a bit o' bitching

( It's a Monday. )

Book meme, from jadedcat

1) How many books do I own?

Well, that depends. If you count just the ones that are mine, probably around four hundred. If you count the ones in my house, including those of my husband and daughter, you're looking at at least 1500, probably closer to 2000. We bought a house in part because the apartment was too small for all our books.

2) What was the last book I bought?

Um. . . this took thought, because I haven't bought a lot of books lately. Excluding stuff for my daughter's birthday, I think it was Master and Commander (the one the movie is based on. I can't remember the author offhand - this was back in December.) I bought it as research for a pirate book I was writing, and read the rest of it because it was good. Heavy at spots, but good.

3) Last book I read?

Easy. I just finished "Dancing in the Wind", by Mary Jo Putney. She's my favourite romance author, because she includes so much real history in her books. It's the granola-bar level of romance novels - lots of really worthwhile stuff in it, but you gotta love the chocolate chips. This particular one is set in London during Napoleon's first exile, before Waterloo, and involves a dashing earl spymaster who helps a young woman save her twin sister from a dire fate at the hands of the members of the Hellfire Club. (The Hellfire Club really did exist, and really did a lot of awful stuff. That's the non-fluff part of the book.)

It's pure escapism. I love it.

4) Books that mean a lot to me:

1) Anne and Emily, the whole series, by L.M. Montgomery. They defined me for a very long time, and to some extent they still do.
2) I have to agree with jadedcat yet again - I love Anne McCaffery's Dragon Singer trilogy. I like almost all of the earlier Pern books, for that matter. The more recent ones, after Thread was destroyed - *shrug* what's left to say when you've vanquished the main enemy? She should retire Pern at this point.
3) The Chronicles of Narnia - marvelous books, all of them, though I'm tempted to exclude the Last Battle. I've only read it once, because I couldn't get into it. The rest of them never cease to thrill me. I read at least one of them to every class I teach, every year.
4) Harry Potter series - I think there are enough Potter fans on my flist to cheer this one on.


I can't think of any more right now. I'll come back to this.

"My tummy hurt!"

Thus said Elizabeth as we put her to bed.

Half an hour later, we were cleaning up puke and comforting a shaking, crying toddler.

Five minutes after that, she was snuggling down into our blankets and pillows, naked except for a diaper, hiding her face behind the pillowcases and peeking out with her cutest "I'm hiding!" look.

She's now once again safe in dreamland, having ingested some tylenol and gripe water. (I know, the latter doesn't actually do anything. She likes the taste, though, and if it makes her feel better, I'll keep giving it to her.)

I just hope that whatever it is, I don't have it. My plans for tomorrow are insufficient for a supply teacher, and I'd rather not take a day off right now, anyway.