Throwback Thursday #7 – Come, thou Tortoise

Posted April 29, 2021 by elzaread in Throwback Thursday / 14 Comments

Gosh, my Mommy is on such a roll this week. She’s posted 6 days in a row. Nope, no idea what’s up with that, but I’m not complaining here. I know she loves the blog and I’m glad she gets her days sorted in such a way that she has a bit more time to spend on the blogosphere.

It’s Thursday and time for Throwback Thursday. Guess what? My Mommy actually plays by Davida’s rules for a change!

  • The Chocolate Lady’s #Throwback Thursday takes place on the Thursday before the first Saturday of every month. Yes, there is a linky and it will remain open until she uploads the new one. Thank Goodness. My first and last sometimes gets very confused. 
  • Your post must highlight one of your previously published book reviews and Davida encourages other participants to do the same. 
  • Add the link to your post and remember to link back to The Chocolate Lady’s Book Blog And do not forget to #ThrowbackThursday!
 
As this is our 7th Throwback Thursday, Mommy is looking back at the 7th review that she’s written.

Goodness gracious me! This is a funny review. I sniggered more than once, but I do understand that it’s a fond memory for her. Apparently this book was her inspiration to start blogging in 2016. I won’t know, I wasn’t the apple of her eye yet, as I wasn’t even born yet. I don’t think my feline mother was even born. Thank goodness she traded up from tortoises to cats.

 

Title: Come, Thou Tortoise

Author: Jessica Grant
Published: March 2009 (Knopf, Canada)
Pages: 412
Format: Paperback
Read: 19 March – 05 June 2016 (I know,…. But keep in mind – this was a book concerning a tortoise. I call it “empathetic reading”)
Rating: 
Synopsis: When Audrey (a.k.a Oddly)  Flowers learns that her father has been hit on the head by a Christmas tree and is in a coma, she knows what she must do: leave Winnifred her tortoise behind, fly home, make a moving speech at his bedside and wait for him to wake up. When Audrey disarms an Air Marshall on route to St Johns and the Wednesday Pond, we realize there is something a bid odd about her.
Things didn’t work out quite the way she planned. Instead, Audrey finds herself embarking on an extraordinary journey: one full of puzzlement and pain – but one that could also light up her life (very similar to a Christmas tree). Come, thou tortoise  unfolds in a world that is not quite our own; a place where you might just live forever if you can avoid the dangers, and where the truth can be hidden in the armrest of your airline seat.

 

Should you be in the very, very fortunate position to be following this blog * (amazement in the making here – watch this space) for the past two months – this is the book you should be thanking.
*This blog here refers to my Mommy’s previous blog, MareliThalkink. Long before I was in the picture.  I think our blog, Elza Reads, is even more swoon worthy.
The idea of starting my own blog was simmering somewhere the back of my mind for a couple of months and it took Winnifred, the highly opinionated tortoise, to bring the idea to the boil. When I read the above quoted lines from Come, thou Tortoise, it was an enlightening moment. That is exactly what I have become! A bookmark. Really, think about it; I’m not working full-time anymore;* I’m at home most of the day; I spend most of my waking hours reading; at least 15 000 of my daily quota of 20 000 words per day are on books and authors and bookish blogs. See???
*My Mommy is working full-time again and not at home as much as I would like her to be. And she talks a lot of school. At least 25 000 words a day.
 
“This is what I’ve been reduced to. A bookmark. Me thinks I need a plan”
 
What other choice did I have than to follow the wise-old tortoise’s advice? I made a plan. And started my own blog. Maybe that is the main reason why it took me so long to finish this book. I didn’t want to let go of Winnifred. I was hoping that she would be able to give me more advice on the important things in life. She did. And it was a bit more than just “Slow and steady wins the race”.

You can read the rest of her very unstructured review by clicking on the link above.

As always, I have asked her a couple of questions regarding the review:

 

  1. When was this review first published? – 06 June 2016
  2. Did you have any idea what you were doing? – Obviously not! But leave it. It shows that growth is always a possibility.
  3. Will you re-write this review? – Good grief, no. I would never be able to be so ridiculously creative again. And by ridiculously, I literally mean ridiculous.
  4. Did you tweak this review? – A bit yes. Could have done more, I guess. But let’s leave it as is.
  5. Will you re-read the book? – I think so yes. I remember that I loved it.
  6. Will you recommend others to read this review? If you want to have a laugh, yes. But the book comes highly recommended.

 

 

 

End of last year, we’ve decided to combine Throwback Thursday with  Books from the Backlog, hosted by Carole’s Random Life of BooksThis worked very well. By working well, I mean that my Mommy actually spend some time on her TBR shelf and cleared some space for new books. (She needs to do that every time we post on Books from the Backlog. Very effective)
Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread.  If you are anything like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in your stacks.
The 7th book on our TBR list of 502 books was Jasper Jones by Caig Silvey, but somehow I don’t think we’ll still get to it. So our list is now down to 501 and nr. 7 is: 
 

 

 

 

 

Stanley Yelnats’ family has a history of bad luck, so he isn’t too surprised when a miscarriage of justice sends him to a boys’ juvenile detention centre. At Camp Green Lake the boys must dig a hole a day, five feet deep, five feet across, in the dried up lake bed. The Warden claims the labour is character building, but it is a lie. Stanley must dig up the truth.

 

 

 

I’m sure this little book needs no introduction. My Mommy has read this book years ago and she remembers that she told herself then already that one day she will read it again. I think one day is any day now. We just need to find a copy again. I believe there’s one in the school library with the cover we’ve shared with you. Have you read Holes? Or is that one of those rhetorical questions?

 

Please remember to link your Throwback Thursday and your Books from the Backlog up to the two lovely hosts and share your books with us too!
Lots of Love,

 

 

 

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14 responses to “Throwback Thursday #7 – Come, thou Tortoise

    • Hi Carole! I'm sure you'll be able to pick up a copy just about anywhere! It is a good read and I am looking forward to reading it again.

  1. I've never read Holes but every teacher I've ever known has loved it so I figure that's something! I love Elza's recap of the old blog! Definitely not as good without a white kitten's imput.

    • Hi Katherine! It was also a fellow teacher who first introduced me to Holes. It is a good read and I am very glad to see that it's still on the bookshelves of the schools' libraries.

      I will tell Elza that you approve of her antics. She will be ever so chuffed.

  2. I have not read Holes. I haven't! It looks awesome, one of those YA-must reads, or just generally must-reads. Why haven't I read it? No, not a rhetorical question!

    • Hi Lex! Don't worry, I also only read it as an adult for the first time, but it was such a great read I really want to read it again. Sure you will like it.

    • Hi Sophia! I've actually never seen the movie of Holes. Will have to take a look. Read the book again and then I'll watch the movie.

      I'm also glad the turtles and then a fluffy white kitten talked me into blogging!

    • Hi there Sherry! Thank you so much. I think it's a huge compliment that someone with such a lovely blog as yours enjoys reading mine!

    • I loved Come, thou tortoise and Holes. Holes I know I definitely want to read again and if I ever get my hands on Come, thou Tortoise again, I'll read it again too!