What were your favorite childhood books?

The Favourite Book. Honor C. Appleton (1879 – 1951, English)

This is Children's Book Week, so I'm bringing back a post from the archives about my favorite childhood books.  What were yours? Let me know in my comments section!

I've been a voracious reader since I was able to string words together. Interestingly, I don't have much of a memory of the books that were read to me before I could read myself, but I vividly remember the books I loved as a child.

Here is a nod to some of them.

Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott, is the first full-length book I remember reading. I was eight years old.

This is a picture of the actual version I read. It was an abridged version, but I loved the illustrations. In my mind, that is still what Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy look like.

My Aunt Jean (sadly no longer with us) had recommended it to me, saying "You'll cry your eyes out and back in again!"

This was just before my family went to Beirut, Lebanon as missionaries. We were in New York City for several days before our ship sailed, and my parents bought me beautiful hardbound copies of "Little Men" and "Jo's Boys." I was in heaven.

This book laid the foundation for my lifelong love of The Chronicles of Narnia. I saw British friends reading it at Manor House School in Beirut, and that sparked my interest.

Even as a child, I was able to see the spiritual parallels. Years later, I made sure my own children read them.


I received this book as a Christmas gift when I was a little girl, and it was a treasure trove for me! I also loved Blyton's "Mallory Towers" series.

This was the first Noel Streatfield book I read, but I think I probably ended up reading all of them. They were all about children who were very talented, either as skaters, dancers or actors. I enjoyed them immensely.

I was delighted when the books were actually mentioned in the movie, "You've Got Mail."

Those are just a few. You can read here about my other favorites, Auntie Robbo and Red Knights from Hy Brasil...and here about what my love of a childhood book has to do with a murder in an English village!

Reading enriched my childhood and continues to do so today!

What were YOUR favorite books as a child?

My life lately on Instagram...

Lots going on lately! Most recently, my two sons and the youngest of my two grandsons came up for my daughter's graduation last Friday night from Illinois State University.

Here are some moments captured on Instagram:

No visit from my kids is complete without an outing to Giuseppi's Pizza

I like having my sons around for morning coffee...scruff and all :) This is my firstborn, Jonathan

JD LOVED the Discovery Center...he had so much fun!

With the graduate, my daughter Elizabeth

JD waiting patiently for the graduation to begin...he was SO good!

My husband Doug and son Justin

My kids had to leave this morning for Texas, but I feel I got to celebrate Mother's Day with them  

Hubby and me after church

Visible Monday: A Fun Bridal Expo

What is more fun, more girly, more appealing to our romantic natures than a bridal fair?

You know, having a job in radio really does include some fun perks sometimes.  I was asked to help m-c the fashion show at Rockford's Own Bridal Expo yesterday...what a blast!

First of all, I got to pick out a dress to borrow from David's Bridal for the occasion.  This is what I chose:

By the way, if any of  you ladies are going to be mothers of the bride any time in the near future, I can definitely tell you that David's has a nice assortment of styles, shapes and colors for that important day.

Then, on the day of the event, I got my hair done by  the wonderful Gail from Fuzion Salon and Spa.  Here's what the back of it looked like:

I actually did my own make-up, but did sport some MAJOR false eyelashes with the help of Fuzion's makeup artist, Kayla.

My jewelry was provided by a wonderful company called Your Jewelry Dreams.  Here's a close-up of the stunning necklace (before I put my dress on)...

Unfortunately I couldn't take pictures during the actual fashion show.  The dresses and the models were stunning.  Here's a couple of girls I managed to photograph before the show...

Olivia

Molly

Relaxing after a fun show!

Thanks so much, Mickey Rosenow and everyone connected with Rockford's Own Bridal Expo for allowing me to be a part of this wonderful event!

I'm linking today with Visible Monday, hosted by Not Dead Yet Style!

'Tis "Talk Like Shakespeare" Day--Didst Thou Know?

via

Today is Talk Like Shakespeare Day. William Shakespeare, "The Bard of Avon," was born on April 23, 1564, and coincidentally he died on the same date in 1616.

 As someone who was raised on the King James Bible, I have little difficulty "talking like Shakespeare"..even without the instructions of rappers The Q Brothers:



(If you don't want to subject yourself to that little ditty, it's OK...I'll give you the tips right here, courtesy of TalkLikeShakespeare.org:)

How to Talk Like Shakespeare

Instead of you, say thou or thee (and instead of y’all, say ye).

