Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2010/12/oh-i-have-slipped-surly-bonds-of-earth.html

Moveable Feast

Still reading Pat Conroy's My Reading Life and I am taking my time in the Paris section. Yes, it is taking me an extra long time to read a short memoir, but there is this thing called Christmas that demands I do other things...

I got a new Reference & User Services Quarterly in the mail yesterday. Picking it up this morning, I notice two hot topic articles that had the potential to wake my brain. Well, they did indeed spark some thought, and as I skimmed the next page I read Brad Hooper's name as guest columnist. He works for Booklists and is a great source for new readings!

In Hooper's RUSA article he talks about our love for food and travel writing. In the article he quotes Hemingway as an early understander of combining the two pleasures.

"If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast."

I love it when different sources of reading seem to tie together! Oh, and check out this website where I got Marc Chagall's Eiffel Tower Serenade.

Moveable Feast

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2010/12/moveable-feast.html

Night Owl

I am up late reading Pat Conroy's new book, My Reading Life. Good stuff, folks!

In the span of two chapters, my emotions mirror masks hanging at the entrance to local town theatres. Conroy's introduction to the opposite of librarians in Eileen Hunter had me rolling with laughter. Then, I was shocked at my own tears while reading the reaction from family members to the release of his book, "The Great Santini."

Oh, and I have a book suggestion for Mr. Conroy. Read, The Man who Loved Books too much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession by Allison Hoover Bartlett. The story of David belongs in this book!

Night Owl

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2010/12/night-owl.html

The Elf on the Shelf (copy)

When I was little, my mother had a set of ornaments I could not figure out. For one thing, they were metallic-colored in blue, green, red, and purple. They did not fit in with the standard reds, whites and greens of our other tree adornments. They were huge in comparison to the other decorations, too; so much that the tree limbs sagged once attached. Plus, I thought them ugly.

I would ask my mother (more than once - on a yearly basis) why she hung such ugly things. She never answered my rude questions, but kept with the tradition until we moved to a new home in 1974. Of course, once we moved I wanted to know why we did not display them anymore.

What I am referring to are a set of elves. Sneaky stuffed elves suspended from their satiny caps, they sat in a perpetual crouch with their arms hugging their knees on a pillow. Their plastic faces forever frozen in a know-it-all grin. Can you tell? Even today, I do not like those hideous things.

Low-n-behold, these little imps have a story behind them. Apparently, I am not the only child of the 70s that had elves in the home. Carol V. Aebersold, according to the website www.elfontheshelf.com, grew up with a special elf to watch her during the Christmas season.

Later, when Carol had children of her own, she brought the elf to her house and they named him Fisbee. A tradition in the making, Fisbee was there to answer the age-old question, “How does Santa really know if we are being ‘naughty or nice?’” Well, the elves keep him informed. They watch throughout the day and report back to Santa at night. All it takes is a little Christmas magic and they fly back-and-forth in the wink of an eye.

Chanda Bell, Carol’s daughter collaborated with her to bring this tradition to the world through a children’s book titled The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition. Inside, young readers will find full-page spreads of watercolor illustrations by Coë Steinwart. The text is short and sweet and meant for the youngest of children ensuring the tradition in place as they grow older.

The toy that accompanies the book is almost exactly like those ornaments of my childhood except less sinister. The faces have a sweet kewpie doll look and they come in both black and white. They are sure to please children and may even keep them “in-check” during the holiday season. Make these elves your personal "Santa spy cam" for generations to come.

The Elf on the Shelf (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2010/12/elf-on-shelf.html

Book Lust to Go (copy)

I know a book is a big hit with me when I am still talking about it a month later. I was in my mother’s kitchen admiring her collections. She has various groups of M&M characters, Louisville Stoneware and antique tins. Each time I come home, she changes and rearranges things so that I see something new.

We were having hot tea when I begin to tell her about The Man who Loved Books too much by Allison Hoover Bartlett. (Book talked it last month.) Book collecting is all in the finding. The lusting after an edition or accidently coming across a signed copy while rummaging through the local Goodwill, is the goal.

Apparently, I touched on a nerve. She called my dad into the room and asked me to reiterate my point. I told them when a complete collection of books, let’s say on trains, comes up for sale auctioneers cannot sell the lot. Collectors do not want to purchase a complete collection. They might want a book or two, but never the hard work of someone else. The fun of collecting is in the finding; preferably, acquiring a little at a time.

“See,” she said. “eBay does not count!”

When it comes to collectors, they make my Christmas shopping a joy. They know what they want or need in a collection; thus, I go forth and shop with purpose.

What if you want to give a book for Christmas to an established reader? Picking up the latest bestseller might work, but what if you could give them something even better. The ultimate gift would be a book that is not only readable but full of other book ideas.

I love every book in the Book Lust series by Nancy Pearl for this reason. You might know the name Nancy Pearl from the librarian action figure made in her image. Not only is she a joy in person, but her image has become quite the collectable. I digress.

The latest in the series is Book Lust to Go. Pearl travels the world alphabetically giving readers suggestions. I headed straight for the chapter on Newfoundland to make sure she wrote about The Shipping News by Annie Proulx. While there I gathered suggestions like Howard Norman’s The Bird Artist and Farley Mowat’s Bay of Spirits.

Give this book and 1,000 Places to See before You Die by Patricia Schultz to any reader and they will see you as an excellent gift giver!

Book Lust to Go (copy)

http://maggiereads.blogspot.com/2010/12/book-lust-to-go-copy.html