he was noisy?

4. What are your Facebook and Twitter URLs? Facebook is just for keeping in touch with family but my brand new Twitter account button is right there on the sidebar. It's fun! Feel free to shout into the abyss with me join the conversation.

5. What is your favourite time of day? Morning! I am a morning person through and through. I enjoy the quiet, and the birds, and the grey dawn light. I go for a long walk and then come home to a hot cup of fresh brewed coffee. I don't do nights well at all. After 9pm I'm pretty much a goner.

6. What was your favourite vacation? Hub and I went to Paris in May of 2011. It is seriously the coolest city I've ever seen. Everything is jaw-droppingly huge, historic and beautiful. I loved that we shared it together.

7. What is your favourite physical activity? Walking. Hiking. Kayaking.

8. What is your favourite non-alcoholic drink? Hot coffee first thing in the morning; iced tea in the afternoon.

9. What is your favourite flower? Peonies because they are so lush and fragrant; daisies because they are so sweet, bright and happy.

10. What is your passion? I believe in education and literature for the mind; family, partners, companions and friends for the heart and soul; exercise, rest and good food for the body; and the belief that we are all here for a reason: to help, support, and encourage each other. This is how I try to live my life.

I'd like to pass this award on to some other worthy recipients:

~ Debbie at ExUrbanis

~ Patty at Books, Thoughts, and a Few Adventures

~ Barb at Mundane Musings

~ Harvee at Book Dilettante

~ Heidi at Heidi's Books

~ Connie at More Where That Came From

~ Becky at Humorist~Bliss Folower~Writer

~ JoAnn at Lakeside Musing

~ Alexis at Reflections of a Bookaholic

~ Sam at Tiny Library

~ Diane at Bibliophile by the Sea

Read All Night Long

by Johanna

[If only I could stay awake!]

Karin Reading 

by Carl Larsson, 1904

Open a book and start reading. Don't move until you've reached page fifty. Until you've buried your thoughts in print. Cover yourself with words. Wash yourself away. Dissolve.
~Carol Shields

Book Worm 

by Jessica Finson

Remember when I suggested that the heroine of Murakami's 1Q84 was not to be trifled with?
To wit:

Aomame decided to take it upon herself to punish the man. She got his address from Tamaki and went to his apartment carrying a softball bat in a plastic blueprint tube. . . . Aomame checked to be sure the man was not at home. She used a screwdriver and hammer to break the lock on his door. Then she wrapped a towel around the bat several times to dampen the noise and proceeded to smash everything in the apartment that was smashable - the television, the lamps, the clocks, the records, the toaster, the vases: she left nothing whole. She cut the telephone cord with scissors, cracked the spines of all the books and scattered their pages, spread the entire contents of a toothpaste tube and shaving cream canister on the rug, poured Worcestershire sauce on the bed, took notebooks from a drawer and ripped them to pieces, broke every pen and pencil in two, shattered every lightbulb, slashed all the curtains and cushions with a kitchen knife, took scissors to every shirt in the dresser, poured a bottle of ketchup into the underwear and sock drawer, pulled out the refrigerator fuse and threw it out a window, ripped the flapper out of the toilet tank and tore it apart, and crushed the bathtub's shower head. The destruction was utterly deliberate and complete. 
~ 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami, page 164

Do they sense it, these dead writers, when their books are read? Does a pinprick of light appear in their darkness? Is their soul stirred by the feather touch of another mind reading theirs? I do hope so.

~Diane Setterfield, The Thirteenth Tale

The Boston Rocker by Eastman Johnson

Books in Bedrooms Love

This feels rustic and essential. The simplicity makes it cozy.

image source

Rustic again! And look at all those books. A room like this just begs to be lingered in. I'll be down for breakfast later, after this next chapter.

image source

How clean and fresh is this room?! I love the ratty leather chair in the corner. All those big colourful books need to be browsed, pulled from the shelves and sampled. Don't count on seeing me much past 8pm. I'll be here reading.

image source

I Am The Messenger by Markus Zusak DNF

As much as I loved The Book Thief with its message of compassion, I just couldn't connect with the characters in I Am The Messenger. The protagonist, Ed Kennedy, is a horny nineteen-year old cab driver who has been 'chosen' by some mysterious . . . what? benefactor? I don't know. But he keeps getting these cryptic notes in the mail written on playing cards that compel him to intervene in other peoples' misfortunes and crises. So he reluctantly participates and sees that even he, a self proclaimed nobody, can be a force for good. Cool. Okay. I like that. It is certainly a noble pursuit we could all practice a little more often. The thing is, though, when it comes to books with a 'message' I think a little bit of subtlety is a good thing, too. About a third of the way through, I just couldn't handle the heavy-handedness of the be-kind-to-your-neighbor story. And what's with all the fantasizing about all the sex our poor protagonist isn't getting? It's a little out of place here. *yawn*. Enough already. We get it. Ed is a frustrated young guy. We don't need to be hit over the head with his sexual daydreams again and again. Subtlety, dear author. Subtlety.

