I Sniff Books...

Source: tumblr.com via Katie on Pinterest

...do you?

Finding this made me laugh out loud.  This page might be its origin.  I have one reservation, though: why are there flowers and no books in the background?

Just Read: The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern

{image from the book trailer, which you should definitely watch here}

I promise, this is the last you'll hear my gush about this book...for today, at least.

If I said that it's rare for a book to entrance me like this, I'd be lying.  Yet at the same time, The Night Circus caught my imagination in a different way than usual.  The book was equal parts thrilling and emotionally intriguing, which is a rare find, I think.  You turn pages curious, excited, and a little bit in love, wondering what could possibly happen, and you are continuously surprised by what comes next.

After reading these pages, I want to write and imagine so much.  It's one of those stories that makes you want to tell a few of your own, and to live adventurously, even in the smallest ways.

Reading The Night Circus

Source: etsy.com via Katie on Pinterest

ohmygoshthisbookissogoodi'mnotevenusingcapsorspaces...

...which actually takes me longer to type because I hit the spacebar and shift key so very naturally that I don't even notice.

But seriously, this book is brilliant.  I'm even ignoring the comma splices everywhere and the one mistaken homonym I encountered awhile ago.

Also, I originally put "it's" after "ohmygosh" up there, then realized I spelled a swear word.  Oops.

If you're stopping by, you've caught me on a perky kind of cheerful day.  Usually I'm just cheerful, so this post is a rare find.

Three Things

Source: vanityfair.com via Katie on Pinterest

I am rather obsessed with Downton Abbey.  It's so good!  Best part?  PBS has the episodes available online right away.  I'm also rather in love with the music...and the characters, and the suspense, and the time period (1912-1918, so far), and the wardrobe, and everything.  It's so emotional to watch, and the most recent episode had the most joyful scenes, in spite of being set during World War I.  Go watch it.  Now.

Source: notyouraverageordinary.com via Katie on Pinterest

Since hearing an interview with Erin Morgenstern on NPR, then reading Brandi's post about The Night Circus a few weeks later, I've been trying to get my hands on a copy.  This week, I stumbled across it at a used bookstore and picked it up immediately.  I've only read a few chapters, but I plan to devote tomorrow to the rest.  It is enchanting thus far.

Source: thefirstlime.com via Katie on Pinterest

My hair is still too short for a lot of these styles (it hits the top of my shoulders), but I've been braiding it almost daily.  As soon as it grows a few more inches, I'll try the fishtail and the five-strand braids.  I'm trying to break out of my ponytail habit, especially because I need to look a bit more professional and a bit less college student nowadays.

Winter Reading

Source: google.com via Katie on Pinterest

A friend just sent me the link to the New York Times list of 100 Notable books of 2011.  I have yet to read any.  This will change over the break.  How many books can I cram in between December 13 and January 9?  I'm about to become a regular at the library and finally pay the fines on those overdue books from the summer.

Here's my list so far...

pre-2011 titles I've been meaning to read for too long:
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (Jonathan Safran Foer)
The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
Mrs. Dalloway (Virginia Woolf)
After You'd Gone (Maggie O'Farrell)
Agnes Grey (Anne Brontë)

2011 titles:
1Q84 (Haruki Murakami)
Say Her Name (Francisco Goldman)
Blue Nights (Joan Didion)
The Marriage Plot (Jeffrey Eugenides)
The Tiger's Wife (Téa Obreht)

Ten books in twenty-one days?  I like this challenge.

Oh, and that picture up there?  A replica of it is hanging in my room at my parents' house.  I love it.

Three Things

The list of books I want to read after the semester ends grows almost daily.  I actually picked up a book this week and read it, even though I really should have been working on an annotated bibliography.

I probably can't afford to do that much more, but if I again read a book as a procrastinating tool, it'd be one of these three...

