Head over to Homestead Revival to read the review and enter the giveaway.

Make sure to check back on Thursday, as she will be hosting a detailed interview with me. You won’t want to miss it!

I’m not that hard to scare.

Well, that’s not strictly true.  I’m terrified of riding in airplanes or the Dumbo ride at Disney.  In other words, I’m reasonably afraid of things that present genuine peril to my life.

But I’m not afraid of fictional things.  I can see pretty much any movie, read any book, and the most I’ll feel is a mild foreboding if the good guys are rifling through the bad guys’ belongings and the bad guys are about to come in. I do have nightmares, especially since my husband died, but they are never about what I read or see.

Until the night before last, when I woke up filled with sick dread because Jack the Ripper was in my room. Even when I remembered where I was – my bedroom – and what was happening – nothing – I still couldn’t shake the feeling that I was about to be disemboweled.

So, thank you Maureen Johnson. What I thought was an interesting young adult novel really designed for younger audiences actually turned out to be suspenseful enough to imbed itself into my subconscious.

There’s almost no way to describe this book without giving spoilers, so I’ll just say Maureen Johnson has a great voice and wrote a book that’s captivating to me, the elderly widow, as well as younger audiences. Read this story; it has several surprises in store for you.

Pestering . . .

No.

Pounding Cranium — no.  Wait.  Wait.  It’s here in my pocket.

**takes crumpled paper out and spreads it flat.**

Ladies and Gentlemen, may I introduce:

Permilia Cornell

Permilia is the historian who providing me with research for the Whither sequel I’m working on right now, and she has graciously agreed to share some of the most interesting facts about family life on the frontier with us. Permelia has a Master’s Degree in Family Development, and is passionate about the history of families and their unique stories.  She is retired from The Ohio State University Extension as a Family and Consumer Sciences Educator.

Also, she’s my mom. 

So beginning next week, watch for her new blog series, Asides from Permilia.

Yay, right?

I am not defined by what you see when you look at me,
or my own reflection in the mirror.
I am not defined by your expectations –
Your approval or disappointment.
I am not defined by my failures, my successes,
my future or my past.
I am defined only as an irreplaceable child of God,
and by each moment that I cast aside the chains of measuring up,
and expose myself as the masterpiece He created in me.

Marriage is messy. It’s not “happily ever after”–it’s fights about nothing that feel like something, different parenting styles, mothers-in-law, money troubles, morning sickness and labor pains. It’s resentment, hurt feelings, loneliness and impatience. It’s the terrifying aging process, two people constantly changing, long silences, moments of understanding and, in the end, almost always…one without the other.

This is another book for which I’m not really the intended audience, but I still think it’s fair to say that the young adult novel, Gathering Blue, which is apparently set in the same universe of The Giver, just doesn’t compare.

While The Giver was extraordinary and memorable, Gathering Blue was simply a nice read.  I never quite lost interest in the plot but it wasn’t a page turner.  I never quite quit caring about the main character, Kira, but I never quite rolled into really caring about her either.

The Giver will be a classic – our grandkids will be reading it.  Maybe, because of that, Gathering Blue will go along for the ride.  But it’s no The Giver.  I’m interested to see what the third book will be like when it comes out.

This will be a short review, both because the book was released in 2008, so it has lots of reviews already, and because I am not its intended audience. An Abundance of Katherines is a lighthearted read intended toward young adults. I am one of many adult readers who enjoys young adult books. This particular book was entertaining, but lacked the underlying meaning or significance of many other books of the same genre.

That’s fine. The main character is clever and entertaining, if not particularly likable, and there are some funny moments. There was no point in the story when my emotions were engaged, and no point where I was captivated by the plot, but it was a nice read.

I did notice that some reviewers commented about the presence of language and sexual innuendo in a young adult book. I respect their opinion, and their right to sanitize the influences the touch their own children’s lives. I don’t think, though, that most parents will be troubled by the content. Menu control safe.

If you’re burdened by the facts of your life, take them out and examine them again. Hurtful secrets can be told. Broken communications can be challenged, families can be reconfigured, lives can be changed, pain can be overcome. If you think you can have even one more happy moment ahead in the span of your life, reach for it. Keep reaching, dear one, and call us to help you until we come and reach with you.