Welcome to my biblioblog!
My name is Carrie and I wear a lot of different hats: wife, mother, friend, reader, watercolor artist, traveler, etc. This space is all about books. Well, mostly. I share pieces of myself when talking about books so pull up a chair and let's chat!
Our family vacation in 2017 was to Eastern Canada where we spent some time on Nova Scotia and then, chiefly, Prince Edward Island. As mentioned, we spent a great deal of time as a family immersing ourselves in the world of Lucy Maud Montgomery leading up to the trip and it was an enjoyable and wonderful experience.
I probably won't read as much Montgomery this year, strictly because I'm rather saturated at the moment, but I will read some. Meanwhile, thought you all might enjoy seeing a few pictures that we took during our time on the Island. It was beautiful, it was wonderful, and yes, I want to go back!
For starts, this was our "back yard" during our stay.
One of life's chief happy thoughts for me is having red dirt on my boots! Heh...
We watched a lot of sunsets to the point where our children asked us why we "had" to watch so many sunsets. (We're mean that way.)
We hiked all over the place.
And we saw the things we wanted to see.
Over all it was a magical, wonderful time and we cherished every moment (except for the part where we got a tummy bug but nothing in life can ever be perfect).
It was a lovely visit. Hope you've enjoyed the pictures.
You know my life is busy when I'm not reading. I have to be super busy not to be able to read. (Or I have to think I'm too busy to read. It's one of the two.) From October - December of 2017 the only thing I managed to read were books aloud to the kids and I was playing major catch up in my Chronological Bible in order to complete reading the Bible though by the end of the year.
You can see my 2017 Reading List here. I link reviews to titles and one thing you'll quickly notice is that while I read a little, I wrote even less. The sad thing to me is that I have a bad memory when it comes to books and writing out my thoughts on them helps to solidify stories and information. For that reason, I am sorry that I dropped book blogging because there is likely much more information lost than in year's past. While I hope to correct that this year, one never knows how life will go! Meanwhile, I thought I'd take a quick moment to record my favorite reads of 2017.
As I mentioned earlier this week, this past fall our family went to Prince Edward Island on vacation and so the large chunk of my 2017 reading was focused on the works of Lucy Maud Montgomery. A huge treat and treasure was picking up a copy of After Many Years: Twenty-One "Long-Lost" Stories by Montgomery. If I had to pick a favorite of my Montgomery-related reads, I'd have to pick this After Many Years because it was fresh, new and therefore especially fun!
As a bonus, I purchased my copy of After Many Years at the site of Maud's Cavendish Home and it is stamped as such.
The book I feel most accomplished for having read (or, uh, finished) was Atlas Shrugged and I made a very short blog post about that! Atlas Shrugged was tremendously fulfilling but a great deal of work! I can honestly say I enjoyed it and that I'm glad to have read it. Also, I'm glad it's over.
I'm still a huge fan of D.E. Stevenson books and still devour everyone that I can lay my hands on. This year I was blessed to read three different titles by this delightful author. If I had to choose a favorite I guess I'd say I most enjoyed Celia's House.
I picked this up during one of Amazon's Deal of the Day offers on the Kindle and I'm SO glad that I did. This title is absolutely fascinating. If you want to get a better picture of what the life of any random First Lady is like, then this is the book for you. West served as Chief Usher at the White House for decades and he recounts his experiences with six of our nation's First Ladies. What I love is that he didn't write this book to "dish" on any one particular First Lady but to explain an institution. It's fabulously well done. Take a trip down memory lane with this one and enjoy the ride!
This past year was probably the year I learned the valuable importance of the read aloud book for me, the mother. If the only book I get to spend time with is the one that I also will be sharing with my kids, I want to make that read aloud a particularly good one! (I can see some of you smiling and nodding your heads even now!) Once upon a time I was browsing the bookshelves at Powell's up in Portland. A dad approached me to ask if I had read the Swallows and Amazons series yet. He raved for a few minutes about how he had read them aloud to his kids and absolutely loved them. His sales pitch sold me and I purchased a couple of the titles.
Fast forward to 2017 and it looked like the reading level would be appropriate for almost all of our kids (ages 3- 11 now!) and so I pulled Swallows and Amazons off the shelf and read it aloud.
And. we. loved. it.
This twelve book series is set in between the World Wars and is set in the Lake District in England. Published in the 1930's, these books were the Harry Potter series of their day and they deserve another go 'round. It follows the adventures of four siblings and their explorations as they sail and camp and make friends with the locals on their holidays. We read the first book and immediately chased that book down with the second, Swallowdale. I loved these books so much that I think I have to declare them my top favorite books read in 2017! They are wonderful! Oh, and the kids liked them too. However, they did request a break before we move onto the third book in the series so I've complied with the request. Just you wait though because the moment I am "allowed" to go back in the world of the Swallows, I'll be there in a heartbeat! Also, I'm pretty sure I want to spend the rest of my life in the Lake District in England.
That pretty much summarizes my reading year. What about yours? If you've written up an end of the year reflection post, I'd love to see it! Leave the link in the comment section and I'll go visitin' my old book blogging buddies and catch up a bit!
Happy New Year to you all! I really have missed you!
It's been awhile since I've regularly blogged. Life crept in and we took on some new projects (chiefly, opening up a store in our hometown) and something had to give. That something was blogging. And reading too, to a great extent. I have missed it. I process so much life through and by writing things down and I've missed having the time to be able to document my thoughts and jot things out for myself, let alone for anyone else who might benefit from my bookish thoughts on the side.
I really can't say what 2018 holds (who can?) and I don't know if I'll get to blog very much at all. But I do know that I'd like to try. Someone left a comment for me on last year's L.M. Montgomery Reading Challenge post asking if I was going to host for 2018. I love that people care enough about L.M.M. to want to see this happen. If only for the one, I'll keep this reading challenge going.
