Archive | December 2010

Semicolon’s Twelve Best Adult Fiction Books Read in 2010

Dec31

So Much For That by Lionel Shriver. Ms. Shriver rants about health care, and tells a pretty good story. Semicolon review here.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett. Semicolon review here.

Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser. Classic tale of a fallen woman who actually ends up with nothing worse than a feeling of vague discomfort with her pointless life. Semicolon review here.

Black Narcissus by Rumer Godden. Semicolon review here.

The Other Side of the Bridge by Mary Lawson. Semicolon review here.

Crossers by Phillip Caputo. Very violent with gratuitous sex, but also insightful about the U.S./Mexico border wars. Crossers are people who cross the border illegally, for whatever reason, mostly drugs or economic opportunity.

We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver. Very introspective, depressing, and thought-provoking.

Triangle by Katharine Weber. Not only about the famous Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, but also about music. And it’s a history mystery.

Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus by Orson Scott Card. This historical fiction/science fiction novel by a master of both genres was so absorbing that I stayed up late to finish reading it and to find out what would happen to Christopher Columbus in a re-imagined world, changed by time travelers from the future.
Semicolon review here.

Shanghai GIrls by Lisa See. Semicolon review here.

The Passion of Mary-Margaret by Lisa Samson. This book reminded of something as I was reading, and it was only after I finished that I realized what it was: it has a “Touched by an Angel” feel to it, only with a lot more Jesus than Touched By an Angel ever saw fit to indulge. Semicolon review here.

The Best Book I Read in 2010:My Hands Came Away Red by Lisa McKay. Semicolon review here. This story represents really sophisticated and deeply significant Christian fiction. Ms. McKay is not afraid to tackle the hard questions: why does God allow suffering? Why do bad things happen to good people? How do Christians pray when it seems as if God isn’t listening? How is Romans 8:28 (“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”) true? Is it true? Really?
Not only does the book deal with these and other hard questions, the writing is also courageous enough not to give simple, easy answers. But it also doesn’t say or imply that there are no answers. Oh, just read it. Fantastic.

Semicolon: The Year 2010 as Facebook Status

Dec31

I’m finally on Facebook. What AM I thinking?
January 17 at 7:29pm

Ahhh, I’ve had my LOST fix and I’m lost-er than ever. See you in another life, brotha.
February 3 at 2:15pm

Am attempting to observe Lent. “A discipline won’t bring you closer to God. Only God can bring you closer to Himself. What the discipline is meant to do is to help you get yourself, your ego, out of the way so you are open to His grace.” (From Donna at Quiet Life )
February 20 at 8:14pm

Purim in 2010 will start on Sunday, the 28th of February and will continue for 2 days until Monday, the 1st of March. And the first weekend in March the women of my church go on retreat to study the book of Esther! Good timing.
February 23 at 2:57pm

Thin Mint GS cookies make me happy.
February 24 at 9:39pm

I opine that painting doors is a lovely way to welcome spring. And reading Renee Mathis’s favorite poems.
March 19 at 3:54pm

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; behold thy King cometh unto thee:He is just and having Salvation; Lowly and riding upon an ass. Zechariah 9:9
March 27 at 11:15pm

Kendra F. at Preschoolers and Peace recommends Picture Book Preschool.
April 9 at 7:59pm

I love this “bucket list” for Christians by Joe McKeever.
April 24 at 5:47pm

“Her own misfortunes engrossed all the pity she once had for those of another, and nothing gave her ease. In company she dreaded contempt, and in solitude she only found anxiety.” ~The Vicar of Wakefield by Oliver Goldsmith

A few thoughts on the finale of LOST, probably more to come.
May 24 at 9:22am

‎’If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.” Romans 12:18. I realized yesterday that I’m not very good at peacemaking. Now what do I do?
June 14 at 1:18pm

In South Dakota so far we’ve encountered an exploded pizza oven, a lost ice cream truck, and DD’s plane commandeered by Canadians. What more?
July 11 at 3:39pm

“A ‘yes, grace, but’ disposition is the kind of posture that keeps moralism swirling around in the church.” T. Tchividjian
July 18 at 9:59am

“They try to fix us instead of helping us meet the Jesus who is present in our unfixedness. Sometimes they try to silence us so they can protect the rest of the church from people like us because we might poison the rest of the congregation. Mostly, they try to ignore us and hope we’ll go away– and usually we do. We may still attend, but our soul withers and dies because we have decided there is something wrong with us so we silence the very voice of God in our lives.” ~Mike Yaconelli
July 20 at 3:56pm

