Friday Five Favs

It's been a little while since I've participated in the Friday Five Favs. It was a little thing called "summer" and "wedding season" and life got a little overly busy. I know everyone has been experiencing summer busyness but now that we're near (gasp) fall things are slowing down and we are starting to relax around these parts again.

So, here I am! Back for the FFF!

I wish I had some personal pictures this week but we're getting caught up with a great deal of photo editing of late. Pictures will come later. (*updated with one photo)

#1 - I am grateful for a one-week getaway with my husband. That's right! A friend made it possible to hightail it out of town. But not anywhere local. Nope, we were allowed to travel all the way across the country to Washington D.C.! We got back this past weekend and hit the ground running again but a week away was such a treat!

#2 - I am grateful that our children missed us and were happy to see us upon our return. (That's nice because we missed them and were, likewise, happy to see them!) I asked Bookworm1 who he most enjoyed being with while we were gone and he replied, "Well. I really like being with YOU!"

So, of course, he scored lots of brownie points with mommy. Bookworm2 scored points by showing us his dimples for a good long while when he saw us back at home.

#3 - While in D.C. I got to see a former roommate of mine and I got to meet her husband and her adorable little baby! THAT was SO COOL! We even got to do a bridal shoot with her and you can see those pictures HERE if you like.



#4 - I "met" Winston Churchill. What's that? Come back next week. I'll have a picture by then, I'm pretty sure. Let's just say it was exciting. ;)

#5 - My best friend from law school GOT MARRIED (which is what prompted the whole trip in the first place!) She married an AWESOME guy who we really like. So now we not only have an adopted aunt, but she's given us an adopted uncle and it's all smiles around these parts! I was so happy to be able to witness her joy as she married the man she has fallen in love with. It was just a fantastic ceremony and they were surrounded by such happy friends and family. Joy, joy, joy -- all around!

I could say a million wonderful things about the trip - and I WILL say more in the future. But for now, it is so good to be home because this is exactly where we belong - with two little boys who want and need us and give us dimpled smiles. What could be better than being home? It's nice to get away sometimes, if only to remember this.

But I have to close in song and I'm going to go slightly off topic. I read Mary Beth Chapman's Choosing to SEE this past week (click on the title to read my review) and I didn't realize that their son, Caleb Chapman, has started his own band with brother Will & some friends. So I checked out his sound and came across this song which I adore. Bookworm2 also really likes it. He's watched the video with me more than once and we "drum" together while listening. It's kinda loud - but the message? Spot on. Enjoy!



Happy Weekend everyone!

Carrie

This Time Together, by Carol Burnett

Fun. Funny. An enjoyable reading experience. (Definitely something that I kinda wanted to read on the tails of yesterday's book! I needed something lighter! It was the perfect follow up.)

These words sum up my feelings about This Time Together, by Carol Burnett.

Now, I have to confess that my exposure to Carol Burnett is limited. I've seen bits and pieces of comedy sketches she has done. My most vivid memory of her is as Miss Hannigan in the movie Annie. She is always spoken so highly of though, and seems to have made the whole world laugh at various points in time that I was very curious to read this book.

This Time Together: Laughter and Reflection is a quick and easy read. The book is a collection of short stories based on Q&A sessions that she has hosted with studio and theater audiences around the country. For anyone familiar with the Carol Burnett Show, she would host Q&A's to warm her audience up and get them ready for the show. Essentially, this book reads as a series of short stories that she would give in answer to people's questions regarding her early career, interactions with other television and movie stars, etc.

I so enjoyed hearing about her relationship Jim Nabors (aka Gomer Pyle), CARY GRANT (my personal favorite), Lucy (of the I Love fame) and many, many others. I laughed over her interchanges with fans and got a kick out of hearing some of her early New York experiences. Carol Burnett has a way of telling a good story and getting a laugh. I've come to realize this through reading this book and have since parked myself in front of Youtube watching various Carol Burnett Show clips. And it's FUNNY! But then, I don't really need to tell that to any long time fan of Carol Burnett!

Most Hollywood memoirs (especially those published more recently) are distasteful and I leave them feeling like I learned more than I wanted to. Not so with Carol Burnett! I thought she was (mostly - as in 95% of the time!) tasteful and simply humorous. Burnett did write a book called One More Time that is memoir about growing up in a "dysfunctional but loving family." This Time Together isn't a life story, so I think it stays light, fluffy and, well, funny. She writes in the introduction:

"This time I'm emphasizing episodes and anecdotes that have brought me to the present time, although I've also included a few stories from childhood that bear repeating.
Originally I began writing this book as a simple series of anecdotes, but as I got into it I found that I went into more detail than I usually do onstage." (Introduction, page 2)

If you like Carol Burnett and her sense of humor, then I can't think as to why you wouldn't like this book. I'm glad to have read it as it made me more interesting in learning more about her. She's not just Miss Hannigan. She's that and so much more!

I keep using this word - but thanks to The Crown Publishing Group for the FUN of this read - for keeping it clean and for making me laugh!

Choosing to SEE, by Mary Beth Chapman

This was on my Amazon wishlist. Choosing to SEE's official "due date" is September 1st and I made it very clear to my loving husband that I fully expected to be receiving this book on my upcoming birthday. I e-mailed people about it. I was HYPED to hear of it's upcoming release!

