May 2023
May was crazy busy. We had so many activities for the kids and work and school. Now that we are on the other side, it’s time to relax a little and spend some time doing nothing, or at least enjoy some unstructured time. Congratulations to all the kids who made it through another school year. Congratulations to all you parents who kept your kids alive through another school year. We’ll be praying for those stay-at-home parents who are now in charge of the chaos for the summer break. I didn’t finish as many books this month as I wanted, but I started quite a few. I’ve been distractible.
Here are the books I finished and my short reviews of them:
Fiction Books
Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White
This is a fun story about helping friends, talking animals (and arachnids), and saving lives. First, Fern saves the runt of a pig litter. She bottle-feeds the pig and names him Wilbur. When he outgrows his shoe box, she sells Wilbur to her uncle. On her uncle’s farm, Wilbur grows into the spring and summer, making friends with all the barn animals and a large gray spider. Charlotte, the spider is eloquent and clever. When Wilbur learns that Homer Zuckerman the farmer will butcher him in the winter, he is devastated and panicky, but Charlotte develops a plan to save Wilbur’s life. She plans to trick the humans by creating minor miracles. She saves Wilbur’s life with five words. Over the course of the summer and fall, she weaves one word or phrase into her web. The humans marvel at “Some Pig”, “Terrific“, “Humble”, and “Radiant”. The humans are easily amazed. Zuckerman and his family become celebrities as the world obsesses over the miracles of the web. Finally, at the local fair, Wilbur wins an award that solidifies his value for Zuckerman and ensures Wilbur will live a long and happy life on the farm. I was able to listen to this book with my kids. Experiencing books with them gives me a new perspective. I enjoy seeing what they find funny, which characters they like, and what questions they have. I like this book because it teaches us to be kind, think of others, help, and appreciate these brief moments we have to live.
This is for anyone who believes in talking animals.
(Rated G, Score 9/10, audiobook read by George Plimpton, 3:34)
Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson (Stormlight Archives #3.5)
This novella brings together some of the characters, events, and mystery from Oathbringer and earlier stories. Rysn leads her ship on the impossible mission to approach the Island of Aim, which is protected by a constant storm. The story is told from several angles. The Knights Radiant are on a secret mission to unlock the oath gate on the island. The scholars on board aim to study the island, its perpetual storm, and other magic tools called fabriels. Another hope of Rysn is to find healing for her little creature named Chiri-Chiri, who has been fading and lethargic and was born on the mystical island. The voyage is nearly repelled by several bad omens, but Rysn deftly addresses and counters each one. She is determined to complete the trip. Finally, on the island, the crew encounters the Sleepless, which are beings tasked with defending an ancient power called the Dawnshard. The Sleepless were behind the bad omens, storm, and other ruses designed to protect the Dawnshard. Seeing all their defenses defeated, the Sleepless commit to destroying the crew by force. Rysn rises up and crafts a masterful negotiation. She sees needs and then meets them, bargaining for her life and the safety of her whole crew. She learns many secrets and vows to keep them as part of her arrangement with the Sleepless. She becomes the Dawnshard's protector and earns her crew's respect. I enjoy these novellas tied to the Stormlight Archives. They strengthen secondary characters. They are shorter and more packed with action. They are clever and add humor where some of the longer volumes get heavy, deep, and dark. This story is about resilience, overcoming disabilities, grit, and honor. Sometimes we are our own biggest obstacles, and sometimes our greatest strengths include the need to get out of our heads and follow our hearts.
This is for survivors, negotiators, and adventurers.
(Rated PG, Score 9/10, audiobook read by Kate Reading and Michael Kramer, 7:05)
The Letter Keeper by Charles Martin (Murphy Shepherd #2)
I have issues with the idea of the shepherd leaving the 99 sheep to seek the one lost sheep. One of the main themes of this book is this parable. Bishop leaves the people he has rescued (99 sheep) to recover in Freetown to seek the one who is lost. He always goes to save those who have been taken, always at great personal cost and sacrifice to himself. This retelling/reinterpretation of the parable makes sense to me and helped to clarify some of the intent behind it. Andy Stanley has a phrase to this effect, “Do for the one, what you wish you could do for the many.” The main story arc follows Bishop as he rescues human trafficking victims and restores them in Freetown. Then, his enemies try to blow him up on his boat. As he recovers in Freetown, Bishop tells his story to his daughter giving the reader his background and explaining how he meets and trains with Bones. Bishop also realizes he is ready to marry Summer, and helps Casey Girl to write her story, get it published, and crush some of her past demons. Bishop’s past has programmed him to wait for disaster in the midst of good moments. His luck hasn’t improved as his wedding reception is interrupted by a massive fire and explosions in the Freetown hospital. Bishop’s enemies kidnap the four women closest to Bishop in the middle of the disaster. Bones and Bishop chase the girls and kidnappers all over the country, but the kidnappers stay one step ahead until Summer finds a way to call Bishop and tip him off to their location and situation. Bones, Bishop, and Gunner (Bishop’s dog and my favorite character in the book) track down the girls and rescue them, but Bishop is shot by his own crossbow and falls into the river. He manages to escape into a cave. He nearly dies before being rescued by Bones. In the end, Bishop learns that his enemy is Bones’ brother. I imagine they go hunting for him in book 3. This book was quite different from the first book. It felt less deep, but also more clear and more linear.
