Wednesday 24 December 2014

Merry Christmas

* Frohe Weihnachten * Merry Christmas * Joyeux Noël * Vrolijk kerstfeest * Feliĉan Kristnaskon * Feliz Navidad * Geseënde Kersfees * Шчаслівых Калядау * Sretan Bozic * Честита Коледа * Bon Nadal * Sretan Božić * Veselé vánoce * Glædelig jul * Häid Jõule * Hyvää joulua * Nollaig shona duit * Καλά Χριστούγεννα! * Mele Kelikimaka * Boldog Karácsonyt * Selamat Hari Natal * Buon Natale * Жаңа жыл құтты болсын! * Hristos Razdajetsja * Noeli Nziza * Priecīgus Ziemassvētkus * E schéine Chrëschtdag * Mbotama Malamu * Linksmų Kalėdų * Среќен Божиќ * Selamat Hari Natal * Танд зул сарын баярын болон шинэ жилийн мэндийг хүргэе * God jul * Bon Pasco * Maligayang pasko at manigong bagong taon * Frohe Wiehnachten *Wesołych Świąt * Um Santo e Feliz Natal * Crăciun fericit * Жаңа жыл құтты болсын! * С Рождеством * Христос се роди* Veselé vánoce * Krismasi Njema * God jul * Schöni Wiänachtä * Mutlu Noeller * Веселого Різдва * ميلاد سعيد عيد الميلاد * Շնորհավոր Նոր Տարի * 聖誕節同新年快樂 * חג מולד שמח * क्रिसमस की शुभकामनाएँ *メリークリスマス * 메리 크리스마스 * कृसमस को शुभकामना * کریسمس مبارک * کرسمَس مبارک *

Tuesday 25 November 2014

Döblin, Alfred "Berlin Alexanderplatz"



Döblin, Alfred "Berlin Alexanderplatz: The Story of Franz Biberkopf" (German: Berlin Alexanderplatz: Die Geschichte vom Franz Biberkopf) - 1929

An urban story, the first German book to use the stream-of-consciousness style, often compared to "Ulysses". None of those descriptions sound extremely inviting to a lot fo people. After having read "Ulysses" earlier this year and since I was always interested in this book, even if just for the title, I started reading it a while ago. I usually read more than one book at a time so I won't finish them too soon but that wouldn't have been a problem here.

If I have said about "Ulysses" that it was the most difficult book I have ever read, I probably have to put this as number two. I found it slightly easier, not because of the language it was written in but because of the way it was written. There was more of a story to follow in "Berlin Alexanderplatz", there was more reality to get into. Maybe also, because I have read more about this topic. Germany in the anti-war time, the prophetic vision of the apocalypse. What were people thinking, how did they live, where did it all lead? Having said that, that way I probably missed parts of the non-realistic bits.

The novel is the story of Franz Biberkopf and starts with his release from prison. Throughout the book, we see how he cannot find a way back into normal life, just as the Weimarer Republik couldn't get back to a normal state after World War I. There are a lot of allusions to the political time as well as to biblical stories, there are so many layers in this book. I need to reread it one day.

Apparently, it belongs to the 100 most meaningful books of all times. I can understand how it got on that list. It's tough to read but definitely worth it.

From the back cover:

"Berlin Alexanderplatz is one of the masterpieces of modern European literature and the first German novel to adopt the technique of James Joyce. It tells the story of Franz Biberkopf, who, on being released from prison, is confronted with the poverty, unemployment, crime and burgeoning Nazism of 1920s Germany. As Franz struggles to survive in this world, fate teases him with a little pleasure before cruelly turning on him.

Alfred Döblin (1878-1957) studied medicine in Berlin and specialized in the treatment of nervous diseases. Along with his experiences as a psychiatrist in the workers' quarter of Berlin, his writing was inspired by the work of Hölderlin, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche and was first published in the literary magazine, Der Sturm. Associated with the Expressionist literary movement in Germany, he is now recognized as one of the most important modern European novelists."

Thursday 20 November 2014

Bradbury, Ray "The Martian Chronicles"

Bradbury, Ray "The Martian Chronicles" - 1950

"The Martian Chronicles", a highly interesting novel about the human invasion on another planet. A dystopian novel that couldn't envisage anything better. Or worse.

The whole story is separated into several different short stories, each of which could be read separately but only together do they form a full picture of the extent what the human race can do. That doesn't mean they should necessarily do it.

I think the Martian Chronicles should be seen, as any dystopian literature, as a warning to us. The author doesn't necessarily talk about what we could be doing to the planet Mars but also about what we are doing to our own planet. If we don't stop what we are doing, we will end up like the Martians, non-existent. We should see this book as a parable and learn from it.

I loved Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451" but I think I liked "The Martian Chronicles" even better. His style is agreeable, easy to get, yet full of allusions and side remarks. Anyone who likes this sort of genre should read his books.

From the back cover:

"Leaving behind a world on the brink of destruction, man came to the Red Planet and found the Martians waiting, dreamlike. Seeking the promise of a new beginning, man brought with him his oldest fears and his deepest desires. Man conquered Mars - and in that instant, Mars conquered him. The strange new world with its ancient, dying race and vast, red-gold deserts cast a spell on him, settled into his dreams, and changed him forever. Here are the captivating chronicles of man and Mars - the modern classic by the peerless Ray Bradbury."

Ray Bradbury received a special Pulitzer Prize citation in 2007 for "his distinguished, prolific and deeply influential career as an unmatched author of science fiction and fantasy."

Tuesday 11 November 2014

Nietzsche, Friedrich "Thus spoke Zarathustra"


Nietzsche, Friedrich "Thus spoke Zarathustra. A Book for All and None" (German: Also sprach Zarathustra. Ein Buch für Alle und Keinen) - 1883-85

A philosophical book. The title itself is mere poetry. Even for non-German speakers, it sounds magical, or at least it should.

Nietzsche was a German philosopher of the late 19th century. We have to bear that in mind when reading his work. I've been trying to put together a little description of the book but have failed miserably. It's too hard to put these thoughts into just a few lines.

All I can say, it is definitely worth reading this book and it should be read more than once in order to grasp the whole philosophy behind it. One of the greatest works of its sort. Highly provocative, it had a huge influence on both literature and art, certainly one of a kind.

From the back cover:

"Thus Spoke Zarathustra: A Book for All and None is a philosophical novel by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, composed in four parts between 1883 and 1885. Much of the work deals with ideas such as the "eternal recurrence of the same", the parable on the 'death of God', and the 'prophecy' of the Übermensch, which were first introduced in The Gay Science. 

