What is the real reason we celebrate St. Patrick's Day?

"For this sun which we see rises daily for us because He commands so, but it will never reign, nor will its splendour last; what is more, those wretches who adore it will be miserably punished. Not so we, who believe in, and worship, the true sun — Christ — who will never perish, nor will he who doeth His will; but he will abide for ever as Christ abideth for ever, who reigns with God the Father Almighty and the Holy Spirit before time, and now, and in all eternity. Amen." ~ Patrick's Confession

All About St. Patrick's Day

A Poem (Lorica) by St. Patrick

My Shadow by Robert Louis Stevenson

In honor of Robert Louis Stevenson's 160th birthday:

My Shadow
by Robert Louis Stevenson

I have a little shadow that goes in and out with me,
And what can be the use of him is more than I can see.
He is very, very like me from the heels up to the head;
And I see him jump before me, when I jump into my bed.

The funniest thing about him is the way he likes to grow --
Not at all like proper children, which is always very slow;
For he sometimes shoots up taller like an India-rubber ball,
And he sometimes gets so little that there's none of him at all.

He hasn't got a notion of how children ought to play,
And can only make a fool of me in every sort of way.
He stays so close beside me, he's a coward you can see;
I'd think shame to stick to nursie as that shadow sticks to me!

One morning, very early, before the sun was up,
I rose and found the shining dew on every buttercup;
But my lazy little shadow, like an arrant sleepy-head,
Had stayed at home behind me and was fast asleep in bed.

~ From A Child's Garden of Verses (1902)

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Related Links:

More about: Robert Louis Stevenson
Wikipedia: Robert Louis Stevenson
A complete collection of Robert Louis Stevenson's poems

The Classic Hundred Poems: All Time Favorites Edited by William Harmon

360 pages
Published in 1990, reprinted in 1998
by Columbia University Press

I FINALLY had a chance to pull together my thoughts about The Classic Hundred Poems: All Time Favorites edited by William Harmon which I read this past summer for my book club. I am very excited to report that my write-up has been posted over at 5 Minutes for Books!!!


So after you check out my write-up please be sure to stop back here to read a few interesting "Did you know" facts about some of the poems and poets contained within this collection.

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DID YOU KNOW:

- The song Auld Lang Syne most famous as a New Years Eve song is actually based on a poem by 18th century Scottish poet Robert Burns. Burns was also famous for his poem: A Red, Red Rose.

- Poet Percy B. Shelley was the husband of Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein. Mary penned this famous novel while on vacation with her husband and several literary friends. Apparently one evening Percy, Mary and their friends challenged each other to see who could write the scariest story. Mary won hands down. So who were some of the others present? One of them was Percy's friend and fellow poet, Lord Byron. Talk about a collection of literary giants!

- Most fans of the novel Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery are already familiar with how The Lady of Shallot by Lord Alfred Tennyson was one of Anne Shirley's favorite poems. But that wasn't the only poem or poet that Montgomery references within the Anne books. Readers should also take a look at Robert Louis Stevenson's poems as several are woven through the Anne books.

Want to know more about how poetry has influenced literature and culture? Check out The Classic Hundred Poems.

Autumn Poetry: Sonnet 73 by William Shakespeare

That time of year thou mayst in me behold

When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,
Bare ruined choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.
In me thou see’st the twilight of such day
As after sunset fadeth in the west;
Which by and by black night doth take away,
Death’s second self, that seals up all in rest.
In me thou see’st the glowing of such fire,
That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,
As the deathbed whereon it must expire,
Consumed with that which it was nourished by.
This thou perceiv’st, which makes thy love more strong,

To love that well which thou must leave ere long.

Poetry: Emily Dickinson

"The morns are meeker than they were,

The nuts are getting brown;

The berry's cheek is pumper,

The rose is out of town.

The maple wears a gayer scarf,

The field a scarlet gown.

Lest I should be old-fashioned,

I'll put a trinket on."

