April Reading...before May is all done

Time flies, and it seemed to go especially quickly in April. Nevertheless, reading continues even on busy days, so here's the monthly recap:

Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
I can't recall ever reading a fictional book that I enjoyed less, and I wasn't alone in that opinion, as everyone in my book club seemed to agree. Perhaps more die-hard Anglophiles might have found something to love in it, but I thought all the characters were deplorable narcissists - truly the biggest bunch of navel-gazers ever collected between the covers of a book! Just as the book of Judges is depressing because everyone did what was right in their own eyes, so this story is very depressing because vice and vanity are relentlessly pursued in an elusive search for happiness. With that said, however, Waugh did capture the essence of sin in the most succinct and raw fashion that I have read in a novel (at least as far as my memory serves). I'll quote it here so that you have the benefit of reflecting on its accuracy, and perhaps searching your heart to see if you have pet sins of which you should repent, and you can thank me for saving you the tedium of reading the book:

     "'Living in sin, with sin, by sin, for sin, every hour, every day, year in, year out. Waking up with sin in the morning, seeing the curtains drawn on sin, bathing it, dressing it, clipping diamonds to it, feeding it, showing it round, giving it a good time, putting it to sleep at night with a tablet of Dial if it's fretful.
     'Always the same, like an idiot child carefully nursed, guarded from the world. "Poor Julia," they say, "she can't go out. She's got to take care of her little sin. A pity it ever lived," they say, "but it's so strong. Children like that always are. Julia's so good to her little, mad sin."'" (287)

Now, that's not a pretty description, nor an encouraging one, but it certainly provides much to ponder, and if it leads to repentance, then my reading of this book was not in vain.

Choosing to SEE: A Journey of Struggle and Hopeby Mary Beth Chapman
I needed something real to counter the unreality of Brideshead Revisited (although a friend reminded me that such an empty life was/is a reality for some, which is a sobering thought). I had known of the Chapman's loss of one of their adopted daughters several years ago, but didn't really know much of the story. Mary Beth Chapman writes with honesty of the fears and struggles that she has experienced throughout her life of faith, with the greatest of these being the loss of 5-year-old Maria in 2008. I used the word "raw" for the description of sin above, and it applies here, too, though the contexts are so very different. The death of a child can shake one's faith to the core, and Mary Beth writes openly of her doubts, anger, and disbelief, and of her faith, security, and hope in God and the promise of heaven. It's an emotional story, but an encouraging one, a truthful one that depicts death as the enemy, Christ as the victor, and heaven as our home and hope.

 Dangerous Journey: The Story of Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan and Oliver Hunkin
It's been a while since I've read Pilgrim's Progress, but this is an excellent children's version which retains both the language and the lessons of the original. My kids enjoyed this book, and I've already used its allegories to remind them of "fighting Apollyon" when they are having a difficult time with self-control. All too often, sin seems to be glossed over and excused rather than exposed and resisted. So while I will readily admit that all allegories have their shortcomings, I'm grateful for this tool to help my children understand some aspects of the Christian walk.

The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
I can't take credit for reading this one aloud, but I did listen while my husband, an original Tolkien fan (yes, before there were movies!), read this to our kids, ages 5 and 8. This was required reading before the Hobbit movie is released in December, but aside from the much-anticipated movie, it was delightful to share Middle Earth and Tolkien's wonderful story-telling with my family. So after you've enjoyed My Father's Dragon  (linked to my review) with your young readers, be sure to introduce them to Smaug (a not-so-nice dragon) and Bilbo Baggins!

See, this is how much of a Tolkien fan my husband is. These are bookcases that he built for our office/library a few years ago. Pretty cool, huh?

April Update on March Reading

I didn't get my summary post written by the end of March, but here it is a few days late. Colds, fevers, and allergies put a damper on our read-alouds last month, but we almost finished Adam of the Road, so I'm counting it anyway. Illness, however, made my own reading more productive, and I finished more than usual.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith - This was recommended to me several years ago as a coming of age novel akin to Angela's Ashes, which was not one of my favorite memoirs, so I wasn't quite sure how I would like it. Francie Nolan, however, is a much more sympathetic character than Frank McCourt - what's not to love about a young girl who loves to read and write! (Not surprisingly, my book club realized that we tend to gravitate toward these types of books!) In spite of the severe poverty and hardships of turn-of the-20th-century Brooklyn, I found this a hopeful book.

