This is a great book. I listened to it on CD but it is a great book on the unusual theme of "acedia" which is, basically, the inability to care. It strikes people (as does its partner, sloth) and makes it difficult to live and act and be.
Kathleen Norris wrote the book and also provides the audio. She is not the most polished speaker in the world but her narration lends an authenticity to the book that you would not get if it were narrated by a professional reader. She relates her battles with acedia and spends quite a bit of time relating it to the challenges she faced as her husband experienced all sorts of emotional and physical problems.
She found herself, strangely enough, in the two very different worlds of North Dakota and Hawaii. She enjoyed (and enjoys) the monastic tradition and writes with great insight into clinical depression and "cures" (and especially spiritual cures) for diseases which afflict all of us from time to time.
One of the memorable passages concerns the last minutes of her husband's life and the need for the visiting clergyman to read Psalm 27. She longed for it to be read in the poetic verse of the King James Version or from the older Book of Common Prayer "because my husband is a poet and would want it read that way." Her desire here was somewhat frustrated by the events but I enjoyed her (and her husband's) need for something more than just translated words.
Part of the package of this CD was also receiving a down loadable book of Acedia comments traced through history.
This book was well worth listening to and reflecting upon. You will not be disappointed.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Monday, April 23, 2012
Book Review of "American Savior" by Roland Merullo
What if Jesus came back to earth and openly ran for president of the United States. The premise is somewhat outrageous and the book might be considered a little strange but I found it a very interesting read.
The narrator is a disgruntled TV reporter whose faith is shaky at best. He finds that Jesus calls him to be in charge of security and enlists his entire family in the process, including the reporter's Jewish father, his very Catholic mother, his handicapped brother, his fiance, and a bunch of other people very close to him.
At first the premise is a bit outrageous but as the book unfolds the reader finds that you really wonder how it's all going to turn out. Jesus and His Divinity Party find strange opposition from both Democrats and Republicans and discover that political parties often use religion for the wrong purposes. Who would ever have thought that.
At times the author, Roland Merullo, strains his credulity as he invents names which sound strangely familiar to the political pundits of real life.
I'm tempted to share spoiler alert facts but I can't bring myself to do this. You have to read the book to find out whether or not Jesus winds and what happens to him. You will find yourself a bit breathless and you may indeed come closer to the Lord of 2000 years ago and the Lord of today.
I'm not sure why this book ended up in the Dollar Store. Yes, it's true...this was another Dollar Store special but I confess that I enjoyed the book very much.
The narrator is a disgruntled TV reporter whose faith is shaky at best. He finds that Jesus calls him to be in charge of security and enlists his entire family in the process, including the reporter's Jewish father, his very Catholic mother, his handicapped brother, his fiance, and a bunch of other people very close to him.
At first the premise is a bit outrageous but as the book unfolds the reader finds that you really wonder how it's all going to turn out. Jesus and His Divinity Party find strange opposition from both Democrats and Republicans and discover that political parties often use religion for the wrong purposes. Who would ever have thought that.
At times the author, Roland Merullo, strains his credulity as he invents names which sound strangely familiar to the political pundits of real life.
I'm tempted to share spoiler alert facts but I can't bring myself to do this. You have to read the book to find out whether or not Jesus winds and what happens to him. You will find yourself a bit breathless and you may indeed come closer to the Lord of 2000 years ago and the Lord of today.
I'm not sure why this book ended up in the Dollar Store. Yes, it's true...this was another Dollar Store special but I confess that I enjoyed the book very much.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
The Three Stooges
I wanted to see this movie because I've always liked the Three Stooges. I had also heard that Jim Carrey was considered for one of the parts. He, however, was noticeably absent. I wondered if the realists in today's world had also limited the kind of outrageous slapstick humor that the Stooges "patented." I was pleased that the Farrelly brothers apparently decided to pick up where the old Stooges programs left off and continued the humor for which they were "famous."