Although I didn't blog very much (or read very much) in 2017, what I did read and live and breathe for the majority of the year was L.M. Montgomery and her books because dreams do come true: our family took several weeks of vacation on Prince Edward Island this past fall. (I'd like to share some pictures soon so fingers crossed that I'll manage a pictorial post!) In prep for our trip, the kids and I read a lot of Lucy Maud Montgomery. We finished watching the entire Road to Avonlea series as well! (That was a lot of fun.) (Has anyone else missed my side thought parenthesis, by the way?) Due to the fact that I invested much of my reading time in Montgomery books last year, I'm not feeling overly pressed to read too much of her this year as part of this year's reading challenge. I have a bit of a hankering to re-read A Tangled Web for myself, and the kids and I will read some picture books about Montgomery, but as we've been living and breathing her lately I think it's time for us to take a little break and move on to some other authors. That said, I wanted to share a few books of note that I purchased when on the Island, today's book being one of them.
I had not heard of Remembering Lucy Maud Montgomery before our trip but found it sitting on a shelf in a bookshop in downtown Charlottetown. It was patiently waiting for me and I eagerly snatched it up! Alexandra Heilbron gave the world a gift in this book in that she gave us the personal impressions of people who had personal relationships/interactions with Montgomery during her lifetime. Not every person recorded had a great story to share, mind you. School girls who admired Montgomery and were once granted an interview shared their impressions and those are so-so. Don't get me wrong, it's interesting to hear from someone who actually swapped words with my favorite authoress but the more interesting recollections were from maids who worked for the Montgomery family or from her nieces who lived at Park Corner. Some people's stories were long and others short. I won't share any here but will make you read the book to learn for yourself what people said of this famous Islander.
While I can appreciate all of the literary scholars' interpretations of Montgomery's life, I rather thoroughly enjoyed the simple reflections of the "regular Joe" who had some sort of normal, run-of-the-mill story about Montgomery and her day-to-day life. The individual stories recorded in this book made me to feel like I understood Montgomery and her personality almost better than any other work has ever done. It's not that I want to discount the work of the amazing men and women who have worked tirelessly to safeguard Montgomery's works and artifacts from her life! Not in the least! Everyone who loves Maud can contribute something when it comes to carrying on her legacy. But Heilbron hit on something fairly unique and I was just absolutely delighted to have found this book and to have had the chance to read it.
The Amazon paperback price for Remembering Lucy Maud Montgomery is a bit steep, true, but the Kindle price is decent and reasonable. If you're looking for a bargain, check your library or purchase for the Kindle. I, for one, am glad to have this for reference and perusal. It's a treasure and if you can find a copy I highly recommend you give it a read! I can't think but that you'll be glad you did. Thank you, Alexandra Heilbron, for taking the time to collect these stories for all present and future Montgomery fans. It is greatly appreciated!
Do you know what I love? That every year someone contacts me and asks if this reading challenge is still a go? And since I love Montgomery so, the answer is always YES! As long as people want to read more Montgomery and learn more about her, I will continue on with this challenge. This will be the 9th year I've hosted this challenge but the rules never change. The explanation for it remains the same and is below. Hope you'll join in!
Hello, my friends! I might be a tad late launching the party but welcome to the Annual Lucy Maud Montgomery Reading Challenge held every year in January right here at Reading to Know.
If you are new to this, here is the idea behind the challenge:
Read as much Montgomery as you can during the month of January.
Just that. Pure and simple.
Montgomery is my favorite female author of all time and I love beginning a new year with her quiet, spunky, imaginative characters. Despite the fact that her life was far from serene and perfect, she managed to create characters that have made the world laugh and smile for over 100 years. I take pleasure in her books, despite the fact that they are rather formulaic. I find them to be remarkably peaceful. They are quiet reads which keep a slow and steady pace and which continue to draw me back to them year after year after year. If you have not had the pleasure of reading a L.M. Montgomery book, I hope you'll take the time to do so this month. If you are looking for another excuse to take a leisurely walk around Prince Edward Island with some of your favorite friends, well then, please, let me provide that excuse!
I invite you to read any book by Montgomery or about Montgomery as part of this challenge. Audio books are, of course, very welcome as are the first two Anne movies created and produced by Kevin Sullivan. The only two things which never have and never will "count" towards participating in this challenge are the following:
Before Green Gables, by Budge Wilson. This is a made up history of Anne. It's the imaginings of another author about my most beloved Montgomery character.
I also do not allow the inclusion of Anne Of Green Gables - The Continuing Story because it's so far off the mark. This movie should be considered Anne heresy and is banned around these parts.
Consider these limitations a host's prerogative if you must. (Heh.)
Everything else is fair game.
What I ask participants in this challenge do is to write up a post on your own blog stating the following:
a.) That you intend to participate in this Lucy Maud Montgomery Reading Challenge;
b.) List which of her books you intend to read (or which movies you intend to watch); and
c.) Enjoy whatever it is that you manage to work through during the month.
I do hope you will join in and be a part of this reading challenge. I so enjoy hosting this every year and always try to learn something new about Montgomery as I read on. If you're planning to read along, please let me (and everyone else!) know in the comment section!
I don't want to write a big long blog post about this but I did want to say that three many long years ago Shonya challenged me to read Atlas Shrugged. I meant to do the deed in one year but it has taken three.
But I did it.
I have been asked if I would recommend it to others.
My response goes something like this....
It is a classic.
It is a work of art.
It requires you to think. A lot. Hard.
It is detailed and memorable.
It requires something of you.
It makes demands.
I wouldn't say that it's a Must Read. But I'd give you a round of applause of you went after it.
It's definitely high school reading material (on up) due to some of the content. I wouldn't suggest it to my kids until they were in high school.
I feel I have now earned the right to watch the movie TRILOGY. (There is no way to wrap this book up on a screen an a measly hour and a half!)
Now I'm spinning circles feeling free as a bird wondering what on earth I should read next . . . !
Looking for Anne was my personal read for the L.M. Montgomery reading challenge this past month. I finished it a few days ago, thoroughly happy with it in spite of what I would consider some flaws. This title kept me thoroughly and engaged from beginning to end.
Looking for Anne is a study, an investigation, and an imagined fancy of what Montgomery was thinking about when writing Anne of Green Gables and what aspects of her life may have played a role in creating this beloved classic.
In this book, Gammel lays out certain events that were happening in Maud's life as she began putting Anne's story together. Gammel makes note of unpublished journal entries, considers what books and/or magazines Montgomery had likely read, and relies on letters between various individuals to explain what elements came together to inspire the red-headed Anne Shirley.
