Thursday, March 20, 2014

Strawberry Basket Quilt Block and What's on Your Nightstand?

Strawberry Basket Quilt Block Pattern Information
I'm participating in the monthly feature, What's on Your Nightstand?
Participants post what they've been reading the past month as well as what they're planning to read in the future.

Baby Board Books:
My husband and I have a Grand Book Club with our ten-month-old grandson who lives in another state.  We sent him some books and bought copies of the same books for us.  His parents read the books to him several times, so he was familiar with them. We got together via Face Time, and I read aloud Jamberry by Bruce Degen to him while he followed along with his own book. His dad sat with him, but my grandson turned the pages.  Later, my son commented that Jamberry is currently our grandson's favorite book.  My son just read it to him five times in a row!  I keep all of our book club books together, so we can quickly have a book club "meeting" whenever our grandson is up for one.

Hatberry
Shoeberry
In my canoeberry
Under the bridge
And over the dam
Looking for berries Berries for jam


My husband and I recently visited a fabulous children's book store in Denver called The Bookies.  We picked up two of my grandson's favorite books Yummy Yucky and Potty - both by Leslie Patricelli.  Now, both grandson and grandparents have copies, so these have been added to our Grand Book Club books collection.

Picture Books:
Through another blog, I heard about The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt.  It is written in the form of letters from each crayon to a boy named Duncan.  If you're a teacher, it's a fabulous way to teach point of view.  If you're a parent, both you and your child will LOVE this book.  Our school librarian just added it to our school collection. 


I watched the movie Miss Potter for a second time.  It's a wonderful movie about Beatrix Potter, author of the beloved Peter Rabbit stories, and stars Renee Zellweger as Beatrix.  I reread her The Tale of Peter Rabbit and The Tale of Jemima Puddle Duck just for fun. 

How to Babysit a Grandpa by Jean Reagan is a delightful book.  "Within the pages of this book, you will find essential tips for being a good grandpa-sitter, including:  how to play with a grandpa, things to do on a walk, and snacks grandpas like to eat."  How to Babysit a Grandma is coming out this month.  My grandson is not old enough for these books yet, but they will be perfect when he's about 3 or 4. 

Middle Grade/Young Adult Books:
My third graders just finished reading Marvin Redpost - Kidnapped at Birth? by Louis Sachar.  All of my students (mostly rather reluctant readers) loved it.  There are eight books in the series, each perfect for third graders.  They are chapter books with about 70 pages and enough white space on each page to make it reader-friendly.   

Book Club Books:
For the free, online Quilters' Book Club, I read A Drunkard's Path by Clare O'Donohue.  It's the second in her Someday Quilts Mystery series.  Check out all my posts about this book here.  It is considered a cozy mystery and is set in the fictional town of Archer's Rest, New York.  Archer's Rest is based on the actual town of Sleepy Hollow. 

For my local book club, I've just begun reading Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons for our April discussion.  It was first published in 1932 and is set in England. I'm looking forward to reading it. 

Just for Fun:
From the library, I checked out A Fine Romance: Falling in Love with the English Countryside by Susan Branch.  Then I bought my own copy of it because it's the kind of book I want to be able to enjoy whenever I want to.  I wrote a bit about the book here.  My family and I exchanged homes with an English family for 3-1/2 weeks one summer, and Susan's book brought back so many wonderful memories.  If you've ever been in England or would love to go, I think you will love her book, which is a journal of her two-month trip there.  Susan's books are always hand written with gorgeous watercolor illustrations.


Audio Books:
I've been listening to Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop CafĂ© by Fannie Flagg.  It's set in the fictional town of Whistle Stop, Alabama.  I've seen the movie several times but don't think I've ever read the book.  It's read by Lorna Raver, who has the perfect Southern accent for reading this book! 

What's on Your Nightstand? Inquiring minds want to know!  By commenting, you'll be entering to win a copy of A Time for Peace (Quilts of Lancaster County) by Barbara Cameron. If you are reading this via email, you must click on the title of my blog post to be able to comment and read the comments of others. The winner will be announced on April 1.

You might also enjoy reading my previous blog post Welcome Spring with a Bees and Fields Quilt Block.

7 comments:

  1. I have just finished reading The Drunkard's Path and returned it to the library this morning. So my nightstand just has my bible on it at the moment. A book I put aside to read the Drunkard's Path, is called Notorious Australian Women by Kay Saunders. It is a series of biographies about 20 pages each about some well known Australian women through history, such as Mary Broad, the First Fleet convict who escaped the colony in 1791 and got back to England; Tilly Devine the streetwalker who came up the ranks to Madam & stand over merchant in the 1940s; Adela Pankhurst, rebel pacifist & socialist. Interesting reading, but a book which you pick up and read a bit at a time, not one which you can read from cover to cover in one go.
    I need to go find something interesting to read off the shelf.

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  2. I love your idea of books for grandchild and books. I'm going to have to do that. I have my first grandbaby coming. I have quilting magazines on my nightstand. I need to get my kindle back and start reading again. I'm not giving myself me time. I need it!

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  3. My "nightstand" ( I use that term, though I sleep on the floor) has my Lenten meditations and Servants of the Map by Andrea Barrett. I finished Drunkard's Path a while back. I hear Sandra Dallas has written a book about the Japanese during the war and that might be interesting to get hold of....

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  4. Right now I'm reading "Reunion of the Dead," a cozy mystery set in Italy. I'm also reading "The American Revolution" for a current project I'm working on. My grandson's favorite book was a Scholastic book called, "And the Rain Came Down."

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  5. I am reading Sophie Kinsella right now, Twenties Girl. She is so funny. I really like reading through the comments here to learn about books I might enjoy! Mary Anne

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  6. I just added a new page to my blog, linking to yours and to a few others that offer so much free information to quilters. Thanks for all that you offer to so many!
    http://atquiltersquarters.blogspot.com/p/sharing.html

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  7. I don't have time right now to READ a book, but am listening to an audio version of "Eat, Pray, Love". It is marvelous because the author herself is the reader.

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I love hearing from readers. Your comments make my day!