Shakespeare in the Park: Othello

I’ve been looking forward to Shakespeare in the Park this year since my flatmates informed me that there’s such a thing. Since I rarely get the chance to see a Shakespeare production, I thought it was a good idea to do it when I could. I like how the outdoor setting gives off a Just One Day kind of vibe. The Singapore Repertory Theatre’s production for this year is Othello. Take note that I’m not well-versed in Shakespeare’s work so this is by no means a review. I just wanted to talk about my experience to let all of you know how I spent my Saturday evening. We weren’t allowed to take pictures during the play itself so I only have a couple of pictures before and after.

Waiting for the play to start

Here’s the program

We brought food and drinks and sat on mats on the grass. Everyone else did something similar – it was funny how a lot of people brought wine or champagne and they even had their own wine glasses. The casual setting was a good thing because you can move around to get comfortable, which is an advantage when you’re sitting on the ground for several hours. When the play started, I was surprised at the modern attire and stage setting but I liked it once I got used to it. Men were wearing suits instead of robes while the women wore pants. They used guns instead of swords and showed a helicopter instead of a ship.

Look at that crowd!

Thank you, sir, for blocking our view.

I was surprised by how many people turned up for the event. I’ve heard that last year’s production of Twelfth Night wasn’t as crowded so it looks like the event has gained popularity. I would have loved to see Twelfth Night or any of Shakespeare’s comedies – I think I’m more suited to them rather than his tragedies. I remember watching A Midsummer’s Night Dream back in Manila a few years ago and I really enjoyed that. Overall, it was quite an interesting experience and one that I wouldn’t mind repeating.

Have you ever seen a Shakespeare play performed on stage? What did you think of it? I know that Shakespeare in the Park is an international thing so feel free to let me know if you’ve experienced this as well.

What are the things you give up so you can read and blog?

I wanted to highlight the brief Twitter conversation that I had with Angie above because it emphasizes the point that bloggers sacrifice time in order to read and blog. I’ve said it before and will most probably repeat it again in the future, both reading and blogging take up time and effort. It might be easier to squeeze in reading during the day because that can be done while traveling, waiting in line for something or basically whenever you have a few minutes to spare. As for blogging, it takes more time to organize thoughts and come up with a coherent post. Sometimes, I just need to sit down and think about what I want to talk about. I envy people who constantly get creative ideas for their blogs and find it easy to just whip up a post.

My point in this is that because book blogging takes time, there is usually something that a blogger has to give up to make way for it. More often than not, it’s sleep that gets sacrificed. I am not a morning person so I have a hard time getting out of bed every day – I end up hitting the snooze button several times and I always sleep in on weekends unless I have to get up to do something. So I keep telling myself that I should try to sleep earlier because getting more sleep would probably mean that I won’t have such a hard time waking up the next morning. But no, I rarely get to sleep early. When I’m reading a good book, I want to get to as many chapters as I can or even finish the whole thing in one go. Sometimes even when I’m reading a book that I’m not into, I just want to get it over with. When I want to put up a blog post, I open my laptop and I get distracted by so many things online – Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and also other blogs. Then I create a draft and edit and work on it until I feel like it’s good enough for me to hit “publish.”

So sleeping is the first thing that gets sacrificed. Next is probably chores. Laundry takes up a chunk of time even if I can read or blog while waiting for the cycle to finish. Dryers aren’t common here in Singapore so I have to hang clothes up after they’ve been washed. Then the next day, I have to take them down, fold and put them away. I try to do laundry every week but sometimes I let it pile up because I’d rather read or blog. Same with vacuuming, although I hope you guys won’t think that my room is a pigsty. I’m also not a fan of ironing so I try to avoid that as often as I can, which is why I don’t get to wear some of my clothes as often as I’d like.

As for everyone else, I’d like to know what you give up so you can have time to read or blog? Do you get fewer hours of sleep because of reading or blogging? Or do you give up other things in your life? Are you lucky enough that you can sneakily write blog posts during office hours when nothing much is going on?

