tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-63380551566721292772023-11-16T01:17:35.467-05:00Memory LaneMemories, Thoughts, Book ReviewsLisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-46823426707697599532017-09-17T15:24:00.002-04:002017-09-17T15:24:44.756-04:00Steadfast<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The sermon today was on Jeremiah 35. I have never heard anyone speak on this passage and was totally unfamiliar with it. Basically Jeremiah is told to take this nomadic family, the Rechabites, to the temple and give them wine to drink. God was very specific about what room in the temple they were to go to. He was to take them to a room near the chamber of the officials, near the doorkeeper (who was a very important person in the temple). This significance of the room had to do with it being connected to the rooms of the leaders of the temple - the leaders of Israel.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The lesson God had from this family was simple. This family had obeyed the decree of their ancestor but God himself had told the Israelites what to do and they had not obeyed. Because of their disobedience, God allowed Israel to be taken into captivity. “</span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There is much to learn from this family. The Rechabites stood firm against assimilating into the culture of the time. They were commended by God for their </span><a href="https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-faithfulness.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">faithfulness</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and obedience to their father. The Rechabites are an example of steadfastness. God desires His people to live in obedience and steadfastness to Him.”</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 9pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(</span><a href="https://www.gotquestions.org/Rechabites.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 9pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">https://www.gotquestions.org/Rechabites.html</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 9pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">)</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Romans 12:2 connects this story to how we as New Testament believers are to stand firm against assimilating into the sinfulness of our culture. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”</span></div>
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<br />Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-66960564797847111262013-04-04T19:06:00.001-04:002013-04-04T19:06:09.284-04:00WHEN SHE WOKE<br />
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 13.0pt; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US;"> </span><span lang="en-US">“</span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: Verdana; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-armenian-font-family: Verdana; mso-ascii-font-family: Verdana; mso-currency-font-family: Verdana; mso-cyrillic-font-family: Verdana; mso-default-font-family: Verdana; mso-greek-font-family: Verdana; mso-hebrew-font-family: Verdana; mso-latin-font-family: Verdana; mso-latinext-font-family: Verdana; mso-thai-font-family: Verdana;">When She Woke is, in its simplest terms, a futuristic retelling of The Scarlet Letter. This sophomore novel from Mudbound author Hillary Jordan takes Hawthorne's classic several steps further, turning it into a pointed, blunt warning about the consequences of an America run by the church, not the state. Hannah Payne is sentenced to sixteen years of melachroming for aborting her child. Instead of bearing a scarlet "A" like Hester, Hannah's pigment is dyed a stop sign red, leading her to endure an ostracizing societal punishment as well. Jordan seamlessly interweaves the back story of Hannah’s relationship with her unborn </span><span lang="en-US"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Verdana;">child's father; their relationship is sudden, passionate and the short interspersed flashbacks enhance the story and Hannah's spontaneous personality. While she stumbles through rebuilding her life, her sudden decisions in moments of trouble are made with confidence and determination. Jordan purposefully makes the story about Hannah's journey by keeping her secondary characters exactly that - secondary. Although they may guide and assist Hannah on her path, the decisions, character-building, and strength all come from within. Hannah is ultimately responsible for her future and she takes full responsibility for her past. While some readers may balk at Jordan's political and religious messages, the story of owning our decisions and actions is the focus of this engaging tale of redemption.” (Goodreads)</span></div>
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<span lang="en-US"> <o:p></o:p></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-style: italic;">While I have never read </span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">The Scarlett Letter</span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-style: italic;">, I know the general story and did watch the movie starring Demi Moore. This was indeed a retelling of that story from a modern viewpoint. I was captured from page one. While I disagreed with some of the theology and worldviews presented, the whole concept of our sins being visible to the world simply by our skin color was something to think about. I actually read this before reading </span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">Mudbound </span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-style: italic;">and actually enjoyed it the most of the two.</span></div>
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Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-53044198473405385872013-03-28T17:28:00.000-04:002013-03-28T17:28:13.873-04:00Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend<br />
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<span lang="en-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-arabic-font-family: Arial; mso-armenian-font-family: Verdana; mso-ascii-font-family: Verdana; mso-currency-font-family: Verdana; mso-cyrillic-font-family: Verdana; mso-default-font-family: Verdana; mso-greek-font-family: Verdana; mso-hebrew-font-family: Verdana; mso-latin-font-family: Verdana; mso-latinext-font-family: Verdana; mso-thai-font-family: Verdana;">But even though he narrates this eccentric novel, Budo is not real. He is imaginary. And Max is the only person who can see him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: Verdana;"> </span><span lang="en-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-arabic-font-family: Arial; mso-armenian-font-family: Verdana; mso-ascii-font-family: Verdana; mso-currency-font-family: Verdana; mso-cyrillic-font-family: Verdana; mso-default-font-family: Verdana; mso-greek-font-family: Verdana; mso-hebrew-font-family: Verdana; mso-latin-font-family: Verdana; mso-latinext-font-family: Verdana; mso-thai-font-family: Verdana;">Max may have Asperger's Syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder characterized by problems with social interaction and sometimes intense interests in mechanical things. Dicks shows us through Budo what it's like for a young boy who lives in </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana; line-height: 13.5pt;">his head. More than anything, Max likes to be alone and he loves his Lego and toy soldiers. His parents argue constantly about how to deal with him.