Christmas Reading Challenge

http://thetruebookaddict.blogspot.com/2009/10/christmas-reading-challenge.html

Saturday, November 14, 2009

UPDATE:  Originally, I had stipulated reading 1-3 books in this challenge.  I would also like to add that you can read more books than what is listed.  What with Jenn’s Bookshelves’ Thankfully Reading Weekend and Dreadlock Girl’s Read Read-a-Thon and Haley’s Christmas Break Challenge: A Book-a-Day, I figure (for me, at least) these events will give extra opportunities to read more Christmas books…yay! So read as many books as you want as long as you read at least one.  Happy Reading!

In honor of the release of The Christmas List by Richard Paul Evans today, I am announcing my first reading challenge ever…and it’s a Christmas Reading Challenge! I know it may seem early (for people who are not Christmas fanatics, like me), but I want people to have plenty of time to decide what they want to read.

First, here are the details about The Christmas List:

Dear Reader,

When I was in seventh grade, my English teacher, Mrs. Johnson, gave our class the intriguing (if somewhat macabre) assignment of writing our own obituaries. Oddly, I don’t remember much of what I wrote about my life, but I do remember how I died: in first place on the final lap of the Daytona 500. At the time, I hadn’t considered writing as an occupation, a field with a remarkably low on-the-job casualty rate.

What intrigues me most about Mrs. Johnson’s assignment is the opportunity she gave us to confront our own legacy. How do we want to be remembered? That question has motivated our species since the beginning of time: from building pyramids to putting our names on skyscrapers.

As I began to write this book, I had two objectives: First, I wanted to explore what could happen if someone read their obituary before they died and saw, firsthand, what the world really thought of them. Their legacy.

Second, I wanted to write a Christmas story of true redemption. One of my family’s holiday traditions is to see a local production of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. I don’t know how many times I’ve seen it (perhaps a dozen), but it still thrills me to see the change that comes over Ebenezer Scrooge as he transforms from a dull, tight-fisted miser into a penitent, “giddy-as-aschoolboy” man with love in his heart. I always leave the show with a smile on my face and a resolve to be a better person. That’s what I wanted to share with you, my dear readers, this Christmas — a holiday tale to warm your season, your homes, and your hearts.

Merry Christmas

About the Author

RICHARD PAUL EVANS is the #1 best-selling author of The Christmas Box. His thirteen novels have each appeared on the New York Times bestseller list; there are more than thirteen million copies of his books in print. His books have been translated into more than 22 languages and several have been international best sellers. He is the winner of the 1998 American Mothers Book Award, two first place Storytelling World Awards for his children’s books, and the 2005 Romantic Times Best Women Novel of the Year Award. Evans received the Washington Times Humanitarian of the Century Award and the Volunteers of America National Empathy Award for his work helping abused children. He is the founder and CEO of BookWise, an international direct sales business. Evans lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, with his wife, Keri, and their five children. (from Amazon)

I am really looking forward to reading this.  The Christmas Box is one of my favorite Christmas books by Mr. Evans so I’m sure I will love this one as well!

Now, on to the challenge details.

The Christmas Reading Challenge:

• will run from Thanksgiving Day, November 26 through New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2009
• you can choose 1 – 3 books…I know it seems a small amount, but it’s a busy time of year and the challenge is only a little over a month.
• These must be Christmas novels, books about Christmas lore or a book of Christmas short stories (sorry, no children’s books, but YA novel is okay).
• Be sure to check back here in a couple of days, I will have a list of new Christmas books coming out and some old favorites to recommend.
• Be sure to come back and link your post here on Mr. Linky.  This is my first time using it so if it doesn’t work, leave your link in the comments.  Please leave a comment after you post your link in Mr. Linky. Thanks!

