A room without books is like a body without a soul

New community for readers

Fri, 19 Mar 2010 12:39:21 GMT

I have just created a new community for readers called littleknownbooks. It's a book community exclusively for those books which somehow get overlooked because they're not promoted like crazy or are only known in their home country (e. g. I love Arnaldur Indridasson's thrillers but I'd say he isn't that widely known outside of Iceland).

Join in if you love books :-)

You'll be missed, Luna

Sat, 06 Mar 2010 10:27:52 GMT

Do not stand at my grave and weep

Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am in a thousand winds that blow,
I am the softly falling snow.
I am the gentle showers of rain,
I am the fields of ripening grain.
I am in the morning hush,
I am in the graceful rush
Of beautiful birds in circling flight,
I am the starshine of the night.
I am in the flowers that bloom,
I am in a quiet room.
I am in the birds that sing,
I am in each lovely thing.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there. I do not die.
~ Mary Elizabeth Frye

Meme

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:19:37 GMT

From gramina:

You're on my Friends List. I want to know 35 things about you. I don't care if we never talk, or if we already know everything about each other (or think we do). Short answers or long, whatever you want to say (or not) is cool. Copy from here and then repost in a comment. Then repost the empty questions on your journal. You know. If you want to.

SPECIAL INVITATION TO LURKERS: Lurking is always okay here, so there's no obligation to participate, but it'd be lovely if you'd care to play. Answer as few or as many as you like. Or tell me something I didn't ask. Or hey, screw the meme and just say hi. :-)

And hey, if you've already answered this somewhere else, you needn't do it again here (although you're more than welcome to do so if you like). It'd be great, though, if you'd leave me a comment linking me to your elsewhere response.

Onward:

( Read more... )

Ipod help?

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 06:56:48 GMT

A co-worker has trouble with her Ipod (it's a 1 GB Ipod nano). After plugging it into her laptop, it "froze" and doesn't react properly anymore. You can switch it on but all it does is showing the Apple logo. We googled how to reset it but even that didn't work. Does anyone has an idea what else she could do?

Book Review: Portrait in Sepia

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 09:52:03 GMT

Title: Portrait in Sepia
Author: Isabel Allende
Number of Pages: 304 pages
Reading Challenge: TBR Reading Challenge (1/12)
My Rating: 3/5

( Review )

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:33:10 GMT

Happy belated Birthday, darkrose!

I hope you had a great day

Meme

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 13:39:31 GMT

Stolen from everyone:

What's surprised you the most about me (if anything) since beginning to read my journal (or when you met me IRL, for those who have)? Has anything about me been completely unexpected or have I always fit the picture of me you had in your head?

Reading: January Wrap-up Post

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 12:37:34 GMT

Books I've read:

1. Indelible by Karin Slaughter

2. The Private Patient by P. D. James

3. Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel

4. The Tarnished Chalice by Susanna Gregory

I've tried writing reviews for the books but after staring at a blank page for quite some time, I gave up. But if anyone has questions about any of the books, leave a comment.

Wordless Wednesday (10-01-27)

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 08:55:19 GMT

( Tigers In The Snow )

What should I read next?

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 13:19:25 GMT

I can't decide which book I want to read next so I'm asking y'all to suggest one from this list.

Thank you!

Reading Challenges 2010

Fri, 01 Jan 2010 10:25:53 GMT

( Booklist for the Reading Challenges )

Book Reviews

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 12:31:06 GMT

Title: Die Roemer in Germanien (The Romans in Germania)
Author: Reinhard Wolters
Number of Pages: 127 pages
Book Number/Goal: 54/75
My Rating: 3.5/5

( Review )

Title: Der Limes (The Limes Germanicus)
Author: Egon Schallmayer
Number of Pages: 136 pages
Book Number/Goal: 55/75
My Rating: 3.5/5

( Review )

Title: Written in Bone
Author: Simon Beckett
Number of Pages: 496 pages
Book Number/Goal: 56/75
My Rating: 4/5

( Review )

Title: The Source
Author: Michael Cordy
Number of Pages: 364 pages
Book Number/Goal: 57/75
My Rating: 2.75/5

( Review )

Wordless Wednesday (09-12-30)

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 09:40:49 GMT

( Snowy Hannover )

TSS (09-12-20): Reading Challenges

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 09:05:05 GMT

It's time for another Sunday Salon post on a Monday. If you're wondering what the Sunday Salon is, here's more info about it.

Despite failing spectacularly participating in reading challenges this year, including the two I hosted, I'll be giving it another try in 2010.

I'll be joining the "What's in a Name 3" reading challenge, hosted by Beth Fish Reads. It sounds like fun and I already own three of the six books I need to read.

Apart from that, I'll be hosting the American Civil War reading challenge again this year. Info can be found here. The second challenge I'll be hosting is the Neil Gaiman reading challenge; to sign up, go here.

