Top Ten Tuesday: Characters I Would Name a Pet After

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!

Another fabulous theme this week and one quite apt as my husband and I own two cats that are named after book characters.

So here is the list and first up are my cats!

Meet Lyra and Pan from His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman

Gandalf the Grey from The Lord of the Rings – This is my dream name for a long haired grey cat.
Winnie from Winnie the Pooh – A female British Bulldog.
Pilot from Jane Eyre – A male German Shepherd
Holmes and Watson from Sherlock Holmes – Two male Beagles
Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights – Male wire haired Dacshund
Deuteronomy from The Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats – Male Maine coon cat.
Darcy from Pride and Prejudice – Male or female Dalmatian
Meg from Little Women – Female long haired collie
Hercule from Hercule Poirot – Male Scottish Fold cat
Tiny Tim from A Christmas Carol – Male Tea Cup Chihuahua

So there is my pet wish list.

Please drop me link with your Top Ten Tuesday and I will head over for a visit.

This and That Thursday

Hello!

Another busy week has gone by with teaching, studying and throwing things away.

Yes I have had a big clear out of my music room and changed the position of my online teaching setup and I love it. The room is so much calmer now it is all organised. I am aiming to do every room before Christmas so the bedroom and music room are now done, so kitchen and dinning room are next.

Here is my lovely music room

Exercise

I have been after an exercise bike for ages and I now have one and so after a busy day I have been chilling out with a session on the bike whilst watching an episode of Criminal Minds.

Walking

We are still walking and have recently discovered a lovely walk which is really close to where we live and I loved it. Lyra has been helping us choose some new walks to try as well.

Piano Playing

I have started practicing Christmas music on the piano. Each year I try to learn new Christmas pieces on the piano and so hopefully I will be able to play some new tunes at Christmas. So far there has been some terrible Christmas tunes in this house.

So there is my week. I hope everyone is having a good week so far.

Happy Reading.

First Lines Friday: 30/10/2020

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!

Happy Friday!

I hope you all have some amazing reads planned for the weekend.

I thought it was time for a First Lines Friday. As usual the answer is below the cats.

“These days the origin of the universe is explained by proposing a Big Bang, a single event that instantly brought into being all the matter from which everything and everyone are made.”

The answer is…

Mythos by Stephen Fry

Rediscover the thrills, grandeur, and unabashed fun of the Greek myths—stylishly retold by Stephen Fry. This legendary writer, actor, and comedian breathes new life into beloved tales. From Persephone’s pomegranate seeds to Prometheus’s fire, from devious divine schemes to immortal love affairs, Fry draws out the humour and pathos in each story and reveals its relevance for our own time. Illustrated throughout with classical art inspired by the myths, this gorgeous volume invites you to explore a captivating world, with a brilliant storyteller as your guide.

Links

Audible • Book Depository • Foyles • Kindle • Waterstones • Wordery

Please drop me a comment with your First Lines Friday and I will head over for a visit.

Happy Reading!

This and That Thursday

Hello!

I hope all my fellow Book Dragons are well and having a good week so far.

This week I have been organ playing and back to teaching again which has been a bit of a shock to the system after a week off.

So here is what else I have been up to this week.

Studying

The studying is going well and I have now begun planning my two essays for my first assignment. They are very different to anything I have done before and I will be honest I am rather nervous about them. Hopefully I do a good job.

Crochet

The cowl continues! This cowl has been unravelled and restarted several times as I haven’t been happy with it. The husband has threatened to throw it in the bin several times but now I have got the ripples correct and it is going well.

Baking

The Great British Bake Off is having a bad influence on me because it keeps making me want to bake lots of yummy cakes. This time I chose to do some chocolate brownies. Thankfully, they came out of the oven a success with that all important gooey middle.

Hot Chocolate

This week has also included lots of hot chocolate sampling as we work through all the different flavours that Hotel Chocolat does for the Velvetiser. So far my favourite is the mint and dark chocolate.

Cats

To finish here is a cute picture of Lyra who decided she needed to be under the blanket rather than on top.

Happy Reading!

lady book dragon signature 250w

This and That Thursday

Hello!

Well this week has been full of studying, reading and Christmas shopping! Yes I have started Christmas shopping, please don’t hate me. I never usually start this early but I took advantage of the double stamps at Waterstones. I always love giving books for presents, I always find it magical.

So here is what else I have been up to.

Walking

We had a lovely walk on Tuesday after I had finished teaching in the morning. I really needed a change of scene and it was just the tonic I needed as the sun was shining and it was wonderful.

Cat Pictures

Also this week my phone decided to form a video of the recent cat photos I have taken which has made me realise just how many cat photos I am taking.

I will be honest my week has mainly involved studying and binge watching Criminal Minds. I did however get a new desk this week which was very exciting as it is yellow!