1. Ryan (Wordsmithonia)
2. janflora
3. Deb (bookmagic)
4. Liz K
5. Michelle (Red Headed Book Child)
6. Melissa
7. Karen ” BOOKIN’ WITH BINGO” (US & Canada)
8. Laura’s Reviews
9. Missy
10. Jennifer (Reading with Tequila)
11. Laurel- Rain Snow
12. Tina (tutu)
13. Book Psmith
14. Heather (Word Trix)
15. Melissa W.
16. Gina @ Book Dragon’s Lair
17. Coast to Coast Reader
18. Alleluialu
19. Tea
20. Tea (3)
21. kim in ohio
22. Colette (A Buckeye Girl Reads) 23. Laura- retroredux
24. Patti (Reading Distractions)
25. Molly
26. Helen
27. Schatzi (the stacks my destination)
28. Jens Book Talk
29. Ana T (Aneca’s World)
30. Marilu
31. Lindy
32. Kris – 3
33. Kari (Kari Ann Alysis)
34. Lumikki
35. Lynne (Lynne’s Little Corner)
36. Diane (Bibliophile By the Sea)
37. bookjunkee00
38. Andrea (The Little Bookworm)
39. Millefeuille
40. Diane ~ The Book Resort
41. Vivienne (Serendipidy)
42. JLS Hall (Joy’s Blog)
43. Kim (Metroreader)
44. J. Kaye’s Book Blog 45. Veronika @ True Harbour
46. kaye
47. boliyou @ endomental
48. Cheryl
49. Emily
50. Chèli at Cheli’s Shelves
51. Cee Cee (Book Splurge)
52. Bitsy (Fabula: A Book Blog)
53. MarthaE (Martha’s Bookshelf)
54. Jody
55. Abi ~ 4 the LOVE of BOOKS
56. This That & The Other Thing
57. Julie @ My Own Little Corner of the World
58. Calico Contemplations
59. Alanna (DM Library)
60. Molly
61. Rae
62. Coconut Library
63. Y

Christmas Poems – Carols.Org

http://www.carols.org.uk/christmas_poem.htm

Christmas Poems
Christmas Songs Christmas Carols More Christmas Carols!	Christmas Jokes	Christmas Facts
The Christmas Poems that have been selected are very traditional and are dated as far back as the 14th century. Many of the Christmas Carols detailed on the appropriate section on this site were originally written as Christmas Poems but became Christmas Carols when music was added to them! Love Poems // //	Twas the Night before Christmas a poem by Clement Clarke Moore A Christmas Carol a poem by G.K.Chesterton A Christmas Carol a poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge Christmas Bells a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Marmion a Christmas poem by Sir Walter Scott Nativity a Christmas Poem by John Donne The Three Kings a Christmas poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow On the Morning of Christ’s Nativity Christmas Poem by John Milton Minstrels a Christmas Poem by William Wordsworth Mistletoe a Christmas poem by Walter de la Mare Christmas Cheer a Christmas poem by Thomas Tusser The Foolish Fir-Tree a Christmas poem by Henry Van Dyke In the Holy Nativity of our Lord a Christmas poem by Richard Crashaw Christ’s Nativity a Christmas poem by Henry Vaughan The Burning Babe a Christmas poem by Robert Southwell New Prince, New Pomp a Christmas poem by Robert Southwell A Christmas Carol a Christmas poem by George Wither Ceremonies for Christmas a Christmas poem by Robert Herrick Ring out, wild bells – Christmas Poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson The Oxen – Christmas Poem by Thomas Hardy The Little Match Seller – a Christmas Story by Hans Christian Anderson Christmas at Fezziwig’s Warehouse – Christmas Story by Charles Dickens The Fir Tree Christmas story Christmas Story by Hans Christian Anderson Auld Lang Syne a poem for New Year  / Hogmanay by Robert Burns

My Book Recommendation – Sacrifice

Title: Sacrifice

 

Author:  S.J. Bolton

Paperback: 560 pages

Publisher: Corgi Books (29 Jan 2009)

ISBN-10: 0552159751

ISBN-13: 978-0552159753

Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.6 x 4 cm

Product Description

Moving to remote Shetland has been unsettling enough for consultant surgeon Tora Hamilton; even before the gruesome discovery she makes one rain-drenched afternoon …Deep in the peat soil of her field she is shocked to find the perfectly preserved body of a young woman, a gaping hole where her heart has been brutally removed and three rune marks etched into her skin. The marks bear an eerie resemblance to carvings Tora has seen all over the islands, and she quickly uncovers disturbing links to an ancient legend. But as Tora investigates she is warned by the local police, her boss, and even her husband, to leave well alone. And even though it chills her to the bone to admit it …something tells her their concern isn’t genuine.

