Wednesday Wars was written by the same author as Lizzie Bright And The Buckminster Boy. I started doing a joint review and then I realized that I already reviewed Lizzie.... It's OK, I'm back to reality now.
So, Wednesday Wars is another one of those books that I will buy and read every year. It's set in the 1960's during the Vietnam War. The main character is in 7th grade and as the only student who is a Protestant in his class he gets left behind - alone - every Wednesday while all the others are bussed to Hebrew School or Catechism. Charged with teenage love (or hate "They are the same thing in the 7th grade") and the issues of the day, an awkward student teacher relationship and the relationships of families, it is a truly good read. And very clean. I laughed, I cried, I cried some more and then I laughed again and then of course I was a little teary at the end. And I miss the characters, they were great. I highly recommend everyone to go and check this one out.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Monday, August 11, 2008
Here you go Mom, a real post.
My mom says I can't just do book reviews. So here is a real post - about Sam and some of the funny things he has done and said lately.
First of all, our new favorite place to go is Payson Lakes on the Nebo Loop in the Uinta Mountains. It's far enough away that you feel like you're actually going some where, but close enough to still want to go. So there is this little lake and people of all ages come with their floatation devices of all shapes and sizes and they have fun in the sun and water. Thanks to my niece Allynn, Sam had something to float on when we went last Saturday. It was just your average floating mattress, Long, Skinny, Pillow at the top. So he's going around on it with his stomach down and his arms in the water to paddle with. He got the hang of it really fast and he was pretty quick too. He knew how to turn and get where he wanted to go pretty well within the first three minutes. I don't know why this impresses me so much. Oh yeah, it's because I have the smartest kid EVER!
Anyway, he's floating around, and there are these little punk four year olds, (not really punks, but let's just say for my story they are) who have these tube guns that suck up water when you pull and shoot the water when you push. They shoot far. So Sam , who is about 25 feet from the shore, is floating around totally relaxing when he starts to feel water landing on himself. So he slowly starts to turn. Now remember, he is laying on his stomach and he is really relaxed. Well he sees those kids with the squirting tube guns, he looks kind of interested and then they full on squirt him. Both of them . So he turns his raft thing so it's aiming right at them and then he sets his face and it is totally determined. Then he starts paddling really fast. Picture both arms moving at the same time in quick little strokes. And the raft is moving FAST. And the punks realize it. They are only about 10 feet from the shore but they know they are about to get rammed. So they turn around and start running. And the water is up to their waists so they aren't getting anywhere fast. Then the girl punk loses a shoe and she tells her brother to get it but he's not stopping. So she turns around and hesitates, seeing that Sam is totally gaining on them and then she leans out and reaches as far as she can to the shoe, not wanting to lose any ground, and then turns and starts running again. Once they reach the shore, Sam is only about 5 feet behind them and he slows and then stops and looks at them for a while like he wants to make sure they know he means business. Then he slowly turns his raft and leisurely paddles away. We all watched this from the shore and laughed our heads off.... I had no idea he had it in him. He does not usually stick up for himself, but he did us proud.
Yesterday, he and I were driving in the car and I stopped at someones house to drop something off. When I got back into the car there is a really annoying commercial on for Low Book Sales, which is a local chain of used car dealerships. They always take popular songs from the past and put their own ridiculous lyrics to the music. This was one of them. So I get in and Sam says, "Mom, this is a Low Book Sales Commercial." I said , "Oh, do you like this one?" His answer, "No, because the song said that the car scared all the women away." At that point in the commercial their theme jingle music cuts in and Sam says, "And I hate it when they say, 'Low Book Sales, a better way to buy a car!' " So then I said, "You don't like Low Book Sales?" And he said, "No, except for when we bought this baby." He is a very observant child because we did buy our car at Low Book Sales and even I didn't remember that or equate that with the commercials, I never have. And I was surprised to hear him refer to our car as "This baby" because he usually calls it Jazz. Yes, he thinks it's a transformer.
This morning Sam watched The Doodlebops, which he had not done in a long, long time, and that is fine by me because I think they are creepy. So at some point towards the beginning of each episode they recite the Doodlebop Pledge. And today is no different. Matt and I are moving around the house, each preparing to go to work, and Sam is sitting quietly on the couch watching when they start up, "We Promise to SHARE, We Promise to CARE,.... (I can't remember this part).... There's nothing to IT, We can do IT, WE can do ANYTHING!" Then we hear Sam quietly say, "Tuh, Not anything." in a totally sarcastic and jaded voice. Matt and I just looked at each other like Whaaa?????? Sam watched the whole thing and when it was over he stood up to turn the channel, (I don't know why he stood, the remote was with him on the couch) and as he was about to change it he said, " We are NOT allowed to watch that ANYMORE."
