A Saturday Post.

I got about 47 new books for Christmas and I seem to be tearing through them pretty quickly. I'll give you a quick review of the ones I have read so far. Why? Because you know I love talking about things I've read. Especially if it's something that I really, really loved.

Case in point:

The Night Circus  by Erin Morgenstern. This is her debut novel.  I wanted this book based on the cover alone. It's so pretty and I love the colors (which are a running theme throughout the book). It has magic and romance and heartbreak and it has a haunting quality to it that really made me fall in love with it. I know, I know, when you think of "circus", you are thinking of elephants and clowns and whatnot. That's so not what this circus is about. It's fueled by magic and a longstanding duel of sorts between two illusionists (Celia and Marco). There is so much more to the story than all of that but I don't like giving stuff away, so read it for yourself and see just how lovely it is. Truth be told, the book did have a bit of a slow start at the beginning. It took me a few chapters to get into it but once I did, I didn't want to put it down. I keep telling Jeff that I want to live inside this book. The idea and detail of the story fascinate me and I am really looking forward to whatever else Ms. Morgenstern comes out with.

I finished the 3rd (and supposedly final) book in the Southern Witch Series, Halfway Hexed by Kimberly Frost. This book just made me smile a lot. The whole series is quirky. The books are fun, quick reads that will make you happy. It's about a twenty something pastry chef named Tammy Jo, who discovers she's coming into witch powers that all the other ladies in her family have. They developed their powers much earlier in life though, so everyone had given up hope on Tammy Jo ever getting hers. When she does start to get her powers, however, she's pretty much alone since her mom and aunt have left the country and she has no one to guide her. So, silliness ensues with spells gone wrong and her little town of Duvall, Texas thrown into chaos. Naturally, she turns to a handsome, rich (Irish) Wizard (who just so happens to be on her family's "do not touch" list) for help. Bottomline: They're fun.

Currently I am finishing up The Apothecary by Maile Meloy. She is the sister to none other than Colin Meloy of The Decemberists, who also has a book out right now called The Wildwood. Which I may be reading next. Maybe... I can't decide. Anyway, I have read a few of Maile's previous books which were more for an adult audience and enjoyed them quite a bit, so I was curious when I saw that she was coming out with a Young Adult novel. Listen, I don't put age limits on the books that I read. If it's a good story, I'm going to read it. This one is a good story. It's about a young girl named Janie, whose family has to move from Los Angeles to London in 1952 because her parents are basically being accused of being communists. She meets a boy named Benjamin and when it looks like his father, who is (you guessed it) The apothecary is being taken by Germans, they go on a hunt to try to find him and figure out what's going on. On the surface, it seems a little heavy for being a YA novel but it has lighthearted moments and magic mixed in with all the talk of nuclear bombs and war.

All this reading has made me yearn for the library I will one day have in my house. Yes, one day... I don't know when, but one day we will have an entire room in our house devoted to our books. No more piling random books on top of each other wherever space will allow in our bedroom. We will have honest to goodness shelves upon shelves of wonderful stories, organized and set in a cozy room full of wonder and imagination.The website Pinterest has been feeding my yearning by allowing me to look up a plethora of potential items for this future library. Fun shelves, tables and spaces devoted to my favorite hobby. I have an entire board ----- > Shhh... devoted to this totally (ha) attainable dream. If nothing else, I truly love looking at the designs that other people have thought of to make these comforting little book nooks.

Just a few miscellaneous annoyances that have been irking me for the past week:

* I totally get that the Adele album 21 is a good album. I agree with the whole entire world's sentiment that Adele's voice is beyond amazing and her songs are kickass, but please, radio people, for the love of everything, stop playing her songs every other song. When it gets to the point where I am driving to work and hear the same song by her on 3 different radio stations at the same time, one would have to think that it's a bit excessive... don't you think?

* The same goes for that Colbie Caillat song, "Brighter Than The Sun". Yes, it's totally catchy and poppy and fun. No, we don't need to use it in every commercial/movie trailer there ever was.

* Did you watch The People's Choice awards on Wednesday? No worries, I watched them for you and you didn't miss much (aside from almost ALL of my TV/Movie boyfriends being there) because it was mostly one giant advertisement for CVS. Half the show was dedicated to the store plus all the beauty products they sell. Those awards are lame anyway but the commcercials within the show just made it sad.

A few Miscellaneous FYI's:

*Daniel Radcliffe is hosting Saturday Night Live tonight. !!!! I haven't been a consistent viewer of this show in years but in addition to DVR'ing it, I may actually stay up and watch it live. I'm real, real excited about it!!

* The Golden Globe Awards are this Sunday at 8pm on NBC. Ricky Gervais is hosting again and I am looking forward to watching him. A lot of people were irritated with him last year because they said he was too mean to the celebrities. He's a comedian... what do they expect? Besides, he at least gives people something to talk about other than how boring these things can get.

* HBO announced the premiere date for season 2 of Game Of Thrones. Set your DVR's friends, because winter is coming April 1st at 9pm. Huzzah!

* The last business day for the Westland FYE is January 26th. As of right now, all the merchandise is 50%-80% off (unless it's already on sale). If you wanna check out some deals and say hello to my handsome husband (or offer him a job, haha), go ahead and stop by the store.

Have a great weekend, everyone!