reading

Quotes in the Spirit of Christmas

Lynette M Burrows

My Monday Motivation and Inspiration post today is dedicated to the holiday I celebrate at this time of year. I invite those of you who celebrate other holidays to read these quotes in the spirit of Christmas and feel free to submit quotations about your preferred December holiday in the comments.  Christmas Eve was a night of song that wrapped itself about you like a shawl. But it warmed more than your body. It warmed your heart…filled it, too, with melody that would last forever. –Bess Streeter Aldrich, Song of Years Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. –Clement Clark Moore, The Night Before Christmas   It was the beginning of the greatest Christmas ever. Little food. No presents. But there was a snowman in their basement. –Markus Zusak, The Book Thief     One can never have enough socks. Another Christmas has come and gone and I didn’t get a single pair. People will insist on giving me books. –J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Thousands of lights were burning on the green branches, and gaily-colored pictures, such as she had seen in the shop-windows, looked down upon […]

The Excitement–and the Mess–Build

Lynette M Burrows

There’s a lot going on at my house and the excitement—and the mess—build. Soon they will crescendo at nearly the same time. My hubby gets to come home this week and at the end of the week, I will be appearing at the Longview Literary Festival in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. The Festival is free and runs from 10 am to 5 pm, Friday, October 26th. I’d say I’m cleaning house in preparation for hubby coming home but that’s not exactly true. Take a look. Preparations My dining room has been converted to a workshop, staging area, and collections point. I wanted to do a little something special for my sales table at the Festival. And being the overachiever whose OCD kicks in at every opportunity, things got a little out of hand. Yup, those are two of my too-curious-for-their-own-good dogs in the crate in the lower right corner. They caused a couple of paint mishaps that could have been disastrous. Don’t worry. They will only be in there for a few more minutes. The product I’m using to paint the styrofoam head drys quickly. Have I gone overboard? Definitely. Is it worth it? It’s been fun, stressful, and fun. Of […]

20 Reasons Why You Love Reading Dystopian Novels

Lynette M Burrows

Dystopian novels are very popular these days. Have you thought about why they are so popular? Why do we choose to be entertained by dark worlds where it’s kill or be killed? I have pondered those questions. In my research, I didn’t go to the psychiatrists and academic sites to find out why. I went to the readers. 20 Reasons Why We Love Dystopian Novels They feel honest because we know politicians, military people, and corporate moguls are capable of doing awful things. Dictatorship, revolution, and counterrevolution usually cause severe physical and psychological damage to the victims and other participants.  We admire the best dystopian novels because they’re written well and depict people we can relate to. It fascinates us how some characters react bravely and some react cowardly or with resignation to the terrible situations they face. As readers, we rubberneck to see the misery; we can’t avert our eyes even as we’re enraged by what despots and other vicious officials are doing to citizens. We wonder if rebels and other members of the populace can somehow remake a wretched society into something more positive. The questions of who will survive and who won’t keep us reading.  We might […]