This 'n That Thursdays: A Few Good Reads for Halloween

 

For me, the colder and shorter days of fall and winter are the best days to start reading spooky tales.  I have four recommendations that would be perfect for Halloween, starting with The Bone Key: The Necromantic Mysteries of Kyle Murchison Booth by Sarah Monette.  Sarah Monette is an excellent writer, Kyle Murchison Booth is an unlikely but endearing protagonist, and it is refreshing to read supernatural tales written in the traditional style but from a contemporary woman's point of view.  This is the best supernatural short story collection I have read in a long time, and I highly recommend it.

Next up is A Theory of Haunting also by Sarah Monette, a short novel which marks the return of Kyle Murchison Booth, the protagonist of the impressive previously mentioned collection of short stories.  Monette continues Booth's saga in this book, and it does not disappoint.  It is short enough to read in one day, but I would suggest reading the short story collection first to become familiar with Booth's back story.  That said, you can still enjoy the book even if you read it first.

Another short story anthology recommendation is Horror Stories for Halloween by Tony Walker.  Tony Walker is the narrator of the Classic Ghost Stories Podcast as well as the author of a number of supernatual-themed books.  This collection covers a variety of supernatural themes.  If you are looking for a read that will get you into the mood for spooky season, give this book a try.

My last recommendation is Ghosts from the Library: Lost Tales of Terror and the Supernatural (A Bodies from the Library special) edited by Tony Medawar.  I have just started reading this one so cannot yet give an opinion, but this is a collection of lesser-known works by familiar mystery authors, so I have a feeling I am really going to enjoy this one.  This anthology of supernatural tales is a slight departure for the Bodies from the Library series, which usually focuses on mystery stories by authors from the Golden Age of detective fiction.

Happy Halloween reading to all who enjoy these types of tales! 👻🎃💀🐍👽

Terrifying Tuesdays: Sunless Solstice: Strange Christmas Tales for the Longest Nights

It has been quite a while since I have done a Terrifying Tuesday post, but I am one of those people who loves that old tradition of telling ghost stories around a roaring fire during the winter holiday season, and the book I am currently reading is perfect for evoking a supernatural chill on a long December evening.  Sunless Solstice: Strange Christmas Tales for the Longest Nights is an anthology edited by Lucy Evans and Tanya Kirk for the British Library Tales of the Weird series.  This collection features twelve stories set during the shortest days of the year, written by authors both well-known and obscure and originally published from 1893 to 1974.  Some are gentle tales while others are sinister, but each one sets just the right tone for a satisfying ghost story during this cold and dark time of the year.  If you too love a good ghost story I highly recommend checking out this book as well as others in the series - I think you will find them quite enjoyable in a spooky sort of way!

This 'n That Thursdays: 2022 Online Reading Challenge Update #3

The vintage girl's novel I chose to read for the month of May was Ruth Hall: A Domestic Tale of the Present Time by Fanny Fern.  As I had never heard of either the novel or the author before, I looked forward to finding out more about both.  As a girl's novel this title fit the category only marginally, as the main character's youthful years are covered rather quickly.  The story focuses mainly on her young adult life, especially after the death of her husband when she must struggle to find a way to earn a living for herself and her two young daughters.  I did enjoy reading this semi-autobiographical work which incorporates many of the author's same difficulties in life during a time when women were not expected or encouraged to earn a living.

The author became a successful writer first as a newspaper columnist, at one time being the highest-paid columnist in the United States.  Ruth Hall is her most successful novel, and was very popular when it came out, although it is less well known now.  While the novel starts out strong and the story is well written and cohesive throughout the middle portion, I found the last portion of the novel a bit weak.  After her heroine achieves financial success, the succeeding chapters seem a bit more haphazardly thrown together, almost as if the author had a few more bits from her own life she wanted to include in her novel whether they enhanced the narrative or not.  For example, Ruth Hall and her daughters spend some time in a seaside hotel before moving to their new home.  While they are there, a fire starts in the hotel which they just barely manage to flee with their lives.  This may add an exciting tough to the story, but it just seems to have been thrown in to the story for no particular reason.  While the novel's conclusion is not as strong as it could have been, the book is still a worthwhile read for the character descriptions as well as an insight into how difficult life was at the time for a woman with children who had no husband (sadly, it seems that not much has changed for a lot of women even now).

The reading challenge for June is to read a classic novel by an African-American author.  I have decided to read Beloved, the 1987 novel by Toni Morrison.  This is a genre that I have yet to experience, and it is high time I changed that.  Unlike the older classics I have read thus far, this newer book is not available free online, so I will have to buy or borrow a paper copy.