About the Author

S. J. Bolton was born in Lancashire. She spent her early career working in marketing and PR, gaining an MBA along the way, and ultimately reaching a senior position in London’s financial district. She left the City to work freelance, to start a family and to write. Sacrifice is her first novel and was inspired by her fascination with British traditional folklore. She lives near Oxford with her husband and young son. For more information about the author, visit her website at www.sjbolton.com

Buy Online: http://astore.amazon.com/annduniriwri-20/detail/0312381867

WildLife

Title: Wild Life: Amazing Animals, Extraordinary People, Astonishing Places

Author:  Simon King

Hardcover: 320 pages

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton (6 Aug 2009)

Language English

ISBN-10: 0340981059

ISBN-13: 978-0340981054

Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15.6 x 3.2 cm

Product Description

Even as a very young child, Simon King was passionate about the natural world. Being savaged by a rabid cheetah, charged at by rhinos and elephants and defecated upon by a long list of birds and other animals may sound like hell to some. But these, along with countless other experiences alongside all things furry, scaly, slimy and feathery have provided him with an enormously rich bank of tales to relive and retell.

With his professional life starting aged ten, acting in a television drama called The Fox, (for which he looked after an orphaned fox for two years at home), through projects such as Planet Earth, Blue Planet, Springwatch, Autumnwatch and Big Cat Diary to name just a few, Simon King has traveled to every continent and lived in extreme conditions from remote desert to Arctic and Antarctic wilderness.

With characteristic honesty and charm, Simon King weaves his animal stories amongst encounters with extraordinary people, and astonishing places to give us a memoir that will delight readers.

About the Author

Simon King was born in Nairobi, but moved to the UK in 1964 and has been working as a natural history film-maker for almost thirty years. Simon has worked on programmes such as Big Cat Diary and Blue Planet and presents Springwatch and Autumnwatch. He is an expert in his field, and has received EMMY, BAFTA and RTS awards for his work

Buy Online: http://astore.amazon.com/annduniriwri-20

Christmas Reading – Santa Claus.Com

 

http://www.santaclaus.com/favorite-christmas-stories.php

Welcome to Santa’s Holiday Stories Page!

Santa and Mrs. Claus really enjoy reading holiday stories — it is an excellent way for families to spend time together and celebrate the holidays. We have some of Santa Claus’ Favorite books (and the Elves too).

• Twas the Night Before Christmas, one of the first stories about Santa Claus!
• Twas the Night Before Christmas – Antique Versions
• Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol
• Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus
• The Gift of the Magi, O. Henry.
• Christmas Card Poem
• The Polar Express
• The Tumble Weed
• The Most Beautiful Thing
• Wally’s Christmas Pageant
• Christmas Wisdom
• Carol’s Christmas Stories family-oriented stories.
• Auntie Claus

Buy These Online At http://astore.amazon.com/annduniriwri-20

Christmas Poems

http://www.theholidayspot.com/christmas/poems/index.htm

These christmas poems selection are submitted by users. You are free to enjoy them or use them for your personal reason. You can also select a poem with your mouse, and then copy it by ctrl+c and then click on the greetings card link below in the page to send the poem as a. greetings card to your loved ones. (You will have to paste the poem in the message box of the greeting card while creating it.) You can also submit your work for publication at feedback_at_theholidayspot.com. Scroll down for the complete list of Christmas poems

Page 1 Oh Little child Visions Past Chrissy Christmas Tree A Christmas Wish The True Meaning Of Christmas The Angel Lady It’s Christmas Time A daughter’s tribute to her mom ‘Tis Time Christmas Acrostic	Page 2 It’s Christmas Time Again Message From Santa Claus Merry Christmas Daddy A Frozen Tear We Took A Dive Christmas ‘95 Christmas 2000 A Christmas Greeting The Christmas Gift We Took A Dive Christmas ‘95 Cowboys Christmas A Letter From Santa Claus The Eve Of Christmas	Page 3 A Christian Man The Cross Its that time of the year again Do you know it’s Christmas The good old days Christmas time Christmas Poems by LMWillson Christmas Adam Snow On The Cactus Cherish His Christmas
Page 4 Merry Christmas! Christmas in the air! Dear Mom and Dad Wish we could be together The First Christmas The Christmas Present The True Spirit of Christmas Jingle tills, Jingle tills Heaven’s Gift Teddy Bear Sleigh	Page 5 Candlelit Heart ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas Wonder Candles Are a Gift of Light Christmas Long Ago The Real Meaning of Christmas	Page 6 The Christmas Thing Christmas Is a Time for Love and Fun That Midnight Hour The Gift of god
	Page 7 Star of Hope They Won’t Be Home For Christmas My Christmas Tree Christmas Senses Sounds of Christmas Christmas Eve Dear Santa All of Gods’ Creatures Christmas Christmas Spree

