Booking Through Thursday: Objectionable Elements

Posted on June 12, 2014 by Barbara Harper

Booking Through Thursday is a weekly meme which poses a question or a thought for participants to discuss centering on the subject of books or reading.

Today’s question is:

How do you feel about explicit detail in your reading? Whether language, sex, violence, situations and so on … does it bother you? Faze you at all? Or do you just read everything without it bothering you?

I do not like explicit detail in my reading and try to avoid it.

Don’t get me wrong, I understand there has to be a “bad guy” or something wrong in order to have a plot. I know there is adultery and violence in the real world. But we don’t need explicit detail.

Any war story is going to have some degree of violence, but I don’t need details about eyes bulging out or blood spattering or whatever that are there just to titillate or disgust or increase the gore factor. Ditto for sexuality. As one friend once said, sex is not a spectator sport.

Since I am a Christian, I take my cues from the Bible. The story of David and Bathsheba tells us all we need to know of their tryst, but there is nothing in the description that would cause arousal in the reader.

Language is a bit harder. For the most part I avoid profanity or taking God’s name in my reading because I don’t want to fill my mind with it and increase the chances that those words are going to filter into my thoughts and possibly come out of my mouth in an unguarded moment. But if I were going to try to eliminate them completely, I’d have to unfriend some of my relatives on Facebook. 🙂 There are a few “damns” even in some of the classics (like The Brothers Karamazov, which I am reading, or rather listening to now). I think sometimes a story can transcend those elements (like Unbroken), but I’d still rather they weren’t there. A character can be shown to be a profane character without giving us the full brunt of his profane mouth.

In fact, I think it takes much more talented writing to show a profane character or a violent or sexual scene without explicit detail. In one of the most violent scenes I have seen on film, nothing was shown but the victim’s feet. A bit of restraint and leaving some details up to the reader’s imagination are far more effective.

To weigh in on this week’s question or read other responses, go here.

Laudable Linkage

Posted on March 29, 2014 by Barbara Harper

Here are some thought-provoking reads from the last week or so:

How to Beat That Bad Mood.

Middle-agers Need Older Women Too.

Raise a Man.

Salvation in a Dementia Ward, HT to Challies.

Motherhood or Singleness: Which Is More Sanctifying? Short answer: whichever one you’re called to.

8 Things Not to Say to Your Aging Parents.

How to Write a Book in Your Spare Time.

7 Reasons Why I Stop Reading a Novel by author Jody Hedlund, whom I have not yet read except on this blog.

Getting Upset About the Wrong Things in Disney Movies and The Cold That Bothers Us both give thoughtful insights into Disney’s movie Frozen.

Finally, I couldn’t resist sharing with you something we noticed during Sunday breakfast. Apparently one of the biscuits was grumpy, or woke up on the wrong side of the pan or something. 🙂

Happy Saturday!

What’s On Your Nightstand: March 2014

Posted on March 25, 2014 by Barbara Harper

The folks at 5 Minutes For Books host What’s On Your Nightstand? the fourth Tuesday of each month in which we can share about the books we have been reading and/or plan to read.

Feb. seemed long for a short month: March has seemed short for a long month. Of course, there’s about a week of it left, but for WOYN purposes, it’s time to discuss what’s on our reading agendas.

Since last time I have completed:

Made to Crave: Satisfying Your Deepest Desire With God, Not Food by Lisa TerKeurst, reviewed here.

Walking From East to West: God in the Shadows by Ravi Zacharias, reviewed here.

Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder for my Laura Ingalls Wilder Reading Challenge and for Carrie’s Reading to Know Classics Book Club, reviewed here.

The House Is Quiet, Now What? Rediscovering Life and Adventure As a Empty Nester by Janice Hanna and Kathleen Y’Barbo, reviewed here.

I’m currently reading:

Crowded to Christ by L. E. Maxwell

Bleak House by Charles Dickens via audiobook

The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge for Carrie’s Reading to Know Classics Book Club for March. I need to step on it with this one!

Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal: A Boy, Cancer, and God by Michael Kelley

Made to Crave Action Plan Participant’s Guide by Lysa TerKeurst and Ski Chilton (which is a different thing from the Made to Crave Participant’s Guide, as I discovered after ordering the wrong book…) It is a follow-up to Made to Crave, and the Proverbs 31 Ministries site has been posting the videos in the Action Plan series and going through this book.

Next up:

The Great Divorce by C. S. Lewis

My Man Jeeves by P. D. Wodehouse for Carrie’s April selection.

