Monday, September 12, 2011

Book Blogger Appreciation Week Begins Today


For many reasons, I wasn't excited by Book Blogger Appreciation Week this year. I haven't been keeping up with my own blog as well as I want to and I haven't been commenting on the blogs I read as much as I should. I was planning on sitting out on this week altogether. And yet, as the week has approached, I couldn't help but think how lucky I am to have become a part of the book blogging community. I hope that I have contributed something worthwhile so far and I can honestly say that there are bloggers out there who have had a lasting effect on me.

Today's post is actually supposed to be about Community and those bloggers who have "made book blogging a unique experience for you" so it fits in with the only thing I really want to accomplish this week -- to thank book bloggers (in a meaningful way) who have made an impression on me. This may get a bit mushy and so I apologize in advance.

First, I want to again thank Jenny of Jenny's Books for reminding me that blogging should be fun. Her witty and sometimes hilarious posts are always a blast to read. She fills her posts with sugar and vinegar in equal measure, as honesty dictates. She has also reminded me that loving a children's author is nothing to be ashamed about. Sometimes we get caught up in wanting to be taken seriously and forget that we will be respected more for being honest than for having the proper reading list.

But I also want to thank Karen (of Books and Chocolate), Danielle (of A Work in Progress), Jane (of Reading, Writing, Working, Playing), Jenny and Teresa (of Shelf Love) and Amanda (of Dead White Guys) for reminding me how much I love the classics and for constantly bringing new ones to my attention. They may not be the flashiest titles in today's reading world and we might already know how they end but they are still beautiful novels and are well worth reading (sometimes again and again).

And for helping me expand the scope of my reading, I want to thank Natalie (of In Spring it is the Dawn), Bellezza (of Dolce Bellezza), Leeswammes, Iris (of Iris on Books) and Zee (of Notes from the North). They make international fiction accessible and have led me to books that I would never have found on my own. Natalie has been especially influential in introducing me to the world of Japanese fiction that I had been missing out on for so long (and she's an absolute sweetheart). Now I'm eagerly awaiting the release of 1Q84 this fall!

I want to thank Carl (of Stainless Steel Droppings) for hosting the best challenges in the entire bookblogging world. I might not still be blogging if it wasn't for the RIP Challenge! And you have to appreciate any challenge that insists on nothing more than having fun.

For being my friend in the kidlit world that I sometimes dabble in (and hope to be much better about going forward), I want to thank Danielle of There's a Book. She's not only one of the sweetest bloggers out there but she might just be the hardest working one. I'm incredibly sad that she won't be at the Kidlitcon this weekend!

I also want to thank Selena (currently of Luxe Hours) and Cecelia (of Adventures of Cecelia Bedelia) for the meet-ups this year. Part of the joy of the book blogging community is when it spills over into the real world. Both of these ladies are smart and fun to hang out with and I can't wait to do it again!

The other joy of the community is when you are able to discover other joint interests and celebrate them together and so I want to thank Tasha a.k.a. Heidenkind (of Truth, Beauty, Freedom and Books) for being the fearless leader of our Saturday night Hitchfest group. I also want to thank all of the other #hitchfest crew for being an awesome bunch to spend an evening with while watching (and sometimes mocking) the brilliant films of Alfred Hitchcock. (Anyone is welcome to join us on Twitter -- 10pm ET Saturdays!)

And I really, really want to thank Eva of A Striped Armchair for being a curious reader. She reminds me that there's nothing wrong with picking up a book that you know nothing about. You might be annoyed with it and put it down early, but there's also the chance that you will find a new favorite author. Eva also always reminds me that we are all dealt a different hand in life and go through our ups and downs. The mark of good character is that after the downs, you stand up, dust off the cobwebs and start walking again. Thank you for always coming back, Eva!

And finally, I want to thank Tif (of Tif Talks Books) and Jenners (of Life ... With Books). It is my biggest regret that I haven't been able to meet either of these gals in real life yet because I have truly come to consider them as friends. It doesn't matter whether we share almost the exact same reading tastes (Tif) or have almost no reading in common (Jenners). I can always count on them for comments (even if Tif's come a bit late sometimes ;)) and support. They're both very resilient and strong people and I envy them in many ways.

