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wightandblue · 3 months

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“Your lungs, smoothed out, would cover a tennis court, and the airways within them would stretch nearly from coast to coast. The length of all your blood vessels would take you two and a half times around Earth. The most remarkable part of all is your DNA (or deoxyribonucleic acid). You have a meter of it packed into every cell, and so many cells that if you formed all the DNA in your body into a single strand, it would stretch ten billion miles, to beyond Pluto. Think of it: there is enough of you to leave the solar system. You are in the most literal sense cosmic.”

— Bill Bryson, The Body: A Guide for Occupants

#bllueposts #quotes #book quotes #astronomy #reading #bill bryson #the body #i love this book #medicine

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queen-bi-blog · 2 years

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The only thing special about the elements that make you is

that they make you.

That is the miracle of life.

- Bill Bryson

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kingedmundsroyalmurder · 8 months

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"Days of clear brilliance. Evenings that were like cups of glamour—the purest vintage of winter’s wine. Nights with their fire of stars. Cold, exquisite winter sunrises. Lovely ferns of ice all over the windows of the Blue Castle. Moonlight on birches in a silver thaw. Ragged shadows on windy evenings—torn, twisted, fantastic shadows. Great silences, austere and searching. Jewelled, barbaric hills. The sun suddenly breaking through grey clouds over long, white Mistawis. Icy-grey twilights, broken by snow-squalls, when their cosy living-room, with its goblins of firelight and inscrutable cats seemed cosier than ever."

I love winter, and this passage captures perfectly why. Winter is pretty and clean and sparkly and you can breathe easily and it's like the whole world is holding its breath when it wakes up covered in snow.

Anyway it's 100 degrees where I live right now and we've been choking on smoke for days. Let me have my winter escapism!

Someone help me out -- what are John Foster's books about? They're musings on nature, clearly, but I don't at all have a clear picture of what they actually are. I'm curious if it's just a genre that I'm unfamiliar with or if LMM wrote into them what she needed Valancy to hear and didn't think much further on it. I keep wanting them to be basically travel books -- a more sincere Bill Bryson type thing, except focused on nature instead of people -- but we learn more about John Foster later in the book and I don't know that that reading makes sense. The other thing that would make sense for them to be are, like, foraging guides with lots of extra fluff. Like those really pretty recipe books that you buy for the pictures and the stories more than the recipes themselves. But Valancy doesn't do any pulling out of her books to check something she saw in the woods, or recognizing a new plant based on Foster's description -- we learn specifically that Barney teaches her woodscraft and there's no indication that she has an existing knowledge base beyond just having lived in the area.

I guess they could be, like, very fancied up diaries? The passage Valancy quotes at Barney sort of sounds like Foster is talking about a specific day, so perhaps they're accounts of his life, either real or fictional? (Now I'm thinking about My Side of the Mountain and imagining John Foster with a hawk. Do with that image what you will.)

It doesn't super matter, but I keep trying and failing to imagine them and I'm curious what other people think.

#blue castle book club #blue castle spoilers #very non-specific spoilers but technically still spoilers

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daimonclub · 4 months

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The Christmas Tree

Christmas tree legends The Christmas Tree, an article that explains its legend, origin and tradition, with some enlightening merry quotes to enrich the great value of the Christmas period. Snowflakes felt so awesome in winter season. There is a main figure in Christmas known as Santa Claus. And the main theme of Christmas is jingle bell, a very famous tune known all other the world. People use this tune a lot all over the Christmas event, and it feels so good like something very positive that will bring peace and happiness in our lives. Moving between the legs of tables and of chairs, rising or falling, grasping at kisses and toys, advancing boldly, sudden to take alarm, retreating to the corner of arm and knee, eager to be reassured, taking pleasure in the fragrant brilliance of the Christmas tree. T. S. Eliot It is curious to what a degree one may become attached to a fine tree, especially when it is placed where trees are rare. Christian Nestell Bovee The Christmas tree is the dot on the i. Frank Taylor The trees that bud and blossom forth, Throughout the world from south to north, Are tokens that a life will bloom When manhood's passed beyond the tomb. T. Augustus Forbes Leith Three things are needed to make a Christmas tree: ornaments, the tree and faith in the future. Armenian proverb I stone got crazy when I saw somebody run down them strings with a bottleneck. My eyes lit up like a Christmas tree and I said that I had to learn. Muddy Waters My beer-drenched soul is sadder than all the dead Christmas trees in the world. Charles Bukowski He who has not Christmas in his heart will never find it under a tree. Roy L. Smith It’s not what’s under the Christmas tree that matters, it’s who’s around it. Charlie Brown A Christian should resemble a fruit tree with real fruit, not a Christmas tree with decorations tied on. John Stott The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other. Burton Hillis

