As seen over at Radical Mama:
The top 100 or so books most often marked as “unread” by LibraryThing’s users. Bold the books you have read, underline the ones you read for school, italicize the ones you started but didn’t finish.
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
Anna Karenina
Crime and Punishment
Catch-22
One Hundred Years of Solitude
Wuthering Heights
The Silmarillion
Life of Pi : a novel
The Name of the Rose
Don Quixote
Moby Dick
Ulysses
Madame Bovary
The Odyssey
Pride and Prejudice
Jane Eyre
The Tale of Two Cities
The Brothers Karamazov
Guns, Germs, and Steel
War and Peace
Vanity Fair
The Time Traveler’s Wife
The Iliad
Emma
The Blind Assassin
The Kite Runner
Mrs. Dalloway
Great Expectations
American Gods
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
Atlas Shrugged
Reading Lolita in Tehran : a memoir in books
Memoirs of a Geisha
Middlesex
Quicksilver
Wicked : the life and times of the wicked witch of the West
The Canterbury Tales
The Historian : a novel
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
Love in the Time of Cholera
Brave New World
The Fountainhead
Foucault’s Pendulum
Middlemarch
Frankenstein
The Count of Monte Cristo
Dracula
A Clockwork Orange
Anansi Boys
The Once and Future King
The Grapes of Wrath
The Poisonwood Bible
1984
Angels & Demons
Inferno
The Satanic Verses
Sense and Sensibility
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Mansfield Park
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
To the Lighthouse
Tess of the D’Urbervilles
Oliver Twist
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Dune
The Prince
The Sound and the Fury
Angela’s Ashes : a memoir
The God of Small Things
A People’s History of the United States : 1492-present
Cryptonomicon
Neverwhere
A Confederacy of Dunces
A Short History of Nearly Everything
Dubliners
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Beloved
Slaughterhouse-five
The Scarlet Letter
Eats, Shoots & Leaves
The Mists of Avalon
Oryx and Crake
Collapse : how societies choose to fail or succeed
Cloud Atlas
The Confusion
Lolita
Persuasion
Northanger Abbey
The Catcher in the Rye
On the Road
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Freakonomics : a rogue economist explores the hidden side of everything
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance : an inquiry into values
The Aeneid
Watership Down
Gravity’s Rainbow
The Hobbit
In Cold Blood : a true account of a multiple murder and its consequences
White Teeth
Treasure Island
David Copperfield
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Children's Poetry
When my sisters and I were young we had a favorite book of poems: Piping Down the Valleys Wild (edited by Nancy Larrick). I was lucky enough to come across this book at a garage sale several years ago. Some of my favorites include:
Get Up and Bar the Door (Anonymous)
The Owl and the Pussycat (Edward Lear)
Cats (Eleanor Farjeon)
Every Time I Climb a Tree (David McCord)
My Shadow (Robert Louis Stevenson)
Daddy Fell Into the Pond (Alfred Noyes)
Father William (Lewis Carroll)
It was that collection and A.A. Milne that I believe fostered my love of poetry. To this day I make sure I always have a copy of When We Were Very Young in the house. Favorites from that include:
Buckingham Palace
The Four Friends
Disobedience
Rice Pudding
The King's Breakfast
Halfway Down
Poetry is meant to be read outloud. I read these and many others to Boy in his youngest years but, alas, he finally asked me to stop. Since then I've read them to the cats.
Now I know everyone loves Shel Silverstein, and I do too, but the other children's poet I adore is Jack Prelutsky. I am especially fond of his book The Dragons are Singing Tonight.
Get Up and Bar the Door (Anonymous)
The Owl and the Pussycat (Edward Lear)
Cats (Eleanor Farjeon)
Every Time I Climb a Tree (David McCord)
My Shadow (Robert Louis Stevenson)
Daddy Fell Into the Pond (Alfred Noyes)
Father William (Lewis Carroll)
It was that collection and A.A. Milne that I believe fostered my love of poetry. To this day I make sure I always have a copy of When We Were Very Young in the house. Favorites from that include:
Buckingham Palace
The Four Friends
Disobedience
Rice Pudding
The King's Breakfast
Halfway Down
Poetry is meant to be read outloud. I read these and many others to Boy in his youngest years but, alas, he finally asked me to stop. Since then I've read them to the cats.
Now I know everyone loves Shel Silverstein, and I do too, but the other children's poet I adore is Jack Prelutsky. I am especially fond of his book The Dragons are Singing Tonight.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Children's Literature
K8 tells us that this week is Children's Books week and invites us to share some of our favorite children's literature. I was very lucky growing up to have a mother who loved children's lit and exposed me to many excellent books. At the time she was pursuing her doctorate in English Lit but eventually put that aside and started writing books for young adults. One of my sisters, Meg, is also a published author of books for young children, so it is a subject with which I have some familiarity.
