Costa Rica National Library

Hello dear Readers,

Hope you all had a great weekend.

As a mentioned in my previous post, I want to share with you some of the book related places I used to go when I lived in Costa Rica.

One of these places is the Costa Rica National Library. I have amazing memories  about visiting this library. I used to go there to study for school, do homework, to read a good book or simply borrow old newspapers and read them. They have a pretty good collection of those there. 

The Spanish translation, National Library (Biblioteca Nacional), and its name, in honor to Miguel Obregon Lizano, one of the Benefactors of the Fatherland. He contributed to national education, teachers, children and the youth of our country. Two of his biggest contributions: founder of the New School in San Jose, which is the capital of Costa Rica and he promoted the creation of Public Libraries in our country. He also gave teachers the professional category, teaching as a professional career in Costa Rica.

The National Library was founded in 1888. It is a huge, two-story building inaugurated in 1971. Throughout the years, the building has suffered a few restoration processes in order to better preserve all the documents store in there and also the building has been improved to offer more benefits to the patrons. Benefits such as better internet, wi-fi, more computers for public use and bigger reading and studying rooms.

The National Library, with other 58 public libraries, plus one Bibliobus, its what is called the Costa Rica National Libraries System (SINABI-Sistema Nacional de Bibliotecas).

Bibliobus brings library services and materials to people from rural and small communities with no access to libraries.

The Costa Rica National Library has done an amazing job preserving old books, and special collections for everything: costarican authors, first editions, history, music, newspapers, magazines, most of those produced in Costa Rica. A collection of foreign books and magazines. And a collection of titles used as a reference and research.

One particular thing about the Costa Rica National Library is Patrons cannot check items out from the closed collections, they are more for study and research. You can read them but inside the library. That is why is often called the "Reference Library". You can also listen to music and some items can only be used under supervision.

Below some pictures of the Costa Rica National Library. And for more information on the National Library and the SINABI, you can visit www.sinabi.go.cr

Next post: Used Bookstores in Costa Rica.

Wen

On Vacations in Costa Rica

Hello dear Readers,

Hope you all are having a great week.

I want to share with you a quick update here on the blog.

I'm on vacation in Costa Rica visiting my family and I decided before I came that one of the things I want to do on this trip is to show you some of the libraries and bookstores downtown San Jose which is the capital of Costa Rica and it is where my family lives. I will be taking pictures, posting those here and sharing a little bit of history of each place. Stay tune, pictures are on its way.

Also, for those who know Spanish and would like to practice it by reading books, I will be sharing what my costarican community is reading for you to have some recommendations and reference.

Thank you so much for all your support.

Wen

Book Review: The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros/Coming-of-Age

Hello dear Readers,

About a month ago I started watching book tube channels on You Tube. All these lovely book lovers talking about books, doing reviews, showing what books they are buying, giving recommendations. All of those things that we as readers love to know.

That is how I came across this book. It was mentioned in a few of these channels and it caught my attention. It was given positive feedback and good reviews, I felt like I needed to read it and I am glad I did. I was also fascinating to read how this book has impacted the literary world. How is used by teachers in schools and how much people like it.

I read the Spanish version of it but this did not affect my opinion and my review.

Title: The House on Mango Street

Author: Sandra Cisneros
Genre: Coming-of-Age

Publisher: Vintage

Language: English

Paperback: 110 pages

Book Description

The House on Mango Street is a 1984 coming-of-age novel by Mexican-American Sandra Cisneros. it deals with Esperanza Cordero, a young Latina girl, and her life growing up in Chicago with Chicanos  and Puerto Ricans. Esperanza is determine to say goodbye to her improverished Latino neighborhood. Major themes include her quest for a better life and the importance of her promise to come back for the ones she left behind.

My thoughts

I gave 5/5 stars on Goodreads

I am so glad I found out about this book. Is one of these books I told myself: "where have you been my whole life?". Like I said at the beginning of this post, I heard about it in book tube and was really interested on reading it.

I should start by saying, I loved the book, from the beginning to the end. For the number on pages, it was supposed to be a fast read, however, it was that good I read it slow. I wanted to enjoy every word, every page because I knew it was not that long. The author's writing style, the way the story is told, very refreshing and embracing. Made me feel so immerse in the story.

The fact it is written in "vignettes" added that "wow" factor that I usually look for in a book. Personally, I think this format gives the book a more interesting tone and shape and most of all, helps to the voice. Each vignette is an important part of the story. The story, the memories, the recollections of Esperanza. A Latina girl living in a city surrounded by poverty of which she wants to escape, with the hope of a better future and the promise to come back for the ones she will left behind.

Reading through each vignette I could notice, one aspect is developed. The one called "House on Mango Street" sets the setting of the book. The one called "Boys and Girls" tells the differences between genres. "My name", portraying Esperanza, her thoughts, what she wants, what are her hopes for the future. I think this way of telling the story is such a fantastic one. These are not mere collections of thoughts or things. These are her feelings, her memories, told in such a poetic way. She shares with us, the readers, how her life was like growing up. How she wanted to have a better life. How she dreamed of escaping that life. Not to be surrounded by poverty, live in a better environment, become a better person. And how by she doing that, she could help the other people around her. 

Another thing this book brought into my life was, I felt related to Esperanza. I was not born in the United States but I have lived here for almost two years and I half now. I was born in a country in Latin America and I was blown away by the way she tells how she wanted to leave that life which she did not like and become a better person, she always had in mind to have a better future which is what most of the people coming to America hope to do here. Our circumstances are not the same but I came here with the hopes of changing my life and experience new adventures, new things, which at the end have helped me to have a better life.

