A Round of Interesting Blog Posts 3.

All-righty folks, here are the links to all {or most of} the interesting blog posts I've read in the past week at the various blogs I follow. Hope you enjoy them as much as I did! :)

Book reviews! I love book reviews!! Head over to Casey's blog, Writing for Christ ~ The Audience of One for this first review:
http://enjoyingthewritingcraft.blogspot.com/2011/05/beyond-borders-with-people-of-book-by.html  When you're done there, pop in at Reviews by Jane for not one but two book reviews: http://reviewsbyjane.blogspot.com/2011/05/to-win-her-heart-by-karen-witemeyer.html  http://reviewsbyjane.blogspot.com/2011/05/lightkeepers-ball-by-colleen-coble.html  Once you've read those, hop over to Lady Elenatintil's blog and read this review:
http://elenatintil.blogspot.com/2011/05/once-upon-time-world-above.html  Finished? Good, for now you can wander over to A Muse in The Fog Book Review and read this:
http://muse-in-the-fog.blogspot.com/2011/05/book-review-confessions-of-catherine-de.html  And now for the final grand review over at The Blog of a Writing Maiden:
http://awritingmaiden.blogspot.com/2011/05/in-search-of-honor-review.html

All done with awesome book reviews for the moment, let's read some good advice that makes you go, "Huh." :) Since you're already at The Blog of a Writing Maiden, stick around for this well-written post:
http://awritingmaiden.blogspot.com/2011/05/why-being-home-schooled-is-worth-it-and.html The Inkpen Authoress probably had fun writing this post on, well, writing:
http://inkpenauthoress.blogspot.com/2011/05/if-you-wrote-like-i-write.html My dear friend made a very good point in this post:
http://lettersofaskpen.blogspot.com/2011/05/fantasy-writers-little-advice-from.html The folks at Young Ladies Christian Fellowship had a grand post on politeness: http://ylcf.org/2011/05/the-curse-of-politeness/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ylcf+%28Young+Ladies+Christian+Fellowship%29

And, for a grand closing effect, head over to Unedited Photography for this post:
http://unedited-photography.blogspot.com/2011/04/crocui-take-two.html
http://theshadowofthebear.blogspot.com/2011/05/captured-by-evil-prince.html And read this lovely poem over at Strictly Speaking run by a good family friend:
http://charles-thorell.blogspot.com/2011/05/am-i-solider-of-cross.html

Have a good week and keep blogging! God bless!!

Isaiah 5:26-30.

"He will lift up a banner to the nations from afar, And will whistle to them from the end of the earth; Surely they will come with speed, swiftly.

No one will be weary or stumble among them, No one will slumber or sleep; Nor will the belt on their loins be loosed, Nor the strap of their sandals be broken;

Whose arrows are sharp, And all their bows bent; Their horses' hooves will seem like flint, And their wheels like a whirlwind.

Their roaring will be like a lion, They will roar like young lions; Yes, they will roar And lay hold of the prey; They will carry it away safely, And no one will deliver.

In that day they will roar against them Like the roaring of the sea. And if one looks to the land, Behold, darkness and sorrow; And the light is darkened by the clouds."
                                ~ Isaiah 5:26-30. NKJV

Start Here Book Review.

