Audiobooks 111

got a lot of audiobooks catch up on. we'll make this fast. ^_^

For the Win
Cory Doctorow

This book was unusual. Lots of third-degree language, and for that I don't recommend it. But an interesting premise - that much is worth looking up.

And an epic cover.

Lord of the Flies
William Golding

My favorite book. Ever. The jury is in; the die are cast. I have concluded.

I read it via audiobook for the second time, and my love for it expounded.

It's rather dark, and sort of morbid, and sort of sad. It explores the question of what would happen if a group of boys were stranded alone on an island. The war between order and chaos is epic and terrible.

Recommended, personally. ^_^






Peter Pan in Scarlet
Geraldine McCaughrean

Kind of a weird book. o_O For instance, through magic, a grown man turns into a little girl for a while. >_> Odd. Peter Pan himself is rather obnoxious and not so heroic as in the Ridley Pearson series. XD heh. So, I didn't like this so much. But there's a pretty nice, nostalgic quote, if you care to read it:

Next day, Mrs. Wendy's cold kept her from going out, but the Old Boys found themselves in Kensington Gardens with butterfly nets, wandering up and down. Looking for fairies.

There was a stiff breeze blowing. Something white and fluffy brushed Mr. Nibs's face and he gave a shriek. "There's one! It kissed me!" And all the gentlemen went pounding after it. The wind was rising. Other scraps of whiteness scudded past, until the air seemed to be full of flying snowflakes all twirling and dancing, feathery light. The Old Boys trampled the grass flat with running to and fro, swiping at fairies, accidentally swatting each other, whooping and shrieking, "Got one!"

"So have -- OW!"

"Here's one, look!"

But when they peered into their butterfly nets, all they found were the fluffy seed-heads off summer's first dandelions. There was not a single fairy in among the dande-down.

All day they searched. As the sun went down and starlings gathered over the glimmering city, the Old Boys hid themselves among the bushes of Kensington Gardens. Early stars ventured into the sky, their reflections spangling the Serpentine. And suddenly the air was a-flicker with wings!

Jubilant, the ambushers leapt out of hiding and ran to and fro, nets flailing.

"Got one!"

"By Jove!"

"Don't hurt them!"

"Ouch! Watch what you are doing, sir!"

"I say! This is ripping fun!"

But when they turned the nets inside out, what did they find? Midges and moths and mayflies.

"I have one in here! Definitely! Incontrovertibly!" cried Mr. John, cramming his bowler hat back onto his head to trap the captive inside. The others gathered round, jostling to see. The hat came off again, with a sigh of suction; Mr. John reached in with finger and thumb, plucked something out of the satin lining, and held it up to show them -- the iridescent purple, the shiny, flexing, turquoise body...

Only a dragonfly.

Mr. John opened his fingertips, and eight pairs of disappointed eyes followed the lovely creature as it staggered and waltzed back towards the water.

"I don't believe there is a single fairy..." began Dr. Curly, but the others felled him to the ground and clapped their hands over his mouth.

"Don't say it! Don't ever say that!" cried Mr. Nibs, horrified. "Don't you remember? Every time someone says they don't believe in fairies, a fairy somewhere dies!"

"I didn't say I didn't believe in them!" said the doctor, tugging the rumples out of his suit. "I was only going to say, I don't believe there is one single fairy here. Tonight. In this park. I have mud on my trousers, insect bites on my ankles, and I have not eaten supper yet. Can we give up now?"

The other Old Boys looked around them at the twilit park, the distant, glimmering streetlamps. They looked at the soles of their shoes, in case they had trodden on any fairies by mistake. They looked into the water of the Serpentine, in case any of the stars reflected there were really fairies, swimming. No fairies, no fairy dust. Perhaps, after all, they would not be going back to Neverland.

- Peter Pan in Scarlet

All in all, don't really recommend it, I suppose. But I love that quote. ^_^

I Am Morgan le Fay
Nancy Springer

A forgettable story. Turns into a romance. Magic and whatnot; kind of boring, I think. A testimony to its forgetable-ness: I don't remember anything more. Not recommended. I doubt it's worth your time.

The Outsiders

S. E. Hinton

Sad, but good. I enjoyed this book a lot. And one character, Soda, has an awesome name and is a great character. The book provides a good and clean perspective behind the street life of decades ago. Get your boys together; get ready for a rumble. Stay gold, Ponyboy. Stay gold. ^_^

Recommended.

