Have You Seen the Rest of My Book? It's Missing.

There is a pet peeve...well one of several...that really bugs me.  Like a stone in my shoe - it doesn't bother anyone else usually. Just me.

I recently purchased "The Count of Monte Cristo" from a well-known bookstore.  Blissfully, I brought it home and started reading it.

During the read...it nagged at me. Some bit of story is missing since the first time I read my brother's copy.  The characters have lost some depth; some descriptions are less colorful; a sub-plot seems flat.

That's when I flipped to the title page and saw the dreaded word!

ABRIDGED

These should be banned from all self-respecting bookstores. If stores must sell them - then clearly mark them as such with big red letters across the cover of the book so buyers know ahead of time.  Not sneakily and quietly placed inside on the title page where nobody looks!

Why would I want to pay good money for a book and only get part?  That is like getting a piece of cake without the frosting...it still tastes good but it would be even better with the frosting.

Now I have a watered down book.  It's a good story and if you've never read the complete novel you won't miss the cut-out parts.  But I miss them...the count becomes too tame.  He loses some of the single-minded revenge that builds up through the book. Some of the irony is gone.

As my friend Pooh says, "Oh bother".

What is your opinion?  Abridged or not abridged?

It's been a very warm and humid few weeks here.  I've been camped in front of the fan reading.  What have I been reading you ask?

• And the Shofar Blew by Francine Rivers
• I am the Clay by Chaim Potok
• The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (more about this in a later post)
• The Little Princess by Frances H. Burnett
• Waking the Dead by John Eldredge
• The Dead Don't Dance by Charles Martin

I admit it...I like the old classics. But I try to throw into the mix a few books that make me think - both non-fiction and fiction.

I am the Clay is not at all what I was expecting.  My past experience with Mr. Potok has been The Chosen and The Promise - both are set in NYC, both are kind of "coming of age' books.

This one is nothing like that.  It is set in Korea during the war. The style of writing feels Asian...almost like reading a haiku.  It is more descriptive and you are inside the character's heads as they think and plan and survive.  There is a sense of loss that flows through it all. The sadness of war.

A little boy has lost his whole family and village. An older couple rescues him from death as they weave their way through the country-side just ahead of the battle.
The couple lost their only child as a toddler and the old lady feels this is her second chance at motherhood.  The old man resents the boy, the food he eats, the burden of his care -eventually the man changes his mind.

Together they try to rebuild a shattered world.

Brownish Pinkish Yellowish White

Have you ever read Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein? 

Some of his poems are delightful, some are silly, some are strange and some speak truth.  My current favorite is "Colors" because this describes my thoughts.

COLORS

My skin is kind of sort of brownish

Pinkish yellowish white.

My eyes are greyish blueish green,

But I'm told they look orange in the night.

My hair is reddish blondish brown,

But it's silver when it's wet.

And all the colors I am inside

Have not been invented yet.

by Shel Silverstein               

I suppose some would read this and say "it's about tolerance and being nonracist". And that would be one way of interpreting it- I don't know exactly what the author had in mind.  

But when I read this I see someone who doesn't have life all figured out yet.  A person who sees possibilities and potential and maybe is a bit confused.  Which color should I be today?  Am I a blue?  Or am I supposed to be teal? 

As adults we're supposed to have life all figured out, right?  

We're not supposed to waver about what we think, feel, or value.  

We have opinions!  We have convictions!  We have rights!  

We are adults.

But lately I've been looking at my ideals, my plans, my 'this is how life should be' and wondering if I'm missing out on the "reddish blondish brown, silver when it's wet" adventure.  

Am I living out all that the Lord has planned for me?  

Am I living too safe?   

Am I too comfortable?            

Detours and Standing Stones

Some friends and I were conversing about how our lives had not followed our original "plan" but had been full of detours as God changed our plans to fit His Plan.  Afterward I started thinking about some of the authors and books that helped me see and accept these detours as a good thing.  I decided to write them down as 'standing stones' - a record of God's faithfulness to future generations.  (Joshua 4:1-7, 20-24)

Here are a few of titles that I came up with:

• Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
• Hinds' Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard
• When God Writes Your Love Story by Eric & Leslie Ludy
• When God Writes Your Life Story by Eric & Leslie Ludy
• Moulder of Dreams by Guy Rice Doud
• Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold by C.S. Lewis
• Authentic Beauty by Leslie Ludy
• A Man Called Peter by Catherine Marshall
• A Rose In Bloom by Louisa Mae Alcott

There are others but these are a few that have challenged my faith, gave me a new point of view and/or gave me an example to follow.

