Double-Stacked Bookshelves

We've done it!  Today is the final post for the A-Z Blogging Challenge and I consider this year's edition a resounding success.  It was a blast!  But on to today's letter...Z. Z is for "Zombie" and "Zip-Lock" "Zombie" - The Cranberries   If you're posting about music, how can you not choose this track as representative of Z?  It's so freakin' good!  A protest rock song written in memory of two boys, Jonathan Ball and Tim Parry, killed during the IRA bombings in Warrington, "Zombie" was released in late 1994 by Irish band The Cranberries.  It is beautifully angry and historically significant.  Such a great song. *Lyrics :  "It's the same old theme since nineteen-sixteen / In your head / In your head they're still fightin' / With their tanks and their bombs / And their bombs and their guns / In your head, in your head they are dyin'" "Zip-Lock" - Lit   A fun l...

Only one more day to go in the challenge.  Well done, fellow A-Zers!  Today is all about the letter Y. Y is for "You and I Both" and "Your Biggest Mistake" "You and I Both" - Jason Mraz   My ears love Jason Mraz.  He's so smooth and soulful and doesn't put out a bad track...seriously.  If you're looking for a chill set of pipes, this is one of your options.  When Mraz released "You and I Both", I had already been a fan for years.  This only solidified how awesome he is...it's a beautiful song. *Lyrics :  "See I'm all about them words / Over numbers, unencumbered numbered words / Hundreds of pages, pages, pages for words / More words than I had ever heard and I feel so alive" "Your Biggest Mistake" - New Found Glory   Ah...a little NFG.  I haven't listened to them in several years, but for a while there in high school and early college I loved me some NFG.  They had a few ma...

Teaser Tuesdays:  Madame Bovary Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme hosted by Jenn @ A Daily Rhythm . Here are the rules: grab whatever you're reading, open to a random page, select no more than two sentence (NO SPOILERS), share the title and author, and GO! Here's this week's teaser: "As to Emma, she did not ask herself whether she loved.  Love, she thought, must come suddenly, with great outbursts and lightnings, -a hurricane of the skies, which falls upon life, revolutionises it, roots up the will like a leaf, and sweeps the whole heart into the abyss." --page 62           Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert I've been meaning to read this for years and I've owned it for a while (I really enjoyed A Sentimental Education ).  Finally getting around to actually reading it.  Thoughts? Happy reading!

It's nearly time for another edition of Bout of Books!  Excitement is overflowing in this area :)  This round will begin on Monday, May 11th and run through Sunday, May 17th.  Here are the logistics: The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 11th and runs through Sunday, May 17th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional.  For all Bout of Books 13 information and updates, be sure to visit the  Bout of Books  blog.  - From the Bout of Books team Here are my goals: Read...just read.  Think Dory! Don't worry about pages read. Participate in Twitter Chats and Challenges when able to. Have fun! I'll post something outlining what books I hope to get through closer to the start of the read-a-thon....

Welcome to Tuesday and the near completion of the A-Z Blogging Challenge.  Today's post is dedicated to the incredibly difficult letter X. X is for "X&Y" and "XXX's and OOO's (American Girl)" "X&Y" - Coldplay   It's such a chill song.  I'll admit, I got over the hype of Coldplay quickly when "Yellow" was so overplayed.  But they've managed to redeem themselves beautifully.  Well done, Chris Martin.  Still not my favorite Coldplay track, but it's definitely got merit and the album has some of my favorite tracks. *Lyrics :  "Trying hard to speak and fighting with my weak hand / Driven to distraction, so part of the plan / When something is broken and you try to fix it / Trying to repair it, anyway you can" "XXX's and OOO's (American Girl)" - Trisha Yearwood   Released in 1994, Trisha Yearwood's "XXX's and OOO's" is just a fun country t...

Happy Monday, fellow A-Zers.  Let's hope this week, our final week in the blogging challenge, goes out with a bang!  Today is all about the letter W. W is for "Who's Crying Now" and "Wo Willst Du Hin" "Who's Crying Now" - Journey   Hands down, this is my favorite Journey song.  My parents had a vinyl copy of 1991s Escape , the album the track is on, as well as a tape of it.  I wore the tape out from rewinding it so much.  Since that time, Journey has always remained one of my all-time favorite bands.  Steve Perry's crystal clear voice is hauntingly beautiful...you really can't go wrong. *Lyrics :  "It's been a mystery / And still they try to see / Why something good can hurt so bad / Caught on a one-way street / The taste of bittersweet / Love will survive somehow, some way" "Wo Willst Du Hin" - Xavier Naidoo   Probably my favorite German artist, Xavier Naidoo is a soul and R&B si...

Saturday...I've yearned for you!  I hope everyone is having a relaxing Saturday...basking in your respective activities and modes of relaxation.  Me?  I'm reading...maybe doing some laundry (because I love that).  Perhaps watching a movie or some TV today.  The possibilities are endless.  Aside from that, today is all about the letter V. V is for "Vienna" and "Vogue" "Vienna" - Billy Joel   This is a beautiful melodious song.  It's a decadent metaphor for life and Joel presents it so well.  From 1977s The Stranger , Joel has declared "Vienna" to be one of his favorite songs to perform...it's that good.  The song was inspired when Billy Joel visited his father, who was living in Vienna at the time.  While there, he noticed an old woman sweeping the street and he questioned this practice.  The ensuing conversation with his father opened his eyes to the way American's tend to push the elderly population to the side...