There are so many other bloggers that make this a world that I'm loath to leave and, just because I haven't listed you here, it doesn't mean that I don't want to send out a big THANK YOU to you as well.

Sincerely,
K

34 comments:

  1. Wonderful wonderful post. Many of the blogs you mention would be on my own list for the very reasons you state here. I am off to check out the ones I didn't know about now.

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  2. I forgot to add: thank you for mentioning me. I was a little too busy looking at all the other names ;), sorry.

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  3. Great list of wonderful bloggers

    Hi, I am stopping by to visit your blog via the list of posts for Day one

    Please Stop by My Blog if you Like

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  4. A lovely post and an excellent reminder to us all about how many people make up our community and help us get by day by day.

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  5. Fantastic list, almost like looking at my Google reader subscription. thanks for a great post.

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  6. Fantastic list of bloggers and great way of singling them out. I agree with you on many of them, and I still found a few new ones to check out.


    My list of influential bloggers, if you are interested!

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  7. I loved reading this post Kirsten! So heartfelt, and what you wrote about me was just lovely. Thank you.

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  8. Thank you so much for the lovely mention. :)

    When you said, "I haven't been keeping up with my own blog as well as I want to and I haven't been commenting on the blogs I read as much as I should"... well that describes me to a T as well this last while. But I love that we can always pick up where we left off. Like good friends.

    And only 42 days until 1Q84 is released! :P

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  9. Lovely post! Thanks for mentioning me - I too have a wonderful time when we meet up, and I'm glad we've been able to do so.

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  10. Thanks so much for mentioning me!

    I agree with what you say about blogging having to be fun. I sometimes take it too seriously and then at other times I'm much too relaxed about it (in my own eyes, of course)

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  11. Thanks so much for mentioning me!

    I agree with what you say about blogging having to be fun. I sometimes take it too seriously and then at other times I'm much too relaxed about it (in my own eyes, of course)

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  12. Iris - I know that you aren't keen on naming names but I'm glad that I could mention you and also point you to some good new bloggers!

    Mel - Thanks for stopping by!

    Jan - I didn't realize that I would have so many names on my list until I started writing. And I easily could have kept going!

    Parrish lantern - Well, then I must come stop by your site! I'm surprised we haven't met yet.

    Trisha - I really wanted to make this a meaningful post this year. I'm glad you enjoyed it!

    Eva - I could have gushed about you even more but that would have been weird. ;)

    Nat - You are very welcome! I feel lucky to know you.

    Celia - I hope that we can do it again! Actually, I might be in your neighborhood this fall. I'll let you know!

    Judith - You are very welcome. I'm hoping to be a better member of the community going forward and to nurture relationships with people as well as books!

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  13. Ahhh...Kristen, you are so incredible. Thank you so so much for your wonderful words! I'm so happy we were able to meet this year and also sad we won't be seeing each other at KidLit Con (darn medical stuff!). But seriously, thank you, I appreciate it so much!

    And wow! What an amazing collection of book bloggers. So many of them are ones I love as well. Tif is a favorite of mine as well, she's been a tremendous friend to me also. I agree! It's too bad we can't see all of us in person some time!

    Wonderful post and thank you again for including me! You made my day! :o)

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  14. Wow, what a list! Judging by the bloggers I already know that are on it, all of whom I read and enjoy, I bet I'll love the others as well. I love BBAW for all the new blogs I encounter. It can be so hard to find them otherwise!

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  15. Thank you so much for the shout-out--and in such good company, too! I don't know all the blogs you've mentioned, but the ones I know are very good indeed. Must find time to check out the others.

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  16. Wonderful, heartfelt post, Kristen. Thank you so much for joining in #hitchfest! We always miss you when you're not there. :)

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  17. Thanks for visiting me today! :)

    I agree with you about many of these bloggers. So many that I love and admire!!

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  18. Lovely post and thanks so much for the mention--I'm honored you would include me in your list! I'm afraid I've not been as active as I would like in the book blogging community of late--so I understand how you feel, but it's a community I greatly enjoy being a part of!

