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Literature

May Book Reviews: Judge

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So. . . I just kinda’ launched into May without thinking about it, and then realized I never officially made ‘book reviews’ a permanent thing.  I thought that after the third month I’d ask if you guys wanted to make it permanent.  But I’m out of patience, so what do you say to doing them every month until further notice?

You can read a review of Prophet by R.J. Larson here.  I came across it a while ago while digging through Leah’s ‘fantasy’ tag.  Looking back at it now, I feel like there’s a lot that could be said about that book, but reviews can only be so long and it was enough to get me interested.  Leah mentioned later that the Kindle version was free (I also read Waltz Into the Waves because of Kindle’s free, Leah-recommended version), and Spencer got it (because I’m pretty much helpless around computer, Kindles, and all electronics).  And I loved it!

My reader Savannah recently let me borrow her copy of Prophet‘s sequel, Judge.

“Not that I’m questioning matters, but isn’t this Ela of Parne’s role?  She’s the prophet and messenger. . . or have you turned prophet as well?”  “I hope not.” (19)

I felt like the romance was more of a drag than in Prophet, and there was one part that I felt was un-creatively close to a Bible-story; and it does cover some pretty adult-level topics, so I would definitely recommend children seeking parental guidance.  I also did not feel like the author resolved some of these tough situations very well–just pulled the main characters out and moved on.

But over-all I really enjoyed it, and found it spiritually encouraging.  I think it helped me grasp more of God’s character, and it also challenged me to make Him the center of my life.

As well as for the other Parnians who were rushing up to the wall walk, against her warnings, brandishing their swords and bows and arrows.  Infinite?  Why won’t they listen?! (187)

Literature

May Book Reviews: Mr. Revere and I

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I had listened to Mr. Revere and I by Robert Lawson when I was little*, but when Mama asked me if I wanted to read it for history this year, I didn’t even have to think about it; and it was sooo fun to hear again!

“She’ll be a horse to be proud of.  She got the lines and build.  Can’t fool me on horses.  She’d better have two-three weeks’ rest though.”  “She’ll have to,” Paul Revere laughed.  “You see, I’ve never yet been on a horse.” (46)

For one thing, I had forgotten how funny it was! 🙂  It is about a horse named Scheherazade (or Sherry) who belonged to a red coat, and went to Boston with him.  After her master, Sir Cedric Barnstable gambled her off to the owner of a glue factory, she was rescued from a life of drudgery by the Sons of Liberty and given to Paul Revere–and then, of course, carried him on his famous midnight ride.

Mr. Revere and I is a really good book–not only entertaining, but also informative; most of the story taking place before the famous ride.  I am not sure how much of it is strictly accurate, but it was sure fun to read again; and the story from the point of view of a brainwashed British horse is quite amusing!

It all started with the imbecile, practically sacrilegious, determination of these stubborn Colonists to defy the sacred authority of our Royal and Sovereign Majesty King George III. (4)

Sherry’s perspective is quite skewed at first, but it doesn’t come across anti-patriot-ish at all; so no worries.

But like I said, I’m not sure how much of it is accurate; and Mr. Lawson didn’t just paint Sam Adams and John Hancock to be geniuses, which might bother some; but you just have to read it for what it is.  And I definitely recommend it!

Of course this rude bumpkin was no horseman; I could have tossed him off as easily as a sack of grain.  But naturally, for a horse of my breeding, this would never do.  For one must never, never allow one’s personal feelings to interfere in the perfect performance of one’s horsely duties. (34)

Happy Thursday! 🙂

 

 

*  Can you tell that this is my second year studying American history? 🙂

Literature

April book reviews: Jesus Prequel

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Dr. Eric Smith attends our church, and gives the Sunday message occasionally.  On one of those weeks, they mentioned that he had published a book, called Jesus Prequel: Old Testament Themes Pointing Toward New Testament Fulfillment, and they had several copies that people could buy.

We bought one, and Mama read it.  She said it was very good, and all the rest of us should read it too.  She put it on my desk and, since my desk is half mine half Becca’s and in the middle of the main-level, I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to read it or if someone had just left it there.

So it sat there for like a week, before I clarified that I was supposed to read it.  It took me a little while to read because I was at a home-school kid’s conference (you can see pictures on my friend’s blog here), but I did read it eventually and really liked it.