Most fascinating for me was seeing a picture of a young lady named Evelyn Nesbit whose picture Montgomery had cut out of a magazine and pasted in her journal. Along with the picture was a written explanation that this is how Montgomery imagined Anne in her mind's eye. Here is a picture of Nesbit for your benefit:
Montgomery didn't name Nesbit in her journal and its rather doubtful that she ever bothered to find out who she was. If she had, she might never have claimed Nesbit as an inspiration considering Nesbit's character and history. Nesbit has a rather sordid history which makes for sensational reading if you are interested in such things. It's hard for me to imagine Nesbit as Anne but that's to be expected, given all of the years I've spent imagining her as Megan Follows. Ha. Still, it's interesting information.
My chief disagreement with Gammel comes at her line of questions surrounding Montgomery's sexuality. She does point out that noted Montgomery scholar Mary Henley Rubio flatly denied that Montgomery was a lesbian. If Rubio's answer had been allowed stand, Gammel would have had a much shorter book. Alas, there were pages to fill! Gammel spends considerable time examining all of Montgomery's female friendships and her interactions with them. Chiefly she focuses on correspondence between Maud and friends, noting that their letters included endearing text suggesting something other than friendship. In my opinion, society today wants to point out that there famous homosexuals and lesbians throughout history for people to take pride in. While I definitely do agree that the issue of homosexuality has long rankled history, I don't think that everyone who has ever been famous should be suspect. Gammel really spends quite a bit of time on this topic and while I see and understand what would lead her to such questions, I also think she was straining at the bit. I have a few dear friends of my own that I address in special terms that I don't use for others. When you have a good, close, tight friend I think it's completely natural that you would have little nicknames, special secrets, and that you would engage in some activities that you wouldn't with someone else that you trust less.
I'm a rather extreme introvert. The real me is known by only a select few. I can completely see and understand how Montgomery would draw a particular female (or two) at a time and trust them with her innermost thoughts. Those friendships would have access to certain parts of her which were off limits to the general public. That in no way means that there is a romantic relationship but merely suggests an intense friendship to me. Montgomery and I share very many similar traits so I wouldn't assume that she had interest in women sexually but that she was just an intensely private person who poured her heart and loyalties out on those she truly loved (in a platonic way).
I don't mean to cast aspersions on Looking for Anne or suggest that you wouldn't want to read it. As I mentioned, I thoroughly enjoyed it. There's much to learn and glean from Gammel and, if nothing else, it encourages you to consider Montgomery's world a little bit more thoroughly and how it was that she was influenced by the community she lived in, as well as the books and activities she exposed herself to.
Certainly I have no regrets in reading this title. I enjoyed it! I don't know that I could say everyone would, but I did and thank Gammel for the enjoyable ride.
While everyone else has begun to figure out which Montgomery books they are reading during the month of January in conjunction with the Lucy Maud Montgomery Reading Challenge, I figured I should share my reads as well.
The last few years of this challenge I've focused on reading The Story Girl (back in 2015) and its sequel, The Golden Road (in 2016) aloud to my kids. A few months back I read Anne of Green Gables to them for the first time. I was saving it until I thought they would have a good chance at appreciating it. You can only imagine my state of mind when I told my kids we were down to the last few chapters and the following conversation ensued:
Me: "We only have a few chapters left and then we'll be done and you guys can watch the movie."
Daughter (age 5): "Oh, but I don't WANT it to be over!!"
Me: "Why not?"
Daughter: "Because I love it so much."
Sweet, sweet music to my ears. I almost died of happiness.
I can't believe I never got around to writing down all of the kids' impressions of Anne of Green Gables but such is life. It's been a busy season around these parts. Nevertheless, I didn't want January to pass us by and my miss an opportunity to read a little bit more Montgomery to them. This year I opted to read aloud Magic for Marigold.
I picked this one for a few reasons:
1. I want my kids to be aware of Montgomery's lesser known characters and not just her most famous ones.
2. They have a growing affinity for Montgomery and accept her people rather wholeheartedly.
3. I haven't read Magic for Marigoldsince 2014.
We're about four chapters into the story already and I'm on the fence about having picked this one to share with them. My kids (aged 4 to 10) are tracking with it for the most part. They laugh in the right parts and take interest in the characters. However I do think it is written with an adult audience in mind and much of it would seem to go over children's heads. We'll soldier on though and I know I'll hardly regret it.
This book has proved the perfect choice for me. I am absolutely loving it! So informative and interesting. It's distracting reading. Seriously, life has been so incredibly hectic lately I can't even begin to describe it. However, this book has forced my mind to slow down and find enjoyment in learning more about Montgomery. Montgomery and her characters really are a passion of mine and I love being distracted by a good book about both. Somehow or another, spending time with or around Montgomery leaves me feeling very calm and relaxed, introspective and grateful. She's fuel for my brain in some form or fashion so I'm grateful that January is here and it's time for this reading challenge!
I don't know if I'll manage to squeak in any additional Montgomery reads this month but I will certainly try. If I don't manage it I'm not too worried. The only thing I've decided about my reading goals for 2017 is to indulge in as much Montgomery as I like all the year long. If you are also a fan of this woman and her works, then stay tuned. I plan on spending a good bit of time with her these next few months.
Hello, my friends! I might be a tad late launching the party but welcome to the 8th Annual Lucy Maud Montgomery Reading Challenge held every year in January right here at Reading to Know.
If you are new to this, here is the idea behind the challenge:
Read as much Montgomery as you can during the month of January.
Just that. Pure and simple.
Montgomery is my favorite female author of all time and I love beginning a new year with her quiet, spunky, imaginative characters. Despite the fact that her life was far from serene and perfect, she managed to create characters that have made the world laugh and smile for over 100 years. I take pleasure in her books, despite the fact that they are rather formulaic. I find them to be remarkably peaceful. They are quiet reads which keep a slow and steady pace and which continue to draw me back to them year after year after year. If you have not had the pleasure of reading a L.M. Montgomery book, I hope you'll take the time to do so this month. If you are looking for another excuse to take a leisurely walk around Prince Edward Island with some of your favorite friends, well then, please, let me provide that excuse!
I invite you to read any book by Montgomery or about Montgomery as part of this challenge. Audio books are, of course, very welcome as are the first two Anne movies created and produced by Kevin Sullivan. The only two things which never have and never will "count" towards participating in this challenge are the following:
Before Green Gables, by Budge Wilson. This is a made up history of Anne. It's the imaginings of another author about my most beloved Montgomery character.
