Sunday, May 4, 2008

The Sunday Salon

Good Morning! It finally feels like Spring in this part of the country. The sun is shining and my plants are starting to come alive again. Yay! On the agenda for today, Spring clean-up in the backyard, give the little dog a bath and laundry. I'll try to squeeze some reading time in there too!

This week I finished listening to World Without End, wow, what a book! I started listening to Outlander after reading so many wonderful things on Librarything and am very disappointed. My problem with this book is the narrator, Davina Porter. Her voice is slightly irritating me. I have only listened to two hours of this so I will give it another hour and then will give up listening to it. I have had this happen a few times where I just could not follow the narrator because of their voice but then read the book and loved it.

I finished reading Year of Wonder by Geraldine Brooks last night and am now a huge fan of hers. I might try to run out and buy March today. Her writing is beautiful. She takes such a tragic story and turns it into a story of survival and hope.

Last night I started The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde not knowing what to think based on the front caption of the book "Filled with clever wordplay, literary allusion and bibliowit, The Eyre Affair combines elements of Monty Python, Harry Potter, Stephen Hawking and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. But its quirky charm is all its own." -The Wall Street Journal. I am not a fan of Monty Python, haven't read any Harry Potter (I know, I know, it's on the list), read one Stephen Hawking book several years ago and have never read any Buffy the Vampire Slayer books. So, what am I doing reading The Eyre Affair? I have no idea. I needed a change of pace from all of the historical fiction I have been reading lately and this fit the bill. I am only 50 pages in and am already sucked into it. Fforde is very clever indeed.

This week, thanks to Devourer of Books, I signed up for the Penguin Classics Blogging Challenge and will be getting The Laws of Manu by anonymous. I am pretty scared about this one! Penguin sends the book to you free of charge for committing to post a review within six weeks of receipt.

That's it for today. I hope you have a wonderful Sunday!

12 comments:

wisteria said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog. This topic is such a hot potato right now. I was a professional musician, rather than a music teacher for the very reason you mention. I didn't want my job cut when budgets were slashed.
Don't give up on Outlander...just throw away the audio version. The book is fabulous, and I can't wait to read the next book in the series.
Her writing is exceptional.
Have a great day!!!

Clare - The Super Mommy Club said...

I'm reading March and am really enjoying it - I've read good things about A Year of Wonder so may have to get hold of a copy. I like the way she has taken Little Women and used it as the basis of March - it's been a while since I read LW but I'm tempted to read that when I've finished with this!

Anonymous said...

Did you know that FForde has a wonderful web-site to go with the novels? You can find out such essential details as where the Mammoths have got to in their migration, which if you live in the UK you really need to know. I'm not certain of the address, but I think you'll find it in the book itself.

Traci said...

Thank you for visiting my blog.

I can't wait to hear what you thought of The Eyre Affair. I have it on my TBR list. It was suggested by another LTer, and I really know nothing about it, but most of the reviews I've read were decidedly positive.

Good luck with The Laws of Manu. I think I'd be a bit nervous about that one, too.

Wendy said...

Who is the author of Outlander? I've read two books with this title - one by Diana Gibaldan and one by Gil Adamson...both were outstanding books. I wonder now if there is yet another book with this same title!!

My Journey Through Reading... said...

Hi Wendy, it's Diana Gibaldan that wrote the Outlander I was referring to. Sorry, I should have mentioned that in my post!

Lenore Appelhans said...

I have to admit I didn't like Outlander much either. But I love, love, love Jasper Fforde's Tuesday Next series - I even got to meet him. He's just as clever in person!

Thanks for signing up for my contest and good luck!

Aarti said...

Wow, you're in Chicago, too! What area? I am glad I wasn't the only one who didn't really enjoy The Venetian Mask. It had such a pretty cover, too. There comes that old adage, I suppose.

The Laws of Manu are very important to Indian history- would love to hear what you think of the book, though I feel like it probably would be kind of dry reading if it's not in prose form...

My Journey Through Reading... said...

Aarti, I just moved to Morton Grove, my husband grew up here. I lived on the northwest side my entire life so I am adjusting to suburbia. It's not far from the city at all.

I just got The Wednesday Sisters as an ER book, hopefully this will be better!

I am very nervous about The Laws of Manu but am willing to try anything once. I'll post a review once I am finished. I am still waiting for the book.

Library Cat said...

I checked the Penguin site and there are no books available at the moment...but I am glad to have read about it here and I will keep checking.
LibrarysCat

My Journey Through Reading... said...

Oh no, I'm sorry to hear that there are no books available. I am not sure if they are going to be offering these on a regular basis or if it was a one time deal.

Anonymous said...

The Eyre Affair is fantastic -- one of my favourites ever. And I wouldn't worry too much about what the book cover says. I don't think it's "based" on any of those books at all! It has some similar elements, perhaps: fantasticalism, science, and lots of humour. But it is a wonderful thing on its own. I hope you enjoy it!