Freedom by Jonathan Franzen

I kept thinking nothing about this book is inspiring. Half way through the book and all I wanted to do was slit my wrist, but I thought maybe it will get better towards the end, instead all I wanted to do was slit both wrists. 

I hate all the characters and wanted to stab them all, especially the protagonist Patty Berglund. I hate her husband Walter, their kids Jessica and Joey and Joey’s girlfriend Connie and Walter’s best friend Richard Katz. 

Towards the end, I was afraid to read the book because I knew it would put a damper on my day. I wanted to read something inspiring for my last blog of 2010: You know “Hang in there”; “Life is worth it”; “There is a light at the end of the tunnel”, nope not this book. I do not understand why this is one of the best novels Oprah has ever read. 

Frazen is a master of the English Language. The book is wonderfully written, witty, and funny. The story has a wealth of information but is so damn heavy and depressing. The book club members enjoyed the book. They saw it as a journey of life and people through the Berglund Family. It is very interesting how he presents “Freedom” and how he takes an in-depth look at people’s lives throughout the story.

Patty, Walter, Jessica and Joey Berglund are a Midwestern family from St. Paul. Patty is a basketball player turned housewife and Walter is a lawyer. Through their journey we see them slowly lose track of each other, themselves and their dreams. The story spans over 35 years and coincide with many important political issues. Frazen takes you through a detail look at how people live and become who they are.

Don't Blink by James Patterson and Howard Roughan

I read this book in 2 days, well actually 12 hours. It’s a fun fast paced easy to read detective story. Typical who done it action and suspense thriller.

Nick Daniels is conducting a once in a life time interview at a famous busy Steak House in NYC. Before he can begin an assassin walks in during the busy lunch hour and commits a gruesome murder at the table next to him. This is only the beginning of things to come for Nick Daniels.

Captivating by John & Stasi Eldredge

Captivating tries to touch women at their core. It illustrates all the difficulties women have and tries to show them how God is always there to listen and get them through their problems. The author Stasi and her husband John advise women not to be afraid of their desire to be loved and appreciated the way God wanted them to be. This is a self help book for Christian woman struggling with issues that are common to most women. The book teaches that you can always find solace and love if you turn to God. The Stasi and John give plenty of advice, encouragements and prayers to help you find the woman that God meant for you to be.

The book refers so much to the fall of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden and I am not sure I see “The Fall” in the same way. I did not like women portrayed as victims, broken, empty, and looking for someone to fill in the holes in their lives and always need to be rescued. Women were not represented as capable of taking care of themselves; but I think that is the point of the book, “you cannot take care of yourself, you need God with you all the time in order to make it”.

The Antichrist by Friedrich Nietzsche

My head is still swimming after reading this book. 

Antichrist can also be translated as Anti-Christian.

Nietzsche asks if Pity is a Virtue. He denounces Christianity completely. As far as he was concerned Christianity was the greatest evil out to destroy man of his true form and identity. He was furious that Jesus’ practice and words were taken out of context.

Here are 2 sections I wanted to share.

Section 9

Upon this theological instinct I make war: I find the tracks of it everywhere. Whoever has theological blood in his veins is shifty and dishonourable in all things. The pathetic thing that grows out of this condition is called faith: in other words, closing one's eyes upon one's self once for all, to avoid suffering the sight of incurable falsehood. People erect a concept of morality, of virtue, of holiness upon this false view of all things; they ground good conscience upon faulty vision; they argue that no other sort of vision has value any more, once they have made theirs sacrosanct with the names of "God," "salvation" and "eternity."

Section 62

With this I come to a conclusion and pronounce my judgment. I condemn Christianity; I bring against the Christian church the most terrible of all the accusations that an accuser has ever had in his mouth. It is, to me, the greatest of all imaginable corruptions; it seeks to work the ultimate corruption, the worst possible corruption. The Christian church has left nothing untouched by its depravity; it has turned every value into worthlessness, and every truth into a lie, and every integrity into baseness of soul. Let any one dare to speak to me of its "humanitarian" blessings! Its deepest necessities range it against any effort to abolish distress; it lives by distress; it creates distress to make itself immortal. . . . For example, the worm of sin: it was the church that first enriched mankind with this misery!--The "equality of souls before God"--this fraud, this pretext for the rancunes of all the base-minded--this explosive concept, ending in revolution, the modern idea, and the notion of overthrowing the whole social order--this is Christian dynamite. . . . The "humanitarian" blessings of Christianity forsooth! To breed out of humanitas a self-contradiction, an art of self-pollution, a will to lie at any price, an aversion and contempt for all good and honest instincts! All this, to me, is the "humanitarianism" of Christianity!--Parasitism as the only practice of the church; with its anaemic and "holy" ideals, sucking all the blood, all the love, all the hope out of life; the beyond as the will to deny all reality; the cross as the distinguishing mark of the most subterranean conspiracy ever heard of,--against health, beauty, well-being, intellect, kindness of soul--against life itself. . . .

Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire

Son of a Witch, Maguire’s sequel to Wicked, focuses on Liir, the boy who saw Dorothy kill the witch with a pail of water at then end of Wicked. Liir thinks that The Wicked Witch of the West Elphaba and Fiyero are his parents, but no one seems to know for sure. He struggles with this and tries to find an answer throughout the story.

The story begins with Liir found on the road after being attacked by dragons. He is taken to a convent (the Cloister of Saint Glinda Mauntery) where he is cared for by Candle, a girl that was dropped off at the Mauntery by her uncle a few weeks before.

Liir’s tasks: to find Nor, help the Princess Nostoya, help the birds regain their freedom and to figure out who the hell he is.

The book, written for adults, received mostly positive reviews but I did not like it. There were a few parts that caught my attention but for the most part I found it wordy, it did not make sense and the story was all over the place.

A Confession by Leo Tolstoy

At the age of 51, on the brink of suicide, Tolstoy went from the pursuit of fame and money towards religion and the meaning of life. A Confession details his search for God and what is truly important in life. Tolstoy says it is important to ask yourself “What am I doing and Why”, “How can I make my life worth living”. You should not live your life afraid of asking these questions and searching for an answer. This is an in-depth search for the meaning of his life.

As one gets closer to the end it is usually common to look back and ask “What have I done with my life”, “Is this all there is”. For Tolstoy faith in what Jesus said (not the religion) saved him.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling

The Tales of Beedle the Bard is a fairy tale where the characters always learn a moral lesson from their journey.  Albus Dumbledore tells you the meaning at the end of each story.  It gets a little boring but it's still fun and worth it in the end. There are five stories in the whole book.  


Beedle the Bard appears in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the seventh novel of the series. The book is a popular collection of Wizarding children's fairy tales that Albus Dumbledore left to Hermione Granger in his will.

Introducing the Deathly Hallows. There is a symbol above the story "The Tale of the Three Brothers", which is the symbol of the Hallows. The Triangle represents the Invisibility Cloak, The Circle represents the Resurrection Stone, and The Vertical line represents the Elder Wand.

Rabble Rousers by Cheryl Harness

20 Women Who Made A Difference
Ann Lee - Mother of the American Shakers
Frances Wright - Passionate Patriot
Emma Hart Willard - Equal Opportunity Educator
Sojourner Truth - The Abolition Movement
Mary Ann Shadd Cary - Abolitionist Activist
Elizabeth Cady Stanton - Revolutionary in Petticoats
Susan B. Anthony - Suffrage: The Women's Movement
Dr. Mary Edwards Walker - Civil War Heroine and Performer
Frances E. Willard - Temperance Activist
Mary E. Lease - Populist "Joan of Arc of Kansas"
Ida Bell Wells - Barnett - Anti-Lynching Campaigner
Jane Addams - Social Worker in the Mankind Business
Mary Harris Jones - The Labor Movement
Margaret Sanger - Birth-Control Activist
Alice Paul - Suffragist: The Last Push for the Vote
Eleanor Roosevelt - First Lady of the World
Fannie Lou Hamer - The Civil Rights Movement
Betty Friedman - Feminist
Dolores Huerta - Champion of Migrant Farmworkers
Doris Haddock - Champion of Government Reform

Hatshepsut - The Princess Who Became King - By Ellen Galford

A.D. 1842-1845 Lepsiu's confirms that there was a female pharaoh - Hatshepsut. 

Hatshepsut's tomb was excavated in 1893 by Henry Edouard Naville. She ruled for about 22 years. She made herself King after the death of her husband c.1501 B.C. After becoming King she rewrites the story of her birth to give herself divine lineage.

