26 Letters

Some time in our elementary years, we were all introduced to a magical sentence that includes all 26 letters of the alphabet: The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.

In his book, Ella Minnow Pea, Mark Dunn imagines a fanciful island where the constructor of the sentence, Nevin Nollop, is worshipped for is unequivocal genius. A large statue, which includes tiles spelling out the famous sentence, stands boldly in the center of the main city. While the island lacks modern technology like electricity, 150 years after Nollop's life, the island persists as a pleasant community where everyone has a voracious vocabulary, celebrating the beauty of each of the 26 individual letters. 

Communication is clear and beautiful until one day, one tile falls from the statue and the Council makes a bold decision: Nollop is speaking from beyond the grave and removing letters from the known alphabet. Society descends into madness as the Council reinforces their decision with each falling tile.

The demise of the nation of Nollop is told through the letters of several citizens, primarily Ella Minnow Pea and her family--father, mother, cousin, and aunt. Salvation from madness can only be found if one of the rebels is able to come up with a shorter sentence that also contains all 26 letters. The result is a captivatingly beautiful tale of the power of words and a comedically dystopian view of how communication would deteriorate if letters were removed. 

A student recommended this book to me and, particularly compelled by the humor of the title (Ella Minnow Pea = LMNOP), lent me her copy. The 180 pages fell away in what felt like 26 minutes (truly closer to 180). If you are one who enjoys puns, homonyms, and creative word play, this short novel is one you won't want to miss. 

On Writing and Bibliotherapy

In November, the content coach for the English department in my district scheduled bibliotherapy for all the teachers in the district. Each of us brought a book that we would love to share with someone else. Bibliotherapy is "the use of books as therapy in the treatment of mental conditions" and while a group of English teachers aren't licensed therapists, we do understand the power of a good book. We were given polka-dot bags and literary notecards with instructions to write a prescription recommending the book for another's ailments.

Not completely understanding the assignment at first, I brought three books that I thought would appeal to teachers:

 The Maid by Nita Prose 
A whodunit that reveals itself early to the reader, but connects the reader to the maid in question. I recommended this because of my love of mysteries, but also because of the insight into the mind of someone with divergent thinking, like Asperger's or Autism. As educators, we often forget that not everyone thinks or learns in the same way and I found this book both intriguing and educational in understanding others.

The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy
This classic has long been one of my favorites. I was introduced to the musical in 2010 while cleaning cabins with a friend. Our weeks were filled with counseling 8 to 18-year-olds at Bible camp, but our weekends were for preparing for the next week and building relationships with others. My cleaning partner introduced me to two Broadway musicals now on my wish list, The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Secret Garden. Nearly two years after being introduced to the musical, I read Orczy's novel as I worked an afterschool program. I fell in love with the story of Margarite and Percy and the beautiful imagery throughout the book. I was shocked to find that other English teacher's weren't as obsessed with this short classic as I was. The personification of Lady Guillotine alone is mesmerizing. 

This is the OwlCrate special edition.

Horrid by Katrina Leno
Admittedly, I am a wimp when it comes to horror. I love mystery and suspense, hate horror. So this recommendation may seem to be a conundrum, but I loved how Leno set up this ghostly tale. Rather than chapters, this book is divided into sections by lines of one of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's well-known children's rhymes:

    There was a little girl,
            Who had a little curl,
Right in the middle of her forehead.
            When she was good,
            She was very good indeed,
But when she was bad she was horrid.

What follows is a story that slowly draws the reader in to the clutches of a menacing ghost. Plus, there's an Agatha Christie reference throughout (and who doesn't love Christie?). 

The two modern selections were picked up and I am confident they both were received well. The Maid showed back up in round two of bibliotherapy this past month and the teacher who selected Horrid talked to me about it as we both selected new books in January. So what did I do with The Scarlet Pimpernel? I left it for my mentor who still works at the middle school. Has he admitted he hates it? Yes. Ain't I a stinker?

As for my first dose of bibliotherapy, I selected On Writing by Stephen King which was brought by a senior English teacher from another building. Part of our initial assignment was to read the book over the winter break . . . which I did not do. However, I did start reading it with my Comp & Reading 2 class during free reading time. I can tell that the other teacher, like myself, thought our books should connect to teaching in some way (we were later encouraged that our round two books could simply be books we enjoyed, no educational strings attached). And I'm so glad for his misunderstanding. I had never read King's writing primer before (actually, I've never read any of King's books, but I am familiar with several of them through pop culture and movies), but I have highlighted quotes on over twenty pages and had my Creative Writing students analyze a portion of the text in class. 

