One Thousand Gifts

One Thousand Gifts
One Thousand Gifts
a dare to live fully right where you are
by: Ann Voskamp
2010
hardback, 237 page if you count the notes

In keeping with reading only books that have come to me recommended, i knew for a while that i wanted to read this one with the blue eggs in the nest on its cover.  I bought a copy (before i read it) for Melanie's 50th birthday thinking that 50 gifts would be cool, a thousand gifts would be way cool. Then our church (HFBC) had a ladies retreat and Kelly Matte, our pastor's wife did a session about it, but as i was not there, i do not know what she taught.  i checked it out of the church library but then got too busy with writing to read it.  I did read the first few pages and put it down quick as the raw description of birth and then the death of a child was too much for me.  Then i got sick, i thought instead of laying around, i will lay around with a book and because so many thought i would like this one, i picked it up again.  That is saying a lot before i say anything, i know. 
So, the book.  It is poetically written, yet touches on points like a good spiritual disciplines book should, so if it were mine it would have underlines in it.  It is a story, but one that is not in any hurry of getting anywhere and in the end, other than a trip to Paris (that may have been better off left as personal journal rather than included in the book) you really do not have a sense of arriving as far as story resolution goes.  But there is big resolution in the process that one homeschooling mom of six living on a pig farm in Canada goes through in her way to God, in her journey to fully trust Him.  She comes upon a word  eucharisteo meaning to give thanks and uses it page after page in her growth process in how this really unfolds. All boiled down one might say living a life of gratitude leads to living a full life of joy.  I would certainly agree.   The part that goes along with the title and with the journey is that she counts gifts... the little things that make up life, and she writes them down.  And she does so poetically.  On page 83 she reaches gift number 1000. Resurrection bloom, an amaryllis, a gift a year in the coming in reference to her mother-in-law's gift of a plant before she died of cancer.  There are lots of pages left for further discovery and the author uses her life as the class room of this growth into the goodness and blessings of God. At the end there are five pages of footnotes to give credit to authors and reference to books she has quoted in each chapter, so one has good resources if they would like to go deeper in an area. 
i liked the book and think it would be one that i would really have enjoyed reading in a book club where more could be expounded person to person after each chapter read.  At the end the reader is invited to join an on-line club to get even more information on how to live fully, complete with photos.  Many praise her book, and for good reason.  

Sluggers #1

Sluggers #1
Magic in the Outfield
by: Loren Long and Phil Bildner
Paperback 136 pages

Thank you Noah for suggesting Sluggers #1 for me to read!  It was a joy to meet Griffith, Ruby and Graham, the Payne children and their mom, "Guy" who plays as catcher for a traveling baseball team back in 1899.  The book Sluggers #1 is the first in a series of 6 that were originally called "Barnstormers" which is the name of their baseball team.  There is a mystery to be solved and at the end of the 136 page paperback we get just enough clues to draw is in and want to read more to figure it all out.  I love the creative and expressive illustrations throughout the story.  But what really captured me was the mini dictionary of baseball terms used back-in-the-day that add such authenticity to the story.  For an example, at the beginning of chapter 4 in the margin we can read that a Striker's Box is the area in which the striker (now known as the batter) stood when it was his turn to hit.  Also known as the "sticker's line."  Dish: home plate.  Lumber: baseball bat. also called "timber" and a Hurler is a pitcher.  The recommended age for the series is from 8-12, but at 47 (and as a gal who played softball back when I was kid) I found the book to be a lot of fun.  Noah, can't wait to borrow the rest of the series, thanks again for sharing some of your favorites with me.  Oh, and if you would like more information about it all, there is a cool website to get the behind the scene scoop! http://www.lorenlong.com

Taking the Word to Heart

 Taking the Word to Heart
Five Ways to get a Grip on God's Word
by Nancy Taylor
paperback 70 pages
2009

As the end of 2012 was drawing near, i had been thinking through just how i wanted to journal the journey of 2013.  One thing that kept coming up was this idea of trying to memorize Scripture so i thought maybe i would journal the process.  I had heard about a woman at our church, Nancy Taylor, that had written a book about how she went about it, and one day her husband, who works with Russell, gave me a copy of her book.
I thought through the reasons for why i would want to take on something that seems huge to me (really knowing the Word and the reference for where it was) and jotted down what would be gained, starting with closeness to God, obedience, wisdom for my life and others, a way to grow in the character of Jesus, have ammunition against the enemy, a fresh look at God's faithfulness and how my trust in Him would increase.
I began Nancy's book and was delight on how she touched on these motivations and then gave a well-thought out tried and true plan for how to make these goals a reality.
This short book, brought to mind advice given in years past, but also fresh outlooks and techniques including getting the Word not only in your head but in your life.  And that is what i really desire: a transformed life.  I'm thankful that Nancy lives this out, teaches others, has written this book and has been a personal encouragement to me as i begin this journey.  At this point i have 3 verses in my head and heart and about to add verse four, seeking to add one verse for each week so that by New Year's Eve, Lord willing, i will have 52 verses!  what a treasure that will be!

The History of Love

The History of Love

by: Nicole Krauss

2005

hardback 252

The fresh and very unique writing style of Nicole Krauss drew me in and kept me on my toes as i tried to connect the characters to their countries and sought to detect how it was that they interconnected with each other.  I had not read a novel in several months, maybe half a year, so i found the experience again fun as a little escape.  And now that it is over, it feels like guest that have been visiting the past week have moved on from our home.  Sophie got hooked on the novel with a line from page 11, " Once upon a time there was a boy who loved a girl, and her laugher was a question he wanted to spend his whole life answering."  When she left for Africa, she asked me to return the book to the library as she was not going to be able to finish it and i thought i would go ahead and give it a go.  

