August 27, 2007
If you’re feeling slightly bereft from the ending of the Harry Potter series there is good news: His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman. Apparently this series has been around for some time now, so it’s possible you’ve already read them (in which case I’m very sorry you can’t enjoy them again for the first time), but if you haven’t you need to.
While ostensibly a series for children, this set of novels is more appropriately enjoyed by adults who can fully appreciate all of the innuendos and philosophical elements the novel weaves into an exciting adventure. The stories follow an eleven year old girl, Lyra, from a world unlike our own who gets caught up in the theological and political debates of her time. While the underlying premise for the series is a war on The Almighty, the grist of the story is an adventure through the eyes of a young girl as she travels through multiple worlds and plays her part in fate.
Adam and I listened to all three books on our drive out west and they were our saving grace on multiple 12 hour days in the car. Like Harry Potter, which is more enjoyably listened to the first time around, the audio recordings of this trilogy are well worth the time it takes to listen rather than read. They are narrated by the author himself and read by a whole cast of characters. They are a delight.
And, if you need further incentive to read them, the movie of the first book, The Golden Compass, is coming out in December - so hop to …
Posted in reviews by Sarah 
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August 26, 2007
Well, after a busy summer of packing, moving, unpacking, adjusting, CPEing, working, and adjusting some more, we decided what better way to spend our two weeks of vacation than in a car driving across the country?? What could be better?
Clearly many things we discovered after the first of many 12 hour days, but we were on a schedule, so while we whined and complained, grumbled and moaned, we drove on. For the third, and perhaps final, year in a row we made a vacation out of the fact that Adam has to be in Idaho at the end of every summer to meeting with his Presbytery about ordination. This year, rather than flying, we decided to be frugal and drive ourselves out to Idaho staying with family (and some lovely motel folk) along the way. Rather than taking our time meandering across the mid-section of our lovely country, however, we booked it in order to have a few days to spend at Yellowstone, a few days in Idaho, and a day in Missoula. While the 12 hour days were not in any way enjoyable, I’m glad we did it that way so we at least had some time out of the car and some time in places we enjoy being.
All in all it was a decent trip given the circumstances. The weather held up well for us, the forest fires kindly stayed out of our way most of the time, and we saw some very cool wildlife at Yellowstone (the orange moose above was actually tame, not wild, and in Wisconsin not Wyoming, so that’s not a good example, but who can resist an orange moose? Clearly not Adam). Probably not a trip to do again at the end of an already stressful summer, but hindsight is 20/20 and far more comfortable now that my butt is comfortably planted on the couch and not in the car.
Posted in life, marriage by Sarah 1 Comment »
August 25, 2007
Disgrace by J. M. Coetzee was a surprising book for me. I read about it first in the New York Times Book Review section and probably never would have bought it myself, but added it to my wishlist so I could get it from the library some day. Adam bought it for me shortly thereafter when he ordered some books from Amazon.
I’m not sure exactly what to say about the book except that I liked it and (again) I was surprised I liked it. The story revolves around a divorced professor in his 50s who lives in South Africa post-Apartheid. His character borders on being incredibly unlikeable, which always kills a book for me, but manages to stay in your good graces despite his seeming apathy and continual fall into disgrace.
It isn’t a book that resolves itself or leaves you feeling that things are as they should be, but it is a book you will finish - even if you put it down once or twice along the way.
Posted in reviews by Sarah 1 Comment »
August 9, 2007
Part of my birthday present involved driving four hours to this bookstore in Vermont. You, like Adam, might think that four hours is a long way to drive for a bookstore, but that only means that you, like Adam, have never been to this bookstore because it is so worth four hours in the car.
Anyway, I spent most of the two and half hours we spent in the bookstore writing down titles for books I wanted to read. You can see them here (along with others), but I did allow myself part of my birthday money to buy a few books. Here If You Need Me by Kate Braestrup was one of the five books (out of thousands) that won a lucky space in my bag at the end of the day.
It is a short memoir and it reads quickly. At first I thought it was just so-so: definitely an interesting story (a mother of four goes to seminary and becomes a chaplain for Maine search and rescue missions after her husband dies in a car accident - ministry had been his retirement plan), but a bit cliche in the writing. But, 3/4 of the way through either it got better or I stopped noticing. Anyway, I liked it (didn’t love it), but would recommend reading a library copy. She has some interesting thoughts on faith and some profound sentences. All in all, an enjoyable book and, like I said, an incredible story underneath it all.
