I won!!

Carl from Stainless Steel Droppings have picked me for the Anne-Julie Aubry prize pack. Her work is so beautiful. I am so happpy: I screamed so loud when I found out that I scared my best friend Yvette. Yah! Thank you, Carl.

Booking Through Thursday

When somebody mentions “literature,” what’s the first thing you think of? (Dickens? Tolstoy? Shakespeare?) Do you read “literature” (however you define it) for pleasure? Or is it something that you read only when you must?

When someone mentions literature, the first thing that comes to mind is books, just the image of books. But when I really get to thinking about it, John Steinbeck, Toni Morrison, Tolstoy, and the many other great heavyweights come to mind. I think, for me, literature is any book that gives me pleasure and makes me think.

You Set It Paperback Challenge

One more challenge. Now I'm up about 16 challenges! So I just signed up for the You Set It Paperback Challenge. The rules are you pick how many books to read, you set the time limit but it has to be at least one month, and you only read paperbacks. I think I will read six books in next six months, starting today. Here's my list.

1. The Year of Magical Thinking - Joan Didion

2. The Penderwicks - Jeanne Birdsall

3. The Scent of God - Beryl Singelton Bissell

4. Her last death - Susanna Sonnenberg

5. I am no one you know - Joyce Carol Oates

6. A good man is hard to find - Flannery O'Connor

Once Upon a Time 2

Though school is kicking my butt, I joined another challenge the Once Upon a Time 2. It's hosted by Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings. The challenge is one that is bringing me back to my childhood. For the challenge you read at least one book that is forklore, a fairytale, fantasy, or mythology. I've decided to do Quest 1 and read five books from those categories. I plan on reading at least five books out of this growing list.

1. The Stolen Child - Keith Donahue


2. Penelope - Marilyn Kaye


3. The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger


4. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen - Alan Moore


5. Love and Murder - Jodi Picoult


6. Little Black Book of Stories - A.S. Byatt


7. American Gods - Neil Gaiman


8. Forever - Pete Hamill


9. The Book of Lost Things - John Connolly


10. The Ice Queen - Alice Hoffman

Monday's quote

In the depth of winter,
I finally learned that within me
there lays an invincible summer.

-Albert Camus

Triple Thursday

Yesterday the UPS man came and gave me the five packages from Amazon.com that I've been waiting for. Three great books for me to read and try in my own way to change the world and get my creative juices flowing. Every Monday Matters by Matthew Emerzian and Kelly Bozza, 52 Projects by Jeffrey Yamaguchi, and Not quite what I was planning edited by Rachel Fershleiser and Larry Smith.

The subtitle for 52 Projects is Random Acts of Everyday Creativity. The book is filled with artistic projects that are so simple to do and you don't need money or artistic skill to do such as project #10: making a poster or project 29: stuffing an envelope with as many things as you can and mailing it to someone special. You don't have to do the projects in the exact way the author suggested. You can come up with something of your own. 52 projects is a great book that has me jumping to do my own. You can also do the projects with your children. My family and I are going to work on project 10 this weekend. The author, Jeffrey, also has a website that goes with the book.52 projects is the muse for the everyday person.

Not quite what I was planning: Six word Memoirs by famous and obscure writers is edited by Rachel Fershleiser and Larry Smith for Smith Magazine.Smith magazine is a "storytelling community: a place to read, write, and share stories." That's their words but it's more than that. Smith magazine is a great place to hang out online for a couple of hours and just get lost, becoming an active part of the website by submitting your own experiences along with other readers. In November of 2006, Smith Magazine asked their readers to submit their six-word memoir. It was a hit and they received thousands. The memoirs range from funny ("I think, therefore I am bald,") to tragic ("Everyone who loves me is dead,") to thought provoking ("Cursed with cancer. Blessed with friends.") With no more than five memoirs on a page, you can read this 240 page book in one sitting or take your time. Now, I'm trying to come up with my own six-word memoir.

