Favorite Summer Books/Movies

I'll add to this list as I read more books. Here's just a taste...

Leviathan, by Scott Westerfeld. This takes place just after the archduke of Austria was assassinated, but has an element of sci-fi/fantasy, along with fictional/non-historical characters. In this novel, the Germans and Austrians use "Clanker" technology--zeppelins and airplanes and tanks, of course, plus "Walkers". Walkers are huge machines that, well, walk on 2 legs, and can hold about 3-4 people plus some cargo. The British, on the other hand, are "Darwinists", and this doesn't refer to an ideology. Rather, their war machines aren't machines but living creatures. These creatures are fully contained ecosystems. Instead of a zeppelin, they have a huge whale-type creature, with glowworms providing light as needed, bats that emit projectiles, etc.

The storyline follows the archduke's son on the run after his parents were killed, and a British girl posing as a boy in order to take part in the war effort. Eventually, their paths cross in Europe, as the war is beginning to intensify, and .... I'll leave the rest for later. If I didn't know there was a sequel, I'd be mighty dissatisfied with the ending, as it left much unsaid.

Tea with Hezbollah, by Ted Dekker and Carl Medearis. These two guys go to the Middle East and ask America's enemies questions like, "What makes you laugh? What makes you cry?" They also ask these leaders about Jesus, the parable of the Good Samaritan, and Christ's command to "Love your enemies," in a quest to find today's Samaritan (disenfranchised, on the edge of society, perception that they can do nothing right). Highly recommended.

Russian Journal, by Andrea Lee. She and her husband spent a year in Moscow in 1978, and this book tells the stories of the Russians they befriended and their experiences in Soviet Russia. I enjoyed the background of things like the ринок (rynok/farmer's market) and тапочки (tapochki/slippers provided at the door), which very likely is the same for Ukraine today. Some of the stories they told of basic daily life reminded me of aspects of life in Ukraine, though today goods (especially Western ones) aren't as scarce. It was eye-opening to hear more about their experience with the KGB and how the people lived in a constant state of being wary of others, especially for those who wanted to emigrate to the West.

An Intimate Understanding of America's Teenagers: Shaking Hands with Aliens, by Bruce Gevirtzman. The author draws upon decades of experience as a high school speech teacher, offering insight into the lives of his students. At times, he offers explanations from a teen's perspective--obtained simply by asking his students! He provides advice directed at teachers, parents, and teenagers at the end of each chapter.

Other Books:

Peculiar Treasures (Katie Weldon book #1), by Robin Jones Gunn

Reading List...10 summers ago...

Tonight I was cleaning up some stuff in the attic from when I was a kid -- I am constantly going through my old toys, books, and schoolwork and getting rid of stuff, though it's a never ending task -- and I found this. I made a sort of scrapbook page consisting of library receipts, and also had a list of books from my 6th grade reading teacher.

Here are some of the books I read during the summer of 1999, or had read by that point:

Ella Enchanted
The Ballad of Lucy Whipple
Walk Two Moons (Sharon Creech)
Julie of the Wolves
The Talking Earth
The Westing Game
Figgs and Phantoms
Soup's Goat
Lyddie
A Wrinkle in Time
Achingly Alice
Wringer
2095
Knights of the Kitchen Table
Holes
Park's Quest
Half Magic
Bunnicula
Abel's Island
The Master Puppeteer
My Side of the Mountain
The Village by the Sea
Nothing But the Truth
Thames Doesn't Rhyme with James
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Charlotte's Web
Island of the Blue Dolphins
Seventeen Against the Dealer
Homecoming (Voigt)
The Phantom Tollbooth
Watsons Go to Birmingham
Little Women
True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle
Hatchet (Gary Paulsen)
Ice (Phyllis Naylor)
Caddie Woodlawn
Harriet the Spy

Also, in 1996 at age 8 1/2, I wrote the following book report, probably for my Caravan group. In my current opinion, it is the lamest book report ever.

"Esther of the Andes was about Esther Carson Winans who lived in Florida and was born there September 14, 1891. Her mother's name was Anna and her father's was Frank.
"Esther was afraid of nothing. She was a missionary in Peru and married Roger Winans. She liked the mountains very, very much. She died on November 6, 1928."

What were some of your favorite books as a kid? Did you ever do summer reading -- but for fun -- perhaps at the public library?

summer!

What a week. I got to go to Impact this past weekend, and that was great. It was great to see everyone again, even if it was one of the last times. I now have a video of the "House on Fire" skit on my computer, which is pretty exciting. :)

This week I'm babysitting just about every day. I didn't get the job at Camp Wright, so basically my work is going to happen here and there. I applied to work at summer school in the KCPS, but that's in July, so I have about a month to spend doing random stuff. Cassi told me there are new places in the Outlets that are hiring, so I'm going to try to work there. The bad thing is that it's half an hour away and will use up all my precious gasoline. I miss the T. :)

More quotes:
~"Further up and further in!" (The Last Battle)
~Erin H, about the volume of the music: "We can't hear each other think!"
~"In the end Eustace and Jill begged so hard that Tirian said they could come with him and take their chance--or, as he much more sensibly called it, 'the adventure that Aslan would send them.' " (The Last Battle)