Change is coming...

 

 

 

The past year has been a time of massive change for me, the birth of the delicious Baby Bookbath (who is just about 6 months old now) and the accompanying change from full time social worker to full time/over time mother, the death of my beloved fluffy boy Ewok, the massive restructuring (and sometimes loss) of my reading life and in the next couple of weeks a physical move from our home of the last 10 years to a new house - a very exciting and needed move but a time of sadness too.

In all of this change, re-structuring, loss, challenge, happiness and love my blogging has ultimately taken a back seat - not through choice but through practicality and logistics. I often haven't had the physical time to even turn on the computer - or if there has been that moment of time I have not had the emotional or mental energy to think about formulating a post.

I have missed my blogging. I have missed that connection with other readers and bloggers who share similar interests and passions and I have missed the debate and communication that occurs over differing tastes and opinions. I have missed having the time and space to read and read and then read some more - enjoying the reading for itself but also the thoughts that swirl as I read about how I will interpret this experience through my blogging. Mostly I have missed the people - so many of you have helped to shape by current reading/bookish experiences and have challenged me to be a wider, more open, more adventurous, better reader.

So, I am making a re-commitment to BookBath - but with a twist. I'm not sure that BookBath can continue in its current form. My world has changed and I feel that my blog, as an online interpretation and expression of that world, has to change too. There will still be books - how could there not be??!! But I feel other aspects of my life will also come into play - my hope is that this will once again open up this space and become inviting not only for me - but for all of you as well!

I'm not completely sure yet what this new blog vision will look like - but I am looking forward to discovering it. I'm hoping you will stick around for the journey, wherever it takes us...

I'm Still Here...

OK, so almost 2 months since my last post and I feel like my blogging world is leaving me behind. This being a mum sure takes up a lot of time, energy and headspace! My Baby Bookbath is now 4 months old and really becoming her own little individual - the good news is she seems to really like books! I wasn't sure how I was going to cope if she didn't!
As for my own reading - I am already noticing some changes. I have so much less time to read now that I want to make every word count. I feel the pressure to choose my reading materials carefully as I don't want to waste precious time on books that won't feed my reading needs. That being said I have now finished 3 whole books since Pia's birth on the 31st July. A dismal total when I look back at my previous reading habits but I feel they are 3 books that I enjoyed and devoured - quality over quantity. I am hoping to get some more detailed reviews of these 3 books up on the blog soon.
I have abandoned any hope of writing reviews for all of the other books I have read this year prior to Pia being born but I will add them to my sidebar so that you can see what I have been reading (and so that I can see I have accomplished something reading wise this year!).
Until reviews are up, some photos to reflect my current world...

I May Have Jumped the Gun...

I might have spoken too soon about my return to normal blogging activities - this parenting thing sure is a roller coaster! I really am hoping to get down to some actual writing very soon but in the meantime here are some photos to help express my world at the moment - and yes, there are books in it!!

 

The Weeks That Have Been...

Baby BookBath is now 7 weeks old and (hopefully!) she seems to be catching on to the whole sleeping thing a little more! Which might mean I am able to resume some reading and blogging - we will see...
In the meantime, before the normal book reviewing and posting picks up again, some photos to show what things have been like in the BookBath household over the past 7 weeks...

My 8 Pound Reason for not Blogging Lately...

Baby BookBath arrived on the 31st July - a little dramatically but we are all well and settling in to the world...

The Lollipop Shoes - Joanne Harris

The thing about sequels is that as a reader you come to them with so many expectations - you want a story and characters that resonate with you the same way in which the first book did and you want them to taken further so that you feel you are getting even more of the story - an extension of what wasn't able to be given to you in the first book. You also want a sequel to carry on the tone and spirit of the initial story - you want to feel as though you are in the same world - with slight differences. These might be unrealistic expectations but they are there all the same. They are very much the expectations I had when I started reading The Lollipop Shoes, the sequel to Chocolat as part of our Paris in July event. Unfortunately, after finishing The Lollipop Shoes I didn't feel as though my sequel expectations had been met and I was left grieving for the magical feeling I had when I first read Chocolat. The risk of reading sequels!!
The Lollipop Shoes is set 5 years after Chocolat ends - Vianne (now known as Yanne), her eldest daughter Anouk (now know as Annie) and her youngest daughter Rosette are living in the Montmartre district of Paris again working in a chocolate shop but one that has none of the magic or distinctiveness of the shop Vianne had established in the village of Lansquenet. Yanne has worked hard to fade into the background, creating a "normal" life for her and her children, courting no magic or disruption. This seems like a reasonable wish for a mother of two young children but it does not feel true to the character of Vianne/Yanne at all - the spunky, vivacious woman from Chocolat has all but disappeared making the tone of the novel feel flat and hopeless. Harris has introduced a new character to try and balance this out, Zozie de l'Alba enters Yanne's live and brings the magic she is unable, or unwilling,  to rustle up herself at this time. Zozie is more than what she seems and her magic, while bringing new found success and prosperity to the chocolate shop, has its downsides in the way she uses it to play Anouk and create more of a division between mother and daughter bringing the book to its ultimate climax.
This book is much longer than Chocolat - although I didn't feel it needed to be this long the end part of the book was much more engaging that the beginning and middle sections. Some familiar characters from Chocolat arrive on the scene - but even they are not able to spark the book up for me. This was just a case of the sequel not hitting the mark, or coming close to being as wonderful as the book that inspired it. I was planning to read the third book in the series, Peaches for Monsieur le Cure but I think I will stop while I am slightly ahead and the magic and glow of Chocolat is still glowing...

Paris in July - Week 3 Wrap Up

I can't believe we are already at the end of our third week for this years Paris in July event - time sure does fly when you are in France!!
I'm still wistfully looking at the pile of books that I want to get through before the end of the month and I just know Paris themed reading is going to be continuing well into August for me...
One of the highlights for me this week was an interview with Tamara and I by the lovely Charlotte from The Book on the Hill - please check it out here if you have not already. Many thanks to Charlotte for including us and our Paris in July event on her blog.
I did manage to finish The Lollipop Shoes this week and I will post my review very soon.
In the meantime I would love to catch up on what everyone else has been reading, watching, cooking etc... over this third week so please list the links to your posts in the comments section below.
And into the final week we go...