Off the Beaten Page on the Tangalooma Whale Watch Cruise

Izzy is the cousin on the right.

What are you reading? Chronicles of Narnia the Magician's Nephew, and Water tales, Aquamarine by Alice Hoffman.

Why are you reading 2 books at a time? I brought two in case I finished one. Water Tales is boring in the second part. Chronicles is very interesting, and you should probably read it before you read the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, which everyone seems to be reading because of the movie.

What did you read before this? Ella Enchanted, which is suited to teens. Generally I read more than most of my friends.

She says, 'Reading is nice.'

By the way, on the cruise we saw these two whales above, and the one below. And about 10 of their mates. Just spectacular...

Off the Beaten Page; Dellylu

Dellylu, eight years old, is reading Samurai Kids #2, The Owl Warrior. She sums up the story, 'drum beating signals in 10 day there will be a war in Japan. The Samurai Kids don't want to fight, so they are travelling to the Emperor where they will talk to the Emperor and see if they can silence the drum.'

The Samurai Kids are probably teenagers. Dellylu says, 'I like them because it's got lots of exciting parts and I like reading about different countries and how they are different from ours.'

These books have a glossary in the back, to explain all the different Japanese words to young readers, but personally I found it strange that the word 'samurai' isn't listed.

Adele's favourite series of picture books is Charlie and Lola, by Lauren Child. Next she will start the Wrinkle in Time series, because the third Samurai Kids book is reserved for her in the library, but she didn't bring it to Heron Island.

She says, 'Reading is cool.'

DeLynne's Biblio-Blunder

I joined some of my dear work colleagues for dinner at a Thai restaurant near the beach. After coffee we were drawn outside by people sending off, coincidentally, Thai paper lanterns (not as many as in the photo, though!).

Walking near the water I heard one woman, a happily married mother and teacher say to another work mate, 'I have to give you that dirty pick-up book.'

I was shocked that she would own a dirty pick-up book and even discuss it in front of us. Also, I was a little curious about what it really was. They dissolved into guffaws when I asked. She had actually said, 'That Jodi Picoult book.'

Here's hoping it's only my hearing that is faulty, and I don't have a terminal case of gutter mind!

Heron Island Library

Can you imagine an island with NO INTERNET CONNECTION, NO MOBILE PHONE RECEPTION AND NO TV'S IN THE ROOMS? Hubby, my beautiful mother and I took five girls, our Aussie/American daughters and our American nieces, to Heron Island. Some expressed a bit of angst at the thought of such deprivation, but the truth is that they are great girls and great readers. I knew they would be fine.

Most people come here for the amazing sea and bird life, but personally I was also interested in the library. Guests can take and leave their books, and I was looking forward to seeing what choices people made. Have you seen other 'swapsies' collections? I have seen them in motels, hotels and other resorts, and I was keen to see what people were leaving behind in a beautiful place which mostly relied on reading for leisure-time entertainment.

The library itself is housed in the Whitstari Lounge, above the bar with a big TV and some family games. Below people might be having cocktails or playing pool, but above a book lover can be exploring another world.

First surprise was the amount of Dutch and German books. Hubby said we'd be right if only we read one of those languages.

I did find a couple of books in the other languages I speak; a copy of The Long Goodbye in Italian and Nelson Demille's Le deshonneur d'Anne Campbell in French. It's a recount of the investigation of the rape and murder of a General's daughter. With no dictionaries and no internet connection to speak of (online translators are so handy!), I have been forced to underline in pencil the words new to me and save them for later. I consider my languages other than English books to be text books, and therefore don't mind 'defacing' them in this way. Do you agree?

I took this book, which is actually in English, and a wonderful novel. More on it later!

There were naturally lots of family saga and block-busters. One that interested me was the Endless Forest by Sara Donati. It says it is a historical romance by a best-selling author. I loved the cover.

There was a well-thumbed classic, a copy of Arizona Justice by Gordon D. Shirreffs. The blurb inside says, 'Gunsmoke Showdown: A gun blossomed orange flame in the centre of the smoke. Rowan rolled to one side, ripped his Colt loose and pumped two shots into the belly of the man who had hurdled the fallen door and thrust a six-gun toward him. The man hit hard, smashed against Rowan and lay still. ' Wow, what an exciting read for lounging on a tropical island!

Hubby left a copy of Ivory by Tony Park, which I had not read, and he took Sidney Sheldon's Mistress Games. He had found Ivory amusing in a not so flattering way, reading out some particularly corny lines to me. He expects Mistress Games to be about the same.

Probably the least appealing tome in the collection is a 2009 copy of the Coletanea de Legislacao Administrative Constitulcao
Federal from Brazil. Looks to me like the laws of the country. I can just imagine a Brazilian lawyer arriving with full intention of studying, then abandoning the profession to become a dive instructor or cleaner just to stay on the island. This book probably was found on the pool deck.

What treasures have you found in a 'swapsies' library?

DeLynne's Turn

Just like the last few weeks when Lesa was flying solo, I am having my turn being sole Mrs Baja contributor for a while. Lesa will be having some time with family while I do my best. Of course, she's the boss (I'm sure she'd say she's not, but I always think of her that way!) but I will keep those posts coming. Any advice is welcome.