Favorite Book of All Time.

It’s the beginning of October. It’s a time for cider, bonfires, comfort food, sweaters and boots. And it’s time for The Time Traveler’s Wife. I’ve told you before about my obsession with this novel, but here I am. I’m about to pull it off my shelf, crack it open, fall in love with it all over again.

I can’t explain it, but something about fall reminds me of this book and makes me want to read it, so I’ve made a tradition of it. Perhaps it’s because the first time I read it, it was fall. Perhaps it’s because the novel begins with a beautiful October day in Chicago, much like the one I’m enjoying today. Perhaps it’s the symmetry bittersweetness of golden leaves as they fall to the ground and the colorful, heartrending love story of Henry DeTamble and Clare Abshire that commands me: stop. read. relish.

So if you haven’t read it, now would be a wonderful time to start.
If you can narrow it down to just one, what is your favorite book? Do you have a book that you read over and over again? Do you reread a certain book at a certain time of year? Am I crazy?

Words and Strings

historyoflove

Because I couldn’t help but fall in love with this passage, I thought I’d share it with you:

“So many words get lost. They leave the mouth and lose their courage, wandering aimlessly until they are swept into the gutter like dead leaves. On rainy days, you can hear their chorus rushing past:

IwasabeautifulgirlPleasedon’tgoItoobelievemybodyismadeofglassI’veneverlovedanyoneIthinkofmyselfasfunnyForgiveme…

There was a time when it wasn’t uncommon to use a piece of string to guide words that otherwise might falter on the way to their destinations. Shy people carried a little bunch of string in their pockets, but people considered loudmouths had no less need for it, since those used to being overheard by everyone were often at a loss for how to make themselves heard by someone. The physical distance between two people using a string was often small; sometimes the smaller the distance, the greater the need for the string.

The practice of attaching cups to the ends of string came much later. Some say it is related to the irrepressible urge to press shells to our ears, to hear the still-surviving echo of the world’s first expression. Others say it was started by a man who held the end of a string that was unraveled across the ocean by a girl who left for America. 

When the world grew bigger, and there wasn’t enough string to keep the things people wanted to say from disappearing into the vastness, the telephone was invented. 

Sometimes no length of string is long enough to say the thing that needs to be said. In such cases all the string can do, in whatever its form, is conduct a person’s silence.”

– Nicole Krauss, A History of Love

[Photo.]

book·ish : Literary Great Britain

I’m no good with geography, but as a wanderlust and a book nerd, I find this literary map of Great Britain positively delightful.
great britain map
book·ish/ˈbo͝okiSH/Adjective
 
1. (of a person or way of life) Devoted to reading and studying rather than worldly interests.
2. (of language or writing) Literary in style or allusion.
3. (of art and all manner of lovely things) devoted to the written word as a form of art and as a way of seeing the world.
4. (of SheWritesandRights.blogspot.com) anything of the aforementioned characteristics as they are found on the interwebs and reposted by Bethany, because bookish and writerly things always give reason for amusement.*
 
*All items posted in the book·ish section are found by myself and posted of my own accord unless otherwise stated. If you would like to be a sponsor or host a giveaway, please contact me at shewritesandrights[at]gmail[dot]com.

Library Card! and What I’m Reading Now

Guess what? I am now in possession of my very own library card! I haven’t had one since moving to Illinois [unless you count my college ID, but we’re talking reading for pleasure here, so it doesn’t count.] So technically, this is the first library card I’ve had since I was in high school.
I know, I know. You’re thinking, Bethany “bookish” girl didn’t have a library card? What’s up with that? But the truth is, I’ve had this really bad habit, like all book addicts do, of buying most of the books that I wanted to read. [Tell me I’m not the only one that does this!] And then I realized I was broke. I’m sick of borrowing books or just going through dry spells of not reading, so I am now the proud owner of a library card, and I checked out The History of Love by Nicole Krauss.
Ever read it? Seems like everyone is raving about it right now. I’m 50 pages in [since starting last night!] and I understand why!
So what are you reading? And do you have a library card or do you buy or borrow all of your books?

book·ish : Kansas City Library

This giant bookshelf serves as the facade for Kansas City Library’s parking garage. I’m guessing it’s probably the only parking garage that is itself a tourist destination. I’d certainly love to visit!
kansas-library (3)[2] kansas-library (2)[2]
[Images found here.]
book·ish/ˈbo͝okiSH/Adjective
 
1. (of a person or way of life) Devoted to reading and studying rather than worldly interests.
2. (of language or writing) Literary in style or allusion.
3. (of art and all manner of lovely things) devoted to the written word as a form of art and as a way of seeing the world.
4. (of SheWritesandRights.blogspot.com) anything of the aforementioned characteristics as they are found on the interwebs and reposted by Bethany, because bookish and writerly things always give reason for amusement.