Christmas tree origins I grew up with a Christmas tree, I’m going to stay with a Christmas tree. Thomas Menino The perfect Christmas tree, all Christmas trees are perfect. Charles N. Barnard Some Christmas tree ornaments do more than glitter and glow, they represent a gift of love given a long time ago. Tom Baker The Christmas tree is beautiful only when it is finished and when the lights can be turned on, the crib is not, the crib is beautiful when you do it or even when you think about it. Luciano De Crescenzo Taking down the Christmas tree makes it feel official: time to get back to joyless and cynical. Greg Fitzsimmons I never thought it was such a bad little tree. It’s not bad at all, really. Maybe it just needs a little love. Linus Van Pelt What will we find under the Christmas tree this year? Oh my God, I think the roots! Carl William Brown Glittering tinsel, lights, glass balls, and candy canes dangle from pine trees. Richelle E. Goodrich The best Christmas trees come very close to exceeding nature. Andy Rooney There is new life in the soil for every man. There is healing in the trees for tired minds and for our overburdened spirits, there is strength in the hills, if only we will lift up our eyes. Remember that nature is your great restorer. Calvin Coolidge The earth reminded us of a Christmas tree ornament hanging in the blackness of space. As we got farther and farther away it diminished in size. Finally it shrank to the size of a marble, the most beautiful marble you can imagine. James Irwin Christmas tree stands are the work of the devil and they want you dead. Bill Bryson Look at a tree, a flower, a plant. Let your awareness rest upon it. How still they are, how deeply rooted in Being. Allow nature to teach you stillness. Eckhart Tolle He that planteth a tree is the servant of God, He provideth a kindness for many generations, And faces that he hath not seen shall bless him. Henry Van Dyke

Christmas tree quotes Now I’m an old Christmas tree, the roots of which have died. They just come along and while the little needles fall off me replace them with medallions. Orson Welles Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 25 feet tall. Larry Wilde They’ve got plastic Christmas trees now. They’re hard to tell from the real aluminum ones. Milton Berle I was only kicking down the Christmas tree to get the star on top. Ray Bradbury I don’t know what I believe. I guess that makes me a christmas tree agnostic. Stephanie Perkins Only look what is still on the ugly old Christmas tree!" said he, trampling on the branches, so that they all cracked beneath his feet. And the Tree beheld all the beauty of the flowers, and the freshness in the garden; he beheld himself, and wished he had remained in his dark corner in the loft; he thought of his first youth in the woods, of the merry Christmas Eve, and of the little Mice who had listened with so much pleasure to the story of Klumpy-Dumpy. Hans Christian Andersen A Christmas tree, the perfect gift for a guy. The plant is already dead. Jay Leno The Christmas tree, twinkling with lights, had a mountain of gifts piled up beneath it, like offerings to the great god of excess. Tess Gerritsen A dog looking at a lit Christmas tree thinks: they finally put the light in the toilet. Romano Bertola Christmas trees don’t grow on trees; they need rainbows, lumberjacks, and Leprechauns on unicorns playing jock jams on glockenspiels. Ryan Ross Make your plate look like a Christmas tree, I tell people, mostly green with splashes of other bright colors. Victoria Moran There’s no experience quite like cutting your own live Christmas tree out of your neighbor’s yard. Dan Florence

True natural Christmas trees The smell of pine needles, spruce and the smell of a Christmas tree, those to me, are the scents of the holidays. Blake Lively Christmas is a very enjoyable event ever. It is a great feast for everyone. Kids, adults and grandparents. Everyone enjoy this occasion very much. Parents give presents to their children and this brings happiness in their hearts. An enormous amount of joy comes through this period which is a real gem for us. Therefore how could we avoid talking of one of the main symbol of this religious celebration, which is certainly the Christmas Tree, so let's read about its fascinating history. The Christmas tree today is a common custom to most of us. There are many interesting connections to ancient traditions such as Egyptian and Roman customs, early Christian practices, and Victorian nostalgia. However, most scholars point to Germany as being the origin of the Christmas tree. Long before the advent of Christianity, plants and trees that remained green all year had a special meaning for people in the winter. Just as people today decorate their homes during the festive season with pine, spruce, and fir trees, ancient peoples hung evergreen boughs over their doors and windows. In many countries it was believed that evergreens would keep away witches, ghosts, evil spirits, and illness. In the Northern hemisphere, the shortest day and longest night of the year falls on December 21 or December 22 and is called the winter solstice. Many ancient people believed that the sun was a god and that winter came every year because the sun god had become sick and weak. They celebrated the solstice because it meant that at last the sun god would begin to get well. Evergreen boughs reminded them of all the green plants that would grow again when the sun god was strong and summer would return. The ancient Egyptians worshipped a god called Ra, who had the head of a hawk and wore the sun as a blazing disk in his crown. At the solstice, when Ra began to recover from his illness, the Egyptians filled their homes with green palm rushes, which symbolized for them the triumph of life over death.

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Early Romans marked the solstice with a feast called Saturnalia in honor of Saturn, the god of agriculture. The Romans knew that the solstice meant that soon, farms and orchards would be green and fruitful. To mark the occasion, they decorated their homes and temples with evergreen boughs. In Northern Europe the mysterious Druids, the priests of the ancient Celts, also decorated their temples with evergreen boughs as a symbol of everlasting life. The fierce Vikings in Scandinavia thought that evergreens were the special plant of the sun god, Balder. One of the earliest stories relating back to Germany is about Saint Boniface. In 722, he encountered some pagans who were about to sacrifice a child at the base of a huge oak tree. He cut down the tree to prevent the sacrifice and a Fir tree grew up at the base of the oak. He then told everyone that this lovely evergreen, with its branches pointing to heaven, was a holy tree - the tree of the Christ child, and a symbol of His promise of eternal life. Germany is credited with starting the Christmas tree tradition as we now know it in the 16th century when devout Christians brought decorated trees into their homes. Some built Christmas pyramids of wood and decorated them with evergreens and candles if wood was scarce. Another story tells that perhaps it was Martin Luther responsible for the origin of the Christmas tree. This story says that one Christmas Eve, about the year 1500, he was walking through the snow-covered woods and was struck by the beauty of the snow glistened trees. Their branches, dusted with snow, shimmered in the moon light. When he got home, he set up a small fir tree and shared the story with his children. He decorated the Christmas tree with small candles, which he lighted in honor of Christ's birth. Another legend says that in the early 16th century, people in Germany combined two customs that had been practiced in different countries around the globe. The Paradise tree (a fir tree decorated with apples) represented the Tree of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden.

