I've always loved L.M. Montgomery's books, but I usually don't venture outside of her Anne and Emily series. So this year's Reading to Know Book Club selection provided the perfect balance for me - one Anne book of my choosing and The Blue Castle, Montgomery's only book set somewhere other than Prince Edward Island.

I have read The Blue Castle before (the plot gradually came back to me as I read), but it had been years. There was much that I didn't remember, but I enjoyed rediscovering it all.

Valancy's sense of humor as she began to shake off her mother's shackles was incredibly amusing, even if I can't picture myself ever talking to someone that way. What would it be like if we all went around saying exactly what we were thinking, even (especially) if it wasn't something nice? Would our relationships deteriorate because we were offending our friends and family, or would our relationships grow stronger because everyone is telling the truth and has nothing to hide? Some relationships would survive, I am sure, but it seems like an awfully dangerous experiment.

Valancy and Barney's love story is rather unorthodox. But isn't it just like Montgomery to have her characters fall in love over the beauty and wildness of nature? There have been many moments in my life when I wished I could see the world through Lucy Maud Montgomery's eyes. What a magical place it becomes, and what wonderful writing she uses to describe it!

For the L.M. Montgomery Reading Challenge this month, I also reread Anne of Avonlea (for about the eighteenth time). I always love revisiting Prince Edward Island and renewing my friendship with Anne. And much of that (this time at least) was exactly what I just mentioned in the paragraph above - Montgomery's descriptions of the world around her. I just love to revel in the magic she brings to nature by the word-pictures she draws.

I can't say that The Blue Castle is my favorite Montgomery book, but I was glad to be given the chance to reread it. It helped remind me of all the amazing Montgomery stories there are out there, beyond the world of Emily and Anne. I just may find myself exploring more of these stories in the very near future!

I never noticed just how many books have colors in the title until I discovered this challenge last year. It's hosted by Bev at My Reader's Block. The goal is to read nine books with colors in the titles, one for each of the following categories:

- Blue
- Red
- Yellow
- Green
- Brown
- Black
- White
- Any other color
- Any implied color

It can be a shade of the above-mentioned color or the name of the color itself. I completed this challenge last year, and I was a bit hesitant to join again this year. I thought it might be difficult to find enough color books to complete this challenge two years in a row. But it's not quite the end of January, and I've already read books for three categories - unplanned, even! It looks like I'm ready for another go on this challenge. You can check out my 2014 Reading Challenges page to see what I've read for this and all of the challenges I've joined so far.

Now I'm off to find the rest of my color books. I'm discovering that blue and green are common in titles. Black and white seem to be less so. I'm open to suggestions if anyone's got some!

Newbery Reading Challenge Sign-Up Post (This challenge is hosted right here at Smiling Shelves! Check it out!)
Z by Therese Anne Fowler and Gatsby's Girl by Caroline Preston - Reviews
Deja Vu When Reading (Has anyone else experienced this?)

The Iron Whim: A Fragmented History of Typewriting by Darren Wershler-Henry (I was in the middle of reading this one for last week's It's Monday post. Then, I mentioned it was weird. Having finished reading it, that opinion still stands. It's a weird book.)
Austenland by Shannon Hale (Can I go to that place on the cover? Please?)
The Other Side of the Island by Allegra Goodman

The Good Girl's Guide to Getting Lost by Rachel Friedman (A good travel memoir for cold, snowy January)

The Color of Rain: How Two Families Found Faith, Hope, & Love in the Midst of Tragedy by Michael and Gina Spehn (I heard the authors of this book speak at our church last weekend, and I got a free copy of the book. I'm really looking forward to reading this one and seeing how God has worked in their lives.)

I recently had a strange experience while reading a book, and I'm curious if I'm the only one out there that has had this experience.

I was reading Before Green Gables by Budge Wilson. I picked this book up last year in the bargain book section of Barnes & Noble. I was absolutely thrilled to discover it because it is a prequel to L.M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables. Her Anne series is one of my all-time favorites, so I was excited to hear a plausible story of what happened before the series begins.

As far as I knew, I had never heard of this book before, let alone read it. But as I began reading it a couple weeks ago, I had the strangest feeling of familiarity. It's like I knew what was coming next, but only just as I reached that part. I couldn't have plotted it out for you ahead of time, but each next event had an "oh, yeah, I remember this" moment. How is this possible if I hadn't read the book before??

The book was published in 2008. I can't list every book I've read in the past six years, but I can usually remember if I've read a book or not. Before picking this book up, I was very certain that I had never read it before. But having those experiences while reading, I'm no longer so sure.

The only name I have to describe this is déjà vu - the feeling of having read something that I haven't actually read before. Has anyone else had this feeling while reading a book, or am I alone?

The Fitzgeralds did not live happy lives. I’ve always pictured them living free, fun, artistic lives, whether in New York or Paris or somewhere else. You know, the flapper mentality of the 1920s – life is a party and anything can happen. But truthfully, life isn’t a party. Oh, it can be for awhile, but it doesn’t last. The Fitzgeralds started their life together as a party, but then other things invaded. There was drunkenness, mental illness, money problems. . . Life was not always carefree.

