Starting Again

My self-imposed blogging vacation was only about a week old before I started thinking of starting up again. But I told myself I needed to enforce that blogging break, and therefore wouldn’t “allow” myself to blog again until September.  I instead spent time redesigning the site and pondering just what I want to be doing on this reading blog.

I’ve decided I’m going to start over again. My involvement will probably be far less than it was before and I reserve the right to just stop blogging or omit blogging for a week or two here or there if I’m too tired of it, if life is busy, or if I otherwise just feel like it. This is once again for me, and not for others, although I’ll try to be a part of something. Continue reading »

May and Milton in May in Review + Challenges Update and Reading Journal

It’s well into June and I haven’t done a “last month in review” post. Since I’m trying to simplify blogging, I’m going to do things a little differently from now on, I think. This is a review of my Milton in May project (which I finished last week). My next “project in review” post will be after my Victorian summer has ended.

I’ve finished my Milton project, although I’ll have to say I really started losing interest by the end. One month would have been plenty (I spent six weeks). There were even more Milton writings I wanted to read, like Samson Agonistes and Milton’s non-epic poetry.

My next project, my Victorian Summer, is well under way. Because I’m reading very long books (such as Armadale and Wives and Daughters) it may still be two weeks before I have a post for that. I’m also really enjoying the biography of Victoria and Albert. I think it was a great way to start the project.

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Introducing: My Victorian Summer

I am not finished with Milton, despite the fact that May is over. I will have another Paradise Lost post (probably tomorrow) and probably two to four more posts in the two weeks – posts on the biography I finished, the C.S. Lewis commentary I’m reading, Paradise Regained, Samson Agonistes, and possibly some other Milton poetry. I’ll combine posts as I find convenient, but I am still reading about Restoration England for two more weeks at least.

Nonetheless, I have been planning my summer reading, and I’m so excited I’ve already begun my reading for my project. This summer will be My Victorian Summer.

Between now and the end of August, I plan on immersing myself in as much Victorian fiction (and nonfiction about the era) as possible. I decided to do this because I’ve been slacking on my Our Mutual Read books and I really have been craving Victorian literature lately.

The idea is to enjoy Victorian literature, so I’m focusing on what is most loudly calling my name, which is early and middle Victorian novels. I’ll leave poetry for another time and I’m avoiding the later fiction, which just seems different in my mind. (I admit, I’m afraid of Hardy.)

That said, here are some things I want to read in the next three months. Continue reading »

Bookworms Carnival: Poetry

I am delighted to welcome the Bookworms Carnival to my site for a special carnival of POETRY.

As you probably know, Savvy Verse and Wit has been sponsoring a month-long National Poetry blog tour! In addition to the poetry links below, make sure you check out that link for a detailed listing of all the ways that poetry has been honored this month around the blogosphere. Continue reading »

Call for Poetry Posts: Deadline Extended!

Early next week I hope to post a Bookworms Carnival highlighting poetry.

If you’ve recently reviewed a  poetry collection,  written about a favorite poet or poem, or discussed some nonfiction about poetry, send me a link.

If you haven’t yet written something recently (or ever!), you still could. Send me your links before Monday at noon (Central Daylight Time).

That’s all you need to do. I’ll collect the links and post on Tuesday.

Milton in May: A Paradise Lost Read-Along

I mentioned this a few months ago, and here is another reminder. I’m reading some Milton in May, and I thought I’d open it up to anyone who may care to join me. My main goal is to read Paradise Lost, although I may read some other poetry and discuss it as well. I’d love for you to join for the Paradise Lost read-along or you could just read something else Miltonian.

I recall really enjoying Paradise Lost and Milton’s other works when I read them in college, so I’m really looking forward to pulling out my Complete Milton and browsing and sharing more thoughts.

I will probably start reading Paradise Lost the last week of April, and so the time schedule will be as follows, with my post on Monday or Tuesday of the week. You can read and write about it at your own pace.

Week of May 3: Books 1-3

Week of May 10: Books 4-6

Week of May 17: Books 7-9

Week of May 24: Books 10-12

I want to keep things pretty low key, but I do want to make sure I catch all the other posts you write about Paradise Lost or other Milton poems or works. If you also write a post about Paradise Lost or any other Milton during that week, add a link on the Linky so we can find each other.