Title: Start Here: Doing Hard Right Where You Are.
Author: Alex and Brett Harris.
Genre: Nonfiction, Christian, Teens, Sequel, Handbook/Guidelines.
Plot: Written in the summer between their freshman and sophomore years at Patrick Henry College, Alex and Brett Harris put together a handy manual containing answers to many of the questions Rebelutionaries have been asking, as well as some inspiring and amazing stories of real teens breaking the chains of society's low expectations and doing hard things. The writing style is fun with plenty of the twins' humor laced throughout yet it successfully delivers a comprehensive sequel to their serious prequel and renews the call to join the Rebelution.
Each well organized chapter covers a different set of questions. Beginning with the simple summary of their first book, Do Hard Things, the first chapter covers the you-are-here part of the whole adventure opening before you. In order, each of the following nine chapters {all in all totaling ten chapters} talk about getting started, what to do with that great idea you've got, the side effects and challenges that you'll have to overcome, priorities, how to keep motivated in the middle of the hard thing, going against the crowd on "popular" issues that you might/should consider bad, what to do when you're finished doing a hard thing, and two last chapters that leave you inspired and ready to head out and do hard things. Two real-life stories are also included in one of the last chapters which are the remarkable stories of Ana Zimmerman who hosted a Love the Least event in her hometown of Ithaca, New York, and John Moore who, along with a team of supportive adults and willing teenagers, created the amazing film The Widow's Might which won first place in the 2009 San Antonio Independent Christian Films Festival.
Along the way, the authors also answer many such questions as: "I'm ready to get started on something; what should I do now?" "What kind of planning do I need to do before I launch this thing?" "How do I raise money for my project?" "I want God to be at the center of every hard thing I do. What does that look like?" "How do I keep my motivation for doing hard things pure?" "How do I keep up my enthusiasm?" "Can doing hard things be fun?" "What if doing hard things makes me unpopular?" At the end of the book is discussion questions and a list of one hundred hard things you can do right where you are {which is a pretty impressive list if I do say so myself!}. This book is definitely a must-read for today's teens and for those who have already read its groundbreaking prequel.
Likes/Dislikes: What can I say? From the first opening line of "Simple ideas and unbelievable dreams" I was hooked! This is a well written humorous yet serious book and fairly easy to read, not just because of the fun flowing style but also because its only 137 pages long! ;) Teens, parents, youth pastors, everyone should get a copy of this book and read it; who knows? You might be inspired to do something hard.
Rating: G-12 and up only for reading level; highly recommended for family reading!
Date Report Written: May 18, 2011.

Tower Challenge First Submission!!

                                  In My Own Little World.

                                       By Elizabeth P.

Obviously I should have known better.

   Two hundred feet below me the river swirled and plunged, sounding like a happy monster on a holiday. All around me, “my world” of forest and flowers twirled in a dance of deep green and Easter blue. I call it “my world” because the woods and creatures therein seemed to belong to me; they were my home. More specifically, the Trunk was my home.

   This was years ago. I would never think of living in a three hundred foot tree abandoned by elves in the Dark Ages unless I was young, ignorant, and immature. Which I was. Back then. Now, I flatter myself, I uphold at least the appearance of maturity.

  It was a time of pure foolishness, a time infused with childish verve. Coincidentally, the times I enjoyed in the Trunk – and roundabout – were some of the best times of my life.

  Anyway, the Trunk was big. What made it seem bigger were the various toadstools popping out sporadically from its base. Some smaller ones {some the size of large ottomans, others with roofs like round couches} made their way UP the Trunk, but they kept clear of my “living quarters” above in the branches. Have you ever imagined sleeping on blossoms at the tippy-top of some peach tree? Who knows what variety of deciduous the Trunk was, exactly – I only know there were plenty of blossoms all year round, even in winter, when they turned dark purple and black, but bloomingly magnificent – and that I not only slept on top of them, but have a garden inside a yellow one. Even the raspberries in that garden turned yellow…but I’m getting off track here. Yes, the Trunk was huge. Big. A towering – well – tower. Etched in its bark were all sorts of writings and approximations. Most of them were reminiscent of squirrels. “Mr. Chatty, is two today; Height: the same as last year” accompanied a rather intricate drawing of a father squirrel proudly brushing his tail while brandishing a piece of carrot. Eventually I met Mr. Chatty, along with most of the animals in the wood. {Some of them were hired as servants. For instance, Luna the ant-eater was an extremely frightful personage, but she proved wonderful sucking up all the red ants. All in all, I had about twenty servants, all very obliging, especially the hummingbirds. They cleaned the flowers with the butterflies. I know you men of little faith don’t believe me, but have you ever been intoxicated in the Trunk on Cleaning Day when the hummingbirds are taking advantage of all the nectar-wine and spreading it about with their quick little wings? I thought not!}

   My favorite servant was Doubtee, the most skeptical Burmese tiger this world has ever known. He helped construct my water-wheel and wind-mill, {both very useful for all sorts of things}, but too often got his claws caught on the silk scarves with which I decorated. From tree to tree those scarves fluttered and the sunlight would glimmer orange or pearly pink or turquoise. My Trunk was bouncing with colors.

