Bookshelves

Today’s MUSING MONDAYS post is about your bookshelf…

Does your house have a communal bookshelf? If not, is your bookshelf centrally located so everyone has access to it?

I guess you could say our bookshelves are centrally located - we have one or more in each room of the house. Yes, that includes the bathroom! My hubby, daughter and I are all avid readers, so our home is full of books.

There are currently 4 bookcases in our living room - all crammed full of mostly my books. Young adult fiction is taking up the most room, but I also have a large number of books by Kentucky authors. The bookshelf in the kitchen is really inside a cabinet and it holds all my cookbooks. We each have our own separate bookcases in our bedrooms.

Of course, with so many books, we also have them spilling off the couch and tables, as well as several piles in different corners. In my opinion, you can never have too many books!!

Sharing Books

Today’s MUSING MONDAYS post is about social reading:

How much of your reading do you share with others (outside of blogging?) Do you belong to a book or library club? Do you trade books with friends? Do you tell others what you’re reading?

I love to share with others what I'm reading or have read. Besides having 2 book review blogs - Bobbi's Book Nook and MCPL Book Nook - I have a weekly book review column in THE HARRODSBURG HERALD and I do freelance book reviews for KENTUCKY MONTHLY Magazine. I also post my reviews on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, GoodReads, Jacket Flap, I'm Reading (Facebook) and Shelfari. I have also started a Facebook group for my book review blog, Bobbi's Book Nook (please come join me!) and I routinely link my book reviews to Facebook and Twitter.

Yes, sometimes my friends get tired of hearing my talk about books all the time! But I also have a group of friends who love to read and hear about what I'm reading, so it is for these people (and myself) that I keep ranting on about great books.

I also belong to a local book club at the Mercer Public Library in Kentucky - the Mercer Library Lunch Bunch Book Club. We meet on the 4th Tuesday of every month and typically have from 8 to 15 participants. This month we are reading THE RED TENT by Anita Diamant (a book I read many years ago and loved!) - I am rereading the book for the second time to refresh my memory. We get together at lunch time, bring a sack lunch, and spend an hour discussing our likes and dislikes of the current book. You get a wide range of perspectives because our participants range in age from 28 to 70+, plus, we have lots of fun.

Because most of my local friends are not readers, I don't usually swap books, but occasionally I will send a book to a friend far away. I'm a huge book whore, so I usually hold on to almost all of my books!

Amy Kisses

Amy Kisses

She spoke to me like a flicker of air swept by in a dream
Gentle kisses in the ear making me feel wanted and loved;
She’s been gone so long it’s been almost five years
And yet I can still feel her in my heart.
She caresses the inner sanctity opens my wounds with a flick of her wings,
Then she smiles and says, “thank you for being there today.”
Her first grandchild she will never know, but will watch from her chair high above.
Every kiss, every prayer, every loving moment in time
Captured internally and filed away, ready to recapture the joy.
We will give her earthly love and vigor,
You will give her angel kisses;
She will grow and thrive and capture the light
Fulfilling her destiny unwritten.
She’ll have much hugged awards, atta girls, aren’t you sweet
But she’ll also have memories and history and cherishments.
Yes, we will raise her and see she does right
And she will know the grandmotherly love, though the package may seem strange
She will know the love you are giving
You don’t have to worry we will make sure she knows,
That granny’s my sis and we all miss her so,
But she’ll live in your heart and your soul.

Inevitable

Inevitable

Just when I should be having the time of my life,
I thought I wasn't complete
unless I had that one perfect someone to call my own.
Instead of hanging out with my friends,
I was caught in the loop of pleasing my man.
My heart would beat faster as
each class bell rang,
knowing we could steal brief moments, scheduling our after school time
so we were always together;
in hindsight it was probably not the thing to do.
But the excitement and joy and tummy butterflies was a high
we both sought to obtain.
Did the good outweigh the bad?
Obviously it did because we ended up together, at least for a short time.
The problem is, it wasn't enough
to satisfy the itch we both had deep down inside for something more,
something special to fulfill an aching need.
So we crashed and burned,
engulfed by flames in a magnificent bonfire
of heated words, angry acquisitions, finger pointing and screaming;
Two lives torn apart, two souls ripped asunder,
but the fallout damage affected much more,
and it would be years before the collateral was known.
Looking back the path is quiet clear,
even a child could see the course.
So why was I so blind at the time not to see the outcome
when it was right before my eyes?
I guess love really is blind and it has the ability
to swoop in and steal a childhood, give tunnel vision goals,
like the quest for the Holy Grail

and tempts us with a happily ever after.

I'm conquering my inner demons and to do that, I realize I'm going to have to revisit some painful things from my past. Sorry if the poetry/prose gets a little dark. ~~BDR

The Reviler

The Reviler

The Reviler sometimes arrive as innocently as the wings of a dove
Soft and light like the whisper of a butterfly
She loves you and makes you feel secure
Laughs at your jokes, thinks you’re something special
Pulls you in close, makes you one of the fold
When in essence it was all a false sense of security.
By the time the dagger sliced my heart in two
I was privy to the vile, ugly side of her life
I saw every canker and sore
Festering with impotent rancor at a base of self propaganda.
For a time, I was lost, only seeking the comfort to make me feel needed;
But when that phase came to an end
I hesitated but a moment
then followed again with my heart.

