Recap

Dear bloggers, readers, and once-in-a-blue-moon visitors,

I guess by now you have noticed that I haven't blogged for quite some time.  In fact, its been since August 2012 that I have written a real-time post.  I knew I would have little blogging time during September to December and decided to write enough posts to last me to the end of the year.  I had planned to create a new stash of reviews during the winter holidays that would be posted throughout the upcoming months while I diligently worked on my archival studies.  No such luck.

My winter holidays were fabulous.  I was super busy doing Christmasy things with E, family, and friends.  I did not, however, manage to write a review nor finish reading more than one book.  The book, Christmas at the Cupcake Cafe by Jenny Colgan, was very Christmasy and thus I cannot even post a review of it as, well... no one is in the Christmas mood anymore.

So, after a few *polite* questions from others about my blog over the last two weeks, I have decided to broadcast my predicament.  I have no reviews for the time being.  I haven't read any books of late... besides some good archival works.  I will try to keep my blog more updated - after all  blogging is a great procrastination tool!

Speaking of which, my annotated bibliography on the management of archives and library calls me...

Moyes' Interview

You can watch this at YouTube by clicking here (OfficialRichardandJudy, 2012).

Above is Jojo Moyes' discussion of her work Me Before You at the Richard and Judy Book Club 2012 hosted by WHSmith, a bookshop in the UK.  I absolutely loved this book and I think it's topic is incredibly pertinent in today's society - this clip is worth a listen.

The Richard and Judy Book Club 2012 have conducted interviews with all of the authors from this years reading list.  Their other interviews can be found on YouTube by clicking here.

Me Before You

Photo taken by Ms. C. 

Jojo Moyes has often been labelled a chick-lit writer.  However, I think she is anything but the producer of fluffy, inconsequential romances.  Moyes does write love stories... but her tales are able to combine controversial topics, emotion, hilarity, and intense drama.

Moyes explores the everyday life of individuals with severe physical disabilities within her work Me Before You.  The story centers around Will, a quadriplegic young man who was once highly active, and his budding relationship with Lou, his caretaker.  Readers are introduced to each character before they meet - thus we are able to view Will as a young athletic business man at the top of his world and Lou as a recently laid of cafe employee supporting her parents and sister on minimum wage.  Moyes does an excellent job of developing the characters and portraying the tensions in each one's life which ultimately bring them together.

Punctuate Me Up

My classmates recently brought my attention to this guest post by Leah Petersen at Bryan Thomas Schmidt.

Apparently how we write reflects our personality type.  Are you a guy/girl who uses lots of commas, periods, exclamation points, or colons? 

I'm somewhere between a "..." and "-" girl... which means I am creative, indecisive, and flighty (among other things).  Actually, I use parentheses a lot, too.  Perhaps I should add scatterbrained and mutli-tasking to my list?  I think I could find a few people who would attest that I hold all of these traits.  Especially indecisive... oh boy, am I indecisive.


.... I think it's time I stop analyzing.


What does your punctuation say about you?  Click here to find out.

Love, Books, and Marriage

I stumbled upon a story of love, books, and marriage while surfing through Twitter earlier this afternoon. 

This article, featured at Quill & Quire, describes Naly and Ben's recent Toronto wedding (congrats!).  The couple, who met at Davenport Public Library, decided to hold their wedding vows at Ben McNally Books as the store's name is eerily similar to their own. 

This led me to ponder.... would I want to get married in a bookstore or library? 

While reading this article I immediately thought of Sex and the City and Carrie's use of the New York Public Library for her wedding venue.  She rationalized that the library was the perfect location for a wedding as it held all of the world's greatest love stories.  How romantic!

Me.... while, I've always wanted to get married in a castle.  Or someplace that looked vaguely like a castle.  I recently joked that I should just find a brick wall somewhere, considering the amount of castles Canada has to offer.  However, I can see potential if a really cool, old-fashioned, European style library popped up on my soil.



Would you combine love and books on your big day?

From the Land of E to Home

Over the past four weeks I have been in England.  I seem to have good timing for travel - last year I was able to see Will and Kate's royal wedding while the jubilee was in full swing this time around.  I swear I didn't plan it!  Actually, I didn't even know the true date of the jubilee until I landed and heard all of the British news coverage leading up to the big weekend celebrations.


So, how was the Land of E? ---- Great! 

