You know, I haven’t been at work since Friday, December 20th. And let me just say it has been muy fantástico mis amigos. Even with the cold weather closing campus yesterday, the day had to come when I returned to work and that was today. Temperatures coupled with wind chill were still dangerously cold and I was bundled up from top to toe with only my eyes peering out from the layers as I walked around the corner from my house to the bus stop. I was so well padded I could have slipped on the ice and fallen and not felt a thing. Oddly enough, it was rather invigorating. As I waited for the bus I wanted to yell up at the invisible “polar vortex” and shout, “Ha! It takes more than -30F (-34C) wind chill to keep this Minnesotan indoors!” Admittedly, if I had to wait longer than the five minutes it took for my bus to arrive I might not have felt so belligerent.
But enough about my arctic adventures. Let’s talk January reading plan.
December didn’t quite go as planned since all kinds of books arrived for me at the library, but I still managed pretty well to read most of what I had intended. I just didn’t get to all the other books I was hoping to indulge in over my vacation since I indulged in a pile of others instead.
I continue to read Vital Signs: Psychological Responses to Ecological Crisis. I started reading Singing School by Robert Pinsky and have to say I am disappointed. I was expecting Pinsky talking about poetry and while he does a little, it is mostly poems he likes that the reader is supposed to study herself. I am not sure if I will keep reading it. I will decide soon.
And now here it is January 7th already. I’ve finished two books this month, one quite slim, Phantoms on the Bookshelves by Jacques Bonnet, and the other, The One-Straw Revolution by Masanobu Fukuoka. Both of these I will be writing more about in the coming days.
I realized on Friday last week that I didn’t have any novels on the go so immediately picked up Hilary Mantel’s Bring Up the Bodies. Oh, I am so glad I did! I was pretty down on historical fiction after the MOOC class and the terrible contemporary novels we were assigned (I never finished the lectures for this class, I just lost interest. My apologies to my discussion group for flaking out!) but Mantel has restored my faith in historical fiction. Oh is she ever so good.
From reading no novels I am now about to be in the midst of three. This morning on my commute to work I started reading David Copperfield. And tonight before bed I will start reading the next Slaves group read, Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier.
I think those will pretty much carry me through the rest of the month. If I decide to give up on Pinsky I may start Four Quartets by T.S. Eliot. I might just start it anyway.
Sounds like a bad choice of assigned reading made you lose interest.
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Nish, yes. If we had read any of the older historical fiction books like Waverly or Last of the Mohicans or any number that the professor mentions in his early lectures, I would have stayed interested. Oh well.
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Jamaica Inn is one of my favorite Du Maurer! Hope you enjoy it! By the way, a brave stand against the Polar Vertex!🙂
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cirtnecce, I’ve only read Rebecca and I liked it very much so I am really looking forward to this one! One must respect nature but not bow down in the face of her😉
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I’m happy your wait for the bus was not longer. Sounds like you know just how to apply the correct layers. We are, sadly, wimps compared to you Minnesotans. We bragged about how we braved the 1°F to one another at the office yesterday and swapped notes on the best brand of thermal under-clothing.
I gave up on Pinsky for a short while. He challenged the reader to type the poems for the sake of familiarity and I took it one step further and handwrote them. “Upon Appleton House” did me in. I returned the book and when the mood strikes again I’ll borrow it and write some more.
His advice to read a poem and not stop to look up a word’s meaning was helpful. I read “The Highwayman” in preparation for helping my nephew with his classwork and I think I better appreciated the cadence of the poem by not stopping and consulting a dictionary on the first read.
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Vanessa, I get to practice layering every winter so after 20 years I have become expert at it🙂 If you aren’t used to 1F it is quite a shock. I make fun of my parents in southern California though who pull out sweaters when the temperature falls to 65.
In the little bits where Pinsky does write about poetry it is very good and I like how he has broken up the book into sections that emphasize a certain skill for the reader/writer and a particular quality of the poem. But I want less poetry and more Pinsky.
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Yes, that walk to the bus stop in the cold and dark after a nice long break is something of an eye opener, isn’t it?! Glad to see the cold doesn’t have you down!😉 I am longing for spring, however . . . I read Jamaica Inn years ago so am not sure I will reread it since I have just started (rereading too) The Woman in White–it’s such a fantastic novel and I have fallen quite easily–perfect reading for the cold I think. Looks like you have a nice selection of books on the go–I once again have been dipping into lots and finishing nothing, so I had better settle down with just one or two soon!
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Danielle, oh yes, it is quite the eye opener. At least the days are getting a little longer and while the morning isn’t brighter there is light a bit later. We are being promised a heat wave by the weekend, possibly even a thaw. Woman in White is really fun so I understand why you might not want to reread Jamaica Inn. As it is I am starting it a bit late so I hope it reads pretty fast! And if you enjoy dipping, then don’t feel guilty!
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I just started Bring Up The Bodies myself! I am listening to it on audio (not my favorite book delivery system, but this time it’s working out quite well). I get so interested in the book, I sometimes forget where I’m going and start driving to work even when that is not where I was going at all. Not all that safe. Maybe I’ll listen to it while I do housework instead. Oh, Slaves if reading Jamaica Inn? Marvelous. I actually have that one and read it a couple of years ago, so I will re-read and finally be able to participate once again. Minnesota is such a great place, and Minnesotans are such a sturdy bunch. The polar vortex be damned.
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Grad, oh, we will have to compare notes! I am not an audiobook listener but Bookman is and he has been known to sit in the car when he gets home from work just to listen to the book a little bit longer. Yup, Slaves are reading Jamaica Inn. It’s be nice to have you join in🙂 Heh, the cold is what we willing endure on order to live in such a beautiful state.
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Yay for Bring Up The Bodies! I’ve been sort of saving it for a rainy day (or a very cold one – hopefully not polar vortex cold). I wasn’t sure whether I’d be able to join in for the Slaves this month, but I might be able to. I am pretty sure that my copy of Jamaica Inn is with my parents, however (I was in my teens when I had my big du Maurier phase!) which is a bit frustrating. I’ll be with you all if I can.
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Litlove, I’ve been saving it too but I couldn’t save it any longer. Now I am already worrying about how long I will have to wait for the third book and I am not even halfway through this one yet. I hope you can join the Slaves. I might be a little late but I am going to try and finish in time.
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I just finished Jamaica Inn last night and it was really interesting. I’d only read Rebecca before this, and JI feels like a very different book. I’ll be interested to hear what people have to say about it!
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Rebecca, I’ve only ever read Rebecca too so I have no idea what to expect.
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I have Jamaica Inn ready to go but first I need to read the book for my mystery book group. I am determined to participate in the Slaves discussion!🙂
Note to self: read Hilary Mantel!
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Iliana, Mantel is soooo good. But first you must read Jamaica Inn🙂
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