Child.of.God.1989

Thanks for the compliment, Kylie. I bet those BSC books will come in handy when you spend time with a younger girl! --Or when you feel a little nostalgic. (Poor male members of the BCF - what are some good guy adventures?) Ooh, Animalia is such a beautiful, fun book! Even though my brother and I never quite understood how to solve the whole book, we liked looking for all the things that started with the page's letter. Alliteration can either a little annoying or, in this case, very clever. Animalia reminds me of the I Spy books. My oldest sister, the same sister who bought my little brother Animalia, gave these as Christmas presents to us every year. We have just about every book until the very-very challenging additions. I have bonded with my younger brother, nephew, uncle, sister, and dad finding the items in these captivating find-it books. You would probably have to be around my age to have enjoyed them as a youngster when they first came out, but did anyone's kids have them at school?

I'm the same way! I do that all the time with online recipes and my mom's 1970s-era Betty Crocker cookbook and dessert book. When I was little, I'd look at the dessert sections of cooking magazines while standing in line at the grocery store. Recipes were approved based on the ingredients they had: "Eww, nuts! I wouldn't put those in." "Ooh, look at the chocolate in this one! Just like my birthday cake!" The only thing I actually made until I was twelve, however, was cereal and toast. You have probably heard of my maternal grandma's influence on my love for reading, particularly historical books and books with noble characters. In September 2005 my grandma took me to the outlet mall near my family's house to do a little shopping. I had birthday money from late August, so my normal pessimistic feelings of shopping ("I won't actually GET anything!") were happily disbanded. We probably spent the most time at a bookstore, where I bought headphones for my brother (I had accidentally stepped on his) and a cookbook on sale for $7.00. I love this book! It's called All American Desserts, written by experienced cook Judith M. Fertig. I have bookmarks and smudgey fingerprints on the Classic Chocolate Chip Cookie and Classic Yellow Cake recipes. All American Desserts is so interesting because it takes recipes from pilgrim times to the 1950s mom-at-home era to the modern fresh citrus-y desserts of today. The origin of each recipe and section is included: did you know that "cookies" came from the Dutch word for "little cakes"? One reviewer says, "Fertig has compiled an exhaustive and valuable collection of American recipes and the lore behind them that will as likely end up on your bedside table as your kitchen counter." I wish there were colored pictures for all 400-something recipes, but I suppose the useful conversion tables, emergency substitution section, and variegated selection makes up for the loss. I think people from all countries will find something to enjoy; after all, America is a melting pot of different cultures!

I can relate, Princess! Every time I see a recipe for pie or something with berries, I want to replace whatever berries the recipe calls for (particulary not-so-well-liked cranberries with Thanksgiving on the horizion) with delicious raspberries. Mmm. Smucker's Red Raspberry Preserves is my only choice for jam! What do you do for brownies with raspberry filling? Do you have to partially fill the baking pan with brownie batter, bake it, freeze it, and put the filling and the rest of the brownie batter on? I'm excited to try something like that to dress up a simple brownie mix (especially since most brownie-from-scratch recipes call for six or seven eggs!); I'm just afraid I'll mix up the filling and batter. My family and I will thank you for your suggestions!