Joy in the Morning by Betty Smith - I was intrigued by the autobiographical nature of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and wanted to read more of the author's fictional retelling of  a young couple's first year of marriage, struggling with relationships and finances after being transplanted from Brooklyn to a Midwestern college town (I live in one of those!). The situation is somewhat parallel to Betty Smith's own life, but as with A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, she said she wrote it as it might have been, not as exactly as it was. There's a touch of feminism, but overall a fairly traditional view of marriage and family and a very realistic portrayal of adjusting to married life.

The Kitchen Boy: A Novel of the Last Tsar by Robert Alexander - Carrie at Reading to Know posted a review of this book a year ago, and it's been on my mental to-be-read list ever since. Though I knew very little about the particulars of the Tsar's family's assassination, it was fairly easy to jump into the story of the last few weeks of their life - a fascinating, riveting, and tragic period of history, to be sure. This was a carefully researched, well-written, expertly crafted, and completely plausible novel - historical fiction at its best! The modern staging and unexpected twists make this a historical story that you won't be able to put down!


My Family for the War by Anne C. Voorhoeve - I don't recall where I read a review of this recently released translation of a German novel, but the premise intrigued me and I quickly requested my library to purchase a copy. Did you know about the Kindertransports that, over the course of 9 months prior to England entering the war, evacuated approximately 10,000 Jewish children from Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Poland and placed them with foster families in England? I had not heard of this before, but it is certainly another amazing facet of the many stories of survival and generosity that can be found in World War II history. This coming-of-age story is heavy on emotion and introspection as it traces the experiences of a Jewish (by race) Protestant (by religion) girl named Franziska, who reluctantly leaves her parents in Germany only to find a greater love and stronger sense of family with an Orthodox Jewish family in London. Franziska transitions to Frances rather quickly, and wrestles with the differences between her parents' faith and the rituals of Judaism. The resulting synthesis of the two comes a bit too easily, I thought, and is entirely driven by emotions, not beliefs or convictions. For that reason, I found the spiritual/religious element to be very superficial, but the experience of living through the war in England is well-told through the eyes of a child/teenager.

Adam of the Road by Elizabeth Janet Gray - If all Newberry Award winners are as good as this one and The Door in the Wall, I think we should make a project of reading all of them. At least the list is readily available here. This is a delightful story about a lost boy, a minstrel's son in 13th century England who was separated from his father as they searched for his stolen dog. An eleven-year-old roaming the roads of Medieval England might seem rather tragic, but a minstrel's home is the road and Adam makes the best of his circumstances even when he is delayed time and again in finding his father and beloved dog Nick. Adam meets a wide cross-section of medieval society in his travels and has plenty of adventures along the way, giving the reader a fun and interesting introduction to Medieval life. My children looked forward to reading this and would have gladly sat through several chapters if only my voice would last that long.

Edited to add: Sometime at the end of February or beginning of March, I also read The Uncommon Reader: A Novella, but I found it disappointing and have no further comments.

February 2012 Reading List

We're doing better at actually finishing read-aloud books this year, probably because I love historical fiction set in the Middle Ages! My own reading was a bit on the lighter side this month, but still thought provoking at times.

The Door in the Wall by Marguerite De Angeli
This is a heart-warming tale of a nobleman's son who seems to have lost everything when illness renders him lame. However, with the help of a kind monk, he regains both physical strength and hope for the future, learning to look for the silver lining, or as Brother Luke says, "to find the door in the wall," an opportunity for courage, perseverance, and thankfulness in the face of obstacles. Eventually, Robin quite literally goes through a door in the wall on a dangerous mission for which he is uniquely suited in his lameness, proving to himself and others that his illness has not robbed him of usefulness and purpose. Amazon reviews are full of complaints that kids think this book is boring, but it worked great as a read-aloud!

The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Of course, plenty has already been written about this novel. Like many others, I quickly became engrossed with the characters' unique voices and stories. It was an enlightening glimpse into Southern culture in the midst of the civil rights movement and the general unrest of the 1960's. Only one part seemed really out of place, that is, Aibileen's sympathetic acknowledgement of homosexuality in her recollections of previous employers. Sadly, it seems that almost all modern novels must have a token homosexual. Is that really necessary to appeal to the masses, or is it merely to placate the politically active minority? I'll continue to be politically incorrect and voice my objections to blatant disregard for God's order and Word!

