April 2024
April has been a month of growth. Spring. Recovery. Healing. Jet’s been playing lots of soccer. I have been able to go watch, though not able to participate (which hurts my feelers). I regained the freedom of driving. I have worked down to one crutch so I can now carry one armful of stuff like half of an adult. Allergies in Wichita lead the nation. At least we are number one at something. Storm season is here. I love the rain. I started a daily bird watch report, but Aubrey wasn’t interested so without an audience it died a quick death.
Anyway, here are the books I finished and my reviews of them:
Fiction Books
The Final Gambit by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (Inheritance Games #3)
Book 3 of the Inheritance Games- This book was my favorite of the series so far. It was more serious, a little darker, and there was a definitive antagonist. Avery and Jamison have been trying to identify the disc taken by Toby at the end of book 2. They have been traveling, learning, and investigating. The plot gets rolling when Eve, Toby‘s daughter, shows up at Hawthorne House begging for help finding Toby who has been kidnapped. When Eve shows up she triggers two parallel mysteries – a game for Avery made by Tobias Hawthorne before his death, and a quest to find Toby and rescue him from whoever took him and hurt Eve. Avery and the Hawthorne brothers spend the rest of the book sorting out these two puzzles which lead to an epic battle of wits and a very risky gamble. Avery finds the Queen‘s gambit in her puzzle and uses its strategy against her enemy, putting her entire empire on the line. Thanks, Aubrey, for recommending these books to me.
This is for puzzlers and gamers.
(Rated PG, Score 8/10, audiobook read by Christie Moreau, 11:25)
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
This is one of my favorite stories: the story of Nobody (Bod) Owens, a boy who is raised in a graveyard. Now, before you get all weird and judgey, hold on. It’s not a horror story. It’s a kid story like The Hobbit is a kid story. The Man Jack kills Bod’s family when he’s a toddler, but Bod escapes into a nearby graveyard. The dead in the graveyard protect and adopt the boy. Silas agrees to be the boy’s guardian. Bod is given the freedom of the graveyard, meaning its protections and secrets and powers to share with the dead. I love the descriptions, characters, and dialogue. I especially like the part when Bod tries to learn how to fade. Bod makes friends who teach him powerful things, which come in handy when the Man Jack comes back to finish what he started all those years ago. The author has a remarkable voice and gift as a narrator. If you are an audiobook skeptic, this one might change your mind. The story was intense enough in some parts for Jet to need a little break to compose himself and ask a few reassuring questions, but he enjoyed the story and I’ve heard him telling people about it since we finished it.
I recommend this book to everyone. It’s so good.
(Rated PG, Score 10/10, Audiobook read by the author, 7:37)
Billionaire Troy Phelan orchestrates the circus that opens the book and sets the path for the rest of the plot. Troy spends weeks getting ready for his final moments. His lawyers draw up a huge will distributing his fortune to his seven sons and daughters spread over three failed families. Everyone gathers as Troy is interviewed by three experts whose job it is to establish if Troy’s mind is sound enough to sign his final will. Troy is sharp, present, and brilliant. After establishing his sanity, Troy dismisses everyone except a few key people. Then he executes his devastating trap. He records himself signing a handwritten will. A will that gives nothing to his terrible families and everything to an unknown, illegitimate child (Rachel Lane), who no one knew about. Then Troy jumps off his skyscraper to his death. His instructions left with his will explain that the will should be held in confidence by his lawyer for 30 days. This is a trap. Troy’s heirs, spend millions of dollars of the inheritance they will never see before the will is publicly read. Their greed and presumption are brutal. After the reading of the will, the legal circus begins. Each heir hires a team of lawyers. Each legal team counts their percentages of the battle to come. The meat of the story – the good bit – is Nate O’Riley‘s bit. Nate is a recovering alcoholic lawyer who gets sprung from rehab and sent to Brazil to find Rachel, the lost heir, who is a missionary to the native people of Brazil. She is so far from civilization that it takes Nate several days to get into the same river system that Rachel might be working in. Nate eventually finds Rachel. He spends a few days trying to talk her into signing the legal papers he brought, but she refuses. As Nate tells her his story he is blown away by her complete peace and total lack of interest in the fortune left to her. Nate’s life has been destroyed by power, greed, drugs, and all the things the world offers as fake peace. Rachel prays with and for Nate and helps him start his journey of redemption and recovery. As Nate begins to leave the camp, he gets sick thinking it is malaria. Nate’s guide drags him back to civilization on the edge of death where he is treated for Dengue Fever. After he recovers, Nate heads back to the US to decide how to handle Rachel’s legal situation. He becomes Rachel’s lawyer and gets drawn into the legal dispute created by the Phalen heir’s lawyers as they all decide to challenge the last will and Troy’s sanity. Nate dismantles their attacks, embarrasses them in deposition, and destroys their key witnesses forcing settlement discussions. But Nate has changed. His spiritual journey of healing, which started with Rachel progresses, and his heart is healed. Eventually, Nate heads back to Brazil to find Rachel to finalize the legal documentation worth billions. I liked the progression of the plot. The legal stuff is not my thing, but I find it interesting. The travels in Brazil were fascinating and terrifying. Imagine crashing into a cow in a thunderstorm in a tiny airplane in the middle of a Brazilian swamp. Thanks, Brandon for recommending this book.