Lady Macbeth

Susan Fraser King

I was all excited about this one (I like Macbeth, and this tale is the backstory of his wife) but hardly got through the first fifteen minutes. Madness and immorality. Not recommended, indeed.

The Beloved Dearly

Doug Cooney

Cute story about a group of entrepenuaral kids who start their own business: pet funerals. Recommended.

Sapphique

Catherine Fisher

Awesome book. One or two second-degree swear words, but no immorality. Steampunk. It's the second book in a series, but I didn't know it, and I liked reading this one first. I liked being dropped into the middle of the story, and figuring out who was who and what was going on. Epic adventure, and I liked it better than book 1. Only qualm were the swear words and that I didn't entirely like the ending. >_>

Recommended.

Incarceron

Catherine Fisher

^See Sappique. Good but not quite as much, I thought. This was a bit more cliche and had a bit more objectionable content. Still a good steampunk tale.

Cave of the Dark Wind

Dave Barry

Very cliche, very wholesome Peter Pan adventure. A short sort of cheering read but quite predictable.

My Brother Sam Is Dead

James Lincoln Collier

A sad book. Let's just say things weren't looking good for poor Sam. ^_^ I think this book is a classic; it was sort-of forgettable, and, as aforementioned, sad. Raised an interesting ethical dilemma or two. Not particularly recommended.

Sherlock Holmes

Arthur Conan Doyle

I read a few of the famous Sherlock Holmes short stories. They were good! Quite clean, a bit dark, fairly epic, and entertaining. Good solid mysteries; recommended.

The Kingdom Keepers

Ridley Pearson

The first one was good; it has an interesting premise: five kids are teleported each night to Disneyland after dark, when the machines are starting to come alive. I liked the first one all right, but then it became a series and became, methought, cliche and unrealistic, and I lost interest. *shrug* First one mildly recommended.

The Iliad/The Odyssey

Homer

I liked these. Quite gruesome, though. >_> The author has no hesitancy in describing exactly how a warrior was impaled and how he falls to the ground, gasping and bleeding out and dying. Ahem. A half-dozen times.

I spent most of the books trying to figure out who was the son of whom and fighting for which army (probably would have understood it better if I'd read them in book form). There's some immorality referenced, and most characters are supreme idiots, but it was good to get this taste of very-old literature; of the true, original epic warfare. Rather interesting, too, and rarely boring. Recommended for older readers.

- - -

in order of favorite-ness:

1. Lord of the Flies

2. Sapphique

3. The Outsiders

4. Incarceron

5. The Iliad/Odyssey

6. Sherlock Holmes

7. The Dearly Beloved

8. The Kingdom Keepers

9. For the Win

10. Peter Pan In Scarlet

11. My Brother Sam is Dead

12. Cave of the Dark Wind

13. I Am Morgan le Fay

14. Lady Macbeth

^ read any of these? Thoughts, opinions, arguments?

thanks for reading,

happy eucalyptus day,

-whisper

COURAGEOUS - some thoughts

I saw the movie Courageous a week ago.

I liked it. I liked it a lot.

The Christian world has given it a very mixed-up reception. I've heard men chortling over its un-realistic-ness, and critical articles dryly mocking it. I've also heard many people say they loved it, and a couple call it possibly their favorite movie of all time.

So. As with all Christian movies produced from the dawn of time to the bitter end, Courageous was received on all extremes of the spectrum. While mulling this over, I realized a remarkable epiphany: no Christian movie will ever, EVER be a total "win" to the Christian community. It will ALWAYS be accused of erring on one side or another; either of being "watered-down" or being "unrealistic and preachy." I've heard people accuse Courageous of both. o_O You really can't win 'em all.

My opinion of the movie? I liked it a lot.

The pacing was a bit slow at times, but when there was action, it was ACTION. O_O At least to this little homeschooled, sheltered teen. XD To me the car-chases and break-ins and shoot-outs were pretty awesome.

The plot felt rather unsatisfying on the whole - when the credits started rolling, I was left with a sense of "wait- what?" as though we still had half the movie left to go (though it was already about 2 hours long. O_O). Maybe that was because there were five main characters, all with subplots and families that couldn't all be fully extrapolated.

The movie was emotional. I thought that was well-executed. I cried once or twice. Or thrice. And movies don't generally make me cry. (exceptions: Up, Lord of the Rings, Prince Caspian, Alice In Wonderland.)

