I am a dog. I write impressions of the books Momma reads to me each night.
Hugs, hi everyone! *Sassy wavy paws
Welcome to Meet Me At The Bookshelf. Today I am reviewing Theo of Golden by Allen Levi.
Theo is an 86-year-old, mysterious Portuguese stranger who arrives in Golden, Georgia. He loves the people there, so he decides to stay. A local attorney and his staff arranged for Theo to live above the office in a stunning, renovated, well-appointed apartment with a balcony.
Theo frequents a quaint coffee shop where he is enthralled by the insightful, well-priced, exquisite pencil portraits hanging throughout the cafe. He asks the owner and is told that a local artist, Asher Glissen, created the 92 portraits.
Theo wonders aloud why the subjects of the portraits don’t purchase the art themselves. The reader wonders that as well. The power of the pencil drawings moves Theo. It reminds him of something deep in his past.
Theo decides to purchase several portraits from the cafe each time. Afterwards, Theo arranges to meet the subject, hear their life story, and then convey what he felt the portrait showed him when he viewed the art. Theo calls these meetings a bestowal.
His first bestowal is to Minnette Prentiss. She feels surprised to receive this gift, but being seen and heard makes the strongest impression when she first meets Theo.
Theo calls it the “sadness in the seeing.”
Tony Wilcox, bookstore owner and a real scamp, was a favorite bestowal of mine. He gives a festive business and economic update every time he sees Theo. You can tell a genuine friendship has formed.
Each meeting’s elegant prose will remain with the reader.
The book is over 400 pages long. It might have been tighter, but I believe the author aimed for a broad link between Golden and Theo. This led to a stunning conclusion about who Theo is and why the town matters. Clever, I woof to Momma.
The most impactful portrait subject bestowals to me were the homeless woman, custodian, bookstore owner, accountant, musician, and the portrait artist himself, Asher. Theo shares little about himself in these exchanges, yet you can tell they matter to his life story. He starts to connect the dots to his own life.
Theo enjoys mystery and explains why this town and its people are central as the book’s bestowals continue. His elegant manners, eye for art, and generous wealth give clues to his true identity. Theo answers the call when any of his new friends needs him. He becomes a bit of a town legend.
I give this book five paws up. It was Momma’ s favorite book this year.
I loved the benefactor, Theo. He met every portrait subject with the art he purchased sitting right next to them, as they evaluated what he saw in them. Theo would sit, engage, and truly listen to them. The value of that exchange cannot be overstated.
Theo has a gorgeous life story to tell, but chooses to elevate the subject of each of the 92 portraits instead.
The hurry of today makes people lose this individual exchange. I loved it. I tried to imagine buying finely drawn portraits to give to perfect strangers and then chatting about what we see in the work. What a luxury to give the art, as Theo says, “to the rightful owners” and carefully hear the stories of their lives. Heartfelt random acts of kindness lead to the town’s emotional growth legacy.
What a wonderful book!
Thanks for joining me. Wuvu.
See you next time at Meet Me at the Bookshelf. *Sassy wavy paws
Tag: Books
This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page
Hugs everyone! *Sassy wavy paws.
I am a dog. I contribute to the fabulous Anipal Times.
I write my impressions of the books my Momma reads to me each night. I hope you like my book review.
First, I want to explain my ranking system for the books I review.
Five paws: A must-read. So good that all my paws are waving.
So good that I borrowed a paw from Momma, who types for me, plus added all four of mine.
Four paws: A great read. Enjoy it in the tub.
Three paws: Eh. To read or not to read, if you have extra time, then read it.
Two paws: Likely skip it. Drags on, characters are silly, or just not a good read.
One paw: Seriously, skip it.
Welcome back to another Meet Me at the Bookshelf Book Review. Today we have a romantic offering called This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page.
The story involves Matilda Nightingale, a young woman who lost her husband, Joe, six months ago to an illness. They notified “Tilly” that before Joe died, he carefully chose one book a month for his beloved wife to collect at the local bookstore to help her overcome her grief.
