It's Like They Know Me!

Hello All, I hope everybody had a great whatever they choose to celebrate (or not) this season.  I was as always spoiled rotten.  Seriously folks my family and friends know me so well it's not even funny.  This year's haul included my Kindle Fire from the Hubbin so I can not only read any book at any time, but it is so high tech and usable I can actually write a lot of my posts on it  YAY HUBBIN!  Mammasan went WAAAAAAAAY above and beyond and got me the ultimate combo gift.  It is the book  As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride  by Cary Elwes...who I may have wanted to marry since I first saw the movie The Princess Bride.  To make it even more epic...she some how managed to have it signed by the Dread Pirate Roberts himself, Mr. Cary Elwes!!!!!  A small freak out may have commenced upon opening of said gift.  My baby sis of course found the best collection of books that not are only readable, but look amazing on my bookshelf.  I got a bunch of other cool stuff too...'cause you know...spoiled, including a Game of Thrones inspired card and an epic hand drawn dinosaur that goes RAWR...'cause we all know that is exactly what they say...no screeching here lol.  Anyways  I am looking forward to some quality reading time so if I go MIA I'm probably curled up in my reading chair with a huge stack of books.  Happy Reading Everybody!

For Unto Us A Child Is Born

The Birth of Jesus

2 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while[a] Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.

4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

21 On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived.

The Night Before Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,

In hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads.

And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap,

Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap.

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,

I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow

Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below.

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,

But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer.

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,

I knew in a moment it must be St Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,

And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name!

"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!

On, Comet! On, Cupid! on, Donner and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!

Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky.

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,

With the sleigh full of Toys, and St Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As I drew in my head, and was turning around,

Down the chimney St Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,

And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot.

A bundle of Toys he had flung on his back,

And he looked like a peddler, just opening his pack.

His eyes-how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!

His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,

And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow.

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,

And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath.

He had a broad face and a little round belly,

That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly!

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself!

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,

Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

And filled all the stockings, then turned with a jerk.

And laying his finger aside of his nose,

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose!

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, ‘ere he drove out of sight,

"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!"

The Last Santa

Rambling time!  Yep I have finally finished an actual holiday book and am ready to ramble...only four days before Christmas...oh well.  I found this book When Santa Fell to Earth by Cornelia Funke and illustrated by Paul Howard and was totally stoked to have my Christmas book all set.  It is a short book compared to the behemoths I have been reading and yet it still took me a while to get through (stupid Westworld taking up all my time...lol).  Anyways it is done now and it is time to ramble.  As always SPOILERS AHEAD!

Niklas Goodfellow and his caravan falls to Earth when his flighty reindeer Twinklestar gets frightened an breaks his harness.  He falls into a typical suburban town filled with your typical suburbanites.  Niklas and his two Christmas angels the motherly and bossy Matilda and shy and quiet Emmanuel put the caravan to rights while the tiny, swear prone elves get to work on repairs.  Ben is an athletic middle grade boy who while great at sports is not so good and speaking out loud, his thoughts never come out the way he intends them too.  He is dared by his nemesis Dean to knock on the mysterious caravans door and wait for an answer.  He does this and meets Niklas, a tired looking young man for a brief second.  During this brief interlude, Ben see's the unbelievable sight of a tiny man chillin in Niklas's pocket.  Feeling guilty Ben goes back to visit Niklas.  Ben is invited inside and is astonished to see many of the little men (elves) working on repairs, and the two angels baking gingerbread.  He is also astounded to find the interior of the caravan to be much larger then the visible exterior.  After some conversation, Ben learns that Niklas is one of many "Santa Claus's" that work Christmas.  He tells Ben that a nasty Santa by the name of Goblynch took over and made new rules for the rest of the Santa's to follow.  Now all presents are only made after a parental request and payment.  Goblynch has turned almost all the reindeer into salami and fired all the elves as he finds it cheaper to just buy the presents from Earth.  Niklas and six other Santa's refused to follow the new rules and continued the old ways.  This entailed gathering wishes from children directly from their dreams and sometimes surprising them with something completely different.  Unfortunately Goblynch set his evil nutcrackers after the rouge Santa's, catching all of them but Niklas.  Matilda tells Ben that if the nutcrackers catch Niklas, they will take his boots and if he looses his boots for more then 24 seconds then he will turn into chocolate...which is what happened to the other Santa's.  The next day, a shy quiet girl by the name of Charlotte also gets invited to visit Niklas.  She offers her dog to search for Twinklestar...who is invisible while on Earth.  Ben and Charlotte have a bit of an adventure, but eventually get the rouge reindeer back where he belongs.  Ben gets teased at school about his continual belief in Santa.  To this end he makes a bet with his nemesis on whether it will snow or not, with Ben winning if it snows in the next couple of days.  Ben and Charlotte ask Niklas if this is possible and he says it is, but it is risky.  Niklas agree's to the risk and tells the kids that they need to take a pipe/hose through the White Door to Yule Land and pipe snow to the snow machine.  The risky part is that the White Door is where the nutcrackers will come through if they get a whiff of Niklas.  The kids just manage to get enough snow and through the door before the nutcrackers come through, winning the bet with Dean and making the kiddo's happy.  Unfortunately their little escapade brought Niklas to the notice of Goblynch and his henchmen.  There is a pretty awesome little battle with the tide turning when shy Emmanuel and Twinklestar free the elves and save the day.  Goblynch is turned into chocolate and Niklas is free to be the best Santa he can be.  He personally brings Ben and his parents super awesome presents and promises to see him next year.  Niklas leaves with the hope he can recruit some new Santa's who will bring the true magic back to Christmas.