I loved each and every minute... besides those dreadful final goodbyes.   E and I were able to visit awesome literary sites (the birthplace of Shakespeare and the Harry Potter studio tour in London). Partly my jet lag and partly my cold - I managed to be sick my entire stay and am currently propped up in bed - prevent me from further explaining these awesome sites.  That, and the fact that Potter and Shakespeare deserve far more than a few sentences.   Over the next little while I will upload both photos and stories from these very places.

PS - I may be a coffee addict but tea is another one of my weaknesses.  Stay tuned for a very British tea tasting review held from Nottingham!

Lets Unite

Love, love, LOVE this video.  Oh how I wish I would have found Madeline sitting on my school bus back in the day... I adored her stories! Who is your favourite character featured here?

First Year of Grad School Complete!

I finished the first year of my MLIS/MAS dual degree Easter Monday.

What did I do to celebrate?
Jumped on a plane to Las Vegas!
It was a great way to unwind, relax, and get prepared for a fun-filled summer spent away from graduate school.

However, I still have a HUGE stack of library books which need to be returned... 22 books to be exact. I already returned over 30 books which I packed into a suitcase. Yes, I traveled to university with an actual suitcase full of books to be returned (it felt super odd). I also kept all of the receipts from this semester's library books, mostly to keep track of what book came from what library. There is quite the collection... at least I feel that I'm putting the library to good use as an upcoming librarian myself!

Receipts for the 55 library books I rented this semester.
(Photo taken by Ms. C)

From 1 masters degree to 2

First off - yayy for awesome songs!

*LOVE* this song! Carly is one of my favourites - this CD came out on valentines day!

In other news... Grad school life hasn't been that exciting - I don't even have any crazy stories to report on over the last month. February flew by, partly because it was a mad-dash to get ready for March assignment due dates. First year is officially over in less than a month!! I have a huge stack of books (you know, the fun ones with awesome plots and reviewable material) that I cannot wait to dive into starting April 9th.

I'd like to say that I am halfway done my two-year MLIS degree... but things have changed since I last wrote. I decided to do a dual masters degree. Two years from now I will be the proud owner of two masters degrees - an MLIS and MAS. I am so excited and so happy that I have this opportunity! Some of you may have picked up along the way of reading my posts that I am a history fanatic. The thought of being the person who manages, preserves, and promotes our cultural record is amazing. Someone pinch me!

Speaking of which, my newest assignment is finding out how to spend $6000 on preservation materials for a rbsc library. I should really get back to discussions on mold, appropriate shelving, and pH testing.... sigh.

Hello, Hello!

So sorry to leave this blog unattended for so long! I finished my first semester at Library School in early December. I was exhausted and the thought of blogging was way too much for my body or mind to fathom immediately after handing in my last assignment.

Flash-forward a week after gaining freedom from Library School's due dates... and E was here for the holidays. He *almost* missed the plane. He's asked me not to glorify his actions - but I can't resist. He was stuck in traffic in London and ended up running for the plane (he's got all the athletic skill in this relationship haha). There were a few minutes I believed he wouldn't make the flight... and when he finally told me he was seconds from take off I was ecstatic!

During the holiday season I acquired a Sony ereader. I know this blog proudly displays the sign "i pledge to read the printed word." And, don't get me wrong, I still do. However, I have fallen in love with the ereader... and I know it will come in handy next time I travel across the Atlantic (*hint - there's a future trip a'brewing!).

I'm now in Library School's second semester. I am so glad I finished my foundation classes - they were brutal. However, I now have major procrastination problems... I'd like to think that is not why I'm writing here... but you and me both know it probably has something to do with it ;)

I may not be able to read as frequently as I would wish, but I am still planning to keep Coffee Tales up. Future posts will provide accounts of caffeinated graduate school adventures of many shapes and forms... along with book entries and hopefully a recipe or two.

Hope all is well,
Ms. C

Chaucer Fuss - The Nun Priest's Tale

"The Nun Priest's Tale" is the final segment of Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales. The power of dreams and education are explored within this tale.

"The Nun Priest's Tale" is the most optimistic story in Chaucer's work. Within this story, Chaucer reminds his readers of the importance of learning from all aspects of life. Hands-on learning is emphasized in his work as he describes the importance of learning essential life decisions through dreams.

This work illustrates the significance medieval Englanders placed on supernatural occurrences and the spiritual world. It was important to be aware of all areas of life, including the conscious and subconscious mind.

