Satire.. The Good and Bad

I am America (And So Can You).... Stephen Colbert take on how to live your life, to live the American Dream, and to read a book.

I guess I knew what I was getting to when I picked up this book. I have to admit although I like the Colbert report it was not my favorite book. Half of the topics, comments, and ideas and right on point and  even address issues directly that are usually brushed off ( class relations, sex, gender distinctions).  However, in addressing these hot button issues he says what he thinks without any regard to the larger life picture.

On the other hand, many people will take this book word for word as the golden way to approach life. Stephen Colbert will laugh and you and so will I. One of the best parts of this books is figuring out the literary and political satire. Colbert jumps around so much though it is hard to tell which part is which or where the book is going.

Overall, I would say this is an okay fast read. Not my favorite book, but would make a decent table read.

Now off to explore another adventure book in Gulliver's Travels!

Happy Reading!

Friendship, Ya-Yas, and the South

Everyone it seems has heard of the Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood. I decided that I would take a quick reading detour and read this book this weekend. First, I am so glad I never saw this movie in full. Creating the pictures of Vivi, Caro, Teensy, and Necie with Sidda and the rest of the kids growing up.

This book resonated with me on so many levels. There is nothing like true friends who have been with you since the beginning. I grew up in a small town and had great friends from an early age. I also watch my siblings and parents grow up with amazing friends. While there were dramatic middle school and high school moments, I remember most girls night, midnight swims, late-night phone conversations, pep rallies  beach trips, football games, and convention trips. Although we are not all as close as we once were and we all live all over the United States now, we can look back and treasure these moments.

I am not sure this idea of lifelong never moving friendship exist today that existed in the Ya Ya world. I grew up in a small town and maybe some of the people stay the same or don't evolve, but people move and change. Friends grow and change. Although I had great hometown friends, my college friends are just as impactful and meaningful. We supported each other as we took on one of life's greatest challenges and changes:Growing Up. Friend groups merge and change, people change and get married. The memories and bonds shared help you learn who you are, who you want to be, and how you perceive the world.

Sidda craves the close friendship her mother has with the Ya-Yas, yet she does't seem to recognize her work team of Wade and May are there to support her through thick and thin. Take a minute to look at the people you spend the most time with and are closest too, they are hopefully your biggest supporters even if you do not recognize this.

Love is another huge theme in this book. Women in the south seem to marry to create a family instead of the men they truly love. Sidda family seems especially prone to this action. While life hands this family some deep dark issues and problems, know one ever addresses them with the children. They are to young to fragile and yet are scarred for life. Sidda almost throws her marriage away. This book is now 15 years old and the stories are now almost 50-60 years old. In todays time,  I hope we have gotten better addressing bigger issues with friends, family and children  Depression is real. Alcoholism is real. Issues can not be pushed under the rug. Finding ways to address these issues early with friends and family and including the children can prevent a lifetime of scarring. ( Not scientific, well maybe I look for a source later)

All in all, I thought I was jumping into a light happy read. Instead, I feel in love with the characters and jump in my seat at the issues addressed in this book. Read and enjoy this book and take a closer look at 1940s-1980s Southern culture in Louisiana. Explore this classic tale of faith, family, and friendship.

Still Reading the Purpose Driven Life and just started I am America...

Happy Reading!

(PS- So this blog post is a little jumpy, but that is how I felt about this book)

What works for you? Finding your own time to reflect.

Two post in one lunch. Catching up on the week.

 While this is a reading blog and I will spend most of my blog post writing about my 100 books, one of my books was chosen specifically to follow along with Lent. This week starts one of the most important times in the Christian calendar in Lent.

While I may not pray or read the Bible every night, I do take special care and effort to read and reflect daily on who and was, I am will be and how God led me to this path during this special time of lent. During these 40 well 44 days of lent if you want to get technical, I take time to pray, read the Painted Prayerbook daily devotional reflection and scripture. This year, I have added reading A Purpose Driven Life into the mix.  You are suppose to only read 1 chapter a day for 40 days. (I think I will probably read 2. I am not very patient.)

So far, I agree with the big picture and though some of the details and ideas I think will be hard pressed for the modern Christian or anyone who has faced rough times in their life. Yes, everything happens for a reason. God can help you heal and find person and heal internal scars, but I am not sure this book so far is letting faith, hope, and trust align with the real world. It may be a little to fluffy for my taste. I tend to believe in a God who takes in the Good and Bad and leads us through.

Regardless of your beliefs, take the time to reflect on what is important to you and thank your god for that blessing.

Happy Reading!

Appearances can be deceiving....

So it has been the longest I have gone without posting, but I promise to make it up to  you this week. Life has been full of changes, busy times and new adventures.

