Spring Book Tag!

Hello! I hope you are all having a happy spring! Where I live, tulips buds are swelling, violets are blooming in secret corners, and trees are gently dusted with green. The days are warm and summer is just around the corner. Spring is my favorite time of year, and when I saw Heather’s “Spring Has Sprung Tag” on her blog The Frozen Library, I thought it was the perfect way to celebrate. It’s also an opportunity to talk about books, so I couldn’t resist writing a similar post myself. Here we go!

Question #1: Flowers – What is your most beautiful book, inside and out? 

I immediately thought of Le Morte D’Arthur. A dear friend gave me this gorgeous copy for my last birthday, all wrapped in regal, purple paper. It has gilt pages and a leather bound cover. I felt thoroughly spoiled. I read Howard Pyle’s retelling of Arthurian legend a few years ago. Now I look forward to tackling Sir Thomas Malory’s! 

Question #2: Grass – What is a book that everyone seems to like more than you do? 

North! Or Be Eaten, the second book in Andrew Peterson’s Wingfeather Saga. It was packed with action and overwhelming suffering. I might have found this easier to handle if it were broken by more moments of rest and healing, but instead it felt practically constant. That said, I did like the emphasis on family, and how the children risk everything to protect each other, even when hurt and anger come between them. I also liked Artham. Pitiful and mysterious, comical and courageous, he is my very favorite character in the series. The intensity of the suffering makes me hesitant to continue it, but I think I will, for Artham’s sake. I long to learn more of his past and to see if he gets the happy ending he deserves. ❤

Question #3: Rain – What’s a book that lifts your spirits when you’re down? 

The Lord of the Rings! And practically anything else by Tolkien. The depth of the world that he created, the pure-heartedness of his characters, the way he values beauty and craftsmanship and green, growing things — all this touches a chord deep in my heart and fills me with longing. Rereading my favorite passages never fails to lift me up. (Plus he actually lets his characters rest. 😉 ) 

Question #4: Dew – What’s a book that makes you feel alive? 

Though I enjoyed science in high school, I didn’t generally read it during my free time (literature and history took precedence). That temporarily changed when my mother had me read For the Love of Physics by Walter Lewin. His passion for his subject matter enthralled me. He made physics relatable and revealed its beauty, and I could hear his excitement as clearly as if we were standing in the same room. It was so contagious that I remember reading at the kitchen table, swinging my legs and stopping every few seconds to make enthusiastic exclamations about rainbows or quasars or the laws of motion.

Question #5: Storms – What’s a book that you found unpredictable? 

The Arrow and the Crown by Emma C. Fox, a heartwarming fantasy with a touch of mystery. Since it was inspired by the fairy tale “Beauty and the Beast,” it should be fairly predictable, right? Wrong. In spite of my best efforts to guess the outcome, I was delightfully surprised by a certain plot twist.

Question #6: Rainbow – What’s a book that you struggled with, but were glad that you read it in the end? 

Out of the Silent Planet by C. S. Lewis, the first book in the Cosmic Trilogy. At first I nearly put it down. I was expecting something more like the Chronicles of Narnia, but this was written to an adult audience and was harsh by comparison. It tells the story of Ransom, an ordinary (and VERY relatable) philologist from Cambridge University, who is abducted by evil men and taken to a distant planet. Hunted, alone, and struggling to survive, he endures both psychological and physical pain. Then, little by little, he realizes that the universe is nothing like he thought it was. He finds beauty and grace where he expected cruelty, and his mind and heart are opened. As always, Lewis combines theological wisdom with a riveting storyline and vivid imagery. Out of the Silent Planet was worth the read after all. I have now read it three times and might just like it better than Narnia.

~*~

That wasn’t all of the questions, but this post is already so long that I think I’ll stop for now. Perhaps I’ll answer the others some other time!

In the meantime, I tag you! If you have a blog and would like to write a post like this, please do! Be sure to check out Heather’s post for the complete list of questions. And feel free to let me know in the comments so I can read it. 😀

Have you read any of the books I listed? What did you think of them?