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
Unbeknownst to us when my book club chose this for our February selection, A Wrinkle in Time was published 50 years ago and was celebrated with some fanfare in the publishing world this month. It's interesting, if a little odd at times, but I agree with Janie at Redeemed Reader that the inherent mysticism and dualism is neither biblical nor Christian. We listened to the audio version, read by Madeleine L'Engle herself, before I reread the book, and I wish I'd waited a few more years before introducing it to my daughter. Most of the subtle distortions of Christian truth were over her head, although I commented on a few obvious ones. We'll probably revisit it when she's older and better able to discern and discuss truth and error. For now I'll comfort myself that Little House and Narnia books are the usual fare for audio books around here.

I Am Half-Sick of Shadows: A Flavia de Luce Novel by Alan Bradley
Flavia de Luce: she's awful, but it's still fun - and British - so I keep reading every new installment. I thought this one got off to a slow start, although it was fun to have something of a reunion of characters from the other novels. Am I the only reader who keeps expecting Harriet to waltz in and save the estate after living in seclusion with some remote people group in the Himalayas for all these years? Well, that's another reason I keep reading this series. That seems to be THE unsolved mystery - her death is always taken for granted - but why hasn't Flavia thought to investigate that one (apart from the intensely personal nature of the case and the fact that it would require travel and money which even she can't conjure up in the chemical lab)?

The King's Shadow by Elizabeth Alder
If my children were reading this on their own, this would probably be best for older readers, for it deals with the gruesome reality of war and various injustices inherent in the Medieval feudal system. Yet in spite of the hardships Evan, the main character, encounters, it is a story of hope, courage, loyalty, forgiveness, and justice. It worked just fine as a read-aloud to my almost 8 and almost 5-year-olds, who could understand it in terms of good guys/bad guys, and it really made history come alive as we studied the Battle of Hastings in our history studies. I also enjoyed reading it aloud because there was such a good balance of description, dialogue, action, and reflection - it kept me interested, and it was fun to try to vary my voice to the mood and setting of various passages. The historical characters and events seem fairly accurate, but even if the author took some poetic license, it provides such a vivid picture of various levels of Medieval life, I could recommend it for the social and cultural insights alone.

Books Read in 2012 - January

I'm not finding much time for blogging, so this may be all you see for 2012. I'll be listing my own reading and the chapter books that I read aloud to my kids, most of which correspond to our history studies. The favorite of the month will be pictured - just to keep things interesting! [edited to add: I'm switching to a monthly summary instead of a yearly one - hopefully, I'll be able to keep up with that, and there will be more pictures!]

JANUARY

1. Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas - riveting, convicting, excellent - read it soon if you haven't already!
2. The Story of Rolf and the Viking Bow by Allen French - read-aloud to correspond with history studies - in spite of the rather archaic language, my 7 & 4 year-old, not to mention their father, followed the main story line of this Icelandic epic with interest; the examples of honor and accountability set forth made for excellent discussion.
3. Chronicles of Avonlea by L. M. Montgomery - Oh, this was fun! Anne Shirley only makes a few cameo appearances in this volume of short stories, but these tales of some of the more mature members of Prince Edward Island are just as full of wit and charm as one would expect.
4. Son of Charlemagne by Barbara Willard - Although I wasn't impressed with the writing style (a bit convoluted for my tastes), the history and "insider perspective" on 9th century kings and kingdom building was fascinating. This was a family read-aloud, but we were disappointed with the ending - even a brief epilogue to explain what happened to Charlemagne's children and successors would have been helpful, although it wasn't too difficult to fill in the gaps with Google and Wikipedia.

Lessons from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

If your memories of Little Women have been muddied by watching the movie version, I highly recommend a re-read! Far from the feminist and transcendentalist overtones of the movie, this well-loved classic by Louisa May Alcott extols the virtues of home and homemaking and a simple faith in and dependence on God that is quite refreshing. I also found several gems of wisdom for mothers both in Marmee's gentle dealings with her girls and advice to her grown daughters. While some might find the moralistic tone of this novel a bit overbearing, I, for one, don't mind a bit being reminded of the ideals and virtues of a distant generation.

