Girl's Night Out

I hope you all had a good Thanksgiving. We got the whole week off school, so it has been very relaxing. The only glitch was throwing out my back by bringing the 20 lb turkey into the house. That put a damper on things. But I’m on the mend. A highlight for the week was a Girl’s Night Out involving 9 teenage(ish) girls, one (smart) teenage boy, three moms, one little brother, and the movie, Twilight.

I’ve never been interested in or supportive of vampires but decided to read the book after my older girls started talking about it. I was pleasantly surprised that the book is squeaky clean aside from a bit of violence involving the “bad” vampires. It is written by a Mormon. Enough said. So the “good” vampires don’t drink human blood. They hunt animals instead and call themselves vegetarians. One thing I like about these books is that they are based on classic literature. Twilight is a bit like Pride and Prejudice and a bit like Romeo and Juliet. The basic plot is that a vampire and a human fall in love. It is very much a love story. I don’t want to spoil anything for those who haven’t read them yet. I will just say that nothing immoral happens in the series. The fourth book doesn’t hold back in the bedroom, but since the characters involved are married, I have no problem with it.

In short, the Twilight series is not a deep, soul searching read, however it has many redeeming qualities especially when compared to other fare aimed at the teenage crowd.

Book Character Day

Are these two cuties the spitting images of Nancy Drew and Madeline or what? We had a fun morning at school today. All the kids dressed up as a book character, and we had a parade. Hannah is in fourth grade, and Emily is in second.

Lone Survivor

In honor of Veteran's Day, I thought it would be appropriate to highlight this excellent nonfiction book I recently read (on bookshelf). It is a sad read, but it is not lacking in hope. The hardest part for me is that one of the troops who did not survive was Matt Axelson, a family friend. If you like good war movies, the best, you will love this book. I understand a movie is in the making. It begins with a very interesting and eye-opening look at Navy SEAL training. It then goes on to describe in detail the tragic ambush in the mountains of Afghanistan resulting in the largest Navy SEAL tragedy ever. The aftermath is filled with hope as the co-author, Marcus Luttrell, is sustained and welcomed back as the hero that he is.

I love to read!

I hope you like my new bookshelf. Please comment if you have read any of them. Consider it a book club. I will eventually comment on them. I didn't like all of them, or at least I had some reservations about some, but I think they could generate good discussion. Happy reading!

Harry Potter

Hi! I know, it has really been a while. I'll update soon. But the question right now is: who has read HP7? I just finished it, and I'm dying to talk to someone else who has. It is so hard to keep all the secrets from my family. So, if you have any thoughts, fire away.

I just read a critique from the Christian Science Monitor that I don't totally agree with. It said that Harry does not undergo a moral struggle. I just don't know what sacrificing yourself for the greater good is, if not a moral struggle. It is true he never flirts with the dark side, like Snape, but books don't have to always go there. Many real people (myself included) never flirt with the dark side. As a Christian, I know I'm a sinner saved only by grace. I also know that sin is not OK and strive not to. So, anyway, I loved the book, loved the ending, and I could go on... I like the way the magical world and all its various creatures came together taking sides at the end. We're talking centaurs, giant spiders, elves, etc. Conspicuously absent were Muggles (regular people). That's because it's a fantasy story. I don't believe Harry Potter is evil and getting kids into witchcraft. It's just a fun fantasy story.

Book Reviews

Rating System:

* Don’t!
** I could contain my enthusiasm.
*** I was entertained, but there are some problems.
**** I couldn’t put it down—a masterpiece!

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen: ****

I just read this for the first time, and I was not disappointed. In fact, it was shorter and easier to understand than I thought it would be. I hope to read many more of the great classics that I have missed and get back to you about them. It made me reflect a bit-- we live like the upper class of that day in many respects. Travel, entertainment, education, food... to name a few are American rights. Household employees, manners, and family honor are some things we have lost. I'm not condoning the class system, but it would be nice if I could have a cleaning lady. OK, more importantly, while reading the book I became more aware of my children's lack of manners, respect for elders, and general impertinence. I'm going to work on that. It also occurred to me that I could improve on some things as well. If we, as Americans, are going to live like kings, we should act like them too.

Mason-Dixon Knitting by Gardiner and Shayne: ****

Knit Lit at its best! This book is funny, informative, and inspirational. Now I just have to figure out which project to try first. Do yourself a favor and ask someone you know to teach you how to knit. It really isn't hard.

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden: ***

A fascinating page-turner. I learned a lot about Japanese culture from this book. This is a love story with a very happy ending, considering the amount of tragedy and conflict the young geisha endures until that point. It takes place around World War 2 in Gion. It strikes me how much Christianity still affects our largely unbelieving culture when I compare it to this Buddhist culture that would sell young girls into slavery and prostitution. I learned that geishas are artists—dancers, conversationalists, entertainers. But the bottom line is: they are slaves.

The Princess Bride by Morgenstern, abridged by Goldman: *** ½

This was a delightful read. It is even funnier than the movie. Here’s the scoop on the abridgement: Goldman is the little boy in the movie whose grandpa reads the story to him. As a boy, his Sicilian father read him the ancient Italian book by Morgenstern. When Goldman’s son was ten, he found a copy (which was very hard to do and at a used bookstore), and gave it to his son. His son didn’t like it. Shocked, Goldman picked it up and quickly figured out why. His father had only read him the good parts. Morgenstern was a satirist who wove pages of often boring Florinese history into the story. So Goldman abridged it. He also wrote the screenplay of the movie, which follows the book very closely. There’s only one problem: he is way to attached to his baby. He keeps popping himself into it. Don’t you think the movie would be better if the little boy thing was cut? That’s how I feel about the abridgement, but even more strongly. He pops into it very frequently and even uses some profanity. There is none in the story-line (except when Inigo tells the six-fingered man he wants his father back, and that is mild.) So here’s what I recommend: whenever the font changes to indicate a comment by Goldman, skip it. I think I am going to reread it that way right now. Enjoy!

Anne of Green Gables by L.M Montgomery (the complete series) ****

It doesn’t get any better than this for fiction. Anne is the ultimate heroine. The language is difficult and a bit wordy at times for modern-day readers. I admit I picked it up as a teen and put it down because the vocabulary and setting descriptions lost me at times. Of course the movie changed everything. I picked it up again as an adult and devoured the complete series. I’m now reading it to the girls. The oldest two are really into it and asking me to read it to them. The series goes through Anne’s life until middle age and also offers plenty of funny scenes that didn’t make it into the movie. Highly recommended!