   I slept in one of the blossoms. It smelled like a plum blossom, but in spring was totally white except for the turquoise stamen – one of the millions clustered at the tippy-top of the tree. These flowers were special, for instead of closing at night and opening at day, they remained unfurled for the moon and the sun constantly. That is why, in fall and winter, I moved my room to one of the lower blossoms. It can get dreadfully wet in the throat of a flower. Every morning, the sun shone in and reverberated off the walls of my room with a golden splendor. I’d stretch, then slide down the tunnel of the blossom. Once I reached the stem, beyond the sun’s light, my way was lit by the lightning bug jars which sat in little carved out spaces in the walls. Polished and gleaming, the inside of the stems was like part of a rich library or study. I had a library, in fact, but no one wants to read first the morning unless they have something important on their mind.

   There are fifty-four different ways to scream delightedly, and I hit them all on key while sliding down all four hundred twenty-two different tunnels. Not all my tunnels were closed from the light; some “halved” branches worked wonderfully as water-slides after a good spring rain.

   I needed a refreshing drink of water every morning, and what better way to reach the river than to swing there? My swing was not crude and wooden, as swings are apt to be. Nor was its rope brittle and hurtful to my little hands. Oh, no. They must have been cords of velvet holding that swing, but they were green and moss-like. The swing itself was my invention: of orange plush and firm, not an empty sack to fall into and become instantly squished. My swing had to rotate down the Trunk, beginning past the branches of my living quarters, swooping out in a wide arch, so I could view the whole forest and beyond. Way out in the distance I saw a land starkly attired in what seemed to be realism. That land always has annoyed me, and may have been the only flaw in the landscape, but I usually looked on the lake called Lily. Its waters were rainbow-hued, of course, for the sky was always that way, except for rain-storms. Then it turned completely white-gray and the lake looked like liquid snow. Anyway, once my swing reached the soft grass below, I rushed across the stepping stones by my water-mill and made for Lily. There my swift kayak carried me out to the very center, where I leaned in to drink. This idea has come to me the first day I saw Lily, but as I leaned over excitedly to dip my mouth into the waves, the whole kayak tipped over and I fell straight down to where the water turned violet. Needless to say I repeated this mistake again and again every morning for all the years I lived there. A morning swim never felt so rejuvenating, and the water, unlike the best swimming pools, did not sting my eyes. Rather, I could see even more brilliantly after diving into the soft simmering colors.

   After that, I would sun-bathe by the huge rock over-looking the river, a mad rushing torrent which I listened to while reading book after book, usually poetry about life, love, happiness, and occasionally how to make the fluffiest cake in creation. I studied all my life how to make the perfect cake, but never succeeded in Trunk, because I could never bake anything, except in my solar oven. I always forgot about cakes in that oven. I had to constantly watch, or else Furtive the hamster would sneak them to his lair underneath Trunk’s roots. I grew frustrated, Furtive grew fat, and the solar oven far too steamy. {How do you turn off a solar oven, anyway?} I contented myself with an apple for lunch and a handful of almonds from the almond tree. Lunch-time was fun, since I got to promenade past the fruit trees instructing them to retract any pokey twigs because I was about to climb up and find the perfect apple. {The only reason little children are poked by sharp twigs when they climb trees barefoot today is because they never ask for retraction.}

   All afternoon I did a variety of things, but all of them have to do with swinging and climbing and swimming and searching and exploring and daydreaming and reading and occasionally eating. None of the rabbits ever liked me because I appreciated their carrots far too much. I felt like an outcast sometimes, living all alone in Trunk without anyone. I mean, the hummingbirds cared, and the butterflies, but they couldn’t stay forever. They came, they cleaned, they left. Luna was a dear, but as I said frightful to look at. I always felt so guilty, staring from my left big toe to my right big toe while trying to carry on a conversation with her. And I never could learn the language of the river. {It just ROARED.} Doutee was the best chum a person could want, but characteristically silent. Squirrels are squirrels. They chatter, they gossip, they worry their tails off about chestnuts and acorns and their whole life is spent twitching and jumping from tree to tree. They never take naps, and die young. I must have written a hundred books, complete with illustrations, of twenty different squirrels’ families living in those woods. All at different times, of course. Finally, “it” got to be too much. What was “it” exactly?