After re-reading Little Women, I also read Little Men and Jo's Boys recently, both of which were new to me. I enjoyed getting an expanded knowledge of the March family, although the main characters of Little Women take a secondary role to the boys at Jo & Mr. Bhaer's school. There is more emphasis on women's rights in the younger generation, but it is well-balanced with the wisdom and training of older women in home duties, as a picture of Titus 2 in action. My only complaint is that Jo and Laurie's relationship seems a bit unusual as they get older and raise families side by side. I thought some of their interchanges a bit odd, or at least a bit too chummy for sister-in-law and brother-in-law, even if they had been the best of friends as children. Let's just say that Amy was very gracious - much more so than I could ever be in a similar situation!

Here are some of my favorite passages from Little Women:

"The patience and the humility of the face she loved so well was a better lesson to Jo than the wisest lecture, the sharpest reproof. She felt comforted at once by the sympathy and confidence given her; the knowledge that her mother had a fault like hers, and tried to mend it, made her own easier to bear and strengthened her resolution to cure it; though forty years seemed rather a long time to watch and pray, to a girl of fifteen." (83, such wisdom about confessing and battling sin, in this case anger, over a lifetime.)

"'I want my daughters to be beautiful, accomplished, and good; to be admired, loved, and respected; to have a happy youth, to be well and wisely married, and to lead useful, pleasant lives, with as little care and sorrow to try them as God sees fit to send. To be loved and chosen by a good man is the best and sweetest thing which can happen to a woman; and I sincerely hope my girls may know this beautiful experience...My dear girls, I am ambitious for you, but not to have you make a dash in the world, -- marry rich men merely because they are rich, or have splendid houses, which are not homes because love is wanting.'" (101)

"'I am quite satisfied with the experiment, and fancy that we shall not have to repeat it; only don't go to the other extreme, and delve like slaves. Have regular hours for work and play; make each day both useful and pleasant, and prove that you understand the worth of time by employing it well.'" (121)

"To outsiders, the five energetic women seemed to rule the house, and so they did in many things; but the quiet scholar, sitting among his books, was still the head of the family, the household conscience, anchor, and comforter; for to him the busy, anxious women always turned in troublous times, finding him, in the truest sense of those sacred words, husband and father." (244, nary a bit of feminism there!)

"I also doubt if any young matron ever began life with so rich a supply of dusters, holders, and piece-bags...People who hire all these things done for them never know what they lose; for the homeliest tasks get beautified if loving hands do them..." (247-248, a good reminder for one not so fond of dusting!)

"'Laurie, my lad, if you ever want to indulge in this sort of thing, get one of those little girls to help you, and I shall be perfectly satisfied,' said Mr. Laurence,settling himself in his easy chair to rest, after the excitement of [Meg's wedding in] the morning.'
   'I'll do my best to gratify you, sir,' was Laurie's unusually dutiful reply, as he carefully unpinned the posy Jo had put in his button-hole." (260-261, see, it's not all moral instruction!)

"Mrs. March knew that experience was an excellent teacher, and when it was possible she left her children to learn alone the lessons which she would gladly have made easier, if they had not objected to taking advice as much as they did salts and senna." (266)

"'Never deceive him by look or word, Meg, and he will give you the confidence you deserve, the support you need. He has a temper, not like ours, -- one flash, and then all over, -- but the white, still anger, that is seldom stirred, but once kindled, is hard to quench. Be careful, very careful, not to wake this anger against yourself, for peace and happiness depend on keeping his respect. Watch yourself, be the first to ask pardon if you both err, and guard against the little piques, misunderstandings, and hasty words that often pave the way for bitter sorrow and regret.'" (287)

"'Because they are mean is no reason why I should be. I hate such things, and though I think I've a right to be hurt, I don't intend to show it. They will feel that more than angry speeches or huffy actions, won't they, Marmee?'
   'That's the right spirit, my dear; a kiss for a blow is always best, though it's not very easy to give it sometimes,' said her mother, with the air of one who had learned the difference between preaching and practising (sic)." (310)

"'Ah, Jo, mothers may differ in their management, but the hope is the same in all, -- the desire to see their children happy. Meg is so, and I am content with her success. You I leave to enjoy your liberty till you tire of it; for only then will you find that there is something sweeter. Amy is my chief care now, but her good sense will help her. For Beth, I indulge no hopes except that she may be well.'" (339)

