I ♥ Books

Eventually I had to do it... Talk about books... I love books. To say I'm an AVID reader is not even close to being strong enough terminology. To say I am a BIBLIOPHILE is completely accurate. A friend recently helped me organize my book collection and somehow we remained friends. The best books are the ones so well written you can re-read them half a dozen times and learn something new with each read. Perhaps my favorite author (that's like picking your favorite pastry in the bakery, or your favorite wine in the world)soo lets say..... One of my favorite authors of all time is Charles Dickens and I think my favorite story is Oliver Twist (Penguin Red Classics). Dickens can paint pictures, invoke emotions,scents,tastes... with words alone.

As much as I love the written word a close second is childrens picture books. I always have loved reading to children and getting them involved in the adventure of a story.Audrey and Don Wood, authors and illustrators have a fantastic array beautifully written and illustrated children books. For Example Piggies, The Napping House, King Bidgood's in the Bathtub,and The Tickleoctopus. Another of my favorite author and illustrator is Steven Kellogg who created fun and hilarious picture books such as The Mysterious Tadpole, Can I Keep Him?, and The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash. The pictures are rich, humorous, and fun.
I really love shopping for books as well. I love for finding pretty much any book new or used. Bas Bleu reviews books with such accuracy and since they only choose books they love you are guaranteed to find a good one. However, as grand as new books are nothing is quite as fun as a used book store. Where you can find something that you won't find on the shelves at a "new" book store. The infinite possibilities of a used book store makes the book lover in me giggle with glee. It can be overwhelming but oh so joyful to find that hidden treasure in the stacks. Then something new this way came... e-readers.
I have been drooling in earnest over e-readers since they came out. Looking with covetousness at those owned by friends as greedily as a deer eyes tulips just beyond its reach. Part of me still finds so much joy in the turning of a page... but the world of books becoming available on e-readers offers so much reading temptation. A paper book can be read on the beach without sand damaging its parts but... I can never seem to pack enough books in my suitcase. A paper book can be read by the campfire and not require a battery...but I can only fit so many books into my pack before someone complains that I packed rocks. The virtual library out there has me salivating. They do keep making improvements to them, adding important features, tweaking the software, adjusting for multiple uses, so I will wait a little while longer.... before I can't stand it anymore! Here you can visit Amazon's Kindle and drool over it yourself.

When I substitute in Elementary School often there is small chunks of time in which students are done with work and waiting for their classmates. One of the ways I fill the time is with squiggles you can by a book Squiggles: A Really Giant Drawing and Painting Book Which is on my wish list. Or you can just make random squiggles on white paper as I did. Soon I will have some of my favorites posted on the right. Watch for that.