Goodreads

No, this is not a post on good reads (although watch for those in the future!). Instead, this is a warm invitation to join Olive on goodreads.com! Haven't heard of it? Gosh, it's only one of Olive's favorite ways for keeping track of what she's read, what she wants to read, and what she thinks she has to read. Pop over and see the books Olive has rated 5 out of 5 or, oh dear, given only one star and see if you agree. I'm username "olivewrites." Add me as a friend, and let me see your good reads.

Literary Heroes

If you had seen Olive's Facebook page this week, you would have noticed that she was madly engaged in one pursuit: entering the Chapters Indigo "My Fictional Hero" contest. Fifty "literary heroes" were nominated the first week of the contest -- characters who inspired readers for one reason or another -- with the characters slowly being whittled down week by week. Olive was sorry to see Bertie Wooster fall back, but she is still cheering on a fighting Anne Shirley.

Aside from her fevered wish to win the fifty books that Chapters Indigo is offering as a prize (where they will go she doesn't know), Olive was intrigued by this idea of a literary hero. Who would you vote for? Someone like Bilbo Baggins who forged on through Middle Earth despite his diminutive size? Maybe you admire the moral strength of Atticus Finch? Or perhaps the quiet resilience and loyalty of Jane Eyre? (Olive voted for all three, in fact.)

Let's have our own vote, shall we? Tell me who your literary hero is, and why!

Welcome!

With much warmth, welcome to Olive Reads! As the title implies, this is a blog devoted to the glorious art of reading!

If you've found your way here from Olive's other blog, Olive Writes, thank you for wandering over. (Don't worry, there will still be as much writing as reading.) If you are newcomer to the Olive universe, don't hesitate at the door; step over the threshold. The tea is always on, the scones are warm and, here especially, the conversation bubbles over with reading delight.

And this is indeed about conversation! Reading can be rather solitary (those blessedly so at times), but that doesn't mean we can't emerge from the pages from time to time for a chat over our old favourites, our new finds, and the simple wonder of a perfect sentence.

So read on, my fellow wanders on the written world! Olive cannot wait for you to join her.