Book Three of the Divergent Series

Allegiant by Veronica Roth
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I have liked the Divergent series, but towards the end of book 2, and throughout book 3, I've been disappointed in the relationship between Tess and Four. To my mind, their misunderstandings were turning into a lot of whining, and they didn't seem to learn from them. So, that part has annoyed me a bit.

I did, however, appreciate how the author used the thought processes of her characters, and Tess in particular. The characters were often uncomfortable with the violence they had to employ, and the choices that they made. I know it made me ponder the forces of good and evil and the choices that we make. We see violence all around us, particularly in the recent events in Israel, Palestine and Russia(killing of young/innocent people).

If you have teens reading this book, or if you are a person of faith, the entire series could lend itself to some good discussion. It is my understanding the author is a Christian. I would be interested to know why she choose this story line,and what, if anything, she hoped young people would learn from the series.


View all my reviews

Wyoming and Women's Suffrage

The Gentle Tamers: Women of the Old Wild West by Dee Brown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I give this book four starts for Chapter 13, Wyoming Tea Party.

While the entire book was interesting, particularly as how the westward movement of pioneer men and women liberated women in unexpected ways, the Wyoming chapter really brings it home.

Esther Morris, described as a self-reliant "55 year old lady of great charm, who enjoyed fierce battles and was accustomed to winning them", had a tea party on September 2, 1869. Esther invited 20 influential citizens to her party. Among her guests, two candidates for the legislature, Col. William H. Bright (Democrat)  and Captain Herman G. Nickerson (Republican). She asked each of them, if elected, to introduce a bill to give the women of Wyoming the right to vote. Both candidates agreed, even though at that time, no woman in the world had that right.

Bright won the election and kept his promise on November 9, 1869. Many saw the bill as a practical joke,or an opportunity to embarrass the governer. However the bill also passed the house, with the only change being to increase the age from 18 to 21. On December 10, 1869, Governor Campbell signed the bill. And for the first time anywhere on earth,women had won the legal right to vote. Additionally,Wyoming women could now be elected to office.

When Wyoming applied for statehood 18 years later (1889) the law was in danger of being repealed due to the woman's suffrage bill. Kudos to the Wyoming legislatures who sent a telegram stating

We may stay out of the union a hundred years, but we will come in with our women.

There are many more stories of our western women and how their lives changed, but this bit of history, of which I was unaware, made the book for me.

View all my reviews

A One Nighter!

One Came Home by Amy Timberlake
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I highly recommend One Came Home to the young adult and adult reader. I started and finished this book in one night. I could not stand to not know the ending! Granted I had to read through the end really fast, since I had to get up at 5:15 am(!) and go to work the next morning, but I did it. Since a book is just a friend to visit over and over again, it was no problem to go back and read through it at a leisurely pace a few days later.

I so admire authors and their imaginations. This author, Amy Timberlake, got her inspiration for this story from some actual events that occurred in 1871. She tells you more about these events in the afterward of the book (in a way that the younger reader can easily understand). So, from a smidgeon, really of history, she crafted a tale of growing up, of heartache, of mystery. I was so drawn in!

Our protagonist, Georgie, is 13. She's just buried her sister Agatha, she can't believe she's dead. How can this be so? In her denial, she decides to revisit the location they found her body. Her neighbor, and her sister's old boyfriend, Billy, goes with her. And thus the adventure begins.

In addition to writing a story you can get lost in, I really enjoyed some of the author's prose. Here are some snippets:

"But I was learning that knowing things does not mean you understand them."

"A thousand tiny hopes swarmed over me like a cloud of gnats."

"The sun burned behind the leaves like a white-hot coin."

and this really thought provoking statement:

"I hadn't appreciated before when I'd been there. But now before was where I wanted to be, before was where I wanted to live."

Don't take my word for it. Hop over to Amazon where you can read the first chapter, and see if you can resist reading the rest!

View all my reviews

Of Books and Bears

Brother Hugo and the Bear by Katy Beebe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is not your typical children's book. According to the publisher, Eerdman, this book is appropriate for ages 5 to 9. At first blush, I didn't really see where it would be a book a 5 year old would love. However, since there is a bear to find in every illustration, I've changed my mind.

I do like that as you read this book to a child, they are going to learn a lot. Behind the story of the bear eating books, you learn about monks, about how books were made in historical times and about how friends help friends when they have a large task to do. The prose is also written in a humorous fashion, which gives charm to the tale.

I like the language in Brother Hugo. It's old fashioned, set in the historical time frame of the story itself. (I am always a sucker for "old-fashioned" language anyway. I think it's quaint, and I guess people were just way smarter than us way back when, since they seem to have a better command of the English language than we do today.)

An added plus for me is the Author's Note and Illustrator's Note at the end. The notes are clearly written for young readers and stays with the theme of the book.