This 'n That Thursdays: Online Reading Challenge Update #2

In my last reading challenge update I mentioned that the adventure novel I intended to read for the month of April was The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne.  I finally finished it a couple of days ago.  I really enjoyed it and do recommend it, but with a couple of caveats.  First, Jules Verne was fascinated by scientific detail and there is plenty of it in this novel, where five castaways land on a remote and uninhabited island and must find a way to make everything they need with just the raw materials available and their own knowledge and abilities.  Fortunately the leader of the group is an engineer with a broad background in many scientific fields, so they are quite successful, but Verne does go into great, sometimes tedious, detail as to the methods used for making such items as pottery, gunpowder, glass, various metals, etc.  I found the descriptions of these processes to be fascinating, but must admit that I merely skimmed through a lot of the information (hopefully I will never find myself in a situation like the castaways where I wished I had paid more attention to these details!).

I also found it interesting to read yet another 19th century novel which again reinforced the very masculine view of the world during this time period (the Conan Doyle novel I read last month had similar views).  All of the castaways are men, and their main focus seems to be conquering their environment rahter than living in harmony with it (one of their first tasks is to blow up one end of a lake to lower the water level for access to an underwater cave!).  They are obsessed with coming into possession of guns, which they cannot make themselves, and which, fortunately for them and somewhat miraculously, they find in a chest adrift in the ocean.  There is even a brief warlike conflict with some pirates who come across their island - even remote castaways cannot escape war!

The only other problem I had with this novel came at the very end.  The five castaways were accompanied by a loyal dog, who did his fair share in helping them all to survive.  After the rather catastrophic end to the island, the only survivors are these men and the dog, but they fear that without supplies they will soon perish from hunger and thirst.  Just in the nick of time they are rescued, but no further mention is made of the dog.  Did he survive or perish before the rescue?  Jules Verne did not think to let us know, and I for one as a confirmed dog lover found this overlooked detail maddening!  It pretty much ruined the whole ending for me - I even reread the last few pages twice to see if I had missed this detail, but there was nothing.  I will just assume that the dog managed to survive, but it would have made me happier to have had this conclusion verified.  Otherwise, as I said I found the novel a very worthwhile read and would certainly recommend it to anyone looking to read a classic adventure tale.

Next month's reading challenge is a vintage girl's novel (Little Women by Louisa May Alcott is a classic example), and I have decided to read a lesser known work called Ruth Hall by author Fanny Fern.  I am completely unfamiliar with this novel and the author, so I look forward to learning more about both when I read this semi-autobiographical book.

Wish List Wednesdays: Tiny Pantry Cookbook by Isabel Paige

Last fall I posted a recipe for a dish called kitchari based on a recipe from a digital cookbook I purchased called Tiny Pantry by Isabel Paige.  Isabel Paige is a YouTube vlogger who makes the most fantastic vegan meals in a tiny house she built herself.  Recently she made her cookbook available as a hardcover book ($34.95; also includes a free digital copy), and I wasted no time in placing my pre-order (the book is published independently so copies must be pre-ordered).  The original e-book has been edited and updated, with new photos and ten new recipes added.  The updated version is also available as a digital download only ($14.95) if that is your preference, but as an ardent book lover I can't wait to get my hands on the hard copy!  It will take a few weeks for the book to arrive, but once it does I intend to make a few more of the tantalizing recipes.  I recommend watching the following episode from A Cookbook Collector vlog which shows a non-vegan making and trying out some of the recipes from the original e-book, just to get an idea of how user-friendly and tasty these recipes really are:

This 'n That Thursdays: Online Reading Challenge Update

I thought I would give a quick update on my progress with the 2022 online classics reading challenge I decided to join, as described in a previous post.  This month's challenge was to read an unfinished novel by a famous author, and I chose to read The Narrative of John Smith, a lesser known unfinished work by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.  For some reason I thought this would be a quick read and I had plans to read other unfinished works by other authors, but it actually took me the entire month just to finish this one.  This early work is very different from Conan Doyle's other writings, which tend to be more action-oriented.  In this novel, an older man, confined to his room with gout, philosophizes about many aspects of life and interacts with those few people who come to visit while he is confined - below is a better description from The Arthur Conan Doyle Encyclopedia website, where the novel is available to read free online (see title link above):

"Arthur Conan Doyle lost the manuscript of his first novel, and later professed horror at the thought that it should be found and published. As we now know, he rewrote much of it from memory, and "The Narrative of John Smith" has indeed been published. As it stands, it's not a long book, and next to nothing happens. I doubt it would have seen print in the 1880s, but now we're familiar with the author's life and work, and we're interested to follow his development as a writer, a thinker and a person. John Smith, perhaps Conan Doyle's vision of himself as an older man, is confined to his room by gout; the narrative consists of his reflections on life and his conversations with his doctor, his neighbours, his landlady, and the local curate — characters who are depicted with a lively authenticity. Nowhere else in his fiction does Conan Doyle discourse on such a range of topics — politics, religion, philosophy and much more — with the boldness of youth and often with the wisdom of maturity..."

