Wordless Wednesday

A warm water spring in the Ocala National Forest, Florida.

The Kind of Friends We Used To Be - Frances O' Roark Dowell (audio)

“The Kind of Friends We Used To Be” was a featured book on our Scholastic Book Fair this year, so when I stumbled upon the audio in the library, I thought it might be a good selection for the kids and I to listen to in the car. It was pretty short – only four discs – so we were able to listen to the entire story during a few errands and our Mother’s Day roadtrip to the beach this weekend.

Kate and Marilyn have been best friends and neighbors since grade school. They are now entering 7th grade, however, and it is becoming more and more apparent that they have very little in common but their shared history. Marilyn is a cheerleader and has gotten caught up in makeup, fashion, and becoming an elected member of the student government. She also struggles with her parents’ recent divorce. Kate is a jeans and t-shirt kinda girl, and has recently decided to learn to play the guitar, write song lyrics, and has added a big clonky pair of lace-up black boots to her wardrobe.

Each girl has her own middle school challenges. Does Marilyn dare befriend the slightly odd new girl who is an amazing artist, and risk the scorn of the other cheerleaders? Does she even care? Is there anyone she can talk to about how inconvenient and empty a broken home really feels? Kate doesn’t feel like she fits in. She surprisingly finds music as a common ground with the pink-haired older girl down the street that used to torment her, and forms a close friendship with a boy in her creative writing class but is confused about her feelings for him. Each girl sadly misses “the kind of friends they used to be”, but have moved on.

This was a light, moderately entertaining book. While the characters are primarily girls in the 12 to 13 year old age range, my 11 year old daughter and 9 year old son were actively interested. The themes weren’t inappropriate and were within the realm of their understanding. The storyline, however seemed to be without purpose. Yes, there were some lessons in there, but it meandered too much to leave much of an impact at the end. I questioned the kids this morning after we finished the audio and before we reached school, and both of them said in monotone voices “it was good”. I couldn’t get much more out of them. Neither really wanted to help review it. I guess I have set the standard with Lois Lowry books and The Hunger Games, and I can’t blame them for their lack of excitement.

Sandy's rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Emma and Ryan's rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Monday Movie Meme - Minor Memories

This week, the Bumbles have changed it up a little for us. They have asked us to close our eyes and reflect back to that fragile moment in our lives when we lost a little of our innocence...when we saw our first rated R movie. Chances are pretty good we weren't "legal", and we knew we were getting away with something a little naughty.

I usually have very vivid memories of my youth. In fact, I can remember conversations I had in first grade with my friends, but often not what I had for breakfast. So I'm a little vexed that this important moment in my life doesn't readily come to mind. In general, my childhood was heavy on the slasher films and light on the sex films...I bet my sister, cousins and I saw Friday the 13th and Halloween a couple dozen times on VHS throughout high school. With a little research on dates, here are my best guesses:

Saturday Night Fever (1977)


I distinctly remember going to see this movie with a group of friends in the Attica (Indiana, not the prison) theater. Attica showed movies that had been released for awhile, like a dollar theater, so it is possible that we saw it in '78, which would have made me 12ish. Julie Reynolds' mom took us, and as we were walking up to buy our tickets, she made a comment under her breath that she hoped the black underwear on John Travolta wouldn't freak us out. I almost wet myself right there on the spot. Did my mom know I was seeing this? I have to imagine she did, but then again, who knows?

The Shining (1980)


I think this was the first scary movie I ever saw...this one came out the same year as Friday the 13th, so I don't know for sure. What was memorable about seeing this movie was that my dad took me, of his own free will. (My sister got to see a Disney movie with my mom.) We'd both seen the trailer, and I'd read the book at this point, so we were pretty excited to see it. Frankly, the book was pretty terrifying, so I was well-prepped for the crazy dead lady, the murdered twins and blood coming out of the elevator. After my initiation with this film, it was an all-out barrage of Friday the 13th/Halloween/Nightmare on Elm Street movies and their inane sequels. I saw them all.


If anyone from my childhood remembers something different, please let me know. So what rated R movie memories do you have?

Book bloggers are the best!