Tilly heads over to the store.
Alfie, the store owner, takes a lot of abuse from Tilly, who wants the entire twelve books to be delivered in one swoop.
Alfie refuses.
Tilly trudges home with only that one book.
Even the bookstore cat, Georgette, thought Tilly made a scene.
Tilly carefully reads the note from Joe, included in her first book. It makes her heart sing. Joe chose a children’s book, which inspires Tilly to read again and engage in life, despite her crushing grief.
Rather than return to the scene of her humiliating fit and see Alfie again the next month, Tilly visits the public library and chooses several of her favorite children’s books. She stuffs herself into a reading tent intended for the local under-six kids set and reads her entire haul of books. Tilly doesn’t let any actual kids in to spoil or share her reading space.
One child reports a troll has taken over the castle.
When Tilly finally decamps from the tent, Alfie is hilariously there, just outside her tent, delivering overstock books to the library. Hangdog, Tilly follows him back to the bookstore to collect her second book.
The gorgeous bookstore cat, named Georgette, greets Tilly, sprawled across the office paperwork on the counter. She is the luxurious fourth member of the Book Lane team, and she revels in the attention from Tilly.Alfie and Tilly banter about, comparing cats and book lovers, stating they are similar by being fond of snacks, sun puddles and quiet time.
Georgette, named for the mystery author Georgette Heyer, purrs on while the pair list the books that feature cats like Alice in Wonderland, The Traveling Cat Chronicles, The Cat in the Hat, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Carbonel and The Cat Who Saved Books.
Georgette senses a bond forming.
I alert Momma that it is time for my snack about this point in the adventure. Too much cat talk, I report.
The book-a-month choices by Joe give Tilly the confidence to travel, sing karaoke, read, and open her heart to life.
This book would make a splendid gift for birthdays and holidays. It has various book suggestions and updated titles packed amongst its pages.I give this book four paws up!The characters are quickly familiar, and the book is romantic.
Bonus: The bookstore cat would definitely be my buddy. I might chase Georgette once or twice, but she would forgive me.
I feel love will win the day, and I may get more purrs from my cat pals.
Try this book!
Thanks for joining me. Wuvu. See you next time at Meet Me at the Bookshelf.
*Sassy wavy paws
The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett
Hi everyone! *Sassy wavy paws
Welcome to another Meet Me at the Bookshelf Book Review.
Today we have The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett; the same author as The Help, which is a famous book and movie.
This book is excellent historical fiction and revolves around orphan homes in 1930s Oxford, Mississippi. Meg LeFleur, eleven, recounts this story: She was abandoned at the Lafayette County Orphan Asylum on Christmas Eve.
The companion story centers on the unmarried Birdie Calhoun. Her mom sent her to ask her socialite, younger, married sister for money to save the family home and acres.
Birdie learns her sister’s life is a lie but she, by chance, meets Charlie, a woman who has nothing to lose, and when they both discover they know Meg, Birdie and Charlie form the Calamity Club.
This unlikely Calamity Club forms a daring and dangerous plan to squeeze out a happily ever-after for the women.As one of the unadoptable older girls, Meg works in the Orphan asylum office, and daily tries to get her hands on the mail, hoping it will contain either word from her mom that she is coming back to retrieve Meg, or mail from orphan friends sent out to work at age 12. She dreams that she will have a happy life.
One day chaos erupts. Never letting a calamity go to waste, the orphan toddlers get out of their room and are running loose so Meg sets her eyes on the asylum mail bag. She finds both a letter addressed to a fellow orphan, Dorella, who torments her, and a brand-new Life magazine in the mail drop. She steals them.Dorella reads her letter aloud to the other orphans. Her mother says she is sorry she had to leave her and will make it up to her one day, and her siblings are fine.
Inspiration for the girls! Sassy appaws.
