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Armchair BEA: Fifty Favorites

May23

A lot of book bloggers and other bookish people are going to spend the greater part of this week in New York City at BookExpo America. However, many of us live too far away and can’t afford to go to BEA, so we’re celebrating books and blogging where we are. The assignment for today is to introduce yourself and your blog. So I thought that sharing with you a few of my favorite (mainly bookish) things would be a good way for us to get acquainted.

French Novel: Les Miserables by Victor Hugo.

Spanish novel: Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes.

American novel: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

Russian novel: The Brothers Karamazov by Feodor Dostoyevsky.

Memoir/biography: The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom.

Christian author: C.S. Lewis

Mystery author: Dorothy Sayers

Musical: Man of La Mancha

Candy bar: Baby Ruth

TV series: LOST, of course.

Current TV series: Friday Night Lights, even though it’s frustrating the heck out of me.

Board game: Scrabble

iPhone app: Words with Friends, an app I just discovered and cant get enough of.

Blog other than my own: The Common Room or Mental Multivitamin

Computer brand: Apple

Fruit: Strawberries

History mini-series: John Adams, based on the book by David McCullough

Beverage: Iced tea with lemon and sugar

U.S. President: Teddy Roosevelt. He was by far the most interesting and personable of the presidents, even if I don’t agree with all of his policies and actions.

Shakespeare comedy: Much Ado about Nothing

Shakespeare tragedy: Hamlet

Shakespeare adapted to movie: Kenneth Branagh’s Henry V

Charles Dickens novel: David Copperfield

Nonfiction U.S. history book: Men to Match My Mountains by Irving Stone.

Nonfiction British history book: The Conquering Family and its sequels by Thomas Costain.

Poet: Edgar Allan Poe

Poem: Renascence by Edna St. Vincent Millay

Narnia book: The Silver Chair

Movie (comedy): The Princess Bride or It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

Comedic novelist: P.G. Wodehouse

Fantasy novel: The Lord of the RIngs, grandaddy of them all.

Time travel books: Blackout and All Clear by Connie Willis.

Romance novel: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.

Fictional couple: Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane.

Movie (drama): Chariots of Fire

Hymn: When I Survey the Wondrous Cross by Isaac Watts.

Love song: Desperado by The Eagles.

Month: October

Season: Autumn

Pie: Pumpkin with pecan halves arranged in a pleasing pattern on top.

Color: purple

Dystopian novel: Children of Men by P.D. James.

Announced 2012 presidential candidate as of today: Rick Santorum????

Classic children’s book: Eight Cousins by Louisa May Alcott.

Young adult novel: Christy by Catherine Marshall.

Picture book: Oh, Were They Ever Happy by Peter Spier.

Easy reader: Frog and Toad Are Friends by Arnold Lobel.

Quotation: “I know now, Lord, why you utter no answer. You are yourself the answer. Before your face questions die away. What other answer would suffice?” ~C.S. Lewis.

Book of the Bible: The Gospel of John.

Bible verse: Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life.” John 6:68

If you just can’t get enough of this sort of thing and want more ME, here’s a post on 52 Things that Fascinate Me.

Happy Armchair BEA to all ye who enter here.

Summer Reading: 52 Picks for the Hols

May24

I used to love to read the British slang in books by C.S. Lewis, E. Nesbit, P.G. Wodehouse, and others. It took me a long time to figure out that those kids weren’t carrying actual torches in their pockets (how?), but rather normal old flashlights. And “hols” were holidays, any break from school.

Some of the books on the following list are old, some are new. Some I’ve read and loved, and others I plan to enjoy this summer. So, whether you’re taking a break from school for next few months/weeks or just easing into a different routine for the summer, here are some summer-y suggestions for your reading pleasure:

Picture Books: (Preschool/Kindergarten)
1. Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey.
2. The Storm Book by Charlotte Zolotow. About a summer thunderstorm.
3. Roxaboxen by Alice McLarren. A group of children in Arizona or New Mexico, somewhere dry and desert-y, make a play town out of old woden crates, rocks, cacti and desert glass. The illustrations are by Barbara Cooney. This book reminds me of the story Engineer Husband tells of making towns in the dirt in his backyard and then flooding them with the garden hose. Except I don’t think Roxaboxen ever suffered any floods.
4. Nothing To Do by Russell Hoban. I love this book. Unfortunately, it’s out of print. Walter Possum, a Frances-like character but related only by author, is bored and can find nothing to do. When he complains his father gives him a “magic stone”at will give him ideas if he will only rub it and think really hard and wait for the ideas to come. This one is just as good as the Frances books.
5. Harry by the Sea by Gene Zion. Harry, a white dog with black spots, tries to find a way to cool off at the seashore.
6. Cranberry Summer by Wende Devlin.
7. Hot Air Henry by Mary Calhoun. Henry the cat takes an accidental trip in a hot air balloon.
8. The Summer Noisy Book by Margaret Wise Brown.
9. On A Summer Day by Lois Lenski. Out of print and hard to find. Try your library. Isn’t the cover delightful?
10. A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle.

