Give A Girl A Book And She'll Want Another
8:38 PM
The Plan
My to-read list is never ending. Whenever I go to a bookstore, I madly scribble down book titles that look interesting on the back of receipts I find floating around in my purse. I can easily spend hours in a library either browsing for new reads or curling up in a comfy chair to lose myself in a good story. With all the reading that I do, it is sometimes hard to keep track of all the different books I've read. Countless times, I'll begin a conversation with my sister which starts with "What's the name of that book you and I both read with the girl who (insert random part of the book I remember here)?" So, I've decided to keep a blog of all the books I read. I'll include a summary of each book and a review.
The Inspiration
Many of you may have heard the story behind One Thousand and One Nights. For those of you who haven't, the story is about a distrustful sultan and a brave woman who tells stories to save her life. According to the story, King Shahryar discovers that his wife has been unfaithful to him. In a fit of rage, he kills his wife and those with whom she has betrayed him. From that moment onward, the king loathes women and decides to marry a new woman and kill her every day until no more candidates can be found. Then, a woman named Shahrazad (Schezherazade), daughter of the king's vizier, steps forward to marry the king. The vizier at first tries to dissuade his daughter, afraid that she will meet the same fate as all the other sultan's wives, but Shahrazad has a plan to save herself and her people. Each night, Shahrazad begins to tell a story but stops without completing it and promises to finish it the next night. The king is so entertained by the stories and eager to know how they end that he keeps delaying Shahrazad's execution from day to day. Eventually, he abandons his cruel plan and the two of them live happily ever after. It is said that Shahrazad told the sultan stories for 1,001 nights, hence the title: One Thousand and One Nights.
In honor of Shahrazad, I have made it my goal to read 1,oo1 books. How long this undertaking will last, I do not know. Shahrazad told stories for almost three years. Undoubtedly, it will take me a good deal longer to read 1,oo1 books.
If you are interested in the story of Shahrazad and her stories, here are three books I recommend you read.
1. One Thousand and One Nights-This is the collection of stories Shahrazad told to the king.
2. The Storyteller's Daughter by Cameron Dokey-This book tells the story of Shahrazad in the form of a love story.
3. Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher-In this book, Shahrazad is running out of stories to tell the sultan and turns to a young girl named Marjan for help.
Book 1 of 1,001
Every journey begins with a single step. The first book I will include in this blog will be The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black. Check back soon for a summary and review of it. It is my hope that you'll find at least one book on this blog which will strike your fancy and keep you up reading late into the night.
Until next time, fellow bibliophiles!
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