I thank Goodreads and Eerdman's for my free copy. It's always great fun to be a Goodreads winner! I will be keeping this book to enjoy with my granddaughter in future years.



View all my reviews

Choices

Insurgent by Veronica Roth
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I still can't quite figure out why I like this series. Not a great way to start a book review is it?

Tris, our heroine, struggles in this second book of the Divergent series. As we left her in Divergent, she had lost her mother, her father, her good friend Will. She feels responsible. She can't shake these feelings, and it causes some strain in her relationship with Tobias. As a matter of fact, they were having so many misunderstandings that it was becoming a little old to me, I was ready for them to move on or give up on each other.

I do think that part of the reason I like the book is because Tris does struggle with her choices. Like many of us, she can't let these feelings go, but at the same time, she doesn't seem to quite grow up. We make choices. Our choices affect others. This is a huge part of the story line. Evil exists. How do we respond?

I continue to think that this series, read with your teen, would make for great discussions.

I'm not quite sure what I think of the ending, and look forward to reading the next book in the series. Since I am 205 out of 205 on the waiting list, it may be a while!


View all my reviews

Bless the Women Who've Gone Before Us!

Book of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin by Jill Lepore
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What an interesting book!

First I'll tell you the shockers for me. Ladies, we are so lucky! We can do just about anything we want. We can complain about women's rights, but baby, we've come a long way. So, here are some of the facts:

"Beware the bookish woman" was an adage of the age"

. . . at George Brownell's school . . . those few girls who enrolled were allowed to attend only after the boys had finished for the day, and what they learned was different: boys learned to write; girls learned English and French Quilting, Imbroidery, Florishing, Plain Work, marking in several sorts of stitches"

In 1771, Massachusett's poor laws had, for the first time, required that girls be taught to write.

Jane was the sister of the famous Ben Franklin. She and Ben were close while young, and he is the one who taught her how to write. Jane was ashamed of her writing, as she knew she was a poor speller, and was always apologizing it in her letters to Ben.

Many of Ben and Jane's letters did not survive, but of those that did you were able to get a sense of her personality. She truly loved and admired her brother. She loved to read and scoured bookstores to find and read Ben's books. She loved her family. In short, she was a well rounded person who cared for herself and her family despite a fairly worthless husband and the restrictions of her day.

Although Ben was often away doing his thing for the fledgling states, he did stay in touch with Jane, and tried to see to her comfort monetarily. She really needed the help too. According to the author,

"In 1748, Jane turned thirty-six. She had been pregnant or nursing, almost without pause, since she was sixteen."

This book will not only give you a picture of Jane, but a picture of the times, and of Ben. This is what I thought of Benjamin Franklin. He was smart, he was an inventor, he was a philanderer. This book changed my opinion of him. He is really a rags to riches story--for someone of his class to become such a learner and have success is a really big thing.

So once again. I am so lucky. With never a thought I pick up a book, I read, I write. I work and enjoy every opportunity that I seek out. I really need to pay much more attention to Woman's History Month (March) and celebrate the women who paved the way for me!


View all my reviews

What Kind of Messenger are You?

I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm giving this 4 stars because once again Zusak has given me something to think about.

A friend lent me this book (Thanks Lara!). I have to be honest, if I didn't respect her opinion about books so much, I would not have kept going. Like many of the other goodreads reviewers I find some of the beginning offensive. It's hard to talk about here without giving up some of the story, so I'll just leave it at that. But I encourage you to stick with it, if only for the pondering that will occur once you've finished the book. This is pretty much the same reaction I had after finishing The Book Thief. I didn't think I liked it, but it stuck with me, and I found I needed to talk about

I Am The Messenger revolves around Ed, and the messages he receives that are written on playing cards. Ed's job is to figure out what the message is, and then to do something about it. In essence, he has a mission to complete based on the clues on the cards. Sometimes the missions are scary, sometimes sweet, almost always they are hard. Ed is taken out of his passive life, and into an engaged life. He is forced out of selfish thinking, into unselfish thinking. He becomes a better person.

One of my favorite chapters is when Ed and his friends put in play a creative marketing plan to get people to Father O'Reilly's church. (I loved Father O'Reilly!) When Ed found the Father, he couldn't believe what an awful neighborhood he lived in. As Ed gets to know the father he thinks:

"...I now realize why he's chosen to live here. The church is too far away for him to really help anyone, so this is the best place for him. It's everywhere, on all sides and angles. This is where the Father needs to be. Not in some church gathering dust."

There is a great quote from Henri Nouwen that captures the essence of this book:

"We need to be Angels for each other, to give each other strength and consolation because only when we fully realize the cup of life is not only a cup of sorrow, but also a cup of joy, will we be able to drink it."

Ed became a sort of angel on his journey, and also realized that life is both parts sorrow and joy, and that he needs to be a part of it.

If your teen wants to read this book, I would recommend that you read it first, or read it together. You will be able to have some great discussions when you finish!



View all my reviews