Book Review: Homeless Bird

I still adore Listening for Lions more than any other book written by Gloria Whelan. I gave Homeless Bird a try and wanted to love it more. It was a National Book Award winner. Sadly, I felt Listening for Lions was a far more compelling and inspiring story. Homeless Bird left me rather depressed. Even though the ending brought some happiness into the main character's life, her life's description until that point was tragic.

Thirteen-year-old Koly is getting married to the young man her parents have settled upon. This is not an unusual arrangement in India. Her parents hope she is marrying well. They will offer a pair of earrings for the dowry. However, the groom's parents have ulterior motives. They need the dowry to help pay for a medical cure for their son's illness. Koly's life progresses from one hardship to another. Eventually, she finds herself alone in a strange city. Her only hope lies in her expert ability with a needle.

The story is probably very true to life. Moreover, it opens young eyes to the difficulties some girls face in India. Yet, it was a hard read. Koly is a homeless bird longing for wings to fly. I can only say, I loved Listening for Lions. This one, not as much.

Book Review: The Heart Between Us

I'm grateful for several things. My library's involvement in Hoopla has been a real blessing in my life. I believe they pay for their patrons to access the Hoopla titles, and their payment level determines how many titles each patron can check out per month. (Of course, I pay to use my library - since I don't live in that town - so I guess I'm helping to cover that bill.) Thanks to Hoopla, I've found many titles like this one to listen to while I walk on my treadmill (when the weather is too inclement for outside exercise). I'm also grateful for the wireless headphones my husband purchased for me for my birthday last year. I only seek audio books at my local library for my time in the car (I have almost exhausted all of interest anyway). Most of the audio books I've been listening to may have eluded me without Hoopla.

The Heart Between Us, by Lindsay Harrel, is a simple and sweet tale of twin sisters, Megan and Crystal. Megan is a recent recipient of a heart transplant. Crystal, the healthy twin, has endured what many siblings encounter when a sibling is sickly and weak. I recall a young woman in one of my high school classes whose younger brother had many physical, educational, and emotional issues. She expressed how difficult it was, as the high-functioning child, to be overlooked in the focus on her brother's many needs and trials. Perhaps similar struggles propelled Crystal to flee just prior to Megan's heart transplant. Despite a new heart, Megan remains fearful of living life to the full.

Then she meets the parents of the young woman whose heart now beats within her. She determines to pursue the bucket list their daughter left behind. Megan's mother is concerned. She begs Crystal to talk Megan out of going. Instead, Crystal agrees to join her sister on this whirlwind trip to some of the world's amazing structures and natural wonders. Crystal is an architect working towards a senior architect position. She hopes the trip will inspire her with ideas for the account that may clinch her promotion. Both need a chance to heal and restore their relationship and others.

I enjoyed this travelogue tale. It was fun to explore the locations vicariously. The sibling relationship issues were believable. The story drew me in quickly. But beyond my own enjoyment of this book, an Amazon review touched me. Labelled "Delightful and Impactful," the reviewer explains she had just endured a cornea transplant and this was the first book she attempted to read. I adored her review (thank you, Sarah K). It reminded me that sometimes a story meets people at different intersections of life. One person's experience of a book will not be another's. This book hit this reader right when and where she needed it most. That is the wonder and balm of books! I thank God for books!

Book Review: Listening for Lions - Highly Recommend

During the 2005-2006 school year, I read Gloria Whelan's Listening for Lions, and absolutely loved the book. I was working as an individual aide in a 5th grade classroom at my son's school. Bursting with excitement, I begged the teacher to allow me to share this book during read-aloud time. (As teacher, I would hesitate to give up that coveted task.) I have delightful memories of drawing those students into the spell of many outstanding books!

Gloria Whelan has won over 30 awards for her children's books, including the National Book Award for her novel, Homeless Bird. She is a gifted writer. I always relish a chance to share her books with others. A few months ago, I joined a historical fiction book group on Facebook. What fun to find opportunities to share this amazing book there. I realized I was long overdue to read it again.

Listening for Lions begins in 1919 British East Africa, where twelve-year-old Rachel Sheridan lives with her missionary parents. Her father is a doctor and her mother is a teacher. When the Spanish Influenza reaches their missionary hospital, it turns Rachel's life upside down. She loves Africa, but greedy neighbors use her as a pawn in a plot of deception that takes her far away to England. Though she wants to speak the truth, she also desires to help others. Throughout her time in England, she lives with a longing for her home in Africa.

