Three for a third

It is a third of the way through the year and I have read three of my designated Mood Boosting books. I have enjoyed all three of them, at the very least it is good to escape into another person's ideas and view of the world. The three reviews I have written for the books are below.

The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald

I got on well with this book, which is interesting as the main character is always going on about preferring books to people. The story concerns a young Swedish woman who arrives in an American small town, Broken Wheel, and almost inadvertently opens a book shop. The book features many soothing descriptions of everyday life and many quirky characters. The book has a happy enough ending and I felt it was a very comforting read.

The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide

This is a sweet book. You get to know a bit about the Japanese economy and housing crisis of the late 1980s and early 1990s, as well as how a small cat can come to mean so much to an aloof, literary couple. The book was poignant rather than happy, it had a touch of sadness about it, as the march of technology and big business rides roughshod over a dwindling amount of city green spaces. It was also a quick read, it only took a week out of my life.

Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami

This book is mostly about the growing pains of a fifteen year old boy, Kafka Tamura, as he runs away from home, in a vague attempt to grow up and find himself. The book features quite a bit of death, sex and violence, but also a library, poetic visions, music and art, as we follow Kafka's journey towards manhood as well as the poignant journey of a strange old man called Nakata, who can talk to cats and knows a lot of weird stuff, even though he's quite backward and childlike. This is the first fiction book I have read for over a year, it didn't disappoint; it was mostly sheer escapism.

Extra Good Mothers

On a cold evening in October seven mothers meet in the Chapel Cafe and take part in the Good Mothers' Club where they share their stories and advice on the good, bad and ugly sides of motherhood. Below are character descriptions of the eight women involved.

Sister Eleanor is the mysterious nun who runs the Good Mother's Club in the Chapel Cafe. She is well meaning, virtuous, honest and determined to put the good mothers on the right road through life.

Sapphire Meadows came from Trinidad and married a TV executive. She is a proud woman, determined to do her best for her only son, Eliott.

Christine Bishop is a mother of two who fears her life is becoming more meaningless with every passing year. Despite being a church going Christian she is attracted to a strange new age religion to bring her more fulfilment.

Nadine Verda runs an after school art club. She is a busy mum with three clever children and an emotionally distant husband.

Alice Plummer is a mental health worker and a mum. She's a good enough mother and a good enough psychologist, without endeavouring to be excellent at either. Trouble comes when Alice's only daughter, Lucy, develops a strong bond with a mysterious girl called Emily.

Olivia Marlow is studying computers, helping her husband in the tech industry. She becomes obsessed with the fantasy of being a 1950s housewife and starts to think this lifestyle would be the best way forward for the entire family.

Zoe Wraith is a part time accountant who finds that the school run is the bane of her life. She has triplet daughters who require much of her time and attention and a mosly absent husband.

Madeleine Sharpe is a young single mum. She is tempted to explore her submissive side with a mysterious, older, dominant man who seems to know all about the most secret and exotic experiences available in London.

A book for World Book Night

The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide

This is a sweet book. You get to know a bit about the Japanese economy and housing crisis of the late 1980s and early 1990s, as well as how a small cat can come to mean so much to an aloof, literary couple. The book was poignant rather than happy, it had a touch of sadness about it, as the march of technology and big business rides roughshod over a dwindling amount of city green spaces. It was also a quick read, it only took a week out of my life.

London Therapy Part One

London can feel rather relentless and my previous London Series have been about trying to find a bit of peace and quiet amongst the noise and busy-ness of the city, these are Secret London and London Interrupted.

These days I mainly think about well-being, so anything I visit in London needs to help with that. I have made a decision to visit more museums (Time Therapy) and art galleries (Art Therapy) and see more plays (Drama Therapy). These pictures are from recent visits to Somerset House, South Bank Centre, British Museum, China Town and National Gallery, which we visited in the last week of March 2019.

London Therapy is still in formation, so I will be posting more of my ideas about it at a later date.

Crafts for a May Fair

It has been nearly a year since I did my last craft fair. I wasn't sure whether I wanted to do another one since doing my first one in 2013, but thought craft fairs in the twenty-teens have been a good enough thing to keep going a little while longer. Above and below are a selection of crafts I will be presenting in May. I have swapped my dolls around and expanded my knitted purses and pouches and fabric brooch collections. The books, lavender scenters and cards remain pretty much the same as before.

 

 

London Therapy : an introduction

I have a dream about moving closer to the sea, but for the time being I am still in London, so I hope to still make the most of the city I have lived in for over fifty years. I am never far away from thinking about well-being and therapy these days, so any London days-out I do should have some therapeutic value to them. Above and below are mindful doodling and colouring sheets reflecting ideas for therapeutic London outings.

My life in books

I have read many books in my life but one of my 50th birthday aims was to get 50 book reviews on GoodReads. To do that I went back to books I had read from the 1970s onwards.

To help my project I also revisited drawings and paintings I had done of my favourite literary heroes and, more prominantly, heroines. The last painting I did was of Madeline Usher from 'Tales of Mystery and Imagination' by Edgar Allan Poe; a book I first read in 1979 and still my favourite author.