Source: google.com via Natalie on Pinterest

After hearing an interview with the author on NPR a few weeks ago and then reading Brandi's recommendation, I'm convinced I'd love The Night Circus.  I tried to get my hands on this one at the library earlier this week when I had two hours between classes and forgot to bring homework for the next day with me, but apparently it's good enough that it's checked out of the university library and the four public library locations that have it.

Source: google.com via Angie on Pinterest

I pretty much missed all the hype for Everything is Illuminated, but then, I rarely read anything that's popular while it's popular.  I'm just frequently behind the times like that.  My sister got me a copy of this and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close for my birthday, so I'll be taking them both on over Christmas break.

Source: goodreads.com via Katie on Pinterest

I've read mixed reviews of The Marriage Plot, particularly from readers who loved Middlesex (which I thought was brilliant) and The Virgin Suicides (which I haven't read).  It seems it's good, but not as good as his previous work.  But then, how do you follow up a Pulitzer Prize?

So, what are you reading?  And what would you like to read?  

Writerly Travels: The Mount

I first got the idea to write these little posts about writers' homes from a pair of posts I saw on Houzz.  Edith Wharton co-wrote design and garden books in addition to her engaging novels (like The Age of Innocence, which I wrote about here) and put many of her design sensibilities into play in the home she had built in 1902.  It was also the site of the composition of a number of her novels.  The interior of the home is incredible and worth taking a look, but I would love to spend a few hours traipsing about the grounds outside and exploring the sunken secret garden...

Source: houzz.com via Katie on Pinterest

Source: houzz.com via Katie on Pinterest

Source: houzz.com via Katie on Pinterest

Images link to their pins, where I've collected a few more and linked back to the original source.

Two Lives

Source: None via Kelsey on Pinterest

I used to always be the person to cry, "The book was better!" after watching any film adaption of a story I enjoyed.  But over time, I came to a different approach.  I feel lik the film should be judged as a film of a story.  Sometimes that story is different from the one written.  They are separate entities, related but definitely different.

Source: bookcoverarchive.com via claire on Pinterest

But at the same time, I feel like a film (or play) adaptation is most wonderful and serves best when it keeps the spirit of the story on which it is based.  When this happens, it gives it a second life.  I'm a lover of books, yes, but even more than that, I'm a lover of stories.  When a story I've fallen for has two lives, then, I'm happy.

That said, I sometimes come across--or, in the case of Breakfast at Tiffany's, recall--film and written versions that differ in spirit, tone, and events, and hugely so.  Each one is great in its own way and each works in its own way.  They only share a few names and a few plot points.  Some authorial outcry often accompanies the adaptations, but ultimately, we end up with two great works.

So I'm curious: how do you feel about book-to-movie adaptations?  Do you evaluate one by the other, or do you enjoy them separately and for their own merit?

The Lighter Side

The sun is out today.  It was supposed to hit eighty-five today, but it's stayed comfortably closer to the seventies.

Source: emersonmade.com via Kristin on Pinterest

I'm posting between classes right now.  I think I should find a tree outside on the quad and read until my next class, since after that I'll be in class or meetings until nine.

It's all about the little things.

A Chill in the Air

Source: girliedesire.tumblr.com via Tati on Pinterest

The weather is unseasonably chilly and I'm happy that I can spend most of my time indoors.  If the sun was out, I'd love this weather, but it's gloomy and cloudy right now.  In a way, though, I like it.  It's ideal weather for a cup of hot chocolate and a book.  If I could be reading anything right now, I'd probably be paging through The History of Love again, or perhaps refreshing my memory of Sense and Sensibility, which I'm going to see at our local (incredible) theater this weekend.  Still, the book I have to read for class is actually quite interesting, so as long as I have my coffee in hand and a blanket over my lap, it'll be a good day...as long as it's not pouring rain when I have to walk across campus.

Source: crushculdesac.tumblr.com via A on Pinterest

Perfect.