THEN, a few weeks ago, I was tipped off to the fact that CBD was selling and shipping the book. In August. WHAT?! Hastily I placed my order and then promptly left town, knowing that the book would arrive in my absence. (More about my trip out of town on Friday!) I arrived home this past Sunday and ripped open the CBD box which contained this treasure. On Monday I read the book in its entirety.

Not only did I read Choosing to SEE, but I actually hauled myself out of bed at 6 a.m. to guarantee the fact that I would be able to read for at least one solid hour before my children woke up.

It's no secret around these parts that I am a huge Steven Curtis Chapman fan. I remember driving in the car and hearing the radio announcement that the Chapman's youngest daughter, Maria, had been struck by a car their son Will was driving, and had died. It's a tragic story with a great deal of beauty attached to it. So I was quite eager to hear from Mary Beth on the topic. This book is her story.

And I'm extremely biased from the get-go and so it's almost pathetic for me to write up a review. Suffice it to say, that certain aspects of the book kinda grated on my nerves but, on the whole, this is a family that I deeply admire and so I'm not going to say anything bad about this read. I think it's fantastic and remarkable in so many ways. I would have written it a little differently in parts, but it's honest and its Mary Beth and, as far as a reader can tell, gives an accurate picture of who she is.

Mary Beth Chapman is very different in personality from her husband - and totally not afraid to say so. This definitely reads like an honest account of her life. There are moments where I was laughing outloud (and Jonathan would ask me what was so funny) and times when I never left the company of my tissue box. I laughed, I cried, I listened to Beauty Will Rise and grieved all over again. Not just for them - but I grieved the pain of life in general.

Still, I got to the final track on SCC's Beauty Will Rise CD and was reminded with great hope and anticipation that beauty will rise. I believe that to be the point of the message contained in Choosing to SEE: A Journey of Struggle and Hope - that life is hard but God is good. Spring follows winter. We might not get over particular pains, but God can move us through the pain. She used a quote by C.S. Lewis twice in this book that I found particular powerful (as I frequently find Lewis to be!):

"We're not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be." ~ C.S. Lewis

I think that's very true. God is sovereign and He works for our good and for our glory. But in submitting to Him, we also submit ourselves to hard things. It leaves us with hard questions, and sometimes not very many (if any) answers. That's the point of Mary Beth's book here. It's to say that Christians will suffer pain and hardship - but God is still good. All of the time, He is still good. We may not have all the answers and we may not be able to see the big picture of what He is doing - but He is good. And He doesn't make mistakes.

I really liked this book. But then, you can hardly expect me to say anything less than that so I can't really expect you to take this as a blanket statement to rush out and grab yourself a copy. Of course, I would hope that you would do so but at the same time - I have to acknowledge that I value the book because of the connection I have with SCC's music ministry and with the message that the Chapmans have been collectively sharing since May 21, 2008 when their daughter Maria entered Heaven.

It's a powerful book and heartrendingly beautiful. At times, it is hilarious as well. In my case, it's a "must read." (Come on, let's face it. I doubt I'll be rising with the birds at any other time to read a book!) Totally worth it as an honorable and insightful read with a positive message attached. Just keep some Kleenex handy and you'll be fine! I promise!

Kids' Picks: Dragons and Mice

We've been doing a lot with our library lately and just returned home with another stack of books yesterday. (There are books littering the floor of our home. Literally. I'm trying to sift through books as quickly as possible because I think books are what is making our house messy at the moment!! Is that a bad thing? You tell me.)

One book on the living room table is a new one from WaterBrook Multnomah Press entitled The Dragon and the Turtle.



I pulled this one out to read with Bookworm1 (age 3 1/2) and it received an instant request for a re-read. (We've read it quite a bit, actually!)

This tells the story of Padraig the Dragon who befriends Roger, the lost turtle. Roger has lost his home while out on a pirating expedition. Padraig befriends him and helps search out and find Roger's home by flying over the island. He is on the look out for a brown home that sounds like singing, smells like cookies, and tastes like strawberries (from the bushes out front.) The key verse surrounding this book is Proverbs 17:17 which says, "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity." There is a small study guide after the story which prompts children to think about what it means to be friendly and helpful towards other people.

The illustrations by Vincent Nguyan are perfect for the story. He gives the dragon a friendly look and feel, making both Padraig and Roger look like baby versions of the animals. This is appealing to my three year old who has recently dubbed all baby animals as being "so cute." At the very end of the book there is also a recipe for Chocolate Chip Snappers for anyone interested in a chocolate fix!

Thanks, WaterBrook for the opportunity to check out this new book!

Next up!

Some time back I said that I was going to talk about Christopher Churchmouse and I haven't gotten around to it quite yet.


A few years ago I stumbled across a copy of The Christopher Churchmouse Treasury and snatched it right up! Growing up, Christopher Churchmouse was a bit of a celebrity in our house, given that my brother is named Christopher. Finding a cute little character to teach some moral and Biblical lessons no doubt delighted my mother to no end. I, of course, liked the name but also just enjoyed the mouse and remember reading these books with my brother when he was 4-6 years old.

