Sunshine Blogger Award #2 (plus some extra sunshine not of my own making...)

 

I've been tagged! A second time! For the Sunshine Blogger Award! Thank you, Liz Churchill!

I'm sure most of you know the rules by now, but here they are anyway:

1. Display the award’s official logo somewhere on your blog.
2. Thank the person who nominated you. (Thank you again, Liz.)
3. Provide a link to your nominator’s blog.
4. Answer your nominator’s questions.
5. Nominate up to 11 bloggers.
6. Ask your nominees 11 questions.
7. Notify your nominees by commenting on at least one of their blog posts.

Here are Liz's questions: 

1. Favourite Nancy Drew book?

I'm afraid to say I've never read any Nancy Drew books... I didn't know what they were until I looked them up! 

2. Least favourite middle-grade book? 

I hope I've answered this correctly, as I haven't come across this classification (think it might be a UK/USA difference in terminology?). If this counts, I'd say Black Beauty by Anna Sewell, which I had to read for lessons when I was about twelve or so. I dislike books about animals, especially if they're narrated through the animal's eyes and I disliked this one so much that I never finished reading it.

3. Are you a fan of Shakespeare? And have you ever acted out a section of one of his works?

I absolutely love Shakespeare! My favourite plays of his that I've read are Macbeth, Hamlet and Much Ado About Nothing. (I actually saw Much Ado at the Globe Theatre in London last summer - it was incredible!) I've never acted properly in any Shakespeare, though I'd love to.

The Globe

4. Favourite bookish drink?

Well, I like to drink cocoa in bed while reading! I like coffee while I'm reading too.

5. If you had to choose to live in Middle Earth or Narnia... where would you choose and why? 

Assuming this is after the War of the Ring, I'd love to live in Ithilien in Middle Earth. I'd like to be Eowyn, basically.

6. What time period would you live in for one day and whom would you bring back to the future with you?

If it were a day with a ball, I'd go to Regency London!

I would wear this. It is gorgeous! (It's not an original, but who cares?!)

I would bring... Emma Woodhouse (at the end of Emma) with me. She would be such fun. We would probably argue a lot, but then we'd make it up and have a generally fabulous time! 

7. What time period do you like but everyone else hates?

This is a very good question! I almost went for Jacobean England. Look at this room. 

Then I thought that, apart from the decor, I don't actually like it that much. I've go for England in the early parts of Henry VIII's reign. Everything was settled because the War of the Roses had ended, Henry VIII seems to have been a more generous king than Henry VII, and the Reformation hadn't started yet.

From "A Man for All Seasons" (1966)

Fashion-wise... I would love to dress like this. And the men's fashions are pretty amazing, too. 

And the intellectual culture might have been becoming a bit tumultuous, but hey, it would have been fun. 

8. Favourite period movie not in the Regency time period? 

A Man for All Seasons. Based on Robert Bolt's play of the same name (which is worth a read too), it tells the story of St. Thomas More, in a powerful, yet balanced and realistic way. It won eight Academy Awards in 1967! Do watch it.

9. Movie you love but everyone else hates?

I found this one hard to answer... I suppose that no-one else in my family likes the 2009 Emma as much as I do. They definitely don't hate it, they just don't like it that much. 

Films that are so bad as to earn general opprobrium are generally films that I dislike too.

10. Favourite 80s movie/TV show?

This overlaps into the 90s, but my favourite TV show from this time is the Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes series.

This one

He is Sherlock Holmes - in looks, speech, mannerisms, behaviour, everything.

A close contestant was the series of the Barchester Chronicles:

These are also excellent and deserve to be more famous, but not quite as good as Sherlock Holmes. 

11. Have you ever been tagged for the Sunshine Blogger Award before? (And if yes, how many times?) 

Yes, I have! I was tagged by Lizzie Hexam at Starlight and Saucepans. (Take a look at her blog if you haven't already.)

Also... the same Lizzie said that anyone could use her fabulous questions, so I've asked her and here we are.

1. What's your favourite and least favourite household chore?

Favourite is probably dusting and polishing, because it's so satisfying. Least favourite? Probably cleaning out the inside of kitchen cupboards. It's boring!

2. Have you ever watched a movie-remake that was better than the original movie?

Yes, I have... the live action Cinderella from 2013. I am not a huge fan of the original animated Cinderella, but this version was beautiful. It had a good message, looked lovely, had an amazing score, and was directed by Kenneth Branagh. 

3. Which decade are the majority of the songs you listened to today from?

Ha, I couldn't fix an exact decade, but they were all Renaissance! Byrd, Tallis, composers like that.

