Me, Her, the Boy and a Dog
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Finishing up The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Great read. Beats the hell out of James Patterson.
Hagrid is the only voice that is not convincing enough for my Boy when I read. I do a passable Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Draco Malfoy and I can even get that bit of ‘tude in Hermoine’s delivery (in the first book). I like Dumbledore, but struggle a little with Snape - but then again, we’re talking about Alan Rickman, so what can you do? His voice is so unique and his delivery nearly impossible to match.
The Boy’s favorite voice that I do is that of the Sorting Hat. When Susan Bones is called before the school to be sorted and the Sorting Hat yells, “Hufflepuff!” my boy giggled and said, “Say it again, dad!” He then settled down so we could get to Harry’s part. He sat in great anticipation (even though he knew the outcome) of what fate the Sorting Hat would lay out for Harry. And when I read, “Better be… GRYFFINDOR!” he let out a little “Yes!”
Books rock.
Wilder was initially hesitant, but finally accepted the role under one condition:
When I make my first entrance, I’d like to come out of the door carrying a cane and then walk toward the crowd with a limp. After the crowd sees Willy Wonka is a cripple, they all whisper to themselves and then become deathly quiet. As I walk toward them, my cane sinks into one of the cobblestones I’m walking on and stands straight up, by itself… but I keep on walking, until I realize that I no longer have my cane. I start to fall forward, and just before I hit the ground, I do a beautiful forward somersault and bounce back up, to great applause.
When Stuart asked why, Wilder replied, “because from that time on, no one will know if I’m lying or telling the truth.”
Genius.
I’m currently reading this book to the Boy and he LOVES it!
(via newsweek)
Read something!
via i.imgur.com
I checked out, from our public library, a John Grisham book titled “Playing for Pizza.” It’s the first non-legal fiction book I’ve read by Mr. Grisham.
I read this to My Boy’s kindergarten class this morning. The guest reader (usually a parent or guardian) sits in a big leather chair, and their child gets to sit in a smaller chair next to the big chair, while the rest of the class sits on a colorful, letter-filled rug.
I also got to see the morning announcements on the “smart board” and a couple of activities the kids get to do each morning. My Boy was pretty excited to have his daddy there today and I had a great time! I look forward to reading to them again soon!
Who wants this book? I’m done with it and I’ll mail it to the first person that replies to this post.
A buddy of mine tried starting a Tumblr book sharing trend earlier this year. He changes his blog address and privacy settings as often as the Raiders change head coaches, so the original post is long gone (way to screw up your long tail search, DB), but I thought I’d tried to resurrect the idea now that I finished Dan Brown’s latest book, The Lost Symbol.
It’s not the most well-written book, but it’s a page-turner and if you liked Da Vinci Code and/or Angels & Demons, then you’ll probably like this gook. I was a little disappointed with the ending, especially with such a lengthy build-up.
My next book is the one that my friend sent me, Stealing Time. It’s about the AOL-Time Warner merger/breakup and the fallout from one of the worst merges in history. My buddy sent it to me last spring, but I was still reading this book. Now I can get started on the next one. So far, it’s actually pretty good. I’m usually a fiction guy, but this one is pretty insightful.
My boy and I finished reading this the other night. It was hers as a child and she passed it on to him. Next up, Peter Pan.
Dan Brown’s “The Lost Symbol” is truly a work of fiction. The Redskins are in the playoffs.
I recently finished The Shack by William P. Young. And it definitely game me a lot to thinkg about. But, before I get started with my take on the book, I want to share the synopsis that appears on the back of the book:
Mackenzie Allen Philips’ youngest daughter, Missy, has been abducted during a family vacation and evidence that she may have been brutally murdered is found in an abandoned shack deep in the Oregon wilderness. Four years later in the midst of his Great Sadness, Mack receives a suspicious note, apparently from God, inviting him back to that shack for a weekend. Against his better judgment he arrives at the shack on a wintry afternoon and walks back into his darkest nightmare. What he finds there will change Mack’s world forever. In a world where religion seems to grow increasingly irrelevant “The Shack” wrestles with the timeless question, “Where is God in a world so filled with unspeakable pain?” The answers Mack gets will astound you and perhaps transform you as much as it did him. You’ll want everyone you know to read this book!