I picked up this copy of the The Christopher Churchmouse Treasury and tucked it away until just recently. Figuring Bookworm1 was about ready for them, I pulled out the book and I was not at all disappointed by his reaction to the stories. The Treasury includes 6 Christopher Churchmouse stories: Rainy Day Rescue, A Load of Trouble, The Shiny Red Sled, A Flood of Friends, A Short Tail and The Tattletale Tongue. Each one focuses on a specific Bible verse and shares a lesson through the Churchmouse interactions with each other and their friends.



Written by Barbara Davoll and illustrated by Dennis Hockerman, these books originally appeared in the late 1990's. They are kind of hard to find these days, but I highly recommend them should you stumble across them. Davoll and her husband apparently have (and do?) operate a Christopher Churchmouse ministry to connect with children. You can learn more about that on their website if you'd like.

In the meantime, if you want to check out what other books are littering our floors, our tables and every chair in the house - visit Reading My Library to see what we've been hauling home recently!

The Fruitful Life, by Jerry Bridges

This book was a much anticipated read because I've long been a "fan" of Jerry Bridges. (Or, as much of a fan that you can be of someone who shakes you up and causes you to reexamine yourself in light of scripture!) So when an opportunity came along to read The Fruitful Life - you can bet I jumped on it!

The Fruitful Life focuses on exploring the "fruit of the Spirit" as described in Galatians 5:22-23:

* Love
* Joy
* Peace
* Patience
* Kindness and Goodness
* Faithfulness
* Gentleness
* Self-Control

In the introduction to the book, Bridges explains that much of the material in this book is presented in his previous work, The Practice of Godliness. The difference between these two titles is that The Fruitful Life narrows its focus specifically on the "fruits of the Spirit" instead of having them included in a broader discussion of spiritual discipline. Having read The Practice of Godliness years ago, I enjoyed following up with this newer title.

In this book Bridges talks about the importance of a Christian taking on the character of God. God possesses all of these character, or attributes, which we are to practice and model in our own lives and to one another. Now, if you just take a precursory glance at the list of the fruits of the Spirit, it can feel like a rather long and daunting task. I'd kind of like to take it in bite-sized chunks and focus on practicing a particular "fruit" that I feel more confident in. Studying and working out all of the fruits seems impossible. Here is what Bridges has to say to that, right at the beginning of the book:

"We tend to emphasize in our lives those traits that seem most natural to our particular temperaments. But the fruit of the Spirit is not a matter of temperament; it is the result of the individual Christian seeking toe grow, under the direction and aid of the Spirit, in every area of Christian character. Though in this book we will examine primarily the nine traits listed in Galatians 5, we should keep in mind a lifelong objective of growing in all of the traits of godliness." (page 21)

And why, as Christians, should we pursue a study of these fruits, seeking to grow in godliness? Bridges sets forth a triangle. The bottom tier represents the fear of God and the Love of God. Combined those grow our devotion to God, building a Desire for God. It is a combination of all of these things that would shape our hearts and our minds to want to be disciplined.

The more we concentrate on obedience, the more we will realize how sinful we are and how incapable we are of maintaining godly character/devotion to God without His help. We recognize our sinfulness. We begin to understand His perfection and consistency and our failures. We admire and desire Him more for His perfection and our weaknesses.

"This is the heartbeat of the godly person. As he contemplates God in the awesomeness of His infinite majesty, power, and holiness, and then as he dwells upon the riches of His mercy and grace poured out at Calvary, his heart is captivated by this One who could love him so. He is satisfied with God alone, but he is never satisfied with his present experience of God. He always years for more." (page 43)

When you desire God, you seek to follow after Him. You grow in love; you understand His ways. You take on, and exhibit the fruits. With each new nugget of truth you latch onto as you learn more of who God is, you long to know more. Always more. Never less. Never status quo.

Bridges goes on to explore each of the nine fruits individually. Admittedly, I took longer reading and working through this book than I normally do, "dragging out" my reading by a few weeks instead of a few days. I really wanted to soak it in. Plus (here's my pride!:) I discovered if I read only two chapters a day I didn't feel as bad. Generally I felt stronger in one of the fruits over the other. So it would frequently happen that I would kick myself in one chapter and then pat myself on the back in the other. It made for a more pleasant reading experience. (And yes, I acknowledged this as I read and had to deal with that attitude as I read along!) I also talked my way through his question/answer sections at the end of each chapter to help more accurately identify areas where I need some work. (Yikes!)

That admission made, I must say that this book was a good read for me. It challenged me and made me think more deeply about how much I truly desire and long to know God. It convicted me and also gave me hope and inspired me. Bridges has always been able to do that to me through his books, and reading The Fruitful Life was not any different. This is a positive book that I am happy to recommend, probably just to shake you up and deal with any apathetic feelings you might have towards your own sin. I say that only because it made me deal with my own apathetic feelings and that's a good thing.

Thanks, Navpress, for offering me the opportunity to take a deeper look inside so that, ultimately, I'd look up and find God to be bigger.

Weekends, Weddings & Music

Dear You All,

Off book topic. I just feel like talkin' bout something else today. And it's been awhile since I've posted any Youtube videos to document my favorites songs so it's about time, ya think?