Chaucer did not plan on ending The Canterbury Tales with "The Nun Priests Tale." In fact, his work was meant to be much, much longer. However, the Nun Priest's Tale does seem a fitting ending to Chaucer's work. The Canterbury Tales reflects both traditional lifestyles and progressive ideas in medieval England. It is appropriate that a tale focusing on the importance of knowledge and awareness is the close of Chaucer's tomb of writing.


Bibliographical Reference:
Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. New York: Barnes and Noble Classics, 2006.

October Library School Update

You know when you have SO much to do that you're stressed out? Combine stress with a whole whack of other negative feelings and boom -- that's my life tonight. I can't concentrate despite the looming library school deadlines. I feel confused, upset, rushed, headache-y, and stuck in one spot. It rather sucks...

Having said that, I do really love what I am learning. All of the material is finally clicking - I begin to see things in my environment in a new light. I'm slowly internalizing all of this pedagogy. So, I guess I am doing wonderful in one regard.

I have just a little over a month until Christmas break rolls around... and then sleep! And lots and lots of blogging. And reading for fun!! Oh how I've missed it!


PS - a big, bigggg collective hug to all of you! *hug*

First Two Weeks of Library School

Ahhhh, I haven't written in here forever!

How's the program going?
It's intense. Confusing. Mind-boggling. And, thankfully, interesting.

On the off chance that I'm not thinking about school work and assignments and course readings, I'm thinking about how much I miss E. I'm sure I'll get my head into the right space soon enough.

Lately, we've been learning about just how much information is out there needing to be organized and managed. We've delved into cataloguing, reference work, and IT (the scariest of the scariest topics for me).

They're also supplying us with many, many videos on the crazily expanding amount of information. Here's a recent one:

Chaucer Fuss - The Miller's Tale

We are quickly introduced to the miller in Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales. The miller, described as an athletic and charismatic man, tells a graphic tale of adultery. The wit and sexual capabilities of an intellectual and tradesman are pitted against each other within this work.

Picture Me Wednesday - 2011 Week 21

E is a potter. Not so much an Englishman with the last name Potter (hehe), but more so a guy who knows his pottery.

A few months ago I saw a sturdy white cup in the pottery factory and fell in love. Little did I know that I would soon be receiving one, with a few added personal touches, as a present.

I just love this cup and had to share it online. It is the perfect study companion for a caffeine addicted gal. I know it will be used many, many times come September.

Death by Books

This weekend K and I went book hunting and found ourselves in a shop that closely resembled an episode from Hoarders.

A bookstore should have a wide selection of books... but this was overboard. Books were piled high to the ceiling. Books were heaped onto tables. Books were laden between the isles. I often had to squeeze through piles of books on the floor that were higher than me to get to the next shelf!

Two flights of stairs and we were in the basement. Lights flickered as we stood looking at, seriously, a mountain of books.

I totally regret forgetting to bring my camera on this outing. What I saw is hard to describe, and all I have to show for the experience are two slightly fuzzy Ipod pictures.

Secret Daughter

Nature or nurture?
What truly makes you 'you'?

Shilpi Somaya Gowda's Secret Daughter examines notions of family and self-identity while confronting cultural differences between America and India during the 1990s and 2000s.

Picture Me Wednesday - 2011 Week 20

Do you write in your books?

I like to record information.

Who? What? Where? When?
I like to cover all the bases.
I guess where my books originate from are no exception in my 'must record information' mind.

When a book comes from a special place, from a special someone, or from a special moment in history, I like to record it all down in its margins.

Happy One Year

This time last year I had just met E, now my Englishman, who happened to live halfway across the world. I decided to devote my spare time to reading and reviewing books, coffee cup in hand. I wrote my first blog post.

Today I spent my afternoon in an *unhappy* airport, experienced a torrential rainstorm, thunder, and lightening. As fate would have it, E left Canada on Coffee Tale Reviews' 1 year anniversary. The fact that this little blog has made it through a year is a bittersweet affair.

I would like to thank each and every one of my readers, followers, authors, publishers, friends, and family members for your kind comments, suggestions, or promotions.

Thank you for making a wonderful year at Coffee Tale Reviews.


PS - A 1 year anniversary isn't complete without some stats:
179 posts
41 books read & reviewed
25 yummy recipes tested

The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England

Next month you are travelling to England. Fourteenth century England at that. What do you need to know? What are the laws? What should you expect to eat, do, and wear on your stay?

How will you experience medieval England?

This is a central question in Ian Mortimer's The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century. Mortimor creates a very unique non-fiction history text through writing the past as if it were the present.