Posted in religion, reviews by Sarah No Comments »
July 25, 2007
Well. It’s true that I am working a no-brainer job in an office this summer that I could have done without either of the two degrees I’ve worked so hard for; but do not despair, I have very successful friends, including Jina, who is currently writing for Christian Science Monitor. And because bragging is nothing without data, here’s the beginning of one of her articles …
Cafe confessions: Do they think we can’t hear?
an article by my friend Jina Moore in The Christian Science Monitor
“When George Washington was 16, he copied out 110 “Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior” from a list the Jesuits had crafted in the 16th century. Many of the rules are irrelevant or obvious in our modern world, admonishing us not to spit into fires or run around half-naked. But one stands out: “Tell not your dreams but to your intimate friend.”
By this standard, I, as an unintentional eavesdropper, am the intimate friend of dozens of people I have never met. On my commute to work, on my walk from the office to lunch, in the cafe near my apartment, people dish. Girlfriends, husbands, husbands’ girlfriends, contracts, health problems, fights. Public, it seems, is the new private.
In fact, very little of our public space sounds the same as it did even 20 years ago. Once upon a time – the memory of which splits Generation X from Y – people walked down the street in relative silence, sans cellphones. Today, we’ve lost our “inside” voices. We meet lawyers, arbitrate divorces, interview for jobs, and strategize about firing our subordinates in places full of witnesses with good hearing. What, Washington might ask, are we thinking?”
Want to read the rest? Of course you do. So click here.
Posted in life by Sarah 4 Comments »
July 24, 2007
It is finished. Sadly. Though appropriately I suppose - good things can’t go on forever or they stop being good. Right? Right.
Well, I won the bet and finished the first six Harry Potter books well before the seventh book came out. The terms of the bet turned out to be Adam cleaning up from dinner one night AND, more importantly, going to Barnes and Noble on Saturday morning to buy me the seventh book when we found out that UPS, who was scheduled to deliver the book, does not deliver on Saturdays. And, indeed, I finished the book at 11pm on Saturday and the book I pre-ordered did not show up until Monday afternoon - so it was a good bet. So we have two copies, one we will be returning to Barnes and Noble and the Amazon copy we got for free since they did not live up to their promise to deliver the day of.
I can’t say much about the book yet since Adam hasn’t finished it. But I will say that I liked it. I liked the ending. I’m disappointed it didn’t have any twists, but it was satisfying just the same. Definitely a great series and a good ending.
Posted in reviews by Sarah 6 Comments »
July 19, 2007
(I am going to talk about the movie in this post (duh) so if you don’t want to know what happens in the movie; which IS slightly different at points than what happens in the book, I would not read any further)
Initial disclaimer: I have yet to like any Harry Potter movie when it is first released; yet, I own the first three and will buy the rest eventually.
That said. I didn’t like the movie and I am sorely disappointed. I finished re-reading the first six Harry Potter books two nights ago and was very much looking forward to seeing the movie as a hold over until the final book arrives (hopefully Saturday; as a side note, I’m starting to regret ordering it from Amazon because now I want to go buy one at midnight and start reading it). But I didn’t like it.
I’m sure I annoyed the crap out of Adam since I sat through the whole movie sighing and pointing out what wasn’t in the book, but come on! I get that you cannot put everything in a book that long into a reasonably timed movie - I am resigned that movies of books will always be forced to leave parts out; resigned, however, does not mean pleased - but if you are cutting out, why add things in that aren’t there to begin with?? Why not use that space to put in what was in the book?
I am willing to be corrected here since I did re-read the books rather quickly. But I have no recollection of Umbridge interrogating students at random; and I know the whole DA did not have detention together; AND Cho did not turn them in!!!
Aside from my annoyance at add-ins and deletions, my major beefs with the movie are these:
- There is no balance in the movie between light and dark. The whole of the movie is dark. I recognize that there are dark aspects to the series, and I am glad the movies show those, but there are also warm/cheery sections in the book. Hogwarts is almost always a cheery place, especially the dormitories and Dumbledore’s office. The movie showed none of this - Hogwarts was as dark and dreary as everything else (and where was the enchanted ceiling? It’s my favorite part).
- Too much Umbridge. I grant you that the character of Dolores Umbridge plays a major role in this book, but she was the whole of the movie. Where was the quidditch, the ghosts, the lessons other than Defense Against the Dark Arts? I think we could have done with a little less Umbridge and a little more of everything else.