~ Emily Dickinson

August's Crown, A Poem by Michelle L. Thieme

Artwork: Wheat Stacks, End of Summer by Claude Monet

Whilst August yet wears her golden crown,
Ripening fields lush- bright with promise;
Summer waxes long, then wanes, quietly passing
Her fading green glory on to riotous Autumn.

Poetry: The Writer by Richard Wilbur

In her room at the prow of the house
Where light breaks, and the windows are tossed with linden,
My daughter is writing a story.

I pause in the stairwell, hearing
From her shut door a commotion of typewriter-keys
Like a chain hauled over a gunwale.

Young as she is, the stuff
Of her life is a great cargo, and some of it heavy:
I wish her a lucky passage.

But now it is she who pauses,
As if to reject my thought and its easy figure.
A stillness greatens, in which

The whole house seems to be thinking,
And then she is at it again with a bunched clamor
Of strokes, and again is silent.

I remember the dazed starling
Which was trapped in that very room, two years ago;
How we stole in, lifted a sash

And retreated, not to affright it;
And how for a helpless hour, through the crack of the door,
We watched the sleek, wild, dark

And iridescent creature
Batter against the brilliance, drop like a glove
To the hard floor, or the desk-top,

And wait then, humped and bloody,
For the wits to try it again; and how our spirits
Rose when, suddenly sure,

It lifted off from a chair-back,
Beating a smooth course for the right window
And clearing the sill of the world.

It is always a matter, my darling,
Of life or death, as I had forgotten. I wish
What I wished you before, but harder.

Click here for more about Richard Wilbur.

The Reading Mother by Strickland Gillian ~

Last night my book club met and we discussed The Classic Hundred Poems edited by William Harmon. I have definitely reached a place where I love poetry. But to know more of my thoughts you'll have to wait for my review, which will be posted next week. In the meantime I thought I would share a special poem, not included in the aforementioned collection, but one that was recommended to me by another lady in the club:

The Reading Mother
by Strickland Gillilan

I had a mother who read to me
Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea,
Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth,
"Blackbirds" stowed in the hold beneath

I had a Mother who read me lays
Of ancient and gallant and golden days;
Stories of Marmion and Ivanhoe,
Which every boy has a right to know.

I had a Mother who read me tales
Of Gelert the hound of the hills of Wales,
True to his trust till his tragic death,
Faithfulness blent with his final breath.

I had a Mother who read me the things
That wholesome life to the boy heart brings-
Stories that stir with an upward touch,
Oh, that each mother of boys were such!

You may have tangible wealth untold;
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be-
I had a Mother who read to me.

Poetry: The Pulley by George Herbert

When God at first made man,
Having a glass of blessings standing by,
'Let us,' said He, 'pour on him all we can:
Let the world's riches, which dispersed lie,
Contract into a span.'

So strength first made a way;
Then Beauty flowed, then Wisdom, Honor, Pleasure:
When almost all was out, God made a stay,
Perceiving that alone of all His treasure
Rest in the bottom lay.

'For if I should,' said He,
'Bestow this jewel also on My creature,
He would adore My gifts instead of Me,
And rest in Nature, not the God of Nature;
So both should losers be.

'Yet let him keep the rest,
But keep them with repining restlessness:
Let him be rich and weary, that at least,
If goodness lead him not, yet weariness
May toss him to My breast.'

(The Pulley by George Herbert, 1630, published 1633)

America The Beautiful by Katherine Lee Bates

O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!

America! America!
God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
O beautiful for pilgrim feet
Whose stern impassion'd stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness.

America! America!
God mend thine ev'ry flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law.

O beautiful for heroes prov'd
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved,
And mercy more than life.

America! America!
May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness,
And ev'ry gain divine.

O beautiful for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears.

America! America!
God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea.

Stars, a Poem

Stars

I'm glad the stars are over me

And not beneath my feet,

Where we could trample on them

Like cobbles on the street.