While this may not be considered on of Conan Doyle's better works, I found it fascinating because the narrator spends quite a bit of time predicting how the future will be different from his present day in 1888.  Some of his predictions are quite prescient while some are spectacularly off the mark, as would be expected, but what is most interesting are his reasonings for those predictions.  Also of interest is the views held by the narrator (and presumably Conan Doyle as well) as to race, religion, gender stereotypes, and other topics, most of which were presumably typical for the time but would be considered quite passé if not downright offensive now.  I am not much of a history buff so it is good for me to read about these topics in a historical perspective, as it gives insights into how we view many of these subjects today.

I am really enjoying this reading challenge, but I think I am more than ready for April's topic, which is a classic adventure novel.  My choice for April is The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne.  I have always loved the 1961 movie adaptation (watch it free online here) but have never read the novel upon which it is based, so it is high time I did so!

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This 'n That Thursdays: Tea and Ink Society 2022 Classics Reading Challenge

Last year I found a new blog to enjoy called Tea and Ink Society, self-described as "a (mostly) classic literature blog".  Like the blogger, I too love to read but went through a period when I stopped reading as voraciously as I did when I was younger.  My mother was quite fond of reading classic literature, and I have vivid memories of her seated on the sofa with the cumbersome Russian novel War and Peace in her lap and her Japanese/English dictionary close by (she was born in Korea when it was occupied by the Japanese, and therefore spoke Japanese fluently), the latter a necessity because she would often have to look up and translate an unfamiliar English word to understand the text.  She could only get through a few pages a day, and it took quite a long time, but she did eventually finish the book, only to move on to yet another lengthy classic and start again.  Her desire to read the classics was that strong, and while I do not have her will power I did gain my love of reading, especially the classics, from observing her.

However, somewhere in my mid-thirties I drifted away from reading anything but the most undemanding novels, mostly cozy mysteries.  I still love reading mysteries, but recently felt the need to revisit the classics, and the Tea and Ink Society 2022 reading challenge seemed like the perfect way to get back into the habit.  Each month a different category is recommended - January featured classic books being made into a movie, and for February it is a novel by one of the three Brontë sisters.

In January I kept it simple by rereading an old Agatha Christie mystery called Why Didn't They Ask Evans?, which I had read decades ago but thoroughly enjoyed reading again (reading this book reminded me why I love mystery novels so much!).  Apparently this story is being made into a three-part TV series for BritBox by actor and now director Hugh Laurie, and I will be interested to see how this series turns out.  I found the novel free online here, and while there are a few editing issues it was quite easy to read.

For February I just finished reading the novel Agnes Grey by the least known of the Brontë sisters, Anne Brontë (read it free online here - it is well edited though in a rather small font).  This novel I also read decades ago, and it was a pleasure to read it again.  While not as well known or as well written as her sisters' more famous novels, Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre, it was quite absorbing to read about the observations of a young governess concerning the lifestyles and attitudes of the wealthy upper class families who hired her.  (Mild spoiler alert - this novel does have a happy ending, which I prefer and which is why I am not as fond of the admittedly better written Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë.)

The challenge for March is to read an unfinished novel by a classic author.  Recommended titles include The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens, Sanditon by Jane Austen, and Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell.  I managed to find an unfinished novel by Arthur Conan Doyle, The Narrative of John Smith, written when he was in his early twenties and actually sent to a publisher, but unfortunately lost in the mail and never recovered.  Conan Doyle rewrote it from memory but never completed it, but it was finally published relatively recently in its unfinished form.  I did read the Dickens novel long ago, but not the others, so I may read all three if I have the time (all four are readily available to read free online, and I have provided the links with each title).  I find it can be very frustrating to read an unfinished work, however, because I really do look forward to some definite conclusion, so this will be a test of my patience and tolerance, to say the least!