Desiree

DESIREE

Delicate little blossom born into this world
Everything is open wide and laying at her precious fingertips
So many lessons to be learned, so many moments to enjoy
Ideal vessel for storing the memories of our lives
Rosy cheeks, a dimpled chin round little head and sweet little sound
Embraced in love and held close to our hearts
Eternal bond we hope never will be broken

This week's Food Friday - Hearty Pumpkin Stew:
http://ping.fm/EfabF

Jethro Tull vs. The Eagles

Did you know The Eagles wrote "Hotel California" in 1976. Ironically, they used to open for Jethro Tull in the early '70's and Jethro Tull has a song called "We Used To Know" (from the album STAND UP) which was writen in 1969. If you listen to "We Used to Know" you will see how much like "Hotel California" it sounds. I love Jethro Tull and I also love the Eagles - but it makes me wonder ....

Check it out for yourself!

It's not too late to buy a pumpkin for Halloween - check out these different varieties:
http://ping.fm/ARQoY

I'm a Great-Aunt

My niece, Ashley, just had her baby tonight - 6:14 pm. Desiree Carter weighs 7 pounds and 10 ounces and is 21 inches long. She has a head full of hair and a great set of lungs.

Because of the flu precautions at the hospital, we are not able to visit with me niece or my great niece, so I'll post pictures as soon as I can.

It's going to be so exciting - the first baby in our family for several years. The 2 youngest grandchildren are 16 and 17. We'll have a baby again for Christmas - it will be so fun. Next year, with the addition of my new grandbaby, we'll have 2 little ones for Christmas!

Granny-to-be

I have the most fantastic, wonderful news ...

I'M GOING TO BE A GRANNY !!!!

My middle daughter, Marie, just told me last night and I am totally overjoyed, over-the-moon! I am so ready for grandchildren and I am looking forward to being a granny.

Of course, the baby isn't due until late June, but now I have all this time to plan. I need to get my knitting needles out and sharpened up - I'll be a knitting fool this winter!

What's growing around the Bluegrass? Amur Honeysuckle is aggressively invasive:
http://ping.fm/1Y4Ph

The Diary of Horace Wimp

This is for Christine - one of her favorite ELO songs. Thanks for all the help the past few days! I love you bunches! Mom ...

The Diary of Horace Wimp
Electric Light Orchestra - 1979
Written by Jeff Lynne

Monday - late again, today, he'd be in trouble though
He'd say he was sorry, he'd have to hurry out the bus.

Tuesday - Horace was so sad, he'd never had a girl that he
Could care for, and if he was late once more, he'd be out.

Chorus

Don't be afraid, just knock on the door,
Well he just stood there mumblin' and fumblin'.
Then a voice from above said -
Horace wimp, this is your life,
Go out and find yourself a wife.
Make a stand and be a man,
And you will have a great life plan.

Wednesday - Horace met a girl, she was small and she
Was very pretty, he thought he was in love, he was afraid.

Thursday - asks her for a date, the cafe down the street
Tomorrow evening, his head was reeling,
When she said yes o.k.

Repeat chorus

Friday- Horace, this is it, he asks the girl if maybe they
Could marry, when she says gladly. Horace cries.

Sunday - everybodys at the church, when Horace
Rushes in and says now here come my wife,
For the rest of my life. and she did.

Repeat chorus

Note Taking

Today’s MUSING MONDAYS post is about note taking:

Do you take notes while reading – either for your reviews or for yourself? How/where do you make these notes (on the page, post-its, scrap paper, notebooks etc)?

I am a notorious note taker when it comes to reading books, but it's because I want to remember so many things. Although I always read for pleasure, almost all the books I read end up being reviewed. I have a separate notebook I keep all the notes from books I'm reviewing. I also am a huge fan of "sticky notes" so my books are usually crammed full of them. This helps me when I'm looking for a specific passage I want to use in a review.

When I started my book review blog over 2 years ago, it was mainly going to be a way for me to keep track of the 100s of books I read every year. However, about 6 months into blogging, the book reviews began to take on a life of their own and before long, I was receiving review books in the mail. You don't know what a rush it is for a book whore like me to come home from work and find a box of books on my doorstep!

For many, many months I accepted any and all offers to read and review books, but I quickly learned this was not going to work for me. I was getting such a wide variety of books I was overwhelmed. Although I occasionally enjoy a self-help book on certain topics, many of the books I received were just that. I was also receiving many self-published books, which there is nothing wrong with, but many of these books could do with a good editor.

I finally realized I had bitten off more than I could chew - or read - so I quit requesting every new book that came down the pipeway. Now I only review books I think I will truly be interested in and my life is much happier and not as hectic.

I am currently still on a young adult book kick - mainly series books - so I was thrilled to receive a huge shipment of books last week from Candlewick Press. I did not know about this publishing house until I read Silas House's new book, ELI THE GOOD. Out of courtesy, I always send the publisher a copy of any book reviews I do, but when I check out their website, I was amazed at the collection of books I was interested in. Now I'm like a kid on Christmas morning wading through book about glorious book, so stayed tuned for many upcoming reviews.

I also have a keen interest in Kentucky authors and I try to read all I can get my hands on. The Kentucky Book Fair is coming up November 7th and I have already started making my list of which authors I want to meet and which books I want to buy. It should be very exciting.