4 posts tagged “books”

They're here!!  They're here!!  *happy dance*   How We Lived Then is quite the tome; well, for me anyway.

Now, which to read first and which to put away for holiday.......decisions, decisions!  :-D

After a lazy Sunday it's a rainy Monday.

It has been raining and/or dark clouds ever since I got up this morning which tends to make me want to continue one lazy day into the next, but I can't.  Well not completely at least, things have seemed to run a bit slower than average today :-)

What seems like forever ago I joined both Pigsback and iPoints just to see what would come of it, if anything.  I've received a few £10 vouchers from Pigsback and I'm now awaiting a delivery from Amazon that was paid for via my iPoints points.  Well, all but £4 that is.  I'm absolutely ecstatic.  Not only have I gotten back into the reading habit (finished Betty's Wartime Diary yesterday), but now I've got a small stack coming that have only cost me £4 to refresh the "to read" pile.  Over -  the -  moon!  Some of us are easily pleased.

I don't buy many books, usually only reference types or ones I'm certain I will read more than once for whatever reason, because of a lack of space.  So normally I order whatever book I want from our local library - sometimes there is a cost if it comes from outside our area, but most often the service is free - and then I can read what I like and have no worries about where I'm going to put it afterwards.  If it happens to be one that will be re-read then I consider buying it.

So, sometime tomorrow or Wednesday, arriving on my doorstep should be:   
1)  Escape  by Carolyn Jessop   
2)  How We Lived Then:  A History of Everyday Life During the Second World War  by Norman Longmate   
3)  The Other Buddhism:  Amida Comes West  by Caroline Brazier   
4)  The Wartime House:  Home Life In Wartime Britain 1939-1945  by Mike Brown

I'm fascinated with all things WWII era homefront and really don't 'do' fiction much at all anymore.  Classics maybe and an occasional other.

The best bit being that I'm receiving points for things that would be purchased anyway (believe me, I've not gone and bought a truckload of stuff just to get points, lol)!  As I said, easily pleased.

Well, not here exactly (yet), and not all (yet).  :-)

If we lived in some large old house I'd have a room that would be the library.  A great, enormous room with exceptionally high ceilings, and it would be filled top to bottom, side to side, not an inch to spare, with books.  But we don't.  So, what I do is "order" books from the library and then if I really feel that they would be read/used more than once, I buy them. 

Most times "ordering" books from the library is free, once in a great while if they have to go outside our system to get them there is a nominal charge (about £2 I think) but in any case lots cheaper than purchasing it and then be it good or be it bad, deciding that you probably would never read/use it again.  I think it's a great service and am always surprised how many people don't know that you're able to "order" from the libraries. 

Anyway, I've got a love for all things WWII era and the books that have arrived and are waiting to be picked up are:  Food Glorious Food.  Eating and Drinking with Good Housekeeping 1922-1942 and The Ration Book Diet  and then the other two that haven't come in yet are Ration Book Cookery  and Baking Basics Handbook.  The last one is by Marguerite Patten, an absolute icon. 

If it stops raining I may just take a break from RapidWeaver and trek over to the library!

It's really nice having a weekend off and away from the computer/internet, recharging at it's best!

Some pretty posies were acquired, plants and containers were only £1.79 a bit of a bargain and they're adding some much needed colour to the homestead.  I didn't want to plant a lot of winter flowerers so a few of these were just the ticket!  Also picked up a set of solar lights for a pathway, it was a joy wandering around garden centres as they go full swing into Spring/Summer mode.

Got through some of the recorded stuff on the Sky HD box, read through "Unmitigated England" and started "Swindled - From Poison Sweets To Counterfeit Coffee.  The Dark History Of The Food Cheats"  Which is right up my Foodie Street.  Only about 60 pages in so far but I'm already amazed at some of the things done to/with our food and drink in the past to make it look better, taste better or smell better.  Better being up for debate!  Weekend newspapers, outings and finally watched Pans Labyrinth which is now winding it's way back to Stelios.  I thought it was a fantastic film and one I'd like to add to the 'library'.  I'm one of those that emits a groan whenever a film starts and I see subtitles, but this was a definite exception.

Between the garden centre visits, the sunshine and fairly warm weather I'm definitely in "Spring" mode.  Now I just need the powers that be to cooperate! 

And, before I go, I've got to congratulate Eol on surpassing 100 inhabitants in his 'town' W4 and thank him for my very official seal.  Hopefully he'll be granting planning permission to Starbucks soon :-)