First of all, our new favorite place to go is Payson Lakes on the Nebo Loop in the Uinta Mountains. It's far enough away that you feel like you're actually going some where, but close enough to still want to go. So there is this little lake and people of all ages come with their floatation devices of all shapes and sizes and they have fun in the sun and water. Thanks to my niece Allynn, Sam had something to float on when we went last Saturday. It was just your average floating mattress, Long, Skinny, Pillow at the top. So he's going around on it with his stomach down and his arms in the water to paddle with. He got the hang of it really fast and he was pretty quick too. He knew how to turn and get where he wanted to go pretty well within the first three minutes. I don't know why this impresses me so much. Oh yeah, it's because I have the smartest kid EVER!
Anyway, he's floating around, and there are these little punk four year olds, (not really punks, but let's just say for my story they are) who have these tube guns that suck up water when you pull and shoot the water when you push. They shoot far. So Sam , who is about 25 feet from the shore, is floating around totally relaxing when he starts to feel water landing on himself. So he slowly starts to turn. Now remember, he is laying on his stomach and he is really relaxed. Well he sees those kids with the squirting tube guns, he looks kind of interested and then they full on squirt him. Both of them . So he turns his raft thing so it's aiming right at them and then he sets his face and it is totally determined. Then he starts paddling really fast. Picture both arms moving at the same time in quick little strokes. And the raft is moving FAST. And the punks realize it. They are only about 10 feet from the shore but they know they are about to get rammed. So they turn around and start running. And the water is up to their waists so they aren't getting anywhere fast. Then the girl punk loses a shoe and she tells her brother to get it but he's not stopping. So she turns around and hesitates, seeing that Sam is totally gaining on them and then she leans out and reaches as far as she can to the shoe, not wanting to lose any ground, and then turns and starts running again. Once they reach the shore, Sam is only about 5 feet behind them and he slows and then stops and looks at them for a while like he wants to make sure they know he means business. Then he slowly turns his raft and leisurely paddles away. We all watched this from the shore and laughed our heads off.... I had no idea he had it in him. He does not usually stick up for himself, but he did us proud.
Yesterday, he and I were driving in the car and I stopped at someones house to drop something off. When I got back into the car there is a really annoying commercial on for Low Book Sales, which is a local chain of used car dealerships. They always take popular songs from the past and put their own ridiculous lyrics to the music. This was one of them. So I get in and Sam says, "Mom, this is a Low Book Sales Commercial." I said , "Oh, do you like this one?" His answer, "No, because the song said that the car scared all the women away." At that point in the commercial their theme jingle music cuts in and Sam says, "And I hate it when they say, 'Low Book Sales, a better way to buy a car!' " So then I said, "You don't like Low Book Sales?" And he said, "No, except for when we bought this baby." He is a very observant child because we did buy our car at Low Book Sales and even I didn't remember that or equate that with the commercials, I never have. And I was surprised to hear him refer to our car as "This baby" because he usually calls it Jazz. Yes, he thinks it's a transformer.
This morning Sam watched The Doodlebops, which he had not done in a long, long time, and that is fine by me because I think they are creepy. So at some point towards the beginning of each episode they recite the Doodlebop Pledge. And today is no different. Matt and I are moving around the house, each preparing to go to work, and Sam is sitting quietly on the couch watching when they start up, "We Promise to SHARE, We Promise to CARE,.... (I can't remember this part).... There's nothing to IT, We can do IT, WE can do ANYTHING!" Then we hear Sam quietly say, "Tuh, Not anything." in a totally sarcastic and jaded voice. Matt and I just looked at each other like Whaaa?????? Sam watched the whole thing and when it was over he stood up to turn the channel, (I don't know why he stood, the remote was with him on the couch) and as he was about to change it he said, " We are NOT allowed to watch that ANYMORE."
Book Review - Hatchet and How Angel Peterson Got His Name by Gary Paulsen
Somehow I made it through Jr. High and Highschool with out having to read Hatchet. My book club chose to read it for our August book selection and I loved it! It's the story of a 13 year old boy who finds himself stranded in the wilderness with nothing but a small hatchet, and the experiences he has there. Everytime I tried to put myself in his shoes, to think about how I would react to the situations he found himself in, the answer was always the same.
I would have POOPED my pants!
Plain and simple. I couldn't have done it. This was a quick read that really got to me. I bawled several times, I couldn't help it. I highly recommend this book.
One night before bed, when I was about 3/4 of the way through the book I started telling Sam the story. He was stuck on every word. And then he had to go to bed without the end of the story. I finished it that night and the next day he reminded me before 8am to tell him the rest of the story. I'm thinking about buying it so I can read it to him and then I can read it again every year. My list of books to read once a year is getting long.