We are part of the 1%

I find it funny that I’ve been blogging for more than three years now and I’m pretty active on several social networking sites (Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram) and yet I only heard of the 1% rule the other day. Basically, the 1% rule or 90-9-1 principle states that in any online community, 1% of the people are creators, 9% are commenters and 99% are lurkers. This means that 1% will actively create content maybe through blog posts, while 9% will comment and react, and the remaining 90% will just lurk and watch what’s going on in their feeds. I found this really interesting because I knew right away that I’m part of the 1% when it comes to the reading community. I mean, come on, I have a book blog! That definitely makes me a creator, right? I wonder if all book bloggers can be considered creators since we do publish our own content such as reviews, discussion posts, guest posts and interviews. Commenters are probably the ones who read book blogs and leave comments from time to time. They’re readers who enjoy interacting with fellow book lovers but don’t feel compelled to write their own reviews or start their own blog. Lurkers are probably readers who just check out reviews to help them decide what to read next. Or they enjoy reading book-related news and discussions but are quite content to just see what’s going on instead of diving in to comment. I’m not sure if these numbers are accurate or if they even apply to the reading community but it kind of makes me feel special to be part of such a small percentage. I also find it funny that I went through all those stages – I was a lurker before then I started commenting once I realized that book bloggers are actually quite friendly. Until finally, I decided to start my own book blog.

Have you heard of the 1% rule before? I tried Googling and some articles say that the 1% rule isn’t applicable anymore as more and more people become digitally engaged. In any case, I thought it would be fun to share this little tidbit of information with all of you since the fact that you’re reading this post in a book blog means that you’re probably a reader who’s aware of the blogosphere and the online reading community.

Of Postcards and Washi Tape

What is it with retail therapy? I don’t know why it’s so much fun, at least for me, to go shopping. Even if I don’t have a goal in mind, I still end up buying stuff that I WANT but don’t really NEED. One thing I’ve noticed about my purchasing behavior is that I tend to obsess about other things when I don’t shop for books. I’ve given up on the idea of limiting my book purchases a long time ago. I mean I don’t usually get crazy when it comes to buying books (yeah, right) but I let myself indulge from time to time. It’s such a comfort to have books around even if I feel like I don’t have enough time to read all of them. But since books are so expensive here in Singapore, I’d rather not buy unless I’m ordering online to take advantage of more affordable prices. Or I’d wait and then just buy books the next time I fly home to Manila.

With food, I’ve also given up on feeling guilty whenever I eat something that I want to eat. I believe that food is a necessity and if you can afford to buy food that you’re interested in or eat out when you feel like it, then go ahead and do it. I usually want to eat something good during the weekends, especially when I’m out with friends because that’s my way of unwinding and relaxing. Or there are times when I feel like hanging out somewhere to read instead of just heading back to the flat. Special occasions like birthdays are also good excuses to treat yourself.

So basically I don’t say no to food and books. I also have a hard time saying no to clothes on sale (because clothing is a necessity as well, right?) What I’ve realized about myself is that I tend to compensate in other things now that I don’t get to buy books as often as I’d like. Let’s take my fondness for postcards as an example. I think we can pretty much agree that in today’s digital age, getting a little something in the mail has become a novelty. It’s always nice when you feel like someone was thinking of you and was generous enough to send snail mail. It breaks the monotony of only seeing bills in the mailbox. What’s funny is that I’ve become so engrossed about postcards to the point that I even started my Postcard Love feature here on my blog. To be fair, more than half of my postcard buddies are fellow book bloggers. It’s a reasonable assumption that blogging buddies would enjoy seeing postcard-related posts. Plus, I like postcards with book-themed designs more than anything else. So it’s still somewhat related to book blogging. Singapore also makes it easy to collect postcards because so many stores here sell postcards with cute designs. Even free postcards here usually look nice.