My Book Recommendation – Target

Title: Target

Author:  Simon Kernick

Paperback: 496 pages

Publisher: Corgi Books (5 Nov 2009)

ISBN-10: 0552156612

ISBN-13: 978-0552156615

Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.6 x 3.4 cm

Product Description

One hot date. When writer Rob Fallon goes out one night and ends up with his best-friend’s girlfriend, Jenny, he’s feeling guilty before anything’s even happened. One brutal abduction. But guilt quickly turns to shock when two men break into Jenny’s apartment, abduct her, and try to kill Rob. But when Rob reports this to the police, no one believes him. And when he speaks to Jenny’s father, he says she’s on holiday abroad. One hell of a morning after. Rob knows Jenny’s life’s in danger and starts asking questions. Soon he finds that he’s the target of killers who have something big to hide. But what is it? And what does it have to do with an ordinary girl like Jenny? Either Rob finds out or he’s dead. It’s that simple…

About the Author

Simon Kernick is one of Britain’s most exciting new thriller writers. He arrived on the crime writing scene with his highly acclaimed debut novel The Business of Dying, the story of a corrupt cop moonlighting as a hitman. However, Simon’s big breakthrough came with his novel Relentless which was selected by Richard and Judy for their Recommended Summer Reads promotion, and then rapidly went on to become the bestselling thriller of 2007. He lives near London, and is currently working on his new novel.

Buy Online: http://astore.amazon.com/annduniriwri-20/detail/1407440217

My Blog Of The Week – Children’s Book Club

http://childlitbookclub.blogspot.com/

Terrible Yellow Eyes

Am I the last one to hear of the blog Terrible Yellow Eyes?  Illustrator Cory Godbey says Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak has always been tremendously important to him.  He decided to contact many of his favorite artist in hopes to curate a collection of paintings as a tribute to the book and he displays them all on the blog

All I can say is, “Wow!”  You have to go straight to the blog to see it for yourself.  I want a copy of each and everyone.  And many more are still coming!  Here are a few of my favorites to prove to you that you need to go straight to the site. Godbey says

it’s like a visual love letter to the book and I have to agree.

Crowned by Jared Chapman

The King of All Wild Things by Jake Parker

Poster Thing by Tad Carpenter (and I already was in love with his work)

Posted by Stephanie Ford at Monday, June 15, 2009 10 comments Links to this post

Irish KC Christmas Reading

http://irishkc.com/christmas-reading.htm

CHRISTMAS STORIES
  • It Could Happen to a Bishop: Drunken Christmas Story Part I
  • Drunken Christmas Story Part II
  • Drunken Christmas Story Part III

