I hope 2021 is a better year but to be honest I can’t see that it will dramatically change straight away. However, I still plan on having a good reading and blogging year.
My reading goals for 2021 are as follows…
My Goodreads reading challenge will be 70 books again as I only just managed 70 in 2020. I have to do a lot of reading for studying so need to factor that in.
I plan to do a few buddy reads in 2021. We are starting with Dissolution by C. J Sansom, hopefully if we enjoy the book we will carry on with the series.
The ExpanseseriesbyJames S. A. Corey. I plan to read the series this year as I love the TV series and have just started reading the first book in the series and absolutely love it.
Agatha Christie. I have only ever read short stories by Agatha Christie so 2021 is my year to read more of Agatha Christie’s full novels. I won’t set a goal of how many but I plan on reading the books in order of publication.
Shakespeare Challenge. This challenge I started in 2020 so I hope to get a few more ticked off the list in 2021.
So there are my Reading Goals for 2021. Hopefully, I will get to tick them off as I don’t think they are too strict, after all I am a mood reader and reading should always be fun and not restrictive.
Please drop me a comment with your 2021 reading goals.
I need to do my 2020 Wrap Up but I thought I would get my December Wrap Up complete first. I think December has been my best reading month this year. I have absolutely loved all the books I have been getting through and have really felt like I am back on track with my reading.
So here are my December statistics
I must admit I was very shocked that I had managed to read 12 books. However, some were quite short though I will be honest.
So here are the books…
Now this one should have been on the November Wrap Up but I finished this right after I had scheduled the post so it can go on this post instead.
There is my December! I hope everyone had a good December and got some reading done. Some books do not have reviews yet but I promise they are on the way.
Please drop me a comment if you want to chat about any of the books.
The rules are answer the questions below and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you will read next?
Hello
I hope everyone is OK during this limbo period. I must admit I do love the period between Christmas and New Year. The limbo period involves left overs, chocolate, reading, wintry walks and just generally chilling.
So here is my last WWW Wednesdayof 2020.
What I am Currently Reading
My husband and myself love watching The Expanse so I decided I would read the books in 2021 and have started early. So far I can’t put it down.
What I have Recently Finished Reading
I finished The Nutcracker and have read two of my Christmas presents, Letters from Fairyland and How to See Fairies by Charles Van Sandwyk.
What I Think I will Read Next
I’m starting my buddy read Dissolution on the 1st January, I’m really excited about this book and to be reading it with my best friend. I will probably be reading another book at the same time and it will be one of these books.
Please drop me a comment if you want to chat about any of my books. Please drop me the link to your WWW Wednesday and I will head over for a visit.
The Nutcracker by E. T. A Hoffmann, illustrated by Sanna Annukka Ltd
Blurb
Hoffmann’s classic Christmas fairy tale, immortalised by Tchaikovsky’s ballet, is brought to life by the gorgeous contemporary artwork of Finnish illustrator, Sanna Annuka.
On Christmas Eve, Fritz and Marie excitedly await the arrival of Godfather Drosselmeier and the marvellous gifts he brings for them every year. When Marie discovers a curious nutcracker doll among the presents, she suddenly finds herself caught up in an age-old battle before being transported to a magical world of sugar-frosted castles, chocolate kings, and true love.
Sanna Annukka is familiar to many from her collaborations with Marimekko. The Nutcracker is her third book project.
This cloth-bound edition combines the charm of Hoffmann’s original nineteenth-century tale with the freshness of Sanna Annuka’s gorgeous illustrations. A beautiful gift to give and receive.
Review
As most of you know by now I love the story of The Nutcracker and I read a new edition of it every year. The story for me will always have 5 out of 5 Dragons and thankfully this edition was not abridged so I could enjoy the story in full.
Over the past few years I have read some beautifully illustrated copies of this story and last year’s was a pop up book version, which although abridged really made me smile as the detail of the book was stunning. The illustrations in this year’s edition for me was rather a shock and not what I had expected but this year due to the pandemic I had had to order my copy rather than explore an actual book shop.
