It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date, and adapted by Kellee at Unleashing Readers and Jen at Teach Mentor Texts with a children’s/YA focus. The Sunday Post is hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer. These weekly roundups are a great way to discover new blogs and bloggers, share some of the titles you’ve been enjoying, and add to your ever-growing to-read list.
Happy New Year, friends! Suffice it to say, 2017 wasn’t a very good year. Some great things did happen – I traveled to New Zealand and Japan, and I published my very first picture book. But it was also a terrible, terrible year in which I lost someone very close to me, and I don’t think I’m alone in wishing 2017 good bye and good riddance. Here’s hoping for a better year in 2018, complete with health and happiness!
This is going to be a bit of a brief post because with all the madcap zaniness of the holiday season I haven’t had a lot of time (or energy) to sit down and read. I have however managed to read for a few minutes before bed every night, and although I have more books on my TBR pile than I could ever read in a single lifetime, I’ve felt the need for some comfort reading. Which brings me to my single entry for this week’s reading recap:
Written for J.R.R. Tolkien’s own children, The Hobbit met with instant critical acclaim when it was first published in 1937. Now recognized as a timeless classic, this introduction to the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the wizard Gandalf, Gollum, and the spectacular world of Middle-earth recounts of the adventures of a reluctant hero, a powerful and dangerous ring, and the cruel dragon Smaug the Magnificent.
There’s something so comforting about rereading a childhood favourite. It’s been years and years since I last read The Hobbit, but I do have very fond memories of it. My mother is a life-long Tolkien fan, and the copy I’m currently reading is actually hers, so there’s a great familial connection there, too. Despite what the overblown film adaption might try to have you think, The Hobbit really is a children’s book. It isn’t without its moments of danger and adventure, but at its heart it’s a wonderfully old-fashioned fairy tale, a bedtime story on a grand scale. I’ve been longing for comfort recently (the holidays can be tough when you’re missing a loved one), and this gentle, familiar read has been exactly what my spirit needs.
I wish you all a wonderful year filled with wonderful reads and plenty of opportunities to share them with all your family and friends! Happy New Year!!
Wishing you a peaceful,healthy, prolific 2018. I can’t say I know what you’re going through, but I empathize with you.
Re-reads are a wonderful thing especially when thoughts of a loved one are attached. The Hobbit has a special place in my heart as I read it and enjoyed it with high school friends and have read it aloud to my son and even one third grade class years ago that was absolutely determined to have that as our class read aloud. Whew!
Ack. I forgot to also say I wish you a much better year filled with loveliness. 2017 sounds like one filled with great joy, but also great sorrow. I wish you healing.
May we all be like hobbits in 2018! Discovering our strengths when standing up against the odds and enjoying lots of food. And enjoying good company!
I’m sorry for your hard times, Jane, and wish you a good 2018 with comfort food and books! I re-read The Hobbit every couple of years. It is a favorite, along with the Ring Cycle. In hard times, I return to them, too. It’s good to read about quiet heroes. Happy New Year and congratulations again for your very first book!
Congratulations on your picturebook! Awesome! I think you are not alone in noting how difficult 2017 had been. Here’s to a brighter, bolder, more bountiful 2018. 🙂