books in august

Bridget Jones's Diary, by Helen Fielding

This was the ultimate summer read.  Not only was it so lighthearted and funny and honest that I wanted to immediate write a book just like this one, it was the perfect way to pass the time while my family and I were on vacation in Annapolis.  Pure, sugary entertainment.  The movie was a good adaptation (I'd seen it before I read the book), and the casting was spot on.  I love that Mark Darcy is based on Colin Firth's portrayal of Mr Darcy in the P&P miniseries, and the movie has Colin Firth in that role.  It's all too perfect.  A little more sentimental than the book, but still so perfect.

Helen Fielding's writing style here is so approachable and funny.  I wish I would have thought of it first - segmented journal entries, beginning with an update on calories, cigarettes smoked, weight, and whatever else Bridget's keeping track of that week.  I should have written this book.  

Perelandra, by CS Lewis

Such a different book from the other one I read this month.  I struggled with Lewis's first book in his Space Trilogy (Out of the Silent Planet, which I wrote about two years ago - oy), and this one started little better.  His imagination creates literal worlds, and it takes half of a book to give the reader that setting.  The plot doesn't take off till you get a feel for your surroundings.  Is this to the detriment of the story itself?  Probably not.  We're just not used to having to stick with something that reads a little more... classically.  I've got to exercise that muscle a bit more.  By reading something tedious.

Halfway through, though, this book is anything but tedious.  All I'm going to say is the scene with the frogs.  True horror.  The Un-Man, as Ransom names the villain of this adventure, is truly horrifying.  He's reminiscent of Dracula to me... and I cannot really explain why.  I just know I felt the same terror and dread reading about his mutilation of this beautiful world of Lewis's imagination as I did about the vampire's activity.  Sheer evil.

No matter what Lewis writes, he rewards you for walking through his world, no matter how long the journey may have taken.  Please take this journey.  You won't be sorry.

books in july

The Pilgrim's Regress, by CS Lewis

I enjoyed this.  It's difficult for me to not enjoy something by my friend Jack.  However.  I felt like this was something I'd have written in a literary analysis course... obviously not to the same effect as his, but it was very much a response to a prompt, in my opinion.  The way he used names of literary/psychological/cultural movements was even more overt than Paul Bunyan's original Pilgrim story.  I realize this was one of his earlier works, post-conversion, and that it detailed (in allegorical form) that very conversion, but it certainly does not do justice to the imagination and brilliance we see in his other works.

Go Set a Watchman, by Harper Lee

A much-anticipated sequel to what is perhaps the great American novel did not live up to its hype.  My opinion.  While it was fun feeling like I was reading something out of a time capsule (Lee wrote this before To Kill a Mockingbird), the plot was undeveloped, and the characters were not likable.  The highlights were the flashbacks to Scout's childhood, naturally - that was the character we fell in love with in the first place.  I didn't like grown-up Scout.  When you read about a book about a precocious young girl, don't you automatically assume she would grow up to be just like you?  I know I do.  And did.  But Jean Louise is nothing like me.  And that made me dislike her.  Ha. 

Perhaps the biggest hit to my soul was the tainting of Atticus's character.  How dare she.  The greatest father in all of literature... is not.  It's a sad story.  It's a messy reality.  And what about Jem?  He's simply been dead, without much ado or explanation.  Eh.  Not what I wanted.  I feel a bit disillusioned with Atticus, and with Scout, strangely.  An interesting read, but certainly not on par with her first published novel.  Read that one again. 

books in june

The Shack, by Wm. P. Young

Oh, The Shack.  Although I was rereading it to discuss with a friend, I realized about halfway through that I had never finished it when it was assigned for my Triune God class at college.  Sorry, Dr Hirt!  But I aced the term paper, so....

