This Heyer stands out for making the well-rounded, virtuous characters so wonderfully attractive while the spoilt, self-interested fools couldn't be m...moreThis Heyer stands out for making the well-rounded, virtuous characters so wonderfully attractive while the spoilt, self-interested fools couldn't be more tedious.
The unassuming but well born Miss Ancilla Trent is governess to the spoilt and dangerously beautiful heiress Miss Tiffany Wield, and has a difficult time keeping her charge out of mischief.
When the famed sportsman Sir Waldo Hawkridge inherits a dilapidated house in their village, Tiffany sets about adding him (as well as his cousins) to her list of admirers. But Sir Waldo is perceptive, and it's not long before he's able to see past Miss Wield's dazzling beauty to notice her far more interesting governess.
Some great ideas for things to do with your kids, and as there are so many (366 - one for a leap year, I guess), there will be no problem leaving out...moreSome great ideas for things to do with your kids, and as there are so many (366 - one for a leap year, I guess), there will be no problem leaving out the less commendable ones.
Fav's (there were heaps... these are just a few): don't just teach them to drive, teach them to drive a stick shift (go manual!) take a photo of them in the same place in the same position every year bury a treasure and let them find it introduce them to the Beatles pick a holiday destination by throwing a dart at a map form a parent-kid book club turn a stretch of sidewalk into a chalk-painted masterpiece give them flowers for no particular reason on no special day just before you remodel or repaint, let them draw all over the walls stay up all night and watch the sun rise plan a progressive dinner with your neighbours trade places send a message in a bottle celebrate a holiday or festival from another country
Least fav's (sorry to draw attention to them, they're pretty silly, but just so you know what you're getting): laugh until you p your pants write dirty words in the sand watch a baby be delivered laugh together at a dirty joke
A comical novel about a naive English woman who marries a charming French man only to find that her new husband is an insatiable flirt whose liaisons...moreA comical novel about a naive English woman who marries a charming French man only to find that her new husband is an insatiable flirt whose liaisons with other women are as essential for his livelihood as breathing. According to the French man the two were never validly married, as he is nominally Catholic and they were married in a registry. He intends to wait and see whether they should be married in a Church. Grace, a nominal Protestant, eventually leaves him after finding him in bed with another woman, but even afterwards she longs for him to come and repent and take her home.
Their son discovers that life with separated parents is more to his liking because he is spoiled as each tries to win his favour over the other. Their new love interests also that the child is the key to their lover's heart and do all they can to impress him.
The son manages to deceive both parents to keep them apart, and is only discovered at the end. His clever deceptions are the most enjoyable part of the story.
Ultimately Grace must eventually accept her husband's weaknesses as part of his character and culture, in the hope that he'll grow out of it with time. The two come back together even after they have had a civil divorce and before they are 'validly' married in a Church, and it seems that she has been won over by his charming, immoral ways.
Intelligently written and at times entertaining, there is not much to be learned from the content other than the immorality of French high society and that the only danger is in getting caught. Reviewed for www.GoodReadingGuide.com(less)
A thorough response to theologians like Karl Rahner who claim that more or less everyone will be saved. Martin references John Paul II and many papal...moreA thorough response to theologians like Karl Rahner who claim that more or less everyone will be saved. Martin references John Paul II and many papal and Vatican II documents extensively.(less)
A beautifully illustrated introduction to The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings for readers of all ages who can ponder the details of the illustrations...moreA beautifully illustrated introduction to The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings for readers of all ages who can ponder the details of the illustrations to learn more about the stories.(less)
This is the BEST audio version of the New Testament I have heard. The voices are simply amazing, especially the rather important voice of JC himself (...moreThis is the BEST audio version of the New Testament I have heard. The voices are simply amazing, especially the rather important voice of JC himself (you feel like he is there, speaking to you). The music behind the words is perfect, though I sometimes skip the halleluia songs which pop up occasionally (they are always separate tracks so they are easy to skip.) I have listened to a part of it every day for the last 5 years; it still makes me cry.(less)
I can't do better than quote Kimberly Hahn's review of this book: "Always uplifting, The Catholic Girl's Survival Guide for the Single Years offers tim...moreI can't do better than quote Kimberly Hahn's review of this book: "Always uplifting, The Catholic Girl's Survival Guide for the Single Years offers timeless truths that help women see beyond current circumstances to grasp the bigger picture of life as a beloved daughter of God. I highly recommend this book for anyone who is a single Catholic woman—or anyone who wants to learn how to love single women better. I don't know of another book that does what this book does for single women—it's simply outstanding!" Kimberly Hahn.
Even not being the kind of reader this book is aimed at, I found so many suggestions for daily life that would be helpful for anyone. But what is so uniquely special about this book is that it has three qualities that make a spiritual-help book particularly attractive: honesty, humour and holiness. The author is candidly honest about how she feels (as do many others in her situation), she writes with a sparkling sense of humour, and she anchors all her advice on deep spiritual truths that give a refreshing and beautiful 'fragrance' to her writing. Highly recommended. Reviewed for www.GoodReadingGuide.com(less)
Extreme Makeover details the author's personal conversion, and then offers a study of the spiritual and social context in which women live today. She...moreExtreme Makeover details the author's personal conversion, and then offers a study of the spiritual and social context in which women live today. She tackles feminism, birth control, objectification of women and sexualisation of girls, abortion, free sex, and eating disorders (including details from her own experience). She then looks at the dignity of women according to the teaching of the Catholic Church, particularly based on the conference following John Paul II's Mulieris Dignitatem: Apostolic Letter Of The Supreme Pontiff John Paul Ii On The Dignity & Vocation Of Women On The Occasion Of The Marian Year. She is clear about the evils of the general media and proposes some Catholic alternatives. At the end she includes stories of women who have had 'extreme-makeover' conversions. While the content is all true and good, I found the style to be a little 'exclamationist', almost as though she is raising her voice for the entire book. Perhaps only those who already agree with her would find the book helpful. Wendy Shalit offers some helpful alternatives—she's not Catholic but she writes extremely well on the dignity of women in a contemporary context. Reviewed for www.GoodReadingGuide.com(less)
A brilliant, brilliant audio presentation which every person needs to hear. Please, listen to this, take your time, consider the questions, even argue...moreA brilliant, brilliant audio presentation which every person needs to hear. Please, listen to this, take your time, consider the questions, even argue if you like, but don't ignore this.