So far all of the classic novels I have mentioned are by English authors, but this will change later in the year when categories will include African-American, pre-Medieval, and French novelists.  I fully intend to finish this challenge, and to help hold myself to this goal I will give periodic updates on my progress here.  If you too are an avid reader, you may wish to join the challenge as well.  If so, happy reading to you!

Wish List Wednesdays: Two Good Reads for the Holidays

Our holidays are particularly chaotic this year as we continue to unpack our moving boxes, but I still try to find a little time to relax with a good book when I can.  Currently I am reading two short story anthologies as I find it easier to quickly read one story at a time whenever I can fit in a short reading break.  I am really enjoying The Christmas Card Crime and Other Stories ($14.99 on Amazon) edited by Martin Edwards, which is one of his British Library Crime Classics featuring holiday-themed short stories written during the Golden Age of detective fiction.  If you are a fan of short mystery fiction, check out the other Martin Edwards anthologies here.

The other anthology I will be reading for the holidays this year is The Penguin Book of Christmas Stories: From Hans Christian Andersen to Angela Carter ($13.56 on Amazon), which is one of the Penguin Classics Hardcover books.  All of the stories have a Christmas theme, but the genres range from fairy tales to ghost stories, so this should be a fascinating read.  I intend to start this one on Christmas day, which I plan to spend quietly, doing as little work as possible and only engaging in cozy and enjoyable activities.  I hope your holiday plans include only fun activities as well!

Wish List Wednesdays: 1,001 Ways to Celebrate Christmas & Create Lasting Traditions Book

If you are looking for a way to get into the Christmas spirit, I highly recommend a little book called 1,001 Ways to Celebrate Christmas & Create Lasting Traditions ($16.95 on Amazon).  As the title states, this book lists 1,001 ways to celebrate Christmas, with ideas ranging from holiday recipes to festive activities to seasonal arts and crafts plus a whole lot more.  Each idea is presented in a short sentence or paragraph, and you can read as few or as many as you want as time and inclination permit.  Read them in order or skip randomly through the book - no matter how you proceed, these ideas are sure to get you in the holiday mood!

Last month was extremely busy for me, and I hope to do an On the Homefront post soon to get caught up on all that has been going on here, but the big news for now is that we sold our Georgia home and my husband has now officially made the move to Santa Fe!  We have a frightful amount of unpacking to do, but the majority of our belongings have arrived, and we can finally settle into becoming New Mexico residents.  Hopefully more information will be coming soon, but I really intend to get back to regular posting now!  I hope you all had a fun Halloween and are looking forward to all of the upcoming holidays.

Wish List Wednesdays: What It's Like to Be a Bird by David Allen Sibley

If you are an animal lover and are looking for a great coffee table book, then get yourself a hardcover copy of David Allen Sibley's book What It's Like to Be a Bird ($28.99).  This large format book will delight anyone from the amateur birder to the most knowledgeable ornithologist.  More than 200 species are discussed, but the beginning of the book focuses on birds in general, and a plethora of fascinating facts is included on each page.  This book does not need to be read from cover to cover - just open it up to any random page from day to day and you can learn interesting facts about birds each time.  After the introduction, 96 species of birds are described in greater detail, with an author illustration of each bird (life size when possible) on the left page and descriptive essays about the bird on the right page.  This fun and easy to read book is temporarily out of stock on Amazon at the moment, but you can place your order now if you don't mind waiting for more to arrive.  Spring is coming and so are the birds, so this would be a great time to start learning more about our feathered friends!

Wish List Wednesdays: Modern Comfort Food: A Barefoot Contessa Cookbook by Ina Garten

 

One of my favorite cookbook authors is Ina Garten, so you can bet I was quick to order my copy of her latest offering, Modern Comfort Food: A Barefoot Contessa Cookbook ($21.00 on Amazon) as soon as it became available.  As is her way, Ms. Garten has taken beloved and familiar recipes that bring comfort to many and tweaked them just enough to make them even more special without detracting from their original cozy intent.  I am already picking out the recipes I need to try, especially when wintry weather arrives (which may be less than a week away if the forecast holds!).

For breakfast, the Smashed Eggs on Toast sounds like a great Sunday morning breakfast option.  The Kielbasa with Mustard Dip is listed under the appetizers chapter, but I would happily eat this for lunch or even a light dinner.  Chicken Pot Pie Soup, Split Pea Soup with Crispy Kielbasa, and Creamy Tomato Bisque are all on my list to make, as is the Ultimate Tuna Melts recipe.  And I haven't even made my selections from the dinner section of the book yet!  A few recipes from the book are posted here on the Barefoot Contessa website as a preview of what to expect.