The Lindo Theater was about half full but most of the watchers were having a very good time. We couldn't remember the last time that we heard this much uproarious belly laughs. The movie was funny. There was basically no plot. OK. OK. There was a plot The stooges were left at the doorstep of the Sisters of Mercy Orphanage and grew up not being adopted--perhaps because of their stupid pranks. A prospective couple decides to adopt Moe but bring him back when he insists that Larry and Curly also be adopted. Instead, the couple adopts Teddy. Twenty five years pass and the Stooges are still in the orphanage and now have to come up with $830,000 to save the orphanage. They get involved in a plot where a lady (Sofia Vergara) is trying to kill her husband and the Stooges agree to help her out because her husband has a terminal disease. See...I told you there was no plot.
The movie also stars Chris Diamantopoulos, Sean Hayes and Will Sasso as Moe, Larry and Curly. Who? The cast of Jersey Shore are also there and their involvement is pretty funny.
OK. What did I think of the movie? My last name has 14 letters. I wouldn't give it a 14 but it was certainly better than a 7. I found myself laughing. It won't win any Emmys for anything but it will make you laugh. At the end the producers even saw fit to explain that when the Stooges use hammers and sledge hammers and similar inappropriate items to beat each other over the head, it's all a matter of sound effects and pretend tools. I guess I always knew that. I hope so. My brothers and I pretended we were doing 3 Stooges stuff but I don't recall really hitting my brother with a hammer. I'm glad for that.
So, if you have underage children that don't understand outrageous slapstick humor, don't take them. If you understand it, you might want to go. You could end up with some major belly laughs.
The Lindo Theater was about half full but most of the watchers were having a very good time. We couldn't remember the last time that we heard this much uproarious belly laughs. The movie was funny. There was basically no plot. OK. OK. There was a plot The stooges were left at the doorstep of the Sisters of Mercy Orphanage and grew up not being adopted--perhaps because of their stupid pranks. A prospective couple decides to adopt Moe but bring him back when he insists that Larry and Curly also be adopted. Instead, the couple adopts Teddy. Twenty five years pass and the Stooges are still in the orphanage and now have to come up with $830,000 to save the orphanage. They get involved in a plot where a lady (Sofia Vergara) is trying to kill her husband and the Stooges agree to help her out because her husband has a terminal disease. See...I told you there was no plot.
The movie also stars Chris Diamantopoulos, Sean Hayes and Will Sasso as Moe, Larry and Curly. Who? The cast of Jersey Shore are also there and their involvement is pretty funny.
OK. What did I think of the movie? My last name has 14 letters. I wouldn't give it a 14 but it was certainly better than a 7. I found myself laughing. It won't win any Emmys for anything but it will make you laugh. At the end the producers even saw fit to explain that when the Stooges use hammers and sledge hammers and similar inappropriate items to beat each other over the head, it's all a matter of sound effects and pretend tools. I guess I always knew that. I hope so. My brothers and I pretended we were doing 3 Stooges stuff but I don't recall really hitting my brother with a hammer. I'm glad for that.
So, if you have underage children that don't understand outrageous slapstick humor, don't take them. If you understand it, you might want to go. You could end up with some major belly laughs.
Monday, April 16, 2012
The Discomfort Zone by Jonathan Franzen
I probably shouldn't purchase audio Cd's at the Dollar Store for a dollar. Sometimes they are worth every penny or even less!
"The Discomfort Zone" by Jonathan Franzen has its moments but they are few and far between. Basically, it's a book about someone dealing with fears and depressing things. He tells of his frustrating and frustrated youth and for some reason spends page after page (minute after minute) talking endlessly about the life of Charles Schultz. There was probably a reason for that but somehow that reason escaped me.
He also spends a lot of time talking about his Christian youth fellowship and the various trials and tribulations associated with this.
Yes, I know that he wrote many fine essays and received all sorts of awards for his writing. It's one of those books that I probably would have stopped reading but since it was an audio CD I kept listening to the bitter end.
