In The Pages of a Book Poem.

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In the pages of a book

With just a look,

I can go anywhere

That I dare.

I have been to Rome

When Nero was on the throne,

I‘ve been to Sherwood

With Robin Hood.

I‘ve been in France

During a bloody dance,

I‘ve met Richard Lionheart

And Queen Elizabeth, struck by Cupid‘s dart.

I‘ve sailed with Sir Francis Drake

To San Francisco in his wake,

I‘ve come across the sea

When Pilgrims flee.

I met General Washington

When the war was won,

I‘ve discovered gold

And slept in the cold.

I have met talking beasts,

While attending great feasts,
I‘ve flown on spaceships,

And felt the sting of whips.

I’ve met Emma Woodhouse,

And Christopher Churchmouse,

I‘ve sailed up the Nile,

Studying Egypt the while.

I‘ve helped solve baffling crimes,

And have torn down pagan shrines,

I‘ve made many good friends,

Some whose tales have no ends.

I‘ve fallen in love
And flown high above,
I‘ve met heroes of old
And read letters in gold.

I‘ve been to worlds unknown
And walked on lands not owned,

I‘ve freed slaves

And gone down caves.

I‘ve been many people and things,
And met many people, creatures and things,

I‘ve been to the center of the earth,

And discovered much and nothing of worth.

All this and more
Without opening the front door,

I have done

And much experience I’ve won.

I can go anywhere

That I dare,

In the pages of a book

And all I have to do is look.

Prince Caspian Book Review.

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Title: Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia.

Author: C.S. Lewis.

Gene: Classic, Christian Fantasy.

Plot: Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy are all sitting on a bench on the railway platform waiting for the two trains to come and whisk them off to their separate schools for the new term when quite unexpectedly they are pulled from this world into the world of Narnia via Susan’s lost magic horn that someone had blown. It takes them some little time to figure out that they are really in Narnia again and that hundreds of years have passed since their last visit, thus explaining why their old castle Cair Paravel is in ruins and stands on a peninsula with a man-made channel separating it from the mainland that hadn’t been there last time. The siblings do some exploring and save the life of a Red Dwarf named Trumpkin who, after a meal of fresh fish and apples, tells them all about a fellow named Prince Caspian. The youthful leader of the Old Narnians is the son of Caspian the Ninth {who is dead} and nephew of Miraz who rules as king over the oppressed land. When Caspian was a small boy he learned the hard way that all the tales he was so fond of about Dryads, Dwarves, Talking Beasts, the two kings and two queens of old {the children} and Aslan were hated and even feared by his uncle who sent his nurse away as punishment for telling Caspian all the stories and told the boy he was to have a tutor. Doctor Cornelius proves a great friend and on moonlight nights at the top of the abandoned tower he tells Caspian about all the true history of Narnia which his uncle is trying to have rewritten and forgotten, all of it deals with the above creatures of old. But their contented state doesn’t last long for some years later Caspian’s aunt gives birth to a son and on the night of his birth Caspian flees for his life from his uncle’s castle and manages to knock himself out. He is taken in by two dwarves {Trumpkin and Nikabrik} and a talking badger named Trufflehunter who introduce him to lots of other Old Narnians who all agree to band together and drive the Telmarines out of Narnia for good.

After the first battle proves a disaster the leaders of the ragtag army decide on a backup plan and send Trumpkin off to the ruined castle several hours in advance before Caspian blows Susan’s horn, calling for aid in their most desperate hour. When this tale is concluded the children and Trumpkin spend a day in preparation before setting off to join Caspian, they get very lost but Aslan appears in the nick of time and leads them to their destination, then the party separates. The girls go with Aslan and wander across the nearby countryside with all the myths of that land, bringing joy to the sad inhabitants who live there and undoing all of Miraz’s work of modernizing and changing Narnia; the boys and Trumpkin arrive just in time to help dispatch a hag, a werewolf and Nikabrik before those three kill Caspian, Trufflehunter and Cornelius when the counsel gets out of hand. Peter then does what no one else had yet thought of and sends a challenge of single combat to Miraz who {rather surprisingly} accepts it; the combat is fierce and Peter is injured in the wrist before Miraz trips and is stabbed in the back by one of his own generals. A full blown battle then brakes out and the Narnians gain the upper hand only when the Telmarines flee and find that their wonderful bridge is gone; the girls and Aslan arrive just in time to see the surrounded Telmarines give up. The Old Narnians celebrate their victory with a Narnian party and the next day Aslan makes a door in the air and sends the four children back home to their school term, with more fond memories of Narnia.