When Zarathustra (also known as Zarathusta, Zoroaster) had reached the age of thirty years, he left his native country for the mountains where he prayed and fasted for ten years. Finally, when he got his Prophetic calling an angel is said to have appeared before him. 

Later Zarathustra became the founder of Zoroastrianism and his teachings are preserved in the Zend Avesta and the Gathas which include topics like spirituality, ritualism, sacred chants and astrology."

Friday 7 November 2014

Book Quotes of the Week


"The first thing that reading teaches us is how to be alone." Jonathan Franzen

"His hands were weak and shaking from carrying far too many books from the bookshop. It was the best feeling." Joseph Gordon-Levitt

"You want to know about anybody? See what books they read, and how they’ve been read…" Keri Hulme, The Bone People

"I am a product of endless books." C.S. Lewis

"Books are like mirrors: if a fool looks in, you cannot expect a genius to look out." J.K. Rowling

"Literature is a fiction that tells a greater truth." N.N.  

Find more book quotes here.

Thursday 6 November 2014

Aaronovitch, Ben "Moon over Soho"

Aaronovitch, Ben "Moon over Soho" (Rivers of London 2) - 2011

The sequel to "Rivers of London". We meet Peter Grant again, the trainee wizard in the London Metropolitan Police, who hunts supernatural forces, investigates supernatural crimes, tries to save the life of that make everyone's life miserable.

Same as the first one, this book is funny and interesting to read. Lots of fantasy elements mixed in with real life but deep down a crime story with likeable characters. If you enjoyed "Rivers of London", you will like this one, as well. If you haven't read "Rivers of London" (or "Midnight Riot" in the US), read that first. This really should be read as a sequel.

From the back cover: "My name is Peter Grant, and I’m a Detective Constable in that might army for justice known as the Metropolitan Police (a.k.a. The Filth). I’m also a trainee wizard, the first such apprentice in fifty years.
Something violently supernatural had happened, something strong enough to leave an imprint on the corpse of part-time jazz saxophonist Cyrus Wilkinson as if he were a wax cylinder recording. He's not the first musician to drop dead of a heart attack right after a gig, but no one was going to let me start examining corpses to check for supernatural similarities. Instead, it was back to old-fashioned police legwork. It didn't take me long to realise there were monsters stalking Soho, creatures feeding off the gift that separates great musicians from those who can raise a decent tune. What they take is beauty. What they left behind is broken lives.
And as I hunted them, my investigation got tangled up in another story: a brilliant trumpet player, Richard 'Lord' Grant – my father – who managed to destroy his own career. Twice.
Policing: most of the time you're doing it to maintain public order. Occasionally you're doing it for justice. And, maybe once in a career, you're doing it for revenge."

The whole series:
"Rivers of London" - 2011
"Moon over Soho" - 2011
"Whispers Under Ground" - 2012
"Broken Homes" - 2013
"Foxglove Summer" - 2014
"The Hanging Tree" - 2016

I found a good site about this series: The Follypedia

Tuesday 28 October 2014

Burgess, Anthony "A Clockwork Orange"

Burgess, Anthony "A Clockwork Orange" - 1962

My first thoughts about this book, I would have liked to read this in English. Alternatively, I would have liked to have the translation of Nadsat (the invented language the storyteller uses.) in the book rather than having to search for it online.

So, the beginning of the book was not very pleasurable at all. I found it very hard to follow Alex's thoughts. But, even when I did finally find the link online, I found it hard to follow his thoughts. This is not your usual dystopian literature where you see the world from the view of the oppressed, rather you see it from the oppressor's side, and that is not a nice view, either. Maybe it is because the protagonist is only fifteen, you don't want a teenager to have such negative thoughts, to live such a violent life. Maybe it is also because life changes even for Alex and his friends.

In any case, even though there were parts of the book I enjoyed, I don't think this is a novel I would pick up again soon.

From the back cover: "Anthony Burgess's nightmare vision of a society overrun by nihilistic violence and governed by a menacing totalitarian state, 'A Clockwork Orange' includes an introduction by Blake Morrison in Penguin Modern Classics. Fifteen-year-old Alex doesn't just like ultra-violence - he also enjoys rape, drugs and Beethoven's ninth. He and his gang of droogs rampage through a dystopian future, hunting for terrible thrills. But when Alex finds himself at the mercy of the state and subject to the ministrations of Dr Brodsky, and the mind-altering treatment of the Ludovico Technique, he discovers that fun is no longer the order of the day.
The basis for Stanley Kubrick's notorious 1971 film, 'A Clockwork Orange' is both a virtuoso performance from an electrifying prose stylist and a serious exploration of the morality of free will."

Friday 24 October 2014

Austen, Jane "Emma"


Austen, Jane "Emma" - 1816
The Motherhood and Jane Austen Book Club


This was the fourth book I read with this blog and the challenge to read and discuss Jane Austen's novels with a view of the mothers in the stories.

The first three novels we discussed were "Pride & Prejudice", "Mansfield Park" and "Persuasion" which I have already reviewed earlier.

If you have not read this novel, I refer you to my more general review here because this one will contain spoilers.

I think Emma is the Jane Austen novel with the least mothers or mother figures. We have a few who take the place of mothers but the mothers themselves take a very small place in the novel. Nevertheless, there is something to be said about each one of them and how they influence the other characters.

Mothers: Mrs. Bates, Mrs. John Knightley
Mothers not present: Mrs. Woodhouse
Non-Mothers: Mrs. Weston, Mrs. Churchill

Mrs. Bates
Mrs. Bates is the mother of the very talkative Miss Bates. We don't hear much from the mother but can gather from her daughter and some other remarks what kind of destiny Mrs. Bates had. She is probably the equivalent of Mrs. Dashwood in "Sense & Sensibility" (or what Mrs. Bennett fears in "Pride & Prejudice") because she used to be rich and now is very poor. She therefore must have lost her wealth with the death of her husband whose estate and money went to a distant relative who didn't think he needed to take care of Mrs. Bates and her daughter.

She is a calm and quiet person, too old and too sick to do anything for her daughter and also has no influence on any of the other characters in the novel.

Mrs. John Knightley née Woodhouse
Emma' sister Isabella is married to Mr. John Knightley, the brother of THE Mr. Knightley. She is probably more like her father than she is like her mother, she definitely inherited his fear of catching any illness that is around. The Knightleys are a family family, very close to their children, very caring for them but that's about all we hear from them.

Mrs. Woodhouse
Mrs. Woodhouse, mother of Emma and Isabella, is Mr. Woodhouse's late wife. Her early death might have influenced his hypochondria but I am sure there were some hints of it already there before her demise.