1. Favourite main meal ~ homemade spaghetti with meat sauce 2. Favourite starter ~ The battle thunders on between mozzerella sticks and salad with Italian dressing to claim the title... the salad may come out with a victory if there are croutons! 3. Favourite dessert ~ chocolate cake with raspberry filling, chocolate frosting, and a generous amount of chocolate sprinkles 4. Favourite pizza topping ~ extra cheese:mrgreen: (I'm a Plain Jane!) 5. Favourite bread ~ Hard rolls with potato chips and iced tea; hot fresh Safeway French bread can stand on its own 6. Favourite vegetable ~ Broccoli 7. Favourite fruit ~ Apples any way you like, especially apple slices with crunchy peanut butter 8. Favourite cheese ~ Mixed shredded cheddar and mozzarella (makes for great chips 'n cheese, spaghetti, lasagna, enchiladas, you name it!) 9. Favourite takeaway ~ cheese pizza, especially Papa Murphy's despite some grease 10. Favourite chocolate bar ~ Twix (such a treat!) 11. Favourite sandwich ~ French Dip sandwich with au jus in side bowl for dippin', Lays potato chips, and cool drink like Crystal Light iced tea or Sprite What is your favourite meal? homemade spaghetti with meat sauce, salad with Italian dressing, garlic bread/homemade breadsticks/fresh French bread from Safeway, chocolate cake or homemade chocolate chip cookies for dessert, milk or Crystal Light iced tea to drink What is your least favourite meal? Any other macaroni and cheese than Kraft Mac 'N Cheese. I know that seems tasteless and unappreciative of homey charms:(.What is your favourite drink? Crystal Light iced tea (expensive but hydrating and frequently craved!). I can't tolerate any other iced tea because they're all peachy or too... I don't know, bland or lemony. (Nestea, more convenient because it is available at vending machines, is okay with little sips, though. I'd still rather get a Coca-Cola)What is your least favoourite drink? I've never tried it, especially since that would be illegal right now, but I hate the smell of beer! Ick! --Not that I would stop a loved one from having a little, though I've never had that problem; it's the copious amounts of it at sports games and some other public events that make me dizzy. For a drink I have had, I can't drink much Mountain Dew. Mountain Dew Code Red is nice because it tastes like fruit punch, but I can feel my teeth becoming more disgusting when I drink what my cousin calls "weasel pee."

Niiice, Andrea:giggle:! I looked around for your reading list after seeing your views and taste in some of your other posts. I'm happy that I can relate with you. For example, right now a book I've had since August, Knowing God by J.I. Packer, has heavier material, and I finished two novels before finishing its first chapter! Now, however, it is becoming engrossing. You're one of the very few people I know who prefer the Harry Potter movies over the books! What an honor for you, I know. I am certainly going to put My Cousin Rachel on hold, after I have some time for it! It sounds like it's good for the same reasons I think a few other books, like Pride and Prejudice and Pilgrim's Progress (two P.P.'s! Teehee!), are good.

Yes, please! I have read three and a half books of Jane Austen's (the half is Mansfield Park, which someone had on hold when I went to renew it a couple of days ago). I think there will be much discussion material, with the different famous characters, the standards of the Victorian era that Austen challenged, and the many commentaries and synopses written on her works. Ooh, and some modern authors like J.K. Rowling have been influenced by her!

Those are clever - I heard of them on fun-with-words.com a long time ago but forgot them all. Fun-with-words' anagram page is pretty interesting! I have to check those out for my nine-year-old nephew and me to read!

That's funny how we turned out to have a few. Great minds think alike, I suppose! *titters shrilly at own joke* I actually like having one thread specifically for favorite childhood books, and one specifically for memories about receiving or reading books. I'm sorry this is so long - it's so hard to pin down one favorite, I kind of listed almost all the ones I liked. The Babysitter's Club series by Ann N. Martin - my favorite character was Abby because she was humorous and it was funny how Ann Martin would write her dialogue in "stuffy nose" speak (like J.K. Rowling did when Neville had a bloody nose in Harry Potter and, uh, the Half Blood Prince I believe). My favorite book was the big one where all the babysitters took a trip together around the USA. I also read the Babysitter's Little Sister series; I had big pink glasses just like Karen, the seven-year-old main character, when I was in third grade! The Miss Pickerell series by Ellen MacGregor - this elderly lady kicked butt from what I remember! She was the stuff of book reports for me. I was so proud to read my first chapter book in first grade. My sub-favorites were Miss Pickerell Goes to Mars and Miss Pickerell and the Geiger Counter. Nancy Drew series by Carolyn Keene - I liked these since the second grade. The old yellow books like #2, The Hidden Staircase, and #5, The Secret of Shadow Ranch, were my preference, though I did enjoy some in the 100s and kid-Nancy series. Sailor Moon manga by Naoko Takeuchi (I think); three of my cousins and I liked the cartoon when I was ten and they were nine, ten, and twelve. We drew the characters and played with the cards and figurines. They became a bit weird in the later spinoffs, but I still remember all the names of characters from the earlier ones. Little Critter series - my mom worked the night shift and would come home with every new little book for my brother and me. Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey - at first I suggested my mom buy them for my brother and nephew, but after a peek I thought they were funny, too! Hee! Dav Pilkey illustrated a book still dearly on my bookshelf, the Dumb Bunnies. Hilarious. Others: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, some short Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Boxcar Children series (still popular at my old school among the first and second graders), the Little Golden Books (Pokey Little Puppy comforted shy li'l me on a "scary" doctor's checkup), Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, What Katy Did, Heidi, Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery (I just read that again because Anne is so stinkin' fun and endearing; I am almost afraid to watch the movie and be disappointed by not having my imagination matched!); and Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (my first "big" book, I think; I loved it so much I loved my sister even more for giving the beautiful copy to me!).