In Which I Am Born and I meditate on the numbers 52 and 53.
July 28 at 10:09am

Shakespeare at Winedale: I’m back from Winedale with thoughts about Twelfth Night and Macbeth.
August 1 at 5:25pm

What I Learned from Psalm 1. Stand firm, even when you don’t feel like a tree.
August 8 at 10:46pm

I’m having trouble getting my mind wrapped around (home)school this year. So much stuff to learn and experience, so little time.
August 14 at 2:28pm

“What will break me? This is the question that consumes me . . . devours my waking hours and weaves itself throughout my nightmares.”~Mockingjay, ch.11 Will Satan devour us? See my post at Semicolon.
September 17 at 5:39pm

“How monotonously alike all the great tyrants and conquerors have been: how gloriously different are the saints.” ~C.S. Lewis You don’t have to be a robot to be a Christian; God makes every snowflake different.
September 21 at 8:39am

Avoiding a fight is a mark of honor; only fools insist on quarreling. Proverbs 20:3. Think I should make a wall-sized poster & hang it in the kids’ bathroom?
October 8 at 3:30pm

I want to resign —from everything. I might make a competent desert hermit monk (female). Is there a word for that?
October 10 at 11:37am

Thanksgiving: I am thankful for a country in which the transfer of power, or the partial transfer, is peaceful and even fun. Well, it’s fun for me today. Thank you, Lord.
November 3 at 2:01pm

November Thanksgiving: Thank you Lord for #cybils. I’m having so much fun reading Middle Grade Fiction. Lovely books.
November 11 at 11:28pm

Mature Christians are those who realize the depth of their brokenness and cling all the more tightly to Jesus.
November 16 at 8:52

C.Colson: “In a culture marked by radical individualism & the dictatorship of relativism, obedience to [Christ] is a revolutionary act.”
November 19 at 9:54am

“A young man who wishes to remain a sound Atheist cannot be too careful of his reading. . . . God is , if I may say it, very unscrupulous.” CS Lewis, Happy Birthday!
November 29 at 1:30pm

I seem to have misplaced my JOY; has anyone seen it lying around?
December 16 at 12:02am

Eschewed worry; found joy; Merry Christmas all!
December 22 at 6:56pm

Happy New Year–from Facebook to me to you.

Lying Liars and the Lies They Tell

Dec31

Several of the Cybils Middle Grade Fiction nominees deal with kids who get themselves into a heap of trouble by lying.

In I, Nicky Flynn, Finally Get a Life (and a Dog), the title character finds himself enmeshed in a web of lies when he tries to investigate the history of his new dog, Reggie. Some old guys at the park assume that Nicky is the grandson of Reggie’s previous owner, a blind man named Alf, and Nicky goes along so that he can find out more about Alf and why Reggie, a former guide dog, was retired and sent to the pound. Then, Nicky starts telling more and more lies to sustain his investigation until eventually the lies get out of hand, Reggie gets hurt, and Nicky becomes a fugitive from his mom, maybe even from the law.

Ratfink by Marcia Thornton Jones is about Logan, who’s starting fifth grade determined to stay out of trouble. However, trouble seems to follow him, especially when the new girl in school becomes his arch-enemy, and Logan’s best friend, Malik, decides Logan can’t be trusted, and Logan’s grandfather starts doing embarrassing stuff. The solution for Grandfather’s memory problems in the book is a little unbelievable, but it does mesh well with Logan’s “memory problem” of telling exaggerated stories when he should stick to the truth and nothing but the truth. Logan learns to save the stories for written fiction.

The girls also have their issues with making up stories and lies to impress others.

The Reinvention of Moxie Roosevelt has Moxie reinventing herself when she goes away to boarding school and realizes that she can be anyone she wants in this new place where nobody know her. Will she be the Mysterious Earth Goddess (MEG), the Hale and Hearty Sports Enthusiast (HHSE), or the Detached, Unique, Coolly Knowing Individual (DUCKI)? And can she possibly remember which persona she tried out on which new friend without her trusty notebook? I liked the fact that Moxie was just trying out different attitudes when things got totally out of hand. I can see that sort of thing happening to an imaginative thirteen year old. And I liked the idea that when it came time for confessions, Moxie kept some friends and lost others because that’s the way it really works. Lies have consequences, but sometimes you get forgiveness, too.

