Top Ten Tuesday: Santa is all about giving kids books rather than annoying toys

Pretty button via Mint Tea and a Good Book

This Tuesday's topic over at The Broke and the Bookish is Top Ten Books I'd like Santa to Bring, but I still have a bzillion books waiting on my shelf to be read and I have an amazon wishlist (one-stop shopping, y'all!) with a bzillion gift ideas for my wonderful friends and family to peruse.  So I'm going to mix it up and share the collection of books my kids would find under the tree if Santa had access to unlimited funds.

1.  The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Martchenko
Fabulous, feminist-friendly children's book about a princess who defeats the dragon and rescues the prince.  He turns out to be "a bum" and she ditches him in the end.  Sorry for the spoiler, but this book is so rad I can't help but share the whole story.

2.  Stop That Ball! by Mike McClintock, illustrated by Fritz Siebel
My brothers and I (especially the brothers) loved this book when we were kids.  My mom still has the copy we read so many times, and now Isobel and Jude request it again and again when we visit my mom.  Sadly, it appears to be out of print.  This book and a big red ball would be a pretty perfect gift for little Jude.

3.  The Red Tree by Shaun Tan
Speaking of books that are out of print...
Connie reviewed this one ages ago, and I was so impressed by the illustrations and the premise and Connie's glowing praise that now every time I go into a used/rare bookstore I look for it.  No luck yet, but I hope I find it because I think it's good for kids to realize, at some point, that books can express things other than FUN and CUTE and ACTION.

4.  The Wall by Peter Sís (or any of his other books)
I love this author.  He has several nonfiction picture books about significant people like Charles Darwin and W.A. Mozart.  His illustrations are original and stylized and detailed.  The Wall tells the story of his childhood in Prague under communism.

5.  Beautiful Yetta by Daniel Pinkwater, illustrated by Jill Pinkwater
Children's book authors, here's the way to win me over: use languages other than English in your text.  And make it funny so my kids will like it as much as I do.  The Pinkwaters succeed with using both Yiddish and Spanish AND I've never heard Isobel laugh so hard as when I read her this book.

6.  Knuffle Bunny Too and Knuffle Bunny Free by Mo Willems 
I have a mad mom crush on Mo Willems.  I may or may not have gotten misty-eyed when I read the last Knuffle Bunny book to Isobel.  Clearly our family needs to own the complete trilogy.

7.  Mimi's Dada Catifesto by Shelley Jackson
Hey look, a picture book that introduces kids to Dada!  I checked this out from the library a couple of years ago and it went way over Isobel's head, but I think she'd dig it now.

8.  Tales from Shakespeare by Tina Packer and various illustrators
Ok, they might be a little young still, but I'm really excited about the idea of introducing my kids to some Shakespearean stories.  Each of these 10 stories has a different illustrator, and one of them is Kadir Nelson, a personal favorite.

9.  Barefoot Books World Atlas by Nick Crane, illustrated by David Dean
One of the best things about parenthood: learning about and exploring the world with a kid, and seeing how they react and respond to things that are old hat to us grownups.  And yes, my kids are too young for this one too.  But it's ok to have a few special books to look forward to.

10.  The Lump of Coal by Lemony Snickett, illustrated by Brett Helquist
We have and love another Lemony Snickett holiday book, The Latke Who Couldn't Stop Screaming.  We need this one to make a match set!  Besides, who could resist a book with this description: "This is a story about a lump of coal who can think, talk, and move itself around.

Is there a more charming holiday tale to behold? Probably, but Lemony Snicket has not written one."

Happy holidays, ye happy people!

Connie's Top 10 Books that Make Her Think

I'm very excited about this week's Top Ten Tuesday topic, as my favorite books are the ones that make me think. That's why I'm a sucker for a well-executed tragic ending, as those tend to be the most haunting. Here are ten books that I love for the amount of thought they provoked.