I'll write as many as I can remember from seventh to twelfth grade. Seventh Grade Book: (nonfiction) Let God be God by Assoc. of Christian Schools Comments: - Book: (nonfiction) Wise Up! by ? Comments: A summary from a home school website: "You've wanted to say it, and now you get to tell your students to 'Wise up.' Middle school youth need to get biblical wisdom for relationships, character family, friends, leadership, and decision-making. This study in Proverbs helps your students get wisdom." --I doodled a lot in this one, but I especially liked the part about building friendships. Eighth Grade Book: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien Comments: Sweet! My teacher read it aloud to us each day in English. We watched the old cartoon movie afterward; I wish Peter Jackson made a movie of it instead! Book: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte Comments: Actually, I read this one myself for a book report. Ninth Grade Book: A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens Comments: We didn't actually read this as a class; I moved up to ninth grade English in the second semester, but still had to write a couple of book reports. Tenth Grade Book: Les Miserables by Victor Hugo Comments: I had read an abridged modern adaptation of this book by Jim Reimann two weeks before we started this one in class! I guess having a birthday late in the summer and having a grandma who gives books for presents sometimes is not as wonderful a mix. I can't remember which movie we watched after the final exam for the book. Book: A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens Comments: Another re-read book! My English teacher knows much about it, however, so I learned much more than I did reading it by myself. Eleventh Grade Book: Hamlet by William Shakespeare Comments: - Book: Macbeth by William Shakespeare Comments: - Book: Various American literature excerpts Comments: Much of them were sad! We were taught how to recognize the talent of but argue against Ralph Waldo Emerson's and Thomas Paine's humanist essays. I have always enjoyed Emily Dickinson's sweet (or bittersweet) poems. Twelfth Grade Book: Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare Comments: Interesting, memorable story. I would not want to be Viola! There's a movie with Amanda Bynes that borrows names and some of the plot from this play. Book: *something about Sir Thomas Kent or Ken* Comments: I'll think of the name and author later. Sorry for leaving you hanging on a pretty good book! Book: King Lear by William Shakespeare Comments: I think I liked Hamlet the best of the tragedies:drama:, but King Lear's daughter Cordelia and servant Kent were super. Nine seniors went on the trip to England, Scotland, and Normandy and saw the play with Sir Ian McKellen... he was naked for a few minutes. Book: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by J.R.R. Tolkien Comments: It was fun writing poems in this style. The story was good, although I can't remember the ending =-/ . Book: various excerpts from British literature Comments: I liked The Three Strangers by Thomas Hardy; The Canterbury Tales By Geoffrey Chaucer; Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift; most of the English Romantic poets like Lord Byron and John Keats ("To Autumn" is BEAUTIFUL!); and others I don't recall at the moment.

That's a swell idea, IceCream! I'll be watching for that, any time you have time to compose what I'm guessing is such a big list. Maybe even ones you have already read and loved??

Good plan! I didn't read Jane Eyre until I was thirteen; I actually hadn't heard of it until my English teacher recommended it to me. Once you pick it or an abridged version up, I hope you'll like Jane's steady character, and the slightly creepy feeling throughout the book!

This is such an enjoyable blog, Tiger! Great job earning the book tokens. I wish my school had those - and that I would be as smart as you to earn and wisely use them! My mom passed her bookworm trait to me; Angel, good job taking that further! When I was in junior high (not that long ago, really!), my favorites were The Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and the Dear America and Royal Diaries. --And Harry Potter, obviously! My grandma bought me Sorcerer's/Philosopher's Stone when I was eleven, so I was kind of the same age as Harry with each new year at Hogwarts I read about. My other grandma got me into George Macdonald's children's stories like Sir Gibbie and At the Back of North Windearly on. I will see what I like best by Karen McCombie and Michael Mopurgo for now. That's cool that you have so many favorites already!