Rhymed couplets are all the rage.

Men are Sirrah, ladies are Mistress, and your friends are all called Cousin.

Instead of cursing, try calling your tormenters jackanapes or canker-blossoms or poisonous bunch-back’d toads.

Don’t waste time saying "it," just use the letter "t" (’tis, t’will, I’ll do’t).

Verse for lovers, prose for ruffians, songs for clowns.

When in doubt, add the letters "eth" to the end of verbs (he runneth, he trippeth, he falleth).

To add weight to your opinions, try starting them with methinks, mayhaps, in sooth or wherefore.

When wooing ladies: try comparing her to a summer’s day. If that fails, say "Get thee to a nunnery!"

When wooing lads: try dressing up like a man. If that fails, throw him in the Tower, banish his friends and claim the throne.

Mel Gibson contemplating a skull in the movie version of Hamlet

Seriously, that Will Shakespeare...

Could he write, or what?

When I was a little girl and my family spent some time in New York City waiting for a longshoreman's strike to end so we could sail to Lebanon, we spent some time in bookstores.  Among the books my parents bought was a handsome volume of the complete works of William Shakespeare.

I confess that I didn't read them at the time (I had just been introduced to Louisa May Alcott), but I spent a of time in that book...scanning the pages and looking at all the pretty names. (I was fascinated with names even then.)

Knowing that William Shakespeare was a great writer is a given...even knowing that we owe a lot of sayings to him.  But you never really realize it until you actually read or see one of his plays.  I remember how that fact really hit me when I watched "Hamlet," with Mel Gibson.

Elizabeth Taylor in "The Taming of the Shrew"

Instead of just talking like Shakespeare, why not try reading one of his plays or watching one of the many movie versions?

Here's a list of the best Shakespeare-to-Screen adaptations.

A beloved Christian writer finally gets her due

On my now "paused" book blog, Cindy's Book Club, I posted about a book I loved when I was in high school: Not My Will, by Francena H. Arnold.

I included "Not My Will" is a list of 15 Books That Will Always Stick With Me.

Here's a description of the book from the Moody Publishers website:

Eleanor's secret love for Chad could mean losing her inheritance and giving up a life long dream. Will she follow her own will, or make the hard choice to submit her life to Christ's leadership? Now available with a contemporary new look, Not My Will is a classic story of love, loss, and surrender, with more than 500,000 copies sold.

Interestingly, I just got this comment on my original post:

I am Steve Buttry, Francena Arnold’s grandson, and wanted to thank you for including "Not My Will" in this post. I cited it in Grandma’s Wikipedia entry as an example of the enduring impact of the author's work, four decades after her death. I also told more about Grandma in a longer version that I used on my own blog. 

She was a remarkable woman and an outstanding writer. I'm pleased that you have honored her by inclusion on this list.

Steve's blog post is particularly interesting, as it recounts how he and his family decided their grandmother really should have her own Wikipedia page...and everything he had to go through to make that page a reality.

Francena Arnold as a young bride, with her husband Frank in their wedding photo

An Enduring Tale

A few years ago, I re-read "Not My Will."  Yes, it was originally written in 1946, so you can't read it expecting it to feel or sound like a current novel.  But I  found it just as engrossing and inspiring as when I originally read it as a teen.

I also enjoyed the sequel, "Light in My Window," and a few other of Arnold's books, including "Then Am I Strong."

Another blogger, Jendi, wrote this in 2010:

I got to thinking while searching for information about Francena Arnold. She does not have a website, and only an empty Facebook fan page. There is not a lot of personal information about her, but her first book [Not My Will] which was originally written only for family is all over the web and the world. Her encouraging and thought provoking stories have endured the test of time.

I couldn't agree more.

At least she does have a Wikipedia page, thanks to her persistent grandson. And if you really would like to know more about this remarkable writer, I suggest you read Steve Buttry's original draft for the Wikipedia page.  It's rich with detail, insight and even writing tips from Francena Arnold.

The joy of browsing a used book store...

Have you ever spent time browsing through a used bookstore?  There's something truly wonderful about it, especially if you're a bookaholic like I am.

