Sunsets, Stars, West, Wind
Yesterday, on the last day of 2013, I posted my uncle’s best reads of last year. Today, on New Year’s Day 2014, I’m looking back at my reading for the past twelve months.
After Amazon acquired GoodReads in the Spring of 2013, I resolved to not rate or review books on that site going forward. I spent many hours relocating my existing reviews (and ratings) to this blog, where I can maintain my voice, my thoughts and my opinions as I see fit, without fear of censorship, tampering or deletions.
I’m relinquishing my blog today to my favorite uncle so he can share his essay on his best reads from 2013. You’ll have to wait for another day to learn the answer to the question ‘Why doesn’t he have his own blog?’ Currently, he is a retired Air Force Colonel, writing historical and speculative fiction and painting and teaching watercolor. And now without further ado …
∞ ∞ ∞
In 2013, I read a record number of books and don’t plan to read that many again in one year. I don’t just read for pleasure. I am an author-wannabe, so some of my reading is researching what’s on the market. (That’s my story.) And, I have a lifelong love of history, so I read a lot of history, biography and alternate history stories. Also, at church I give a Bible study a month, so I’m always looking for ideas to steal . . . uh, in a Christian-sort-of-way. Finally, I love humor. So, I occasionally give extra credit to stories that tickle my funny bone.
Continue reading “Guest Post: My Uncle’s Best Reads of 2013”
The only thing I would suggest when you try this Caramel Corn recipe for yourself, is that you have a second set of hands to help. It was all I could do to juggle a very hot saucepan of caramel and stir the popcorn in the bowl at the same time.
Terry, who spurred me on to making this recipe a few days ago, swears it’s the best caramel corn he’s ever had. I can’t wait to try again, with him standing by to help stir the popcorn as I pour the hot caramel.
Very easy to make and quite tasty.
The Ladies of Mandrigyn by Barbara Hambly
Warning: Spoilers
After discovering Barbara Hambly via the books Dragonsbane and The Time of the Dark, I just couldn’t get enough of her. She writes great, strong women characters, that are usually of the non-magical sort. The women are often the warriors, like Starhawk. Her male characters are also indelible, flawed but inspiring.
In this book, Sun Wolf is a successful mercenary captain who refuses a job that is basically a rescue mission. The women of Mandrigyn want him to rescue their men from the mines of the evil wizard Altiokis. Sun Wolf had one rule, one principle he always adhered to – never get involved in a war with a wizard.
Continue reading “Book Review: The Ladies of Mandrigyn by Hambly (5 Stars)”
A Civil Campaign by Lois McMaster Bujold
Read in March 2010
I cried. I raged. I laughed. I laughed some more. Any author who can make me care so much about characters who don’t exist deserves five stars.
A Civil Campaign picks up just three months after Komarr. Ekaterrin and Nikki returned to Barrayar to live with her aunt and uncle so she can attend university. Miles not-so-cleverly thought to persuade Ekaterrin to create a public park next to Vorkosigan House in Vorbarr Sultanna just so he could see her everyday and to get a leg-up on the competition for the widow’s hand. Eventually, this plan backfires — spectacularly.
While the preparations for the Emperor’s Wedding swing into high gear, the political scandals among the Counts seem in a mad rush to pick up the pace. Miles crosses that minefield nearly intact and Ivan matures enough to help the Empire, but learns something new about his mother which drives him to drink, temporarily, to ease the shock.
I loved this novel, but I’m sad that I’m nearly to the end of the Vorkosigan Saga series. This installment was the best of the bunch to date.
The Diamond Throne by David Eddings
Originally read in 1990 (but re-read many times since)
Besides Terry Brooks, David Eddings is the only fantasy genre author I can get my husband to read. Who could resist dialogue dripping with sarcasm and wit and satisfying action adventures? I read Eddings when I want a respite from deep-thinking convoluted epic fantasy. Eddings makes me laugh and always provides a rollicking romp through strange lands on a heroic quest to save the world. All very predictable but also very enjoyable.
The Diamond Throne has one of my all-time favorite characters – Sparhawk. He’s a curmudgeon of a knight who should have retired years ago but is too stubborn to stop. And no one else has the heart or gumption to tell him otherwise.
May 1, 2013 Update: I decided to relocate this review to my blog from GoodReads on this specific day because today, May Day, is my husband and I’s anniversary. This book was published and I read it at least two times before we celebrated our fifth year together. Twenty-seven years later, this series is still just about the only fantasy fiction I could get Terry to read. Sadly neither of us will ever read anything new from David Eddings again, since four years ago this June, he passed away.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Read in April 2009
This book is outstanding and well deserving of its many awards. Even better, it is classified as young adult fiction. And I hope one day, soon, The Book Thief is read and taught in classrooms around the world … because everyone should read this book.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to grow up and come of age in Nazi Germany during World War II? Not as a Jew, but as a German citizen – a foster child recently bereft of her younger brother.