</span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 9.0pt; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-arabic-font-family: Arial; mso-armenian-font-family: Verdana; mso-ascii-font-family: Verdana; mso-currency-font-family: Verdana; mso-cyrillic-font-family: Verdana; mso-default-font-family: Verdana; mso-greek-font-family: Verdana; mso-hebrew-font-family: Verdana; mso-latin-font-family: Verdana; mso-latinext-font-family: Verdana; mso-thai-font-family: Verdana;"> </span><span lang="en-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-arabic-font-family: Arial; mso-armenian-font-family: Verdana; mso-ascii-font-family: Verdana; mso-currency-font-family: Verdana; mso-cyrillic-font-family: Verdana; mso-default-font-family: Verdana; mso-greek-font-family: Verdana; mso-hebrew-font-family: Verdana; mso-latin-font-family: Verdana; mso-latinext-font-family: Verdana; mso-thai-font-family: Verdana;">Memoirs is told from Budo's point of view. This is a little challenging because readers must find a way to wrap their heads around the concept that the story is being told by someone who does not really exist. On the other hand, because Max isolates himself from people and lives mostly inside his own head, having Budo tell the tale seems appropriate and clever."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-arabic-font-family: Arial; mso-armenian-font-family: Verdana; mso-ascii-font-family: Verdana; mso-currency-font-family: Verdana; mso-cyrillic-font-family: Verdana; mso-default-font-family: Verdana; mso-greek-font-family: Verdana; mso-hebrew-font-family: Verdana; mso-latin-font-family: Verdana; mso-latinext-font-family: Verdana; mso-thai-font-family: Verdana;"></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-style: italic; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; mso-default-font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; mso-greek-font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; mso-latin-font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">I remember my imaginary friend. The premise that they really exist and can interact with each other grabbed my imagination. Budo helps Max learn to deal with life. This was a fast read and an enjoyable one for me. Like The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time it was interesting to get inside the mind of someone with Asperger’s/Autism. I have since read all the other books by Matthew Dicks. Imaginary Friend is not my favorite but he is now one of my favorite authors. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-12231200293464956322013-03-26T21:17:00.003-04:002013-03-26T21:18:17.692-04:00Blue Asylum<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: Verdana;">“</span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: Verdana; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-armenian-font-family: Verdana; mso-ascii-font-family: Verdana; mso-currency-font-family: Verdana; mso-cyrillic-font-family: Verdana; mso-default-font-family: Verdana; mso-greek-font-family: Verdana; mso-hebrew-font-family: Verdana; mso-latin-font-family: Verdana; mso-latinext-font-family: Verdana; mso-thai-font-family: Verdana;">Amid the mayhem of the Civil War, Virginia plantation wife Iris Dunleavy is put on trial and convicted of madness. It is the only reasonable explanation the court can see for her willful behavior, so she is sent away to Sanibel Asylum to be restored to a good, compliant woman. Iris knows, though, that her husband is the true criminal; she is no lunatic, only guilty of disagreeing with him on notions of justice, cruelty, and property. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: Verdana; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-armenian-font-family: Verdana; mso-ascii-font-family: Verdana; mso-currency-font-family: Verdana; mso-cyrillic-font-family: Verdana; mso-default-font-family: Verdana; mso-greek-font-family: Verdana; mso-hebrew-font-family: Verdana; mso-latin-font-family: Verdana; mso-latinext-font-family: Verdana; mso-thai-font-family: Verdana;">dangerously unstable. Which of these is Ambrose Weller, the war-haunted Confederate soldier whose memories terrorize him into wild fits that can only be calmed by the color blue, but whose gentleness and dark eyes beckon to Iris.</span><span lang="en-US"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: Verdana;"> </span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: Verdana; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-armenian-font-family: Verdana; mso-ascii-font-family: Verdana; mso-currency-font-family: Verdana; mso-cyrillic-font-family: Verdana; mso-default-font-family: Verdana; mso-greek-font-family: Verdana; mso-hebrew-font-family: Verdana; mso-latin-font-family: Verdana; mso-latinext-font-family: Verdana; mso-thai-font-family: Verdana;">The institution calls itself modern, but Iris is skeptical of its methods, particularly the dreaded "water treatment." She must escape, but she has found new hope and love with Ambrose. Can she take him with her? If they make it out, will the war have left anything for them to make a life from, back home?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana;">From Goodreads</span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 9.0pt; font-style: italic; language: en-US; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; mso-default-font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; mso-greek-font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; mso-latin-font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"> We rarely see anything about the male dominant culture of the South. Plantation owners are either portrayed as loving father figures with lovely southern wives or evil slave beaters whose wives stand by in approval. How many times was there dissension over slaver between a couple? What could happen to a woman who disagreed with her powerful husband? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-575377984690093602013-03-25T18:37:00.002-04:002013-03-25T18:37:19.564-04:00The Dry Grass of August<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jEnyWQ7Vzco/UVDRaTx9vrI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/QtuGZ1gI7SY/s1600/The+Dry+Grass+of+August.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jEnyWQ7Vzco/UVDRaTx9vrI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/QtuGZ1gI7SY/s1600/The+Dry+Grass+of+August.png" /></a>“On a scorching day in August 1954, thirteen-year-old Jubie Watts leaves Charlotte, North Carolina, with her family for a Florida vacation. Crammed into the Packard along with Jubie are her three siblings, her mother, and the family's black maid, Mary Luther. For as long as Jubie can remember, Mary has been there - cooking, cleaning, compensating for her father's rages and her mother's benign neglect, and loving Jubie unconditionally. Bright and curious, Jubie takes note of the anti-integration signs they pass and of the racial tension that pass, and of the racial tension that builds as they journey further south. But she could never have predicted the shocking turn their trip will take. Now, in the wake of tragedy, Jubie must confront her parents' failings and limitations, decide where her own convictions lie, and make the tumultuous leap to independence...Infused with the intensity of a changing time, here is a story of hope, heartbreak, and the love and courage that can transform us - from child to adult, from wounded to indomitable.”<br />
(Barnes & Noble)<br />
