Recommended Poetry Books

As a follow-up to last week's post on the importance of poetry, I'm linking to some of my favorite poetry books. 

I always say that the best poetry primer for someone who has no clue where to start is Robert Louis Stevenson's A Child's Garden of Verses. The poems are light and lyrical without being too sing-song-y. Even as an adult, I continue to delight in them and have put quite a few to memory. (I've linked to the Kindle Free version, but there are many beautifully illustrated hard copies to choose from when buying one for your personal library.) I extol the glories of one his poems in this post.

I created a list of poetry books especially for children here. A decade after I wrote that post, I discovered the lovely Sing a Song of Seasons, which for a modern book has an amazingly small amount of tripe. (I reviewed it here).

Of course, poetry must be read aloud for you to be able to appreciate its cadences so I highly recommend this audio recording of 81 Famous Poems. (Reviewed here.) Sadly, no corresponding book is available, but there is a similar book of classic poetry, Best-Loved Poems, that I reviewed here.

Finally, if you already love poetry and are ready for something a bit meatier, I highly recommend these two books of devotional poetry: Poems of Faith (Dover publications, not the Helen Steiner Rice title) and The Oxford Book of Christian Verse -1940. (Don't pay any attention to the Amazon price; I found it at a used book store for $5.) Of the two, Poems of Faith is a bit easier, but the OBCV is one of the most treasured books in my entire library. 

Let me know if you've enjoyed any of these or if you have a favorite book of poetry that is not mentioned here.

Blessings,

The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni

I often say I prefer Catholic authors to modern Christian fiction writers because they address human suffering without giving overly simplistic answers. The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni is a perfect example.

The novel take place in Italy in the 17th century, and covers actual historical events of that time, particularly the plague of 1630. Renzo and Lucia are pledged to be married to one another, but serious impediments arise that keep them apart for several years. Can their love withstand the challenges that each must face alone?

Fortunately, this is much more than a story of separated lovers. There are villains and heroes. In the midst of political instability, lawlessness, famine, kidnapping, rioting, and narrow escapes, themes emerge of redemption, forgiveness, and trust in God's ultimate plan. It shows suffering as the great equalizer. When famine comes, both the rich and poor go hungry. When the plague hits, both outlaws and saints succumb to death. AND yet there is a difference in the reactions to the calamities. Some become hardened and rob the dead bodies and pillage the houses. Others lay their lives on the line to help the helpless. Though written from a Catholic perspective, The Betrothed does not blindly glorify Catholicism. Selfish, ungodly leaders intermingle with the humble and self-giving ones. 

During the plague, the priests are given the task of manning the lazarettos (housing for the sick and dying). Manzoni writes that as the plague took its toll, means, men and courage failed as the necessity for the lazarettos increased. Nine out of ten of the priests died. But where suffering was, there they were. 

Without giving any big spoilers, I will say that both Lucia and Renzo grow through their trials and learn that God never disturbs the joys of His children but to prepare them for one more certain and endurable. Manzoni reminds us that the most cautious and blameless conduct cannot secure us from troubles. [But] when they come, whether by our own fault or not, confidence in God alleviates them and makes them cohesive to a better life.

If anything, the book teaches that the Christian life is full of testing, but that God is faithful.

The Betrothed is supposedly the most famous and widely read novel in the Italian language. I listened to a good translation, but I will admit that it was still not easy to get through. Some of the chapters on politics and geography (and even the detailed descriptions of the plague) were laborious. The audiobook, narrated by Nicholas Bolton, helped me to stick with it, and when it was all done, I felt deeply nourished by the hours I had spent in this book. 

Anyone else familiar with this title?

Blessings,

The Duchess of Bloomsbury by Helene Hanff

Consider this a belated review of 84 Charing Cross Road which I enjoyed in 2021 and again in January of this year. I am a fan of epistolary novels so the 20 years of correspondence (1949-1968) between Helene Hanff (book lover from New York) with Frank Doel (a book seller from London) was pure delight.  The audio version is spot on in highlighting their differences of manner. And the 1987 movie, with stellar performances by Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins, is one of my favorites. (You can watch the trailer here.)

Because of her success with the book 84 Charing Cross Road, Helene is finally able to afford a trip to London. The Duchess of Bloomsbury recounts her dream-come-true:

All my life I've wanted to see London. I used to go to English movies just to look at streets with houses like those. Staring at the screen in a dark theatre, I wanted to walk down those streets so badly it gnawed at me like hunger. Sometimes, at home in the evening, reading a casual description of London by Hazlitt or Leigh Hunt, I'd put the book down suddenly, engulfed by a wave of longing that was like homesickness. I wanted to see London the way old people want to see home before they die. 