I am way behind on posting some wonderful awards I have received! I received the 2009 Friendly Blogger Award from two amazing blogger friends Serena @ Savvy Verse & Wit and Desert Rose. Serena is one of those bloggers that sets the standard for the rest of us. She writes amazing reviews, participates in blog tours, author interviews, giveaways, and is a very generous supporter to her blogging community. Not only that, but she is an excellent writer of poetry! Thanks Serena! And if you have been following my blog for any lenth of time at all, you know Desert Rose. I think a majority of my awards have come from her. She herself is one of the friendliest bloggers out there, and reads a wide array of books. There is something for everyone on her blog!

I also received another award from Serena, the #1 Blogger Award. The originator of this award, Naida at the bookworm, created this button from a photo of her new dog Diego. Again, Serena, an award coming from you is an honor. Thank you so much!

Happiness

Earlier this week, I was tagged for an upbeat little meme by Susan at Bear Swamp Reflections. Now before I go any further, I have to wax lovingly about Susan's blog, which is fairly new to me. She has recently finished a seven post series on a photo album that she picked up in an antique shop. The photos are of a vacation taken in the early 1900's by a group of three women and a man (we think, who may be the photographer) overseas to Europe. The pictures are phenomenal, the women interesting. Some of the landmarks are unidentifiable...are they gone now? Some of the activities of the women are mysterious. I had so much fun looking at these pictures, and think that Susan should write a book about them. You must go check them out!

Anyway, on to the meme. In the meme, you need to list ten unimportant things that make you happy. I say, if they make me happy, then they are very important (to me anyway!). Oh well. Here are some of my sources of happiness, in no particular order:

1. A long walk with my audiobook.

2. Writing a review I'm proud of.

3. The smell of freshly cut grass.

4. A weekend evening with no plans.

5. A glass of wine. Or two. Or three.

6. Time with my girlfriends. No kids, no husbands. (No offense.)

7. The beach. Preferably St. George Island, but any will do in a pinch.

8. Playing golf with my husband.

9. Getting a delivery from the library.

10. Spending quality time with my kids. When they aren't fighting or rolling their eyes at me.


I'm supposed to tag some people to play along. But I'm not going to. I am taking a tag hiatus for just awhile. I feel like I have tagged my blogging friends to a bloody pulp with memes and awards. But, if you feel the need for some light musings on happiness, please join in!

Persuasion - Jane Austen

It's a shame that after 42 years, I am only now discovering the genius of Jane Austen. I fell head over heels for Pride & Prejudice, and I jumped into the Classics Reading Challenge with the intent of reading more from Jane. I even bought a two volume set of all of her works. After some trusted advice, I decided Persuasion would be next. Before I talk about the story, though, I want to say two things. 1) I'm NOT a romantic 2) I am not automatically drawn to period movies or literature. Be that as it may, these books rock.

Our central character in Persuasion is Anne Elliot, a middle child, overlooked and underestimated by a family of hypocritical, narcissistic bigots. The father is the ringleader of the whole mess, setting an example for two of his three daughters. He is hypercritical of others based on how they look (freckles and weathered skin are down there with the poo on the bottom of his boots) and how much money they have. Anne, surprisingly, has grown up to be a down-to-earth, level-headed, sincere young lady. She carries with her a deep sadness, though, having been forced to break off an engagement with the love of her life, a Mr. Frederick Wentworth, 8 years prior. Wentworth apparently was not financially worthy at the time, and the family sent him scurrying away with his tail between his legs.

After Mrs. Elliot dies, daddy dearest blows all of his cash, and ends up having to downsize to a smaller place in Bath, and leases his estate to an upstanding sea captain and his wife. (This is an example of karma at its best!) The captain's wife just happens to be the sister to the one and only Frederick Wentworth (now quite wealthy), and when Anne finds out, she just about blows a gasket. All the old emotions come rushing back. Their paths cross again and again, but Wentworth is impossible to read. Is he still mad at her? Does he still love her? At one point, it seems that he is courting another woman, but then he turns his back on her. When a wealthy Elliot cousin breezes into town and starts to buzz around Anne, Wentworth begins to show some cautious interest, but overall is ambiguous in his intentions. Anne is encouraged but doubts her interpretation of his actions.