This is for seekers and those beyond their power to recover.
(Rated R, Score 9/10, audiobook read by Frank Muller, 14:33)
Some books are made to be read without knowing much about them. They are adventures. The story is an experience of learning. They require a reader who is curious and willing to deal with the tension of not knowing and not having perfect clarity. This is such a story. Piranesi is a short book filled with mystery, exploration, wonder, and fantasy. It’s also about rescue, making the right choices, and consequences. I enjoyed the story very much. Thank you, Abbey, for recommending it to me. I have rarely read a book that exercised my imagination as thoroughly and allowed me to make sweeping inferences as it progressed.
This is for explorers, walkers, and skeptics.
(Rated PG-13, Score 10/10, ebook, 246p)
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
Jet’s next dragon book was supposed to be about two months away from being our turn at the library so we went looking for some other books and this one was on my 100 book Bucket List poster. This is a classic middle school boy story. A school year’s worth of stories, struggles, stream of consciousness style from Greg Heffley. It covers family drama, school, friends, style, athletics, and all the insecurities and selfishness a boy can think up. There are seventeen more books in the series so it seems to have been successful with the younger crowd. Jet giggled his way through it. Not quite my favorite, but also not the worst thing I’ve read this year. Not sure if we will continue to book 2 or not since Escaping Peril freed up early.
This is for little boys who need to feel like they are not alone in the weirdness of middle school.
(Rated PG, Score 5/10, audiobook read by Ramon de Ocampo, 1:57)
The Brothers Hawthorne by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (Inheritance Games #4)
I had to have Aubrey explain how this series is evolving. I guess there will be two more books in the series coming out later in the year. One will be a spin-off and one will be book 5. That being said, book 4 felt a little different from the first three books because the main story arc split between Grayson Hawthorne and Jameson Hawthorne, and though Avery played a role in the Jamie half of the story, she was not the lead. Grayson heads to Phoenix where he bails his little sister, Gigi, out of police trouble. She doesn’t know who Grayson is, and she is causing trouble looking for their father, Sheffield Grayson. Gigi is my favorite character in this book. Possibly my favorite character in the whole series. She is relentless, full of energy, sass, and cat pictures. Grayson spends several days getting to know the family he never had and solving puzzles to figure out what records Sheffield Grayson had left behind as insurance policies. Grayson is forced to face his perfection issues, his misconceptions about love, family, and what it means to protect those close to you. Jameson and Avery are across the Atlantic in London where Jameson meets his father. Jameson is struggling to understand who he is and is struggling with comparisons to his brothers. He has always had to see the world differently and risk more to win. Jameson and Avery are drawn into a secret society of London’s elite. They secure invitations to an annual game with the highest stakes- secrets. Jameson and Avery use all their combined skills and dirty tricks trying to win the game. Eventually, Avery gets thrown out, leaving Jameson to see what he’s made of as he finishes the game alone. Being the oldest brother, Grayson’s journey of protection resonated with me. Being good at math and counting, I’m not much of a gambler so Jameson’s journey made me uncomfortable.
This is for big brothers and gamblers.
(Rated PG, Score 8/10, audiobook read by Jay Ben Markson, 13:00)
Escaping Peril by Tui T. Sutherland (Wings of Fire #8)
Peril is a very complicated young SkyWing dragon who was born with too much fire. Queen Scarlet controlled and commanded Peril as her weapon of death, champion in her arena, and threat against any dragons brave enough to threaten her throne. Coming from a life of murder and violence, Peril is a bit of a mess emotionally and psychologically. Now that Peril is free and Queen Scarlet is in hiding, she struggles to know what to do and who to trust. Clay is the only dragon who can touch her without being burned so she seeks to think up things to do to earn his affection. Peril and Turtle set out to find and kill Queen Scarlet to bring her to justice. When the pair meet up with the other dragons of Turtle’s winglet, they distrust Peril. She storms off to find Scarlet on her own. During her hunt, she meets her father, Soar, a shapeshifter with an enchanted scroll. Soar is also working for Scarlet. He takes Peril to her. Together, Scarlet and Soar convince Peril to wear an enchanted necklace that takes away her extra fire and makes her a normal dragon, but it also is enchanted to make Peril loyal to Scarlet. With her weapon of terror (Peril) Queen Scarlet goes to the Sky Kingdom to take back her throne from her daughter Ruby. No one in the Sky Kingdom is happy to see Scarlet come back. Ruby is a noble queen who has done amazing things for her people. In the end, Scarlet and Ruby fight to the death for the throne. Peril defeats the enchantment and manages to bring peace to the Sky Kingdom. The story ends with a crazy cliffhanger when an ancient dragon is awakened when the magic scroll taken from Soar is destroyed. The next book in the series is a month out so we are waiting on pins and needles to find out what happens.