In My Fake Boyfriend Is Better Than Yours by Kristina Springer, Tori thinks her old, but now wealthy, friend, Sierra, is making up the boyfriend she says she acquired in Florida while on vacation at the beach. So Tori invents her own fake boyfriend, and the competition becomes fast, furious and time-consuming. Cute and sweet and twisty-turny. You’ll keep reading to figure out who’s telling the truth, who’s going to confess, and whose boyfriend really is a fake.

Nutsby Kacy Cook features 11 year old Nell, a homeschooler, who lies to her mentor, Libby, over the internet about her age and other details of her life so that she can take care of two baby squirrels she finds in her yard instead of taking them to a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. It turns out to be a really bad idea, with some devastating consequences for at least one of the squirrels.

In Happy Birthday, Sophie Hartley by Stephanie Greene, almost ten year old Sophie tells everyone at school that she’s getting a baby gorilla for her birthday. Even though Sophie knows deep down that her parents never really promised her a real baby gorilla, she almost convinces herself that her birthday wish will come true. Thereby demonstrating one danger of lying: you might even fool yourself.

I would recommend all of the above, but my favorite was Moxie Roosevelt. Have any of these books or others made you think about lies, exaggerations, and the consequences thereof? I think it would be great book club theme to read several of these books with a group of kids and discuss how easily untruths can spin out of control and cause a world of hurt.

The shortlists for the 2010 Cybils will be announced on New Year’s Day. And that’s no lie.

Semicolon’s Twelve Best Middle Grade Fiction Books of 2010

Dec30

When Molly Was a Harvey Girl by Frances M. Wood. Semicolon review here. Thirteen year old Molly pretend to be eighteen so that she and her old sister Colleen can get jobs together as Harvey girls at the famous restaurant chain in Raton, New Mexico. I liked the vivid portrayal of what it was like to work in the Harvey House restaurant and of the characters in a 1880’s town on the frontier of civilization.

Wishing for Tomorrow: The Sequel to A Little Princess by Hilary McKay. Semicolon review here. Whatever happened to Sara Crewe and all her friends at Miss Minchin’s Select Seminary for Young Ladies? Find out in this lovely story by the author of the Casson family books.

Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm. Semicolon review here. Eleven year old Turtle joins the Diaper Gang when she goes to live with her extended family in Key West, Florida.

The Fences Between Us by Kirby Larson. Semicolon review here. I couldn’t resist this Dear America story about the daughter of a Baptist pastor who ministers to Japanese Americans during World War II.

Clementine, Friend of the Week by Sara Pennypacker. Semicolon review here. The best Clementine book so far. Fine.

Belly Up! by Stuart Gibbs. Semicolon review here. A cantankerous hippo who is the main attraction at FunJungle dies mysteriously, and Teddy is convinced that Henry the Hippo is the victim of cold-blooded murder. But can he prove it? And will Summer McCracken, the rich daughter of FunJungle’s owner, J.J. McCracken, be a help or a hindrance in the investigation?

Betti on the High Wire by Lisa Railsback. Semicolon review here. Babo lives in an abandoned circus with other abandoned children in a country torn by war and civil unrest. Then, Babo is adopted by Melons (Americans), and she becomes Betti, and the confusion begins. An excellent story about adoption and family and culture shock.

Crunch by Leslie Connor. Semicolon review here.A fuel shortage strands the Marriss parents up north while the kids take care of the Marriss Bike Barn. And bicycles become a hot commodity.

The Reinvention of Moxie Roosevelt by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel. When Moxie goes away to boarding school, she realizes that she can reinvent herself as anyone she wants to be. But can she remember who she’s decided to become?

Wildfire Run by Dee Garretson. Son the president of the United States, Luke and his friends, Callie and Theo, must escape a forest fire and security systems to save their lives when they are accidentally stranded at Camp David.

Boys Without Names by Kashmira Sheth. Eager to find work after his hungry family arrives in Mumbai, 11-year-old Gopal ends up locked in a one-room “factory” making beaded frames with five other boys so beaten down they don’t even talk to one another. The boys have no names because their boss manipulates them to distrust one another in the interest of keeping them in slavery. Heart-rending, but never preachy, and ultimately hopeful.