Would Emma have been a different person had her mother been alive? Probably. Since we don't know much about her, we can only assume that she might have been a little stricter than her father who is over-afraid of losing her to anything or than her governess who seems to have been more like a friend than a parent.

Mrs. Weston née Taylor
At the beginning of the novel, Miss Taylor, Emma's governess of many years, marries Mr. Weston, a "man of means". We don't really see her working at Highbury, the Woodhouses' residence, but the families visit each other and there are several discussions with Mr. Knightley about Emma. From that we can get a good idea how she treated Emma and that her indulgences have led Emma to become a young lady who thinks the world of herself and that she knows everything. Mrs. Weston has become the surrogate mother to Emma although she was a little indulgent with her and functioned more like a friend, she loves her as much as a daughter and Emma loves Mrs. Weston as much as a mother but I don't think she did Emma a great service in raising her without any strictness at all.

Mrs. Churchill
Mr. Weston, who marries Miss Taylor, Emma's governess, has a son. When his wife died, Frank was still very little and so his wife's childless brother and his wife raised him. Mrs. Churchill seems to be a very demanding mother, she relies on Frank a lot and won't let him go to visit his father, even for his wedding.
Is she a good mother? Well, she took in her husband's nephew but that was something that a lot of people did at the time, even one of Jane Austen's own brothers grew up in another family. She surely comes around as being very selfish because Frank has to hide his love to Jane Fairfax and can only marry her after Mrs. Churchill dies. Since we never really get to meet her in person, only hear her talked about by those people who would like to see Frank more often, we can only judge her by the negative vibes we get from her acquaintances.

All in all, not many mothers in this novel but still some that have a huge influence on the story.

From the back cover:

"'I am going to take a heroine whom no-one but myself will much like,' Jane Austen wrote, but young Emma Woodhouse, in spite of her weaknesses, has charmed generations of readers. Bossy, a little spoilt, and too eager to control other's lives for what she believes is their own good, she creates misunderstandings with every tactic she employs. But when her attempts to match-make go awry, she learns a hard lesson about life, love, and growing up. The world's greatest works of literature are now available in beautiful keepsake volumes. Bound in real cloth, and featuring gilt edges and ribbon markers, these beautifully produced books are a wonderful way to build a handsome library of classic literature. These are the essential novels that belong in every home. They'll transport readers to imaginary worlds and provide excitement, entertainment, and enlightenment for years to come. All of these novels feature attractive illustrations and have an unequalled period feel that will grace the library, the bedside table or bureau."

This was the fourth book I read with this blog and the challenge to read and discuss Jane Austen's novels with a view of the mothers in the stories.

Other Jane Austen novels I have read with regard to Motherhood:
"Emma" - 1816
"Mansfield Park" - 1814
"Northanger Abbey" - 1818
"Persuasion" - 1817
"Pride & Prejudice" - 1813
"Sense & Sensibility" - 1811

Find a link to all my Jane Austen reviews here.

See more comments on my ThrowbackThursday post in 2022.

Thursday 16 October 2014

Book Quotes of the Week


"Life without books is like an unsharpened pencil... it has no point." Belcastro

"The book to read is not the one that thinks for you, but the one which makes you think." Harper Lee

"1. Write 50 words. That’s a paragraph. 2. Write 400 words. That’s a page. 3. Write 300 pages. That’s a manuscript. 4. Write everyday. That’s a habit. 5. Edit and Rewrite. That’s how you get better. 6. Spread your writing for people to comment. That’s called feedback. 7. Don't worry about rejection or publication. That’s a writer. When not writing, read. Read from writers better than you. Read and Perceive." Ajay Obri

"Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." Pablo Picasso ... The same applies to books.

"Libraries store the energy that fuels the imagination. They open up windows to the world and inspire us to explore and achieve, and contribute to improving our quality of life. Libraries change lives for the better." Sidney Sheldon

"It wasn’t until I started reading and found books they wouldn’t let us read in school that I discovered you could be insane and happy and have a good life without being like everybody else." John Waters

Find more book quotes here.

Monday 13 October 2014

See, Lisa "Peony in Love"

See, Lisa "Peony in Love" - 2007 

This is a magical story about a young girl called Peony who lives in the seventeenth century. I have read many books about China, historical and contemporary, fiction and non-fiction, but this has taken me to a place I have never been before. This novel not only explains old Chinese stories and theatre, their whole art even but also their other traditions, like how marriages were arranged and most of all how Chinese see their life after death. Extraordinary.

Through Peony, we learn a great deal about the opera "The Peony Pavilion" written by Tang Xianzu who set the story in the Song dynasty (906 to 1127) even though he wrote about the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), a trick still used in literature today when writing during a difficult time of a country. The second big art project depicted in the novel is "Wu Wushan's Three Wives' Collaborative Commentary of The Peony Pavilion" which takes a big part in the book but does exist in real life. It makes the book even more interesting.

The author does not only describe the life of Peony but also that of any other woman she comes in touch with or is related to, grandmother, mother, aunts, cousins, concubines ... and how they interact. We learn about the Cataclysm, the Manchu overthrow of the Ming regime and the beginning of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), eras I could never really keep apart but I think with the help of this novel, I am going to manage. She also informs us about feet binding, arranged marriages, weddings, death ceremonies, the status of Chinese women at the time,

Another great read about a country with a big history and probably an even greater future.

From the back cover: "Peony is the cherished only child of the first wife of a wealthy Chinese nobleman. Yet she is betrothed to a man she has never met and as her sixteenth birthday approaches, she has spoken to no man other than her father and never ventured outside the cloistered women's quarters of the Chen Family Villa. She is trapped like a good-luck cricket in a bamboo-and-lacquer cage and the romantic lyrics from the Chinese classic novel The Peony Pavilion mirror her own longings. Though raised to be obedient, Peony has dreams of her own. Her father engages a small theatrical troupe to perform scenes from the epic opera of The Peony Pavilion - a live spectacle that few women have ever seen - in their garden amidst the scent of ginger, green tea and jasmine. Peony's mother is against the production: Unmarried girls should not be seen in public. But Peony's father prevails. Women will watch the opera from behind a screen to hide them from view and through a crack, Peony catches sight of an elegant, handsome man with hair as black as a cave and is immediately bewitched by him. So begins Peony's journey of love, desire and sorrow as Lisa See's haunting new novel takes readers back to seventeenth-century China and into the heart and soul of an unforgettable heroine."

This is the author of "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan" which seems to be a lot more popular but I would definitely recommend reading this one, as well.