First Lines Friday: 9/10/2020

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!

It’s time to get guessing that book! The answer is below the cats.

“When I was born, the name for what I was did not exist. They called me nymph, assuming I would be like my mother and aunts and thousand cousins.”

and the answer is…

In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child—not powerful, like her father, nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power—the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves.

Threatened, Zeus banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus.

But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love.

Drop me a link with your First Lines Friday and I will head over for a visit.

This and That Thursday

Hello!

Well this week has mainly focused on studying and teaching to be honest but here is what else I have been up to.

Walking

The walking is going strong when it isn’t raining.

Cats

We had to take our one cat to the vet, she is all ok but it was a traumatic experience for my husband and myself. I’m the one who has to catch the cat which is always rather a worry.

Knitting

The scarf is still going strong. I am already planning my next challenge but I must make myself finish the scarf first.

So there it is, a rather quiet week but got lots of work done which is always good.

First Line Friday: 18/09/2020

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!

Happy Friday!

It is time to guess that book. As per usual the answer is below the cats.

“Anna peered through the window of the gatehouse, watching the chariot trundling through below, enjoying the rich sensuousness of the new silk gown she was wearing, and conscious of her parents’ expectations of her.”

ANSWER

Newly widowed and the father of an infant son, Henry VIII realizes he must marry again to insure the royal succession. Now forty-six, overweight and unwell, Henry is soundly rejected by some of Europe’s most eligible princesses, but Anna of Kleve—a small German duchy—is twenty-four and eager to wed. Henry requests Anna’s portrait from his court painter, who enhances her looks, painting her straight-on in order not to emphasize her rather long nose. Henry is entranced by the lovely image, only to be bitterly surprised when Anna arrives in England and he sees her in the flesh. She is pleasant looking, just not the lady that Henry had expected.

What follows is a fascinating story of this awkward royal union that had to somehow be terminated tactfully. Alison Weir takes a fresh and surprising look at this remarkable royal marriage by describing it from the point of view of Queen Anna, a young woman with hopes and dreams of her own, alone in a royal court that rejected her from the day she arrived.

Please drop me a comment with your First Line Friday and I will head over for a visit.

First Line Friday: 4/09/2020

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!

It is time to guess that book. As usual the answer is below the cats!

The parties at the Tunons’ house always ended unquestionably late, and since the hosts enjoyed costume parties in particular, it was not unusual to see Chinas Poblanas with their folkloric skirts and ribbons in their hair arrive in the company of a harlequin or a cowboy.

When glamorous socialite Noemi Taboada receives a frantic letter from her newlywed cousin begging to be rescued from a mysterious doom, it’s clear something is desperately amiss. Catalina has always had a flair for the dramatic, but her claims that her husband is poisoning her and her visions of restless ghosts seem remarkable, even for her.

Noemi’s chic gowns and perfect lipstick are more suited to cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing, but she immediately heads to High Place, a remote mansion in the Mexican countryside, determined to discover what is so affecting her cousin.

Tough and smart, she possesses an indomitable will, and she is not afraid: not of her cousin’s new husband, who is both menacing and alluring; not of his father, the ancient patriarch who seems to be fascinated by Noemi; and not of the house itself, which begins to invade Noemi’s dreams with visions of blood and doom.

Her only ally in this inhospitable abode is the family’s youngest son. Shy and gentle, he seems to want to help, but might also be hiding dark knowledge of his family’s past. For there are many secrets behind the walls of High Place. The family’s once colossal wealth and faded mining empire kept them from prying eyes, but as Noemi digs deeper she unearths stories of violence and madness.

Book Depository • Waterstones • Wordery

This and That Thursday

Happy Thursday!

So this week has been a bit more adventurous for me which has been nice.

Organ Playing

This week I went to one of the churches I am an organist for and practiced the organ for a good hour. It was so nice to be back and the fact that I was in the church with no interruptions was wonderful as I could just play until my heart’s content. Thankfully the organ is still working because it is needed for a wedding in September and it hadn’t been played since March. By the way the organ’s name is Bob.

Walking

This week we have been on two lovely walks which have been really nice as it was somewhere different.

Exercise

I have been really getting into my exercise and have been trying out different workouts. This has meant the recent acquisition of a step box, hopefully this will mean some more fun workouts or with my coordination I end up falling off it.

Cat photos

This week has also involved a lot of cat photos for some reason. Think the cats are getting a little sick of it but they are so cute. Here is my favourite of Lyra.

TV Series

We are still working our way through our TV series. We have finished all the Absolutely Fabulous episodes and are still working our way through Buffy the Vampire Slayer, sadly the annoying sister Dawn has turned up now and she does drive me insane.

There is my week. Still quiet but I’m still teaching and studying most days so not too quiet. Right now I’m currently frantically watching out for the enormous spider that is running around our living room.