Postcard sets I’ve collected since moving to Singapore

I just find it funny that whenever I see a postcard set that I like, I’m always tempted to get two sets – one for sending and one for keeping. I keep thinking that some of these postcards will look great when they’re framed, but who knows when I’ll have a place of my own to put up things like that? Anyway, another thing that I’ve been obsessing about recently is washi tape! Some of you may be wondering what washi tape is – basically, it’s masking tape that has prints and patterns that make it ideal for crafts. It originated from Japan, which probably explains why it’s not as cheap as one would expect. I like decorating the postcards that I send out – either by using stamps or stickers. Now, I mostly just use washi tape because I’ve started collecting rolls of it ever since a friend gave me some for Christmas last year.

My current washi tape collection

Talking about postcards and washi tape is my way of leading up to this question – what do you spend your money on when you’re not buying books? If you have extra cash to spare and you don’t feel like buying any books (or books are super expensive where you are), what do you buy? Or maybe I should be asking what your other hobbies are aside from reading?

Postcards decorated with washi tape

Shoot That Book: Books For Rent

Shoot That Book combines my passion for books and my tendency to become trigger happy with a camera. My lack of photography skills is compensated by my enthusiasm. Basically, I like taking pictures of books.

There’s this bookstore near the office that allows customers not just to buy books but to borrow them as well. Their books are marked with two prices: the first amount is what you pay for when you get the book and the second is what you’ll get back when you return it. I’m not sure what the formula is for the prices but I think you get about half of what you pay for. So it’s like paying for half the price to read a book that you’re interested in. You can choose to buy brand-new books as well because they have stocks of those. Given how expensive books are in Singapore, this seems like a great idea. But why not borrow books from the library instead? Foreigners only need to pay an annual membership fee while membership for Singaporeans is free. I wonder how strong their business is since the Singapore public library has pretty good selections and there are several branches scattered all over the country. I haven’t borrowed or bought any books from them because I usually get my own copies in Manila or just borrow from the library.

I thought the rest of you would find this concept interesting. It’s first time I’ve encountered it. What do you think about renting books instead of buying them? Have you heard of other establishments that lets readers borrow books for a certain price?

Where did the weekend go?

It’s Sunday night in our part of the world and I’m about to crash in a few minutes. I was planning to put up some posts this weekend but that didn’t happen since I was busy meeting up with friends and now I’m too tired to stay up to blog. I have half-finished drafts waiting to be posted so let’s see if I can find some time during the week to sit down and work on them Sigh, there really are times when I wish I had more time to blog. Here’s what I just started reading for the next YAckers discussion:

Let me know what you think if you’ve read The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson. I’m hoping that I’ll enjoy reading it. Anyway, how was your weekend? Hope you had a nice and relaxing one. Feel free to talk about the book that you’re currently in the middle of.

Making the Move

I realized that I really haven’t talked about what it’s like for a reader and book blogger like me to move from Manila to Singapore. I thought it would be a good idea to spend some time on that topic. One of the biggest advantages to moving to Singapore is I now have access to a good public library. I’ve never had that before and I keep taking advantage of the fact by borrowing books that I’m interested in even though I don’t have the time to read them. I keep returning unread books. I used to go to the library every weekend and I would put up a book haul post of what I borrowed but I’ve stopped doing that because I don’t always end up reading the books that I mention. Also, the Singapore Public Library is active on both Twitter and Instagram so it’s a lot of fun to connect with them over there.

The downside is that books in Singapore are a lot more expensive than books in Manila. I don’t know why that’s the case because the editions are the same – some are US editions while some are UK editions. It’s not like in Australia where they publish local editions for the books. I think the prices are on par with Aussie book prices though: about SGD 25-50 (PHP 825-1,650, USD 20-40) for trade paperbacks and hardcovers while about SGD 15-30 (PHP 495-990, USD 12-24) for mass market paperbacks. I miss being able to afford books. When I was in Manila, I would regularly visit Fully Booked to buy books whenever there was something that I wanted. Or I’d drop by the store while they’re having a sale because 20% off books is a good deal. Here in Singapore, I do wait for bookstores to go on sale but even with discounted prices, books are still cheaper in online sites like the Book Depository. This is why I splurge and buy books like crazy whenever I go home. Also, I keep grabbing books off my own bookshelf back home. I try to squeeze in as many unread books that I can in my luggage.