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<i>I enjoyed reading <u>The Help</u>, which also explores the south during the beginnings of civil rights. However, I enjoyed The Dry Grass of August even more. Perhaps it was the frankness of the narrator as she observes what happens as her family travels south. My generation never experienced the prejudice and ‘normality’ of segregation in every walk of life. People younger than me are even more ignorant of how ‘it used to be’. I think this book helps us to see how unfairly blacks were treated. While we need to move on, and for the most part, young people are blind to color, I do think we should be aware of the injustices of our past. </i><br />
<i> My rating: 4 stars</i><br />
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Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-22207007333094864062012-08-20T17:16:00.000-04:002012-08-20T17:16:52.052-04:00Alias GraceStill working on this one. I'm having a hard time getting into it. My hope is that it will be one of those books that if you just keep plugging away you find yourself involved in the story. Meanwhile, I've read two YA books! Keep watching, and you'll hear about both of them eventually.Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-75695540933958091292012-08-20T17:14:00.000-04:002012-08-20T17:14:59.809-04:00Between Shades of Gray<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A Lithuanian family torn from their home and sent to the Russian Steppes during WWII is the basic story. I enjoyed reading the book but it was eerily similar the <i>The Endless Steppe </i>by Esther Hautzig. <br />
Both books describe the horrific treatment of Jews and political prisoners by both Germans and Russians. Both of the main characters are young girls who are from wealthy families and 'almost' understand what is happening. <br />
Soldiers beat on the door and give the family five minutes to pack what they can. Then they are taken and crammed with other 'criminals' onto waiting cattle cars where they wait. And wait. The conditions are beyond belief with no provision for any privacy for even the most basic bodily functions. Eventually the train leaves and they travel days upon days without knowing where they are going.<br />
When the train finally stops they are in the Russian steppes.<br />
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Based on true stories,<i> Between Shades of Gray </i>was an educational read. Because I had read the autobiographical<i> The Endless Stepp</i>e some of it seemed hauntingly familiar even though one family is Polish and the other Lithuanian. Both are worth reading. <i>The Endless Steppe</i> is probably hard to come by these days but if you ever see it, pick it up. Meanwhile, read Between Shades of Gray and appreciate the country and freedoms you have in America. I hope we don't forget the past and the lessons we learned. Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-51449978204652737372012-08-14T19:14:00.000-04:002012-08-14T19:14:18.553-04:00CITY OF WOMEN <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I enjoyed this book tremendously. Gillham takes the reader into Berlin during WWII. Bombings, death, loss of sons, husbands, and brothers are all there. All the men have been conscripted into the army leaving the city to women and old men. <br />
What I enjoyed most is the fact that we don't usually think about the enemy as people. Sigrid lives with her mother-in-law, has a secretarial job in the city and her husband is away in the army. She thought she loved him when she married him but now she isn't so sure. <br />
When the Nazis came into power she and many of her friends and neighbors didn't really have a political opinion. As the situation in Germany escalated and Hitler began to persecute the Jews she and many others didn't agree but also didn't do anything. They just kept on living their lives. Sigrid finds herself forced to become involved in the controversy when a young nanny in her building turns to her for help. She then becomes part of a group that hides political prisoners from the Gestapo. <br />
I found myself wondering about what I would do. I am not politically active. I lead a busy life. If seriously, morally wrong crimes were being committed by those in charge of government, would I stand up and take action? If I am truly honest I have to doubt that I would. We are so quick to judge the Germans but would we be any different? I hope so. <br />
<br />Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-19131133673787799882012-08-13T19:17:00.001-04:002012-08-13T19:17:35.721-04:00Just BecauseOkay, I am not going to post 352 articles today, I promise. But as I was saving pictures of book covers to post (<i>Alias Grace</i> and <i>Send</i>), I saw this that I had saved and wanted to share it with you. <br />
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I LOVE SNOOPY! Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-16709055689119584252012-08-13T19:05:00.001-04:002012-08-13T19:14:14.327-04:00Hello, how are you?It's been a long time since I posted anything. I have a hard time believing anyone would want to read anything I say. Then I find other blogs and I enjoy them soooooo much. My niece Sarah has two blogs, <a href="http://sarahsthoughtsandpictures.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><i>Between the Fenceposts</i></a> is about her life as she and her husband enjoy the USA from the cab of a tractor trailer; and her other blog is <i><a href="http://sarah-alongthoselines.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Along Those Lines</a></i> is about the books she reads or listens to. I love both of them! She is a talented writer. My other niece, Meagan, blogs about her life with her husband and two little girls in middle Tennessee. I love keeping up with what is going on with her. We haven't even seen her baby girl, Ava Grace but I have watched her grow through the blog. Then there are the blogs of strangers. I love Pinterest. One of my favorite parts is the wonderful, gifted people out there who blog their recipes, ideas, and etc. I may never try a single craft, decorating idea, or recipe, but I love reading the blogs. I have read about weight loss journeys, wedding plans, recipe ideas, and ideas for teaching. <br />
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All of that to say that I decided to blog for me! I read a lot. I love to share what I read but have a very small community to share with. So I will share with you, cyberspace. No one may ever read a word that I write and that is okay. I'm going to write about books that touch me, books I love, and old favorites. The review may be short. They may not be eloquent. But they will be from the heart. Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-83681338187263430132011-12-21T17:31:00.000-05:002011-12-21T17:31:23.769-05:00BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nPwLpkPyY8g/TvJd6UkEM3I/AAAAAAAAAJU/zuHm_H1Qdgk/s1600/Before+I+Go++to+Sleep.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nPwLpkPyY8g/TvJd6UkEM3I/AAAAAAAAAJU/zuHm_H1Qdgk/s320/Before+I+Go++to+Sleep.JPG" width="229" /></a></div> <br />
What if you woke up every morning and didn't remember who you were or anything about your life? I know, I know, the theme has been explored before; haven't you seen <i>Fifty First Dates</i>? This book by S.J. Watson, however, puts a different twist on the old amnesia theme.<br />
What if you woke up every morning and didn't remember who you were or anything about your life, and some days you woke up thinking you were a teenager; other days waking up thinking you were in your twenties and single. But you have to deal with the strange man lying beside you. And you have to believe whatever he tells you about who you are and why you can't remember. What if he's lying? How do you know?<br />