What books have impacted your life?

Who Needs Thriller Movies?

Have you read any of Joel C. Rosenberg's books? He has been on the New York best-seller list quite a few times but I hadn't read anything by him until now.  Wow.

I have just finished The Copper Scroll and it was way better than the last movie I attended for suspense and thrills.  The clock was into the early morning hours when I turned out the light...just had to read one more chapter and then one more...

His storyline is so well crafted and so realistic that I almost forgot it was fiction.  It is kind of alarming in some ways because of his depiction of future events and discoveries in the Middle East - especially Israel and Jerusalem.  The plot is so well thought out that all you would need to do is change the characters' names and it could be tomorrow's headlines.

If you haven't read them start them in order:
The Last Jihad
The Last Days
The Ezekiel Option
The Copper Scroll
Dead Heat

I didn't realize they were a series and started with the last one first!  I could follow the plot but some of the back-story of the main characters and history of events wasn't as clear as if I had started at the beginning.

In my humble opinion these are better than the Left Behind series and I highly recommend them.

Snow, Snow, Snow

This winter feels like we're living in Narnia under the rule of the White Witch -it is always winter and never Christmas!  The drifts on the road are now taller than a pick-up truck in places. If the joy of new snow has lost it's luster read The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. It captures the wandering adventures of a little boy named Peter as he explores his snow-covered world.

If you would rather count your blessings of food, shelter and warmth read The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  When you read it in the middle of a winter storm the determination and strength of that little house takes on a whole new meaning.  Make sure you have plenty of hot chocolate on hand to keep you warm while you read!

More tools from Google

I have recently discovered this website books.google.com

It is a great place to search for all kinds of books. If the book is an older one you can actually read it right there on the site.
I've started reading one of George McDonald's books there. It is a scanned copy of Malcolm from 1896. The Scots dialect is a bit difficult but I like the challenge of it.

His books are hard to find so I snatch them up when I come across them.

What out-of-print books do you wish they would republish?

Book Club Titles

When I lived in Pipestone I belonged to two book clubs. Since moving I have not kept up - so here is a list of books that I need to read yet.

• The Shepherd's Prayer by Richard M. Barry
  
• The Uncommon Woman: Making an Ordinary Life Extraordinary by Susie Larson
  
• Summer of Light by W. Dale Cramer
  
• June Bug by Chris Fabry

What books do you suggest for next month's book club meeting? I'm always looking for "good discussion" ones.

Mercy?

What does mercy look like?
Is it forgiving when there hasn't been an apology?
Is it with-holding your first impression until you know more about a person?
Is it taking your own life to save another's?
Is it granting yourself mercy in spite of past mistakes?

The Shape of Mercy: A novel by Susan Meissner gives a reader a lot to think about. I was convicted many times about how I view/judge people too quickly while reading it.

But it also made me think about mercy and all the different ways that we give it/or withhold it.

The author grips you from the first chapter and doesn't let go until the end... And the end will surprise you.

Summer, Where didst Thou Go?

Here it is mid-September and I haven't been very good about updating you on what I've been reading. I finally got another bookshelf so only a few books are left on my floor.

What "light" reading did you get done this summer?

I read Helen Keller's autobiography The Story of My Life in August. Her life is truly an amazing one and it inspired me to greater perseverance when faced with obstacles in life. She worked her whole life perfecting her writing, speech, and reaching out to those around her. How can I do any less?

Another inspiring novel is My Hands Came Away Red by Lisa McKay. Her first book is very well written, in fact I had to remind myself that it wasn't a true story! The research and background for it is based on stories from humanitarian relief workers and missionaries. I look forward to her future books.

Do you have any recommendations?

Summer Reading

Where has this summer gone?

Here is a quick list of what I've been reading!

• Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper
• Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
• A Thousand Shall Fall by Brodie & Brock Thoene
• Say To this Mountain by Brodie & Brock Thoene
• The Shack by Wm. Paul Young

Pretty light reading other than the Piper book.

I'm trying to slowly read my way through all of Dickens' stuff. So far I've read A Christmas Carol, The Pickwick Papers, Nicholas Nickleby, A Tale of Two Cities and Oliver Twist. I think Oliver Twist is still my favorite so far.

Crickets and a Heart Transplant

When Crickets Cry by Charles Marten is an amazing book. I stayed up until 4:00 one weekend reading it.