- The acting. I think Daniel Radcliffe is great and I think he was great in the movie; I think Rupert Grint (Ron) was good as well in the few scenes where he actually talked or acted at all. I thought Michael Gambon (Dumbledore) was an inspired choice to step in for Richard Harris, who was perfect for the role; but, in this movie (perhaps because of the plot) he brought to mind Lord of the Rings a little too frequently and I wished they had used someone different (granted I also found the scene between Dumbledore and Voldemort in the Ministry of Magic quite Lord of the Rings -esque). Finally, I thought Emma Watson (Hermione) was awkward, though I’m willing to accept the possibility that that was more to do with her lines than her ability to act, which brings me to my final critique (for now) …
- I thought the transitions were awkward and the connections lacking. Adam didn’t seem to think so, so it may have more to do with my knowing all that was missing rather than the connections actually being weak. But I wondered whether or not I would get everything that was going on if I hadn’t read the book. Then again, perhaps I would have enjoyed the movie more if I hadn’t read the book, or at least not as recently.
All in all, disappointed. But, if things go as they have gone in the past, I will enjoy the movie in the future when the book is not so fresh in my mind. And for now, at least I have the final book to look forward to - let us hope that it is as satisfying as the past six have been.
Posted in reviews by Sarah 4 Comments »
July 14, 2007
So. I started re-reading Harry Potter last weekend when I realized the final book comes out next weekend and I couldn’t remember what had happened (minus the BIG plot points) in the past two books. Chances are decent I would have read all of them before the book came out no matter what, but when I told Adam what I was doing he scoffed at me and bet me I couldn’t do it.
Now, if you know me, you know that’s just a dumb bet - there’s nothing I like better than reading and betting me I can’t do something I was going to do already, well, that’s just silly. But, nevertheless, he bet me and so I have spent my week completely engrossed in Harry Potter and Adam has spent the week (from what I could gather from behind my book) regretting he ever mentioned anything about reading or books since I rarely moved from the couch unless absolutely necessary.
And, I am proud to say that I only have one book left and a whole week to read it. It has been a little stressful, if you must know, as I still had to work, go to the gym, do some research, and write a sermon, but you know, you do what you have to: it’s a rough life and someone has to endure it so I suppose it might as well be me.
Adam never set the conditions of the bet, which he thinks means there aren’t any, but I say it just means I get to decide what I win. Any ideas?
Oh, and also, the books are just as good, if not better, the second time around - I had forgotten so much! I can’t wait to see the latest movie and read the book. I can see now why some religious people object to the series - it has me completely bewitched.
Posted in uncategorized by Sarah 3 Comments »
July 11, 2007
I admit I took a short break from receiving the daily story from storypeople.com during my ‘must-keep-the-inbox-clean-at-all-costs’ phase. But, as my resolve has softened and my response time has slowed, causing a jam-up in my inbox once again, I’ve signed up once more to receive my daily dose of story.
Here’s today’s:
In the heart of the world there is a place that holds the secret names of the rocks & the trees & all the children of the earth & around it gather women & men who hold it dear & each night they stand together to keep it safe for as long as it takes til morning comes & no matter what you have been told, this will always be so, in the heart of the world.
I know we have a tendency to deride ’stories’ in pursuit of higher truths; but ’stories’ like this one remind me that sometimes we discover far more truth in what we hope is true than in what we can empirically discover around us.
Posted in spirituality by Sarah 3 Comments »
July 6, 2007
When I think ‘Soft Rock,’ I am immediately thrown backwards fifteen years to the dentist’s office my brother and I frequented far too often for cleanings, cavities, teeth pullings, and orthodontia work. Always, there was the local soft rock station playing softly through the speakers, which did nothing to ease the pain involved in the visit, but only made the whole experience that much worse.
So, you can imagine my dismay when one of the best radio stations I can find in Princeton calls itself ’soft rock’ and has that disturbing, overly melodic little soft rock jingle to go with its name. I would like to posit that this station has, in fact, incorrectly labeled themselves and are not a soft rock station. They play artists like Matchbox 20, Tracy Chapman, James Taylor, and others of my favorites. While I acknowledge that their choices tend toward folk - I do not think folk is the same as soft rock and am offended and shamed by their correlation on this station.
Shamed to the point that I hid the preset in the middle of the others and never leave this station on the radio when I get out of the car for fear someone will be with me the next time I get in and hear their pathetic soft rock jingle and think a little less of me.
But, I leave the preset there, and when the pop stations that come in are all playing the same song, which they’ve played repeatedly for the entire month we’ve been here, I switch over to this ‘other’ station and enjoy some quality music for awhile.
I just want to say - it’s not me, I don’t like soft rock; it’s them, they’ve made a mistake. I am not old enough for my favorite songs to be soft rock ones. I protest.
Posted in uncategorized by Sarah 2 Comments »
