SCREWTAPE LETTERS by C.S. Lewis The Screwtape Letters is a masterful warning to young and old alike penned by C.S. Lewis. In this book, Lewis offers us a collection of correspondences between Screwtape, a high ranking demon, and his nephew, Wormwood. Wormwood has been charged with the role of securing the ultimate demise for a human, an eternity spent in Hell. Most of us would assume that would be the result of a major attack in a person's life, but what Lewis reveals to us is that it really is a series of small temptations that keep us bound up from accepting the gospel message. Wormwood reaches out to his experienced uncle for guidance on how to snag his charge permanently. Included in the picture is The Screwtape Letters Study Guide for Teens by Alan Vermilye. One of my older daughters was given this as a part of a Bible Study. This is not a literature study guide. It purely is for digging deeper in the word and challenging choices and lifestyles based on the correspondences.

A WORLD OF CURIOUSITIES by Louise Penny I am a lover of Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache. After 17 books I thought we had experienced just about every atrocity known to the human race and lived through dirty government/dirty police officers with ulterior motives trying to force Gamache out of the Quebec Suerte. I've watched him rescue and breathe purpose into officers tossed aside as unusable. I've heard the 4 thoughts he teaches each of his new recruits that lead to wisdom: 1) I don't know 2) I need help 3) I'm sorry 4) I was wrong. I've seen the scars that have been inflicted upon him and the slight tremor that now appears in his hands when he is emotionally involved in a case. But Book 18 A World of Curiosities steps us into the world of child prostitution and somehow Penny intertwines the story with a time period when women with herbal knowledge were accused of witchcraft and a famous painting of Curiosities. You live on the edge of your seat. However, I will tell you this is the darkest of the 18 so far. It about pushed me to my edge. There are allowances that I permit in books like this because law enforcement often times deals with the dark. It is part of the job, and there is no shying away from the types of cases that our men and women in blue deal with. Thank your law enforcement officers around you for sheltering you from the horrors that they encounter on a DAILY or WEEKLY basis. I should know, I once was a dispatcher for a police department. To read this series you should start at Book 1. HEADS UP - Heavy on the language including f bombs. Child prostitution- not heavy on the intimate details, but it takes you to the edge by making you aware of video and locations, people involved and the long term damage inflicted. This book does involve supposed witchcraft and the hunt for a book of spells of sorts, but not all is as it seems.

DANIEL BOONE'S GREAT ESCAPE by Michael P. Spradlin. Illustrated by Ard Hoyt If you have an adventurous boy or girl, Daniel Boone's Great Escape by Michael P. Spradlin is a great picture book! Daniel, at one point, was actually captured by the Shawnee Indians. During that time he was forced to run the gauntlet and later adopted as a chief's son. When he learned that the Shawnee were about to attack Boonesborough, where his family lived, he knew it was time to make his escape. The Shawnee had brought him over 160 miles from his Kentucky home into southern Ohio. This picture book highlights the perils of his journey back to his family. Illustrations are high action to go with the text and lots of fun to examine. Epilogue at the end gives lots of additional info to curious kids as to the rest of his life. So why the minor caution? Two things really to be aware of with sensitive kids. 1) The action of running the gauntlet. Not heavy detail, but this was a reality in the Shawnee life for prisoners. 2) The Shawnee are going to attack Boonesborough, because a chief of theirs was murdered by the white people. Their goal was vengeance and Daniel's family and friends will perish if he doesn't succeed.

PINOCCHIO by Carlo Collodi How many of you were thrilled when you saw that Disney had done a live action version of Pinocchio? I was so excited...until I watched it. (Major bummer in my opinion.) Anyway...when I saw that it was coming out, I called my local bookstore and asked them if they would help find me a complete version with good illustrations for reading aloud (since we all know that Disney's versions typically are quite a stretch from the original). What they suggested was a copy with illustrations done by Robert Ingpen. I immediately knew that was the one to get, because I have some of his other works and they are wonderful! A side note about Ingpen is that he has been steadily going through and illustrating children's classics. If you are doing a classic read aloud I would highly suggest seeing if it's one he has completed. Carlo Collodi's Pinocchio is a very frustrating book, but don't write it off quickly. It is true that I read about 5 chapters and turned to the kids and asked if they wanted to quit. I may or may not have been dangling it out my car window as we were flying down the interstate when I asked. Suprisingly, they said no, so we kept going with it. The original is very different than the Disney version, but what makes it SO VALUABLE is the frustration that Pinocchio gives to his readers. He makes the dumbest mistakes over and over again, chapter after chapter. You get to the point that you want to reach through the book, grab him by the neck, and shake him until his little wooden teeth rattle. As soon as we would start down the path of destruction again for the hundredth time, the kids would just start yelling,"No, Pinocchio! Don't do it! Make the right choice this time!" It was a valuable lesson over and over and over and over (did I say over?) again about the consequences of bad decisions. What a terrific lesson to kids as time and time again they stand at the crossroads were Pinocchio stood looking to the left, looking to the right. Mom, Dad, and/or God have clearly laid out the choice to make, but now it is in their hands. To be on the outside looking in on a person who continues making bad choices and the results of those choices is such a valuable thing! So Pinocchio is safely tucked up on my shelf waiting the next time it is read. ALONGSIDE ACTIVITY- Are you trying to teach your kids how to summarize a reading? Pinocchio is a perfect teaching tool. I quit reading the chapter names to the kids until after I read the chapter, because it basically summed the entire chapter up.