Likes/Dislikes: This is the fourth book in The Chronicles of Narnia and magic is portrayed as a good thing which many Christians might disagree with, as the book is about regaining a stolen throne there are a couple battles and battles usually equal wounds but no detail is given. Highly recommended as a family read-aloud.

Date Report Written: February 19^th, 2010.

Redo: Pride and Prejudice Book Review.

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Title: Pride and Prejudice.
Author: Jane Austen.
Gene: Classic, Romance, Drama, Comedy.
Plot: "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." Thus begins one of the finest romantic novels in classical literature and which everyone should have a copy of, or at least, everyone who still cares for good books in our fast-paced modern-day world of electronic gadgets.
Mrs. Bennet, having her heart set on getting all five of her daughters married off to wealthy men, fairly jumps at the news that "Netherfield is taken by a young man of large fortune" and promptly tries her best to get her peaceful and less-enthusiastic-on-the-subject husband Mr. Bennet to visit the young gentleman by name of Mr. Bingley. Unbeknown to his wife Mr. Bennet does make that visit of his own accord and two weeks later his five daughters meet him at a local ball, they also meet his two sisters Mrs. Hurst and Miss Bingley in addition to his brother in-law Mr. Hurts and his best friend Mr. Darcy. Bingley is instantly liked and enjoys himself greatly at the ball while Darcy dances only twice and earns the dislike of everyone present, especially that of the Bennet family for he slighted Elizabeth Bennet in saying to his friend that she "is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me." Bingley of course skipped off to dance again while Elizabeth, who'd overheard the conversation, makes fun of it with her friends.
So begins the exciting drama of this classic tale. Jane Bennet and Mr. Bingley fall in love with each other almost immediately after Jane stays at Netherfield for three days with her sister while she has a cold. The next major event is the arrival of Mr. Bennet's clergyman cousin Mr. Collins who is looking for a wife {and who also will inherit Longbourn upon Mr. Bennet's death}. During Mr. Collins' visit the girls and he all walk to town one day and meet the dashing Mr. Wickham who charms everyone wherever he goes, by chance the merry group meets with Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth comes to suspect that there is history between Mr. Darcy and their new friend but already disliking Mr. Darcy she doesn't ask him about it. Instead Mr. Wickham of his own accord spins her a fine tale of how Mr. Darcy wronged him which seems to seal poor Darcy's fate in her eyes. Shortly after this Mr. Collins proposes to Elizabeth and is politely but firmly refused, he then bounces over and proposes to her best friend Charlotte Lucas who promptly accepts him. After the wedding some time later the Bingley group leaves for London and after Christmas Jane goes there to stay with her aunt and uncle Gardener for a change of scenery {she's heartbroken at this point}. In March after an uneventful January and February Elizabeth goes to visit the Collins couple and while there she meets Mr. Darcy's rich old aunt Catherine de Bourgh, her sickly daughter and his cousin Colonel Fitzwilliam who accompanies Mr. Darcy when he comes to visit his aunt at the same time that Elizabeth is paying her own visit. When both visits are drawing to a close Darcy takes Elizabeth by surprise when she's off her guard and proposes to her, giving the classic line: "In vain have I struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you." Still feeling the effects of Mr. Wickham's charmed tales, Elizabeth refuses him and the next day regrets her hasty and hurtful words when he tells her {in a letter} the truth concerning his dealings with Mr. Wickham and exposes his story as a lie.
Her visit complete, Elizabeth returns home for a short time then accompanies her aunt and uncle Gardener on a visit to Derbyshire after they drop their children and Jane off at Longbourn, the youngest Bennet girl named Lydia is also absent from home at this time as she went with a friend to Brighton where the local militia had gone. About mid-visit Elizabeth and her relations call at Pemberly and get a tour of Mr. Darcy's fine mansion of a house, after the housekeeper hands them over to the head gardener to get a tour of the grounds Mr. Darcy himself suddenly returns home a day ahead of schedule and despite being very surprised at finding them there he shows them around his grounds and disproves the rumors bouncing around that he's very proud. Elizabeth is very embarrassed at being caught visiting his house but her embarrassment wears off and is replaced by wonderment in his change of manner. Mr. Darcy introduces his sister to the visiting group the next day and Mr. Bingley shows Elizabeth that he's still in love with Jane by asking about her but the pleasant time is ruined when word some that Lydia has eloped with Mr. Wickham! Elizabeth and her relations rush home and while Mr. Gardener joins Mr. Bennet in searching London for the missing wayward girl Elizabeth does her best to help Jane in comforting their mother.
Lydia is found and Mr. Wickham marries her which satisfies almost everyone concerned and Elizabeth gets a most surprising visit from Lady Catherine de Bourgh just after Bingley finely proposes to Jane but this is as much of the tale as I care to tell you of for to spoil this one treasure for someone who has never read the book or seen the movie would be terrible! Therefore I leave you to get acquainted with the amusing Bennet family, their varying relations and their comical suitors on your own.
Likes/Dislikes: This is, in it's own way, a fast-paced novel though certainly not an easy-read and yet, it sometimes seems as though time stops when you read it and you are allowed to live in another place and time with good friends for perhaps the most eventful year of their busy lives. It's a very good book and from cover to cover, time and again there exists not its equal in all the wide world of literature, both classical and contemporary.
Rating: PG-12 and up mainly because younger readers might have a hard time with the big words and the complex plot. Highly recommended!
Date Report Written: January 21, 2010.

