BW34: 14 Things

Fourteen, 14, XIV

Happy Sunday!  This week I'm thinking about the number fourteen.   Merriam Webster defines it as 'a number that is one more than thirteen'.  That's it, I kid you not. Other dictionaries (real ones)  state it is a cardinal number, ten plus four; equal to seven times two, or six less than twenty; a symbol 14 or XIV;  a set of persons or things.  A series of 14 books is called a tetradecology. 

Pressbooks: In the 14th century, Chaucer became the first writer to use English in his works

History Extra: Cosmopolitan Chaucer: Marion Turner on the 14th-century poet’s inventive, international life

Buzzfeed:  Hannah Loewenthal's 14 Best Books in 2022

Momjunction:  17 Best Books For 13 And 14-Year-Olds To Read In 2022

GMA:  August books to squeeze in before summer ends: 14 to read

NPR:  Here are the 14 books that NPR staff and critics are loving the most so far this year

Goodreads: Books with fourteen in the title

Read a book  with 14 or more books in series such as Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time, J.D. Robb's In Death, Terry Pratchett's Discworld, Louise Penny's Armand Gamache, Jan Karon's Mitford, Sue Grafton's Kinsey Milhone, or  Lee Childs Jack Reacher. 

Have fun following rabbit trails. 

Our A to Z and Back Again letter and word of the week are S and Series. 

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BW33: Mary Jo Salter

 

Happy Sunday!  This week we celebrate the birthday of American poet, Mary Jo Salter, who is co editor of the Norton Anthology of Poetry and a professor at John Hopkins University  

Discovery

By

Mary Jo Salter

6:48 a.m., and leaden
little jokes about what heroes
we are for getting up at this hour.
Quiet. The surf and sandpipers running.
T minus ten and counting, the sun
mounting over Canaveral
a swollen coral, a color
bright as camera lights. We’re blind-
sided by a flash:

shot from the unseen
launching pad, and so from nowhere,

a flame-tipped arrow—no, an airborne

pen on fire, its ink a plume

of smoke which, even while zooming

upward, stays as oddly solid

as the braided tail of a tornado,

and lingers there as lightning would

if it could steal its own thunder.

—Which, when it rumbles in, leaves

under or within it a million

firecrackers going off, a thrill

of distant pops and rips in delayed

reaction, hitting the beach in fading

waves as the last glint of shuttle

receives our hands’ eye-shade salute:

the giant point of all the fuss soon

smaller than a star.

Only now does a steady, low

sputter above us, a lawn mower

cutting a corner of the sky,

grow audible. Look, it’s a biplane!—

some pilot’s long-planned, funny tribute

to wonder’s always-dated orbit

and the itch of afterthought. I swat

my ankle, bitten by a sand gnat:
what the locals call no-see-’ums.

Happy Birthday to Mary Jo Salter!

Our A to Z and Back again letter and word of the week are T and Tangible.

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BW32: 52 Books Bingo - Curious Cats and Courageous Canines

 

Happy Sunday! From The Dogfather series by Roxanne St. Claire to the running joke of we don't know what the heck Gracie is in the Armand Gamache Series by Louise Penny to Erin Hunter's Warrior Cats to Lillian Jackson Braun's Cat Who series, the characters with paws make the story and are a joy to read.  Join me for this week's 52 Books Bingo category reading about Curious Cats and Courageous Canines.  

Slates: The Case of the Feline Flatfoot

Write Academy's: Cats in Books: Our Top Fictional Felines

Crime Reads:  Cats and Cozy mysteries, the purr-fect combination and  Reader's Guide to K-9 Mysteries 

Goodreads: Pawsitively Love-Romances With Special Pets Or Animals and Hot Dog! (A Dachshund-lover's list)

And last but not least is Bookriot's 100 Must Read Books with Cats in Them

Our  A to Z and Back Again Letter and Word of the week are U and Unique.

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BW31: Crime Spree - True Crime

 

Happy Sunday! August is upon us and our newest crime spree category brought to us by Sandy and Amy is all about True Crime. 

True Crime is a genre with no middle ground—readers either love it or have no stomach for true examples of the darker side of human behavior. The modern genre started with Edmund Pearson in the 1920s and continues today in dozens of forms of media, from books to podcasts. 