I'm hearing a lot of Jason Mraz at the weddings we've been photographing this summer. I like his sound. Very much! It's just FUN! (Well, let me specify that I'm hearing a lot of two particular songs by Mraz and I like them both very much!)

So, to Jonathan on this happy Friday - I'm Yours!





And just for the fun of it - here's one of my favorite images from this season.



The bride was just so...Jane Austen-y to me. And the location? One of my favs! You can see MORE HERE (if you want.) (And here are a whole lot more on Facebook - if you do that sort of thing. The Facebook thing, that is. Normally we loathe it but we have it for the photos only.)

Whatever you find yourself doing this weekend - I hope you enjoy yourselves! The summer is fading away but boy, we've sure had a good one (albeit it an insanely busy one!)

Best,
Carrie

Fantastic Mr. Fox

True confessions: this was my first ever Ronald Dahl book to read.

Equally true confessions: I can't imagine that I'll be feeling hard pressed to read any additional titles (although some I'm curious about from a cultural standpoint.)

I was browsing Borders bookstore with my boys one day and thought I'd try to find a short chapter book that Bookworm1 and I could enjoy together. I decided on Fantastic Mr. Fox because a.) I had never read Dahl before and b.) I knew there was a movie out and Jonathan had suggested we watch it. Naturally, I had to read the book first. (Actually, that's not really "naturally." I don't always read the book first. But it's nice when it happens.)

Bookworm1 and I launched into this particular book and, I have to say, he stayed tuned through the whole story. He followed along. He knew the characters. He enjoyed the story. It's fun to say "Boggis, Bunce and Bean" really fast. Mr. Fox and his family of foxes were intriguing. For those of you unfamiliar with the story- it is about a fox (and a fantastic one at that, of course!) who steals food for his family from farmers Boggis, Bunce and Bean. The three gentlemen are sick of having this fox nab their goods and set out to catch him. However, Mr. Fox is a sly one and the farmers never receive the satisfaction of capturing their arch nemesis. The story is a quick read at only eighty-one pages long.

I wouldn't have minded the book so much, honestly, if Dahl hadn't used words like "stupid" and "dumb" which - eh. Maybe you wouldn't be as picky as me. I don't like my three year old using such vocabulary. It's not something I'm going to introduce - and certainly not words we will make a habit out of using in our home - so I just changed the words as I read it aloud.

I was glad to read this book aloud to Bookworm1. It was a fun experience. I could change the language to suit us. I just wouldn't read them for personal pleasure and if I were choosing a read-aloud, I probably wouldn't go out of my way to purchase another Dahl book. Not to say it won't happen, just sayin' he's not my first pick.

After reading the book we watched the movie as a family. And after watching the movie as a family, we wondered why we had chosen to do so. The hands-down best part of the movie is that it's animated with stop-motion animation. I thought it looked visually appealing and enjoyed the movie for that aspect alone. (I'm awed by the crazy amount of work and patience such a full-length film would take!!!) Jonathan didn't like it quite so much. Bookworm1 didn't seem to notice.

George Clooney gives Mr. Fox his voice and I confess to not really caring for the Fox much as a result. I could only hear Clooney's voice and had this picture of Oceans Eleven in my head. I'd have preferred a lesser known to give the Fox his character so that I could have engaged with Dahl's story a bit more. Not to say that there was a whole lot to engage with, as the screen writers had a hayday in presenting, in some respects, a brand new story to the screen audience.

The thing I objected to the most in the film is that Mr. and Mrs. Fox only have one son who is "different" and whom they have relational struggles with. Mr. Fox is drawn more to his masculine and sports-star nephew who has come to live with the family for a time. In the book, the family was a much tighter unit and you didn't have to deal with teenage angst. (Frankly, I like to avoid teenage angst as much as possible in books and movies both. Oh, and in real life also!)

In short, we give a thumbs down to the film (but I did like the stop-action) and a hand wiggle to the book for a memorable reading experience.

Not a loss, but not a lot to say here either (obviously.) A big, "whatever" is more like it.

Letters to an American Lady, C.S. Lewis

I really can't say that I understand why Letters to an American Lady exists. Originally published in 1967, this book contains a collection of letters that C.S. Lewis wrote to an anonymous lady in the United States. He began writing to her in 1950 and continued on until his death in 1963. He never had a thought that these letters would be published, although I suppose it's natural to assume that if you are a famous writer, people will be looking to read everything that you ever wrote.

In my own non-scholarly opinion, Letters to an American Lady is a perfect argument for why we don't need to read every single thing any author ever penned. Some of it is just....non essential. But that's just my opinion.

This book has been described as being important because:

a.) They are a collection of "pastoral letters"; and
b.) They show the humanity of C.S. Lewis.

(I find argument "b" a bit bizarre because all of his writings speak to his humanity. But ok.)

The flap jacket of 1967 edition that I have says the following:

". . . these [letters reveal], perhaps more candidly than anywhere else, the kind of man and the kind of Christian that was C.S. Lewis."