World Building - The world in this book was three fold, the mundane suburbia that could literally be anywhere, the cozy homey holiday magic of the caravan and the frosty, cold mystery of Yule Land.  The three very different area's all compared and contrasted with each other to create a perfect tiny little world in which to tell our story.  It is not sweeping, their is not a ton of back story, but it is the perfect setting for the narrative that the author was trying to tell.

Story - This was a great little Christmas story.  It has everything I love in a holiday tale, kids, magic, Santa, elves, angels, danger, greed, wishes and a very happy ending with the bad guys getting whats coming to them and the good guys triumphing over the darkness.  I liked how this story had many traditional elements, but the story itself was wholly original.  Good story.

Character - So much fun when it came to the characters.  Ever single being with a line had some sort of personality.  My favorites where the elves and angels, but seriously every single character was well done.  Nobody was perfect, nobody was stock, everybody had motivation and stayed true to themselves.  Pretty awesome if you ask me.  But seriously my favorites are the interactions between the bossy Matilda and the lazy swearing elves.

Editing - The book was readable, the flow was good, it was the perfect length...not much more to say.

Accidental Find - So possibly one of my favorite things about this book is how I found it.  I was perusing my local used bookstore in the middle of summer...possibly only so I could be somewhere with AC.  I was stumbling through the kids section when the authors name caught my eye.  Her Inkheart Trilogy is one of my favorites in the world so I am always looking for more by her.   I was kind of surprised to see it was a Christmas book 'cause I did not know that she had ever written one. I then had to make sure I actually remembered that I had it...which I did...so yay me...and yay for random book finds of perfection.

A Little Dark - I love a Middle Grade book that does not shy away from realizing that most kids, especially by the time they hit those middle grades might actually have a clue to what goes on in the real world.  This book is one of those.  The bad guy is not nice and some of the scenes...especially the illustrations are down right scary.  That being said, everything has a reason for being in the book and the way the kids deal with the scary stuff is dealt with really well.  It is not your typical sugary Christmas story where the bad guy gets redeemed...he pretty much gets turned to chocolate...and I for one am very happy about that.

Multi Santa's - The story is not super detailed on whether there was an original Santa that hired help, or if there have always been multiple Santa's, but I think the concept works.  It gives so much plausible explanation to how Santa can be everywhere at once.  It also helps explain some of the physical and story differences that abound when the various stories are told.  I also liked how even the Santa's were not immune from human greed and how that affected Christmas as a whole.  An original concept that was very well executed.

Overall Impression - I enjoyed this little Christmas book.  It had everything I was looking for in a Christmas story and is one I would recommend for anybody old enough not to have nightmares from the demonic looking nutcrackers.  Overall I would give it 7 out of 10 polar glow worms and am now going to start looking at everybody who might possibly be a Santa.  Happy Reading Everybody!

