Brrr, or, it's January


Susan Orlean: "A snow day literally and figuratively falls from the sky, unbidden, and seems like a thing of wonder."  Orlean is the author of "The Orchid Thief"



Is it cold enough for you? If you enjoy skiing, ice skating or even ice fishing, this is the perfect weather. As for the rest of us, we're happy to watch the snow fall from indoors, curled up in a comfortable chair with a hot cup of tea. And a good book, of course.


January is Book Blitz Month, National Hot Tea Month, and National Soup Month. Enjoy!


1 -      Happy 2015 

3 -      J. R. R. Tolkien Day. Love a hobbit today.

4 -      Trivia Day. 1) What was the best selling fiction trade paperback in 2013? 
                               2) What was the best selling fiction mass market paperback in 2013? Answers below*.

4 -       Birth of Doris Kearns Goodwin, 1943 (Team of Rivals)

6 -       Birth of Kahlil Gibran, 1883 (The Prophet)

8-14 -  Universal Letter Writing Week. Send someone a lovely surprise...a letter in the mail.

12  -    Death of Agatha Christie, 1976 (Murder on the Orient Express)

13 -      National Poetry at Work Day. See blog post January 13, 2014.

14 -      International Kite Day. It's an interesting choice of month for those of us in the northern hemisphere who may be knee deep in snow, but try it anyway. Or sing the song from Mary Poppins, "Let's Go Fly a Kite."

18 -     Thesaurus Day. Thesaurus is another word for treasure.

18  -     Birth of A.A. Milne, 1882 (Winnie-the-Pooh)

19 -      Birth of Edgar Allen Poe, 1809 (Murder in Rue Morgue)

20  -     Birth of Tami Hoag, 1959 (Kill the Messenger) 

25 -      A Room of One's Own Day. Enjoy an essay or novel by Virginia Woolf.

25 -     Robert Burns Day, Scottish poet (My Heart's in the Highlands)

30  -    Birth of Barbara Tuchman, 1912 (The Guns of August)

30 -     Death of Wendy Wasserstein, 2006 (The Sisters Rosensweig) 



*According to Publishers Weekly, F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby" was the best selling trade paperback in 2013. George R.R. Martin's "A Game of Thrones" was the mass market best seller.


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