Friday 18 June 2010

Stuck-in-a-Book's Weekend Miscellany

My best laid plans to type out a week's worth of reviews this evening have rather crumbled and fallen. Instead, I did my ironing, baked a cake, and watched soap operas online. I feel a little like a 1950s housewife... but I've read/seen The Hours and I know how that ends.

Off to a wedding tomorrow, should be fun - and will hopefully avoid dancing. As Mary Bennett once said before me, "I should infinitely prefer a book." And, had she found her way to Stuck-in-a-Book, she'd get even more than that: a book, a blog post, and a link. Don't say I don't spoil you.

1.) The book - I was wondering to myself what else Nicola Humble might have written, except the very Simon-friendly The Feminine Middlebrow Novel 1920s to 1950s (see more here) and came across this rather winning title: Cake: A Global History. It's advertised on Amazon as Cake: A Global History (Edible) which I thought was an exceptionally clever gimmick, but turns out Edible is the name of the publishing company. Basically it looks like it does what it says on the tin - a history of cake! What's not to like?

2.) The link - is to an Oxfam Bookfest. Includes a day-long readathon... Click the link to find out more.

3.) The blog post - I'm a sucker for so-I-went-bookshopping sorts of posts (especially since I've been on rations myself) so hive on over to Thomas at My Porch and his latest spree...


9 comments:

  1. How do I hive on over Simon? What does it mean?

    DP

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  2. Hmm. Don't know. The expression existed in my mind. But I daresay you can interpret the meaning from the context! (What expression did I mean? My brain still isn't functioning this morning. And, yes, I know that isn't scientifically accurate.)

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  3. Simon! You're killing me! Thanks for making me spurt tea...'1950's housewife...'

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  4. Thanks for the link to Thomas at My Porch. Great book blog and one I had not been to before. And I like the image of you in floral pinny ... one for a cartoon maybe!

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  5. Simon, perhaps you meant "hie over" where hie means hasten? I see it used as a heading in the Dublin Penny Journal Vol. 2, No. 92 (Apr. 5, 1834), pp. 318-320 which reads "Hie over to England". You can get that via JSTOR.

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  6. "to hive" def: to feast or flock to, like bees to honey...

    you crack kill me, boy! 'the hours is pretty much my favorite 'movie/book (a rarity these days!) so I love the reference...now I'm off to cry alone in a hotel room!

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  7. I own the cheese and chocolate Edible books but cake would be wonderful too :)

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  8. If you're in the retro mood perhaps we could "jive" on over to My Porch too...

    Thanks for this post Simon, that made me giggle quite alot.

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  9. Darlene - :) Glad it amused!

    Catherine - I love Thomas' blog, I'm glad you do too! Yes, that's a fun cartoon idea.. I must get the pencils out more.

    Daniel - Speaking of expressions we've not heard, I've never heard 'crack kill me' - learning a lot today! ;-)

    Claire - oo, are they good?

    Polly - let's do some jivin'!

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