Much of what we read in the Gospel’s may seem strange to us.  As first-century Western readers, we’re removed from Jesus’ context in so many ways: language, culture, worldview, time, location, just to name a few.  Because of that distance, our view of Jesus may be a bit fuzzy. . . Feeling at home in the Old Testament, I have found, informs how I have read the New Testament.  This book is meant to sharpen your picture of Jesus by deepening your understanding of the world Jesus came from and the people he taught.  Most of all, I wrote this book to show you Jesus and provoke your worship of him. (x)

That quote from the introduction pretty much sums up what Jesus Prequel is about: it simply gives you a better understanding of the culture in which the Bible took place.  When you understand the culture and know the language in which it was originally written, you better understand the Old Testament.  And when you understand that, the Gospels make more sense.

Jesus Prequel was not overly-Old-Testament-ish, or hard to understand.  It was clear and easy-to-read, and helped me understand the actions of Jesus and the people he interacted with, as well as the actions of people from the Old Testament and the regulations that God gave.  You can purchase a copy here.

Happy Thursday!

P.S.  Sorry it took me so long to get this posted.  Don’t miss the story-post I did this morning.

Literature

April Book Reviews: Begin

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Philip and Erin Ulrich published The Growly Books one by one in 2013.  Mama heard about them when they published the first book, Begin; which she bought for me to try out.

It was the first time she had given me a book she did not know a lot about and asked me to tell her if it was any good, and I was a little nervous.

It proved to be a very good book though.  It was written for children ages 8 to 12; but I read at least one, maybe both, of the other two books in the series after I turned 13, and still really enjoyed them.  There are talking animals, but they are not handled in a very childish way.

Actually, I liked the way Mr. and Mrs. Ulrich handled the talking animals interacting with humans and other kinds of animals better than any other talking-animal-book I have read.  Every kind of animal had a language.  Two animals of different kinds could communicate only if one or both had learned the other’s language.  There was a people-language, a bear-language, a bee-language, etc.

As soon as they set out this morning, Growly knew this was where they were coming.  It was the perfect place for a day like today.  It was the perfect place for the beginning of an Adventure. (3)

Begin is about a bear cub named Growly.  He starts out on a well-planned “Adventure” in the wilderness, at the end of which he will be no longer called a cub, but a Young Bear; only to find himself on a much greater adventure, called out into unknown territory, with no promise he can find a way back home.

There were occasions though when Growly saw her from a distance, looking out the library window toward The Precipice.  At those times she had a far off look on her face, and he saw her wiping her eyes.  When she noticed him at last though, her smile would return. . . (23)

The bears of the city of Haven live on the edge of The Precipice, and no one knows what is beyond it.  Growly’s grandfather had a dear friend named C.J. who was blown over The Precipice in his glider during a storm.  No one has seen him sense.

At the beginning of his Adventure, Growly encounters the only creature that the bears know has been with C.J. beneath the clouds at the edge of The Precipice–a bird.  Growly cannot understand its language, but the bright, little animal gets it across that C.J. is in great danger.

Driven by the love of his friends and family for this bear he has never met, Growly follows the bird in his own glider over The Precipice into the unknown. . . only to loose his only guide and have to continue his search in this strange new world all alone.

Growly’s determination and dedication was sobering.  He makes great sacrifices for someone he has never even met.

He didn’t say anything for quite a while, but the look in his eyes made Growly feel so happy and loved that he couldn’t stop grinning. (3)

Growly does not have any siblings, but his relationship with his parents was wonderful.  Strained relationships in families are common in stories, but they bother me.  There are also several other characters that do have siblings, and their relationships are great!

There was a bit of romance–okay, kind-of a lot, which surprised me considering it was a kid’s book about animals that wear clothes; but it was all well-handled.

“I. . . I thought there were two guests,” he stammered.  “Well hello to you too!” Merridy replied, pretending to be offended.  “Who else were you hoping might be here?” . . . Growly felt himself blushing, and he knew Merridy could see it, too.  (It’s very difficult to see when a bear blushes, but other bear’s have a way of sensing it.) (24)

Over all I really enjoyed this book, and I could not wait to read the second one (the ending is a bit of a cliff-hanger)!  Over all there are three books, and the others are called Widewater (2) and  Morning (3).  I might do reviews on them too.

“It seems you did something wonderful on your way into the village, Young Bear.  There is quite a bit of confusion as to what it was that you did, but everyone seems to agree that it was indeed wonderful. (201)

Now all the rest of you brace yourselves for Ellen to gush about these books. 🙂  Any of the rest of you read them?