I find that statement incomprehensible, truth be told. He was kind of a candid fellow and unashamedly Christian by nature. His Christianity pervaded everything he ever did/wrote/said. I don't know why this book would be touted as being the most candid of all of his works. Just perhaps, reading that claim soured my opinion of the rest of the book. In the end, I have a rather harsh opinion of it and it has nothing to do with C.S. Lewis. He wrote letters to a lady in America having no thought or intention of ever having them published. In these letters he discusses health and this lady's financial sufferings. He comforts her fears and concerns and encourages her in her faith and sympathizes with her troubles. It's a pen-pal exchange and we don't get see what her letters to him were all about. In fact, I'm not sure that I would have found reading her letters any more helpful as he was obviously trying to sort out the facts of what she was saying to try to have a clear picture of what her spiritual difficulties and general every-day-life trials were.

I closed this book having a rather snarky view of the Anonymous American Lady who wrote to C.S. Lewis constantly - always with a complaint about her personal life. I left with the impression that all she ever said was, "I'm sick! I'm tired! People hate me!" (Guess I should just go eat worms...?) She struck me as a lady who couldn't take a hint when he would tell her that she shouldn't expect to hear from him so often and/or should not expect long letters - particularly around the holiday season when he was buried in fan mail. Reading his letters to her, I got the feeling he had to constantly remind her not to expect so much from him and that he wasn't able to respond as she probably wished. I got the feeling that she wanted and expected too much from him. Even after he married she continually wrote to him, frequently and at length. He remarks in one of his letters that she is one of the few female correspondents that he has left, most having ceased writing to him after his marriage to Joy.

I don't know. It just feels odd and bizarre to me that a single woman would pester C.S. Lewis so, expecting much of him and lodging her list of life's complaints on his doorstep. For all of that though, he seemed to generally respect her as a pen-pal and even arranged for his American publishing company to send her a small stipend of his profits every now and again to help support her when she was suffering financial troubles. He seemed to feel generally kindly towards her. At the same time, you read it thinking to yourself that he was trying to understand her, didn't completely, and so just did the best he could.

I really question why this book was published at all and who brought forth the letters for publication. Huge question mark in my mind but I can't find the answers online. If anyone happens to know, I would really like to understand that bit of history surrounding this book. I did find this quote however, which Lewis made to his lawyer, Owen Barfield:

"If I didn't have so many letters to answer, I'd have time to write another book."

I have to wonder which would be better. Still, she no doubt appreciated his attentions and the letters in her mailbox. For her, that seemed a helpful balm of sorts which helped her to face life. Viewed in that light, you could say that this book showed Lewis's helpful ministry in the area of letter writing. (He responded to every single letter ever sent to him.) If that's the case, I have my example of him acting in this ministry and I'm certainly satisfied.

Worth a read? Well. Perhaps. But I'm afraid I'm left without a good reason to read it. I closed it more annoyed with Anonymous than anything else. Would anyone care to enlighten me further with the history behind this book? I'm definitely willing to listen.*

* After writing this post I did some more searching online and discovered that the anonymous letter receiver was Mary Willis Shelburne, "a widow from Washington, DC. She was a journalist, poet and critic, four years older than Lewis, and a Catholic." (See CSL Bookclub discussion on Letters to An American Lady) She promised these letters to Wheaten College in a letter of 1966. (See article on 30th Anniversary of the Marion E. Wade Center)

Primrose Day, by Carolyn Haywood

One of my favorite books growing up was Betsy's Playschool, by Carolyn Haywood. A few months back when we made a trip to Powell's, I thought I'd hunt for it. I made it to the H's and looked up Haywood and, to my surprise there were a lot of other books by Carolyn Haywood. I had no idea what she wrote or that we ever wrote anything other than Betsy's Playschool but I was delighted to make this personal discovery. (Some of you might just want to bean me over the head for my ignorance in this case!)

Unfortunately, I didn't find a copy of Betsy's Playschool but I did find out that there was a whole series of Betsy books that have recently been re-published and made available to modern readers. I'm delighted to know this because Haywood just feels like a classic. She's fresh and delightful and returns her readers back to the 1940's in a completely charming and believable way.

I may not have found my favorite title of Haywood's but I did snatch up some new friends, one of which is seven-year-old Mary Primrose Ramsay. This is the story of a young Merry who is being sent by her parents in England to live with some American relatives during World War II. It tells of her adventures and mishaps as she settles in to life in a new country while her father is off serving the King and her mother is also doing war-related work. To keep Merry safe, she is sent away. Merry ultimately does well with her new life in America but naturally she hits some bumps along the road. She "talks funny" and uses different vocabulary. That said, she does make friends and enjoys her relationship with her American aunt, uncle and cousin.

Although the cover art is modern, the illustrations inside are the originals by Carolyn Haywood. They have such a vintage feel to them and I LOVE it!

I adored this story and I'll be snatching up and scarfing down anything I can lay my hands on by Haywood. You know -- you have your American Girls collection which attempts to teach young girl's about life in America during different decades and various time periods. As I was reading about Merry, I couldn't help but think of Molly. The difference is that Merry is tried and true 1940's. Haywood was living and writing in the 1940's. There is a certain quality and life that her characters have that Molly doesn't quite capture. (Don't get me wrong. I like Molly. Very much, actually.) But if you want to "go to the source" and read a book about a girl who lived during 1940's, and you can find a simple and enjoyable story written during that decade, well....to me the choice is easy. I'll take Merry with all due respect to Molly!