Marks and Co., the bookshop that had been her main supplier, has closed and so she meets a host of new people who offer to show her the town. She's a bit overwhelmed with the modest fame that her book has brought her and jokingly calls herself "The Duchess of Bloomsbury" since that is where her hotel is located. Many of the characters she meets are as quirky and endearing as she is. 

This is a must for every bibliophile if only to identify with how easy it is to go off on to rabbit trails while reading a good book. Helene remarks that one set of books by Arthur Quiller Couch took her eleven years to read because of all the books she read in between to better understand his comments. She so identifies with Couch that she nicknames him "Q" (which explains the title of her next book, Q's Legacy.) 

I was fascinated by the fact that though she had not read as widely as she would have liked, she had read deeply; My problem is that that while other people are reading fifty books I'm reading one book fifty times. I only stop when at the bottom of page 20, say, I realize I can recite pages 21 and 22 from memory. Then I put the book away for a few years.

I'd love to be able to do that. 

I was able to get these first two books via digital download from my library, but it looks like Q's Legacy may cost me $6!

Blessings,

Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe

(Be aware that some mild spoilers are inevitable in this review.)

I avoided Uncle Tom's Cabin for years anticipating caricatures, bad writing, and preachiness. Frankly, it was much better than I expected. Yes, there are some stereotypes, but there are also many nuanced, well-drawn characters. I had to read all 300 pages before I could decide in which group to fit Uncle Tom. It would have been easy to write off him for his unusually placid outlook on life, which is why I think Stowe was wise to create a needed contrast in the character of George. 

Sometimes Stowe was preachy, but she also worked hard to show different points of view on slavery.  It was fascinating to see every possible Scripture verse (both to defend and denounce it) coming out of the mouths of the main characters. Some, like Maria, hold to their views of slavery no matter what they see with their own eyes. Others, like Ophelia, grow in their understanding of the problem. Though Ophelia is convinced that slaves have eternal souls and should be educated and treated well, she is initially horrified when Eva kisses one of the black servants. She slowly evolves, becoming a tender and true woman of faith. 

Three drawbacks: Stowe, in her effort to be gracious toward blacks, unknowingly writes condescendingly, often making blanket statements about them as "a sensitive and impressionable race," or describing a person as acting "after the manner of their race." It doesn't wear well today, but I'm sure that at the time of her writing, it was seen as sympathetic. Also, the "N" word is used frequently by both whites and blacks. Last of all, the saintliest person in the book was, to me, the least believable. 

I was intrigued by the fact that even though slavery was the primary issue in the novel, a strong secondary theme was theodicy. Is it possible to trust God in the midst of extreme suffering? Very thought-provoking!

Blessings,

What I Read and Watched in September

I read a nice variety of books this month. I'm enjoying the 100 days of Dante challenge more than I thought I would. It is not easy reading, but the short teaching videos put out by Baylor have been outstanding. Two audiobooks that I enjoyed were Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Pied Piper by Nevil Shute (reviewed here)

The rest of my fiction was pretty light. Least favorite was One Tuesday Morning by Karen Kingsbury (reviewed here). I also read a WWII mystery called Proceed at Will (reviewed here), A Man Called Trent by Louis L'amour (reviewed here), Sarah's Cottage by D. E. Stevenson, and The Proper Place by O. Douglas. (I bought it for $1.99 for Kindle, but can only find the link to the overpriced hard copy.) 

Two non-fiction titles were Matthew Henry's commentary on Song of Solomon (review here) and an abridged Journal of John Wesley (reviewed here) 

My favorite book of the month was All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot, reviewed here.

I found several Hallmark mysteries on YouTube. Sweet Revenge is the latest in the Hannah Swenson "Murder, She Baked" mysteries and is definitely the funniest of them all. Mystery 101: Deadly History and two Aurora Teagarden mysteries rounded up the list. 

Blessings,

The House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne

If there is any children's classic that teaches (true) tolerance better than The House at Pooh Corner, I don't know what it could be. All the animals in The Hundred Acre Wood have their idiosyncrasies, but each one is accepted and loved. There is the overprotective, but kind, Kanga, timid yet noble piglet, pompous Rabbit, pessimistic Eeyore, and obnoxious Tigger. Most important of all is Pooh, that "bear of very little brain" who has a big heart, which may make him the wisest of all.

