A Love Letter to Don Quixote

I am participating in the High Summer Read-a-Thon and decided to take on a challenge to write. a letter to a character from one of the books I am reading during the read-a-thon. So I have chosen to write to Don Quixote because I have been reading this Big chunky book since the beginning of June. So here goes...

Dear Don Quixote of La Mancha,

Also known as the Knight of the Sorrowful Face,

Also known as the Knight of the Lions,

I have admired you from afar for years and have only recently decided to take my fate into my own hands and declare my love for you.  

You, mad, bumbling fool, that you are, have stolen my heart with your chivalrous ways and your love of books.  These books that you love, dried up your brain and made you mad and set you off of on your journey of knight errantry.  Your crazy acts of chivalry made me notice you and fall in love with you even though you have pledged your heart to the peasant girl, Dulcinea of Toboso, who enchants you with her wicked looks.  Oh, how I wish you would notice me, for it is I, who holds you, in the palm of my hands and makes your story come alive.  

I’m not sure if you know this, Don Quixote, but the Spanish world adores you.  I have visited statues erected in your honor.  Even I, have a Starbucks mug that contains your likeness, on which I ponder our future together, over a strong mug of tea.

I want adventure, my dear Don Quixote, and I want to save babies, and right, wrongs and help those in need like you do.  If it so pleases you my lord, may I follow you through Spain as you protect the unfortunate?  Or can I dare hope to replace Dulcinea of Toboso in your heart and as your enchantress?

Send me your answer forthwith or as fast as your skinny nag, Rocinante can carry.

I anxiously await your loving reply,

Your ladyship and faithful reader,

Laura of Booksnob

Seasons of Reading High Summer Read-a-thon

Hi Everyone,

I have had a super busy summer, visiting Spain, Morocco, South Dakota and Montana.  I am home now and really looking forward to sitting on my deck and reading some good books before I have to go back to school.  I'm excited to participate for my 5th or maybe 6th read-a-thon with Michelle, The True Book Addict.



Here are my goals for the read-a-thon:

1.  Read Wintering by Peter Geye
2.  Continue and hopefully finish reading Don Quixote by Cervantes (I have 300 pages left)
3.  Read one short story a day from The Red Convertible by Louise Erdrich
4.  Read a graphic novel ( I haven't picked it out yet)
5.  Start: A Wolf at Twilight by Kent Nerburn

High Summer Read-A-Thon Wrap-Up.

High Summer Read-A-Thon Wrap-Up.

Sadness:  The Read-a-Thon is over.  But I'm happy to say I accomplished most of my goals.  Friday was my worst day for reading because my car broke down in the middle of a busy intersection and I was stuck sitting on the side of the road with my dog and a broken foot.  Sad to say, I am still without my car, which I call The Bullet.  The bullet is at the dealership waiting to be fixed and I may not have it all week!  I hate being confined.

So here are my goals and what I accomplished.


Goal #1.  Read a book a day.  This means I will read one book a day for the entire readathon or read seven total books finished.

I did this.  I read and/or finished 7 books during the readathon.  Yes.  Below is the list of books I finished.

Book #1 War Brothers. The Graphic Novel by Sharon E. McKay and artwork by Daniel Lafrance
Book #2 The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald
Book #3 The Lady and the Unicorn by Tracy Chevalier

See my post about these books with mini-reviews here:  Readathon update post

Book #4 Flight by Sherman Alexie (audio book)
Book #5 The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
Book #6 Vacationland by Sarah Stonich
Book #7 Eight Dolphins of Katrina by Janet Wyman Coleman.  Illustrations by Yan Nascimbene

Goal #2.  I have 2 books that I am in the middle of and want to finish this week.  Vacationland by Sarah Stonich and The Lady and the Unicorn by Tracy Chevalier.  Both books are super good and I can't wait to find out what happens.

Finished both of these.  See above for books finished and below for mini-reviews.

Goal #3.  Writing.  I know this is a readathon and not a writeathon but I want to write at least an hour every day this week and I think I will use this readathon as a way to do that.  Writing includes blogging for me but I also want to work on my short stories and young adult novel.  So much writing to do and so little time.

I did not really accomplish this goal.  I spent most of my free time reading.  It is so much easier to read than to write and yep, I'm a procrastinator.

