The Poisonwood Bible

I have heard great things about this book and it has been on my to-read list for a long time. I checked it out from the library to read for last month's book club book. I got about 60 pages in and I still wasn't getting interested in the book and, before I knew it, three weeks was up and it was time to return the book to the library. Has anyone else read this? Is it worth trying again and reading the whole thing, or should I move on to the next book? I hate leaving a book unfinished, but I just don't have as much time to read as I would like.

In another vein, I finally read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and I loved it. I wish I had read it when the discussion was happening on this blog!

Same Kind of Different as Me

Here are some questions to get the discussion started on Same Kind of Different as Me.


Consider these LitLovers talking points to help get a discussion started:

1. At the beginning of the book, what kind of person is Ron Hall? How would you describe him (how does he describe himself)? Why does he agree to volunteer at the homeless shelter, and what is his initial reaction in doing so?

2. Talk about the trajectory of Denver Moore's life. What events have landed him in the homeless shelter? Discuss the differences between his life and Ron Hall's. What is Denver's world view?

3. Talk about Deborah Hall? What inspires her life? What does she think of Denver Moore?

4. Eventually, Denver and Ron, two men who have lived vastly different lives, become close friends. What do the two see in one another? What draws them together?

5. What are the symbolic implications of the conversation about how white men fish, especially their catch-and-release method? What does that conversation say about each man, and what is the underlying message that Denver is trying to pass onto Ron?

6. What is the meaning of the book's title, "Same Kind of Difference as Me"? What does it refer to?

7. How do both men change by the end of the book? What do they learn from or teach each other?

8. This is a story about how hate and prejudice can be overcome by love and grace. How difficult is that achievement in most of our lives? What can this book teach us?

9. Does this book inspire you? If so, in what ways?

(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)

The Happiness Project

As a book club, we rated The Happiness Project:

4 out of 5

Another Secret of Adulthood...

...that I was reminded of this morning:

You can't rush a 2 year old!

What are some of your secrets of adulthood?

The Happiness Project

Hi All,

How did you like The Happiness Project?

I gotta say, the author really drove me crazy, but I loved the content, and I loved how methodical she was about dissecting Happiness and what it means and how to get more.  It gave me a lot of food for thought and had some great ideas in there.  I also just got on her blog for the first time and there's some interesting stuff there and it's jam packed with great quotes to get you thinking.

What I have been wanting to ask you, whether you read it or not, is if you were asked to write down your Secrets of Adulthood, and your 12 personal commandments, as Gretchen Rubin did, what would they look like? (Click the links to see Gretchen Rubin's Secrets of Adulthood and 12 personal commandments (this link is actually for the home page of the blog, but her 12 commandments are on the sidebar on the left))

Or if you weren't going to write your own Secrets, and Commandments, which of hers do you like or identify with?  Which have stuck with you after you finished reading the book?

The one that has stuck with me since I read the book back in January is:

What you do EVERY DAY matters more than what you do ONCE IN A WHILE.


I am an all or nothing type of person, and I have been trying to teach myself this same lesson a lot lately in all aspects of my life: housework, work work, reading, teaching Jocelyn, etc.  I recite this Secret of Adulthood subconsciously since reading the book, and I think it has helped.  I also really loved this one:


Outer order contributes to inner calm.


I have probably been driving people crazy lately talking about redecorating my house all the time, but it is what I have been trying to do for myself and my family to create that "outer order".  In my re-decorating, I have gotten rid of mountains of junk (just like Gretchen did with her closet).  I also have been trying to find storage solutions for our teeny tiny house so that I can really have "A place for everything and everything in its' place" even if I don't have a linen closet or a pantry.  I got rid of anything that I didn't LOVE.  I gave away stuff that it almost hurt to get rid of, and painted the walls in bold hues, and guess what?  Now, for the first time in my life, when I walk into my house, my soul breathes a sigh of relief and I feel comfortable.  


It seems silly to go on and on about a house project, but I really feel that the Spirit resides in my home more now that it is a haven and my soft place to land. It is a temporal thing, but I feel like I am a better mother and wife because I'm not stressed out by junk piles everywhere. 


I definitely would include this in my own personal Secret of Adulthood.


I also loved one that a blog reader wrote in that said, "buy whatever you want at the grocery store.  It costs less than eating out."  Isn't that the truth.


What would make your list?

Review

As a book club, we gave Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

1 out of 5

we were not fans!

Book Idea

My Mother-in-Law was telling me about this book called Follow the River and I thought it sounded interesting. It's a true story about a woman who is captured by the indians and the first half is about her ordeal with them, then the second half is about her escape with an old dutch lady who goes mad and tries to kill her to eat her. She said it was really good so I thought I'd try it out