As I listened to the audio version, I could easily imagine A.A. Milne telling these stories to his little son. Perhaps each animal personality-type was a copy of a child or grown-up they both knew. In any case, the stories of Christopher Robin's toy menagerie are told quite simply. Christopher isn't central to all of them, but when he appears, he radiates a joy and affection that I found quite contagious. Sprinkled throughout each story are acts of kindness, math jokes (which made me laugh out loud), and little bits of wisdom that are never preachy.

Chapter 9 had this little insight into poetry: Poetry and hums aren't things you get. They are things which get you. And all you can do is go where they can find you. Chapter 10 has this delightful description of leisure: Christopher Robin says, What I like doing best is nothing. How do you do nothing? asked Pooh. Well it's when people call out to you just as you are going off to do it, "What are you going to do Christopher Robin?" And you say, "Oh, nothing," And then you go and do it. . . It means just going along and listening to all the things you can't hear and not bothering.

In the last chapter the animals hear that Christopher Robin is going away. Maybe it was referring to boarding school. Or maybe it was a reference to growing up. But it's a lovely, poignant moment as Christopher Robin and Pooh bid each other goodbye.

Peter Dennis does a wonderful job narrating this book (although it took me a while to get used to the snorting sound he uses for Piglet.) He handles the voices well and his British accent makes the understated jokes all the funnier. During the same week that I listened to this audio book I was reading Miss Read's Celebrations at Thrush Green. I was amazed at similarities in the two stories. Mrs. Gibbons IS Rabbit and Albert Piggot IS Eeyore. ha!

This children's classic offers as much for adults as it does for children. Maybe more!

Blessings,

What I Read and Watched in September

Life wasn't quite as crazy this month so I was able to read quite a bit and watch several better-than-average movies. After reading Barbed-Wire University, I watched the 1953 movie Albert R.N., which accurately portrays life in a European POW camp.

Christian movies are often sappy and theologically thin, so I was pleasantly surprised by Paul, The Apostle of Christ. The writing and acting were good and the ending was magnificent. (Quite a nice change from modern drivel that teaches if you come to Christ all your problems will go away.) One more movie I watched was The Trip to Bountiful. I'm a sucker for any movie based on a play because it usually has good dialogue. This 1985 film is about an elderly woman who dreams of returning to the town where she grew up. It is slow-moving, heartbreaking, and garnered the Oscar for best actress for Geraldine Page.

As far as reading goes, I slowly worked my way through C.S. Lewis' Mere Christianity (3 to 4 pages a day) and loved every bit of it. I listened to The Scarlet Pimpernel (for the umpteenth time) whenever I was working in the kitchen. But that was only after I'd listened to House at Pooh Corner TWICE. Lovely!

Three books that were okay, but that didn't wow me, were Miss Read's Celebrations at Thrush Green, Anthony Trollope's Dr. Wortle's School, and 101 Great American Poems.

Anyone else familiar with Kate Howe's Victober Book Challenge? Every year in October she encourages her listeners to read more Victorian literature. I'm already a big fan, but I appreciate the nudge to add more of it to my literary diet. I hope to read one Charles Dickens title and one Thomas Hardy. Here's her video introducing the challenge.

Blessings,

News of the World by Paulette Jiles

I rarely read modern fiction, so I'm not quite sure how this book landed on my radar. But I'm glad it did.

Seventy-one year old Captain Jefferson Kidd is travelling through Texas, carrying "the news of the world" to small towns where folks will pay a dime to hear him read the papers. It's just after the Civil War and, in many ways, Texas is the wild west. Kidd had hoped that sharing stories from all over the world would help bring unity to divided people: If people had true knowledge of the world perhaps they would not take up arms and so perhaps he could be an aggregator of information from distant places and then the world would be a more peaceful place. He had been perfectly serious. That illusion had lasted from age forty-nine to age sixty-five.

In one city where he stops, his offered $50 to deliver an orphan to her people who are 400 miles away. The girl had been kidnapped four years earlier by a band of Kiowa Indians and had recently been rescued by the U.S. Army.  Kidd names the ten-year old Johanna and promises to take her safely home. As they travel together, warding off bandits and busybodies, they learn to communicate and to build a friendship that brings healing to both of them.

Kidd had become indifferent to humanity. Now it was different. He was drawn back into the stream of being because there was once again a life in his hands. Things mattered. The strange depression and spiritual chill he had felt were gone. . . . Joy and liveliness had come back to his readings now. His voice had its old vibrancy again and he smiled as he read; . . . . [he] recalled how dull his life had seemed before he had come upon her in Wichita Falls.

