Snippets

Sometimes I just don't feel like writing up a big long review of certain books, but I would like to remember the fact that I perused or read them. Here's a list of some that I haven't mentioned in more detail:

LIKED:

Loved By Choice: True Stories That Celebrate Adoption is a much needed book. As a society, we've been inundated with negative stories about adoption and that can grow very wearisome.

The authors/editors of Loved by Choice, Susan Horner and Kelly Fordyce Martindale know the struggles adoptive parents face, as well as birth mothers, families and the media. They compiled a list of personal stories of adoption that focused on the positive instead of the negative. I picked up this book because I needed to hear someone say something good about adoption for once. And I should preface that remark by saying that we have several dear family friends who have walked the road of adoption before us. They have encouraged us, prayed for us, and stood by us when the going got tough. They remind me that certain struggles are par for the course, and that God makes families. That is true. He does. And He does so quite beautifully, if you ask me! I had concluded a conversation with one friend about the beauty that is our own adoption story and then I stumbled upon this book and allowed myself a week to just focus on this one book.

This is obviously a subject I feel that I could talk a great deal about. It is also a subject I've become quite opinionated about. It's also a subject that I cry more tears over now, than I did when we first signed up to adopt Bookworm2 about three years ago. Then again, I'm far more emotional about being pregnant with Bookworm3 than I was about being pregnant with Bookworm1. Why is that? Time. Pain. Perspective. Blessing. I see the benefits and joys of parenting Bookworm1. I see what he is becoming and what having children actually means and I am grateful. I know that bringing a child into our family is something that comes as a result of God's blessing. Being physically sick or suffering some heartache to be able to pick up a child, look into their eyes and say, "Oh, goodness. Can you possibly IMAGINE how much God loves you? Because I can't even wrap my mind around how much *I* love you!!!!" is worth everything and then some.

That, my friends, is the statement of adoption for each one of us who are Christians and who have become a child of God. We cannot even begin to imagine the depths to which He loves us because we cannot comprehend the cross. The impact on my life as a result of being a child of God is indescribable and overwhelming. I am His and He is mine. That is what this book is about. Children becoming family. Family becoming.

Highly recommended.

DID NOT LIKE:

The Eyre Affair: A Thursday Next Novel. I confess, I didn't even finish it. For one thing, it was kind of science fiction-y and, as I've mentioned before, I'm not a truly big fan of that genre. It just stretches my imagination beyond capacity. (Unless, of course, we're talking about Star Trek and then Live Long and Prosper and all that! I'll watch it but I'm not interested in reading it.)

Secondly, I was greeted with a lot of curse words within the first chapter and then main family unit seems to be broken in some strangely mysterious way that just made me, well, not very impressed. I had a hard time getting into it and so I just decided not to spend anymore time on it.

This is one of those times I'm glad I didn't actually pay money for the book. I still think the premise is intriguing but the time travel issues involved in this book was questionable at best and I didn't like how time travel was used to manipulate people. Or, at least, that seemed to be the way the book was going and it made me uncomfortable.

I definitely felt like I should mention that I ended up not liking this book, as I mentioned it and hosted a giveaway with the title. That makes for two books I've mentioned without reading around here in conjunction with a giveaway that I ended up not liking! Lesson learned. Back to my original statements to publishers that I won't post information about a book that I haven't read for myself first! If you see it on this site, it means I've read it and, at the very least, I didn't hate it. (And then again, sometimes I mention them even if I did despise them.) Anyway, we won't be having any of that anymore!

Space: The Final Frontier

DO YOU KNOW WHAT FRIDAY IS?!

Well, thanks to Sylvan Dell Publishing I do - because they sent me a little e-mail to tell me that this Friday is Space Day!

Now, you guys didn't know about World Penguin Day until it was too late so I thought I'd tell you that Friday is Space Day. Want to do something fun with your kids? You have two days to plan for it!

We're going to have a Space Day around these parts and my brain is whirling thinking about how we shall go about celebrating it. We haven't launched into discussions about the sky because we've been too busy swimming in the depths of the ocean. But maybe - just maybe - I can convince Bookworm1 to lay down the octopus for a day and explore the wonders of space. Huh? Ya think, maybe?

To make it more fun though - want to have a mini blog party with me? You've got two days, folks. Two days to come up with something fun and then come back here on Friday and tell me what it is or was that you plan/planned to do. (I realize that some of your plans might not come to fruition until later in the day, but you can tell me what your initial thoughts were or share a link on Saturday, completely with pictures.)

If you do decide to party with your kids in honor of Space Day, I'll give you a prize. (No. I don't know what it it is yet because I'm totally doing this on the fly. But I'll let you know what I've come up with on Friday, ok?)