 

 

P.S. You can read the last post Spencer did about his TeenPact homework here. 

Literature

April Book Reviews: Johnny Tremain

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When we were really little Becca, Spencer, and I studied the Revolution, and Mama read Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes out-loud to us.  I am studying the Revolution by myself this year, and I just re-read Johnny Tremain on my own.  I did not remember much about it, so it was still very suspenseful!

This book is about a fourteen-year-old boy (well, he is fourteen at the beginning, but I think he is sixteen by the end) named Johnny who is the apprentice of a silversmith.  Mr. Lapham has two other apprentices, but Johnny is the strongest, the smartest, and the most skilled.

Although two years younger than the swinish Dove, inches shorter, pounds lighter, he knew, and old Mr. Lapham knew, busy Mrs. Lapham and her four daughters and Dove and Dusty also knew, that Johnny Tremain was boss of the attic, and almost of the house. (8)

His smith work bringing in most of the money that supported the Lapham household Johnny spent most of his days in the shop, bullying and criticizing the other apprentices, helping Mr. Lapham keep orders straight, and listening to his mistress’ daughters insulting compliments.

Until he burned his hand in an accident in the shop, and was rendered unable to practice his craft.  Once the ‘boss’ of the house, Johnny was then looked upon as a nuisance and begins to look for another job he can do.

Arrogant, ashamed of his crippled hand, left without work, unaccustomed to being an outcast he struggles in this new life.

Those marketwomen who had counted their pats of butter after he brushed past their stands, Mrs. Lapham with her prophecies that he would end on the gallows, had not been so far wrong.  For a little while it had been touch-and-go with him.  If pushed a little farther, he might have taken to crime–because that was what was expected of him. (109)

When he finally found work he was drawn into a whole new circle of people.  He began to pay attention to politics, and met people like Samuel Adams and Paul Revere–he also begins to discover things about himself and his own life.

After that Johnny began to watch himself.  For the first time he learned to think before he spoke.  He counted ten that day he delivered a paper at Sam Adams’s big shabby house down on Purchase Street and the black girl flung dishwater out of the kitchen door without looking, and soaked him.  If he had not counted ten, he would have told her what he thought of her, black folk in general, and thrown in a few cutting remarks about her master–the most powerful man in Boston.  But counting ten had its rewards.  Sukey apologized handsomely.  In the past he had never given anyone time to apologize. (109)

I am glad that I read this book, but parts of it were very frustrating!  It is very suspenseful–and some of the answer do not get answered… yet another great, good-but-not-perfect-ending book! 🙂  It was very real.  Not ‘story-bookish’.

There were also some pretty fierce parts (that I think Mama skipped the first time she read it to us), so kids might want to have a parent preview it.

This is a really good book though, and very well written.  I do not really feel qualified to write a review about this one either–hence all the quotes! 🙂

Hundreds would die, but not the thing they died for. (269)

Life, Literature

April Book Reviews: The Hundred Dresses

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I’m posting again because it’s Thursday, but you can keep commenting your guesses on my “Mystery Quote” post until next Tuesday.

It was really hot yesterday, but today is cooler.  We had a good thunderstorm last night–lightning and everything–that probably helped!

Due to the heat, Michael and Lucy played in the hose yesterday-afternoon.  We have hot-water in the hose on the back-porch and someone left it on and used up all the hot water!  We were kinda’ worried that the heater was broken, but then figured out it had just run out.  Phew!  We had hot water again by that evening, but I took a cold shower anyway–the weather was just that sweltering.  Took a minute last night to thank God for running water!

Spencer is in Lincoln at TeenPact, which a class for home-school students about American government.  You can read some of his homework on his blog, here.

Anyway: the book review!  Sorry I am a little late in getting this posted, I wasted spent I-don’t-know-how-much time today watching songs from The Sound of Music with M and L! 🙂

Several years ago my Mom read The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes out loud to me, and I liked it from the start.  Which strikes me as weird now, as it is a school-story, which I–being home-schooled–cannot relate to.  But the common misconception that home-schoolers do not have friends is, after all, a misconception; and this book is more about friendship.  It has some pretty stereotypical old-fashioned school tweaks, like popular girls/bullies, good- and bad-sides-of-town, clicks and cast-outs, and unpopular kids; but it has a unique twist.  This book, though not directly Christian, has good morals; real, relatable characters; and is beautifully written.