I love the relationship between Rachel and the grandfather. They form a beautiful bond over bird-watching. Rachel's plight is intriguing and realistic. She longs for freedom, honesty, and purpose. Yet, all the while she is in bondage, she determines to live as the lion, eagerly awaiting her opportunity to pounce and claim her home.

This book has so many wonderful aspects. It speaks of the triumph of women when they had to strive to earn their due. It provides a vivid picture of the African bush and the British countryside. The characters often stand in stark contrast, wicked and greedy, set against the honorable and good. It nurtures in the reader a longing for truth, integrity, and righteousness. It has the feel of The Secret Garden, paired with the missionary spirit of Gladys Aylward's biography, The Small Woman. If I had a daughter, we would have read this aloud together many times over.

Gloria Whelan is one of my favorite middle grade authors. I've read several of her books (I apologize as I wrote these reviews when my boys were small and I had less time for editing). Listening for Lions is still my favorite of her books, but you might also wish to check out Fruitlands, That Wild Berries Should Grow, A Time to Keep Silent, and The Locked Garden. I even found several more available on Hoopla through my library (including Homeless Bird).

Mid-month Mention: A Passel of Poetry Posts

During National Poetry Month, I wanted to focus on a few former posts on various poets. I would be remiss to neglect mentioning my own poetry out the gate. Travelling all the way back to 2009, I shared a poem I had written for an exercise on another poet's site. It is called "At the Corner of Now and Then," and provides images of the merging of lives when we moved into my husband's grandmother's house (in 2006). The poet who inspired that experiment was L. L. Barkat, author of Stone Crossings: Finding Grace in Hard and Hidden Places (reviewed here). I loved finding the old post reviewing her book because it contained a little illustration I had forgotten about. The illustration reminds me to tend the talents I've been given.

In 2022, I tended those talents and self-published a book of poems for parents of prodigals. Titled Watching the Wayward, it puts expression to the many emotions experienced when you discover your teen/adult child has departed from your desired path for them. You can find links in the sidebar or on my author website. If you love podcasts, check out this podcast interview for my testimony and the story behind my book.

Here are 3 books that have inspired my creative life: 

1. Andrew Peterson's Adorning the Dark: Thoughts on Community, Calling, and the Mystery of Making, 
2. Annie Dillard's The Writing Life,  
3. Nicole Gulotta's Wild Words: Rituals, Routines, and Rhythms for Braving the Writer's Path (I think I'm in the "liminal" space right now).

In preparation for working on my poetry, I consumed several books by (or about) favorite poets. Here are a few of those: 

• Emily Dickinson's biography, These Fevered Days
• Ruth Bell Graham's Footprints of a Pilgrim and Prodigals and Those Who Love Them
• Beth Moore's Things Pondered and Further Still

And, I wanted to mention my favorite personally known poet:

• Kyle L. White - especially his book Freezing and Thawing: New and Revised Stories from the Midwest - Kyle is also an illustrator and creates prints available on his prints website. Right now he's promoting a set of 6 prints based on the rhythm of the church calendar. Here's the blurb in his advertisement: "Bring a peaceful rhythm to your household's year with this unique series of reflective art prints. The six artworks come with an easel, a background story, and an explanation for each season of the liturgical calendar. All illustrations will be hand printed on the vintage presses of Mordecai book building in Middleton, Wisconsin. And when you preorder the bundle by May 15th, you'll receive a 7th art print. It makes for a good reflective gift for people all around you too."

I recently saw a post on FB about an influential high school teacher who listened to a girl spill her problems and at the end of the year left an inspiring phrase in her yearbook. The post was written by Elaine Jarvis. Her daughter made a bookmark with the teacher's oft-remembered phrase (teacher: Everett Thomas):

(photo credit: Elaine Jarvis)

Book Review: Supercommunicators

I noticed several people mentioning a desire to read this book by Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit (another one that sounds interesting). Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection was #6 on the Amazon charts when I wrote this review (now #16). Quite a buzz! While interesting, it wasn't my favorite book about communication (not that I could tell you what title tops this one). Plus, I enjoyed the first two sections far more than the third.

