Remembering Synonyms

Maybe we don't appreciate how important words are until we lose them. My father had Alzheimer's. His words disappeared - one after another. He was very patient about it, it did not seem to affect him. He just explained the words. I would ask him what he had for breakfast, and he would answer "a round red thing" (a tomato) or he would say he "the things that removes my beard", talking about his razor.
One day he had almost no words left, and his body language and facial expressions told me what he thought or wanted. Even though this example is extreme, we all forget words now and then.

I like synonyms. Like the way my father explained the words lost in his mind, there are so many fun synonyms to use. You can find alternative words when using the Microsoft Word toolbar: review - synonyms or use a good old-fashioned synonym-book or check out one of the many websites, e.g. synonyms
Using different words and the synonyms for these, can sometimes show who you are, if you are a reader, if you are young or old, or maybe what your profession is.

Expanding my vocabulary, learning new words and how to use them is challenging and fun. There are so many more words out there!
Check-out the "word a day" on the right hand column here on this blog.

Book to read: The Physician

Do you read one book at a time, or several?

I tend to have books in different rooms of the house. Maybe I am terrified of missing something, or just thirsty for the adventure of good reading and new things to learn, new places to go in thought, new people to meet through characters in the stories. It's an exciting voyage and it's fun!

I would like to recommend another book today. It is called The Physician by Noah Gordon. This is the first book of a trilogy about the Cole family. They have a special sixth sense, called "the gift" as they practice as physicians.

The Physician was number one in Europe, though it did not get the same response in the US. The Madrid Book Fair attendees called The Physician "one of the ten most beloved books of all time".

If you like historical novels, this is one to read. Go back in time to the year 1020 in this first book.

The second is called "Shaman" and is set in the time of the conflict between the north and the south in USA. The third and last book is called "Choices", set in modern time.

Book to read: The Eight

A good place online to organize the books you read and get recommendations for more along the same line is Goodreads. It is also a meeting place for friends who enjoy books and reading, an opportunity to join reading groups, and much more.

Today I would like to recommend a book I love. It is called "The Eight" by Katherine Neville (published 1988).

It is a rich blend of medieval mystery, modern romance, and historical fiction. The story is packed with people from history, adventures on different continents, and an intelligent game of chess.

This being Neville's debut novel, she has already been compared to writers like Umberto Eco.

Why I like this book?

I enjoy a clean novel - free from bad words and bedroom scenes. I love it when I can learn something new, that the writing has an intelligent approach, bringing the story forward in a teaching and entertaining manner. It is a page-turner that makes you sad when the last page is read.

So what DOES make a great book great?

Good books? What makes a book good - or worth while spending your prescious few hours or minutes of leisure time with? Do books have to be good, or is it OK to read bad ones as well? I am pretty strict with myself when it comes to that question. Even though books are almost sacred in our home, carefully taken care of and thoroughly enjoyed - I don't want to fill my head with words that don't belong there. Yesterday I read the following by an LDS author - he is a novelist and screenwriter, with numerous bestsellers:

Defining Greatness by Michaelbrent Collings

So what DOES make a great book great? There are a lot of things. But first and foremost, I think, is simply this: a great book is one that people want to spend time with. And I’m not just talking about the time they put in reading it. A great book is one that we think about even when the covers are closed, one whose characters we wish we could meet well after the last chapter has been finished. It’s one that lives within us, and becomes not merely a part of what we have done, but a facet of who we have become.

To read the whole article go to http://www.ldspublisher.com/

So pick up a good book today,folks and enjoy!

Launching a second blog

Launching a new blog today for the enjoyment of writing and reading WORDS.

In this blog I will conjure up some of my thoughts on why words can be exciting, fun, and inspirational. They can also be the opposite - but being a positive character myself, I would like to empathize the good words.

All words can mean something to someone -

I am no expert at all, but I can enjoy words of all sorts. There will be mistakes in this blog, strange sentences, I'm sure - but then again: this is just for fun.

Art work from Eljarbo Studio will accompany many of the blog entries. Hope you'll enjoy them.

So, I'm pushing the start button. Here we go....