Linus: It won't be forever. You'll be in the dark for as long as it takes and then you'll come out. Audrey: You think? Linus: My aunt grows special rhubarb in dark sheds. They keep it dark and warm all winter and harvest it by candlelight and it's the best stuff. She sells it for a fortune, btw. Audrey: So what, I'm rhubarb? Linus: Why not? If rhubarb needs time in the dark maybe you do too. Audrey: I'm RHUBARB?! --Finding Audrey, Sophie Kinsella I'm pleasantly surprised at myself! I finished a book in just about a week! I'm not sure if I've done that at all this year...maybe once.
I'm on a bit of a fiction kick right now, so this twelfth book in the #yearof50books is Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella. I've had this one on my shelf for a long time, and I remember first being intrigued by its cover. (We aren't to judge books by their covers, I know and agree..but they certainly catch my attention!) I enjoyed her writing style and how a movie transcript format weaved throughout the story (while the main character was filming a documentary as part of her therapy). I love the approach this book takes toward anxiety and mental illness. Although I do think there are people in the world who take advantage of attention they might get because of mental illness, I know there are plenty of other people who truly suffer as a result of these imbalances in their brain. Audrey, the main character, wants to "be normal" so badly. Her therapist, Dr. Sarah, explains that she will have ups and downs and draws her a sample graph of her progress with the line going up and down, but gradually working toward progress all the time. In return, Audrey wants a straight graph, with no steps back, just forward motion. I can imagine this is how it feels when someone who struggles truly desires to be rid of their suffering, but I appreciate how this book made me realize that no one has a straight graph...mental illness or not, we all take a few steps forward, and a step or two back. That's life, and it keeps us on our toes! Isn't it wonderful? My next fiction read is on the horizon, plus a couple of reads I have checked out from the library. (The fiction is paperback, so it's a back-up in case my phone or iPad is ever dead and I want to have something to read!) Wonderfully Yours, Kristin
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"It's a lot easier to seize the day than that is to seize a Tuesday. You have errands on Tuesday. On Tuesday you eat pizza again. Your favorite TV show is on Tuesday, you know? But the day... The day is all just hours you're alive for. They can be filled with anything. Unexpectedness, wildness, maybe a little bit of lawlessness, even...if that makes sense." -- Let's Get Lost, Adi Alsaid Have I mentioned before that I like when things are a little out of the ordinary?
This eleventh book in the #yearof50books is just that! Let's Get Lost, by Adi Alsaid, is told in five sections, each from the perspective of a different character. The first four characters all have one thing in common: Leila. Her section comes last, which was an excellent decision..it kept me waiting and curious throughout the book to learn more about her story. The sections do not describe the same event from different perspectives, but rather their encounters with Leila and how she helps them through difficult situations in their lives. I read once where someone told their children to look for God in anything they watched or read, because we can always find something that reminds of His presence or the way He takes care of His children, even in the most unlikely of stories. This YA read is certainly not a religious story, but I couldn't help but think about how God always shows up for us, just like Leila dropped whatever she was doing to be there for the next person who needed her. Isn't it wonderful to find God everywhere, even in fictional teenage stories? My next two reads are books I've downloaded from WV DELI (West Virginia Digital Entertainment Library Initative..if you don't know about it, look it up!), so I'll hopefully be reading through them quickly in the next fourteen days before the loans expire! Both are music-related, and I'm excited to share them with you! Until then, wonderfully yours, Kristin |
AuthorI'm Kristin. A Christian, wife, daughter, sister, aunt, and friend. Archives
October 2017
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