Writerly Travels: The Jane Austen House Museum

I'm taking another imaginary trip this morning.  Do you know how much I wish this was real?  I spent a few hours in Heathrow Airport on my way to Kenya four years ago, but that's all I've ever seen of the British Isles.  For some time, I've been compiling a list of things I must see if I can manage a trip across the pond.  The Jane Austen House Museum is, of course, one of the top locations on my list.  If you've been here before, you already know of my love for Jane Austen, seen here, here, and here, so I'm sure a virtual visit to the home in which she wrote and revised the majority of her novels comes as no surprise.

{by David Quick, on Flickr}

{by erinsy, on flickr}

{by Pug, on Flickr}

{also by erinsy}

To examine why it can be insightful and useful for literary study to examine a writer's home and the environment that surrounded their composition, you can read this short article found on the Jane Austen House Museum's website.

Writerly Travels: The Emily Dickinson Museum

This Monday morning, I'd like to start a new series.  Since sometime in high school, I've had this little dream of a road trip through the northeast US that would explore the different homes and locations in which many of my favorite authors composed their works.  The highlight of the trip, for me, would be visiting the Emily Dickinson Museum and seeing the room in which she composed many of her poems, possibly even the one that inspired my blog's title (you can click on "The Poem" button in my sidebar to read it).

Since I can't really pull off the trip right now, I've been perusing the museum's site and getting a good virtual look-around at the homestead and the grounds.  This only makes me want to travel even more, of course, but I'll keep reading anyway.  Do you want to take a look?

Source: emilydickinsonmuseum.org via Katie on Pinterest

Source: emilydickinsonmuseum.org via Katie on Pinterest

Source: emilydickinsonmuseum.org via Katie on Pinterest

Source: emilydickinsonmuseum.org via Katie on Pinterest

Perhaps one of the most intriguing aspects of visiting Dickinson's homestead is the knowledge that she hardly left it as an adult.  How could she write a poem that spoke so deeply to me that I've inscribed it in journals multiple times, named a blog (of all things!) for a phrase in its last line, and memorized it the first time I read it, five or six years ago?  How could she have enduring insights into the human soul as well as an ironic sense of humor, unlike many poets of her time, that still entertains readers today?  I believe she must have had the deepest and truest relationships with the people she allowed in her life and that she must have been more willing to look inside herself and explore her own humanity than the ordinary person.  I want to explore the grounds of the home in which she wrote.  Perhaps there, I could gain some insight into her work and maybe even a little clue about how I could create a space in which I could write something beautiful and lasting.


What authors do you love?  Is there an author's home you'd like me to explore or one that you've visited and would like to share?  

Janeites, Again

The festival was bigger and even more fun this year.  I learned a bit about bobbin lace from an incredibly skilled craftswoman, a little about regency hairstyling from a wigmaker from Actor's Theater, and a touch about Regency garments.  The tea, though, was perhaps the best part of the day.  I chose Marianne's Wild Abandon, a green and black tea blend with a floral infusion, along with an irish tea cake with fresh cream and berries.

I'll let the pictures tell you the rest.

{birthday gift for my aunt} 

{an early edition of Godey's Lady's Book--I've looked at scans of its pages, but this was the first time I held one in person.  This is where many American female writers were first published.}

{sugar dish}

{tea from the Jane Austen Tea Series}

{Irish tea cake with fresh berries and cream}

{the Shops of Meryton}

{in a shop}

{on the grounds of Locust Grove}

{Regency reproductions by Gayle Simmons}

{that bow, about two by three inches in size, took eighty hours to create}

{the materials for making bobbin lace}

Janeites

Every year, for my aunt's birthday, the women of my family indulge in our irrepressible fascination with Jane Austen and the Regency Era.  If you're thinking we just watch the movies and drink tea, you would be mistaken.  We actually go to our local JASNA chapter's yearly festival.

{at JASNA, 2009}

I have a little bit of a guilt complex going on when it comes to my love for Jane Austen--after all, when you're a student of the written word, it feels a little silly to so thoroughly enjoy novels that enjoy more than a bit of a fan-girl following.  But the thing about Austen is that her stories (if not the novels themselves) appeal to all different types of people, and you can enjoy the romance alone or you can delve into their literary merit based on your own personal preference.