"Hatshepsut decorated the walls of her new temple at Deir el-Bahri with a rewritten life story, in which her birth was the result of a miraculous meeting between the divine Amen (Amon/Amun - sometimes called the Creator God) and her mother Ahmose".(p.49) This is B.C. (Before Christ) It's interesting how the story mirrors the Virgin Birth of Christ. The word "amen" is also used at the end of  Christian prayers. 

The New Atlantis by Sir Francis Bacon

Picture from the Yale Library

Utopia is a name for an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The word was invented by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. (Wikipedia)

We all have individual ideas of Utopia. New Atlantis, published in 1626, is Bacon’s idea of a Utopian world. The island is called Bensalem where people of all races and religion live together in harmony but leaning much more towards Christianity. The people are honest, generous, pious, and enlightened. There is an ideal college “Solomon House” where they study pure and applied science. In Bensalem religion and science co-exist perfectly. Bacon coined the phrase “Knowledge is Power”.

It is theorized that Bacon was hoping that America would be a model of this utopian world. There are many controversial ideas in the novel but it’s amazing all the wonderful ideas that Bacon foresees. Towards the end of the novel he describes all the things they have discovered, here’s an example:

"We have also furnaces of great diversities, and that keep great diversity of heats; fierce and quick, strong and constant, soft and mild, blown, quiet, dry, moist, and the like. But above all we have heats, in imitation of the sun's and heavenly bodies' heats, that pass divers inequalities, and as it were orbs, progresses, and returns whereby we produce admirable effects… Instruments also which generate heat only by motion. And farther, places for strong insulations; and, again, places under the earth, which by nature or art yield heat. These divers heats we use as the nature of the operation which we intend requireth.”

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

Reading these books make learning history so much fun. Rick (yeah we’re on a first name basis) takes us on another adventure, this time it’s the history of the Gods of Egypt. He stays true to his trademark with young hero Carter, 14 years old, and his sister Sadie, 12 years old, who team up with the Gods to save the world.

After their mother passed away six years ago under mysterious circumstances Carter and Sadie were separated. Carter traveled with his dad Egyptologist Julius Kane and Sadie lived in London with her grandparents. On Christmas Eve their father takes them for a private tour of the British Museum and the fun begins. I’m looking forward to the second book.

A few Egyptian Gods:

Amon - The creator

Anubis - God of mummification.

Isis – Diviner and the wife of Osiris and mother of Horus.

Osiris - Ruler of the underworld.

Horus – The Falcon/sky god. Son of Osiris and Isis.

Set - God of Chaos and enemy of Horus.

Sobek - The crocodile god.
Ra - The sun god.

From the UnMuseum

The Destruction of the Indies by Bartolomé de las Casas

This is a very detailed account, from Bartolomé, of how the Indies was colonized. Friar Bartolomé de las Casas wrote to Prince Philip II in 1542 about the mistreatment of the Native Americans. The writing is repetitive and filled with examples over and over again of horrible cruelties the Natives had to endure.  The Friar was not only horrified by the treatment of the natives, he was also concerned that Spain would come under God’s judgment for these evil acts. According to him the poor natives never had a chance to know the real Christian God because of the cruelties they witnessed they associate Christianity with the Devil. Bishop Bartolomé said he witnessed liquid gold being poured down a man’s throat, many of them burned alive or had their mouths and noses cut off.

What I tried to get my head around is the total number of natives killed. Is it 10 million, 20 million?  I don’t know if I believe that the Prince had no idea of what was going on? Where is all the gold that was taken from the Natives? How sad that the Natives never recovered?

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

This book slowly reels you in and you are not quite sure what the story is about because there are so many layers. The original title of the book is Men Who Hate Women.  The story is gripping pulls you in with small details like dangling a carrot in front of a donkey/horse. Whatever, you know what I mean.

The best part to me is towards the end. Even after the mystery is solved there are still bigger mysteries to solve. I truly enjoy the challenge of thinking about and working through the dilemma the author poses at the end. How do you choose between two evils when your integrity is at stake and there are no clear winners?  I enjoyed how everything about the story challenges the way I think about life and the culture we live in.

The story reminds you that you have no idea what the people who live near you or that you come in contact with everyday are doing behind closed doors. What deep secrets is the person sitting next to you or standing in front of you keeping? Are you being studied or watched by some crazy stalker, rapist or killer? Please don’t feel paranoid, I don’t but I do feel aware and alert to my surroundings. This was an intense wonderful read. Oh by the way it is extremely scary how easy it is to hack into your computer. I’m not trying to scare you – LOL!

