Just a few miscellaneous items today. First, exciting (bookish) news. Margaret Atwood is coming to Omaha in April! She is the guest of honor at an event that my public library is hosting. I often complain about a lack of literary events locally, but the chance of hearing Margaret Atwood speak makes up for it. Needless to say I've mentally penciled the event in on my social calendar.
With the time change this past weekend I am now plunged into darkness on my morning and evening walks to and from the bus stop. Actually it has been dark in the mornings for a while, but now I get to go home in the dark, too. This means I have to rethink the days I visit the library to swap out books as I don't relish walking home from the library at night in the dark. So five books on hold grew to seven and now when I have just looked again it has grown by one more. Itchy fingers means I want the books now, though I guess I'll have to wait until the weekend.
Is it just me or has it felt like it should be Friday for the past two days? Yesterday I kept thinking--only a couple more days to go until I really thought about it and realized it was only Tuesday. This is probably a good thing really since I am trying to focus on just a few books in order to finish them in a timely manner (anything has to be better than last month).
A friend of mine did a little shopping a couple of days ago and picked me up a package of 'British style crumpets'. Have you had them before? They are yummy. I like to freeze them and just have one now and then as a special treat. Preferably slathered with a little of my favorite preserves. Okay, maybe not slathered--that sounds awfully decadent, but you know what I mean. Just what is a crumpet anyway? I'd like to try Scottish crumpets. Let me clarify that--I'd like to go to Scotland and try their version of crumpets. (Wishful thinking). Anyway, I have a cabinet full of various teas and I'm looking forward to picking one out this weekend, snuggling up under a blanket with a good book and my crumpet and tea. (It's the little things in life).
On to more bookish topics before this post spirals out of control and I go raid my cupboards.
Did you see this? Wilkie in Winter presented by The Estella Society? You know me--any good excuse to start a new book. There is a group readalong for Wilkie Collins's The Frozen Deep, which is a novella that I have not yet read as well as a group read for The Woman in White just after the holidays. Something nice to look forward to for the after-the-holidays-drabness. The Woman in White will be a reread for me, and I think a little Victorian melodrama will be just what I need about then.
Looking for more chances to read along? This month's Literature and War selection is Death of the Adversary by Hans Keilson (that is one of the books waiting for me at the public library!). This book is going to do double duty as it will also be one of my books for the German Literature Month.
Although I am still reading Isabel Colegate's The Shooting Party, Cornflower's next Book Group book is Sei Shonagon's The Pillow Book this month (although I have yet to get around to writing about it I did read Jane Gardam's Crusoe's Daughter for the CBG last month . . . ). This is a good reminder to go pull out my copy of the Shonagon from wherever it is hiding.
And if you'd like to read along with the Slaves of Golconda, drop by and vote for your choice of next read! You have until November 11 to cast your vote and we won't be discussing the book until mid-January, so there is still loads of time to join in.
January? Already making reading plans for it? I guess it is never too soon, is it? I have been mentally thinking about reading projects and such, but it is still far too soon to share anything . . . But I suspect that a few books by Margaret Atwood will be on my reading pile!
It's been a rainy, grey, cold few days. We even had glimpses of snow. I'm not ready for winter yet, but the cold and rain does make that promise of tea and crumpets awfully appealing.