A WALK IN THE WORDS by Hudson Talbott Do you have a child who struggles to read, or do you have a child that knows a child that struggles to read, but can't understand why they do? A Walk in the Words is the perfect picture book for them! Author/ illustrator Hudson Talbott allows us a personal peak into his life about his difficult journey with words when he couldn't keep up with his classmates. He lets us know what it felt like to know he was behind everyone else. He lets us know where his safe space was. He shares with us what he did to become a stronger reader. He lets us know that struggling readers are not alone but a part of a very special, highly intelligent group! If you know someone that needs a little boost of hope in their own journey, this is the perfect book! By the way, get ready for some fabulous illustrations that help us understand how OVERWHELMING words can be for some kids!

BLACK HISTORY MONTH My high school daughter just began Booker T Washington's autobiography Up From Slavery. I am personally 2 chapters into it, and my soul is overwhelmed by Washington's words. For example, "I was asked not long ago to tell something about the sports and pastimes that I engaged in during my youth. Until that question was asked it has never occurred to me that there was no period of my life that was devoted to play. From the time that I can remember anything, almost every day of my life has been occupied in some kind of labor " He then goes on to share his jobs as a young child. His labor as a child is more than my labor as an adult. My momma's heart hurts for him, but you know what is amazing to me? He is not bitter. His father was a white man who never provided a thing for him, and he doesn't blame him a bit. How many LITTLE things in my day gather like pebbles in my shoe that have me complaining or blaming in no time? Am I the only one? Look for more from this book in a future post! Pictured are the books dealing with slavery (the root of the problem) that launched the need for people like Martin Luther King Jr. to take a PEACEFUL stand for the rights of all people. Actually, I'm going to go a step deeper to say this was a problem of the devaluation of human beings created in the image of God, but slavery was an outward result of that mindset. To understand MLK Jr we must have an understanding of what he was standing against, and these resources will help take you back to the "root." ALONGSIDE ACTIVITIES- Wow! The sky is the limit on this one, folks! -Go back to Genesis where God created man (and woman) in His image. Share this with your kids! There really is no black or white. We really are just varying shades of brown! -Watch Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. Goggle it and watch it delivered to a huge crowd in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. -Memorize part of the speech -Copy part of the speech onto white cardstock. Decorate it with handprints in different colors by dipping hands into different colors of paint and "stamping" them on paper -Discuss with your children about issues that we need to take a stand against in our day through prayer and peaceful protest. Are there causes that you should support through time or financially? -Did you know that MLK Jr's favorite meal included fried chicken and pecan pie. How about serving some up for supper?

MARTIN LUTHER KING JR Monday is MLK Jr. Day. I will be posting thoughts and activities tomorrow, but giving you a day in advance to start gathering books in case you want to share with your kids.

SAVING JEMIMA: LIFE AND LOVE WITH A HARD-LUCK JAY by Julie Zickefoose When I picked this book up to start reading, I didn't realize National Bird Day was around the corner. Growing up we fed the birds, and I have continued that tradition in my own home. I call them "my butterflies in the winter." They are bright spots in the gray and whites of the season. One type I enjoy watching is the blue jays. Saving Jemima is the story of bird rescuer Julie Zickefoose's experience with a blue jay fledgling, and I wanted to get a deeper peek into their behaviors, likes and dislikes. How fun it was to learn that Julie is located just south of us in Marietta, Ohio. She definitely shared the raw ins and outs of dealing with baby birds. It is not an easy journey, and success is not guaranteed. Since reading the book I find myself searching for jays more actively. I have a group of 7 that will come and feed. Little side note, a group of Jays is referred to as a party or a band. Makes sense doesn't it with their raucous calls?! I haven't zeroed in on defining features between my birds yet, but boy are they fun to watch!