The exquisite writing was balm to my soul. Jiles helped me to see and hear the settings and the people when she wrote that someone was as "freckled as a guinea hen" or that "His pen nib scratched across the newsprint with a noise like avaricious mice." Some turns of phrase were so apt and lovely that I laughed out loud with sheer joy.

She also does a wonderful job establishing the historical context, adding details about post Civil War conflicts, the economy, the laws (or lack of them), Kiowa Indian customs, and more. But it was never an overwhelming amount of details. The clash between the Kiowa and the white man's cultures is handled with skill and without pat answers.

The denouement in the final chapter was spot on. The reader learns that it isn't the big "world" news that changes people, but the daily sacrificial offering of one's life to another.

In spite of the occasional profanity (none of it felt gratuitous), this is a beautiful story of grace in the midst of brokenness. The narrator at Audible, Grover Gardner, had the perfect gravelly voice for this book. I look forward to revisiting this novel in the future.

Blessings,

81 Famous Poems

I love poetry anthologies, but am often dismayed by the inclusion of modern stuff that can barely be called poetic. (See my review of The Poet's Corner, for one example.) What a treat to find this audio compilation via my library's digital services.

No fluff here. The poems are all bona fide classics ranging from Milton’s “On His Blindness” to Blake’s “Little Lamb Who Made Thee?” to Robert Burn’s “To a Mouse.” If you want an education on the best-of-the-best, you need go no further. Alexander Scourby, Nancy Wickwire, and Bramwell Fletcher are all exceptional narrators. (A sample of Scourby reading "Elegy in a Country Churchyard" is here.)

I remember needing my college professor to explain “My Last Duchess,” but if I had heard this audio version, I would have had NO DOUBT as to Browning’s subtle meanings. This is probably the most powerful poem in the bunch because of the outstanding narration.

My enjoyment of the readings was enhanced by the fact that I was already acquainted with most of them. (If you are not familiar with them, it would take several listens to get their gist.) A particular favorite is Tennyson’s “The Eagle:”

He clasps the crag with crooked hands;
Close to the sun in lonely lands,
Ring’d with the azure world, he stands.
The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls;
He watches from his mountain walls,
And like a thunderbolt he falls.

Apparently there is no book form of this compilation. It’s a supplement to the larger Norton Anthology of Poetry, third edition. The version I listened to said it was put out by BBC audio, which may explain why it is so top-notch. If you already love good poetry, or would like to become more knowledgeable, this is a lovely opportunity to plunge in. Highly recommended.

Blessings,

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Many classics can be read with delight, but The Scarlet Letter is not one of them. Yet even though it is not beautifully written, it is a compelling and powerful novel.

Most people are familiar with the story. Hester Prynne is punished for adultery by being forced to wear an embroidered letter "A" on her clothing, "to be a living sermon against sin." She refuses to divulge the name of her lover to the governing body of the Puritan community and alone suffers public humiliation and ostracization for her iniquity. The unrevealed lover suffers his own private agony because of unconfessed sin.

Even though I read it in college, I could not remember why it was considered the great American novel. So I was glad to find a study guide from my library to remind me. The guide helped a little, but emphasized the book's ambiguity more than anything.

What struck me most was that Hester calmly and coldly accepted her punishment, but never really seemed to repent. In fact, the book emphasizes that the more she withdrew from society, the more she "wandered, without rule or guidance, in a moral wilderness." The scarlet letter was her passport into regions where other women dared not tread. Shame, Despair, Solitude! These had been her teachers - stern and wild ones - and they had made her strong, but taught her much amiss. (111) This leaves the reader to wonder if it was Hester's fault or the community's. If they had embraced her instead of shunned her, could she have been redeemed?

Here comes the ambiguity. In all her shame and loneliness, Hester visits the sick and the poor. The scarlet letter had the effect of the cross on the nun's bosom. It imparted to the wearer a kind of sacredness... (p. 91) She is even compared to the Madonna and child as she stands with her baby outside the prison.

How I wished I could go back in time and listen to my professor at Asbury explain this book to me. Freedom vs. authority, the wages of sin, and the role of community in regulating morality are just a few of the themes which Hawthorne offers as fascinating fodder for thought.

Blessings,

The Thirty-Nine Steps by John Buchan

A novel that keeps being made into a movie clearly has captured popular imagination. The Thirty-Nine Steps by John Buchan was filmed in 1935, 1959, 1978, and 2008. And according to IMDb it's scheduled for another remake in 2018.

This first book in the Richard Hannay series was published in 1915 and recounts the adventures of 37-year old Hannay on the eve of WWI. It has implausible twists, yet the hero is so endearing and earnest that you root for him from start to finish.