   I don’t know. But every night as I climbed up to bed, I’d stare for a while at the hollow face of the whitest flower of all, that mystery moon, and try to figure out what was etched on its skin. Those writings proved far too complex for my weary eyes. And every night, I’d gaze out on the world, and my world was dark. There was that structure in the distance, that brown place. Evidently it wasn’t lit with lightening bugs; the lights there did not flicker, but remained steady. I wondered if it was at all like my world. If it was, then there must be one of me there, too, someone who had already learned the dull Brown language and someone who went to sleep at night and gazed up at the same hollow flower and woke up at the same time every morning and went swimming in the same brown…Oh, that poor person! I thought. It never occurred to me that more than one person would live in a place. After all, this was my place, my wood, my world, my tower, my haven of security, and everyone else must have one unique to themselves as well.

   But what a dreadful lot of security. Even if the Brown language was dull, my curiosity was suddenly hungering to know what it sounded like. I talked to myself in twenty-five different languages {not counting the woodland dialects} and I didn’t know which one was the first one I started off speaking when I first arrived at the Trunk.

   How did I arrive here, anyway?

   Things were a blur in my mind. I went to sleep and during the night rolled into one of the stamen and ended up with blue dust sprinkled throughout my hair. Without thinking I rolled down the tunnel with a shameful lack of grace and grabbed tingingly for my swing. I opened all the windows on the way down the Trunk and said hello to the butterflies and hummingbirds who were all working cheerfully and efficiently – and quietly. I started singing at the top of my lungs and instantly the squirrels’ chatter began. Faster I swung on that silly old swing, till I stood up on it and squinted my eyes.

   Two hundred feet below me the river swirled and plunged. Jumping up and down on the swing, I pushed it to the limit. Suddenly the velvety moss snapped away, and I was borne through the air – that butterfly-filled, rainbow-hued, shifting heaven of exquisite delicacy.

   I used to live in the Trunk. My home, my wood, my world. But I saw Brown in the distance. I needed to know how the distance looked like from the opposite side of the horizon. You what I discovered? There wasn’t just one person out there; there were a lot of people, but only some talked to me. Some were silent as Doutee, some squirrelish gossips. And not all of them stared up at the moon each night and wondered what life was like in the Trunk. Apparently it just looked like a rainbow to the people in Brown, {and they have a twisted foreknowledge that no one lives in rainbows.}

   Turns out only one person in Brown ever did wonder about me. His language was very hard to learn, but learn it I did. I can speak it and write it now, though heaven knows neither of us live in Brown anymore. This narrative of my past is written in Brown for your benefit. Funny thing is, we tried to visit the Trunk, just so I could show off some of my favorite things, like the kite you can actually fly on top of and the horse that can run across Lily Lake – but we couldn’t access it at all. We even tried diving through the rainbow and ended up with a nasty sunburn.

   Obviously I should’ve known better.

Lord of the Rings Music Videos.

Here are a couple lovely videos that I couldn't resist sharing with you! Enjoy! ;)



This one is my favorite!



This last one wouldn't embed so you'll have to click the direct link. :)
http://youtu.be/ZPbL91ANwPs

This one featuring our two heroes Aragorn and Legolas. ;)


This one is hilarious!


This one is really cool though the quality isn't the best and the singer has a scratchy voice. ;)

Excerpt from The Emperor of Nihon-Ja.

"Do you speak Nihon-Jan? When did you learn?"

She shrugged, feeling her pulse settle back to normal now that there was no longer any question about her accompanying the party.

"I've been studying the language for a year or so," she replied. "Mostly using the tranlations George made on his last trip there. I'm not fluent but I can get by."

Will raised both eyebrows. "Well, you learn a new thing every day," he said reflectively.

"In your case, that's no exaggeration," Halt said, completely straight-faced.

Will pursed his lips in annoyance. He'd have to learn not to give Halt openings like that, he thought. Then another question occurred to his grasshopper mind, and he turned to Evanlyn.

"How do we get there? How did you get here, by the way?"

He heard Halt's deep sigh and knew he'd done it again.

"Do you ever," the older Ranger said with great deliberation, "manage to ask just one question at a time? Or does it have to be multiple choice with you?"

Will looked at him in surprise. "Do I do that?" he asked. "Are you sure?"

Halt said nothing. He raised his hands in a "See what I mean?" gesture and appealed to the others in the room. Selethen was amused by the byplay between the two. And, since the enjoyment of this sort of obscure, trivial debate was very much part of the Arridi character, he couldn't help himself. He had to join in.