While On Writing is certainly impacting me as a teacher, it is also impacting me as a writer. When I completed my Masters of English in Creative Writing in 2017, I had the rough idea and thirty pages of a novel that I feared I would never have the guts to write. I'm no Bradbury, Austen, Tolkien, or Lewis. I'm just . . . me. But, according to King, that's exactly who I need to be. 

I am not coming here to promise that I'll finish my book in 2023, but I am going to cling to King's admonition to write a little bit each day. Some days, I will take time to write in my book. Others--probably more often--I will stretch my writing muscles through blog entries and book reviews, but I will be writing. 

The fear may not fall away, but I will face it head on, one word at a time. 

 

 

The Heart of a King

As an ELA teacher and lover of reading, I have subscribed to several YA book subscription boxes and even moderated for one until it went defunct last year. I moderated romance novels (not my genre of choice, but the only opening they had) for about five months before I was able to switch to literary fiction. As a moderator and  public school teacher, my recent reading has been inundated with secular themes and characters. The bookstagram I started when I started moderating took off and I realized that I could be using that social media platform to promote books that would promote Christ-likeness.

There was a slight problem, though. Christian fiction I have read in the past left a bad taste in my mouth. Like the romance novels I proctored, the majority of Christian novels I had read in past felt shallow and focused on eliciting an emotional response, failing to challenge the reader to be introspective on how they could change themselves or the world around them. Plot lines and characters seem to fall out of a mold, removing creativity and uniqueness from the story.

So a few months ago when a friend of mine who reviews Christian fiction encouraged me to sign up to be part of the launch team for a book to be released in May, I jumped at the chance to reintroduce myself to a genre I had avoided for so long.

The Heart of a King: The Loves of Solomon is a compilation of short stories about four of the wives of King Solomon. I was apprehensive from the start as this book seemed to fit into my preconceived notions of what I would be reading.

And it was: a chick-flick romance novel.

If you are looking for a romantic view of Israel's (and the world's) wisest king, then this is the book for you. Smith introduces you to four wives of different histories from different times in Solomon's life.
Naamah the Ammonite, his first wife and a friend of his youth. Namaah seeks to know Solomon and his God in a more personal way. She also hopes Solomon will obey God's commands to kings and be the husband of one wife.
Abishag, the young wife-nurse of David selected by Bathsheba knowing Solomon would marry the young wives of his father. Solomon and Abishag fall in love through grief and love of music.
Siti, the young Egyptian princess who gives Solomon Gezer, but refuses to give up her god, Bastet and demands a palace of her own.
Nicaula, the virgin Queen of Sheba who seeks Solomon's wisdom and a trade agreement. In her search, she finds wisdom for herself in a relationship with the God of Israel.

Personally, I struggled to read this novel. After reading the selections about the first two wives, I set the book down and it glared at me for nearly two weeks. I legitimately could not read anything else knowing I agreed to review the book honestly, which I refused to do until I finished the novel, but I had no desire to finish (see my predicament?). Eventually, I did push through and finish the novel. I enjoyed the conflicts present in the last two wives better than the first, but not enough to say that I love the book.

What I didn't like:

• Solomon woos several of his wives with the same poems and sayings, including calling each of them "my dove" and a passage describing Solomon holding and kissing intimately them prior to marriage, resulting in a sexual rise from the lady, only to say "we must wait until love awakens"as he walks away.
  
  These descriptions bothered me as Solomon did not reveal himself as a man in love, rather he sounded like a sexual predator, manipulating his most current victim. While I understand many readers may not interpret Solomon's words and characters in this way, I could not shake the feeling that Solomon was a master manipulator.
  
  After reading Siti's section, I was more understanding of Solomon's motivations to keep peace via marriages to princesses of other lands, but then he manipulated Nicaula into a marriage and child after she showed her unease and asked to call off the marriage. His wording in this section, again, reminded me of a sexual predator offering confidence in the midst of insecurity rather than listening and backing off.
• Solomon is a whiny crown prince and comes off as incredibly selfish throughout the book, although the selfishness does lessen toward the end.
• Solomon's relationship with Adonai seems weak. Namaah and Abishag mention the strength of his faith, but it is not apparent to the reader. Yes, we are give the prayer when God offers Solomon anything and grants him wisdom and descriptions of his obsession with the building of the temple. The temple obsession is not a convincing argument for his love of Adonai, just his love of his father and fulfilling a duty. 