Aside from book prices, I also miss hanging out and chatting about books in person with fellow Filipino Book Bloggers. Book bloggers and readers are active about discussing books back home in Manila. I haven’t had a chance to meet Singaporean book bloggers or readers yet. I do chat with Liyana of LiyanaLand on Twitter from time to time and I hope we can eventually meet in person. Although now that I think about it, work keeps me busy and there’s usually something that I have to take care of during week nights and weekends so I’m not sure if I could participate as actively in the real life bookish scene as I did before. The rarity of my posts here on the blog is proof enough that I don’t get to read and blog as often as I’d like.

These are the major changes that come to mind when I think about my move. What about you, have you had to make adjustments as a reader and a blogger when you move from one place to another?

Yosemite National Park a.k.a. My First Encounter With Snow

I’ve mentioned several times on previous reviews that I’ve never seen snow in person. Well, that changed when I went to Yosemite National Park this weekend. I got to see snow for the first time!

Yosemite National Park is a beautiful place, reminds me of the setting of quest-type fantasy novel. Makes me wish that I brought my lomo cameras with me so I could have taken nicer pictures. All of the pictures I posted were taken using my phone camera. I wouldn’t mind going back there but most definitely not during winter. I found it too cold, which isn’t surprising since I’ve always lived in a tropical country.

I got these Chiura Obata woodblock postcards as souvenirs:

I’m back in Singapore after a looong day of traveling yesterday. I haven’t had a chance to reply to comments on previous posts but I’ll try to do that as soon as I can. I’m also planning to put up a post about the books that I got while on vacation. Hope you’re all having a good week!

The Art of the Brick by Nathan Sawaya

Last Friday, I went with a friend to The Art of the Brick exhibit at the ArtScience Museum in Marina Bay Sands. I heard about this Lego exhibit from a co-worker – I found it interesting because the artist, Nathan Sawaya, was a lawyer before and then he decided to quit to become a full-time Lego artist. Isn’t it great that he was able to do that? I’m sure most of us will be able to relate because it would be amazing if we can find a job based on what we’re passionate about (I’m talking about books, of course). Anyway, I thought it would be a good idea to share his artwork. Some of the pictures are a bit blurry because I was just using my phone camera and flash photography wasn’t allowed inside. We were just thankful that they allowed us to take pictures so we could document the experience.

Yellow

Peaces

Hands (reminds me of certain hand-less favorite characters)

An Artist’s View

Writer

Dinosaur Skeleton

Everlasting

ArtScience Museum (the building in Singapore where the exhibit was shown)

There were a lot more pieces there but these were the ones that I really liked. I don’t want to post too many pictures and ruin the experience to those planning to see the show.

I also wanted to give you guys a heads up that I’m flying to the US tomorrow evening for my cousin’s wedding. I’ll be back in mid-March and I won’t be bringing my laptop with me (just my smart phone) so I have no idea how often I’ll get to post while I’m gone. I’ll try to schedule posts before I leave but I’m not making any promises since I’m not even done packing yet.

More People Should Read the Lion Hunters Series by EWein

Code Name Verity (CNV) by Elizabeth Wein was one of my favorite reads last year. I was actively promoting CNV even before it came out because I knew it was going to be amazing based on EWein’s previous novels – her Aksumite series called the Lion Hunters. Also, I was hoping that if CNV does well, then more readers will also pick up her other books and she can publish another novel in the series. I’m ecstatic at how well-received CNV has been – it has received awards and recognition that it deserves – but it looks like the Lion Hunters series still isn’t getting enough attention. I was expecting readers who fell in love with CNV to be curious about EWein’s other novels, especially since they’re all well-written historical fiction. It makes me sad that it hasn’t happened yet. Because I desperately want the next (is it going to be the final one?) book in the series to be published, I’m working on getting more readers to pick up these books! EWein said that the publication of the next book depends on reader support. Have you ever experienced reading a remarkable series and you’re astounded that so few readers are aware of it? That’s how I feel about this series.

