I’m not sure you can actually see them all.  There’s a 4lb fleece in the back, so 5 bags total.

We split a big fleece this year (the one in the back).  A beautiful, lush cormo and we asked Spinderella’s to add 25% Tussah silk to the roving.  This turned out gorgeous.  I can’t seem to get a photo that will do it justice.

Again Spinderella’s did a fabulous job.  They really know how to handle fine fibers and I can’t wait to spin the new fleeces.  I really have to get out there one day and meet them and get a tour.  I figure I may be able to do it as a two prong trip as I also want to see Best Friends.  I would love to take a tour there and visit with all the wonderful folks and animals.  Ever since I’ve read their wonderful book…

I keep thinking “one day, for sure.”   If you want to read a wonderful, inspiring book that will make you laugh and cry, this is the book.  It also has great photos of the compassionate folks who started this wonderful place and of some of the animals we get to know through the pages.

So yes the little mitered squares are moving along – I may finish the squares this week. It’s a super fast knit, especially when you are so focused on getting things done before the babies are born.

What is not faster, but still an easy lace pattern is my cocoon lace, which I worked on yesterday while I finished listening to The Power of One, which by the way is an excellent book. A little violent and dark, but full of hope. I’ve decided to put off listening to the sequel for a while, which is Tandia, to get into something a bit lighter. I picked out the first book in the James Herriot series, All Creatures Great and Small – I would like to listen to the whole series. I don’t know how I missed this series as a kid, since my childhood dream was to be a country vet. I’m much too much of a softy though, as I know it can be tough, plus I would probably be totally broke all the time. (lol) At least I could take payment in wool.

I forgot to take a picture of my Saturday Sky, whoops. It seems like all of them are really looking the same lately, so no biggie, but you can sure tell spring is in sight as it actually got warmer through the day yesterday and by 10 pm when the dogs went out it was 53-degrees. Whoa – now that’s interesting. Hopefully everyone will be safe though as it seems to be causing some terrible weather further south.

Purple is her signature color – so we have a nice purple, a lavender, a gray, a white, and a black. Pattern is from Patons: A Dog’s Life. Bright stripes – the one on the cover, with my own color choices.

So in other dog news, I just finished a great book about a great dog – Merle’s Door. If you love dogs and are looking for a great dog story, this is it. There is also an accompanying website.

While this is a fourth in a series, it can stand alone. While it builds on characters we have met before, it centers on a set of characters and then they fade into the background letting a new set take the drivers seat. This is my favorite way for author sequels. I really don’t have a bad word to say about this series. If you like historical romances this is a good one to try out.

In this novel we meet Letti who was dwarfed by her beautiful sister. She is accidentally comprised and rushed into a marriage. When the groom takes off to perform his spy duties after the vows, she takes off after him. Because what would a girl do once she is tied to a man whom she doesn’t know very well, didn’t want her as a wife in the first place, and was not expecting a tag a long on a mission? It makes for a most deceptively delightful honeymoon.

While we’re on the topic of reading, I would like to mention I just finished up a fabulous book that is fiction based on fact – The Hummingbird’s Daughter is a very worth read or in my case a super worthy listen because it was read by the author Luis Urrea – make sure to click the link and check out his website, blog and don’t miss his page on Teresita. This book was 20 years in the making and hopefully soon to be a movie – there is a script being written. Also there will be a sequel to the book as this one starts off from the birth of Teresita through her exile to America. Teresita, the Santo de Cabora (Saint of Cabora), is a very special young women who is the daughter of a very young Yaqui girl and the very rich ranch owner Don Tomas. She has a very interesting life, where she grows up to be a traditional native healer and mid-wife until a horrific event changes the direction and she begins to perform miracles of healing. Set in a the late 1800′s, amidst an unstable political Mexico, the backdrop is rich and Mr. Urrea brings you right there. Don’t miss out – put this one on your summer reading lists.

~ Madame Purl

~ Madame Purl

Finally, a fabulous book – Three Cups of Tea – I’ve been telling everyone I know about, which I swear started off a little slow but then totally folded me in and wouldn’t let go to the end. -

While listening to the end of Heart-Shaped Box, I finished my Monkey Socks, tomorrow they will make the blog. Today it’s been about spinning. I’ve decided to get in gear and continue with Monsieur Purl’s sweater – two bobbins worth today – not too bad. I had another bobbin spun, but instead of plying I just did another bobbin. I was in a rhythm and didn’t want to stop.

~ Madame Purl

The first one is Thunderstruck by Erik Larson. This is a solid 4 stars. Not quite as compelling as The Devil in the White City also by Larson, but very interesting. It is based on the second most infamous murder in England and the Marconi machine. While his writing can get tedious because he includes ever detail he can find, Larson does have exceptional story telling skills in which he can bring you right into the story. His style is to do parallel stores in the time frame and seeing how they cross paths. So you have to pay attention, but it’s well worth it.

Stalking Ivory by Suzanne Arruda is a second book in the Jade Del Cameron series. I love this series. It’s mystery set right after WWI in Africa. Jade was a ambulance driver in WWI on the front lines in France. After the war ended she was offered a job with the Traveller to write stories and take pictures. She is an adventure woman before her time and the writing is fantastic. If I could see anyone in a movie series or if anyone needs to be in a movie – it’s Jade Del Cameron. In this book she is photographing elephants and comes across poaching, among other things. It was a bit hard to listen to as elephants are by far my favorite. I am smitten with their gentle largess. I think I said before how my first memory is of seeing an elephant and feeding it peanuts. Love, love, love this series – definitely 5 stars.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield was a slow start. I listened to this one, so I just plugged in and did other things, but if I would’ve read this one – I would not have probably made it to the point that you get sucked in. It meanders along for a while and for the most part I didn’t like any of the characters. I wasn’t attached to any of them until about 3/4 of the way through at which point you get the twist – finally I felt like the roller coaster reached the top and wham. If you can make it to that point then you will probably enjoy this book. It gets rave reviews, so it may just be me – but I prefer tales that suck you in and spit you out like a wild ride – so try this one out and let me know what you think.

Grave Surprise by Charlaine Harris is a second in the Harper Connelly series. Harper our main character gets hit by lightening and starts to travel around finding dead bodies. She is able to find them by the vibration and tell the cause of death. She is hired by a skeptic and finds a body in a cemetery that shouldn’t be there to an old case she worked on. These are not as compelling as Harris’ other work – the Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vampire Series, which is supposed to be a pilot sometime in the future, but they are good in their own right. Where Sookie is vivacious with a natural gift, I see Harper with a little cloud over her head because this is a gift imparted to her by the lightening strike. I do have to say it’s entertaining though.

Last but not least – You Suck: A Love Story by Christopher Moore. This is the second of his novels that I listened too and I wasn’t disappointed. They are fun and funky with a super normal twist. In this book the minion of the vamps – Abby Normal is a riot and if you get a chance to listen – the reader did an awesome job with her voice. Several times it was laugh out loud funny. If you haven’t read a Dirty Job by Moore that one is a must read. One fun writing tool he uses is to use characters from other books – makes me want go back and read all his work and see who pops up. When I listened to the interview with Christopher Moore at the end of You Suck it is actually a sequel to a novel he had written 10 years ago called Blood Sucking Fiends. However, I didn’t know this before hand and it stood on it’s own just fine.

Well folks – good reading or listening to in my case.

~ Madame Purl