So Many Books; So little Time

Wait! No Paint!

Wait! No Paint!

by Bruce Whatley

c. 2001

This is the most interesting version I have read of The Three Little Pigs since I read Jon Scieszka’s The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs by A. Wolf.

This version starts out exactly the same as every other version on page one. And from there on, the story is….varied. For one thing, you find out why they left home–they had 73 other pigs living there.

For another, this really strange thing happens. Juice falls from somewhere then a voice comes out of no where then…someone runs out of paint and the pigs go white as a ghost, then sickly green then…….

Okay, I’m not ruining the story for you except to say that if you want to introduce your children to a new version of The Three Little Pigs or if you want to teach children what an illustrator does, this is a great book for both.

It’s large enough for a lap, interesting enough for those of us who could tell the story in our sleep (and probably have), and colorful enough to catch the eye of even the most bored reader.

I shared this book with friends and all of them just loved it and so did their children and grandchildren. My friend Librarian thought it was really cute and after purchasing thousands of books for children’s libraries over more than 25 years, that’s a compliment right there. One first grade teacher started it and then had to start over when her granddaughter appeared and was attracted to it. Another first grade teacher read it to her first grade son and fifth grade daughter and they enjoyed it as well. Even my high schoolers enjoyed this version.

New, fresh and with a hilarious, surprise ending–what more could you want? Caution–you may have to stop for giggles both theirs and yours.

Beyond the Sorrow

Beyond the Sorrow: There’s Hope in the Promises of God

by Tammy Trent

c. 2005

On September 10, 2001 while the rest of us were going about our business and nineteen men were making preparations to hijack four airliners, Tammy Trent and her husband were on vacation. Her husband went free diving and never came back up alive.

Along with the tradgedy of being an American on September 11, Tammy dealt with being a new, young widow in an accident far from but no less tragic than the one that took the lives of thousands of other husbands, wives, and children.

This book is not her attempt to make sense of her husband’s death. It is her attempt to share with those who are suffering loss the things that made going on bearable for her. She shares verses, thoughts and even letters of encouragement she received from other people, some friends and some strangers who just heard of her sorrow.

This is a book about coping with sorrow written in a very different manner. This book is written in two page sound bites and is useful for morning or evening devotions or just a couple of pages when you need it most.

Tammy wants everyone who has lost someone close to them to be able to bask in the love of our Lord and know that every day is another day in which to praise Him. She also recognizes that there are days when getting up is almost too much for some sorrowing people.

I was not in sorrow when I bought this book but I read it anyway. As some reading this may know a dear friend of mine lost her seventeen year old daughter to suicide while I was reading this book. This is one book I will not keep. It is headed to this friend where I can only hope and pray it will give her strength and help her rekindle the empty space she carries inside her heart that used to be filled by her lovely daughter’s daily presence.

This book gave light to me and I pray it gives light to others in need and in sorrow and helps them, like Tammy, to live again.

The Raising of a President

The Raising of a President: The Mothers and Fathers of Our Nation’s Leaders

By Doug Wead

c. 2005

This book isn’t exactly what I anticipated and yet it was all that and more. This work details the personalities of specific parents of the Presidents of the United States. Specifically the parents of George Washington, John and John Quincy Adams, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore but mostly Franklin Delano Roosevelt, John Fitzgerald Kennedy and George H. W. and George W. Bush.

The book does have a section with brief biographies of all the presidents but each of these seven to nine (much less about Teddy except as a cousin of FDR) presidents’ parents received considerable thought and dissection. There are also appendices on the birth order of the presidents, ethnic origin of the presidents (all but four have either English or Scottish heritage or both), the remarriage of the presidental parents, the age at which the presidents lost their parents (three lost their fathers before they were born) and several other interesting statistics.

This work is interesting in looking at the sort of man becomes the President of the United States. (I have come to the conclusion that I have never been harsh, controlling or dead enough to be the mother of a president.) It also compares the driven legacies of the Kennedys and the Bushes which is an interesting case study of accomplishment in and of itself.

All in all, this is an enlightening study. I wish more time were spent on all the presidental parents but as it stands this work is over 500 pages including bibliography.

The presidents are all interesting men in their own rights but looking at the “hands that rocked the cradles that ruled the world” is fascinating. Anyone interested in what makes a man into a president should read this book.