The chronological order of the books is as follows:
The Winter Prince
A Coalition of Lions
The Sunbird
The Lion Hunter
The Empty Kingdom

These novels are set in sixth century Aksum (Ethiopia) and I don’t think I’ve ever read a novel in that setting before. Readers new to the series can start with any of the first three books but the latter three books have to be read in order. Does that make sense? I read The Sunbird first and then The Lion Hunter and The Empty Kingdom because those were the only ones available in Manila at that time. I was able to get copies of both The Winter Prince and A Coalition of Lions when I want to the States in 2009. All of the books in are wonderful but I love the latter three because they focus on my favorite character in the series: Telemakos. This half-British, half-Ethiopian boy is sneaky, clever and wise beyond his years. I also love his interactions with the rest of the characters in the series – the relationships in these novels are definitely complex, which shouldn’t be surprising since the novels have intelligent characters involved in political intrigue.

Telemakos, as drawn by RosaleeLuAnn

The Winter Prince is an Arthurian retelling, with the story told from the point of view of Medraut (Mordred). So all Arthurian fans out there, that’s another reason for you to give this series a try. Here’s the summary of The Winter Prince from Goodreads:

Medraut is the eldest son of Artos, high king of Britain; and, but for an accident of birth, would-be heir to the throne. Instead, his younger half-brother, Lleu, is chosen to be prince of Britain. Lleu is fragile, often ill, unskilled in weaponry and statesmanship, and childishly afraid of the dark. Even Lleu’s twin sister, Goewin, seems more suited to rule the kingdom.

Medraut cannot bear to be commanded and contradicted by this weakling brother who he feels has usurped his birthright and his father’s favor. Torn and bitter, haunted by jealousy, self-doubt, and thwarted ambition, he joins Morgause, the high king’s treacherous sister, in a plot to force Artos to forfeit his power and kingdom in exchange for Lleu’s life. But this plot soon proves to be much more – a battlefield on which Medraut is forced to decide, for good or evil, where his own allegiance truly lies…

I’m posting only the summary to the first book in the series to avoid spoilers. To further convince readers to pick up the books, I compiled snippets from what other authors have to say about EWein’s the Lion Hunters. Here’s a tweet from Rachel Neumeier (author of House of Shadows, The City in the Lake, The Floating Islands):

The next tweet exchange surprised me because Robin McKinley (author of The Blue Sword, Beauty, Pegasus and so many other fantastic novels) is one of my favorite authors of all time, and I had no idea that she helped EWein get published:

Aside from these two lovely authors, Megan Whalen Turner (author of the Queen’s Thief series, you would know who she is if you’ve been following my blog for a while) is also a fan of EWein’s work. EWein even wrote a guest post for Queen’s Thief Week about the similarities and differences between Telemakos and Eugenides.

Another favorite author, Sherwood Smith (author of The Crown Duel, the Inda series, the Sasharia en Garde duology and the Wren series), said this about The Sunbird:

Intense, spare and vivid, this story builds, with subtle characterizations, and some sharply dramatic and painful moments.

I’ve recommended it to readers who like Megan Whalen Turner’s work, and heard back that this was a successful pairing.

If you’re a fan of these authors, their recommendations will probably be enough to make you curious about the books. If you feel like we have similar tastes in books, then I have a feeling that this post will be enough to convince you to read at least one of the Aksumite novels. I wish I had my copies of these books here with me but unfortunately, they are all back home. Writing this post is making me want to reread the books. Have you read the Lion Hunters novels? Please help me spread the word about them if you have. I would also appreciate hearing your thoughts about the books, feel free to rave about them in the comments to encourage more readers.