10. Memories of My Melancholy Whores by Gabriel Garcia Marquez ~ This one is fresh on the mind, as I read it in a book group this summer, and it resulted in an interesting meeting. Marquez's truly unique love story between a 90-year-old man and a 14-year-old virgin is at times an uncomfortable read and  sparked a great discussion in the group about our dearly held cultural views of love and sex.

9.  Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro ~ I will never forget the experience I had with this book. In case you missed it, read about it in my review here.

8. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien ~ This is the best war book I have ever read. It beautifully examines the mentality of those at war as well as those who are not. Read my review here.

7. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood ~ A dystopia that examines women's role in society? Yes, please. In fact, I look forward to reading this one again, as it gave me perhaps too much to think about the first time around. Read my review here.

6. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens ~ Nothing like an anti-hero to make you question society's black-and-white classification of the "good guy" and the "bad guy."

5. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf ~ Pretty much any book - or journal - or essay - or scribble of Virginia Woolf's is guaranteed to make me stop and think.

4. Native Son by Richard Wright ~ In school (my schools at least), teachers loved to assign us books about racism in America, but they tended to choose books that tip-toe around the issues. When my ninth grade English teacher assigned us this book, I found it shocking and disturbing and a refreshingly new perspective. Wright has since become one of my favorite authors.

3. Orlando by Virginia Woolf ~ Once again, my Woolf obsession. Virginia Woolf has such a unique view of gender, and it's never more evident than in Orlando, in which the character begins life as a man and one day awakes as a woman. Read my review here.

2. We: Understanding the Psychology of Romantic Love by Robert Johnson ~ One part mythic tale of Tristan and Isolde, two parts analysis of our deepest set beliefs and expectations about love, this is truly a fascinating read. You can't help but reanalyze every relationship you've ever had while reading this. Read my review here.

And the number one book that sends my brain into a frenzy is....



1.  1984 by George Orwell ~ Huge surprise to those of you who know that this is my very favorite book. 1984 is brilliant and insightful and haunting. Every read leads me to question everything around and inside of me. And I love that. Read my review here.



And now I'm in the mood to read some more thinkers! Recommendations, anyone?

Top Ten Tuesday: Ingrid's TBR for Fall 2012

It's been a long time since we've done a Top Ten Tuesday post, but obviously I had to show you my exciting TBR list for Fall 2012, because TBR lists are the most fun lists to write. 

Possession by A.S. Byatt. Derik and I recently moved to Colorado, and sadly I had to leave my wonderful book club behind. This month they chose to read Possession, a book I've owned for awhile now and keep having recommended to me. I figured that even though I won't be able to make it to the meeting, now is a good a time as ever to read it. I started it a few days ago. 

Modernism: A Very Short Introduction by Christopher Butler. I'm working on applying to grad school right now, and in my personal statement I have to outline my specific academic goals. I think I want to focus on some aspect of Modernism, so I plan on brushing up a bit. 

In the Shadow of Young Girls in Flower by Marcel Proust. The apartment we moved into is very tiny, so we only brought one box of books. Derik insisted on bringing the entire In Search of Lost Time series he just finished reading last spring. Proust is hard, but he writes about emotion in the most beautiful and complex way. Plus I like reading Derik's annotations. 

How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran. Harper Perennial kindly sent me a review copy to write about on this blog. I've been hearing a lot of hype about this one. I'd like to know how to be a woman. 

Only a Promise of Happiness: The Place of Beauty in a World of Art by Alexander Nehamas. One of my nerd-ish books I've been wanting to read for awhile. I don't read a lot of academic books, but there are a few scholars out there like Alexander Nehamas that I like to keep on my radar. 

Orlando by Virginia Woolf. One of the few books I packed in my small box. Connie LOVES Virginia Woolf, and I want to love her too! I've only read To the Lighthouse and A Room of One's Own and was impressed with both. I'm ready for some more Virginia. 

The Financial Lives of the Poets by Jess Walter. After reading Jess Walter's newest book Beautiful Ruins a few weeks ago, I'm eager to read some of his earlier stuff. 