I learned a few things but, very frankly, I cannot quite remember right now what they were.
If you want to borrow it, it's yours! Free and worth every penny!
"The Discomfort Zone" by Jonathan Franzen has its moments but they are few and far between. Basically, it's a book about someone dealing with fears and depressing things. He tells of his frustrating and frustrated youth and for some reason spends page after page (minute after minute) talking endlessly about the life of Charles Schultz. There was probably a reason for that but somehow that reason escaped me.
He also spends a lot of time talking about his Christian youth fellowship and the various trials and tribulations associated with this.
Yes, I know that he wrote many fine essays and received all sorts of awards for his writing. It's one of those books that I probably would have stopped reading but since it was an audio CD I kept listening to the bitter end.
I learned a few things but, very frankly, I cannot quite remember right now what they were.
If you want to borrow it, it's yours! Free and worth every penny!
Thursday, April 12, 2012
The Age of Anxiety
This is a book review of "The Age of Anxiety" by Haynes Johnson.
I didn't "read" this book but listened to it on CD. It is a careful look at Joe McCarthy and how his red-baiting history of anti-Communism created countless problems in the 1950's as he tried to find a Communist under every rug. For some five years his crusade (which was picked up politically by many people) found most people (including journalists and senators) reluctant to check the facts or confront this demagogue.
Some politicians cynically used McCarthy for their own purposes. Most would agree that Edward R. Murrow's famous interview of McCarthy was the "beginning of the end" for this man who drove himself into alcoholism and extreme health problems.
Haynes Johnson did a pretty good job with the historical narratives but was downright offensive in the final 1/3 of his "book" as he shamelessly and arrogantly attacks George W. Bush and finds desperate comparisons with him and McCarthy. President Bush had his problems, to be sure, but the comparisons to McCarthy are strained and contrived.
I bought this book at the "Dollar Store" and I think I know why. The last part of this book was the downfall of this publication and probably the reason why it was relegated to the bargain bin.
Hey...read the first 2/3 or the book or listen to the CD but then turn it off before he starts his ranting and raving. It gets mean-spirited and arrogant. I suspect that even Bush detractors would find themselves cringing.
I didn't "read" this book but listened to it on CD. It is a careful look at Joe McCarthy and how his red-baiting history of anti-Communism created countless problems in the 1950's as he tried to find a Communist under every rug. For some five years his crusade (which was picked up politically by many people) found most people (including journalists and senators) reluctant to check the facts or confront this demagogue.
Some politicians cynically used McCarthy for their own purposes. Most would agree that Edward R. Murrow's famous interview of McCarthy was the "beginning of the end" for this man who drove himself into alcoholism and extreme health problems.
Haynes Johnson did a pretty good job with the historical narratives but was downright offensive in the final 1/3 of his "book" as he shamelessly and arrogantly attacks George W. Bush and finds desperate comparisons with him and McCarthy. President Bush had his problems, to be sure, but the comparisons to McCarthy are strained and contrived.
I bought this book at the "Dollar Store" and I think I know why. The last part of this book was the downfall of this publication and probably the reason why it was relegated to the bargain bin.
Hey...read the first 2/3 or the book or listen to the CD but then turn it off before he starts his ranting and raving. It gets mean-spirited and arrogant. I suspect that even Bush detractors would find themselves cringing.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Mirror, Mirror
Alice is always worried that I'm going to write a negative review. She wasn't sure if she wanted me to write this one about "Mirror, Mirror." But, wait a minute, I loved the movie. Funny. Witty. Unique. Unpredictable. Tongue in cheek. It was just a very nice movie. Hey, and it's not really for kids. They probably wouldn't get a lot of the subtle humor...but, then again, our children are pretty smart!
This is a comedy fantasy generally following the book by the Brothers Grimm. I was waiting for Snow White to be tempted with the poison apple. That finally happened at the end but the you will be a bit surprised about what happens in that scene.