Continue reading April Book Reviews: The Hundred Dresses →

Literature

March Book Reviews: “Great Expectations”

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I started reading Great Expectations by Charles Dickens on Mom’s Kindle on the plane, on the way home from China.  I read the first couple chapters and then… stopped.  I was going to pick it back up again when we got home, but I just got busy and did not.  Spencer prompted me to finish it, and I told him I would after I read The Sign of the Beaver.

So I did.  And I am sooo glad I did!  It is a wonderful book.  I had my doubts in the middle of it, but I got through it and loved it.

It was not because I was faithful, but because Joe was faithful, that I never ran away and went for a soldier or a sailor. (83)

It is about a little boy called Pip who grew up with his strong-handed sister and her husband the blacksmith, and was later adopted by a rich person to be their heir–without being told who his benefactor is.  Pip moves into his new life, making his guesses at who adopted him; pursuing his passion for the pretty girl he loved from the moment he met her, pushing aside his regret for leaving his brother-in-law and the girl he grew up with, haunted by the guilty-ridden memory of helping an escaped convict when he was a boy.

“You are one of those, Biddy,” said I, “who makes the most of every chance.” (98)

I do not really feel qualified to write a review about this book, in all honesty.  It is just… classic.  It has a very good ending–not the one I was expecting, but a good one.  I was mad at most of the characters through most of the book, but I was at peace with most of them at the end–all of them but two, I think.

She seemed much older than I, of course, being a girl, and beautiful and self-possessed; and she was as scornful of me as if she had been one-and-twenty, and a queen. (43)

It was written in the 1800s and the writing-style was a little difficult to read, but I did alright.  It is also a very long book.  So long, that I started feeling like I was almost done when I still had something like forty pages to read! 🙂

Technically it was realistic, but there were way too many coincidences, and too many eccentric people–which makes for a good story, but is unrealistic.  But realistic was never a priority for me, so that did not bother me at all! 🙂  But Mr. Dickens did seriously tie up all the ends.  It was amazing!  So when a person comes in, expect to see them again.  No matter how small a part they play, start looking for their second appearance.

“You are growing tall, Pip!”  I thought it best to hint, through the medium of a meditative look, that this might be occasioned by circumstances over which I had no control. (75)

This book was really funny, but parts of it were very seriously or sad.  My favorite kind of book is the ones that make you laugh one moment, and cry the next!

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So: do my reviews bore you, or do you like them?  Who’s game for April?
Literature

March Book Reviews: “Waltz into the Waves, A Cinderella Story”

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The author of Counted Worthy mentioned on her blog that the Kindle version of Waltz into the Waves by Sarah Holman was free, and Spencer (my tech-support) got it for me to read.

I glanced down.  The hem of my emerald gown was soaked, and my feet still had sand on them.  I turned a shy gaze back to him.  “I am sure no lady at court would be caught with a wet hem or bare feet.”  Alex took both my hands into his own and spun me around, laughing.  “Perhaps not, but why do you think I am always so eager to return to you?”  I gave a half-hearted smile.  “My father says it is time for me to learn the ways of a proper lady.  After all, it is only a matter of time before the one I am pledged to comes for me.” (8)

Amelia lives along the seashore, balancing her love for her father and her frustration at his next marriage, and her nervousness about her betrothal to a man she has never met with her love for her childhood-friend Alex.

After her father’s unexpected death shortly after his second marriage, one loss follows another for the crushed Amelia–loss of life and friendship, and the loss of her beauty after an accident with the kitchen fire.  As her stepsister and mother endeavor to take everything she calls her own, Amelia bravely tries to except the fact that her scars have rendered her undesirable as a wife for any man.

❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀

This is good book, but it is very romantic–which I guess I should have expected from the title! 🙂 And there is kissing before marriage, which might bother some of my friends who are saving their first kiss for their wedding; but other than that the romance was well-handled.

It is a sweet book, like Miss Good said; not to mention short: I read it in two days!  It was very interesting to think about having watched the Disney Cinderella so many times recently! 🙂

Anyone else read this book, or anything else by Sarah Holman?

Happy Thursday!

 

P.S. The flowers are courtesy of my reader Skylar, in the comments of this post. ✿

P.P.S. The Kindle app on my computer belongs to another user, and getting that quote between users was really fun! 🙂

Literature

March book reviews: The Sign of the Beaver

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I recently read The Sign of the Beaver, by Elizabeth George Speare, for history.  A long time ago my Mom read The Bronze Bow to Becca, Spencer, and I (for history), which is by the same author.  I know at least one of you–a.k.a. Ellen–has already read this book. 🙂 I do not remember it real well, as I was pretty small, but I remember it well enough to compare the books.  I am also in the middle of reading Calico Captive.  Maybe I will do a review of that when I finish it.