What I did like:

• The characterization of Bathsheba as Queen Mother. While I am certain her position was difficult, I appreciated how Smith used her as a friend, confidante, and adviser to each of the wives. Bathsheba also showed wisdom in how she addressed, encouraged, and reprimanded her son, even after he was king.
• The revelation that wisdom is not equal to morality or prudence. Solomon knew what he was supposed to do, but often foolishly chose to indulge his passions. I have done this in my own life, so I'm sure being the richest, wisest king of his era made temptations that much greater. I appreciated that Smith used the wives to challenge his foolishness.
• Not all of the wives are believers. The contrast between the four wives adds interest in the book. I particularly enjoyed the dissonance between Siti and Nicaula. 

I must admit, Smith's book did not change my opinion on Christian fiction, but I know there are books in this genre that I will enjoy. I just need to keep looking. And maybe avoid romances.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

April Wrap Up

This month I took on a mammoth task: Book Roast's OWLs Read-a-thon 2019. Book Roast has hosted this on her YouTube channel and bookstagram before, but this is my first time looking into her challenge. The challenge itself is pretty flexible, but encourages you to read five to seven books in April. She has prompts for each of the OWLs tested classes per Hogwarts and Harry Potter lore. You can also pick a career to "study" for, which may dictate what prompts you seek to fulfill. I chose professor as it was the most flexible and, well, my actual career.

Here's the breakdown for this year's challenge:

• Ancient Runes: Retelling
• Arithomancy: Written by more than one author
• Astronomy: "Star" in the title
• Care of Magical Creatures: Land Animal on the cover
• Charms: Age-line: Adult work
• Defense Against the Dark Arts: Reducto - book that starts with "R"
• Divination: Set in the Future
• Herbology: Plant on the Cover
• History of Magic: Book published 10+ years ago
• Muggle Studies: Contemporary read
• Potions: Next ingredient - sequel
• Transfiguration: Sprayed Edges

For my chosen career, I was to complete Defense Against the Dark Arts and six other courses. I almost made it.

Astronomy

Stardust - Neil Gaiman

I have started this book, but did not finish before the end of April. I adore the movie, so I knew I would love the book. And I do, so far. But I especially love the way Gaiman introduces Wall and Tristan and prefer the books version of Tristan entering the land beyond the wall. 

Care of Magical Creatures

The Tea Dragon Society - Kate O'Neill

⭐⭐⭐⭐

This cute graphic novel was included in OwlCrate's February box. 

Charms

The Wild Card - Hope & Wade King

I am reading this along with other middle school teachers in my district as part of a team-building, career-focused Twitter chat. Initially, I was bummed because I felt I already include much of the content in my classroom, however, as I have progressed through the book I realize while I have a solid foundation on how to be creative and engaging in my classroom, I still have more to learn.

Defense Against the Dark Arts

Renegades - Marissa Meyer (audiobook)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

First of all, this book was the perfect book to listen to at 2x the speed. Second, it is a brilliant superhero versus supervillain retelling that challenges the reader to truly consider who the good guys really are. I appreciate that the protagonist views herself as a villain, but her values and the actions of the antagonist cause the reader to question the morality of the "heroes". 

Divination

Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins (book + audio)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I nearly missed finishing this book in time for the Read & Gush session, but the library's audiobook selection saved me. I was able to work in the yard and listen to the final third of the book. Again, I wasn't sure how Collins would increase the anticipation and intensity of her series, but I found this to be a fitting ending to the story she created. I was happily Team Peeta all the way through and truly enjoyed discussing the characters, plot, and conflicts with the Read & Gush team, even if we did disagree about Gale.

Herbology

Four Dead Queens - Astrid Schlote

⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

Fitting this book into herbology is a bit of a stretch, but one of the crowns is embellished with leaves and flowers, so I counted it. Because I was already reading and loving this book and couldn't live with reading a book that didn't fit within the challenge. 

Four Dead Queens is a captivating whodunit that keeps you guessing until the end. While there were elements that were not my favorite, the mystery itself was fantastic. The twist was completely unexpected, which drove the plot to its final, fulfilling conclusion.

*OwlCrate March selection

History of Magic

Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

When given the chance to squeeze in an older book, I will generally pick up a classic that I've been dying to reread. That's exactly what I did with this prompt. Fahrenheit 451 is probably my favorite book of all time (yes, I think it even outranks Anne of Green Gables and Pride and Prejudice). Rereading this lit a fire in me once again about the importance of reading and learning a variety of different topics and views. Knowledge is power.