The Last Battle Book Review.

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Title: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Last Battle.

Author: C. S. Lewis.

Gene: Christian Fantasy, Classic.

Plot: My family’s paperback copy of this classic book is well worn out from having been read by myself so many times. The first chapter introduces us to a cunning ape named Shift and a loveable, not very bright donkey named Puzzle. They live far up west beyond Lantern Waste near the great Caldron Pool; they’re walking beside this pool one day in early spring when Shift spots something floating in the water and when Puzzle retrieves it, he discovers it to be a lion-skin which Shift, ever crafty and plotting, makes into a coat for Puzzle and talks him into pretending to be Aslan, the Great Lion. Thus, a simple walk round the swirling Pool on that fateful day sets in motion a string of events that will rock Narnia to it’s core. Three weeks later the last of the kings of Narnia is sitting out front of his hunting lodge with his best friend Jewel, the unicorn, standing nearby and they are discussing the rumor of Aslan’s return when Roonwit, the centaur, rides up in a great hurry and passionately argues against the rumors in an attempt to warn King Tirian saying, “The stars never lie, but Men and Beasts do. If Aslan were really coming to Narnia the sky would have foretold it.”

Tirian’s belief in the rumors is shattered and replaced by anger that only goes when a Dryad wanders into the little clearing begging justice from the king just minutes before she vanishes as her tree, miles away in Lantern Waste, is cut down. Acting rashly in his anger Tirian sends Roonwit off for reinforcements and sets off toward that ancient wood with Jewel and once there they kill two Calormenes who’re beating one of Narnia’s Talking Horses. His anger suddenly cooling, Tirian and Jewel surrender to the other Calormenes and are taken before an ape who is none other than Shift himself. They watch as he brainwashes the poor, distressed Narnians assembled in the clearing around him with a false lie that Aslan and the horrid god Tash are the same person. When Tirian can take it no longer he bursts out and calls the ape a liar but gets no further for he is struck in the mouth and then tied to a tree a good distance away then left alone.