The movie does a great job illustrating the violence in the book. I wonder if the American version will be as bold and forthright.

Larson lists a few facts about women and violence in Sweden. This is the saddest one to me:  Ninety-two percent of women in Sweden who have been subjected to sexual assault have not reported the most recent violent incident to the police.

The Storyline - Harriet Vanger disappeared over 40 years ago. Her 80 year old uncle is still consumed with her disappearance and hires journalist Mikael Bloomkvist to investigate. Along the way Lisbeth Salander, a troubled young woman covered in tattoos, is hired to help him solve the puzzle. Together they uncover so much more than the disappearance of a teenage girl.

The Fat Smash Diet and extreme Fat Smash Diet by Ian K Smith, MD

I really like these 2 books but I must say if you buy one you do not need the other. Dr. Ian Smith wrote an easy and practical diet book. The recipes are easy and the meals are for everyday regular people. Everything can be found in your local supermarket. The menu is easy to follow and easy to read.

But, yes there is a But, like any diet or healthy eating plan, the plan must be followed. The individual must have discipline and NO; you can’t eat all you want and still lose weight and be healthy.

The Fat Smash Diet is a 90-day program

extreme Fat Smash Diet is a 3-week program

The Alchemyst by Michael Scott

The character is based on the legend of the greatest Alchemist who owns the stone that changes all metals to gold, and can be used to make an elixir that makes the drinker immortal. In this series he is the protector of “the Book of Abraham the Mage”, the most powerful book on earth, which has the recipe for making the elixir of life, and many other powerful prophecies and magical knowledge.

The story has great historical facts about the Flamels and Dr. John Dee but I did not care for it and I am not moved to read the rest of the series. I felt it was choppy, forced and repetitive. The magical characters are not interesting and I don’t like the heroes: twins Sophie and Josh Newman who have the power to save the world. I must say young adult readers might disagree with me because the book is a New York Times best seller and has an average of 4 stars on Amazon.

A little history- The real Nicholas Flamel was born in France and lived in Paris around 1330-1418 and was married to Perenelle (an alchemist herself). He started out as a scriber and manuscript salesman but became known for his research as an alchemist devoted to finding the secrets of the Philosopher’s Stone. It is rumored that he discovered the secrets in an old copper-bound book he bought: “the Book of Abraham”.  Flamel was extremely wealthy when he died in 1418. The house he lived in still stands in Paris at 51 rue de Montmorency, and is the oldest stone house in the city. There is a street named after him near the Louvre Museum.

Meditation -101 Essential Tips by Naomi Ozaniec

This is a really clear and practical book for anyone interested in meditation. It’s an easy to follow step-by-step series. I’ve had this book for many years and it never gets old or out of date. It has great illustrations and just looking at the book makes you feel calm.

An Acceptable Time by Madeleine L'Engle

I don’t remember what a wrinkle in time was about but I remember loving it as a kid. I have to re-read it because I’m not enjoying An Acceptable Time as much. I don’t think it’s because I’m older. It’s because the characters are not believable and don’t connect to each other which makes it impossible for me to connect to them. The story seems chopped up and doesn’t flow. I like religious fiction but this one was too preachy and predictable.

Young adult science fiction -

Polly takes some time from her large family and is spending the autumn with her grandparents. Zachary Gray comes to visit, a troubled college student whom Polly met in Greece and dated the year before. Then, while walking near her grandparents' Connecticut home, Polly travels through time, three thousand years ago, meeting druids Karralys and Anaral and a warrior named Tav.

The Children of Húrin by J.R.R. Tolkien

Húrin defies Morgoth and a curse is placed on his entire family. We see the life of Túrin, his son, on his journey through life in Middle Earth.

This is my first Tolkien read and that was a mistake. This is a very dark tale, too dark for me. I wasn’t expecting a happy ending but I was not prepared for the amount of despair present in this story. The writing style is very similar to The Lord of The Rings. It is recommended that one reads other Tolkien books like the Silmarillion before giving The Children of Húrin a try.

My favorite thing about the story was the fact that individual characters take on different names depending on what they were going through in life.

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

"Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird."

