My very first Classics Club Spin!

Posted in Bookish Thoughts, Fun and Whimsy, The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

I’ve been seeing other bloggers participate in the Classics Club Spin over the last few years, and I suddenly got inspired this week to join in the fun!

Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that correponds to the “spin” number that comes up.

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 20th, March, we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 30th April, 2022. That’s a six week reading window for this spin. You may like to stack your list with books that you know are do-able for you within that time frame.
We’ll check in here on Sunday the 30th April, 2022 to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!
What’s Next?
Go to your blog.
Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.
Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before Sunday, 20th March.
We’ll announce a number from 1-20.
Read that book by 30th April, 2022.

This is probably the worst possible time for me to do this, since I’m completely backlogged when it comes to my reading plans and have way too many ARCs lined up for April and May.

Still, I’m intrigued by the concept, and I really like Hopewell’s Library of Life‘s idea to refer to Serial Reader for books that can be read in few enough installments to finish by the deadline. (And, by the way, Serial Reader is fabulous, and if you want to know more, see my post here for more info!)

Enough introduction!

Here’s my list of 20 classics for my first ever attempt at the Classics Club Spin:

Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
Dracula by Bram Stoker
Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
Queen Lucia by E. F. Benson
Howards End by E. M. Forster
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
Foundation by Isaac Asimov
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
Passing by Nella Larsen
The Awakening by Kate Chopin
The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay

A few of these would be re-reads for me, but given how many years have passed since I first/last read them, I’d be happy to read them again!

I’m just dipping my toes in cautiously, trying to pick books that are both doable in the time frame and that I would feel excited to read. No huge books, no huge obstacles…

Wish me luck! We’ll find out tomorrow what the spin number is!

12Feb2022

Just For Fun: A wonderful Austen puzzle!

Posted in Fun and Whimsy by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

The World of Jane Austen Jigsaw Puzzle
1000 Pieces
Laurence King Publishing

In book-adjacent news… I just completed this wonderful puzzle, and had such a good time with it that I had to share!

The fact that I loved it isn’t exactly a surprise — last year, I did a Shakespeare-themed puzzle from the same company, and it was fabulous too.

In the Jane Austen puzzle, the colors are vibrant, the pictures are detailed, and as you drill in, you see that the design includes characters from Jane Austen’s novels, as well as the houses, estates, and towns of her stories, and even certain specifics moments (such as Willoughby carrying Marianne after she twists her ankle (Sense and Sensibility) and Louisa jumping from the Cobb in Lyme Regis (Persuasion).

The puzzle quality is terrific too. I hate a shoddy puzzle — flimsy or badly cut pieces, or pieces that don’t snap into place or could fit in multiple places. Fortunately, this one is well-made, with sturdy pieces, no fraying, and a clean, crisp click when placed just right. For a puzzle fanatic, it’s just so, so satisfying to hear that click!

Note: As usual, my photography skills are sorely lacking. Trust me, the puzzle is much brighter and prettier in person!

The puzzle comes with a fold-out poster with a clear view of the total picture, and on the back, a guide to all the characters and details hidden in the puzzle. I definitely would have missed some without it!

Zooming in for a closer look at some of the details:

I have my eye on two more puzzles from this company: The World of Charles Dickens and The World of Dracula. I’ll hold off and order them when I need something to boost my mood for the day. Any of these puzzles would make great gifts for book lovers… or a nice way to treat yourself — you know you deserve it!

Affiliate links: Buy now at Book Depository – Bookshop.org

9Jul2021

Just For Fun: My new favorite puzzle!

Posted in Fun and Whimsy by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

The World of Shakespeare Jigsaw Puzzle
1000 Pieces
Laurence King Publishing

Departing from talking about books, books, and more books for a moment…

If you read my Monday Check-In posts, you may have noticed that I’ve become obsessed with jigsaw puzzles. Spending a year locked in your house will do that to a person!

I need to take a few beats to rave about how much I loved the puzzle I did this week. It’s The World of Shakespeare, and it’s wonderful.