"Halt," he said, "I could be wrong, but I think you were just guilty of the same fault. I'm sure I heard you ask two questions just then."

"Thank you for pointing that out, Lord Selethen," Halt said with icy formality.

Will grinned at the Wakir, who gravely inclined his head to Halt. Then Will remembered that Evanlyn hadn't answered either of his questions.

"So how did you get here?" he reminded her.

  ~ Excerpt from Ranger's Apprentice Book 10: The Emperor of Nihon-Ja by John Flanagan.

A Round of Interesting Blog Posts 2.

Hi folks! Here are some of the blog posts that have caught my eye this past week. Enjoy!

An awesome book review from Jane Austen Reviews!

http://janeaustenreviews.blogspot.com/2011/05/in-garden-with-jane-austen-kim-wilson.html

Some interesting, helpful and practical writing tips from The Inkpen Authoress!

http://inkpenauthoress.blogspot.com/2011/05/hints-for-writing-historical-fiction.html

Another awesome book review and a cool picture from A Muse in The Fog!

http://muse-in-the-fog.blogspot.com/2011/05/masterpiece-monday.html

http://muse-in-the-fog.blogspot.com/2011/05/book-review-elizabeth-and-prince-of.html

Good piece of advice from In The Bookcase!

http://inthebookcase.blogspot.com/2011/05/set-your-own-conditions.html

An interesting rumor from Just a Trifle {I do hope it isn't the dragon!}! ;)

http://just-a-trifle.blogspot.com/2011/05/sherlock-holmes-in-middle-earth.html

Hilarious video from Book Talk and More!

http://booktalkandmore.blogspot.com/2011/05/doctor-who-hes-pirate.html

And finally, a fun writing contest from The Inkpen Authoress which I plan on entering! ;)

http://inkpenauthoress.blogspot.com/2011/05/reminder-and-prize-announced.html

http://inkpenauthoress.blogspot.com/2011/05/picture-is-worth-thousand-words-contest.html

Keep blogging folks!! God bless!!!

The Centurion’s Wife Book Review.

Title: The Centurion's Wife.

 Author: Davis Bunn and Janette Oke.

 Genre: Christian, Historical Fiction, Romance, Early Christian Period.

 Plot: Leah may be the niece of Pilate, the famous or perhaps infamous governor who had Jesus scourged and then washed his hands of His blood, but she serves as Procula's handmaid and feels tainted by her family's disgrace. Haunted by her two elder sisters' unwanted arranged marriages, Leah vows never to marry and never to trust a man. Her heart hardened yet her hands gentle and her eye quick to attend her mistress and the aging Dorit, Leah's only friend in Pilate's household, Leah is as content as can be expected. Until word reaches her that Pilate has received an offer of marriage for her from a centurion whom she has never even heard of before. Distressed, Leah carries on with her duties while all around her swarm the reports of the Prophet Jesus' death and what a good man her centurion is. With Procula's mysterious dreams and painful headaches still lingering, Leah and her mistress pack up and head back to Jerusalem where Procula sends her out to find Jesus' disciples and learn if an attack upon Rome is in question.

 What Leah, amidst all her duties and the memories of a former life locked away in her heart, doesn't know is that her centurion, Alban, has a heart as emotionally scarred as her own. Sent away from home upon his father's death, Alban remains stationed in a little corner of the dusty empire near Galilee where his main concern is keeping his men alive and dealing with those pesky raiding parties of Parathians. When his request for Leah's hand is seemingly accepted and he is summed before Pilate, Alban is nearly knocked off his feet at the idea of a Judean betrothal and the task he must undergo in order to claim Leah as his own. Now both of them are on the hunt for the truth, but what they find shakes their separate worlds to their cores.

 Likes/Dislikes: Beautifully written with a flowing, engaging plot and wonderful well drawn characters that immediately became my best friends, this book is an epic Christian look at the events surrounding the birth of Christianity. Mixed in with all the seriousness and the beauty of the setting is good clean humor among the characters that had me smiling all the way from cover to cover and the last final twist at the end brought happy tears to my eyes! Highly recommended! For additional information on this book, visit the following links: http://www.bethanyhouse.com/ME2/Audiences/dirmod.asp?sid=0477683E4046471488BD7BAC8DCFB004&nm=&type=PubCom&mod=PubComProductCatalog&mid=BF1316AF9E334B7BA1C33CB61CF48A4E&tier=3&id=752FA8200766458180F9260EA3349C4A
http://www.davisbunn.com/book/the-centurions-wife.htm

 Rating: PG-13 and up for reading level.