The Death (and Further Adventures) of Silas Winterbottom: The Body Thief by Stephen M. Giles. Melodrama at its best, in the tradition of Lemony Snicket. Three young people from quite dysfunctional families gather at the home of their evil and dying uncle, Silas Winterbottom, to find out who his heir will be. Will it be Adele, whose mother has threatened to send her to a horrible school if she doesn’t bring home the bacon? Or will Isabella, the beautiful con artist and thief, be able to fool Uncle Silas into choosing her? Or will Silas choose Milo, who’s only there for revenge? Daring, dastardly, and devious.

And that’s my sort of short list. The short list for the Cybils Middle Grade Fiction category will be announced on January 1, 2011. All I can say is that some of the books on my list may be on the official short list, and others will not. There’s some seriously good fiction out there, folks.

And Now For Something Completely Different: Cybils Off the Wall

Dec30

Some of the Cybils Middle Grade Fiction books I read were just . . . well, oddballs. In a good way, mostly.

Sir Seth Thistlethwaite and the Soothsayer’s Shoes by Richard Thake. O.K. First read that title out loud. It’s absolutely the best book title I’ve read this year. In the book, Sir Seth and his friend Sir Ollie, “fearless and famous ten year old knights”, go out in the morning to “seek out injustice and uphold fair play and rescue fair maidens from fire-breathing dragons, and, if time allowed, slay all those miserable, invisible things hiding under your bed.” Lots of wordplay, punning, and rhyming make this title somewhat reminiscent of Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth. I was also reminded of The Princess Bride and strangely enough, maybe because of the illustrations (?), of Adventures in Odyssey. Sir Seth and Sir Ollie and their faithful steed, Shasta, who’s really a dog, go on a quest to find the soothsayer’s truth-telling shoes that have been stolen from Sir Shawn Shrood the Soothsayer of Thatchwych by poxy Prince Quincy of Poxley Castle in High Dudgeon. Yeah, if you like that description, you’ll enjoy lots more tongue twisters and creative anachronisms in this short, but sweet imaginary adventure story.

Finn Reed, Flu Fighter: How I Survived a Worldwide Pandemic, the School Bully, and the Craziest Game of Dodge Ball Ever by Eric Stevens is a another kind of oddity. Finn Reeder finds himself keeping a journal for his sixth grade English class for five weeks in the midst of a worldwide flu pandemic. When, one by one, everyone in his school, everyone at home, all of his friends, even his worst enemy, all fall victim to H1N1 flu, Finn Reeder ends up plying solo dodge ball in an empty gym with a crazy coach looking on from afar. Can Finn survive and avoid the craziness and the flu virus that have overtaken his teachers, family and schoolmates? And who is the silent substitute wearing a gas mask to school?

Secrets of a Lab Rat: Mom, There’s a Dinosaur in Beeson’s Lake by Trudi Truett has fourth grade inventor Scab McNally finding a prehistoric swamp creature in Beeson’s Lake. But the only way his mom will let him go back to the lake so that he can prove the existence of the dinosaur is for Scab to pass the Salmon level swim class. Unfortunately, Scab’s afraid of swimming, especially diving. Fortunately, he knows how to fake it or avoid it. Unfortunately, he plays a prank and gets himself grounded. Fortunately, Scab has an escape hatch through his bedroom window. Unfortunately . . .

Spike and Ali Enson by Malaika Rose Stanley. Spike, who is adopted, discovers that Ali, his new baby brother is actually an alien, not human at all. Is it just a case of sibling rivalry?Or is it true, and will anyone believe Spike before it’s too late? Velly British, with all the talk of “mates” and “nappies” and shepherd’s pie. Also, very strange, since Ali really is a space alien, maybe, I think.

Buddy Zooka in the French Quarter and Beyond by Tracey Tangerine. I tried, but couldn’t get into this one. However, it might appeal to some of the more zany readers in the audience. So here’s the publisher’s blurb: “Buddy Zooka brings the French Quarter to life like no one since Ignatius Reilly. Buddy is a happy-go-lucky musician in the French Quarter until one day he goes fishing and catches an alligator, Mardi Gater, who quickly decides to take up residence in Buddy’s hat. Thrown off his usual carefree routine, Buddy loses his smile and starts to contemplate his world. Buddy’s journey turns spiritual as faith healers show him how man has been degrading his environment and how the secret to our salvation resides within each one of us.”