The Sign of the Beaver takes place in the 1700s; and is about a thirteen-year-old boy named Matt.  He and his father go as some of the first pioneers to build a house in the wilderness.  Matt’s father then leaves him alone to defend the cabin while he goes to get his mother and younger siblings.

By the morning after that Matt decided that it was mighty pleasant living alone.  He enjoyed waking to a day stretched before him to fill as he pleased.  He could set himself the necessary chores without having to listen to any advice about how they should be done.  How could he have thought that the time would move slowly?  As the days passed and he cut one notch after another on his stick, Matt discovered that there was never time enough for all that must be done between sunrise and sunset. (7)

But living alone becomes less enjoyable when Matt faces unexpected problems.  Losing the gun his father left and losing most of his stored-up food due to a careless mistake, for instance.   Only after Matt hurts himself in a desperate attempt to get food, do the Indians who have long been watching him show themselves.

The Indian chief offers to bring Matt food if he will teach his grandson how to read in English.

“Attean learn,” he said.  “White man come more and more to Indian land.  White man not make treaty with pipe.  White man make signs on paper, signs Indian not know.  Indian put mark on paper to show him friend of white man.  Then white man take land.  Tell Indian cannot hunt on land.  Attean learn to read white man’s signs.  Attean not give away hunting grounds.” (31)

A task that is easier said than done.  Matt has never taught anyone to read and Attean has no interest in learning.  As the days pass the two boys begin to do more and more things together.  Although forced to admit that the Indian boy is teaching him valuable lessons about life in the forest, Matt finds spending time with him frustrating, due to Attean’s scorn of all white men and their customs and tools–which he goes to no pains to conceal.

Attean had only meant to help him.  If only he didn’t have to be so superior about it… He just wished he could make Attean think a little better of him.  He wanted Attean to look at him without that gleam of amusement in his eyes.  He wished that it were possible for him to win Attean’s respect. (57, 58)

I have to say I was infuriated by Attean arrogance as well, and read the whole book in one day because I could not bear the suspense!  It does have a happy ending though–not a perfect one, but a good one.  I am seeing that as a theme in Miss Speare’s books–at least in The Bronze Bow and The Sign of the Beaver.  I am not sure how Calico Captive ends.

And I am not giving spoilers about the white stranger, Ben.  I read two descriptions of this book, that both gave away his good guy/bad guy identity, leaving me just waiting around for things I knew had to happen.  Like when someone gave me their opinion of Strider before I read The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien, and gave away all the suspense.  Small a part as he plays, I do not want to spoil the questions for you.

Over and over his father had warned Matt that it wasn’t as safe as a stone chimney and that he had to watch out for flying sparks.  He needn’t fear.  After all the work of building this house, Matt wasn’t going to let it burn down about his ears. (3)

This is probably the shortest book review I’ve ever done! 🙂  Any of you read this book?  No commenting spoilers please, though!  Any of you (besides Ellen) read any of Miss Speare’s other books?  Happy Thursday!

Literature

March Book Reviews: “The Princess and the Goblin”

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I am going to try to post a book review every Thursday in March.  I’m not ready to get a real schedule going, but I thought I’d try it for a month.  It shouldn’t be too hard, as I love to read and I love to write, and book reviews are a combination of the two!  Once again, I’ll probably fudge a little if I miss a day… or I might skip, ’cause you guys won’t be on cliff-hangers! 🙂

I read this review of The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald and thought it sounded interesting.  I told my mom about it and stated I would like to read it.  She had never read it, but she had heard of it, and said I could check it out from the library.

This book has good morals, but is also humorous and I really liked the beginning.  Somewhere in the middle of it I got pretty “weirded-out” and decided it was not my style.  By the end, though, I had decided I liked it again #inconsistency

To make a long story short: I liked it, but the fact that there was a pretty-much allegorical God-figure without it really being an allegory–And that that figure was a woman–and that she was biological related to Irene, but not to everyone in the story, was hard to get used to.

ANYWAY–This is a story about a princess who was sent to the country to be raised.  She lives in a house in the mountains, and is looked after by her nurse.