The Book of Three by Alexander Lloyd (pub. 2006), first book in the Prydain Chronicles

Other bookish posts this month included one on censorship of YA literature and rereading.

As always, happy reading!

Laudable Linkage

Posted on March 22, 2014 by Barbara Harper

I’m here again today with my almost weekly round-up of interesting reads from the last week or so:

Gospel-Centered Reduction: Slighting the Spirit. There has been something bothering me about the term “gospel-centered” being used as an adjective on just about everything in Christianity in recent years, but I couldn’t quite articulate why. This article touches on some of the reasons.

Coffee With Facepalm Jesus Calling, HT to Bobbi. The various problems with portraying Jesus as saying things He wouldn’t say, from memes to cartoons to Jesus Calling.

Fred Phelps and the Anti-Gospel of Hate.

9 Things We Should Get Rid of to Help Our Kids.

31 Days of Purity: The Throne of Grace. I especially appreciated the paragraph by Lambert in the middle about the difference between condemning self-talk and confession.

This Mother Tore Off labels and Nurtured Her Son’s Hidden Genius.

Soldier Finds Lifeline in Letter Exchange With Vermont Author, HT to Sherry. I have never read either of these authors but want to now. I espcially liked this: “I needed that reminder that there was still hope and still beauty in the world. At that time in my life there was none. There was nothing except guns and fear. I was really not at all sure that I was ever going to get out of that place. This book gave me a little bit of beauty at that time, and I needed it. Not the way I need a new app for my iPad. I needed it to keep my soul alive.”

Threads: Loved this: “Every great story tells in some part The Great Story. Each truth revealed helps us make sense of our world. And through each tragedy, comedy, and fairy tale, the Truth is woven through the fabric of our being.” I don’t know that I’d say that about every story – I’ve read some awful ones with little redeeming value – but overall, yes, truth even in fiction points us to the ultimate Author of truth.

Happy Saturday!

Booking Through Thursday: Rereading

Posted on March 20, 2014 by Barbara Harper

Booking Through Thursday is a weekly meme which poses a question or a thought for participants to discuss centering on the subject of books or reading.

Today’s question has to do with rereading:

I’ve asked before if you re-read your books (feel free to recap), but right now I want to know if that habit has changed? Did you, for example, reread more as a child and your access to new books was limited by how often you could convince your mother to take you to the library? Has the economy affected your access so that you’re forced to reread more often now? Have you grown to look at old books as old friends so that you’re happy to spend time with them rather than rushing the next new thing?

I don’t remember whether I reread much as a child, though I imagine I did with a few favorite books. I don’t think the economy has had much effect on rereading: if I couldn’t afford new books, there are hundreds through the library. But I do reread some books, for several reasons:

1. It is like a visit with an old friend, much like listening to the same music, rewatching a movie, telling the same stories at family gatherings. It’s cozy, comfortable, and familiar.

2. It’s hard to get everything from most books the first time through. To me the best books are those I can revisit many times and still gain something from.

3. It’s hard to remember everything we got from the first read, especially (for me) with nonfiction.

4. It reinforces what I learned from the book before.

5. I identify with different characters or parts of the book differently at different stages. Little Women is a classic example: I identified with different ones of the girls as a child and young teenager; as a young wife I identified with Meg; as an older mom I saw Marmee through new eyes (and the girls, too, for that matter, looking on them from a mother’s point of view rather than as friends.)

6. It can be just plain fun to revisit a story.

The problem is that there are so many enticing new books to choose from that it is hard to make the decision to reread an old one. Sometimes with nonfiction I choose to reread because I need those lessons or that information again. But with fiction, audiobooks are a great way to revisit books. Although I do listen to new books that way, I can tend to miss something from them if I can’t hit the replay button (like when I am driving or cooking). But that’s not so much an issue with a familiar book. Plus by listening I don’t feel like the old book, especially if it is an old, longer classic, is monopolizing so much of my reading time. And hearing it read can bring out facets I may have missed in my own reading.

Here is a list I made a few years ago of books I have reread and would like to reread. I’m happy to say I have reread many from the latter list since then, most via audiobook.

Laudable Linkage

Posted on March 1, 2014 by Barbara Harper

Here are some noteworthy reads from the last couple of weeks:

An Invitation. “I don’t want to be grouchy and discontented. I don’t want to become angry with my kids, short-tempered with my husband, or aloof with my friends. It is my desire to be more. To be patient, kind, and others-centered.”