Book #4 Flight by Sherman Alexie (audio book)

Listened to this on audio. This about a homeless, parentless Native American teen who has bounced from foster home to foster home and is on the wrong side of the law. As he commits a crime, he is taken on a flight into other bodies in other times and places. Sort of time travel. He is being put into situations and people relevant to his life situation. It has a hopeful ending but boy, was it hard to listen to.

Book #5 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

Love this book. The book and the movie are pretty similar and if you've never read The Chronicles of Narnia, hop to it because you are missing out.  I love to be transported to Narnia, I only wish it was real so I could travel there and be queen like Lucy and Susan.

Book #6 Vacationland by Sarah Stonich

This book is stunning and Stonich is a master storyteller.  Her words and sentences are so descriptive and picturesque and evoke time and place so well. Through out the whole book, I kept envisioning myself at Vacationland.   I just didn't want it to end.  So good.

Book #7  Eight Dolphins of Katrina by Janet Wyman Coleman.  Illustrations by Yan Nascimbene

This children's book tells the fate of 8 dolphins housed in the Oceanarium in Mississippi on the coast during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. There is also a section towards the end of the book, called Man's best friend which tells of the evolution of dolphins as well as how they are credited with saving lives. Eight Dolphins of Katrina ends with a scrapbook full of pictures with a timeline of events. I had no idea that 8 dolphins were swept into the gulf by a tidal wave during the hurricane and needed rescuing until I read this book. I think children would really be interested in this book

Ahhh, I love reading and I love readathons.  Don't you?

Update on High Summer Read-A-Thon

                                                   Update on High Summer Read-a-Thon

So far my reading progress has been very good.  My writing has taken a back seat to my reading and I kinda wanted to get more writing done but Oh well.

So far I have read 3 books and am on track for reading 7 books during this read-a-thon.

Here are the 3 books I have read and a short review of each.

Book #1 War Brothers. The Graphic Novel by Sharon E. McKay and artwork by Daniel Lafrance

I read War Brothers on Monday 7-21.  Wow. This book has left me speechless. The artwork= Amazing! The story based on true events about Kony and the LRA (Lords Resistance Army) and the kidnapping of children to conscript into their army of child soldiers. Told from the perspective of a child named Jacob, who was kidnapped from school with his classmates. Everyone needs to read this book!

Book #2 The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald

I read The Bookshop on Tuesday 7-22.  A novella of 10 chapters about a woman who opens a book shop in England near the North Sea. She opens her bookshop in an old haunted house near the sea. Another woman in town, who is connected in higher places wants Florence to turn the old house into an art center and Florence refuses. This is her downfall as this woman is vindictive and controlling and will not rest until she has her way. This novel is not about a quaint English town, it is a book about small town life in England, tradition and manners, and about daring to be different.

Book # 3 The Lady and the Unicorn by Tracy Chevalier

I finished The Lady and the Unicorn on Wednesday, 7-23.  This wonderfully imagined novel is based on a set of 6 tapestries called The Lady and the Unicorn. They were made sometime in the 15th century probably in Brussels for a French Aristocrat. Chevalier creates a story imagining who the supposed artist and weavers are and creates a great story about the tapestries. It is interesting to learn about tapestry making and life and love in the 15th century. I really enjoyed this novel. Included in the pages of the book are 6 images of the colorful tapestries. Each tapestry represents one of the 5 senses and the 6th, incidentally my favorite one, is called My Soul Desire.

I'm currently reading Vacationland by Sarah Stonich and loving every word.  I'm also reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis.  Both of these I will finish by the end of the readathon.

How is your progress?
What are you reading?

High Summer Read-A-Thon

High Summer Read-A-Thon
July 21 through July 27

I love read-a-thons and this High Summer Read-a-Thon  hosted by Michelle from the True Book Addict blog, is one of my favorites.  I participate every year.  You can still participate by going to the Seasons Reading blog to sign up.

I tend to read a lot and enjoy the time I spend outdoors reading with my dog and my kids.  This year, I have a broken foot which means I am pretty limited in what I can do, so I have been reading and writing a lot.  For this read-a-thon I have several goals.

Goal #1.  Read a book a day.  This means I will read one book a day for the entire readathon or read seven total books finished.