If you find a Carolyn Haywood book - pick it up! Nothin' to regret!

Earmarked for ages 6-10
Entertaining for the thirty-somethings as well. ;)

Narnia Reading Challenge - Your Links!

Thanks everyone for a wonderful experience during the Chronicles of Narnia Reading Challenge. I'm still working my way through your links and enjoying finding out what you all did this past month in Narnia.

In order to make it easier for you all to bop about, I'm listing all of your links in this one blog post. Visit one or two (at least!) other posts and leave comments. After all, there is joy in learning from one another on this journey!

But enough talk - here are the links!

Amy at Hope is in the Word read Prince Caspian this time around.

Melinda at Wholesome Womanhood read The Horse and His Boy and Prince Caspian. She also shared her favorite quotes from each of the Narnia books.

Annette at Live, Learn, Love listened to Voyage of the Dawn Treader (the Focus on the Family Radio drama.)

Stephanie at Simple Things set and realized goals with her daughters in the land of Narnia (which included reading The Silver Chair.)

Janet from Across the Page watched The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe movie with her family and shared her reflections. She also shared about A Book of Narnians (which I now want!!) and The Land of Narnia. If you have kids, you'll want to check her posts out!

Mark from Random Ramblings from Sunny Southern California read The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe as well as The Horse and His Boy. (I thought he made an interesting comparison between the later title and the Book of Esther in the Bible.)

Ibeeeg shared about the music inspired by Narnia (which I am also a huge fan of, by the way!) She also wrote up a completely awesome post about her experience reading The Voyage of the Dawn Treader this past month. She read it along with her daughter, EJ, who also shared her thoughts on the book. Great post!

Bekahcubed wrote some seriously awesome posts as well (and, I've noticed, has done a superb job of visiting around to see what all the rest of you had to share!) Despite the fact that she has her own challenge going to read every book in her library, she stops to re-read Narnia books with me. (Cool.) She wrote a review of Inside The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. (I'm gonna have to buy that one!) Bekah has been reading The Cross of Christ, by John Stott and incorporated that into her Narnia challenge writing Unsatisfactory Satisfaction (pointing out one of Narnia's flaws?!) , The Cross Satisfied the Law? and Evaluating Trustworthiness in Narnia.

Welcome to Our Wonderland (aka Butterfly Wishes and Wonderland Dreams) and her kids read through four books which were adapted from the movie version. I was glad to see that she wrote about these. I read through the Susan book with Bookworm1 this past month but never got around to writing about it. You might want to check these out if you are interested in bringing your younger readers into Narnia. She also shared what her 9 year old read as well as what her four year old read. Lastly, she wrote a post about the movies they watched and games they played relating to Narnia. I LOVE the family interaction here!

Page Turner shared her reading summary which includes highlighting some of the Narnia picture books she found at her library. (Now I'm going to have to check my library!)

Lastly, Heidi at Reviews & Reflections posted her challenge update. I'm sincerely impressed that she read five out of the seven titles this past month! Hats off to you, Heidi and thanks for playing along!

All of these posts were interesting, each in their own way. Insightful, thought-provoking, FUN! You might not have time to visit every post, but do try to hit at least two. I'm certain you'll learn something and grow in your love of Narnia.

I hope you all enjoyed the challenge and we'll absolutely be back for it again next year!

Further Up and Further In!

Congratulations!

The winner of the Chronicles of Narnia Reading Challenge conclusion prize is:

Butterfly Wishes and Wonderland Dreams



Congrats! I think your kids are going to love it!

(BTW everyone, stay tuned for a post which will include everyone's posts submitted for the Narnia Challenge for easy reading/browsing!)

The winner of The Eyre Affair is Angela C. !

Congrats to both and you should be receiving an e-mail from me shortly!

Sylvan Dell Fall 2010 Titles

Sylvan Dell Publishing just released their new Fall 2010 titles and I was excited to see them! I love Sylvan Dell (having mentioned them a time or two) but I was most excited to see the newest title by Janet Halfmann. You might recall that she wrote Little Blank Ant on Park Street (click on the title to read my review) which we have read just a time or two this summer. She also wrote Little Skink's Tail which is another of our favorites. I was feeling pretty confident that we'd like this new title and I was right!

In this new story, we meet Sophia, a little girl who is being read a bedtime story by her mother. This story results in her having a dream about all of the animals losing their fur and feathers. Sophia worries for the animals and they take turns coming to her to be redressed in their original outer coverings.

Cute story which points out the uniqueness of the animals in their various skin coverings. As per usual with Sylvan Dell titles, in the back of the book there is additional information about the animals. In this case, the book details a bit more what the differences are between mammals, adult insects, reptiles, birds, fish, snails and amphibians.

A Day on the Mountain is written by Kevin Kurtz who also wrote A Day in the Salt Marsh. If you liked Salt Marsh, the chances of you enjoying A Day on the Mountain is likely a sure bet.

In this new title we take a trip up the mountain, learning about the various animals that live at various levels above the sea. We meet black bears, garter snakes, the yellow-bellied marmot, mountain goats and more! Illustrated by Erin E. Hunter, this book is simply beautiful and, well, it really makes you want to go on a hike up a mountain! The back of the book includes an animal matching game which, of course, provides more information about each creature.