That is the position Christine finds herself in every day. Then, on the advise of a counselor her husband doesn't know about, she begins to journal. The counselor calls each day to tell her where the journal is and she reads about her life again. Instead of questions being answered, she only discovers more questions. Can she believe the man who claims he is her husband?<br />
This book makes you think about the precarious position such a person is in. How would you know the truth? The author builds the story and the suspense lasts up until the last chapter. I truly enjoyed reading it and look forward to more books by this debut author.<br />
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Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-26356830831552964722011-12-04T21:44:00.000-05:002011-12-04T21:44:59.441-05:00Only a BookaholicHappy Day! I had thirty extra minutes today and ran by McKay's Used Books. I found four books that have been on my wish list for months! If I could only read non-stop I might make a dent in the to be read list! Here are the great books found on this unexpected trip to the store. I'll let you know if they are any good!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1734b00T66A/TtwvXuyN1fI/AAAAAAAAAIw/ssGOiHZ3l-o/s1600/Blind+Your+Ponies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1734b00T66A/TtwvXuyN1fI/AAAAAAAAAIw/ssGOiHZ3l-o/s200/Blind+Your+Ponies.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-i0OxLuYjoDc/TtwvadGvkiI/AAAAAAAAAI4/_cqGKWFhcCs/s1600/Never+Let+Me+Go.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-i0OxLuYjoDc/TtwvadGvkiI/AAAAAAAAAI4/_cqGKWFhcCs/s200/Never+Let+Me+Go.jpg" width="129" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RsllRHNDyqM/TtwvcLxNaAI/AAAAAAAAAI8/nm3dt3gE1HQ/s1600/The+Prince+of+Tides.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RsllRHNDyqM/TtwvcLxNaAI/AAAAAAAAAI8/nm3dt3gE1HQ/s200/The+Prince+of+Tides.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1LY9yyqilN0/TtwvfcCyFyI/AAAAAAAAAJI/swbrLbfDtnk/s1600/Prep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1LY9yyqilN0/TtwvfcCyFyI/AAAAAAAAAJI/swbrLbfDtnk/s200/Prep.jpg" width="128" /></a></div>Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-86619389963780793482011-12-01T20:20:00.002-05:002011-12-01T20:24:43.488-05:00Have You Read . . .?I love to read. When asked "What are your Hobbies?" I only have one - reading. I have cross stitched in the past. I do like to shop but only when I have money, and is that really a hobby anyway? I love the idea of gardening, cooking, bird watching, sewing, etc., etc., etc. I've heard a lot of people say they don't have time to read, they wish they had more time to read, they used to read, and so on. You know what I've learned? You make time for what you enjoy. Even when I had five small kids at home, I found time to read. Maybe the house wasn't spotless, supper wasn't gourmet, I didn't grow our own food, but I somehow found time to read. Anyway, I have been thinking about books I've read. You know one of the best parts about reading books is sharing those books with others. With all that said, here are some of my favorite books. (I'll tell you a secret: I've read most of these books at least twice.)<br />
If you've read any of them, tell me what you thought. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-efkxUGhrSpo/TtglU7DajNI/AAAAAAAAAHo/43n10ySQuUo/s1600/Mrs.+Mike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-efkxUGhrSpo/TtglU7DajNI/AAAAAAAAAHo/43n10ySQuUo/s200/Mrs.+Mike.jpg" width="126" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VgmvUyKyn1A/TtglY7htPyI/AAAAAAAAAHw/cQMj0kDhw6w/s1600/Leota%2527s+Garden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VgmvUyKyn1A/TtglY7htPyI/AAAAAAAAAHw/cQMj0kDhw6w/s200/Leota%2527s+Garden.jpg" width="132" /></a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KVyPoiIOQyc/Ttgla8HvHmI/AAAAAAAAAH4/zRWwOaTlmj0/s1600/Memoirs+of+a+Geisha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KVyPoiIOQyc/Ttgla8HvHmI/AAAAAAAAAH4/zRWwOaTlmj0/s200/Memoirs+of+a+Geisha.jpg" width="132" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RLjK3VINXXE/TtglkcYnCgI/AAAAAAAAAII/4U3AU4SDO6Q/s1600/Sacajawea.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RLjK3VINXXE/TtglkcYnCgI/AAAAAAAAAII/4U3AU4SDO6Q/s200/Sacajawea.jpg" width="116" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IXVRc_f5HSc/Ttgln94K4SI/AAAAAAAAAIQ/xIQ-y6n4gf4/s1600/The+Hunger+Games.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IXVRc_f5HSc/Ttgln94K4SI/AAAAAAAAAIQ/xIQ-y6n4gf4/s200/The+Hunger+Games.jpg" width="132" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pMHz8nW0vhs/TtglrXW0IHI/AAAAAAAAAIY/SLVJJiOAsaI/s1600/The+Bean+Trees.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pMHz8nW0vhs/TtglrXW0IHI/AAAAAAAAAIY/SLVJJiOAsaI/s200/The+Bean+Trees.jpg" width="136" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U7QYQEafATg/Ttgly5wruFI/AAAAAAAAAIo/lR0zrqCFatI/s1600/The+Cross+and+the+Switchblade.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U7QYQEafATg/Ttgly5wruFI/AAAAAAAAAIo/lR0zrqCFatI/s200/The+Cross+and+the+Switchblade.jpg" width="118" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8YZTu4yrGj4/TtgltJHGvTI/AAAAAAAAAIg/GofsBzEftyY/s1600/Hatchet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8YZTu4yrGj4/TtgltJHGvTI/AAAAAAAAAIg/GofsBzEftyY/s200/Hatchet.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-62444168489195610312011-11-29T20:27:00.000-05:002011-11-29T20:27:43.520-05:00My First Best Friend<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPYMRuuOU08Zo_SXl11xch1HXLmukJXt1ccVN7CFzyXo7SsDu0nponU4JnPYUuBS8GeZvBq4nwa5bI8sXjMgdGpj9Y9B5MSFjUxwxgMV9G5YHz1uva-vx01KrcFc76D6iqMTVNz7H2OAo/s1600/Best+Friends.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPYMRuuOU08Zo_SXl11xch1HXLmukJXt1ccVN7CFzyXo7SsDu0nponU4JnPYUuBS8GeZvBq4nwa5bI8sXjMgdGpj9Y9B5MSFjUxwxgMV9G5YHz1uva-vx01KrcFc76D6iqMTVNz7H2OAo/s400/Best+Friends.JPG" width="373" /></a></div>See those kids in the picture? They were best friends! That is me and my brother Keith. Born just 20 months apart, I believe we were inseparable until he went to Kindergarten, which was a sad, sad day in my life.<br />
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This is what I remember. We played a game we called "Cat and Dog" that involved running around the house on all fours (crawling) because the "dog", i.e. Keith, was chasing the "cat", Lisa. The cat could climb on chairs and the couch, but the dog could only jump and bark. Hours and hours of fun! Another fun game was called "Cops and Robbers" which was played on tricycles. I ALWAYS had to be the bad guy and Keith always got to be the cop. We would ride round and round on the road in front of our house playing this game. <br />
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When Keith went to Kindergarten at our church I remember feeling lost. What was I supposed to do without him? I remember watching soap operas some, and sitting around lots. I guess I got used to him being gone eventually and the next year I went to Kindergarten! <br />
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As we got older our world enlarged to include the neighborhood kids. I know there were probably girls my age in our neighborhood but I ran with the guys. Keith's friends were my friends and the two best were Mike and Tony Brown. They lived just down the street and we had the best fun playing with them. They had a dog named Candy, (an Airedale) that I remember thinking was not a very pretty dog. I haven't changed my opinion much - I still don't think they are pretty dogs with their rectangle snouts! Anyway, I remember playing with those guys every summer. If they minded a girl being part of the group I don't remember it.<br />