The story was better than I remember it being, to be honest.  I empathize with Mack (the main character) more now that I have a daughter.  That section was truly heartbreaking, and caused me to ask some of those same questions he struggles through (e.g.: "Is God a good father?").  But the writing is still awful, the dialogue trite, and the characterization of God not necessarily accurate or helpful.  It's interesting, in its way, but ultimately, just not great.  Young brings up a great topic for discussion - the nature of the Triune God - but as far as the portrayal of God Himself, it often falls into the two main heresies surrounding that doctrine: either the Persons of the Godhead are too one (to the point of being indistinct), or too three (to the point of being too distinct and separate).  God is three in one.  The more we try to put this mystery into words, the more we try to rationalize, the farther I think we get from the truth.  Truly.

I also think, unintentional though it may be, the author falls into other heretical ideas.  It's probably for the sake of story, plot development, characterization, etc, but the fact remains that God the Father was not on the cross; there is a hierarchy within the Godhead; and the Bible is the reliable and necessary source of truth.  I don't appreciate the treatment of church and/or religion as a manmade god, either.  The church is the body and the bride of Christ.  All who claim Christ are not all His, obviously, and the church is full of fallen human beings who misrepresent Him all the time.  But we are called to structure and order and relationship with one another as well as on an individual basis with God.  

Are these points nitpicky?  Is it really just semantics?  As a work of fiction, can we gloss over these seemingly little details?  I suggest (firmly) no.  While I appreciate the portrayal of God in the way He will reach down into our lives, radically change our hearts, and demonstrate His nearness, I think it's closer to the heart of God to believe truth about who He is above a heartwarming and imaginative, but ultimately dishonest, dream sequence.  

Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer, by CS Lewis

This was such a timely read.  Written by Lewis in the format of letters to a fictional friend "Malcolm", this book answers many of the questions raised by Wm. P. Young in The Shack.  Jack's main discussion point is the way we relate to God, and how God relates to us.  Hence the "Chiefly on Prayer" subtitle.  In some ways, he supports the conclusions of The Shack: "We must lay before Him what is in us; not what ought to be in us."  God not only invites, but requires us to be honest with Him - in our moments of joy and especially in our times of despair.  He emphasizes the importance of communing with other believers through worship services, daily life, and the Lord's Supper; church is the way God relates to His people.  

The biggest, most important quote of the book in my eyes is, "Every idea of Him we form, He must in mercy shatter."  We as believers need to daily surrender our idea of who God is unto Him to be destroyed and built up in truth.  What a risky business is this faith!  

books in may

My Names Is Asher Lev, by Chaim Potok

I loved this.  Although it took me a bit to really get into the story and its characters, it had the same feel to me as A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.  The coming-of-age.  The setting, to some degree.  But since I have such a love for Judaism and the Jewish culture (especially in America), and as one who believes in Jesus as Messiah, Asher's story resonated with me on a deeper level.  The fact that his Crucifixion was far more offensive to his family and community than his nude paintings gives great insight into their morality.  It's sad.  And beautiful.  For a thinker, I highly recommend this book.

A Room with a View, by E.M. Forster

Yawn.  I'm so sorry - I wanted to enjoy this book.  I wanted it to be dripping with wit and sarcasm and a more scathing insight into the upper class of England during that time.  I wanted The Importance of Being Earnest.  Alas, what I was given was a bland narrative with sometime engaging and intriguing and real characters, and hints of wittiness.  I didn't finish this one, but knew what was coming.  I suppose the end justifies the boringness of the earlier chapters, but I don't care about Lucy and George in the slightest.

What Does the Bible Really Teach About Homosexuality?, by Kevin DeYoung

Such an informative read.  DeYoung really nails the reader with his knowledge and expansive research.  Do not read if you are looking for something other than simply what the title states -- what the Bible has to say on the topic.  There is less pastoral heart here (except in the later chapters); he rather focuses on the interpretation of controversial passages.  If you want to know biblically what to think about homosexuality, read this.  If you don't hold the Bible to be an authority, or know you will disagree with his conclusions anyway, I probably would not recommend it.  