Younger Readers: (Ages 5-9)
11. Because of Winn-DIxie by Kate DiCamillo.
12. Betsy’s Busy Summer by Carolyn Haywood. Ms. Haywood’s books are delightfully old-fashioned and fairly easy to read. I may read this one with Z-baby.
13. Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White.
14. All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydney Taylor.
15. Many Moons by James Thurber. THere’s a newer version of this classic about a princess who wanted the moon with illustrator Marc Simont. It’s OK, but I like Slobodkin’s watercolors.
16. Moxy Maxwell Does NOT Love Stuart Little by Peggy GIfford.
17. Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking, and Other Natural Disasters by Lenore Look.
18. Henry and Mudge in the Green Time by Cynthia Rylant. (very easy)
19. Summersaults by Douglas Florian. Kid poetry for summer.
20. The Littles and the Big Storm by John Peterson.

Middle Grade Readers: (Ages 9-13)
21. Any Which Wall by Laurel Snyder. Four children find a wall that can transport them through time and space. Semicolon review here.
22. The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy by Jeanne Birdsall.
23. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis. The Dawn Treader movie is supposed to come out in December, so this summer would be a good time to read the book if you haven’t already done so. It has one of the best opening lines in literature, and Eustace’s redemption is a beautiful story. “There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it.”
24. Henry Reed, Inc. by Keith Robertson. A great old-fashioned book about a boy who spends the summer in a small town with his uncle and aunt. Exciting things happen whenever Henry is around!
25. SIx Innings by James Preller. Baseball and summer just go together. Semicolon review here.
26. Leepike RIdge by N.D. Wilson. Semicolon review here.
27. The Girl Who Threw Butterflies by Mich Cochrane. Semicolon review here.
28. Umbrella Summer by Lisa Graff.
29. Spiderweb for Two: A Melendy Maze by Elizabeth Enright. It doesn’t take place in the summer, but I thought it did. It would make a great summer adventure.
30. Galveston’s Summer of the Storm by Julie Lake. Very lazy Texas summer with Texas foods and hot weather and front porches and grandmother’s house. Then disaster!

Young Adult:
31. The Last Summer of the Death Warriors by Francisco X. Stork. Brought to my attention by Mitali at Mitali’s Fire Escape. Semicolon review here.
32. A Ring of Endless Light by Madeleine L’Engle. One of my favorites. I think it’s time for a re-read.
33. Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene. A 12 year old Jewish girl from Arkansas meets a German prisoner of war and helps him to escape. As her family life deteriorates, her emotional involvement with her German friend grows.
34. Monsoon Summer by Mitali Perkins. Semicolon review here.
35. Heist Society by Ally Carter. I haven’t read this one yet, but I want to.
36. They Never Came Back by Caroline B. Cooney. Another one the I want to read. Here’s Jen’s review.
37. The Chosen by Chaim Potok.
38. Watership Down by Richard Adams. Hey, LOST (TV) isn’t really over, is it, until we’ve read all the books that LOST references? Watership Down was one of Sawyer’s reads, and even Boone said that he’d read it in Australia. If you haven’t, you should. It’s about bunny rabbits.
39. Ask Me Anything by J. Budziszewski. Professor Theophilus gives provocative answers to college students’ questions. The book is written by a professor of government and philosophy at the University of Texas at Austin.
40. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins. The final book in the Hunger Games trilogy will be out AUgust 24th. Still summer, but barely.

Adult Fiction and Nonfiction
41. The Summer of the Great-Grandmother by Madeleine L’Engle.
42. Bring Me a Unicorn: Diaries and Letters of Anne Morrow Lindbergh, 1922-1928. Before she was married to famous aviator Charles Lindbergh, Anne Morrow, daughter of the American ambassador to Mexico, kept a journal and wrote a plethora of letters. This book is the first of five volumes of collected letters and journal entries of Anne Morrow soon-to-be Lindbergh. The others are called: Hour of Gold Hour of Lead, Locked Rooms Open Doors, The Flower and the Nettle, and War Within and Without.
43. An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser. It’s been a long time since I read this classic, but I remember it as a very summery book. Sad and summery.
44. Miracle in Philadelphia by Caroline Drinker Bowen. Read about that hot summer in Philadelphia 1787, and and celebrate the miracle that is the U.S. Constitution.
45. Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe. June selection for the Semicolon Book Club.
46. Mrs. Buncle’s Book by D.E. Stevenson. July selection for Semicolon Book Club. I just read my first book by D.E. Stevenson, and I’m looking forward to another.
47. 1776 by David McCullough. Another summertime American history book.
48. Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry. Just read it. It’s wonderful.
49. Walk Across America by Peter Jenkins. Every summer should include travel and adventure.
50. The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott by Kelly O’Connor McNees. Reviewed by Florinda at the 3 R’s.
51. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley. Everyone recommends this one. This summer I’m going to read it.

52. Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork. I guess this one is really a YA fiction title, but I ran out of room on that list, and it’s just as good for adults. Marcelo’s summer job at his father law office teaches him about the real world, but his co-workers learn a few things, too, from the wonderfully honest and autistic Marcelo. Semicolon review here.

I case that’s not enough, here a few more lists:

Death in Summer: Mysteries for Hot Days
Summer Reading: 2006

This post is linked to Armchair BEA because these are the books I’d be talking about, and in some cases looking for, if I were there. Come back tomorrow for an interview with a very special and stunningly beautiful blogger and Armchair BEA participant. And Thursday I’ll give you a list of all the books I’d like to snag see if I were at BookExpo America this week. Those of you who are ther: enjoy!

Sunday Salon: Twelve Projects for 2010

Jan3

The Sunday Salon.comFor the last couple of years, instead of resolutions, I’ve been thinking in terms of projects, lots of projects that I wanted to complete during the year. I wouldn’t say I was any more or less successful with my projects than most people are with resolutions, but I like the tradition anyway and plan to to continue it this year. So here are my twelve projects for 2010, with evaluations of how I did on some of the same projects in 2009.

1. Bible Reading Project. Last year’s Bible reading project was a qualified success. I didn’t read every day, and I didn’t study the books and passages I chose as intensely as I wanted, but I did read and study some. This year’s Bible reading plan is the same as last year’s: choose a book or part of a book of the BIble for each month of the year, read it daily, and study it using some good study tools. Take notes in my Bible and maybe this year in a journal, too. The selections for this year:

January: Esther. The women of my church are going on retreat in early March, and we’ll be studying the book of Esther. So I thought I’d get a head start.
February: Revelation 1-11. My pastor is preaching through Revelation this spring, so I thought I should be reading it. Revelation is my least favorite book in the Bible, so I’ll need some major self-discipline and encouragement from the Holy Spirit to finish this project.
March: Exodus 1-12 in preparation for Resurrection Sunday (April 4, 2010) and remembering Jesus, our Passover lamb.
April: Revelation 12-22.
May: Exodus 13-20.
June: I Timothy
July: Exodus 21-30.
August: II Timothy
September: Exodus 31-40.
October: Titus
November: Psalms 11-15.
December: Psalms 16-20.

2. Pulitzer Project. This year for the Pulitzer Project I read Andersonville by MacKinlay Kantor and found it very absorbing and thought-provoking, one of the best books I read this past year. This next year I plan to read March by Geraldine Brooks and Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout.

3. My Newbery Project for last year was also something of a bust. I think I got stuck because the winners for 1925 and 1926 were both story collections, and I don’t like story collections. I may skip the storybooks and get back on track this year.

4. Homeschooling Project: I need to focus on homeschooling the three remaining students in our homeschool.
Karate Kid (age 12)
Betsy-Bee (age 10)
Z-Baby (age 8)
You’ll see posts about how that project is going, plans for school and reading and science and history and field trips and all manner of educational schemes and visions. Perhaps you’ll also see a few desperate pleas for HELP! Just because I’ve graduated four students doesn’t mean I know how to homeschool the rest of the bunch.

5. Operation Clean House. I thought last year that if I took a room or area of the house and concentrated on that section each month, I might get somewhere with the de-cluttering and cleaning. Maybe. I didn’t. So this project is a repeat.
January: My closet and dressing area.
February: The rest of my bedroom.
March: Front hallway and entryway.
April: Living Room.
May: Kitchen.
June: Laundry room.
July: Half of the gameroom.
August: The other half of the gameroom.
September: Front bathroom.
October: Z-baby’s bedrooom.
November: Karate Kid’s bedroom.
December: Sit back and enjoy my reorganized home?
I might even, if I’m brave enough, post before and after pictures to keep myself motivated.

6. LOST Reading Project. I really want to get back to this project this year. I read Lathe of Heaven by Ursula LeGuin, enjoyed it, and tried a couple of others on the list that I didn’t care for at all (A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess and The Third Policeman by Flann O’Brien).
This year I think I’d like to read Laughter in the Dark by Vladimir Nabakov and perhaps, Everything That Rises Must Converge by Flannery O’Connor. I’m not sure I’m sophisticated enough to “get” Flannery O’Connor, but I’ll give it a try.

7. The U.S. Presidents Reading Project has a list of all of the U.S. presidents and suggested reading selections (non-fiction) for each one. The challenge is to read one biography of each one. Last year I read biographies of George Washington, John Adams, James and Dollie Madison, and Alexander Hamilton (I know, not a president, but closely related). This year I plane to continue with biographies of James Monroe, John Quincy Adams, and Andrew Jackson, not necessarily in that order. I skipped Jefferson because I don’t like him very much.
atournamentofreading
8. Tournament of Reading Project. Probably the only reading challenge I sign up for this year, The Tournament of Reading is a challenge to read nine medieval books in three categories: history, medieval literature, and historical fiction. Most of these books that I plan to read come from my TBR list anyway:
History:
Byzantium by John Julius Norwich.
Justinian’s Flea: The First Great Plague and The End of the Roman Empire by WIlliam Rosen.