The 1980s are represented by Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy. Books I really enjoyed in this decade were 1984 by George Orwell, probably my favourite book ever. I also loved Ariel by Sylvia Plath, The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

The 1990s are represented by Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier. I read much in this decade mostly because of my daily commute to the libraries I used to work in required a lot of travelling on public transport. The books I particularly enjoyed were A tale of two cities by Charles Dickens, Misery by Stephen King and Memnoch the Devil by Anne Rice.

The 2000s are represented by Vianne Rocher from Chocolat by Joanne Harris. I was very busy in the noughties being a working mum, I was also runing my SubVerse Poetry Group from 2000 to 2005 and teaching the piano from 2008 onwards. However I did find time to read all seven of the Harry Potter series of books by JK Rowling. I also really enjoyed the Other Boleyn Girl by Phillippa Gregory, The woman in black by Susan Hill and The thirteenth tale by Diane Setterfield.

In the 2010s my reading has been more attuned to what my daughter enjoys. That is why this decade is represented by Katniss Everdeen from the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, three books I loved reading. I have also acknowledged that reading about flawed people in imperfect situations is much more enjoyable than reading about perfection. Bearing this in mind the top five books I have loved lately are.

1. We need to talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver
2. The girl on the train by Paula Hawkins
3. Never let me go by Kazuo Ishiguro
4. Gone girl by Gillian Flynn
5. Labor day by Joyce Maynard

To read my book reviews in full please visit my Good Reads page, to view more of my literary heroines please visit my DeviantArt page. My own writing can be found on my WattPad page.

Kafka on the Shore : Book Review

We are a quarter of the way through the year and I have managed to read book one of the thirteen books I have chosen for my reading this year. I'm not sure how likely it is that I will be reading the other twelve in the remaining nine months, but that I enjoy reading them is the main thing. Here is my review for my first read of the year.

Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami

This book is mostly about the growing pains of a fifteen year old boy, Kafka Tamura, as he runs away from home, in a vague attempt to grow up and find himself. The book features quite a bit of death, sex and violence, but also a library, poetic visions, music and art, as we follow Kafka's journey towards manhood as well as the poignant journey of a strange old man called Nakata, who can talk to cats and knows a lot of weird stuff, even though he's quite backward and childlike. This is the first fiction book I have read for over a year, it didn't disappoint; it was mostly sheer escapism.

My Second Mindful Year

I have two big-ish anniversaries coming up next year. The big one is 'Thirty Years a Librarian' which is happening in February 2020. The second one is 'Ten Years in Concert', as I first started playing classical piano pieces in public in 2010. I also have other ideas about having survived other things in my life from the 1990s to the 2020s. With all this going on I have become aware that this year is in danger of becoming a very un-mindful year.

To turn things around I realised I needed to think differently about this particular year. My first mindful year began in March 2018. With my second mindful year running from March 2019 to February 2020 I decided to split my year into the four seasons and work out my mindful goals from there.

Spring Mindfulness - March, April, May

I have chosen 13 books to read this year; 6 mood boosting books, 4 leftover books and 3 Buddhist Psychology books. I hope to do another craft fair in April or May. I will continue my meditations, breath awareness, body scan and Loving Kindness. I will continue being mindful in my walking and everyday life. We will play more. I am going to practice the piano more especially the pieces I hope to play in public.

Summer Mindfulness - June, July, August

I am looking forward to holidays in Southend and Eastbourne and maybe Devon again, in June, July and August. I hope to visit Kew Gardens and do more walking by the Thames and in Ruislip Woods. We may find opportunities for dancing. We may also find opportunities for stargazing which fits in nicely with Space Therapy.

Autumn Mindfulness - September, October, November

Ideas for Autumn mindfulness are a bit dark. I read in 'Tiny Buddha' that often New Age therapies are not very good at engaging with our dark sides. We are light and dark and I think we need to accept both. My autumn mindfulness includes being philosophical and blogging, which I often work on while being mindful in a pub. I can also muse on death, Edgar Allan Poe and horror films. I will probably do more poetry and enjoy some graveyards as well.

Winter Mindfulness - December, January, February

My wintry mindful ideas are things I should be working on all year. Dr Who and TV box sets are things we enjoy all year round as are films. I hope we will be seeing plays and visiting art galleries and museums this year. I also intend to do more mindful doodling and colouring. With the December musings of impermanence and letting go I can muse about the end of the decade and the first twenty years of the 21st Century.

A Year of Living Mindfully

 

On the 23rd March 2018 I did my first guided meditation with my daughter. It was the body scan from 'The Beginner's Guide to Mindfulness'. We now do guided meditations everyday. The connecting to breath meditation, where we concentrate on breathing slowly and calmly, is very effective and relaxing and can also cure hiccups. We also do the Loving Kindness Meditation which we started in July and which now features quite a bit of self-compassion as well. Self-compassion was one of the last ideas I embraced, it has been very helpful. 