These books certainly testify to the quality of books that Sylvan Dell publishes to open up the world of animals to children. I'm going to keep harping on them, but if you haven't yet checked out their website, you really must! There are plenty of activities available for download and use by parents and teachers on their website. They are a cracker jack publishing company and I hope you'll check them out.

Some additional fall titles you might be interested in include:




To learn more about these and other of their titles, visit Sylvan Dell Publishing.

The Tilting House, by Tom Llewellyn

The Tilting House is a debut novel by Tom Llewellyn that was just recently published by Tricycle Press (June 2010.) I admit I was initially attracted to it because of the cover art. Whoever designed it was genius for creating a mystery for me that I felt I must solve!

The premise was equally intriguing. It is the story about the Peshik family that move into their new home with tilting floors and strange and mysterious writings all over the walls. Brothers Josh and Aaron are on a mission to find out the mysteries that this house holds and along the way we meet a whole neighborhood full of interesting and intriguing neighbors and strangers.

As some prior reviewers have said of this book - it is fast paced. It is intriguing and interesting and holds great promise. This book has a ton of great things going for it. (When I started the book I thought I might find it as fascinating as I have The Mysterious Benedict Society.) But here's what "kills" the book for me: it IS fast-paced. At a mere 150 pages, Llewellyn keeps a steady clip going, so much that certain questions are left unanswered and certain characters were not developed as well as I would have liked to see them developed. Many aspects of the story fall short of satisfying not because Llewellyn didn't have a great idea for a story. I think he had a fantastic idea for a story! He just didn't write it all out. For example, at the beginning of the story we are introduced to two gentlemen who seem to be some sort of undertakers. One of them carries a list in his coat pocket which has a list of names on it. If your name is on the list, it means that you are in danger of dying a rather untimely death. The brothers want to get this list and destroy it. I'll not tell you what happens but shortly after they interact with these men, the men disappear from the rest of the story. I'm not entirely sure what the purpose and point of mentioning them ever was. Were they pivotal? Just a side anecdote? They were an intriguing idea that were left incomplete. There were a few fanciful things that happen in this book that are also rather strangely accepted as normal. I didn't understand how and why the characters accepted some of the things that they encountered.

Yeah. It's kind of a harsh review and one that (let's be blunt here, shall we?) the author-on-the-prowl-to-read-reviews-of-their-book (we all know those types!) doesn't want to necessarily see. And normally if a book falls a bit flat for me I'm inclined to just not review it.

However, I did want to talk about this book because I think it's a fascinating and interesting example of an underdeveloped plot. I'm not sure why the story is only 150 pages. I would have GLADLY read a 300 page version of this story because there were so many interesting aspects to it. I'm saddened that the complexities of this book were not allowed to be more fully and deeply explored. Riveting plot. Great idea. Imaginative! Fun! DEFINITE kid appeal (I was thinking this would make a marvelous book for boys around the age of 10-12.) And maybe it is. Maybe a 12 year old boy would be satisfied with this. Certainly there is mystery, magic, a bit of mayhem and plenty of curiosities. But the 30 year old part of me wanted to know more and wanted to understand exactly what was going on and where Llewellyn wanted to take me with his tale.

On the whole, I'd say that if I had seen a draft of this book I would have said to the author something like this: "Fantastic! I LOVE it! Now take this and go expand on some of these ideas!!!!"

If you have a hesitant male reader in your household or in your acquaintance, definitely consider this book. I think if I had boys old enough to read this title for themselves, I'd let them. And then I'd ask them to "fill in the blanks" of the story with their own imagination and discuss the book with them. It's a fun idea and concept to be sure. I just....wish it were more.

Christian Encounters: Winston Churchill

Finally, finally, finally! Too long ago, Judy Lynn at Seize the Book blog surprised me by sending me a copy of Winston Churchill (Christian Encounters Series). If you'd like to catch her thoughts this book - CLICK HERE to read her review.

Ever since I read her review I was dying to read this! (Well, maybe not dying.) But she knew of my enthusiasm and popped it in the mail. How sweet is that? (Thanks, Judy!) Therefore, because I am reading the book thanks to Judy, I'm linking this up to the I Read It Carnival at 5 Minutes for Books today.

I finally had a chance to sit and devour it, and devoured it I did. At a mere 158 pages, this is a quick and easy overview for anyone who might be interested in learning more about Winston Churchill.

Admittedly, I was curious about why Churchill was appearing in Thomas Nelson's Christian Encounters series. For anyone who is more familiar with these books - I'd certainly appreciate hearing more about the purpose behind them. I did read and reviewed the book on Jane Austen from the same series over at 5 Minutes for Books (click on her name to see my review) and had the distinct impression that Thomas Nelson was highlighting people in history who held a believe in the God of the Bible. However, I would say that's not the case and they just want to point out what positions were held by notable personages throughout history? Anyone know the answer to this?

At any rate, I was mildly confused upon cracking up the book being that I didn't understand Churchill to be Christian.

And indeed, he was not.

