Thanks for the tag @RamsFan1963
1 Not a true “ fairytale “ but I love a Peter Pan retelling.
2 Once upon a time you can travel to Ireland and join the next few chapters???? (unfortunately due to Covid my dream of going home seems to be entering the realm of fantasy) 😢 @TheSpineView

Want to play

Recent hauls from used bookstores. ❤️ 📚

I‘m struggling to describe why I enjoyed this but I truly did. There‘s zero plot. It‘s rather like being a nosy fly on the wall, present at conversations you have no concern in. The writing is incredible and if you like between the wars time period this is perfect. On to book two.

Absolutely an amazing read. Horrocks writes with grace about the lives of the Satie siblings, mainly the composer Erik Satie. It one of those books I‘ll think about long after the last page is turned. ❤️

It‘s taken me a month of nothingness to decompress from the school year. Finally started reading again this week. I finished Emma, A Tale of Two Cities, the above novel which is delightful and today I finished The Bishop‘s Man by Linden McIntyre which is a difficult story but well told. #pemberlittens #WhattheDickens

Mystery solved!! My husband was convinced that I had ordered it and just forgotten. Thank you @Helen19 It‘s a perfect summer read. ❤️ #litsylove

#whattheDickens I know I‘m a week behind. I‘ll be a better host as soon as school gets out. So Carton loves Lucie too. Cruncher is a resurrectionist. Gaspard was tortured to death. Darnay confirms he is an Evremonde and we know Madame Defarge has condemned all Evremondes. 😳 This does not bode well. Lucie and Darnay marry.

A Tale of Two Cities Book 2 Ch‘s 7 -12
Well! A child was runover by a carriage, perpetrator of said crime was stabbed in their bed. Thank you, Jacques! We‘re heading for revolution though. Things in France are getting rather sticky. Dr. Manette does not want to know Darnay‘s true name and background. I‘m loving Caton‘s sarcasm that goes right over Stryver‘s head.
#whattheDickens

My reading view today! So in these 6 chapters we‘re introduced to Mr. Darnay and Mr. Carlton who are lookalikes. Important methinks!! Mr Darnay has escaped the fate of being executed in a most gruesome manner. Lucy is a doll. Most agree. And Jerry has rust on his hands. 🤷‍♀️ #whattheDickens

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times“ and so the dichotomy is set up for the rest of the novel. Book one was dark, mysterious and full of foreshadowing. What says you?

By chapter 40 we are aware of the threat Tulkinghorn poses to Lady Dedlock. Is he motivated by loyalty or something else? What did you think of Tulkinghorn and his demise?

Charity and philanthropy feature in the novel both as something positive and not so. Dickens seems particularly critical of certain forms of charity. Why? #whattheDickens

#whattheDickens There were many characters both main and side in this novel. Did you have favorites? Who did you like/admire? Was Esther the perfect “Victorian” woman? Who did you dislike? Why?

Oh my it‘s been a busy few weeks. So behind on all my reading goals though I did finish Bleak House @Amiable #whattheDickens and a few other books too. Will write reviews soon. Will start BH discussion questions this week. Is everyone finished?

#whattheDickens For those of you joining in on AToTC. We begin on May 1st with a new plan of weekly readings and discussions. The plan is 6 chapters a week which should have us finishing July. Discussions on the weekends. Open to all!

We‘re on the home stretch! #whattheDickens Some have finished, some are still chugging along. I‘m preparing discussion questions for the end of April. It‘s also time to think about how we want to tackle A Tale of Two Cities. Would weekly goals/discussions be helpful? etc. Would love to hear your thoughts. Again I‘m tagging all who plan to read any C. D. with us. All are welcome to join at any time.

@Jessieleah thank you so much. Love the mug, books are great and the bag is tote-ally cute 😚 #feelingspoiled 💗
#litsylovespringswap
Thanks for organizing:

This is one of those books that feels like sitting down chatting with a good friend. The humor is understood and there‘s also a slight nod to gossip. I loved Evert and Johnny so much that ending the book was a bittersweet affair. 5 ⭐️

Considered by many to be his finest book, this was a beautifully written but somber anti-colonialism story. The heart of the book concerns a mystery on a tour of some caves. I enjoyed most of it except the last few chapters which seemed superfluous as the story had already ended. But a pick nonetheless as the writing was thought provoking.

Totally forgot to post, but this was mailed on Tuesday. @rsteve388 @Bookgoil @Jessieleah #litsylovespringswap

2016 took my daughter to #London, it was a literary adventure with plays at the globe and Agatha Christie‘s Mousetrap we also visited 221 B Baker St and above where the modern Sherlock is filmed. Oh to travel again. #litsyspringbreak

Most of life is so dull that there is nothing to be said for it, and the books and talk that would describe it as interesting are obliged to exaggerate, in the hope of justifying their own existence. Inside it‘s cocoon of work or social obligation, the human spirit slumbers for the most part, registering the distinction between pleasure and pain ⬇️

The Lake Isle of Innisfree
BY WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee,
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;

Started this last night, got up early to read before work. I‘m only on page 42 but I‘m enthralled. ❤️

In between curriculum planning I manage to finish this surprisingly delightful novel this weekend. If you like pagan traditions and Druids being threatened by Roman rule then you‘re in for a treat. Set during the Roman invasion of Britannia, a tight community holds strong to each other while honoring Mother Earth.

This book haul is an absolute “blame it on Litsy” specifically #pemberlittens , more specifically @jenniferw88
This time last year I‘m not sure I knew exactly what gothic was. After 4 novels I want more. 🤷‍♀️

@RamsFan1963 thanks for the tag!!

