A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

Description: Ebenezer Scrooge is a mean, miserable, bitter old man with no friends. One cold Christmas Eve, three ghosts take him on a scary journey to show him the error of his nasty ways. By visiting his past, present and future, Scrooge learns to love Christmas and the people all around him.

Review: Enjoyed it. It was the second time that I have read the novel and it was interesting to read the book again, especially after watching the most current version of the movie. I found it not only a good book, but also something that one should take to heart all the year round.

Two Book Reviews

I finished two books yesterday and here are the reviews for the books:

Book One:
The Prodigal God by Timothy Keller.

Description: [Timothy Keller] uses one of the best-known Christian parables to reveal an unexpected message of hope and salvation.

Review: A very interesting and thought provoking book. While most of the book seemed to be discussing parts of the parable that I already knew and understood, but what was most interesting was his discussion on the eldest son, which rarely gets a worth mention at all in most sermons that I have heard on the parable. Recommended.

Book Two:

The Secret by Beverly Lewis

Description: In the seemingly ordinary Amish home of Grace Byler, secrets abound. Why does her mother weep in the night? Why does her father refuse to admit something is dreadfully wrong? Then, in one startling moment, everything Grace assumed she knew is shattered. Her mother's disappearance leaves Grace reeling and unable to keep her betrothal promise to her long-time beau. Left to pick up the pieces of her life, Grace questions all she has been taught about love, family, and commitment. Heather Nelson is an English grad student, stunned by a doctor's diagnosis. Surely fate would not allow her father to lose his only daughter after the death of his wife a few years before. In denial and telling no one she is terminally ill, Heather travels to Lancaster County--the last place she and her mother had visited together. Will Heather find healing for body and spirit? As the lives of four wounded souls begin to weave together like an Amish patchwork quilt, they each discover missing pieces of their life puzzles--and glimpse the merciful and loving hand of God.


Review: If you have read any of Beverly Lewis' previous books, you can probably get through this book in short order. It was a good read, especially to pass the time as I either was waiting for a bus or riding on the bus to and from work. It is one of the more lighter pieces of fiction that I enjoy and thought that the storylines were intriguing, but mostly liked the storyline with Heather, as there wasn't much and when there was something, it wasn't connected at all to the primary storyline. I hope that the next two books provide more of the Heather storyline, but what one hopes and what one gets are two different things all together. Recommended for those that have enjoyed Ms. Lewis' previous work.

Bronte Challenge

I discovered a great challenge. Its to read, watch, or listen to a books by the Brontes. I plan on watching, as I have too much to read at this time and I would like to just sit down for an evening and watch a good miniseries.

Here are the three that I plan on watching:
Jane Eyre (2007 Masterpiece Theatre)
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1996 - Masterpiece Theatre starring Tara Fitzgerald and Toby Stephens)
Wuthering Heights (Masterpiece Theatre 2009)

Frustrated...a tad

Last Thursday I got a call about a book club that I belong to and found out that the meeting is this coming Saturday. I was a little pissed off, as I thought that it would be towards the end of the month. I am a little mad that I hadn't known at least a couple of weeks prior to and the fact that I have something up that evening that I have to be at around 5 pm makes me even more mad, but honestly, I could have said no to volunteering that evening, but then if we had been able to meet a couple weeks later I would have had the book done.

I am mostly pissed off at myself but there is nothing to do but making sure that I read as much as I can over the next two days, but with the thickness of Anna Karenina, I don't know how much more I can get done. Hopefully I can get the first half done.

Holiday Reading Challenge

I went to the library and got a bunch of Christmas themed books. I don't know exactly what my books will be, but here is a tentative list of books that I plan on reading:

• A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

• Grace by Richard Paul Evans

• Christmas vows : $5.00 extra by Lori Copeland

• The Christmas List by Richard Paul Evans

• A wallflower Christmas by Lisa Kleypas

• The Christmas Basket by Debbie Macomber

• Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris

• Engaging Father Christmas by Robin Jones Gunn

• Finding Father Christmas by Robin Jones Gunn

• Sarah's Song by Karen Kingsbury

• Gideon's Gift by Karen Kingsbury

• Finding Noel By Richard Paul Evans

Gretzky's Tears ; Stephen Brunt

From Chapters.ca: Renowned sportswriter Stephen Brunt reveals how "the Great One," who was bought and sold more than once, decided that the comfortable Canadian city where hockey ruled couldn't compete with the slushy ice of a California franchise.

Bobby Orr's career ended prematurely, with tears. Wayne Gretzky's tears, unlike Orr's, announced not an ending but another beginning. Gretzky's Edmonton Oilers had four Stanley Cup victories, but Gretzky may then have had other goals in mind.

Beginning with his dad, Walter, and continuing with Nelson Skalbania, Peter Pocklington, Bruce McNall, Jerry Buss - and with the CBC's Peter Gzowski as chronicler for the eager masses - the enormity of Gretzky's talent attracted all sorts of people who were after a variety of vicarious thrills.

Review: I really quite enjoyed it being as I am a hockey fan and have followed much of the exploits of what happened in regards to the NHL expansion since the mid-1990s and the eventual downfall of the game in the Southern United States. It was not only interesting from from my prospective as a hockey fan, but also as somebody who is interested in history and has been following the news stories in regards to the Phoenix Coyotes, which were once located in Winnipeg and were called the Jets and can recall the moves of various and formation of teams since 1994.

I also liked how Brunt integrated the climate of Canada as a country at the time of the Gretzky "trade" with the events surrounding his departure. While I was alive at the time and probably saw it on the news the day of the event, I recall the Ben Johnson scandal that hit the fan in the next 3 weeks afterwards. Its strange how one recalls certain events and not others, even though both are significant in terms of one's sporting history, especially when they occur within a few weeks of each other.

New Author Challenge

I am going to attempt to read 15 new authors in 2010. Most likely they will be books that I all ready own and haven't attempted to read. I am also considering reading authors in genres that I don't particularly like, ie. fantasy.