Perhaps it's that I Am The Messenger is classified as Young Adult and I'm just too old and curmudgeonly to appreciate it.

Rainy weekends were made for this.

Illustration by Daria Palotti

Books: a beautifully browsable invention that needs no electricity and exists in a readable form no matter what happens.
~Nicholson Baker

The moon had been observing the the earth close-up longer than anyone. It must have witnessed all of the phenomena occurring - and all the acts carried out - on this earth. But the moon remained silent; it told no stories. All it did was embrace the heavy past with cool, measured detachment. On the moon there was neither air nor wind. Its vacuum was perfect for preserving memories unscathed. No one could unlock the heart of the moon.
~Haruki Murakami, 1Q84

1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

Wow! I had no idea 1Q84 would be such a cool book. Its size and weird title were both intriguing and off-putting at first, but after finding a copy at a used book store I knew I had to bring it home and give it a try. I started reading the first few pages and found the chapters  flying by on their own as I became more and more obsessed with Tengo and Aomame's story. It's a Matrix-y, Alice-in-Wonderland-y love story with alternate realities, portals, mysterious Little People and a double moon. Murakami's writing is so engrossing and so real, that the fantasy aspect of the story was surprisingly easy to cope with for my non-fantasy tastes. This author's books could be my gateway into a whole new genre!

*spoilers* The story overall is really, really good. I loved the flow and the pacing and those weird little other-worldly surprises. The characters, too, were intriguing. How cool is Aomame? She kicks ass and takes names, looking great in everything from designer suits to yoga pants. And then there's the dowager in her hidden compound with the body guard and gold fish. So Zen! And what does she do with all her wealth? She provides a furnished, secluded shelter on her property for abused women. A worthy and noble undertaking, I'd say. Tengo is a quirky, writer, teacher, loner type of guy with some serious father issues. I love how he manages to resolve this, forgiving his father and staying with him in the old-age home, reading aloud and talking to him even though the old man is in a coma. Fuka-Eri, the seventeen-year old girl with the imaginative story is also a pretty quirky character. She doesn't say much, but she has a presence that's shrouded in imagination and mystery. And then there's Komatsu for a little bit of extroverted relief. Where I imagine most of these characters to be soft-spoken, I imagine Komatsu to be a loud-talker, an irritation for us introverts, but a necessary element to keep us balanced. And then, ugh, Ushikawa. I don't know if it was Murakami's endless descriptions of this character's ugliness or what, but I found book three, when Ushikawa plays a bigger role investigating and spying on our two protagonists, to be rather tedious. I really didn't need to know all about Ushikawa's history and personality for pages and pages at a time. He got on my nerves something fierce and I couldn't have been more relieved when he finally met his demise. Once it became clear that Tengo and Aomame were going to reconnect, I just wanted to get on with the conclusion already.

1Q84 is good in a 4-out-of-5 stars sort of way. I liked it a lot but it could have done with some trimming.

The year is 1984 and the city is Tokyo.
A young woman named Aomame follows a taxi driver's enigmatic suggestions and begins to notice puzzling discrepancies in the world around her. She has entered, she realizes, a parallel existence, which she calls 1Q84 - "Q is for 'question mark'. A world that bears a question." Meanwhile, an aspiring writer named Tengo takes on a suspect ghostwriting project. He becomes so wrapped up with the work and its unusual author that, soon, his previously placid life begins to become unravelled. 
A love story, a mystery, a fantasy, a novel of self-discovery, a dystopia to rival George Orwell's - 1Q84 is Haruki Murakami's most ambitious undertaking yet: an instant best seller in his native Japan, and a tremendous feat of imagination from one of our most revered contemporary writers. (back cover)

Happy Birthday Maya Angelou
4 April, 1928

Maya Angelou is an American author and poet. She has published six autobiographies, five books of essays, and several books of poetry. Her career spanned more than 50 years. She has received many awards and honorary doctoral degrees. Angelou is best known for her series of autobiographies which focuses on her childhood and early adult experiences. Her first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, brought her international recognition and acclaim.

A few of Maya Angelou's remarkable quotes:

~The honorary duty of a human being is to love.