I also do not allow the inclusion of Anne Of Green Gables - The Continuing Story because it's so far off the mark. This movie should be considered Anne heresy and is banned around these parts.
Consider these limitations a host's prerogative if you must. (Heh.)
Everything else is fair game.
What I ask participants in this challenge do is to write up a post on your own blog stating the following:
a.) That you intend to participate in this Lucy Maud Montgomery Reading Challenge;
b.) List which of her books you intend to read (or which movies you intend to watch); and
c.) Enjoy whatever it is that you manage to work through during the month.
I do hope you will join in and be a part of this reading challenge. I so enjoy hosting this every year and always try to learn something new about Montgomery as I read on. If you're planning to read along, please let me (and everyone else!) know in the comment section!
The Christmas Tree, by Julie Salamon was one of my personal reads this Christmas season. (You can see what the kids and I have read this year HERE.) I picked this title out of a list of recommended Christmas reads over at Goodreads. This title caught my eye because of the simplicity of the book art design. It looked cozy and calm and that's pretty much how I like my Christmas reads.
In The Christmas Tree we are introduced to the chief gardener at Rockefeller Center whose job it is to choose the annual Christmas tree which is displayed in Times Square. He's a somewhat jaded fellow who spends a good portion of the year seeking out a tree for the world to marvel at. To him it's more of a chore than a pleasure. I never really thought about how the tree at Rockefeller Center is chosen and so I found this book interesting from that angle alone; it does sound like an exhausting project. It was curious to think about how it's one person's job to fly over forests and property scouting out that perfect tree which helps represent the magic that is Christmas, not only to New Yorkers but to people all over America.
The gardener in this story is told about a possible Norway Spruce which is located on a piece of private property which is home to an Abbey. The Sisters of the Abbey are willing to let him take a look at their tree but he soon discovers that this tree holds a special place in the heart of one of them. It is one nun who has to grant permission for him to take the tree and she's not quite ready to say goodbye yet. The story revolves around the gardener, the nun and the tree. On this rather remarkable journey we learn to appreciate people and their individual stories over "stuff".
The Christmas Tree is a beautiful little story. It took me all of an hour to read but it's the sort that will stick with me for much longer. I loved it and will be keeping it around to reread in the future. Highly recommended.
Life is so crazy at the moment that half the time I don't know whether I'm coming or going. It feels like Christmas celebrations have to be very purposeful this year. Taking time to celebrate the season as a family amidst the busyness is a challenge but one that we've been striving towards. The week before Thanksgiving I launched us into our Christmas readalouds to make sure we'd have a chance at enjoying some fun stories throughout the month of December.
These are the books we've enjoyed:
We began with Keeping Holiday, by Starr Meade. We've read this title before, but our last reading of it was in 2013. Bookworm1 read this independently last year so he had some memory of it. To the youngest among us, this was a brand new story.
If you haven't heard of this title the best way I know how to describe it is that it is an allegory, not altogether unlike Pilgrim's Progress, geared towards children. Dylan and Clare are looking for the real town of Holiday and this story documents their journey finding it. You can read my full review of Keeping Holiday here.
All of the kids seemed to enjoy this title very much. If you are looking for a religious story that explains that we are in the "not yet" here on earth then this title is worthy of your consideration.
Next we read Christmas with Anne because I wanted to. This book is a collection of short stories by Lucy Maud Montgomery that focuses on the holiday season. Our family spent the better part of this year working our way through the Road to Avonlea series and so it seemed appropriate to top the year off with some tried and true Montgomery. If you tell my kids that a story is "like" Avonlea or that it is from Prince Edward Island, the chances are you will receive an enthusiastic response in presenting the option. Anne does make an appearance in this book (the chapter in which she receives her puffed sleeves from Matthew) but the book is a compilation of short stories not pertaining to any of Montgomery's other books or series.
The last time I indulged in this holiday read was back in 2008 so it was a nice visit for me as well. You can read my full review of Christmas With Anne HERE if you are interested in more information on this title. It can be a hard book to get your hands on, but if you come across it I highly recommend snatching it up!
Last year was the first year that I had read The Best Christmas Pageant Ever aloud to my kids and they really got such a big kick out of it then that I didn't want to miss the opportunity to enjoy it again. I threw that into our Christmas mix on the heals of Montgomery and we had a good time with it. As I said in my review last year, this isn't a book that I necessarily want my kids reading on their own, even though they are quite capable of doing so. I edited out the same things in my read aloud that I did the first go around and no one was the wiser or the sorrier.
If you are looking for a book to provide a good chuckle during the Christmas season, while still sharing the Gospel story, then this one is kind of a fun way to rehearse the Christmas story in a new way. (Don't replace your Gospel reading with this title by any means, but I think it's valid to suggest this title is a humorous way to retell the story while still being respectful.) You can read my full review of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever here.
A few years ago I picked up a copy of The Lion in the Box, by Marguerite De Angeli. We hadn't gotten around to reading it yet and so I figured on squeezing it in between reads. We read this one over the course of about two days and enjoyed it for what it was. I have to confess it wasn't my favorite but the kids all claim to love it and I can certainly understand why.
This story is set in New York City around the turn of the century. It tells the story of a poor family whose father has died. The mother works three jobs to keep herself and the children housed and fed. Although the family doesn't have very much, they are a happy crew. One Christmas Eve the family is surprised to receive a large box which has come courtesy of a well-to-do lady who met the mother and sympathized with her story. I'm sure my kids' imaginations were completely in gear when it came to unpacking this enormous box of goodies. The moral of the story is to be cheerful in all things and also to believe in miracles which sometimes happen. It's pretty formulaic and cheesy but it's Christmas and provides all the warm fuzzies that you could possibly want. From a Goodreads perusal it would seem that this story has been loved by a great many people. If I had been thinking about getting rid of the copy, I may have been swayed into keeping it once I checked its availability on Amazon.
We're finishing up our Christmas reads with Hank the Cowdog andThe Wounded Buzzard on Christmas Eve. This is admittedly an unconventional read but it has been a lot of fun nonetheless.
