Book Review - The Bridge at Andau

I was assigned this book at the beginning of the year by my Classic Moms class at Abigail Adams Academy. She changed it to "Magnificent Obsession" last month, but I was already hooked on this book and finished it yesterday.

Written in 1957 by James A. Michener, it is the account of what Hungary was like under Soviet Russia's control and how they attempted to throw them out in 1956. People were still very close to the situation and very much afraid of the communist regime. The author interviewed people that he helped escape into Austria for refuge and compilated their stories, changed names, rearranged places and times, so that families of the people left behind would not be in danger by the government. Wow! It was a rough read at times. I can't imagine life being that frightening and having so little hope to escape it.

A must read for sure. Like the Hunger Games, it gives you the past as a warning for the future and what roads should not be traveled for fear of arriving at a place like this. But unlike the Hunger Games, it is real. It really did happen. It's not what might happen, but what did and that makes it a lot scarier and worrisome.

"Commies". I will not use that derogatory term lightly anymore.

Book Review - Magnificent Obsession

Another book assigned by my Classic Moms class at Abigail Adams Academy that I'm so happy to have read! Written in 1929 by Lloyd C. Douglas, this book brought me closer to the idea of God that I love so much. It touches on the idea that God is not just a character in the Christian Bible, that He may be so much more. We watched the Rock Hudson movie as well and it dwelt more on the love story and less on the spiritual side of it, but it was still a great movie.

The idea is that...well, you have to read the book to really get it. I'll give you a few of my favorite lines though.

"Of course, if you decide to experiment with this projection of yourself through investments in other people, you must be prepared for all manner of failures, disillusionment, disgusts. You will frequently go to no end of trouble and expense for somebody who turns out to be a pest and a piker. You will be imposed upon, lied to, lied about! You will run into cases of ingratitude so rank that it will sicken you! But - now and again, you will manage to put the thing over...and when you do you will discover it has squared for all the failures you've had!"

"I've thought a good deal about the soul lately, Granpere. It strikes me that the things one reads about souls are frightfully misleading. They inquire, 'What are you doing to, for, and with your soul?' as they might ask 'When are you going to turn in your old car?'...I can't say 'my soul', as I would 'my hat', or ' my canoe', or 'my liver'...I AM a soul! I have a body! My body is wearing out, and when I can't tinker it back into service any more, I'll drive it out to the junk-pile; but I don't have to be junked with it! I'm tied up to the Major Personality!...like a beam of sunshine to the sun!...I'll not lose my power unless He loses His!...If that's religion, Grandpere, I'm religious! But I'd rather think of it as science!"

"This oncoming generation, now in its adolescence, is not in the least way concerned about organized religion. Religious enough, instinctively, I dare say; but out of sorts with the sects; weary of their bad-mannered yammering at one another over matters in which one man's guess is as good as another's, and no outcome promised either in faith or conduct, no matter whose guess is right!"

Book Review - Alas, Babylon

I finished "Alas, Babylon" by Pat Frank last night. It was assigned for my Classic Moms class. I ordered the book along with others at the beginning of the class so it was around the house a while before I got to it. When I saw the words "The classic apocalyptic novel that stunned the world." on the cover, I knew Dan would want to read it and he did. Then he read it to the boys and then I got to it.

Tom and I agree we didn't really like the end. It was a little anti-climatic. Just the words "Not that it matters." stuck out for me. We won the war, but does it matter? When the whole world is destroyed, sent back to the dark ages? The novel is about nuclear war in the 50's. The threat that loomed over everyone for several decades. Growing up in the 70's and 80's, I missed this part of our history and the book does bring that forward into reality for me. I've decided that nuclear war is just something that is not allowed. :))

There were several little pieces that I thought were funny in an odd way. The main character's nephew is happy that he doesn't have to go to school but the uncle assures him that he will as soon as possible. But they don't set up a school. They decided that educating children will have to fall to the parents responsibility for the time being, as if it's a huge burden. Seriously, because the world has been blown to kingdom come and parents will have to keep up to the state standards until...well, until there is a state to make standards again. I know, people try to continue down the path of normalcy especially during a crisis but this is just silly. There were others too, like breastfeeding being so old fashioned but they will just have to do it.

There were interesting things to think about like how would you cook anything and where would you get things like salt! I'm rethinking some of my emergency supplies now. And communication! Wow! No radio, telephone, or even mail. Word of mouth only and that would be severely limited since people were not traveling between areas at all, no cars, just horses and after a nuclear attack? You just don't know when you would be getting radiation. The book gave me anxiety attacks at times, hence the decision against nuclear war. I just can't wrap my mind around preparing or surviving that.

This book brought up "bread and circuses" which I keep reading and seeing and being reminded of, which gives me the creeps!

Anyway, the book is good and I enjoyed reading about the relationships that continue, the segregation that had to be overcome, the restoring of order. I highly recommend it!

"Law of the Wall" Lecture

Just finished listening in on the lecture I was supposed to be online for last week. I couldn't go. Jake's first baseball practice was that night at the same time and I was just too nervous for him and HAD to be there. Jake loves baseball so much and he's such a sensitive soul and well...he's just not that good at it yet. He's made amazing progress over the years though, even though he's OUR kid. :)) So I've been nervous about what kind of coach he will have this year, as I am every year. This year we found out he was on a team that won a lot last year and it's the same coach, so I was worried he would be mean to my baby and I would have kill him with evil looks all season. It wasn't the case so he's off the hook. He's an amazing coach. So calm and confident. He has great drills for the boys and when they make a mistake he re-does the play so that they can do it right and learn from their mistake. Jake's already better. The sigh of contentment as we drove home pretty much said it all. So I'm glad I was there and missed my class.

Today I listened to the recording and I'm glad I did. Again about mentoring. That keeps coming up! Yikes! So what is "the wall"? It's the roadblock after you feel your calling to do whatever it is you need to do. What do you do when you hit that wall? You think, you pray, you look around you. What is stopping you from going forward? Mine is fear. Fear that I won't be good enough, that I can't learn. But I know that is bogus. I'm not stupid, just out of practice. What do you do when you think you know what the problem is? You find the next step, make a list of what you need to do, and actually do them. Sounds so simple. But the sit and think, long and quiet, about the situation is what gets me every time. I'm a reacting type, not a ponderer. Gonna have to work on this one.

This was my biggest take away today. "When you are ready a mentor will appear." It sounds so dumb but it's true. Dan has a philosophy on trying new things and it's usually about a gadget or program, but it applies here too. Always get the free or cheapest one. If you use it regularly and like it, then get the bigger and more expensive one. Pretty cool, huh? I need to be doing the work I'm doing and then some. I need to make plans and stick to it. The mentor I need will come to me when I'm ready to move up the the "bigger and more expensive one".

So, the plan? I've already started. My built in study time in the morning has done wonders. I have several things I work on every day that I got for free, i.e. the constitution class, seminary lectures, and such. My next step is to take the writing class I've been looking at. I spent money on it! I'm in! When I finish that, I think I will be ready for the class I've been aching to take, Introduction to the Great Books at Monticello College. In addition to that, I'm going to get A History of Israel by Walter Kaiser and read that when I'm done with my "Year Through the Torah".

Big plans! I'll keep you posted.