Christmas tree in Rio de Janeiro The Christmas Light, a small, pyramid-like frame, usually decorated with glass balls, tinsel and a candle on top, was a symbol of the birth of Christ as the Light of the World. Changing the tree’s apples to tinsel balls and cookies and combining this new tree with the light placed on top, the Germans created the tree that many of us know today. In the 1840s and 50s, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert popularized the Christmas tree in England. Prince Albert decorated a tree and ever since that time, the English, because of their love for their Queen, copied her Christmas customs including the Christmas tree and ornaments. An engraving of the Royal Family celebrating Christmas at Windsor was published in 1848 and their German traditions were copied and adapted. Another story about the origin of the Christmas tree says that late in the Middle Ages, Germans and Scandinavians placed evergreen trees inside their homes or just outside their doors to show their hope that spring would soon come. Most 19th-century Americans found Christmas trees an oddity. The first record of one being on display was in the 1830s by the German settlers of Pennsylvania, although trees had been a tradition in many German homes much earlier. The Pennsylvania German settlements had community trees as early as 1747. But, as late as the 1840s Christmas trees were seen as pagan symbols and not accepted by most Americans. It is not surprising that, like many other festive Christmas customs, the tree was adopted so late in America. To the New England Puritans, Christmas was sacred. The pilgrims’s second governor, William Bradford, wrote that he tried hard to stamp out "pagan mockery" of the observance, penalizing any frivolity. The influential Oliver Cromwell preached against "the heathen traditions" of Christmas carols, decorated trees, and any joyful expression that desecrated "that sacred event." In 1659, the General Court of Massachusetts enacted a law making any observance of December 25 (other than a church service) a penal offense; people were fined for hanging decorations. That stern solemnity continued until the 19th century, when the influx of German and Irish immigrants undermined the Puritan legacy. The early 20th century saw Americans decorating their trees mainly with homemade ornaments, while the German-American sect continued to use apples, nuts, and marzipan cookies. Popcorn joined in after being dyed bright colors and interlaced with berries and nuts. Electricity brought about Christmas lights, making it possible for Christmas trees to glow for days on end. With this, Christmas trees began to appear in town squares across the country and having a Christmas tree in the home became an American tradition.

Christmas tree best wishes Research into customs of various cultures shows that greenery was often brought into homes at the time of the winter solstice. It symbolized life in the midst of death in many cultures. The Romans were known to deck their homes with evergreens during of Kalends of January 15. Living trees were also brought into homes during the old Germany feast of Yule, which originally was a two month feast beginning in November. The Yule tree was planted in a tub and brought into the home. But there is no evidence that the Christmas tree is a direct descendent of the Yule tree. Evidence does point to the Paradise tree however. This story goes back to the 11th century religious plays. One of the most popular was the Paradise Play. The play depicted the story of the creation of Adam and Eve, their sin, and their banishment from Paradise. The only prop on the stage was the Paradise tree, a fir tree adorned with apples. The play would end with the promise of the coming Savior and His Incarnation. The people had grown so accustomed to the Paradise tree, that they began putting their own Paradise tree up in their homes on December 24. Christmas trees have been sold commercially in the United States since about 1850. In 1979, the National Christmas Tree was not lighted except for the top ornament. This was done in honor of the American hostages in Iran. The tallest living Christmas tree is believed to be the 122-foot, 91-year-old Douglas fir in the town of Woodinville, Washington. The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree tradition began in 1933. Franklin Pierce, the 14th president, brought the Christmas tree tradition to the White House. In 1923, President Calvin Coolidge started the National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony now held every year on the White House lawn. Since 1966, the National Christmas Tree Association has given a Christmas tree to the President and first family. Most Christmas trees are cut weeks before they get to a retail outlet. In 1912, the first community Christmas tree in the United States was erected in New York City. Christmas trees generally take six to eight years to mature. Christmas trees are grown in all 50 states including Hawaii and Alaska. 90 percent of all Christmas trees are grown on farms. More than 1,000,000 acres of land have been planted with Christmas trees. On average, over 2,000 Christmas trees are planted per acre. You should never burn your Christmas tree in the fireplace. It can contribute to creosote buildup. Other types of trees such as cherry and hawthorns were used as Christmas trees in the past. Thomas Edison’s assistants came up with the idea of electric lights for Christmas trees. In 1963, the National Christmas Tree was not lit until December 22nd because of a national 30-day period of mourning following the assassination of President Kennedy. Teddy Roosevelt banned the Christmas tree from the White House for environmental reasons. On the contrary the 2020 Christmas Tree is an 18 ½ foot Fraser Fir from West Virginia. It will serve as a centerpiece for Christmas decorations in the Blue Room of the White House. The White House Christmas Tree must stand 18-19 feet tall and reach the ceiling of the Blue Room, where the chandelier is removed each holiday season to accommodate the tree. And last but not least, if you want to choose the perfect Christmas tree visit the website of The American Christmas Tree Association (ACTA) which is a non-profit organization established to help families create holiday memories and build traditions by choosing the perfect Christmas tree. www.christmastreeassociation.org/ Instead if you need a good short story for your children about Christmas or the Christmas tree, you can find many of them at this link: https://americanliterature.com/author/hans-christian-andersen/short-story/the-fir-tree Top 10 Tallest Christmas Trees in The World Read also our other posts on Christmas ; Christmas quotes ; 60 great Christmas quotes ; Christmas tree origin and quotes ; Traditional Christmas Carols ; Christmas jokes ; Christmas markets in England ; Christmas cracker jokes ; Christmas food ; Christmas thoughts ; Read the full article