Letters From St Nick

Have I mentioned I'm spoiled?  Hubbin got me a new top of the line tablet to help me read and write while I'm away from home...cause apparently I am never ever ever home any more.  Anyways, one of the many perks of the new tablet...or the Sketchbook as my nephew calls it (Hubbin also got me an super cool awesome bestest ever cover for said tablet) is the amazing resolution and screen size.  So to test out the abilities of my new toy I found and downloaded Letters From Father Christmas by J.R.R. Tolkien, which is not really a story but a collection of letters written by the famous J.R.R. Tolkien to his children over the course of many years.

Normally this is the sort of book I would only buy in hard copy as the whole point of it is to be able to appreciate the detailed and magical letters and illustrations...but with the new tablet I can see everything perfectly (full disclosure, I'm so totally gonna still buy this in hard copy lol)!  Anyways back to the letters.  This isn't really gonna be a rambling 'cause there is really no story per se,  but I'm still going to expound on some of my favorite stuff...'cause it's Christmas week...and it's my blog :-)  There are a couple of things about this collection that really struck me.  The foremost is the amazing ability Tolkien had to create a world in such a short time and space.  In the course of apx 25-30 letters this guy created a whole entire world populated with developed characters and it's own story line.

 I find this to be further testament to this mans brilliance at creating worlds and story's, this my friend is the real deal.   The envelopes, the letters and the accompanying illustrations, all done by Tolkien are just absolute insane.  Seriously the time, effort and eye to detail these little bits and pieces add to the over all feel are stunning.   It is kind of hard to believe that they were ever only intended for his children.  Which brings me to my last point.  This guy clearly adored his kids.  Even when the older ones started to grow up, he still mentioned them multiple times.  This whole endevor was so clearly a labor of love and it makes my heart happy to know that this talented man was also a phenomenal father.  This collection is the perfect Christmas read, it is quick, simple, beautiful, heartwarming and I will probably peruse it for many years to come.  Happy Reading Everybody!

Oh Reading Tree Oh Reading Tree

Hi All!  FINALLY got a day off, first one over two weeks.  Got some reading done, got some shopping done and now I am finally in the holiday spirit.  To continue this holiday cheer, here are some super cool tree's decorated in a theme most literary.

Jane Austin Tree

I like the combination of little books and ornaments on this tree

Harry Potter Tree

I love this tree on so many levels, the cauldron base, the Hogwarts train and track, floating candles.  To make it even better it was built by the writer of one of my favorite blogs!  Go check out the detail pics.

Narnia Tree

It's a book, it's Christmas tree, it's all themed to my favorite book in the whole entire world....I seriously don't think it gets any better then this!

Lord of the Rings Tree

This tree just makes me smile...I think the giant spider with the book is what really makes this fantasy themed tree special.

Shakespeare Tree

All kinds of Shakespearen goodies on this tree.  I would love to sit next it and explore all the various items on it!

Ok folks, here is our quick dose of Christmas cheer, more to come including a holiday rambling later in the week.  Happy Reading Everbody!

This Tree Is Ready For Books!

Hi All, had a whirlwind of a holiday with family both blood and adopted.

We got a chance to get Christmas up...all that's missing is some more books for under the tree!  Happy Reading Everybody!

Christmas

The Birth of Jesus
2 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while[a] Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.

4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

It's Christmas Eve!

A Visit from St. Nicholas

BY CLEMENT CLARKE MOORE

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,

In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds;

While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;

And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,

Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,

I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow,

Gave a lustre of midday to objects below,

When what to my wondering eyes did appear,

But a miniature sleigh and eight tiny rein-deer,

With a little old driver so lively and quick,

I knew in a moment he must be St. Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,

And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name:

"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now Prancer and Vixen!

On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donner and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!

Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

As leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky;

So up to the housetop the coursers they flew

With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too—

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As I drew in my head, and was turning around,

Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,

And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;

A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,

And he looked like a pedler just opening his pack.

His eyes—how they twinkled! his dimples, how merry!

His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,

And the beard on his chin was as white as the snow;

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,

And the smoke, it encircled his head like a wreath;

He had a broad face and a little round belly

That shook when he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head

Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,

And laying his finger aside of his nose,

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight—

“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”

Happy Reading Everybody!

Magic Space Christmas

To continue my foray into weird holiday moods I picked up an old school short story collection called The Magic of Christmas edited by John Silbersack and Christopher Schelling which is a collection of seven short stories that are either holiday themed sci fi or fantasy.  It was an interesting little read, with each of the stories having a various success in getting me in the Christmas mood.  Since there are only seven stories, here they all are.  As always SPOILERS AHEAD!