Annie needs a heart transplant but her Aunt CeCe doesn't have the money to pay for it. Charlie lives life to the fullest in spite of his circumstances and his neighbor Reece isn't living at all except through his flashbacks. All these characters become woven together at a lemonade stand in a small town down South.

If I tell you any more it will ruin the twists and turns in the plot. There is some technical medical paragraphs to wade through but it's worth it!

Ghosts in This House

Death of The Dream: Classic Minnesota Farmhouses by William Gabler is both interesting and sad. He chronicles the demise of farmhouses in black and white photographs. I found myself wondering what memories linger between their walls.

How many generations sat in the kitchen? Did they lose a son in World War II? What nationality were the original owners? Who were the last people to live in the house?

Abandoned barns standing all alone have the same effect on me. I'm watching history disappear before my eyes. I just don't understand why Americans are so quick to get rid of the old. In Europe barns, houses and historic places go back hundreds and hundreds of years and we are so quick to tear ours down.

Why is that?

(picture of my sister and cousin in front of our farmhouse)

A Challenge to My Understanding

In my Bible study we're going over John Piper's book "Don't Waste Your Life". It has proven to be quite challenging. I know the book is written in English but sometimes I have to read a sentence over and over before I even grasp what he is saying.

Has anyone else read this book? What was your opinion? So far I'm on Chapter 3. Does it get clearer as you go along?

The Heavenly Man

For book club we just finished reading "The Heavenly Man" by Brother Yun.

It has an amazing message of hope and joy in times of persecution. For some of those in attendance the persecution was the overall theme but I found myself excited at how God sustains a Christian during overwhelming circumstances.

There is hope in the midst of trials!

Redeeming Love

I just finished Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. There is a lot of food for thought in this story of a farmer and his new bride (loosely based on the book of Hosea in the Bible).

Reading this book brought me to tears, laughter, and even some frustration at the main character's lack of trust in her husband. But after reading it I have realized that I am no different in my response to my Heavenly Father. He has given everything and I have nothing left to give.

What are your thoughts?


(This book is not for younger readers)

Coincidence?

Have you ever read something and then a few days later something related to that topic pops up?

I finished " Up From Slavery" by Booker T. Washington only to end up watching the movie "Amazing Grace" a few days later. Both deal with slavery, both are about ordinary men attempting great things, and both men put their faith into action.

Their lives inspire me to make a difference in the world. Who inspires you?

Christmas isn't Christmas

Christmas just isn't Christmas till I've seen, read, or listened to "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens. This year I am a lucky owner of a paperback copy! No more waiting for the library's copy to become available.

I think my first memory of Scrooge, Bob Cratchett, and Tiny Tim was the Walt Disney version with Mickey Mouse and Co. Thankfully, I've moved on. :) Scrooge's transformation always brings tears to my eyes and I rejoice with Tiny Tim's "God bless us, everyone!"

Maybe it's been awhile since you've taken a stroll with the Spirits of Christmas - I encourage you to carve out some time to read this little book. You will be glad you did!

The Remains of The Day

Some months ago I was blog-hopping and stumbled across the mention of this book. Having a vague recollection of the title (I thought it was a horror film) I was surprised to find it at the library in the teen aisle.

After reading it I wonder what kind of an impression it leaves on a high-school English class. For me it left a feeling of sadness and a sense of waste but on reflection there are many lessons to be learned from it.

Some topics that could be discussed:

• How does being vulnerable affect communication?
• Should duty and service be put above love?
  
• How do ethics play into duty?
• Can lost opportunities be reclaimed?
• What are some areas of idealism that I hold onto?
  

I found myself willing the butler to just say "I love you" to the housekeeper, to take a risk and become a real person. He avoids pain and effectively locks away his heart until it is too late. He pulls back from living a full life and finds out how much he missed in the end.

If you are short on time Emma Thompson and Anthony Hopkins portray the main characters in a movie by the same title. I found I lost some of the butler's thought processes in the movie that you gain in the book but overall its pretty well done.

CSI, Charles Dickens and "Remains"

Hi,
I am still around but with summer there just hasn't been much time for reading, nor bookstore browsing.

I am working on a post about the book "The Remains of the Day" which also has been made into a movie with Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson.

Dante's Inferno is just sitting there...oh well.

I did get some fun, light reading in...George MacDonald's "The Shepherd's Castle" storyline keeps you guessing until the end. The uncle is a twisted character and his story could almost be a plot from CSI...it surprised me coming from a contemporary of Charles Dickens!