Studies in Murder by Edmund Pearson

·      In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

·       The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule

·       Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann

·        The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson

 

Challenge: Lock your doors, turn on your lights, and pick up a True Crime mystery that won’t keep you up at night.

Our A to Z and Back Again letter of the week is V and Vanguard.

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BW30: Bookish Miscellanea

Happy Sunday! This week we celebrate Amelia Earhart day, National Tequila day, Culinarians day, All or Nothing day, National Love is Kind day, National Milk Chocolate day, National Lasagna day, National Cheesecake day, and last but not least. Paperback book day.  Hmm, I think I'm hungry!   

My neighbor dropped off a bag of peaches from his garden today. I decided I should make lasagna as well as a peach pie this week, so off the the grocery store I went.  And while I was there, I got to thinking how we've been in kind of a food rut lately and should pick up something different for a change versus the same ole, same ole.  I ended up with a potpourri of items.  Which brings me to my web wanderings which mirrored my shopping trip. A little bit of this, a little bit of that!

Fiona Barton's Favorite Thrillers featuring Female Detectives 

Pass the popcorn: action adventure thrillers 

Tasmanian 'book detective' reunites customers with long-lost books and beloved childhood titles

Discovered a new blog as well as an annual book celebration Women in Translation

Chance, Choice, and the Avocado: The Strange Evolutionary and Creative History of Earth’s Most Nutritious Fruit

10 Food Writing Books to Read This Fall

He Might Be a Prophet. That, or the Greatest Chef in the World.

The Cocktail at the End of the Universe

Do any of  you remember Graham Kerr?  Why the Galloping Gourmet—a Kooky, 1970s TV Chef—Is an Unsung Style Icon for Our Times

Our A to Z and back again letter and word of the week are W and Wine.

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BW29: Fall of the Evening Star

 

Constellations by Maggie Vandewalle

Happy Sunday!  I bookmark things on my computer, buy cards with unique sayings, add books to my wishlist and I'll come across them later and wonder what was I thinking.  What struck me at the time and why did I save it?  This poem is one of those saved and forgotten.  I was going through bookmarks, deleting those I don't use anymore and found it. Don't know when I bookmarked it, but I'm glad I found it again. Love the imagery.  Reminds me of reading and rereading stories and getting something completely different out of them versus the first time.  Sigh! So lovely.

Fall of the Evening Star

By

Kenneth Patchen

Speak softly; sun going down

Out of sight. Come near me now.

Dear dying fall of wings as birds

complain against the gathering dark...

Exaggerate the green blood in grass;

the music of leaves scraping space;

Multiply the stillness by one sound;

by one syllable of your name...

And all that is little is soon giant,

all that is rare grows in common beauty

To rest with my mouth on your mouth

as somewhere a star falls

And the earth takes it softly, in natural love...

Exactly as we take each other...

and go to sleep...

All this to say, revisit an old friend by rereading a favorite author or book and enjoy discovering them all over again. 

Our letter and word of the week are X and Xiphoid.

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BW28: 52 Books Bingo - Southern Fiction

 

Howdy!  I was born and raised in the south before we headed out to wild and wacky California. But my roots will always remain in Texas where I was born, then Alabama to Georgia during my formative high school and college years.   Yes, I was one of those who used to call everybody hon or sweetie or darlin. And dropped the g's on all words ending in ing. I had to work hard to lose the accent once we landed in California, however my southern accent still creeps back in when I'm tired or I hear someone speaking with a drawl.  But Y'ALL has stuck with me ever since.  And I bet y'all are wondering why I'm telling you this. Why our next 52 Books Bingo category, of course!  :)   Time to dip our toes into the wonderful world of Southern Fiction.  

What is Southern Literature?

What Makes Southern Literature Unique? 

Southern Gothic Literature

36 Deep-Fried Delish Southern Books And Writers

12 Southern Novels That Will Knock Your Boots Off

Seven Atmospheric Mystery Suspense Novels Set in the South

Goodread's Listopia of Best Southern Literature

Our letter and word of the week are Y and Yesteryear

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BW27: Crime Spree - The Americans

 

Happy Sunday! July is upon us and our newest crime spree category brought to us by Sandy and Amy is all about American mystery Authors.

Not all of us want to venture too far from home, and The American authors have plenty to offer as well. From the start of hard-boiled detection starting in the 1930s (Carroll John Daly) to Navajo mysteries (Tony Hillerman) to mystery writers that spanned several generations (Rex Stout).

