Reading with My Grandpa

I was very close to my grandma.  Towards the end of her life, she suffered from Parkinson's, did not emote, and could not speak.  But, I loved our weekly visits and always looked forward to them.  It was such a special thing that we had together, but I'll be honest, most of my friends and coworkers didn't understand when I'd tell them about it.  About how I'd arrive full of the stresses of the day, but leave two hours later as calm and relaxed as could be.  She had such a presence, such elegance, for someone who could barely communicate.  And after visiting for a while, I began to understand her moods and little gestures.  She "spoke" in her own way, and it was not that hard to understand her if you actually tried.

Now, my grandpa and I have not been close since I was a little kid.  We used to play cards together, color Easter eggs, share jokes, play games... But, we don't really talk much anymore.  So, when my mom told me that there was a book he had been wanting to read, but couldn't (he's legally blind), and since he was bored being stuck in quarantine (he's not sick, but his building is on lock-down), I agreed to read it to him over the phone.

I wasn't expecting anything monumental, and I don't think he was, either.  We began the phone conversation with him telling me that if I wanted, I could just read the book to myself, and then update him on what it was about.  But, I suggested that we do one day of reading and then decide how to proceed.  He loved it and asked when I could call again.  Today was day two, and we read even more than yesterday (I'm good for about half and hour, but this was easily an hour).  We're already looking forward to tomorrow.

Uncle Dynamite

If you were to ask me who my favorite author is, I couldn't answer you.  Choosing one favorite author is like choosing your favorite child.  There are just too many excellent writers out there, and I love each one for something different.  But, if I was going to pick one, Wodehouse would certainly be in the running for the best.

I very rarely "laugh out loud" when I'm reading a book.  I might smirk or even chuckle, but I don't laugh out loud.  Wodehouse makes me laugh, though.  Sometimes, I'll laugh until I cry.  When I need a good pick-me-up, I pick up a Wodehouse book.  There's nothing like one of his gut-busters when you're feeling sour.

I've not been feeling sour, per se, but I've been feeling cooped up.  So, when my dear friend  Shay said that she was reading one of the books I'd given her last year (I had passed along a couple of my precious Wodehouse titles when shelving got a bit too tight), I thought it might be worth checking out one myself.  And since she was reading Uncle Dynamite, I thought that I would, too.  The problem is that of course, I had given my copy to her.

But, remember how I talked about Hoopla and other ebook systems in one of my last posts?  Well, Hoopla had Wodehouse on audiobook.  And I remembered that as a lonely teenager, I would spend hours pouring over Wodehouse's books, and I discovered the brilliant Jonathan Cecil's narrations.  Even though I didn't particularly like audiobooks, I liked him, so I started to listen to anything that the library had to offer.  And wouldn't you know it, years later, I found that Hoopla had 30+ Wodehouse books read by none other!

So, of course, I downloaded Uncle Dynamite.  And goodness gracious!  I was not disappointed.  The magic had not been lost.  I had a delightful time.  It was so much fun!  The voices, the pacing...Cecil even includes little vocal cues, like braying laughs, or someone choking on a muffin!

But, what is Uncle Dynamite about?  Anyone who has read a Wodehouse book knows that there are always multiple intertwining subplots that make it hard to answer this question.  So, instead, I'll give you a short list of some of the things you can look forward to in such a book.    You'll find love triangles, American girls, Brazilian explorers, mistaken identity, smuggled jewels, and plots to punch policeman.  There are impoverished publishers, scheming uncles, and bonny baby contests.  In short, it's a lot of fun!  While this one didn't have me in tears, it certainly had me in stitches the way that only Wodehouse can do.  I learned about halfway through the book, it was #2 in the Uncle Fred series (for some reason, I thought this was book 1), but as with any Wodehouse tale, you can generally jump right into the series wherever you want.  You'll still be able to follow along just fine.

"Country Roads" in Minor Key

So, I don't know the "science" behind it, but songs in "major key" are happy and upbeat, and songs in "minor key" are more somber.  Sometimes, you can find listings online of songs where the key has been switched.  This one is my favorite of those.

