Blogversary Giveaway #3: For International Readers ONLY.

I know I have a fair amount of international readers, so I definitely wanted to make sure that you were not left out of the celebrations going on here. So, I made this giveaway JUST for my international readers (anyone who lives outside the U.S.).

So what is up for grabs in this giveaway?



Your choice of one of the beautiful Penguin Clothbound series of classics. The full list of titles includes:

• Little Women
• Emma
• Pride and Prejudice
• Sense and Sensibility
• Jane Eyre
• Wuthering Heights
• Alice in Wonderland
• The Woman in White
• Inferno
• A Christmas Carol and Other Christmas Writings
• Great Expectations
• Oliver Twist
• The Hound of the Baskervilles
• Cranford
• Tess of D'Urbervilles
• The Odyssey
• Lady Chatterley's Lover
• Shakespeare's Sonnets and A Lover's Complaint
• Treasure Island
• The Picture of Dorian Gray
• Middlemarch
• Tale of Two Cities
• Dracula
• Gulliver's Travels

I adore this series, and you all know that I try to give one away every opportunity I can. So here is what you need to do to enter...

Rules:

• The first thing I want you to do is check this list to make sure The Book Depository delivers to your country (it delivers to a GREAT deal of them, so check!). If for whatever reason they don't deliver, still enter and we'll figure something else out if you win. :)
• In a comment below, leave the following information for me: 1. the country you live in, 2. your e-mail so I can contact you, and 3. the title of your favorite classic novel!
• You can only enter once.
• You do not have to "follow" or subscribe (but do if you so feel the desire)
• If you win, you have 24 hours to respond or I will choose a new winner.
• Winner will be chosen randomly using random.org
• This giveaway will end on Friday, September 2, 2011 at 11:59 PM EST.

Good luck!

"Oldies but Goodies" Mini-Challenge Winners.

Ummm....wow you guys. I am impressed by the number of entries (155!) and the fact that you all seemed to love talking about these old books that I hold so dear to my heart. It has been an absolute blast reading through your comments and I have added a LARGE number of titles to that massive TBR list I have. It also made for good reading while sitting in the doctor's office this morning. :)

It is great to see that at some point, these books we call "classics" have impacted everyone. I suppose that is why we call them classics, hmm?

Reading through all of your entries and your cries of, "How can I pick just one?" had me thinking about which books I would label my favorites. It came down to 1 story out of a million that I wanted to share.

When I was coming up with the premise for my blog and developing my book list, challenge requirements, and naming my blog, I took a good long look at what I was trying to accomplish. I wanted a name to speak to what I was going to do and years long project it was going to be. That is when my eyes glanced over Homer's The Odyssey on my list. It had been a couple years since I read the story, but I was drawn to the name. I loved the struggle of Telemachus finding himself and his role in society, I loved the drama of Odysseus finding his way home. No matter what obstacles were in their way, both men met those challenges and conquered them.

The name of my blog was born and The Odyssey was the first book I read and discussed on my blog. And whenever I get low or frustrated, I can look at that blog name and remember.

Cheesy? Probably.

Anyway, I know why you're all here and that is for the names of the WINNERS.

I chose two winners randomly through random.org. They are:

#41: Savs (having a hard time finding your blog!)

and

#125: Simplerpastimes

And since there were so many entries....I randomly picked one more winner (again, from random.org):

#20: Amanda

Congrats to all the winners! You have until the end of the read-a-thon to contact me through my blog e-mail (you can find it on my profile page).


But wait....


My husband was so impressed with your response and shocked by the outpouring of your responses that he wants to pick one more commenter. I let him read through the comments and he selected one more person to win based on this comment:

"You rock, Allie Cat.

My favorite classic? Gone With the Wind, Gone With the Wind, Gone With the Wind!!

Because it is about a woman's struggle through war, and societal expectation, and an insane sort of upbringing.

Because it was my first classic. (I was sixteen the first time I read it.)

Because I share a love of the book with my mother. She doesn't adore much literature, but it was she who kept nudging me to read Mitchell; when I finally did, I fell in love, with reading, with history, with Atlanta, with the story of the American Civil War.

Because my grandmother was from Atlanta, GA, and I hope to move back there, some day. I'm pulled to my history in Atlanta. My people were in Georgia for generations.