Historical Fiction:
The King’s Daughter by Sandra Worth.
The Last Queen by C.W. Gortner.
The Master of Verona by David Blixt.

As for actual medieval literature, I’ll have to ask Eldest Daughter to suggest something.

9. Poetry Project: I would like to continue having my urchins memorizing and reading poetry. I would like to read and memorize poetry. I would like to have more Poetry Parties. Poetry Friday is the place and time to get an update on the Poetry Project. Plus, I’ll be celebrating Poetry Month again in April.

10. Prayer Project. I need to spend some daily concentrated time in prayer and meditation. My plan is to pray and read my Bible before I get on the computer each day so that I can bathe all these projects and all my children and my husband in prayer.

11. Book Club Project. I’m re-starting my book club this year. If any of you are interested in participating (virtually), email me at sherryDOTearlyATgmailDOTcom, and I’ll send you the details. I’ll also be posting the book club selections for each month of 2010 here at Semicolon soon. I’m also leading a middle school girls book club at our homeschool co-op, and I’ll be posting the book list for that club before long.

12. Advanced Reading Survey Project. I decided last year that on Mondays I was going to revisit the books I read for a course in college called Advanced Reading Survey, taught by the eminent scholar and lovable professor, Dr. Huff. I’m not going to re-read all the books and poems I read for that course, probably more than fifty, but I am going to post to Semicolon the entries in the reading journal that I was required to keep for that class because I think that my entries on these works of literature may be of interest to readers here and because I’m afraid that the thirty year old spiral notebook in which I wrote these entries may fall apart ere long. I may offer my more mature perspective on the books, too, if I remember enough about them to do so.
Texas Tuesday Project. I also plan to keep posting about books set in or published in or related to Texas on Tuesdays. Or at least on most Tuesdays.

Bonus Project: I’ll keep blogging, the Good Lord willing and the creek don’t rise, and I’ll keep you all updated on all my projects for 201-.

Semicolon’s 12 Books I Have on Hand and Ready to Read

Dec26

Most of these I got for Christmas, and I am going to have a great time reading them in January:

Read for the Heart: Whole Books for Wholehearted Families by Sarah Clarkson. I’ve known of Sally Clarkson and her ministry to families and especially to homeschooling moms for a long time, and now her daughter is all grown-up and writing books of her own.

The Whole Five Feet: What the Great Books Taught Me About Life, Death and Pretty Much Everything Else by Christopher R. Beha. Christmas gift from my wonderful Engineer Husband. It’s another books about books, which is about as bookily nerdish as a reader can get. New York Times Book Review.

Slouching Toward Bethlehem by Joan Didion. Christmas gift from my lovely Eldest Daughter, the one who has impeccable taste and instincts for great literature. (Although I’m still not a Walker Percy fan.) I’ve been planning to read some essays by Ms. Didion for quite a while, and now is the time.

Sometimes a Light Surprises by Jamie Langston Turner. I asked for this novel, the latest by Christian fiction author Jamie Langston Turner, and my generous Drama Daughter obliged. Ms. Turner writes novels of surprising depth and interest, and I’m looking forward to reading this one. Recommended by Barbara at Stray Thoughts.

Auralia’s Colors by Jeffrey Overstreet. Another pick from my list of requests that Drama Daughter bought for me. This fantasy novel came out from Waterbrook Press in 2007, and it was a finalist in the Christy Awards for Christian Fiction, Visionary Fiction category, losing to Stephen Lawhead’s Scarlett. It already has a sequel, Cyndere’s Midnight, which I will ask for next if this one is as good as I think it will be. Originally recommended to me by Julie, The Happy Catholic.

An Expert in Murder by Nicola Upson. Another Christmas gift. I love Josephine Tey’s mysteries, and I’ve been looking forward to reading Ms. Upson’s novel featuring a fictionalized Tey as the detective in her own murder mystery.

At Large and At Small: Familiar Essays by Anne Fadiman. Eldest Daughter again. I think she wants me to read more nonfiction, particularly essays, and I’m happy to go there with Ms. Fadiman, who also wrote Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader, a book I enjoyed reading a couple of years ago.

Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art by Madeleine L’Engle. I think I’ve already read much of the materila in this book, if not the entire book. However, I’m happy to have my own copy now and to be able to read and re-read Ms. L’Engle’s insights into faith and the creative process.

Culture Making: Recovering our Creative Process by Andy Crouch. Another book about creativity, art, and the Christian life. I bought this one on Carrie’s (Reading to Know) recommendation.

Voices of the Faithful, Book 2: Inspiring Stories of Courage from Christians Serving Around the World. Compiled by
Kim P. Davis. This series was created and Book 1 was compiled by Beth Moore. It’s really an almanac/devotional book of modern-day missionary stories. I’m not planning to read straight through the book, but I do want to start reading the stories, maybe aloud to the family. And I am supposed to review the book for Thomas Nelson Publishers, so you’ll be hearing waht I think of it here on the blog.

