Half way to a completed quilt

I've been a bit quiet on the quilting update, but have been busy plodding away. Row by row, stitch by stitch - I am now finally at the half way point to getting the quilt top sewn together. The photo may be a bit misleading as what appears to be the length of the quilt is actually the width of the quilt. The width will be 10 9-square patches long, and the length will be 12 9-square patches long. So far, I'm really pleased with how its looking. It's quite exciting to finish a line, hold it up and gaze at the progress - I can just about imagine the final product.

A Life Update

You may remember from a couple of posts ago that I was going for an interview. Well, the result of that is that despite the very stiff competition (1 in 80 chance) I got offered a place and from September will be training to be a Primary School teacher. I can't wait to start!!! I will be moving from Brighton to London for the duration of the course, and living back at home with my parents, which will be an experience in itself. This is going to be an incredibly stressful and intensive year, as they push you hard - but I'm game! Genuinely thrilled that I got offered a place on the course and still can't quite believe that its finally happening!

Cloud Atlas

Cloud Atlas is a book that has been recommended to me by a number of people. I must admit that I started reading it with a little trepidation, was it going to be one of these books that didn't live up to my expectations?

Cloud Atlas follows 6 stories that interlink, spanning a number of centuries and locations. It is hard to write about it without giving away some of the plot, as essentially you are reading six short stories. And that, of course is the ingenuity of the book. As you read these stories you can't help but look out for the links that tie each story together, some more obvious than others. Each character has its own charm, own language and own culture, and each story is as gripping as the previous. You start off in the 18th century, each story progressing in order of time, with the middle of the book (story number 6) being told in full, and then each story is returned to in reverse order. All in all, I really enjoyed this novel and have already passed it one to my mum to read.