"The conversation was miles beyond Jo's comprehension, but she enjoyed it, though Kant and Hegel were unknown gods, the Subjective and Objective unintelligible terms; and the only thing 'evolved from here inner consciousness,' was a bad headache after it was all over. It dawned upon her gradually that the world was being picked to pieces, and put together on new, and, according to the talkers, on infinitely better principles than before; that religion was in a fair way to be reasoned into nothingness, and intellect was to be the only God...[Mr. Bhaer] bore it as long as he could; but wen he was appealed to for an opinion, he blazed up wit honest indignation, and defended religion with all the eloquence of truth...He had a hard fight, for the wise men argued well; but he didn't know when he was beaten, and stood to his colors like a man. Somehow, as he talked, the world got right again to Jo; the old beliefs, that had lasted so long, seemed better than the new; God was not a blind force, and immortality was not a pretty fable, but a blessed fact. She felt as if she had solid ground under her feet again..." (361-362)

"[Beth] did not rebuke Jo with saintly speeches, only loved her better for her passionate affection, and clung more closely to the dear human love, from which our Father never means us to be weaned, but through which He draws us closer to Himself. She could not say, 'I'm glad to go,' for life was very sweet to her; she could only sob out, 'I try to be willing,' while she held fast to Jo, as the first bitter wave of this great sorrow broke over them together." (382-383)

"[Meg] was nervous and worn out with watching and worry, and in that unreasonable frame of mind which the best of mothers occasionally experience when domestic cares oppress them." (398)

[Marmee's advice to Meg as a young mother] "'I  nearly spoilt [Jo] by indulgence. You were poorly, and I worried about you till I fell sick myself. Then father came to the rescue, quietly managed everything, and made himself so helpful that I saw my mistake, and never have been able to get on without him since. That is the secret of our home happiness: he does not let business wean him from the little cares and duties that affect us all, and I try not to let domestic worries destroy my interest in his pursuits. We each do our part alone in many things, but at home we work together, always.'" (400-401)

"She had often said she wanted to do something splendid, no matter how hard; and now she had her wish, for what could be more beautiful than to devote her life to father and mother, trying to make home as happy to them as they had to her? And, if difficulties were necessary to increase the splendor of the effort, what could be harder for a restless, ambitious girl than to give up her own hopes, plans, and desires, and cheerfully live for others?" (445)

Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry

I read Jayber Crow earlier in 2011 and recorded my favorite passages, but nothing more. So in an effort to tie up loose ends, I'll just leave it as it stands and publish it.



"Sometimes I might take off a whole day to go fishing...always taking care to get back before six-thirty. Of course, if I didn't leave until after six-thirty in the evening, I had all night to get back. And since nobody was apt to want a haircut at six-thirty in the morning, I could stay away until the next evening. My clock said I would be back at six-thirty, but it didn't say what day. And sooner or later, until the last time, I always got back." (5)

"My relation to that place, my being in it and my absences from it, is the story of my life. That story has surprised me almost every day--but now, in the year 1986, so near the end, it seems not surprising at all but only a little strange, as if it all has happened to somebody younger." (12)

"There really was nobody else to do it [adopt him after the death of his parents], but she treated me like a prize she had won...I suppose Aunt Cordie and Uncle Othy had a store of affection laid away that they now brought out and applied to me. Later I would know how blessed I had been." (15)

"Back there at the beginning, as I see now, my life was all time and almost no memory. Though I knew early of death, it still seemed to be something that happened only to other people, and I stood in an unending river of time that would go on making the same changes and the same returns forever." (24)

"I'd had the idea, once, that if I could get the chance before I died I would read all the good books there were. Now I began to see that I wasn't apt to make it. This disappointed me, for I really wanted to read them all." (47)

"In most of them I saw the old division of body and soul that I had known at The Good Shepherd [Orphanage]. The same rift ran through everything at Pigeonville College; the only difference was that I was able to see it more clearly, and to wonder at it. Everything bad was laid on the body, and everything good was credited to the soul. It scared me a little when I realized that I saw it the other way around. If the soul and body really were divided, then it seemed to me that all the worst sins--hatred and anger and self-rightousness and even greed and lust--came from the soul. But these preachers...all though that the soul could do no wrong...and yet these same people believed in the resurrection of the body." (49)