  • The Christmas Tree of Life
  • Goat Burning Season

CHristmas Poetry @ Santas Net

http://www.santas.net/christmaspoetry.htm

Christmas Poetry

• The Twenty-fourth of December – Author Unknown
• Christmas Comes – English Traditional
• Christmas – Mother Goose
• Traditional
• The Holly and the Ivy – Traditional
• Green Grow’th the Holly – English, 16th century
• At Christmas Time – English Traditional
• Christmas Bells – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
• Bells – Old English Carol
• And All the Angels – from an old Scottish carol
• Christ is Born – Englsih, 16th century
• About The Field – English shepherd’s carol
• Rise, Shepherds – Austrian shepherd’s song
• Bring Your Pipes – Austrian shepherd’s song
• So Come We Running – Austrian shepherd’s song
• The Shepherds Knew – from a Spanish carol
• We Saw a Light – Old English carol
• Morning Star – from a Moravian hymn
• One Glorious Star – from a Sicilian shepherd’s carol, translated by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
• The Nativity – Luke II 1-14
• Bethlehem – Author Unknown
• Carol – English, 15th century
• As Joseph Was A-Walking – Old English
• an old French prayer from Provence
• Long, Long Ago – Author Unknown
• Anonymous, 14th Century
• The Friendly Beasts – English carol, 12th century
• Old Norwegian verse
• Carol of the Birds – an old French carol from Bas Quercy
• Carol of the Birds – Old Spanish carol from Catalonia
• Three Kings – Old English Epiphany carol
• Farewell to Christmas – French Epiphany carol
• Kolyada – Russian carol
• English traditional
• The Christmas Pudding – English Traditional
• Advice from Poor Robin’s Almanack – 1700
• A Catch by the Hearth – Author Unknown
• When Santa Claus Comes – Author Unknown
• Saint Nicholas – Author Unknown
• Old Saint Nicholas – from Germany author unknown
• Santa Claus – Anonymous, 1880
• Christmas Pies – English Traditional
• Armenian Traditional
• Now Have Good Day – English Traditional
• A Carol for Children – Ogden Nash
• Christmas Prayer – Robert Louis Stevenson
• One is for the Manger – Author Unknown
• Would You Follow – Author Unknown
• Bird of Dawning – William Shakespeare
• Christmas Presents – anonymous
• For the Children or the Grown-Ups – Author Unknown
• The Golden Carol Of The Three Kings Melchior, Balthazar And Gaspar – Old English Carol
• Heigh Ho, The Holly – William Shakespeare
• I Sing of a Maiden – Anonymous 15th century
• Little Donkey – Traditional
• Make We Merry – Anonymous
• Open House – Anonymous
• Snowflakes – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
• The Three Kings – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
• The ABC’s of Christmas – Author Unknown
• The Bird’s Carol – Traditional Czech Carol translation by Percy Dearmer
• Christmas-tide Comes in like a Bride – from The Praise of Christmas, 1630
• Christina Georgina Rossetti – 1830-1894
• A Christmas Carol – Christina Georgina Rossetti
• A Christmas Carol – Christina Georgina Rossetti
• Christina Georgina Rossetti – 1830-1894
• Ever Green – John Clare 1793-1864
• Christmas Bells – John Clare 1793-1864
• Voices in the Mist – Alfred, Lord Tennyson 1809-1892
• A Thousand Bells – Alfred Domett 1811-1887
• Matthew II/1st Corinthians XV/Isaiah II – Matthew II verse 2
• A Christmas Carol – Robert Herrick 1591-1674
• Stop Thief! – Robert Herrick also called Christmas Eve, Another Ceremeny
• The Yule Log – Robert Herrick 1591-1674
• Spring Cleaning – Robert Herrick 1591-1674
• A Hymn on the Nativity of My Saviour – Ben Jonson 1573-1637
• The Magi – Matthew II: 9-11
• The Kings from the East – Heinrich Heine 1797-1856
• The Mahogany Tree – William Makepeace Thackeray 1811-1863
• Fun and Games – from Round About Our Coal Fire 1734
• Our Joyful’st Feast – George Wither 1588-1667
• Now Thrice Welcome Christmas – from Poor Robin’s Almanack 1695
• English Traditional
• Old Christmas Returned – Old English Carol
• Johann Wolfgang von Goethe – 1749-1832
• Poor Robin’s Almanack – 1677
• 18th century ballad – from an 18th century ballad
• English 19th century
• Star of Hope – Del “Abe” Jones NEW 10/17/2009
• They Won’t Be Home For Christmas – Del “Abe” Jones NEW 10/17/2009
• My Christmas Tree – Del “Abe” Jones NEW 10/17/2009
• Christmas Senses – Del “Abe” Jones NEW 10/17/2009
• Sounds of Christmas – Del “Abe” Jones NEW 10/17/2009
• Christmas Eve – Del “Abe” Jones NEW 10/17/2009
• All of God’s Creatures – Del “Abe” Jones NEW 10/17/2009
• Dear Santa – Del “Abe” Jones NEW 10/17/2009
• Christmas – Del “Abe” Jones NEW 10/17/2009
• Christmas Spree – Del “Abe” Jones NEW 10/17/2009

My Book Reccommendation – The Thing Around Your Neck

 

Title: The Thing Around Your Neck

Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Paperback: 300 pages

Publisher: Fourth Estate Ltd (1 Oct 2009)

Language English

ISBN-10: 0007306210

ISBN-13: 978-0007306213

Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 12.8 x 1.8 cm

Product Description

From Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the Orange Prize-winning author of Half of a Yellow Sun, come twelve dazzling stories in which she turns her penetrating eye on the ties that bind men and women, parents and children, Nigeria and the West. In ‘A Private Experience,’ a medical student hides from a violent riot with a poor Muslim woman whose dignity and faith force her to confront the realities and fears she’s been pushing away. In ‘Tomorrow Is Too Far,’ a woman unlocks the devastating secret that surrounds her brother’s death. The young mother at the center of ‘Imitation’ finds her comfortable life threatened when she learns that her husband back in Lagos has moved his mistress into their home. And the title story depicts the choking loneliness of a Nigerian girl who moves to an America that turns out to be nothing like the country she expected; though falling in love brings her desires nearly within reach, a death in her homeland forces her to re-examine them. Searing and profound, suffused with beauty, sorrow and longing, this collection is a resounding confirmation of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s prodigious storytelling powers.