If you are as much a fan of Ina Garten's recipes as I am, I highly recommend this newest cookbook - you will not be disappointed!

Mystery Mondays: An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good by Helene Tursten

If you are looking for a quick, easy, and delightful mystery read, then get yourself a copy of the short story collection An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good by Swedish auther Helene Tursten.  The title character, 88-year-old Maud, is the last representative of a formerly wealthy family fallen on hard times after the death of her father.  Her life has not been easy, but thanks to decades of frugal living and a contract that allows her to live in the spacious family apartment for the rest of her life rent-free, she is finally ready to enjoy life in her golden years.

Unfortunately, there are those who would like to interfere with this elderly lady's solitary but contented existence, only to learn the hard way that Maud is not a woman to trifle with!  As the author says about her character, "...let's just say that I would not like to have her as a neighbor or a relative!"  I think you will agree when you read this wonderfully wicked short story collection.

This 'n That Thursdays: Five Fantastic Tips for Avid Readers

Serious readers will appreciate the tips shown above.  Go to the source of these tips here for a more thorough discussion of each one.  For me, Tip #1 is especially germane.  So many times I start a book and decide I do not care for it, but plow on regardless because I feel that I should.  Now why do I believe that I am obligated to do so when obviously there is no law requiring anyone to finish a book?  It takes me significantly longer to get through a book that is not interesting to me, and I could be using that time to read many other books that I do find compelling.

On the other hand, Tip #3 does not apply in my life because I still have an old flip phone, which has no airplane mode!  And because we are in the process of downsizing before our big move, Tip #5 is a good idea as we thin out our book collection and either sell or give away books that we no longer use.  I do try to carry a book with me when I know I will be spending time waiting around (travel, repair or medical appointments, etc.).  We could visit our local library much more often, but are trying to avoid buying more books until after we move so only visit the bookstore that buys used books from us.

I hope you avid readers out there find some of these tips useful in your own situation!
               

Wish List Wednesdays: A New Dr. Seuss Book!

Are you a fan of Dr. Seuss (aka Theodor Seuss Geisel), that iconic creator of whimsical and immensely popular children's books?  Then you will be delighted to know that a new book from an original manuscript by the author, found posthumously, is about to become available!  The book, entitled Dr. Seuss's Horse Museum, tells the story of a friendly horse who takes a group of children on a tour of an art museum.  The unfinished manuscript was completed by illustrator Andrew Joyner, and includes photographic images of horse-themed artwork by famous artists in addition to the illustrations.

The book will not be available until September 2019, but you can pre-order a copy on Amazon here.  Incidentally, at the same time the manuscript for this book was found, a unpublished complete manuscript was also discovered, which led to the publication of the best-selling Dr. Seuss book What Pet Should I Get? in 2015.  If you are like me then I am sure you will feel the need to own this book as well, which can be ordered on Amazon here (or from other sources such as Target).  Happy reading, fellow Dr. Seuss fans!

             

Mystery Mondays: Hercule Poirot's Christmas by Agatha Christie

From Facsimile Dust Jackets LLC

The Christmas mystery for this week is Hercule Poirot's Christmas, a novel by Dame Agatha Christie first published in 1938.  Hercule Poirot finds himself investigating the murder of an elderly millionaire during a family Christmas gathering.  There is no lack of suspects as the old man was universally disliked by his family, but the method of murder is rather ingenious and solving the case will require all of the great detective's "little gray cells".  You can listen to an audio version adapted for radio on YouTube,

or watch a film adaptation from the British television series Agatha Christie's Poirot (slightly modified from the original story), also on YouTube:

I hope your family holiday gathering is merrier than the one celebrated by the Lee family!

I just realized I linked to the wrong audio version earlier, so I have corrected my mistake, but I am leaving the Agatha Christie short story "A Christmas Tragedy" (1932) featuring Miss Marple (and read by the delightful Joan Hickson) in this post as a Christmas bonus!
                

Mystery Mondays: "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

From Mysterious Eats

This week's mystery for Christmas is a classic Sherlock Holmes short story entitled "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle", a neat little tale which involves a Christmas goose, a gem, a puzzle, and no dead bodies (at least not for the time in which the adventure is set).  It also includes some Christmas kindness, in an unusual move for the detective.  (Technically, the term carbuncle refers to any red gemstone, but Sir Arthur Conan Doyle decided to make the one in this work blue, presumably to make it even more rare and valuable.)