A YEAR FULL OF STORIES: 52 FOLKTALES AND LEGENDS FROM AROUND THE WORLD by Angela McAllister. Illustratd by Christopher Corr. Growing up some of my go to books at the library were a series of fairy tale/folk tales from other countries. I loved those books! The words and descriptions whisked me away to other lands full of different customs and cultures. I could smell the spicyness of the Middle East and Orient. I could feel the cold in the Russian and Scandinavian Tales. When stumbling across A Year Full of Stories: 52 Folktales and Legends From Around the World by Angel McAllister, I immediately went back to that special place in my childhood. Divided into months, McAllister uses a lot of the stories in combination with holiday celebrations in other countries. Even though there are 52 stories it is not divided up to be 1 story a week. As already mentioned it is divided into months, but some months contain 3 stories. Some contain 5 stories. Christopher Corr's illustrations are colorful and whimsical which will make them a delight to children. HEADS UP- Because you are dealing with other cultures, you are dealing with other religious beliefs periodically.

INDIAN IN THE CUPBOARD SERIES by Lynne Banks Did you know there are 5 books in the Indian in the Cupboard series? Indian in the Cupboard and The Return of the Indian were some of my son's favorite books in late elementary. I happened to read another book by Lynne Reid Banks called Tiger, Tiger (which is fantastic if you enjoy the Roman time period and coliseums), and I noticed in his list of other published books there were 2 more in The Indian in the Cupboard series. My son was thrilled to find out the adventures continued on! Book 4 is The Mystery of the Cupboard. Of the 4 books this one was my son's least favorite, because it focuses on how the cupboard came to be. There is a family rift and a bit of magic involved, and you know that a child is born out of wedlock. My son wants adventure not drama. However, I enjoyed this one, because there are very clear consequences for actions. There is no light let off for bad decisions made. I also appreciated knowing how the cupboard came to be. (Think of Narnia's Magician's Nephew.) Book 5 is The Mystery of the Cupboard. What makes this one special is Omri's Dad ends up discovering the magic of the cupboard. This leads Omri and his father to embark on a special adventure helping Little Bear and his village who are in great danger. If you have sensitive kids be aware that there is a part where women and children are trapped in a long house that is on fire. One woman is shot by 2 white men blocking the way of her escape. As we reach the end of the adventures, all I could picture was the ending scene of Dances With Wolves. It's hard to imagine Omri and Little Bear parting ways. HEADS UP- Other than issues mentioned above there is a small amount of language in the series.

OWL MOON by Jane Yolen It's the perfect time of year for an owl adventure!! Owl Moon by Jane Yolen is the perfect deep winter picture book for young and old alike. Yolen's husband and children in real life would go on owl hunts during wintery nights. This story shares the process of finding these majestical elusive night birds. ALONGSIDE ACTIVITY- This Friday, Jan. 6 is a full moon. According to my reading, full moon, wintery nights are the best for owl hunts. If it is cloudy, tuck this info into the back of your mind until the next full moon. Check out this website for info to prepare for your hunt www.thespruce.com/tips-on-owling-386696 . For owl calls done by Jane Yolen's daughter Heidi Stemple check out www.facebook.com/watch/?v=532730057233102 . Familiarize yourself with owls native to your area and their calls! How about some owl art? www.drawingtutorials101.com/how-to-draw-a-barred-owl  for simple steps. Happy Hunting!!

THE BOYS FROM BILOXI by John Grisham John Grisham scores again with The Boys From Biloxi. Just a quick side note about Grisham, he currently has authored 47 consecutive #1 bestsellers. How crazy is that? The Boys From Biloxi starts off as a small town, feel good read. Two boys named Keith Rudy and Hugh Malco grow up together, play ball together, and party together. However, their worlds couldn't be farther a part from each other thanks to their fathers. Keith Rudy's father is a prosecutor, while Hugh Malco's father is the head of the Dixie Mafia known for its business dealings in drugs and prostitution. Both boys hit a point in life where they have to decide the path they will follow, and both choose to follow their fathers. Their friendship becomes more and more strained with the passing of time, until finally an event affects their friendship in such a way that there is no coming back from it. This book starts slow as it immerses the reader into that small town vibe, but be ready as with all mafia oriented books, the pace quickly shifts to an all guns blazing, loyalty to the point of death experience. Reading this book quickly reinforces the age old wisdom from 1 Corinthians about "bad company corrupting good morals." So did I like the book? I did. Just be ready to jump over a paragraph if need be. HEADS UP- What does medium caution mean? If you've read Grisham's books in the past you know that he throws language in. Prostitution is a subject that appears often in this book. You are not given intimate details, but you know who is jumping in and out of bed. At 1 point we know 2 guys are with 1 girl. Also, this is a Mafia book which means there is a decent amount of "hits" execution style. They are not gory in detail but present.