Hello Dear Reader,

Welcome back to another month of content cultivated specifically for you! 

Let me start off my saying that things have been quite busy for me over these past few weeks. I’ve been really busy with research and writing for the next book (eekk!), working on content, and all the other ins and outs that go into this line of work. 

But on top of that, there is something else that came to the top of my plate. While many people consider it work, it’s probably my favorite thing to during the changing of the season: Spring Cleaning! 

I get to freshen up everything in my house, it just makes me feel so clean and crisp, like I’m turning over a new leaf. Now, whether you enjoy it or not, most everybody does it. From wiping the baseboards and window shades, to going through all our clothes, to organizing the pantry, it all has to be done. But what most of you might not do is do that for your book collection. 

That’s where I come in! I’ve got a mini list on just how to take care of your books and to add them to your to-do this year!

Let’s not leave a moment to waste and just dive in!

KNEE SLAPPER THURSDAY 

VERSE OF THE MONTH

“So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.”

1 Corinthians 3:7 ESV

SERVINA

Storytime!

Let me preface this by saying if you’ve read “Servina, The Friendly Dog,” you do know this story, but here’s a more insightful look!

A more insightful look to what you may ask — April is the month that we found Servina! Or better said, Servina found us. 

It was a warm April day in 2019, and we were babysitting some children, when all of a sudden, my father comes from the garage, saying to come quickly. Lo and behold, there was a black and white dog that we’d never seen before hanging out in our garage. She was SO friendly, nuzzling next to everyone who came near her. We didn’t know what to call her, so we just dubbed her “April!”

To this day, when she hears that word, her ears perk up a bit.

This was the day she came, just seven months old — our puppy!

SPRING CLEANING: BOOK EDITION

Whether you’re a big reader or not, everybody, at the minimum, has one book in their house. It’s just a fact. 

Some people take better care of their books than others. Or sometimes, things just happen by accident — I know I’ve been there! (quietly walks away like I don’t read my books in the pool) Whatever the case may be, there are times when we think there’s nothing to do to fix our books. 

Here comes Sara to the rescue: this is your one stop look to find about what you can do to take you books back into tiptop shape, no matter the predicament. 

You Have a Smelly Book

This one is probably one of my favorite hacks, as it’s so easy, but works miracles!

1. Grab the smelly book and take out any bookmarks or other things lodged in the pages.
2. Take some baking soda and sprinkle it generously through the pages.
3. Place the book in an airtight container in the dark for 24-48 hours. 
4. Retrieve the book, shake out the baking soda, and voila!

A Page from Your Book is Torn

This one’s simple, yet effective!

1. Find your torn page.
2. Rip off a piece of clear tape, big enough to span on both sides of the page.
3. Seamlessly lay it across the rip and now it’s good as new!

Dry a Wet Book

Unfortunately, this one is the one that happens most frequently with me.

1. Wipe or fling excess water from the book.
2. Lay down a few paper towel sheets.
3. Take your wet book and place it on top of your paper towels so that it stands straight upright.
   • You don’t want your book to sag at all as it dries, so, if need be, use bookends or weights to keep your book standing straight upright.
4. Next, take two paper towel sheets and tuck one inside each cover.
   • Don’t disturb the pages when you do this. Fanning the pages at this point can lead to crumpled or deformed pages when the book dries.
5. When you’ve arranged all of your paper towels, simply allow the book to sit in its standing position.
6. Check on your book’s progress every hour or so. Replace paper towels as needed.

The Spine of Your Book is Falling Off

My biggest pet peeve, as well as the one I’m most scared to do! 

1. Open the book and remove the loose pages, make sure they’re in numerical order.
2. Set them aside.
3. Squeeze some glue onto the inside of the book spine.
4. Use a craft stick to spread the glue so that it covers the spine evenly.
5. Set the ordered loose pages back in the spine. Carefully line up the top and bottom of each loose page with those in the book.
   • You might need to wiggle or readjust them to make sure they are lined up.
   • Work quickly so the glue doesn’t dry and cause the pages to stick in the wrong place.
6. Place a rubber band around the book to hold it closed and to ensure pages are held in place. You can also stack heavier books on top of your repaired book.
7. Let book dry for 24 hours.
8. Removed heavy books and rubber band.
9. Gently flip through your book. The pages should feel secure.
   • If they don’t, repeat steps 1 through 6.

BONUS: Storing Old & Precious Books

Things To Do and Not To

BOOK REVIEW

“GUENEVERE: QUEEN OF THE SUMMER COUNTRY”

This month’s book is “Guenevere: Queen of the Summer Country” by Rosalind Miles. 

My Overall Opinion:

Before writing this review, I scoured the internet to see if I was crazy in what I was thinking. I found that 99.99% of reviews I read, the people agreed with me. This book was just… okay. The first 100 pages or so were hard to get into, I’m not usually a fan of the feminist slant, and I don’t think that Miles did a good job in the character development or emotional attachments. For example, when Guenevere’s mother died, she didn’t even cry, even though she was supposed to have such a strong bond. On a stronger note, even though the story of Lancelot, Guenevere, and Arthur is commonly known, I thought that the storyline would have been more tastefully done. Instead, she took the path of coarse and lewdness, making a beloved story something to be cringed at. How she got published as a trilogy, I’ll never know.

My Favorite Character:

To be honest, I didn’t really like anyone. That was probably because I didn’t enjoy the book as a whole, but I couldn’t attach to anyone: Guenevere, Merlin, Lancelot, Morgan, and so on. 

Things I Didn’t Like / Would Change:

I was not expecting it to be this… raunchy?  Morgans vulgarity, Lancelot and Guenevere, and so on, were all things that I did not enjoy. Nor did I relish the authors descriptiveness. Moreover, while the battle between religions is a tale as old as time, I didn’t appreciate the depiction of the Christians. I would have stopped reading at the first hint of all these things but felt committed to give an honest review.

Ranking:

1/5 — A frank review; no person, Christian or not, should read this book. Besides the storyline itself being quite boring, the authors intent on being indecent, and lack of a better word, smutty, was not appreciated. Had I known the extent, I wouldn’t have even bothered to put it on the reading list.

Other Comments:

The tale of Guenevere is not something new and has been reimaged countless times both in literary works, as well as the film industry. Some of my favorite retellings include: “First Knight,” starring Richard Gere, Sean Connery, and Julia Ormond, the musical classic “Camelot” starring Richard Harris and Vanessa Redgrave, “Avalon High” a Disney Channel Original movie, and “King Arthur” starring Keira Knightly and Clive Owen. 

COMING NEXT MONTH

April showers bring May flowers, but what do May flowers bring?

See You Next Month!