Europe Adventure: Day Eighteen, part two- Shakespeare and Company and Batobus

After leaving Notre Dame Cathedral we walked across the river to go to the bookshop I have wanted to visit for as long as I can remember. 

We stopped at a couple of shops along the way but didn't buy anything. 

Then we stopped in this little park to look around and just take in all the beauty!

 Those buildings had the shops on the ground floor. 

Looking back over toward Notre Dame...

Then we made it over to Shakespeare and Company. 

It was so surreal and exciting to see it in person!

It wasn't open yet so we took a few pictures...

Then we went to the cafe just next door for some breakfast. 

We got some drinks and crepes. 

While we ate it was fun to just watch people going by. 

There were at least two brides and grooms that came by to take pictures right outside by the bookshop. We really enjoyed our time. 

Then the book shop was open!

We walked in and began to browse. I was so happy. 

There were books everywhere, filling every corner. 

It was so cool to see the stacks of books and the quotes on the walls. 

We spent a lot of time browsing every shelf and stack and upstairs where writers can write with a wonderful view. 

You aren't supposed to take pictures in the shop but since it said that was for the privacy of other customers I stole a shot upstairs where there wasn't anybody else of this typewriter by the window. 

Beautiful view.

We each bought some books. 

I loved that we were able to get each book that we bought stamped with their special stamp. 

Our books came in these bags...

I bought four books. I planned on buying a copy of The Hunchback of Notre Dame but I couldn't find one. I ended up getting Mrs. Dalloway, Surprised by Joy, Farmer Giles of Ham, and Dear Peter, miniature letters of Beatrix Potter. 

I also bought a tote bag and a postcard showing the shop and one of the quotes painted inside. 

After we left the shop we walked down to the bank of the Seine to buy our Batobus tickets and catch a ride to the Louvre. 

While we waited for the batobus we got to look at our beloved Cathedral as this stop was right next to it. Of course I had to take a few more pictures of it.

There's the batobus!

It was a really fun way to get around the city but also very slow. So I wouldn't recommend it if you are in a hurry but for us, it was a great way to travel and be able to see the city along the river. 

I was really surprised by the amount of graffiti in Paris. 

Next up: The Louvre

July Reading Wrap Up and Haul

In July, thanks to Booktubeathon, I finally got over my reading slump. 

I read nine books in the month of July. 

1) The Art of Homemaking by Daryl V. Hoole

This book goes through all the aspects of homemaking. 

It was really outdated. I think there were some good ideas and information in it but in the age of Pinterest there wasn't anything I couldn't find online. I imagine that when this was published it was a big help to a lot of homemakers. But not really nowadays. 

I gave it three stars. ***

2) On The Other Side by Carrie Hope Fletcher

"Evie Snow is eighty-two when she quietly passes away in her sleep, surrounded by her children and grandchildren. It's the way most people wish to leave the world but when Evie reaches the door of her own private heaven, she finds that she's become her twenty-seven-year-old self and the door won't open.
Evie's soul must be light enough to pass through so she needs to get rid of whatever is making her soul heavy. For Evie, this means unburdening herself of the three secrets that have weighed her down for over fifty years, so she must find a way to reveal them before it's too late." (Goodreads)

You can see my entire review of this on Scones and Crackers here.

I enjoyed this book. I gave it 3.5 stars. ***.5

3)Five Kingdoms, Sky Raiders by Brandon Mull

"On Halloween below a haunted house, Cole Randolph wanted to have fun. But he dives after friends whisked away to The Outskirts.The five kingdoms lie in between - wakefulness and dreaming, reality and imagination, life and death. Some people are born there. Some find their way there from other worlds." (Goodreads)

I really enjoy this series and it was a good first book. 4 stars ****

4) Five Kingdoms, Rogue Knight by Brandon Mull

"A mysterious foe massacres towns, leaving no survivors. And a rebel "Rogue Knight” upsets the balance of power. Pursued by enemies, Cole and Mira use a new kind of magic for protection and to outwit the High King, ruthlessly seeking to regain what he has lost." (Goodreads)

This is good. It is a good follow up and had me even more interested in finishing the series. 

