Happy weekend, folks! Mine is looking chirpier than last week, as I seem to be back on my feet. A bit of coughing here, a bit of sneezing there, but it no longer feels like my brain has gone on holiday without leaving a forwarding address. (This isn’t what I wanted when I hoped my blog would go viral, ba-duhm-crash.) For the first time in a while, I’m actually going to be disciplined and stick to a book, a link, and a blog post.
Oh, but first a reminder that it’s March! And thus it is time to read A View of the Harbour, if you’re participating in Elizabeth Taylor Centenary Celebrations. I’ll be hosting a discussion later in the month, and will hopefully start reading it myself this weekend (if I don’t get distracted by reading In Cold Blood for book group. I know Polly and Simon love it, but I’m a bit trepidatious…)
1.) The link – comes via my housemate Debs’ friend Jo. It’s a response in the Guardian to that list of beautiful bookshops which did the rounds a while ago (did I post them here? I can’t remember – there were some stunning places.) Basically it’s about the most unattractive and haphazard bookshops containing the best ‘finds’ – and does raise the question: why are so many secondhand bookshop owners grumpy and unpleasant? Is it just me who has found this? Is it because I buy cheap books, and they’re hoping I’ve got my eyes on £500 first editions? (There are notable exceptions, of course – the staff in Slightly Foxed bookshop, for instance, are always lovely.) Enough waffle from me – the article is here.
2.) The book – Urania, in the Virago Modern Classics LibraryThing group, mentioned a book in passing which really intrigued me: The Faster I Walk, The Smaller I Am by Kjersti Skomsvold. All I know about this book is that it’s a Norwegian novella – but those are two definite buzz words for me, and I was immediately sold. Onto the Amazon wishlist it went, for a post-Lent purchase… but I’d love to know if you’ve come across it already, and what you think?
3.) The blog post – is Tom’s very amusing review of The Very Hungry Caterpillar, which I saw on Simon S’s Twitter feed (yes, Twitter – I’m there occasionally!) Turns out Tom and I have a mutual friend called Carly from Real Life. She also blogs, or blogged, here. And now the indefinite chain of blog-links-to-blog-links-to-blog is in full force…
I loved the Hungry Caterpillar analysis – the number of times I've read that book!
As for grumpy second-hand book sellers (that sounds weird!) – I know a really friendly one ;)
Yesterday OV + self had to gain help from a nice man called Matthew to BREAK IN to the book barn at Barrington – to DELIVER books!
Haha!
And this reply reminds me that I've moaned about booksellers recently, oops, must be nicer about them…
Isn't Tom's review utterly brilliant. I loved it, glad you found it and are passing it on.
thanks for bringing it to my attention, Simon!
Many, many thanks for the link to my review: so happy that people seem to like it. I'm very flattered (though also a little embarrassed; you know, in an appropriately English kinda way) I was wondering where my sudden upsurge in hits was coming from!
But I have a horrible feeling that my blog might have peaked. How am I ever going to follow my Very Hungy C post? (I had no idea people would like it so much). I worry that everybody's going to find my planned up-coming reviews of books by Arthur C. Clarke, M.John Harrison and Georg Heym to be very disappointing, by comparison. :S
Tom.
Haha! The only times my blog posts have gone viral/started something of a meme, are the times when I've put no effort at all into a post – just stuck something up because I was tired. There's probably a lesson in there somewhere…
Love the review! btw, it happens to be The Very Hungry Caterpillar's birthday. The book has really become a classic for small children.
fyi: I happen to live in the town that is home to The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art – http://www.carlemuseum.org/Home – I keep a Membership there for free access to the museum & all its many programs – plus, I get a 15% discount in the store (more than I get at Barnes & Noble). It's a great store – love it!
What fun! I haven't read Carle since I was about eight – how nice that there is a whole museum.
I am intrigued by the title of that books: "The Faster I Walk, The Smaller I Am" and the fact that it's Norwegian made me want to buy it immediately. On to the wishlist it goes :)
You obviously have similar instincts to me! I was equally intrigued by these factors…