Saturday 11 October 2014

Book Quotes of the Week

"Reading makes immigrants of us all. It takes us away from home, but more important, it finds homes for us everywhere." Jean Rhys

"Good fiction creates its own reality." Nora Roberts

"I don’t believe in the kind of magic in my books. But I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a good book." J.K. Rowling

"The world was hers for the reading." Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
 
"Every time we read to a child, we're sending a 'pleasure' message to the child's brain. You could even call it a commercial, conditioning the child to associate books and print with pleasure." Jim Trelease

Find more book quotes here.

Friday 10 October 2014

Scott, Mary "Turkey at Twelve"

Scott, Mary "Turkey at Twelve" - 1968

Another enjoyable reread of Mary Scott's stories about Susan and Larry, the farmer wives from New Zealand. This is book number five from the series of eight.

This time, Susan and Larry have to worry about the same things we still worry about today, all the work a public holiday brings. How many people will feed on a turkey? How much dessert do we need? How many drinks? And where, oh where will the whole family sleep?

Not only that, they also have to listen to an unmarried relative who knows so much better how to lead a household or raise kids than our two friends. How times have not change at all. Will these kind of people ever die out? I doubt it.

Anyway, as always, this story is both funny and nice. A feel good read.

This is the ffith book in the series by Mary Scott And this is the list of all of them:
"Breakfast at Six" - 1953
"Dinner Doesn’t Matter" - 1957
"Tea and Biscuits"  - 1961
"A Change From Mutton" - 1964
"Turkey at Twelve" - 1968
"Shepherd’s Pie" - 1972
"Strangers for Tea" - 1975
"Board, but no Breakfast" - 1978

Unfortunately, they are out of print and only available second hand. I have heard in the meantime, that you can buy some of them as ebooks, i.a. "A Change from Mutton"

From the back cover: "Turkey At Twelve. The back blocks of New Zealand are once again the background for this latest novel by Mary Scott."

Friday 3 October 2014

Book Quotes of the Week


"Reading well is one of the great pleasures that solitude can afford you." Harold Bloom

"A good book has no ending." R.D. Cumming

"Books make great gifts because they have whole world inside of them. And it's much cheaper to buy somebody a book than it is to buy them the whole world!" Neil Gaiman

"Books are the ultimate dumpees: put them down and they'll wait for you forever; pay attention to them and they always love you back." John Green

"Reading can be dangerous." Diane Setterfield, The Thirteenth Tale

Find more book quotes here.

Wednesday 1 October 2014

McCulloch, Colleen "The Thorn Birds"

McCulloch, Colleen "The Thorn Birds" - 1977

I read this book years ago, shortly after the mini series came out in 1983. However, I am sure that I read it in German at the time because I wasn't able to get English books that easily back then. Or at all.

I wanted to reread the novel for ages and now I finally achieved that.

I think we can easily call this book an epic saga. The story of the Cleary family over two generations coming from New Zealand to Australia in the early Twenties of the last century and also moves to London and Rome. But the main story is told in New Zealand, how a family settles in a strange country and goes through all the hardships you can imagine.

The story touches almost every topic you can imagine, well, there are over 700 pages, so there is space for a lot of drama. It is so well written. The characters come alive in a way that makes you feel you know them personally. You fear with them, you rejoice with them. You feel sorry for them when something bad happens. And there is plenty of bad stuff to happen to a family like that but there are also some quite unexpected parts, roads this story takes that you don't think it would.

I especially loved it because it shows the hardships people went through when settling in a new continent. Even though the Clearys were not the first settlers, there was still a lot to overcome, both in New Zealand as well as in Australia. Some things we should not forget nowadays where all these countries have all the modern facilities imaginable.

Anyway, if you love chunky books and would like to read about Australia, this is a wonderful book, whether you have seen the series or not. Read it. You won't regret it. Maybe it's time to get the DVD out again, as well.

From the back cover: "Treasured by readers around the world, this is the sweeping saga of three generations of the Cleary family. Stoic matriarch Fee, her devoted husband, Paddy, and their headstrong daughter, Meggie, experience joy, sadness and magnificent triumph in the cruel Australian outback. With life’s unpredictability, it is love that is their unifying thread, but it is a love shadowed by the anguish of forbidden passions. For Meggie loves Father Ralph de Bricassart, a man who wields enormous power within the Catholic church…
As powerful, moving, and unforgettable as when it originally appeared, THE THORN BIRDS remains a novel to be read…and read again."

Friday 26 September 2014

Book Quotes of the Week

"Reading a book is like re-writing it for yourself. You bring to a novel, anything you read, all your experience of the world. You bring your history and you read it in your own terms." Angela Carter

"You will be transformed by what you read." Deepak Chopra

"A good book, he had concluded, leaves you wanting to reread the book. A great book comples you to reread your own soul." Richard Flanagan in "The Narrow Road to the Deep North"

"One glance at a book and you hear the voice of another person, perhaps someone dead for 1,000 years. To read is to voyage through time." Carl Sagan

"Books are open doors to other dimensions where everything is possible and nothing is forbidden." Danny Tyran

Find more book quotes here.

Tuesday 16 September 2014

Montgomery, L. M. "Anne of Green Gables"

Montgomery, L. M. (Lucy Maud) "Anne of Green Gables" - 1908

Can you believe that I have never read Anne of Green Gables? Of course, I have heard of it. But it was not a very well known book in Germany when I was little, at least I don't think so, and later I didn't really come across it, either. But I have a couple of Canadian friends who often asked me whether I have read the book or not. And I always had to say "no". So,I thought it was time to read it.

I don't think I have to tell many people about the book. An orphan girl is taken in by a childless couple and she really loves both her new parents as well as the school and the neighbours and everything but still gets into a lot of trouble all the time. The novel is both humorous as well as serious.

A good book for children of all ages but I am sure everyone enjoys rereading it as an adult, as well. I definitely enjoyed reading it as an adult for the first time.

From the back cover:

"Everyone's favorite redhead, the spunky Anne Shirley, begins her adventures at Green Gables, a farm outside Avonlea, Prince Edward Island. When the freckled girl realizes that the elderly Cuthberts wanted to adopt a boy instead, she begins to try to win them and, consequently, the reader, over."

Tuesday 5 August 2014

Gaarder, Jostein "Sophie's World"


Gaarder, Jostein "Sophie's World" (Norwegian: Sofies verden) - 1991

This is not a book you will want to read within a couple of days. There is a lot of information in this book. We could call it a philosophy class. Granted, this book has been written for young people. But there is a lot in it for us older folks, as well.

Sophie is a 14 year old girl who receives mysterious letters from a philosopher unknown to her. He teaches her about one philosopher after the other,  Even if you just look at the book for this, it is a good achievement. We learn a lot about many philosophers and their philosophies, their language and the development how we (Westerners) look at this world today. And Sophie is not called Sophie by chance, philosophy means "love of wisdom".