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ktienh · 1 year

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➡️ Come unbox December Classic Parcel with me 😁 ➡️ Swipe through 🤗 ➡️ 2023 calendar + sticky notes (I can see that I'm gonna need lots of these for this book!) ➡️ Christmas tea sampler + a mysterious leetle parcel ➡️ A wrapped Book + related (quote) bookmark ➡️ all unwrapped: Mother Tounge by Bill Bryson plus a very cutesy Christmas bauble which I've immediately placed on our tree 😍 I've been loving all parcels and the announced January theme is a terrific one to start the year with (I've read that one so...). Subscribe for yourself or your loved ones (great Christmas present!) using my rep code TIEN10 #NovelTeaBookclub #bookstalife #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #ausbookstagrammer #booklover #booksta #igreads #lovetoread #eclecticreader #bookishfeatures #aussiebookstagrammers #readersofinstagram #classicbookbox #classicbook #popularpenguins #penguinpopularclassics #classicbooks #ireadclassics #classiclover #MotherTongue #BillBryson #nonfiction https://www.instagram.com/p/Clx7l7MrdTo/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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loveinquotesposts · 4 years

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https://loveinquotes.com/there-isnt-a-landscape-in-the-world-that-is-more-artfully-worked-more-lovely-to-behold-more-comfortable-to-be-in-than-the-countryside-of-great-britain-it-is-the-worlds-largest-park-its-most-p/

There isn't a landscape in the world that is more artfully worked, more lovely to behold, more comfortable to be in, than the countryside of Great Britain. It is the world's largest park, its most perfect accidental garden. ― Bill Bryson, The Road to Little Dribbling: Adventures of an American in Britain

#BillBryson, #BillBrysonBillBrysonLoveQuotes, #BillBrysonQuotes, #BillBrysonLoveQuotes, #TheRoadToLittleDribblingAdventuresOfAnAmericanInBritain, #TheRoadToLittleDribblingAdventuresOfAnAmericanInBritainQuotes

#Bill Bryson #Bill Bryson Bill-Bryson-love quotes #Bill Bryson quotes #Bill-Bryson-love quotes #The Road to Little Dribbling: Adventures of an American in Britain #The Road to Little Dribbling: Adventures of an American in Britain quotes #LoveQuotes

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backwardmaptravels · 4 years

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But that's the glory of foreign travel, as far as I am concerned. I don't want to know what people are talking about. I can't think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything. Suddenly you are five years old again. You can't read anything, you have only the most rudimentary sense of how things work, you can't even reliably cross a street without endangering your life. Your whole existence becomes a series of interesting guesses.

Bill Bryson

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metisket · 3 years

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Books about language

For someone who has never studied linguistics, I am a huge nerd about linguistics in an Amateur Hour sort of way. And so I will torment you with my favorite books about language! No one can stop me.

Most of these books are just dragging English, but some of them wander over and make cruel remarks about other languages as well. Love that for them.

The Mother Tongue, by Bill Bryson

It’s been many years since I read this, and I need to re-read it desperately, because I remember it being hugely fun and just Bill Bryson being like, “So, the English language. WHAT A HOT MESS, AM I RIGHT? Let’s discuss.”

I love Bill Bryson anyway, but he’s also very suited for discussing the theater of the absurd that is the English language. He’s having fun with it and he feels that you should be, too.

Spellbound, by James Essinger

Presumably you are already super mad about English spelling. If you want to direct that anger to a specific source, this is the book for you. (TLDR; it was the Norman Invasion. The Normans did this to us, guys. IT WAS THEM.) This book is very fun and educational and will make you froth at the mouth with rage, because why. WHY. See if learning about the Y thorn doesn’t make you just want to hurl the book out the window. It’s not the book’s fault, but still. STILL.

In the words of the author, “Many people, whether native speakers of English or those learning English as a second language, regard English spelling as at best a joke and at worst a nightmare deliberately designed to bamboozle and perplex anyone who tries to learn it.”

(Also he randomly calls out Bill Bryson at one point, because the world of linguistics is apparently both small and catty. Academia! Love it.)

Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue, by John McWhorter

This entire book feels like an ongoing argument the author is having with someone who is not you. He never introduces a topic with, “Here’s what I think about x.” No, it’s always, “SOME people may argue OTHERWISE, but here are all the reasons why they are DEAD WRONG...”

(idk who he’s fighting with, but I thought his arguments about the Celtic influence on English were very strong. Cheering for you, John McWhorter!)