About the Author

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was born in Nigeria in 1977. Her first novel ‘Purple Hibiscus’ was published in 2003 and was longlisted for the Booker Prize. Her second novel ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ won the 2007 Orange Prize for Fiction.

Buy Online: http://astore.amazon.com/annduniriwri-20/detail/0307271072

My Book Recommendation – The Road

Title: The Road

Author:  Cormac McCarthy

Paperback: 256 pages

Publisher: Picador (1 Jun 2007)

Language English

ISBN-10: 0330447548

ISBN-13: 978-0330447546

Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 13 x 2.2 cm

Product Description

A father and his son walk alone through burned America, heading through the ravaged landscape to the coast. This is the profoundly moving story of their journey. The Road boldly imagines a future in which no hope remains, but in which two people, ‘each the other’s world entire’, are sustained by love. Awesome in the totality of its vision, it is an unflinching meditation on the worst and the best that we are capable of: ultimate destructiveness, desperate tenacity, and the tenderness that keeps two people alive in the face of total devastation.

‘The first great masterpiece of the globally warmed generation. Here is an American classic which, at a stroke, makes McCarthy a contender for the Nobel Prize for Literature . . . An absolutely wonderful book that people will be reading for generations’ Andrew O’Hagan

‘A work of such terrible beauty that you will struggle to look away’ Tom Gatti, The Times

‘So good that it will devour you, in parts. It is incandescent’ Niall Griffiths, Daily Telegraph

‘You will read on, absolutely convinced, thrilled, mesmerised. All the modern novel can do is done here’ Alan Warner, Guardian

About the Author

Cormac McCarthy is the author of nine previous novels, and among his honours are the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award.

Buy Online: http://astore.amazon.com/annduniriwri-20/detail/0307476308

My Book Recommendation – Nine Dragons

Title: Nine Dragons

Author: Michael Connelly

Hardcover: 384 pages

Publisher: Orion (1 Oct 2009)

ISBN-10: 0752875876

ISBN-13: 978-0752875873

Product Dimensions: 23.8 x 15.4 x 3.6 cm

Product Description

The shooting of a Chinese liquor store owner in LA brings Harry Bosch back to the Rodney King riots and the moment a stranger gave a young cop sanctuary. Now the debt must be repaid, and Harry soon discovers the old man’s death was no ordinary holdup. Homing in on clues disregarded by the cops on the scene, Harry builds a picture of corruption and intimidation, with the local Triads at the heart of it. But as he tries to build a case and breach the impenetrable wall of silence in the local community, he finds he is taking a dragon by the tail – a dragon whose talons reach well beyond LA, and even the States. Suddenly the most precious thing in Harry’s life is under threat, and he will need to leave the familiarity of his home turf, alone and without backup, if he is going to stop his worst nightmare from happening.

About the Author

A former police reporter for the LOS ANGELES TIMES, Michael Connelly is the author of the acclaimed Harry Bosch thriller series and several other bestselling novels. He lives in Tampa, Florida, with his wife and daughter.

Buy Online: http://astore.amazon.com/annduniriwri-20/detail/0316166316

Christmas Poetry

http://campus.udayton.edu/mary//resources/poetry/xmasp.

 

 

Click on the title to view the poem.