Great description was given not just of things but of feelings and thought processes. The two characters i liked best were Leopold, an old man who had escaped Poland when the Nazis invaded and Alma: an almost 15-year-old that was named after the gal in Leopold's book that he loved since he was 10 years old in Poland.   There is a bit of a mystery to solve as the pages give way to the rich development of both Alma and Leo and others they both know.  And you learn a lot of this and that as you read along like a person can starve to death by eating rabbits and that a lamed vovnik is one of 36 super-powered Jews that live at any given time.  (Alma's younger brother, Bird, thought he was one of these).  

In my opinion, the story was not as proportional as it could have been and for all the build up and investment, it ended far to quickly... maybe i just was not ready to be finished reading about these endearing friends and wanted it to go on a bit more.  With the title being "The History of Love" do not expect a very romantic book, or a happy book, yet i did laugh a time or too. It was realistic and sad told of missed opportunities and made me want to live life fully for it ends for some before it is really over.     

A Painted House

 A Painted House
by: John Grisham
294 pages, hardback
2000

I have never harvested cotton, listened to a Cardinals game, painted a house, or written a letter to a solider serving in Korea  but after reading John Grisham's novel it feels as if I have experienced all these things and more. (This is my second book from renown author John Grisham and neither involved a lawyer).   Told from the perspective of a 7-year-old boy named Luke, the 6 weeks or so of harvest season in the Arkansas low-lands came to life almost as if I had lived it back in the 50's.  Great story-telling, super character development and action I would not have guessed kept the pages turning.  Before leaving on my trip to Michigan, Melanie gave to me this novel and another one called Winter Garden (I will also give my review on that novel) and I read one chapter from each book most nights before going to bed (sometimes I gave in and read more than one chapter).  Luke, became like a son and I loved his relationship with his mother.  Actually, as an only child living in the same home with his parents and his paternal grandparents, he had good and healthy interactions with his whole family.  Life was far from dull and the secrets told and kept in this story made me feel like one with the  inside scoop in this country/small town settling.  The book contrasted interestingly with the other novel which was set present day on an apple orchard business in Washington state. Fun to read like that and Melanie I recommend both books...thanks for giving them to me to read!

 

Heaven is for Real

Heaven is for Real
A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back
by Todd Burpo
2010

This is a book I have seen quite a bit in ariports, as Russ and I have traveled about this year in the USA.  Various people have recommended it to me and especailly during the time I was awaiting results from an ab-normal medical test it caught my interest.  But it wasn't until after I got my library card in the Heights and a librarian helped me to find it that I actually read it.
Well, it is very much like the subtitle describes: the little boy, named Colton, has a need for emergency surgery and while that is taking place he goes to heaven.  Later as he is fully recovered he begins to tell his family  bits and pieces of what it was like in heaven including people he met, time spent with Jesus, the colors of heaven, etc.   The story unfolds from the father's  point of view and is a quick and easy read and gives lots of hopeful things to think through.  What I found maybe most fascinating is how Colton, even years later, had a very clear memory of what Jesus looked like.  Several times since Colton's experience there were opportunities for his family to see various portraits of Jesus and each time they would ask Colton if the artwork looked like Jesus.  Every time there would be something not quite right with the artists' attempt to capture in a painting or a sketch the essence of Jesus.  Then Colton was shown the art work of a young girl named Akiane Kramarik (who had also been to heaven and back) and Colton was speechless so his father asked him what was wrong with the portrait. He said, "Dad, that one is right."
As Colton's dad is also a pastor, he takes the time to add dimension to the story by quoting passages from the Bible that give a foreshadowing of heaven. I'm glad I read the book and for it being the first near-death-expereince book I have read, I found it to be a good one and believable.   Can't wait to go myself!

Riding the Bus with my Sister

 Riding the Bus with My Sister
a True Life Journey
by: Rachel Simon
2002
paperback; 296 pages

Generally I have chosen to only read books that come to me via a recommendation,  but recently I found myself in a new library and very ready for a light novel. Surrounded by books, I could not think of one title that someone recommended, so this light blue paperback caught my eye because of its size; perfect weight and good margins so I could read it while hula-hooping and that is how I began the story of a year of  bus journeys.  At first I almost put the book down after a chapter or two, as it seemed a bit predictable and self-indigent; the writer was writing of how she, a successful got-it-together independent woman, was going to learn life lessons (and ultimately become a bit more successful) by writing about  her sister and her mental disability to shine light on the importing things of life.  But putting aside my cynicism, I pressed on and found much more to the story.  The big sister really does care about the little sister and as one review stated the book is, "clever and unsentimental".  I liked learning about the variety of bus drivers and their healthy perspectives on life, all who make up Beth's world as she rides day after day around a city in Pennsylvania.  As each month leads to the next, I discover more about Beth (the little sister) and consequently Rachel's (the writer) relationship with her. The author also does a very good job of going backward in time to describe things in chronological progression of her childhood and how she (and her siblings) were effected by not only the "different-ness" of having a sister who was different, but their parent's  divorce and the lingering effects it had on everyone.  Her detail in memories brings the richness to the story's re-telling of the music and fashion of the past in which she grew and gives authenticity to the joys and challenges life presented.  I am now excited about becoming a bus-rider and the people I just meet on the journey..I  have my bus pass, just need a destination and look out, maybe I will learn the ins and outs of Houston and the people that make up this great city.  At the end I read more slowly as I did not want to have Beth out of my life.  A story well told.