Lise's Ramblings

Last year, I signed up for the 50bookpledge . I wasn't just setting a goal, I wanted to track what I read during 2017. The site provides visual shelves showing the titles: I want to read I'm currently reading I've read If I had remembered to log every book, I'm sure that my total would've exceeded the 32 titles listed on my 2017 bookshelf. At a glance, it looks like I missed last year's goal, although I earned several badges along the way. Oh, how the Girl Guide in me enjoyed those carrots. I look back on 2017 without regrets. I consider myself fortunate to have squirrelled away time to read more than 32 books, including ones by new-to-me authors. This year, I not only resolve to read 50 books, but I'll also remember to enter more of the titles online, so that I may share what I'm reading as the months unfold. Plus, my year-end shelf will better reflect my books of 2018. So far, I'm on track. I've finished one book (Johansen'...

In past years, I've blogged about family literacy and the joys of reading aloud .  Literacy actually extends beyond the ability to read and write.  Consider counting, solving logic puzzles, playing card games and following recipes as activities in your literacy toolkit. Speaking of which, here's a link to an activity book from ABC Life Literacy Canada, the not-for-profit organization responsible for Family Literacy Day, which Canadians celebrated yesterday (January 27). If you're tired of my literacy rants, then let children's author Robert Munsch , the 2013 honourary chair for Family Literacy Day, motivate you through the 30-second video below.   By increasing literacy levels, we improve opportunities for Canadians to succeed at work, at home, and in life as a whole.       AWESOME!

Offer me a classic novel or its film adaptation, and I’ll choose the book nearly every time. In general, I find a Hollywood film’s storytelling and character development pale compare to the impact of the author’s original text. Source:  Cinemark Theatres on Pinterest However, I make exceptions for musicals. Armed with brilliant casting and musical scores, then the power of song in musicals lends additional depth to characters, builds plot momentum and dishes out compelling entertainment. Screen and stage musicals can also lure audiences into tales we may not otherwise choose to read. I’m sure people have watched The Sound of Music , Les Misérables and My Fair Lady even though they may not be inclined to read about the von Trapp family’s history, pick up a Victor Hugo novel on the aftermath of the French Revolution, or follow a woman’s transformation in George Bernard Shaw play. But, I suspect these performances will move selected audience members and theatregoers enough to...

At bedtime, children implore parents and grandparents to read another story. Sure, stall tactics may be involved, but I like to believe that the desire to have someone read a tale aloud is at the heart of most pleadings. After all, some books can be appreciated the most when you hear the words roll off someone's tongue. Dr. Seuss stories come to mind.  Before ebooks, printed books or even scrolls, people relied on storytellers to entertain, enlighten, connect, and hand down oral histories and cultural experiences.  Aside from broader communities, reading aloud can also serve to strengthen bonds within families.  At our house, my hubby rarely sits still long enough to read. When he picks up something to read it tends to be a short piece from a newspaper’s business section, a hobbyist magazine or an instruction manual (yes, he's a rare breed). More often than not, his reading schedule coincides with bathroom breaks, because he optimizes every minute of his ...

Following up on my any excuse to celebrate entry, this month I submitted my second guest post to the fan-led 1000awesomefriends.org site. This time I chose to write in a different fashion and my topic was how Dr. Seuss influenced and influences generations of readers. Here’s a teaser… Inspiring generations to read Long before we had blogs, Google, flickr and Tweets, Dr. Seuss introduced us to Blogg, Yertle, Once-ler and Kweets. Along Mulberry Street and Pompelmoose Pass too, down to Who-ville and over to Solla Sollew. He showed us odd kingdoms, near and far, fed our brains and created characters bizarre. Check out the continuation of my silly poem on 1000awesomefriends.org [scroll past the book covers to read extra verses and reach the concluding AWESOME ].

Picture this: an elementary class a freckle-faced keener squirming at her desk a teacher holding a box and calling out family names   a sluggish clock unbearable levels of pent-up anticipation Eventually, my name would ring out. I would scurry to the teacher’s desk to collect a precious bundle of books, which stretched an elastic fastener to its limits. Even though that was decades ago, I recall those days with incredible clarity. Scholastic book days―my favourite school days. Weeks after carefully poring through the newsprint catalogue, checking boxes and adding up totals, at last, my book selections would arrive. Comic collections, Choose-your-own-adventure novels, Clifford and Curious George picture books, the Miss Pickerell series, how-to books, biographies and countless other affordable reads. Scholastic had them all. Each batch of books came with yet another mail-order catalogue. The marketing whizzes who compiled those flyers knew their trade. They could entice m...

Hear ye, fair readers of mine own random ramblings, yesternight ‘twas the oft celebrat’d birth of good William. Methinks ‘tis happen’d four hundred and forty eight times o’er.    While his exact birthday cannot be confirmed, April 23 rd has long been the agreed upon date to honour William Shakespeare (1564−1616). And despite the mystery shrouding aspects of his life, and the controversy and intrigue generated by his art, everyone from historians, English professors and literary critics to conspiracy theorists and ninnies can agree that the Shakespearean works have staying power. For more than four centuries, Shakespeare's works have influenced theatre goers, readers, teachers, students and people from all walks of life. I know I’ll never forget my initiation, as a pre-teen bowled over by Shakespeare's language and wit. My mother encouraged me to read “Twelfth Night” and then we took in an incredible performance of that ...

Ever since 1999, January 27 th has marked Family Literacy Day in Canada . Family literacy is meant to help bring children and adults together to develop and maintain language skills. Families have many options available to them; they can choose to read books aloud, sing songs, play board or online word games, write letters or cards, type text messages or emails, visit library programs, and take part in other formal or informal activities to support listening, comprehension and literacy.   During the past few weeks, I’ve seen my sister, brother-in-law and mom reading English and French stories to my 18-month-old niece. She counts along, mimics sounds, anticipates parts of her favourite books, bonds, wiggles, giggles, touches, etc. According to non-profit group Literacy BC, kiddos are likely to enter grade school “with several thousand hours of one-to-one pre-reading experience behind them” if they’ve been raised by literate families and caregivers.   So ...

If you’ve ever felt challenged by something in a book, then congratulations! Consider yourself fortunate to have the right to read books, magazines, e-books and other works that make you think about a topic, culture, plight, event or person from a completely different perspective.   Our Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms ensures that you have the right to pick up any book you desire to read. Not sure that's important in this day and age? Think censorship is a thing of the past? WRONG. Sadly, censorship continues to rear its ugly head. The Canadian Libraries Association published an updated 2011 list of works people have fought to have removed from school curricula and bookshelves in this country during the past ten years. Those titles included: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn , The Handmaid’s Tale , Lives of Girls and Women , The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz , and all seven Harry Potter books. Fortunately, Canadian teachers, librarians, principals...