Thursday, July 19, 2007

Lookin' For Inspiration In All the Wrong Places...


In addition to a compulsive desire to make quilts and play on the computer for endless hours, I have a deep love of reading. That hobby has been on the backburner for several weeks (unless you count quilt books, quilt magazines and quilt directions!!!) until day before yesterday. I had been on the waiting list at my local library for this book for ages. Finally, I got the email: "Come get your book." Oh, and was it ever worth the wait. Eat, Pray, Love (by Elizabeth Gilbert) is a wonderful read. It's about a 30ish woman writer who decides to "find herself" after a disastrous divorce and the breakup of a second romance. She travels to Italy (my mostest favorite country in the world next to America), then India and last Indonesia in search of--well, food, God, and romance. I absolutely could not put the thing down and it consumed all of yesterday and a bit of the day before. Because of that compulsiveness I mentioned in the first sentence, I went online to my library to request all other books by this author! I tend to overdose on one author then move on to the next LOL! I lost track of how many John Grisham novels I read before discovering Rick Bragg, then Lisa Scottoline, Janet Evanovich, Sue Grafton, Dan Brown and those three fantastic Ya-Ya sisterhood books!!! And there have been more! For the longest time I was on a CIA/spy/mafia/intrigue kick and couldn't get enough of those types. I went through my women's biographies phase, too. Jackie, Eleanor, Dolly (Madison, not Parton, though I'd love to read Dolly Parton's life story too), even Marilyn Monroe. Not to appear sexist (in my own mind) I spent a lot of time with Harry Truman and John Adams! Books that take place in a certain locale that I'm interested in can just take over my life. Before my husband and I went to Charleston, Savannah and Natchez one year, I devoured every book I could find--fiction or nonfiction--on the Civil War and the deep south. It is really quite amazing to be able to get so lost in words and mental images. I was like this as a kid too. I read all the Betsy, Tacy and Tib books and all the Carolyn Haywood books.
Well, now you know more about my reading habits than you ever cared to know.
Just to keep this post the tee-tiniest quilt related, I made the penny rug pictured above several years ago, but darned if I can remember the designer's name.

16 comments:

Libby said...

Have you been peekin' at my bookshelves *s* The Ya-Ya's, Grisham and Rick Braqg (I got the biggest kick out his mom *s*) I'm headed over to Amazon . . . right now.

sophie said...

Thanks for the recommendation ... I just surfed over to my library's site and reserved Eat, Pray, Love.

Angie said...

You, Libby and I must be triplets when it comes to reading...I am EXACTLY like you in the OC department!!! ROFL And I'm on Libby's heels to Amazon! Cute penny rug, BTW!! :>

Little Penpen said...

The book sounds great and I love the penny rug. I'm headed for the beach next week and hope to find something good to read while there. (and hope to finish up a redwork embroidery project!)

Anonymous said...

Hi, have you read any Greg Iles books, they are set in Natchez. He writes crime/thrillers. Vicki from Australia

Darlene said...

I saw that book at Barnes & Noble this evening and had it in my hand and put it back. I need to go back and get it. LOL I have a deep love for reading and cannot go to sleep at night without reading a bit. I have a tendency to get compulsive with authors too. When I find I like then I have to read everything they've written. Silly, I know!

Love the penny rug, too.

Debbie J said...

You sound like my kind of person!!! Quilts and books, my favorites too!

Texan said...

I too love to read, its truly one of lifes greatest pleasures!

You know how some people use their Credit Card points for airline miles, since I do not fly, I use mine to get $ Gift Cards to Amazon.com :O)...my card auto sends them to me when I build up enough points, just got one last week! :O)... oh boy!

Deb Sews Quilts said...

Reading is one of life's great pleasures. I wrote down your list of authors and I am going online to see what we have at our public library. Amazon is mailing my Harry Potter book today. I can't wait! Have you read those? I would have never thought that they were my type but I looked at the first one out of curiosity (when #6 came out) and I could not put it down.

Andrea said...

I too am an avid reader - comes as naturally as breathing ! I also tend to read as much as I can by an author. At the moment its Janet Evanovich but I also have the new Harry Potter ready to go as soon as I can get it from my DD !

Mrs. Goodneedle said...

OK-- now I need to read it too, you definitely made it sound so very appealing! Love that strawberry penny rug, too!!

Molly Mandeville Fryer said...

I am not a reader and you made me want to read that book--I might have to make a trip to the library. But everytime I read, I fall asleep. LOL

Susan said...

We read the same way. I've been on a military scifi kick for a while, with time off for plowing through Michael Connelly. I'll look for the book you mentioned.

QuiltingFitzy said...

Oh but please, you didn't mention James Paterson?

I'm a book a week addict, have 20+ minute ride on the bus morning and night.

I think I'll "do" Dan Brown next, he was referred to me by another Paterson reader, lol.

Ila K. said...

Isn't Interlibrary Loan the best ever? Ours is hooked up with an online search of all libraries in the state. The world is mine... or at least it is if one library in the state has it. I've even ordered quilt books to test before buying.

I'm glad someone else besides me reads "on a rail" (sounds better than in a rut)!

Quilts And Pieces said...

I"ve been reading a lot this summer too. I LOVE the strawberry matt!