4 stars ****

5) Five Kingdoms, Crystal Keepers by Brandon Mull

"Ruled by Abram Trench, the one Grand Shaper who stayed loyal to the evil High King, the government of Zeropolis uses advanced technologies to keep tight control. Luckily, the resistance in Zeropolis is anchored by the Crystal Keepers;a group of young rebels with unique weapons." (Goodreads)

I didn't like this one as much as the first two but it was still fun and good. I am looking forward to reading the next two in the series. Still gave it 4 stars ****

6) All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

"WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZEFrom the highly acclaimed, multiple award-winning Anthony Doerr, the beautiful, stunningly ambitious instant New York Times bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II." (Goodreads)

This one went back and forth for me. There were times when it was a 3 and times when it was a 4.5. 

The first part I had a hard time staying engaged as I was listening to the audio book and kept zoning out but then I switched to the hard copy and became much more engaged. 

There were characters I wanted more from and things I didn't like that happened but overall I still had to give it 4 stars ****

7) Austenland by Shannon Hale

"Jane Hayes is a seemingly normal young New Yorker, but she has a secret. Her obsession with Mr. Darcy, as played by Colin Firth in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, is ruining her love life: no real man can compare. But when a wealthy relative bequeaths her a trip to an English resort catering to Austen-crazed women, Jane's fantasies of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman suddenly become realer than she ever could have imagined" (Goodreads) 

I went into this wondering if the fact that it has become one of my very favorite movies would make me like the book more... but it is still the same rating for me. I like it but I think the movie brings to life the humor so much more. And I find movie Jane so much more likeable than book Jane. 

3 stars ***

8) Stargirl  by Jerry Spinelli

"From the day she arrives at quiet Mica High in a burst of color and sound, hallways hum “Stargirl.” She captures Leo Borlock’s heart with one smile. She sparks a school-spirit revolution with one cheer. The students of Mica High are enchanted. Until they are not. Leo urges her to become the very thing that can destroy her - normal." (Goodreads)

I read this in just a few hours as it was pretty short and I needed it to finish it that day for booktubeathon. It was okay. I thought about it a lot. I didn't love the characters and I felt like Stargirl was a bit more outrageous than she needed to be. And yet I was still really sad about what happened with her. I think it was a decent book. 3 stars ***

9) A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

"When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin—one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world. As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow over the faerie lands is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever." (Goodreads)

I love Beauty and the Beast so I was pretty wary of whether I would like this re-telling or not... but I ended up loving it. 

It was exciting and interesting and I felt like it was really well written. 

I can't wait to read the next one. 
Keep in mind that this series is in the genre called New Adult even though it is categorized, in my library at least, as Young Adult. This means that while it is pretty much a young adult book, it does have some sex scenes. It is not as graphic as the more adult books but there are a few scenes. 

4.5 stars ****.5

As far as books we bought in July I am going to just add the July haul onto the end of this post now: 

In July the girls both got quite a few books.

Abi got the two My Little Pony books to jumpstart our summer reading program. 

Maddy got two Owl Diaries books for the summer reading program but they are not in the picture. 

Then they picked out a new book at Barnes and Noble for free from their summer reading program. 

Abi got Mr. Lemoncello's Library and Maddy picked out the Puppy Pirates Stowaway. 

We visited The King's English bookstore once this month and I let them each pick out one book. 

Abi got the Unicorn and Phoebe book two and Maddy got a book about Hedgehogs (not pictured)

I got two pre-orders this month. 

The Heart of the Home anniversary edition by Susan Branch ordered from her website. 

On the Other Side by Carrie Hope Fletcher and Billy and Me by Giovanni Fletcher (and yes, they are related. Gi is Carrie's sister in law) were ordered from Book Depository 

Have you read any great books in July? 

May/ June Book Haul

 I'm finally getting around to it!

My book haul for May and June was pretty decent. Most of them were bought in May. 

There was a scholastic warehouse sale in May and I always go to those and get a few things and there was also Mother's Day!

Let's get started. 

I ordered the Berenstain Bears' and the Tooth Fairy after Maddy lost her first tooth. 

She did not leave her tooth out for the tooth fairy. She wanted to keep it. 

I got Jacky Ha-Ha and Who was Beatrix Potter at the warehouse sale. 

We were excited to add another one of the Who was.. books to our collection. 

We began reading Jacky Ha-Ha out loud immediately and... well, we didn't finish it. Not one of the three of us was a fan. We may try again later or we may give it away.