4. What’s a language/grammar mistake that drives you crazy? (Or a more general pet peeve, if you can’t think of a language-related one.)

People mixing up "who/whom" really irritates me. Also "there/their/they're" and also saying "off of". (I would clarify that, having researched this, "off of" is only a problem in England. I only care when it's the BBC or something.)

5. What’s a movie you’ve seen recently that you just can’t wait to re-watch?

I really want to rewatch the BBC series of Brideshead Revisited with my sister. The book is just incredible, and the series is an amazing adaptation, so I really want to show it to her!

6. What’s a movie you’ve seen recently that you never want to watch again?

There are comparatively few films that are so bad I never want to see them again, as I have a high tolerance for most things other people hate in films (excluding immorality, obviously). However, the 2020 adaptation of Emma was probably the worst films I've ever seen. It felt as though it were laughing at my favourite book all the way through. It didn't even look that pretty.

7. You’re stranded on a desert island. You can bring three fictional characters with you: one will be your protector, one will be your moral support, and one will be devoting his/her time to finding a way off the island. Which three characters do you bring?

After a lot of thought: 

Protector: Dr. Watson from Sherlock Holmes. He would be comforting, reassuring, chivalrous, and ready to use a gun if necessary. 

As long as it's this Dr. Watson.

Moral Support: I would choose Eowyn from The Lord of the Rings. We could have interesting conversations and she would probably know a lot of poems and ballads to pass the time.

Escape Finder: I was going to say Gandalf, but a wizard would probably be cheating. Thinking of people who are good at finding escape routes... probably Sherlock Holmes. I just feel like he'd be good at it.

 

Sherlock Holmes

Freddy Eynsford-Hill in My Fair Lady. Same actor... though I don't think you'd want Freddy to help you in a crisis.

8. If you could go back in time and ask one historical figure one question, who/what would it be?

I'd want to ask Julius Caesar why he didn't listen to his wife...

9. How would you describe your personality in just three words?

Efficient, compassionate, impatient. (Those of you who receive my emails... let's pretend for the purpose of this post that I'm efficient at sending emails, too!)

10. What’s that one board game/card game that you secretly (or not so secretly) dread playing?

I am not a huge fan of any board game, excluding word-games. While my family doesn't really do board games that much, I usually politely excuse myself from playing any strategy game with friends, as I am bad at them.

11. What’s a story that you think is just begging to be made into a musical? (And which, as far as you know, has not been made into a musical yet.)

You know, I think Much Ado About Nothing would make a great musical! 

Aaaand it's not over yet! With her permission, I borrowed Emi's questions from The Idlewood Archives... let's hope you have plenty of time, people.

1.Do you have a favourite poet? If so, who is it, and which work of theirs do you like best?

Shakespeare! I am rather obsessed by Shakespeare at the moment. Also, though I haven't
read enough of his other poetry, I love this sonnet by John Milton:

Oh, and The Wasteland by T.S. Eliot. It's amazing. Go and read it now.

2. Which do you enjoy most, classic detective stories or Action/Adventure? Ie, westerns, missionary stories, and other birds clad in feathers of a similar hue...

Classic detective stories, every time! I love Sherlock Holmes, Poirot, Miss Marple (especially as I am a Miss Marple in the making, complete with knitting...), Father Brown... I love them all!

3. What is one thing/skill you learned this year that you're so excited to get to use from here on out?

I've really improved my cooking skills this year, to the extent that I'm confident cooking for guests if we have them. While I could cook before, I'm so much better than I used to be (not boasting).

4. What's one book you read within the past year or two that was so good that you're telling everybody you know about it?

Oh, either The Wasteland (though technically that's a poem) or In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden. I didn't expect that a book about Benedictine nuns would be so wonderful and mind-changing, especially as I didn't need convincing of the awe-someness of a vocation to the religious life. But it was still wonderful. It's also one of the very few books that made me cry.

5. What's the most storybookish thing you've ever come across in real life?
When we moved into our current house, we found that there was a beehive under the roof, stretching back half the depth of it.

6. Which sounds more doable to you, being lost in a city where you don't know the language, or being lost in the woods with no cell service?

Hmm, good question. Well, at the moment, I don't have a cell/mobile phone, so being lost in the woods might be doable as having no signal wouldn't feel different for me. I would, however, probably panic or be scared by perfectly normal noises that seem scary because woods are ever so slightly creepy when on is by oneself. I would probably choose being lost in a city where I don't know the language. I already know quite a bit of French and Latin and some German, so I imagine that once you've got used to absorbing some languages the others would come more easily... that's definitely how it works... right? 