I can't actually remember our last Hank the Cowdog read and I fear we might never have had one. Bookworm1 has read several titles independently but I have a sinking feeling that he's been the only one. As we launched into the read I realized that our younger kids weren't familiar with Hank, Drover, Slim, Loper and crew at all! Clearly I have fallen down on the job! I had to explain one or two things to them as we got into the story but, gratefully, this title can operate as a stand-alone if it must. (Listen carefully: No Hank the Cowdog book should stand alone. You should read a lot more than one.) In this particular story Wallace the Buzzard takes a nose dive into the windshield of Slim's pickup truck and a spirit of goodwill overtakes Hank and Drover in a desire to help the old buzzard out. Adventures abound (as does humor) throughout the story. Our kids are guffawing in all of the right places letting me know that Hank needs to occupy a larger place in our hearts in the coming year for truly, no childhood is complete without Hank the Cowdog.
And these, my friends, are the stories which have occupied our imaginations this December. Some old, some new with an emphasis on fun, I think. Rather, it's been fun for us and I'm grateful for each story we manage to tuck in with this Christmas. How about you all? What have you been reading this month?
The Girl Who Drank the Moon is my first Kelly Barnhill book and is guaranteed not to be my last. From the very beginning of this book to the very end I was completely captivated by the story.
Open the pages of The Girl Who Drank the Moon and dive into a fantasy and adventure story which is both unique in nature and also remarkably well-crafted. Barnhill is a beautiful writer of prose and I enjoyed the sentences which made up beautiful paragraphs and chapters and book. The story begins with the explanation that every year the people of the Protectorate leave the newest born baby from their village in the forest as an offering to "the witch." No one has ever seen the witch but they are well-familiar with her and the overhanging threat that she will do Something Awful if they do not sacrifice one of their young to her on an annual basis. At the very beginning of the tale, we are introduced to a woman being forced to give up her baby girl and who succumbs to sorrow and madness as a result. She is locked away in a tower in the local abbey where the sisters see to her care. Or do they?
In the forest lives a witch who never asked to become one. Her name is Xan and it is she who takes the babies which the Protectorate leaves in the forest. However, all is not what it might seem. Xan takes the babies without understanding why they have been left and she delivers them to loving homes in a village on the other side of the forest. However, one day she collects a baby girl who captures her heart. Xan names the baby Luna and accidentally feeds her with moonlight. In so doing, Luna herself is enmagicked with a magic so powerful that Xan is forced to hide Luna's magic from her until her thirteenth birthday. Xan hopes that in time and with age Luna will learn to better control her magic and use it responsibly. The Girl Who Drank the Moon follows Luna, Xan, the woman in the tower, and also a young father from the Protectorate who offers hope to a village shattered by sorrow at having lost so many babies to the unknown witch.
Kelly Barnhill has woven together a beautiful tale of magic. Her imagination seems to know no bounds. The reader is left to marvel at and enjoy this story of tragedy and hope. The best way I know to describe it is to say that it reads like ancient lore and legend. There's a timeless feel to it that makes you to think that you've heard this story somewhere before, although perhaps not quite in the same way. There's a uniqueness to the tale which is immensely satisfying as a reader. It's always a pleasure to be told a new story in a way that is not entirely predictable if for no other reason that the story is so well-told that the reader/listener is patient enough for things to unfold as they are meant to all in good time. Barnhill is a reader's dream and no, I don't feel like I'm being overly dramatic in saying so. However, I want to be cautious that I don't puff the story up so much that when you finally get around to reading it you'll wonder what all the fuss was about. Not that you'll want to wait a long time to get to this, because it's so fun and fanciful that you'll probably want to rush right off and grab a copy. If you enjoy it half as much as I did, that'll be plenty.
In terms of worldview, I would say that more conservative readers will not like The Girl Who Drank the Moon if they are skittish about magic and witches. However, this new title has nothing over Harry Potter or Narnia or Lord of the Rings. While there is no real distinction made between what is "white magic" versus what is "black magic", there is a clear distinction between good and evil. The right side wins, leaving no ambiguity or requesting of the reader to be sympathetic towards those in the wrong. It's a clear cut story full of delicious magic and imagination of the best sort.
This book is classified as Middle Grade Fiction which I think is entirely appropriate. I plan on handing it over to my ten-year-old to read next and I fully anticipate that he will enjoy it. The Girl Who Drank the Moon is a book I am happy to keep on our home bookshelves to be enjoyed by all when they are ready for it. I can imagine myself enjoying it again at some future date.
Many thanks to Kelly Barnhill for writing this story and to Algonquin Young Readers for publishing it. I was sent a copy for review purposes. I received no additional compensation and all opinions are 100% my very own.
I'm a sucker when it comes to a Donna VanLiere's Christmas book. Her Christmas reads are generally calm and pleasant and make you feel all warm and cheery on the inside. There's very little upset, the plot lines are very predictable and everything always ends well enough. I was excited to discover that there was a new VanLiere on the scene this December, that being The Christmas Town.
In The Christmas Town we meet Lauren Gabriel, a single gal who was raised in the foster care system and who really has no family of which to speak. She wants more than anything to spend Christmas with a family and so decides to place an ad on Craigslist looking for a home to share for the holiday. Meanwhile she finds herself engaged in a bit of drama one town over where she winds up being volunteered to work with the children's Christmas choir. Along the way she finds out that family isn't always what you think and that there is always hope. This book is a Hallmark Christmas movie waiting to happen with warm fuzzies and the promise of a new and better tomorrow all rolled into one. I know I'm making it sound a bit flippant but it is. Donna VanLiere books aren't exactly fine literature and I'd be silly to say so. Rather, they are just a cozy comfort read designed to suit the festive feel of this season.
I've read and reviewed a few VanLiere titles around here and I'll link those titles in with this post. I don't know that I necessarily have a favorite out of these cotton candy reads, but I will say that I noticed some flaws in VanLiere's writing in The Christmas Town which had not caught my attention previously. Most notably is the fact that she kept changing tenses between the first and third paragraphs at the start of each chapter. It felt as if she couldn't decide if she wanted to reflect on what was, or set her story up in the present, or perhaps run a line of dialogue between her characters. The writing was choppy and jarring as a result. Clearly no one felt the need to take the time and edit in order to have the story flow with ease. While I was happy with the concept of the story, I thought this one was especially poorly presented and I can't say I enjoyed it very enthusiastically.
