Book Review: Animal Farm by George Orwell /Town hall sheep?

   This book is far from new, it was published in 1945, but it was new to me up until a month ago.  I'd heard the reference to it, but didn't realize for a long time it was referring to a book.  I thought it was a reference to a setting with lots of creatures, like, you know, maybe a farm, with lots of animals.

   So for those like me who somehow missed this classic in high school, it is a satire on the Russian Revolution. The story is about a farm where the animals are tired of being mistreated by the farmer, revolt, and take over running the farm.  The pigs, being the smartest, take charge.  They lay out the Seven Commandments, learn to read and teach (mostly unsuccessfully) the other animals how to read, direct the work, and otherwise rule the newly re-named Animal Farm.  All is fine until someone wants more than others and the Commandments get ... bent.  I won't spoil the details - I recommend read the book, or listen to the audio book read by Richard Brown.  I went through my library's online service (they use hoopla) and listened on my phone.

   There's all kinds of remarks and political opinions on this book I won't get into, but I did think of this story when I was listening to the news the other day.  At certain points in debates, one animal gets the sheep to drown everyone else out with a chant that, effectively, stops the debate altogether.  It reminded me of the town hall meetings where people with real questions wanting a real dialogue are getting drowned out by protesters yelling and chanting until they shut down the meeting.  I'm not a conspiracy theorist or anything, but who is teaching those sheep?
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   Okay, to end on a happy note, the sun is now up and I'm going to check the fruit in the dehydrator, get another cup of coffee, and figure out how to tune my mower.

Joyfully yours,
K

Book review: Give Please A Chance by Bill O'Reilly and James Patterson

   Little Princess got this book for Christmas from her Great Great Aunt R.  It is so cute, and both kids love it.  It is a good lesson book on saying please, without appearing as a lesson book.  It is easy to read, with wonderful, full-page illustrations by different illustrators.  That actually brought on a discussion about types of drawings, media, paints, etc, and research on Handsome Boy's favorites.  Princess likes to say "Sure you can" on almost every page, and it has a lot of the simple words she's working on for school.  I also like how the kids in the pictures are different ages, and in a lot of common situations.  It's about 35-40 pages, but only one line on one side, and a picture and "Please" on the other.

   I don't know what ages this is geared toward, but I think anything in elementary or lower would be appropriate.  I'm grateful we got this book as a gift.  It's already been requested for reading a dozen times in a week.  Check it out from your local library if they have it, and buy it if you like it for keeps.

https://www.billoreilly.com/p/Give-Please-a-Chance/Give-Please-a-Chance/47461.html

Joyfully yours, 

K

Book Review: Becoming Odyssa by Jennifer Pharr Davis

   I am a reader. I love to read. I get to learn about different people, learn more how-to's and why's, dive into stories real and imagined, and get inspired. The only problem is, you have to sit and do nothing else while reading a book. That doesn't really fit in my schedule.  Audio books are my answer to the time thing. I can clean the house, drive to work, go hiking, and most anything else that lets my hands do work while I soak in the information.
   I did, however, take time to read this book, which took all of 4 days. This was borrowed to me by a friend of mine who became a somewhat reluctant section-hiker on the Appalachian Trail last year. His wife is an exuberant section-hiker and I love hiking, too. I've never thru-hiked anything, and never even touched the Appalachian Trail, but I love to be out in the woods.
   I really like this book. Not only is it another glimpse into the famed AT, I also like the idea that she just jumped right in, without experience and barely any training, and put everything out there in the book. "I share the good, bad, and ugly – even when I’m the one being ugly." - Jennifer Pharr Davis. Not only is it a tale of the trail, it's a coming of age story -she did this at 21 years old- and a story about how we look at life.
   I'm convinced that, in our current society, we need to remind ourselves constantly of what life is really about.  With our 2 minute attention spans, and eyeballs on screens a lot of the day, it is so easy (and I'm no exception) to let minutes go by without anything being accomplished, hours go by without the sun on our face and fresh winds in our hair, and most importantly, days go by without speaking (not texting) those we hold most dear.  This lesson and many others are weaved into this story.  Whether you glean hiking tips, shake your head at Jennifer's early mistakes and judgments, or laugh with her, it is a good read.
   You know, when you can sit down, kick up your feet, have a cup of coffee, and ignore the world around you for a bit.  :)
http://blueridgehikingco.com/product/becoming-odyssa-paperback

   Another good AT read is A Walk in the Woods, now also a movie with Robert Redford (one of the hottest old men around) and Nick Nolte. As with all books made into movies, I suggest you read it first.  They're both very good, though, and give another real and humorous look at the AT.
https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/1004854/a-walk-in-the-woods/
http://www.walkinthewoodsmovie.com/