Because all of my love, for everything above, is rooted in Gone With the Wind.

And Margaret Mitchell? She is my literary best friend."

Congrats Jillian! Now my husband is calling me Allie Cat. :)

Thank you all for entering. Winners, contact me by the end of the readathon so I can be in touch with you about picking which title you want (that way I can order you your lovely and get it on the way)!

The "Oldies but Goodies" Mini-Challenge.

Hello read-a-thoners! How is your day going so far? I hope you are making great progress towards your reading goals!

Welcome to my humble little blog in the big book blogging world. By looking around you might be saying to yourself, "Wow, I see a lot of scary classics on here. Is she crazy?" I assure you that I am quite sane most of the time, but I do love the classics and that, my friends, is the primary focus of my blog and the mini-challenge that brought you here.

For this mini-challenge, all you need to do is leave a comment here with the answer to these big scary questions:

What is your favorite "classic" and why? How has that classic impacted your life?

See? Scary.

Now you might be asking, "Allie, what do I get if I win?"

I'll tell you.


Those pretty books up there are Penguin Clothbound classics and I absolutely love them. I own the set and have been gushing about them since I bought my first one over a year ago.

There will be two winners, both who will be randomly chosen based on random.org. Depending on how many entries and how much you all gush over your classic love, I will pull a third winner. Each winner will get to choose their title of choice from the following list:

• Little Women
• Emma
• Pride and Prejudice
• Sense and Sensibility
• Jane Eyre
• Wuthering Heights
• Alice in Wonderland
• The Woman in White
• Inferno
• A Christmas Carol and Other Christmas Writings
• Great Expectations
• Oliver Twist
• The Hound of the Baskervilles
• Cranford
• Tess of D'Urbervilles
• The Odyssey
• Lady Chatterley's Lover
• Shakespeare's Sonnets and A Lover's Complaint
• Treasure Island
• The Picture of Dorian Gray

In addition, there are four more titles being published in the U.S. at the end of April if you decide you want one of these:

• Middlemarch
• Tale of Two Cities
• Dracula
• Gulliver's Travels

To recap and clarify the rules:

To enter, all you need to do is leave a comment with an answer to that question up there. The challenge will run for three hours. At the end of the three hours, I will randomly select the winners and make an announcement post. The winners will have until the end of the readathon to get in touch with me or I will select a new winner. This contest is open to anyone who lives in a country that the Book Depository delivers to and you should be 13+.

Sound wonderful?

Good luck and start telling me about those Oldies you love!

Oliver Twist Readalong Sign-ups AND Giveaway.

I am pleased to announce that we will be reading Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist for our February readalong here at A Literary Odyssey. This novel beat out "Romeo and Juliet" during the voting session, and in a way, I'm kind of glad.

While I am not a huge fan of Dickens, I am excited to tackle another of his novels with a bunch of you. If you are questioning whether this is a novel you want to give a try, here is a summary from Goodreads.com,

"One of Dickens’s most popular novels, Oliver Twist is the story of a young orphan who dares to say, "Please, sir, I want some more." After escaping from the dark and dismal workhouse where he was born, Oliver finds himself on the mean streets of Victorian-era London and is unwittingly recruited into a scabrous gang of scheming urchins. In this band of petty thieves Oliver encounters the extraordinary and vibrant characters who have captured readers’ imaginations for more than 150 years: the loathsome Fagin, the beautiful and tragic Nancy, the crafty Artful Dodger, and perhaps one of the greatest villains of all time—the terrifying Bill Sikes.

Rife with Dickens’s disturbing descriptions of street life, the novel is buoyed by the purity of the orphan Oliver. Though he is treated with cruelty and surrounded by coarseness for most of his life, his pious innocence leads him at last to salvation—and the shocking discovery of his true identity."

It sounds fascinating, doesn't it?

Here is the reading schedule I have planned out, based on the edition I own (I will be reading from the Penguin cloth bound classic, which has 455 pages divided into three books). I should note that because the book is divided into three "books" I decided to do three posting periods. If there is huge public outcry against this, I will change it.

