"Outside a dog a book is man's best friend, inside a dog it is too dark to read!" -Groucho Marx========="The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid." -Jane Austen========="I don’t believe in the kind of magic in my books. But I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a good book."-JK Rowling========"I spend a lot of time reading." -Bill Gates=========“Ahhh. Bed, book, kitten, sandwich. All one needed in life, really.” -Jacqueline Kelly=========

Monday, November 29, 2021

TTT: Happy Bookish Memories

Top Ten Tuesday: Happy Bookish Memories

Ian loves books. Here he is reading to the dog who is recovering from surgery.

1. Reading my daughter's favorite childhood books with her son. The other day we read Jillian Jiggs together and then spent the rest of the day repeating the rhyme,  "Jillian, Jillian, Jillian Jiggs, it looks like your room has been lived in by pigs!"


2. Listening to my dad read the How the Grinch Stole Christmas every year on December 24th before we got to open presents. Dad did all the voices and really got into it. Now that Dad is gone, a nephew is taking over the role of reader but it isn't quite the same. 

3. Reading The Chronicles of Narnia series and the first three Harry Potter books aloud with my daughters when they were young. After the first three books in the HP series my daughters wanted to read faster so they read them themselves. 


4. Attending the Michelle Obama Becoming book tour event with my mother, daughter, sister, husband, and friend at the Tacoma Dome.

5. Attending the WILMA (Washington Instructional Library Media Association) conferences almost every year  I was an active school librarian. I enjoyed the collaboration with other professionals and met so many authors: John Green (Looking for Alaska); Jay Asher (Thirteen Reasons Why); Sherman Alexie (The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian); Frank McCourt (Angela's Ashes); Naomi Shihab-Nye (A Maze Me: Poems for Girls); Orson Scoot Card (Ender's Game); and many more.

6. Listening to audiobooks on car trips with my husband (and other family members if they are along for the ride.) Recently we finished two audiobooks on our trip to spend Thanksgiving with family: Cloud Cuckoo Land and Interior Chinatown.

7. Book club discussions. I'm in two clubs and as I look back on my favorites books many of them were book club choices. This coming month the RHS Gals club is discussing The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett and the SOTH Book Club is discussing Transcription. Books usually improve in my estimation after a lively discussion.

8. Browsing book stores and libraries and finding some book I didn't even know I wanted to read. 


9. Visiting libraries when I am a tourist. The last time I was in New York City we visited the main library and saw an exhibit about the art of the 60s and went for a hunt to find the original Winnie-the-Pooh and other characters from the books. They were displayed in the children's department. In Prague we gaped at a beautiful library that had painted ceilings in a monastery, though we could only look in from the door. 


10. Last week my hubby and I went to the Vincent Van Gogh Experience in Seattle. It was awesome but I think my experience was broadened because I'd read the wonderful biography about the artist and his brother, Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers.

-Anne

29 comments:

  1. So many good memories myself of Grinch and Narnia too. Nice. :)

    I love that Pooh map.

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    1. Both of those books/series carry huge memories for me. I've read them both loads of times, too. The Grinch often enough I think I can quote it word for word.

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  2. Those are great memories!

    This topic stymied me, so I went rogue this week. My post is here— https://fiftytwo.blog/2021/11/30/ttt-bookish-confessions/

    Happy TTT!
    Lori
    https://fiftytwo.blog

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    1. Your confessions are very revealing. I can tell you love your Kindle. Mine, a low cost version, isn't very reliable.

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  3. I think your attendance with your family during the Michelle Obama Becoming tour is such a special memory. And isn't it fun to bring our young children and grandchildren on the ride with us, too?

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    1. I know. I love it that Ian and Jamie both love books. My daughter tells me that books are the only reliable way to calm down a busy boy and the magic of books works every time.

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  4. That picture of Ian reading to the dog is so adorable! I love to read about all your amazing bookish memories :) I feel like I got to know you better with this post!

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    1. That photo of Ian and Bingley is one of my favorites, too. Ian was three at the time and wanted to mess with the dog's hood. This was a pretty nifty solution to solve that problem...read to the dog.

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  5. Such wonderful memories! I can't wait until my girls have little ones I can read to.

    Here is our Top Ten Tuesday. Thank you!

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    1. We start 'em young in our family reading to babies even before they know what a book is. Jamie, age one, is at the phase of loving board books that do something. I had to order more since I was bored with the three I had.

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  6. So many neat memories. I would love to attend a book tour one day. Thanks for sharing.

    https://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/2021/11/top-ten-tuesday-top-ten-bookish-memories.html

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    1. That BECOMING tout was amazing. Jimmy Kimmel was her host and they sat on stage and had a wonderful conversation. What an event!

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  7. I bet it was so awesome getting to attend a Becoming event! That's something I really wish I'd gotten a chance to do!

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  8. The Grinch, Narnia, and Frank McCourt! All great memories. I also enjoy visiting libraries when we travel. Thanks for sharing.

    My post: https://pagesandpaws.com/2021/11/30/ttt-bookish-memories-and-coming-home/

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    1. Frank McCourt was the guest speaker at the evening program, after he was done speaking and answering questions the program was finished and everyone stood up to leave. My husband and I, in contrast, marched to the front of the room and shook his hand and spoke to the author/teacher for several moments. I love all of his books so much, you see. Then we learned that he died a few months after that event from blood cancer. I was so glad I took the chance while I had it to compliment his work.

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  9. This is so cool! I love how books open up so many experiences for us. I'm not gonna lie - I'm super jealous of the library you visited in Prague!

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    1. It was so beautiful. I will have to look around for a photo. We had to pay extra for taking photos so my husband was the only one who had photos to aid our memories.

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  10. I love our discussions although the December one is sometimes curtailed. That one year when we really wanted to talk about "A Tale for Time Being" was disappointing. Niko loves books so much and has definite favorites!

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    1. A TALE FOR THE TIME BEING somehow slipped through without a good discussion. I think sometimes, not often, the group decides a head of time to not like a book and there is no changing one's mind to open it up for the discussion. But you and I loved it.

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    2. It was such a beautiful read for discussion. I felt enriched by the Zen wisdom. By the way, I recognize your friend. ;) I loved hearing Michelle O. with your family and you. Thanks for the invitation!

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  11. I love visiting libraries when I go somewhere too. Happy reading! My TTT https://readwithstefani.com/ten-books-i-have-a-strong-emotional-attachment-to/

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  12. A great list of memories.

    Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!
    https://readbakecreate.com/unusual-books-i-read-in-high-school/

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  13. Your Dad reading the Grinch every Christmas Eve...what a great memory!

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  14. What wonderful memories! My husband read the whole Narnia series out loud to our youngest during our COVID lockdown and it was fun to listen to them while I read my own book :)

    Happy TTT!

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  15. Ah I'm desperate to go to that library in Prague, the pictures I've seen are so beautiful!
    My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2021/11/30/top-ten-tuesday-344/

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  16. So many great memories, thanks for sharing! I also love bookstores/libraries etc., and finding books I didn't know I needed to read ;) https://cindysbookcorner.blogspot.com/2021/11/top-ten-tuesday-bookish-memories.html

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  17. Lovely memories! The photo of your grandson reading with the dog is adorable.

    Thanks for visiting my Top Ten Tuesday list.

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  18. Good to know I am not the only book person who likes to see libraries when I am a tourist. College libraries are also wonderful.

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  19. Sounds as though you have many great memories of the bookish variety, Anne. :) Thanks so much for visiting Finding Wonderland. Appreciate this.

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