fare thee well

after months of being moribund I've finally accepted the realization that trying to maintain the 4 blogs (and be a contributor on another) is just too much for this little mouse. as of today the bookmouse is officially closed.

I began this blog with the intention for it to be a site for my bookgroup - but since I'm the only blogger of the bunch, my hopes for where it would go never went. a while back I repackaged the original blog (which I think was called the cleveland bookwomen), renaming the blog the cleveland bookmouse. but with only 37 posts in over two years I realize this is a blog that should probably be shut down.

for months I've resisted shutting down the bookmouse, liking its disappearance to the disappearance of those beloved independent bookstores or the little mom & pop shops being gobbled up by bigger shops. but these are false analogies. the fact is 4 blogs are probably two blogs too many.

I won't zap the contents of the blog (at least not for now) - there probably are two or three interesting bits here, but I won't continue to feel guilty that I'm not tending to this site.

I don't expect I will ever stop blogging (periodically) about books, but since I rarely did it here but rather did it here, I might as well be honest and not clutter up the blogosphere with another blog that sees no action. hope to see you around mouse medicine, perhaps I will resurrect a book mouse feature on the mm's sidebar!

theme day - toys

have you noticed how many books these days have toy tie-ins? I confess I have fallen victim to purchasing more than a few stuffed toys over the years that represent a character from a favorite children's book. all of the time these toys are purchased to give to kids as gifts. however, at least once, one of these stuffed characters has decided to remain living amongst the books and toys at my house.

I refer to the stuffed wild thing puppet from sendak's where the wild things are. once he came into my home, he didn't want to leave! I'm sure it's because he likes hanging out discussing the state of the world and books with kermit.

I love the mouse guard books and I'm quite proud of my self-restraint in terms of purchasing the adorable action figures which accompany the series. I know myself all too well and Iknow if I did buy them to give as gifts, they probably may never make it out of the house.

I do have a weakness for brave mice.

if you aren't familiar with david petersen's mouse guard books, do yourself a favor and check out his website.

the mouse guard books join a rich literary tradition of brave, interesting mice. of course everyone knows of e.b. white's 1945 classic stuart little. the love of stuart little has triggered all sorts of cultural phenomena - including a hit movie, with michael j. fox as the voice of stuart. I'm sure some of you are familiar with brian jacques wonderful redwall series. I don't know if there are any toy tie-in's to the redwall books, but given the fact that there is an animated canadian television series based on the books I expect there must be action figures or stuffed characters from the books.

perhaps my favorite group mice from children's literature are graham oakley's church mice. I wrote about my love of these books here. by the way, I'm still looking for the last book in the series, the church mice take a break. if any one knows how I can get a copy, please contact me! I would expect there might be a reward! I have never heard of any church mice toy tie-ins, and if anyone would know, I expect I would.

theme day: library

The other day I started thinking what books have I read that feature libraries or libraries. I'm sure there have been a good deal but I could only remember adult reads where the centrality of the library has stuck with me over the years. One is Umberto Eco's fantastic historical mystery The Name of the Rose, it's been a really long time since I read this book, but I remember being swept away by it's labyrinthine plot which centers primarily on events in a labyrinthine medieval library. The book was later adapted to film - I recall liking the film but like most adaptions of books to film it was not nearly as compelling as the book. The film could have actually sucked, but I would have liked it anyway as it starred Sean Connery, and I've always had a soft spot for Sir Sean. I'm sure this has to do with having watched this as a wee lass.

Another adult book that has stuck with me over the course of many, many years is Gillian Bradshaw's The Beacon of Alexandria. Ironically (or coincidentally) I read this book around the same time I read The Name of the Rose - obviously in the mid to late 1980s I was into historical fiction concerning libraries. I'm sure I've read other (adult) books that have highlighted libraries and librarians, but at the moment only these two come to mind.

There is a relatively new book that is out about a cat that lived in an Iowa library for many years. Apparently the cat transforms and saves the town and the library. The book is Dewey: The Small Town Library Cat it was written by Vicky Myron. I remember hearing an interview on NPR with Myron, who is the librarian who discovered Dewey in the book drop one cold winter day. The story is fascinating and sounds really heart-warming, one of these days I will have to see if there's a copy at the library available.

Does anyone know other (adult) books set in libraries or that feature librarians?

There are quite a few books for children that feature libraries and librarians. On Tuesday I ran across The Boy Who Was Raised by Librarians written by Carla Morris and illustrated by Brad Sneed (is Brad any relation to Merle??).

This book is a charming story about a curious boy named Melvin who spends a great deal of time at his public library and Melvin's relationship with Marge, Betty, and Leeola, who are three of the coolest, most helpful librarians one would ever hope to run across. The book is a beautiful tribute to librarians.



Another delightful children's book which takes place in a library is Library Mouse by Daniel Kirk. The hero of this book is Sam, very intelligent and gifted mouse who happens to live in hole behind a wall in the children's department of a public library. Sam is the epitome of a bookmouse and spends all his waking hours reading the books in the library. One day Sam gets the idea that perhaps along with reading books he should try and write and illustrate a book about about his life. And one night does just that and writes his memoir Squeak! Although Sam doesn't intend to write for anyone but himself, one day a child discovers Sam's book - and after this happens.... well, you'll have to find a copy of the Library Mouse yourself and see how it ends.

theme thursday: statue

today the blogosphere is celebrating statues on theme thursday. unfortunately, I've been neglecting the cleveland bookmouse and perhaps I should try and remedy that.