Departure Time by Truus Marti. Translated from the Dutch and it, too, lost me from the beginning. The hotel from hell? A talking rat and a fox host? Amnesia and a traveling musician father? I’m just not putting all this stuff together. But Charlotte loved it. And Betsy at Fuse #8 thought it was “a singular, memorable book.” So either I gave up too soon, or I’m not as strange as They are.

Anyway, if you’re up for odd, bizarre, eccentric, or freaky, one of the above might tickle your fancy. Tell them I sent you.

The shortlists for the 2010 Cybils will be announced on New Year’s Day.

Oh, and what’s the strangest book you read this year?

Semicolon Bible Study and Reading Plan for 2011

Dec30

I posted the other day about 52 Ways to Read and Study the Bible in 2011, and Nina asked what my plan was for 2011.

Book-at-a-Time Bible Reading Plan from Discipleship Journal (NavPress) I plan to see if Engineer Husband or any of my children would like to join me in reading through the Bible according to this plan this year.

I also hope to do an in-depth study of at least one book of the Bible each month:

January: Galatians

February: Proverbs

March: Matthew

April: Matthew

May: Proverbs

June: Jonah

July: Hosea

August: I Corinthians

September: Job

October: John

November: John

December: John

O.K. I’d rather set my goals high and miss than set no goals and achieve . . . nothing. I’m hoping to set aside about an hour a day for Bible study and reading this year.

Semicolon’s Tweets of the Year: 2010

Dec30

This is the year I joined Twitter, for better or for worse. At least Twitter enables me to look back over the year and see some of the things that happened and that made this year, 2010, significant:

Perfectionim/legalism can kill, folks. http://tinyurl.com/yl3t6af GRACE!
2:23 PM Feb 21st via TweetDec

Studying Esther on retreat He is present when not seen and in the business of rescuing His people
7:47 AM Mar 7th via mobile web

Thanks to Melissa at Mental Multivitamin for saying what I’m thinking again: Get real http://bit.ly/b8FFlq
2:56 PM Mar 16th via TweetDec

Put together loans, aid, our contribution, expenses for DD’s college next fall, and we’re xthousand short. Praying . . .
8:43 PM Apr 2nd via TweetDeck

It’s Poem in your Pocket Day. Are you carrying?
7:17 AM Apr 29th via TweetDeck

52 Things That Fascinate Me http://bit.ly/bcHf04 What are your obsessions?
8:17 AM Jun 21st via TweetMeme

Daughter says we have to find a new TV series to watch as a family since LOST is over. Suggestions?
7:35 PM Jun 22nd via TweetDeck

Bliss List, Book Hooks, Fascinations http://bit.ly/9j6Tum What are yours?
8:56 AM Jun 29th via TweetMeme

Been listening to pop music for 1200 miles/now suicidally depressed #road trip
2:37 PM Jul 8th via Echofon

AT&T covers 97 percent of all Americans. The other 3 percent live in SD.
11:28 AM Jul 16th via Echofon

I like rain but sitting here in my van in the intermittent rain is making me sad –with no book to read
7:31 PM Jul 27th via Echofon

Judge Walker: “Marriage under law is a union of equals.” So what is basis for outlawing polygamy now?
9:50 AM Aug 5th via TweetDeck

If, theoretically, I were going to Nashville for a few days for the first time ever, what people, places, and events should I not miss?
1:15 PM Sep 6th via TweetDeck

“There are 100’s of connections & meanings & implications in the Bible that do not leap off the page at 1st reading . .slow down.” J. Piper
1:04 PM Sep 21st via TweetDeck

I’ve lived here (in Texas all my life), but still feel like I’m not old enough to be a m’am. I look behind to see who the grown-up is.
6:19 PM Sep 29th via TweetDeck

Thank you , Lord, for beautiful weather, flashes of insight, #Cybils and healthy sleeping children.
October 4, 2010 8:43:43 AM CDT via TweetDeck

Avoiding a fight is a mark of honor; only fools insist on quarreling.Pr20:3 I think make a wall-sized poster & hang in the kids’ bathroom?
October 8, 2010 3:29:30 PM CDT via TweetDeck

I’m ready for history class tomorrow, but are my students ready? Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison . . .
October 14, 2010 8:25:47 PM CDT via TweetDeck

Sunday Salon: Miscellaneous Fascinations http://bit.ly/bm8hTb retro library T, awards, Zambia and (not) pink. Oh, and a Christian actress.
October 17, 2010 4:16:06 PM CDT via TweetMeme

Books for Zambia http://bit.ly/cCA2ug I’ll be accepting books thru end of the year. Would you like to give children the gift of reading?
November 15, 2010 10:34:45 PM CST via TweetMeme

Mature Christians are those who realize the depth of their brokenness and cling all the more tightly to Jesus. http://bit.ly/aQh4wt
November 16, 2010 8:52:43 AM CST via TweetDeck

Lost in Middle Earth http://bit.ly/bs3pVC What books do you wish you could read again for the first time?

