Introduction and January Books

[mattiescottage.livejournal.com]

January's books:

• The Children Who Stayed Alone (Alternate title: Sod House Adventure) by Bonnie Bess Worline (1956)
• The Long Journey by Barbara Corcoran (1970)
• He Fell in Love with His Wife by Edward Payson Roe (1886)

Introducing Myself

I'm a Bible-Christian gal in my forties now. (I'm usually in denial on that last bit. How could I possibly be over forty?) I live in the Midwest and have a techie job that keeps me pretty busy. At home I like nature and gardening. Most of my fiction reading tends toward old-fashioned novels, so much of my reading comes from Project Gutenberg. I've been reading free public-domain books on my Windows Mobile handheld (PDA) for almost ten years.

I'm always behind on general housekeeping, home improvement projects, garden wishes and such, so sitting down to read is a bit of a luxury. Often I turn to Librivox.org or convert Project Gutenberg texts to computer-read audio in order to be able to listen to books as I cook or do housework or even do outdoor gardening and yard projects.

Notes on January's Books

(1) The Children Who Stayed Alone (Alternate title: Sod House Adventure) by Bonnie Bess Worline (Original copyright 1956, published by Scholastic Book Services, 1968) This story was perfect for this time of year--a story of warmth and good humor that helps carry a teenage brother and sister through their adventures in their sod home during a Kansas prairie blizzard. They manage to take care of their younger siblings and even some unexpected guests during this trying time while father and mother have been called away on separate errands. The story was so realistic, with authentic details, that I often forgot that it is apparently fiction and not someone's retelling of their own pioneer childhood. I was left understanding a little better how pioneer families supported and cheered each other through the hard times.
	(2) The Long Journey by Barbara Corcoran (1970, Atheneum) "I brought your pack in from the barn," she said, " and I put a few things in it that you might be needing." Laurie's pack sat by the door. It was bulging. "You are awful good to me," Laurie said. . . . Miss Emily stooped over and picked up a peacock feather. She put it in Laurie's hand. "When you get to thinking the world is hopeless," she said, "look at that." Thirteen-year-old Laurie enjoys the beautiful things about her solitary life with her Grandfather in their abandoned Montana mining town. She also longs to experience more of the world which she has learned about through her Grandfather's stories, visits from her Uncle Arthur, correspondence school, and a subscription to National Geographic. Now Grandfather is experiencing blindness, and he sends Laurie on a solitary journey by horseback across the state to reach her Uncle for help. The story is a lovely presentation of the dance between interacting with good people and distancing oneself from people who pose a threat to one's peace and happiness.
(3) He Fell in Love with His Wife by Edward Payson Roe (1886), available for free download at Project Gutenberg) A widowed farmer not only mourns the loss of simple companionship with his wife, but finds he is losing money by his inability to run the farm without her help. He goes through multiple dismal experiences in hopes of getting help before he ends up falling in love with the wife of the title. It's a mediocre story, and the title makes it somewhat predictable, but it is sweet to see how his relationship with his new wife affects his life. Just a note about author Edward Payson Roe: He was a Presbyterian minister who found a more ready audience by turning his observations into popular fiction. Forced to resign his ministerial duties due to poor health, he retired to writing and fruit-farming. Some of his works--fiction and non-fiction--heavily extol the virtues of small-farming to restore health, soul, family relations, and the family pocketbook.

Comments

[moredetails.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the intro and posting your books. :)

Re: fellow wayfarer,

[mattiescottage.livejournal.com]

I'm glad to introduce you to the community! Although this is my first post, I've been reading it for over a year.

I really enjoyed your review of the journals of Major Warren Lewis (http://cinda-cite.livejournal.com/57877.html). You might think of cross-posting it here; I'm sure there are some C. S. Lewis readers here who would be interested.

I also followed up your reference to the New York Times series on literary criticism and sampled some of those featured articles. I had hoped to post within my own LJ a note of something of that I found interesting. . . but I am behind on a lot of things lately.

Edit: formatting correction

[eattheolives.livejournal.com]

You are *almost* making me want an e-reader of some kind* just for the chance to read old books from Project Gutenberg!

That first book sounds especially good. :)


*I find that just having books on my laptop isn't enough ... with the easy availability of print books, I never seem to make the effort to sit down with computer and read.

[mattiescottage.livejournal.com]

If I were that close to a good public library most every day, I wouldn't be quite so dependent upon Project Gutenberg texts. On the other hand, I have been able to explore a lot more that way than most libraries keep on their shelf--particularly of the pre-1950's fiction variety.

I agree, leafing through pages is better, but now that I've gotten used to it, it is pretty handy to have everything on a little hand-held that contains a whole library of books that can be carried with me in my pocket, lights itself when reading in dimly lit spaces, and wipes off easily if I accidentally spatter a little something on it at a restaurant.

It's the ability to have my computer convert to audio, though, which is the thing I wouldn't want to give up about Project Gutenberg. The computer-voice takes a little getting used to, but I like it better than a human reader that puts annoying emphasis into the reading where I don't want it.

Yes, people have told me that if I already like reading free E-texts, that I would enjoy the Kindle or similar. But what I have right now works fine for me.

[eattheolives.livejournal.com]

yes, it's difficult to find any fiction from the first half of the century or earlier in a public library, unless it's attained "classic" status. I understand why, but that doesn't make me much happier about it!