I will also say that I was sent an "Advanced Uncorrected Proof", giving me more reasons to hate ARC's than ever before. What if they fixed the verbiage and everything ended up flowing together nicely instead of taking place in the past, present and future all at once? I don't know and can't tell you if an editor got their hands on a copy and straighten out the details. Perhaps so. Perhaps not. I'm not going to seek out a new copy in order to confirm that these mistakes were caught. As I said though, I don't really read VanLiere for the brilliant writing so much as the sappy Christmas story and on this point she delivered yet again. If you haven't ever given this author a try but you are looking for some good, clean Christmas fun than she's worthy of some consideration. Just don't go into one of her reads expecting anything brilliant. You can, however, expect some fun. I think this book could have used a lot more spit and polish than it received but despite that I got what I wanted out of it and so I'm happy.
Many thanks to St. Martin's Press who sent a copy of this title my direction in order to facilitate this review. I received no additional compensation and all opinions expressed above are my very own.
I was sent an e-mail pitch asking if I'd be interested in reviewing Befriend, a new title by Scott Sauls, published by Tyndale House Publishers. I'm usually always up to read a book about friendship as there always tends to be room for improvement. The book arrived and I launched right into it.
Befriend is a relatively short book containing twenty-one chapters. It can be devoured in a few sittings but was designed with the idea in mind to use as a devotional or a group study. I read it in about four different settings, taking in a small chunk at a time.
This main idea behind this book is to encourage the reader to reach out and show love and friendship to others in a world that doesn't really "do" relationship away from a screen. It's a call to think more of others than yourself and to be willing to build bridges to people who maybe do not think and act exactly as you do. As he points out, he's easy to be friends with people who are just like you and who like the same things you do. It's much harder to be friends with those who are different. Certainly this a challenge and a topic worthy of its own post.
Sauls opens his book with the first chapter pointing out that it's going to be hard for you to love others unless you can love the person you see in the mirror. I see what he's getting at, of course, but I have to say that the whole "love yourself" argument rubs me the wrong way most of the time and so I mentally held the book at arm's length at first. My hesitation on the whole "love yourself" way of thought is that it tends to make us selfish and self-focused to the detriment of all other relationships. I've heard the phrase, "I need to focus on me" too many times from people and I find that a more destructive attitude than a helpful one. Sauls' message that he wishes to communicate is that, in Christ's eyes, we are all "enough" so we shouldn't try to avoid being friends with others because we are ashamed of ourselves or because we think we are less than others. I agree with him, I think I just use more caution in the way that is all phrased and argued because people are quick to hear, "I need to love myself" and slow hear "I need to die to self so that others might live." And, really, a genuine relationship with anyone requires a bit of death to self.
While I wasn't thrilled with Chapter One things improved from there and I appreciated the arguments he made about needing to reach out to people we can't control, sexual minorities, children, the rich and powerful, bullies, dysfunctional family members, the poor and empty-handed, etc. He needles a lot of people right where it hurts: their pride. We humans naturally gravitate towards relationships we find to be easy. We want to relax with our friends, not have to work at being around them. Somehow that strikes us as being unnatural and, if we're honest, unfair. Relationships shouldn't require work, should they now? Or should they? Worldly wisdom tells us to think about what makes ME comfortable, about making sure that MY feelings and thoughts are considered. When we stumble across people who think differently then us we frequently wonder if it's worth our time and effort to know them or to care for their needs. That's where Sauls' book is useful because he challenges you to think about treating your neighbor as you want to be treated, more or less. Sure, some people might be difficult to love but does that give us the excuse not even to try? (Hint: the answer is 'no'.)
Beyond arguing that you should make friends with people who are not like you, Sauls also spends a lot of time arguing why and that's important. This is necessary work on Sauls' part because we humans are a stiff-necked lot and easily get bogged down in the mire of What We Like. The older I get the more I understand why I need Scott Sauls-types in my life to encourage me to peep outside of my own little box in order to see the world at large. It's so easy to live (and to want to live) in my own bubble where I'm not ever flustered or made to interact with a person or situation that makes me uncomfortable. But Jesus didn't call us to be comfortable, did He? Instead He issued a challenge to look for opportunities to go above and beyond in reaching out to others and to serve them. It's a difficult call which is why not many people do it. If it was easy to all get along then we would. We don't because it isn't and because we don't want put down our own prejudices and see what the other person might be trying to say. For the silent ones who feel alone and ignored, Sauls has written this book to share why it's important to break down the walls so that we can reach one another for the glory of the Lord. All in all, I found this a beneficial read.
I must tell you though that I received an ARC of this and it was missing Chapter 20 which is entitled, "Befriending the Opposite Gender." This is a topic that I would find hugely interesting and would rather have liked to have heard what Sauls had to say. I didn't have that chance and so my opinion of this book isn't entirely completely. That explained, I do have 90% happy thoughts towards this read and no hesitations in recommend it to you. It contains a lot of good food for thought.
The temptation surrounding Befriend is going to be in wanting to have other people read it so that they will know better how to treat you. Resist the temptation to think that way. (I mention this because I understand the temptation quite well!) If you're going to read it, read it for yourself and make applications where necessary. Sure, there may be a speck of the inconsiderate in the eye of your friend, but get rid of the log in your own eye before thinking about them.
Many thanks to Ravū Collective who sent a copy of this book my direction in order to facilitate this review. I received no additional compensation and all opinions are 100% my very own.
Oh, how I wanted to love The Girl in the Castle, by Santa Montefiore! Set in Ireland, this is the fictional story of Kitty Deverill. The story is set during the Irish Revolution shortly before World War I. Kitty lives with her family at Castle Deverill which has been owned by their ancestors for generations. Although they are Anglo-Irish, Kitty feels more connected to Ireland than England and finds herself essentially between two worlds.
The Girl in the Castle is the first in a trilogy of books that Montefiore is planning to write about the Deverill family. This is a great thing if you loved the book and not so great if you aren't feelin' the love. As I say, I wanted to love it but I simply could not. I enjoyed learning more about the history of the Irish Revolution. It was like getting to know the other half of Tom from Downton Abbey and having his political positions explained more thoroughly. It's a time period and situation I know little about which is one of the reasons I was drawn to reading the story in the first place. On the whole though, I could not relax with the book because, aside from Kitty herself, I could not admire a single other character.