The story around Sophie itself is just as philosophical. Who are we really? And what happens to the characters in the books we read? Jostein Gaarder might not have created the greatest story ever written but he certainly has given us food for thought.

From the back cover:

"A page-turning novel that is also an exploration of the great philosophical concepts of Western thought, Sophie’s World has fired the imagination of readers all over the world, with more than twenty million copies in print.

One day fourteen-year-old Sophie Amundsen comes home from school to find in her mailbox two notes, with one question on each: 'Who are you?' and 'Where does the world come from?' From that irresistible beginning, Sophie becomes obsessed with questions that take her far beyond what she knows of her Norwegian village. Through those letters, she enrolls in a kind of correspondence course, covering Socrates to Sartre, with a mysterious philosopher, while receiving letters addressed to another girl. Who is Hilde? And why does her mail keep turning up? To unravel this riddle, Sophie must use the philosophy she is learning - but the truth turns out to be far more complicated than she could have imagined."

Monday 4 August 2014

Greetings to my readers


I know I haven't blogged for a while, almost a whole month actually. Thanks for those of you who have enquired after me.


The reason for this is a personal one. My father passed away suddenly last month. He is truly missed by my mother, my three brothers and me and our families. It might take a while for any of us to go back to normal.


I will carry on blogging, I promise, but I am sure you all understand that I was not up to it lately.


Even though the pictures in this post are taken in our garden, any flower will always remind me of him.

RIP

Friday 11 July 2014

Book Quotes of the Week


"Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few are to be chewed and digested." Francis Bacon

"Reading is like thinking, like praying, like talking to a friend, like expressing your ideas, like listening to other people’s ideas, like listening to music, like looking at the view, like taking a walk on the beach."  Roberto Bolaño, 2666


"I became a book lover at a very young age. Books taught me that there are different lives and beautiful things." Rene Denfeld


"Let books be your dining table and you shall be full of delights, let them be your mattress and you shall sleep restful nights." St. Ephraim the Syrian


"Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend. Inside of a dog it’s too dark to read." Groucho Marx


Find more book quotes here. 

Wednesday 9 July 2014

Palma, Félix J. "The Map of the Sky"


Palma, Félix J. "The Map of the Sky" (Spanish: El mapa del cielo) - 2012

Fantasy and/or science fiction is not really my favourite genre, and that is putting it mildly. However, last year I came across "The Map of Time" in the chunky book group and I really liked it. Probably because it was a spin-off of "The Time Machine" which I did like as a movie (the old version, that is, never seen the new one). But maybe also because the author is a good writer. And very creative. Nothing is impossible for him.

As in his first novel, Félix J. Palma makes a spin on an H.G. Wells novel, this time it was "The War of the Worlds". But he also includes other novels like "The Time Machine", "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and "The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde" and we see many famous people, first and foremost, of course, H.G. Wells himself, then Christopher Columbus, Galileo, Karl Gauss, Marco Polo, Robert Louis Stevenson, Jules Verne, to name just about the most famous ones.

In this novel, we have a lot of adventures to pass. We are stuck on a ship in the frozen North Sea and we have to fight alien machines who want to overtake the whole world. At that point, we arrive in a dystopian environment. There is hardly a genre or a subject not touched in this novel. There is something for everyone. The author even manages to slip in a love story.

Even though this is a brilliant story, I did prefer the first of these two novels but I am still looking forward to the third and last of the books in this Victorian Trilogy which apparently will work around the themes of "The Invisible Man". I think I should start reading H.G. Wells in the meantime.

From the back cover:

"A love story serves as backdrop for The Map of the Sky when New York socialite Emma Harlow agrees to marry millionaire Montgomery Gilmore, but only if he accepts her audacious challenge: to reproduce the extraterrestrial invasion featured in Wells's War of the Worlds. What follows are three brilliantly interconnected plots to create a breathtaking tale of time travel and mystery, replete with cameos by a young Edgar Allan Poe, and Captain Shackleton and Charles Winslow from The Map of Time.

Praised for lyrical storytelling and a rich attention to detail, (Library Journal, starred review), Palma again achieves the high standard set by The Map of Time."

Friday 4 July 2014

Book Quotes of the Week


"I think we ought to read only the kind of books that wound and stab us."  Franz Kafka

"Books are a completely portable magic" Stephen King

"A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one." George R.R. Martin, A Dance with Dragons

"A book is a magical thing that lets you travel to faraway places without ever leaving your chair." Katrina Mayer

"When we open our favourite books, we do so to spend time with our best friends." N.N.


Find more book quotes here. 

Tuesday 1 July 2014

Top Ten Tuesday ~ Top Ten Favourite Classic Books.

"Top Ten Tuesday" is an original feature/weekly meme created on the blog "The Broke and the Bookish". This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at "The Broke and the Bookish". Since I am just as fond of them as they are, I jump at the chance to share my lists with them! Have a look at their page, there are lots of other bloggers who share their lists here.

July 1: Top Ten Favourite Classic Books (however you define classic) or Top Ten Classics I Want To Read  

Austen, Jane "Persuasion"
Brontë, Anne "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall"
Collins, Wilkie "The Moonstone"
Dickens, Charles "Great Expectations"
Dostoevsky, Fyodor "Crime and Punishment"
Eliot, George "Middlemarch"
Mann, Thomas "Buddenbrocks" (Buddenbrooks)
Steinbeck, John "The Grapes of Wreath
Tolstoy, Leonid "War and Peace"
Trollope, Anthony "Barchester Chronicles"

Monday 30 June 2014

Green, John "The Fault in Our Stars"


Green, John "The Fault in Our Stars" - 2012

I am not normally into weepy, chick lit type stories. And even though this book was written by a guy, it had a very chick lit type feel to it, the colour of the cover, the description. And, as we know, the cover never lies.

Neither did it in this case. However, I have read so many quotes by John Green, I really admire the guy, so I wanted to give his book a try. I am glad I did. "The Fault in Our Stars" is a lovely story about a girl who suffers from cancer. Of course, we all expect her to die at the end but as in many of these stories, there is a twist in the end and we don't really know what happens to her in the long run.

This is not a book about cancer in the first place. Or about love in the first place. Or about teenagers. It is a good mixture between all of them. However, one has to consider that this is a story for young adults, not written for grown-ups in the first place. If you do that, you will enjoy the novel.

From the back cover:

"Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten."