Star of Wonder by Julian May - A people who have lost their home planet to a super nova search for a new one.  Meanwhile the captain, burying his wife on an unsuitable planet gets to witness the supernova of his home planet leading the primitive people of this little world to a child in a manger...yep an alien observes the oldest Christmas story.  I liked this bittersweet story that gave a new perspective on the Christmas miracle.

The Ornament by Dennis L. McKiernan - A cherished acorn ornament is the symbol of a special Chrismtas story.  A young boy is befriended by what can only be called elves and to reward him for his help one Christmas Eve an acorn is carved with the story.  The boy grows up and has a family of his own, passing on the fantastic story before he is taken by his childhood friends to live with them in their magical realm.  This is a perfect and sweet tale to tell by the fire side, I loved it.

A Very Dickensy Christmas by Andre Norton - For this tale the author takes the style of a Dickens ghost story and gives us a bit of a modern twist.  A girl with no family is hired to play the part of a ghost girl for the benefit of a wealthy group interested in a Christmas at an old family house.  Little does she know that the boy she is playing oppisite of is no actor, but a true ghost of the old family.  The atmosphere in this book is perfect and in the exact style of Charles Dickens and feels like an extension of his famous works.  Definitely a good one.

What Are We Going to Do With Grandfather? by Christopher Stasheff - Set on an astroid a titled family worries what to do when the patriarch appears to go a bit batty.  Turns out the guy is finally free of his duties and his need to be so formal with his noble peers.  It ends with the more tender and eccentric part of the family embracing the story that Grandfather is trying to impart...best part of this story is the way he makes it snow on the astroid for a Christmas gift for his daughter in law.   I like the mix of sci fi and fantasy in this one, it is the exact type of story and setting I like to read.

I Sing of a Maiden by Judith Tarr - A researcher studying the Canterbury Cathedral finds that she and the spirit/ghost/being of Thomas Becket can cross into each others worlds.  To be honest I did not really get this story that much, but it was still cool in it's own almost wistful way.  The only real Christmas part was the season in which the story is set. On a complete side note, I very much love the song I Sing of a Maiden that the title of this story is based on.  

Tidings of Comfort and Joy by Gael Baudino - Possibly my least favorite story in the collection as again, besides the season this story had very little to do with the holidays.  The story is about a Wiccan and a Catholic priest who come together to help a mutual friend who has died move on to the next world.  Not really my style of story, but I'm sure there is an audience for it. 

Holiday by Richard Christian Matheson - This is a super short, yet very well written story about a man who encounters Santa while on vacation.  The man gets to here from Santa's point of view on a couple of topics that seem to bug non-believers.  The perfect grown up tale.

Overall the book was a bit uneven with the actual holidays only really making an appearance in a couple of the stories.  I was hoping for something a bit more festive oriented, but there were still some great gems.  I give it 6 out of 10 Christmas foxes and recommend it for anybody who wants something a bit different for their holiday reading.  Happy Reading Everybody!

12 Days Of Books Singing

So apparently I am in a completely irreverent mood this holiday season and am enjoying all the fun ways we can morph the traditions to suit our individual selves.  To that end, if you are sick of hearing the original 12 Days of Christmas, here are some literary alternatives.

Harry Potter

On the twelfth day of Christmas, the Owl Post brought to me

Twelve veela dancing (Happy Christmas, indeed!)

Eleven Slyth'rins scheming

Ten points from Gryffindor

Nine folks named Weasley

Eight books by Lockhart

Seven years at Hogwarts

Six Quidditch teammates

Five golden snitches

Four Hogwarts Houses

Three Dursleys

Two best friends

And a new sweater under the tree

Lord of the Rings

On the twelfth day of Christmas a wizard gave to me, 

Twelve Elves of Lorien, 

eleven gems from Moria, 

ten of Gandalf's fireworks,

 nine Fellowship members,

 eight talking trees, 

seven men of Rohan, 

six smelly orcs, 

five undead Wraiths,

 four little hobbits, 

three lembas bread,

 two sons of Gondor 

and one ring to rule them all. 

Game of Thrones

On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me

Twelve ‘Spiders’ spying, 

Eleven loyal liege-men,

Ten banners flying, 

Nine armies marching,

Eight holds a-keeping, 

Seven Gods to worship,

Six maidens waiting,

 Five warring kings!