Greenmantle by John Buchan. I bought this book at the used bookstore a couple of months ago. The blurb says, “Richard Hannay, hero of The Thirty-Nine Steps, travels across war-torn Europe in search of a German plot and an Islamic Messiah. . . . Classic espionage adventure.”

Lewis Agonistes: How C.S. Lewis Can Train Us to Wrestle with the Modern and Postmodern World. by Louis Markos. Engineer Husband got this title for Christmas, but I’m hoping he’ll let me borrow it and read it, too.

So there you have it: 12 books I already have on deck and ready to read as soon as I finish my work with the Cybils Middle Grade Fiction panel of judges. I have plans to share 12 more lists with you this week and next–sort of my 12 Days of Christmas gift posts. And I’ll be writing a lot about the Cybils as the year and the preliminary judging wind down. The Cybils shortlists will be announced on New Year’s Day.

Stay tuned.

Semicolon’s Old, New and Ongoing Projects, Part 2

Sep18

I want to do some things that are ongoing and are an expression of the reading and other pursuits that I love. I’m going to try to fold the projects in my previous post into this blogging plan:

Sunday’s Hymn: See #9 in the post below. After I finish the Top 100 Hymns Project, I’m going to feature one hymn per week on Sundays. Because I love hymns.

Sunday Salon: More about this later in the post. Basically, I have an idea about incorporating some of my ongoing monthly projects into my Sunday Salon post each week.

Nonfiction Mondays: I’ve wanted to join in on this event for a while, and I have quite a few nonfiction books to review and share. Some will be books that we’re using for our Texas study at my homeschool co-op. Others will be review copies of books I’ve received from publishers.

Advanced Reading Survey: On Mondays I’m also going to revisit the books I read for a course in college called Advanced Reading Survey taught by the eminent scholar and lovable professor, Dr. Huff. I’m not going to re-read all the books and poems I read for that course, probably more than fifty, but I am going to post to Semicolon the entries in the reading journal that I was required to keep for that class because I think that my entries on these works of literature may be of interest to readers here and because I’m afraid that the thirty year old spiral notebook in which I wrote these entries may fall apart ere long. I may offer my more mature perspective on the books, too, if I remember enough about them to do so. I started doing this about a year ago and then forgot to keep it up; the spiral notebook isn’t getting any less worn nor less likely to disintegrate.

Texas Tuesday: This weekly feature is new; I just invented it. Since we’re studying Texas history and literature at co-op this year, and since I’m a proud, native Texan, I want to spotlight books set in the great state of Texas and books by Texas authors.

Wednesday Whatever: another new feature invented by me. I may or may not use this weekly meme as inspiration, but I plan to work on my writing on Wedsnesdays, write about whatever is niggling (wiggling?) down there in my bottomless pit of mind or whatever comes to the surface or . . . well, the metaphors could use some work as a starter. Warning: I may write about books, or politics, or homeschooling, or parenting, or church, or anything else I’m interested in. Take it or leave it. Comments are welcome.

Read Aloud Thursday: I’ve also wanted to share about some of our read aloud books, and I think I’ve found a good way to do that. Interviews with the urchins about what we’ve been reading kill two birds with one stone: narration for them and book blogging for me.

Picture Book Preschool Book of the Week: Also on Thursdays I hope to feature a classic picture book from my curriculum book, Picture Book Preschool. I used to do this feature, too, but I quit for some reason.

Poetry (and Fine Art) Friday:I’ve participated off and on, but I really want to get our poetry memorization going again. So I’ll be writing about what the kids and I are memorizing as well as about some of my favorite poems each Friday. And I may include a work of fine art to go with the poem if I can find one.

Saturday Review of Books: The Saturday Review will continue as usual, but I hope a lot of you bloggers who have participated in BBAW will discover the Saturday Review and begin to link your reviews there. The more, the merrier.

Sabbath Bible Reading Report: On Saturday evening, report on my Biblical explorations for the week. I hope the Holy Spirit will give me something worthwhile to say if I’ll do my part and actually read and meditate.

The Sunday Salon.comSunday Salon Plan:
First Sunday of the month: Post my list of books read in the previous month, and write about my favorites.

Second Sunday of the month: Operation Clean House kicks into gear. I will post before and after pictures of one area of the house that I’ve managed to clean, and as a reward to myself and to you for looking, I’ll also post a picture of a favorite shelf of books in my house and highlight some of the Good Books on that shelf. SInce I have approximately 250 shelves of books in my house and more areas that need to be cleaned than that, this project should last my lifetime if I choose to continue it that long.

Third Sunday of the month: Post about my progress for the month on The Newbery Project or the Pulitzer Project or my U.S. Presidents Project.

Fourth Sunday of the month: Write about the Semicolon Book Club selection for the month, and give a teaser for next month’s book.

Fifth Sunday on the month: Fifth Sundays are reserved for Wild, Wacky, and Not Fitting Into Any Plan At All. I love making plans and organizing stuff, but then I usually enjoy breaking out of my pre-planned stodginess to do the next thing that will later become part of a new plan.