• Post 1 will go up on February 8th (Tuesday) and will cover Book 1 (roughly 180 pages-the longest section)
  
• Post 2 will go up on February 17th (Thursday) and will cover Book 2 (roughly 120 pages)
  
• Post 3 will go up on February 28th (Monday) and will cover Book 3 (roughly 140 pages)
  

That morning I will put up a post with my thoughts and feelings about the section we're posting on. If you are participating, all you have to do is leave a comment with a link to your post so I can link them up here! I do not require participants to go read everyone else's post, but it is always encouraged! After all, the point of a readalong is to see what everyone else makes of the same book and discuss it.

Everyone who completes the readalong will receive something from me in the mail (a surprise!) and a hearty congratulations!

WAIT!!! THERE IS MORE!!!!

As of January 16, 2011, the GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED as a winner was chosen.

In addition to having sign-ups, I am also GIVING away a copy of this book. Really? How did this happen? Well, my generous and wonderful parents purchased the rest of the Penguin clothbounds for me as a Christmas gift. My mom accidentally ordered an extra copy. So yes, I have a glorious Penguin clothbound of Oliver Twist for one of you.

Here's the deal. I would really like to give this book to someone who wants to participate in the readalong. So, if you are interested, you have until Sunday at NOON to enter to win (I want to make sure I can get it mailed out to you ASAP). All you need to do is comment to sign up for the readalong and let me know you're interested in winning this beauty! I should also point out that I can only ship to someone living in the U.S.

I would also appreciate it if you would spread the word on your blog and/or Twitter about this readalong, so we can get as many participants as we can!

If you are signing up for the readalong, comment and let me know so I can link to your blog!

Participants:
Adam
Kristi
Eclectic Indulgence
Bookworm1858
Jillian
Karenlibrarian
mel u
L.L. (No link to blog!)
kassy
readwriteandlive
Willa
Katy F.
Cindy
Annette
Aimee
terri-maree
tasseled
fleurfisher
Zoe
Darlyn
Alison
Staci (I know you said you were a maybe, but I left you on here, just in case)

Penguin Clothbound Winners!

Wow! I was so excited to see that so many of you wanted to win one of the lovely Penguin clothbounds I put up for grabs! There were 66 entries, which is far more than any other giveaway I've hosted. And I know I said that once I hit 25 entries I would select another winner. And I mean to.

But I got to talking to Matt (the husband) and since I was so astonished that there was so much interest, I'm tacking on another winner. So yes, you read that right, I am going to buy three lucky winners the Penguin clothbound of their choice!

Here are the winners! (Again, all three numbers were taken from random.org)

Entry #28: Adam from Roof Beam Reader

Entry # 55: Jessica from Firefly Book Loft

Entry #18: Christina from Reading Thru The Night

I am so excited to be sending the three of you your lovely Penguin clothbound from Bookdepository.com. Look for an e-mail in your inbox from yours truly so I can get these lovelies to you as soon as possible!

For the rest of you, thank you for entering. I will be hosting another (similar) giveaway in the very near future, so please enter again!

Penguin 10 Essential Classics:

Last year, Penguin released their list of the Ten Essential Classics that everyone must read. It was a fun list and included some of my favorite classic novels.

Since its release, there has been some discussion about novels that needed to be included, so Penguin is asking for votes for the new Ten Essential Classics. Included with the vote is an opportunity to win a tote bag filled with the amazing Penguin editions of the ten new novels.

I already cast my vote, but I figured it would be best to pass along the opportunity to you all!

And in case you were wondering, here are the ten titles I selected (I should point out that I only chose titles I have read. I felt that was fair. That might explain why a certain Bronte title is missing...and some from Tolstoy). And these are in no particular order:

• The Odyssey by Homer
• Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
• Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
• Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift
• Middlemarch by George Eliot
• Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
• Le Morte D'Arthur by Thomas Malory
• Hamlet by William Shakespeare
• The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
  

Good luck if you enter!

Weekly Wrap-up for July 11, 2010: Book Plans and Acquisitions.

It was a decent week after we hit the mid-way point. I fortunately had two of the four days of the heat wave off so I spent them blissfully in bed with the air conditioning working hard. I was grateful I didn't have to go and work (I work outside, so when it gets really hot, it is super nasty). I also feel slightly better, but still tired. Mono is different for everyone and I certainly have the fatigue and muscle aches!

We've been getting ready to go up north tomorrow, which we are both really excited for. We both need a break and it will be wonderful to sit out in the sun (or sleep) and read some wonderful books. Matt is planning on making me go fishing, but he agreed I can just accompany him on the boat and read while he fishes. We'll see though!

On Thursday we might be making a trip up to Mackinaw Island, which is about 45 minutes north of my family's cottage. I haven't been up the island since I was 2 or 3, and since Thursday is my birthday, I wanted to do something fun (I'll be turning 25). There are also some new bookstores in downtown that my aunt was telling me about, so I think we are going to have to do some more book shopping.

I have gotten quite a few books over the last week or so. I got a good chunk for my birthday from my parents and brothers and sister, and some I bought with a gift card another relative gave me. I also just out and purchased one since I am planning on bringing it with me next week.
Here is what I have added to my shelves:

I had asked for 6 or so titles to finish the first two sets in the beautiful Penguins Classics series (the picture shows the full set of three different printings. The third printing is available yet in the U.S.). This made me so excited as I love the vintage feel of this set and I am so glad that I have a bunch of great titles on my shelves. The books I now have are: Emma, The Odyssey, Treasure Island, Lady Chatterley's Lover, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Great Expectations, Wuthering Heights, Sense and Sensibility, Cranford, Tess of d'Urbervilles, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, and The Picture of Dorian Gray. Of those pictures, two of these books are now out of print. Apparently they only printed a limited number and only in the U.K. Those are Madame Bovary and Crime and Punishment. The rest of the collection will be out in September and it includes: The Hound of the Baskervilles, Oliver Twist, The Woman in White, Shakespeare's Sonnets, and Little Women. You can guarantee that I will try and add them to my collection as well!

I also wanted to add another Steinbeck and this title has been hard to find in my local bookstores. For some reason, they carry almost every other Steinbeck but this title!

The Winter of Our Discontent is a favorite of my brother-in-law so I am curious to see if I am going to like it or if I will forever banish Kyle from giving me suggestions. I have already two Steinbeck's for my challenge, Of Mice and Men and Travels with Charley in Search of America. I felt indifferent about Of Mice and Men, but I loved the other. I'm not feeling up to tackling Grapes of Wrath quite yet, but I think this might be a good solution to get a Steinbeck fix. And I have a feeling I am going to like it a lot anyway.

I also was excited that they had the Penguin edition. I love the sleek black look of Penguin Classics and while they cost more than some other editions, they look so pretty on a shelf. Because yes, buying books is all about putting them on display, isn't it?

I thought I had a copy of Virginia Woolf's Orlando somewhere, but when I went looking, I couldn't find it. And since I have been craving some more Woolf (I love the lyrical tone to her writing), I wanted to read this title.

I ended up buying a new copy that matches the others in my Woolf set. I had an older edition that was far less pretty anyway, so this cover is fine with me. But when I got home and checked my list, Orlando wasn't on it! It looks like I won't be reading it to fulfill my 250 titles, but I'm glad I have a new copy anyway. I know I'll get to it eventually since Woolf is a favorite of mine.

I also picked up another Woolf novel, A Room of One's Own. This one I haven't read before, so hopefully I enjoy it. At least this one counts for my challenge! The other novels by Woolf I have to read are Night and Day and To the Lighthouse. I already read and reviewed Mrs. Dalloway about a month or so ago.


I have been in the mood for some wonderful Greek writing, so when I saw this on a display, I grabbed it. The edition of The Odyssey that I love most is Fagles translation. He really knows how to make the story come alive, so I know that I will benefit from his translation of Virgil's The Aeneid. And yes, translation DOES matter.



Sara Douglass is one of my favorite fantasy writers. She is a great world-builder and I am fascinated by what she has created. The Infinity Gate is the third in a trilogy (the other two titles are The Serpent Bride and The Twisted Citadel) that I have been anxiously waiting for. I haven't read any of the books. I always try and wait if I can for a series to be finished before starting it if it is by an author I really love and cherish. That way I can fly through it and be absorbed all at once. All three of the books are making their way up north with me and they will be part of the "fun reading" I am doing up north as part of my glorious vacation time.



My last new buy was the newest book in John Flanagan's Ranger's Apprentice Series. I love this series more than anything. It is fun and action-packed. And while it is certainly YA, I love every word of it. I bought the 7th book in the series, Erak's Ransom back in January when it came out as well. Both that one and this title will be making their way up north as well. I might even bring the 6th book, The Seige of Mackindaw with me as well.

Anyway, those are my newest additions and if Matt has anything to say about it, they will be the last for a little while. I still have plenty of unread books on my shelves,

And speaking of shelves, Matt couldn't figure out what to get me for my birthday, so we settled on getting another book shelf (yay!) so I can put more of my books on display. I currently have one shelf in our bedroom that houses all of my classics, but I would love to display some of my favorites on another shelf. The rest of my books are in boxes in one of our closets. I own about 1200 books, so you can imagine how when I say the closet is full of books I am not exaggerating. But it will be awesome to have more out and within reach.

Happy Reading everyone!

Sunday Salon: March 21, 2010.

I had a really great week this week! One of the biggest accomplishments was getting caught up on the piles and piles of laundry that were taking over our bedroom. It is so nice to have clean clothes to wear! But I am amazed at how much laundry two people can have.

Tuesday night was the return of our community band after a 2 week break. Matt and I both play (trumpet), so we were glad to get back into the swing of things. We have some great music this half of the semester and I am pretty excited. We're playing a piece inspired by Whitman's poems! I have mad love for Whitman, so I am really into the piece we're playing. I even have a solo!

Wednesday was St. Patty's Day, so we had grand plans (this is where it is nice to not be working). Unfortunately I woke up with a nasty migraine, so after nursing me for a bit Matt met some friends for breakfast and early beverage consumption. Thankfully by the time they returned here I was feeling better. We all hung out for awhile until I went to work from 4 to 8, then partied some more after. It was great to see friends and family and just relax. Also, it was gorgeous outside so the windows were wide open and we all enjoyed some fresh air.

Thursday was also a great day. We slept in before cleaning up from the night before. Thursday night I got to meet Carrie Ryan! I also picked up some extra copies of her books for her to sign and for me to give away! It was a great experience and I really need to make it a point to go to more book signings. I love hearing writers discuss their writing process and the stories behind their novels. It is simply fascinating. Carrie was especially wonderful and offered great insights to up and coming writers.

Last night we were originally going to travel into the "thumb" of Michigan to my in-laws' cabin for a maple syrup making party, but I woke up with a sore throat and came home from work with those dreaded white spots in my throat. Matt decided to stay home and nurse me, which was a wise decision since our power ended up going out!

In book news...

Earlier this week I got a newsletter from Penguin Classics announcing the release of more titles to their Hardcover Classics line. I mentioned in an earlier post how I am desperately want all of these editions. In general, I really like Penguin Classics. They are well done and beautiful editions. And these gorgeous hardcovers are no exception. I own the editions of Wuthering Heights, Cranford, and Tess of D'Urbervilles, but I really want all of them (Note: If anyone wants to butter me up, please buy me these. Thanks.). Here are the five new editions:

Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll

Emma by Jane Austen

Lady Chatterley's Lover by D.H. Lawrence

Treasure Island by Robert Lewis Stevenson

The Odyssey by Homer

I would like one of each, thanks! I personally love the new edition of The Odyssey, I just love the color and the image of the waves, but each one is beautiful. I would love to have all of them on my shelves. If you want to see the whole line, here is the place to look. I should probably add here that Penguin has no idea who I am, so I am not specifically endorsing their products for them. I just love them!

I also had a pretty good reading week. I finished Lord of the Flies, which was an odd little book. I also read Death of a Salesman and Misanthrope. I am also working on number 55 on the original list, which is the "Complete" Sherlock Holmes novels and stories. It is a huge task, but I am working on the first novel, A Study in Scarlet. To get through all four novels and 56 short stories will be a long process-bear with me! I have The Cherry Orchard by Chekov on my desk, as well as The Picture of Dorian Gray. To be fair, I'm not sure what is up next. I think I might have a long visit with my bookshelves to see what pops out.

I am probably going to work on finishing up the Lost Challenge in the next couple of weeks. I only have two more books to read for it, but I am not sure which. I have these four titles to choose from: Catch-22 by Joseph Heller, Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut, and The Turn of the Screw by Henry James. Any suggestions?

I also need to work on completing two Dumas novels for the Classics Circuit. I am going to read two novels for the circuit, The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers, so I should get going on those.

It seems like I have a lot of reading to take care of in the next few weeks!

Happy Reading everyone!