So that is how I would explain my love for Austen novels to any critic.  There is something literary about it, but I would love her works even if I was not an English student.

{found here}

Now that I've defended my love for all things Austen, I've got the fun part of this post.  The festival is this weekend and I have got to come up with something suitable to wear.  If I had the materials, I would be sewing a Regency reproduction right now, but I'm turning to my closet instead.  Still, a girl can dream a little, can't she?  I loved the styling of the 2005 adaptation of Pride & Prejudice and always thought I could put together a look with modern pieces that would be similar to the one Keira Knightley is wearing in the above image.  The best part of making an outfit out of modern pieces is that I could get everyday use out of everything.

   

regency inspired by katie-bee featuring a slim leather jacket

Hoss Intropia silk gown, $535
Embroidered blouse, $40
All Saints slim leather jacket, $450
Madewell flat shoes, $142
Jane Norman bohemian handbag, £14
Monsoon wedding hair accessory

Have a great weekend and don't forget to check out the other Friday's Fancies posts over at Long Distance Loving!  

so sweet

I might be just a little blip in the blogosphere, but even I have experienced the genuine kindness and friendliness that other bloggers seem so intent on sharing.  Thank you for offering ideas or for simply commiserating with me.  Yesterday's post was a little more personally emotional than I tend to be online and I was more than a little nervous about putting my worries and dreams out there for others to see.

In the midst of my frustration and indecision yesterday, Cory suggested a trip to the library during one of his study breaks.  So I went on a hunt for some written advice and came across a little book called Careers for Book Lovers.  Now, the cover was horribly designed and most of the advice was outdated, but it was somehow still full of ideas for people who, like me, can't seem to care about studying anything besides the written word.  I realized that I have options for careers when I graduate--choices besides teaching college students (which is in fact what I want to do, but the job market is tiny)--and then I remembered some advice I once gave a student worker in my old office.

You have to chase after what you want to do based on your interests and passions.  If you chase after a career just because the jobs are expected to be around when you're done with school or training, you might make some money for awhile, but even that is not certain.  A job that exists and is paid well right now may not be there in a few years or even a few months, and even if it is, there is no guarantee that it'll be there for the rest of your working life.  Do what you want to do with your life, because any career will have times of success and times of failure; in those times of failure, you may as well be doing something you enjoy.

Source: google.com via sarah on Pinterest

I think I also added that you should be smart and careful with your money along the way, and avoid going into debt to finance those dreams if at all possible.  Dreams can be a little practical, can't they?

With all of that said, I'm going to plan out my classes for the fall, and take a few literature courses and try to get in to a sociolinguistics class that's full (and ignore the fact that blogger says I misspelled sociolinguistics).
Images link back to their sources.

I do still read the printed word.

I'm very attached to books.  They're enchanting and feel good in your hands.  Stacks and shelves of them can make a room your own.

{source unknown; found on weheartit}

Unfortunately, they are also heavy, as the dear friends who helped Cory and me move last month discovered, although I was nice enough to transport some of my books before the actual move, so there were only two smaller boxes full.

{source unknown}

Because of the heft of a bag full of books, I've been thinking about purchasing a reader of some sort, and if I do, I'll have to find myself an adorable case, of course.  If I'm going to tote around something that doesn't have quite the same aesthetic pleasure as an actual paperback, I should at least make it a little prettier.

{e-reader case tutorial by Thimble}

I'd like to find one that would allow me to read all those journals that I'll be diving into for the next two years without having to print them off--does an ereader with the ability to open and view pdf files exist?  I could never abandon real paper books, heavy though they may be, but a reader could be enormously helpful as I earn an MA in English, especially because a lot of older works (like the ones I'll be reading for a couple interesting-looking classes) are public domain and available for free.

I haven't yet figured out how I'll like reading books on a screen, though.

I encountered a whole lot of uncredited images while looking for pictures to use today and picked my favorites.  If you have any idea where they came from, could you tell me?  

um.

