March's book review.

BRAELEIGH'S BOOK CLUB

Okay. I admit it. I dropped the ball.

I did not read our March book, which was The Witch Of Blackbird Pond.

The fact that I don't own the book and had to get it from the library was only part of the problem. Yes, I am a procrastinator, but I'm usually good for my promises. However, considering the things I survived last month (children, a broken down car, children, a miscarriage, children, mean comments on my blog, children, a failed attempt to organize an excellent fairy party, children...well, you get my drift.) I think I can hardly be held accountable.

Luckily, I HAVE read the Witch of Blackbird Pond back in the day (4th grade, actually.) and though I do not remember enough about it to actually give you a good, in depth A.P. English kind of review, I do have to say that what I remember about the book is that I thought that if I lived then, all the forbidden things, and all the talk of witchcraft wouldn't make me scared for my life, it would only make me more interested in the possibility of witches, and want to know how i could be one too.

Now, I don't think that in my life today I'd actually want to be a witch- you know, I'm a really devout christian and all- however, I have never been the kind of person who can stand cruelty to other people, even witches or those who I feel are morally wrong. (I'm talking things like abortion and gay rights here, not things like pedophiles or murderers.) One might argue that if a person was raised in that kind of community, then witches would be a scary thing, and because of the type of religious upbringing, I would react differently, but I don't buy that. I am who I am, raised that way or not. If everyone grew up to be exactly the same as his mother and father, and everyone grew up to have the exact same beliefs, then there would never be any change.

Not to mention, i have kind of an obsession with fairies and magic and all things fantasy. As awesome and supportive as my family is, that's kind of my own thing, and no one taught me THAT.

Anyway, if you DID read the Witch Of Blackbird Pond, please feel free to leave your comments about it here anyway! We can still talk about it, even though i didn't read it.

Moving on.

This month, we will be reading The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis, which is an exceptional book about a demon who is coaching his nephew, Wormwood, through letters, to guide his 'patient' to certain doom. A masterpiece of satire, this book will really have you thinking deeply.

(oh! And I already have this one so half my procrastination problem is solved!)

MAY'S PROPOSED BOOKS

PETER PAN

by James M. Barrie

(For the record, it MUST be said that Peter Pan is my FAVORITE BOOK OF ALL TIME. I read it at least once a year. I'll never tire of it.)

J M. Barrie's Peter Pan is a poignant tale about the magic of childhood. The main character, Peter Pan, is a magical boy who wishes never to fall into the banality of adulthood, but to have an adventure every moment and remain forever young. The play details Peter's relationship with a young girl, Wendy, who is on the cusp of young adulthood. Peter's gang, the Lost Boys, wish for a mother to read them stories. Peter goes and retrieves Wendy to be their new mother. Their adventures reveal much about the nature of childhood and Barrie's thoughts on the bittersweet necessity of growing up.
(synopsis found here: http://www.bookrags.com/essay-2005/10/9/23443/6704)

THOSE WHO SAVE US
by Jenna Blum

For fifty years, Anna Schlemmer has refused to talk about her life in Germany during World War II. Her daughter, Trudy, was only three when she and her mother were liberated by an American soldier and went to live with him in Minnesota. Trudy's sole evidence of the past is an old photograph: a family portrait showing Anna, Trudy, and a Nazi officer, the Obersturmfuhrer of Buchenwald.

Driven by the guilt of her heritage, Trudy, now a professor of German history, begins investigating the past and finally unearths the dramatic and heartbreaking truth of her mother's life.

Combining a passionate, doomed love story, a vivid evocation of life during the war, and a poignant mother/daughter drama, Those Who Save Us is a profound exploration of what we endure to survive and the legacy of shame.

ANGRY HOUSEWIVES EATING BONBONS

by Lorna Landvik
The women of Freesia Court are convinced that there is nothing good coffee, delectable desserts, and a strong shoulder can’t fix. Laughter is the glue that holds them together—the foundation of a book group they call AHEB (Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons), an unofficial “club” that becomes much more. It becomes a lifeline. Holding on through forty eventful years, there’s Faith, a lonely mother of twins who harbors a terrible secret that has condemned her to living a lie; big, beautiful Audrey, the resident sex queen who knows that with good posture and an attitude you can get away with anything; Merit, the shy doctor’s wife with the face of an angel and the private hell of an abusive husband; Kari, a wise woman with a wonderful laugh who knows the greatest gifts appear after life’s fiercest storms; and finally, Slip, a tiny spitfire of a woman who isn’t afraid to look trouble straight in the eye.

This stalwart group of friends depicts a special slice of American life, of stay-at-home days and new careers, of children and grandchildren, of bold beginnings and second chances, in which the power of forgiveness, understanding, and the perfectly timed giggle fit is the CPR that mends broken hearts and shattered dreams.

(Synopsis from barnesandnoble.com)