sprite writes
broodings from the burrow

April 26, 2018


different, yet familiar
posted by soe 1:29 am

Sometimes when I find myself getting stuck in a reading rut, I opt to return to an old favorite. When I was young, it was Little Women or, less often, Anne of Green Gables. These days it’s the Harry Potter series. Because it is familiar in a comforting way, but no matter how many times I read it, I find something new in it, whether it’s because different details pop out at me or because I’m a slightly different person than I was the last time I read it.

As I said yesterday, I’m feeling stuck with my knitting. And, to be honest, none of what I’m currently reading has grabbed my soul either. So while yes, I do want to finish all the things I’m knitting and some of the things I’m reading (and need to do so soon in some cases), a change was in order.

I could head back to Harry, but the version I want to read now is the illustrated one, which does not lend itself to Metro reading. So I’ve picked up Down and Across, a book Jenn recommended last year and which I bought months ago after hearing the author read from it and which takes place partly in my neighborhood. I’ve completely abandoned Amelia Peabody (the thing I liked best about the book was the narrator; otherwise the story reminded me of an overly long Scooby Doo episode with about the same level of sophistication). Instead I’ve started Katherine Arden’s The Bear and the Nightingale, which folks in my book group have compared to Uprooted, which I loved, and which I’ve enjoyed the first two chapters of tonight while washing dishes and doing some other nighttime chores.

New Reading and Knitting

The Harry Potter equivalent in my knitting world is stripey socks. And, yes, you would be right that the Posey socks are also stripey, but they are tinged with sadness, I think, and while I will definitely return to them — and not too far in the future — I needed something that made my heart sing with joy and that tonight was Knitterly Things’ Vesper Sock in In The Wild Wood, with stripes of verdant green, calming brown, and brilliant fuchsia. They are the colors of the azaleas that are coming into season right now and I think they’ll be just what I need to spring clean my soul and give it some space to return to other projects.

Sometimes it’s necessary to power through a problem, but sometimes it’s good to remind yourself that it might not really be a problem unless you make it one yourself.

Onward!

Category: books,knitting. There is/are 3 Comments.



I love Knitterly Things’ Vesper Sock yarn! And, that is a gorgeous color!

Comment by AsKatKnits 04.26.18 @ 8:11 am

Poor Amelia Peabody. I wanted to like her, too. If the book weren’t so uncomfortably outdated, maybe we could get past its other flaws. Or not. Moving along is probably the best thing to do. The cover of your new book is intriguingly puzzly, and the yarn is beautiful. They look like excellent “spring cleaning” choices!

Comment by Karen 04.26.18 @ 9:44 am

Your “problem thoughts ” are good ones Sprite. I’ve been powering through and thinking positive. Surrounding myself with nature, horses, cats and my dear hubby.

Comment by kathy b 04.26.18 @ 11:48 am