Four pigeon pies, 

Three dragon eggs,

Two twins in sin,

And a throne that was very bloody.

Anybody else know of anymore?  Let me know and we will have the whole world singing along with these booky versions of a beloved carol.  Happy Reading Everybody!

Stockings To Stuff...With Books Of Course

Hubbin and I have a tradition that the week of Christmas any where we go we wear our sparkly Santa hats.  We love the pointing, the smiles, the giggles and the cheer such a simple act brings.  It's also really hard to be grumpy in a sparkly Santa hat.  So here are some stockings for you sparkly Santa's to stuff with books and bookmarks and all kinds of booky goodness.

Pride and Prejudice Stocking

The perfect touch to your Regency Christmas

Curiouser and Curiouser Stocking

The perfect Alice and Santa mix

Hogwarts Stocking

I really hope I find my Hogwarts Letter in this stocking!

Middle Earth Stocking

A place for Gladriel's gifts.

Game of Thrones Stocking

Show your support for your favorite house with this stocking.

I hope everybody finds their inner sparkly Santa (or whoever you want to be) this Christmas season and fills up everybody's literary stocking with all kinds of booky awesome!  Happy Reading Everybody!

One Messed Up Christmas

I decided to start of my Christmas reading this year with something a bit on the irreverent side...ok... a lot on the irreverent side.  I had been feeling a wee bit stressed and just wanted something that  required little thought and a bit of relief.  To this end I picked up The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror by Christopher Moore.  Did it give me the holiday break I needed?  Let's find out, but first, as always SPOILERS AHEAD!

First things first, this is not a family tale of magic and wonder, it is the complete opposite and has a fair amount of all the stuff that makes a book rated R so you have been warned.  Pine Cove, California is a picturesque town that is still small enough to be considered charming to outsiders.  The denizens of this town are varied and a bit...well...crazy.  The main players in our tale are Dale, an "evil" and developer, his ex-wife Lena, Tucker a free-lance helicopter pilot and his fruit bat Roberto with a thing for Lena, Mavis the old broad of a bar tender (with a penchant for spiking her fruitcake), Theo a pot-head constable and his certifiable wife Molly who when she off her meds morphs into Kendra Warrior Babe, complete with sword wielding prowess.  Lena and Dale get into it one night, resulting in Lena accidentally killing him with a shovel.  Little Josh see's this and as Dale is dressed as Santa, his little child mind thinks that Santa is now dead.  Meanwhile the angel Raziel (who must have whatever form of ADD angels can have) has been tasked with fulfilling the Christmas wish of one child.  In between consuming human treats Raziel wanders over to the chapel that is hosting the Lonesome Christmas party where most of the town has gathered.  Taking the wish literally, Raziel raises all the dead in the area so that "Santa" will be alive.  This results in the dead coming back as very interesting zombies and terrorizing the party.  All sorts of crazy hell breaks loose which I cannot even begin to describe.  Little Josh freaks out and tells the angel he just wants everything to go back to how it was.  Poof, the angel grants the Christmas wish and all is well.

The book itself is a completely twisted mish-mash of personal stories interwoven with the main one, making it impossible to really sum up, but that is part of its charm.  The book was fun, violent, weird, crude, vulgar, silly, insane, but fun.  It is the type of book one reads when they are in that weird sort of mood for a tale that makes your life seem normal in comparison.  This book will make even the most messed up of holiday's seem sane in comparison.  Besides all of the weirdness and un-PCness, the author still managed to keep the gist of the holiday spirit through out the book.  The entire time I was reading, I got the sense that the people of Pine Cove were trying their hardest to be good people and to ensure their friends and family were doing ok regardless of what was going on. The characters were the best part of the book. each one having their own quirky past and interesting present.  I will forever have a soft spot for my schizophrenic Molly/Warrior Babe and I will probably read more of this authors books just to read more of her.  There is really not much more I can say about it other then if you like this sort of book, it fits in wonderfully for a little bit of a saucy holiday read.  I give it 7 out of 10 lasagna's and recommend it to anybody who likes something a bit different and does not get offended even moderately easily.  Happy Reading Everybody!

Christmas Party

One of my favorite things about my Hubbin is the random conversations he starts.  The other day he asked me what literary characters I would invite to my wonderful Christmas Party of Awesome.  So guess what, you guys now get to read a post about my fantasy literary Christmas Party.