Last week, my daughter and I were able to spend a little time in Babbit's Bookstore in Normal, IL.  Not enough time, of course.  We had some time constraints, or we would have lingered.  But it was so enjoyable.

I knew I wanted to get a book about Ireland, and I found quite a few to choose from.  Although not garage-sale cheap, the prices were very reasonable.

I had to take a picture of these Beverly Gray books for my sister Beverly.  Her name isn't all that common, and I was pretty sure she didn't know there was a series of books based on a girl named Beverly.  I may see if I can find some of these at the library.

My daughter was enchanted with this book.  Books were once so lovely, weren't they?

Elizabeth was looking for Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time, but she was unsuccessful in that quest.  She did, however, find a book that had been on her to-read list:  Peggy Noonan's biography of Ronald Reagan, When Character was King, at a very good price.

The book about Ireland that I ended up getting turned out to be fascinating.  Although this appears to be a much more recent edition, it was written in 1925! It was interesting to find Ireland captured at that moment in time.

There are tons of photographs, but of course all of them are in black and white.  Travel literature has come a long way since then!

Before we left, my daughter commented that visiting that bookstore made her realize that although she gets many books online, she'll never abandon reading the printed word.  Neither will I.

Below is another used bookstore where I spent some time a few years ago...the Book Pride store in Georgetown, Texas.  Compared to Babbit's, it was wonderfully spacious and included several reading nooks.  I loved it!

Are you like me...do you love used bookstores?  Do you have a favorite one...or even just a favorite bookstore?  I'd love to hear about it!

I'm linking up today with Thursday Favorite Things, hosted by Katherine's Corner!

Visible Monday: Emerald Eye Shadow Tutorial

Did you know the fashion and make-up Powers That Be have declared emerald to be the color for 2013?

With yesterday being St. Patrick's Day, I decided to go all out...green everything, including my eye shadow.  Yes, the Make-up Powers That Be often tell you not to match-matchy your clothes and eye make-up, but I chose to ignore them.  Above is the finished look.  If you'd like to know how I accomplished it, read on!

This ELF palette has been may go-to palette since I got it for FIVE DOLLARS--yes FIVE DOLLARS--half-price at Walgreen's right after Christmas.  For my festive emerald St. Paddy's look, I chose to build the look around the emerald shadow that's in the fourth row up from the bottom, three shadows over.

Prep for the look:

I started out with a clean, moisturized face.  Before beginning with the shadow, I shaped my eyebrows with a dark brown shadow and a tiny angled brush...used ELF eyelid primer all over the lid...and a neutral skin-toned shadow all over the lid, all the way up to the brow.

Why, you ask?  I know it seems like a lot of steps, but if you're like me and want your eye shadow to stay put all day, it's worth it.

Now for the color:

Step 1:  I applied my emerald shadow all over the eyelid itself.

Step  2:  This is one step in which I deviated from ELF.  I love the gray in my Lancome eye shadow palette so much, and that's what I used in the crease and as a contour on the edges of my lid.

Step 3:  I blended it out with a brush, and even used my finger a little.

Step 4:  I used Estee Lauder black eye pencil above and below my lashes.  (I don't put liner on my water line, because I think it makes my eyes look smaller.)

Above my eye, I smoothed ELF black eye shadow over the eye pencil for a slightly more smudge look.
Beneath my eye, I smoothed the emerald eye shadow over the black pencil.  (As you can see, it doesn't look crazy-green.)

Step 5:  You can't see it very well in the pic, but I used eyelash primer on both sets of lashes.  I'm convinced it makes my lashes look a bit longer and thicker, (although naturally they're neither.)

Step 6:  In the center of my eyelid, I put a small smudge of a much-lighter green and blended slightly.  I think the little bit of bright in the center of the lid makes you look more wide-awake somehow.

Step 7:  I then put 2 or 3 coats of Estee Lauder black mascara on my upper and lower lashes.

Below:  I put a light shade of neutral with the tiniest bit of shimmer right below my brow.  You have to be careful with this, especially if you're older like me.  Too much shimmer, too much light stuff below the brow can end up looking tacky.  Use a very light touch.

Below:

The finished look.  Hope you like it!

I'm linking up today with Visible Monday, hosted by Not Dead Yet Style!