In between all that, I’ll post random book reviews and news notes. I also hope to participate again in the Cybils as a panelist or judge, so there should be lots of reviews of children’s books of some kind in the next few months. Then, in December I’ll post some more Christmas quotations from favorite books. And April is Poetry Month.

Wow! I love blogging and planning and reading and having ideas and grand schemes and proposals. If you’d like to join me in any of the above, feel free to leave a comment or shoot me an email. I’ll try my best to include you and link to you and all that stuff.

Oh, yes, and does anyone know how to teach me, Ms. Graphics-Challenged, how to make those button/picture doodads like the ones above for Read Aloud Thursday and Sunday Salon? I don’t have any idea how people come up with thingies like that, but I’d like to make some for some of these weekly features that I’m planning.

Semicolon’s Old, New, and Ongoing Projects

Sep18

The last project for BBAW is to establish some goals for your blog. We’re supposed to do this one in 50 words or less, but I’m not constituted for less than 50 words, so it’s going to take me two posts. As I’ve said before, I like to think in terms of projects rather than goals or resolutions. I do have a few old projects that I’d like to do a better job of working at. I had twelve projects at the beginning of the year:

1. Bible reading project. My plan was to be reading Amos in September. I haven’t done the reading for any of the months that I had planned at all. I also was inspired by this project at another blog to start memorizing. I didn’t do that either. So, I’m going to try something different. Every Saturday evening, I’m going to write a post here, (insert catchy title: Sabbath Bible Review?), about my Bible reading for the week. I’ll tell you what I’ve read and what I’ve thought about as I read, how the Lord has spoken (or not spoken), and maybe I’ll be motivated to get the reading and meditation and even memorization DONE.

2. Prayer Project. This project, too, has been failure. I pray a lot, on the go, as I drive, or as I wait for children to finish classes., but a daily, dedicated time of prayer, even for ten minutes a day seems impossible. I get distracted; I think of all the things I should be doing; I read the titles on the bookshelf; I feel as if I’m wasting time telling God stuff He already knows anyway. I tried a prayer accountability thing with another blogger (sweet, patient Katherine), but I was coming up delinquent every week.

Lauren Winner: “It is easier to read about prayer than to do it. We fool ourselves into thinking that it somehow counts!”

I’m still working on, and praying about, a jumpstart for this particular project.

3. Pulitzer Project. I haven’t read any more Pulitzer prize-winning novels this year, but I am supposed to read Andersonville by MacKinlay Kantor for the Semicolon Book Club in September. I want to read one Pulitzer or National Book Award winner per month and post about it maybe on a specific day of the month. If anyone wants to join me in this project, I’ll work with you to come up with a list, and we’ll agree to meet (virtually) on a certain day of the month for a book discussion.

4. Newbery Project. I haven’t made much progress on this project either. I’d really like to find some of the older “honor” books and read them. I tried to read The Graveyard Book three times; does that count?

5. Madeleine L’Engle Project. I’m putting this project in abeyance for now. I’m just not so interested in re-reading anything these, even Ms. L’Engle’s books.

6. LOST Reading Project. I have done a bit of reading on this list, and I intend to do more, as inspired.

7. My U.S. Presidents Reading Project is linked to THE U.S. Presidents Reading Project.

8. Poetry Project. We need to memorize more poetry. And I plan to participate in Poetry Friday each Friday this fall.

9. The Top 100 Hymns Project is online again, thanks to my wonderfully helpful Computer Guru Son. I’m planning to finish that out sometime in October (31 more hymns to go), and after that my plan is to do a Hymn Sunday post each week (along with The Common Room and Rebecca Writes and others) to spotlight all the other wonderful hymns that weren’t on the Top 100 list.

10. Book Club Project. I somehow let the Book Club die on the vine this summer, but I’m planning to read Andersonville by MacKinlay Kantor, as I said, for September, and God willing, I’ll finish out the year with the following:

October: Scoop by Evelyn Wwaugh.
Novmber: A Walk WIth Jane Austen by Lori Smith.

In December, I’ll take suggestions, then votes, for next year’s selections, and my goal (there’s that word) is to do better about posting about the book for the month at the first of the month and about linking to others’ posts about the book we’re reading for the Semicolon Book Club toward the end of the month. No, I am not giving up.

11. Project Clean House. I need accountability in this area, too. What if I take a picture of an area of my house each week or month, before and after?

Ummm, I lost one somewhere, but that’s OK. I’m full up anyway and about to take on some more.

Now that I’ve cleared all that detritus away, I have a new blogging plan or project that has me excited. Stay tuned.