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. After seeing that stupid Miracle Whip commercial about a million times on Xfinity on demand while watching Breaking Bad, I realized I should probably read The Scarlet Letter at some point in my life. I don't like that left-out feeling I get when I see a parody of a book I haven't read. Gotta fix that. 

The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith. Picked up a used copy of this one at the Boulder Bookstore recently. After watching a beautifully made French adaptation of this book made in the 1960's called Purple Moon, I'm curious about the book. 

Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed. Wild is by far one of my favorite reads so far this year. I've been a fan of Dear Sugar for awhile, so I know that when I eventually get ahold of this book I'll love it too. 

Have you read any of the books on my list? What did you think? Any suggestions for where I should start once I finish Possession?

Top Ten Tuesday: Best Bookstores and Libraries

via Mint Tea and a Good Book

Well hey!  It's a Top Ten Tuesday Freebie week over at The Broke and the Bookish, and that means I get to pick my very own topic.  After a visit to the Strand a couple of weeks ago, I felt inspired to compile a list of my favorite bookstores and libraries, so the Freebie timing is perfect.

1.  Strand (New York City)

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This bookstore is big ("18 Miles of Books" being the famous slogan) and peopled with workers who use book trucks.  Those two elements, along with the tall stacks, help me to think of it almost more like a library than a bookstore, in a way.  Though of course it is still a commercial (though independent!) space.  It's got pretty great prices, too; some books have tags that favorably compare the Strand's price to the e-book or amazon price.  They also have an incredible rare books department.


2.  The King's English (Salt Lake City)

via Boys and Literacy

 Cute, quiet, cozy and homey place, with a welcoming, knowledgeable staff.  They even have a resident cat!  (Or, at least, they did back in 2005 when I last visited.  I think I did hear that the poor thing had passed away, but maybe there's a successor there now.)

Widener Reading Room, via

3.  Widener Library (Cambridge, MA)

Ah, Widener!  I could (and would love to) post photo upon photo of this amazing place.  The marble floors and iron stacks!  The ancient books (I found one from 1607) hidden in plain sight!  The complete Gutenberg Bible!  The sheer size and scope of the place!
I was really proud to work at Widener, even though my job was nowhere near glamorous. 


4.  Harvard Bookstore (Cambridge, MA)
Not to be confused with the actual Harvard bookstore (called The Coop and managed by Barnes & Noble), this place is unaffiliated with H-bomb and independently owned.  It's also the only place I know that has in-house, on-demand printing performed by a robot named Paige M. Gutenborg.  What the what?  I know, right??  Read all about it here.

5.  The City Library (Salt Lake City)
Whenever I visit a really cool public library I feel proud to be an American.  Of course, other countries have awesome libraries, too.  But when I see a place like The City Library, it gives me hope that something is going right in our little part of the world.  *sigh*


6. Sam Weller's Books (Salt Lake City)
It's hard for me to say whether this one or King's English is my favorite bookstore in Salt Lake.  If you go for the bigger, hipster-ier, downtown vibe, you can't beat Sam Weller's.  I check the used section for out-of-print things whenever I'm in town.
Also, the name has apparently been changed to Weller Book Works, and it has moved.  I shall continue to call it by the old name and imagine it in the old location like the stubborn old fart I am.


7.  The Library of Congress, Jefferson Building(Washington, D.C.)

Peep more beautiful photos of the booklover's mecca here.

 IT IS THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.


8.  The Tattered Cover (Denver, CO)  (I haven't been to the Highlands Ranch one, but it looks kinda blah.)

16th Street location, via

 With two equally beautiful locations in Denver and an event schedule that knocks it out of the park, how could I not include The Tattered Cover on my list?  No visit to my 'rents is complete without a TC excursion.


9.  George Peabody Library (Baltimore, MD)

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My cousin-in-law had her wedding here last year.  Can you imagine a more stunning place for a wedding?  It was like a dream.  I especially love that the library has maintained its 19th-century vibe, including the original books and their availability to the public. 


10.  McKay Music Library (Salt Lake City)

Gardner Hall, home of the MacKay Music Library.  via.