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, by Laura Hillenbrand

Oh my goodness.  Kevin and I watched this movie the weekend before Memorial Day, and by the end of that following week, I had finished reading the book.  A few that I've talked to about it didn't care for the screen adaptation, but I think it was well done and actually spot on with casting and focus.  Obviously, it's long.  Both the movie and book dwell on Louie's horrific experiences and anguish, rather than on his ultimate redemption and the forgiveness he finds for himself and his captors in Christ.  The book delves far more into this.  Louie Zamperini was an incredible, seemingly indestructible man.  PLEASE READ THIS BOOK.  

An Outline History Of the Wesleyan Church, by Lee M. Haines

Maybe the most boring thing I've read since graduating college (when I was forced to read so many uninteresting books and articles for classes).  However, as my husband is now employed by a Wesleyan church, and I have no experience with the denomination myself, I thought it wise to get to know our new roots a bit more.  So, in that regard, I definitely feel I have a grasp on where the denomination came from, what Wesley himself actually believed and taught, and how the denomination morphed and grew and changed throughout its some odd 200 years of existence.  I just could've done without the record of presidents and leaders and Sunday School initiatives and periodicals.  

this is pathetic

It's been about three months since my last post.  It's not that I haven't been reading.  Because I have been.  Kinda.  I've been jumping from book to book for a while, and in doing so, haven't thought to write down any thoughts about these particular books.  But it's time for an update.  Please bear with me and my fragmented thoughts/sentences; I'm nearly in my right mind, and will use this occasion to pull the pregnancy card.

Since finishing the Shakespeare book by Bryson, I've sampled:

marriage books (The Sacred Romance, Real Marriage), 

novels/short stories (Ender's Game, The Jungle Books, The Scarlet Pimpernel, The Book Thief),

religious stuff (The Forgiveness Labyrinth, The Vine and the Trellis, The Mass)

other non-fiction (Made in America, The Professor and the Madman)

See?  I have been busy.  But not captured enough to finish one.  Obviously some of these I've read before.... Eh.  My eyes hurt.

i'm stuck

Here I am on my day off.

I just finished twenty pages of one book,

and here I am watching The Breakfast Club.

I'm stuck.

I'm in the middle of these two books, and I'm bored out of my mind.

Yet - 

despite the fact that I have seven+ recently purchased books sitting on my shelf

taunting me - 

I cannot move past them just yet.  

So I read twenty pages at a time.

Inching along.

Prolonging my fictive misery.

Blech.  

What do I do?

Move on?

Power through?

Stop whining and do something active?

Please advise me.

Here are the two books I'm stuck in.

The Soloist, by Steve Lopez

It's the good and true story of a journalist who meets a Julliard-educated homeless man playing a violin with two strings.  

He befriends this man, writes an article, and begins a journey with him.  

Mental health, 

classical music, 

the state of the homeless in Los Angeles, 

and the unsteady friendship between two men make for an interesting read, right?  

Wrong.  

Sure, the content is fantastic, but Mr Lopez's writing style is... bland.

Knowing him to be a journalist, and this to be his own story, I was anticipating something more along the lines of a Tuesdays with Morrie a la Mitch Albom.

With Lopez, I'm hardly engaged.

There was a movie based on this book a few years back, starring Robert Downey Jr and Jamie Foxx.

Even when I saw it in theatres, the premise was so good, but the movie was slow.

Not as slow as this book.

Egghhhhh 170 pages left.

  

Death Comes to Pemberley, by P.D. James

It's a natural choice.  The sequel to Austen's classic Pride and Prejudice.  

I ought to love everything about it.

But I don't.

P.D. James may be a brilliant crime writer and important person in literature.

But, for all I know, this book doesn't work.

The vivid personalities Austen introduced to the world fall lifeless (no pun intended) under James's pen.

I may only be fifty pages in, so perhaps I've got to give her a break and a chance, but I don't want to.