So. I cried, I laughed, I was surprised, I was on the edge of my seat, I whispered fervently "Nonononodon't-open-that-DOOR/go-that-way/split-up/etc. you ninny!", and I was practically squeaking during the climax.

The movie challenged me. It impacted me definitely for the best. It has not completely revolutionized my life - I will never expect that of any particular moment or book or movie (edit: aside from my moment of salvation, of course). But it did certainly change my thinking, and has, in turn, influenced my actions. It's perceptively shifted my worldview a bit; it gave emotional depth and memorable dimension to the principle of not wasting one's life.

"Let me do all the good I can, for all the people I can, as often as I can, for I shall not pass this way again." - John Wesley

Yes, the movie felt to me, at times, mildly corny. It was not wholly and completely satisfying, to myself or to the Christian community at large. But all things considered, I'd say they did a very fine job.

If you haven't seen it yet, I advise that you do. ^_^ If you have seen it, what did you think of it?

All things considered,
-whisper

Larklight

Larklight
Philip Reeve

The extended, official title is: Larklight, or, The Revenge of the White Spiders, or, To Saturn's Rings and Back: A Rousing Tale of Dauntless Pluck in the Farthest Reaches of Space.

If that doesn't make you want to read it, I don't know what will.

It's quite a good book. Pleasantly thick but with large print and plenty of splendid illustrations, the book reads light and easily. It's steampunk, I believe - if steampunk involves a Victorian society of machinery and gravitational devices and space travel, then yes, this is every inch steampunk. It concerns the lad Arthur (or Art, as he is more commonly called) and his sister Myrtle as their life aboard the elaborate space-orbiting house Larklight is suddenly interrupted by the arrival of a very strange and rather unpleasant visitor. This leads to a series of adventures and daring exploits including (but not limited to) the Potter Moths, the space pirate Jack Havock, aliens, flaming spiders.... etc, etc.

The book was also rather clean.... aside from some words that were (sadly) referenced but (gladly) not spelled out; in other words, the author generally substituted swear words with abbreviated versions composed mostly of "----"s.

The writing style is British and humorous and a bit reminiscent of Lemony Snicket's. The world is well-developed, the characters varied and enjoyable, and the setting fabulous.

Recommended indeed as a fast-paced, entertaining, and cheering tale.

Salutations,
-whisper

The Mysterious Benedict Society

The Mysterious Benedict Society
Trenton Lee Stewart

This was a clever and entertaining tale. A bit ominous in size but written for a younger audience, it concerns four particularly gifted children who pass a series of tests, thereby becoming a part of a mission to sabotage the work of an evil scientist and save the world. The characters were well-done, and though at times the plot was improbable or unrealistic, it was charming as what it was meant to be: a child's tale. The beginning takes on a bit of a Lemony-Snicket-style mysteriousness, but doesn't retain it very long. Happily, the novel is perfectly clean, and while I rather enjoyed it, it probably was intended for ages 8-12 or so. In my opinion, "The Mysterious Benedict Society" was an exciting, entertaining, and enjoyable tale.

The Scarlet Pimpernel

The Scarlet Pimpernel
Baroness Emmuska Orczy

This epic tale of a daring, Zorro-like hero - who is known only as the Scarlet Pimpernel, rescuer of dozens of innocent French nobles from the guillotine and clever evader of every attempt of capture - is one of my very, very favorites.

The story takes place during the French Revolution, so not only is it a gripping, mysterious adventure, but it also proves educational. I learned a bit about the political and social structures of England and France in those days.

The storyline is essentially as follows: Marguerite St. Just, a wealthy and seemingly flighty French lady, fled from her violent home country and to England. The news in those days told of the mysterious League of the Scarlet Pimpernel, a group of Englishmen who, for the sheer thrill and heroism of it, rescue doomed French nobility and bring them safely to England. Soon Marguerite, sought out by the French officer Chauvelin, under threat of her brother's death is forced to try to uncover the identity of the Scarlet Pimpernel, England's hero. What follows is an epic adventure.... I won't give it away to you, but let's just say it involves incriminating evidence, rescue, malicious Frenchmen, spying, disguise, and a dash of pepper. >_>

In my eyes, this book has very few flaws, but they may be enough to dissuade some uncertain readers. First and quite noticeably, the beginning is slow. I admit that the first few chapters are hard to get through. But intrigue and peril are quickly sewn into the plot, and by the end I was every bit as gripped by this classic as by any modern adventure. Another downside, a bit more grave, would be the minor but frequent language. The words are not strong but idly and often used. However, it is free, as I recall, from inappropriate content.