C.Colson: “In a culture marked by radical individualism & the dictatorship of relativism, obedience to [Christ] is a revolutionary act.”
November 19, 2010 9:54:30 AM CST via TweetDeck

I seem to have misplaced my JOY; has anyone seen it lying around?
December 16, 2010 12:02:50 AM CST via TweetDeck

52 Ways to Read and Study the Bible in 2011 http://bit.ly/gMurcI
4:10 PM Dec 27th via TweetMeme

Semicolon’s 12 Most Crucial News Stories of 2010

Dec29

1. On Jan. 12 a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit the town of Léogâne, approximately 16 miles west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, leaving 250,000 dead. The presidential palace, the United Nations headquarters and the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption were destroyed. Around 300,000 were injured, and more than a million Haitians were left homeless; those whose homes survived slept outside for months as aftershocks continued into March. It’s been almost a year now, and Haitians are still experiencing homelessness, joblessness, and political turmoil. Pray for Haiti.

2. On April 20, 11 workers were killed and 17 others were injured when an explosion aboard the Deepwater Horizon Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit caused the unit to burn and sink, precipitating the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history.
Although the BP well was finally capped in mid-August, cleanup of the Gulf is still ongoing and scientists are beginning a yearlong study of the ocean and shore environments, seeking to identify long-term effects.

3. On March 23, 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act became law. Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi blithely remarked, “we have to pass [the health care bill] to see what’s in it.” Pro-life Democrats in the House provided the deciding votes in return for . . . nothing. Republicans are promising to try to overturn the act and rescind it in 2011.

4. Ongoing holocaust: More than 50 million American babies have been aborted since 1973. THis “story” may be the most significant and consequential of this year, or any year since ’73. How can we escape the horrific consequences of killing our own children, year in and year out? God forgive us.

5. War and persecution in Afghanistan.

6. An 8.8-magnitude earthquake on Feb. 27 released 500 times more energy than Haiti’s quake and became the fifth-strongest earthquake ever recorded. But Chileans fared better than Haitians because of better building codes.

7. The last of U.S. combat forces in Iraq left in mid-August. Some non-combat troops and Special Forces remain. “The day after the 2nd Infantry Division left, bombers and gunmen killed at least 55 Iraqis and wounded hundreds in nearly two dozen coordinated attacks across the country.”

8. On Oct. 31, attacks on a Baghdad church service left 58 dead and more than 70 wounded. Christians have been leaving and continue to flee Iraq.

9. The European Union and the International Monetary Fund bailed out Greece in May to the tune of $145 billion. Then, in November, the EU and the IMF bailed out Ireland’s economy, $130 billion. They say either Spain or Portugal or both are next.

10. WikiLeaks began releasing portions of 250,000 diplomatic cables after Thanksgiving, 2010, to select newspapers and via its own website. The head of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, has yet to be charged with treason or any other crime in the United States.

11. The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization, held October 17-25 in Cape Town, South Africa brought together enthusiastic participants from Latin America, Africa, and Asia —and some from Europe, North America, and Australia, too. “Participants devoted much of Saturday to repentance and prayer as they responded to a call to reflect on the movement’s lack of humility, integrity, and simplicity.”

12. iPhone 4, iPad, e-Readers of all kinds, apps, Facebook, Twitter, Google, and tablets are all changing the way we communicate and the way we use technology to relate to one another and to educate and amuse ourselves. Maybe the technologies are also changing us, but it’s difficult to know how or how much.

World Magazine’s Top Ten News Stories of 2010.

Actually, these are only the stories we know about that might be significant influences on the future of our world or of God’s Kingdom. The real story may be a baby born somewhere in China or Albania or Venezuela, or a young woman born again in a tiny church near an obscure village, or two or three gathered together faithfully to pray for God’s deliverance and for revival. It’s amazing to me to think that someday in heaven, we may be able to see and hear about all those really crucial events and people that God used to bring about His will and His plan for our little planet.

