Appreciation of Reading

Well who would have guessed it? As soon as the half term was over, it was full on again with the teaching role and this blog lay neglected, tucked in a corner of my mind, desperately trying to battle its way forward but weighed down under lesson planning and marking. Before anyone wants to say anything about the holidays that teachers get, I still worked everyday, I just had a bit of time in the evening to do something for me.  Easter is already looking very full of marking.  Typically I get 5-6 hours sleep a night and still am not on top of anything in the job or my home and feel I am always neglecting my own two children.

Quite frankly, I found myself feeling incredibly resentful that I was left with no time for my reading and could not  go to the book club I was going to join as I had not been able to read the book.  This meant I missed out on meeting the author and having those nagging questions answered.

I then read a quote about appreciating the gift of reading; it asked you to imagine life without it.  This made me think and think hard. I suddenly realised how much I am still reading.  I still read to both my children even though the eldest is 11 and a very competent reader.  We are reading the Lord of the Rings trilogy a few pages at a time and I am often taken aback by the descriptions it contains.  Utter poetical beauty.  I am also reading yet another Jacqueline Wilson number with my 8 year old daughter (this is the third on the trot by the same author!).


On top of this, I am teaching Of Mice and Men and A View from the Bridge, have just finished teaching Lord of the Flies, am reading Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde with another class and will shortly be reading another novel as yet undecided with a Year 7 class.  They may not be my choices and are mostly literature I have read time and time again but I should recognise this privilege.


My own daughter struggles with reading as does the occasional high school student and I see how difficult life can be for them.  I must be more appreciative of those special times I get to read to others and of the precious minutes I have for my own reading, even if I tend to fall asleep exhausted after only a few lines!

Lingham's - A Personal Service

Today I ventured up the Wirral to visit this local independent book shop with a big reputation.  I was not disappointed! One of my personal favourites was the classic books section in which I spotted some contenders for my shelves of bookporn!

            

I didn't get chance to try out the coffee shop within today but hope it will be part of my next visit in a couple of days time.  The leather seats dotted around will also require testing!

It was unfortunately more of a business trip today, preparing for my lessons over the coming months.  A found a couple of great guides and the staff were incredibly supportive when I ordered another, even pulling up the picture of the front cover so I could check it was the right one.

The bookshop also has a book club that I hope to be able to occasionally attend and seem to have regular author visits.  In fact there was one this evening which sadly I was unable to attend.  To add to the community hub feel within the shop there was a notice board letting shoppers know what is on in the area.  An excellent idea!

To top off the first class experience, I returned to find a reply to a tweet I had sent them a couple of days ago.  They hoped I had enjoyed my visit and they remember ordering my book today :-)  Yes Lingham's I have thoroughly enjoyed my visit and will now be a regular customer!

Lingham's Booksellers - Heaven Locally?

This year I have decided to move away from the giants such as Amazon, W H Smiths and Tescos and instead support my independent local book sellers, yes admittedly partly because I harbour a dream to own my own quirky, gorgeous little book heaven.


Trouble was, having only moved to the area recently, I have no clue who or where they are.  I have also been desperately searching for a book club that could fit in with mine and my partner's schedule.  So imagine my sheer delight when I stumbled on this article; an independent bookseller who takes on the Tesco's opposite and actually gains their support.  Not only that but they are only a few miles away from me.  I could hardly contain my excitement when upon further investigation, I discover it also runs a book club AND a coffee shop!  Okay so it's not the Nespresso I'm obsessed with but still, I can sit in a comfy chair and I can drink coffee whilst in a book shop!


Admittedly I may sound a little crazy at this point but I know other bibliophiles will understand this joy and the book club may not always fit with shifts but hey, it's got to be worth a look.  My only disappointment is that I am away for two days and will not be able to visit  until Thursday.


Linghams we are coming to get you on Thursday!  In the meantime, you can find them on Twitter.