 Date Report Written: May 19, 2011.

 This book was provided free by the publishers in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions expressed in the above review are my own.

Schedule Announcement and Book Covers.

Yes, I have to do one of these kind of posts every now and then. If you care to read the last {and first} one I did then look for it in the archives at the bottom right hand side of your screen under December {yes, it's waaaaay at the bottom}. Now, below is my current posting schedule though it of course doesn't guarantee that I actually post regularly because I'd run out of stuff to post about very quickly if I did that. ;)

Sunday: Interesting Scripture Passage/The-Scripture-That-The-Sermon-Was-Taken-From
Wednesday: Excerpt from current book or pictures from a recently {as in the last seven days} viewed movie or television show.
Saturday: Book Review or movie review if I haven't finished my current book.

Now, this is the new posting schedule that has been bouncing around in my head for the last week or so.

Sunday: Interesting Scripture Passage, etc.
Tuesday: Links to Neat Blog Posts I've read over the past week or whatever.
Wednesday: Excerpt from current book/movie or show pictures.
Thursday: Totally Random {from poetry to short stories to odd pieces of news to uh, well I haven't really decided what to post about on Thursdays honestly. Maybe music reviews}.
Friday: Movie or television show review.
Saturday: Book review.

So, what do you think?

There was something else I was gonna mention here {and it had nothing to do with the ridiculous soundtrack I'm listening to and wondering why on earth my siblings think its hilarious!}. Hmm....Well, if I remember it anytime soon then I'll just edit this post and add it in. ;) God bless!

Scratch that, I just remembered what it was! *slaps forehead* Okay, lately I've been reading all these modern publications and have noticed that all the covers are pretty decorative so in my book reviews from now on I'll be including the cover pictures. Now, if you're wondering why I haven't done so before, it's because until recently {as in the last six or eight months} I've only read hundred year old books {and those are still the best but I can't get free review copies of them :(} and it's rather difficult to find fancy covers for my beloved old books. ;) Anyway, just thought I'd mention that.

Excerpt from The Centurion's Wife.

Linux asked the question that had hung between them since Alban had emerged from the palace. "How was your audience with Pilate?"

"So intense I am still sorting through the fray." He grinned crookedly at his companion. "Like after a battle, just as you said."

Linux stirred the fire. "You know what is an officer's best friend in battle?"

"Cunning."

It was a good answer, but Linux flicked his head in disagreement. "Cunning alone can trap you. Get a soldier into a pinch and allow him a way to escape, cunning gives him reasons to turn from warrior to coward. And too often he'll fall into the trap his enemies have set."

Alban picked up one of the flatbreads and tossed it from hand to hand until it was cooled enough to eat. "What is it, then?"

"Cunning bonded to a secret rage. A good warrior lets the fury take hold only when the heat of war surrounds him. Then he lets loose, and cunning guides his aim." Linux inspected him gravely. "You have that rage, and you have that control, and you have that cunning. That is what I think Pilate found as well."

Alban rolled a slice of the meat and a bit of the dried fruit into his bread. He found himself silenced by Linux's observations. It was not often that a man read him as well as this one had.

The soldier continued to study him. "I for one wouldn't want to come up against you in a fight, centurion."
               ~ Excerpt from The Centurion's Wife by Davis Bunn and Janette Oke.

A Round of Interesting Blog Posts.

One of the things that has been simmering away at the back of my mind for a week or two now is the thought-provoking question of how many fun things can I do with my blog? What you are now reading is the result of all that back-burner thinking. May I introduce you to the new "weekly" post in which I shall provide links to any interesting posts I come across during the week at the blogs I follow {trust me, there are quite a few blogs I follow}. So fellow Bloggers, I wish you to know that even though I don't get online every day or comment on all your posts, I still read them. And if your post is particularly interesting or thought-provoking then it might end up in a post of my own. ;)

All right, first things first. Over at my dear friend Miss Hellwig's family blog, I found this humorous and very interesting post on plant sprays: http://hellwigfamily.blogspot.com/2011/05/natural-plant-sprays.html

