So today's post was supposed to be a baking post. I made a cake last weekend, but it turned out to be just a sweet moist mess. We hadn't gone shopping until Sunday, but I wanted to make the cake Saturday so I used a lot of substitutions and it ended up tasting like a mound of sweet butter. Gross. So instead I though I'd update you on what I've been reading. Last year was a weird year and I didn't end up reading a lot. I also feel like I've been in a funk when it comes to books, so I've decided to kind of push myself back into it. Which I've actually been enjoying lately, especially because I'm not buying books this year, well sort of, (I bought a copy of A Wrinkle in Time because I don't own it, and had no idea where my mom's copy was). But not buying books has allowed me to explore the weird, and old things I've never read that I had buried in some box or sitting on my Over Drive, and I've been enjoying the diversity in subjects.
Last month I listened to Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes which tells the story of about 20 students who take part in a poetry club at their Bronx high school. The students come from all walks of life and, through their poetry, discuss topics like race, gangs, economic status, teen parenthood, and growing up. This was such a good book and I loved listening to it on audio because all of the characters were narrated by different people, adding to their personalities. It was a super short listen and I ended up finishing it within a week. I'm sure you've heard me gab about my new love for audio books, because it's really helped me to not have to make time for reading, and I can listen to them while at work, or getting stuff done at home. And this was such a good one! I rated it 4/5 stars.
I also started 642 Tiny Things to Draw and this book has been fun and surprisingly difficult. Though I wouldn't call myself an artist I do enjoy drawing, and am known to doodle a lot. This book has been so much fun to work on, because the subjects vary in difficulty, and in interpretation. Similar to when I went through the Wreck This Journal, I've enjoyed looking online to see what other people have drawn for some of these, but the thing I like the most about this is the challenge it presents and the skill that I'm improving as I work through it. I think when I've finished I'm going to flip through and scan some of my favorite pages and write a post about them.
In a similar genre (creativity, fill-in-the-book, ect.) I was given Piccadilly's 300 Writing Prompts this last Christmas and I've been working through them (though I admit less frequently, but I just really like to doodle). What surprised me about this is that they are not story writing prompts, as I thought, but it's more like a journal. The prompts are subjects like "Imagine you are planning a trip across the continent on which you live. Assuming you have unlimited time, resources, and energy, what will be your mode of transportation?", "What's the worst emotion a human can feel?", or "What's your best pickup line?". Again I think when I am finished I'd like to do a post about my favorite pages in this one, despite the fact that my handwriting is atrocious.
I also picked up The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. I really enjoyed this book when I was a kid, it was one of the first chapter books I read, and I love the story. That being said I never read the entire series and yet they are so short! I'm nearly half way through the first one and I started it Saturday night. This is probably not an exciting thing for most people, but I'm a bit of a slow reader, and lately reading has taken a backseat in my life, so the pure fact that it's only February 6th and I've already finished four books this year is something I am ecstatic about! On top of that is the fact I've been doing a lot of cleaning and decluttering (is that a word?) in my house, and I've still had lots of reading time is really great! There's also some joy in reading a book for fun as an adult, that you had to read for school, as a kid. You get a different perspective, and you get to be more relaxed with your reading schedule. I think I'm going to enjoy jumping back into this series.
That's about all I've been working on that is blog worthy. I've mostly spent my evenings going through stuff, cleaning, reading, or watching Zumbo's Just Deserts on Netflix. I was not happy with the winner of that one though. I'm planning a yard sale, hence the going through stuff, to raise a bit more money for a car. I'm hoping to have one before camp starts, though I might just wait until the end of Summer which would mean I'd have a bigger budget to work with, but we'll see about that. For now I'm enjoying getting back to being a reader. I've missed it.
~Delaney
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