It's a regular feature of our Christmas: stacks of books all around the living room. This year I gave my older son a book he thought about giving me. I received another book from the
Persephone collection of neglected or forgotten 20th century women authors. I gave my daughter books by the Bronte sisters from a Penguin collection featuring cover art by
Ruben Toledo that seems like a mash-up of anime and goth. (Don't you love that glowering Heathcliff?)
For this book discussion, let's share what books we received or gave for Christmas, and why we're excited about them. Use the comments to tell your stories, or link to your own blogs. And if you have a new book you think would be suited to RevGalBookPals, please let us know!
The book I gave my son is Finishing the Hat, an annotated collection of the lyrics of Stephen Sondheim. If you like theatre arcanum such as what other songs did they consider as the opening to "West Side Story" before deciding to stick with "The Jet Song," you might like this book!
ReplyDeleteAnd I will be reading Good Evening, Mrs Craven: The Wartime Stories of Mollie Panter-Downes. David Sedaris also made some appearance under our Christmas tree, both Holidays on Ice and Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk.
I gave my husband "Just Kids" by Patti Smith which is a lovely memoir of her friendship with Robert Mapplethorpe. For my 12 year old a new novel called "Matched"; the 8 year old "Diary of a Dork" and for the 5 year old Lemony Snicket's "Thirteen Words." All are receiving excellent reviews from the girls.
ReplyDeleteThose sound great, Liz!
ReplyDeleteWe didn't exchange gifts this year, so I neither gave books nor received any.
ReplyDeleteBut I am interested in discovering new authors so I have a list to take to the library with me....
I know someone else who got "Finishing the Hat" and was so excited about it. I'll add Mrs. Craven to my list and, of course I always love David Sedaris. Right now I'm reading Elizabeth George - except it's the story before the last I just read, so I already know what happens :-(
ReplyDelete"The Kitchen House" by Kathleen Grissom, a story about an orphaned white girl being taken in by a slave family.
ReplyDelete"Claiming the Beatitudes: Nine Stories from a New Generation" by Anne Sutherland Howard.
Both of these are "from-me-to-me's". Hopefully the Howard book will arrive in time for preaching on the Beatitudes from Matthew in January.
I realized when we pulled out all the gifts to wrap that my 3-year-old had stocking stuffers and books. Period. We discussed a midnight trip to a discount store, but decided against it. In the morning, she just kept saying, "There were so many presents! I got so many presents!" I love Christmas with a 3-year-old. The books included "Lily's Plastic Purse" and another Kevin Henke book (love them!). A couple of Curious George books because she requested them. And "The Paperbag Princess" because Mom wants something to counteract "The Princess and the Pea" books her grandparents had with the Prince rejecting the "unladylike princesses."
ReplyDeleteAs soon as I finish the book I'm reading, I'm going to gift myself with Margaret Maron's Christmas Mourning.
Terri: I try so ha to read mysteries in order, but sometimes it just doesn't work.
Elizabeth George has more of a continuing narrative for her main characters than most mysteries. I've tried to read her in order, too. Does she have a new one? I think the last thing I read was something on my Kindle.
ReplyDeleteWendy, my oldest was like that one year when his birthday gifts were all books. He wanted to leave the cake and go read!
ReplyDeleteSongbird is correct about EG's mysteries...except for these two:
ReplyDeleteLast summer I read The Woman in the Red Dress and am now reading With No One As Witness - Woman in Red picks up the story of Lynley and Havers after No Witness and describes the despair of Lynley a significant death in his life and talks about his remorse over the inability to solve the serial murders in No Witness...which leaves me wondering why I am reading this book knowing that the end will be unsatisfying...and the details of the kidnapping and killings of adolescent boys is just sad. (I think this book is going back to the library today - unfinished)
My 16 y.o. son, who wants to be a photojournalist, has been enthralled by a book of Pulitzer prize winning photos; I picked it up in the bargain section at Borders at the last moment :-) I started looking through it as well; it's filled with powerful stories of how each picture came to be. Read with tissues handy!
ReplyDeleteThe library gifted me with Kevin Sleeth's The Gospel According to the Earth. He is also the author of The Green Bible, which I haven't seen. I really enjoyed this, and it might make a good choice for RGBP in future.
ReplyDeleteMy most exciting Christmas book was from my sister Sarah: A Year with Aslan: Daily Reflections from the Chronicles of Narnia. http://www.amazon.com/Year-Aslan-Reflections-Chronicles-Narnia/dp/0061985511
As someone whose early theology was greatly shaped by Narnia books as well as by Madeleine L'Engle's adult and kids' books, I am dancing with delight!
