August 20, 2010

Fun at the Hop & Friday Five

'Tis been a busy summer so far.  Visits with our children and the grandchildren too!  At the same time, I am also really trying to stay focused and busy with my reading.  I am also very honored to be leading a group-read of Thomas Hardy's novel, Far From the Madding Crowd, on Goodreads.com in the "Victorians" group, and it is turning out to be an absolute blast.  I am also experiencing for the first time the powerful poetry of Thomas Hardy.  And as hard as it may be to believe, I am coming to realize that Hardy may be an even better poet than prose writer.

But It is Friday, and it is time to 'Hop.'  This is my third 'Hop', and I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying meeting all of you who love books as much as I do, and finding some really terrific blogs to follow.  The 'Hop' is the brainchild of Jennifer at Crazy for Books.  You can go here to her fun blog and learn more about the 'Hop' and sign yourself up too.

This week's Book Blogger Hop question is:  "How many blogs do you follow?"

[Looking slightly sheepish]  Currently, I am only following twenty different blogs.  Most of them are book blogs too.  I do try, each and every day, to scroll down and see what my peers are posting about, and I also try and leave meaningful comments as appropriate.  I have to happily confess that several of the blogs that I now follow are ones that I have discovered through my two previous 'Hops,' so Jennifer's notion was a truly good one--it works!  I know that I will be finding more of you out there too, and I look forward to it!

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Another blog I enjoy is Kate's Library and Kate offers a fun and nifty weekly activity called "The Friday Five."  Here, we are encouraged to share several interesting blog postings that we encountered during the week.  Like the 'Hop,' it is a great way for all of us to move about the blogosphere and find other cool sites and postings.  Should you like to participate in "The Friday Five" go visit Kate's Library, just 'for the joy of reading,' and join in the fun!  Here are my offerings (three this time, more to follow soon)--

Brenna at Literary Musings wrote an absolutely brilliant review of Henry James's "Washington Square."  This was a novel that I first read when in the U.S. Coast Guard in my early twenties, and I was completely blown away.  Brenna is a great writer, and I encourage you to stop by and check out what she's reading and writing about!

Isaac at The Tower of Stories is a blogger that tends to focus on short story fiction.  Shorts tend to be bypassed by many of us, and at our peril I say.  If you're looking for good short story authors, recommended collections, and reviews, Isaac is your guy.  Give him a look, and go find some short stories to read.

Finally, if you love books and 'Dinner and a Movie,' please stop by and visit Every Book and Cranny.  She has some absolutely terrific postings, and features her love of books, great food, and all-things Alfred Hitchcock!  Great fun!

So, have fun hopping about and checking out some new literary blogs.  It'll do you good!  I wish you all a wonderful weekend!  Thanks for stopping by and visiting!

11 comments:

  1. Christopher, You're awesome! Thank you so much for the kind words :)

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  2. Hi, stopping by via Hop. Have a great weekend!

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  3. Hey Christopher! Thanks for spreading the word about the Friday Five. New blogs to go check out!

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  4. A group discussion on Far from the Madding Crowd! I read the first chapter of that novel out of curiosity a few weeks ago, and now I'm excited to take it up again and discuss it. I joined the "Victorians" group just now. Let's see how well I can play catch up.

    Have a good weekend!

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  5. Chris, Thank you so very much for the shout out! I'm honored - and I truly appreciate it.

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  6. I'll have to check out the Victorians group too. What do you recommend for my next Hardy read, Blue Eyes or Madding Crowd? I'm reading Middlemarch right now, it's amazing.

    It's so great to see how many people out there love the classics! At first I thought the book blog world was going to be all about romance novels.

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  7. To All of You, a big 'Thank You!' for the visit and your words! I am delighted to have been able to 'find' each and every one of you.

    To Curlygeek04, the "Victorians" group on Goodreads.com really is quite wonderful. You can probably find a place to satisfy each and every one of your literary desires. Have fun exploring! I find it a great way to organize my library electronically, and find new books that I want to read too.

    Regarding diving into Hardy, I started with his first novel written under his own name, "Under the Greenwood Tree" (and check out the sublime BBC film adaptation too), then read "A Pair of Blue Eyes," and then it was into the more well known novels of his canon, in order, "Far From the Madding Crowd," "The Return of the Native," The Mayor of Casterbridge," "The Woodlanders," "Tess of the d'Urbervilles," and the towering pinnacle of Hardy's fiction, "Jude the Obscure." I would be remiss at not putting in a big plug for his poetry and short story fiction too! Enjoy! And do let me know how you are enjoying Hardy as you read him. Cheers! Chris

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  8. Hello Chris! Once you start with Hardy it's hard to stop, isn't it? Just stopping by on the hop--your blog has become one of my favorites.

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  9. Just stopping by via the hop! I am your newest follower. I love that you are reading the classics. It's so refreshing to see some diversity in the book blogging world. hope you have a good weekend and happy reading :)

    Rachel
    And the plot thickens...

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  10. Hopping by to see what is new. I'm already a follower.

    Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
    http://www.primoreads.com/

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  11. Thanks for coming by my blog! I am so glad I returned the favor, as I love discovering other blogs that read classics. :) I am sure I will have a great time checking out your past reviews. I'm a follower now!

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