Now if you're a purist, and haven't read the book and intend to soon, I am about to talk about the story's "big reveal" that Austen is known for. So skip this paragraph if you don't want the spoiler. In Persuasion, the climax comes about a dozen pages from the end, and it is a wonderful scene. Anne is at a function, and is having a spirited discussion with a family friend about whether men or women recover quicker from a broken heart. Anne vehemently argues that women love longer, and find it harder to let go. Wentworth is sitting nearby and overhears the discussion, and understands now that Anne still loves him. He writes a very heartfelt letter to Anne, claiming to have never stopped loving her all these years. This is the ultimate story of second chances. They live happily ever after, of course.

I did thoroughly enjoy this book, but perhaps just a tad less than Pride & Prejudice. I know not everyone agrees. But I felt this book, while full of Austen's usual charm and nuances, was slightly less developed. I would have liked to see more of Wentworth's personality - he felt almost two dimensional. I also would have like the ending to be less abrupt, with just a little more elaboration. (My only basis for comparison is P&P, so I would love the more seasoned readers' opinions!) Only after I'd finished the book did I read that Austen was ill while writing this book, and in fact died before it was published. She hadn't even named the book, and the ultimate title of Persuasion was chosen by Austen's brother. This explains some of my issues, and in fact, makes the whole situation very poignant and bittersweet. At the end of the day, I have confirmed to myself that I must read everything written by Austen and look forward to the journey!

4.5 out of 5 stars.

My heart's desire has arrived!

The seed was planted awhile ago, when Stephen King, in one of his columns in Entertainment Weekly, started talking about this electronic book device, the Kindle. Mr. Pop Culture loved it. I was skeptical. I love the touch and smell of a paper book. I did some research. I threw it into a saucepan and put it on the back burner in my brain.

A mom that volunteered at my Book Fair had one, and I got to touch it. I cranked up the heat a little bit.

I started musing about how many books I would have to drag to Poland and Indiana this summer to keep me entertained (and how much these books would contribute to my 50 pound limit per bag). Last time I went overseas, I took all the Harry Potters with me. They were very heavy, and my husband was very angry. The saucepan was moved to the front burner.

Then Michele, my kindred reading spirit at Reader's Respite, got one. Not only that, I guessed what her first Kindle purchase was, and I won a $25 gift certificate to Amazon. That did it. I started my campaign with my husband. This was the only thing I wanted for Mother's Day and my birthday (coming in June). It arrived yesterday via UPS. I even had to work for it. It required a signature, so I made sure all my vacuuming was done prior to the estimated arrival of said UPS man, I didn't take a shower, and I broke some speed limits going to pick up my son from school and get back home before the UPS man came (plus I left a note on my door threatening him not to leave before I came back). How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

You can download just about any book in the universe via a wireless system built in to the Kindle, which takes about 30 seconds. Prices are reasonable, ranging from about a buck for older books and classics, to $10 to $15 for a new release. The screen is the size of a paperback, and fonts may be adjusted for those who are visually challenged (like me). For most books, you can turn on an audio function (electronic, not person) and it will turn the pages as it reads. You can subscribe to daily/weekly/monthly magazines, newspapers and blogs. The blogs run about a buck a month, and the magazines and newspapers are equal to or less than if you were to subscribe to receive the printed copy. It will hold about 1,500 books, and Amazon will archive them online if you don't want to carry them on your device. You can search Google or Wikipedia (albeit a little slow). You can mark passages you want to save for your posts, you can write notes along the way. The screen is non-glare so you can read it in the sun. You can send and receive some documents to and from your computer at home. The average battery charge, if you turn off the wireless feature, will get you about five days of reading. You can upload MP3 songs to play while you read.

Downsides? It's an Amazon thing. No library e-books are compatible. The online browser function is a little slow. You wouldn't want to use it to blog, for example. But if you need to do a little research on Wikipedia, you can.

This is just what I've gleaned over the last day. I'm going to give it a workout over the next few months, and I'll report back what I find. For now, I am a happy girl.

Oh I forgot to tell you one of the best things. My husband also bought me a beautiful purple leather cover for it!