Meh.  Another I want to finish, but I'm so bored!

The Devil Wears Prada

The Devil Wears Prada, by Lauren Weisberger

Such a fun, fluff summer read!  As I was already a fan of the movie, I was delighted to find that the book was not all that different.  

**************Some spoilers ahead detailing differences between book & movie - STOP now and read the book if you want to be surprised! **************

Though decently written with vivid descriptions, the language (lottttttsssssss of F-words) was a little disappointing.  

She doesn't ever sleep with Christian in Paris.  YAY for the morality of the character, but I do wish Weisberger had spent more time developing that little flirtatious relationship.  It was fun.  :)

The story is told from Andrea's point of view, which causes the reader to commiserate a bit more with her character.  Unlike in the movie, Anne Hathaway's portrayal of Andy makes you want to hate her just a bit when she becomes absorbed in Miranda Priestly's world.  The novel's Andy, because we the readers are privy to her thoughts, is much more likable.  

Her boyfriend, named Alex - not Nate - is a saint.  He teaches at an underprivileged urban school, typically goes above and beyond in the classroom and extracurricularly, and is something of a frustrating character for that very reason.  He's as much a workaholic as Andy is.  Perhaps that's due to her lifestyle, and the changes therefore in their relationship.  Hmm.  Regardless.  He's not brooding; he's not a chef; and he's more manly, I think, than Adrien Grenier's Nate.

Certain characters are combined in the movie.  Stanley Tucci's character Nigel plays a relatively insignificant role in the book - maybe five whole sentences in the entire 375 page novel - but combined with the characters James and Jeffy of the book, Nigel comes to life on screen.  

Miranda's British, and Emily's not.

Lily, Andy's best friend, is pretty trampy.  The story weaves her story into Andy's... mainly due to the drama Lily causes.  It's Lily's alcoholism that brings about the climax of the story.

The novel ends dramatically differently than the movie.  There is no mutual respect between Miranda and Andy.  They have a significant falling-out, actually.  But this falling-out causes Andrea to receive several consequential job offers.  

**************End of spoilers!**************

Easy-peasy summer reading.  So much fun.  If you liked the movie, you will LOVE the book.  And I guarantee that you will feel like you need Prada and Gucci products after this one.  I don't even know what such brands look like, except in my imagination... but I want them.

recent additions

I have an addiction to buying books.

I just hafta.

My recent finds at a local thrift store:

The Chosen, by Chaim Potok (have already read)

Davita's Harp, Potok

The Book of Lights, Potok

The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Mitch Albom (have already read)

The Devil Wears Prada, Lauren Weisberger

The Search for God and Guinness, by Stephen Mansfield (currently reading)

The Red Pony

The Red Pony, by John Steinbeck

I read this one this afternoon.  It was a glorious day: I was working on my tan, sitting on one of our new lawn chairs... glorious. 

While I don't consider myself a Steinbeck fan, I do appreciate his writing from time to time.  This most recent one reminded of me why I equally like and loathe him.  He certainly creates a scene, develops an interesting character, and causes you to care.  At the same time, however, I find that he revels in the despair of the time period.  I hate how he makes me like a character and then either kills them off or causes them to experience emotional or physical hardship.  Heartbreaking.  

Sigh.  I cannot deny, though, that I truly enjoyed The Red Pony.  I loved the relationship between Jody and Billy Buck.  Billy, the hired hand, had the most depth, I think, of the characters.  I also loved Grandfather and how he was unable to give up his thrilling adventure in the past.  Jody, the boy, essentially told the story; through that, I was given insight into his thoughts and emotional responses, but I cared more about the surrounding characters, to be honest.

Read it.  It'll take you maybe two hours. 