Transfiguration

Crown of Feathers - Nicki Pau Preto

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Did I maybe cheat by including this one? Yes, because I was already about 100 pages in when April started. But, Book Roast said this is for fun and qualifications are really up to me, so yes, I counted it. OwlCrate's edition of this book has a gorgeous purple cover with purple sprayed edges! It's so pretty!

Unfortunately, I don't think the story lived up to my expectations. The premise is amazing: a girl who seeks out Phoenix Riders (hello?!) and a central relationship focused on two sisters (Val and Veronyka). The story flowed well when focusing on the sisters and their goal, however, there were a couple internal romances and a secondary plot that halted the flow for me. In fact, I would have been fine not knowing the other side of the story. Also, the book had a satisfying conclusion, but the author is writing a sequel, which kind of confuses me. What more is there?

If you tally the scores you'll notice that I was one book shy of meeting the requirements for my chosen profession. But two half-read books can count as one, right?

March Wrap Up

Big dreams this month...and not so big accomplishments. At least not in reading goals.

A bit of a rough month for us transportation-wise. My husband was in a wreck in December (he was rear-ended) and the insurance company of the driver at fault is FINALLY talking care of the issue. The day after his car was towed away, my car refused to start. On a morning I as running late, luckily my mother was able to come pick me up. My dad and cousin came to look at the car, but could not figure out the issue. My car was towed the next morning (yep, both cars in the shop at once. Thank heavens for my in-laws who have been lending us a car since my husband's wreck in December). After two days of inspecting, the dealership found that a rodent had chewed through the main wiring of my car. Guess what? That damage isn't covered by your warranty. Eventually, the car was fixed. My husband is still waiting to hear back from insurance about his.

Most of March Book Haul

We have had a record number of snow days this winter: a total of TEN! Far more than I ever remember. Ever. With that, my district elected to sacrifice half of our spring break so we will not have to go to school after Memorial Day. Bummer for now, great for the summer.

A few great things happened this month, too!

I officially interviewed to direct Barefoot in the Park for the local community theatre and was notified that would be directing the show just a few days later!

I also scored some amazing deals on books at my favorite store, Cargo Largo! Over 25 books for under $80!

Now for this month's wrap up:

The Hate U Give - Angie Thomas
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Besides being a culturally relevant, poignant story of how to be brave enough to speak up. Starr's momma, Lisa, was my favorite character, dropping wisdom and truth bombs left and right. The book is also an English teacher's dream, filled with figurative language, great character development, and themes that challenge us all to be better people.

Ami: Child of the Stars - Enrique Barrios
⭐⭐⭐⭐
A student handed this book to me one morning, telling me it was her favorite book growing up. Ami has a great message of the power and law of Love. It presents a utopia of a world at peace.

Some of my favorite bookstagrammers are hosting #readgushpanem this month and I'm excited to participate and read the series for the first time ever. Yup, you read that correctly. I have never read The Hunger Games before. The movies came out while I was teaching at a private school, but my students were so obsessed that I was turned off. Plus, that was the era of YA dystopian books turned to film and Divergent was a disappointment.
As I spilled most of my feelings during our Read & Gush discussions, the summaries here are going to be abbreviated.

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Truly fantastic world-building and beautifully complex characters with realistic internal and external struggles. I'm totally Team Peeta.

Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I was a bit conflicted on how Collins was going to add more intensity to the series when this book takes place outside the Games, but she exceeded my expectations and kept me glued to the story from cover to cover.

February Wrap Up

Love is in the air and, while this is the shortest month of the year, I finished seven books this month, which is far more than usual!

The Girl Who Drank the Moon - Kelly Barnhill
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Wow, this was a truly magical tale about the power of sorrow and the healing power of hope.
My students were reading "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson at the time and the introduction to Barnhill's enchanting tale reminded me of Jackson's theme of blindly following traditions. Although things with the reading club have fallen through, I have already discussed this book with several students!

Dear Martin - Nic Stone
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I walked in to work one day and this book was waiting for me as a gift from my "Morale Pal" who is like a Secret Santa. This short book shook me to my core. I don't know exactly how to write a review for it, but I can say that everyone should read this book. It is similar to The Hate U Give (which I am nearly finished with), but I appreciated this book a little more. In writing to Martin Luther King, Jr., Justyce challenge himself and the reader to ponder these questions: Who do I want to be? Am I making choices so I can become that person?

