First Friday Firsts

* Copy/paste the question and button.
* leave a comment and link to your post.
* Join in with the intermittent puzzle, (look for the answer the following FF). First correct answer = 1 pt.    A prize will go out on FF 1st anniversary ! (track your progress on my sidebar)…

Congratulations Vicki (you’re on the score-board) who was first in with the answer to last month’s FFPuzzle: The clocks were indeed striking 13 in Orwell’s 1984.

An east FF this month (but one of my favourites because I’m passionate about first lines)…let’s have a teaser from your current read…first line/title/author please.

…and the Government of the United States of America is herewith suspended, except in the District of Columbia, as of the emergency. Earth Abides George Stewart.

Puzzle: Holly holds a sweater to her face for three points…what does she feel, why and for whom.

could it really be only Tuesday?

Don’t get me wrong I love libraries – just not my local public library. My favourite library is the one just over the hill from where I live – in the university where I was a student up until just last year.

I must love libraries because I’m back to work in not one but two of them! 3 days a week in a lovely little school library (I’ve loved school libraries ever since one became my refuge from a lonely school career in grade 5); and two days a week in a uni library – not the campus the hill but the same uni – opposite end of the spectrum work-wise but just as enjoyable in a different way).

I’m loving being back at work but boy I’m tired and it’s only Tuesday!

library thing

Musing Monday is hosted by Becca of Just One More Page. Pop over and read lots of interesting comments & post your own. This week book-blogger Becca asks ...This week Bower-bird Becca has a library meme courtesy of MizB:

Library Habits meme:
1) If you don't frequent your local library, why not?  Don’t get me started…It gives me the irrits, there’s never the book I want, or it it says it’s in I can’t find it because as Becca says, the shelves leave a lot to be desired, the general ethos is off-putting which is annoying cause I love libraries (mostly) and I really WANT to like my local but there you go my standars are too lofty I guess.

2) If you do visit the library, how often do you go?

3) Do you have a favourite section that you always head to first, or do you just randomly peruse the shelves?  I usually have something specific in mind if I’m there so that determines where I head first.

4) How many books are you allowed to check out at one time? Do you take advantage of this? See Becca’s notes

5) How long are you allowed to have the books checked out?  See Becca’s notes

6) How many times are you allowed to renew your check-outs, if at all?  again Becca
7) What do you love best about your particular library? That Becca loves it with such a passion.

8) What is one thing you wish your library did differently?  I wish the staff took more pride in their work.

9) Do you request your books via an online catalogue, or through the librarian at your branch?  Once upon a time we had a great branch librarian but that branch had to go now I don’t know where she is so I go elsewhere for books.

10) Have you ever chosen a book on impulse (from the online catalogue OR the shelves) and had it turn out to be totally amazing? If so, what book was it, and why did you love it? As I don’t do impulsive well ride along on Becca’s coat tails, she knows what I like and passes all her great finds off to me (lucky I know). I just don’t have the time to speculate and my TBR is so HUGE I can happily work with what I’ve got.

Top 3 by the c

My favourite top 3 responses by the commenters extraordinaire for July.

1.July 13:  literaturecrazy from What was I reading? said, in response to discussion about cover attraction, I think it must be pretty tough on publishers because so much of beauty is (as the cliché says) in the eye of the beholder. Sometimes their great artwork could end up being, for some person, a turn-off. It's Catch-22, huh?

I love the other-side-of-the-coin aspect of comments that make me all ooo I didn’t think if that and how clever of Literaturecrazy used the title of a book in her answer – one that has entered the idiom to be such an evocative expression all on its own.

2. July 7 Nise' from Under the Boardwalk said I loved watching my kids get excited about books too!

Nies’ you always make it into my top 3! kids and books are a great combination… I think we are very alike.

3.July 31 Christina from Reading though the Night said Don't feel bad. I can't think of anything off the top of my head right now either.

My blogging friends make me feel so …normal :) it’s so good to know that others feel just the same way as me!

Dear JOMP

The Best Thing

The Best Thing by Margo Lanagan
181 pages
Genre: YA
Tone: gritty
Rating: VPI (well not exactly pleasant but interesting enough).

Fav lines: Outside the cicadas cease, like a blanket snatched off us, letting in the silence in.
First Line: I find a condom in my locker, with a jelly baby poked right down the tip.

Synopsis: Mel is a typical 17 year old full of angst, confusion & awkwardness; she’s dealing with some pretty heavy stuff. Her parents are having marriage troubles & she’s burdened with a secret that could make them worse; she’s got bullies throwing stones at her and putting condoms in her school locker; she’s had one miscarriage and may be pregnant again; she’s got Pug but does she love him?

What do I think? There’s nothing like a good first person narrative to get you hooked. Poor Mel struggles to work through all her difficulties in a self-imposed isolation that made me want to hug my daughters and tell them that they are never alone. The structure – narrative broken by technical details of pugilism and obstetrics – I found a bit poncy. If I thought about it for a few minutes I could probably come up with a nice form = theme analysis but I just wanted the story in this book (so I skipped a lot of the ‘interruptions’). It is at 181p a very quick read and everyone who knows me knows I’m a Lanagan-fan, so it wasn’t a stretch for me to like this book.

It’s not like any others that I’ve read of hers. It’s set very much in the real world – places in Sydney that I can picture in my head. I think it would appeal to the YA audience – seems to me Lanagan has captured an authentic voice in Mel. One thing I noticed was how much I rely on my car. Mel doesn’t have access to a car so, being furiously independent she walks everywhere, even when she’s in labour!

I really like the explanation of the title (something I always like to nail down) which is articulated on p 135 and foregrounds the climax of the story beautifully. Read this for a reminder that life goes on with all its ups and downs. No matter how unsurmountable difficulties seem just keep going and you’ll find one ‘thing’ worth living for – the best thing.

stand back I’m on a mission!

BTT is a long running bookish meme. To join in pop over and read the 100's of interesting comments. This week’s question…

What’s the funniest book you’ve read recently?

Well there you go another reason to blog find the gaps in your reading.

It’s amazing to realise I can’t think of a single book that I’ve read recently that made me really laugh. My stand-out memory of a great laugh was years ago reading Spike Milligan’s war books  - laughed till I cried even on the train (smidge embarrassing).

So it is now my mission to read everyone else’s BTT post to make a list of books that made others laugh and they are going to the top of Mt TBR!