My Christmas books are both wonderful. I've read one already! It is by an entertainment reporter who is also a lawyer. I didn't expect it to be as inspiring as it is. It's called The Last Day of My Life by Jim Moret. Great insight for an unassuming little bio.
ReplyDeleteMy other Christmas book is:
I Shall Not Hate by Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish. So far, I'm really enjoying this one as well.
Oops. I almost forgot another book given to us by a friend and fellow Newfoundlander! The author is a relative of my partner's....distant relative, but all of the Ivany folk on "the Rock" - Newfoundland - are related to our original ancestors who came from Wales. (ok, more family history than you asked for, but it's cool to have a "family" book!)
ReplyDeleteThe book is called Christmas Memories.
I gace my newly-degreed daughter books about fashion, design, the design business and costuming. I gave my son a sardonic little book of quotes I found on urbanoutfitters.com.
ReplyDeleteI got a Kindle, on which I am reading Mennonite in a Little Black Dress, with Freedom: A Novel soon to follow!
I am sad to say that for perhaps the first time I can recall, I received NO books for Christmas. What...? I did give one, however. Three-year-old granddaughter, Trinity, got a book of Fairy Tales and also "The Ten Commandments for Little Ones" written by Alla Zobel Nolan and delightfully illustrated by Janet Samuel.
ReplyDeleteMy hubby and I gave our 10 y.o. a the Chronicles of Narnia (after we discovered that ours were falling apart!)
ReplyDeleteBest part - my hubby, who doesn't read for enjoyment like I do, requested the new Bonhoeffer biography. For the first time in 20 plus years we gave each other the same book! Anyone want to buy a copy of Bonhoeffer?
He also gave me a copy of The Gift of an Ordinary Day by Katrina Kenison. It was recommended by a friend who said it would be great sermon material!
Happy reading all!
Be careful, revkpd, our associate pastor has been reading the Bonhoeffer biography and it's making him want to start his D.Min. He suddenly thinks he's way behind.
ReplyDeleteOddly, I didn't receive any books this year. But The Lovely Daughter, who is going to Guatemala over spring break on a social work grad school trip, received a guidebook and Spanish for Dummies.
ReplyDeleteOh, and I GAVE books to my new grand-niece and grandnephew: Angelina and Curious George and Babar x2. And other books to other extended family members, but they are grown-ups, and so there is not such a need to ensure that they are well supplied with the classics.
ReplyDeleteI gave my MIL the new Kate Morton book and my FIL the new novel by Jan Karon - it's sort an epilogue to the Mitford series, which he really enjoyed.
ReplyDeleteI got Three Cups of Tea which I have been meaning to read for quite awhile and A Dog's Purpose. A slight year for books but I did get a case of Zapp's potato chips to make up for it. ;-)
ReplyDeleteI gave Don't Shoot Me, I'm the Guitar Player and Colonel Roosevelt and one I think is called Cabernet Sisters. All nonfiction which I don't read enough of so I am looking forward to all of these making the rounds. We give books in our family so we can send them on to each other.
My favorite Christmas story this year is from my daughter. In addition to giving all of us gifts to the Cancer Society in memory of my dad, she took the clothes my mom got her back to Target and bought toiletries to put in bags she is giving to the homeless in Lafayette Square, New Orleans. She was waiting to get the gift card she knew her other grandmother would give her to buy fleece blankets for the same bags. I am so proud of her.
I got a novel, ROOM, which I was looking forward to diving into today (all the reviewers and the friend who gave it to me say "read it one sitting!! you wont be able to put it down!") but now I'm heading to the church for some funeral planning, so might not get to it after all.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I got from the library recently and am enjoying Marriage and Other Acts of Charity.
Good stuff for the list here! I've been wanting to read Just Kids, Liz, and that Sondheim books sounds good, too.
I used to read ALOT of mysteries - not so much anymore. I find I have less of a stomach for that violence than I used to...
Ooo.....Juniper, I'm waiting for "Room" to go to trade paperback. I can't wait to read it.
ReplyDeleteI gave several copies of "In My Heart I Carry A Star: stories for Advent" but then I would because it's one of my own!
ReplyDeletehttps://bookstore.upperroom.org/pcd/eServCart?iServ=MjgzMDE2MTU3NCZpUGFnZUlkPTEyODE5NSZpSW52SWQ9NTA5MDYmaVNrdUxpc3Q9JmlTdWJUZXJtPTA=
Other than that, I also gave multiple copies of The Book Thief (best writing in decades).
www.derekmaul.com
@Wendy, fortunately, I already have my Dmin so I won't be tempted! I'm sure I'll still feel far behind, however!
ReplyDelete