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  19. Kirsten, thanks for the lovely mention! I haven't been posting much lately but I think all these blogs will inspire me as well.

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  20. It is funny how little reading interests we have in common, yet I feel like we'd be best buds if we ever met!! : )

    Great choices and more blogs that I need to check out. Have fun with BBAW! I'm going to be struggling this week to participate because we just got a brand-new puppy yesterday!!!!! I'm insane! I'll be writing a post soon making the official announcement.

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  21. There are so many bloggers on here that I know and love and some that I've never heard of before! Thanks for sharing the bloggers that make your corner of the book blogging community so wonderful!

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  22. Danielle - Well, I think you're rather swell. ;) One day we will have to have a grand get-together that won't cost an arm and a leg (ie. New York!).

    Erin - I hope you find someone new to love! I sure have today.

    Teresa - Well, you know I'm a big fan of your blog already but it never hurts to say it one more time, does it?

    Tasha - Aw, thanks! I can't wait to see what we do in October!

    Allie - You're welcome!

    Danielle - Yes, I just couldn't quite leave yet. And even if I stopped writing, I would definitely keep reading blogs!

    Karen - You're welcome!

    Jenners - A puppy! I can't wait for pictures! Z is deathly afraid of dogs so that's not something in our future.

    Lu - And thank you for stopping by. There really are so many corners of the community and it's nice every once in a while to step out and look around!

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  23. Thank you, Kristen, for mentioning me on your post today with so many great bloggers. It is true for me as well, that I have been enriched and stretched by those you mentioned. So much wonderful literature is out there for us to enjoy! It's been a pleasure to blog with you this year.

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  24. I have bookmarked this post because I think I'm only aware of half of those bloggers you've highlighted. The ones I know are fantastic, so I think my reader is going to explode. :)

    Have a wonderful BBAW. I love this time of year.

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  25. LOL!!!! I am seriously cracking up laughing reading this! You just seem to get me!! :) I love some of the others that you have listed ... Danielle is of course AMAZING! Jenners is a fairly new follow for me, but I'm loving so many of her posts (and I will eventually get around to commenting on her's too!). I'm really curious about a couple of others though! Thank you for such a wonderful post. Thank you for such an awesome blog (one of my personal faves!) and person. And, someday, I hope to actually get to meet you in real life. If I have my way, we will be moving back out that direction in the next couple of years and that grand get-together will be very possible!

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  26. Bellezza - You're very welcome! I enjoy making use of the diversity in our community and I'm glad you're a part of it too!

    Literate Housewife - I'm glad to bring more bloggers to your notice! Sometimes it's hard to find new blogs but then when you do, one leads to another!

    Tif - I'm glad that you liked my little tribute to you! I probably wouldn't still be in the community without you and a couple of others. So thanks again. :)

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  27. What a lovely post! So many of my favourite bloggers on your list! I have to agree about Carl from Stainless Steel Droppings. He is the number one host. I hadn't come across his blog when I first signed up to one of his challenges, but he made me feel so welcome. He is a star!

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  28. Jackie - He is -- absolutely! I'm so glad that you stopped by.

    Marie - I agree! I'm spending today settling in with some of the new blogs I've followed. It's quite fun!

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  29. Wow, there are so many of these I don't know! I've been an unreliable blogger this year -- alas! -- and I haven't been going out discovering new blogs as much as I'd like. BBAW is always so perilous to my feed reader.

    Thank you so much for your kind words, Kristen. All of that back at you -- and particularly, I am still hugely grateful to you for how enthusiastically you participated in Diana Wynne Jones Week. *hug*

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  30. Hi Kristen. I just wanted to say hello and thank you for the visit earlier in the week. It's great to meet you. :-)

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  31. Jenny - You are very welcome. Your blogging makes me happy!

    Jillian - Fantastic! Thanks for stopping by!

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  32. What a great list of blogs! I'm going to try to visit each one. Thanks for stopping by my blog and commenting!

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  33. You're welcome! I truly felt honored to be included on your list! :)

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