I decided to share some of the books that made it through Boy's childhood. These are books that I bought him and shared with him and when he outgrew them I refused to let them go.
The Trumpet of the Swan is definitely number 1. I know Charlotte's Web is the favored E.B. White but the story of Louis, the mute young swan who plays Beautiful Dreamer on his trumpet to win the heart of his one love, Serena, won me over the first time I read it. I can't tell you how thrilled I was when Boy loved it best too. It was a book we discussed for several years and one he still remembers fondly.
Next up is An Anteater Named Arthur by Bernard Waber. I picked this little gem up in a library booksale in Boy's elementary school. I had never seen it before but fell in love with the stories of Arthur as told by his mother. The last story in the book "Sometimes Arthur Forgets" was Boy to a T.
A favorite of mine, but not Boy's was Catwings by Ursula K. Le Guin. I do love anything by her and her Earthsea Trilogy was my first foray into science fiction. Who wouldn't love a story about a litter of kittens born with wings? Unfortunately that would be Boy. I could never get past the first chapter with him.
I have loved dragons since I was a child (I still get weepy when I hear Puff the Magic Dragon) and I read any story that contained a dragon. Yet somehow I missed Ruth Stiles Gannett's "My Father's Dragon" books. Meg gave them to Boy when my niece had outgrown them. Originally there were three but I can only find two now: Elmer and the Dragon and The Dragons of Blueland.
Another book that Boy loved as much as I but seems to have disappeared, is The Phantom Tollbooth. He totally got into the adventure, the puns, and the general zaniness. He would often fall into hysterical laughter and make me reread sections over and over before we could proceed. Wonderful illustrations by Jules Feiffer just adds to the charm.
I'll end tonight's post with Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. A charming story of a mother mouse who must move her children out of the field before the harvest but her youngest son, Timothy, is too sick to be moved. Super intelligent rats from NIMH come to her aid.
Stay tuned for the post on children's poetry.
I decided to share some of the books that made it through Boy's childhood. These are books that I bought him and shared with him and when he outgrew them I refused to let them go.
The Trumpet of the Swan is definitely number 1. I know Charlotte's Web is the favored E.B. White but the story of Louis, the mute young swan who plays Beautiful Dreamer on his trumpet to win the heart of his one love, Serena, won me over the first time I read it. I can't tell you how thrilled I was when Boy loved it best too. It was a book we discussed for several years and one he still remembers fondly.
Next up is An Anteater Named Arthur by Bernard Waber. I picked this little gem up in a library booksale in Boy's elementary school. I had never seen it before but fell in love with the stories of Arthur as told by his mother. The last story in the book "Sometimes Arthur Forgets" was Boy to a T.
A favorite of mine, but not Boy's was Catwings by Ursula K. Le Guin. I do love anything by her and her Earthsea Trilogy was my first foray into science fiction. Who wouldn't love a story about a litter of kittens born with wings? Unfortunately that would be Boy. I could never get past the first chapter with him.
I have loved dragons since I was a child (I still get weepy when I hear Puff the Magic Dragon) and I read any story that contained a dragon. Yet somehow I missed Ruth Stiles Gannett's "My Father's Dragon" books. Meg gave them to Boy when my niece had outgrown them. Originally there were three but I can only find two now: Elmer and the Dragon and The Dragons of Blueland.
Another book that Boy loved as much as I but seems to have disappeared, is The Phantom Tollbooth. He totally got into the adventure, the puns, and the general zaniness. He would often fall into hysterical laughter and make me reread sections over and over before we could proceed. Wonderful illustrations by Jules Feiffer just adds to the charm.
I'll end tonight's post with Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. A charming story of a mother mouse who must move her children out of the field before the harvest but her youngest son, Timothy, is too sick to be moved. Super intelligent rats from NIMH come to her aid.
Stay tuned for the post on children's poetry.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Kittens
Our next door neighbor has lots of cats and one small dog. It seems she doesn't spay her female cats and they have frequent litters. At the moment she has two litters just 3 weeks apart. The moms are very protective, as you would imagine, and they appear to be co-parenting.
The kittens are old enough to begin roaming around and frequently wander into our front yard. Our neighbor is generally successful at finding new homes for the various litters but I still find it incredibly irresponsible not to spay your cats. She has gone away for a week and has friends and acquaintances (including our postman) "dropping by" to keep an eye on the kittens. Before she left she told me that the last time she went away and left a litter of kittens someone came by and "swooped" them all up. One of the kittens (the most dominant one in the group) gets along well with her new dog (her last one was hit by a car) so she wants to keep her. She decided to take just that kitten to her friend's house for the week--for safekeeping.