Duhigg breaks communication into three levels of conversation: practical (What's this really about?), emotional (How do we feel?), and social (Who are we?). All three levels can operate simultaneously, but Duhigg feels it is important to identify which kind of conversation you are having, in order to better form connections. The book holds practical advice on how to foster deeper connections. Since connection is key to happiness in life, it is worth exploring how to communicate like the pros, the supercommunicators. Maybe you've known a super communicator, one who can extract meaningful conversation from anyone. They listen well and probe further. They match your emotions and mood and foster trust. I am NOT a super communicator. Yet, I gleaned some interesting fodder for consideration that may improve my efforts to connect with others.

In one intriguing experiment, researchers came up with 36 questions and paired strangers to explore the questions together. (Those questions are available in the notes section of the book. I jotted them down and am eager to pose these questions to my family members, to learn more about their insights and thoughts.) It seems the type of question is key (especially ones that seek emotional investment in answering feelings, beliefs, and opinions). I could improve my questions and my listening. Duhigg tells of a CIA operative seeking to convince a foreign woman to provide intelligence. Negotiation requires skill to get someone to do something they don't want to do. Communication that fosters trust is essential. 

The book ends by explaining how important authentic, meaningful connections are in life. Those who form good connections live happier lives. So how do you form better connections? This book is instructive and well supported with illustrations and anecdotes. I still think there are things unexplored that hinder people from forming solid connections. Yet, it cannot hurt to consider ways to enhance communication.

Book Review: If You Want to Write

Brenda Ueland's If You Want to Write is an encouraging pep talk, and one I needed. I loved many things about this book. Primarily, I loved her explanation that criticism kills creativity. When a writer presents a work to another for feedback, that individual can spur the writer on or defeat their soul. Heavy-handed criticism, voiced to "help improve the writing," shrinks the heart of the writer, causing them to second-guess their abilities instead of freeing those abilities to flow. 

Ueland, as a writing instructor, points out the noteworthy sentences and fragments and draws the writer out into the open instead of shutting them down. It reminded me of wise words I heard when I worked with an outstanding 3rd grade teacher, Ms. McKee. She explained that when faced with a student beset by negative behaviors, the best course of action is to highlight and praise positive ones. Catch them doing something good. Encouragement often works better than correction.

I also loved the idea that art is infection. When something is well written, the reader catches the writer's vision. He or she sees what the writer sees, feels what the writer feels. If you are writing on a subject you feel passionate about, that passion will pour from the pen. It will ignite passion in someone else.

At the end of this book, Ueland reiterates a dozen principles for creating art that further inspire the writer to think positively about their goals. She asserts everyone has talent, is original, and has something important to say. She reminds us that writing is a privilege rather than something too hard to approach. Her encouragement? "Write freely, recklessly, and in first drafts." This supports what I learned in almost ten years of participating in Nanowrimo (National Novel-Writing Month): writing flows when you silence the inner critic and push to create a rough draft. Spit it out! You can spit-shine later! 

Fear is often what holds a writer back. Will it be good enough? Ueland urges the writer not to fear writing terrible stories. She recommends writing two more and then returning to the first story. Good writing taps the true, honest, and untheoretical self. I loved her phrase, "Think of yourself as an incandescent power, illuminated by God." 

Moreover, she warns against the comparison trap. "You are like no other being ever created." Thus, I must remember that nobody else bears or can weave the story God has given me to weave. Makes me want to fire up my laptop and write!

Book Review: The Wish Book Christmas

I wouldn't have sought out a Christmas book now, but The Wish Book Christmas is the follow-up novella to Lynn Austin's If I Were You. I enjoyed that one so much, I was eager to return to the characters again for my treadmill time. Thankfully, Hoopla had it available in audio form (at only 4-3/4 hours long). It was a splendid follow-up. I still loved the first book more though.

Audrey Barrett and Eve Dawson are raising their 5-year-old sons together in post-war America. When their boys' addiction to the Christmas toy catalog reaches a fever pitch, the two mothers vow to teach the boys something about giving back and expecting less. Both women struggle against forming new love interests. Yet as the events unfold, they learn more about forgiveness, second chances, and God's enduring grace. This feel-good novella is a great way to celebrate the spirit of the holidays (and was even fun when approaching spring). I may return to both of these again in the future.