It's a Classical Life

  Boris Pasternak, the author of this week's Bitesize Inspiration, is famous for his work Doctor Zhivago .  Doctor Zhivago is on my TBR, in fact, I have the book on order from my local library. As far as I know, however, this quote is not from that book; it comes from Pasternak directly (although please correct me if you know me to be wrong here!) For me, this quote here exemplifies perfectly why I read the classics, many of which are considered "literature." When I was younger, I read a lot of fantasy and science fiction as a form of escapism, but now I prefer to read the ordinary lives of ordinary people - written in extraordinary ways.  What about you? Do you agree with Pasternak's definition of literature? Is this also why you love to read the classics?

  Things have been quiet around here lately, but that is all right with me. I enjoy quiet days where we are free to potter either independently or to come together as a family for a meal or a game. I recently read Kenneth Grahame's  The Wind in The Willows . I had read parts to my children when they were young, but never sat down to read the whole thing myself. I was totally and utterly charmed by this book! I laughed, I cried, I longed for home and I longed for travel. If you haven't read it, then I highly recommend you do. Read on to learn more about the charms of this wonderful classic. 1. Mole's diligent spring cleaning interrupted with exclamations of "O blow!" and "Hang spring-cleaning!" The story begins with dear Mole undertaking the spring cleaning of his little home. He has worked hard all morning, scrubbing, dusting, washing, but he can feel spring "moving in the air above." Eventually the call of the outside world is too much and he

I'm really enjoying these Tidbits posts, and I hope you are too! This week was still quite warm here but there are definite signs in the garden that autumn is on the way. We got plenty of tomatoes, though still not enough to preserve - we are enjoying them with fresh bread and ham. The potatoes are coming along; I can't wait until they are ready because there is nothing better than fresh potatoes and butter! And as you can see from the glorious photo above, the harvest moon has been giving us some beautiful sunsets. Five Classic Books That Never Get Old  ~  I've read four of the five books on this list and would have to agree that this selection is timeless. Do you agree? Which books would you add to such a list? Holocaust Victim's Opera for Years in Trunk Gets Premiered At Last   ~ A heart-warming story, whose title says it all really. It's amazing how we as humans deal with trauma in such creative ways. I Bought No New Clothes For Two Years - Here's What I Lea

Wordle has been taking over the internet lately! Do you know this short but challenging word game? Even if you don't, you've probably heard how it was recently bought by the New York Times. So what's the hype? Well, the premise of the game is really simple and you can only play one game a day. No sign-up. No commitment. No fees. All you have to do is guess the 5-Letter word of the day, within six guesses. We love it! My son especially loves to play and between our two devices (everyone has the same word to guess), we usually get it!! You can watch how to play in the video below, then pop over to the Times website to play. ( edited: We have also recently discovered Quordle , which is just like Wordle only there are four words to guess. Very challenging!) There is nothing new about word games. In Ancient Rome, there was the Sator Square, a stone with a combination of a palindrome carved into it (that is, the words can be read backwards and forwards) and a cryptogram.  When t

    "Here's harmony!" said she, "Here's repose! Here's what may leave all painting and music behind, and what poetry only can attempt to describe. Here's what may tranquilize every care, and lift the heart to rapture! When I look out on such a night as this, I feel as if there could be neither wickedness nor sorrow in the world; and there certainly would be less of both if the sublimity of Nature were more attended to, and people were carried more out of themselves by contemplating such a scene."                                                                                                                        Mansfield Park ~ Jane Austen Recently my family and I were holed up for a couple of weeks in isolation with the COVID-19 virus. Thankfully, we weren't as afflicted as many others with this virus, but our energy levels were zero and there were a lot of cold and flu symptoms in our house.  The weather was mild which means windows and doors

  Welcome to a new series here at It's A Classical Life! I love blogs and sites that share little morsels of interesting articles and things on the web that explore different interests so I thought I would begin a similar series here, with a distinctly classical theme. I chose to name this series, Tidbits, meaning small pieces of interesting information. So, sit back with a cup of tea, turn off your phone and take a few minutes with this week's tidbits. Beatrix Potter - The Victoria and Albert Museum, London This exhibition is now running at the VA Museum, but there is so much wonderful information about Miss Potter, her life and her work, online for you to explore. I love Beatrix Potter and have learnt so much from the online exhibition, which includes written articles, podcasts and more. From the museum's website:  "The V&A is a major resource for the study of Beatrix Potter. The museum holds the world's largest collection of her drawings, manuscripts, corres