I recently read two books that opened my eyes to the real life of the Fitzgeralds: Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler and Gatsby’s Girl by Caroline Preston. As the subtitle claims, Z tells the story of Scott’s wife, Zelda. And again, it’s not a happy story. She started out as the consummate flapper and ended up living in mental hospitals until she died. Fowler does a beautiful job of telling Zelda’s story. The lives of famous people get distorted through time, gossip, and retellings. Z provides Zelda’s side and a plausible explanation for her behavior. Zelda becomes a character you can truly sympathize with and feel sorry for, rather than just a “crazy person”, as she is sometimes portrayed. This is Zelda’s life as she would want it to be known.

Gatsby’s Girl follows the Fitzgeralds only indirectly. The “girl” of the title is Scott Fitzgerald’s first serious girlfriend, Ginevra Perry (based on a real person named Ginevra King). They meet one winter break during Scott’s college years and write letters for many months. But when Scott actually comes to visit, Ginevra finds him annoying and immature, and decides to end the relationship. By doing so, she becomes the inspiration for the ultimate unattainable love, as seen in The Great Gatsby and other works by Fitzgerald. Preston also gives us a relatable character, one who makes mistakes but then tries to make the best of them.

Both of these books provide insights into the life of a famous author and those who surrounded him. The characters are flawed, but it is precisely these flaws that draw us to them.

I figure it's about time to sign up for my own challenge! I decided to host a Newbery Reading Challenge because it's one of my long-term goals to read all of the Newbery Medal winners. But those books often slip through the cracks of all the adult fiction and nonfiction (and the occasional YA novel) I read. This challenge will keep me on track for someday completing that goal.

The challenge is point-based (click on the challenge badge above to see all the details). I'm signing up for the Spinelli level, which is 30-44 points. If you want to join the fun, check out the introductory post!

I Love Library Books Reading Challenge Sign-Up
My Bookish Christmas Presents
Lego: A Love Story by Jonathan Bender - Review (includes some Lego creations of our own!)

The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery
Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne
Big Cherry Holler by Adriana Trigiani

The Iron Whim: A Fragmented History of Typewriting by Darren Wershler-Henry (This book is not exactly what I was expecting, to say the least. There are some chapters that are very interesting, and some that are downright weird.)

Austenland by Shannon Hale
And then probably something else off my Classics Club list, though I haven't decided what yet. I'll have to wait and see what sounds good! Any suggestions?

Nostalgia. That’s probably the one word that sums up this book for me. Sitting on my bedroom floor surrounded by Legos, carefully studying each step in the instruction book, feeling that satisfying click as the pieces snapped together. I enjoyed playing with Legos as a kid, but I was not nearly as obsessed as my younger brother (or my husband, it turns out).

Lego: A Love Story describes Jonathan Bender’s journey into the world of AFOLs – Adult Fans of Lego (and yes, this book is full of acronyms). There are fan clubs, conventions, websites, and stores dedicated solely to Lego which are not run by the Lego Company. Hundreds of grown men and women are just as obsessed with Lego today as they were as a child. Over the course of a year, Bender follows them down this path. Along the way, he researches the history of the Lego Company, visits the Lego headquarters in Denmark, and comes to some very personal discoveries about his life and family. This book is the perfect mix of facts and narrative, nostalgia and looking to the future. If you have ever loved Legos or have anyone in your life that loves Legos, then this book is highly recommended.

And I’ll warn you in advice that your Lego cravings will return. My husband read this book after I was finished with it, and before I knew it, he was carrying tubs upon tubs of his childhood Legos into our spare bedroom (I’m quite certain his parents were glad to finally see them go). We spent one glorious Sunday afternoon rediscovering the joys of playing with Legos. I also discovered that my Lego building skills were far below my husband’s. That’s really not that surprising, considering he grew up to be an engineer.

Here’s what I built:

And here’s what my husband built:

That’s right. He built a model of our house. I was lucky I came away with a decent-looking pyramid. But I certainly had fun playing with Legos, and in the end, that’s all that matters.

Every good bibliophile gets book-type things for Christmas presents, right? I'm no exception. I know it's already a few weeks after Christmas, but life is finally calming down enough to organize Christmas presents. So here are the wonderfully bookish things I got for Christmas this year.

Books! (No surprise) The top one is the only actual book I got (a present from my mom). The rest were purchased with the Barnes & Noble gift card I received from my brother. Yup, my family knows me well.

A tote bag that is absolutely perfect for hauling around the piles of books I seem to accumulate. And in the meantime, it hangs on the railing upstairs, decorating my library with its awesome Scrabble-y bookishness!

Trivial Pursuit is just about my all-time favorite board game. And did you know there's a Book Lover's Edition??? Now I just need someone who's willing to play it with me. Any takers?

I discovered this challenge too late last year to sign up, but I will not make that same mistake this year! This challenge is hosted by Book Dragon's Lair, and it is a challenge I have no fear of not completing. Trips to the library are the mainstay of my summer months. Every three weeks, I have a Library Day where I visit the two big libraries in my vicinity, and then celebrate my piles of books by meeting my husband for lunch during his lunch break. Even now in January, I am looking forward to those Library Days in June.

I am signing up for the Just Insert IV level, which means I need to read at least 50 library books by the end of 2014. No problem, since I just can't stay away from libraries. My original plan was to read from my TBR stacks until June, then live in the library all summer. But the book I'm reading now came from the library. . .and there are two more waiting on my nightstand. There's just something about a building full of books that you can borrow for free! 

So there's my confession: My name is Julie, and I'm addicted to library books. Here's to signing up for a challenge to help fuel that obsession!