52

Jul28

Having as of today, July 28, 2009, spent fifty-two years on this planet, mostly in Texas, I could be expected to say something profound upon the anniversary of my birth. However, all I can think of are lists:
52 Books That Made Me Who I Am,
52 People Who Taught Me All I Know,
52 Quotations for Living,
52 Most Beautiful Words,
52 Questions Still Unanswered,
52 Truths I’ve Learned,
52 Places I’d Like to Visit,
52 Things I’d Like To Do Before I Die,
52 Proverbs for the Young at Heart,
52 Songs That Make Me Smile,
52 Projects for the Next 10 Years,
52 Thoughts on Psalm 52,
52 Names for My as Yet Unborn Grandchildren,
52 Recipes I Want to Try,
52 Recipes Tried and True,
52 Things to Try With a Crying Baby,
52 Wonderful Books You’ve Probably Never Read,
52 Picture Books That Adults Can Enjoy,
52 Ways To Say “I Love You”,
52 Portraits of Fascinating People,
52 Photographs from Before 1950,
52 Bookstores I Want To Visit,
52 Holidays To Celebrate,
52 Historical Events I Wish I’d Seen,
52 Ideas for Celebrating Christmas in the Presence of Christ,
52 Poems That Make Me Laugh,
52 Jokes That Also Make Me laugh,
52 Ways To Simplify and Declutter (I need help),
52 Card Games Anyone Can Play,
52 Games for Playing Outside,
52 Apple-y Activities for Home and School (been saving this one for awhile),
52 Books About Texas and Texans,
52 People I Admire Even Though They’re Not Perfect,
52 Extraordinary People I’ve Known
52 Classes I’d Like to Take
52 Flowers and Plants I’d Like To Grow,
52 Bloggers Who Make Me Think,
52 Things I Love About America,
52 Fictional Characters I’d Like to Meet,
52 Things To Eat Before I Die,
52 Great Words in 52 Languages,
52 Things I Want To Learn,
52 Places in Texas to See,
52 Habits I Need to Establish or Eradicate,
52 Mysteries of History Still Unsolved,
52 People From my Family Tree,
52 Reasons I Love My Engineer Husband,
52 Ways To Show Him I Love Him,
52 Biblical Commands I Can Obey Right Now,
52 Reasons I’m Thankful to Be Alive,
52 Ways To Save Money Now,
52 Names for the God I Love.

52 is the approximate number of weeks in a year, the number of white keys on a piano, and the number of cards in a standard deck of playing cards. At age 52, Alfred Hitchcock directed the film Strangers on a Train, and also at the age of 52 Ray Kroc opened the first MacDonald’s in Des Plaines, Illinois.

In 1957, the year I was born, Ed Sullivan had Elvis on his show for the third time, showed him only from the waist up, and said: “This is a real decent, fine boy. We’ve never had a pleasanter experience on our show with a big name than we’ve had with you. You’re thoroughly all right.”

Published in 1957:
The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss.
On the Road by Jack Kerouac.
Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak.
On the Beach by Nevil Shute.
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand.
If Death Ever Slept by Rex Stout.
Through Gates of Splendor by Elisabeth Elliot

Movies released in 1957:
Loving You with Elvis Presley.
Jailhouse Rock with Elvis Presley.
The Bridge on the River Kwai with Alec Guinness, which went on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.

On the actual day of my birth an earthquake shook Mexico City and Acapulco. But I doubt if my mom noticed it way out in West Texas.

Also born on July 28th (not 1957): Beatrix Potter, Gerard Manley Hopkins

So it’s a happy birthday for me, and I hope your day is happy, too. If you’d like to see me make an actual list for any of the above (52) titles, let me know, and I’ll see what I can do. Right now I’m going to find 52 ways to celebrate my birthday.

Twelve Projects for 2009

Dec27

Last year instead of resolutions, I thought in terms of projects, lots of projects that I wanted to complete in 2008. I wouldn’t say I was any more or less successful with my projects than most people are with resolutions, but I like the tradition anyway and plan to to continue it this year. So here are my twelve projects for 2009, with evaluations of how I did on some of the same projects in 2008.

1. BIble Reading Project. Last year’s BIble reading project was a qualified success. I didn’t read every day, and I didn’t study the books and passages I chose as intensely as I wanted, but I did read and study some. This year’s BIble reading plan is the same as last year’s: choose a book or part of a book of the BIble for each month of the year, read it daily, and study it using some good study tools. Take notes in my Bible and maybe this year in a journal, too. The selections for this year:

January: II Samuel 1-8 Last year I read and studied I Samuel, so II Samuel seems to be next.
February: I Thessalonians
March: II Samuel 9-16
April: II Thessalonians
May: II Samuel 17-24
June: I Timothy
July: Joel
August: II TImothy
September: Amos
October: Titus
November: Psalms 1-5
December: Psalms 6-10

2. Pulitzer Project. This one will have to be a repeat from last year since I read only one of the books on my list, The Optimist’s Daughter by Eudora Welty. I didn’t review it because I didn’t really care for it much.

3. My Newbery Project for last year was also something of a bust. I think I got stuck because the winners for 1925 and 1926 were both story collections, and I don’t like story collections. I may skip the storybooks and get back on track this year.

4. My Madeleine L’Engle Project also failed to get off the ground last year. I think I just have so many good books to read, and not enough time. Anyway, this is another one I want to try again this year.

