June 24, 2005

A Bookish Meme For The Bookish Folk

Christine at BTW & Pearl at Humanyms both tagged me for this book meme! Since Christine emailed me first, I'm going to use her rules and list of blogs.

The Rules:
Take the top name/link off the list below. Add your blog (with an embedded link) to the bottom of the list and paste the blognames/links into your post.
1.
Regurgitation
2.
Soliloquy
3.
Third World County
4.
BTW
5.
It's Raining Again

Total books owned, ever:

Blush. I'm not sure. I tend to get distracted and lose interest in the counting. Especially when I run across something I haven't read for a while, and love. I'd estimate there's 250 to 300 books in the collection right now, give or take, but at it's high point, it was closer to a 1000. I'd eventually like to whittle it down to a small bookcase's worth, but I don't think it'll happen anytime soon.

Last book(s) I bought:

The Nine Muses: A Mythological Path to Creativity by Angeles Arrien. I've been a fan of her writing since high school, and this book had been on my 'to buy' list for simply ages before I finally found a copy of it a week or so ago.

Last book I read:

Oh dear. That's a little difficult. I'm very bad at reading just one book at a time. I've got a more polyamorous approach, and the current list looks like this:

1/ Jenny and The Cat Club : a Collection of Favorite Stories about Jenny Linsky by Esther Averill. Yeah, it's a kids book, but it was May's suggested reading in the Guardian, and I fell in love with the illustrations. More on this book here.

2/
A Circle of Quiet (Crosswicks Journal, Book One) by Madeleine L'Engle. Everyone knows her for her kids books, especially A Wrinkle In Time, but I find her journals intriguing. If I can find the whole set, I'm buying it.

3/
Retreat : Time Apart for Silence & Solitude by Roger Housden. I talk to people all day, so the idea of going on a retreat has been percolating for some time now. This is an excellent book, beautifully photographed and far-ranging. If you're interested in finding more books about silence, visit this list.

Five books that mean a lot to me:

Just five? Tough crowd.

1/
A Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin - there is no way for me to sum up this book in less than 25 words, so I won't even try. Read some of the reviews on amazon.ca and you'll see why. This was one of my library finds many, many years ago, and I paid a grand total of $2.00 for the hardcover version at that book sale. Best. Investment. Ever.

2/
Thornyhold by Mary Stewart - Originally loaned to me by a friend, I've borrowed this book from the VPL often enough that I'm now searching for my own copy. Mary Stewart has a lovely capacity for describing the wildness in the tame, and I love her for it.

3/
The Art of Pilgrimage: The Seeker's Guide to Making Travel Sacred by Phil Cousineau. I first read this book while preparing fora trip to England to meet the darling's extended family, and was, quite frankly, enchanted. The trip itself was heady, and by the time we got to Glastonbury by way of the Cotswolds, I was able to get the most out of it. I re-read this book every 6 months or so.

4/
Crossing to Avalon by Jean Shinoda Bolen. One of my favourite authors. Mix a mid-life crisis, some Jungian Psychology and a pilgrimage to some of the most fascinating places in the world, and this is what you get.

5/
Pink Think by Lynn Peril. I have a fascination with old etiquette and beauty books. There, I've admitted it. Lynn Peril's e-zine Mystery Date was always a great read for this sort of thing, and when I found out she had a book on the way I couldn't wait. Her book is fabulously smart and funny.

Five New Victims:

1/ Ms. Seuss at Strand of Pearls.
2/ Rosemoon at
Moonmeadow Farm
3/ Arthur at
Vanishing Points
4/ Nicolette at
Fur In The Wind
5/ Lisa at
Mitten Musings.

And if anyone else wants to play please feel free to email me!

And now for some Taggy Goodness:
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5 comments:

Bonvallet said...

You've sent me down a new path today Cin. I'm looking more into the book, "Pink Think" by Lynn Peril. Sounds quite interesting. Thank you. Michele sent me.

mw said...

I don't do memes, but I do love books. I think my high count is around 2200, which is the current count as I can never bear to part with a book...

Fun - michele sent me!

Misti said...

Michelle sent me. Love the colors ;) Off to read.

Anonymous said...

LOL. Michele didn't send ME! Great list Cin! I love Mary Stewart. And now I have a couple more books to add to my list. I want to read M L'Engle's journals!

ms.seuss said...

Picked the right meme Cin. Will hopefully finish the reply in a week :-) Love your list . . . now wondering how to find Madeline L'Engle