That doesn't dampen my enthusiasm for him, however! As I've mentioned before, I think Winston Churchill is a man of bravery, honor and decency. There is plenty to admire about him, despite the fact that he apparently studied the doctrines of Christianity and rejected it. (Not a forceful rejection, mind you, but a rejection all the same.) I can see how people would want to claim him to their faith being that he was a hero of World War II. In fact, his daughter, Mary, is quoted as saying:

"But what of his faith in God? Winston Churchill was not religious in a conventional sense - and certainly no regular churchgoer. I saw him once greatly embarrassed when a visiting divine addressed him as a "pillar of the church." My father, one of whose endearing qualities was candor, replied, "Well, I don't think that could be said of me. But I do like to think of myself as a flying buttress." (page 157)

Regardless of the purpose and design behind this Thomas Nelson title, I enjoyed the book for other reasons.

I still haven't read an in depth biography of Churchill (the only book that I've read being Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship), so I considered this a little foretaste of things to come. This book gives a little history regarding his birth, his years in the military and, of course, what led to him becoming Prime Minister as England was led into World War II.

I guess I don't have a whole lot to add to Judy's review except to say that it was a brief and general overview of his life and one I found interesting. I don't really get the purpose behind this book though which leaves me with a series of question marks. I'd feel better if I knew what the intent for this book was/is.

But! The bottom line is that I enjoyed it. Yes, I did. And I'd recommend it to anyone who wanted to just learn a little bit about the man. Perhaps a high schooler? I think that this book is probably best suited for a younger reader and anyone who is serious about wanting to know more should look elsewhere. That's my take on it.

A Book I Care About (& a copy to giveaway!)

We'll be starting a discussion of Women's Ministry in the Local Church over at Offering Hospitality this fall.

In the meantime, thanks to Crossway Books, (my publisher of choice for today, apparently!), I have one copy to giveaway. However, the giveaway is over at Offering Hospitality and so I have closed comments on this post.

In order to be entered to win a copy, CLICK HERE. Simply leave a comment to win.

I hope you'll consider the read and consider following the discussion of it which will begin in September. The more the merrier!

The Church History ABC's

Helllooo, Crossway Books!

A is for Augustine, Africa's ancient bishop

B is for Bradstreet, America's first bard

C is for Calvin, John, of course.

D is for John Donne

E is for Edwards (Jonathan)

And so on and so forth.

Here is a great and basic way to introduce children to the church's beautiful history.

You've heard me say that I think learning history is important. I do! I think we repeat so many mistakes, and we fail to understand our future, because we don't make the time to study our past. We do not understand why things are the way that they are in the world today. If we would just devote a little time to understanding processes, people and certain past events then so much present day mystery would be cleared up! (I didn't say world peace would be attained, ok? I just said that we'd understand a whole lot more.)

Why is church history important? Why do you want your kids to know who Hippolytus is? Ignatius? Tertullian? Zwingli?

Because, speaking generally, as the Christian church in America - we have no idea where we've been and so we are making things up as we go along! We're spirit-seekers but we don't care what God (who never changes, by the way) has taught others long before our great-great-great grandparents were ever born. We need to learn church history because God isn't in our "sacred" music anymore. We've replaced "He" with "I" and sing about ourselves. (This really should be embarrasing, folks.) We fail to realize how many people have sacrificed and studied to give us a firm foundation to build on. We all just want to get along but we don't understand how much blood was shed to build up the church in the first place. Catacombs? What was their duel purpose? Colosseums? Just for gladiators? People traveling long distances under horrific conditions to gather together and confirm doctrine? How hard was that? We think we now know better but we know less now than ever before because we don't pay attention to our past. We don't understand why there are Baptists and Methodists and Presbyterians. We just think people are being silly and we should just wave flags in each other's faces and shout hallelujah really loudly. That'll be enough. We'll stumble and bumble our way along - laughing (again) as we go.

Sometimes I'm tempted to think that not knowing church history is cheap faith. (For the record, I also think that high school seniors who don't know which country America went to war with to gain her independence value not their American citizenship!) Learning and studying history is not a bad thing. Instead, I think it's a sign of humility to realize that we, individually and in our present day situations, do not have all of the answers. It is a confession that the past is necessary. It is a concession that people slaved away to build a solid and firm foundation for us to stand upon as a church. In short, we have a thing or two to learn.

I was ecstatic to see that Crossway was offering The Church History ABCs because I see it as a valuable tool to use with the newest generation. To teach children that their past is ancient and rich is incredible! To share with them passion and purpose that was owned by people centuries ago who argued and even bled and died for truth is a sacred honor.

I once heard it said that children should grow up and know more than their parents and be more mature than their parents ever were. Why is that? Because their parents should have taught them all that they know, sharing the lessons and truths that they possess. Then, when the children are launched from the firm foundation passed along from their parents - they will fly further. They will increase in wisdom, knowledge and understanding. The parents can be proud of that and excited to see where their children go with the truths that they have been faithful to guard and pass along. We, the Christian church today, are children. But we've forgotten anything that any of our elders have ever taught us.

There is no better time than the present to return to the past and find out why things are the way that they are. It's time to grasp hold of old and confirmed truths in the Christian faith and press forward with them.

Thank you, Crossway, for making this resource available. I hope we will learn to use it correctly.