Play! Have fun! Pull out your tricorders and explore world's unknown!



Come on! You know you wanna! ;) ha!

With a nod to Sylvan Dell Publishing (since they let me in on this "secret" to begin with) - here are some of their books to consider running and snatching up at your library for your own special Space Day.



Both of the above books are put out by Sylvan Dell.

In Pieces of Another World a father wakes his daughter up and takes her on a late night outing to watch a meteor shower. This is a sweet story about a father who spent some quality time with his daughter while enjoying the beauty of the world around them.

In Saturn for My Birthday, a little boy wishes to be gifted with the planet Saturn on his special day. He has all kinds of plans for what he will do with this planet. (My only objection, as a Creationist, is that it gave a one sentence mention that Saturn was billions of years old.) Otherwise, it's a cute, fun book with some game and activity ideas as well.

Click here to learn more about Space Day.

Need help making plans?

* Check out NASA's Space Place for kids
* Here are some space coloring pages
* I dare someone (even myself!) to make a rocket cake!

HAVE FUN! See you around on Friday.

Offworld, by Robin Parrish

I'm almost rather snickering putting a "science fiction" label on my post. I'm afraid it will stand alone as the only "science fiction" that I'll read for, oh, awhile.

When I think of science fiction, I usually think of Star Trek. I used to be a Trekker (to be distinguished from a Trekkie) meaning that I liked The Next Generation. Oh yes. My favorite character was Lt. Commander Data, I had myself a uniform (I was 14, ok?) and a tricorder and everything! No joke. I was even a member of the official fan club. Uh-huh! The magazine landed in MY mailbox, folks! I still like a good science fiction movie every now and again (but mostly it has to have "Star Trek" somewhere in the title.)

When Amy asked me to participate in a Faith and Fiction Roundtable, with the recommendation that we read Offworld, I have to say I had my doubts. This isn't really my genre of choice when it comes to books! I thought, however, that it would be fun to give it a whirl. (Follow the Rountable discussion here if you like.)

The intriguing aspect of it was that it was published by Bethany House Publishers which is, of course, a Christian label. Christianized Science Fiction? Well, let's just say my curiosity was piqued. (Of course I liked C.S. Lewis' Space Trilogy but, come on now! There's only one C.S. Lewis! And even his space trilogy is a stretch for me!) So off we went into Offworld.

This book tells the story of NASA's first manned mission to Mars. The cast of main characters includes the four astronauts who made it to Mars and back and a girl they picked up upon their return home named Mae. These astronauts, lead by Commander Christopher Burke, return to earth to find everyone missing. They have no idea what happened, but it would initially appear as if earth has been wiped clean of all human lifeforms. Realization dawns and the crew begin to acknowledge that the lives they had been hoping to return to have been eradicated by the removal of their family and loved ones.

The book details their journey from Florida to Texas where they are headed to search for answers. They find a girl named Mae. They have no idea how she managed to remain on earth or why she is with them at all.

I have to say that I could have never read this book and lived a perfectly happy and fulfilled life. Not that it was BAD. Because it really wasn't. It just wasn't my thing. I've come to the conclusion that I'd much rather watch my science fiction rather than read about it.

I'm happy to say that the book wasn't overtly Christian because I can't figure out how Parrish would have made it so. It definitely would have felt contrived if he had weaved the Gospel message into the book in any kind of blatant manner. (To be blunt, I think that would have just been weird.) If I were to like science fiction, I would have to say that I would have LOVED this book because it was just plain crazy, good fun. No objections to it whatsoever. It was your run-of-the-mill stretch of an imagination with an intriguing plot.

***There is a certain mystery about the book and I want to be careful not to give any spoilers to those of you who might wish to read this for yourself. BEWARE OF A POTENTIAL SPOILER FORTHCOMING (which is essential to the point I want to make about the book.)***

All of the above stated, there were two statements that the author included in this book that I found particularly interesting.

The antagonist in Offworld is named Roston and he is doing everything in his power to keep the crew from making it to Houston and discovering his evil and wicked scheme of eradicating the world's population for the good of the world (in his opinion.) The crew discovers that Roston is behind the mysterious disappearance of everyone on the planet. But the explanation that Roston gives for his actions is worth thinking about for a minute. He says, as an excuse for his actions:

"We will succeed in creating a better world, not because we have superior numbers or superior tactics, but because no one exists to oppose us. We stayed here, so we win by default." (Chapter 18, "The Stiff Heart" page 326)

Essentially this: he clears the world of "sin" so that he can inhabit it and make it as perfect as he thinks it ought to be. Instead of a clear savior figure, we're presented with an exact opposite. Christ came to conquer the world and redeem people so that they can come to God through the knowledge of Jesus Christ. He came to pay the price of sin so that fellowship between God and man could be restored. In Offworld the antagonist removes the people to worship himself. There is no redemption. There is a hateful eradication. It's just a compelling contrast to the Biblical concept of a divine savior and I found that an interesting statement to include in the book.