Meg devours the Life magazine. Included here are pictures showing pools, a woman holding a girl’s hand, and nice California sights. Meg sadly gets caught with the magazine, but she thinks of these images during the eight or more belt lashes the closet gives her. Meg thinks it was worth it.
Defiance has consequences, but now Meg knows there is hope. Drop everything and go get this sensational 634-page historical fiction book. It is a gem. The writing is elegant and engaging. The fast pace and finely drawn characters will leave you thinking about this book and Meg months from now.
It is a Wow! Some of the language is rough, but the author navigates the topics of orphaned children, poverty, sick authoritarian figures, and underestimated women beautifully . Saviors in Strange Places should be the name of this tome.
Momma read it to me over the period of a week. I loved it.
Hope shines out from the dark. I give this book five paws way up!
This heartbreaking tale will inspire and challenge you, and make you feel lucky. Momma always says if you could run to a hill of your problems, or choose anyone else’s, you would surely choose your own. I said, how about if I just choose to run up the hill and around a lot?
I hope you love it. I bet, like The Help, they will make it into a movie. Thanks for spending time with me!
See you next time at Meet Me At The Bookshelf. Wuvu *Sassy wavy paws.
Alfie Book Review: The Land of Neverendings
I’m Alfie and here’s the latest From The Toybox..
Fitz (@Fitzfindsjoy) has been reading a lot of teddy bear-related books. He has recently finished one that he wants you to know about.
It’s called ‘The Land of Neverendings’ and it is by the late Kate Saunders.
The Land of Neverendings is a fantasy novel about a girl named Emily who grieves the death of her sister, Holly, by connecting with her sister’s favorite teddy bear, Bluey, through a magical world of talking toys.
The book explores themes of loss, grief, and imagination as Emily discovers the magical world she created for her sister might be real, but the barrier between worlds is becoming dangerous. Magic infiltrates humanity, manifesting sadness, violence, plus criminal acts within the Land of Neverendings.
It really is a wonderful story, but it deals with some heavy subjects like death, loss, and grief.
The story became even more poignant after reading the author’s explanation of what inspired the story.
Until next time…
Teddy Bear Book Reviews
Here’s a review of a couple of teddy bear books:
Hi friends! Alfie here. Here in #TheHugHouse, we love teddy bear stories. I thought we might tell you about some.
Fitz is the official bibliobear in our Hug, so I’ll turn it over to him:
Book 1:

During my latest library trip, I learned of the book “The Lost Ears”. Unfortunately, the library didn’t have a copy. But I really wanted to read it, so we gathered up our pennies and ordered a used copy.
It’s the story of a tiny teddy bear (even tinier than me!) who lives in the pocket of his human’s pajamas. But one day something happened that changed him. But I am trying to avoid spoilers.
Book 2:

“Where Do Teddy Bears Come From” tells of a wolf cub struggling to fall asleep. He has read stories that include teddy bears, and he decided a teddy bear is what he needs. But he doesn’t know where they come from. He asked his mom, and she didn’t know, so he went out into his community to ask around. His neighbors are familiar faces from traditional children’s stories.
Eventually, he finds someone who can help him. It’s someone famous and special. But I won’t give it away.
Book 3:

Finally, the book “Loved to Bits” is reminiscent of ‘The Velveteen Rabbit’. It’s about a boy and his beloved bear who is always by his side… But eventually, all the cuddles and adventures change him. I expected sorrow, and it delivered, to some extent. But it has a sweet ending, and it really reflects the experiences of many stuffed animals.
What books do you like? Obviously, we are partial to teddy bear books. Whatever you like, just pick up a book and read! It’s so important.
Winnie-the-Pooh 100th Anniversary!
Hi, friends!
Something exciting is happening this year, and I wanted to tell you about it!
2026 is the 100th anniversary of the first Winnie-the-Pooh book. Written by A. A. Milne and illustrated by E. H. Shepard, it was originally published in October 1926. Seeing his son, Christopher Robin, play with his teddy bear and other stuffed toys inspired Milne to create the stories. His mom had bought the teddy bear for him for his first birthday. The other toys followed later.
