5-4-5b450 (5455)

It occurred to me recently that in 2022, it would be 5 years since I completed my 5b450 project. To celebrate this anniversary I decided to reflect on 5 things I have achieved over the past few years which follow on from my 5b450 goals.

1. Visit Belfast 4 visit New York City

Visiting New York was the biggest and best part of 5b450. My travel plans have been much more modest since then. Even so it took one and a half years for me to get to Belfast because of the Covid19 lockdown. Belfast was the last of the UK capital cities I hadn't seen, I thought is was a very good city to visit and I'm glad I finally made it there in June 2021.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Paint garage 4 redecorate house

One thing that was easier to do in the lockdown of 2020 was paint the garage. I wasn't going anywhere much and I spent more time in the garden looking at the garage. It was looking quite shabby and I decided to paint it grey. It took me two weeks doing a bit everyday.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Do a reading challenge 4 join a book club

My time at the book club was short lived, possibly due to 2018 being a very difficult year. I began to set myself reading challenges in 2019. I have set myself a special 6 book challenge for the first half of 2022, it features books related to my original 5b450 project.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Work on the Calm Book 4 a School of Life event

I very much enjoyed the face-to-face 'How to be serene' event in 2017. In 2020 we purchased the School of Life's 'Small Pleasures' cards to help us through lockdown. For Christmas 2021 I purchased 'The Calm Book' for Amy and I to work through in 2022.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 5. See another play 4 see a play at the Globe

After seeing 'Romeo and Juliet' in May 2017 we managed to see three more plays before the pandemic hit, the last one being The Twilight Zone at the Ambassadors Theatre in April 2019. I hope we will see another play in a theatre someday, but I don't know what or where or when.

Reality Bites - Time and Space

 

I did my first 6by6 reading challenge in Spring 2019 and really enjoyed the Big Book2Film challenge of 2020 and the Fantastic Reads of 2021.The above books represent the Reality Bites selection for 2022. Below are the history, scifi and journey titles for my Time and Space challenge of 2023. For the time challenge I also hope to read 2 books representing the 2 world wars, Goodbye to all that and Inside Hitler's Bunker.

Eight wellbeing books

 

As well as reading fiction, novels, short stories and poetry I have also enjoyed reading and rereading the following eight wellbeing books over the past year or so.

 

The Mindfulness Journal by Corrinne Sweet

The happiness passport by MC Hayes

The serenity passport by MC Hayes

Pottering by Anna McGovern

The mindful home by C & D Hassed

The little book of mindfulness by P Collard

The little book of inner peace by AD Bush

Slow by Jo Peters

Although I enjoy all of the books, I would say my absolute favourite is Anna McGovern's 'Pottering' book. It is very down to earth and amusing. It is accompanied by the endearingly quirky artwork of Charlotte Ager.

Reading Therapy

There is a lot of solace to be found in reading fiction. I read therapy books throughout 2018. When 2019 arrived I made my mind up to go back to reading fiction and chose six books for the task. They were chosen from various lists of Mood Boosting Books I found on the Internet. Looking back, before my mind became focused on mental health and healing, I have long been using fiction reading as a kind of therapy. A list of books I have found healing over the years can be found below, they celebrate my thirty years as a librarian from February 1990 to February 2020.

The first fantastic reads of 2021

 

With the continuation of Covid lockdowns and restrictions I have found I have had a bit more time and energy for reading. I have been managing to read a book about every fortnight rather than every month. Above are the six books I have been enjoying from January through to March.

The 14 Book2Film titles of 2020

 

The Covid19 Lockdown and restrictions left me with plenty of time for reading books this year. As well as the twelve original Book2Film titles I also managed to read two extra: The Time Traveller's Wife and The Beach. I also read various self-help titles, Bhuddist books, short stories and poetry. One of my favourite books has been Pottering: a cure for modern life by Anna McGovern. I definitely aim to do more pottering and reading next year.

Fantastic Reads and Reality Bites for 2021 and 2022

 

Choosing a big reading list for the whole year has worked very well in 2020. So much so that I decided to go ahead and choose books for big reading lists in 2021 and 2022. 2021's theme will be Fantastic Reads featuring 14 fantasy titles. 

 

2021 – A Year of Fantastic Reading

 

January to June

1.     Northern Lights by Philip Pullman

2.     Circe by Madeline Miller

3.     The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

4.     Heroes by Stephen Fry

5.     New moon by Stephanie Meyer

6.     The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell

7.     City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

 

July to December

1.     The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman

2.     The girl of ink and stars by KM Hargrave

3.     The haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

4.     The Winter Ghosts by Kate Mosse

5.     Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer

6.     The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton

7.     The Maze Runner by James Dashner

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The 2022 list is called reality bites, however I will also be reading at least a couple of fantasy titles as I will want to finish reading His Dark Materials and the Twilight saga.

2022 Reading List – Reality Bites

 

January to June

 

My year of rest and relaxation by Otessa Moshfesh

The lady of the rivers by Philippa Gregory

The woman who went to bed for a year by Sue Townsend

The Hoarder by Jess Kidd

The keeper of lost things by Ruth Hogan

The amber spyglass by Philip Pullman

 

July to December

 

If I stay by Gayle Forman

I capture the castle by Dodie Smith

Wild by Cheryl Strayed

Nine perfect strangers by Liane Moriarty

A gathering light by Jennifer Donnely

Breaking Dawn by Stephanie Meyer

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4by4 Book2Film Titles for Autumn Term

If not much else, 2020 has been a good year for reading. I have read 9 Book2Film titles from January to August and now feel ready to tackle 4 more from September to December. The stories seem a bit heavy but maybe the new addition of the Time Traveller's Wife will lighten things up a bit.