I think it is a happy thing

That they are set so far;

It's best to have to look up high

When you would see a star.

~ Anonymous

Reading, a poem by Marchette Chute

Reading

A story is a special thing.

The ones that I have read.

They do not stay inside the books.

They stay inside my head.

~ Marchette Chute

Poetry

I have always enjoyed poetry, though I can't say I have always understood or appreciated it. There is a difference there, you know, between enjoying and appreciating literature. One can enjoy the sound of the words as they form on the lips, but it doesn't always follow that one can always grasp the meaning behind them. At least not immediately.

Sheakespeare is like that for me. I have always (ever since I picked up my first Shakespearian play, Romeo & Juliet) enjoyed reading Shakespeare, but at the same time he's never been an easy read for me.

More traditional poetry is also like this for me. I read Sir Walter Scott's The Lady of the Lake when I was 19 and while I enjoyed the ebb and flow of the words there were aspects of the epic poem that I just didn't get. I'm much better with the simple poems.

As a child my favorite was Vachel Lindsay's The Moon's The North Wind's Cooky. Which to this day I still love and often recite for my daughter. One day I hope to have the opportunity to study poetry, perhaps with my book club (it was discussed as an option during our last meeting). But for now, here's a simple children's poem I discovered a few months back (Accrossthepage) about one of my favorite places:

Library
No need even
To take out
A book: only
Go inside
And savor
the heady
Dry breath of
Ink and paper,
Or stand and
Listen to the
Silent twitter
Of a billion
Tiny busy
Black words.

[Library From All the Small Poems and Fourteen More (New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1994)]

The Diamond in the Window by Jane Langton

242 pages
Copyright 1962
Harper & Row, Publishers
New York, NY

The Diamond in the Window is the first book in the Hall Family Chronicles by Jane Langton. The Chronicles consists of eight books that were published between 1962 and 2008.

The Plot:
Set in Concord, Massachusetts in the present day (present when published in 1962), The Diamond in the Window is a story that involves mystery, romance, adventure, and fantasy. While most of the story is written in prose a few quotes and some poetry is scattered within.

"Eddy and Eleanor Hall have always known that their family was a bit out of the ordinary. After all, they live in one of the most remarkable houses in all of Concord. But they never guessed just how extraordinary their house really is, or what tremendous secrets about their family's past it holds. That is, until they discover the magical attic room with its beautiful stained-glass window, abandoned toys, and two perfectly made-up, empty beds that seem to be waiting perhaps for two children just like themselves...." (Summary courtesy of the publisher)

My Thoughts:
I was intrigued from the first page of The Diamond in the Window. As I quoted earlier this week in my Tuesday Teaser post, the opening paragraphs made for a compelling read. Ms. Langton writes well as a children's storyteller and I found the book both clever and amusing. The characters were fun as well, with some being easily likable and others appropriately despicable. That said, there was a point, about two thirds into the story, where my interest lagged a little. It wasn't really that the story dragged, because it didn't. It had more to do with the fact I wasn't excited to find so much of the story revolved around the 19th century belief of transcendentalism. I kept wondering where Ms. Langton was going with the story and why she focusing on this out-of-date philosophy.

As I read on the answer to these questions became clear. First, it is evident in her writing that Ms. Langton is both fascinated and passionate about Concord, Massachusetts history and its connection with the late 19th century transcendentalist movement. Second, in writing a story that involves beliefs and philosophies from generations past it only makes sense to include some of the local celebrities who played a part in the movement (Enter Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Henry David Thoreau). In turn these celebrities play a historic part in the story, which ties everything neatly together and makes for a very different type of story.

I was pleased to find when I reached the end of the book that even though Ms. Langton makes the transcendentalist movement a part of her story it isn't the point of her story. There is no "preachiness" in the story, it's just a means to an end. The real point of the story is a tale of mystery and adventure and good overcoming evil. The Diamond in the Window is definitely a fantasy with impossible adventures, some of which are a little weird like a dream... but for the most part the book is just plain fun. It reminds me a great deal of another children's book I read and reviewed, The Enchanted Castle by Edith Nesbit and also a little of a book I started, but never finished, The King in the Window by Adam Gopnik.