I don’t know where to begin. This book is extraordinary. It touched me on so many levels. The story centers on deep rooted racism seen through the eyes of child, it is written in the voice of a very wise nine-year-old girl known as Scout. The story takes place around the 1930s in a small town in the Deep South and touches on the law, justice, the jury, racism and rape, how children see the world they live in and what they are taught by family and the people they come in contact with.

After reading this book, unfortunately I feel that things have not changed much when it comes to racism. I feel that no one group is hated and dehumanized more than the black man. In chapter 26, Scout makes an observation. How can it be that her teacher hates Hitler and what he is doing to the Jews, but see nothing wrong with the way they treat Negros in America.

40 Days to Power Living by Teresa Kay-Aba Kennedy

Power Living is a 40 Day intense look at your self. It took me 80 days to finish the book because I had to spend 2 weeks on every chapter. I highly recommend 40 Days to everyone. The book helps you to think about your dreams, helps you focus and asks 3 important questions that I keep close to my heart. The book delivers what it states on the cover “Transform your Mind, Body & Spirit and Think, Eat & Live on Purpose”.

Teresa writes: “Power is not defined by how much control you have over others, but how much control you have over your self”.

Christopher Columbus and the Afrikan Holocaust by John Henrik Clarke

Afrikan Holocaust takes you on a historical journey. A real eye opener and a must read. There is a lot of information about Africa before slavery by the Europeans. It’s a different perspective then what my generation was taught in school.

Dr. Leonard Jeffries wrote: Professor Clarke’s analysis provides us with a perspective that lets us understand that slavery and genocide were institutionalized and systematized into a global system of domination, destruction and death which not only control land, labor and resources but colonialized information.

Un Monsieur Bien Mis - Jean Vautrin

Une ville de banlieue avec sa gare de banlieue, ses barres de béton, ses éboueurs noirs dans leurs uniformes fluo, ses ahènepéistes et ses trois-huit, ses bandes de bric et de broc et ses crânes trop rasés.

Un monsieur bien sous tous rapports file un balayeur des rues jusque dans l'ascenseur de sa cité-dortoir. Montent avec eux un camionneur balèze, un couple en bisbille, un petit rouquin avec son jeu japonais, un électeur de Le Pen, une jeunesse maghrébine...

Panne entre deux étages. Un cadavre de nègre découvert un peu plus haut quand les portes se rouvrent... Qui a joué du couteau dans le noir de la cabine?

Translation

A suburban town with its railway station of the suburbs, its concrete bars, the black garbage collectors in their fluorescent uniforms, and the too many shaved skulls.

A man follows a sweeper of streets to the elevator of his dormitory suburb. A couple in tiff, a small redhead with his Japanese game, a voter of Pen, a teenage girl takes up a truck driver are also in the elevator.

The elevator breaks down between two floors. The body of a Negro is discovered when the doors open again... Who played the knife in the black of the cabin?

Une Héritière en danger - Debbi Rawlins

An Heiress in danger - I haven’t touched a Harlequin Romance since I was 17 or 18, but I needed something easy to read in French. No matter what language, a Harlequin is a Harlequin. If you are learning a new language I recommend a Harlequin in that language. You will absolutely understand what they are talking about.

Strong gorgeous hunk saves beautiful damsel (albeit always dumb) in distress. During which they have sex (oh sorry make love), fall madly in love and live happily ever after.

He: Qu'est-ce que tu veux de moi? - What do you want of me?
She: Est-ce que tu m'aimes? - Do you love me?
He: Oui, répondit-il, incapable de lui mentir. - Yes, he answered, unable to lie to her.
She: C'est tout ce que je veux. - That’s all that I want.

We The Living by Ayn Rand

Ayn Rand wrote “We The Living” to tell the story of Communist Russia- The Revolution. She wanted to show the rest of the world what was really happening in Russia.

The story is extremely depressing. There is no light at the end of the tunnel. She argues that under the extreme control of a government that tries to bring about the idealism of Marxism, a country and its people will die. Everybody loses the rich and the poor. The Marxist ideal of everyone living on equal ground can never come true. The Revolution never lived up to the fair and equal society it promised. Before the revolution only the poor were exploited, now both the poor and the rich were exploited.

Man has to want to help his fellow man. He cannot be forced into it. People want to give what they want to give, not what they are told to give.

As I mentioned earlier the story is really dark, I had a difficult time completing the book, but I wished Rand showed a lot more of life before the revolution.