5. Operation Clean House. I figure if I take a room or area of the house and concentrate on that section each month, I might get somewhere with the de-cluttering and cleaning. Maybe.
January: My closet and dressing area.
February: The rest of my bedroom.
March: Front hallway and entryway.
April: Living Room.
May: Kitchen.
June: Laundry room.
July: Half of the gameroom.
August: The other half of the gameroom.
September: Front bathroom.
October: Z-baby’s bedrooom.
November: Karate Kid’s bedroom.
December: Sit back and enjoy my reorganized home?
I might even, if I’m brave enough, post before and after pictures to keep myself motivated.

6. LOST Reading Project. I really want to get back to this project this year.

7. The U.S. Presidents Reading Project has a list of all of the U.S. presidents and suggested reading selections (non-fiction) for each one. The challenge is to read one biography of each one. I would really like to start this project this year.

8. American History Project. In conjunction with the U.S. Presidents Reading Project, I’ll be teaching American history at home and at co-op next school year. So I’m working on planning a high school level literature/history class for co-op and condensing the Sonlight third and fourth grade curriculum suggestions for American history into one year for my little girls.

9. Poetry Project: I would like to get my urchins memorizing and reading poetry. I would like to read and memorize poetry. I would like to have more Poetry Parties.

10. Prayer Project. I need to spend some daily concentrated time in prayer and meditation. My plan is to pray and read my Bible before I get on the computer each day so that I can bathe all these projects and all my children and my husband in prayer.

11. Book Club Project. I’m really, really, truly starting my book club this year. We’re having our first meeting to discuss the books for the year this afternoon. If any of you are interested in participating (virtually), email me at sherryDOTearlyATgmailDOTcom, and I’ll send you the details. I’ll also be posting the book club selections for each month of 2009 here at Semicolon soon.

12. VIdeo Project. Engineer Husband and I are s-l-o-w-l-y watching the series Band of Brothers at night after the urchins are asleep. After we finish those videos, we’re planning to watch the HBO adaptation of David McCullough’s biography of John Adams, recommended here.

Bonus Project: I’ll keep blogging, the Good Lord willing and the creek don’t rise, and I’ll keep you all updated on all my projects for 2009.

Sunday Salon: Biblically Literate

Aug24

Back in April, I started a book club. Well, at least I tried to start a book club. But what with one thing and another, mostly my lack of follow-through, the book club languished over the summer and became absorbed into Eldest Daughter’s summer book club project. And that was fun.

However, Eldest Daughter is now in Nashville, and my motto is, “If at first you don’t succeed, rise again.” Or something like that. So even though I don’t believe in reincarnation, this fall will see the second iteration of the Biblically Literate Book Club. The idea is the same. I’ll be focusing on one regular book and one book or portion of a book of the Bible each month, September through November, and anyone is welcome to read along, comment here, review there and get linked, or appear in person at the monthly meeting of the Biblically Literate Book Club at my home in Houston, TX on the last Saturday of the month. Email me (sherryDOTearlyATgmailDOTcom) for directions to my home or to be added to the email list for updates.

I set up a separate blog for Biblically Literate, and back in July when I had blog troubles, it got deleted. Now I’ve decided to just post here about the book club and the books and the Biblical passages, and I’ll title the posts “Biblically Literate” so that you can focus on or skip those posts as you see fit. The books for the next three months are the same as they were when I first began back in April:

September:
1 John
A Bell for Adano by John Hersey. “An Italian-American major in World War II wins the love and admiration of the local townspeople when he searches for a replacement for the 700 year-old town bell that had been melted down for bullets by the fascists.”

October:
1 Samuel 24-31.
So Brave, Young and Handsome by Leif Enger. “A stunning successor to his best selling novel Peace Like a River, Leif Enger’s new work is a rugged and nimble story about an aging train robber on a quest to reconcile the claims of love and judgment on his life, and the failed writer who goes with him.” (If you’ve never read Peace Like a River, you should. I loved it.)

November:
2 John and 3 John
Creed Without Chaos: Exploring Theology in the Writings of Dorothy L. Sayers by Laura K. Simmons.

In December, I plan to have a Christmas/New Year’s party for all who can come, we’ll discuss the book selections for next year. If you have suggestions via internet, feel free to email me or leave a comment. I would like to include the following in our reading for 2009: a mix of fiction and nonfiction, at least one Shakespeare play each year because I like Shakespeare, one Pulitzer or other prize winning book for adults, and one Prinz or Newbery or other prize-winning book for children or young adults. I’m looking forward to discussing specific, selected books with some of you, both online and in person.

Have Books, Need Bookshelves #2

Jan9

Closet door bookshelves. I SO want these all over my house. If you saw all the bookshelves that are already in my house, you would say, “Enough, already!” But I’m a biblioaddict; I can’t help myself.

Here are some pictures of absolutely beautiful libraries. I don’t think mine will ever be up to these standards.

Ladder bookshelves from Mother Earth Living via The Common Room. Or else the ladder actually becomes a hanging bookshelf.

Here’s the first in this what-I-hope-will-be an ongoing series of posts about cool bookshelves.