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After we moved to Ooltewah Keith and I were pretty much the only kids we had to play with because we no longer lived in a neighborhood. I remember us waiting at the end of the driveway for the school bus just talking about stuff. What stuff? I have no idea. Stuff that was important to us. Living in the country was a new experience for us and I remember exploring the creek and the field behind our house with Keith. We had lots of adventures out there! After we started our new school we each made friends in our own grade but I still considered Keith my best friend. In the summers we would play board games. I remember having a Monopoly game that went on for most of one summer! We just left the game set up in Keith's room and played some every day. We also played ping pong and pool in the basement. He was a mean ping pong player and showed absolutely no mercy. He would serve the ball in such a way that there was no returning it.<br />
I preferred vollying the ball back and forth some - but not Keith - he was out for the win!. <br />
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We also played basketball on the driveway. HORSE and PIG were the staples. I never got very good and probably didn't really enjoy basketball (considering I don't now) but if that is what Keith wanted to do, I joined in. He would stay outside shooting baskets long after we had gone inside in the evenings. We swam daily in the pool playing Marco Polo and having jumping and splashing contests. We just had fun being kids.<br />
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When Mom and Dad started having Betty Brown and her husband (what was his name?) come on Saturday nights to play Rook I remember watching the adults play (and learning how to play the game), reading my book, and playing in the basement with Keith and the Brown's son Steve. Baby sister Jenni and Greg Brown were the same age and spent the evenings playing somewhere. Meanwhile, once again it was me and the guys. You know, I was not a tomboy but my best memories as a kid are when I ran around and played with Keith and his friends.<br />
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Well, there you have it. My first best friend was my brother, Keith. I love remembering those days and just wanted to write my memories down somewhere and this is where I decided to put them. Hope you enjoyed reading this little vignette about my childhood. <br />
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Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-11827314817980385252011-09-05T12:44:00.000-04:002011-09-05T12:44:06.285-04:00Winter Garden<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E58m8sQwcMk/TmQsAOhdp6I/AAAAAAAAAGI/WWSrY6eRQYg/s1600/The+Winter+Garden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E58m8sQwcMk/TmQsAOhdp6I/AAAAAAAAAGI/WWSrY6eRQYg/s320/The+Winter+Garden.jpg" width="212" /></a></div> Family, love, and secrets are the major themes in this novel. Two sisters strive for years to earn their seemingly cold mother's love. The older claims to not care even while she spends her entire life trying to 'be good enough' to win her mother's approval and love. The younger sister becomes an adventurer and searches for meaning through her job as a photographer, continually drawn to women and their suffering throughout the world. <br />
A fairy tale is at the center of the story. On his deathbed the beloved father and husband, the glue that has held the family together, extracts a promise from his wife that she will tell her daughters the story in it's entirety, something she has never done. The girls' grew up hearing the romantic story of the peasant girl and the prince but never realized that there was more to the story than 'happily ever after'.<br />
I enjoyed this book. It made me think about how important it is for us to know the history of our family. Not just the genealogy. I think that even if we cannot understand the circumstances our parents and grandparents came from, even if their stories are beyond our ability to empathize with because it might be so far removed from what we know, it is still important because these stories help us understand ourselves. Each of us is a product of our history. What happened to the women and men in our family of the past affects us and our children and even our children's children. How many of us have found out a tidbit of history and suddenly had an 'a-ha' moment of understanding of an event or events from out childhood or even a glimpse of ourselves? How many of us decide to change family patterns without ever understanding why these patterns exist? I believe hearing the stories of our past is the first step to understanding.<br />
So much of our history is lost because either the younger generation never cared enough to ask or to listen to the stories or comments that are made by previous generations. Or the stories are never told because they are too painful or we don't think our children care or could understand our story. Then one day everyone who knows those pieces of your family story are gone, and the history is gone with them.Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-20757796051040922672011-09-05T12:36:00.001-04:002011-09-05T12:41:02.352-04:00Laura and Me (part 2)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kBuUox-GZsA/TmT0uNHZQCI/AAAAAAAAAGc/F-SV1Qq9r_0/s1600/Laura.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="169" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kBuUox-GZsA/TmT0uNHZQCI/AAAAAAAAAGc/F-SV1Qq9r_0/s200/Laura.jpg" width="200" /></a> My love affair with Laura continued and I wanted to find out everything I could about her. One year my mom (I think) gave me a biography about her by William Anderson. He had researched the Wilder and Ingalls families and included parts of Laura's life that was not in the series. Pa and Ma working in a hotel after they left Plum Creek. Their returning to Plum Creek before heading west to Silver Lake. Laura's little brother who died. William Anderson did a great job and I read the biography several times. I really wanted to find out more about Laura and Almanzo's daughter, Rose, so I started looking for information about them. I found a biography, <i>Laura and Rose</i>, in the Hamilton County Public Library. The book was sad and interesting at the same time. You remember Eliza Jane Wilder from Little Town on the Prairie? I think Rose was cut out of the same cloth as her Aunt Eliza. She was intellectually gifted but never had a great relationship with her mother. Rose became a successful author and, according to this book, was jealous that her mother's books became more popular than any she herself had written. The author also stated that Rose heavily edited the Little House books, and, if your read <i>The First Four Years</i>, which wasn't published until after Laura's death, and was left unedited to honor her, you have to realize that someone edited the other books. The final book does not read as smoothly as the others. Of course, Laura did not publish this book because it was so sad. It was probably very difficult to write about that time in her life. I was left saddened at the end of Laura and Rose because my image of Laura was changed. <br />