That night, Tirian ponders the lives of the kings who’d come before him, eventually calling out to Aslan for aid and “immediately he was plunged into a dream {if it was a dream} more vivid than any he had had in his life.” He sees the Seven Friends of Narnia gathered round a table after their meal but vanishes before he can figure out who they are or why he can’t seem to speak to them. He wakes suddenly the next morning, wet with dew, cold and very stiff, several seconds later and he is unexpectedly joined by the youngest of the assembled seven who help him get away to a tower of safety. Along the way he learns that they are Jill Pole and Eustace Scrubb, who’ve been to Narnia before during the time of King Rilian, from whom Tirian is seventh in descent.

Armed and disguised as Calormenes they set out again later that night to rescue Jewel and return to the tower very late with not only the unicorn, but also Poggin the Dwarf and good old Puzzle. It is decided late next morning to try and meet Roonwit and the reinforcements he’s bringing but they haven’t gone far before they meet Farsight the eagle who brings them ill tidings of Cair Paravel’s capture and of Roonwit’s death. The seven companions are left without a choice and wait behind the stable the rest of the afternoon before night comes and they witness Shift strengthening his lies and distressing the poor Narnians even more before they leap out and declare war upon the Calormenes and Shift, gaining the dogs, the bear, the boar and the little forest creatures to their side. Two skirmishes take place and when their number has been reduced to six reinforcements on the enemy’s side arrive and “then the last battle of the last King of Narnia began.” Through the dark door of the stable they are all one by one cast in, with Tirian going last of all only to find himself not in a horrid dark place but in a bright, sunny meadow with trees nearby, grass underfoot and blue sky overhead.

He meets the Seven Friends of Narnia again and is this time properly introduced to Digory and Polly who were at the dawn of Narnia, Peter, Edmund and Lucy who reigned as kings and queen over Narnia and of course his two companions Jill and Eustace. Aslan joins them and they watch as he judges the Narnians, some of whom enter in at the door while others fade into his great shadow, and they see all the s tars fall from the sky and enter in the door also, the sun is put out and Peter, High King of Narnia, shuts and locks the door forever on a frozen wasteland that was once Narnia. Aslan calls them to come further up and further in and joining many of their friends who’d come through the door, the whole party follows him, though not at his rapid pace of course. And on the journey they figure out that they are in Aslan’s country, which knowledge is confirmed when they come to a walled garden, out of which comes all the old heroes of that land. Reepicheep the valiant mouse, Tirian’s father, Puddleglum the Marshwiggle, King Rilian, Caspian the Seafarer and his bride, Fledge, Trumpkin the Dwarf, Cor of Archenland and his family, Bree and Hwin the Talking Horses, the two good Beavers and Tumnus the Faun. And then Aslan relieves the Seven’s fear of being sent back to England, for there was a railway accident and they can’t go back but instead live happily in that land’s version of heaven forever.

And now I leave you with the last paragraph in the book, which has always been a personal favorite. “And for us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.”

Likes/Dislikes: This is the seventh and last book in The Chronicles of Narnia and deals with death but in such a way that it doesn’t seem like death. It’s a very good book though Tirian has a hot temper toward the beginning and there is the appearance of Tash, the pagan god of the Calormenes that might unnerve very little children {or become extremely interesting to them as he did to my youngest brother}.

Rating: G-all ages.

Date Report Written: February 12^th, 2010.

Chocolate Revel Bars.