~I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

~Surviving is important. Thriving is elegant.

~Talent is like electricity. We don't understand electricity. We use it. You can plug into it and light up a lamp, keep a heart pump going, light a cathedral, or you can electrocute a person with it.

~When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.

~ There's a world of difference between truth and facts. Facts can obscure the truth.

~My mother said I must always be intolerant of ignorance but understanding of illiteracy. The some people, unable to go to school, were more educated and more intelligent than college professors.

~Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, is good for him.

~Life loves the liver of it.

~The idea is to write it so that people hear it and it slides right through the brain and goes straight to the heart.

~When you learn, teach; when you get, give.

From Writers Write
And Books Direct

Image from website

Emma Reading

by H. Craig Hanna

Every man who knows how to read has it in his power to magnify himself, to multiply the ways in which he exists, to make his life full, significant and interesting.
~Aldous Huxley

A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah

What strikes me about stories like this is a) the depths of brutality that humans are capable of and b) the incredible resilience and capacity for rehabilitation and good that humans are also capable of. I had been putting this book off for so long I had almost forgotten it was on the shelf. But seeing as I've been on a memoir roll lately I figured it was time to take a deep breath and dive in; this one, I knew, would be a difficult read.

I was drawn into Ishmael's story by the fact that he doesn't dwell on the atrocities but focuses also on the normality of everyday non-war life. As a child he goes to school and reads books, learning by heart some passages of his favourite Shakespeare plays. He jokes around with his friends and puts together hip-hop routines for talent shows. He listens to Bob Marley tapes and goes for swims in the river in the hot afternoons. This could be the life of any twelve-year-old boy in any country. Life changes for Ishmael as soon as he hears of the destruction of his village while away in a nearby town with his friends. Without knowing whether their families are alive or dead, and afraid to go back home, the boys go in search of safety and news wandering the forest realizing the dangers of being discovered by either of the warring armies. This goes on for months with the boys barely surviving not only bullets but starvation as well. Capture, though, is inevitable. After a number of near misses with the rebels, the country's ruling army finally recruits them under the guise of 'protection'. With food and a safe place to sleep, it doesn't take long for the army to manipulate the boys into doing everything they are ordered to do. The copious distribution of 'little white capsules' for energy along with marijuana cigarettes to relax seals the children's fate. They are now 'soldiers'. Their regiment soon becomes their family and the boys are eager to please and impress the powers that be. At this point the author describes his feelings as a mixture of bafflement, fear, anger and resignation as he longs for his childhood before the war saying that now a wall has gone up preventing him from ever accessing that innocence again.

What becomes clear, reading this story, is how large a roll luck plays. The deaths of Ishmael's family and friends could just as easily have included him. The fact that his commanding officer chose him along with some of the other children to leave with the UN envoys come to rescue and repatriate the youngest fighters, as he was almost sixteen and a seasoned, reliable soldier by this time. And then he being chosen to represent his country at a UN conference on Children Associated with War (CAW) in New York City. Even the account of his early rehabilitation had me on pins and needles, everything just seemed so precarious all the time. I could only breathe normally again once I closed the book for the last time and realized how much I appreciate the freedom and peace I have all around me.

My heart goes out to all the children living with war and the workers committed to giving them back their lives.

At the age of twelve, Ishmael Beah fled attacking rebels in Sierra Leone and wandered a land rendered unrecognizable by violence. By thirteen, he'd been picked up by the government army, and Beah, at heart a gentle boy, found he was capable of truly terrible acts. At sixteen, he was removed from fighting by UNICEF, and through the help of staff at his rehabilitation centre, he learned how to forgive himself, to regain his humanity, and finally, to heal.
This is an extraordinary and mesmerizing account, told with real literary force and heartbreaking honesty. (back cover)

George Lucas, of Star Wars fame, built this magnificent two-story library at Skywalker Ranch, a company retreat in Marin County, California in 1985. The library features a forty-foot stained glass dome, a circular staircase, beautiful wood paneling and trim work and of course, bookcases all around. The library houses 27,000 volumes and large collections of video, photo and press clipping archives, including the defunct Paramount Studios and Universal Studios research collections dating from the early days of filmmaking that Lucas acquired for this library. There are not many photographs of it and visitors are rarely allowed, but there is an interesting interview with two of the librarians that describes the collections in detail here.

[How divine is this!? Just lock me in and throw away the key]

image source

Reading on deck, 1941

image source

Later she remembered all the hours of the afternoon as happy - one of those uneventful times that seem at the moment only a link between past and future pleasure, but turn out to have been the pleasure itself.
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, Tender is the Night
image source