The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan

This book did not leave me feeling warm and fuzzy for the Gods. Like all the other books The Last Olympian has many positive messages for its young audience. The one that stood out the most for me is Achilles’ advice to Percy (page 134) “no man may be completely invulnerable”. Lose sight of what makes you human and you will cease to exist.


I only have one bone to pick with the Rick; why does he write Annabeth so girly dumb when it comes to Percy.

Money Business, Playing the Market, Be Your Own Boss from Heinemann

Reading level: grades 3-5

These books are great for anyone who wants to learn a little about economics.

Be Your Own Boss -Describes simple characteristics of small businesses and how to start and manage a small business.

Money Business - Focuses on the fundamental forces that drive the economy, as well as history and economic principles. It touches on the laws of supply and demand and a quick history of the first bankers.

Playing the Market -There is a brief definition of the economy, savings and investments and how companies raise money. It explains the differences between stocks and bonds, interest rates, the role of government and the Federal Reserve. The book ends with instructions for reading newspaper stock reports.

The Country Wife by William Wycherley

The Country Wife is a controversial sexually explicit play written in 1675. It is complicated and difficult to read.

There are three plots in the play:

1. Horner pretends to be impotent in order to sleep with as many married women as possible. He spreads the rumor of his impotence, in order to convince married men that he can be trusted to socialize with their wives.

2. Pinchwife -a middle-aged man who marries a naive country girl hoping that he will not be cuckolded (a man being cuckolded is the last to know of his wife's infidelity). Until Horner gets a hold of her.

3. The love story of Harcourt and Alithea - Harcourt wins the hand of Alithea from the hands of the Upper-class town snob after she discovered he only loves her for her money.

The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan

Percy does not get a break. Soon to be 15, Percy has girl problems and must save the world from the Titan lord Kronos. Annabeth is the leader of this quest with Percy, Grover and Rachel (a mortal). They must go through the Labyrinth to find Daedalus before Luke’s army storms Camp Half-blood. The Labyrinth is a confusing maze and they soon encounter gods and creatures, some friendly but most are out for blood.

Like the first three, this is fun, full of adventure and I enjoy how Riordan goes back and forth between reality and fantasy.

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

Is murder acceptable in pursuit of a higher purpose? Dostoyevsky presents this argument brilliantly. Taking us through Raskolnikov’s daily activities and thought pattern.

Raskolnikov thinks of himself as “extraordinary” and believes that extraordinary men have the right to commit a crime if it is for the good of humanity. He commits a murder, killing a despicable pawnbroker and her sister, to prove his point.

I remember thinking “he is so isolated and self absorbed” and completely out of touch with reality. I understood his anguish, he did everything right, he is extremely smart, good looking and hardworking. Why was he in this predicament; so poor that he couldn’t afford to eat or pay his rent? Why should an extraordinary man have to live this way while mean horrible awful people were allowed to have better lives and make the lives of decent people miserable? In his mind killing such horrible people is justifiable.

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

According to Greek mythology Atlas is being punished and is forced to hold up the sky. If Atlas were to let go, the sky would come crashing down on earth…well you get the picture.

This book is great, a bit over the top but a very interesting read. The book is heavy and discusses some very touchy subjects. I enjoyed the book so much that I literally tore the book in-half, so I could carry it around with me.

The first thing that came to my mind when I finished, was that it reminded me of the Bible; particularly the New Testament. The hero John Galt reminds me of Jesus. Two men, rather than give in to the norm or do what the authorities demand of them, are willing to be sacrificed for what they believe. Two men who are willing to do what they must to bring forth the world they believe in. They do not sellout nor sell themselves short.

Galt takes over the broadcasting stations and has his “Sermon on the Mount” of what he believes are values by which we should live. His philosophy (just a few): knowledge must be acquired through reasoning, he rejects faith and emotion as tools of acquiring knowledge, self-sacrifice is the code of death, never sacrifice your values, never compromise, and that complacency is one of man’s worse enemies. He defends laissez-faire capitalism; Galt absolutely opposes socialism, fascism and communism. He rejects the idea of God and says that man himself chooses between good and evil. Towards the end of the book Galt is able to create a paradise where people live by these philosophies.

