Tagged: book recommendations
I finished Storm Front: Book One of the Harry Dresden Files, and it wasn’t quite as good as I had hoped it would be, but it was still quite entertaining. In brief: What I liked: The setting: I particularly liked Harry’s house and office, and his idea about magic affecting complex machines The film noir elements combined with traditional wizard-lore Butcher’s conception of magic and how it works: a little Latin, a staff, some magical symbols, all the things traditionally associated with users of magic The action scenes...
I finally finished listening to the Don Quixote audiobook narrated by George Guidall, and it remains my favorite book of all time. It took almost five months to listen to (I have a very short commute to work), but it was worth the time. Guidall is deservedly known as the king of audiobooks, and his reading was masterful. In a book full of dozens of characters, he managed to give each one a separate personality and voice. I don’t want to say too much about the story itself,...
I’m about a quarter of the way into Storm Front, book one of the Harry Dresden Files, and I wanted to answer a question posed by Maureen, who wants to know about its suitability for junior high/high school readers. It didn’t take long to get the answer to that question. Keep in mind that I believe in each parent deciding what their kids can read or watch, so don’t take my comments as gospel truth on this. Here we go: I’m really enjoying the book so far as...
My boys and I watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail a few days ago and that got me thinking about Arthurian novels. Here are a few of my favorites: The Once and Future King by T.H. White – A terrific book, but unfortunately I can’t get the Disney movie The Sword in the Stone out of my head when I read the first part. The Crystal Cave, The Hollow Hills, The Last Enchantment, and The Wicked Day by Mary Stewart – This was my first introduction to...
Not only are these great movies, but the novels on which they are based are classics, too. If you’re in a reading group, why not read the book, then watch the movie? I only chose novels, no non-fiction (i.e., A Beautiful Mind) or drama (i.e., Much Ado About Nothing). Movies are listed alphabetically. Ben-Hur – Novel by Lew Wallace The Bridge on the River Kwai – Novel by Pierre Boulle Field of Dreams – Based on Shoeless Joe by W.P. Kinsella The Godfather – Novel by Mario Puzo...
A few summers ago I drove my family down the west coast of the US to visit friends in San Luis Obispo, California. I don’t travel much, but when I do I like to read novels that take place in the places I visit. Since I knew we were going to stop in Monterey, I read Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. Not the most exotic novel or locale, but reading the book did add another layer of enjoyment to the trip. Those of you with more ambitious travel...
One of my favorite things to do is share stories with my family at the dinner table. A few years ago when I was reading Patrick O’Brian’s Master and Commander series my boys asked me each night at dinner to tell them what had happened to Captain Aubrey and his friend Stephen Maturin. It gave me a chance to share the joys of reading with my sons, and it also encouraged me to keep reading. Another great way to encourage reading in your kids is to read to...
This is a follow-up to Maureen’s question about recommendations for 12 and 13 year-old boys. Without getting into a big discussion about gender stereotyping, let me just say that in general boys at this age tend to read books that are more action and adventure oriented, while girls enjoy reading more about relationships. Case in point: I teach The Hobbit and Les Miserables to my eighth graders each year. Both boys and girls love these books. But when I look at the few students who didn’t like them,...
Maureen asks: I have 12 and 13 yo boys and would love some book recommendations. Is Don Quixote appropriate for their age group? They are voracious readers, and I find we’re on the brink of children’s and adult books. Thanks for any advice. What a great question! One of my favorite things to do is recommend books. First, concerning Don Quixote: In sixteen years of teaching junior high students, I only recall three students who read Don Quixote all the way through, but each of them really enjoyed...
Happy Mother’s Day to all of you moms today. In honor of Mother’s Day, here are five books about Mary, our Blessed Mother: Introduction to Mary: the Heart of Marian Doctrine and Devotion by Mark Miravalle – an informative explanation of the Church’s beliefs about Mary True Devotion to Mary by St. Louis de Montfort — a challenging read, but this book was central to the late Pope John Paul II’s formation The Rosary: Chain of Hope by Fr. Benedict Groeschel — profound meditations on the different mysteries...
Motivational speaker Pat Williams has an important new book out called Read for Your Life: 11 Ways to Transform Your Life with Books. Pat is the father of nineteen children, a marathon runner, the senior vice president of the Orlando Magic basketball team, and a reader. His book is designed to encourage people to read for an hour every day. He says, “Hey, if I can do it with nineteen kids, so can everyone else.” Yeah, but does his wife read for an hour every day, too, or...
I began Flannery O’Connor’s Wise Blood a few weeks ago, but I got sidetracked by a few nonfiction titles that grabbed my interest. That happens to me every so often. I’ll make up my mind to start a book, and then another one will grab me by the shirt and say, “NO! Pick ME!” That’s what happened with the Heath brothers’ Made to Stick, a fantastic exploration of what makes ideas memorable. I started reading it in the bookstore and couldn’t put it down. As I mentioned in...