Awwwww.  This is the home of many happy memories for me- it's where I first learned a little about library science, it's where I got to know some of my best friends, and it's where I met my husband.  I still sometimes look back on Gardner Hall (where the University of Utah School of Music is housed) as a place of chronic anxiety and stress.  But the music library was and still is like a sweet, quiet haven in the middle of it.  Such a nice place.

Top 10 Characters Who Remind Me of My Family

I am currently staying with my family on vacation, so as I started this week's top 10 Tuesday, identifying book characters that remind you of people you know, I couldn't help but do my family. It probably won't entertain you as much as it does me (since I know my family), but maybe it will give you a glimpse into what my big ole' family's like. So here they are, from oldest to youngest. 


I also decided to include a couple old school family pictures for your viewing pleasure. But we'll start with a less embarrassing, recent one.

My family today (or last year) L-R
Michelle (Christian's wife), Christian (Peter), Bryan (Rhett Butler), Mom (Elinor), Dad (Captain Wentworth), Brad (Arthur Weasley), me (Hermione Granger), Juli (Elphaba), Jayme (Mary Rivers), Katie (Ramona Quimby)

My dad = Captain Wentworth from Persuasion: Captain Wentworth is, when it comes down to it, an awesome guy, though he is prone to being a little emotional. Remember, he's the one who punishes Anne for turning him down by courting another woman right in front of her. Yep, my dad is prone to strong bursts of emotion, but he's still so lovable and awesome. 

My mom = Elinor Dashwood from Sense and Sensibility: Not prone to strong fits of emotion, Elinor is Austen's ultimate level-headed heroine. Anyone who has met my mom knows that she is THE MOST CALM PERSON IN THE WORLD! Nothing, and I mean nothing, shakes her calm demeanor.

Christmas morning, F-B
Katie (Ramona), me (Hermione), Bryan
(future Rhett), Juli (Elphaba), Christian
(Peter), Jayme (Mary), Dad (Wentworth)

My sister, Jayme = Mary Rivers from Jane Eyre: Don't you love St. John's sisters, Diana and Mary? They are single, they are intelligent, they are educated, and they are teachers. Hmmm, sounds like my older sister, a strong single woman about to start her PhD program in music theory.

My brother, Christian = Peter from Chronicles of Narnia: You know the strong, quiet older brother type? Yeah, that's Christian. Calm like my mother, he's a very steady figure who's always watched out for the younger siblings. Well, other than giving his only younger brother a hard time every once in a while :)

My sister, Juli = Elphaba from Wicked: It has been many, many years since I've read Wicked, but I still remember that the entire time I read it, I kept thinking, "This is Juli!" Elphie cares about animals, almost to a fault (when my sister's dog got sick, she stayed home from work to hold him and feed him Pedialite) and has always stood out as a little different from the rest of her family (Juli spent one year of high school with her hair cut into short, bright purple stripes). Ultimately, Elphie/Juli has a lot of heart, and she's very likable.

Katie wasn't born yet, but who doesn't love an old plaid
family picture? L-R Bryan, Dad, Jayme, Christian, Mom,
me (on her lap), Juli

My brother, Bryan = Rhett Butler from Gone with the Wind: Can we say, ladies' man? Women love my brother. He's tall, dark, and handsome, much like dear old Rhett. They're both a little coarse and cocky by all appearances sake, but like Rhett, Bryan's all mushy inside. Rhett has a real soft spot for Scarlett and his daughter, and Bryan is a very loving brother.

Me = Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter series: I tried to be more original on this one, but honestly, no character is more like me than Hermione. I obsessed over grades in school, I was uber competitive and more than occasionally an annoying know-it-all. But I keep a cool head in perilous situations, I love learning and working hard, and I'm a very loyal friend.