Ella Enchanted

Ella Enchanted, by Gail Carson Levine

Ella Enchanted was one of my absolute favorite books growing up.  I love Ella's spunkiness, I love the creativity of the plot despite the Cinderella cliche, I love the first person narrative.  And, having not read it in perhaps over ten years, I was reminded how absurd and awful the film version actually is.  Why could they have not just stuck with the perfect story in front of them?  It's far more intriguing, compelling, and there is no room for horrifying musical numbers!  

Regardless, this was a wonderful kick start to my summer reading list!  Read it if you haven't yet, and if you have, read it again!  

recently added

Yes, yes I know.

I'm hopeless.

But I found these in a thrift store.

For less than a dollar.

So.

I had to.

Robinson Crusoe & Shakespeare & the Art of Verbal Seduction.

AKA classics.

and it begins...

Merry Christmas to me!

The top five books, 

I found at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore

for fifty cents each. 

A collection of Ray Bradbury short stories.

Ella Enchanted; a favorite of mine growing up.

The Pursuit of Holiness; I lent mine to a friend, who never returned it.

The Mayor of Casterbridge; because I love Thomas Hardy.

The Silmarillion; because I need it.

The set of The Lord of the Rings + The Hobbit

were a Christmas present from Austin.

What a great start to the year.  :)

something droll

Considering I've had such a lack of motivation to read (and, therefore, to write)... 

...here's something droll I found online.  

But in reality, I would love for someone to give out these awards.  To me.

Which one(s) would you want to win?

a gift

A book from my beloved high school English teacher.

can i get an amen?

Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë

Ah.  Good fictional literature.  It's been a while.  What is there to say but that Jane Eyre lives up to its status as a staple in the Western canon.  Having read it nearly ten years ago, there was not much I remembered about the heroine, nor Ms. Brontë's lush descriptions.  I had forgotten so much, it may as well have been my first time.  Ah.  

Reading her story, I am so proud of Jane.  And why shouldn't I be?  Faced with tremendous temptation, she replies

I care for myself.  The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will keep the law given by God; sanctioned by man. I will hold to the principles received by me when I was sane, and not mad--as I am now. Laws and principles are not for the times when there is no temptation: they are for such moments as this, when body and soul rise in mutiny against their rigour; stringent are they; inviolate they shall be. If at my individual convenience I might break them, what would be their worth? They have a worth--so I have always believed; and if I cannot believe it now, it is because I am insane--quite insane: with my veins running fire, and my heart is beating faster than I can count its throbs. Preconceived opinions, foregone determinations, are all I have at this hour to stand by: there I plant my foot.

Good grief, Jane!  Way to make all the rest of us women feel horrible about decisions we've made against the law of God and man... And yet by your example, you remind us that we, too, can choose to plant our feet, and that a choice for good will not be in vain.

This book explores, at length, gender relations, social class, grace and law, atonement, real romance, integrity, and education.  All things that I love.

It's almost a cliché to recommend this book.  But seriously, if you haven't yet read it, you cannot claim to love literature.  This is no exaggeration.

I hear the movie version with Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender is a rather faithful portrayal.  Cannot wait to see it!

recent purchases

I had to have:

Out of the Silent Planet, by C.S. Lewis; the first of his Space Trilogy.  Finally, we've got the whole set!

Anna Karenina, by Tolstoy; one that I will force myself to read and to love. Seriously, I've attempted this one twice already.  Third time's a charm, right?

A Daughter's Worth, by Ava Sturgeon; a devotional for teenage girls.  I'm reviewing this one to see if it's any good to go through with some of our youth group girls.  Here's hoping!

Unseduced and Unshaken

Unseduced and Unshaken: The Place of Dignity in a Young Woman's Choices, by Rosalie de Rosset

I never read new books... which is part of the reason I was drawn to this one in the first place.  I was first drawn to it because of its assertion that young women need to read the classics; however, it calls for much more than that.  Dr de Rosset (a professor of my mom's at Moody) wrote this "collection of essays [as] a thoughtful provocation to speak well, read often, make choices that reflect the character of God, and even to establish a theology of play or leisure."

