After reading that story, I am humbled. I think I need so much —health, money, gifts for everyone, children who behave perfectly, a husband who reads my mind. Paul said, “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” And didn’t He supply all we need at Christmas, a Saviour who is sufficient?
All the rest is gravy . . .
Another solution for Lost Sock Syndrome. One of my dear daughters just wears whatever socks are available and clean in her drawer, whether they match or not, mostly not.
Here’s a very practical post by Joe Carter on How To Change Your Mind. I’m planning to follow his plan and see what happens. Tell me if you do it, and if so, what the results are.
Cher Smith is (almost) lost without LOST. I will admit going through some withdrawal pangs on Wednesday evenings, but I find it hard to believe that any writers will be able to resolve fifty loose ends in the plot, which is what somebody says they’ve left.
Gift-buying Tips for Men from Ian’s Messy Desk. That would be gifts for men, not gifts that men buy for others.
Every year on this date, my mom would ask me, “Do you know what today is?”
“Christmas? Almost Christmas? The beginning of Christmas?”
I eventually learned that December 7th has nothing to do with Christmas. Go here for an article by Maggie Hogan on commemorating this “date which will live in infamy” in your homeschool.
The book Early Sunday Morning: The Pearl Harbor Diary of Amber Billows, Hawaii, 1941 by Barry Denenberg is one of the Dear America series from Scholastic. Go here for more information on the book and some activities to accompany it.
Other books for children and young adults:
Air Raid–Pearl Harbor!: The Story of December 7, 1941 by Theodore Taylor
A Boy at War: A Novel of Pearl Harbor by Harry Mazer
World War II for Kids: A History with 21 Activities by Richard Panchyk
Links:
Phil at Brandywine Books: The Last Survivors of Pearl Harbor.
Michelle Malkin: Remembering Pearl Harbor.
From Hawaii, Palm Tree Pundit comments and links to a few others who remember this date.
A list of Christian classics from Julie at Happy Catholic.
Not exactly book-spotting, but I just found out that Ken Myers of Mars Hill Audio has a podcast blog.
In the latest issue of Audition, “Ken Myers talks with Ralph Wood and Alan Jacobs about the power and meaning of James’s fiction, specifically of the themes raised in the bleak (but finally hopeful) story now adapted for the screen by Alfonzo Cuaron, Children of Men.”
Kim at Hiraeth is collecting book piles. Go over and take a look at her books of 2006, and then share yours. I can’t participate because most of my books came from the library, but it looks like fun.
Jeri Westerson posts a list of her favorite books. There are some great reads on this list and a few that I must add to my list.
Take a look at Lindsay’s seasonal blog, Advent for Evangelicals. She’s collecting stories, ideas, crafts, all sorts of helps for evangelicals (and others) who are challenged in the area of celebrating advent.
We’ve decided to go with Cindy’s idea of listening to portions of Handel’s Messiah and discussing those scripture portions that Handel put to music. I found this unit study on Handel and The Messiah with some helpful ideas.
“When words take flight, heroes are born.”
“Imagine a world in which all books have been BANNED.”
There you have the taglines, the story in a nutshell. Fly By Night is all about words and books and freedom of speech and wild heroics. It’s also full of plot twists, memorable characters, fantastical adventures, spies and secrets. Lots of spies and secrets.
In her first novel, Frances Hardinge drops her readers into The Fractured Realm, home of Mosca Mye and her homicidal goose, Saracen. The fractures are real; Mosca compares her country’s politics to a broken honey pot in which the pieces are held together by a fragile bond of honey that will come spilling out whenever any pressure might come to bear. The politics and religious controversies are a bit complicated, and it takes a dedicated reader to get far enough into the book to get it all straight. I found the story fascinating, and so it wasn’t hard for me to fit all the clues together to get a picture of a fantasy land where several religious/political groups are locked in a stasis of power. Any number of events could upset the delicate balance of political power in the kingdom; even the actions of a girl from a small town on the frontier of the country could influence the course of history.
This book reminded me of the Westmark books of Loyd Alexander; it made Betsy at A Fuse #8 Production think of Leon Garfield’s zany Victorian crooks and characters. If you want more information, read her review from last February. She’s a real fan(atic) about the book.
Once again, this book is one of the many good books nominated for the Cybil Award for Middle Grade Fiction.
This afternoon Brown Bear Daughter inhaled this story of a little Jewish girl who survived life during World War II in the Lodz ghetto, and I read it myself in one sitting a few days ago. It’s not a long read, 227 pages, and the prose text is arranged in an almost poetic form such that each page only has about a hundred words. So it doesn’t take long to read, but it does pack an emotional punch.