“Why, where can you have been, princess?” asked the nurse, taking her in her arms.  “It’s very unkind of you to hide away so long.  I began to be afraid–”  Here she checked herself.  “What were you afraid of, nursie?” asked the princess.  “Never mind,” she answered.  “Perhaps I will tell you another day.  Now tell me where you have been?” (24)

The people bringing her up are forbidden to tell the princess about the existence of the goblins that live in the caverns beneath the mountains.  These goblins only come out at night, when they love to make mischief.  So the people, naturally, stay inside after dark–except a few: some of the miners, who do not fear the goblins because they know what the goblins cannot stand–singing.

At all events, those who were most afraid of them were those who could neither make verses themselves, nor remember the verses that other people made for them; while those who were never afraid were those who could make verses for themselves; for although there were certain old rhymes which were very effectual, yet it was well known that a new rhyme. if of the right sort, was even more distasteful to them, and therefore more effectual in putting them to flight. (48)

Curdie Peterson happens to be one of those who can make up verses on the spot, and truly is never afraid, even when a strange turn of events places him in the kingdom of the goblins themselves (where his songs are less heeded) thanks to another goblin-weakness he discovers.

Princess Irene, in my first quote, happened to be up in the attic where she had gone exploring and gotten lost.  She meets someone who happens to be up there, but I am not going into all that right now… but I will tell you it is the beginning of the princess’s many, many trips to the attic.

Irene and Curdie meet quite by mistake, and that chance meeting is the beginning of several adventures they have together–not always on the best of terms: The princess’s nurse does not approve of Curdie; nor does Curdie approve of Irene’s stories of a thread that she follows that will always lead her to safety, which he himself cannot see or feel.

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I enjoyed this book, though all the ‘magic’ was handled very mysteriously, without the reader ever being given a clear explanation, which bothered me.  It was more of a quiet, innocent story than what I have been reading lately, and both main characters were younger than me.  But there were still some goblin parts that were downright nasty.

They had enough of affection left for each other, to preserve them from being absolutely cruel for cruelty’s sake… (12)

I believe this statement to be contradicted strongly by all goblin-appearances in the rest of the book!

Neither Irene or Curdie had siblings, but I loved their relationships with their parents: Irene did not live with her parents, but her father would come and visit her (I do not think her mother was still alive) and she would go running out and get on his horse with him before he even got off–it was so sweet!!!  Curdie did live with his parents, and their love for each other was amazing!  They were always working for each other and helping each other; and Curdie was very respectful, which is rather hard to find these days.

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In the review I linked to above, Miss Ruth said:

C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien read George MacDonald’s books, and the Chronicles of Narnia and the Hobbit were both influenced by his writings. Thus, however indirectly, many of the fantasy books you read today are influenced by “the Princess and the Goblin”.

So I, of course, began looking for similarities.  I did not think they had a lot in common, but I found three things that reminded me of J.R.R. Tolkien’s work:

1) The goblins in Mr. MacDonald’s book have no toes (weird, weird, I know–bear with me) which might have something to do with the toeless troll in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

2) Shelob and the giant spiders in Mirkwood might have been inspired by this reference to extraordinary, if not large, spiders:

It is spider-webs–of a particular kind.  My pigeons bring it to me from over the great sea.  There is only one forest where the spiders live who make this particular kind–the finest and strongest of any. (78)

3) These quotes do not need much explanation!

“Then you’re leaving the story unfinished, Mr. Author!”  “Not more unfinished than it ought to be, I hope.  If you ever knew a story finished, all I can say is, I  never did.  Somehow, stories won’t finish. (203)

–The Princess and the Goblin

‘Why, to think of it, we’re in the same tale still!  It’s going on.  Don’t the great tales never end?’  ‘No, they never end as tales.’ (697)

–The Two Towers

There is still the whole those-were-good-but-these-were-bad problem, but that has little to do with inspiration.

The only that reminded me of C.S. Lewis’s books was the unexplained-magic (^see above^).

Over-all I liked this book, and it was fun to read–which I did in one day! 🙂

“But I must confess that I have sometimes been afraid about my children–sometimes about you, Irene.”  “Oh, I’m so sorry… To-night, I suppose you mean.”  “Yes, a little to-night; but a good deal when you had all but made up your mind that I was a dream. (105)

 

Do you think my book reports are too l-o-n-g???

Happy Thursday!

P.S. If you feel a little out-Middle-Earth-ed by my last two book reviews, so does everybody else whose ever talked to me.  Don’t read my blog if that bothers you.