Dear Lonely Mom of Older Kids.

Why Miscarriage Matters If You’re Pro-Life.

Don’t Be Original.

There are two helpful posts concerning the issue of Christians not wanting to give business to situations that would violate their consciences and whether or not that is hypocritical: Against Christian Hypocrisy and On Weddings and Conscience: Are Christians Hypocrites?

The Heartbreak of Foster Care. “We don’t do it because we aren’t afraid of heartbreak, but because we are afraid of what would happen to them without us.”

Trailer for “Unbroken” Movie. I loved the book about Louis Zamperini, Olympic runner who became a POW in WWII. The trailer looks good: I hope the movie does it justice.

Teddy Roosevelt’s Rules For Reading. I especially like the idea that there is no list of the 100 best books that will fit everyone.

Infographic: Top Ten Reasons for Choosing a Paper Book Over an E-Book. I do read e-books – can’t pass up the free or deeply discounted chance to get books, plus they’re convenient to carry around – but I do still prefer paper books. This graphic shows the top reasons other people prefer them, too.

Why Some Kids Can’t Spell and Why Spelling Tests Won’t Help.

And a couple of fun things:

Tiny Lego Photographer. Really neat photos.

The Man Who Built the Settlers of Catan game.

20 People Who Tried Things on Pinterest and Totally Nailed It. This is hilarious. I’ve written before of some of my cake disasters: these look like something I would do.

I saw this going around Facebook: a math teacher whose students never suspected his secret softer side:

Reading Challenge Update

Posted on February 15, 2014 by Barbara Harper

Roof Beam Reader, who hosts the 2014 TBR Pile Challenge, has check-in points around the 15th of each month so we can summarize how we’re doing.

Of the 12 books I’ve listed here, I’ve completed Ida Scudder, am about halfway through Made to Crave and Walking From East to West, and am a few chapters into Crowded to Christ. So I think I’m pretty much on track there.

I might as well update the other challenges, too: for the Back to the Classics Challenge, I’ve completed two from the required categories of my list (The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery and The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy), and am about 3/4 of the way through The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins (which I am finding riveting!) From the optional categories I’ve completed A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and am about 1/4 of the way through Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder. That leaves me three from the required and two from the optional lists, so I think I am in good shape there, too.

The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery was also read in connection with Carrie’s L. M. Montgomery Reading Challenge and Reading to Know Classics Book Club and Farmer Boy is part of my Laura Ingalls Wilder Reading Challenge. Crowded to Christ is also part of the The Cloud of Witnesses Challenge. And Crowded to Christ, Made to Crave, Ida Scudder and Walking From East to West are all eligible for the Nonfiction Reading Challenge in which I am aiming to read 11-15 nonfiction books.

It’s funny how just having made these lists is spurring me on to more purposeful reading. And now I am going to have to read more Sherlock Holmes and Wilkie Collins when I get done with these challenges!

Laudable Linkage

Posted on February 8, 2014 by Barbara Harper

Here are some noteworthy reads discovered over the last few weeks:

Has ‘Authenticity’ Trumped Holiness?

Authenticity, Honesty, and the Stay-at-Home Mother.

Would That Be Okay? “What if your kid never really does all that great in sports?…never really gets it when it comes to reading?…isn’t wired for college?”

3 Questions You Must Ask Before Reacting.

How Will I Compare?

Don’t Give My Husband Romance Lessons, Thank You.

Before You Were Mommy.

“I Feel Like a Mean Mom”

When Mothering Is Hard and No One Sees.

Valentine’s Day Single? No Problem…Seriously.

The Historical Reality of Adam.

The Beginnings of a Dark-Tinted, Truth-Filled Reading List

Selling Hope: How Christian Fiction Makes a Difference.

Hope you have a great weekend!

TBR Challenge

Posted on January 13, 2014 by Barbara Harper

I appreciated my friend Lisa‘s comment on my post about book challenges last week about the struggle with balance between wanting to be intentional in reading yet not wanting to feel hemmed in. I struggle with that, too. There are some books I’d never get around to reading without some of these challenges and lists, but I don’t want to have so many lists that I’m feeling overly pressured. I know sometimes God has directed me to a book I needed right at the moment that wasn’t on my radar, and I want to leave room for that and for the just-for-fun books (because I read both to learn and to relax.)

