Day 23 of the 30 day book talk....

A book you wanted to read for a long time but still haven't

The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford,  is the one book that's hovered just under my radar for most of 2011, and whilst I have recommended it to so many people, I've never actually read it - it's just that the reviews have been so good, and I KNOW I will love it -

So.... the book is ordered from the library, and will be there to pick up on January 3rd, it looks like it will be one of my first reads of the year, and that should get my reading list for 2012 of to a flying start..

I suppose that the old saying " So many books, so little time " springs to mind - as there are always books I want to read and still haven't, and every year I set myself a little challenge to find a new author, or read a book that I've wanted to read for ages. This year my challenge was to complete Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, which I eventually managed to complete in August this year - I could quite easily have lived my life without reading Anna's story, but as challenges go it was a good one, and thanks to my kindle I was able to have the print at a comfortable reading size...the one thing that now puts me off reading more classic lit. is the tiny print in paper books....

jaffa's choice

I know that Jo has lots of cat books stored on her many book shelves, and this one has been lurking with intent for ages - well, our Goodreads page tells me that we've had a copy since June 2010 - it's high time we travelled the odyssey with Homer, and even though he's not a ginger bundle of mischief , I am sure he will soon become a good friend....and I'll only ever go to New York in my dreams...

Homer's Odyssey by Gwen Cooper

Homer's Odyssey by Gwen Cooper

And  to use this quote from Gwen Cooper - Love isn't something you see with your eyes.....sums up Homer quite beautifully.

Day 22 of the 30 day book talk..

Favourite book that you own

Well, I've already mentioned that my favourite book is a beautiful copy of the 20th Anniversary edition of Outlander, personally signed by Diana Gabaldon...

The Fraser red of the cover is tactile and sumptuous and a perfectly fitting tribute to this wonderful story....

I've read Outlander so many times I can quite literally quote chapter and verse - however, this book is made all the more special by the spirit in which it was given to me.

My Outlander friends are a very special bunch of people....

they are my Anam Caras.....

Anam Cara :Spiritual wisdom from the Celtic World by John O'Donohue

John O'Donohue

Anam Cara is Gaelic for "Soul Friend" 

My paternal great grandparents were Irish, and I like to think that my genetic memory is comforted and inspired by the beautiful writing and soulful expressions contained within the pages of this very special little book.





jaffa's choice

Under the Paw : Confessions of a Cat Man by Tom Cox

This is a laugh out loud funny book by a man who loves cats  - that's why this is one of my favourite books !

Day 21 of the 30 day book talk..

Favourite book from your childhood

I still have my original 1967 copy of The Owl Service, which I bought with a book token I had received for Christmas. It was the first book token I had ever received, and it was with great excitement that I went to the book store to choose a new book for myself. New books were quite a rarity, mainly my books came from the library, or were gathered from jumble sales or loaned by kind hearted friends. So, to have a completely new book was really special, and it's probably why I have still kept it. It's survived three house moves, and it has spent long periods in dusty old boxes in various lofts - but it's now back on my book shelf where it belongs - an old friend.



Incidentally, The Owl Service was made into a TV drama by Granada television, and was broadcast as a series between 1969-1970,


 Alison and Roger are stepbrother and sister, they are on holiday in Wales, staying in an old manor house that Alison has inherited on her father's death. Befriended by local boy, Gwyn, the trio discover a set of old crockery in the attic. Somehow the owl pattern on the plates keeps disappearing and mysterious things begin to happen...
This is quite a dark story, and I can remember being quite frightened whilst was reading it...but ultimately I loved it.



jaffa's choice


Kittens by Rachael Hale







This book was sent by my friend Milo - it gives me a warm and cosy feeling in my fur......

Here I am in my Rachael Hale pose.....

Day 20 of the 30 day book talk

Favourite Romantic Boook


is

Love Story by Erich Segal

This book came to my notice in 1970, when the movie with Ryan O'Neal and Ali McGraw became a box office sensation. I went to see the film with friends from school, we were impressionable teens, and just the right age to start having romantic ideas - Ryan O'Neal became an instant pin up. The inside of my school desk had a huge poster of him, which helped enormously to while away the misery of maths class.

Erich Segal's original idea, not only became THE film of the early seventies, but also became a publishing phenomenon - the book has remained in print since February 14 1970 ~ and remains my favourite Romantic novel.

