13 Books To Go!

The challenge continues with the demise of Book 2.

Only 13 books to go on the long and winding road of my January challenge! http://greatbigjar.wordpress.com/2013/01/05/the-15-book-challenge/

I can’t believe I actually did that! In between listening to One Direction on youngest CD player for an hour and trying to re-create ‘The Best Boy Band Ever, Mum!’ by dancing round the living room, game of scrabble with oldest but only using 4 letter words (mind out of gutter please), setting up and being goalie for new football skill goals set from Santa – Shay Given you have no idea how proud I made you today and in my slippers aswell, timing the boys on how fast they can do penguin ski (don’t ask) and shoving together beef stew for visit from Papa – I managed to down Book 2 in one afternoon!

‘A Gathering Light’ by Jennifer Donnelly – a HUGE book. Not in volume but in words. The author uses every well-known and influential writer from the day the earth began to demonstrate the longing that Mattie has to become a writer and the conflicts between herself and her family along the way. Thrown in for good measure is a murder, devious and cold that concludes the tale as if sadly, it had to happen to make the story complete. Mattie struggles with her life on her family’s farm and for a split second you feel she may turn her back on her dream, but life has a nasty way of making you see sense where you thought love and passion existed. Brilliant.

What can I say – it was one of those books that you take everywhere with you and nearly kill yourself in the process of reading it.

For example, making a cup of tea (kids, don’t try this at home) you really need to be looking at the cup and where the water is going to really get it right. A visit to the Ladies Room, I must have cracked my shin of the bottom step of the stairs about 5 times as I wasn’t looking where the first step was. Sadly I gave in and relinquished said book to the bottom of the stairs to wait for my frenzied return 2 minutes later (yes I did flush and wash my hands!). Note to self – do not wear slippers while trying to climb stairs and read book at same time. Finally, absent-mindedly agreeing to continual chocolate demolition by the boys because they know I am not listening to a word they are saying – yeh, we have all been there – admit it. OK, Ok, I’ll put the book down.

I have reviewed it on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/280654.A_Gathering_Light

It was published in 2003 and won the Carnegie Medal the same year. Finding books like this fill me with pride and longing at the same time. Proud of the author for achieving such a prestigious goal and in that moment I get to dream that I could possibly be that creatively talented – that I can do the same.

So, I am well above .73- of-a-day ahead of schedule.  I am sleepy and I’m going to bed. Probably to dream of fiercely loyal main characters in desperate need to further their writing careers above all else in this world, well maybe not all else – sounds a bit final and selfish – but you know what I mean.

Sounds a bit like me but without the selfish and final bit and more of the fierce and loyal.

Book 3 – ‘Left Neglected’ by Lisa Genova – if it’s anything like ‘Still Alice’ then I will be one happy camper!