I have a few photos of statues of famous authors in my photo archive, unfortunately I didn't think of this until late this afternoon. this is the only one I could quickly find!

this statue of oscar wilde was snapped in a park in dublin. I few years ago I read a very entertaining mystery by walter satterthwait called wilde west. here's a blurb from publishers weekly:

In this perfect blend of mystery, satire and travelogue, Satterthwait ( At Ease with the Dead ) follows Oscar Wilde in his 1882 lecture tour through the American West. Wilde greatly amuses his audiences and Elizabeth McCourt Doe in particular, initiating a torrid (and to the reader, surprising) affair with her. Meanwhile U.S. marshal Bob Grigsby connects a series of murders and eviscerations of prostitutes to the cities where Wilde has delivered his disquisitions and accuses the writer of the crimes. Wilde steers the hard-drinking marshal to the other members of his tour, including an alcoholic reporter, a slick-talking business manager, a sophisticated countess, a frail valet, a retired Prussian officer and even gunslinger John "Doc" Holliday, who has been following the tour. Wilde and Elizabeth narowly escape being killed by cowboys to whom Wilde's wit is no laughing matter, but the identity of the serial killer is not revealed until the harrowing resolution. One more surprise waits in the wings, and its delivery is just as smooth as those that the playwright himself once put to paper.

after I read this book I checked out of the library another book by satterthwait and read it - that book was called escapade - the book was another historical mystery, this time featuring harry houdini and sir arthur conan doyle. it was a stitch. I don't know if satterthwait has written anything else - well I guess he has since the blurb above mentions a book I'm unfamiliar with...I'll have to do a search, I hadn't thought of him in a while - my memory was jogged by thinking of oscar. speaking of oscar wilde, if you are ever in paris, make sure you check out his grave.....like wilde, it is a wild experience - I written about it a couple times on the mouse - you can go here and here.

louie, louie

last night the bookwomen were joined carolyn's new pup louie. louie is a wheaten terrier, a breed which originated in ireland. I didn't have a chance to ask about louie's story before he joined carolyn's family, since he's just about a year old I expect he has one.

louie is very, very soft and very, very friendly.

last night's book was Climbing the Mango Trees: A Memoir of a Childhood in India by Madhur Jaffrey. perhaps louie is trying to tell us that he is salivating thinking about the tasty treats that our host prepared.

in order to restrain louie from said tasty treats, carolyn has louie secured in a loving leg lock.

incidentally, everyone in the group enjoyed jaffrey's memoir. we were disappointed to learn from carolyn, our discussion leader, that jaffrey has no intentions of writing a sequel. jaffrey was born in 1933 and this book covers the first eighteen years of her life. these were important years in the history of modern day india. although the book is primarily a personal memoir about family and food, jaffrey personal story overlaps with topics such as the relationships between hindus, muslins, and christians in india, the caste system, arranged marriage, the nonviolence movement of mohandas gandhi, india's involvement in wwII india's independence from britian in 1947 - resulting in the partition of india, and so on.

the book is a quick read and very enjoyable. the final section of the book includes family recipes from jaffrey's most delicious childhood!

theme day: leaves

Dead Leaves

When these dead leaves were green, love,
November's skies were blue,
And summer came with lips aflame,
The gentle spring to woo;
And to us, wandering hand in hand,
Life was a fairy scene,
That golden morning in the woods
When these dead leaves were green!

How dream-like now that dewy morn,
Sweet with the wattle's flowers,
When love, love, love was all our theme,
And youth and hope were ours!
Two happier hearts in all the land
There were not then, I ween,
Than those young lovers' -- yours and mine --
When these dead leaves were green.

How gaily did you pluck these leaves
From the acacia's bough,
To mark the lyric we had read --
I can repeat it now!
While came the words, like music sweet,
Your smiling lips between --
"So fold my love within your heart,"
When these dead leaves were green!

How many springs have passed since then?
Ah, wherefore should we count,
The years that sped, like waters fled
From Time's unstaying fount?
We've had our share of happiness,
Our share of care have seen;
But love alone has never flown
Since these dead leaves were green.

Your heart is kind and loving still,
Your face to me as fair,
As when, that morn, the sunshine played
Amid your golden hair.
So, dearest, sweethearts still we'll be,
As we have ever been,
And keep our love as fresh and true
As when these leaves were green.

Edward Booth Loughran

theme day: windows

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Dylan Thomas (1914 - 1953) Welsh poet

The human soul has still greater need of the ideal than of the real. It is by the real that we exist; it is by the ideal that we live.

Victor Hugo (1802 -1885) writer and human rights activist

photos: top tea shop and bookstore at the Dylan Thomas museum in Swansea, Wales; Maison Victor Hugo - 6, Place des Vosges - Paris