Chapter One opens with these droll comments: I returned from the city about three o'clock on that May afternoon pretty well disgusted with life. I had been three months in the old country and was fed up. If anyone had told me a year ago that I would feel like that I should have laughed at him. But there was the fact. The weather made me liverish. The talk of the ordinary Englishman made me sick. I couldn't get enough exercise and the amusements of London seemed as flat as soda water that has been standing in the sun.

The suspense mixed with British understatements had me chuckling with glee throughout. When Hannay discovers a murdered man in his apartment, he says, I had seen men die violently before. Indeed, I had killed a few myself in the war. But this cold-blooded indoor business was different.

And from Chapter Five: His name was Marmaduke Joppley and he was an offense to creation. He was a sort of blood stock broker who did his business by toadying elder sons and rich young peers and foolish old ladies. Marmy was a familiar figure at balls and polo weeks in country houses. He was an adroit scandal monger and would crawl a mile on his belly to anything that had a title or a million. . . . The snobbery of the creature turned me sick. I asked a man afterwards why no one kicked him out and was told that "English men reverence the weaker sex."

Stella Rimington, former head of MI5, Britain's Secret Service, wrote a fine article on why Buchan's books retain their popularity. I've included a few of her key points below.

[His books] have been compared to the James Bond books, and they certainly include plenty of expensive cars and other magnificent machines. . . . But Bond is a paid killer and a womanizer; patriotism does not obviously feature in his make-up. Richard Hannay is, above all, a patriotic, public-spirited gentleman, and that fact is key to Buchan’s purpose in writing the books and reflects his own social and political philosophy.
 
Against those nightmarish possibilities [of anarchy, enemy invasion, etc.], Buchan champions the things he thinks best in British civilization – education, gentlemanly and ladylike conduct, honesty, an adventurous questing, a self-sacrificing spirit and plenty of fresh air, long walks and cold baths. Could it be that these unfashionable virtues are what accounts for his enduring appeal?

This is a rollicking good tale mixed with wonderful "unfashionable virtues" and a large dose of good humor. There are free e-copies all over the internet, but I particularly enjoyed the Audible.com version by David Thorn for $4.95.

Of the movie adaptations, the best was done by Alfred Hitchcock (although it includes a female who is nowhere in the book.) This 1935 version is in the public domain and can be watched on YouTube.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce

Harold Fry has retired from the brewery and potters through his days avoiding his hostile wife and his painful memories. When he receives a letter from an old acquaintance who is on her death bed, he decides to visit her. By walking 600 miles. This journey will change his life and the lives of many around him.

There are many things to love about this book: the quietly eloquent writing, Harold's faithfulness, the raw honesty of many of the characters, and the balance of heartache and hopefulness. And, of course, "the gorilla man."

A sample from Chapter Fifteen: He had faced his shortcomings and overcome them. And so the real business of walking was happening only now. . . He was no longer afraid. If anything, he was more sure. . . . His walk had become a battle against himself and he had failed [with injuries and false expectations]. Now he followed a set of gentle stretching exercises each morning and rested every two hours. He stopped to study the plants and to treat his blisters. Once more it surprised him how much was at his feet if only he had known to look.

As he learns to pay more attention to his own bodily rhythms and the world's natural beauty, he also learns compassion for his fellow pilgrims.

Harold walked with these strangers and listened. He had learned that it was the smallness of people that had filled him with wonder and tenderness. And the loneliness of that too. The world was made up of people putting one foot in front of the other. And a life might appear ordinary simply because the person living it had done so for a long time. To Harold every person began to look the same as well as unique. This was the dilemma of being human. It was as if all his life he had been waiting to get up from his chair. . . .

My love for the book is not unequivocal. The short, very strong outbursts of profanity rankled me more than usual because I was listening to the audiobook and these words tended to play and replay in my mind. And faith in God is gently ridiculed throughout.

Still, even with the presence of profanity and the absence of Bible verses, Joyce has written a book that Christian authors can emulate. It's a powerful story of brokenness and the longing for redemption. I'm only sorry the ending was as shallow as it was, with it's fluffy ideas about death and the hereafter.

Even with its imperfections, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry is a wonderful look at the beauty and fragility of humanity and man's deep-seated need for love and meaning. If you can stomach the vulgar language, I highly recommend the Audible.com version expertly done by Jim
Broadbent.

Heroes and Legends in Literature

I purchased Heroes and Legends: The Most Influential Characters of Literature with a free credit from Audible.com.