The March Sisters - Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy from Little Women would be the first people I would invite.  There industriousness, creativity and varied personalities would be invaluable.  They would be able to help me plan and execute the party and during the event any other guest would find a kindred spirit in at least one of the girls.

Lexi the Fox - In the Legend of Holly Claus the little fox Lexi is the reason Holly is so well and appropriately dressed for all of her adventures.  I would hope that having this little vixen around would assure that not only would I look fabulous for my party, but that the guest would enjoy her spirit as well.

Mr. Tumnus - In The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the faun Mr. Tumnus embodies the spirit of hope that the world can be a better place.  I feel that this guy could make my party a positive and fun experience for all of us, and if we were lucky we could get him to play his pipes for some entertainment.

The Weasley Twins - The intrepid duo from the Harry Potter series would bring the magic...literaly to our shindig.  Their sense of humor and inability to take anything other then fun seriously would be just the touch our party needs to bring it from good to AWESOME! And since there are two of them, we could spread the fun.

Heather and Morag - My favorite buddies from The Good Fairies of New York would bring the music and dancing...and probably a wee bit of mischief  to the proceedings.  Nobody would be able to keep still when these two go their fey music started...provided they could get along for the duration.

Calcifer - A fire demon who is also a sarcastic wit would brighten up the fete considerably (did you see what I did there...brighten...get it...he's a fire demon...I crack myself up sometimes).  He would have a place of honor in my fire grate and only be fed the best yule log.

The Ghost of Christmas Present - My favorite ghost in A Christmas Carol  would be the ultimate guest.  This jolly guy would bring the spirit, the charm. the feel and all the good stuff that the holiday season is supposed to evoke.  I can't imagine having one crabby guest with this guy in attendance.

This of course is just a few of the illustrious literary characters I would invite, but I have to save some good stuff for next year.  Who would you invite to your literary holiday party?  Happy Reading Everybody!

Yuletide Reading

I FINALLY got my Holiday books and am ready to immerse myself in this wonderful season.  That being said all other reading (except for the one book I am trying to finish) will be put on hold for the next couple of weeks while I try and read and ramble about four holiday tomes.  Hopefully this will all work out...but if not more for next year.

 I will probably pop up a couple non holiday related ramblings and posts both to give the non-holidayers among us something to not roll their eyes over AND to smooth out the gaps between getting a book read and a ramble ready.  Since I am also pretty sick today, I'm gonna go make myself some gingerbread tea and hop in the tub with my new Christmas book.  Happy Reading Everybody!

Christmas Tree Of Books

One of the problems with writing a blog for so long is that you start to repeat your self on occasion.  The up side is while I may repeat a theme, it's usually 'cause I have some fresh material YAY!  So here once again are some fabulous trees made of our favorite thing ever BOOKS!

Red and Books

I love the color and contrast of this picture

EB Tree

I like how this book tree is decorated

Vintage Book Stack Tree

I am really enjoying the mix of old school and originality of this tree

Book Pop Up Tree

This seems like something I could actually do pretty quickly

Book Page Tree

Another DIY...provided you don't mind killing books lol

Now that you are all inspired go out and create me a forest of book tree's my reading minions...and send lots of pics!  Happy Reading Everybody!

The Problem With Book Shopping

Soooo went Christmas shopping and ran into a couple of problems...mostly 'cause I wanted to spend all my money on books...

BUT...I was a good girl and mostly got presents instead...then promptly came home and ordered three books online...oh well Happy Reading Everybody!

Officially The Holiday's

Hola readers!  How was your Thanksgiving (for the statesiders)?  Mine was super busy, a mix of family, food and running calls on the ambulance.  Got to see ALL of my nephews this week which was awesome and had the best experience of my nephew R-boy reading a WHOLE book out loud to me on Skype.  Spent a couple hours debating the various book shelf options with the in-laws and just had a great time in general.

After an early start and getting the family on the road, Hubbin (and a zillion cups of coffee) helped me get the Christmas stuff up.  I am getting quit a bit of book stuff amassed and can't wait to put up a couple posts of all the shopping/browsing I've been doing.  Next step is to figure out a good holiday book (s) to get in the holiday mood and of course blog the crap out of all the great holiday stuff out there.  I hope everybody is having a great holiday and as always HAPPY READING EVERYBODY!