After a little less than a week, I finished reading Harry Potter and the Goblet of  Fire. As always it is a great read, but this is my least favorite of the long books. It is their coming of age story. Harry, Ron and Hermione grow tremendously in this  book and it is not always pretty. Unlike other Harry Potter books, once you read this book once, many details of the plot are no longer memorable.

JK Rowling touches on currently, past, and future issues in this book, however. In blending many issues of Muggles and wizards with historical problems, JK Rowling creates a classic series that will live forever. House-elves  enslavement mimics the real world issues of slavery cultures have battled for centuries. International community corporation is an issue that countries are still trying to cope with in todays world. The struggle for power and good versus evil will never go away. In connecting these real world problems to Harry Potter's magical world, readers can take the time to think critically about these problems that are not always addressed.



In other more personal news, I finally feel like I reached the point where I have read HP 1-4 to many times. The magic excitement is not there. I love them, but I think I am going to retire them for a good 5 years (gasp). I am not ready to say the same for HP 5-7, I think I have only read 6 and 7 maybe 3 times.

In other news, I need to get to reading. While it looks like this month is going to be down to 8 books.

My plan is to read this weekend/week Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood and  I am American (and So Can You!).

My next post will be about Lent and The Purpose Driven Life (and a few blogs).


Happy Reading and Happy Valentines Day! 

One for The Ages ~ Gatsby

The Great American Dream, The Golden Age, The Jazz Age. greed, social class, love, time, transportation, The Green Light...

In taking time to reflect on F. Scott Fitzgerald The Great Gatsby, I realized that I have talked enough about this book or read enough about this book my entire life to not experience a great change of appreciation or understanding that I did after reading To Kill A Mockingbird.  I could write paragraphs about the topics above. Critics have already analyzed every chapter in every way. I will leave the serious critics to the scholars and AP class, but here are a few thoughts.

I am not sure I remembered how much Nick Carroway impacts Jay and Daisy's story as well as the narrative. I truly liked his story telling, but I encourage all readers to watch time as the story progresses. Think about the phrasing Fitzgerald chose to portray. Gatsby portrays confidence but does he ever really have this confidence? Daisy and Tom love in a loveless marriage with affairs and heartbreak. They end in deaths  Neither understands the implication of their actions. This book is one of the Great American novels because the problems, actions, results and stories are still relevant 80 years later.


“My whole theory of writing I can sum up in one sentence. An author ought to write for the youth of his own generation, the critics of the next, and the schoolmasters of ever afterward.” 
― F. Scott Fitzgerald

I leave you with this quote as a sum of this book. The Great Gatsby coined the phrase the Jazz Age and epitomized the youth of the 20s, the critics of the next generation (well late 1940s) rediscovered the brilliance of the book and the idealization of the American Dream. Today, many high school and college pupils read this classic and contender for the Great American Novel.

If you missed this book growing up, make sure this book is next on your list before it becomes forever changed by the Silver Screen!

Happy Reading! ~ Now time to Catch up with my dear friend Harry Potter!

(10 books Done! 10% YAY!)

Leadership Books and Finding Your Stengths

So it is has been a few days since I have blogged. I work in higher education and the Spring semester is back in full swing. It turns out, my lunch break is as structure these days and it just has busy all around. Additionally, my home town has just won the Super Bowl (Ravens are ok but I love my Manning boys~ Go Broncos and Giants)

Hopefully, I'll be back in the swing of things. I haven't stopped reading. To start off the month, I finished Strength-Based Leadership. While I took the test before it was great to see the results and read through the book.

For those of you who are not familiar with Strengths Quest, I strongly encourage you all to take the assessment. The premise in much of the book is successful organization invest time and energy in developing and understanding the strengths of their teams. One person does not have to have all areas, but the team needs all areas to succeed.

Overall, although, the Strength-Based Leadership book was good, it is not the best Leadership book I have ever read or most thought provoking, but it does has some good material.

Happy Reading!- Almost done with Great Gatsby

(PS for those who know me well, many will find my own personal Strengths entertaining and a mirror of my life)
From Clifton StrengthsFinder

Achiever

People who are especially talented in the Achiever theme have a great deal of stamina and work hard. They take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.

Input

People who are especially talented in the Input theme have a craving to know more. Often they like to collect and archive all kinds of information.

Learner

People who are especially talented in the Learner theme have a great desire to learn and want to continuously improve. In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome, excites them.

Arranger

People who are especially talented in the Arranger theme can organize, but they also have a flexibility that complements this ability. They like to figure out how all of the pieces and resources can be arranged for maximum productivity.

Focus

People who are especially talented in the Focus theme can take a direction, follow through, and make the corrections necessary to stay on track. They prioritize, then act