Sunday 29 June 2014

Migraine Books and Links 2014


Word cloud made with WordItOut
Migraine Books and Links

As a migraine sufferer, I am always interested in finding a solution or at least talk about what might and might not help. Therefore, I created a list three years ago with links to anything that could be helpful for a sufferer like me. Even though I updated it constantly, there are so many new websites and articles in the meantime. Therefore, here is a new list that I will update from time to time. You can still go back to the old one (here) and check for some of the sites there, as well.

Books about migraine:

Baxter, Blodin, Betsy "Migraine Expressions: A Creative Journey Through Life With Migraine"
Davis, Stefanie M. "Through the Eye of Migraine"
Frances, Marian "Migraine: Pain of the Body, Cry of the Spirit"
Frith, Alison "Coping with Headaches and Migraine" ** 
Griffin, Shelly L. "The Migraine Deliverance Planner"
Hatak "Guided Tour of Hell In the Words of Migraine Sufferers" 
Hutchinson, Susan "The Woman's Guide to Managing Migraine: Understanding the Hormone Connection to find Hope and Wellness"
Kabat-Zinn, Jon "Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness" 
- "Mindfulness Meditation" **   
Lane, Russell; Davies, Paul "Migraine"
Lynne, Jean "My Life With Migraines"
MacGregor, Ann; Frith, Alison "ABC of Headache"
Marcus, Dawn A. Bain, Philip "The Woman's Migraine Toolkit: Managing Your Headaches from Puberty to Menopause"
Peterson, Christina "The Women's Migraine Survival Guide: The most complete, up-to-date resource on the causes of your migraine pain--and treatments for real relief"
Podoll, Klaus "Migraine Art: The Migraine Experience from Within"
Servan-Schreiber, Dr. David "Healing without Freud or Prosac" **

There is a list here.

Suggestions for more books about this topic are always welcome.

There are so many websites and blogs about migraines, I try to list a few and will add more over time:
"The Spoon Theory" - someone with a chronic disease explains how it feels to someone who is always healthy.
How to understand someone with Chronic Pain.

Websites: 
About Migraines  
Headache and Migraine News
Migraine Discussions  
Relieve Migraine-Headache.com - It's time to fight back
The Daily Headache  
Virtual Medical Centre  

Blogs:
Abi's Migrainous Wanderings  
Malevolent Migraines  
Migraine Chick
Still searching to get my life back ...   
That M Word   
The Migraine Girl 
The never ending headache  
This is my brain on migraines 

There are a lot already here.