Love means never having to say you're sorry

Jaffa's choice

The Aristocats

This 1970 Disney production is set in France in 1910, and tells the story of Thomas O'Malley, the alley cat, and his romance with the beautiful Duchess....

Another Jaffa look a like - all the best looking cats are ginger and white !!

Day 19 of the 30 day book talk..

Favourite book turned into a movie

Gone with the Wind is the 1940 film adaptation of Margaret Mitchell's 1936 Pulitzer prize winning novel ~ It is set in the 19th century American South, and the film tells the story of the American Civil War ~ the film won a stunning 10 Academy awards and starred the beautiful Vivienne Leigh. and the equally beautiful Clark Gable......



When  I was about  13, my mum took me to the cinema to see Gone with the Wind ~ the film is so long we almost had to take  a packed lunch, and a flask of tea to see us through to the end - but, during the movie I fell in love with the epic story of Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler. When I realised that the movie was primarily a book by Margaret Mitchell, I made up my mind to read the story for myself ..reading the book was almost as mammoth a task as watching the film, I recall that the the print was tiny, and yet I had a real sense of achievement when it was accomplished...
I still have a copy of the book, but somehow can't find the energy to read it again simply because the film is so good, and is true to Mitchell's novel....

jaffa's choice

Puss in Boots is taken from the 17th Century French fairy tale "Le Maître Chat ou Le Chat Botte " by Charles Perrault ~ it is the story of a cat who by deceit, gains power, wealth and the hand of a princess in marriage to his low born and penniless master.

There is a new 2011 version of Puss in Boots currently showing at most cinemas. It has the voice of Antonio Banderas as Puss....

I can't wait to see it - another jaffa lookalike is born......

Puss in Boots 2011

Day 18 of the 30 day book talk...

A Book that disappointed you

Because I read so much I have decided that my life is too short to read a bad book, and therefore feel no guilt when I abandon a book at whatever stage it starts to irritate. Most books are subjected to the 80 page rule, and if I'm not hooked by then, I'm afraid I give it up.....

The only exception to this rule is when I review books. and then I do try to complete the book in order to make a sound judgement...

A recent book that really disappointed me was :

One Day by David Nicholls




I know - I can hear everyone saying - "Oh, I loved that one - great book, great movie..."

It just didn't do it for me - I felt the whole thing was contrived, and almost purposely written with a movie deal in mind......and I so wanted to like it, I was disappointed in myself that I didn't enjoy it more...I thought the beginning was ok - as was the end - it was more the bit in the middle that disappointed me....



jaffa's choice

Not so much a disappointing story but a disappointing rhyme....

Mr Mistoffelees by T S Elliot .....from Old Possum's book of Practical Cats

OH!
Well I never!
Was there ever
A Cat so clever
As Mr Mistoffelees...

when really it should be........

OH!
Well I never!
Was there ever
A Cat so Clever
As Mr Jaffa

Day 17 of the 30 day book talk..

Favourite Quote(s) from Favourite books(s)

I have so many favourite quotes from my favourite books - I think it is time to be a little  indulgent......

From the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon


"For where all love is, the speaking is unnecessary.It is all. It is undying. It is enough" ~  Outlander by Diana Gabaldon 

"I stood still, vision blurring, and in that moment I heard my heart break, like the snapping of a flower's stem" ~ Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon

"It has always been forever for me, Sassenach " ~ Voyager by Diana Gabaldon

"This is our time. Until that time stops, for one of us, for both - it is our time. Now. Will you waste it because you are afraid?" ~ Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon

"When the day shall come that we do part" ,he said softly and turned to look at me "if my last words are not "I love you " - you'll ken it was because I dinna have time" ~ The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon

"And if time is anything a kin to God, I suppose that memory must be the devil " A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon

" Reading is of course dry work, and further refreshment was called for, and consumed " ~ An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon

 © Diana Gabaldon

And the rest..


" You don't forget the face of the person who was your last hope" ~ Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

" You never really understand a person, until you consider things from his point of view...until you climb into his skin and walk round in it " ~ To Kill a Mocking bird by Harper Lee

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of  a good fortune, must be in want of a wife..." ~ Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

" When he shall die
Take him and cut him out in little stars
And he will make the face of heaven so fine
That all the world will be in love with night
And pay no worship to the garish sun

~Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare






jaffa's choice



Look at me!
Look at me!
Look at me NOW
It is fun to have fun
But you have to know how.....

The Cat in the Hat by Dr Seuss