July - August Titles // 2024

Glen Valley dyke trail, early July, 6AM

Watership Down (graphic novel) adapted by Richard Adams - I have never read this classic novel, but the graphic novel has stunning illustrations and I knew I'd read it this way if I had it from the library. I'm glad I read it as a graphic novel - I don't know that the premise of the story would entice me (well, it hadn't thus far anyway) to read it in its original format, but having the illustrations certainly helped me understand the storyline.

Swim Team (graphic novel) by Johnnie Christmas - Just a little piece of middle-grade, graphic novel candy for summer. The equivalent, I suppose, of most people's "beach reads"!

The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbury - I followed along (late, however) with Joy Clarkson's online book club on her substack. I had bought this book at least a decade ago at a thrift store, then gave it away to someone (who?!) and then finally got it from the library and I finished it on Ani and my Portland trip. I loved this novel. It was so perfectly French. It was clever, sardonic, funny, high-falutin, and also bits of beauty and warmth in it, which came after much uncovering. Five stars.

The Devil's Tour by Mary Karr - This was a used copy of an early book of poetry from Karr, and I read it on the bus from Portland to Seattle and found it enticing and darkly humorous. Karr relates a lot in her book to the character of Satan in Paradise Lost. Interesting!

On Island Time: A Traveler's Atlas by Chandler O'Leary - This wasn't really a graphic novel per se....more like an illustrated travel guide to the Islands of BC and Washington. I picked up this book because it was beautiful, but also because I'm always looking for local day-trip ideas and this book did not disappoint! I'd highly recommend it for people who are travelling out here and want to visit an island or two, or those who live here and want to be intentional about seeing the great spots in our own PNW backyard!

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Home School Activities: Board Games We Love

My children have recently become enthralled in the world of board games. I was never a board game player. Sure, I remember long summer hours (days? it seemed like it..) spent around a Monopoly board, but I was never one to suggest to get out the cards, or a game. As my children have grown and they are now able to do activities with me, I started noticing that they really took to puzzles (when done all together) and the one or two board games I happened to have kept in the storage room. They were always asking to play Candy Land and so I figured I should branch off a bit. Over the course of the last year, I have found GREAT games, even ones that I love to play alongside them. The amount of 'teaching' they have gotten through games is jaw-dropping. Counting, team-playing, math related patterning, are just some of the skills I've watched develop. I asked before Christmas on facebook what my friends and their own kids loved and I was thrilled with the response. We have found ov...

Top 10 Books of 2017

early sunset in Ft Langley I love reading all these "Top 10" lists of favorite books read throughout the year, so I'm adding my two cents. I'm involved in a Book Club that I love with women from our church, a small group that meets every week and goes through a book every few months, my own list, books I'm reading aloud to the kids and books I'm reading for educational purposes (think professional development). I took a look at all of those combined and this is what I got, in no particular order: * The Problem of God by Mark Clark - I loved going through this academic apologetic book with my friends from church. It led us to great discussion, and good food for thought. I listen to Clark's sermons every week and so knew I'd probably love his writing style, too. If you have objections to Christianity, or are feeling confused about what to believe, this is a great primer. * You're Smarter Than You Think by Dr. Thomas Armstro...

August Book Titles

* 50 Women Every Christian Should Know by Michelle DeRusha -- I heard the author on a podcast and the book sounded good. It was described as a book full of 5-7 page mini biographies on each woman, and that sounded both easy and interesting. It was. I really enjoyed this book and plan to give it away as a Christmas gift to someone I know will get a lot out of it. I really don't know that much about Christianity's historical females, and I felt I learned a lot. Some of the women I had never even heard of before, and it was fun to read about women I'd heard of before by name, but knew little about their lives. * The Story of Science by Susan Wise Bauer -- Oy. This book was tough to get through. Not because the writing wasn't good (it was excellent), but because of the subject matter and my right-brain. Out of any schoolish subjects, I would rate Science as my least favorite and most difficult. I read this book because when I had the kids' school order it, I thoug...

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