Multiple brands are releasing special anniversary merchandise. Including a knitted Pooh from the Disney Store and a beautiful limited edition Pooh bear from Steiff.
We here at The Hug House love teddy bear stories. The Pooh stories are some of our favorites. Along with the original A. A. Milne stories, we also have all the official sequels and the prequel. Last year we met Jim Cummings, the voice of the animated Winnie the Pooh since the 80s!
Be sure to keep your eyes open for more Winnie-the-Pooh anniversary celebrations!
Quote: Oliver Herford On Cats
I sometimes think the Pussy-Willows grey
Are Angel Kittens who have lost their way,
And every Bulrush on the river bank
A Cat-Tail from some lovely Cat astray.
— Oliver Herford, The Rubáiyát of a Persian Kitten
Public Domain Sources

🎨 General Public Domain Search Tools
- Creative Commons – An international nonprofit organization that empowers people to grow and sustain the thriving commons of shared knowledge and culture.
- Europeana – Discover Europe’s digital cultural heritage.
- Digital Public Library of America – A platform that brings together many collections of America’s libraries, archives, and museums, and makes them freely available to the world.
- Library of Congress – Use the largest library in the world online or in person!
- Internet Archive – A non-profit library of millions of free texts, movies, software, music, websites, and more.
📚 Books & Text
- Project Gutenberg – A library of over 75,000 free eBooks. The world’s great literature is here, with focus on older works for which U.S. copyright has expired.
- Internet Archive – Over 20,000,000 freely downloadable books and texts.
- HathiTrust – Home to millions of digitized books and publications.
- Standard Ebooks – A collection of high quality, carefully formatted, accessible, open source, and free public domain ebooks that meet or exceed the quality of commercially produced ebooks.
- Google Books – Find and download over 10 million free books and magazines, primarily classics published before 1925.
🖼 Images & Artwork
- Wikimedia Commons – Many public domain images (check license)
- Library of Congress – Search millions of items in many formats and languages.
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art – Over 492,000 images of public-domain artworks, is available for free and unrestricted use.
- Rijksmuseum – This innovative platform opens a world of beauty and knowledge, where images, archival sources, stories, and research come together.
- National Gallery of Art – Free open access image downloads are now available directly from the object pages located on this website. More than 60,000 images are available for download.
- New York Public Library – Explore 1,070,667 items digitized from The New York Public Library’s collections.
🎼 Music & Audio
- Musopen – Provides recordings, sheet music, and textbooks to the public for free, without copyright restrictions.
- Free Music Archive – Free access to open licensed, original music by independent artists around the world.
- Library of Congress – Use the largest library in the world online or in person!
- Internet Archive – Recordings ranging from alternative news programming, to Grateful Dead concerts, to Old Time Radio shows, to book and poetry readings, to original music uploaded by our users.
🎥 Film & Video
- Internet Archive – Digital movies uploaded by Archive users which range from classic full-length films, to daily alternative news broadcasts, to cartoons and concerts.
- National Archives and Records Administration – Audio-Video and Motion Picture Preservation Labs.
- Prelinger Archives – Collects, preserves, and facilitates access to films of historic significance that haven’t been collected elsewhere.
📰 U.S. Government Publications
Works created by U.S. federal government employees as part of their job are usually public domain.
- NASA – Discover our intergalactic multimedia collections.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – The imagery showcased in the PHIL is historic in nature.
- U.S. Geological Survey – provides access to over 180,000 publications written by USGS scientists over the century-plus history of the bureau.
- National Park Service – search by keyword, location, or file type (including photos, videos, audio, webcams, and podcasts) and filter for high-quality images.
(Always check each site’s usage guidelines.)
Important Reminder
Even on trusted sites:
- Always check the license on each item.
- Confirm it is truly public domain.
- When in doubt, double-check.
