I have managed for two entire weeks to not add a book to my library requests. I would have made it past today too but the book gods sent me a message and I am not one to mess around when they are trying to get my attention.
It seems their message has a duel intent, good books and for me to come to terms with squirrels.
The first message came last week with an article at the Guardian of top 10 squirrels in literature. Who knew there were so many books with squirrels in them? While the description of the squirrel in Nabokov’s Pnin sounded amusing, the demon squirrel in Small Game by John Blades seemed more realistic. I saved the list because, you know, it could be amusing to read a few of the books at some point in time.
I went on my merry way until today when it came to my attention that The Portable Veblen by Elizabeth McKenzie contains an “an intimate tête-à-tête with a very charismatic squirrel.” I checked my library and of course they have it and of course there is a line for it. I hesitated for about a second before I put myself on the list. I am number 82 so it will arrive sooner that I want it to but not as soon as I expect.
While I was thinking of squirrels I checked to see if there was another volume of Squirrel Girl and there is! In volume 2 she faces off against Ratatoskr, the Norse god of squirrels! So of course I had to request that too! I am number 26 in line for it.
In the meantime other books in my library queue are moving up faster than I expected but it’s all cool. I finished Fates and Furies and should have something to say about it tomorrow. I am working my way through Sorcerer to the Crown and Between the World and Me is moving right along as well. That means I will be ready for the squirrels whenever they should arrive! And, I have followed the directive of the book gods so all will be well.
I just took a gigantic bag of books back to the library (mostly unread) and was feeling all virtuous about being able to focus on my TBR pile (as I should during the TBR Dare) and a handful of TOB books. And then I got an e-mail today saying Between the World and Me, which I’ve had on hold forever, is ready for me to pick up. I will try to just see it as a message from the book gods 🙂 They were, after all, kind enough to send a blizzard that extended all my holds for a week.
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It seems that the God of libraries may be a squirrel! That piece in The Portable Veblen sounds intriguing – squirrel watching as a status marker for the New Class? Enjoy the squirrelling!
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Ian, I think you are right! Why didn’t I see that before? 😉 I’m not certain what is going on with squirrels but they seem to be popping up everywhere.
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Teresa, it is definitely a message and you don’t want to make the book gods angry especially after they granted you a blizzard 😉
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Great post.
I love that list of Squirrels in literature. Imagine just reading through it based upon a desire to read about squirrels 🙂
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Brian Joseph, thanks! It’s a funny list, isn’t it? Using squirrels to guide one’s reading could definitely be interesting 🙂
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I have a charismatic squirrel at my house. Since last August, he’s been trying to build a nest in our gutter. We have to take it apart, clean out the mud plug and leaves, and then put it back together. We run him off whenever we see him, and he chatters angrily at us. One time I had a rake and he took a run at me!
This winter I’ve been putting birdseed in a feeder and on our Christmas tree, which is standing on our deck a few feet from the back door. The squirrels come and eat the seed, and they are largely unphased by the cats, except when a cat starts to give chase.
Last Sunday Mr. Squirrel decided he was going to build another nest (this, despite the squirrel guard we now have wired into the gutter). He kept going up there and getting started, and Ron would go out and have words with him. Ron told him to go find some place else to live, and he screeched back.
I went out there and banged on the gutter. Then I put some more birdseed on the tree.
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Jeanne, your squirrel is persistent, you have to give him credit for that! They can be surprisingly gutsy for such little critters too. We had one over the summer that liked to climb the screens on our door and windows usually when said doors and windows were open. We’d yell at him but he didn’t seem to care until we’d poke him with a broom handle from out side of the screen then he’d jump off and glare at us from a few feet away. I hope your squirrel finally gets the hint and finds some other location for a nest!
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What a great list!
Since it sounds like you haven’t read it, I highly recommend Pnin. It’s a sweet and funny story about a professor from Russia who appears to be a misfit in his U.S. college. By the end of the book, you can’t help but cheer him on. Hard to believe it’s by the author of Lolita.
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Karen, no I’ve not read Pnin. Your description of it sounds charming! I’ve read Lolita and liked that very much. Will now have to put Pnin on the TBR pile!
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Love squirrels and rabbits in literature–not so much in the garden. 🙂
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jenclair, heh, yeah, squirrels and rabbits in the garden are a menace. As a result, I have a hard time liking them in literature but I will try to change that at least a little 🙂
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Stephanie…we should always listen to Book Gods! Thats the most important feature in the religion of bookish faith! Also as they say in my part of the world, somethings are fate….here we were discussing how useful it would be to speak Squirrel and suddenly all directions point to knowing them better! Its fate and God together! Don’t fight it! 🙂
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cirtnecce, heh, no, one does not want to cross either fate or the book gods! They can make one’s reading life miserable if they see fit 😉
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Who knew there were so many books with squirrels!
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Iliana, I know! I was surprised!
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I have a book about squirrels- how to thwart them from your garden and birdfeeders (only none of it really seems to work) and one of the final chapters is about hunting and yes, eating squirrels. i think reading of them in literature much more fun. I once found a list of books that feature foxes, and haven’t yet made it through that one (love foxes) but am going to have to take a peek at this list, too!
There’s a Norse god of squirrels? or just in the world of that book??
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Jeane, I have never found a sure fire way to thwart a squirrel from getting what it wants, they are clever and persistent critters! I think there really isn’t a Norse god of squirrels, that it is just the book, but wouldn’t it be excellent if there were? 🙂
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If they are about squirrels I might read one but it’s unlikely. If they feature any talking squirrels then I can be sure never to read them.
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BookerTalk, Squirrel Girl is a comic so the squirrels actually talk in that one. As for the others, no idea. I’ll be sure to let you know about The Portable Veblen when my turn comes round for it 🙂
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Ooooo, I didn’t know the second volume of Squirrel Girl was out. I’m going to have to investigate this. I thought the first volume was just the sweetest.
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Jenny, I loved the first volume too so I am really looking forward to the second. I’m not sure when it came out, just glad to see it when I looked for it at the library!
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Squirrel Nutkin was one of my favourite characters as a child so I hope that was on your list. Most of the squirrels round this way at the moment seem to be inhabiting my back garden and digging up my bulbs. We are not amused.
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Alex, Beatrix Potter is indeed on the list so you can rest easy. You need to send The Bears out to take care of your naughty squirrels! Bears can certainly muster up some intimidation at the minimum 🙂
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I agree, better listen to the book gods.
Squirrels are fun, I love watching them. Books about squirrels should be interesting, I don’t remember ever reading one.
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Delia, squirrels are always much cuter when they are not in my garden causing destruction. They do this so often though that it has become difficult to separate cute squirrel and bad squirrel!
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Ah, I see. The squirrels in your part of the world are much more…”involved”, let’s say, in the world around them. 🙂 The ones I saw in Bangkok couldn’t get away fast enough. I couldn’t even take a photo.
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The squirrels here are bold, destructive critters that don;t even run away unless you get really close to them.
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Can’t wait to read about the ““intimate tête-à-tête with a very charismatic squirrel.” That is all, for now.
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heh, I am looking forwarding to reading that part of the book. What can one really talk about with a squirrel I wonder?
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Indeed … Hopefully you’ll find out soon!
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