Ms. Roy wrote the book based on the true story of her Aunt Sylvia Perlmutter, who was one of only twelve children who survived the Lodz ghetto in Poland. If you read the introduction or know anything about the Holocaust, you know from the beginning that there are difficult things coming in this book. I hesitated to give it to my eleven year old daughter because I didn’t know how it would affect her emotionally. However, she read it, said it was a good book, and didn’t seem too disturbed. I was the one who mourned as I read for all those children who didn’t survive —and even for those who did.
The Jewish refrain in relation to the Holocaust is, “Never forget!” However, we’re always only one generation away from forgetting what horrors man can perpetrate upon other men. I don’t know what at what age a child is old enough to learn about the horrors of the Holocaust, but I agree that we must not forget that “civilized” man is only one step away from barbarous acts of cruelty. And at some point even our children need to know that sin and evil are real.
They also need hope, and Jennifer Roy manages to tell a story that is filled with tragedy and yet leaves the reader with hope. As the story begins in the fall of 1939, little Sylvia is four and a half years old. On January 20, 1945, the day after she and her family are liberated from the ghetto, Sylvia celebrates her tenth birthday. By the time she is ten, Sylvia has seen and experienced things that most of us have, thankfully, only read about. She goes on to live a full life, marriage, a son, grandchildren. For over fifty years she doesn’t talk about her experiences during World War II. Finally, she tells her niece in a series of telephone interviews what she remembers of what happened to her and her family during the Holocaust.
It’s a story worth reading and remembering.
Again, this book is one of the many good books nominated for the Cybil Award for Middle Grade Fiction.
Barbara Curtis of Mommy Life always posts inspirational and helpful material. Go here to read a reprint of a newspaper article about a special ranch near Austin, Texas where the residents grow poinsettias.
I suppose this story is a Christmas story because it features poinsettia plants. However, it’s also an all-year-long story because God places special people in our lives year round. Take note of the doctor in the story. If you haven’t been handed the challenge and privilege of parenting a special needs child, you can still be an encourager to someone who has. On second thought, they’re all special needs children in some way or another, aren’t they?
The Dominion Family celebrates advent.
Cindy has some ideas for families with little children and families with older children. I like the idea of listening to and discussing a portion of Handel’s Messiah each day.
Engineer Husband wants me to come up with something to read or listen to (daily?) that will lead our urchins, especially the younger ones. into Christmas. I’m not sure what to pull out or suggest at this late date. Any suggestions?
“My favorite books when I was younger were by Carolyn Haywood– B Is for Betsy and Eddie and His Big Deals. The stories took place in school, in Betsy’s home, and in Eddie’s neighborhood. They had families and ate dinner and waited for the bus. . . When I read those books, it was as if I was wrapped in a warm hug. I saw all the things that I loved and lived— my neighborhood, my friends, and my school. The only thing I didn’t see was me.” —Author Grace Lin
So Grace Lin has written the Chinese American equivalent of B Is for Betsy. Except of course, no two authors are alike, and no good book is simply a copy of another with different characters. The Year of the Dog is a good book, in a comforting, Betsy-ish sort of way. Grace, however, instead of going Christmas caroling on Christmas morning, celebrates Chinese New Year with her family and extended family and lots and lots of food. The story begins with the new year, The Year of the Dog, and ends with another New Year’s celebration, beginning The Year of the Pig. The book is cozy and each story is somewhat self-contained, with little stories about Grace’s parents and grandparents interspersed throughout. The thread that ties all the stories together is Grace’s quest, during The Year of the Dog, to find out who she is and who she wants to become. The Year of the Dog is supposed to be good for thinking about that sort of thing.
It’s the stories themselves that are fun and revealing of Taiwanese-American culture. First of all, Grace can’t decide if she’s Taiwanese-Amercan or Chinese-American. The real Grace Lin says that this distinction was something that bothered her as a child, and I can see how it would be a puzzlement. The cultural differences in growing up Chinese in America are woven through the stories, but not intrusively so. What we’re left with is a year in the life of a little girl who is enjoying her school, her friends, and her family.
The reading level is fairly simple, so I’ve got Betsy-Bee (age 7) reading it now. Betsy-Bee’s favorite book is, yes, B Is For Betsy.
Two more things to note about this book: The cover looks better in reality than the Amazon-derived picture makes it look, and this book is one of the many good books nominated for the Cybil Award for Middle Grade Fiction.