The illustrations in this book are bold and only use a limited range of colours but they work so well together and you can really see how Annukka is influenced by her love of printing and Finnish design. The only issues I had was that the illustration of the mouse king sadly did not have seven heads but just the one. You could clearly see it was the mouse king because it was a mouse with a crown but I did miss the seven heads. The other issue I had was that there was an awful lot of black used that made certain illustrations appear rather gloomy.
I really enjoyed reading this edition and I am glad I chose it because in a bookshop I might have overlooked it as the illustrations are not something I would usually choose. However, I really liked how different the illustrations were and how they expertly added to the story. As usual 5 out of 5 Dragons from me.
(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.)
So this Christmas I had some books for Christmas! I had three books and they are absolutely stunning.
I collect the De Luxe Editions by Harper Collins of Tolkien’s works and my husband very kindly bought me Letters from Father Christmas to add to my collection. In fact it was my husband who started me collecting this set as he gave me The Unfinished Tales for my Christmas present for our first Christmas together.
The next two books are by the same author Charles Van Sandwyk. These two books are Folio Society editions that my in-laws very kindly gave me for Christmas and I absolutely love them especially Letters from Fairyland. The other book is a collection of stories about fairyland called How to See Fairies.
There are my beautiful books!
I really do love beautiful books and that is why I generally end up with more than one edition of a favourite book.
I know 2020 has not been the best of years but I hope everyone is managing some sort of celebration for Christmas. This Christmas falls on a Friday and as you know on this blog I always do a Friday poetry post so I have chosen a Christmas poem to mark the special day.
The First Christmas
It never snows at Christmas in that dry and dusty land.
Instead of freezing blizzards, there are palms and drifting sands,
and years ago a stable and a most unusual star
and three wise men who followed it, by camel, not by car,
while, sleepy on the quiet hills, a shepherd gave a cry.
He'd seen a crowd of angels in the silent starlit sky.
In the stable, ox and ass stood very still and calm
and gazed upon the baby, safe and snug in Mary's arms.
And Joseph, lost in shadows, face lit by an oil lamp's glow
stood wondering, that first Christmas Day, two thousand years ago
Marian Swinger
Merry Christmas everyone and I hope you all have a wonderful day.
I hope everyone is ready for Christmas and has had a magical Christmas Eve so far.
I have been following Father Christmas’ journey on NORAD as I do every year and it always amazes me how many presents he delivers.
So what have I been up to this week?
Well, this week I have had no teaching, which has been a nice break to get the final things ready for Christmas. I have also had a little break from studying as well so hopefully I will be refreshed to restart in the New Year.
I have been busy wrapping presents and doing the final preparations for Christmas so hopefully tomorrow will be a nice relaxed day.
Today, I have spent a big portion of the day making my first ever Yule Log with the recipe from Highclere at Christmas and thankfully it does look good so hopefully it will taste good when we try it tomorrow.
So there is my week. I hope everyone has had a good week so far.
The rules are answer the questions below and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you will read next?
Happy Wednesday!
I can’t believe tomorrow is Christmas Eve! I have slowed down a little on my reading this week and have only finished the one book, but it was a good book and I have got a load of housework done instead.
What I am Currently Reading
This is my Christmas tradition and I have just started it today. Every year I buy a new edition of The Nutcracker then read it on the last few days of the run up to Christmas. I just love the story and I always enjoy reading a different translator’s take on the story and of course beautiful illustrations.
What I have Recently Finished Reading
Literally finished this, this morning so review will follow shortly.I did really enjoy it though.
What I will Read Next
This will definitely be read on Christmas Eve as it is another Christmas tradition of mine. I had this book for Christmas when I was little and now I read it every Christmas Eve. It doesn’t take long to read but it always makes me think of that magical Christmas morning when I opened this amazing book.
So there is my WWW Wednesday for this week. Please drop me a link with your WWW Wednesday and I will head over for a visit. Also please drop me a comment if you have any Christmas reading traditions.
I can’t believe it is Christmas on Friday. I am sticking with my Christmas theme for my mid week quotes and this week’s is by Tom Baker. I love this quote because so many of the ornaments on our Christmas tree have special memories attached.
Some Christmas tree ornaments do more than glitter and glow, they represent a gift of love given a long time ago.
Lady Book Dragon 