Long weekend

One movie night, last summer Win and I saw “The Time Traveller’s Wife”.  I was unimpressed by the movie.

My daughter Andrea had raved about the book for months, so my expectations were high.

The chemistry between the two main characters just was not there, I couldn’t believe the love story between them  I know, I know.  It was just a movie.  But a good movie sweeps you up and allows you to forget that you are just watching a movie, it makes the whole story  real.   A good book allows you to play the movie in your head, long before it comes out on film.  In my opinion, Mark Ruffalo would have played a better Henry.

This summer I am reading the novel by Audrey Niffenegger.  And oh what a book.  It is funny, sad, intense, poignant and intelligent.   If you aren’t familiar with the story line, check it out here.  Andrea was right, it is unforgettable.  The story-teller alternates between Claire and Henry, but it is such a beautiful read that your mind almost switches voices as well.  This is the perfect summertime read.

When I finish the book, I intend to have a good cry and maybe rent the video.  Who knows perhaps I’ll enjoy the movie more the second time around.

Whether you are reading, quilting or time travelling this weekend, enjoy yourself.

My favourite book of all time

Today marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of Harper Lee`s `To Kill a Mockingbird`.  This Pulitzer prize winning novel was Miss Lee`s only book.  In 1999 it was chosen as the best novel of the century in a poll conducted by the Library Journal.   It has been translated into 50 languages.  In 1962 it was made into an Oscar winning movie starring Gregory Peck and the then unknown Robert Duval.

The film title comes from part of a conversation between Atticus and his children, after giving Jem and Scout air-rifles as Christmas presents.  He tells them they can  “shoot all the bluejays [they] want,” but warns they must remember that “it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird”.    As  mockingbirds do no harm and provide pleasure with their song.  “They don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us”.  Through the novel the mockingbird is used as a recurring  symbol  of innocence and beauty against racism and hatred.

I saw the movie on television in 1967, the next day I borrowed the book from the local library.  It is a novel that will stay with you forever.   In the last 50 years, this novel has never been out of print.

Summer time reading

Here’s a list of some of the books I intend to read this summer.  The weather man is predicting a high of 32 degrees for most of the weekend, so I plan to stay inside with a good book or two.  No longer do I force myself to finish a book I start.  If I don’t like it, I simply start another one.  Usually I have two or three books on the go.

None of the books shown below cost me more than $1.35 as I buy them at thrift store and yard sales.  Often I receive more in trade in value than what I originally paid for the book.   What’s on your summer reading list?

A Matter of Chance by Jeanette Halen – covers three decades of a family’s triumphs and sorrows.

The Professor and the Madman – by Simon Winchester.  A story of madness, murder, genius and the making of the Oxford English dictionary. A New York Times Notable book.

What the Dead Know by Laura Lippman.  30 years ago two girls disappear and now in the aftermath of a hit and run accident, a middle age woman claims to be the youngest girl.

Doubting Yourself to the Bone by Thomas Trofimuk, another Canadian author.  A love story about the nature of grief.

A Place called Wiregrass by Michael Morris .  A powerful story of saving race, cherished friendship and survival.

We were the Mulvaneys by Joyce Carol Oates.   A story of the demise of a perfect family after an incident is hushed up and never spoken of again.

Don’t kiss them good-bye by Aliison Dubois.  The true story of the woman who is the inspiration behind the hit show Medium

The Navigator of New York – by Canadian author Wayne Johnston, author of  The Colony of Unrequited dreams. A fictional account of the lives of Frederick Cook and Robert Peary and their quest for the North Pole.

Children’s Book Week

I can not remember a time I could not read.  As a young child on sunny days I would hide behind my father’s lazy boy chair at the end of our hallway, thumbing through the Encyclopedia Britannica.   Even now I love to read indoors during a hot summer day.   To me a good book and a hammock on a front porch is pure heaven.

In grade two we moved to town and the book mobile became the highlight of my week.  Soon I was old enough to travel on the bus to the city library.  Heidi, the adventures of the Bobbsey Twins, Nancy Drew and Little Women were my childhood favourites.  The Classics Illustrated comics took a good portion of my weekly allowance.

I haven’t visited the library in years , as I am now a fan of yard sale and thrift store books. Each night I read myself asleep, just like I did many years ago.

What’s your favourite childhood book?

Bobby Greer can come on Monday to check the boat

Often when I purchase a second hand book, it contains a piece of ephemera. The message posted above was on a  bright orange post-it note.  I wonder what was wrong with the boat.

I have found blank  hotel stationery, boarding passes, prayers cards, and grocery list.  All of these were used to mark the spot but soon forgotten.  Oddly enough I have even found book marks.  Most of the book marks are Canadian in nature including one with a note written on the back, “Happy Canada Day at King’s Landing”, love Earl.

Another one quoted “this is where I went to sleep” on Prince Edward Island.

I read myself to sleep every night so I use whatever I can find just before I close my eyes.  Although I sometimes use my reading glasses as a marker, pluckers are a personal favourite.  Those are the annoying paper advertising inserts that you find in a magazine.  The name was derived by a friend’s five year old, whose job it was to pluck out the inserts, before her Mom read the magazine.

What ever you use to mark your place remember……..

What’s the strangest thing you have found or used to mark a book?

I wonder if Bobby Greer is a reader?

To kill a mockingbird – 50th anniversary

My favourite novel of all time, Harper Lee`s `To Kill a Mockingbird` is celebrating it`s 50th anniversary.  The Pulitzer Prize winning novel about racial injustice and loss of innocence in a small southern town is as timely as poignant as it was 50 years ago.