Articles:
1% Thursday: Warning Signs   
1% Thursday: Hire Someone (when you can't afford it)
1% Thursday: Moderate 
3 Reasons Why Migraineurs Stop Sharing Their Migraine Pain
3 Things the Chronically Ill Wish Their Loved Ones Knew 
5 Common Food Types That Triggers Migraines 
5 Diseases Coffee Can Prevent 
5 People You Meet When You Have A Chronic Illness  **
5 Realities of Living with Chronic Pain **
5 Reasons People Abandon a Sick Friend  
5 Things to Do (And Not Do) to Support Someone with Depression **
5 Things You Didn't Know About Migraines 
5 Things You DON'T Say to a Migraine Sufferer 
5 Tough Choices You Face When Chronically Ill or in Pain
5 Ways Not To Be A Jerk To Your Friend With A Chronic Disease **
6 Things About Chronic Pain You Didn't Know
6 Tips for Handling Migraines at Work **
6 Tips to Get Motivated When You're Feeling Depressed  
7 Coping Tips for Chronic Migraine Sufferers 
7 Surprising Things You Didn't Know About Migraines
8 Reasons to Care About Migraine **
8 Things Everyone Needs to Know About Migraine 
8 Things Only People with Anxiety will Understand  
10 Common Chronic Pain Myths
10 Creative Ways to Fight a Migraine **
10 Life Lessons Learned From a Chronic Illness **
10 Things NOT to Say to a Person with Migraines
10 Things to Tell Your Doctor
10 Tips for Effective Migraine Management Goals **
10 Ways for Migraineurs to Sneak in Some Exercise **
10 Ways to Help Someone with Migraine 
10 Ways to Show Love to Someone With Depression 
10 Yoga Poses to Heal Migraines
12 Tips for Living Well with Migraines **
12 Ways to Naturally Relieve Headaches  
13 Disorders Caused by Lack of Water **
13 Things Not To Say To Someone With A Migraine
13 Tips From 13 Years Sick **
14 Migraine Prodrome Symptoms **
15 Diseases, Disorders and Syndromes That Go Along with Migraine 
15 Mental Tricks that Fight Pain  
15 Tips for Empaths and Highly Sensitive People
18 Signs You're Having a Migraine - Sometimes you get them all at the same time.
22 Things About Migraines You May Not Know 
23 Tips for Men on Supporting a Partner with Chronic Pain
29 Things Only Migraine Sufferers Understand **
34 Truths People Who Get Migraines Wish Others Understood **
35 Things You May Not Know About My Invisible Illness 
100 Ways to Answer the Question "How Are You?" **
About Migraine **
A Cancer Survivor Designs the Cards She Wishes She’d Received From Friends and Family **
A doctor finds cure for rare migraine **
Acephalgic or Silent Migraine - The Basics  
After a Migraine: Vision Problems and Stroke Risk?
A Letter to my Migraines ....  
All About Headaches
A Migraine Is Not a Headache, Not Even Close; 17 Struggles Only Migraine-Sufferers Understand **
An Open Letter to People Without Migraine **
A Not-To-Do List for the Chronically Ill 
Anxiety and Migraine Warning Signs 
A Patient Education Day: "Take Control of your Pain"
Aphasia - Migraine and Headache Glossary
A "Piercing" New Alternative for Migraine Relief **
Are Migraine Researchers Preoccupied with Pain?  
Are these Migraine Headache Symptoms? 
Art Taught Scientists About Migraine's Pathophysiology 
Baby Blues: Migraines, Pregnancy and Motherhood 
Barometric Pressure & Migraine 
Block migraine pain with a back-of-the-head injection 
Botox for Migraine 
Brain Changes May Explain Stroke Risk in Migraine Sufferers 
Can Migraine Glasses Stop Migraines?
Changing the way we talk about Migraine **
Chocolate for Migraine?
Chronic Illness & Dwindling Friendships: Finding a Balance and How to Handle Negative/Changing Relationships **
Chronic Migraine - Misfits? 
Chronic Migraines: A Tidal Wave of Activity in the Brain
Chronic Pain Can Damage Brain
Chronic pain not only hurts, it also causes isolation and depression. But there’s hope. **
Clenching Your Teeth May Contribute to Migraines 
Cluster Headache - Migraine Fact Sheets 
Coffee painkiller to target headaches? 
Cold Laser Therapy 
Colic in infants may be early sign of migraine headache
Common misconceptions about migraine **
Community Thoughts: What’s the Most Frustrating Thing About Migraine? **
Dear healthy loved one **
Dentist offers new, 95% effective migraine treatment **
Does Anyone Else Live in Fear Each Day That One Will Hit You?  
Don't believe the headlines (and the news)  
Does BPA Trigger Migraine? 
Does my child have migraine? 
Don't Let Migraines Ruin Your Holidays 
Do your migraines feel like a rocket is exploding your head? 
Electronic Headband Prevents Migraines With Tiny Jolts 
Everything You Need To Know About Migraines (In Under 4 Minutes!)
Evidence Depression Isn't Just 'All In Your Head' - The toll depression has on the body and mind **
Excedrin Tension Headache 
Exercise as Potent Medicine  
Exercise for Chronic Pain 
Exploding head disorder 
FDA approves device to treat migraine headaches 
Fending Off Migraine Triggering Heat: My Secret Weapon 
Fighting the Blues: Chronic Migraines and Depression 
Fight Migraine with our HeadWay Community 
Finding the Cause of Migraine Headaches
Five Lessons I Learned From Dealing with Depression **
Five Tips for Preventing Summer-Season Migraines 
Fragrance can be dangerous for Migraine Patients
Friend in Need - Lisa Kudrow's Doctor Father Brings New Hope to Migraine Sufferers **
From Migraine to Mygraine  
Full Ibuprofen Dosage Information for All Ages  
Getting to sleep with migraine 
Gluten-free, Casein-free Diet f- for Migraine?  
Grain-Free = Migraine-Free 
Headaches and Migraines: What's the good news?  
Headache, Migraine In-Depth Report 
Headache Migraine Depression Connection  
Headache / Migraine News articles
Helpful Things to Say to Someone in Chronic Pain 
Hemicrania Continua - The Chronic Daily Headache 
Homeopathy for Headaches
Hope for migraine sufferers as 'ground-breaking' injection to prevent attacks is shown to be successful **
How a Wandering Brain Can Help People Cope With Pain
How Can I Help a Friend Who Seems Depressed? **
How Dangerous are Migraine Drugs during Pregnancy? 
How Disabled is your Child with Migraine? 
How the Spoon Theory helps those suffering Chronic Pain and Fatigue
How to Cope When Chronic Pain Affects Friends, Family & Social Life **
How to Describe Your Migraine Pain 
How to Deal with People Who Don't Believe You're Sick
How to Destroy Your Headaches **
How to Recognize Our Loved Ones Migraine Symptoms
How to Respond to "How are you?" **
How to Support a Friend Who Has a Chronic Illness **
How to Survive Chronic Pain, One Moment at a Time 
How to Understand Someone With Chronic Pain
How to understand someone with chronic pain - Chronic Body Pain
Icepacks for less **
Identifying and avoiding your migraine trigger 
I Had Alice in Wonderland Syndrome
Insensitive Things That People Say When You Have an Invisible Condition 
Is Stress a Migraine Trigger?  
If You Won't Try Tylenol for That Migraine, Stop Complaining 
It happened to me: I've had a migraine for five years 
It's my Migraine and I cry if I want to.
Letter to people without chronic pain
Living in a big black hole: My experience with depression and anxiety **
Living with Migraine
Meal skipping: chicken or egg **
Medication-Overuse Headache and the Brain  
Migraine - 'a common and distressing disorder'
Migraine Again: Think you don't know anyone with chronic migraines? Think again 
Migraine and Depression: Shared Genetics
Migraine and Epilepsy - Shared Mechanisms within the Family of Episodic Disorders
Migraine and REM Sleep 
Migraine and Stroke in Young Adults and more
Migraine: Are Blood Vessels to Blame After All? 
Migraine Associated Vertigo Symptoms 
Migraine Awareness Shirts 
Migraine disorder comes with its own set of clues to preventing pain
Migraine Emergency Toolkit  
Migraine Guided Visualization
Migraine Headache  
Migraine Headache Surgery 
Migraine is Associated with Variations in Structure of Brain Arteries
Migraine Nausea 
Migraine Not More Prevalent in RLS Patients  
Migraine: Pain Never Really Goes Away 
Migraine Patients Find Pain Relief in Electrical Brain Stimulation 
Migraine Prevention 
Migraine Questions: What is Synesthesia?  
Migraine Quick Tip: Dehydration - The Why, What and How of a Simple Migraine Trigger 
Migraine Research: Exploring Weather Related Triggers
Migraine Research: Why You Should Care and What You Can Do **
Migraines and Mental Health - Mental Health Month 2014 
Migraines and Mental Health - Social Support is Vital 
Migraines are Thieves
Migraines, Back Pain and "Psychogenic" Raise Risk of Suicide
Migraines Can Cause Permanent Brain Damage, Study Finds
Migraines ... headaches you were born to have - and the best cure may be a cup of coffee or two
Migraines Linked to Structural Changes in Brain 
Migraines: Magnetic Device Offers pain Relief  
Migraines: Myth & Reality 
Migraines: Simple steps to head off the pain  
Migraine Symptoms: Sneaky Signs Before Your Head Hurts
Migraine Stats You Need to Know **
Migraine Treatment: Acupuncture Therapy  
Migraine Treatment: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy  
Migraine Treatment: Prevention Therapy  
Migraine Treatment: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation  
Migraine Triggers: Track them Down  
Migraine With Aura May Be Linked to All Stroke Types - Migraines & Headaches Health Center
Migrainous Infarction - A Stroke from Migraine?  
Natural Migraine Relief: the Best Strategies  
Neck Support - A neglected necessity  
Neuromodulation Headache Therapy  
New Migraine Drugs Bring Relief to Sufferers With Pain Prevention, Not Just Treatment
New Chronic Migraine Solution 
New Migraine Treatments Show Promise   
New Research Shows Migraine Responsible for 13% of Deaths in Women **
Niagrara Falls Illumination   
Niagara Falls on Chronic Migraine Awareness Day  
NICE approves migraine magnet therapy
No One Talks About the Fear **
Not a Stroke Just a Migraine
Not Just a Headache: How Migraine Changes Your Brain **    
No Vacation From Migraines **
Nutrition for Migraine Prevention  
Oh Christmas tree, Migraine triggers do you bring me!  
On wishing and hoping for a migraine free future   
Opthalmic Migraine  
Orthopedic Surgeon treats migraine sufferers with unique procedure 
Perspectives on Migraine Trigger Site Deactivation Surgery  
Poor Migraine Control Predicts More Migraines  
Pretending to feel fine 
Professors Delve into Mysteries Behind Chronic Pain, Migraines 
"Proof" That Headaches are Caused by Stress? 
Secret Illness **
Sex and the CM: 6 Things Chronic Migraine Sufferers Should Know  
Sex Matters in Migraines  
Share Your Migraine-Fighting Recipe!  
Silk Ring Theory - How not to say the wrong thing   
Six Common Misconceptions About the Chronically Ill  
Sleeping Sound with Chronic Pain  
Status Migrainosus - When the Attack Doesn't Stop  
Staying Motivated with Migraine Care
Still Searching To Get My Life Back **
Stop Calling Your Headache a "Migraine"  
Study: Migraines triggered by stress relief?  
Suicide and Chronic Migraines  
Suffer From Migraines? Device Worn on the Head may Prevent Them   
That hole in my life called the migraine  
That Smell Before a Migraine Episode  
The 2014 Basilar Migraine Studies Report   
The Chronic Migraine Survival Kit: What's Included by Advanced Migraine Relief   
The Extra Burdens Faced by Young People with Chronic Illness  
The Five People You Meet When You Have Migraine **
The Hidden Ingredient in Your Painkillers  
The Hormone Effect: Menopause, Perimenopause and Women With Migraines
The Impact Of Chronic Pain In The Family **
The Link Between Depression and Migraine 
The Migraine Book Review
The Migraine Dirty Dozen - Things Not to Say to a Chronic Migraineur
The Migraine Medication Decision Process
The Reality Of Chronic Pain Is Different From the Movies **
Theramine for Migraine   
The Silencing Effect of Chronic Illness - The Daily Headache
The Traveling Migraine Diary
The Traveling Migraine Sufferer: Tips for Relief during Travel  
They don't give you a headache - but 'silents migraines' can be even more shattering  
This migraine preventing space tiara was just approved by the FDA  
Those with migraine still stigmatized  
Top 7 ways to stop Weekend Headache   
Top Ten Things You Should Know if Your Spouse Has Chronic Migraine **   
Triggers 
What a Migraine Feels Like by Cindy McKee
Understanding Cluster Headaches  
Unusual Botox Treatment for Cluster Headache 
Visual Aura  
Vitamin D: An important Migraine Treatment?  
Weight Loss Benefits: Study Says Losing Weight Can Prevent Migraines  
What are Silent Migraines? 
What Are The Best Places To Live For Migraine Sufferers
What Causes Migraines? The Common Triggers Plus Best Treatments **
What Does a Migraine Truly Feel Like? **
What Does it Really Mean When I Say "My Head Hurts"? **
What do you DO all day? Questions for a Chronic Migraineur
What Do You Know About Migraines?  
What do you tell your Doctor?  
What's Tylenol Doing to Our Minds  
What the Chronically Ill DON'T Want to Hear  
What the Healthy Can Learn from the Sick   
What To Do When Migraine Headaches Strain Your Relationships  
What You Might Not Know About Treating Migraines  
What we talk about when we talk about pain
What You Need to Know about Migraine in Emergency 
When using Triptans, do you make this mistake?
Why Migraines Deserve More Attention **
Why Spitting it out could stop Headache Pain  
Yoga may help feet, ease migraine 

