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. I have had a mixed day of teaching and running choir club. Some students were very hyper and difficult to work with today and some were brilliant. The really good thing was the reading I managed to do during my lunch break and between teaching.
My chosen book today has been on my TBR for a long time but it is one I also swear that I have read. However, my reading records which are quite extensive and started whilst I was a child would show that I haven’t actually read it. To me it is a mystery. Either way I plan to read it very soon.
“We agree that we are overworked, and need a rest – A week on the rolling deep? – George suggests the river -“
And with the co-operation of several hampers of food and a covered boat, the three men (not forgetting the dog) set out on a hilarious voyage of mishaps up the Thames. When not falling in the river and getting lost in Hampton Court Maze, Jerome K. Jerome finds time to express his ideas on the world around – many of which have acquired a deeper fascination since the day at the end of the 19th century when this excursion was so lightly undertaken.
Please drop me a comment if you have taken part in Goodreads Monday and I will head over for a visit.
Unable to forgive herself for the death of her two-year-old son Bobby in a car accident, Menley Nichols’ marriage to Adam starts to fall apart – until the birth of their daughter Hannah. Determined to rebuild a life together around their precious baby, Menley and Adam decide to rent a house on Cape Cod for a month, confidant that the tranquility of the place will be ideal for Menley and little Hannah. But the peace they crave is disturbed when strange things start to happen – incidents which make Menley relive the horror of the accident in which she lost Bobby… incidents which make her fear for Hannah. And step by step, Menley and Adam are drawn into a dark and sinister web of events which threatens their marriage, their child and ultimately Menley’s sanity.
Review
I read my first Mary Higgins Clark book about four years ago and at the time I didn’t realise it was also her first published novel but I really enjoyed it and she turned into an author I always keep an eye out for her books. Just recently at my church someone has obviously had a clear out of Mary Higgins Clark books, leaving them at the back with the other second hand books, so I have been snapping them up whenever I see one I haven’t read. This is where Remember Me came from.
This is definitely my favourite Mary Higgins Clark book so far. I couldn’t put it down and it had me hooked with no idea what was going on or what would happen next. Menley and Adam have rented out Remember House on Cape Cod for a month where they hope to get the much needed rest together and time to relax as a family together with their baby daughter Hannah.
Menley plans to work on her next book during this month away and so delves into research and work which is where she is happiest. It also gives her a chance to escape the past where Bobby her two year old son was killed in a car accident. However, this planned month of family bliss is not quite as quiet as they planned because Adam keeps being called away to work. This means Menley is left alone with the baby and strange things start to happen at night that start to make Menley question her sanity and fear for baby Hannah’s safety.
There are a lot of strange events that happen in this book and I never had a clue of what to expect next. However, there were certain aspects of the story that were clearly not right and alarm bells were going off in my head that circumstances were not quite right but I couldn’t work out how these things were happening or who was responsible. I had quite a shock when it was all revealed at the end. I also loved the very last paragraph of the book and thought it linked everything up with the Remember House and Menley’s research.
This book is very cleverly written by Clark because it keeps the reader hooked but doesn’t give much away. I also loved Clark’s descriptions especially of Remember House because I could easily picture the house in my mind. I could not put this book down and give this book 5 out of 5 Dragons.
(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
Mary Higgins Clark (1927-2020) was an American author of suspense novels. She published 51 books and each one was a United States best seller.
The Complete Book of the Flower Fairies by Cicely Mary Barker
Blurb
This complete collection of Cicely Mary Barker’s Flower Fairies features a brand-new enchanting cover.
Perfect for fans of all ages, this wonderful collection includes all the original Flower Fairy poems and illustrations by Cicely Mary Barker from the classic books.
Since the publication of Cicely Mary Barker’s first book in 1923, the Flower Fairies have been ethereal companions to generations of readers around the world. Her charming poetry and delicate illustrations have sparked the imaginations of children for over ninety years and continue to inspire a life-long love for fairies and all things magical.
Review
This beautiful book was my birthday present off my parents and a book that has been on my wishlist for ages. I was so excited I started reading it straight away.
This fantastic book is just stunning as the illustrations are beautiful. Each fairy is unique and all match the flower or plant that they are with perfectly matched with. Barker was clearly a very talented artist because the flowers and plants are so well drawn I could easily recognise all the plants (well the ones I am familiar with). I can imagine Barker studying each plant in detail to get the very best illustration.