To make our family favorite treat, follow the recipe below. :)

3 cups rolled oats.
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour.
1 teaspoon baking soda.
1 teaspoon salt.
1 cup butter {we never use margarine but you can}.
2 cups brown sugar {downsize half a cup or more if that's too much, we usually do}.
2 eggs.
4 teaspoons vanilla extract.
1 14-ounce {1 1/3 cups} sweetened condensed milk {now you know why we downsize the sugar}.
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate pieces {known as chips at our house}.
2 tablespoons butter.
1/2 cup chopped walnuts {we sometimes don't have these on hand}.

Now there are two ways to make this: you can make it like the recipe says or you can make it like a cookie which is how I tend to make everything {DON'T make a cake like a cookie, it doesn't turn out right}. The recipe says to combine the dry ingredients {oats, flour, soda and salt} into a bowl while in a different bowl beat the cup of butter for 30 seconds then add the eggs and 2 teaspoons of vanilla, beat well. Stir in the dry stuff and mix till combined then in a saucepan heat together the condensed milk, the chocolate, 2 tablespoons butter and half a teaspoon over low heat, stirring till smooth then remove form the heat and add in the walnuts and remaining 2 teaspoons of vanilla. Right about here is when we turn our oven on at 350 degrees {remember to check it for lost toys and packages of sugar set in there to dry out}. Pat two thirds of the oat mixture into the bottom of an ungreased 15x10x1-inch baking pan {or the biggest you got, also try sticking a piece of parchment paper down, works great!} then spread the chocolate mixture over that and dot remaining oat mixture over that {its not suppose to cover all the chocolate up so don't panic}. Stick it in the warm oven for 25 to 30 minutes then cool on a wire rack and cut into bars {note: the oat mixture should be kinda golden-brown on top like a cookie when it's done}. The recipe says it makes 72 pieces but that's not the case at our house as it never gets cut evenly. Who's counting anyway? :) Enjoy!!
Note: If you use dark chocolate pieces then it'll be really chocolaty and it might not do to give any to younger siblings or children right before bedtime or in the mornings before breakfast. :)

Out on the Pampas Book Review.