 At the warehouse sale we also got these two cook books. The girls want to start learning to bake more things and so I let them pick out one that they thought looked fun. 

I ordered this book from Amazon a while ago. It finally came!

 

I ordered The Princess Bride from Amazon as well to bring the purchase price up to free shipping. 

The day before Mother's Day Doug sent me to Barnes and Noble to look around. 

Always a dangerous idea. 

I bought some books as well as a blanket and pillow that I really wanted and found on clearance!

The Great Divorce was one of the books I got. 

 

You might remember I was on a search for a beautiful copy of Anne of Green Gables and found one a few months ago. 

Well, then I found this yellow edition in Barnes and Noble. 

I went back and forth but in the end I had to have it. 

So, yes, now I own three copies of Anne. 

I also decided to get this edition of The Secret Garden while I was there. 

I love both of these so much!

Did you get any new books in the months of May and June?

March/ April Collective Book Haul

Somehow I missed doing a book haul in March so I am adding the two books I remember getting in March to the April haul. 

We have then accumulated 16 new books between the two months. 

In March I got two pre-orders in the mail. 

Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare and Five Kingdoms: Death Weavers by Brandon Mull. 

Lady Midnight is the reason I re-read all of the other Cassandra Clare books... and then I still haven't read it. Oops. Hopefully soon. 

I also have not caught up on the Five Kingdoms series yet but I really enjoyed the first two books so I am hoping to get to the next ones soon. 

The other book in this picture would be the first of the April books. 

I LOVE Susan Branch books. You will not be surprised by this if you follow me on Goodreads. 

I especially love the three books that she has written about her life. Martha's Vineyard: Isle of Dreams is the last of the three to be published but technically the second book. I pre-ordered it from her website so that I would get it early and hoped I would get it in time for my trip. Unfortunately it showed up two days after I left. Darn. But I had it read within days of getting home!

The rest of these books I bought on my trip. 

I picked up the Usborne See inside the History of Britain at Lyme Park in England. I knew as soon as I saw it that it would be a really fun book to look through with Abi and Maddy. 

We haven't read it yet but plan to soon. 

I got The Golden Store at William Wordsworth's home Dove Cottage in the Lake District. 

It is full of some of his most loved poems categorized by different topics and accompanied by cute illustrations. We have read a few poems from it so far and love it.

I picked up these four books at the Shakespeare and Company bookstore in Paris. 

Surprised by Joy by C.S. Lewis

Farmer Giles of Ham by J.R.R. Tokien

Dear Peter, Miniature Letters by Beatrix Potter

and 

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

I was planning on buying books by the Inklings while in Oxford but for some reason I couldn't find any there that I didn't have. I decided that I wanted to at least buy them on the trip!

I couldn't pass up the Beatrix Potter book. It was so adorable and I didn't own it yet. 

And, Mrs. Dalloway was the upcoming book for my book club and I hadn't bought it yet as I didn't like the covers I was finding. When I saw this one I liked it much better so I grabbed it. 

I have already read Mrs. Dalloway and the Peter Rabbit letters and enjoyed both.

 

I bought Lady Susan and Other Works and Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen at Jane's home in Chawton, England. I knew I wanted to buy at least one book while there and found these two that I don't own for only 1 pound 99! (Roughly 3 dollars)

 

At the Bronte's home in Haworth, England I decided to buy Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte. 

They gave me the small book, Stancliffe's Hotel by Charlotte Bronte for free. 

I am looking forward to reading both. 

 

I thought about buying an entire set of Harry Potter UK editions but they didn't have the exact ones I wanted anywhere. I still felt like buying one that had the "real" name on it so I picked up 

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling at the Harry Potter Studio Tour gift shop. 

I love the cover and am excited to read it again to see if there are many/any differences.  

I got Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare at his home in Stratford Upon Avon in England. It is one of my favorite Shakespeare plays and one I didn't own yet. 

I picked up Alice's Adventures in Wonderland/ Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll in Oxford at the Alice Shop. I really wanted a cute version that had cute illustrations. 

I am so excited about all of these books. There were so many more I wanted on the trip but I was worried about my luggage being bogged down with books. I kind of wish I would have got more!!!

But I think I picked out some really good ones and I am so happy to add them to my library and to be able to look at them and associate them with the memories of the places I went. 

*Did you get any new books in March or April?