Happy New Year!

Finally, a New Year's resolution I can actually make...

2015 wasn't the best of years, let's hope that 2016 will turn out to be a better one. Happy New Year!

What's your excuse?

Not that you need an excuse to read. I wouldn't call them excuses anyway, I'd call them reasons, and, in my book, any reason to read is a good reason. (This from For Reading Addicts:)

I have several reasons (which must explain why I read so much, right?):

Learning. I know it's hard to believe and never really shows, but I do read to learn about things. As it happens, these tend to be somewhat obscure things and topics that have little or no relevance in everyday life. Besides, as nice as it is to learn about (useless) stuff, I'm also very good at forgetting all about it. Even so, I'm curious about a lot of things, and often despair because I can't possibly read about every interesting topic!

Passing time. A long flight. Those endless, agonising minutes as you sit in a dentist's waiting room... how to pass that time? Here's an idea: grab a book! I hate those long flights, but being immersed in an adventure can actually make it... well, not a pleasant experience, but as close as it gets. And even with my dentist phobia, I've managed to sit in the waiting room and be pulled so deep into a story that I forgot where I was!

Entertainment. All right, I'll admit it... this is what I often look for in a book: entertain me!

Experiences. Very much intertwined and sometimes inseparable from the previous point. I want experiences I might never have otherwise. I want adventure! I want to see new places! I want to travel to the past, or to the future! And – although this is something I do get in my normal life anyway – most of all I want to feel things. I want to laugh, cry, fear, cheer... I want emotional involvement (this, more than anything else, is what gives me that “hooked” feeling with a book).

Escape. There. I said it. I've been told that my reading addiction is nothing but a form of escapism. I've been told that there must be something seriously wrong with me, or with my life, if I want to spend so much time in fictional worlds. (Edit: My DH asks it to be noted that these words never came out of his mouth - of course not, he's as voracious a reader as I am.) I have always explained that, first, I'm perfectly happy with my life and myself (neither needs “fixing”, thank you very much) and, second, reading isn't an escape, it's a way to enrich my life. You know, life is good, but life with books is even better! However, there are times when books do indeed provide an escape. They help me forget the everyday hassle. When I'm stressed or depressed they take me away and help me forget my worries. I know they're not a solution. But anything that helps you cope and keeps you sane and stops you from eyeing your sword in the wrong way must be a good thing.

So, for me, it all boils down to greed. We only have one life to live (assumably; let's not start a religious debate) and that puts some serious limitations to how much you can do and experience. Books change everything. And so it all pretty much amounts to this popular quote (image from Little Book Things):

Bookish holidays

As stated in a previous post, that is what I wanted from the holidays. Turns out I got to luxuriate much more than I planned... A nasty cold and a very sore throat made sure I spent the days between Yule and New Year under a blanket with a good book – and as soon as I thought I'd won the battle against the cold, it came back. Not the ideal end for the year, nor a promising start, but it could be worse. It could be raining. Wait... it actually is raining!

But the December 24th and 25th were just about perfect. I even received a bunch of bookish gifts! I love them so much I can't resist the temptation to introduce them here.

I unwrapped this thing and had no idea what it was I was holding in my hands. It turned out to be a graphic novel version of Jane Austen's “Pride and Prejudice!” I haven't read it yet, but the cover is hilarious! I'm not exactly a Jane Austen enthusiast, but I do like her work and find it very interesting how they've become such a phenomenon. Movies and spin-off books and other various variations of these beloved stories... I don't know why, but they always intrigue me (one of the books on my bedside table right now is “Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters” and a while back I finally read “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies”). To be perfectly honest, when I first read “P & P”, I didn't get it. I was a teenager (maybe 12-14, I don't remember) and I did not understand the humour or the social commentary or any of that. I thought it was just about these girls who could think of nothing else but how to get married (really, didn't they have anything more interesting to do?) – and, to make it worse, they were looking for wealthy husbands rather than love! (I was a big romantic then already.) I thought it was boring and I scorned the characters for their superficial values. Talk about pride and prejudice. ;)

Second, I got what I'd wished for, namely a new edition of Kaari Utrio's Yksisarvinen (“Unicorn”). It is the third part in her Viking/Crusader trilogy, which I've mentioned before. Naturally, I've read the earlier edition and even own a copy... but this is a new edition and, most importantly, includes previously unpublished material!

Last but certainly not least, this pendant from Jezebel Charms. I had admired their products just before the gift-giving time and said I'd love one but could not possibly choose! They have so many beautiful pieces that picking one can't be done. However... my husband had chosen one, and he had chosen the perfect one! It has a quote from Shakespeare's “A Midsummer Night's Dream” and, coming from him, this is the one. I had tears in my eyes when I opened the box and saw what was inside (what did I say about being a romantic?).

And to fit the themes of this blog, I might mention that among the presents was some delicious dark chocolate from friends in Germany (a review will follow) and hand-made, hand-picked Belgian chocolates from my sister. They were divine!

And now I'll crawl back under the blanket and pick up my book – I'm on part 2 on Guy Gavriel Kay's “The Sarantine Mosaic” (this is a re-read, and I still love these books).

Bard's wisdom

Shakespeare certainly knew what he was talking about. Some interesting and inspiring quotes from "the ultimate playwright": http://www.mindopenerz.com/let-shakespeare-guide-7-famous-play-write-quotes-live/