Montefiore is a conservative writer by modern standards but not conservative enough for my tastes. All of her characters seem bent on destruction in some form or fashion and frequently this involves sexual exploits. It's fair to say that if you've seen Downton Abbey (and I have) you won't find anything more shocking within the pages of this book, scene-wise. Still, it's there and so I found myself having to skim and skip along to get past descriptions that I didn't want to read.
The first half of the book is all about character development and in this I enjoyed myself well enough. I was easily lulled into the history of the Deverill family and interested in their outcome. However, by the second half of the book things were much more intense and everyone's life was in almost perfect shambles. There was nothing to love, nor even to like. It was hard for me to finish this book, but finish I did.
The Girl in the Castle has many promising things going for it in a spirited leading lady who loves the land she is born into. It's an interesting story from the historical perspective, but when it comes right down to it it's full of dishonorable men and women who care little for doing what is right and more about doing what they want.
Some will find my opinion of this book harsh. Some will find it very vague and I'm keeping it that way on purpose because if anyone out there wants to dive into the history of the Deverill family and read this trilogy then I don't want to offer spoilers as to the storyline. In my opinion, the storyline is fascinating. It's the cranky, immoral characters who did me in. Who wants to spend time with a group of people that they cannot in any way admire (or barely stand)? If this were a true history I might suffer through it, but as it is a piece of fiction I'm going to take a pass on it and I won't be recommending it to others.
I will say a quick thank you though to William Morrow Paperbacks who sent a copy of this book in order to facilitate a review. I received no additional compensation and if you doubt that the opinions expressed above are any but my own I shall find you very funny indeed.
The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis is perhaps my new favorite Narnia story. (Just remember that I say that after every Narnia story that I re-read.) I don't know how many times I've read this particular title personally, but it was my second time to read it aloud with the kids. It had more meaning for me this time around because a friend of mine is walking down a dark, hard road and it's been pressed upon me how important it is that we remember the truths of God's word, even when our eyes and minds are blurry and we're having a hard time focusing on Him. I wanted to read this story to the kids so that I could bring home the point to them that it's important to first memorize God's word and then always, always, always repeat those truths to yourself. In this way, I pray that even when my children find themselves in moments of doubt and disbelief, they will repeat the truths of scripture to themselves until they find themselves able to believe again.
If you are unfamiliar with the story of The Silver Chair, it picks up where The Voyage of the Dawn Treader leaves off, at least in our world. Roughly fifty Narnian years have passed since Eustace was there. Eustace and one of his school chums, Jill, are whisked into Narnia where they are tasked with finding King Caspian's missing son, Prince Rilian. Aslan gives the children four signs which they are to repeat to themselves and obey in order to find the lost prince. The two children are also given a companion for the journey, a Narnian Marsh-wiggle named Puddleglum. This is the story of their adventures in finding Rilian.
This is Jill's first visit to Narnia, of course, so everything about it is new and scary to her while Eustace has some amount of comfort due to familiarity. It is Jill who is given the signs by Aslan which she is to teach to both Eustace and Puddleglum. Right off the bat though she flubs the first sign. In fact, the children flub most of the signs which lead them on a series of misadventures which are both exciting and terrifying. In the end its Puddleglum who rises to the occasion, remembers the signs, and helps to make the mission a successful one. Jill and Eustace are still "rewarded" for their troubles, but some repentance is necessary as a result of forgetting and/or ignoring the instructions that Aslan had given them. The story ends triumphantly which is a joy and a comfort but there is sorrow along the way as the reader is forced to acknowledge "what might have been." Simultaneously, there is a relief in knowing that although we are prone to making big mistakes in life, Aslan can redeem each and every one of them and set all things to right.
As I say, I loved this story and I found it incredibly relevant for life and godliness. Life is hard. Period. It is hard for different people in different ways but anyone who ever stands up and makes the bold claim to believe in Jesus Christ is in for hardship. If you expect you'll get away without a struggle then you are misinformed at best and delusional at worst. (Blunt? Yes.) Jesus said we're to take up our cross and follow him. Do we think this means down a tulip lined path? If so, we desperately need to rethink things because this life is designed to teach us to be holy as He is holy. Is life ALL hardship and pain? No, I believe not. There are glorious days of peace and joy which we become more and more grateful with over time and with age. There is great joy in the Christian life but there is also struggle. It's easy to want to embrace the one and not to embrace the other but as Job asked his dear wife, are we only to accept good from the Lord and not evil? If you said, "Yes" then you need to understand that that is foolish talk. Yes, I'm pressing a point here but I think its an important one. If we condition ourselves only to accept good from the Lord and not evil, then we're only willing to accept a god of our own making, a created being which we have defined to be "good" according to our pleasures and fancies. That's not a good god. That's a weak one who exists for our pleasure and our bidding.
Life is hard, yes. But life is also full of JOY. During those moments it behooves us to camp out on the promises of God so that when the hard winds blow and the rain comes pouring down, we can "remember the signs" and repeat them to ourselves ad nauseum. And when we find our faith weak and we find ourselves struggling to believe in those promises? We repeat the signs to ourselves more loudly and pray, "Lord, help me in my unbelief!" Life, I think, is a battle to get to the higher ground again. Sometimes we enjoy so much peace it's hard to imagine that we shall ever meet a trouble. And then the trouble comes and it's hard to imagine that we ever were happy or that we can ever be happy again. Remember the signs. Repeat them. If God is not of our making, then we can trust His promises are true and that He will do all that He has said He will do. If He is not of our making then the journey is bearable. If we serve a god of our own making, then we are lost and there is no hope. Why? Because a created god can only be as strong as we are. This, we must acknowledge, is not very strong at all.
Remember the signs. Repeat them to yourself when you wake up in the morning, as you go about your day, as you go to sleep at night. Camp on the promises - and commit to believing in them even when you don't want to.
In this story, Eustance, Jill, Puddleglum and Rilian are making an attempt to escape from an evil witch-queen who is trying her best to confuse the party as to fact and fiction. She begins attempting to work a spell on the group, lighting a fire and playing soothing music to distract them from what they know is right. Puddleglum says:
". . . [Y]ou can play that fiddle till your fingers drop off, and you still won't make me forget Narnia; and the whole Overworld too. We'll never seen it again, I shouldn't wonder. You may have blotted it out and turned it dark like this, for all I know. Nothing more likely. But I know I was there once. I've seen the sky full of stars. I've seen the sun coming up out of the sea of a morning and sinking behind the mountains at night."