I’ve been pondering for a few days what to list for the 2014 TBR Pile Challenge hosted by Roof Beam Reader. The challenge is to read 12 books in a year that have been on your shelves unread with a publication date before 2013. I chafe a little bit at that because I have books on my shelves published last year that I want to get to, and books I just got for Christmas that have pre-2013 publication dates but are new to me. But I do understand the need for guidelines of some kind, or else this would be just a general reading list. So I am trying to keep within the spirit of the post and choose books that I’ve had on my shelves or in my Kindle app for a while now. I came up with a list of 25, and that’s not including a box of books in my closet that I had forgotten about. 😳 So from those I’m narrowing it down to this list of 12, with two allowable alternate titles in case I decide against any of the others during the year (as per instructions, as I finish each book and review it, I’m adding the link to that review to the titles below):

1. Made to Crave: Satisfying Your Deepest Desire with God, Not Food by Lisa TerKeurst (pub. 2010). Proverbs 31 Ministries is hosting a study of this book beginning Jan. 19, so I’ll be joining in that. (Finished March 1, 2014)

2. Crowded to Christ by L. E. Maxwell (pub. 1952), recommended by a former pastor. (Finished April 7)

3. Ida Scudder: Healing Bodies, Touching Hearts by Janet and Geoff Benge (pub. 2012). I had read a biography of hers (though not this one) some 25-30 years ago and wanted to refresh myself on her story. (Finished Feb. 3)

4. The House Is Quiet, Now What? by Janice Hanna and Kathleen Y’Barbo (pub. 2009). The subtitle is Rediscovering Life and Adventure As a Empty Nester. My nest isn’t totally empty yet, and I don’t see a shortage of things to do for a long time to come, but figured this would be helpful with perspective. One sentence I saw while flipping through it really spoke to me (about the “sandwich generation”), so I am looking forward to this. I had thought Lisa recommended this one, but maybe that was a different book. (Finished March 10)

5. How to Read Slowly by James W. Sire (pub. 1978). Even with making notes and marking with sticky tabs. I have a hard time feeling like I’ve really grasped everything I need to from nonfiction, so I am hoping this will help in that regard. (Finished July 20)

6. How to Be a Writer by Barbara Baig (pub. 2010). I like to read a book about writing every now and then to keep those embers stirred.

7. Walking From East to West: God in the Shadows by Ravi Zacharias (pub. 2009), because Sherry recommended it to me and because I like hearing how people came to the Lord, among other reasons. (Finished March 16)

8. The Great Divorce by C. S. Lewis (pub. 1946). I’ve read Narnia, the Space Trilogy, and Mere Christianity and now want to read some other Lewis books. (Finished May 6)

9. Loving the Church by John Crotts (pub. 2010), sent to me by Carrie a long time ago. 😳 (Finished June 17)

10. The Book of Three by Alexander Lloyd (pub. 2006), first book in the Prydain Chronicles, recommended by Janet. (Finished June 30)

11. Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal: A Boy, Cancer, and God by Michael Kelley (pub 2012). (Finished May 21)

12. Why We Are Not Emergent: By Two Guys Who Should Be by Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck (pub. 2008), partly because I have never heard anybody adequately explain what the emergent movement is, and I’ve heard this is a good critique. (Finished October 15)

Alternates: Girl in the Gatehouse by Julie Klassen (Finished Aug. 31) and Just Jane: A Novel of Jane Austen’s Life by Nancy Moser (Finished Aug. 4). (My wrap-up post for this challenge is here: https://barbarah.wordpress.com/2014/12/15/reading-challenge-wrap-up/)

You notice how many of these are nonfiction. That’s probably why they have been languishing on my shelves. 😳 I gravitate to fiction and biographies: I like nonfiction when I read it, but I usually have to “make” myself read it. So this list will be a challenge in more ways than one!

As per Roof Beam Reader’s instructions, when I finish and review each book, I’ll make its title above into a link to the review.

Lisa mentioned on her reading challenges post this morning a Nonfiction Reading Challenge which I hadn’t seen but given all the nonfiction have listed here, I figured I may as well join up. 🙂

The Challenge: Read any non-fiction book(s), adult or young adult. That’s it. You can choose anything. Memoirs? Yes. History? Yes. Travel? Yes. You get the idea? Absolutely anything that is classified as non-fiction counts for this challenge.

I always like levels in my challenges, so here are mine:

Dilettante–Read 1-5 non-fiction books

Explorer–Read 6-10

Seeker–Read 11-15

Master–Read 16-20

This challenge will last from January 1 to December 31, 2014. You can sign up anytime throughout the year.