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</tbody></table> After the television show became so popular a new generation of 'Little House' lovers wanted to know more about the real Laura. I like to believe these people decided to read the books because of the show and that is what made them curious. However, suddenly there was a plethora of new Little House stuff on the market. The Little House Cookbook, The Little House Songbook, On the Way Home, and a new series based on Rose's life (which was horrible, by the way). It seemed that the estate of Roger Lea MacBride decided to make all the money possible off of Laura. It continues today. Now there is a series based on Caroline Ingalls (Ma) childhood. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Et92A_aDecw/TmTz-bCnZ0I/AAAAAAAAAGU/S2xohXvRTlQ/s1600/I++Remember+Laura.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Et92A_aDecw/TmTz-bCnZ0I/AAAAAAAAAGU/S2xohXvRTlQ/s200/I++Remember+Laura.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dePQY5CtwEI/TmT0CqErucI/AAAAAAAAAGY/Fq77QG82W2A/s1600/Little+House+in+the+Ozarks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dePQY5CtwEI/TmT0CqErucI/AAAAAAAAAGY/Fq77QG82W2A/s200/Little+House+in+the+Ozarks.jpg" width="200" /></a></div> Two books by Stephen Hines which are biographical in nature helped me in my search for Laura. Little House in the Ozarks is a collection of writing by Laura. It turns out that the Little House books were not Laura's first foray into writing. For many years she wrote a column for the Missouri Ruralist newspaper. The other book, "I Remember Laura" is a collection of memories by family, friends, and neighbors of Laura and Almanzo. Both of these books depict a Laura much like the one we meet in the Little House books. Petite, shy, and humble, as well as very pretty would describe Laura. I was happy to read these books to dispel the image I had from reading Laura and Rose.<br />
To sum up, Laura Ingalls Wilder will always fascinate me. I believe she was a special person who, like the rest of us, had problems. I believe she developed a deep faith that saw her through some difficult years. I also think she and Almanzo loved each other deeply and were "partners in every sense of the word." <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div> Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-11817153132009618242011-08-30T18:40:00.000-04:002011-08-30T18:40:40.975-04:00Iron House - Why You Need to Read It Okay, I promised a more complete review of this book in my previous "teaser." Two brothers are abandoned and end up in a poorly run orphanage named Iron House where the biggest, meanest kids run everything. The adult supervision is minimal. One brother is strong and confident, the other weak and sickly. Michael spends the first ten years of his life trying to protect his brother Julian from abuse. Then Julian kills the biggest bully while protecting himself and Michael takes the blame and runs away.<br />
Julian is adopted and raised by a wealthy senator while Michael lives on the streets of New York City until a mob boss 'rescues' him and raises him as his son. The two have no contact until Michael falls in love and decides to leave the 'business'. His fellow criminals threaten everyone and everything he loves to prevent him from leaving. When he checks on his brother he finds that old classmates of theirs from the orphanage have been discovered dead on the Senators property and Julian is the chief suspect.<br />
Julian's mother will do anything to protect him. The story of family, tragedy, and love is gripping at every turn. My sister has made me promise to tell her when I find a book I don't 'figure out' ahead of time. Well, this is the first in a long time! I had close guesses, but the climax surprised even me! Needless to say, I loved this book. It is even better than John Hart's previous book, <i>The Last Child</i>.Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-20630168235910258592011-08-21T22:06:00.000-04:002011-08-21T22:06:47.456-04:00Iron House<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-b7Gg5b51HJ8/TlG5ksTCeJI/AAAAAAAAAFk/-p80ApVpVRE/s1600/Iron-House.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-b7Gg5b51HJ8/TlG5ksTCeJI/AAAAAAAAAFk/-p80ApVpVRE/s200/Iron-House.jpg" width="131" /></a></div> I will write a more detailed review of this book later but for now all I can say is - READ IT! This is a great book.Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-36382784004839281282011-08-15T18:59:00.002-04:002011-08-16T18:34:51.913-04:00Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HenEO-Tztec/TkmkNVDKvNI/AAAAAAAAAFg/HqtZexn_7Vg/s1600/Crooked+Letter+Crooked+Letter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HenEO-Tztec/TkmkNVDKvNI/AAAAAAAAAFg/HqtZexn_7Vg/s320/Crooked+Letter+Crooked+Letter.jpg" width="212" /></a></div> Can you guess what this book is about from the title? I couldn't. I love titles that grab the reader and make you want to read the book to find out why the author chose it. <i>Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter</i> is classified as a mystery, and the story does involve a 20 year old murder that was never solved. But it is more about friendship and family. <br />
Silas and Larry become friends by accident in the 1950's when Silas, a black boy squatting with his mother in a hunting shack owned by Larry's family, gets a ride to school with Larry and his Father. This is the beginning of a short-lived friendship that haunts them both for the next 20+ years. Larry is a misfit. He is not the son his father, a mechanic, wanted. He has asthma, poor health, loves to read, and is not good at sports. He doesn't fit in at school and has no friends. Every night his mother prays for God to send Larry a friend. When Silas and he start hanging out together, Larry is sure his Mom's prayers have been answered. But Larry's father manages to destroy the friendship. When the boy's are seniors in high school, Larry's beautiful neighbor and classmate disappears after he has a date with her and is never found. Larry is accused of the murder and spends the next 25 years known as 'Scary Larry' in the community.<br />
Meanwhile, Silas gets a baseball scholarship and eventually returns to the small town as part of the police force. Soon, two more people are killed and everyone assumes Larry killed them. The story of how the mystery is solved and what happens to these one-time friends makes a good book.<br />
Can you guess where the story takes place? I'll spell it out for you: M-I-crooked letter, crooked letter, I, hump back, hump back I, crooked letter, crooked letter, I. Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-67958392030131345512011-08-12T21:22:00.000-04:002011-08-12T21:22:58.941-04:00Laura and Me (part 1)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-thbp-mq8tqc/TkXQsELxZ7I/AAAAAAAAAFM/74hiz25UQb4/s1600/Laura+Ingalls+Wilder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-thbp-mq8tqc/TkXQsELxZ7I/AAAAAAAAAFM/74hiz25UQb4/s1600/Laura+Ingalls+Wilder.jpg" /></a></div> I remember when I read my first "Little House" book by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I'm pretty sure it was<i> On</i> <i>the</i> <i>Banks of Plum Creek</i> and I was in the 4th grade. Sometime before I finished that book or soon afterward I realized that it was part of a series. On the next trip to the library I checked out<i> Little House in the Big Woods</i> and<i> Little House on the Praire</i>. I quickly read through the series including what I have always considered one of the saddest books ever, <i>The First Four Years</i>. <br />
After that first reading I think I read the entire series at least once a year. I got a paperback set of the series and read them so many times I wore them out. I always read<i> The Long Winter</i> during the hottest part of the summer because the imagery was so intense that I would shiver sitting outside on a 95 degree day in August. When I was sad I would read <i>These Happy Golden Years</i> because I've always loved a romantic story. Even as an adult I have read these books many times and as a young wife decided to collect the books in hardback. Sometime during the years of collecting (I only bought one book a year) the publisher changed the cover! I feared my collection would never be complete because I wanted the entire set with the Garth Williams artwork covers I had checked out of the public library and first read. I don't remember how but somehow I completed my collection.<br />
When the TV movie <i>Little House on the Prairie </i>came out I enjoyed it. But I never liked the TV show. Pa had a beard, Michael Landon didn't. Ma was a wife and mother of the 19th century. She did what she had to do. The Ma in the show was a 20th century woman in the 19th century. Mary could do a lot after she became blind but getting married never entered the picture! Laura had blue blue eyes - not chocolate brown. And where did Albert come from?! No, I never liked the show and didn't watch many episodes.<br />
But I still loved Laura and wanted to find out more about her. I'll tell you more about my search to know Laura on another day. For now, I think I'll re-read <i>The Long Winter </i>- our air conditioner hasn't been working right and I need to cool off!<br />
Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-72973306609294950322011-08-05T20:00:00.000-04:002011-08-05T20:00:24.649-04:00The Handmaid's Tale<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PDo6vxqHU2I/TjyDbL-I3jI/AAAAAAAAAE4/LzxEj5tfYO8/s1600/The+Handmaid%2527s+Tale.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PDo6vxqHU2I/TjyDbL-I3jI/AAAAAAAAAE4/LzxEj5tfYO8/s200/The+Handmaid%2527s+Tale.jpg" width="200" /></a></div> My sister asked me to blog about books I have read. So I am going to try to blog about a book once a week. This week's book is <i>The Handmaid's Tale</i> by Margaret Atwood. I was hesitant to read this book after reading the summary. I really enjoy reading dystopian novels but have found that the genre is usually limited to young adult books, which I do like most of the time. However, I wanted to find out if anyone wrote adult dystopian books and began searching. The book that was first on every search was <i>The Handmaid's Tale</i>.<br />
The reason I was hesitant was that the summary refers to this being a book about a society where the Christian 'far-right' group has taken over what used to be America and created a mono-theocratic with basically no freedom for women. I hesitated but was drawn to the book again and again. Finally, I found it at McKay's Used Books and decided for $2.00 if it wasn't worth reading, I hadn't lost too much.<br />
America is now the Republic of Gilead and has been taken over by an extreme right sect of 'Christians.' I put the word Christian in quotes because, of course, this group is based on a lot of rule following and man-made perversions and interpretations and is a far cry from true Christianity. Women have no rights and very few job possibilities. Offred is a handmaid and lives a limited existence in which she is allowed to go to the store once daily, and is only allowed to talk to certain people. All women dress in a manner that indicates their societal position. Offred remembers a life before when she had a husband, a daughter, and a name she refuses to think about because it makes the reality of her existence more difficult. She hopes to get pregnant because that is her job and if she doesn't she is no longer useful. Very few women have viable ovaries because of some weapon used in the war (at least that's what I gathered).<br />
The book is written in the first person by Offred. The style is matter-of-fact, which makes the way of life described more difficult to imagine, especially after getting far enough into the book to start figuring out what's going on. I won't spoil the book for anyone who might want to read it by giving to much away. I will say that if you enjoy reading 'light' books, you probably don't want to read this one. However, I recommend it for those of you who enjoy a book that leaves you thinking days after you finish reading.Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-68914591065589244032011-08-02T19:52:00.002-04:002011-08-02T20:06:24.709-04:00IT SEEMS LIKE YESTERDAY<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T4EQyKfUwS8/TjiMhtrayYI/AAAAAAAAAE0/h1Il0oNFV0w/s1600/100_0108.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T4EQyKfUwS8/TjiMhtrayYI/AAAAAAAAAE0/h1Il0oNFV0w/s320/100_0108.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> <br />
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Thirty years ago today Steve and I were married. This morning I mentioned that it sure didn't seem like it had been thirty years. He agreed. Thirty years ago we were 19 years old! Now we have three sons older than we were when we married. Thirty years ago we were both sophomores at UTC. When I look back at the commitment we made to each other I am amazed at what God can do. Without knowing Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, somehow we had the sense to decide that divorce would never be an option - no matter what. <br />
Marriage is not easy, and anyone who says different is either not married or crazy. Love is not a feeling and no one has the power to change anyone. I heard a man speaking on marriage once who said that in any relationship, especially marriage, if both parties committed to give 100% to the relationship, each one might be giving 50% in reality. How true. The older I grow the more God shows me about what is really important. Am I the most important person - even in my world? Should my children be more important than anything to me? Should Steve be number one? God continually shows me that if I keep Him in the number one place and realize that I am really, truly not the center of any universe, then I am happier. If everything we do is done to glorify the One who should be kept at the center, Jesus Christ, then contentment is obtainable.<br />
I have been truly blessed in my marriage. Steve Corley loves me know matter what. He loves me when I am hateful. He loves me when I'm angry. He loves when when I'm loving to him, and he loves me when I'm not so lovable. He loved me when I was skinny; and he loves me now that I'm fat.<br />
I truly believe that Steve would do whatever is within his power to make me happy. He is a great husband and a great dad who is a wonderful example of what a godly man should be to our sons. <br />
Happy Anniversary, Steve! I love you.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi55BCXe-1esAH6YoRoDyZR-bp8RxxgI3NnZ8HGvc_gFs8-T125gQySc6Bi4kNmotvsqfn3m4-C0Zz5bXsIpxqZaswz7CaYSFNKb9ywREehyt2vHG73pmuREJWx9YrdMWNYkAcw2jaVhvE/s1600/IMG_2468.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi55BCXe-1esAH6YoRoDyZR-bp8RxxgI3NnZ8HGvc_gFs8-T125gQySc6Bi4kNmotvsqfn3m4-C0Zz5bXsIpxqZaswz7CaYSFNKb9ywREehyt2vHG73pmuREJWx9YrdMWNYkAcw2jaVhvE/s320/IMG_2468.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-91142097434770297492011-08-01T16:05:00.000-04:002011-08-01T16:05:19.875-04:00A Birthday Story Matthew turned 18 on May 30, 2011. For those of you who know Matthew you won't be surprised by the following story. For those of you who do not know him, well, to quote a teacher he once had "he's not like the rest of you Corley's, is he?" She loved him, as everyone does, because he is a charmer. I was not insulted by her comment even though it doesn't sound too kind because I knew exactly what she meant! Matthew is and always has been full of personality. He can talk to anyone and for many years had no inhibitions about what he might or might not say. Suffice it to say, Matthew is full of personality. Now, on to the birthday story!<br />
When this cute young man was twelve years old Grandma and Grandpa got a new car. They bought a new, white Grand Jeep Cherokee with all the bells and whistles. It even had seat warmers for the leather seats so that bottoms never had to be cold in the winter. Well, when we drove up to visit and Matthew saw that car, he was super excited! He walked (bounced) around it and then, in true Matthew fashion, said, "Hey Grandma, when I turn sixteen will you give me this car?" Grandma laughed and cavalierly answered, "Sure Matthew."<br />
For the next year or so every time we saw Grandma and Grandpa the first thing Matthew would say is, "I can't wait until I'm sixteen so I can get this car!" Now, Steve and I realized that Grandma was probably joking, or thought it was so many years away that she wouldn't have to worry about it. Finally we told Matthew to not mention the car again, he was being rude, etc. etc. So he didn't mention the car to them ever again.<br />
Fast forward to Matthew turning sixteen. Lot's of changes had occurred including a job change for Steve and two boys in college. There was NO WAY we could afford to get him even an old used car. But he never complained. He didn't get his license until he was seventeen because we couldn't afford to add him to our insurance policy. Four young men equals a whopper monthly car insurance payment! Even after he got his license he still didn't have anything to drive and never complained. As his 18th birthday approached I told Steve I would give anything if somehow we could get him a car. I knew it wasn't possible even before Steve confirmed that there was no way.<br />
One day in April I stopped by to see Mom and Dad (aka Grandma and Grandpa) and they said they needed to talk to me about something. Turns out they wanted to give Matthew the Cherokee for his 18th birthday!!! Mom had never forgotten her promise to him. They wanted to check with Steve and me first to make sure we were okay with the idea, which of course we were! On May 30 I took Matthew by to see them so they could give him his birthday present, which he was expecting to be a card with $25 in it. Imagine his surprise when he opened the card and keys fell out instead of $25! He was overwhelmed, which is saying a lot for Matthew.<br />
It is now August and he still loves his car. He has gone from being a homebody to not being home now that he has wheels (and a job to pay for gas). He refused to pose for a picture with the car so you'll have to settle for a picture of him on his birthday getting the keys, and a picture of the car.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WeLtG4aZgEU/TjcFtl5EYKI/AAAAAAAAAEo/pPQb6HMIBPc/s1600/100_0089.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WeLtG4aZgEU/TjcFtl5EYKI/AAAAAAAAAEo/pPQb6HMIBPc/s320/100_0089.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wdeJnF-gdTg/TjcGbINz3LI/AAAAAAAAAEs/9w7ftXlnORU/s1600/100_0106.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wdeJnF-gdTg/TjcGbINz3LI/AAAAAAAAAEs/9w7ftXlnORU/s320/100_0106.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> And that's the story of Matthew and how he got his car. Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6338055156672129277.post-49154738740041463752011-07-31T21:38:00.005-04:002011-08-01T13:36:07.142-04:00Lisa Recommends . . .<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c0zTVIZfzuQ/TjYAbJ-gBwI/AAAAAAAAAEY/ys1sE9KzUS8/s1600/Room+by+Emma+Donoghue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c0zTVIZfzuQ/TjYAbJ-gBwI/AAAAAAAAAEY/ys1sE9KzUS8/s200/Room+by+Emma+Donoghue.jpg" width="128" /></a></div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5H1k3Uy3NbY/TjYAeY64VXI/AAAAAAAAAEc/MwwqjQslpO8/s1600/Still+Missing+by+Chevy+Stevens.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5H1k3Uy3NbY/TjYAeY64VXI/AAAAAAAAAEc/MwwqjQslpO8/s200/Still+Missing+by+Chevy+Stevens.jpg" width="131" /></a> <span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;">Have your read<i> Room </i>by Emma Donoghue? What about <i>Still Missing </i>by Chevy Stevens? Both of these are very good books and while they are definitely NOT a series, I recommend you read <i>Still Missing</i> before you read <i>Room</i>. If it's too late for that, read both anyway. Emma Donoghue lives in Great Britain while Chevy Stevens (a pseudonym - who would have guessed?), lives in British Columbia. I'm pretty sure the authors probably don't even know each other; however these books work wonderfully together.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> Both of these great reads deal with abduction. I think they should be read in a certain order because<i> Stil</i>l <i>Missing</i> is about a twenty-something real estate agent who get kidnapped. She is held captive in a remote location by her abductor for several years. Despite her efforts to retain herself, she is forced to comply with his odd quirks in order to survive. As a result, both her mind and her body become brainwashed. I won't spoil a good read by giving away too much, but eventually she manages to escape. Then she has to find herself and discover who she is now because, as you can imagine, this event has totally changed her and her perception of herself. The story is told from the viewpoint of the kidnapped woman through a series of sessions with her psychiatrist as she is trying to heal.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> <i> Room</i> deals with abduction from the viewpoint of a five year old son of a woman who was abducted and has been a prisoner for years. For the boy, the room he lives in with his mom is the world and it is all he has ever known. The beautiful thing about this narration is the matter-of-fact way he describes his world with his mom, including visits from his father, whom he only sees through slats in a wardrobe because his mom is determined to protect her son from her abductor. As the boy gets older, his world becomes smaller and eventually his mother figures out way to save them both. She has to learn how to live in the real world again and he has to learn that the world is bigger than the room he knew. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c0zTVIZfzuQ/TjYAbJ-gBwI/AAAAAAAAAEY/ys1sE9KzUS8/s1600/Room+by+Emma+Donoghue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></span></div><span style="font-size: small;"> I read <i>Still Missing</i> before I read<i> Room</i> completely by accident. I had never heard of either book before. However, as I was reading <i>Room</i> I was able to superimpose and understand the unspoken viewpoint of the mom because of <i>Still Missing</i>. Emma Donoghue's writing from the viewpoint of the five year old boy was brilliant. His innocence and his normal, childlike acceptance of his life enables her to write of unimaginable events in a matter-of-fact way. While the reader intuitively understands and gets hints of his mom's experience, as I was reading <i>Room</i> the woman in <i>Still Missing</i> became the boy's mother. I enjoyed both books more fully because I read them in order and I am sure you will too!</span>Lisa Sullivan Corleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13426865940954210728noreply@blogger.com2