He knew he was being subjected to trickery and he vocalized his beliefs at exactly the right moment. Maybe his present situation wasn't what he hoped for, but Puddleglum wouldn't forget, no sir and no ma'am! Maybe he was being buried in magic but he would hold fast to the truths he knew. The witch continues to sweetly argue against him and truth, trying to subdue both him and the children. She continues to taunt and tease the group, strumming her music and sitting serenely by her fire. Creating an atmosphere that looks and seems relaxing, she tries to lure the Narnians into submission. Finally Puddleglum's head becomes clear enough that he realizes that there is magic in the fire and he determines to put it out -- with his foot! He sacrifices his own true comfort to destroy the false comforts and show the witch for what she truly is. With the following speech he rallies his countrymen to cling to truth.
"One word, Ma'am, he said, coming back from the fire; limping, because of the pain. "One word. All you've been saying is quite right, I shouldn't wonder. I'm a chap who always liked to know the worst and then put the best face I can on it. So I won't deny any of what you said. But there's one thing more to be said, even so. Suppose we have only dreamed, or made up, all those things - trees and grass and sun and moon and stars and Aslan himself. Suppose we have. Then all I can say is that, in that case, the made-up things seem a good deal more important than the real ones. Suppose this black pit of a kingdom of yours is the only world. Well, it strikes me as a pretty poor one. And that's the funny thing when you come to think of it. We're just babies making up a game, if you're right. But four babies playing a game can make a play-world which licks your real world hollow. That's why I'm going to stand by the play world. I'm on Aslan's side even if there isn't any Aslan to lead it. I'm going to live as like a Narnian as I can even if there isn't any Narnia. So, thanking you kindly for our supper, if these two gentleman and he young lady are ready, we're leaving your court at once and setting out in the dark to spend our lives looking for Overland. Not that our lives will be very long, I should think; but that's small loss if the world's as dull a place as you say."
Maybe those who don't believe in the God of the Bible are right; maybe He is just a figment of our imagination, a crutch for hurting souls. But if my only choice is the God of Scripture or a world without Him, I'll take my chances. I might spend the whole of my life "hunting for Overworld" but I believe in its existence and I'd rather press on in that goal than wallow in the dark lands, wondering if anything can believed at all.
All I know to pray is that when I next find myself "buried under the earth", looking for the promises of God to be true, I'll have a Puddleglum alongside me to lead me out of the witch's chambers and back into reality. Sometimes the grace of God looks suspiciously like a Marsh-wiggle; sometimes it smells like a burnt one.
This story is a good reminder to all of us that until we reach "Overworld" we must be bold to encourage one another in faith, love, and good works.
All of the above are the truths I want my kids to remember. These are the very things that will drive us back to scripture and back to Narnia time and time again.
With all that said, I dedicate the following song to my Marsh-wiggle friends. I love you and I need you.
So Spirit, come, put strength in every stride;
Give grace for every hurdle.
That we may run with faith to win the prize
Of a servant good and faithful.
As saints of old, still line the way,
Retelling triumphs of His grace,
We hear their calls, and hunger for the day
When with Christ we stand in Glory.
I picked up a copy of The Year of Miss Agnes on a whim. I was visiting a friend in Northern Idaho and we went to her hometown bookstore (which is, in my opinion, the best bookstore in the entire country). The owner of the bookshop, while not very talkative or friendly, clearly was a reader and the shelves were filled with books I'd either read myself or knew to be quite excellent. (See? We had similar tastes. Clearly it was the best bookstore in the country! You doubt!?) I hadn't ever heard of The Year of Miss Agnes before but the selection of books upon his shelves recommended this tile to me. It was a safe bet that I was going to like it and like it I did!
The Year of Miss Agnes is a short and simple story told from the perspective of ten year old Frederika (Fred). The story opens with Fred explaining how many teachers have come and gone from their village's one room schoolhouse out in the Alaskan wilderness. Recently the village lost another teacher who couldn't hack the conditions of the community. A new teacher by the name of Miss Agnes was being flown in to try her hand at teaching in the area, and Fred is wondering just how long she'll last. Expectations in the village are low but Miss Agnes seems to rise to the challenge. As it turns out, Miss Agnes isn't like any of the other women who have come to teach. Hailing from England, she doesn't seem at all put off by the environment but chooses instead to focus on the adventure of it all, desiring nothing more than to foster a love of learning in her pupils.
This is a sweet story and, at 113 pages, a fast read for an adult. I read it first and then handed it over to Bookworm1 (age 10) who also polished it off in short order. It's easy to breeze through and enjoy this book. The Year of Miss Agnes is a story about a passion for learning but even more so, about the powerful influence that a teacher can have on the life of their students.
I loved this one and am happy to recommend it to others. If you find a copy, pick it up! I sure am glad that I did.
It's almost that time of year, you know? Will you forgive me for talking about it so soon? I sort of have to, you see. The LEGO Christmas Ornaments Book by Chris McVeigh was just recently released and is a worthwhile title to explore before the season gets underway.
This new LEGO title from No Starch Press offers 15 different ornament designs, complete with full-colored photographs and instructions for how to make your own ornaments with which to adorn your tree. If you are a LEGO lover or know someone who is, this book makes a nice gift and/or also teaches you how to make your own gifts.
Chris McVeigh has designed some pretty cute (can I use that word?) ornaments and offers both a list of parts needed as well as step-by-step instructions for how you can make the same. Of course, once you understand how he uses the various parts and pieces to create his own designs, you can create some of your own and that is what makes books like these so great- they are a launching pad for your own designs!
Most of the parts and pieces that you will need in order to design these ornaments are likely to be in your modern LEGO collection (particularly if you like the Ninjago, Star Wars or Friends lines). Otherwise, you might have to hunt one or two specialty pieces down (but not many). Here are some photos of the various ornament designs included which also gives you a feel for the layout of the book:
Again, if you are looking for a fun Christmas activity to do along with your LEGO lovin' friends and relations, this is a fun title to consider.
Many thanks to No Starch Press for sending a copy of this book my direction in order to facilitate this review. I have received no additional compensation and all opinions expressed above are 100% my very own.
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