1. Anywhere in Europe and specifically if it‘s somewhere I‘ve visited or it‘s on my bucket list to visit.
2. No I‘ll read anything if it‘s well written, regardless of mc‘s gender.

@TheSpineView

Tagging

#whattheDickens check in. Confession time, I got a little distracted by other reads and have been neglecting Dickens but I‘m on vacation this week with time to devote to reading. How is everyone doing?? #chunksterchallenge

Confession time, I finished it! I couldn‘t put it down. I loved it. I will refrain from reviewing because, ✨spoilers✨ and I‘m still enjoying the daily posts.

#pemberlittens @sprainedbrain @jenniferw88

#litsylove

Not exactly caught up but, welcomes and some “thinking of you”, are complete, now for some replies.

Oh my gosh @Karisa thank you for such thoughtful palentines. So excited to read this book and the chocolate will not last long. 🙏🙏🙏

Thanks for organizing @candority 🙏

“resting fatigues me. I have looked across the ha-ha till I am weary.”
These fascinated me as a child, from a distance it would look like something you could leap over. So much garden and landscaping in this novel. This was the heyday of park and town planning. I imagine JA sat through numerous conversations about them.
#pemberlittens

This is the worst book I‘ve ever loved. Yes you read that right. I hated them all, especially the male characters. Yet, I couldn‘t stop reading. Ok I liked Polly, and Dr Ridgeley seemed safe and, Lakey was kick-ass. Not an easy read due to the neurotic, self absorbed characters but I also sympathized with their lack of agency even with their Vassar education. Great buddy read @BarbaraBB @Cinfhen Has anyone seen the movie?

#whattheDickens read along check in. How is everyone doing? Any theories on Lady Dedlock? I was wondering why some of this felt familiar then I realized I saw the adaptation 🤦‍♀️ it was a long time ago so most is still a mystery to me. Edit Happy Birthday Mr Dickens!! 🎉

MP Chapter 6
“if I were you, I would have a very pretty shrubbery. One likes to get out into the shrubbery in fine weather”
Yes, one does rather. 🚶🏼‍♀️🌳🌲🌿🌱

#pemberlittens @sprainedbrain @jenniferw88

14 love songs from different times in my life. I could have spent all day on this. ❤️ 🎵

#galentine @BarbaraBB @Cinfhen

This arrived!! Yay!! #bookcupidswap

@Karisa @candority

Yes, I have Goodreads, Litsy and Amazon lists of books I want to read/buy, plus random scribbled lists on papers and journals.

Tagged poetry book by Amanda Gormon

(Thanks for the tag @RamsFan1963 )

Want to play? @CaffeineAndCandy @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Cupcake12 @TiminCalifornia @quietjenn @KVanRead

#stage #quotsyfeb21 truth⬆️

“From every mountainside let freedom ring” MLK

#showsomelove #loveprevails #freedomday

If you‘re not ready beware of spoilers. 🏴‍☠️ How did Lady Dedlock recognize the handwriting? Why did she faint? Who was Nemo? Who was the man in the coach with Esther? Why did Mr. Jarndyce give Esther the keys? He seems kind to a fault? Do you have a favorite name? What‘s up with Guppy? Or Krook or Skimpole? So many questions. What are your thoughts?

Well that‘s helpful! This book is actually quite funny.

Despite the melodrama and evil characters reading Radcliffe is pure fun! It‘s like a guilty pleasure. You know the plot is a bit over the top but you relish in the absurdity. I feel the same way when I catch an episode of Eastenders or some reality tv show, my brain says “really, you‘re watching this” and the rest of me shouts out with glee “for sure!”
@jenniferw88 #pemberlittens

No guesses here. It‘s a pick! Great story wonderfully told. Most people know the story so I‘ll say as Dickens‘s second novel, his style is clearly evident, satire, humour, exaggeration, and of course caricature.
#whattheDickens

#WhattheDickens We should finish up part one, Chapter 16 by the end of January? Anyone up for a discussion next week?

@quietjenn @Riveted_Reader_Melissa @Lcsmcat @KVanRead @CarolynM @Amiable @AnneCecilie @katieB @meghathecloud, @Lucy_Anywhere @TheAromaofBooks @DarkMina @Milara @TiminCalifornia @Butterfinger @CaffeineAndCandy @Kimberlone @BookwormAHN @Helen19, @BKLover @catiewithac @sblbooks @mesica25 @EdnaC @litsyhappenings

My youngest daughter went back to college yesterday. She‘s been here every day since March, just the two of us, day in day out. The house is quiet but I‘m making plans. I miss her (she‘s hilarious) but learning to enjoy the solitude.

#thinkpositivebepositive @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

Away they run, pell-mell, helter-skelter, slap-dash,… rousing up the dogs… Away they fly, splashing through the mud,… up go the windows, out run the people, onward bear the mob,… There is a passion for hunting something deeply implanted in the human breast.

And that is how you write a chase scene!
#whattheDickens

Paperback
With a drink
Print
Mood
Fiction
Neither
Anytime

What about you?

It‘s a rainy miserable day here in NH. I plan on reading a little from each of these this weekend. Bottom two are for work the rest are for book groups, read alongs etc. 💗

#whattheDickens Week 2 check in. We‘re pretty much all started now. Thanks for posting favorite quotes and discussions both big and small. Do you have pics like this ⬆️ in your edition? How are you finding it so far? On track? I started reading Oliver Twist so I could still enjoy Dickens without reading too far ahead in Bleak House. 🤦‍♀️