My baby sister, Katie = Ramona Quimby: She's freckled, she's curious, and she's a a little mischievous. I couldn't help laughing when I realized my sister is Ramona Quimby. Katie is the loudest of the family; she was always climbing trees and getting into this and that. She seems really tough, but like Ramona, she's actually very sensitive.

my husband, Brad (Arthur Weasley) and me (Hermione)

And finally, my husband = Arthur Weasley from the Harry Potter series: This was another one that made me laugh. Though they didn't do Mr. Weasley justice in the movies, the guy from the books is a loving family man (but not much of a disciplinarian) with a great sense of humor. Nothing makes my husband happier than hanging out at home with the family. He's a people pleaser and hates to make anyone feel bad. Instead, he's the goof ball always making people laugh.

Top Ten Tuesday: Ingrid's TBR for Summer

I'm tired. This Top Ten Tuesday is gonna be a quick one. Here's the 10 books on my to-be-read list for summer. And yes, I'm making this post a large font so it fills up more space. Sue me. 

1. Ulysses by James Joyce. I just started last Saturday.
2. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Excited to read this again for my book club.
3. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
4. What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank: Stories by Nathan Englander
5. Till We Have Faces by C. S. Lewis. See Christina's beautiful review here.
6. Favorite Wife by Susan Ray Schmidt
7. Once Upon a River by Susan Jo Campbell
8. Canoe Trip: North to Athabaska by David Curran 
9. The Midwife's Tale by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
10.  Pragmatism by William James


Feel free to click this banner to buy or look at any of these books, because this time I'm too tired to link each title ...

Top Ten Tuesday: Rewind

via Mint Tea and a Good Book

Woah!  It's been a while since I did a Top Ten Tuesday.  I've been looking forward to this "Rewind" week and having the luxury of choosing whichever topic I wanted.  I think I'm going to go with my Top Ten Book-to-Film Adaptations.  Most of these are situations where I would actually recommend the movie over the book- rare, I know!

AND  just to mix it up a bit, I'm going to make a game out of it!  If you can name every movie on this list, I will give you... my utmost respect and admirations.  Are you ready for this?  Ok!

Let's start with an easy one:

1.

[That beard may have been my favorite thing about the movie.  Actually, no, Stanley Tucci was my favorite.]

2.

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3.

4. 

5.

6.

7.

 

8.

9.

 

10.

So.... how did you do?  And do you agree that these selections stand up well against the book?  Did you think any of them were actually better? 

P.S. - I'm posting the answers in a comment!

Top Ten Tuesday: Ingrid's Favorite Topics

It's a Top Ten Tuesday freebie day! I thought today I'd quickly list my top ten favorite topics. A hint to authors and publishers - if your book fits into one of these categorize, I will more than likely love to review your book on this blog.

via Mint Tea and a Good Book

Polygamy. This is probably my longest standing obsession. I devour polygamy memoirs, like this one.

Titanic. I like Titanic books as a kid, but with the recent centenary I got into it again. The Julian Fellowes miniseries made me sad though. Annie and Pablo!!!!!!!! :'( :'(. Also see here.

Books about books or reading. Because I'm meta like that.

Napoleon or the Napoleonic wars. This was kind of a summer 2009 thing, but I'm always down to read more about my favorite little military commander.

Native American history/mythology. Because of my husband, also cause it's cool.

Mormon history. See post coming tomorrow.

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Downton Abbey-ish books. I recently acquired this through Netgalley. Yay.

Girls coming of age fiction/memoirs, like this little gem that I'm loving right now.

Literary Theory/Translation studies. In moderation, of course.

Women's Studies/Feminism, especially memoirs like this one.

Any suggestions for me that fit in these categories? Send them my way! I'm all over it. 

C-C's Top Ten Book Quotes

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I can't believe I almost forgot to post this. I was so excited to do this Top Ten because I love underlining and staring passages from books! For this week's Top Ten Tuesday, here are my ten favorite quotes from books (Can I really only do 10? I totally cheated).