"'You have been given questions to which you cannot be given answers. You will have to live them out--perhaps a little at a time.'" (54)

"Now I have had most of the life I am going to have, and I can see what it has been. I can remember those early years when it seemed to me I was cut completely adrift, and times when, looking back at earlier time, it seemed I had been wandering in the dark woods of error. But now it looks to me as though I was following a path that was laid out for me, unbroken, and maybe even as straight as possible, from one end to the other, and I have this feeling, which never leaves me anymore, that I have been led." (66)

"The Good Shepherd and Pigeonville Collee were trying to be the world of the past. The university was trying to be the world of the future, and maybe it has had a good deal to do with the world as it has turned out to be, but this has not been as big an improvement as the university expected. The university thought of itself as a a place of freedom for thought and study and experimentation, and maybe it was, in a way. But it was an island too, a floating or a flying island. It was preparing people from the world of the past for the world of the future, and what was missing was the world of the present, where every body was living its small, short, surprising, miserable, wonderful, blessed, damaged, only life." (70-71)

"Often I have not known where I was going until I was already there...Often I have received better than I have deserved. Often my fairest hopes have rested on bad mistakes. I am an ignorant pilgrim, crossing a dark valley. And yet for a long time, looking back, I have been unable to shake off the feeling that I have been led--make of that what you will." (133)

"And so the farm came under the influence of a new pattern, and this was the pattern of a fundamental disagreement such as it had never seen before. It was a disagreement about time and money and the use of the world." (186)

"She had come into her beauty. This was not the beauty of her youth and freshness, of which she had had a plenty. The beauty that I am speaking of now was that of a woman who has come into knowledge and into strength and who, knowing her hardships, trusts her strength and goes about her work even with a kind of happiness, serene somehow, and secure." (191)

"But thinking of Mattie's marriage, I saw too how a marriage, in bringing two people into each other's presence, must include loneliness and error. I imagined a moment when the husband and wife realize that their marriage includes their faults, that they do not perfect each other, and that in making their marriage they also fail it and must carry to the grave things they cannot give away." (194)

"But she loved him, however at odds with him she may have been, for however long. She remembered and kept treasured up her old feeling for him. She treasured up the knowledge that, though she was not happy, happiness existed. And so as Troy's character wore lower and more awry, her own grew straighter and brighter." (342)

Books Read in 2011

Edited 12/10/11 ~ Since life takes precedence over blogging, I've moved this list of my year to date reading to the top of the page. Maybe sometime I'll get back to recording my favorite quotations, but for now this is it.

This is my master list of books read in 2011. It will include not only those books that I read myself, but also the chapter books that I read aloud to my kids. If I tried to include all the picture books we read the list would be much too long, but I figure that children's chapter books, especially the classics that I like to read, can count for my reading list as well. Links will be to my reviews when applicable, though I've become quite the negligent book blogger of late.

1. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo (1463 pages)
2. Emily of New Moon by L. M. Montgomery (339 pages)
3. Emily Climbs by L. M. Montgomery (325 pages)
4. Emily's Quest by L. M. Montgomery (228 pages)
5. Inkheart by Cornelia Funke (534 pages)
6. The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins (494 pages)
7. A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley (391 pages)
8. The Railway Children by Edith Nesbit (188 pages)
9. The Reluctant Dragon by Kenneth Grahame
10. My Life in France by Julia Child with Alex Prud'Homme (304 pages)
11. The Scent of Water by Elizabeth Goudge (349 pages)
12. The Monuments Men:Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History by Robert M. Edsel with Bret Witter (450 pages)
13. Black Narcissus by Rumer Godden
14. Puck of Pook's Hill by Rudyard Kipling
15. Clouds of Witness by Dorothy Sayers
16. Peter Pan and Wendy by J. M. Barrie
17. Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
18. Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry
19. Dreams of Joy by Lisa See
20. That Hideous Strength by C. S. Lewis
21. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
22. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling
23. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling
24. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling
25. Looking for God in Harry Potter by John Granger
26. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling
27. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K. Rowling
28. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
29. St. Peter's Fair by Ellis Peters
30. The Mystery of the Sea by Bram Stoker
31. 84, Charing Cross Rd by Helene Hanff
32. The Leper of Saint Giles by Ellis Peters
33. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
34. Little Men by Louisa May Alcott
35. Jo's Boys by Louisa May Alcott