I don't know how to start saying this, but here goes: the majority of books I've read in the past few weeks have had Oprah's book club stickers on the front.

I didn't do it on purpose.  It just happened.  I haven't decided how I feel about it, either.  I mean, I'm basically indifferent when it comes to Oprah (though I thought she was fantastic in Beloved), but I feel a little weird about this, like I've sold out on great literature in favor of what's popular.  If that were true, though, wouldn't I be indulging on cheap romance novels instead of thought-provoking, artful works?

I'm going to just say that it's because Oprah's team of book selectors must be thoughtful folks who look for books that bridge the gap between intelligent/scholarly and approachable, and clearly I have excellent taste as well.

Right?

Hey, they were good books!

just read :: The Age of Innocence, by Edith Wharton

I can't believe no one told me to read Wharton before my dear friend Shelby recommended The Age of Innocence a month ago.  Not only is it a moving portrait of unspoken and thus unrequited love, as well as a troubling impression of an entire era, but it is superbly readable.  Of course, it's a little slow in the way all character-driven novels are; however, for me, this was not an issue in readability.  I'll acknowledge that not very much actually happens, which is of course part of the point of the novel.  Its protagonist mourns over the lack of happenings in his life.  He aches for adventure and interest but cannot let go of the mores of his time and social standing.

Newland Archer is at times sympathetic (how he aches for Ellen!) and at times impossible to stand (why does he not break with convention?).  We never know the full story from any character, but we get the most information from him.  I wonder how the dynamic of the novel would change if May's or Ellen's perspective--or even Catherine Mingott's--was given to us instead.  However, since the story is told primarily from the perspective of a man discontented with his life, it lends an interesting perspective on the female role in late 1800s New York society (society meaning the upper-upper-upper crust).  Early in the novel, Newland claims, in a heady rush of emotion, that women should have the same freedoms of men.  However, he discovers quickly that the society he lives in not only prevents women from gaining freedom, but actually (and disturbingly) trains them out of desiring it, as seen in the case of his wife, May.  He is deeply in love with Ellen Olenska, I think, because she has the desire for freedom, and sees the sham that society really is.  Because we see the plight of women through his eyes, rather than through the eyes of any of the female characters, I feel that we see the great interplay of various individual roles in any formal society, not just those of gender.  Of course, I have no idea if this was the reason Wharton chose to narrate through the male perspective, or if there were other factors at play, but this is what strikes me as a strength of the point of view.

This novel is both stirring and thought-provoking in the way all classics are, taking what could be only a period piece and connecting it to a general human experience--the difficulty we trod through when our role amongst and connection to others conflicts with our hearts' desires.

If you're looking for a novel that you can feel intellectual reading (it is a classic!) and still find the reading enjoyable, rather than tough work, this is an excellent choice, but be forewarned: you won't find a happy ending.  It's not a tragedy, but it's not happy.  Still, Wharton writes with beguiling eloquence and some occasional poetic turns of prose, and you will find the novel beautiful, and I haven't even told you about the splendid descriptions of the scenery.

available for purchase here

another love

If you read this blog, you know I've got a thing for books, crafts, and pretty things.
You've  also figured out that I'm a nerd for correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
Every now and then, I come across things that combine the two with pleasing results.
Would you like to see?

I spotted one of the illustrated pages of this guide to Portuguese grammar.  Don't you wish they still illustrated book covers, instead of putting exceptionally clichéd photos all over the front?  The man in the striped shirt looks pretty fantastic, I think.

{click here for complete source information}

I really wish my French textbook was this fun inside.  I wonder what the story was in this lesson?

The colors in this are great together.  This textbook might have actually made learning math a little more fun.  

{from Katy Elliot}

I have a pack of vintage papers that I got from Alex Keller a few months ago (when I was lucky enough to win a certificate to her store) and I plan to scan some of them soon--I guess with the ease of digital photography and layouts, fun and whimsical illustrations in everyday, more utilitarian sorts of books, have sort of gone away.