Professor Thomas Shippey (who is a Cambridge-educated expert on Medieval literature and a leading world scholar on the works of J.R.R. Tolkien) gives each of the 24 lectures. Each talk offers important insights into the world's great works of literature and why their heroes have lived on in our hearts and imaginations. How could I not love this series when it started out with a most unlikely hero, Frodo Baggins? Shippey explains why the world needed such a hero at that time in history.

Some of the lectures share additional, unknown information about famous characters (such as Robin Hood). Others walk the listener through the character's most famous story (Odysseus). I enjoyed the variety (In Lecture 16 he explains how people gained a taste for lighter reading. In Lecture 22 he talks about fairy tales and their modern feminist versions.) Although the final lectures include people that I would not have selected as literary heroes (Celie from The Color Purple and Winston Smith from 1984, for example), Shippey argues convincingly for their importance.

Shippey's enthusiasm for his subject keeps you listening. It doesn't hurt that he has a marvelous British voice and dry sense of humor. Although he deals with several indiscreet protagonists, he manages to keep the lectures at a PG level. I appreciated that he wasn't too politically correct to note when a character was helped by faith in God.

I've been listening to this off-and-on for three months and thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a refresher course on books I'd already read, and whetted my appetite for some of the others, except for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which sounds horrific. I have my doubts about that choice, but figure it was added to appeal to 21st century readers. Otherwise these lectures are highly recommended to literature fans.

(They are ridiculously expensive on the Great Courses site, but are $30 at Amazon/Audible.)

Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens

WARNING: Listening to Mil Nicholson narrating Our Mutual Friend can be extremely habit forming. Do not begin unless you are prepared to pay the price to see it through. (It's 36 hours long.)

Not since I read Wives and Daughters in 2008 have I been so hooked on an audiobook!

Early in the novel a young heir to a fortune is found drowned. Dickens shows what happens to those who get his money and to those who don't get it (but want it.) Two of the people affected by the results of the will are John and Bella. I enjoyed seeing how they grew through their hardships and formed an enduring relationship.

How can I begin to explain how magnificent this book is? Is it because of Dicken's amazing writing - with his gift for description, his insights into human nature and his wry British humor? Or is it just that the story has so many substories that it takes your breath away to see how they all come together. (I knew NOTHING about the story before going in, which was a big plus.) Or is it because Mil Nicholson has the ability to make all 500 hundred characters' (slight exaggeration) voices sound different and recognizable? Or is it because the characters are so complex and varied?

Our Mutual Friend has it all: drunkards, swindlers, murderers. star-crossed lovers, cripples, and death bed scenes. Yet because of Dicken's skill with the English language and his little humorous asides, it manages to be charming.

It's only January and I feel like I've already found my favorite book of the year. Highly recommended. (The Librivox links above are free. It's free for Kindle too.)
.

Reading Goals for 2015

My goals for this year are pretty straightforward. I'll continue to "shop" my Kindle and to chip away at my Classics Club Challenge list.

But I have six specific fiction titles I want to tackle:

Paradise Lost (I read the first half TWO years ago and loved it. Why haven't I ever finished it?)
North and South  by Gaskell
To Kill a Mockingbird
Our Mutual Friend by Dickens (I'm listening to a fantastic audio version)
Two Shakespeare plays: King Henry V and The Winter's Tale

I also want to schedule in six non-fiction Christian books, but I'm not as certain about those titles. Possibly Eugenics and Other Evils by Chesterton, Art for God's Sake by Ryken, If I Had Lunch with C. S. Lewis, Pilgrim's Progress, Simply Christian by N.T. Wright, and The Scarcity of Praying Men. (because they are already on my Kindle.)

May your new year be replete with good food, good books, good company, and God's blessing.

The Poet's Corner by John Lithgow

The Poet’s Corner is subtitled "The One-and-Only Poetry Book for the Whole Family." I suppose the word “family” is in the title because there is some nonsense poetry included and because of Lithgow’s grandfatherly tone. But if I were trying to introduce my children to poetry, this is not the selection I would choose. The inclusion of modern poetry with its clunky rhythms and obtuse meanings would surely create a distaste for poems among the very young. (If someone has to explain a poem to you before you can like it, you have already missed much of the magic, soul-touching quality of poetry.)

The positive side of this mixture of old and new poems is that you can compare them for yourself. As you listen/read, it becomes increasingly clear that the “new” is, in fact, very much like the Emperor and his new clothes, pretending to be well-dressed, but sadly naked. One poem was so awful, I laughed out loud.

If I had known how much modern poetry was in this audiobook, I probably would not have purchased it. On the other hand, I was glad to have such a painless, crash course on the “greats” of Western poetry. I even learned to appreciate the talent of several poets who I hadn’t liked before (even if their poetry still does not appeal to me).