This 1000-piece puzzle is bright, colorful, and highly detailed, pulling together different parts of the geography of Shakespeare’s time and world. But if you look closely, it also includes people and settings from both the historical time period and from Shakespeare’s plays — so you can find Romeo and Juliet, King Lear, Caliban, and so many more. Some are pretty obvious, some are hidden among tons of other characters and features. It’s so much fun!

Note: Please excuse my shoddy photography. Next hobby goal: Learning to take decent photos!

*Ta da! Finished after 3 mad days of obsessive puzzling…*

The puzzle comes with a large-sized illustration to use as a guide… and what I really loved is that the back of the illustration zooms in and provides explanation of key people and places. I definitely would not have gotten them all otherwise!

The puzzle pieces themselves are sturdy, small (but not too small), and click together really well. There’s nothing worse than a shoddy puzzle — this one is terrific quality.

Zooming in for more detailed views:

If you’re a fan of Shakespeare, jigsaw puzzles, or both, I can’t recommend this puzzle highly enough! This company also has a World of Sherlock Holmes puzzle (which I’ll skip, since I’m not a Sherlock fan) — and one I can’t wait to get, the World of Jane Austen! My Austen puzzle should be arriving this month, and I’m sure I’ll be attacking it the second it gets here.

Affiliate links: Buy now at Amazon – Book Depository – Bookshop.org

17Apr2021

Help! Have I been doing jigsaw puzzles wrong all this time?

Posted in Fun and Whimsy by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

*Just a small selection of my 2020-2021 puzzle collection…*

By rough estimates, I have done about eleventy-billion jigsaw puzzles since the pandemic started.

I know, right?

But a random comment during a family dinner last night has me freaking out… because maybe my super-awesome puzzling skills aren’t actually all that impressive after all!

As we were chatting about puzzles — like people do — someone commented that once they take the pieces out of the box, they put the box away. And I was like… what??? But how do you know what it’s supposed to look like?

And they told me that they look at the picture before they start, but that’s it.

AND THAT’S HOW REAL PUZZLE PEOPLE DO THEIR PUZZLES.

Which basically implies…

I’ve been cheating all along!?!?!?!?!?!

It has never once occurred to me NOT to keep the puzzle box cover handy as a reference while working on a puzzle. Am I not supposed to? Are we supposed to just do our puzzles blind?

I’m shocked and dismayed and doubting my super puzzling abilities.

What do you think?

Has all my puzzling been in vain?

I won’t be able to sleep nights until I get some answers! Please share your thoughts!

1Jan2021

Happy New Year!

Posted in Fun and Whimsy by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Oh, friends, 2020 was quite a year! It’s lovely to get a fresh start. Wishing all a HEALTHY and happy new year. Onward to better times!

I originally posted this “Happy New Year” book collage last year, but I like it so much that I thought I’d do it again, new and improved and with a few more covers added for the start of 2021.

4Dec2020

Puppy for Hanukkah!

Posted in Fun and Whimsy by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Someone shared this at work today, and now I can’t stop smiling. So… sharing here to brighten everyone else’s day too!

1Jan2020

Happy New Year!

Posted in Fun and Whimsy by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Wishing everyone a bright and shiny start to a glorious new year! And what better way to say “Happy New Year” than with books?

3Jun2018

Book mail highlight: Oxford Illustrated Dictionary of 19th Century Language

Posted in Bookish Thoughts, Fun and Whimsy by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

I bought myself a wee giftie this week:

Oxford Illustrated Dictionary of 19th Century Language
(published 2018)

After seeing this book mentioned somewhere (on a blog post? I’m thinking maybe via Gail Carriger?), I had to get myself a copy! For readers who delight in 19th century fictional realms, this book promises to be a must-keep-close-by sort of reference book.

Besides an A-to-Z dictionary format, there are also multi-page layouts on hot topics such as “Rich and Poor”, “Childhood”, “At Home”, and so much more. It’s all laid out in an easy-to-use alphabetical format, with eye-catching fonts and illustrations.