The weekend has drawn to a close but the Persephone adulation is still going strong. Verity kindly posted our last round-up this morning and it was our largest yet! A quick peek at my Google Reader confirms that there have even been a few more posts that have filtered through since. We rounded up 100+ posts this weekend and those were only the ones we caught, not including our own. We are delighted by such an overwhelming response to our little weekend; we shortened the duration from a week to a weekend to make it more manageable for ourselves but you still came in droves and haven’t disappointed. Our most successful Persephone Reading event yet!
I would like to extend my thanks to the indomitable Verity, my co-host. With RSI-like symptoms in her fingers, Verity was unable to comment on all of your posts as she had to keep her typing to a minimum but she read them all and managed things behind the scenes wonderfully. Special mention has to be made to her fantastically creative and fun Persephone picture competition, which has already inspired me to suggest that we challenge you to create one picture of your own next Persephone weekend!
Thanks also has to go to Nicola Beauman of Persephone Books for her unrelenting support of our event and exceptional generosity in providing us with remainders as prizes. Without Nicola, her vision and her passion for the titles she publishes, none of us would have spent this weekend in each others’ company, connecting over a common love.
Lastly, thank you to everyone who participating this weekend and contributed to making the event so enjoyable and especial thanks to those bloggers kind enough to host their own giveaways. I have a list as long as my self of Persephone books that I now want to read this month and have made so many new blogging friends, whilst growing closer to those of you I know already. Your kind and appreciative words buoyed me over the weekend when I may have been flagging a little and your ardent enthusiasm for the books we were all reading excited and engaged me. Here’s to lots more grey reading in our futures!
Copied from Verity’s wrap-up post as it comes from both of us and bears repeating:
There have been two comments which particularly stood out among all of those which we have recieved over the past weekend and to which we would like to give honourable mention. This one from Bellezza, on Claire’s blog, sums up so well the fantastic sense of community that this event seems to foster:
What I love most about the Persephone Reading Weekend which you cohost is the sense of community it affords as we visit one another and share our love of such outstanding literature. I had not heard of Persephone books until I connected with you, and I can’t tell you the joy they have brought me from the Persephone Secret Santa, to adding to my own collection, to finding new books to order from this lovely shop I hope someday to visit in real life.
We were also in fits over Darlene’s comment on Claire’s Temporarily Missing Competition. In response to the first line:
‘I heard today that Cynthia died, last Friday afternoon at the Ipswich County Hospital, just after a cup of tea.’
Darlene said:
Dying after a cup of tea sounds just about perfect. Imagine the disappointment of dying just as the kettle came to a boil! I’ve given myself the giggles now….
Now to the Oscars prizes as we know you all want to get to the after-parties.
1. The copy of William, randomly drawn from everyone who left links on our blogs is: Tracey at Book Sanctuary.
2. The first copy of Family Roundabout, randomly drawn from everyone commenting on Verity’s welcome post is: Helen from She Reads Novels
3. The second copy of Family Roundabout, randomly drawn from everyone commenting on my welcome post is: Simon T from Stuck in a Book
4. The two copies of Still Missing for the winners of my Temporarily Missing competition are: Heather (from LibraryThing) and Cristina from Rochester Reader (I will post the answers to that shortly).
5. The copy of Mariana for the winner of Verity’s photo competition is: Clare Wiggins
6. The winner of the classic edition of Miss Pettigrew lives for a day drawn from anyone who as yet does not own a Persephone book is: Christine
7. The winner of the classic edition of Little Boy Lost drawn from anyone who was reading their first Persephone book this weekend is: Jo from Jo’s Book Journey.
And…the winner of the best post of the weekend (the Colin Firth and Natalie Portman of the weekend) and receiving the gold statuette copies of Winds of Heaven and There Were No Windows is … Rebecca, from Rebecca Reads, for her incredibly thoughtful post about Round About A Pound A Week. Rebecca tried desperately to find copies of Persephone titles to read this weekend and had to resort to reading an e-book of her choice on the public domain and her dedication and wonderful post are more than deserving of the title of our favourite post from the weekend.
To claim your prizes, please email me at claireDOTboyleATgmailDOTcom