Don't even trip:smile2:! From second grade to around eighth grade, I snapped up every American Girls diary I could find at my school library. They are so pretty, and they started my love for historical fiction, as I'm sure many "diary" books do for people. My parents bought me some, and I empathized with my younger cousin when her sister's puppy chewed up the corner of one of hers. (It was the diary of a girl on the Titanic, I believe.) I especially loved the Royal Diaries, where the author was a real princess like Elizabeth, Marie Antoinette, and Cleopatra. The stuff of book reports, for sure.

I had not heard of the five besides A Child Called "It," but they sound good from your detailed descriptions! Sometimes I wander over to the Teen section of the library looking for something light to read, but I am not sure where to start. These suggestions will certainly be taken. Perks of Being a Wallflower reminds me of a book I read in ninth grade waiting for Drama practice, from Melody Carlson's "Diary of a Teenage Girl" series. Shattering Glass sounds the second-most intriguing; I must be drawn to outcast characters or something! Thanks for the suggestions, Purple Grape! Did you first read them when you were a teen?

A sincere "Thanks muchly!" for the views and responses, everyone! It's nice to know I'm contributing for people other than myself. Aw, shucks, Icecream:mrgreen:. You were the first one I noticed who shares my faith, y'know! Hey there, Liz. Your sig reminded me to check out the Discworld series, which two of my cousins recommended to me four years ago! Oh, let me help you get started (there are some genres I have yet to tap into, too!) on Francine Rivers, at least: For you and other ladies, I would enthusiastically recommend Redeeming Love or The Atonement Child first. Men might find The Warrior and The Prince more to their liking. Oh, nice, Kell! Maybe we can plod through the ever-verbose nature of classics like Ben Hur together some time. So far I am enjoying Mansfield Park: Sweet! I'm glad to have reminded you of it. I have heard mixed reviews from three people I know who have read it; one didn't like it, one said it was okay, and one remarked it was good but it lacked the tension of Austen's other works, like Pride and Prejudice. I'm definitely learning new ways I may be acting selfishly without even knowing it, as many of Austen's high-class characters do! --Uh, you'll see what I mean later, I suppose. I hope this puts MP in as high or low in your TBR list as it should be!

The Lord of the Rings series IS admittedly hard to get through. It's kind of sad that people our age today enjoy classical books that were written for children in their time, huh? I applaud patient readers for their effort! I read The Hobbit once voluntarily and once in school and loved it both times. The cartoon movie was funny! I suppose it's the intoductory material for Fellowship that got to me. --Bilbo, Frodo, Gandalf, and Sam are so dear, though! (I only read the first fifty or sixty pages, and then I had to give it back to my uncle.) I plan on trying the trilogy again. For now, however, has anyone who can't stand Tolkien's verbose tendencies in his Middle-Earth books tried his translations? Sir Gawain and the Green Knight was very entertaining and well-styled, all in rhythmic prose. Worth a shot for such a little story, right? I think Tolkien also did a translation called The Pearl or something like that, but those days in my British Literature class are a little fuzzy.

I described the scene from my close favorite, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, in this post on my blog. It is not very often that even the most sweeping of books make me teary-eyed, so it was really special. I like The Magician's Nephew second-best because of the creation scene and the fact that I was a little familiar with it from reading half of it in my elementary years. Do you guys read them chronologically (1. Magician's Nephew, 2. Lion, Witch, Wardrobe, et cetera) or in the order Lewis wrote them (the order the movies are being made: 1. Lion, Witch, Wardrobe, 2. Prince Caspian, et cetera)? I read them chronologically. Teehee - I bet my younger cousin, my favorite fellow bookworm, will find it funny like I did that so many chose The Last Battle as their favorite.

***"Smee, I've just had an epiphany!" -Captain Hook*** OHH! Big Friendly Giant! Thanks muchly, Mad Gal. Apparently it's super popular in my region's libraries, but my nephew's birthday is coming up soon... I can keep my grandma's tradition of giving books! Funny how you get people the things you want!