I was a little apprehensive about reading this book because it involves every parent’s worst nightmare. I am an empathetic, sympathetic and emotional man, so I knew that there would be parts of the book that would get to me. And I was right to be apprehensive. But, this was one of the better books I have ever read recently.
That being said, I feel strongly that you need to have an open mind, especially if you are not religious or you are a “non believer.” This book is classified as Christian and explores a troubled man’s personal relationship with God and his journey to overcome his “Great Sadness” that has consumed him since his daughters murder.
Spoiler Alert!
I really connected with this book because of my views about religion and Christianity. I have always had my issues with the church and religion in general because I believe that man (as in mankind), over the centuries, has twisted religion into something man sees as relevant or deems as “appropriate.” And that bothers me. Just look at the different demoninations of Christianity; Baptist, Methodist, Catholicism, Presbyterian - the list goes on.
Why are there so many? Simple. One group of humans within a church disagreed with another group within the church and decided to branch out and start their own church and apply their ideals and beliefs. That’s how our country was founded; by our English ancestors fleeing religious persecution to a new land where they could practice their faith freely.
My personal belief is that God never intended for man to flock to churches and build business-like empires such as Lakewood Church or even the Catholic Church. We’re talking about religious leaders making millions and flying around in private jets and helicopters. Somehow, I don’t think that’s what God had in mind when he asked his children to spread the good word.
This book actually seems to explore that same sentiment. Mack, the main character, goes to the shack where his daughter was apparently murdered after receiving a note from God. There, he meets three people that turn out to be God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Of course, he’s not sure if they are real or if his grief has finally forced him to manifest an alternate reality.
Regardless, he goes along with it to see how it plays out. He spends the weekend at the shack talking with the Holy Trilogy and learning much from each one, even though they are a collective being. Their appearance completely contradicts Mack’s preconceived notions of what God and Jesus look like. An interesting twist is that Mack attended seminary and has a strong religion educational background, but everything he learned is turned upside down by what he learns from the Trilogy.
And in his conversations with God, he learns that man has manipulated His words and intentions over the centuries into man’s conceived notion of religion. I won’t spoil the entire book, but what God reveals to Mack is truly eye-opening and gives us something to think about.
The point of Mack’s visit to the shack is to confront his Great Sadness and of course, he asks God the question every parent in his situation would ask the Lord if given the chance, “Why would you let something so horrible happen to my little girl? She didn’t deserve that. Why didn’t you protect her?”
God’s answers that when man (Adam and Eve) chose independence over God’s gift of Eden, they chose humanity’s path - a path that did not necessarily include God’s intervention. The answer is more complex than that, so you’ll just have to read it.
The finaly task before Mack completes his weekend with God is something I’m not sure I could have done. I’d love to know what you think about Mack’s decision in the end. Could you do what God asked of you? I’d like to think that I could, but I’m not so sure I could have. I hope I never have to find out.
I recently read the book “Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini. The book is a true story that follows a Khaled from his early childhood through today. It takes place before, during and after the fall of Afghanistan in the 70s when the Russian Army invaded. It continues on through the explusion of the communist power, which was replaced by the even more oppressive and violent Taliban.
This book humanizes the tragedies and attrocities that have taken place - and continue to take place - in a once proud country that has been ravaged by war and oppression for more than four decades.
Khaled focuses on his failings and his attempts later in life to make amends. I believe that it takes a strong person to share with the world their colosal character flaws; and Khaled openly confronts his demons to anyone that will read his book. I’m not sure I could confront my demons as he did, much less write them down to be shared with eternity.
There are points in the book, and especially the movie, that leave you loathing Khaled and his decisions. I found myself asking how any human being with any sense of conscience and what is right and wrong could make the decisions that he made. But when given the opportunity to make things right, Khaled comes through, which translates to a somewhat happy ending. However; the tragedy that has become life in Afghanistan continues, so the happy ending is localized.
Surprisingly, the movie stay close to the book, though as expected, certain minor story lines and characters are left out due to time constraints. As far as book-to-film adaptations go, this was by far one of the most accurate. I suspect it had much to do with the fact that the author didn’t want any details emblished or undervalued.
This book will not leave you with a warm and fuzzy feeling, despite it’s somewhat happy ending, but it is still a magnificent read. Given what is going on in Afghanistan today, I think you will have a greater appreciation for many things in your life, most importantly the country in which you are free to live as you please. I cannot imagine having to flee my country just to be safe; it is a feeling that is completely foreign to most Americans.