Lisa’s coping mechanism is to steal books. In fact, her first theft occurs at her brother’s funeral. One of the cemetery workers drops The Gravediggers Handbook in the snow and Lisa snatches it up. Later, her new “papa” teachers her to read using this stolen book.
Her most daring theft occurred at a Hitler Youth Rally book burning. She rescued The Shoulder Shrug right out of the bonfire!
The story is narrated by Death who is the ultimate book thief. He stole Lisa’s autobiography when he collected her soul many years after the war. He has read her story so many times, the pages are crumbling in his hands. He admits at the end of the story that he no longer needs the pages because he’s memorized it from re-reading it so often.
I hope you will follow in Death’s footsteps and steal this book and remember it always.
Ben-Hur: a tale of Christ by Lew Wallace
Read in May 2009
Warning: Spoilers
This was the first book of historical fiction I ever read. It was also the first Christian fiction I read. I can attribute my fascination to ancient history, particularly Roman, to this great story. I also can’t remember if I read the book or saw the movie first – although I’ve read and watched both multiple times over the years.
Judah Ben-Hur is the son of a wealthy merchant who is also friends with Messala, a Roman soldier/politician in occupied Jerusalem. Messala returns to Jerusalem as it’s new tribune and there is a bittersweet reunion between the two. During the parade, a loose roof tile falls from the Hur household, striking the tribune and injuring him. The house of Hur is arrested, the women thrust into a dungeon cell and forgotten, and Judah sold into slavery, chained to an oar on a Roman Naval galley.
Dark dreams of revenge keep Judah alive in what most often is a short brutal existence on a Roman galley. During a naval battle, which the Romans lose, Judah saves the galley’s Roman commanding officer, prevents the Roman from committing suicide, and eventually returns him safely to the Roman Navy. In return, this Roman officer frees Judah and adopts him as his son.
Now that Judah has the means to pursue his vengeance, he finds Messala and decides to compete against him in the great chariot race. Judah befriends a sheik, the loving owner of four swift and beautiful Arabian horses. Judah trains them for the race. The chariot race culminates in Judah surviving Messala’s deadly tricks and eventually running over Messala with his chariot. But his revenge turns frigid as Messala’s dying words tell Judah that his mother and sister are still alive but lepers from their long confinement in the dungeons.
Judah finds his mother and sister, who lead him to a great teacher. Jesus was in the background of this story throughout Judah’s travails. Jesus even slaked Judah’s thirst during his trek across the desert with the rest of the galley slaves. Where Judah searched with revenge in his heart, others would speak of the Rabbi who taught of love, forgiveness and peace.
As Judah moved his family away from the leper colony, they were caught in the storms and earthquakes which occurred during the crucifixion of Jesus. His mother and sister were miraculously healed of their leprosy by the blood of Jesus washed from Golgotha by the rain. Finally, Judah comes to terms with the hollowness and futility of his vengeful hate. He forgives his enemies and receives forgiveness and peace himself.
It’s no wonder, to me at least, that this story inspired many attempts to theatrically recreate it on stage, as a silent film and finally as one of the greatest motion pictures ever filmed.
I highly recommend this novel and suggest you follow this link right now to start reading the ebook edition of Ben-Hur courtesy of Project Gutenberg.
Read in February 2013
An absolute five star masterpiece. I read the first half in one sitting and would have finished the second half sooner had work and sleep not gotten in the way. Looking forward to reading the other two books later this year.
The Beyond Reality Group at GoodReads read and discussed Transformation during February 2013. Click here to visit the discussion threads.
Read most recently in November 2009.
A delightful introduction to the world of Middle Earth. Follow the adventures (or misadventures) of a respectable hobbit turned burglar, a wizard and a baker’s dozen of dwarfs in their quest to slay the dragon, redeem the lost treasure and restore peace and prosperity among dwarfs, elves and men.
Along the way, the young audience will learn the pitfalls and consequences of greed, pride and arrogance, tempered with a hobbit’s good sense, good cheer, compassion and self-sacrifice.
Update April 2013: I decided not to re-read the novel before watching the recently released movie of a similar name (click here for my review of said movie). I did end up buying the ebook edition prior to viewing the movie so I would have it available to search and peruse before, during and after. I can’t tell you how wonderful it is to be able to search through an ebook. Compared to page turning and skimming, it’s better than sliced bread (well maybe not my sliced bread).
