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Archives for April 2012

Reading

26 April, 2012
Posted in: Reading etc.

“The Pretender” by Mary Morrissey [New Year’s Resolution]

I quite enjoyed this but, I can’t quite say why, it reads a bit like a book written in translation. It’s about Anna Anderson, the woman who claimed that she was the Grand Duchess Anastasia. It’s a mix of fact and fiction and I think it does a good job of trying to imagine the motives of the woman who spent a lifetime pretending to be someone else.

“Just So Stories” by Rudyard Kipling [New Year’s Resolution]

Despite their moments of imperialism these are really great stories to read aloud to 6 year old boys. Also, they made me realise that I had never said the word “sagacity” aloud before as in “a man of infinite-resource-and-sagacity”. So we’re all learning. You will be delighted to hear that the man of “infinite-resource-and-sagacity” was a “Hi-ber-ni-an”. You can read this particular one yourself here. You may think it dull but find the requisite 6 year old boys and you will be surprised by their delighted reaction.

“The Jungle Book” by Rudyard Kipling [New Year’s Resolution]

I quite enjoyed this. Despite the title, it’s not all jungle. I was inspired to read it by “Riki-Tiki-Tavi” which I read when I was eight in one of my favourite books of all time. I’m not sure whether it was because I read this story at just the right age or because it really was the best but I still liked it best of all the stories. I feel that I have had enough Kipling for a while now though.

“33 Moments of Happiness” by Ingo Schultz [New Year’s Resolution]

I sort of knew from the cover of this book and the font that the 33 moments of happiness in the title would be set in hours of misery. This must be why it’s been awaiting attention on my bedside table since sometime in the 1990s. Why is literary fiction so bad at happiness? These are short stories set in St. Petersburg. There is much gloom, some confusion, and, yes, alright, arguably the odd moment of happiness. I think of the 100 odd books in my New Year’s Resolution pile, this must have been one of the hardest reads. It’s magical realism, written by a German and set in St. Petersburg; can you imagine?

“Ferno” by Adam Blade

The boys love this book. It is volume one of the Beast Quest series. There are 60 (!) volumes and counting. Given that my sons are working their way through the series at a rate of knots, I thought that I should read volume 1 so that I could understand some part of their convoluted explanations of plot. The plot is not complex. Tom goes to free a beast from enchantment. He does it in a very pared down version of every fantasy novel you’ve ever read. But to be fair to the four people who write these books (Adam Blade, is, alas, a fictional character and the copyright to these volumes is held by Working Partners Ltd.), it’s fine. The writing is very accessible for small children and every page is a new cliff hanger. It’s spectacularly limited when it comes to character development and the plot is clichéd but, not if you’re six! Every old trope (missing father, faithful companion, exciting map) is a stunning new development to them. They talk about the books non-stop. Honestly, six year olds could have the best book club ever.

Weekend Activities

23 April, 2012
Posted in: Family, Ireland

On Saturday we went to Four Knocks. Mr. Waffle refused to believe that such a place existed. But it does. It comes from the Irish, na Fuarchnoic which means the cold hills. It’s a passage grave but it’s not a particularly well-known site.

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You get into it by picking up the key from a local.

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We didn’t tell the children what it was but as we approached it, the Princess said, “It’s a passage grave, isn’t it? Like Newgrange.” Some people are very smart.

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When we got there, we opened up the door in the hill with our key.

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We went in and closed the door. As our eyes grew used to the gloom the light shining through the roof illuminated the neolithic carvings on the lintel stones.

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Unlike, Newgrange, the children were free to run around with the torch (essential piece of kit for this outing) and shout and roar. Obviously, this kind of thing is off putting if there are other people about. But we were all on our own.

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And then afterwards, they could roll off the top.

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It was really excellent and appealed to all members of the family in slightly different ways.

And then we went to Ardgillan Castle for a cup of tea and a look at the playground. And that was very pleasant too.

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Siri

22 April, 2012
Posted in: Princess, Reading etc.

These new ads make Siri look pretty good:

This is what she’s like, if you have an Irish accent. Siri does not support Irish accents:

Don’t Make Me Go Over There!

20 April, 2012
Posted in: Princess, Siblings

Herself: Mum, you were mean to me on purpose!
My Sister: No, that’s not fair, I think your Mummy’s a little too lazy to be malicious.

Out and About

19 April, 2012
Posted in: Family, Ireland

We went to the zoo. We invested in an annual family membership. At the cost of it, we will be frogmarching them to the zoo at regular intervals from now on.

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We went to visit Castletown House. I got excellent value for my heritage card this year, I think I will renew it. Can this post get more fascinating? You may well ask.

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The children were virtuous. Even though I insisted on reading to them long passages from this book.

Unrelated: I got a quite spectacular migraine yesterday. As well as classic symptoms (for me – aura, nausea, headache), I also got pins and needles in my fingers which I never had before. It was most unnerving. I took to my bed. I am slightly fragile today but otherwise well. Thank you for asking.

Alas

18 April, 2012
Posted in: Boys

I am a reasonably good cook. I am not brilliant but I think I have attained the status of solid. I can roast most things. I can make stew. I can make cake. I can make biscuits. I can make pastry. Yet, despite this, I cannot make Rice Krispie buns. The mortification. I was at my sister-in-law’s house the other day and she spoke lyrically of the ease with which she could melt chocolate in her pyrex bowl.

I came home, I looked at the glut of Easter eggs on our shelves and the boys and I set to making Rice Krispie buns. I used the pyrex bowl. The chocolate melted but not enough. It clumped together. The Rice Krispies and chocolate failed to mix. They were horrible. I just threw them out this evening.

What, oh internet, am I doing wrong?

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