John McWhorter clearly speaks a lot of languages and is mad about literally all of them. He seems to be mad about everything, frankly, but in a way you can respect. Here’s a good quote about a Theory I have also heard and also found to be nonsense in the case of, say, Japanese:

“There is a canny objection one sometimes hears out there, that English is easy at first but hard to master the details of, while other languages are hard at first but easy to master the details of. Purportedly, then, Russian means starting out cracking your teeth on its tables of conjugations and case markers and gender marking, but after that it’s smooth sailing.

“Nonsense. English really is easy(-ish) at first and hard later, while other languages like Russian are hard at first and then just as hard later! Show me one person who has said that learning Russian was no problem after they mastered the basics--after the basics, you just keep wondering how anybody could speak the language without blacking out.”

...Just so angry. *pats on head* *draws back bloody stump*

The Prodigal Tongue, by Lynne Murphy

Another Angry Linguist I love. She’s a New Yorker who’s spent decades living in the UK and being constantly harassed about her American accent, and she’s officially taken all the shit on that subject that she is willing to take in this life. She runs a blog called Separated by a Common Language. She is Done.

But with one thing and another, she has an encyclopedic knowledge of and fascination with all the differences between British English and American English, and it’s really fun to read. Weirdly enough, American English is apparently the more conservative dialect--it’s changed more slowly than British English over the centuries. I feel like I’ve read that this is also true of France French and Quebec French? Strange.

Anyway, excellent book: educational, funny, and full of bitter sarcasm.

Is That a Fish in Your Ear?, by David Bellos

This is about translation, and won me over immediately by having a Douglas Adams nerd reference right there in the title. Bless.

It discusses translation in general, the impossibility of literal translation, machine translations, trade languages, dragomans of the Ottoman Empire, and other translation drama.

There is also a really fascinating chapter on the history of simultaneous translation, which was first used in the form we know it now at the Nuremberg Trials. (Fun for everyone, of course. Nobody knew how exhausting it was going to be for the translators, plus translators kept bursting into tears and having to be replaced due to the nature of the testimony.)

The history of translation: challenging, cool, and a lot more politically fraught than I’d imagined.

Have fun with these navel-gazing books about language. They are great. XD

#book recs #the mother tongue #bill bryson #spellbound #james essinger #our magnificent bastard tongue #john mcwhorter #the prodigal tongue #lynne murphy #is that a fish in your ear?#david bellos #language #linguistics

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skippyv20 · 2 years

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These quotes about tea remind me of a lovely passage in Bill Bryson's book Notes From a Small Island where he talks about his experiences as an American now living in the UK. "I am always surprised by the way English people become genuinely excited at the prospect of a hot drink."

That is sweet! Thank you❤️

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slutforwings · 3 years

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books i read in july and what i thot of them because im in a silly goofy mood and want to make a post like this

the song of achilles - madeline miller (historical fiction)

retelling of the myth of achilles, from patroclus' (his normal dudebro absolutely no romance there - some historians) perspective. some banger lines balanced out by godawful ones (once you start counting how many times feet are mentioned you never really stop + skin is once described as 'the color of freshly pressed olives' which is just green). the story is, yknow, beautiful and aching. i did really enjoy it, worth the read!

this is going to hurt - adam kay (non-fiction)

diaries of a junior doctor (who no longer practices medicine), with funny as well as heartbreaking anecdotes on life as a doctor. fucking hilarious at times, then you turn the page and you read the saddest thing. i absolutely devoured this book, its a really cool insight into the medical world! 10/10 have already decided m gonna reread

a short history of nearly everything - bill bryson (non-fiction)

what the title says! its basically an 'introduction' to all of science (air quotes bc its like 500 pages) written in a way that makes it both easy and fun to read as someone who studies literature and hasnt had a science course in 4 years. imo best read along with a pencil so you can underline and comment etc. wonderful book, learned a lot and had a great time

opposite of always - justin a. reynolds (romance, YA, coming of age idk)

high school senior gets together with the girl of his dreams. and then she dies. but no fear! its groundhog day week months and he wakes up right when he met her again. can he save her? while this book is sweet and well written and lovely message and all that.... it made me realise 'ah. im officially too old to relate to high schoolers'. so there's that.

haven't they grown - sophie hannah (mystery)

the protagonist parks in front of the house of her old childhood best friend who she hasnt seen in 12 years. just having a looksee. oh there she is, getting out of the car with her kids! hold the fuck up. those kids look exactly the same age as 12 years ago... a book with layers upon layers of lies and mystery, i recommend saving it for a time that you have the entire day to read, you just wanna know So bad. the protagonist's daughter (and her husband to some degree) help her to figure it out and it's neat :)

wendy, darling - a.c. wise (fantasy)

what if peter pan and neverland wasnt really the dream it seemed? what if wendy got institutionalised for still believing in it? what if, years later, she has a daughter. and what if, one night, peter pan comes for her daughter. a really cool reimagining, really goes hard on the 'peter is a kid forever and ever and has insane powers to shape neverland so maybe thats not a good idea!' i really loved it, its a great book about growing up even though you dont want to etc. also incredibly expressive writing, i could picture perfectly what was being described. quite eerie a lot of the time but im a fan of that

the dreamers - karen thompson walker (sci-fi?)

