Book Announcement for May

Hello Fellow Bookworms!

As I have been ruminating upon my book choice for May, I have been itching for another classic. And, since there is one that I have long wanted to read, I figured I would venture in that direction. Seeing as the book itself is a bit on the longish side (i.e. 800 pages), I thought you might appreciate some advance notice. So, here you go.

The book I have chosen for May is Middlemarch, by George Eliot. Eliot was actually a woman, whose real name was Mary Anne Evans. The book was extremely popular when it was written in its several installments, and has since found its place as one of the greatest English novels of all time--particularly when viewed through the lens of other English authors, (such as Virginia Woolf, for instance).

I was first introduced to the book via its BBC film adaption that I saw several years ago. The film has long stayed with me, and when the book was brought up in an unexpected place, (a BYU Education Week class on mothering), it intrigued me all the more.

For those of you who might be intimidated by the length of the book, I think now is a good time to introduce you to one of my latest and greatest finds: Librivox. This is an free online source of mp3 recordings of books that are held in the public domain. (It is compatible with an IPOD). I initially used this when I recently read Jane Eyre, and found it incredibly useful. Just in the last couple of days I've listened to well over 100 pages as I've been cleaning my kitchen or doing laundry. It's fabulous!

Also, speaking of free downloads, for those of you who haven't noticed the Salt Lake County Library website, there is a free service available to all library card holders. It's called Freegal, and it allows you to get 3 free music downloads a week when you input your library card number and pin. That may not sound like much, but I use all of our library cards, which adds up to a lot of free downloads for a whole family. If you get on there and look around, you'll be amazed how much available music there is. I've downloaded everything from Carrie Underwood, to Jascha Heifetz playing the Beethoven vln concerto, to the Backyardigans. Fun stuff . . .

Also, speaking of fun and (previously) Jane Eyre, there's a new film adaption of the book out, and it looks fabulous! Anyone interested in going? I can't think of anyone I'd rather see the movie with more than with my book club . . .