With the books listed about plus a couple of others I want to read this year, I am aiming for the Seeker level.

Do you have books that have been on your “To Be Read” shelves for a while? Maybe you’ll consider joining in with challenge with us, and we can encourage each other along the way.

Upcoming Reading Challenges

Posted on January 9, 2014 by Barbara Harper

I hope you’ll forgive so many bookish posts this week: it’s been a catch-up time for finishing some and writing about others.

There are a few reading challenges I’m planning to participate in this year.

Carrie is hosting a Reading to Know Classics Book Club alternating between children’s and adult classics and asked 12 blog friends to chose a book and lead a discussion of it. You can see a list of the books for this year here. There are no requirements about how much one must participate (which I appreciate very much!) We can just chose to participate whichever months we’re interested. I’m honored to be leading the discussion for To the Golden Shore about Adoniram Judson by Courtney Anderson in October. Several of the titles listed there look interesting: I’m planning to participate several months (probably most of the adult classics and maybe a few of the children’s).

Every January Carrie also hosts a L. M. Montgomery Reading Challenge. Nice way to start the year, don’t you think? I’ve reread all the Anne of Green Gables books for this challenge the last few years and last year read the first Emily book. But this year I’m reading The Blue Castle, one of LMM’s few adult books, which dovetails with the Classic Book Club above, and if I have time I’ll read the second Emily book.

In February I’m hosting the third annual Laura Ingalls Wilder Reading Challenge: more info. on that is here, and I’ll share what I am reading for that on Feb. 1.

There are a couple of other through-the-year challenges that are new to me this year that I am going to try. I believe all of these came to my attention via Joyful Reader.

The Cloud of Witnesses Challenge is sponsored by Becky at Operation Actually Read Bible, and the idea is to read nonfiction books by godly authors who have gone on to be with Jesus. They don’t have to be full books: they could be sermons or articles. A list of suggested authors is here, but Becky is open to others. I am going to commit to reading four. One is Crowded to Christ by L. E. Maxwell, highly recommended by a beloved and highly respected former pastor (though I started it this morning and it looks a little daunting, but we’ll see how it goes!) and Traveling Toward Sunrise by Mrs. Charles E. Cowman (of Streams in the Desert fame). I also have a couple of C. S. Lewis books on hand that I’ll probably include.

I’m considering the 2014 TBR Pile Challenge hosted by Roof Beam Reader. The challenge is to read 12 books in a year that have been on your shelves unread with a publication date before 2013. I’m sure I have 12 books that qualify: I’m just not sure I want to commit to 12, especially as we have to provide a list beforehand, and I don’t want to be hemmed in by reading commitments. But some of these would crossover with some of the other challenges, so I might be able to do it. Everyone who conquest their TBR list before the end of the year is entered in a drawing for a $50 gift card to Amazon, so that’s motivation, too! 🙂 ~~The list of what we plan to read for that needs to be up by the 15th, so I have a few days yet to work on it~~. (I did decide to do this: my list is here.)

And finally, Karen at Books and Chocolate is hosting a Back to the Classics Challenge (guidelines and explanations here) where we can choose classics that fit in certain categories, and there are drawings for prizes at the end of it! 🙂 There are some required categories and some optional categories. My list will overlap a bit with Carrie’s Book Club mentioned above (otherwise I’d never be able to do this!)

Required:

A 20th Century Classic: My Man Jeeves by P. D. Wodehouse
A 19th Century Classic: Bleak House by Charles Dickens
A Classic by a Woman Author: The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery
A Classic in Translation (A book originally written in a different language from your own.) The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky.
A Classic About War The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy.
A Classic by an Author Who Is New To You: The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

Optional Categories:

An American Classic: Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder
A Classic Mystery, Suspense or Thriller: A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle, the first Sherlock Holmes book
A Historical Fiction Classic: I will Repay by Baroness Orzcy, part of The Scarlet Pimpernel series. I hadn’t known there was more than one book with him!
A Classic That’s Been Adapted Into a Movie or TV Series: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
Extra Fun Category: Write a Review of the Movie or TV Series adapted from Optional Category #4

Let me know if you’re planning to join in on any of these, and we can keep up with each other’s progress.

I’m giving some thought to hosting a challenge to read a certain number of missionary books throughout the year. Let me know if you’d be interested in that and how many books you think would be reasonable.