there's a girl at a college that won't wake up anymore. she's just peacefully sleeping but nothing can rouse her. after a few days, she passes away. weird but alright! ah shit it was contagious and now the whole town is falling asleep. they all seem to be dreaming so vividly though, what could it be about? odd writing style, but in a good way. something else yknow. really eerie vibes, but unmatched by the way your skin crawls when you check the date it was published and it was before the pandemic. uncomfortable similarities! its about the way a community might come together (or not) in crisis times and also about the differences between waking and dreams. fun!

the midnight library - matt haig (philosphical fiction)

it starts with nora taking an overdose. except she wakes up in the midnight library, a place between life and death. there she can try other routes her life could have taken if she'd done things differently. a really nice book about depression and finding the will to live again by looking at yourself with a new perspective. although i loved one of his other books (how to stop time) more, this was also a very good read

#book recs #book review

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deborahsaustralianlitblog · 2 years

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Week 4 Blog

In A Sunburned Country

Bill Bryson

Pages Read: 90-130

Word Count: 429

Summary:

After several days in scenic Canberra, Bryson sets out across more desolate land toward Adelaide. He tries to enjoy the confusing banter of cricket on the radio, and stops for the night in the desert town of Hay, where he looks in vain for kangaroos in the barren land surrounding the town. The land around Hay was not always barren. In the nineteenth century, a man named Thomas Austin unwittingly devastated millions of acres of greenery by releasing English rabbits to hunt for sport. This was followed by a decade-long drought, from which the region has never recovered. Bryson soon arrives in the verdant, rolling hills of the Barossa Valley, which makes quite a contrast to the barren land he has been driving through for days. He describes this land as almost Eden-like, with lush hills covered in citrus, it was adventurous and dangerous. Bryson continues his trip in Northern Australia as he attempts to get as close as he can to the dangerous wildlife.

Critical Analysis:

"The senate, which I had never seen on television (I believe because the senators don't actually do anything-- though I will check my John Gunther and back you on this), was in a restful tone." I chose this quote because it stuck out to me. It's funny and relatable, and just a quote I wanted to write about. I also don't believe the senators don't do anything lol. To be honest I don't even think I know who the senators are, and honestly what are they even supposed to do. I love to see Bill Bryson add humor into his writing, it always gives me a good laugh, and brings me back into the 7 elements that we are learning in class. I liked the fact that Bryson added the "though I will check my John Gunther and back you on this" It added some sort of conversational element to the book. Like he was actually talking to us, I thought it was cool.

Personal Response:

Reading about Bill Bryson adventure touring out many parts of Australia and the Outback continues to excite me. The book is truly starting to get interesting as I'm starting to read about him having interactions with wild animals, such as the kangaroos, and spiders. Bill Bryson writes in a way that's descriptive enough to make it feel like you're there. I can picture it all as I read all about his journey. I loved reading about his encounter with all the wildlife, the cool kangaroos and birds, and spiders and insects. I'm excited to read about what else he encounters.

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terramythos · 3 years

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TerraMythos 2021 Reading Challenge - Book 8 of 26

Title: Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures (2020)

Author: Merlin Sheldrake

Genre/Tags: Nonfiction, Creative Nonfiction, Science, Biology, Mycology, Botany, Anthropology, History, (I’m probably missing some), First-Person, Illustrated

Rating: 9/10

Date Began: 3/03/2021

Date Finished: 3/11/2021

Fungi are some of life's most essential, yet least understood organisms. In Entangled Life, PhD Merlin Sheldrake discusses the mysterious and largely unexplored world of fungi.

How do truffles lure creatures to them? How do vast mycelial networks communicate and make "decisions"? How can some fungal species permanently alter the mind? How do fungi make life on Earth possible? How can fungi potentially replace our furniture and architecture? Entangled Life is an accessible primer to what we know about fungi, its effects on human life, and its potential role averting climatic and ecological disaster.

Fungi are everywhere but they are easy to miss. They are inside you and around you. They sustain you and all that you depend on. As you read these words, fungi are changing the way that life happens, as they have done for more than a billion years. They are eating rock, making soil, digesting pollutants, nourishing and killing plants, surviving in space, inducing visions, producing food, making medicines, manipulating animal behavior, and influencing the composition of the Earth's atmosphere. Fungi provide a key to understanding the planet on which we live, and the ways that we think, feel, and behave. Yet they live their lives largely hidden from view, and over ninety percent of their species remain undocumented. The more we learn about fungi, the less makes sense without them.

Full review and content warnings under the cut.

Content warnings for the book: Recreational drug use, mention of animal neglect, mild sexual content.

I've always been fascinated by--and a little terrified of-- fungi. They're essential to life on Earth, yet often seem strange and alien. I didn't get the chance to study them much in college, so I wanted to read a nonfiction work about them that wasn't necessarily just a textbook. Entangled Life caught my eye (or maybe lured me in?), and I'm glad it did.

Entangled Life is probably the best nonfiction book I've read in years. While it's definitely a scientific work (with a vast catalogue of citations to prove it), it's very approachable to a layman. Basic scientific knowledge is helpful going in, but Sheldrake makes sure to explain even simple concepts as they apply to various subjects in the text. While I wouldn't call this book a light read, it's certainly easier to grasp than a standard textbook or academic research paper. I was also pleased to see he cites and defers to a multitude of female scientists, which was refreshing after reading Bill Bryson's otherwise great A Short History of Nearly Everything. Is "including women" a low bar? Yes, but it's not one people consistently meet, so props.

