Category: Top Ten Tuesday

#TopTenTuesday Literary Festivals: We’ll Meet Again

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Top Ten Tuesday newTop Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and now hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

The rules are simple:

Each Tuesday, Jana assigns a new topic. Create your own Top Ten list that fits that topic – putting your unique spin on it if you want. Everyone is welcome to join but please link back to That Artsy Reader Girl in your own Top Ten Tuesday post. Add your name to the Linky widget on that day’s post so that everyone can check out other bloggers’ lists. Or if you don’t have a blog, just post your answers as a comment.

This week’s topic is Book Events/Festivals I’d Love to Go to Someday. Yeah, we wish…

HenleyLiteraryFestivalMy local literary festival is Henley Literary Festival. Like so many other literary events, this year it will be going ahead in online form only, from 26th September to 4th October. I’m sure there will be some exciting events on the programme but it can’t be exactly the same as being there in person: listening to and meeting authors, chatting to other readers, enjoying the sights of Henley-on-Thames and soaking up the bookish buzz.

Henley-on-ThamesTherefore as a reminder of happier, less socially-distanced times I thought I’d share some highlights from previous Henley Literary Festivals that I’ve attended. Links will take you to my review of each event.

2017

Anne O’Brien, author of The Shadow Queen & Rory Clements, author of Corpus

Rachel Joyce, author of The Music Shop

2018

Alan Johnson, author of In My Life: A Music Memoir

Diane Setterfield, author of Once Upon A River

A J Pearce, author of Dear Mrs. Bird & Anne Youngson, author of Meet Me At The Museum

2019

Stephanie Wrobel, author of The Recovery of Rose Gold & Adele Geras, author of Conviction (now to be published as Dangerous Women in February 2021)

Anne de Courcy, author of Chanel’s Riviera

Victoria Hislop, author of Those Who Are Loved

David Suchet, author of Behind The Lens

And a final event, even closer to home, held at Waterstones, Reading in June 2018.

Alison Weir, author of Jane Seymour: The Haunted Queen

What literary festivals or events are you looking forward to being able to attend (in person) again? Or do you now prefer online events?

 

#TopTenTuesday Books That Make Me Smile

whatcathyreadnext19 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday newTop Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and now hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

The rules are simple:

Each Tuesday, Jana assigns a new topic. Create your own Top Ten list that fits that topic – putting your unique spin on it if you want. Everyone is welcome to join but please link back to That Artsy Reader Girl in your own Top Ten Tuesday post. Add your name to the Linky widget on that day’s post so that everyone can check out other bloggers’ lists. Or if you don’t have a blog, just post your answers as a comment.

This week’s topic is Books That Make Me Smile.  I don’t know about you but pretty much all books make me smile, especially when they’re heading in the direction of my bookshelves.  However, here are ten reasons a book is likely to provoke a happy reaction. Links from the book title will take you to my review.

  1. A book with a lovely cover, especially if it features flora and fauna, like The Familiars by Stacey Halls
  2. A book with an intriguing title such as On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
  3. If a book I loved is nominated for a literary prize, for example Once Upon A River by Diane Setterfield (longlisted for The Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction 2020)
  4. A book with a happy ending – spoiler alert – such as Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
  5. Reaching the end of the first book in a new series and knowing there are more to come, such as The Englishman (Raglan #1) by David Gilman
  6. The arrival of a follow-up to a book or series I’ve enjoyed, such as The Mathematical Bridge (Nighthawk #2) by Jim Kelly
  7. A book set in a place I’ve been to such as The Secret Life of Alfred Nightingale by Rebecca Stonehill (set on Crete)
  8. A book that evokes happy memories, like A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
  9. A book that was an unexpected gift like Take Courage: Anne Bronte and the Art of Life by Samantha Ellis (a present from my husband)
  10. A book bought by a reader based on one of my reviews. Too many to mention I hope!

What books have brought a smile to your face?