Last night there were thunderstorms and tornado warnings in our area. When b and I went to bed we heard a kitten (the little orange one) crying outside our window. When I got up to investigate I found our other neighbors were already on the case. They located the kitten and brought him in for the night.
Today Boy and I had to drag them out from under Boy's car so he could go to work. I think we're down to 2 maybe 3 kittens (there were 7 originally). I can only hope the mother cats have moved their location (what with all the activity) or others have "swooped" in to rescue them.
The kittens are old enough to begin roaming around and frequently wander into our front yard. Our neighbor is generally successful at finding new homes for the various litters but I still find it incredibly irresponsible not to spay your cats. She has gone away for a week and has friends and acquaintances (including our postman) "dropping by" to keep an eye on the kittens. Before she left she told me that the last time she went away and left a litter of kittens someone came by and "swooped" them all up. One of the kittens (the most dominant one in the group) gets along well with her new dog (her last one was hit by a car) so she wants to keep her. She decided to take just that kitten to her friend's house for the week--for safekeeping.
Last night there were thunderstorms and tornado warnings in our area. When b and I went to bed we heard a kitten (the little orange one) crying outside our window. When I got up to investigate I found our other neighbors were already on the case. They located the kitten and brought him in for the night.
Today Boy and I had to drag them out from under Boy's car so he could go to work. I think we're down to 2 maybe 3 kittens (there were 7 originally). I can only hope the mother cats have moved their location (what with all the activity) or others have "swooped" in to rescue them.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Class-Related Baking
I spent most of today in the kitchen. You may recall that I've been teaching a practicum class this semester. This class was totally my idea and I was able to hand-select a small group (N=10) of undergraduate (n=6) and graduate (n=4) students. My research assistant served as a TA. The entire class was focused around my research topic and we conducted field work that was a mix between necessary and helpful for my research agenda. The students were great and we've really grown as a group.
Tomorrow is the last class. Everyone will be handing in their portfolios and we'll share our experiences of the semester and our ideas for the future. Several of the students met on Friday to audiotape some of the poems from one of my studies. My friend and colleague (who has been volunteering with the class) is putting it together as a photostory. We'll preview that as a group.
Several times during the semester I baked for some of the community events. Mostly breads - pumpkin bread, banana chocolate bread - and other times I brought in muffins from a local bakery. I promised them I'd bake them all something for tomorrow.
I recently found this website and enjoy both the receipes and the restaurant posts (most take place in my home town). Today I baked Beer Cupcakes (substituted Beamish for Guiness) and Peanut Butter Banana Bread. The cupcakes were as easy to make as promised and I think they look pretty good.
I decided against the optional peanuts outside of the banana bread, so it doesn't look quite like the photo but it too was fairly easy and rose A LOT in the oven. I'll have to wait for tomorrow for the tasting.
Two of my students (undergraduate) and my assistant will be graduating next week. We'll have lots to celebrate and feel proud of but it will be a little bittersweet.
Tomorrow is the last class. Everyone will be handing in their portfolios and we'll share our experiences of the semester and our ideas for the future. Several of the students met on Friday to audiotape some of the poems from one of my studies. My friend and colleague (who has been volunteering with the class) is putting it together as a photostory. We'll preview that as a group.
Several times during the semester I baked for some of the community events. Mostly breads - pumpkin bread, banana chocolate bread - and other times I brought in muffins from a local bakery. I promised them I'd bake them all something for tomorrow.
I recently found this website and enjoy both the receipes and the restaurant posts (most take place in my home town). Today I baked Beer Cupcakes (substituted Beamish for Guiness) and Peanut Butter Banana Bread. The cupcakes were as easy to make as promised and I think they look pretty good.
I decided against the optional peanuts outside of the banana bread, so it doesn't look quite like the photo but it too was fairly easy and rose A LOT in the oven. I'll have to wait for tomorrow for the tasting.
Two of my students (undergraduate) and my assistant will be graduating next week. We'll have lots to celebrate and feel proud of but it will be a little bittersweet.
Saturday, May 3, 2008
PC Blues
Yesterday b and I took a trip to the nearest Apple store. It was a beautiful day. We got a lot accomplished and I got my birthday present (I won't touch it until the actual day--b seems to think this is a little crazy). However I needed to leave my MacBook behind so they can send it in for repairs. It felt weird walking out the door without it. I am now working on an old pc laptop that I have. It is clunky and annoying.
When my MacBook comes back it will also get a brand new hard drive (more than double the current space) and it will have an amazing back-up system ready and waiting for it. So life should be good in a few days. I'm hoping it comes by my birthday.
When my MacBook comes back it will also get a brand new hard drive (more than double the current space) and it will have an amazing back-up system ready and waiting for it. So life should be good in a few days. I'm hoping it comes by my birthday.
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