Hello!
I hope everyone is having a good week reading.
My chosen quote today is by Confucius (551BCE) who was a Chinese philosopher and politician.
“When it is obvious that goals can’t be reached, don’t adjust the goals, but adjust the action steps.”
Confucius
Happy Reading
WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words.
The rules are answer the questions below and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.
Hello!
I hope everyone is having a good week so far. I have had a much better week reading which has been really nice.
What I am Currently Reading
I am still plodding away with Dombey and Son, some days I read more than others. I started The Greek Myths that Shape the Way we Think yesterday and I am really enjoying it.
What I have Recently Finished Reading
I have finally finished the SPQR by Mary Beard, I have been reading it on and off for about 8 months. The two books about the Queen I read over the Jubilee bank holiday weekend.
What I Think I will Read Next
I think it will most likely be the next Expanse book as I am really enjoying the series at the moment but it always depends on what mood I am in.
Please drop me a comment with your WWW Wednesday and I will head over for a visit.
Happy Reading
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and now hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl. For more info please check out Jana’s blog.
Hello!
I will be honest I struggled with the prompt this week but I have managed to find a mix of books that I have read and books on my TBR list. The ones in italics are the ones I have read.
Please drop me a link with your Top Ten Tuesday and I will head over for a visit. Also please feel free to leave a comment if you want to chat about any of the books.
Happy Reading
Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club. All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.
Hello!
I hope everyone has had a good start to the week so far. My chosen book this week is by another favourite author of mine.
In 1844, Alexandre Dumas published The Three Musketeers, a novel so famous and still so popular today that it scarcely needs introduction. Shortly thereafter he wrote a sequel, Twenty Years After. Later, toward the end of his career, Dumas wrote The Red Sphinx, another direct sequel to The Three Musketeers that begins a mere twenty days afterward. Picking up right where the The Three Musketeers left off, The Red Sphinx continues the stories of Cardinal Richelieu, Queen Anne, and King Louis XIII—and introduces a charming new hero, the Comte de Moret, a real historical figure from the period. Dumas wrote seventy-five chapters of The Red Sphinx, but never quite finished it and the novel languished for almost a century. While Dumas never completed the book, he had earlier written a separate novella, The Dove, that recounts the final adventures of Moret and Cardinal Richelieu. Now for the first time in one cohesive narrative, The Red Sphinx and The Dove make a complete and satisfying storyline—a rip-roaring novel of historical adventure, heretofore unknown to English-language readers, by the great Alexandre Dumas, king of the swashbucklers.
Purchase Links
Book Depository | Foyles | Waterstones | Wordery
(All purchases made using one of the above affiliate links gives a small percentage of money to myself with no extra cost to yourself. All proceeds go towards the upkeep of this blog. Thank you ever so much, your support is gratefully received.)
Please drop me a comment if you have taken part in Goodreads Monday and I will head over for a visit.
Happy Reading
Hello!
I hope everyone has had a good weekend. I am back at work tomorrow after half term and although I have still worked a little bit over the week it will be a shock to be back full swing from tomorrow.
Posts this Week
Currently Reading
I had a little break from this over half term to read some books linked to the Jubilee and to finish another book that I have been reading for a very long time. However, I am back to reading it now so hopefully I will make some head way this week.
Happy Reading
There Once is a Queen by Michael Morpurgo
Blurb
“There once is a Queen ever constant to her people…”
From the Nation’s Favourite Storyteller Sir Michael Morpurgo comes a poetic celebration of our Queen and longest reigning monarch, beautifully illustrated in watercolour by acclaimed artist Michael Foreman.
There once was a little girl, a princess, who became a queen, our Queen Elizabeth. Now, seventy years later, her reign as the longest serving female monarch in history has seen her stand steadfast through triumph and tribulation, and through the monumental changes that have shaped our world, as this remarkable queen has remained devoted to crown, to country… and a corgi or two!
Beginning with the queen as a little girl, planting an oak tree with her father, There Once is a Queen follows her incredible story in a way that will bring this historic reign vividly to life for readers around the world, big and small. An exquisite gift book and commemoration of the Platinum Jubilee, it marks a unique moment in our shared history and will be a treasured keepsake for generations to come.
Review
I really enjoyed how straight away Morpurgo links his story book to The Faerie Queen by Edmund Spenser which was an epic poem written for Queen Elizabeth I. Thankfully, Morpurgo’s book is not as long as Spenser’s poem.
This little book is the life of the Queen starting with her as a little girl planting an oak tree, then a princess and then as a queen. But whenever the queen wanted some peace and quiet she always returns to that oak tree she planted with her father. I loved the link of the oak tree because an oak tree can live to a vast age and is a symbol of endurance and that is what our queen is also a symbol of.
The book is set almost as a fairytale but still puts across how hardworking, kind and beautiful our Queen is. The beautiful illustrations by Michael Foreman also really add to this beautiful little book.
The main thing this book does though in my opinion is show children that the Queen once was a little girl, she once was a child who had the same dreams and thoughts as a child. It shows the Queen as a human rather than a mythical lady who lives in palaces.
Morpurgo puts the life of the Queen in language that is perfect for children and adults alike and keeps it short and snappy enough for children not to lose concentration or interest in the book. The book makes a beautiful gift edition and keepsake for adults and children who want to remember the Jubilee. Overall, I give this book 3 out of 5 Dragons.
🐲🐲🐲
Purchase Links
Book Depository | Foyles | Waterstones | Wordery
(All purchases made using one of the above affiliate links gives a small percentage of money to myself with no extra cost to yourself. All proceeds go towards the upkeep of this blog. Thank you ever so much, your support is gratefully received.)
About the author
Michael Morpurgo has written over 130 books, many of them award winning. His best known work is War Horse which has also been turned into a stage play and a film. In 2003 he was made Children’s Laureate. He set up a charity with his wife called Farms for City Children and in 1999 he was awarded an MBE for his charitable work. In 2017 he was awarded a Knighthood for his charitable work and literature.
Happy Friday!
I will be honest I have spent most of today convinced it is Saturday so it is lucky I remembered it was Friday otherwise I would have forgotten to do a poetry post.
My chosen poem is a medieval poem written in Middle English but sadly we do not know the author.
Sumer is i-cumen in Sumer is i-cumen in, Loude sing cuckow! Groweth seed and bloweth meed And spryngeth the wode now. Syng cuckow! Ewe bleteth after lamb, Loweth after calve cow; Bullock sterteth, bukke farteth, - Myrie syng cuckow! Cuckow! Cuckow! Wel syngest thou cuckow: Ne swik thou nevere now! Syng cuckow, now, syng cuckow! Syng cuckow, syng cuckow, now! Anon
Happy Reading
Reviews From the Stacks
Hello!
I have decided to take part in Spell the Month in Books for the first time which I have also done on my Bookstagram.
My chosen theme for my stack are all books off my TBR book trolley. Thankfully, I had a book on there that begins with U.
Here are the books!
J – Jeeves and the Yule-Tide Spirit by P.G. Wodehouse
U – Under the Greenwood Tree by Thomas Hardy
N – No Regrets by Tabitha Webb
E – Elektra by Jennifer Saint
I’m looking forward to reading all these books this year.
Please drop me a comment if you want to talk about books!
Happy Reading
Happy Wednesday!
I hope everyone is having a good week so far.
My chosen quote this week is by Seneca (c. 4 BC – AD 65) who was a Roman Stoic Philosopher, statesman, dramatist and satirist.
“Nothing is more honourable than a grateful heart.”
Seneca
Happy Reading
Lady Book Dragon 