Barefoot in the Park - Neil Simon
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
As a theatre minor, I always love taking a couple of hours to read a new play, but this play is special: I'm going to be directing a production of it at my local community theatre in September! As I have not already seen it, I am prohibiting myself from watching the movie until I have read through the play a few more times and selected my creative direction. This is a touching, hilarious comedy of newlyweds who discover that while a couple can share love, they may have different views on just about anything else. 

Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn
⭐⭐☆
I FINALLY FINISHED listening to this book and, dear readers, I am not a fan. Gone Girl made landmark changes to the mystery and suspense genre and I did enjoy the twists and turns along the way. I desperately wanted to like this book because Flynn is from my home town (Kansas City) and it came as a recommendation from a bibliophile friend and my husband, who loves the movie.
So, what didn't I like? Far too much cursing (the F-word does not have to be used one every page) and description of genitalia. I also had a difficult time buying in to the characters. Both Nick and Amy were vile, selfish, manipulative human beings. Even when watching movies, I just cannot buy in when none of the prominent characters are redeemable or moderately moral. Was the story shocking? Absolutely. Could I have lived without reading (listening to) it. Absolutely.

The Gilded Wolves - Roshani Chokshi
⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Mysteries have captivated me of late and I truly enjoyed following this band of outcasts as they sought to capture a hidden treasure. Chokshi did an excellent job separating the personality of the six (you read that correctly) major characters, making the story engaging from all angles.
*OwlCrate January selection

The Glass Castle - Tricia White Priebe
⭐⭐⭐⭐
This isn't the book you're thinking of, but you should check it out! Tricia babysat my siblings and I when we were younger and has always been a gifted writer. She worked for Jerry B. Jenkins (co-author of the Left Behind series) for some time and teamed up with him to publish her own trilogy. The Glass Castle is the first book in that trilogy and is a magical, coming-of-age novel.  The reading level is lower than I generally go for (lower middle grade, 3-5th grade), so I felt the story was a little slow in creating  the setting, but the pace quickened and I am interested in reading the next two of the series.

January Wrap Up

New Year, New (extensive) TBR!

My goal this year is to read one book a week or a total of 52 books. 

A few of my book purchases this month!
All of these were purchased for my classroom.

At the end of the first month, I'm off to a great start! I completed five books, with another book and an audiobook that have significant progress.

The Afterlife of Holly Chase - Cynthia Hand
☆☆☆☆☆
A truly imaginative and well-written, modern retelling of A Christmas Carol. I did guess the twist, but I love the way Hand  flushed out Holly's character development--arguably better than Scrooge in the original. Also, I firmly believe Boz is Dickens.

Amber & Dusk - Lyra Selene
☆☆☆☆
I was skeptical about this story at first: it felt too similar to two other books I have read, Tangled Webs (Lee Bross) and The Glass Spare (Lauren DeStephano), but eventually the plot evolved into something uniquely its own. I am interested in what will be coming next.
*OwlCrate selection, December 2018

The Tattooist of Auschwitz - Heather Morris
☆☆☆☆☆
A poignant love story blooms during one of the cruelest events in human history, the holocaust. Morris writing style of vignette-like memories made me feel as though I was sitting with her as Lale shared his story.

Cress: The Lunar Chronicles Book 3 - Marissa Meyer
☆☆☆☆☆
This second installment has only made me fall deeper in love with Cinder and Kai. Cress's character building has made Thorne more likable, but Scarlet and Wolf are still growing on me. Meyer has done a fantastic job creating a truly vile evil queen in Levana, but I have mixed feelings about Kai's adviser. Is he supporting Kai or Levana?

This Splintered Silence - Kayla Olson
☆☆☆☆☆
Olson wrote one of my favorite reads from last year, The Sandcastle Empire, so I have truly been looking forward to reading this sci-fi mystery. I was cautious at first because Lindley's narrative voice was similar to Eden's from TSE. However, this story quickly took on a personality of it's own and drew me in completely! I was constantly guessing who was guilty and how the love triangle would work out.

Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn (audiobook)
I'm started listening to this in April 2018 and I still have not finished it because I have a difficult time buying in to the motivations of these two selfish, vile characters. But I'm no quitter--I will finish this. Eventually.

The Girl Who Drank the Moon - Kelly Barnhill
My mentor teacher and a school librarian are leading a reading club at our middle school and have encouraged teachers to choose one of the "32 Best Middle School Reads" to discuss at one of their book talks. While I have not read this book yet, I selected it because I had already purchased it because the story intrigues me.

More detailed summaries and my progress on my goal can be found on my GoodReads account. Feel free to follow me (Lynnae Rachele Andersen) there and let me know what you're reading!