Goal #2.  I have 2 books that I am in the middle of and want to finish this week.  Vacationland by Sarah Stonich and The Lady and the Unicorn by Tracy Chevalier.  Both books are super good and I can't wait to find out what happens.

Goal #3.  Writing.  I know this is a readathon and not a writeathon but I want to write at least an hour every day this week and I think I will use this readathon as a way to do that.  Writing includes blogging for me but I also want to work on my short stories and young adult novel.  So much writing to do and so little time.

I will do a mid-week check in and let you know if I'm on track.  Until then, Happy Reading to you!

High Summer Read-a-Thon Wrap-up

High Summer Read-a-Thon Wrap-up and Mini-Challenge winner!

I love Read-a-Thons as they push my kids and I to get extra reading time in during the day and to finish all the books on our summer reading list.  Not much has changed since my update post a few days ago as the weekend was busy and did not offer up much free time to read.  Plus my son came home sick from Boy Scout camp and I had to take him to urgent care.  Poor guy.

Luckily, Georgia and I both accomplished our reading goals.  I finished three books and Georgia, my daughter finished two.

Here are our book stats:  Georgia finished,
1.  No Such Thing as Dragons by Philip Reeve
2.  Smile by Raina Tegemeier
She started a 3rd book called One Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes.

Laura finished:
1.  Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
2.  Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
3.  The Homecoming of Samuel Lake by Jenny Wingfield

MINI-CHALLENGE WINNER IS:  Srivalli @Valli's Book Den blog
Congratulations Srivalli. 

Each participant had to take one aspect of the book they were reading and show an illustration/picture/photo for it.  Then they briefly explained the connection to the book. 

The winner, Srivalli did her mini-challenge on Dracula by Bram Stroker.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the mini-challenge and thanks to Michelle at The True Book Addict for hosting!

Readathon Update and Mini-challenge

High Summer Readathon Update and Mini-challenge.

So far the read-a-thon is going great.

My daughter has read two books:

1.  No Such Thing as Dragons by Philip Reeve
2.  Smile by Raina Tegemeier

She has started a 3rd book called One Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes.

Booksnob (I) have finished two books:

1.  Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
2.  Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

I have started a 3rd book called The Homecoming of Samuel Lake by Jenny Wingfield.

**I am going to Participate in MY SERYNITI'S mini challenge based on the Page 99 Test Challenge:  Here is what you do:

• Pick a book that you have on your to read list this week.
• Turn to page 99.
• Read page 99!
• Now, from that page post in comments or link back to your updates on what you think of the book. Would you continue reading based only on the page 99 test?

I picked up:  The Homecoming of Samuel Lake and page 99 was so good.  I would definitely would buy this book and keep reading.

Here is one quote from page 99 that made me want to keep reading.

"She wished she could tell the men of the family that she was scared to death of Ras Ballenger, and ask them to be on the lookout for him and protect her from him.  But she couldn't.  If she asked for help, she'd have to explain about breaking the rules, and that would take more courage than she had in her."

Happy Reading!

High Summer Read-a-Thon Mini Challenge

High Summer Read-a-Thon Mini Challenge

Are you a participant in the High Summer Read-a-Thon?
Then you can participate in this mini challenge!

Here is the challenge:  Take one aspect of your book and show an illustration/picture/photo for it.  Then explain it briefly so we know the connection to the book you are reading.

For example:
I am reading Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier and here is a picture of Manderley I got from Piper Maitland's blog.  Most of Rebecca takes place here at the Manderley mansion in England.

Another example:
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout takes place on the coast of Maine.  The book is a series of short stories and the coast of Maine is frequently referred to.

Please create your post and add your link to the linky.
Prize will be a gift certificate of 10 dollars to Amazon.
I will choose a winner on July 23rd.
Feel free to leave your e-mail address in the comments.  I plan to visit all the blogs.  

Rules:
Include a picture of some type, book, author and at least one sentence connecting the picture to the book.
Link up
Winner will be notified via there blog or e-mail.
Have fun! 

High Summer Read-a-Thon

High Summer Read-a-Thon

It's time to join Michelle and other book lovers for the High Summer Read-a-Thon which begins today.  My daughter Georgia will be participating as well.  My son is at Boy Scout camp so he is out.  The nice thing about this read-a-thon is that you set your own goals, read at your own pace and still have time to get other necessary things done during the day.  So you can read a little or a lot, it is entirely up to you.