What's interesting about Entangled Life is it's neither strictly scientific nor strictly about mycology, the study of fungi. It DOES go into our basic knowledge of fungi and recent discoveries and studies. But Sheldrake also adopts a holistic approach, acknowledging various disciplines and how they all relate to fungi as we know them. Sometimes this means botany, like how plants and fungi interact via symbiosis. Sometimes this means anthropology, and how fungi have shaped human culture and history. Sheldrake even talks about the notable contributions of amateur enthusiasts and how they have shaped our understanding of fungi. A big component of the work is speculation; philosophical tangents on what fungi mean to us, what certain discoveries could mean for the future, and so on.

There's definitely a creative component to the work as well, something that really tickled the former English major in me. I labelled this book Creative Nonfiction because Sheldrake often goes into his personal experiences with fungi; these sections read like a memoir. There's some illustrations originally drawn with inkcap ink, which is a nice, thematically appropriate touch. I also loved the section of gorgeous color photography and illustrations inserted into the middle; I felt this added some much needed visual context.

Also, my guy managed to use a Lord of the Rings quote to analyze mycelial networks, which I have to assume was a dare/personal challenge, but... damn dude. (AND an Ursula K Le Guin quote? Bro?)

If I have a criticism it's that sometimes Sheldrake's biases show a little. Probably the most noteworthy is the section on LSD and magic mushrooms. Sheldrake seems downright giddy about the positive effects of these mind altering drugs. And said positives are certainly interesting, like experiments that indicate a long term recovery from anxiety and depression as a result of ingestion. I also found the human history element of this chapter interesting; indigenous cultural uses, anthropological evidence, and modern usage and legal issues. But it's a little disingenuous to imply there are zero negative effects to drugs that can fundamentally change one's long-term personality after a single trip. Regardless of Sheldrake's own positive experiences.

Interestingly, Sheldrake DOES discuss how biases affect all scientific disciplines. He talks about how we naturally gravitate toward metaphor in order to contextualize nonhuman phenomena. For example, we might view symbiosis from a capitalist or socialist perspective, despite neither have anything to do with biological function. However, he doesn't delve into his own biases at all. But this is a nitpick. Biases are difficult to overcome even in a strictly academic work, which this isn't. For what it's worth, I think Sheldrake does a good job with this everywhere else.

Overall, Entangled Life was a treat to read. I rarely venture out of speculative fiction but I found this whole book approachable and fascinating. I learned a lot of stuff I didn't know previously, so I'd consider this a good introduction for an amateur mycologist. I hope Sheldrake plans to publish similar works in the future.

#taylor reads #2021 reading challenge #9/10 #trypophobia

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mediajist · 3 years

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The Funniest Quotes on Pets

There definitely is a special bond between a pet and its owner and here at the Mediajist review team we have curated a list of quotes full of wit and wisdom on our furry friends.

1. “Our perfect companions never have fewer than four feet.”

Colette

2. “Outside of a dog, a book is a man’s best friend. Inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read.”

Groucho Marx

3. “In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this.”

Terry Pratchett

4. “If you hold a cat by the tail you learn things you cannot learn any other way.”

Mark Twain

5. “I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.”

Winston Churchill

6. “Time spent with cats is never wasted.”

Sigmund Freud

7. “The better I get to know men, the more I find myself loving dogs.”

Charles de Gaulle

8. “To my mind, the only possible pet is a cow. Cows love you… They will listen to your problems and never ask a thing in return. They will be your friends forever. And when you get tired of them, you can kill and eat them. Perfect.”

Bill Bryson

9. “Cats have a scam going – you buy the food, they eat the food, they go away; that’s the deal.”

Eddie Izzard

10. “If you eliminate smoking and gambling, you will be amazed to find that almost all an Englishman’s pleasures can be, and mostly are, shared by his dog.”

George Bernard Shaw

11. “No one can feel as helpless as the owner of a sick goldfish.”

Kin Hubbard

12. “Dogs are the leaders of the planet. If you see two life forms, one of them's making a poop, the other one's carrying it for him, who would you assume is in charge?”

Jerry Seinfeld

For plenty of good humour and comedy content, check out Mediajist.

#books #ebooks #mediajist review #mediajist reviews

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joyamax · 3 years

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Travel Quotes To Channel Your Inner Wanderlust

Here are a few great travel quotes from Joyamax which will inspire you to go out and see the world.

1. “Please be a traveler, not a tourist. Try new things, meet new people, and look beyond what’s right in front of you. Those are the keys to understanding this amazing world we live in.” — Andrew Zimmern

2. “If you are twenty-two, physically fit, hungry to learn to be better, I urge you to travel – as far and as widely as possible. Sleep on floors, if you have to. Find out how other people live and cook. Learn from them – wherever you go.” — Anthony Bourdain

3. “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow mindedness., and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts.” — Mark Twain

4. “I’ve met the most interesting people while flying or on a boat. These methods of travel seem to attract the kind of people I want to be with.” — Hedy Lamarr Travel Quotes Related to Work

5. “Jobs fill your pocket, but adventures fill your soul.” — Jamie Lyn Beatty

6. “Because in the end, you won’t remember the time you spent working in the office or mowing your lawn. Climb that goddamn mountain.” — Jack Kerouac

7. “Travel is not reward for working, it’s education for living.” — Anthony Bourdain