Julia Roberts plays a negative character as the wicked stepmother (and evil witch, I guess) but her evil plots and comments make the viewer smile. Nathan Lane as her trusted servant, Brighton, is very funny and his character helps carry the movie. Lily Collins (who's Lily Collins?) plays Snow White and Armie Hammer (who's Armie Hammer?--I thought he was some old guy) plays the Prince.
The Queen's kingdom is facing bankruptcy and the sudden appearance of the Prince is of great interest to the evil queen but she must get rid of Snow White so that she can have the prince. She banishes Snow White to the forest (and an evil roaming beast) where she assumes Brighton has killed Snow White but Snow White is rescue by seven modern dwarfs. Though some politically correct individuals might object to the word "dwarf" I felt that the whole issue was handled well and with tongue-in cheek humor. These seven diminutive men quickly capture the heart of the viewer as well as the heart of Snow White.
The dwarfs teach her how to fight back against the evil queen and the kingdom is eventually rescued.
The movie viewers, we felt, were very impressed. All of the theater-goers (and place was pretty full) stayed through the interesting closing credits.
We recommend the movie. It was funny and well done.
This is a comedy fantasy generally following the book by the Brothers Grimm. I was waiting for Snow White to be tempted with the poison apple. That finally happened at the end but the you will be a bit surprised about what happens in that scene.
Julia Roberts plays a negative character as the wicked stepmother (and evil witch, I guess) but her evil plots and comments make the viewer smile. Nathan Lane as her trusted servant, Brighton, is very funny and his character helps carry the movie. Lily Collins (who's Lily Collins?) plays Snow White and Armie Hammer (who's Armie Hammer?--I thought he was some old guy) plays the Prince.
The Queen's kingdom is facing bankruptcy and the sudden appearance of the Prince is of great interest to the evil queen but she must get rid of Snow White so that she can have the prince. She banishes Snow White to the forest (and an evil roaming beast) where she assumes Brighton has killed Snow White but Snow White is rescue by seven modern dwarfs. Though some politically correct individuals might object to the word "dwarf" I felt that the whole issue was handled well and with tongue-in cheek humor. These seven diminutive men quickly capture the heart of the viewer as well as the heart of Snow White.
The dwarfs teach her how to fight back against the evil queen and the kingdom is eventually rescued.
The movie viewers, we felt, were very impressed. All of the theater-goers (and place was pretty full) stayed through the interesting closing credits.
We recommend the movie. It was funny and well done.
The Lorax
When my parents moved I had to leave the one room country school that I had attended for years. Since our move caused the enrollment to fall below the required number, the school actually ended up closing. I had to attend school in the "big city" of Waterville, Minnesota and I remember experiencing many new things, including going to the library where the librarian, Mrs. Bishop, read a Dr. Seuss story, "The Cat in the Hat." I was in fourth grade. I confess that I didn't really care for the book. For some reason, I have never cared for Dr. Seuss very much. And that describes "The Lorax," a current movie that was puzzlingly boring, preachy and certainly not memorable.
I know. I know. Many reviews praised this book and movie and its focus on environmental concerns. That part was OK and the last third of the movie did a fairly good job of reminding the viewer of environmental issues. The movie finally got a little better however, I feel that movie was generally a waste of time. I'm sorry. That's not a popular opinion but it's heartfelt.
Oh, if you want to take the children, it's OK. It certainly is harmless clean fun. It's just that I wouldn't want to see it again.
I know. I know. Many reviews praised this book and movie and its focus on environmental concerns. That part was OK and the last third of the movie did a fairly good job of reminding the viewer of environmental issues. The movie finally got a little better however, I feel that movie was generally a waste of time. I'm sorry. That's not a popular opinion but it's heartfelt.
Oh, if you want to take the children, it's OK. It certainly is harmless clean fun. It's just that I wouldn't want to see it again.
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