Christmas book haul

I'm not usually a huge fan of "haul" posts, but since this is a blog about reading and knitting, I thought I'd do a post on my Christmas book gifts, what I will be reading over the next few months.

(One of my relatives asked, "Why do you need so many books?  You have a Kindle, don't you?"  And it's true, but I love having hard copies, particularly of history books.  As I told my sister, as a History Master's Degree student, I'm building a library here!)

My Christmas book haul included:

Nicholas and Alexandra by Robert K. Massie.
This book was one of my favorites growing up.  My father had an interest in Russian history, particularly the fall of the Romanov dynasty, and I read his copy to tatters (sorry, Dad).  I'm so excited to have my own copy.

Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman by Robert K. Massie

Loving Nicholas and Alexandra as I do, I was excited to hear that Massie's latest book on Catherine the Great was almost universally praised.  I can't wait to read it.

Henry VIII: The King and His Court by Alison Weir

Alison Weir!  My goal to amass an entire collection of her books continues.  I've read her Six Wives of Henry VIII, but I've never read a book strictly on the life and reign of Henry himself.  I'm looking forward to this one.

Faith and Treason: The Story of the Gunpowder Plot by Antonia Fraser

Thus far, my only experience with Antonia Fraser involved her biography of Marie Antoinette, but this intrigued me.  Also, David and I were married on Guy Fawkes Day, November 5th, so the date and events pique my interest.

World Without End by Ken Follett

The Pillars of the Earth was quite possibly my favorite book that I read in 2011.  I am so excited to read the sequel!

In addition to the histories/historical fiction, I also received two knitting books:

The Knitter's Life List by Gwen Steege
This isn't a book that I had heard of before; my father read a review of it in the paper and thought it would be good for me.  I've only leafed through it thus far, but it's pretty amazing -- sort of a knitter's checklist of things to learn, places to go, people to meet.  

Knitting Vintage Socks: New Twists on Classic Patterns by Nancy Bush
This is one of those "inspiration" books of patterns that I'm scared to death to try.  But the pictures are so beautiful, and I'm going to force myself to knit some of these beauties!


So there are four days left until the new year.  Four days, and I have one book to read.  What did I pick?


Nicholas and Alexandra.  My mom thinks I'm crazy, but I've read it before, I love it, and as of this morning I am on...page 74 of 527.  No sweat.  I can do it!
 

Review: HOTESP, Vol. 1, The Birth of Britain by Winston Churchill

I don't flatter myself that ANYONE is as interested in this review (or as happy to have it finally done) as I am, but I'm going to put it out there anyway, mainly because I feel it is only fair to those who have a crazy obsession with English history like I do.  This is one book (series of books?) that really should not be skipped, if you fall into that category of clinical psychosis.

Winston Churchill (the Winston Churchill you're thinking of, yes) began writing his four-volume A History of the English-Speaking Peoples in the  year 1937, just before England was thrown into World War II.  Delayed by the war and by other projects, Churchill did not get this epic published until 1956 -- nineteen years after it was begun.

Volume I, The Birth of Britain, covers the history of the English isle from 55 B.C. (the year Julius Caesar and the Roman army invaded England) to 1485, with the end of the Wars of the Roses at the Battle of Bosworth Field.  The hardcover copy I borrowed from my father weighed in at a hefty 500 pages.  This is not light reading.

And yet, at times, it seems it!  Churchill's famous prose is amazing.  I will admit (to my great embarrassment) that there were times when I had more fun reading quietly aloud to myself, in order to savor the prose, similar to the method in which some people insist on reading Shakespeare.  Also, considering how long the book is, Churchill is anything but long-winded.  Each great moment in history has its chapter, and doesn't drag out unduly.  Churchill makes his point, then moves on.  Would that all historical writers did the same!

It's a wonderful read, and should really be considered by anyone who is interested in some serious English history.  I plan on reading all three of the remaining volumes, but I'm going to give myself a little time to read something lighter and fluffier before I delve into Volume II.

Rating: *****

Yarn Along Wednesday!

My God, has it really been a week since I posted?  My apologies, guys.  I'll explain more after the obligatory yarn post!

It's Yarn Along time!  Every Wednesday, I (try, at least) to join in on the Yarn Along happening over at Ginny's blog, small things.  The objective is to take a picture of what you are currently reading and knitting, together, and then post it to your blog.  Then link your post to the Yarn Along, and everyone can see what everyone else is reading and knitting.

This is a picture of why the blog has been silent for a straight week.  There hasn't been much going on.  But I did finish one of the Noro socks that I was working on the last time we met.

The book is still the same too -- Churchill's History of the English-Speaking People, Vol. 1, The Birth of Britain.  BUT BUT BUT.  I AM ALMOST DONE (with Vol. 1, that is).  I am currently on page 392 of 500, and I am determined -- DETERMINED, I SAY -- to finish this book tonight.  I have barely any books completed for February, and this is part of the reason why.

I also confess that I jumped the gun and started a new book, on my Kindle, that I have had trouble putting down, so I have had to go on temporary hiatus from the Kindle in order to finish Churchill (which I am still loving, BTW).  More on that, when I finish Churchill.  With any luck, I will have a review for you tomorrow.  If you are still reading me, that is!

The other reason my blog has been temporarily silent is that I have been busy on my OTHER blog, which is my "married" blog about David and I planning our move (five weeks from Friday!) and our plans to renovate said apartment into a real home.  We signed and mailed the lease this morning (!) so plans are underway!  If you would like to follow up with me in my "real life" blog, Between the Bay State and the Big Apple, feel free!

More tomorrow, I promise!

"The Whiiiiiiiite Whale!"

I've heard people speak of books reverently as their "White Whale" (to quote Melville's Moby-Dick) or "Mount Everest."  When I thought about it, I really couldn't come up with a book that was my own personal goal.  I try not to think of books as challenges.  I mean, it seems pretty commonsense, here -- you don't like a book, you put it down and stop reading it.  Outside of school, reading shouldn't be forced, it should be enjoyable, right?

Until last night.  Having finished my latest Alison Weir, I rifled through my bookshelf, in search of something new, and found the dusty hardback book my father loaned me over a year ago.

And I have found my Everest.

A History of the English-Speaking Peoples, by Winston Churchill (yes, the Winston Churchill)

I can't put it down, guys.  It's a history book, yes -- a work of nonfiction, probably "dull as tombs" (to quote Louisa May Alcott) to most people.  But it is a work of beauty.  Churchill's prose is phenomenal, as rich as his formal speeches were (and do not even try to tell me that he didn't write those -- unless you want to tell me he hired a ghostwriter to do this, too, and then maybe we'll talk.

The work is long -- four volumes, with three "books" each.  I'm currently working on Volume I "The Birth of Britain", and I'm in Book Two, "The Making of the Nation", Chapter Three, "Coeur de Lion" (about Richard the Lionheart).  Book One, about the Roman invasion of Britain and the Celts and Boadicea, was an odyssey, and one I'm glad to be done with.  I figure this series is going to take me the better part of 2011 to finish -- but I'm glad to be getting through it, and I'll be richer for the experience!

What's your "White Whale" or "Mount Everest"?