8. “There’s no way I was born to just pay bills and die.” — Anonymous

9. “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” ― Mark Twain

10. “It’s important to travel and move and have a continual set of experiences so you’ve got more to feedback into your work. For me, it’s a natural thing.” — Cate Blanchett

Travel Quotes on Going With the Flow

11. “Stop worrying about the potholes in the road and enjoy the journey.” — Babs Hoffman

12. “Traveling is more fun — hell, life is more fun — if you can treat it as a series of impulses.” — Bill Bryson

13. “If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.” —Lewis Carroll

14. “I take to the open road, healthy, free, the world before me.” — Walt Whitman (See more Walt Whitman quotes)

15. “I just go with the flow, I follow the yellow brick road. I don’t know where it’s going to lead me, but I follow it.” — Grace Jones

16. “I love being on the road. I love that lifestyle, traveling city to city, rocking out and moving on to the next place.” — Caleb Johnson

17. “There is no right way to go on an edible journey. You can never tell what is going to be great, so you have to try everything.” — Adam Richman

If you love great travel content then you will love what you can find at Joyamax.

#books #ebooks #joyamax review #joyamax reviews #Travel #Quotes #tourist #understanding #Wanderlust

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ovymedia · 4 years

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The best adventure quotes for traveling couples

Looking for some inspiration for your next couple’s adventure? Take a read through these adventurous quotes for your next romantic adventure for two.

1. When traveling with someone, take large doses of patience and tolerance with your morning coffee. – Helen Hayes

2. A journey is like marriage. The certain way to be wrong is to think you control it. – John Steinbeck

3. I have found out that there ain’t no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them. — Mark Twain

4. In life, it’s not where you go, it’s who you travel with – Charles Schulz

5. Traveling is like flirting with life. It’s like saying, “I would stay and love you, but I have to go; this is my station.” – Lisa St. Aubin de Teran

6. Travel brings power and love back into your life – Rumi

7. People don’t take trips – trips take people. – John Steinbeck

8. Why should a relationship mean settling down? Wait for someone who won’t let life escape you, who’ll challenge you and drive you towards your dreams. Someone spontaneous who you can get lost in the world with. A relationship, with the right person, is a release not a restriction. – Beau Taplin

9. Never go on trips with anyone you do not love. – Ernest Hemingway

10. What we find in a soulmate is not something wild to tame, but something wild to run with. – Robert Brault

11. The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams. – Oprah Winfrey

12. Actually, the best gift you could have given her was a lifetime of adventures. – Lewis Carroll

13. Travel is like love, mostly because it’s a heightened state of awareness, in which we are mindful, receptive, undimmed by familiarity and ready to be transformed. That is why the best trips, like the best love affairs, never really end. — Pico Iyer

14. What I love most about this crazy life is the adventure of it. – Juliette Binoche

15. Life is an adventure, it’s not a package tour. – Eckhart Tolle

16. Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other, but in looking together in the same direction. – Antoine Desaint-Exupery

17. You develop a sympathy for all human beings when you travel a lot. – Shakuntala Devi

18. Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire. – Jennifer Lee

19. The life you have led doesn’t need to be the only life you have. – Anna Quindlen

20. Sure, give me an adventure and I’ll ride it. – Melissa Auf der Maur

21. And then there is the most dangerous risk of all — the risk of spending your life not doing what you want on the bet you can buy yourself the freedom to do it later. – Randy Komisar

22. Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

23. Anytime I feel lost, I pull out a map and stare. I stare until I have reminded myself that life is a giant adventure, so much to do, to see. – Angelina Jolie

24. I love waking up in the morning not knowing what’s gonna happen or who I’m gonna meet, where I’m gonna wind up. – Jack Dawson

25. I’m in love with cities I have never been to and people I have never met –Melody Truong

26. As soon as I saw you, I knew you would be an adventure of a life time. – Winnie the Pooh

27. The universe just fucking knows when souls are wired to wreck the world together! – Erin Van Vuren

28. A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions. – Oliver Wendell Holmes

29. The more I traveled the more I realized that fear makes strangers of people who should be friends. – Shirley MacLaine

30. Live, travel, adventure, bless, and don’t be sorry. – Jack Kerouac

31. The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience. – Eleanor Roosevelt

32. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. – Helen Keller

33. You’d be surprised who the love of your life turns out to be. After all, adventure fell in love with lost – Mary Oliver

34. Bizarre travel plans are dancing lessons from God. – Kurt Vonnegut

35. It’s wonderful to travel with someone you love and we never travel without one another. – Roger Moore

36. You are never too old to set another goal or to dream another dream – CS Lewis

37. To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted. – Bill Bryson

38. Every man can transform the world from one of monotony and drabness to one of excitement and adventure. – Irving Wallace

For more great adventure content, check out www.ovymedia.com today.

#adventure #quotes #travel #couple #relationship #road trip #books #ebooks

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meltakesthecake · 7 years

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It was already evident in the early poetry of the Anglo-Saxons that they had an intuitive appreciation of words sufficient to ensure that even if England had never been invaded again her language would have been rich with synonyms. ... It is true that English was immeasurably enriched by the successive linguistic waves that washed over the British Isles. But it is probably closer to the truth to say that the language we speak today is rich and expressive not so much because new words were imposed on it as because they were welcomed.

Bill Bryson's The Mother Tongue

#bill Bryson #the mother tongue #English #reading #books #literature #quotes #quotes I love

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