goodreads

I don't know how many of you knew that the picture of a bookshelf over there on the side bar takes you to a page about my reading habits, but I'm willing to guess it's not many. Maybe you don't try to click on every picture on blogs to see if there are any hidden gems. But then again, maybe you do. Regardless, you should click it, and then click the link there that takes you to my goodreads profile. I guess you don't need to do that if you're not the least bit interested in my opinions on books. Or if you're too lazy to take the plunge and click, here's what the page says:

The best way to keep up with my voracious reading habits is to check my goodreads profile. There, you can find books I've read, what I'm currently reading, my favorites, my not-so-favorites, and those I was compelled enough to write about. Join me in my love for all things literary.

goodreads.com/huzzahs

currently reading

she is also the author of this book, which i very much enjoyed

Ha - Why live?

My favorite from this article, an interview with M.H. Abrams (founding editor) and Stephen Greenblatt (general editor) of the Norton Anthology:

For a prospective undergraduate reading this Q. and A., how would you answer the question, Why study literature?

 

Abrams: Ha — Why live? Life without literature is a life reduced to penury. It expands you in every way. It illuminates what you’re doing. It shows you possibilities you haven’t thought of. It enables you to live the lives of other people than yourself. It broadens you, it makes you more human. It makes life enjoyable. There’s no end to the response you can make to that question, but Stephen has a few things to add. 

 

Greenblatt: Literature is the most astonishing technological means that humans have created, and now practiced for thousands of years, to capture experience. For me the thrill of literature involves entering into the life worlds of others. I’m from a particular, constricted place in time, and I suddenly am part of a huge world — other times, other places, other inner lives that I otherwise would have no access to. 

popular

Because I have a degree in English, many issues naturally inherent to the literary world are on the forefront of my thoughts. Here's a common idea that I think is total nonsense:

Classic/modern literature is inaccessible to anyone without an English degree.

This is nothing more than a bogus excuse in my book. Sure, there are those who honestly do not like reading, but not all authors are inaccessible. Yes, you might have to use your brain more (read: much more) than if you were reading, say, Twilight, but I promise you won't hurt yourself. Most authors wrote for the common man. And while I know that there are some authors who write novels that are intentionally difficult*, most don't. Pick up some Dostoevsky or some poetry; you'll be surprised at how accessible it is. It's all about the human experience. Go experience it. Find yourself in another world with new people and share in their triumphs and downfalls. It's a wonderful way to live and learn about all of those literary/philosophical ideas that start with capital letters; i.e. Truth with a capital 't'. 

Runners up for this expose:

:: That censorship will actually do/help anything. (It doesn't.) 

:: That all feminists are of the bra-burning 'we hate men' variety. (We're not.)

*Finnegans Wake by James Joyce is a perfect example. Don't even try.

26. What popular notion do you think the world has most wrong? | thirty things

dinner date

One dinner with Sylvia, please. I'm on a first-name basis with her, and love her more than most. I'd have her take me to her favorite local place in London. I'd love to talk to her and try to get a glimpse into her genius. Just a small inkling. If I could write half as well as she could at age eighteen, well, I wouldn't just be writing a blog that who knows how many people actually see. I'd ask her about her poetry and if she liked the version of the cover of her novel. My guess is probably not - too many colors. Anyway, she's brilliant. Read her if you haven't. The poetry is fantastic. The novel is superb. And this crazy thing happens when you read The Bell Jar; you start to think that you're Esther. Then you put the book down and think, "What was I thinking? That's not me." Then you pick it up again and you're convinced over and over that it's you. Seriously.So.Good. You won't be sorry.

25. If you could have dinner with anyone in history, who would it be and what would you eat? | thirty things

thirty things detour

I don't like the question. It's a bit too personal. So instead, I'll offer up my favorite classical composers, bands/genres, and authors for your entertainment pleasure.