That Midnight Hour The Gift of God Bethlehem and Calvary To Mary Wonder Gloria in Excelsis Deo! Mary Today Wishing The Three Kings Mary of Christmas The Shepherd Boy’s Gift Mary and the Magi Manger Story Madonna and Child Cradle Song of Mary’s Beloved Mary Speaks Let Us Go Over to Bethlehem A Christmas Hymn A Moment of Nativity Christmas Carol (for Berna Hayden)

Nativity Song A Christmas Carol (by G. K. Chesterton) The Stable For You A Christmas Carol (by Samuel Coleridge) To Mary at Christmas Christmas Christmas Eve A Gaelic Christmas A Christmas Eve Choral Five Carols for Christmastide A Christmas Carol (by May Probyn) The Christmas Silence As Dew in Aprille The Cherry Tree Carol The First Christmas Christmas Madonna Mary and the Innkeeper’s Wife The Oxen (by Thomas Hardy) A Story of Nativity (by Virginia Kimball)

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Christmas Poems

http://www.christmas-time.com/ct-poetry.htm

Christmas Poetry

 

This part of Christmas Time is devoted to Christmas related poetry by past and contemporary poets. It also provides a facility for purchasing poetry books in the form of Christmas dedicated collections or works by individual poets and writers that celebrate the Christmas season.  If you have written a Christmas poem that you  would like to send to Christmas Time for consideration, we now have a section called   Your Christmas Poem. All you have to do send it to the following address. (It is not a ‘hot link’ as a measure against ‘the spiders’.) However, we do not guarantee to publish all the material we receive. In all circumstances, copyright will remain with the author and any poem may be removed at the authors request, subject to valid proof of identity. Your Christmas Poem Christmas Poetry for Children Christmas Poems Featured Poem Christmas Poetry Books

You can mail us at: (This is not a ‘hot link’)

 Christmas Poems 

This Year’s Featured Poem

My Book Recommendation – World Without End

Title: World Without End

Author:  Ken Follett

 

Paperback: 1200 pages

Publisher: Pan (2 Oct 2008)

Language English

ISBN-10: 0330490702

ISBN-13: 978-0330490702

Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 13 x 6 cm

Product Description

On the day after Halloween, in the year 1327, four children slip away from the cathedral city of Kingsbridge. They are a thief, a bully, a boy genius and a girl who wants to be a doctor. In the forest they see two men killed.

As adults, their lives will be braided together by ambition, love, greed and revenge. They will see prosperity and famine, plague and war. One boy will travel the world but come home in the end; the other will be a powerful, corrupt nobleman. One girl will defy the might of the medieval church; the other will pursue an impossible love. And always they will live under the long shadow of the unexplained killing they witnessed on that fateful childhood day.

Ken Follett’s masterful epic The Pillars of the Earth enchanted millions of readers with its compelling drama of war, passion and family conflict set around the building of a cathedral. Now World Without End takes readers back to medieval Kingsbridge two centuries later, as the men, women and children of the city once again grapple with the devastating sweep of historical change. 

‘Follett’s storytelling skills keep you compulsively turning the pages to the satisfactory ending of good triumphant over evil’

Daily Mail

About the Author

Ken Follett was only twenty-seven when he wrote the award-winning novel Eye of the Needle, which became an international bestseller and film. He has since written several equally successful novels, including, most recently, Whiteout. He is also author of the non-fiction bestseller On Wings of Eagles. Ken Follett lives with his family in London and Stevenage.

Buy Online: http://astore.amazon.com/annduniriwri-20/detail/045122499X

Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year

 Merry Christmas And A Happy New Year        

 From

Annette

To All My Readers and Friends

Speed Reading

http://www.readingsoft.com/

Is Speed Reading for You?

ReadingSoft . com

Are you an efficient reader? What kind of reader are you?You will know in a few minutes after you have completed this free online speed reading test. You will get your reading speed as soon as you have finished your timed reading. You may then perform a comprehension test with a series of questions about the text you have just read.

The Reading   Highway

Instructions

Get ready to read, click the Start button and start reading. The button starts the timer. Don’t speed but read normally to find your present reading level.Click the Stop button as soon as you have finished. This will stop the timer and display your reading speed. Before you start the real test you may click Start, scroll down without reading, then click Stop to see what happens. You may also size the window of your browser to adjust column width.

