The Last Lecture

What a great book! And what a great book to read during the Thanksgiving season. Not only did this book mention giving thanks on several occasions, but it also made me grateful for my life and my health and strength.

I was amazed by how bright and optimistic Randy was as he approached his death. I guess it just came naturally to him. I'm sure that there were many rough days, but he didn't sit around and feel sorry for himself. I loved that he packed every opportunity he could into his last few months of living.

What a feat to be able to achieve pretty much all of your childhood dreams. I don't remember having a lot of childhood dreams, let alone ones that were achievable or that I even wanted to still achieve later in life. But having the motivation, determination, and persistence to make it all happen just seems amazing. I see in Randy a lot of qualities that I don't have that I would like to develop.

Randy is so full of good advice! I guess I don't have a lot to say about it; he said it all! And I tried to pick a favorite part or piece of advice but found that I couldn't. It was all so good. I just renewed this book at the library so that my mom can read. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone, and I wouldn't mind reading it again in the future. I think that it contains words of wisdom that we all need to be reminded of every now and then.

Did anyone read Infidel?

I started this book back in July or August and and just barely finished it yesterday. Like the Zookeeper's Wife, it took me awhile to read this book because of all the facts to take in and all the people to keep straight.

I found it both interesting and sad to learn about the conditions under which people still live in the world today. You would think that by the beginning of the 21st century, we would be a more civilized people, and yet there are still people who are doing barbaric things to one another. I can't imagine growing up under the circumstances that Ayaan did; being beaten by teachers and family, being persecuted because of your gender, and having no religious freedom. When I read the part about excision, I literally got sick. I didn't even know such a thing existed.

I think that the underlying theme of hope in this book is that even one person can make a great difference, even if they come from humble circumstances. Ayaan went through so much hardship and saw so much pain throughout her life, and she is still dealing with it today, along with death threats. It made me think of the Savior and his birth, where he grew up, how he died, and how he is by far the most influential person to ever live.

Zookeeper

I read this book a while ago, but I kept forgetting to blog about it.

I thought it was so great to get another perspective of WWII. I've done a lot of reading on the other locations during WWII, but not Poland. It was very educational. I was amazed at the true life heroism. Mandy and Kim, I like what you said. It's hard to understand how courageous people can be. I continued to be impressed by the valor and compassion this little family had.

Also, off of what Mandy said, I too was waiting for something dreadful to happen, but through it all they're family remained whole. That's truly incredible.

I must confess, I wasn't crazy with the writing style, but mostly because I just kept getting confused. There were SO many people coming in and out that I couldn't keep track of who was who! Which I'm sure would have been a problem for them as well. The other thing I struggled with was the timeline. It kind of jumped back and forth and I got really lost at times.

Overall, excellent read. There were so many lessons to take from this book. I tried to apply little things, just in thoughts and actions. When studying about WWII and the atrocities of the war it makes me vow to never judge a person based upon a stereotype or outward appearance. I think that's always something we can apply.

November's Book

Hey ladies I'm back and ready to read.  Sorry for being MIA.

But I've been enjoying reading The Last Lecture I hope you do to.  I look forward to your responses.

Love Bekah