As for the upsides: thrilling plot. A deliciously despicable villain. A dashing, admirable hero. Clever escapes. Good morals. Heroism and loyalty. It's a small book, and once beyond the first few chapters 'tis very easy to get through.

I highly recommend 'The Scarlet Pimpernel.' This is, methinks, one of my top ten favorite books.

(I don't understand copyright laws. Just in case, the picture of the Scarlet Pimpernel flower was found on grade8humeng.wikispaces.com and the book cover was on musicroom.com)

Macbeth

Macbeth
William Shakespeare

Macbeth is tragic and grim but beautifully written. Though laced with occasional phrases of "adult content," methinks that, for the older reader (perhaps 13+), the marvelous writing style and clever descriptions - not to mention the strong plot - make it a worthy read for a lover of literature.

Heh, I actually read Macbeth in bed with a flashlight, so eager was I to find out "what happens next!" Methinks that indicates a level of literary geekiness that many readers do not share. :) In other words, you may not like it as much as I. However, Macbeth is fairly short, and not too difficult for the reader with the right kind of edition (melikes the helpful kind that, while giving a few pointers as to the definition of tricky Old English words and phrases, still leaves room for ambitious and curious readers to spend a few seconds mulling over some confusing lines, and then to be rewarded with a joyous spark of pride as it all becomes clear.)

From this book I gleaned:

• A new insult - "Young fry of treachery!" - which I now shout to my brother on occasions.
• A deeper appreciation and knowledge of Shakespeare's culture.
• The nearly breathless experience an avid reader undergoes upon reading a gloriously written line.
• The opportunity to feel sophisticated as I make a bulleted list on a blog post.
  

Villainous characters reciting their gruesome and terrible morals, witches, and "content" would elevate this to older reader's appropriate level, but those who read it carefully and with discernment can even find their faith uplifted, as I did when I read these lines that Macbeth himself recites:

"Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more."

Happily, 'tis not so for we who are Christians. Indeed we often squander our lives in strutting and fretting about, but through no merit of our own, we are not destined to "be heard no more." With inexplicable kindness, God has granted us the gift of dwelling with him for eternity. Marvelous fact, no?

The Tale of Despereaux

The Tale of Despereaux
Kate DiCamillo

This story is heartwarming in a simple, fond way. It concerns Despereaux, a mouse endowed with unusual boldness and an interest in chivalry and heroism. He lives with his timid tribe of fellow mice in the castle of a heartbroken king. The land is generally a quiet and dim place, deprived of the wholesome delight of soup. Despereaux comes to make the acquaintance of the Princess Pea, to whom he courageously pledges his love and protection. This little mouse's courage is put to the test when the Princess is kidnapped, and Despereaux - armed with a a needle-sword, brave love for the Princess, and the comforting smell of soup - embarks on a quest to save her.

Methinks that the movie did not do this story justice. It twisted in magic, exaggerated the villain, and as a whole lessened the tale. It hacked a simple story - one of the pleasures of soup and love and the flaws in good people, misconceptions, and forgiveness - into a story highlighted, as our culture demands, by drama. Something of the tale was lost when the movie makers twisted a climax that revolved around a few people in a dungeon - one reveling in bitter evil, another confused and unloved, a delicate, thoughtful princess, and a tiny mouse full of heroism - to something bigger, brighter, louder, and more intense.

Sometimes a climax is not all about the tension of immediate danger. DiCamillo indeed had that in her book's climax, but it was slower and and more thought-provoking. I, for one, walked away from the book thinking, but the movie I can quickly forget.

But I digress. The little Tale of Desperaux is a worthy read to young children. Though, as aforestressed, it is a bit sad, it points to innocent love and chivalry and brightness and forgiveness. It's a bedtime story, with morals and a worthy hero and the triumph of light over darkness.

"And then, something incredible happened: The mouse fell in love.

Reader, you may ask this question; in fact, you must ask this question: Is it ridiculous for a very small, sickly, big-eared mouse to fall in love with a beautiful human princess named Pea?

The answer is... yes. Of course, it's ridiculous.

Love is ridiculous.

But love is also wonderful. And powerful. And Despereaux's love for the Princess Pea would prove, in time, to be all of these things: powerful, wonderful, and ridiculous." - The Tale of Despereaux

Cover image found on http://kidsblogs.nationalgeographic.com/dogeared/2008/10/the-tale-of-despereaux.html