Moving on...

7. What is one tradition you grew up on that you want to continue in your own home?

A lot of religious traditions around observing the liturgical seasons. Most of them are so fun! Obviously, there's actually going to church and praying as a family, which of course will continue, but I mean other things, such as making lussekatter on St. Lucy's day, making the candles for our Advent wreath, having chocolate money on St. Nicholas' day, fasting for Lent, having a chocolate piano on St. Cecilia's day, painting blown eggs for Easter, singing hymns, doing crafty things for Christmas, Easter and saints' days...

8. What is the title of the seventh book in the third row of your bookshelf right now? (I know I'm snitching this question from somebody, but hopefully they take this as a compliment, because it's just too fun of a question to leave unasked :P) Feel free to count shelves from either the top or the bottom, by the way ;)

What a fun question! 

Well, I have five shelves on my bookcase, so it would come out the same either way. (Don't worry, I do have more books - they're elsewhere in the house as my bookcase won't hold them all.) 

It's The Dean's Watch by Elizabeth Goudge. It's from her Cathedral Trilogy, another series you need to read as soon as possible. Here's the blurb from the back (mild spoilers alert):

When cathedral dean Adam Ayscough encounters clockmaker Isaac Peabody, their unlikely friendship touches the lives of the entire community. Behind the dean's fearsome reputation lies a humble man crippled by shyness. Desperate to leave behind a lasting legacy of goodness, his only wishes are to serve God and his parishioners, and to be loved by his young and dissatisfied wife. Haunted by the memories of a miserable childhood, gifted clockmaker Isaac Peabody has spent a lifetime perfecting his craft and rejecting all belief in God. Despite their fundamental differences, both men find a common understanding, and discover that faith can come in many different guises. A rich and beautiful story, set in a quiet cathedral city during the eighteenth century. 

9. What time period of bygone hairstyles do you feel would have suited you best, and what is one updo from that time that you wish was more common nowadays?

Now, there are two answers here I can't choose from. The first is Edwardian, especially like these ladies: 

Neither of these ladies is me.

It would suit me, I think. I wish it were more common, because I think this style or variations of this style would suit a look of people and look neat and smart. Personally, I find having loose hair annoying when I'm trying to do things, so this would solve that problem.

The other is 1950's. Something elaborate like this would be fun to wear or see around:

Or any of these.

10. Are you of the camp that names their belongings, or quite the opposite? (Car, typewriter, sewing machine, that kind of Belonging.)

I don't give my possessions names, but only because their object names seem to express their nature sufficiently, if that makes any sense. 

11. Who is your favourite book hero, and why do they claim that most distinguished position?

This is a hard one to answer as I've honestly never really thought about it before. Let's go for Mr. Knightley from Emma, because he's a true gentleman, he's quiet, he's humble, and he truly wants the best for Emma.

And he has some amazing quotes. Such as this one.

As for tagging: I've tagged loads of people pretty recently, and I don't want to be overwhelming (as I probably have been already...) If you're reading this and want to answer my questions, I'd love it if you did... let me know if you decide to! I am, however, going to tag some people whom I haven't tagged before (and who I don't think have been tagged too recently - apologies if I'm wrong!) 

I'll have to let those I've tagged know in a couple of days as I won't have Internet access till then, so apologies if you see this before I've commented on your blog! 

Hamlette @ Hamlette's Soliloquy

Megan @ Only Mildly Mad

The Story Sponge

Katie @ Snippets and Speculations

Julie @ The Moonlight Wanderer

Bella Raine

Elsie @ Tea and Ink Society

E.G. Bella

Caroline Bingley @ Truths Universally Acknowledged

If anyone else wants to do the questions, please do! Let me know in the comments...

My Questions: 

1. If you had to live out the events in a book as the main character, which book would you choose?  

2. Favourite weird combination of flavours that everyone else hates?

3. Whom are your favourite actor and actress?

4. If you had all the money in the world to buy an outfit for a ball, what would you wear? (The sky's the limit for this one - you can wear any dress, shoes, bag, hairstyle you like!)

5. Quote from a film that makes you smile/laugh?

6. Social situation from a book/film to which you completely relate?

7. Most inspiring quote from a non-religious book?

8. What personal quality do you think, if everyone possessed it, would make the biggest difference to the world?

9. You have to have one antagonist from a novel tag along with you for the next six months. Who would it be?

10. Can you speak another language? If so, which one? If not, which one would you like to learn?

11. Would you rather be an amazing homemaker and housekeeper, or be able to write beautiful poetry?

And that's it! Thanks again, Liz! I enjoyed that a lot.