I had the great pleasure of watching the movie once again on Bravo TV this week.  Even though this film is in black and white, the story and characters stand the test of time.

The scene which starts me crying is the night Atticus stands outside the jail to protect Tom Robison. Here it is summarized by Tim Dirks of Filmsite

In one of the most compelling scenes in the film, as the children begin taking a shortcut home, four cars noisily converge on the jail from the Meridian Highway. The children hide and watch from the cover of the bushes. The armed men get out of their cars and surround Atticus – they are a self-appointed lynch mob that has gathered to take justice into its own hands after diverting Sheriff Tate. To get a closer look, the three kids run over to the cars. Scout, in particular, who is oblivious to the danger, pushes her way through the crowd to glimpse her stern-faced father – he immediately fears for their safety. While Jem stands by his father and stubbornly refuses to leave after his father’s command, a stalwart Scout faces down the crowd and sees someone she recognizes. She conducts an innocent, uninhibited exchange with Walter Cunningham Sr., and engages him in a disarming, candid, yet humanized conversation. Scout makes him uncomfortable in front of the mob:

I said, ‘Hey,’ Mr. Cunningham. How’s your entailment getting along? (He turns and looks away.) Don’t you remember me, Mr. Cunningham? I’m Jean Louise Finch. You brought us some hickory nuts one early morning, remember? We had a talk. I went and got my daddy to come out and thank you. I go to school with your boy. I go to school with Walter. He’s a nice boy. Tell him ‘hey’ for me, won’t you? You know something, Mr. Cunningham, entailments are bad. Entailments…(She suddenly becomes self-conscious) Atticus, I was just saying to Mr. Cunningham that entailments were bad but not to worry. Takes a long time sometimes…(To the men who are staring up at her) What’s the matter? I sure meant no harm, Mr. Cunningham.

Scout’s words cause him to break up the potential lynching. The embarrassed crowd disbands.

The movie is as heartbreaking and heart warming as it was when it first previewed (1962).   Do yourself a favour and rent the movie.   Settle down with a bowl of popcorn and a box of Kleenex and go back to a time when movies were worth watching.

Pyjama Day

I am on holidays until next Wednesday.  Yesterday my DH and I drove to Fredericton in a snow storm to take my oldest granddaughter shopping.  That is what good grand parents do! Besides she deserved a shopping day.   Sarah received her marks and has a 3.0 grade point average, not too shabby considering she has always been home schooled, this is her first year at college and is holding down a part time job.  She has not received the marks from her best class so the average may go up.

The snow storm hampered our shopping a bit, but we still had a good visit.  Of course we had to top it off with a visit to our favourite bookstore-coffee shop Reads. Sarah drops into Reads each morning for a cup of coffee on the way to school.  That girl has good taste.

I traded my books for a new stash.  Last evening I started  The Heart is a Lonely Hunter and read until after midnight.

Today is all about me.  I plan to stay in my pyjamas until it is time to take a shower and put on fresh jammies.   As the temperature is minus 14 with a wind chill factor of  20, I slept in rather than going to the gym.   The rest of the day will be dedicated to puttering, quilting, reading and cooking.   Sounds busy but to me it is a perfect holiday.  What is your idea of a perfect stay at home day?

Good books and good stew

The current temperature is 5 degrees, it feels more like November than September.  Tomorrow will reach a high of 10 degrees.   When the weather is this chilly my favourite space is at home snuggled up with a good book.  On the way home today, I picked a pile of books at the Great Canadian Dollar Store for $3.00 each.   My plan is to spend most of Saturday reading and nibbling.

Here’s a recipe that makes an incredible soup regardless of the weather.  ( I omit the peanut butter and cilantro).   This stew is very adaptable to changes, I’ve added lentils, different peppers, and a variety of root vegetables.

Adapted from the Crazy Plates cookbook by Janet and Greta Podleski.

Rockin’ Moroccan Stew

2 tsp olive oil
1 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 clove garlic, minced (or more if you like)
3 cups vegetable broth
3 cups peeled, cubed sweet potatoes
1 can (19 oz) tomatoes, drained and cut up
1 can (19 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp grated gingerroot
1 tsp each ground cumin, curry powder, ground coriander, and chili powder
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp light peanut butter
chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan. Add onions, green pepper, and garlic until vegetables begin to soften.

Add all remaining ingredients except peanut butter, and cilanto (if using). Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer on low heat for about 20 minutes.

Stir in peanut butter and cilantro (if using) and simmer for a few more minutes. Serve hot.

How to beat the heat

Where is the best place to be when the “feels like” temperature is 40 degrees Celsius?  At the movies of course.    Jen, Michelle and I are going to The Time Travelers’ Wife.   The ju-jubes and pop are hidden in our purses,  along with the kleenex.   All we need to purchase are the tickets and a huge carton of popcorn.

My second favourite place on such a hot and humid evening is laying in front of the air conditioner enjoying a good book.  This is what’s on my bookshelf this week.  Many of the books I picked up at yard sales for a quarter or at Village Value for $1.00.

This Charming Man

“At the cemetery three kids noisily playing football around a grave. Disrespectful. Until realized it was their little brother who had died and they had made him goalie.”

If this line from Miriam Keyes “This Charming Man” does not bring a lump to your throat, then it is not a book for you.  You laugh, you cry, you wonder “where the hell did that come from”.   If you want to be entertained, buy this book.  I love the way each character’s story was typed in a different font.

Synopsis