If "Country Roads" is meant to be a positive, happy song about going back home, this is a sort of sad, serious version.  It's hauntingly beautiful.  I like to think that this is what would be playing in the background when the hero in a movie has to flee his home, for whatever reason, knowing that he could never come back.

And on an unrelated note, it's snowing.  Last week, I didn't even need a coat, but right now, there's snow on the driveway.  I don't even know anymore.

What I'm Reading

What are YOU reading?  During this time of social distancing (or as my boss put it, physical distancing), many of us are locked up at home, looking for something to do.  What a great time to bust out your To-Read list!

Not actually me.  Sorry to disappoint!

As for me, I'm relying on a few different resources, including my own personal book collection, titles I grabbed from the library before we closed, and lots of ebooks.  I know I've been staunchly anti-ebook, but since getting a smartphone (welcome to the 21st century, Emmy!) I've started to appreciate the convenience of an expanded digital library.

My library (along with many libraries across the country) offers access to ebooks through several ebook systems.  I like to use Hoopla and Libby (by Overdrive).  I can check out books, audiobooks, movies, music, and comics through these resources!  And if you're interested in ebooks but don't want to use the library, I have two apps to suggest.

The first is Free Books.  And just as the title suggests, it's free books.  Most of them are classics or out-of-print, but MAN!  You can find some really cool stuff on here!  The best part is that you can download everything onto your device for reading offline, and its yours to keep.  I recommend starting with The Abandoned Room by Charles Wadsworth Camp.  It's a chilling story of murder, ghosts, and missing time.

The second is sort of a combo.  Project Gutenberg has an amazing collection of excellent Classics available to read for free on their website.  But, their app leaves a lot to be desired.  So, what I do is download the books I want from Project Gutenberg onto my phone, and open them with this app: ReadEra.  I've played around with a few different eReader apps, and this is my favorite.

Of course, I still prefer the feeling of paper pages between my fingers.  And I'm still reading physical books.  As I teased in the title of this post, I'm reading a lot right now.  If you want to see all the sweet details, follow me on Goodreads.  But, I'll share my Currently Reading list with you right now.

In an effort to find something a little more fun and happy, I picked up a few Wodehouse titles.  Got Mike at Wrykyn by PG Wodehouse sitting on the desk next to me as I write.  I'm also listening to the audiobook for another Wodehouse title: Uncle Dynamite.  The narrator is Jonathan Cecil, who's my favorite audiobook reader.  I was super excited to see that there are 30+ Wodehouse books narrated by him on Hoopla, so if you're interested, be sure to check him out!

And finally, I have one ebook in the works-- The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.  I read it as a kid, but that was years (and many books) ago, so I don't remember much.  It's been fun getting to relive the experience.

A Social Distancing Hello

Hey, all!

Not sure if anyone still reads this blog (geez...how many posts do I start with that??)  But, I wanted to reach out and say "Hello".  It's been a long while since I've last posted.  Since everyone is stuck at home (or most of us are) because of COVID-19, I thought it might be nice to reach out.  (Special thanks to a very dear old friend who encouraged me to get back into the blogging scene).

The library where I work closed about a month ago because of Coronavirus, so I've been trying to get used to a completely stagnant pace.  And honestly, a month in, I've been really enjoying it.  I love the quiet, the time to read and write and work on crafts.  Sure, I get scared sometimes about getting sick (and about my loved ones getting sick).  And I get stir-crazy sometimes, too.  But, I'm adapting.  And I'm remembering how much I used to love lazy college days (like back when I started this blog), just relaxing and getting to know myself again.

It's been different.  It's been difficult.  But, I hope all of you are keeping safe.  And if you're out there reading this, feel free to leave me a comment, so that we can continue the conversation.  I'd especially love to hear from my old blogging buds (you all know who you are).  If you're still out there, drop me a line.  Your friendships were always so precious to me, back when I was learning to find myself as a moody teen.  Now, I'm reconnecting with myself again.  I'd love to reconnect with you, too.