*I just adore these houses and their commitment to these plants. I kept passing them all week and wondering when they would bloom!*

Happy weekend and happy last few days of March. I cannot believe we are already a quarter of the way through this year. Wow.

Even though we have a few days left in March, I’m going to go ahead and post my March reads. I’m still finishing a couple books, but I’d rather talk about the bulk of the month’s reads now. Let’s dive in.

MARCH READS

A Bear Called Paddinton by Michael Bond

I listened to this book while painting my recent illustration piece. It was delightful. Stephen Fry was the narrator and it was so charming to listen to such a sweet, simple story. I have the box set and hope to pick them up and read the rest of Paddington’s adventures. What a classic.

Lightfall: Shadow of the Bird by Tim Probert

This is Book Two in the graphic novel series I began in February. It continues the story of a young girl in search of her grandfather with the last of an extinct species. It is intense at times and holds great mystery as they run from a dangerous bird monster and its minions; but also start to wonder about its origins and purpose.

Made For People by Justin Whitmel Earley

I began reading this last year with some friends, but life got in the way of us finishing it together. I finally decided to pick it back up and am so glad I did. What an excellent book! Earley takes a good look at friendship, how our culture pushes us towards loneliness, and what it takes to fight for deep friendship and good community. His observations are quite poignant and he gives great, practical advice for pursuing honesty and vulnerability and encouraging that in our friends. I highly recommend this book and will be referring back to it often.

Lightfall: The Dark Times by Tim Probert

I burned through this trio of graphic novels quite quickly and really enjoyed them. Though it does seem that there may be another coming as (spoiler) it didn’t exactly end with a full resolution. This third one works through the results of the second which threw everything into darkness and despair. This one is really fascinating as it tackles the origin story of the feared monster and takes a hard look at responsibility and purpose of being. Really interesting.

Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

As I have been reading a lot of research and history about British children’s literature, I kept coming across Diana Wynne Jones. Some go so far as to put her in a trio of brilliance with the likes of Tolkien and Lewis. High praise! That was a surprise to me and drove me to finally track down some of her books. I started with this one, as I have always wanted to see the film it inspired animated by Miyazaki. The book was fantastic. Jones builds a world like I have not encountered in quite some time. It is intriguing, humorous, character driven and really engaging from start to finish. This is a book I stayed up til 1am to finish at one point – something that is terrible for me, and I try not to do anymore, but occasionally encounter a book that just sucks me in. I have now tracked down the second and third books that follow and am trying to plan carefully when to read them. So glad to have finally come across Jones’ work!

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

This is the next book I listened to while painting away at my giant illustration. I have attempted to read this book many many times growing up, but always abandoned it due to its pacing. Listening to it was a much more enjoyable experience and kept me engaged with both the story and my work. I do have several copies of the book with different illustrations as it is a classic and beloved for illustrators. I’m so glad I finally listened to the book and think listening with the British narrator enhanced the experience a great deal. I still think it is a bit slow, but it certainly has a classic feel and is quite lovely.

The Enchanted Wood by Enid Blyton

I seem to be on a pattern of remedying my lack of British literature knowledge. Enid Blyton is a highly popular childhood author for just about every British kid. I got The Faraway Tree trio of books on audiobook Yoto cards for the girls for Christmas. They adore listening to them on repeat so I continue to hear bits of them throughout the week and finally decided I should listen to them start to finish myself so I understand the plot! This is the first book about The Faraway Tree. It follows 3 siblings who move to the country with their parents and discover an enchanted wood, a magic tree that is a portal to various worlds, and lots of interesting characters like elves, goblins, fairies and more. It is an engaging, though light fantasy story.

I ironically also just read about Enid Blyton in my history of children’s literature that I am slowly making my way through and it was very helpful to learn about her and what kind of books she wrote while I read through my first of her work. Interesting to note is that Blyton wrote these (amidst the 700 some books she authored!) after WWII and it is noticeable how quaint, nostalgic, and virtually untouched by war these stories are. There is a sweet and childlike naivety to the stories that is charming, but also a bit curious.

FRIDAY LINKS (or Saturday considering the timing!)

*Spent last Saturday morning at a coffee shop reading with Genevieve while we waited for Joanna’s dance lessons. Raising them right.*💚

THINGS I BOOKMARKED

Adolescence reveals a terrifying truth: smartphones are poison for boys’ minds – This is a sobering, but really good article about the new Netflix series that is making quite a buzz and the influence of social media on teenagers. Highly recommend reading this. I don’t plan to watch the show, but have been closely following the response and important conversations happening because of it. Even our kids’ school here in the UK are noting and formally discussing its implications. I’m so thankful for creators tackling this concerning problem and helping start conversations.

Christian Book Publishers Should Protect Authors Against Meta and AI – Another not-so-light read, but important in the conversations and concerns around AI.

THINGS I LISTENED TO

Rise O Buried Lord by the Green Carpet Players – It’s that time of year again as Easter approaches where we dust off this now quite old album that Mark and I helped make when we lived in Tennessee. It continues to be so enjoyable every year as we go through Lent and look towards Easter. I love pulling it out each year to celebrate this season.

Neighbor by JJ Heller – I was surprised and excited to discover this newer song from JJ Heller. It is quite lovely and thoughtful about how we should be engaging with our neighbors in this cultural moment.

Like a Child With Its Mother (Psalm 131) by Caroline Cobb – It’s Mothering Sunday here in the UK this weekend. This is my favorite album by a favorite music artist, Caroline Cobb. I pulled out this song this week to teach to our church tomorrow and it is a lovely one to get stuck in your head and think about God in a different way.

THINGS I FOUND

**Daffodils.** *Granted, they are not hard to find. They are everywhere. But I especially adored this in Weobley on Saturday standing out so starkly with the iconic black and white houses.*

**Pandy on a Monday.** *We all felt like this Monday after a crazy weekend of theatre performances.*

**Flowers in a window.** *Spotted this scene in town on Market Day and it made me consider continuing my window painting series with a Hay window.*

**Frobishers Bumbleberry juice.** I was feeling so thirsty while waiting in queues on Market Day. I was excited to find and try this juice from Hay Deli. It was small and pricey, but very good. A mixture of berries like blackberry, raspberry, strawberry, and more.

**Postman Pat and his black and white cat.** *The new postbox topper is this charming duo. I had no idea who they were and was quickly educated by my friend. This is* *a beloved show* *for all British children. Enjoy* *the first episode* *with me as I remedy my children’s and my own lack of British culture.*

**British humour.** I learned a bit more about British comedy at the Hay Theatre Variety Show last weekend as well. Both my girls were in it and it was quite an experience. I still have very few words to explain what I saw.

Well, I started this post Thursday and am finally pushing it out Saturday morning. Hope the links find your weekend well or help you start off Monday with a smile. 💚

March reads & Friday links

MARCH READS

FRIDAY LINKS (or Saturday considering the timing!)

THINGS I BOOKMARKED

THINGS I LISTENED TO

THINGS I FOUND

Ramen on a Sunday afternoon