Ahh, my first "big post!":sign0144: Hope you obtain some good reading ideas. Love, Child.of.God.1989 ~ Books I have read recently: And the Shofar Blew by Francine Rivers Genre: modern Christian novel Start: October 4, 2007 Finish: October 7, 2007 Rating: 9/10:o Check it out! Almost the best of Rivers's books. Review to come. ~ Books I have checked out: Mansfield Park by... you guessed it! by Jane Austen Genre: Classical fiction Start: mid-September 2007 (I had to turn it in overdue after reading twelve chapters:icon_oops: . I checked out a new one last week.) Finish: _____ -~-~-~- Knowing God by J.I. Packer Genre: Christian Theology Start: Early September, picked it up and started over again October 7th Finish: -~-~-~- The Hidden Smile of God by John Piper (my first Piper! Yay!) Genre: Christian theology Start: October 7, 2007 Finish: -~-~-~- The Brothers Karamozov by Fyodor Dostoevsky (My grandma lent me the old movie with William Shatner, but I had a little trouble understanding it:confused:. This will be my first Russian novel, not counting the little bit of War and Peace I read last summer through last September.) Genre: Classical fiction Start: Finish: -~-~-~- The Last Sin Eater by Francine Rivers Genre: modern Christian novel Start: October 8, 2007 Finish: Thursday, October 16, 2007 at around 3:00 A.M. (hey, I was parted from it for three days!) ~ Books for later: Quo Vadis by Henryk Sienkiewicz (I started this one in December 2006 after receiving it for Christmas, but shamefully abandoned it for books with faster paces:irked:. The first few chapters I read were good, though! I'll start all over later.) Genre: classical Christian fiction Start: Finish: -~-~-~- Ben Hur by Lew Wallace (Seen the movie in school, have read excerpts of it in school, but it's high time I take it off the shelf and read the real McCoy!) Genre: classical Christian fiction Start: Finish: -~-~-~- Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ by John Piper Genre: Christian theology Start: Finish: -~-~-~- I Kissed Dating Good-Bye by Joshua Harris Genre: Christian non-fiction Start: Finish: -~-~-~- Worldwide Journeys in Prayer by Wentworth Pike (I'm embarrassed for putting this on the later list. My grandma lent it to me! --In AUGUST! Okay, it will be the first of the "laters.") Genre: Christian non-fiction/devotional Start: Finish:

Kell, I was thinking about starting my own reading list, so I'm glad I looked at yours! It's a good example for a template, and that's what I need since I tend to ramble without a guideline:lol:. The Secret Life of Bees and Stuck in Neutral are definitely going in the sticky part of my brain. I'll be sure to let my cousin in Trueman's hometown know about the latter.

Hello! My mom (and her generous mom, always with a book for Christmas and birthday presents) is the reason for my bookworm tendencies, too! It must feel good for your mom to have someone to talk to at this time. The best book my mom has shown me, besides the Bible, is... um... I can't really remember one outstanding one, besides the Nancy Drew series when I was small. You have a reading list that's fun to check up on!

As I said in my introduction, I found this forum through an ad in the library. I'll have to ask Michelle for permission to/information about putting one up in January, when I begin school in a different state.

Thank you for the affable, sweet welcomes, Echo and Purple Poppy! (Those names are much more succint!) I have already learned so much here, be it great movies or authors I forgot to follow through and check out long ago. Yes, your pleasing-to-the-eyes ad worked in at least one Sno-Isle library. Echo, I live in Marysville, a little more than forty-five minutes north of Seattle. I liked your optimistic thoughts on the changes in climate we have seen. I had much fun in the summer, but sometimes I look forward to those days when I can guiltlessly down half a box of hot Mac N

Hey, Debbie. That book your class read reminds me of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis. The characters and adventures are great in that one! I think I remember the description of the waves like you said. I only read three-quarters of any of his Narnia books when I was younger, than in 2005 I read all seven in about two weeks! The part about another world is throwing me off, though. If this doesn't ring a bell, at least we'll both know a new great kid's book.

Thanks for reminding me of The Witches:blush:, Icecream. It's a very clever book I'll have to check out for my nephew! From what I can remember when I was his age, reading it in my free time in third or fourth grade, adults can chuckle at its jokes about taking baths:lol:, and kids can enjoy wondering what will happen to the little boy. What was the Roald Dahl book involving a little girl, a giant, and a world where the fizz bubbles go down instead of up:sign0163:?