John Lithgow introduces 50 poems and their authors in alphabetical order of author, so you get the likes of Gertrude Stein right next to Shakespeare, which can be disconcerting. But as I wrote above, it makes the modern authors look pretty silly. The poems are superbly narrated by Hollywood stars such as Morgan Freeman, Helen Mirren, Jodie Foster, et al. 

Even though, the book did not meet my expectations, my enjoyment of the classic poems superseded my disappointment in the others. And it rekindled my desire to brush up on memorization.

Tess of the D'urbervilles by Thomas Hardy

After listening to Adrian Praetzellis read Treasure Island, I downloaded his version of Tess of the D'urbervilles. I had a vague recollection of having read this for a college lit class but all that I remembered was that Tess was a fallen woman. I will do my best to write about the book without any more spoilers than that. Beautiful (but poor) young Tess is taken advantage of by a rich young man early in the novel. Thankfully, Hardy spares us the sordid details and spends the greater part of the novel revealing the effects of Tess's transgression. Hardy makes it clear he sees her as more sinned against than sinful. I was completely blindsided by the ending (I must have slept through that lit class!), but I have no excuse for that since I knew from previous experience that Hardy is a gloomy gus.

In spite of the unhappy conclusion, I strongly recommend this book for its fine prose, compelling story, and for its vigorous portrayal of the "evils" of Christianity.  Our hero, ironically named Angel, declares he has no use for doctrines, but, is "of course, a believer in good morals." (p. 225) A few pages later Hardy compares a mill that is situated next to a crumbling abbey. He observed that the one continued to thrive because "food is a perennial necessity; [but] the abbey had perished, creeds being transient." (234) Clearly Hardy believes the world would be a better place without the doctrines imposed by the Church.

The religious people in the book are either hardhearted or hypocrites. Those who have rejected Christianity want morality without dogma. But the horrible result is that there is only law and no grace. And nothing shows this more than Angel's reaction to Tess's confession. Since he has rejected the articles of Christian faith, he has no basis for forgiveness. She has broken the law and she must pay. And pay, she does!

Although Hardy himself rejected Christianity, he was clearly familiar with the Bible which makes this book rich in biblical allusions. I found great pleasure in those references and in his excellent writing. I only wish he could have known that Christ's teachings are not "suffocating creeds" as much as they are liberating truths.

Nobody says it better than G.K. Chesterton in his book Heretics: The vice of the modern notion of mental progress is that it is always something concerned with the breaking of bonds, the effacing of boundaries, the casting away of dogmas. But if there be such a thing as mental growth, it must mean the growth into more and more definite convictions, into more and more dogmas. The human brain is a machine for coming to conclusions; if it cannot come to conclusions, it is rusty. When we hear of a man too clever to believe, we are hearing of something having almost the character of a contradiction in terms. It is like hearing of a nail that was too good to hold down a carpet; or a bolt that was too strong to keep a door shut.... When [a man] drops one doctrine after another in a refined skepticism, when he declines to tie himself to a system, when he says that he has outgrown definitions, when he says that he disbelieves in finality, when, in his own imagination, he sits as God, holding no form of creed but contemplating all, then he is by that very process sinking slowly backwards into the vagueness of the vagrant animals and the unconsciousness of grass. Trees have no dogmas. Turnips are singularly broad-minded.

Although I disagree heartily with Hardy's worldview, I see the value in reading his books because instead of glorifying a world without religion, he is honest enough to admit it would be hell. 

Two Gentleman of Verona by Shakespeare

My personal challenge for the year was to read at least four Shakespeare plays. I planned to use Carol's suggested method of 1) reading each play in one sitting, and 2) reading while listening. This weekend I took the plunge with Two Gentlemen of Verona.

Knowing how difficult it can be to keep everybody straight, I read a quick synopsis of the play before opening up my Kindle. Then I downloaded the audioversion from Librivox. Although I was not able to read it in just one sitting, I managed to get through it in one day, which was extremely helpful for remembering who was who and for getting the flow of the story.

The play had the same themes as several other Shakespeare plays I've seen: forbidden love, arranged marriages, women disguising themselves as men, fickle suitors, etc. In this case Valentine loves Silvia, but her father forbids it. Proteus loves Julia, but dumps her when he sees Silvia. Valentine and Proteus are/were best friends.

All the characters are constant in their love except for Proteus. He breaks his promises, lies, dumps his friends, threatens to force himself upon Siliva and is an all around heel. Why Julia loves him is beyond me.