God is in control.

Around the World with Cybils Nominees

Dec29

Asia
Afghanistan: Shooting Kabul by N.H. Senzai. Semicolon review here.
Thunder Over Kandahar by Sharon McKay.
Burma: Bamboo People by Mitali Perkins. Semicolon review here.
China: Year of the Tiger by Allison Lloyd.
Japan: Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus. Semicolon review here.
India: Boys Without Names by Kashmira Sheth.
Laos: Escaping the Tiger by Laura Manivong. Semicolon review here.
Northern Mariana Islands: Warriors in the Crossfire by Nancy Bo Flood.
Vietnam: A Million Shades of Gray by Cynthia Kadohata. Semicolon review here.

Africa
Botswana: Travels With Gannon and Wyatt by Patti Wheeler and Keith Hemstreet. Semicolon review here.
Liberia: Mamba Point by Kurtis Scaletta.
Abe in Arms by Pegi Dietz Shea. (YA)
Nigeria (?): Anna Hibiscus by Atinuke.

Europe
France: No and Me by Delphne de Vigan. Semicolon review here.
Scotland: The Young Chieftain by Ken Howard.
Italy: Ana Maria’s Gift by Janice Shelfeman.
England: Pies and Prejudice by Heather Vogel Frederick.
The Netherlands: Departure Time by Truus Matti.

South and Central America
Cuba: The Red Umbrella by Christina Diaz Gonzalez. Semicolon review here.
Chile: The Dreamer by Pam Munoz Ryan and Peter Sis.
Fictional Central American country: Max Cassidy: Escape from Shadow Island by Paul Adam. Semicolon review here.

North America
Mexico: Flat Stanley’s Worldwide Adventures#5: The Amazing Mexican Secret by Jeff Brown.
The Heart Is Not a Size by Beth Kephart.
Bermuda: Camp X: Trouble in Paradise by Eric Walters.
Canada: Grease Town by Ann Towell. Semicolon review here.

12 Books I Plan to Read on my New Kindle This Year

Dec28

Yes, I got a Kindle for Christmas. I’ve already read one book on it, and I plan to read a lot more. I hope to use the Kindle mostly for “classics” reading because I believe in reading old books and because old, out of print/copyright books are inexpensive and easier to find in e-Reader format.

I’m excited about reading these books soon:

The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy. I’ve already starte this one, and although it’s moving a little too slowly for my middle grade fiction-saturated brain, it may be just what I need to re-enter the adult book world for a while.

A Passage to India by E.M. Forster. I’ll be reading this book sometime this year for My Friend Amy’s Faith and Fiction Roundtable.

The Club of Queer Trades by G.K. Chesterton. I’ve been wanting to read this novel by Chesterton for some time, but I haven’t been able to find a copy. Amazon Kindle had a copy of Chesterton’s complete works for a great price.

The Guns of Bull Run by Joseph Alexander Altsheler. I read one of Mr. Altsheler’s books about the Texas Revolution and thoguht he was at least as good as Henty, maybe better. He has a whole series of books set during Civil War battles, and if I like this first one, I’ll read the rest.

The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope. I like Trollope, and this one is supposed to be one of his best novels.

Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson. I don’t usually like short stories, but these are inter-related short stories about the people who live in a small town in Ohio. So, yeah, maybe.

The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne. Another book I’ve wanted to check out, but have been unable to find. Milne writes mystery.

The Crisis by Winston Churchill. No, not that Winston Churchill. The other Winston Churchill was an American, turn of the century, best-selling author of mostly historical fiction. The Crisis is set during the Civil War.

The Octopus: A Story of California by Frank Norris. Another turn of the century novelist, Norris wrote mostly naturalistic stories about corporate greed and monopolistic businessmen. The Octopus is about the Pacific and Southwest Railroad in California.

The Reign of Law: A Tale of the Kentucky Hemp Fields by James Lane Allen. A best-seller in 1900.

Elizabeth and Her German Garden by Elizabeth von Arnim. Another one I’ve been looking for.

Fireflies in December by Jennifer Erin Valent. The 2010 Christy Award in the First Novel category went to: Fireflies in December by Jennifer Erin Valent (Tyndale House Publishers). I somehow managed to download it for free at the Kindle store on a day when someone was feeling generous.

So, I downloaded all of the above for free, or almost free, and I intend to tryout each and every one. I’ll let you know what I think.