Sweet dreams

The above picture is one of my favourites from Amy's story 'The Legend of the Dream Box'. It hung above her bed for a few years before being replaced by one of her abstract teenage paintings, shown below.

The First 6by6 BookToFilm Challenge of 2020

Eat, pray, love by Elizabeth Gilbert

I really loved watching the film of this book on Netflix, so I was really looking forward to reading the book itself. Luckily the book did not disappoint, although I found it strangely lighter in many places than the movie. The first part is thirty six chapters on enjoying food in Italy, as well as some story background and an introduction to Liz, I found it quite delicious. The middle section, Pray, is set in an ashram in India and features a lot of reflection on meditation. The final, Indonesian section, Love, seemed less well-defined as the eat and pray sections, it was about finding balance. I found the whole book was a very enlightening read.

The Martian by Andy Weir

I found this a difficult, but enjoyable read. It is very much like the film, so the story was easy to understand. The difficulty, I found, was the amount of mathematical and scientific language involved. Mars is a planet devoid of life, so anyone attempting to exist there, has a lot precise working out to do. All of this was explained in great detail in Watney's log. Even so, the book was still a lot of fun.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy by John Le Carre

I found this a difficult film to follow and so I was surprised to find the book much easier to understand. Its quite old now, so I found it pleasantly nostalgic. Most of what I got from the book was a series of unusual characters having strange conversations with other odd characters in various interesting locations, in and around London. I think I got a lot out of reading it nevertheless.

The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien

I have attempted to read the Lord of the Rings before but not got much further than the Council of Elrond. I got on much better this time around, after having watched and enjoyed the film trilogy several times. The book is like a long adventurous holiday read, I enjoyed the filmed parts and also the bits that were missed out like Tom Bombadil and the river daughter. There was more to the ending than was portrayed in the film and there was a strong environmental message. It's probably one of the best books I've read.

Dune by Frank Herbert

I found the 1980s film of this book to be quite odd and difficult to follow. Luckily the experience of reading the book was much better. I was a little daunted by the book not having any chapters, but the text was nicely broken up by illuminating passages from Dune's future history texts, which gave me some pause every few pages. The book features many intriguing conversations and exotic action sequences revolving around the other worldly adventures of son Paul and mother Jessica. I found it a good, enjoyable, lockdown read.

Twilight by Stephanie Meyer

I hadn’t read a school story since Harry Potter in the noughties, so it felt pleasant to be reading one again. I love the Twilight film saga, I think the movies are glossy and beautiful, slow and gentle, with a little creepy vampire and werewolf action to keep them lively. The setting and characters in the book were much like the movie. I found the book surprisingly down-to-earth and not as glamourous as the film portrayed, which made Twilight more satisfying to read.

Sixtieth book review on GoodReads

The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien


I have attempted to read the Lord of the Rings before but not got much further than the Council of Elrond. I got on much better this time around, after having watched and enjoyed the film trilogy several times. The book is like a long adventurous holiday read, I enjoyed the filmed parts and also the bits that were missed out like Tom Bombadil and the river daughter. There was more to the ending than was portrayed in the film and there was a strong environmental message. It's probably one of the best books I've read.

ALF Books

ALF Creations has produced ten booklets since I started the project in 2007 with my young daughter Amy.

These seven booklets have appeared regularly on my arts and crafts stall.

The Magic Gallery: Pictures at an Exhibition
This story concerns a little girl called Grace and her adventures in the magic gallery. The animated pictures she encounters can be found on my YouTube channel, under titles like The Planets, The Tudors, Phoenix and Through the Seasons. You can find the entire film on my Vimeo Channel and also on homemade DVD.

The Need Fairy
Written by me and illustrated by Amy. this is a ghost story concerning a newly wed couple, Tony and Cleo, and the old house they have just moved into.

The Legend of the Dream Box
Amy's illustrated story about three little girls who climb a stairway to heaven and bring a box of dreams down to earth.

Still Life
A trilogy of my poetry selections that you can also find on Wattpad, Teenage Troubles, An Anatomy of Love and All Grown Up. Illustrated by Amy and Lorna Finnigan.

Something More
I created ALF's first book of poetry, 'Something More', in 2012. It is thirty two pages of poems and pictures by Amy and Lorna Finnigan, including Upside-Down World, Just Looking and A Feminine Embrace.

Of Dragons and Fairies
Amy's pictures and descriptions of imagined dragons, fairies and other creatures including the magical lands where they live.

Emotional Life
A selection of fifteen of my songs, lyrics and music, including Island of Happiness, Stargazing and Alive at Last. Many of them can be found on my LornaJHart YouTube channel.

The following booklets don't appear on my craft stall, but I have given them out to relatives as Christmas presents.

What do people do? 
Amy's pictures and poem illustrating the twelve months of the year.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Amy's illustrated retelling of the traditional Grimm's fairy tale.

On the Twelve Days of Christmas
A book of Amy's pictures illustrating the well known Christmas carol from twelve drummers drumming to a partridge in a pear tree.