Over at Lady Elenatintil's blog, I found this listed in her most popular posts thing and thought it hit several good points in a well written, well thought out manner:

http://elenatintil.blogspot.com/2011/03/x-men-on-screen-hits-and-misses-and.html

Over at Miss Herringshaw's blog which I recently found was this delightful book review that had originally attracted me to her little nock in this cyberspace blogging world: http://enjoyingthewritingcraft.blogspot.com/2011/05/praying-for-your-future-husband-by.html

Over at Bloom, I read this cool post that all young men and women should read: http://www.bloomthemagazine.com/2011/05/quotations-what-godly-guy-wants-in-wife.html

Over at The Rebelution blog, I read this post promoting a neat new book that is worth looking into:

http://www.therebelution.com/blog/2011/05/uncompromising-by-hannah-farver/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rebelution+%28The+Rebelution%29

And, finally, over at Ruth's wonderful blog I found this awesome movie review:

http://booktalkandmore.blogspotthor.html

Happy reading folks! :D

The Tiphereth Trilogy Book Review.

Title: The Tiphereth Trilogy.

Author: Katie Hepner.

Genre: Christian, Allegory, Fantasy, Action/Adventure, Romance.

Plot: Aramoth, the orphaned son of Aroroth and Mayhiyel, is undergoing weapons training in the city of Thurwyn when it is attacked by Peerthigrin {savage creatures in the service of the enemy} and he is forced to relocate to the nearby city of Ewythrin with his tutor and guardian the Lady Gwynarae while Ynyth Tamam of the city of Banoch alerts the elderly king and urges union among the five cities of Basileia. The king is gravely ill and sent to Ewythrin to recover while the counsel is disbanded and Ynyth put in charge of selecting new members, but these new members refuse to unite and work together to save the kingdom from the approaching destruction. Meanwhile, Ewythrin is unexpectedly attacked and Aramoth and Gwynarae are forced to flee while an anxious Ynyth rushes to the city's relief and orders his men to defend it before coming to Aramoth and the wounded Gwynarae's aid. When the battle is over and the dust has settled, Ynyth and Gwynarae get married; Aramoth continues his training, befriends Iach who is a boy from Idyllin which was the city they fled to, and discovers the hitherto unknown fact that he has a sister named Aramiel.

Aramoth, Iach and Aramiel all first meet as young children but rapidly grow before our eyes into cheerful teenagers who obey their parents and learn new things nearly everyday. But, in the course of their everyday existence, the enemy forces gather and many battles are fought by the band of boys which Iach and Aramoth lead. Now Aramoth is the heir to the throne of Basileia and when the city of Banoch falls, Ynyth packs up his family {which includes Aramoth and Aramiel} and heads to the City of the King to inform Aramoth's grandfather of the news and once again urge union among the cities. A year later, the day before the armies are to march upon the enemy forces, the old king dies and Aramoth reluctantly assumes his rightful place as the king of Basileia at fourteen years old. He faces his first challenge when the Snozama, a large group of rebellious women who have traded spindles and cradles for swords and shields, arrive at the palace asking to fight alongside the men. When Aramoth refuses, they kidnap him and cart him off to the enemy's dark territory.

From Aramoth's capture and rescue to each battle he leads his men into, this epic trilogy will hold you on the edge of your seat till the final page is turned and the exciting conclusion is reached and the lessons learned by the characters have been summarized for our benefit. This is definitely a book you want to add to your summer reading list!

Likes/Dislikes: This book is the second by Miss Hepner and I look forward to future books by her for she certainly has a talent for spinning clever stories with sound lessons and good morals that today's society really needs to be reminded of. Now, as much as I enjoyed this book, there were a few very minor inconsistencies that kinda threw me: Aramoth's age kept changing which was natural but I don't remember nineteen plus four equalling twenty-four; and it would have been nice to have a little bit description, especially of the bad guy's forces because, when I read that the Peerthigrin have tails, I immediately pictured the lizard guys from At The Earth's Core by Edgar Rice Burroughs. ;) And when Iach is whipped, he most certainly would not be able to get up and walk to the City of the King as soon as he did so {plus his mother would definitely have stalled him on his way when she saw his bloody shirt} and he probably wouldn't have been up for smashing the Telos Zizanions when he arrived. ;) I very much enjoyed the wonderful description of the enemy: I have never read a better one in all the books I've read! And it was grand how all the loose ends were wrapped up at the end. Good job Miss Hepner! To purchase this book, check out Miss Hepner's blog: http://mariashiphrahdaltonpublications.blogspot.com/

Rating: G-10 and up for the reading level: highly recommended for family read-alouds.