The more I write these reviews, the more I realize that I crave likable characters. I like most books and the ones that don't get good reviews from me are the ones where I didn't like the main characters. I want to read about characters that I can relate to in some way. This is not to say they need to be a 30ish mother of one who works to help support her family and feels the frustration of not being able to sit at home and read all day, everyday. I mean, who wants to read about that? (Thanks for reading my blog anyway.) I'm talking about identifying with characters on a human level - the good natured side of human. And when I read books with those kinds of people in them I usually enjoy it. And then I miss them when I'm done with the book... Freaky, I know.
I would have POOPED my pants!
Plain and simple. I couldn't have done it. This was a quick read that really got to me. I bawled several times, I couldn't help it. I highly recommend this book.
One night before bed, when I was about 3/4 of the way through the book I started telling Sam the story. He was stuck on every word. And then he had to go to bed without the end of the story. I finished it that night and the next day he reminded me before 8am to tell him the rest of the story. I'm thinking about buying it so I can read it to him and then I can read it again every year. My list of books to read once a year is getting long.
The more I write these reviews, the more I realize that I crave likable characters. I like most books and the ones that don't get good reviews from me are the ones where I didn't like the main characters. I want to read about characters that I can relate to in some way. This is not to say they need to be a 30ish mother of one who works to help support her family and feels the frustration of not being able to sit at home and read all day, everyday. I mean, who wants to read about that? (Thanks for reading my blog anyway.) I'm talking about identifying with characters on a human level - the good natured side of human. And when I read books with those kinds of people in them I usually enjoy it. And then I miss them when I'm done with the book... Freaky, I know.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Book Review - Eclipse and Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
So, as I have told many, I am not a freak about these books, like most of Utah is. I read the first two for book club and they were VERY entertaining. But I do not like Bella. She is totally selfish in my eyes and she bugs me. Some would say I'm just jealous, and maybe that is true. I also feel that while very entertaining they are not very well written. Meyer repeats herself too much and I'm not just talking about certain phrases (I'll barf if I have to read about how "Edward smiled that crooked smile that I love so much." again - EWW) . She repeats whole conversation over and over and rehashes and rehashes. It made me crazy. It got to the point where pretty much every conversation between Bella and Edward made me want to fall alseep. Also, Meyer needs a new proof reader because I am horrible at proof reading (those of you who read my blog regularly are aware of this) and even I found at least 5 typos, extra words ect., in each book. But please, don't get me wrong Very entertaining.
I thought Eclipse fit perfectly with the first two. Great continuation of the story with nice suspense and resolution - well as much resolution as you can get in the third book of a four book series. My favorite part? Jacob and Bella in the same Sleeping bag! That part was great.
On to Breaking Dawn. I have to say it. She went too far. Again - very entertaining, I couldn't put it down. But soooooo weird that I'm not sure if I liked it or not....
These books totally mess with my head though. I am seriously feeling a time crunch on my life. Why can't I be a mother for twenty years and then go to med school for a decade and then vaccinate African babies for a decade and then go to school to study anthropology and do that for a decade or two and then spend a few decades traveling and learning languages and going on humanitarian missions or reading, reading and reading. Do you know how much reading I could get done if I didn't have to sleep at night. TIME! I need more time. A few more centuries is all I'm asking!
I thought Eclipse fit perfectly with the first two. Great continuation of the story with nice suspense and resolution - well as much resolution as you can get in the third book of a four book series. My favorite part? Jacob and Bella in the same Sleeping bag! That part was great.
On to Breaking Dawn. I have to say it. She went too far. Again - very entertaining, I couldn't put it down. But soooooo weird that I'm not sure if I liked it or not....
These books totally mess with my head though. I am seriously feeling a time crunch on my life. Why can't I be a mother for twenty years and then go to med school for a decade and then vaccinate African babies for a decade and then go to school to study anthropology and do that for a decade or two and then spend a few decades traveling and learning languages and going on humanitarian missions or reading, reading and reading. Do you know how much reading I could get done if I didn't have to sleep at night. TIME! I need more time. A few more centuries is all I'm asking!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Book Review - Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt
I loved this book. It's a coming of age story about a boy who moves with his family to a new town/state and the experiences and life lessons they learn there. As most of you know that is all the plot you are getting from me, because that is all the plot I like to get. One of the things I loved about this book is the characters. Funny, cute, charming, loathful - this book has them all, with great developement. Another thing I liked about it is that while it is fiction, it is based on actual events, which I didn't know until the very end.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Memory Tag
I saw this "tag" game on my friend Jen's Blog and thought it sounded like fun.
1. Add a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!
2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses.
If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.
1. Add a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!
2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses.
If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.
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