The flaw in Atlas Shrugged as in the Bible is the core material that you are working with is “Man”. It does not matter what “Paradise/Utopia” you create- capitalism, socialism, Objectivism, living together in peace with each other and the animals. Everyone and I mean Everyone has to agree, not forced to agree, but willingly agree and believe that the system in place is the one to live by. If even one individual disagrees or want to change anything – the system will be flawed. It will be back to square one unless Everyone once again agrees with the new change/s.

Ayn Rand is a strong believer in individualism. In Atlas Shrugged, she defends independent thought and believes that our society would collapse without it. Atlas Shrugged is also her defense of capitalism.


This is a great site for a summary the book.

http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/Atlas-Shrugged-Book-Summary.id-7,pageNum-1.html

Hot Tamara by Mary Castillo

I’m trying to be kind to this new author and want to give her kudos, but I did not like this book at all. Chic-lit is not my thing anyway. I didn’t even want to finish it but I did for the sake of my blog. Hot Tamara got 5 our 5 stars on amazon from 16 reviews. It goes to show you different strokes for different folks. Some people thought it was a fast, fun, cute and romantic read and to some people it was disappointing, underdeveloped and a waste of money.

I did enjoy Tamara’s spunk and the fact that she took control of her life and went completely against the norm. I did not like Tamara's mother at all, she’s a control freak, rude and horrible to her daughter. I absolutely give credit to Castillo for bringing the Latino culture and family to the reading public.

Tamara Contreras is a twenty-six year Latina with an extremely controlling mother, Tamara decides to pursue her dreams and go at it on her own. Even with her mother's threats, that she will no longer speak to her (you are no longer my daughter), Tamara moves out. She gets a part-time job at an art gallery and a tiny apartment in Los Angeles. There is of course the forbidden love, the handsome Will Benavides, with whom she went to kindergarten, and has always been attracted to. 

The Crucible by Arthur Miller

I don’t remember if I read the Crucible in high school or college, but I do remember how angry I was. The story made me very angry because I was young and impressionable at that time. I believed in justice and the truth will always prevail and we are sensible logical creatures. Well any way here we are today…

The thing I find interesting is that no one was there but the 6 girls, but somehow with no evidence at all (ok well maybe a few theatrics) the other characters are able to make many accusations that became hard facts or evidence enough to condemn a man to death.

In 1957 Arthur Miller was convicted of contempt of Congress because he refused to give the names of the people at a meeting he attended. The House Un-American Activities Committee thought he was a member of the Communist Party. In “The Crucible” Miller wanted to send the message that people must be careful about how they react to situations.

The play is set in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. Reverend Parris caught his daughter in the woods, with Abigail, Mary Warren, Ruth Putnam, Mercy Lewis, and Tituba, his slave, dancing and chanting. Betty fainted once she saw her father, and still lies in bed the next day. Other members of the town (including the Putnams, John Proctor, and Reverend Hale) arrive at their home and want to know more. The rumors begin that the girls were participating in witchcraft. Now, they think that the Devil is hanging around the town of Salem. The girls must admit and repent of their sins. The people of the town are now terrified that the Devil is among them and their good Christian ways will be compromised.

Night by Elie Wiesel

 “THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE IS NOT HATE, IT’S INDIFFERENCE. THE OPPOSITE OF ART IS NOT UGLINESS, IT’S INDIFFERENCE. THE OPPOSITE OF FAITH IS NOT HERESY, IT’S INDIFFERENCE. AND THE OPPOSITE OF LIFE IS NOT DEATH, IT’S INDIFFERENCE.” ---Elie Wiesel

Elie Wiesel was born in 1928 in Sighet, Transylvania.

I think it’s my third time reading Night. No matter how many times I read this book I will never comprehend how events like this could happen and continue to happen. In this short memoir Wiesel takes us through the horror and with few words paint a vivid picture of ‘life’ in the camp. The book is based on his experience as a young Jew, after he and his family were sent to Auschwitz and Buchenwald.

He took a ten-year vow of silence after which he wrote "Night". "The anger is in me—hate is not," he says.

Heart of a Buddha -The Amitabha Buddhist Society

I don’t remember where I got this little book. I think it may have been Japan in 2002. It’s a free book given out by the Amitabha Buddhist Society. It has great short quotes.

Perfect wisdom,
Perfect tranquility,
Perfect compassion,
     Arise from
Our love,
Our sincerity,
Our understanding.

Even if everyone else
Is not doing good,
I alone will.
Even if everyone else
is doing wrong,
I alone will not.