Other Pain Articles:
4 Foods That Can Fight Depression  
5 Things I learned From Helping My Dad Die  
7 Big, stupid, destructive lies depression tells you  
10 Simple things you can do today that will make you happier, backed by science  
Best Tips for Managing cognitive symptoms 
Depression: Causes and Advice 
Drinking Water on an empty stomach 
Five Lessons I Learned From Dealing with Depression  
How to find out which foods are making you sick 
How to help someone suffering with depression 
How to stop an anxious thought in its tracks   
'Just Snap Out of It' - Four Hidden Truths About Depression  
Positivity is Bullshit When You Have Cancer 
Six Common Misconceptions about the Chronically Ill 
Stroke has a new indicator 
Stroke risk tied to cold, humidity, weather swings  
Symptoms of Depression 
The Connection Between Migraines and Skin Temperature 
The Garden of Eating: Red Cabbage, Carrot, Cilantro Slaw (With an Asian Slant)  
The Myth of Eight Hour Sleep 
The Science of Sleep: Dreaming, Depression, and How REM Sleep Regulates Negative Emotions  
This is anxiety 
Three Fascinating Depression Articles in Recent News 
Yoga for Complete Beginners - Yoga Class 20 Minutes

Videos:
A Migraine in (animated) Action
Chronic Migraine - We are not alone  
Do you need a Cat Cave for your Migraines?
Magnesium - The Missing Link to better help 
Migraine again  
Migraine Insiders: Interview with Catherine Charrett-Dykes, founder and president of Chronic Migraine Awareness.
Migraine pain is 'indescribable' by Cindy McCai
Migraines: Not Just Another Headache 
Migraineurs across the world (including me!) 8.11
Pain Matters - Discovery Health Programming 
Stress Release! I'm about to Whip Somebody's A**! Song of a Duck  
Slideshow: Celebrities with Migraines  
The Dangers of Chronic Migraine (Interview with JP Summers, Becky Dwyer, Nancy Girvin and Dr. Joshua Cohen)
The Faces of Migraine 2013 
The Frightening Impact of Chronic Migraines (Huffpost)
The mystery of chronic pain 
The postdrone: migraine's silent sister 
What is Depression? (The Black Dog)
Yoga for Complete Beginners - Yoga Class 20 Minute

Study:
Do you experience migraines? 

Products:
Blue tinted glasses for migraine sufferers
Cefaly - FDA Approves New Device to Prevent Migraines
Chillow  
Comfort Revolution Pillows

Migraine and Art:
Feeling Despair, I will Prevail - Poem
"Migraine Art: The Migraine Experience from Within" by Klaus Podoll , Derek Robinson, Oliver Sacks
Migraine-suffering artists depict what the awful headaches feel like  

Headache and Migraine News
The Most Popular Headache and Migraine Posts of 2013 
My Favourite Posts of 2013 

"There are over 100 drugs, surgical interventions, and devices used to prevent or treat migraine symptoms! Finding one or a combination that might work requires patience and expert help." Migraine Research Foundation

I am not an expert or a in a profession that is in any way healthy related. Therefore, I do not represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of any information, content or advertisements contained on, distributed through, or linked, downloaded or accessed from any of the services contained on this website, nor the quality of any products, information or any other material displayed, purchased, or obtained by you as a result of an advertisement or any other information's or offer in or in connection with the services herein.

** added 2015

See newer posts (2023 here and 2016 here)