Each vignette on this book is a reminder of what we see in our society. People trying to figure out what they want in life, their dreams, their hopes for the future. How our differences play a roll in the way we live our lives. This book brings us back to reality because it deals with things we face in real life. Poverty, self discover, differences in genres, how we see ourselves. Our interactions with our families and neighbors.

The House on Mango Street, the story of Esperanza, but at the end, the story of many people, real situations, real life, which any person can understand and feel related to.

My Favorite Quote

"Eso está bonito. Es muy bueno, dijo ella con su voz cansada. Acuérdate de seguir escribiendo, Esperanza. Debes continuar escribiendo. Te hará libre, y yo dije sí, pero en ese momento no sabía lo que quería decirme."

Wen

2015 Writing and Bookish Goals

Hello dear Readers,

A new year always brings new resolutions, new goals to accomplish, new things to do.

That is why I am here today to talk about my 2015 Writing and Bookish Goals.

My first writing goal for 2015 will be just to keep writing like I did last year. I am writing my own Memoir but I do not only work on this. I also write poetry when I feel I need to do it and I also write short stories. Sometimes getting away from writing the Memoir and write other things it's what helps me to find the motivation to continue working on the Memoir. I know it may sound confusing but writing block happens and we as writers need to find a way to deal with it. 

My second writing goal for 2015 is related to my Memoir as well. I plan on finishing the first draft as soon as I can and then move to the editing and revising part of it. There are still a few chapters I am working on, it is not to much but still requires time, inspiration, and a lot of research but definitely, this goal will be top priority in 2015.

I mentioned on my previous post, 2014 was my best reading year. I completed my Goodreads reading challenge. I read a lot more books than ever before in my life. I left my comfort zone and read genres that I never read before. Lots of accomplishments which made me feel pretty good, however, because 2014 is over it does not mean I have to stop.

My first bookish goal for 2015 is to read more than last year. I set up my Goodreads goal to fifty books. Fifteen more books than last year. It does not mean I want to read more books just because of the quantity aspect of it but because I think there are so many books out there I want to read that this will be the year for it.  

My second bookish goal for 2015 is to read more diversely, not only read different genres but also books that will challenge me as a person and as a reader. For instance, I have never read a Sci-Fi book or a book written or by someone from an indigenous culture or a comic book or a book by an Author from Africa. These are just a few examples of books that I really want to read this year.

My third bookish goal for 2015 is to read all the books I have on my TBR Jar. They are 20 books that I purchased last year and never got to read.

My fourth and last bookish goal for 2015 is to read more books from my local library and to listen to more audio-books. Since I started working at the library, I have discovered a lot of books I would like to read. Books that I never heard of before and sound interesting but they are books I do not necessarily feel like buying right now, unless it turns out to be an awesome book and I want to buy it. It will also give me an excuse to spend more time in the library, which I really do not need an excuse because I love it.

Hope you guys are enjoying this new year. If you have any writing or bookish goals, please  feel free to share them in the comments.

Wen.

January 2015 TBR List and Reading Challenge

Hello dear Readers,

Hope you all had a wonderful New Year's Eve and New Years. 

Today, I would like to share my January TBR, what I will be reading this January, and also talk a little bit about my Reading Challenge.

In one week and a half I will be traveling to Costa Rica to see my family and I will spend one month there. I am going to try to read as much as I can before I leave. My TBR consists in two books and maybe one e-book.

The first book I will be reading is the Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. I read this book when I was in school, I think it was fifth grade. It was a long time ago and I do not really remember anything about the it but I remember I liked it. I am excited to re-read it. I also heard there is a The Little Prince movie coming out. I am very curious to see how that will turn out.

The second book I will be reading is La Casa en Mango Street (The House in Mango Street) by Sandra Cisneros. I do not know much about this book other than what I heard a few booktubers said about it on their channels and all of them agreed it is an awesome book and it seems to be very interesting. I am excited to read this book as well.

Finally, if I have time, I will be reading one of the e-books I have on my Kindle, it is Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover. About this book the only thing I know is according to my fellow bookworms on Instagram it is a fantastic book. I decided to buy it and give it a try. Once I read it I will be posting my thoughts on it, as well as the other books I read this month.

About my reading challenge, I set my 2015 Goodreads Reading Challenge to 50 books. I decided the way I am going to accomplish this goal is to work my TBR Jar a little bit different. I will continue using my TBR as usual for the books I have not read and I also added to my jar the 2015 Book Riot Harder Reading Challenge. This consists on a 24 different tasks which allows people different things. For example, some of the tasks include: read a Sci-Fi book. Read a Microhistoy book. Read a graphic novel. Read a book retelling a classic story. I have never read any type of book in these categories. I will be really interesting to see how this goes for me.

I found out about Book Riot thanks to a booktuber I have been watching the last few weeks. I checked it out and it's fantastic. I like their you tube channel and they also have a Podcast which I have been listening to and I enjoying a lot. If you want to know more about Book Riot and about this challenge, you can visit their website at www.bookriot.com. There is also a group discussion on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/152441-book-riot-s-read-harder-challenge 

I am looking forward to this challenge. I think it is going to expand my reading level a lot. I will be reading a different variety of genres. I will also be accomplishing two of my bookish goals for 2015: read more than I did in 2014 and also read more books from my local library. I am sure most of the books I will be using to complete each task on the challenge will be at the library.

Hope you all have a wonderful 2015. Happy reading and talk to you guys on my next post.

***I would like to let you know. I was not paid or instructed by Book Riot to mention them on this post. What was expressed here was completely my personal opinion and was just meant to be shared for reading purposes***

Wen.