There are a couple of other challenges mentioned on A Novel Challenge which look interesting so maybe I'll be joining some more.

Book Review: Founding Mothers by Cokie Roberts

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 10:24:18 GMT

Title: Founding Mothers – The Women Who Raised Our Nation
Author: Cokie Roberts
Number of Pages: 384 pages
Book Number/Goal: 53/75
My Rating: 3.5/5

Review: Founding Mothers is about the mothers, wifes and sisters of the Founding Fathers and their contribution to the founding of the United States of America.

( Read more... )

One More Try

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 09:41:24 GMT

Apparently, no one wants to listen to "Sea of Glory" by Nathaniel Philbrick. I really can't believe it. So I'm giving it another try:

If you want the audiobook "Sea of Glory" or you know someone who'd like it, please leave a comment. It's FREE and I'd send it to whatever country you're living in.

Wordless Wednesday (09-12-02)

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 09:55:52 GMT

Statue of King Ernst August of Hannover

Christmas Cards

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:45:00 GMT

If you would like to get a Christmas card from me, please leave me your address in the comments (comments are screened so no one's going to see it). If you've received a card from me last year and you haven't moved, you don't have to comment again. You're already on my list :D

And if you're sending out cards (and don't mind sending one to Germany), please leave a link or an email address where I can leave my address. I love getting cards!

(Audio-) Book Giveaway: Sea of Glory by Nathaniel Philbrick

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:06:13 GMT

I'm giving away the audiobook "Sea of Glory" by Nathaniel Philbrick. I've listened to it once so it's not totally new but definitely in a good condition.

"Sea of Glory" tells the story of the United States Exploring Expedition which took place between 1838 and 1842. You can read more about the book on the author's website.

To win "Sea of Glory", all you have to do is this:

Name one of the six ships of the United States Exploring Expedition

The giveaway ends on December 6, 2009 (and it's open internationally).

Who am I again?

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 09:42:30 GMT

Grabbed from gramina

You know how sometimes people on your friends list post about stuff going on in their life, and all of a sudden you think "Wait a minute? Since when were they working THERE? Since when were they dating HIM/HER? Since when???" And then you wonder how you could have missed all that seemingly pretty standard information, but somehow you feel too ashamed to ask for clarification because it seems like info you should already know? It happens to all of us sometimes.

Please copy the topics below, erase my answers and put yours in their place, and then post it in your journal! Please elaborate on the questions that would benefit from elaboration. One-Word-Answers seldom help anyone out.
( Read more... )

Book Review: Cabinet of Curiosities by Preston/Child

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:39:53 GMT

Title: Cabinet of Curiosities
Author: Douglas Preston/Lincoln Child
Number of Pages: 574 pages
Book Number/Goal: 52/75
My Rating: 4/5

Review: During the construction of an apartment building in New York City the remains of an earlier building are found – together with 36 bodies. The bodies seem to be the victims of a 19th century serial killer and attract the attention of FBI agent Pendergast. Pendergast convinces Nora Kelly, an archaeologist working for the Museum of Natural History, to help him with his investigations. Soon enough, more bodies are found and it looks like a copycat killer is at work.

I've read 'Still Life with Crows' earlier this year and never really got into the story which also featured FBI agent Pendergast. I'm glad, though, that I decided to pick up 'Cabinet of Curiosities' at the library because I really enjoyed the story and the characters, especially agent Pendergast. He's very eccentric and reminds me a bit of Sherlock Holmes. All in all, a very enjoyable read.

Sunday Salon (09-11-22)

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:28:59 GMT

I was supposed to host Bookworms Carnival No. 41 (topic: Nobel Prize for Literature) but sadly, only one person emailed me to send me links. And because three links don't make a 'carnival', I won't make a post. Maybe some other time.

As for reading, it's really slow going at the moment. I've only read one book this week, Cabinet of Curiosities by Douglas Preston/Lincoln Child. I was reluctant to read it since I didn't really enjoy Still Life with Crows but I really enjoyed this one. Both books feature eccentric FBI agent Pendergast but in Cabinet of Curiosities, he's become a much more likable character. Has anyone read other books featuring Agent Pendergast?

Wordless Wednesday (09-11-18)

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:06:16 GMT

( Haemelschenburg Castle )

Book Reviews

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:29:33 GMT

( Books 40 – 51/75 )

The Sunday Salon (09-10-26)

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:55:49 GMT

Read-a-Thon Wrap-Up

It was my first Read-a-Thon on Saturday and I read for 14 hours, longer than I thought I would. The 10 books and 1444 pages I read mean I'm going to make a $ 75 donation to Kiva (the total was $ 75.44 but $ 75 is easier to split evenly). I had a lot of fun and I think I'm going to do it again in April (or whenever the next Read-a-Thon will be).

ETA: Made the donations. $ 25 each to women in Peru, the Phillipines and Nigeria.