Speed Reading Test

Reading is becoming more and more important in the new knowledge economy and remains the most effective human activity for transforming information into knowledge. If top readers read at speeds of above 1000 words per minute (wpm) with near 85% comprehension, they only represent 1% of readers. Average readers are the majority and only reach around 200 wpm with a typical comprehension of 60%. This seems surprising since most readers, actively reading work documents, newspapers, magazines, books or the contents of a computer display are practicing daily for at least one hour. With such an intense training everyone should be close to top performances. Unfortunately, this is far from the real situation. The average reader is five times slower than the good reader. Things are even worse if we consider reading efficiency as well as speed. Reading efficiency is reading speed weighted by comprehension rate and it amounts to 200 x 60% or 120 efficient words per minute (ewpm) for the average reader and to 1000 x 85% or 850 ewpm for top readers. Thus, an efficiency ratio of seven divides these two categories. Compare the results of the average reader to other areas. We may imagine a sprinter practicing every day for several years on the running track and then just calmly walking for a race. We can also picture a racing driver never exceeding 30 mph or a pianist playing every day of the week for 20 years and only able to play music like a beginner. Unfortunately, since the age of 12, most readers do not substantially improve their efficiency and never reach their full capacity. Every computer-user who is also a slow typist is aware of the benefits he could obtain with a typing course, but nearly no one suspects the much higher profits he could reach by improving his reading comprehension and speed. The rapid improvement of voice recognition may gradually make typing virtuosity obsolete since a good typist performs well under the speed of speech. On the other hand, human or computer speaking, with an average speed of 150 wpm, will always remain many times slower than a good reader, without any consideration of the skimming and skipping possibilities. There are three possible ways to improve reading. The fastest is probably a speed reading seminar based upon good materials and animated by a dynamic instructor. It is quite usual for a slow reader to double and even triple his reading efficiency during a two-day class offering a positive atmosphere, carefully selected texts and comprehension tests. However, as this rapid and encouraging improvement is not sufficiently anchored, it often fades with time. A book about speed reading is the second possibility. Such a book usually provides speed and comprehension tests as well as techniques to improve reading. It often includes more general information about concentration, interest stimulation, skimming techniques and ways to approach a text. Some methods may include audio or videocassettes. A book-based method requires a good deal of time as well as a strong commitment from the reader. Finally, a speed reading computer program is probably the most efficient way to achieve top reading levels. Computers offer unique exercises to boost reading efficiency through interactivity, text animation and pacing. Higher reading skills obtained with a computer screen are totally transferable to reading from paper. Unfortunately the inverse way does not work so well. Speed reading software delivers enjoyable and fast paced training, thus giving the consistent practice necessary to break lifelong slow reading habits. This is the task that seminars and speed reading books usually leave up to the reader.

StarFall – Learn To Read

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	Starfall.com opened in September of 2002 as a free public service to motivate children to read with phonics. Our systematic phonics approach, in conjunction with phonemic awareness practice is perfect for preschool, kindergarten, first grade, second grade, special education, homeschool, and English language development (ELD, ELL, ESL). Starfall is an educational alternative to other entertainment choices for children. In May of 2009, we released our Starfall Kindergarten Reading and Language Arts Curriculum. The lesson plans motivate kindergarten children by creating an atmosphere of fun and enthusiasm, providing opportunities for child-directed instruction, and facilitating the needs of English language learners and struggling readers learning alongside their peers. We invite you to visit The Starfall Store for low-cost books and phonics journals that parallel this website.

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My Book Recommendation – One Hundred Years Of Solitude

Title: One Hundred Years of Solitude

Author:  Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Paperback: 432 pages

Publisher: Penguin (2 Aug 2007)

Language English

ISBN-10: 014103243X

ISBN-13: 978-0141032436

Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.8 x 3 cm

Product Description

‘Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice.’ Pipes and kettledrums herald the arrival of gypsies on their annual visit to Macondo, the newly founded village where José Arcadio Buendía and his strong-willed wife, Úrsula, have started their new life. As the mysterious Melquíades excites Aureliano Buendía’s father with new inventions and tales of adventure, neither can know the significance of the indecipherable manuscript that the old gypsy passes into their hands. Through plagues of insomnia, civil war, hauntings and vendettas, the many tribulations of the Buendía household push memories of the manuscript aside. Few remember its existence and only one will discover the hidden message that it holds… This new edition of Gabriel García Márquez’s most celebrated novel is published to coincide with celebrations to mark the 80th birthday of this Nobel Prize winning author in 2007.

About the Author

Gabriel Garcia Marquez (1927- ) was born in Aracataca, Colombia. His most recent book, Memories of My Melancholy Whores, is his first new novel to be published in a decade and is available in paperback from Penguin from August 2007. He is the author of several novels and collections of short stories, including Leaf Storm (1955); One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967); The Autumn of the Patriarch (1975); Chronicle of a Death Foretold (1981) and The General in His Labyrinth (1989). He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1982.

Buy Online: http://astore.amazon.com/annduniriwri-20/detail/0060883286