I READ them!!
Well, I cleared 20 books off my shelves, although I DNF DIDNOTFINISH two of them, they are still OFF the shelf! HAHAHAHA. I couldn’t get into two of my selections. Nothing against the books, it just wasn’t for me at this time. I have them in my maybe later pile which sits for a couple of months, and then, if not read, gets donated out of the house. This was a fun and interesting challenge. The best thing to come of it is my plan to continue to read off my shelves until I am through them. I will have to read bookclub books, and books with kids. I have vowed to try to stay away from adding new ones to my shelves. This has exceptions too, as I have a wish list of books to replace on my shelf (from people who borrowed and did not return) and classics I am trying to replace from childhood or for my collection of classic novels.
I have blogged about several of my choices for this challenge, but here is a quick recap of the 20 books I chose to read…….
- The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall
- The Penderwicks of Garden Street by Jeanne Birdsall
This series was so MUCH fun! I ended up reading The Penderwicks in Spring and The Penderwicks at Point Moutte as well. The adventures with these sisters is a wonderful adventure to take over the summer. These books read like old classic novels and are definitely ‘warm fuzzy’ books. Such a treat! I highly recommend them!
- Smitten Book Club by Cobe, Billerbeck, Hunt & Hunter
I was hoping for a nice fluff read, but it unfortunately for me was gag worthy. HA. I don’t do very well with ‘sappy everything ends up happy books……’ I’m sure this book is for someone. It’s just NOT for me. - Letters From Paris by Juliet Blackwell
Typically I love books about or set in Paris. I tried to get into this book several times and just had to give up. It is sitting in the pile of ‘if I don’t read this in a couple months ……..it goes!’
- Here Comes Mrs. Kugelman by Minka Pradelski
Although books about the Holocaust are usually a favorite for me this books was way to disjointed. The effort it took to read it was really ridiculous. So it’s an EH. The story told is good, and I absolutely believe in putting this history in books, this just needed a better flow.
- The Orphan Mother by Robert Hicks
The copy I read was in ARC form. I thoroughly enjoyed it! An extremely thought-provoking emotional story. I don’t think about what happened directly after slavery ends often. This really needs to be taught and talked about more, by everyone. Wonderful story told in this book about resilience. An exciting surprise; I learned a ton! I used google and searched for books to study more on this subject. That fact alone is always a win for me as I love studying history. I am grateful to have had this book, to spur me on to learn more. Knowledge leads to understanding and I believe creates much more acceptance and peace in the world.
- Monsoon Summer by Julia Gregson
Although this is well written, with a great story, a lot of themes hit too close to home for me right now in this season of my life of reflection. So I did not continue with reading it after I started. I will pick it up later. It’s an emotionally charged story. The author did a beautiful job …at least for the first half ! This was my second book I chose to quit. H I would like to revisit this book later on in life when scars haven’t been so recently reopened and my focus can be on the story in the book. - The Gatekeeper by Kathyrn Smith
Oh how I loved this book!!! What an amazing woman Missy LeHand was. In the FDR Administration, she was the one with massive influence. She was widely thought of as the ‘chief of staff’ by all. Hugely dedicated to her life of public service, Missy was quite the lady for the time she lived in, incredibly brave. I am counting this as a part of my feminism study of this year. Missy accomplished so much in a quiet way. I immediately looked up more to read about Missy’s life. She should be talked about in history classes right along with the president, in my opinion (FDR that is). She was marginalized and never given the credit she deserved while alive. We owe her the right to be mentioned when teaching the history of that time. Look her up. Read her story.