Title: Out on the Pampas.
Author: G. A. Henty.
Gene: Historical Fiction, Action/Adventure, Classic.
Plot: This book opens with a conversation between Mr. Frank Hardy and his wife Clara concerning their sons Charley {age fifteen} and Hubert {age fourteen} and what to do about a profession for them as they get older. Mr. Hardy spent several years as a young man roughing it in America and therefore it comes as no surprise to us or his wife that he suggests the family emigrate to the Argentine Republic; his wife, being a woman, is loath to go but after some discussion in private between the two it is decided that this would be the best course for both their two sons and their two daughters, Maud {age twelve} and Ethel {age eleven}. At breakfast shortly after this decision is made Mr. Hardy announces it to their children who react in rather amusing fashion, or at least the boys do as they promptly say how they can’t wait to join in an Indian fight, the girls are more subdued and quietly expression their willingness to work hard in their new home.
Calming the children {and Hubert’s intense excitement} Mr. Hardy runs through the list of preparatory work they’ve got to do before they can leave in eight to nine months’ time and most of this is directed at the boys who, we learn, are to cease studying Latin and take up Spanish instead while also learning carpentering, gardening, farming, riding and shooting while Mrs. Hardy tells the girls they are to give up piano and study Spanish, riding, housekeeping and cooking, later on they also learn to manage a dairy and a poultry yard. A year goes swiftly by in which the family becomes fluent at Spanish and gain new skills while the boys discover that they’re stronger than several schoolfellows one day from all the hard work they’ve been doing. The family sells most of their furniture and close up the house before taking a ship across the sea to South America {the children are seasick during the voyage unfortunately}.
Upon arriving they stay at an old friend of theirs who’d emigrated before Hubert had been born and, leaving Mrs. Hardy and her girls with Mr. Thompson and his family, Mr. Hardy and his sons travel ahead to the plot of land they intend to settle upon and meet with Mr. Percy who is a friend of Mr. Thompson’s and who has gone ahead and rounded up some hired hands, including an American named Seth who grows fond of the children before heading back to the States. Galloping ahead of the others Charley takes a tumble when his horse steps into an armadillo hole just as his father warns him to be careful, he is unharmed but gets a good lesson about what happens to people when they’re still self-confident.
Work on the young farm begins right away and when it’s fairly underway Mr. Hardy heads into town to get more wood and bring up the livestock, leaving his boys in charge in his absence and they, with the hired hands, set to work in making bricks with which they shall build the farmhouse and Charley has a narrow escape from being bitten by a very poisonous snake that Hubert kills just before their father comes back. Construction of the house is begun and swiftly got through after this and when it is finished Mr. Hardy leaves to bring his wife and daughters {who’ve learned how to manage a dairy in his absence} up while his boys build sturdy furniture to fill the house with, save for bedsteads as Mr. Hardy brings back iron bedsteads from town. The family comfortably settles down in their new home and begin to cultivate the land and raise poultry and livestock; the girls have charge of the former though are forced to bring in their brothers to reduce the number of skunks who’re messing around in the chicken coops while the boys and the hired hands have charge of the livestock. The boys also take care of the hunting though are joined in this by their sisters after their father teaches them to shoot and the girls get a fine dairy up and running.
Visits with their neighbors are recounted and we’re introduced to young Mr. Cooper, an Englishman, who lives practically next door with two other young Englishmen, all of who become great friends of the Hardy children, but also during this time preparations for a possible Indian attack are made and just in time too for two weeks later an actual attack takes place. The Indians swoop down and kill two hired hands before riding off with all the livestock. Mr. Hardy was visiting the neighbors but gets home not half an hour after this happens and rides out after the Indians with his sons in hopes of recovering their stolen property. They succeed in dramatic style that rather awes their neighbors and hired hands when they return with the livestock. A calm then follows in which the Hardy family works hard at their rapidly growing farm and take in a young friend from England who wants to learn the trade, all this time they’ve been in their new home for two years and the change in the children is very noticeable and dramatic. Another Indian attack is recounted in which Hubert barely escapes with his life while Maud and Ethel shoot two Indians hot on his tail, Charley gets the third and then the family defends their strongly fortified home from a full-blown attack. Three wounded Indians are found the next day and are nursed back to health, this act of kindness earns them those Indians’ friendship for the rest of their stay in South America.
Two more years pass with no Indian attacks and more new neighbors arriving; a trip home to England is planned for Mrs. Hardy and the girls and Mr. Hardy is surprised to learn that Mr. Cooper {soon to return to England himself} loves his seventeen year old daughter Maud who returns the affection. The planned trip and everything else is put on hold indefinitely shortly after Mr. Cooper leaves by a surprise attack upon a neighbor’s farm where Ethel is visiting and Ethel is captured by the Indians. A rescue party is promptly gathered together which, a day after setting out, has to fight off a fire intentionally set by the Indians to throw them off the trail but one of the Indians who they befriended leaves an arrow and a piece of Ethel’s dress behind, pointing them in the right direction and in fine style characteristic to Henty’s novels the girl is rescued and taken back home, the Indians never attack the settlers again after that. The Hardy women are then sent home to England and two years later Mr. Hardy joins them, leaving his twenty-something sons in charge of the thriving farm. A year or so later after all the grown-up Hardy children have married their respective spouses the farm is divided up and sold, the Hardy children all settle down in England and Mr. and Mrs. Hardy amuse their many grandchildren with tales “of how their fathers or mothers fought the Indians on the pampas of South America.”
Likes/Dislikes: This is a very good book and though it doesn’t tell of a major {or minor} historical battle as many of Mr. Henty’s other books do, it does give an accurate account of emigration in that time period. I should mention that blood is mentioned in the fights and two Indians are described as having their brains blow out by the furious Hardy boys when their father is temporally unconscious but beyond this nothing inappropriate is to be found in this book.
Rating: PG-12 and up mainly because of the higher reading level.
Date Report Written: January 29, 2010.