The other day I was at a book presentation and overheard a lady saying to some others 'I don't have time for philosophy, it's too hard keeping up with real life, let alone philosophy!' I nearly cried.
The things Professor Kreeft discusses in this course concern the very foundations of our society, law, culture and education system, our understanding of humanity and everything important to it.
But as a culture, often we don't have time to think deeply, to self-question, or even to consider history except to assert how far we've moved beyond it. This unquestioning (even if unexpressed) faith in progressivism—that we get better and smarter as the years go by, that we know better now than we did then—is perhaps one of the biggest fallacies—blindness’s—of our age.
Kreeft discusses the central, monumental ideas of Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, Aquinas, Descartes, Machiavelli, Kant, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau and more, clarifying their claims and setting them against each other, shedding light on some of the assumptions we see every day in news pieces and encounter whenever we go near a university.
Why do we believe the things we do? Are they really true? How do we know?
This course is a challenge, a call to think, to cast aside indifference and comfort, to step outside of the cave and seek something more than shadows on the wall. I beg you to try it.(less)
A great book for a rainy weekend; light and entertaining with not too much to think about. After the first few chapters of introduction, the story foc...moreA great book for a rainy weekend; light and entertaining with not too much to think about. After the first few chapters of introduction, the story focuses on 28 year old 'spinster' Abigail Wendover, and the 'older' Miles Calverleigh who has spent the last twenty years in India, banished there by his family over a romantic scandal.
Miles is indeed the 'black sheep' of his family having run off with someone else's fiancée, but we soon see that most of his deplorable ways have been left in the past. He still sadly lacks society manners and is careless in his mode of dress, but his quick intelligence and ready wit more than make up for it. He is the kind of person whose conversation can't but be enjoyable. A reassurance for parents of teen readers: Miles at times seems worse than he is, but readers who are not too impressionable should be fine once things become clearer by the end.
As a typical Heyer romance this one is not based on perfect looks and instant attraction but on a deeper 'connection' between the two people. Yet though many contemporary romances allude to just such a 'connection', they often rush so quickly through to the romance that it may as well have been love at first interaction, if not at first sight. But in Heyer's regency romances this connection is patiently and respectfully explored throughout the novel, which makes it more real and consequential.
Though a deeply spiritual study of Tolkien's works—in particular The Hobbit—it is more practical than theoretical and easier to read than other more s...moreThough a deeply spiritual study of Tolkien's works—in particular The Hobbit—it is more practical than theoretical and easier to read than other more scholarly works. It tells the journey of Bilbo—guided by Divine Providence—from his comfortable bourgeois laxity, along the path of the beatitudes, facing the danger and temptation of vice, towards his ultimate goal.(less)
Rich historical fiction that feeds the heart and mind with friendship and family, music and fine arts, and lives afflicted by suffering made whole th...more Rich historical fiction that feeds the heart and mind with friendship and family, music and fine arts, and lives afflicted by suffering made whole through understanding.
We land in 1920s Sydney, in the humble home of fifteen year old Luighseach (Lucy) and her father, originally migrants from Ireland. Somewhat crippled from polio, Luighseach is about to recommence school, and she braces herself for the taunts and jeers she knows her condition will provoke.
When Mrs Epstein proposes a string quartet for Luighseach and three other unwilling musicians from her school, we don't hear much from them except complaints and bickering. Their dialogue would almost be tedious if we weren't gradually getting to know four very distinct characters with diverse and complicated pasts. [One note about the dialogue: Luighseach's Irish is meticulously consistent from beginning to end of the novel, and it could read a little stiltedly for those not familiar with its sound.]
These characters' pasts were complicated indeed. We learn about Luighseach's mother and all that her father has been through, and Della's father and what she and her brother find out. Some characters' situations become almost melodramatic, with neglectful aunts participating in 1920s orgies and abandoned children struggling out of abusive situations to be reconciled with their parents. There's even the suggestion of a murder.
Of course, the girls' friendships—as unlikely as they seemed at the start—blossom into deep-rooted bonds that will stand the test of time. A gentle romance, suited to the protagonist's age and character, adds another layer to the rich web of relationships. In these two we see a natural affection develop as they talk freely about everything, each one helping the other through their particular difficulties.
The author—who happens to have been a high school teacher of mine—is talented across all The Arts, and her love for and extensive knowledge of music, fine arts and literature shines through this first novel. The poetic description of the girls' rendition of Haydn's Fifths, for example, takes you to another world. The landscapes are vast and vivid, the seasons sensory and real, and the emotional journey heart-wrenching.
So too do we see the author's love for history and cultural customs, language written and spoken, and her valuing of family and friendships, of parent-child relationships, and of the profession of teaching. Though the wisdom imparted by some of the adult characters verges on the didactic in parts, these passages offer some of the most profound considerations on the meaning of suffering and understanding others, making allowances for their faults by acknowledging all they have been through.
What is certain is that by the end of the almost five hundred pages you really come to love these characters, and at that point it is difficult to remain dry-eyed. www.GoodReadingGuide.com(less)
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