Secondly, there is a crew member named Terry who makes the following statement after returning from their Mars mission:

"We made history!" Terry cried, his voice echoing in the emptiness.

Owen mused without making eye contact, "Is history still history if no one is around to remember it? Learn from it? Continue building the future on its foundations?" (Chapter 2, "The Smoke and Stir of This Dim Spot." page 49)

That is so true, isn't it? History is exceedingly important for us to learn and to grow from. Without other people around, left all to ourselves on a silent planet, what would the purpose of any of our actions be from a human perspective? It's the same reason the idea of being on a dessert island seems so lonely. We're created for relationship and then we are grown and inspired by stories. We have an inner hope for the way we will grow old with those we love and pass down a heritage to others. Without people, life feels empty.

I thought Parrish did a good job being creative in sharing a message in a more subtle manner. Because of the way he handled it, I would have to say that the book is worth reading (if you like sci-fi!)

I'm certainly not trying to downplay any of his efforts by sharing my thoughts. Truly this was just a genre I find myself not so enthusiastic about so you probably shouldn't expect to see much more of it from me. That said, it was intriguing to have to really think through a book and try to review it when it's not really your "thing." I appreciated the challenge of that at any rate and can at least tell you it was "clean fun" - if you like that sort of thing. Perhaps if he had included some Ferengi and the Borg I'd be more interested? (Life is infinitely more interesting with Ferengi involvement!)

***

As I final note - I'm going to link this up to the I Read It carnival over at 5 Minutes for Books next week because:

a.) I read it at the recommendation/suggestion of book blogger My Friend Amy; and
b.) Lisa read and reviewed this title at 5 Minutes for Books. Follow the link to see what she thought of this one.



The I Read It Carnival isn't until next week which, btw, gives plenty of time to be about the business of reading Tumtum & Nutmeg. (Oh, you thought I was jesting when I said I intended to nag about those books? HAHA!)

Faith and Fiction Roundtable

This is one of those rare weekend posts that is occurring because Amy invited me to be a part of her Faith and Fiction Roundtable discussion.

The idea behind this concept is that a group of people read a book and then discuss it. We're each posting portions of the conversation we had our on own sites.

The book of choice was Offworld.

I'll have a full review of this book to post on Monday, but for now, if you'd like, you can read some bits of conversation over the book. Here goes:

Amy: Did you have a favorite character?

Ronnica: I enjoyed the characters (though they could have been a little more three-dimensional).

Jonathan: Characters were in limited supply, obviously, but I still didn't come away from the book attached to any of them. They were a bit 2 dimensional, once I met each one, I knew what to expect.

Mark: I certainly would have to agree with Jon about the characters. They felt very much like stalk characters, and I wasn't too surprised with how they behaved over the course of the series. Maybe one twist took me by surprise, but that was all. However, I did find myself moved by the "wrap up" chapter at the end that show our heroes moving off into their new life. So at some point they did get to me enough that I cared about them.

Amy: Considering I read the book a week ago, and I can't remember the characters names, I'd have to agree I didn't form any strong attachment to them.

Jennifer: I wanted to know what happened to Chris on Mars. His blackouts were very random. I do admit, I had a hard time remembering the difference between Owen and Chris and I thought Trisha was a strong female character.

Jonathan: The other thing that I realized that makes some parts seem unbelievable was that the group of amin characters was perfectly suited for whatever they came up against. The part of adventurers was already equipped to deal with everything. "We need to competently defeat a group of armed soldiers, too bad we're all astronauts. but wait, I'm special ops pretending to be an astronaut, so we're all good." "Trish has Fibromyalgia, and a killer migraine, and she's passed out, but it is ok, Mae's mom was a nurse, so we've got someone who knows exactly what to do."

I did enjoy the banter between the characters, and the way they bonded by the end, even after Owen, or was it Chris... went nuts and shot up the town (I enjoyed that part and sympathized with him) but it did seem that there was a fairly rigid, and therefore predictable way for the book to go.

****
To follow the rest of the discussion, visit these folks:

Ignorant Historian
Random Ramblings from Sunny Southern CA
Behind the eyes, oversimplified
Mrs. Q Book Addict
My Friend Amy