This is for little dragons struggling to understand their worth or power.
(Rated PG, Score 7/10, audiobook read by Shannon McManus, 7:02)
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
This book pops up all over the place. I think we grew up with it. I have vague memories of an animated movie too. I read it to refresh my memory and check it off of my 100 Book Bucket list poster. The story is about four animal characters: Mole, Water Rat, Badger, and Toad. They have adventures. Rat teaches Mole all about river life, how to swim, and boat, and how to pack a proper boating picnic basket. Rat and Mole end up stranded in a snowstorm and only finding the home of Badger and his hospitality saves them from freezing to death. Toad takes up the second half of the book with his crazy antics. He develops an obsession with motor cars which is quite unhealthy. His friends try to bring him to his senses after he crashes a great many types of cars, but he refuses to see the harm or danger. Eventually, Toad goes too far and lands himself in jail for a 20-year sentence. He tricks his way out of jail and back to Toad Hall (his home) but it has been taken over by weasels. The four friends band together to get Toad Hall back with trickery and cleverness. I enjoy the stories and imagining the woods and rivers and snow. I am quite confused about some of the more literal points though. I don’t quite understand how the animals interact with the humans. I don’t quite understand why only some of the animals can talk, wear clothes, and use tools. I don’t let these details get in the way of the story, because they don’t seem to worry the author at all, but my grown-up, engineer, scientist brain has so many questions.
This is for adventurers big and small.
(Rated G, Score 7/10, audiobook read by John Rayburn, 6:27)
Non-Fiction Books
I am often amazed at how bad we are at finding agreeable resolutions to problems that come up in our American lives. We are so quick to sue and fight and bicker and hold a grudge to the death. It’s not in our culture to overlook offense or let anything go. We want to win. Often with no regard for others or the cost. This book outlines a Christian, Biblical approach to handling conflict. It is counterintuitive in many ways; countercultural for sure. In the book, there is an illustration that helped me immensely. (You can see an adaptation here). It shows the spectrum of responses we have available to us in conflict ranging from escape to attack. It also shows how the best solutions or responses are in the middle of the slope and are called peacemaking responses. The book is organized into four parts, each with three chapters. Sande discusses the progression from one side of the arch of peacemaking responses to the other as the type of conflicts progress from less to more difficult to resolve. The easiest way to resolve a conflict is to overlook an offense. This action or approach is something I am working on in my journey. In many cases, there is no problem unless I force there to be one. I am working on knowing when to make things a problem and when to let go of things that will only make life worse. Humility is critical to this approach and so is patience. Other ideas that Sande presents include the idea that we, as Christians should keep our conflicts out of the courts. We should be the first to settle issues calmly, quietly, and gracefully among ourselves. After all, the world is watching, and nothing destroys a ministry or testimony like infighting and conflict. Shouldn’t we prefer to be wronged and let it go than to harm the body of Christ? Sande talks about the power of owning your piece of the problem. We have deep habits of talking ourselves into thinking the other party owns most of the blame even if that’s not true. By owning our piece, we have much more power to influence the solution process and build better outcomes. Again, humility is important. Stop slandering the other person. Really listen to their side of the story. A gentle answer turns away wrath. There were a lot of good ideas in this book. It felt like it provided some Biblical basis for several of the ideas presented in Never Split the Difference. Being a peacemaker is not about running away or being more powerful. It’s about leaning into hard conversations and being willing to sit in the tension until you understand the other side and can come to better solutions for everyone.
This is for lots of people struggling to understand how to mend relationships.
(Rated PG, Score 8/10, audiobook read by the author, 4:49, ebook, 321p.)
Preview/Currently Reading-
The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
Life to the Fullest by Bryant Westbrook
The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald
I track my books in a database called Goodreads. You might find it helpful in managing your reading lists.
Final Thoughts-
Do you keep a Commonplace book? It’s a book of wisdom, ideas, quotes, memories, and awesomeness. I have quite a few notebooks that I have collected over the years and most of them are quite empty, but I intend to pick one and start collecting things in it. Maybe I’ll use it to write my book one day. Have a look and let me know your thoughts about yours or your favorite quotes to add to mine.
Here is a list of 101 pieces of advice that I found. Here are a couple of my favorites:
~ The cheapest therapy is to spend time with people who make you laugh.
~ The most selfish thing in the world you can do is to be generous. Your generosity will return to you tenfold.
~ Fail fast. Fail often. Fail forward. Failing is not a disgrace if you keep failing better.
~ Whenever you hug someone, be the last to let go.
I love these little, memorable bits of wisdom. Some of them are easy. Some could take years to understand or appreciate. I plan to start adding them to my whiteboard at work to ponder and learn better. What are your favorite bits of wisdom? Send them to me. I love to collect them.
Keep praying for my sister Charity. She had a bit of a setback this week in her treatment, so the doctors are starting a more aggressive treatment plan. We are sad because it felt like things were going so well. I’m praying and hoping for strength and encouragement for her. Our bodies are amazing healing machines but sometimes the process is exhausting.
Thanks for adventuring with me.
Joshua
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