I practice mindfulness everyday; at work, at home, in the pub, while travelling; it has helped make my life feel a lot less stressful. I have read many books on mindfulness and Buddhist psychology in the past year; these are six of the best.

1.       Wherever you go, there you are by Jon Kabat-Zinn; New York, Piatkus, 2004

2.       Mindfulness by Williams and Penman; London, Piatkus, 2011

3.       A lamp in the darkness by Jack Kornfield; Boulder, Sounds True, 2014

4.       The art of living by Thich Nhat Hanh; London, Rider, 2017

5.       When things fall apart by Pema Chodron; Colorado, Shambhala, 1997

6.       Buddha’s Brain by Rick Hanson, Oakland, New Harbinger, 2009​

As it is my Mindfulness Anniversary I decided to buy a new mindfulness book called the Mindfulness Journal to celebrate. Above and below are some mindful doodling and colouring I have been doing throughout the year.

 

Amy's game of life

We have been playing Amy's game of life on holiday since she created it in 2014. It was a most memorable time playing it on holiday in our rented apartment in Whitby, on the Yorkshire coast.

The game begins with birth and ends in death. At the start players wait in limbo until they draw the birth card and then their game begins. On life's journey you earn money, buy property, have children, get into debt, get into trouble, get sick. The game ends when someone draws the death card. At that point the amount of love and money earnt in a lifetime are calculated and a winner is nnounced.

Amy's pictures on the cards are fantastic and playing the game is quite absorbing, however Amy does usually end up being the winner.

Thirteen Books for 2019

A therapy I have recently been exploring is Reading Therapy. These are the thirteen books I am intending to read in 2019.

Good Mood Books Plus
These books were chosen as they might be good for my mental health.

The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald
This seems to be a fish out of water story about a young Swedish woman stranded in small town America. I think I'll read it after Kafka.

A tale for the time being by Ruth Ozeki
Quite a few of my chosen books have a Japanese theme, like this one. It revolves around a diary and a tsunami and I don't know much more than that at the moment.

This book will save your life by AM Homes
This is a classic good mood book, about a business man having to face up to the messy reality of everyday life. I will have to see what it does for me.

The reader on the 6.27 by Jean-Paul Didierlaurent
This is a French book about an everyday man who escapes his dull existence by reading books on his daily commute. I used to do this when I worked in Central London. I can relate to the book already, I hope I enjoy it.

The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide
This is another Japanese book featuring cats. It looks quite sweet.

Kafka on the shore by Haruki Murakami
This has been recommended in several philosophical circles. I am nearly halfway through it. So far I have found it very intriguing, nasty in some places, much nicer in others, it will be interesting to see how it all fits together at the end.

Odds and Ends
I had a big sort out at the end of 2018 and came across four books I had intended to read but did not quite get around to.

Wabi Sabi by Francesc Miralles
This is the sequel to Love in Small Letters. It is written by a Spaniard, and seems to be about Japan and cats.

Life of Pi by Yann Martel
I have tried to read this several times. I read the first page again and seemed to get on much better this time. Maybe I will read the whole book this year.

We have always lived in the castle by Shirley Jackson
Shirley Jackson is a renowned writer, responsible for the Haunting of Hill House. People think this is her best book, I'll see how I get on with it.

Warm bodies by Isaac Marion
I picked this up in a charity shop, after I had watched the brilliant film adaptation. Some people say the book is even better, I hope I enjoy it.

Therapy Books
I also have three more Buddhist Psychology books I want to read.

The Mindful Path to Self-compassion
I am practising self-compassion a lot lately, which is why I have chosen all these lovely books to read this year.

Living beautifully with uncertainty and change by Pema Chodron
Pema Chodron was the first Buddhist writer I read, When Things Fall Apart helped me through a very dark time. This one seems short and sweet.

The Wise Heart by Jack Kornfield
I love Jack Kornfield's guided meditations that are on the accompanying CD to A Lamp in the Darkness. This book is much bigger and doesn't have a CD. I hope I get on OK with it.

Knitted purses and pouches

I knitted my first gadget pouches in possibly 2010, give or take a year. I enjoyed knitting them as they were brief and colourful. I love knitting but am rather slow, so larger knitting projects are quite frustrating. I was not too happy with my camera pouch and so the knitted purse was a bit of an alternative. I had knitted a gadget pouch for my daughter's mobile phone, but she thought it was decidedly 'uncool' and she has since moved onto a proper SmartPhone. I wonder if I will see the return to small cell phones like my daughter's Nokia brick and my knitted gadget pouches will finally become fashion statements. I won't hold my breath.

Something More poetry booklet

I compliled the Something More poetry booklet in 2012. I remember 2012 as being a good year, my dad was still alive and we travelled to Edinburgh and Cornwall with him. My parents celebrated their 50th Golden Wedding Anniversary. London was in celebratory mood with the Olympics. The voluntary olympic embassadors were fantastic and there was a lot of comforting pink and purple everywhere. The years before 2012 were quite difficult and after it were deaths and losses. Something More is full of light verse written by me and light, childish pictures drawn by Amy, which were also on their way out in 2012.