My Summary
Overall I can say I enjoyed The Diamond in the Window. It was a fun read, but with a somewhat predictable ending (but probably less so for young readers). On a scale of 1-5, 1 being horrible and 5 being excellent I would rate The Diamond in the Window a 3.5. It was a good read, but I will admit the transcendentalism stuff kind of turned me off from giving the book a higher rating; still I might take a look at the rest of the Hall Family Chronicles at some point in the future. In the meantime, fans of The Enchanted Castle may find a winner in this book.

For more information about the series or about Ms. Langton check out this Wiki article.

A House to Let by Charles Dickens, Elizabeth Gaskell, Wilkie Collins & Adelaide Anne Procter

102 pages
First published 1858, reprinted 2004
Indy Publish
Boston, Massachusetts

Some time ago my friend and fellow bibliophile, Alison, and I were searching online for future reading ideas. She stumbled upon a little known book titled A House to Let which was co-authored by five authors, among the most notable of the five were Charles Dickens, Elizabeth Gaskell, and Wilkie Collins. Intrigued I put the book on my list to read one day... That day finally came. At the May meeting of my book club both A House to Let and Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens were selected as our reads before the next meeting in July.

A House to Let was first published in 1858 in an edition of Dickens' Household Words magazine. The story is split up in six chapters or segments. And with the exception of the first and last chapters, which were co-written by Dickens and Collins, each chapter was written by one of the five authors. Gaskell wrote the second, Dickens the third, Procter the fourth, and Collins the fifth, with Dickens handling editing for the entire novel. Apparently the story was enough of a success and enjoyment to write to encourage the group to join forces again and co-write The Haunted House in 1859.

At 102 pages, A House to Let is a short novel told in the first person by an elderly spinster named Sophonisba (a.k.a. Sarah), who has moved in across the street from a run down and abandoned house. Sophonisba's interest is sparked when she learns that the house, shrouded in mystery, has not been let for years and will never let. With the aide of an old admirer, Jabez Jarber, and her devoted servant, Trottle the research and sleuthing begins and by the end of the story the mystery is solved and things are put right in typical Dickens fashion. Throughout the story various characters, stories, and possible solutions to the mystery are submitted to Sophonisba, including stories of romance, tragedy, epic poetry, suspense, and swashbuckling adventure.

Overall I enjoyed A House to Let. I admit, I did find it a little slow at first, not because of the wording, but because I had no idea what I was getting into (the used copy I bought turned out to be a different edition than I expected and it didn't include a description or introduction to the story on either the inside or outside of the cover). Nevertheless, if the reader is persistent the story does pick up and reward the reader in the end.

On a scale of 1-5, 1 being horrible and 5 being excellent I would rate A House to Let a 3.5. I really enjoyed the story. I think it was a fun read, especially considering the number of celebrated authors involved in its creation. But I don't think it was said authors' best work. Still, if a reader is curious to read something by Collins, Dickens, or Gaskell, but is daunted by the length or wording of their individual novels, this might be a good place to start.

Unfortunately copies of A House to Let are hard to locate. None of my local libraries possessed a copy, so I ended up buying one online from a used bookseller for $3.50. Although it wasn't the edition I wanted, I decided to keep it and it now rests amongst my other Collins, Dickens, and Gaskell novels.

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Note: For those interested in reading one or more of the stand alone novels by these authors I recommend: North and South, Wives and Daughters, Ruth, and Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell. I've only read one by Wilikie Collins entitled, The Woman in White, but it was excellent! As for Dickens, my favorite so far has been Bleak House, but I've heard many wonderful things about David Copperfield and Oliver Twist, and A Tale of Two Cities, I know they are great reads and I plan to read them one day. Oh and, stay tuned for my review of Little Dorrit.