I love flowers Id love to have the whole place swimming in roses...(Molly Bloom, Ch. 18 Penelope, Ulysses)
It's Bloomsday. This is mainly from the archives as the week has slipped by far too fast. If you're on Twitter, follow this man today (& year-round). The Rosenbach Museum & Library in Philadelphia is maintaining a website dedicated to Joyce & Bloomsday; it's fairly new & needs more information; if you have some information, send it to them, please.If you're in Washington, DC, Politics & Prose, has a Bloomsday reading event starting at 10am (it won't be all day at P&P but continues on at other cafes/bookstores.)
And now, off for those flowers.....
ciao-yes-meow/GGCM
(photograph by Irene Suchocki)
If Tuesday is any indication, this week is already lost to us. We'll try to regain some sense of optimism...soon. Meanwhile, the Poetry Foundation is a favorite site & their Children's Poetry section is new-to-GGCM but looks quite good. Cultivating a love of poetry cannot begin too soon.ciao-meow(Briton Rivière painting by via dflam)
While we don't know William Shakespeare's actual birth date, he was baptized on the 26th of April (1564). Common practice had baptism at three days after birth, so happy birthday, Will.
For celebration & education:
The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC has a wonderful site, including sections for K-12 teachers. If you haven't been, please do visit when you come to Washington.
The Shakespeare Theatre Company should also be on your DC to-do list.
The National Endowment for the Humanities has excellent links for Shakespeare.
Remember Becky's phrases we owe to Shakespeare?
Always, always keep your Shakespeare Insult Kit handy!
Cheers/GGCM
(illustration by Jonny Hannah via Design)
There is no shortage of online material for Charles Dickens enthusiasts for the natal day (& year) celebration. Those fortunate to live in London, should visit the Charles Dickens Museum. Online, they have a creative writing project for students. There are resource links for parents & teachers, as well. (The museum will close in April for renovations so plan accordingly.)A new-to-us David Perdue's Charles Dickens Page looks excellent. So many links to good sites, synopses, illustration information, & much more. And, of course, Dickens 2012 is birthday central. ciao-pip-pip-meow/GGCM(photograph by Bob Penn)
Circumstances conspired to point us towards Tolstoy today, again. Giulia's editor read an excellent translation of Anna Karenina in 2001 & finally understood the greatness of Tolstoy, even in English. Now, a pile-up of Tolstoy blogs, reading groups, & even a tweeter! Visit C.M. Mayo's appropriately-titled Reading Tolstoy's War & Peace. She's our go-to link-a-lot & she always says the most interesting things.
We don't own the translation of War & Peace we want to read, so here's hoping the library does. And that the renewal policy is generous. 365 chapters is no small project. Eep.
ciao-meow/GG Book Club Central
(Woman Reading by Alexander Deineka)
It is a dark & stormy evening here in the nation's capital. We will be delayed in posting tomorrow but leave you with Russian artist and photographer Irina Istratova who is having a lot of fun with her camera & Photoshop lately. See more photographs, here.
For 32 of the most famous Russian fairy tales (in English), click here.Giulia is still asleep - OK, she did get up for snacks & dinner but now she's asleep again. We hope you are not floating away wherever you are.
Today is Ernest Hemingway's birthday & we're celebrating with a little tour down Key West way. GG is jealous of the cool lives these cats lead in the laid-back tropics (& of their lineage, of course). GG would dearly love extra "toes". (Her Nibs has been informed that it is an unattractive thing, envy. Didn't make an impression.)
Here's a terrific link to the Hemingway Home & Museum. There are photographs of the cats (there's even one named Audrey Hepburn), a live cat-cam, & explanations about the cats in the writer's life, how they are cared for now (they're quite well-off, thank you very much), & the history of cats on Key West.
The largest available archive of Hemingway material is at the JFK Presidential Library & Museum, here. You can read Hemingway's short story Cat in the Rain, here (a pdf download).
ciao-meow/GG's literary editor[photographs of Hairy Truman via LA Times blog, Hemingway with kitten via JFK Library & Museum & Hemingway Home & Museum]
Refreshingly pretty images for a hot July Monday (although the idea of wearing the clothes in hot weather is another matter entirely). If you haven't seen the "new" Emma on PBS, you really should catch it (the links have re-run schedules). The two-part program was nominated for several Emmy Awards for good reason. The Emma site is great fun. Take the Bachelors of Highbury Quiz. We are not satisfied with our first run-through, so we'll try again; of course, we prefer Mr. Knightley--who else?Jane Austen Today & AustenBlog are two favorite (of several) Jane Austen sites. In case you're thinking that they are prissy & pursed mouth affairs, you are quite mistaken. Good humor (& a good dose of cheekiness) is the hallmark of these informative, charming, & well-written blogs.Also, have a look at Hats and Laces. It has wonderful images of all fashion periods, including Regency. It beats washing the kitchen floor, no? Especially since GG refuses to do any sort of housework. She was keen at first, but then became bored. Perhaps Emma has been an influence in this regard. Oh dear. Have a wonderful Monday.
ciao-meow/GG Central
[PBS Emma images via Jane Austen World]
Giulia wants to attend the festival this year & we are considering giving her a much-needed outing. She has a new cherry-blossom patterned harness & lead & is ready for an afternoon of literary hobnobbing. If you're in, near, or will be in Washington on Saturday, consider dropping by the National Book Festival. (If not, visit the link; it's a bit of virtual amusement.) By dropping into & out of museums along the way, you can get some exercise & see some great autumn exhibits in one day.
BTW, if you see a redheaded, opinionated cat on the loose, grab her. GG aspires to be a museum cat; however, breaking out of the bag & dashing into the National Art Gallery is not on Saturday's menu, no matter what she might indicate to passersby.*ciao-meowGG's literary agent*innocent face, purring, meowseling --similar to yodeling, rolling on back & stretching out her amazingly long legs, etc.2009 Festival Artist: Charles Santore
Before the movie, you have time to read/re-read the novel. We adore Kate Winslet & look forward to the film (& Leo, of course)...but with some trepidation. Having any connection with the late novelist (which we do) causes some concern. We're on the verge of letting that go, though. Film production promises on RR have come & gone for so many years that we decided to believe it when it actually happened. That time is nearly here.
[No autumnal photos available on TPR web site, so here's a summer-y one; we're sure that our pictured TPR reader has tucked away her white sandals & shorts. Buy your tote here; it's only $15.]
Ciao, GG Central
Giulia & her editor can't go to the festival this year (there's a birthday at GG Central on the 27th!) but it's amusing & we often run into writers & artists we know & see about three times a year. Hope for sun & go. You'll be around a lot of museums, so a quick hop into one or two is always satisfying.2008 Festival Artist: Jan Brett
Busy day here but a few fairy links. A worthy essay (& book review) on The Lure of the Fairy Tale in last week's New Yorker. News-to-us: an archive of fairy tales discovered in Germany. Also, new-to-us, The Baldwin Online Children's Literature Project, excellent resource (including full-length printable stories).
A nod to Maitresse, in Paris. Yesterday's "Links on Wednesday" post is excellent. One important item is the Marilynne Robinson interview in the current Paris Review. The post mentions that the interview is making the rounds, true enough; but one more is just fine with GG's editor if more people read it. 
GG's editor recommends this article by Lauren Elkin. Visit her site, she's very funny & smart. Photos by the great Patrice Panfili.