Public domain is powerful — and careful use keeps you safe and professional.
Using Public Domain Content

Understanding What’s Free and Legal
There’s a lot of free content on the internet. Some of it is in the public domain, which means you can use it legally. But you must be careful to understand the rules before you use anything.
Always Check Copyright
Before using any content, make sure it’s really free to use. If something is still protected by copyright, the website owner may get a DCMA Takedown Request telling them to remove the item.
Always confirm:
- Is the work really public domain?
- Has the copyright expired?
- Is there clear proof it is free to use?
If you aren’t sure, don’t use it.
What Is Public Domain?
Public domain works may include:
- Old books
- Historical photos
- Government publications
Public domain content belongs to everyone. You can:
- Copy it
- Share it
- Change it
- Sell it
You don’t need permission.
Here are some places to look to look for Public Domain content:
- Project Gutenberg – Free classic books.
- Wikimedia Commons – Images and media (check each license).
- Library of Congress – Historic photos and documents.
Even though you don’t have to give credit for public domain works, it’s still polite to do so.
Find more Public Domain Sources.
What Is Copyleft?
Copyleft content is different from public domain. The creator still owns the work but allows others to use it with some conditions. Many copyleft works use Creative Commons licenses.
Creative Commons licenses often include rules like:
- Attribution (BY) – You must give credit.
- ShareAlike (SA) – If you change it, you must share it under the same license.
- NonCommercial (NC) – You can’t use it to make money.
- NoDerivatives (ND) – You cannot change it.
Always read the license carefully.
How to Give Credit (Attribution)
If attribution is required, include:
- The creator’s name
- The title of the work
- Where you found it (link if online)
- The license name
Example:
File:Longcat (6435769739).jpg, Dwight Sipler from Stow, MA, USA, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
This protects you and shows respect for the creator.
Watch Out for Duplicate Content
Search engines can detect copied content. If you use public domain material exactly as it is, your website may not rank well.
Make your work more original and more valuable:
- Rewrite it in your own words
- Add your own ideas
- Combine ideas from several sources
- Check spelling and grammar
- Make the tone match your style
What Can You Create with PD Content?
With public domain and properly licensed copyleft content, you can create:
- Ebooks
- Print books
- Blog posts
- Podcasts
- Videos
- Email newsletters
… and more!
In Summary
Public Domain = Free to use.
Copyleft = Free to use, but follow the rules.
Anipals Read
Hi pals! Pumpkin here. I have something fun to share with you. Did you know we have a book club? It’s called Anipals Read (#readpawty).
Around 2011 or 201212, @MaggieTKat started #Readpawty. We’d all read the same book and meet once a month to talk about it. Of course, sometimes we strayed from book talk and caught up with each other, but mostly we really talked about the book. We’d meet on Twitter and use the hashtag #readpawty to keep the conversation together.
Well, it’s been many years, and #readpawty has evolved. We now meet on the second Tuesday of every other month (February, April, June, August, October, and December). We still meet on Xtwit, but since Xtwit’s gotten harder to use, we meet in a DM group. Sometimes, we don’t pick a book for all of us to read and discuss, but talk about what we’ve individually read since we last met.
We also use it as a set time to meet up. We’re all very busy anipals, and are online at different times, so we rarely get to connect. This way, we know we’re going to see each other at least once every other month.
We also have a group on Goodreads called Anipals Read. I keep a bookshelf there that lists everything we’ve read as a group since 2013. There are also suggestions there of books to read.
If you’d like to join #readpawty, even if it’s just to hang out with us, email me your Xtwit name. I use email to send out announcements, and I’ll need your Xtwit name to add you to the DM group. Hope you join us!
You can find me on Xtwit as @pumpkinpuddy. I’m also on FB (Cheryl Katz), Bluesky (pumpkinpuddy.bsky.social), and Discord (pumpkinpuddy), but I’m mostly on FB. The easiest ways to reach me and be sure I see it are email or FB Messenger.