This is for those needing ideas about healing and forgiveness after trauma.
(Rated PG-13, Score 7/10, audiobook read by Jonathan K. Riggs, 9:49)
In the Blood by Jack Carr (Terminal List #5)
James Reece is still hunting the assassin who killed his friend. In book 5, the assassin flips the script and starts hunting Reece. He starts by drawing the American out of Montana. Reece goes hunting after a plane is shot down in Africa, killing a former contact of Reece. Before flying overseas, Reece gets read into a super top-secret AI program and meets Alice, the AI who helps him find the assassin. Carr goes deep down the AI/cyberwarfare rabbit hole in this one. I kinda passed out for most of that part when he got into quantum computing and the eight layers of the internet. After meeting Alice and getting help finding his target Reece takes the hunt overseas where he hops from gunfight to gunfight, target to target, from Africa to Israel to Rome, to Russia. Eventually, Reece and his target go head to head for all the marbles. Carr uses his military background to give the story and action all the details of real combat. He uses his storytelling and philosophical gifts to ask hard questions and to remind us that we are all mortal and none of us can outrun time. This story was fairly linear if not a bit predictable until the epilogue where Carr sets up the next book with a huge cliffhanger. I happen to have a special first edition hardback copy of the next book, Only the Dead, gifted to me by my great friend Aleksandr. I’m excited to crack it open.
This is for Reece fans, hunters, assassins, and those suspicious of AI.
(Rated R, Score 7/10, audiobook read by Ray Porter, 12:08)
Non-Fiction Books
The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
This book came highly recommended by my parents and my Granny. It is the story of the young men who captured the hearts of a nation and the Olympic Gold medal in Germany in 1936. The book covers the lives of a few individuals as it builds the story, but the main focus is on Joe Rantz. Brown tells Joe’s story- losing his mother as a child, living through poverty, being rejected by a step-mother, learning to provide for himself, forging his body through manual labor, funding his college during the Great Depression, and learning to row with his head and heart fully in the boat. Joe and the other boys spent years learning how to overcome adversity. Each one came from humble beginnings and had to earn his place in the boat. Each boy had to learn to row as a masterful individual, but also with the rhythm of a machine. Their timing had to be flawless. Their unity made them fly. They never lost a race, but their journey to gold was far from easy or straight or painless. The author spent a lot of the book explaining the era and happenings during the run to the Olympics. He describes the Great Depression and the way sports were covered across the country and around the world. Back then rowing was far more popular than it is today. Brown also describes the way Hitler’s propaganda machine handled the Berlin Olympics and fooled many around the world into thinking the Nazis were faithful and true. Of course, they were not. Ultimately, the young rowing crew from the University of Washington shocked the Germans, rowing against stacked odds, and overcoming great adversity to win the gold medal in 1936. I liked this story. It gave me a new understanding of our history, and reinforced ideas like hard work paying off, working hard for teammates, and pursuing excellence for its own sake. I also liked the way Brown painted the role of George Pocock. He was like the Gandalf of the rowing world. Thanks, Mom and Dad for recommending this book.
This is for anyone who loves a good underdog story.
(Rated PG, Score 8/10, audiobook read by Edward Herrmann, 14:24)
Rebel Talent by Francesca Gino
Have you ever seen someone acting outside the usual social norms in a discrete, but clear act of rebellion? How did that make you feel? Here’s an example- my friend Phil wears awesome shoes, but what makes them awesome from my perspective is that they are usually very bright and colorful and fun and paired with business casual clothes. It’s his way of reminding himself to just be himself or a reminder that he doesn’t have to conform. That’s the spirit of this book. Gino tells all about the rebels like Napoleon, the pirate Black Beard, and Houdini. She breaks down principles like embracing nonconformity, using curiosity, embracing discomfort, and overcoming our biases. Gino uses stories, research, and practical lessons throughout the book to reinforce these principles. I found the book to be a little underwhelming. Maybe I’ve been a rebel my whole life. We were taught to do right and lean into hard things, but no one ever told us that would be easy or popular. I kept reading, waiting for more ideas about how to be even more rebellious, but they never came. I guess I’m a rebel, or at least understand rebel thinking in more ways than I appreciated. Also, I thought the book had a huge hole in it. Nowhere did it mention the biggest rebel I know. The Jewish teacher who turned the world upside down, lived and taught nonconformity, curiosity, and overcoming our biases, and used curiosity to change people’s hearts. That’s the rebel I want to be like. Maybe that’s why the book fell a little flat for me - I’ve already seen all the lessons in brighter colors in the story of Jesus and being lived by my heroes (parents).
(Rated PG, Score 6/10, audiobook read by Tamara Marston, 7:56)
Preview/Currently Reading-
The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien
Salvage Fleet by Kevin Steverson
Parenting: Getting It Right by Andy & Sandra Stanley
I track my books in a database called Goodreads. You might find it helpful in managing your reading lists.
Final Thoughts-
So, be kind to each other like Charlotte and Wilbur. Be brave like Rysn and negotiate hard. Be a healer and a rescuer like Bishop. Probably don’t go try killing a bunch of bad people like James Reece…at least without some training. Look out for one another. Forgive each other. The one thing we are all running out of at the same speed is time. Don’t waste the time you have.
Thanks for adventuring with me.
Joshua
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