Each fairy is accompanied by a beautifully written poem by Barker which is also associated with each plant and clearly shows that Barker really knew her plants. I also loved how certain poems had little facts attached to them about the plants, for example whether the plant was poisonous or known by another name. I really learned a lot from these attached facts and discovered that plants I know are also known by other names.
I had so many favourite illustrations and poems but my absolute favourite was the Christmas Tree fairy and I plan on rereading this poem when it is closer to Christmas. I would also love some prints of certain illustrations because they would look stunning on display rather than hidden in a book.
Barker in my opinion was an extremely talented artist and really knowledgable about plants. I loved this book and fully intend to dip into this book from time to time and remind myself of these beautiful illustrations and poems throughout the year. I give this book a massive 5 out of 5 Dragons.
(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
Cicely Mary Barker (1895-1973) was the illustrator who created the famous Flower Fairies; those ethereal smiling children with butterfly wings. As a child she was influenced by the works of the illustrator Kate Greenaway, whom she assiduously copied in her formative years. Her principal influence, however, was the artwork of the Pre-Raphaelites.
Stacking The Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Marlene of Reading Reality. It is all about sharing the books that you have recently added to your bookshelves. These books can be physical books, ebooks and of course audiobooks.
Hello and welcome to my first ever Stacking the Shelves post.
This week I spent a few days in my favourite place, Bath. This also meant I visited my favourite bookshops and went a little crazy on my book buying.
So here are the books and the bookshops I bought them from.
Persephone Books
I always love how Persephone Books have little descriptions of each book on the bookshelves so you can immediately see what the book is generally about. This also means that I found a lot of books I wanted to buy and read. I actually started to read The Victorian Chaise-Longue as soon as I got back to the hotel so that has already been read and reviewed.
Mr B’s Emporium Bookshop
I really want to see the film of this but I always love to read the book first so hopefully I will get reading this soon. I would have liked to have spent longer in this bookshop but unfortunately there was rather a nasty smell in the shop that rather put me off my book browsing.
Toppings and Company Booksellers of Bath
Now I will be honest I went a little crazy in Toppings and Company. Once I had filled my arms up with books I passed the books to my husband so when I went to the checkout the nice lady on the checkout had a bit of a shock. In fact she thought I had started Christmas shopping so she was even more surprised when I said they were all for me. In all honesty I am so excited to start reading all these lovely books I am not sure what to read first. What do you think I should read next?
So there are all my new books! I am returning to Bath in December so I really must be careful I don’t go book shopping crazy again.
Have you added any new books to your bookshelves recently?
It will soon be Halloween so I have chosen a poem from Roald Dahl’s book The Witches.
Down Vith Children!
Down vith children! Do them in!
Boil their bones and fry their skin!
Bish them, sqvish them, bash them, mash them!
Brrreak them, shake them, slash them, smash them!
Offer chocs vith magic powder!
Say, 'Eat up!' then say it louder.
Crrram them full of sticky eats,
Send them home still guzzling sveets.
And in the morning little fools
Go marching off to separate schools.
A girl feels sick and goes all pale.
She yells, 'Hey look! I've grrrown a tail!'
A boy who's standing next to her
Screams, 'Help! I think I'm grrrowing fur!'
Another shouts, 'Vee look like frrreaks!
There's viskers growing on our cheeks!'
A boy who vos extremely tall
Cries out, 'Vot's wrong? I'm grrrowing small!'
Four tiny legs begin to sprrrout
From everybody rrround about,
And all at vunce, all in a trrrice,
There are no children! Only MICE!
In every school is mice galore
All rrruning rrround the school-rrrom floor!
And all the poor demented teachers
Is yelling, 'Hey, who are these crrreatures?'
They stand upon the desks and shout,
'Get out, you filthy mice! Get out!
Vill someone fetch some mouse-trrraps, please!
And don't forrrget to bring the cheese!'
Now mouse-trrraps come and every trrrap
Goes snippy-snipp and snappy-snap.
The mouse-trrraps have a powerful spring,
The springs go crack and snap and ping!
Is lovely noise for us to hear!
Is music to a vitch's ear!
Dead mice is every place arrround,
Piled two feet deep upon the grrround,
Vith teachers searching left and rrright,
But not a single child in sight!
The teachers cry, 'Vot's going on?
Oh vhere have all the children gone?
Is half-past nine and as a rrrule
They're never late as this for school!'
Poor teachers don't know vot to do.
Some sit and rrread, and just a few
Amuse themselves throughout the day
By sveeping all the mice avay.
AND ALL US VITCHES SHOUT 'HOORAY!'
Roald Dahl
Lady Book Dragon 