Classical Composers

Gustav Mahler

Dmitri Shostakovich

Antonin Dvorak

Sergei Rachmaninoff

Fredric Chopin

Sergei Prokofiev

Bands/Genres

Fleet Foxes

Mumford & Sons

Classic Rock

British Rock

Broadway

Authors:

Toni Morrison

Sylvia Plath

Cormac McCarthy

J.K. Rowling

Fyodor Dostoevsky

18. What has been the most difficult thing you have had to forgive? | thirty things

"Now she had to be content with the company of the person she prized most of all --- herself."

Home | Toni Morrison

into the woods

image found here.

"In the thickest part of the woods, where the trees were only ten feet apart, it could be any date I chose, and sometimes it seemed to me that all the years were one, a handful of seasons repeating themselves, the conversations like snakes swallowing their own tails."

hood  |  emma donoghue

to the lighthouse

images found here and here.

"What is the meaning of life? A simple question; one that tended to close in on one with years. The great revelation had never come. The great revelation perhaps never did come. Instead there were little daily miracles, illuminations, matches struck unexpectedly in the dark."

virginia woolf

Tolstoy's got it right.

"Nothing is so necessary for a young man as the company of intelligent women." 

Leo Tolstoy | War and Peace

It's a beautiful world we live in, that copies of War and Peace this pretty and color coordinated exist.

one day at innisfree / one day that's mine there

My notes from class: "Innisfree. Find it. Go there."

I once had a professor tell me that everybody needs their own Innisfree, whether it be a physical space you go to, or just a state of mind you can visit. Everybody needs that place Yeats describes where you can escape to and find peace. It's essential to life. Essential for the soul. And if you can hum that post title, don't bother searching too much more; you're probably already there.

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree, 
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made; 
Nine bean rows will I have there, a hive for the honeybee, 
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

::

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight's all a-glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet's wings.

::

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements gray,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.

The Lake Isle of Innisfree | W.B. Yeats

“Perhaps there is a spirit in books that lets them live beyond their actual bound bodies." - Jonathan Rosen

The 1880 edition of Edgar Allan's poems that I found today.*

Today while driving around the west side of my fair city, I stumbled upon a used bookstore that rivals my love affair with Sam Wellers. And while Sam Wellers is the end all of used bookstores, Ed's Editions now has the top spot  in that space of my heart reserved for used bookstores. Sorry Sam, you're just too far away now for any kind of relationship to continue.

And although you can't really tell from their website, Ed's is everything a used bookstore should be. It has the smell, the old bookshelves, the ancient leather-bound books that I want to grab by the armfuls regardless of whether or not I like it or what language it's in and take home. It's housed in this quaint old storefront that's probably been around as long as some of the books. Amazing double doors. Lots of little rooms at all different levels. I think that may actually be a requirement of good used bookstores - those little steps that take you from section to section. It is, in a word, perfect. I'm anticipating a long relationship of frequenting the place, so if you can't find me, 

you might try looking for me among the shelves.

*And now, thanks to Ed, I've got my eye on an early edition of the complete works of my good friend Shakie. So look out. I'm coming for you.

first book of the new year

image via amazon.com

 

 

This is the first book I've finished so far this year. It's a fantastic read. I could not put the book down.  Donoghue's choice of narrator was impeccable. It was on the NYT list of best books of 2010. And rightfully so. Put it on your reading list for the year.

steal of a find.

amazing, right?

 

 

 

 

Yes, that's a golden snitch ornament. And yes, I'm allowing my inner Harry Potter fangirl nerd self to come out in full force with this one. I'm making this and putting it on my Christmas tree. Soon. As in, as soon as I can get to the craft store to get what I need for it. Oh, the joys of what you find on Pinterest.

i've been gone, but will be back soon. promise.

Pardon the (unplanned) blogging hiatus. We're still trying to get the internet hooked up in our new place. But in the mean time, here's what I am currently reading:

Child of God is good if you like McCarthy. If you don't, don't bother. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is fantastic. Read it. So so glad E. recommended it to me all those months ago.

I am a writer, and I will write.