Every Monday Matters: 52 ways to make a difference by Matthew Emerzian and Kelly Bozza. Every Monday matters is about changing Mondays from those days that you hate to arrive to days of reward by doing simple things to change the world around you. Monday #37 is about mentoring a child while Monday #22 is about thanking your local firefighters.Information for each Monday is concise and only two pages long.The exercises are creative, doable,and will probably turn Monday into one of your favorite days of the week.

So many books, so little time

Between psychology, political science, and the kids, I have very little time to read. In the last two weeks, I have read six to ten picture books and one children's book. No adult books at all. So I can already tell that I probably won't accomplish my goal of reading 200 books this year. My total so far: about 25 or so. I'm getting more acquainted with my textbooks than anything else. But that hasn't stopped me from signing up for two more challenges, the Spirituality Book Challenge hosted by Callista. It starts March 1st through June 1st. You have to read three books that have to do with spirituality in some way. I desperately need to read some of the many books on my shelf, so I'm going to try to read The Best Spiritual Writing 1998, The Best Spiritual Writing 2004, and God: Stories.

I also signed up for the D.E.A.R. Reading Challenge. Dear stands for Drop everything and read. It's being hosted by Becky. The goal of the challenge is to get more people reading. The official D.E.A.R. day is April 12th and is being celebrated by the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and First Book, along with many other organizations. I plan on having my family and myself read for 30 minutes a day, every day between March 12th and April 12th. I don't have any problems getting any of the kids to read except for one. You know who you are, V... I think I'm going to throw the kids here a party on D.E.A.R. day.

The Written Word Book Giveaway

Stephanie at The Written Word is hosting a book giveaway. So, of course, I have to sign up. The book she's giving away is The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs. I keep hearing great reviews about this book. It's now on my TBR list. If you want to sign up for the giveaway, click on the link in this post. It'll take you to her blog. Leave a comment by midnight Feb. 13th. the winner will be announced the next day.

The Pub Challenge

I really don't know how I forgot to sign up for The Pub challenge, but I have. For this challenge you have to read at least eight books published in 2008. Here's my list:

1. Other people's love letters - Bill Shapiro
2. My mistress' sparrow is dead - Jeffrey Eugenides, editor
3. The book of other people - Zadie Smith, editor
4. Homecoming - Bernhard Schlink
5. People of the book - Geraldine Brooks
6. The Voyage of the Short Serpent - Bernard du Boucheron
7. The Geography of Bliss - Eric Weiner
8. Teh Monsters of Templeton - Lauren Groff

Make My Day Award

I'm so happy! Jill at The Magic Lasso has tagged me for the Make My Day Award. She's made my day. The premise of the award is to pick 10 blogs that make my day, so here goes.

1. Jill at The Magic Lasso. I love reading her reviews on books that I love and ones I've never heard of. I always end up adding one more book to my TBR list.

2. Gretchen Rubin at The Happiness Project. Since March 2006, Gretchen has been on a mission to "test-drive every principle, tip, theory, and scientific study" that she can find about happiness and reports what works and what doesn't on her blog. Her blog is funny and her advice practical.

3. Kimbofo at Reading Matters. The girl is the ultimate book monster, posting a new book review every couple of days. She's who I want to be like when I grow up. Because Kimbofo is an Australian who lives in London, I find out about so many books that I overwise wouldn't know exist. I found this blog just by chance.

4. Kristin Dodge at Books for Breakfast. I love her book reviews. They're funny and honest, by letting you know exactly what went right in a book and what didn't.

5. Sam Houston at Book Chase. This blog is about books, people who love books, book situations, country music... I really like this blog. I can't put my finger on it exactly. Just go and visit already.

6. Wendy at Caribousmom. Wendy is one of my book people, though I've never met her in person. She's one of the nicest people you'll ever know. She also runs the Yahoo group ANovel Challenge, which is a group for people who participate in online reading challenges.

7. Dana at Think Pink. I really like Dana, so that's enough reason to put her blog down. She's another funny woman who is also smart.

Okay, that's it. That's all I have. Now off you go, to explore the great blogs that I just told you about. If I remember any more blogs, I'll be sure to tell you.