- My Underground American Dream by Julissa Arce
What does an undocumented persons life look like. When you are brought here as a child, but not allowed citizenship due to the long long long long wait and red tape, what happens. How do you stay hidden. What is it like to live in constant fear. Horrific. For all the children, all the many children who this is their only country. Their only language, all they know….but they are still ‘illegals’ what happens to them. Currently this is on the news DAILY. I work with ESL kids, for whom this is true. They are five and six years old. They live in fear. Some are illegal and some are legal but their parents are not. All live in constant fear of being thrown behind a big wall and being separated from their parents. This book was given to me in ARC form. The story is the triumph of one woman’s life to become a citizen of the United States of America. I very much enjoyed reading this amazing story. I think it is necessary for people to read stories like this, to open their minds to gain compassion and empathy. Well written, highly informative, Julissa does an amazing job telling her story.
- My Mother’s Kitchen by Peter Gellars
OH MY WORD! This book! I was laughing, then crying, then looking up recipes, or copying the recipes in the book down. Such a beautiful story of a mother and son. Food and life and how the two go together. Memories of my grandma and cooking and eating with her came to mind during my journey with this book. Peter’s mother was an amazing woman from what we can tell by reading this book. Such a beautiful tribute of her life. Being a foodie, it was a perfect read for me. I could relate to so much of the emotion of the book. My hope is my children will feel the same of me. - Daddy Long Legs by Jean Webster
This was fun! I read this fairly quick. It was a really fun classic read that I had no clue about! I loved it! It is one of the classic books I read this summer leading to me to my decision for my reading challenge plan for 2018. Classics! - The Song of the Magdalene by Donna Jo Napoli
I’m always looking for a good historical book on Mary Magdalene. This one is written for ages 12 and up I would imagine due to subject matter grade 9 and up may be a better fit. The book portrays a girl named Miriam, a young Mary Magdalene, who is an epileptic, making her unclean. I was taught as a child that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute. None of this is Biblical. It has always bothered me. I believed this to be a man’s way of making her less important. The Bible does say demons were cast out of Mary Magdalene, bringing the epilepsy plot a more of a reasonable conclusion. Mary Magdalene is mentioned more than the other apostles in the Bible, is at Jesus crucifixion and the first to see him after he resurrects. A woman!!! She was important in His life. She was FEMALE. Jesus treated her no different than the men. This has always fascinated me. It has also given me huge comfort. The book is worth the read. The story well written. As historical fiction, it is a win. No one will know for sure what Mary’s life was like. I believe this story, at least, comes closer to the truth. - A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft
Another amazing find and read. Part of my feminism study, Mary was quite the pioneer for her time! I loved reading and learning about her! See earlier post on my other thoughts. - Bad Feminist by Roxanne Gay
Needless to say this was excellent and now I must read Hunger ! - The Card by DL Nelson
This was fun fluff one night I had insomnia and read it all the way through! - Other Broken Things by C. Desir
This was given to me by the author. I wanted to read it first before giving to the correct person/place. An excellent read on addiction for a teen. - SAD GIRLS by Lang Leav
OH I was soooooo disappointed! BOO! I love, still do too, the poetry of Lang Leav. I read her poetry books over and over. This was her first novel. It was way too creepy and dark for me! So the pun is I was a very sad girl after reading this because I wanted to love it. - Islam Opposing Viewpoints by William Dudley
I read and studied this due to my mentoring a refugee family from Pakistan. The book, although old, has been hugely helpful into my insight of how the family works in their culture. This is a gift for me. Understanding, however little, always creates much more peace on both our ends in our relationship. - All the Women of the Bible by Edith Deen
I used this book for my devotions this summer. I did learn more about women portrayed in the Bible and also had deeper thought behind some of the behaviors and actions of these women. I found myself looking up actual passages of the Bible that was mentioned in the book, making it a good learning time for me. - American Islam: Growing up Muslim in America
I appreciated this book, it taught me a great deal. It is really old, pre 9/11, however the prejudices and cultural struggles really aren’t that much different. This proved to be ‘food for thought’ in differing ways I use my speech or explain our culture to kids I mentor. Very useful read!
I enjoyed this challenge very much! Thank you to 746 books for the idea!
PEACE.