This book touches on topics that all Christians, not just young Christian women, need to tackle.  It demands a return to critical thinking, holy leisure, discipleship one generation to the next - and in that, a love and understanding of tradition - as well as what it truly means to be a "formidably self-possessed young woman with a fully realized, detailed moral sensibility", as one critic says of the character Jane Eyre.  

This is not a typical self-help, Christian how-to for women.  It is a serious, well-researched work whose author pulls no punches.  Unseduced and Unshaken is surprisingly as much an advocate for the rights of the all too silent women in the Church as it is a directive for them.  We have a high calling as women.  Are we living up to our potential in furthering the kingdom, or are we content with the quietness and mediocrity of our lives?  Are we all right with the mediocrity of our women's Bible studies that are too often watered down biblical truths packaged for blithe, unthinking women who care little for being challenged with harder theology?  Do we see Mary of Bethany sitting serenely at the feet of her Rabbi, or do we see her in passionate discussion?  Asking hard questions, learning what it means to truly follow Him?  

Everyone needs to read this book.

My favorite chapter, if you've time for nothing more, is entitled "Mindful or Mindless: a Theology of Play".  This is the section that compares stories like Titanic to Casablanca.  Superficial, hasty, but passionate romance versus authentic, deep, but composed romance.  Scandal versus honor.  Sex versus love.  There is more to what she has to say here: developing a philosophy of leisure, fasting from media, reevaluating the music we listen to.  Her several paragraphs on hymnic worship and tradition are particularly weighty.  Read what she says at the end of the chapter:

What I am suggesting to you today is that you remember the best of what was and include that best with the best of what is, or you will break the link in a historical legacy given to us by God.  This means that popular culture can have a thoughtful place in your life, but should not dominate you by the very definition of popular.  This means that it would serve you well to have at least a portion of your experience the classics in music, art, theology, and literature - those things that have been with us for generations.  That understanding will then help you look at today's music, art, and literature critically, helping you to choose and enjoy the best of it.  Having gone through the process of changing your diet, you will find yourself unable to go back to junk food.

The teacher (and fellow young woman believer) in me craves to go through this book with our youth group girls.  To consider why Twilight is not up to snuff.  To consider the dangers of reading cheap fiction.  To consider the movies we watch, and their portrayals of women and romance.  To consider what we do with our free time, whether we are in fact rotting our brains.  To consider what the role of women is in God's plan, and how we can follow Him in that. 

I ask that we as women raise the standard that's been set for us by the world and our churches - in dress, demeanor, critical thinking, and our pursuits.  It's time we take ourselves seriously.

thrifty!

All this for $0.30.  No lie.  

Yes, please, I think I will.

Thus far, then, our Lewis collection:

The Abolition of Man

The Chronicles of Narnia

The Four Loves

The Great Divorce

A Grief Observed

Mere Christianity

Miracles

Reflections on the Psalms

The Screwtape Letters

The Space Trilogy (sans Out of the Silent Planet)

Till We Have Faces

The Weight of Glory

...And some biographies.

Sarah

Sarah, by Marek Halter

This was a quick read for me (I enjoyed it immensely, and it was rather shorter than the other books I've attempted lately).  The first book in the Canaan Trilogy, by French-Jewish author Marek Halter, is an imaginative retelling of the story of Sarah, wife of Abraham.  Though it departs somewhat from the biblical tale (he paints a picture of Sarah as a princess from a neighboring kingdom to Abraham, rather than Abraham's half-sister, as the Bible indicates), the perspective of early civilization, idol worship, and the thorough torment of barrenness put flesh to the story I've heard untold times.  Cliche, I know, but the Genesis story comes to life.  Sarah is given a personality.  Abraham, too.  And he's not perfect.  

Read this if you're interested in historical fiction, if you enjoy retellings of biblical stories with biblical characters, and are just in the mood for a light read with a slightly feminist edge.