Luckily, my expectations were not too high since the synopsis had let me know this was not one of Shakespeare's more popular plays. Also, the readers at Librivox were okay, but not great, which also detracted from my pleasure.

But it was worth the effort for it witty puns and its commentary on the thrills and foibles of romantic love.

O! how this spring of love resembleth
The uncertain glory of an April day,
Which now shows all the beauty of the sun,
And by an by a cloud takes all away! (Act 1, scene 3)

Love is like a child, 
That longs for everything that he can come by. (Act 3, scene 1)

[Valentine to Sylvia:]
O thou that dost inhabit in my breast,
Leave not the mansion so tenantless,
Lest, growing ruinous, the building fall
And leave no memory of what it was!
Repair me with thy presence, Silvia! (Act 5, scene 4)

These Shakespeare titles are free for Kindle.

Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

"Them that die 'ill be the lucky ones." - Long John Silver

Treasure Island has never been high on my priority lists, but Heather piqued my interest in the audioversion when she left a comment on an earlier post.  She mentioned that Adrian Praetzellis had done an excellent job of reading several classics at Librivox so I popped over and downloaded three of his books.

The first was Treasure Island. Mr. Praetzellis catches you off guard when he begins because his voice seems so dull and uninteresting. But don't worry, it's a ruse. When he gets started on the pirate's voices, he's absolutely amazing. His reading of Long John Silver is spot on, succeeding in conveying both his dastardliness and his charm.

The story itself held few surprises since I'd read the Classics Illustrated comic book version a hundred times as a child and have seen various movie versions (the latest being Treasure Planet). Still, it's a pleasure to listen to any book with engaging characters that's well-written and well-narrated.

I especially liked the fact that Jim Hawkins is a kind of Frodo-figure. He's a little boy in the midst of adult good guys (the doctor and the squire) and bad guys (the pirates) and manages to be in the right place at the right time to be the hero of the story.

For families that read/listen together, these audio chapters are broken down into half hour chunks which would make this book a nice evening activity. (Maybe a bit too exciting for pre-bedtime if the kids don't already know the story.)

Thanks, Heather! I look forward to further listening from Mr. Praetzellis.

From Pearl Harbor to Calvary by Mitsuo Fuchida

I read a lot of books about World War II, but rarely from a Japanese point of view.  This booklet, written in 1951, tells the story of Mitsuo Fuchida, the man who led the first wave of attacks on Pearl Harbor on Dec 7, 1941.   It is a powerful testimony of how God turns enemies into brothers.  

From Pearl Harbor To Calvary relates not only Fuchida’s story, but also the stories of others who should have been embittered by the war: Peggy Covell, a young woman whose missionary parents were killed by the Japanese and Jacob DeShazer who had been a POW in a Japanese prison camp. 

When he retired from the military, Fuchida became a farmer, but he struggled with depression:    

Why was I still alive when men all around me had died like flies in the four years of conflict? Gradually I came to believe that I had been supported by some great unseen power.  My sullenness began to be diffused and dispelled by a sense of gratitude.  Moreover, as I continued to live in close relation to the earth through the plants and the cattle, and the other aspects of farm life, I was gradually led to think in terms of a Creator of all these things. . . .  Formerly the “War catechism” had been the sum total of my ideology. . . . I set my mind to the problem of what would be the proper way for Japan to exist as a nation.   Finally, I arrived at a conclusion.  I concluded that the only way for the Japanese to survive and prosper and find a place in the sun again would be through the doctrines of peace, irrespective of other nations’ conditions. . . . Impelled by a desire to warn my people, I determined to send out into the world a book entitled “No More Pearl Harbor” no matter how insignificant my work might be.  As my writing progressed, however, I came to realize that in my appeal for no more Pearl Harbor, there must be an assurance among men of the transforming of the power of hatred to the power of true brotherly love.  But how was that transformation to become a reality?. . .  The problem resolved around a person.  Who, I asked myself, could accomplish the task of banishing suspicion and war.  My mind turned toward God, the Creator of all things.

When he heard about Peggy Covell’s kindness to Japanese POWs in the U.S., he could hardly believe it:   

It was a beautiful story but I could not understand such enemy-forgiving love.  Where did man find such love?  I had never heard of people returning good for evil.  I desired all the more to discover this source of power that could remove hatred from the hearts of people and change them into friendly, loving individuals.  Only when I found that answer could I write a satisfactory conclusion to my book.  

He then writes of his encounters with various others who learned to forgive their enemies through faith in Jesus Christ and concludes the book with his own change of heart.   A quick and interesting read.