 Authors to explore:

  Dorothy Hughes (1931-1978)

·         Raymond Chandler (1933-1959)

·         Rex Stout (1934-1975)

·         Baynard Kendrick (1937-1961)

·         Sue Grafton (1967-2017)

·         Lawrence Block (1958-present)

·         Robert B. Parker (1974-2010)

·         Tony Hillerman (1970-2006)

 Challenge: Pour yourself a stiff drink, grab a dame, and spent a weekend contemplating the grittier side of life by reading an American-centric mystery.

And our countdown begins as we go backwards through the alphabet with A to Z and Back Again. Our letter and word of the week are Z and Zeugma. 

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BW26: Half Time Randomness

 

Happy Sunday! We're half way through the year and Summertime has arrived in our neck of the world, and  Wintertime for those on the other side of the world.  And I've got nothing. Well, not really. I've got a song crashing through my mind, an unfortunate earworm that I can't identify which will drive me loopy until I figure it out.  In the meantime, let's dip into a bit of half time randomness. 

Once a year I watch Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's The Danger of a Single Story and get something different out of it every time. I love her books. 

I just finished reading The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections by Eva Jurczyk so the Ted Talk about The World's Most Mysterious Book fascinated me. 

And while wondering through Ideas.Ted.Com came across 70 books to make you feel hopeful: A special reading list.  You're welcome! 

While falling down some rabbit hole about 25 Beautiful Literary Maps, it lead me to  Kenocartographobia. No, I didn't know what it was either. The fear of Maps. And wouldn't you know it, Goodreads has a list. 

I just discovered the newest book by A.J. Jacobs, The Puzzler, which I of course, had to get instantly.  If you haven't read any of his books, start with The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible) and also check out Jacob's favorite recent reads.

And given that our letter of the week is Z, check out books by authors whose last names start with Z.  My choice is of course, Carlos Ruiz Zafon.

~Cheers~

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BW25: Happy Father's Day

 

Happy Sunday!  This week we celebrate our dads. From the serious to the silly, from thoughtful to chatty, from gregarious to introverted. We honor those who we miss and hold close to our hearts.

 A Brief History of Father’s Day

Fatherly Advice Given From Famous Dads in Literature 

Celebrate Dads Everywhere With These 10 Books

The 8 Best Dads in Literature, According to Readers

12 most memorable fathers from literature

A Book for Every Kind of Dad on Father’s Day

Read a book with father  or Dad  in the title.

Read a book about Fantastic Dads and Father Figures

Did your dad ever read to you when you were little?  Share memories of books given to you by your father. Which literary father do you like the best?

Our letter and word of the week are Y and Yesterday

Happy Father's Day to all our dads! 

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BW24: 52 Books bingo - Clef Notes

Sakarambo

 

Happy Sunday! Whenever I think of religious characters, I think of chanting monks which brings us to our next 52 Books Bingo category - Clef Notes. Music comes in all shapes and forms so read books about music, learning to read music, musicians and singers, Tibetan monks and singing bowls, Gregorian chants in a church, or just go with the flow and see where your mind takes you. 

Read a book with Clef  or Notes in the title. 

Read a book about Musicology 

Read a book with musical notes or instruments on the cover

Read a book from The Capitol Theatre's list of 10 Books That Every Music Lover Should Read. 

Read a book from About Great Reads list of  50 Great Novels about Music.

Our letter and word of the week are X and Xango.

Have fun following musical rabbit trails! 

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BW23: Crime Spree - Religious Characters

 

Happy Sunday! June is upon us and our newest crime spree category brought to us by Sandy and Amy is one of my favorite to read.  

There’s something so appealing about a man (or woman) of the cloth who isn’t just trying to save our soul, but also our life. Religious Characters feature in cozy mysteries, usually as a reluctant amateur sleuth but sometimes as the unexpected villain. 

 Authors to explore:

 GK Chesterton – Father Brown

·         Ellis Peters – Brother Cadfael

·         Cassandra Clark – Abbess of Meaux

·         Julia Spencer Fleming - Clare Ferguson

·         James Runcie - Sidney Chambers

·         GM Malliet - Max Tudor

·         Harry Kemelman – Rabbi Small

 

Challenge: See how the other half lives by reading a mystery with a man or woman of the cloth as a sleuth.

Our letter and word of the week is W and Wisdom

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