Books coming, books going.

 Snail mail is my favorite, and books are the best invention ever. So, naturally, #AOW bookswap season is always a source of joy.

But then, when it turns out that one of your close friends, who you actually met through blogging and playing photographic games, serendipitously happens to be your bookswapper, well, that's what I call magic.

I just opened a parcel that arrived yesterday and you should have seen my surprise when I opened the cardboard envelope and I found a navy blue package with a yellow ribbon, and then I read some Alice-in-Wonderland-style instructions.

At the beginning of the week I ordered 'The view from Castle Rock', by Alice Munro (last year's Nobel prize winner), the book I got assigned for Reading time by Lauren TM, and I was certain those were the contents of the package. But no, it was my #AOW bookwsap book! So special. Thanks so much! And nope, even though I picked it up a few times and I was this-close to buying it, I had always let it go, in favour of something else.

More coincidences... my AOW bookswap package is leaving the country today. I hope its recipient will like it.

Oh, and in case you are curious, these were my answers to the 'Very Special Questionnaire of Book Joy' (in Anna K's words). 
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Q1. Hello! What is your name and whereabouts in the world are you?My name is Amanda and I am a Mexican-Swiss-British girl living in The Netherlands

Q2- Who is your favourite author?

Julio Cortazar, Milan Kundera, Herman Hesse 
 

Q3-What is your favourite book of all time and how would you describe it in three words?

Rayuela (Hopscotch, Julio Cortazar). Magic, Coincidences/Serendipity, Love-story-in-Paris.

  

Q4-What was the best book you read in 2012 - again, describe in 3 words?

  Storyteller, the life of Roald Dahl, by Donald Sturrock. Fun, Intriguing, Smart. I also enjoyed "French children don't throw food" by Pamela Druckerman.

  

Q5-What was your least favourite book you read in 2012 and why - in no more than 50 words?

  Why be happy when you could be normal, by Jeanette Winterson. This is actually a good book, beautifully written, great story, the title drew me hard. But I found it so absolutely sad (borderline depressive) that even if the end does get better and it is full with lessons about life, it left me with a bad taste of mouth. But then again that's art.

 

Q6- If you could only take 3 books to a desert island, what would they be?

 The chronicles of Narnia, Rayuela (Hopscotch), The fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen, and.... Alice in Wonderland

Q7-What was your favourite book as a child?
Hans Christian Andersen-s fairy tales, I read the Chronicles of Narnia later, when I was around 12, and loved them too. I was also a big fan of "Crusade in Jeans" by Thea Beckman and "Microbe hunters" by Paul de Kruif.   

I just realized the last two books in that list were written by Dutch authors. And I ended up marrying a Dutch guy. Also, "Crusade in Jeans" was also a favorite book of Mark as a kid. Yet more coincidences. 

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What are you reading right now? Do you have any recommendations? Would you like to play along and answer the questionnaire in the comments?

The Alice in Wonderland illustration is by Marjorie Torrie, found here.