There are a variety of options if you are interested in this Sherlock Holmes Christmas mystery.  You can read or listen to an audio version here, or listen to a different audio version from YouTube below:

Two film adaptations can be viewed on YouTube.  The first is a 1968 BBC film starring the late great Peter Cushing as Sherlock Holmes:

The second, from "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" Granada Television series, stars the late great Jeremy Brett as Holmes in a 1984 adaptation:

May we all find precious gems in our holiday poultry this year! 😉🎅 Happy holidays!
                

Mystery Mondays: "Christmas Party" by Rex Stout

From Wikiwand

I thought I would start the holiday season by going back to some Mystery Monday posts, with mysteries featuring a Yuletide theme (after this week I will take a break from my Monday political comments until after the holidays, unless something truly noteworthy comes up!).  I recently started reading a mystery anthology called The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries, which contains a number of old favorites as well as previously unknown-to-me works.  One of the stories included is the Rex Stout tale called "Christmas Party" featuring his larger than life gourmet detective, Nero Wolfe.  The original 1957 work has some racist undertones, but if you can ignore those it is an intriguing story in which Nero Wolfe is forced to solve a murder or face personal humiliation.  You can listen to an excellent radio adaptation here, or watch this YouTube video of the equally excellent A&E Networks version from an episode of their A Nero Wolfe Mystery series:

I just love kicking off the holiday season celebration with a good old-fashioned mystery!

                

Wish List Wednesdays: Cook Like a Pro: Recipes and Tips for Home Cooks by Ina Garten

I am a big fan of Ina Garten's cookbooks.  I have every one of them, and am thrilled that her latest work will be coming out later this month.  Cook Like a Pro: Recipes and Tips for Home Cooks (2018) by Ina Garten is available for pre-order on Amazon ($22.48, and free shipping if qualified).  It is her eleventh cookbook, and includes recipes like Chicken Thighs with Creamy Mustard Sauce (see the Amazon site for this recipe), Israeli Vegetable Salad, and Panna Cotta with Fresh Raspberry Sauce (I am getting hungry just typing this!).  I think it is time for me to place my monthly Amazon order now, so that my copy of this cookbook will get to me as quickly as possible!
             

Wish List Wednesdays: New Arrivals at Anthropologie

I like to check out the new arrivals at Anthropologie on a regular basis because they always seem to find an array of fun and unique apparel and home décor.  This week I found some really tantalizing animal-themed items for the home.  Listed below are just a few that caught my eye:

1) Winter Fauna Dinnerware - this colorful earthenware includes dessert plates ($14 each) and mugs ($16 each) in five different animal designs, plus a moose pitcher ($58), stag platter ($48, image at top of page), and fawn serving bowl ($48).  Think of the fun holiday table you could set using these lovely pieces!

2) Row of Sheep Planter ($54) - this sheepish planter made me smile!  Made of dark grey resin, it would be the perfect container for a row of little live plants such as herbs or succulents, or could even be used as a container for a flower arrangement to decorate the holiday table.

3) A World Full of Animal Stories ($19.99) - if you have young children in your life, this delightful book would be a wonderful holiday gift.  Fifty stories from around the world featuring animals of all sorts fill this beautifully illustrated hardcover tome, ready for any child's bedtime reading!

These selections are among the new arrivals for the home, both animal-themed and otherwise, at Anthropologie.  Take a look at the rest and you may just find a few irresistible items yourself!
             

Mysterious Mondays: The Story of Urashima Taro, the Fisher Lad: A Japanese Fairy Tale

From Japan Info

My mother told us this ocean-themed folk tale when we were young, and I remember thinking at the time how very similar the story was to that of Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle.  Urashima Taro is a young fisherman who saves a sea turtle, and in return is allowed to visit a wonderful undersea world inhabited by a beautiful princess.  He is delighted with the world, but eventually becomes homesick for his family and asks to return home.  Although Urashima Taro is warned against this visit, he insists, and the undersea inhabitants send him home.  He is given a box to take with him, but is warned never to open the box.  Upon his return home he discovers that what he thought was just a short separation had instead been centuries.  His home and parents are long gone.  In his sorrow, he forgets the warning and opens the forbidden box, with dire consequences.  This is a rather grim fairy tale, but like many stories of this sort there is a lesson to be learned, in this case one of obedience.  Perhaps my mother had a good reason for telling us this tale!

This would be a good story to recount to children on Halloween - it is only a little bit scary, and they just might take the lesson to heart!  You can read the story here, or listen to an audio version on YouTube: