New Penguin Clothbounds.

Okay, by now you all should know how much I love and adore the Penguin Clothbound Classic series. I own the full set (minus Crime and Punishment and Madame Bovary which were only released in the UK for a limited time), and I give them away as much as I possibly can. I don't love them just because they're classics-I love them because they are high-quality, lasting editions I will own and cherish for a lifetime. I see my set as something I can leave behind. Morbid? maybe. But it is how I think. I am building a library not only for myself, but my future family. Know what I mean?

Earlier today I was fiddling online when I stumbled across a clothbound cover for Charles Dickens' Bleak House. Since I don't own that one and I own the entire set, I knew it had to be a new release. So, I did some more sleuthing and discovered that there are going to be 5 new titles released in the "near" future (at least from what I could find).

On December 27, Penguin is releasing two more Dickens titles (Bleak House and Hard Times) to celebrate Dickens' 200th birthday (you can read more HERE on the Penguin UK site). These will join Oliver Twist, A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, and A Christmas Carol in the collection.

Here are the two covers:



I also discovered that they are releasing the remaining Jane Austen novels (of her main 6) in April (however, the Book Depository, based in the UK, has them releasing next month).

Here are the three covers:




What do you think? I know I am going to have to get my hands on them. :) I do like some of the covers better than others, and it is hard to judge the colors based on what you see on screen. Some of the color combos on the other titles are also a little wonky, but the editions are still beautiful. Of the five new titles, my favorite covers are Hard Times and Persuasion.

Any of you Austen fans going to collect all 6? ;)

Weekly Wrap-up for October 9, 2011: A Quick One.

I only want to take a few moments to update. The blog has been silent this week, not because I didn't have anything to post about (I do), but because I honestly had one of the most frustrating, emotional, and horrible weeks of my life. But I don't want to talk about it, acknowledge it, or let it get to me.

Today marks the beginning of a new week (thank you!), and I have a lot of things to get through this week-including the first night of conferences.

In reading, I managed to finish Moby-Dick this morning. It only took me a month. But it was glorious and worth it. This week my goals are to finish my Classics Circuit choice, Dracula, and The House of Seven Gables. Probably not going to happen, but we'll see. :)

Hope you all have a good week!

Readathon Shenanigans.

I might be a little late to the party, but I wanted to let you all know that sign-ups for Dewey's 24-hour Readathon are up and running here. You need to get on that and sign up to participate! :)

I look forward to this event more than anything else. It is a great way to interact with the book blogging community, enter some awesome contests, and get a LOT of reading done.

There are also lots of opportunities to get involved-from cheering, to hosting a contest, to reading! I suggest you peek around the site and see what kind of commitment you want to take on.

In April, I hosted a mini-challenge and co-hosted the last few hours of the readathon. This time around, I am focusing solely on reading. I am way behind and need to "catch up," so that day will be a great way to do that. I am planning a Vlog for the day before to show you my pile of books, and my random cheering thoughts. :)

Who else is participating?

Weekly Wrap-up for October 2, 2011: Helllllloooo October.

I am so glad September is over. I mean, it is probably my least favorite month of the year. I always get sick, school starts, and the weather can't make up its mind. I am glad to see October, chillier temperatures, and a routine starting to set in.

September was also a horrible reading month over here. While I read about half of Moby-Dick, the only book I finished was Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, which was a whopping 120 pages. I am clearly not accomplishing any of the goals I set for myself.

And I have to admit, I really don't care that I'm not being more hardcore about reading every night. Perhaps it is the illness, or maybe the fact that I am busy, but reading took a bit of a backseat last month. When I went back and looking at my reading list for last year, I did the same thing-I only read 1 book in the month of September. Let's just say that September is not a good reading month for me.

In any case, I have been reading a bit more this weekend in attempts to get on top of all the reading commitments I have this month. This includes 3 group reads (2 that I am hosting), a book for the Classics Circuit, the remainder of my R.I.P. choices, and a few "fun" reads I am hoping to plow through. With being sick, I'm not going to kill myself to get all this read, but it is still a goal.

My book buying ban is going really well. I was tempted to stop in the store the other day to "browse," but I realized that was silly, since I don't need any more books. I have plenty on my shelves. My only "purchase" was a free ebook for Homer, so I haven't broken the ban yet! If I can make it a month, I think it'll be the longest I have gone without buying a book. Sad, I know.

Anyway, I am heading over to my mom's in a bit to do laundry (I have to get the husband to help me carry the laundry downstairs first-too many stairs sets me coughing like a maniac). Usually I take my computer and such with me, but since I really want to finish Moby-Dick, that is all I am taking with. Wish me luck! I am aiming to get to page 500 today!

Happy Reading!

Weekend Reading Update 1.

I mentioned on Thursday that the doctor told me I have to rest and relax as much as possible this weekend, which means lots of reading time. I set some goals, but I think this weekend is more about taking it easy than getting a ton accomplished.

But, I have made some progress. I managed to finish The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde on Thursday night. I still need to write a post on it...maybe later tonight. :)

Yesterday, I began reading The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner by James Hogg during my Friday reading time with my sophomore English classes. They were amused by my Nook, so we had a little discussion about reading ebooks. I got to about page 60 as of last night, so I am a good third of the way finished with it. I am reading it for my Classics Circuit post coming up, so it isn't a list book.

I also made a little more progress in Moby-Dick, which is the goal for the rest of the night. I am hoping to get through 100 pages each day so that I can be finished by Monday night, but we'll see how that goes.

Dracula might have to wait until later in the week. I suppose we'll see how the rest of this weekend goes. Matt came home early from work today and turned on football...I might just wander in the other room and stay cuddled in bed with my books. :)