I will be offering a easy mini-challenge this week to participants of the read-a-thon on Wednesday.  If you want to sign up for the Read-a-Thon visit Michelle at Seasons of Reading blog and sign up.

So here are my reading goals for the week.  I would like to finish two books that I have already started and complete a 3rd book and maybe start a 4th.

These are the books I want to finish:

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

This is the book I want to start and complete by Sunday:  The Homecoming of Samuel Lake by Jenny Wingfield.

Georgia plans to read:  No Such Things as Dragons by Philip Reeve.

Once Upon a Read-a-Thon Final Update

Once Upon a Read-a-Thon Final Update

The read-a-thon was a success for all of us.
The goal was to read one book each.  My daughter and I reached and exceeded that goal.  My son did not meet the goal.
Here are our results.

Laura (me):  Read 2 books:
Paper Covers Rock by Jenny Hubbard
Chime by Franny Billingsley
Read: 2 short stories from Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout.

Georgia (11 yr. daughter):  Read 2 books:
Witch and Wizard, Battle for Shadowland by James Patterson. 
Dork Diaries: The Not so Graceful Ice Princess by Rachel Renee Russell.

Max (14 yr. son):  Read for about 3 hours.
On page 194 in Middle School, Get Me Outta Here! by James Patterson.  He is almost done with the book.

Looking forward to next year!
Happy reading.

Once Upon a Read-a-Thon mini challenge

Once Upon a Read-a-Thon mini challenge

When you do a Read-a-Thon there are lots of mini-challenges out there and I always like to participate in at least one.  So I chose to do the mini-challenge at The Reader Bee.

All I have to do is answer the question:
What is your most anticipated book for 2012?

  I have been patiently waiting all year and will continue to wait until October 2nd for Promised by Caragh O'Brien.
Promised is the 3rd book in the Birthmarked Trilogy.  I love these books and I love simple mini-challenges like this. 

What Books are you anticipating this year?

 

Once Upon a Read-a-Thon Update

Once Upon a Read-a-Thon Update- Day 2

Yesterday was a very busy day for me and my kids.  We spent the day doing some community service with our church and then we went to the beach.  I was able to get a little reading done while soaking up the sun.  In the evening both of my kids had a game, (baseball or softball depending on the child).  I stayed up late to finish one book, Paper Covers Rock by Jenny Hubbard. 

Each of us has a goal to finish one book and so far, My daughter and I have accomplished this.  My son is about 100 pages into his book by James Patterson called Middle School, Get Me Outta Here!
Georgia finished the graphic novel, Witch and Wizard, Battle for Shadowland by James Patterson.  She is now reading the new Dork Diary book called The Not so Graceful Ice Princess.  I have never read a book by James Patterson and here both my kids love him.  Funny.

Now I am reading Chime by Frannie Billingsley and hope to finish it today sometime.  Crossing my fingers.  I hope you all are accomplishing your reading goals.

Once Upon a Read-a-Thon

Once Upon a Read-a-Thon Intro Post

For the 3rd year in a row, my kids and I are participating in the Once Upon a Read-a-Thon.  I love that it takes place during the week!  I bought each of my children a new book and we made a stop at the public library so we are set up with great books and busy reading.  Each of us has a goal to finish at least one book. We don't have a lot of time to read because we have other commitments like softball, baseball, ice skating, boot camp, summer stretch and Boy Scouts but we are excited!  Yahoo!

I am planning to read Paper Covers Rock by Jenny Jubbard as well as one short story a day from Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout.  I also plan to continue reading Rebecca by Daphne De Maurier and Chime by Frannie Billingsley.




My 11 year old daughter, Georgia is planning to read the graphic novel Witch and Wizard, Battle for Shadowland and the new Dork Diaries book.




 My 14 year old son, Max is reading Middle School, Get Me Out of Here by James Patterson. Yep, you guessed it, he is in junior high and he really loves books by James Patterson.

So wish us luck and I will post updates.  Feel free to post your reading goals and challenge updates on your blog and/or Twitter. We are using the hash tag #OUreadathon on Twitter! Here’s the list of participates and you can still sign up until 12:00am EST tonight!  Remember one lucky read-a-thoner will win a $60 gift card!
Sign up at http://www.pureimaginationblog.com/