Monday 6 May 2013

What Are You Reading?

Hello all! 
(Gloria Swanson)

I managed to fit in a bit of reading while on school holidays!

I'm just in the midst of reading This Side of Paradise


and


But before these two, I finished reading Robin Hobb's latest book, 


I love Hobb's fantasy world of dragons, ships and magical cities,
and I really enjoyed this book,
but nothing will beat reading the Liveship Trader and Assassins Apprentice series,
when I discovered Hobb's writing for the first time. 

Also, I read For One More Day


and Moving Forward


which both dealt with the same topic, how to raise yourself above your past and become a better person.
Albom's version was a hypothetical type of story, in that it asks the question, what would you do if someone close to you died, and then came back into your life for one day. In the narrator's case it is his mother, and, while he is ashamed to admit his flaws and mistakes, he realises he can begin to live his life in a better way
if he wishes.

In Pelzer's Moving Forward, the story of a lost childhood is real, as Pelzer was horribly abused as a child. And yet, with all that darkness he found ways to let go of the past to enable him to move ahead, and now uses his experiences to help others. He provides tested methods for dealing with the low moments in life and how to get above them, and then takes this even further by encouraging people to be leaders. He warns, though that leaders don't get it easy. There will always be people who are cynical or jealous of the success of others and his advice is to be prepared rather than surprised by this. It is not personal, he says, just human nature for people to feel like they are missing out when a colleague or friend finds success.  I found this idea to be valuable, and I realised how important it is to be consciously aware of this.
I'll be reading more of Pelzer's books in the future!

I also finished reading Little Men


which was the most adorable story!
It tells of Jo Bhaer, from Little Women, who grows up to run her own school for boys (and some girls), and details all their little personalities and adventures, providing the children (and the reader!) with a whole lot of life lessons. Being a teacher I could really relate to all the idiosyncrasies and misunderstandings of the children, and just wanted to hug each one of them! If you love stories like Little Women
and The Secret Garden, then you will enjoy this too.

I also had a quick read on my iphone of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.



Being only a short story it was nowhere near as involved as the film (which was amazing!) but it is still an incredible story for its unusual concept of being born old and growing younger. While the ending didn't leave me in devastated tears like at the end of the film, it is still a spooky conclusion,
and makes you think about time, mortality, and how we live our lives.
Brilliant stuff!

Time to pop over to Book Journey to check out what everyone else is reading:



Love to you!
xxx



23 comments:

  1. My bookgroup is reading Gatsby this month. It looks like you are working on Fitzgerald's oeuvre!

    Here's my It's Monday!

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    1. Yeah, I guess I am! I just love the era, and intend to read other authors from the time, like Hemingway. :)

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  2. Love that cover on Little Men....and I do want to catch up on the F. Scott Fitzgerald books.

    Enjoy your week! Here's MY MONDAY MEMES POST

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    1. I just borrowed the Little Men book cover from Google images, but it's so cute, that if I saw that version in the shops, I would buy it!

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  3. Lots of fabulous books, I've read all Dave Pelzer's books except Moving Forward, he is truly inspiring. Must get my hands on a copy of it. I agree with you about Benjamin Button, for a short story it packs a punch.
    Have a wonderful week and happy reading :)

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    1. I actually got my copy of Moving Forward from Red Dot! They gave it away as a gift with purchase. Bonus!

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  4. That sounds like a great mix of books.

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  5. When I was very young, my family used to have a summer house in the mountains. It had no TV and could barely receive any radio, so we had to make our own (old-fashioned) entertainment. (Of course it was a very different age and we had none of the electronics or anything that exist today. We were used to old fashioned entertainment. LOL!) We would play with my dad's old board games from the 1930's and 1940's as we sat on the porch in the warm evening. One of my favorite things was when my mom would read to us. One of the stories I remember very clearly was The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Great memories.

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    1. That sounds idyllic! I found a Tumblr called Cabin Porn (he, he) which has the most gorgeous pics of little cabins in remote spots all over the world. So awesome!

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  6. I haven't read This Side of Paradise, which is a CRIME. Adding it to my list...

    Have a great week Wendy :D

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    1. There is that sense of obligation to read the classics, isn't there? I try, but I have to balance them with contemporary books to have a break from the language style. :)

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  7. Some great books I just finished The House of Memories by Monica McInerney

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    1. My favourite Monica McInerney has been The Faraday Girls. That was brilliant!

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  8. You did well!! I am STILL going slow! Too slow!!

    Here is my post!!

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    1. Well that's usually me too! I haven't actually read anything all week now that I'm back at work. :(

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  9. This Side of Paradise is wonderful. I hope you are enjoying it as much as I did! :)

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    1. Fitzgerald's characters are pretty dysfunctional, but rather than leaving me cold, I find their journey amusing.

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  10. That's a lot of reading Wendy. I'm a little embarrassed to say I haven't read much lately other than Petal Pixel, FStoppers, and Phlearn.

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    1. It was only because I was on holidays! I'm back to not reading much again. :( At least all the sites you've been visiting are educational. :)

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  11. I think I read Little Men a very long time ago...(I think. I've had at LEAST 45 years of reading, so something become a little vague over the years). I KNOW for sure I've read the Liveship Traders by Hobb. Great series, though I haven't tried the Assassin series by her. I am enjoying the Dragon book - so far. As soon as I find it again, I'll finish reading it.

    The Elegance of the Hedgehog - what an eye-catching title! :)

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  12. I read the Elegance of the Hedgehog a while ago and really enjoyed it. Have you seen the film too? It's was lovely, from recollection.

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  13. OK ...Where are you???? you are on School holidays ...no excuses please XXXXXX

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  14. For One More Day looks fab Wendy, it will be my next read. Have just finished Mrs. Kennedy & Me by Jackie's long-time bodyguard. Not salacious, just an honest account of that brief moment in time that became part of history forever.
    Millie x

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