A year in books

I've been thinking about books ever since I saw the stamp that will come with the Studio Calico kit in January. Turning around in my brain is a layout about the books I've read this past year.

An English teacher, I read less now that I did before I taught. Still, Good Reads has helped me become diligent with keeping track of books I want to read and recording the books I have. (BTW, if you are on Good Reads, friend me and we can exchange reads!) With great delight, I realized I've read 22 books this past year (excluding school books I teach, papers I read for school, and books I reread a lot, like Agatha Christie and Laura Ingalls Wilder).

The last book I read was terrific: The Painted Drum by Louise Erdrich. I had gotten it at my book club Christmas party last year, where we exchange books and select the texts we'll read the next year. This book had a structure that took me a while to follow, but once I got to the end, I realized how fully wonderful the book was.

The last time I felt that way was reading Green Grass Running Water by Thomas King. In that book there were some odd details, but at the end, when it came together, I laughed out loud. Amazing.

The ending of Erdrich's book was brilliant--satisfying without being cute. Few authors, IMO, end books well. Steinbeck was great, and I love the endings of Ernest Gaines' books, and I thought this Erdrich book was up there as well in perfect endings. Added to her lovely writing, and it all just sang. I may go back and reread the middle section--I think I missed some foreshadowing.

Some of her sentences just jumped out at me--here's one that made it into my commonplace book, for obvious reasons, I think:

"Perhaps, I think as I settle the pot in the deep sink and run the water...my purpose in life is to pay attention and to remember."

So what were the other books I read? Here were some of my favorites (pardon the lack of links--you can copy and paste to find out more about them):

1. The Lost Continent by Bill Bryson
2. Tragic Magic by Laura Childs (OK, a little intellectual slumming, but fun)
3. My Life in France by Julia Child
4. The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson
5. A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
6. Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer
7. In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson (OK, I love his books. They're fun.)
8. The Trouble With Poetry by Billy Collins
9. Fever Dream by Douglas Preston (more fun slumming)
10. Impact by Douglas Preston (set in my home state of Maine!)
11. The Bullhead Queen by Sue Leaf
12. Sweet Land by Will Weaver (You MUST read this book.)
13. Moloka'i by Alan Brennert

I will probably read another couple books during winter break--I got Storm Prey by John Sanford from the library, and I'd like to finish Half Broke Horses and start The Help.

Book rec and garden pics

Don't forget you have until tonight at 9 P.M. Central time to leave a comment on this post for a chance to win the Bazzill flourishes stitching template!

I have done a ton of reading this summer; most recently I finished In a Sunburnt Country by Bill Bryson. Along with the poetry of Billy Collins, Bryson is a perfect summer read. I've read Mother Tongue, I'm a Stranger Here Myself, and now the book on Australia (true confessions, not all three this summer). You can't help but feel good and even enlightened after reading his books. I often laugh out loud while reading. If you're interested in what else I'm read this summer, you can follow my Good Reads link on the right side of the blog.

With the exception of my pink clematis and my now-dead rhododendron, my gardens are doing amazing. July is the month they say "Ta-da!" Here's some of what's blooming here in Minnesota:


This is a close up of the most blooming section of my garden. You can see a couple shades of coneflowers, some heliopsis (false sunflower), gooseneck loosestrife (which is getting too much to rein in for me, so I'll be digging it up and tossing it when the weather lets up), allium, and my sickly clematis. A robin likes to sit on the metal structure that holds the clematis and poop on it. I don't know if that's what is killing it, but I'd look sickly if a bird crapped on me every day.


These pink lilies didn't show in the above shot. They are quite lovely.


A close up of some of my yellow flowers. Yellow is my favorite color, and I love this lily. I think it's called "Happy Day." Isn't that great?

These are called balloon flowers, for obvious reasons: check out the incipient blossoms.


Bee balm for me is hit or miss. It tends not to spread wildly, which it generally tends to do--anywhere but my garden. Still gorgeous though.


This is called a Buffy's Doll lily. Any guesses why I planted it? Ha!


This is butterfly weed, an ugly name for a gorgeous blossom. It is supposed to be kind of touchy here, but it loves my garden. It always comes up waaaaaay late in the spring--end of May, almost.


I didn't use fertilizer this year and somehow ended up with a metaphoric ocean of daisies. Guess I'll have to split them next year.

(Note: I didn't show any of the areas where I need to deadhead or weed, which are plentiful. It feels a little less humid today, so I may feel up to going out and wrasslin' with weeds.)