10. This first one comes from Bel Canto by Ann Patchett:

Mr. Hosokawa gave him a small, avuncular smile and pretended that there was nothing else to say. That was part of it, too. The private life. Mr. Hosokawa had a private life now. He had always thought of himself as a private man, but now he saw there was nothing in his life before that had been private. It didn't mean that he had no secrets then and now he did. It was that now there was something that was strictly between himself and one other person, that it was so completely their own that it would have been pointless to even try to speak of it to someone else. He wondered now if everyone had a private life...it was possible that all those years he had been alone, never knowing that a complete world existed and no one spoke of it.

9. What angsty pre-teen girl doesn't relate to The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath?

I didn't know why I was going to cry, but I knew that if anybody spoke to me or looked at me too closely the tears would fly out of my eyes and the sobs would fly out of the throat and I'd cry for a week.

and of course there is this one too:

When they asked me what I wanted to be I said I didn’t know."Oh, sure you know," the photographer said."She wants," said Jay Cee wittily, "to be everything.”   

8. From The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

I know where I am, and who, and what day it is. There are the tests, and I am sane. Sanity is a valuable possession; I hoard it the way people once hoarded money. I save it, so I will have enough, when the time comes.

7. This one comes from The Diary of Anne Frank. I love it because I'm an optimist: 

It's difficult in times like these: ideals, dreams, and cherished hopes rise within us, only to be crushed by grim reality. It's a wonder I haven't abandoned all my ideals, they seem so absurd and impractical. Yet I cling to them because I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are truly good at heart. 

It's utterly impossible for me to build my life on a foundation of chaos, suffering and death. I see the world being slowly transformed into a wilderness, I hear the approaching thunder that, one day, will destroy us too, I feel the suffering of millions. And yet, when I look up at the sky, I somehow feel that everything will change for the better, that this cruelty too will end, that peace and tranquility will return once more.

6. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

There's such a lot of different Annes in me. I sometimes think that is why I'm such a troublesome person. If I was just the one Anne it would be ever so much more comfortable, but then it wouldn't be half so interesting.

okay sorry gotta do two:

“Isn't it splendid to think of all the things there are to find out about? It just makes me feel glad to be alive--it's such an interesting world. It wouldn't be half so interesting if we know all about everything, would it? There'd be no scope for imagination then, would there?But am I talking too much? People are always telling me I do. Would you rather I didn't talk? If you say so I'll stop. I can STOP when I make up my mind to it, although it's difficult.”   

5. Of course there is always this classic from Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë:

"No, Jane," he returned: "what necessity is there to dwell on the Past, when the Present is so much surer--the Future so much brighter?"

4. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

"I like to see people reunited, maybe that's a silly thing, but what can I say, I like to see people tun to each other, I like the kissing and the crying, I like the impatience, the stories that the mouth can't tell fast enough, the ears that aren't big enough, the eyes that can't take in all of the change, I like the hugging, the bringing together, the end of mission someone..." 

3. The History of Love by Nicole Krauss

"The fact that you got a little happier today doesn't change the fact that you also became a little sadder. Every day you become a little more of both, which means that right now, at this exact moment, you're the happiest and the saddest you've ever been in your whole life...Think about it it. Have you ever been happier than right now, lying here in the grass? And have you ever been sadder? It isn't like that for everyone. Some people just get happier and happier every day. And some people just get sadder and sadder. And some people, like you, get both."

2. Practically every line in my copy of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith is underlined. But ultimately this is my favorite one: 

"People always think that happiness is a faraway thing," thought Francie, "something complicated and hard to get. Yet, what little things can make it up; a place of shelter when it rains-- a cup of strong hot coffee when you're blue; for a man, a cigarette for contentment; a book to read when you're alone--just to be with someone you love. Those things make happiness."

a close second would be

"And that’s where the whole trouble is,” thought Francie. “We’re too much alike to understand each other because we don’t even understand our own selves...”

1.  Even though Middlemarch by George Elliot has a bad rep on this blog, I absolutely love it. My favorite quote from it comes from the last lines of the book:

"But the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and the things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs."

What are your favorite quotes from books? I found myself wanting to quote a lot of children's books. What I learned about myself from this? That I relate best to female authors...