I had a realization last week while walking to work, listening to Fleet Foxes, and enjoying the cooler air that brings hope of Fall. It came in the form of a Jack London quotation. "You cant wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club." I was in a particularly downtrodden mood at the time, lamenting the fact that I had nothing to write about, no good ideas, and thinking all sorts of other equally pessimistic thoughts. It was then that Mr. London came to mind. Right when I needed him. Thank you, Jack. It really was as perfect as timing can be. I realized - though I'm pretty sure I already knew it - I cant just sit around waiting for inspiration to permeate my thoughts. Fabulous ideas take time. Work. Cultivation. More work. More cultivation. I need to write. write. write. Keep the good. Keep the bad because one day it might look good. I bought a new notebook and new pens. I'm ready. I really am. No more waiting to do what I want to do. It's time to just do. Just be. Exist. Think. Write. So, look out inspiration. I've got a club, and I'm coming after you.

rememory

rememory: almost like you've lived it before, and you're just remembering it again. like de ja vu, but stronger. more real. more concrete.

heavily prevalent in african-american literature. both beautiful and mysterious. much like african-american literature itself.

i love everything about this genre of literature. their beliefs, their customs, their ideas. it makes me more aware of all beautiful and true things around me.

provo.

tonight we went to provo because spencer's company was a part of a recruitment fair for the business school. while he was off recruiting on campus, i was reliving the glory days with two of my former roommates. first i visited melanie. we went to the store, bought ice cream, went back to her house and relived the 90s - we watched home improvement while sharing a bowl of delicious ice cream. it was so fun catching up on each others' lives.

then i visited elizabeth. we sat at the kitchen table drinking water (which i promptly spilled all over the table - spoiler: i'm a klutz) discussing life, love, and literature - the three most important L's. we talked about all things beautiful and true. from people to postmodernism, poetry to plath. we discussed it all. we talked about the classes she was taking (she is also an English major) and it made me yearn to be back in an academic setting discussing books. there was that little flutter in my stomach at the excitement of sitting in a circle talking about authors and the beautiful things they do with words. talking about literature is just good for my soul. it really is.

book club.

In church this past week, this notice was passed around. All I saw was "book club" so I snatched one up in hopes that it might yield some intellectual discussion about literature. I was wrong.

In case you can't read it (I crumpled it up and gave it to my cat as soon as I realized the lack of intellectual stimulation such a gathering would provide) it says that "Elsa Jean will review the book Pollyanna." Firstly, Elsa Jean is old. Elderly, even. Not that old people aren't intelligent, but the choice of book is a tip off that this isn't going to be the type of discussion I'm used to. Secondly, Pollyanna? Really? It was fine when I was ten, but even then, not really. I was more of a Tolkien girl at age ten. The best part is that they want suggestions of books to read and review. I feel pretty secure in saying they don't want the books/authors that I'd recommend: Morrison, Plath, McCarthy, the Russians, Shakespeare, Danticat, Hemingway, etc. Then again, maybe I'll go and see if anyone is open minded about some good literature. Wishful thinking.

Why is it so nearly impossible to find a book club that discusses real literature?

books

Spencer bought me three books this week from a little bookstore in Tampa that sells old, rare, out of print books, etc. One of those books is The Complete Concordance of Shakespeare by John Bartlett. (+20 points to Gryffindor if you already know what it is). Ever want to know where all of Shakespeare's references to cheese are? This is the book you need. Bartlett's Concordance contains every reference from the Bard's plays that exist. Just look up a word to find all of the references of that word in Shakespeare's works. It's a pretty impressive thing that someone took all of the time to compile something like this. He must have really loved Shakespeare. And, having a little soft spot (and my own pet name) for Shakie myself, this is the perfect item to add to my collection. (Here comes the fun part.) The book is really old. The publication date inside is 1894 with no previous editions listed. After a bit of research, I discovered that the Concordance was, in fact, originally published in 1894. Looks like we might have a first edition on our hands. Even if it's not, it's still an amazing text. Feel free to call me a book nerd now. It's okay. I've already accepted it.

beautiful book, no?