I don’t blog on Saturdays or Sundays, so I also won’t be moderating or responding on those days, but I’ll try to stay caught up the rest of the time. I’m looking forward to immersing myself in Milton’s wonderful poetry! I hope you will join in too.

Poetic and Dramatic Works by Milton (via Wikipedia)

• 1631: L’Allegro
• 1631: Il Penseroso
• 1634: Comus (a masque)
• 1638: Lycidas
• 1645: Poems of Mr John Milton, Both English and Latin
• 1655: On the Late Massacre in Piedmont
• 1667: Paradise Lost
• 1671: Paradise Regained
• 1671: Samson Agonistes
• 1673: Poems, &c, Upon Several Occasions

See Wikipedia for discussion of prose by John Milton.

National Poetry Month + Call for Poetry Posts

April is National Poetry Month in the United States, but why not celebrate poetry around the globe this month? Whether or not you normally read poetry, pick up a volume of something, be it modern, classic, or ancient. If a volume is too intimidating, just read one poem!

A bonus to this April is I’m hosting a Bookworms Carnival all about Poetry at the end of the month. Read something and write about it on your blog by April 23. Send me the link by emailing rebecca [at] rebeccaread [dot] com (with Bookworms Carnival in the subject line) and I’ll include you in my Carnival. If you don’t feel like reading something new, you could write about your favorite poems or poets as well or you could send an old post. The bottom line is that I’d love to see a variety of poetry poetry: modern, western classics, non-western.

I’m going to be going on a weekend trip and so I won’t be around the next few days to respond to comments, etc. My reading material? The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas and Everyman’s Pocket Poets: William Blake. I’m going to make a point of carrying poetry around with me all month. What about you?

This Is NOT Goodbye

I’ve been saying for months that I would take a blogging break as soon as I finished this-or-that book or when such-and-such month came. But there was always something waiting for me to finish up. There was always Twitter to distract me.

I’ve been stressed with some personal things, one of which is my son’s toilet training (if you are wondering, he’s technically there but oh my I’m tired of accidents). Add to that the fact that he does not nap most days and that he’s at an in-between stage as he adjusts to being a 2½ year old and no longer a baby. I have felt for quite a few months that blogging (reading, blog upkeep, twittering, and other online projects) was distracting me from giving him the attention he needs.

So I decided to drop everything and step away cold turkey for at least a week (I think it ended up about 10 days). The first day was very hard (I missed twitter especially), the second was a little easier, and by now I almost feel I could just stop blogging completely. I could give my son my undivided attention. I could start each day with his smiling face and not checking to see whether my post went up and how many comments do I need to respond to from yesterday?. I could continue my stay-at-home mother life without the distraction of the internet. I COULD QUIT BLOGGING! Continue reading »

Any Interest in a May Read-Along of Paradise Lost?

I know May is still three months away, but I just want to gauge interest and see what you all think. I loved reading Paradise Lost a decade ago when I was in college and I’ve been thinking it’s about time to revisit it. The language of the poem was so beautiful, and I loved the retelling of the Adam and Eve story.

Because it is epic poetry (and it’s so great I’d love for others to join me!), I’m hoping that someone else might like to read along with me. My copy (Norton Critical Edition) is about 300 pages, and there are 12 books. I’d probably post once a week about three of the books, and I could link to any participant’s posts each week too.

Here’s the idea:

Week of May 3: Books 1-3

Week of May 10: Books 4-6

Week of May 17: Books 7-9

Week of May 24: Books 10-12

Is three books a week reasonable for other people that might be interested? We could do two books a week, and go into June, but then it might feel slow, I don’t know.

Why May? Well, I’m participating in the Lord of the Rings read-along starting next month and going through April and I need to also read Crime and Punishment for my April book club. May gives me time to get ready for it. Besides, doesn’t the story of Adam and Eve in a garden just call for springtime? (At least, it will be springtime for the Northern hemisphere.) I could also wait until June if that’s better for others.

And one other thing: I need a catchy name. I almost called it Milton in May, but since Woolf in Winter is kind of the same thing, I don’t want to appear to be copying on the alliteration thing…

Would you like to join me in reading Paradise Lost? Even just one person reading with me would make me happy!

Bloggiesta To Do List

I’ve been procrastinating on blog maintenance issues for a week now, saying that “I’ll do that during Bloggiesta” so I really should get started on doing something now that Bloggiesta is here! I’m back from work at the library and ready for a weekend.

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