Weekword=Book via Sally at Sow and Sew

Thanks to Sally for picking such a fantastic word this week that makes me who I am, books. Fact of the matter is, I'm such a nut about books I almost couldn't bring myself to write this post because I don't know how to cover my adoration for books on this little blog without spending all day on the computer away from them. So I'm taking a quick gulp, going to dump some memories, some videos and come back for more later I hope :)

I have deep memories of acceptance, courage, understanding and support associated with books that I rarely found in my real life, but I imagine everyone has felt like this about books at some point or another. Books were and have been my escape since I was very young, and have continued to be the markers of my most important personal and ethical milestones.

My first memorably loved book was Pat the Bunny. However, I loved Pat for the bunny ears which I had particular affinity for feeling (I had a grey bunny friend I carried with me everywhere until he fell apart in the wash after many previous repairs when I was four).

 These days I'm more partial to this guy. (Mine's named Matt)

The most imaginative book that I remember loving dearly as a kid was Harold and the Purple Crayon. Pretty sure my dad had to read this one over and over for bedtime.

I read more books than any other kid in my grade several years in a row for Scholastics Books, and never stopped reading, even at the breakfast table. My mother never could get why I read the cereal boxes. Some of my favorite childhood books still on my shelves are:


The Chronicles of Narnia
Where the Red Fern Grows
A Separate Peace
Bunnicula
The Indian in the Cupboard
A Wrinkle in Time
Superfudge
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
Alice and Wonderland
The Secret Garden
Island of the Blue Dolphin
The Trumpet of the Swan
The Hobbit
Mr. Popper's Penguins
The Mouse and the Motorcycle
The Black Stallion


My girlfriend who now lives in Brooklyn posted this recently on her Facebook and it's definitely a book that is going on my "buy for friends with kids" list:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1617750255/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=selectism-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399349&creativeASIN=1617750255




I spent most of my 5th grade year of school in the library reading and writing a report on Australia because I had completed all the reading the teacher could possibly assign me, and he felt my writing skills were far above an elementary schoolkid's level. I loved the librarian and nestled between the stacks for a good three hours every day just devouring every book I could get my hands on.


For vacations to Donner Lake and Puerto Rico every year, I was purchased 5 new books for each trip and had to borrow from the library or reread old favorites for the rest of the time away. Often times I manipulating another 2-3 books out of my mother because she hated to turn down a book hungry child. My memorable favorites were from The Babysitter's Club series, Sweet Valley High, and Judy Blume, but I also read Shakespeare, Steinbeck, London, E. B. White, Robert Frost, Camus, Bronte, Dosteovsky, and Thoreau.

It was a book that got me into my first argument with my dad over politics when I was in the fourth grade. My father is a retired NCO from the Air National Guard and served in the Air Force and Navy. I had read Johnny Got His Gun from Dalton Trumbo  and decided it was a good idea to go rail at my dad for being part of the military-industrial complex and responsible for sending young men off to die. The conversation did not really go so well, but I appreciate that my dad even listened to a 9 year old giving him the business.

I worked at the library for my high school to squeak credits to graduate after life got very rough as I became a preteen, then a teenager.

I worked in a bookstore on Olive Ave. in Fresno when I was nineteen and absolutely loved the smell of old books and learning about how to identify first printings from different publishers, looking for misprints and checking the wear on a book for determining its value. I still have many of the books the owner gave me and so appreciate his willingness to teach me even though I really didn't find myself out of the "rough" stage till after my time there. There were a lot of people who helped me along the way to being comfortably me, and he's one of them, so thanks David from the American Bookstore if you're out there.

I have a list I have been keeping since I was ten of books that I promise to read every year for the rest of my life. The list has grown, and I have not been able to stick to the once a year time table for some, but I reread my most beloved books often and learn something new and amazing every time. My favorites that had been part of my list since I was teenager are The Dark Tower series from Stephen King, A River Runs Through It by Norman Maclean, The Temple of My Familiar by Alice Walker,  and The Lord of the Rings from J. R. R. Tolkien. All of these books embody for me life lessons about humanity that are worth remembering and revisiting over and over.


My most recent soon to be exciting memories with books should unfold here in a few weeks with the purchase and tension-filled waiting for an iPad to collect all my most loved books on!

An interactive book is an absolute dream of mine. I never really thought I would see this in my lifetime as a kid and dreamt of having a whole library in my pocket, but never thought it was possible. I should warn that I have no intention of not buying books though my shelves are completely full-books are magical talismans for me that can never be replaced with a machine, no matter how shiny and bright it is.

I saw this book video some time ago and felt so bad for the lost and abandoned book-it was more touching than Titanic for my taste ;)


The Diary of a Disappointed Book from Studiocanoe on Vimeo.


Lastly, I am back to participating in the Sketchbook Project for 2011! I'm looking forward to actually spending more time on it and doing it right this time...or at least a little less frazzled. Hoping to see others here who might be interested take a shot and we can form a little support club of sketchbooking the way we have with our Weekwords!

http://arthousecoop.com/projects/sketchbookproject

Oops okay really really lastly, I've going to go hang out tomorrow at a spa and imbibe some fabulous wine, hang out with my girlfriends and get my party on...all because of a book. Girls, it's some of the funniest reading you will ever do and it's just plain fun! These women know what they want and aren't afraid to joke and make fun of themselves while they look ridiculously fabulous (equal parts of both those words).

It's inspiring to throw your hair back (of which I now have pink locks), toss caution right out the door, be okay with taking the world head on with a joyous and silly heart, while enjoying the most important things in life, good food, good drink (alcoholic or non if it's not your thing) and good company.

After all this book talk, this might lead me back to an art project I meant to work on many moons ago that involved doing goache pieces and mixed media work based on favorite stanzas from poems or books I treasure.  **smiles** I think I've caught my creative bug again :)

Go visit everyone else who is participating this week at Sally's place. I've so missed Weekword and all you wonderful souls out there-have a great weekend!!