Date Report Written: May 7th, 2011.

This book was provided free by the author; I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions expressed in the above review are my own.

A Call to Readers, Followers, and Book Lovers!

Hey folks! Could you pretty please take a minute of your valuable time and rank my reviews? Thanks so much!! :)

Sir Rowan and The Camerian Conquest:

http://ejlibrary.blogspot.com/2011/01/sir-rowan-and-camerian-conquest-book.html

Mine is the Night:

http://ejlibrary.blogspot.com/2011/03/mine-is-night-book-review.html

Here Burns My Candle:

http://ejlibrary.blogspot.com/2011/04/here-burns-my-candle-book-review.html

Do Hard Things:

http://ejlibrary.blogspot.com/2010/04/do-hard-things-book-review.html

Thanks so much!

100th Post and Recipe!

Guess what? This is my 100th post! Way cool; let's party!!! :D

Okay, that's enough. Now, seeing as how summer {ugh, not my favorite season!} is just around the corner, folks are gonna be out barbecuing more often and one of the more popular side-dishes for anything barbecued {aside from watermelon} is potato salad, I'm gonna give you the recipe for my famous potato salad! See, aren't I nice? ;)

What you will need:
12 to 16 good sized red potatoes. Brown potatoes will work too but they tend to fall apart during the cooking process. You can also vary the amount of spuds; my family is rather large and everyone has large appetites so. . . :)
3 to 6 hard boiled eggs.
1 tub of sour cream {trust me on this one}.
2 sticks of celery, minced {or at least chopped into small pieces}.
1/2 red onion, finely chopped.
1 large pickle or 6 small pickles {depending on how much you like pickles that is}.

Now, the above ingredients are the basics. The ingredients below are optional; actually, everything aside from the first three items are optional.

1 can of black or green olives.
12 to 24 pickled green olives {you know, those things sitting at the bottom of your martini glass?}
1 carrot, finely chopped.
1/3 to 1/2 cup of pickled peppers or fresh peppers {the equivalent of one half of a bell pepper}, chopped of course.
I suppose you could put mushrooms in it but I never have.
Some apple cider vinegar {I'll explain in a minute}.
Salt and black pepper.

Step 1: Gently scrub the potatoes; red potatoes have a thinner skin than brown potatoes so you don't need to peel them. Besides, the skin is the healthy part of the spud anyway. Tip: to eliminate any bitter flavors, scrub out or remove the eyes on the spuds. Place the clean potatoes in a pot of boiling water {add a dash of salt to the water before you stick the spuds in for flavor} and boil until a fork is easily inserted into the middle of the potato. Remove, drain, rinse under cold water and let cool while you get the eggs boiling.

Step 2: While the spuds cool and the eggs slowly boil {which they should do for about fifteen to twenty minutes or so}, get out a sharp chopping knife, a cutting board and a large bowl {like, very large!}. Chop up the celery, carrot and onion first; put these into the bowl and then pour a little of the vinegar over them. This is a trick I learned from my mom: the celery and other veggies will soak up the vinegar and when you eat them later, they'll be more flavorful. Okay, once those are in, chop up and add in the olives, peppers, pickles and such.

Step 3: The eggs should be finished boiling about now so drain and rinse them with cold water before you move onto the potatoes, which you will chop up and add to the vegetables. Peel the eggs {I advised rinsing them off once after you've gotten rid of the shells} and then either chop into small pieces or use one of those handy-dandy things that slice the eggs with wire. What are those things called anyway?? Well, when you've all the ingredients, sprinkle with salt and pepper then dump the entire tub of sour cream into the mix and thoroughly combine the ingredients. Add a dash of salt and pepper to your tastes and serve with the rest of the meal.

See, wasn't that easy? :) Typically takes two to three hours from start {scrubbing the spuds} to finish {adding in the sour cream}, and serves oh, ten people depending on how much you actually made. A sixteen-potato salad typically serves my family of seven for two days after the main meal it was made for. We often have leftovers for breakfast and lunch around my house. ;) Enjoy!!