Day Five - 30 Creative Days Hath November

The Ubiquitous List

Writing every day for a month, as I vowed to do in typical Aries enthusiasm, (which always lasts about a quarter of the time promised,) is more difficult than I expected. I usually mull things over in my mind a few days before actually writing -- and then I rewrite and edit and rewrite again and again before I post... which makes it a lengthy process and all-consuming, since I can no longer multi-task.

I'm not sure where those daily bloggers get their inspiration or energy...maybe it's why so many thousands of them are filled with mindless trivia. Still, there are two on my "necessary blog" list below who manage to write purposeful and beautiful essays every day...and they have my admiration and envy this morning (Jill from Up In Alaska, and Annie from writers and witches, and words, oh my!)

So, in the face of a dearth of inspiration and with a mind still befuddled by the time change, I'm resorting to another blogosphere gimmick and crutch, The List. These are some of the books I've read in the past months, most of which I've enjoyed, some which have astonished and delighted me, and a couple I regret buying. I'm probably missing a few since I pass many along to my Aries daughter-in-law Ann, who is a kindred spirit in reading material.

These are in no particular order, and I'm only commenting on a few of them -- but maybe you'll see something new that you'll like, too.

• No Ordinary Time, Doris Kearns Goodwin (fabulous, particularly if FDR is your hero, too)
• Lyndon Johnson And The American Dream, Doris Kearns Goodwin
• My Day, Eleanor Roosevelt
• The Autobiography of Eleanor Roosevelt
• White Teeth, Zadie Smith (didn't finish -- couldn't get into it)
• The Secret, Rhonda Byrne (this one gets a whole blog post soon)
• The Memory Keeper's Daughter, Kim Edwards
• The Secrets of a Fire King, Kim Edwards (best collection of short stories I've ever read)
• Burning Bright, Tracy Chevalier (disappointing, compared to her earlier books)
  
• The Magician's Assistant, Ann Patchett
• The Patron Saint of Liars, Ann Patchett (in transit from Amazon)
• The Poisonwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver (in transit)
  
• The Fabric Of The Cosmos, Brian Greene
• Eleanor of Aquitaine, Alison Weir (a re-read -- and one of the reasons for my 2006 trip to the Queen's tomb at Fontevraud in the Loire Valley)
  
• The Time Traveler's Wife, Audrey Niffenegger
• Fall On Your Knees, Ann-Marie MacDonald
• The House of the Spirits, Isabel Allende
• Daughter Of Fortune, Isabel Allende
• Eva Luna, Isabel Allende
• The Infinite Plan, Isabel Allende (in progress)
• A Lifetime of Secrets, Frank Warren (on its way to me from Amazon)
• The Road, Cormac McCarthy (many loved it - I HATED every word)
• Bias, Bernard Goldberg
  
• Paris Inside Out, 7th, David Applefield
• and of course, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling (beyond fabulous)

Looks to me like I should stay off of Amazon's website............