Isle of Swords

Isle of Swords

Wayne Thomas Batson

Pirate Adventures Series #1

rating: 10

A young lad awakens on an island, alone and brutally injured, with no memory of his past.

Captain Declan Ross searched for riches that will free him and his headstrong daughter, Anne, from the piracy business forever . . . Bartholomew Thorne, an infamously ruthless pirate, seeks to destroy Ross and any who stand in his way of the legendary treasure hidden by a mysterious order of monks. With these intriguing characters and many more, Wayne Thomas Batson weaves a spell-binding adventure filled with high-seas drama where battles rage, storms brew, a long-dormant volcano awakens, and a sea creature slithers in the deep as pirates race for a cliff-top fortress.

First off, this is my most favorite book, physically.  The cover really draws you in and wants you to read more, and the pages are a charcoal-grey color, with tattered edges.  Yeah, it's pretty awesome...  But what is inside the cover and pages is what really counts, and in this case it doesn't disappoint!  I read this book a couple years ago when a friend let me borrow a copy (thanks Sam!) and it very quickly became one of my most favorite books.  I actually kind of got in trouble for reading is so much, you know getting distracted from doing dishes and making your bed...  That was the time when I learned that sometimes reading is not the most important thing in the world, sometimes. :)  So let me warn you, if you pick up this book make sure that you have a good amount of time on your hands.  It's a really easy read, super well written and extremely captivating!!  

The Characters of Cat, Captain Ross, Anne, Bartholomew Thorne, Padre Dominguez, the crews are amazing.   I especially love a certain Frenchman who is obsessed with explosives. 

The only potentially objectionable things that I can think of have to do with the fact that they are pirates, so things can be a little bloody.  Like when *SPOILER* they cut a tattoo of of someone, or when they talk about certain forms of torture-ish things *END OF SPOILER*  The bad guy, Bartholomew Thorne is bad, really bad, but that's kinda how bad guys are.  They don't ever go greatly into detail but you can easily skip those parts if your squeamish.   

     

 Wayne Thomas Batson is a Christian author who has other great books as well, so even though they don't directly talk about the gospel, you can tell that the characters grapple with the Lord and their lifestyle as pirates. 

 

Literary Heroine Blog Party

I am very excited to be able to participate in The Literary Heroine Blog Party this year!!  Go check it out, it's not too late to join in the fun!

~ The Questions ~

1.Introduce yourself!  Divulge your life's vision, likes, dislikes, aspirations, or something completely random!
Hey, I'm Jana. I'm a 16 year old home-school girl who is always to be found reading a book or listening to music.  In a perfect world I would wear jeans & a sweatshirt every day and eat a diet of coffee and chocolate, dark chocolate.
 (I think that's probably as random as I can get) 

2.What, to you, forms the essence of a true heroine? 
A true heroine is someone who has a strong sense of conviction and acts on it.

3.Share (up to) four heroines of literature that you most admire and relate to.

Jo March (Little Women)

Elizabeth Bennet (Pride and Prejudice)

Polly Milton (An Old-fashioned Girl)

Margaret Hale (North and South)

4.Five of your favorite historical novels? 

A nearly impossible question!  But since I have to pick five...
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

An Old-fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

 North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell

Rilla of Ingleside by Lucy Maud Montgomery

5.Out of those five books who is your favorite major character and why?
 It is definitely a tie between Elizabeth from P&P and Jo from Little Women.  I like both of them for the same reason, they are a lot like me or I'm a lot like them, I'm not really sure how that goes...  Anyway, I can relate to their triumphs and their shortcoming.  I think I like Lizzy more than Jo though, I think.

6.Out of those five books who is your favorite secondary character and why? 

I would have to say Laurie from Little Women.  I think this says it all:

7.If you were to plan out your dream vacation, where would you travel to - and what would you plan to do there? 
I would love to be able to travel around the world and see different places on each continent.  I've already lived on 3 continents but I would love to be able to go back and spend more time each place, and discover new ones.  So I guess more than a vacation it would be a time of suspended life while I was gallivanting around!  Sounds fun right?

8.What is your favorite time period and culture to read about?  
 England in the 1800's

9.You have been invited to perform at the local charity concert. Singing, comedy, recitation - what is your act comprised of? 

Well, I would avoid having to perform at all costs, performing in front of people is not my thing!  But if I had to I would probably recite something really short so I could get off the stage...  I would much rather just sit back and watch.

10.If you were to attend a party where each guest was to portray a heroine of literature, who would you select to represent? 
 Margret Hale from North and South

11.What are your sentiments on the subject of chocolate? 
Where do I even start?  Chocolate is amazingly wonderful and awesome.  There is no problem that good dark chocolate can't fix, but it has to be dark. :)

12.Favorite author(s)? 

 Jane Austen, Louisa May Alcott, J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Lucy Maud Montgomery..... 

The list could go on and on and on!

13.Besides essentials, what would you take on a visiting voyage to a foreign land? 
My Ipod (gotta have my music), journal, camera and Bible.

14.In which century were most of the books you read written? 

The1800's till now

15.In your opinion, the ultimate hero in literature is… 
 Samwise Gamgee from Lord of the Rings (another one of my most favorite book series).  He is awesome all around.  In my opinion everyone needs their own Sam....

16.Describe your ideal dwelling place. 

Somewhere far away from people and with lots of space.  Preferably in Scotland or Ireland.
Or if I had to live in a city, it would be London, England.  It is by far one of of my favorite big cities.


17.Sum up your fashion style in a short sentence. 
Anything that is comfy, functional and cute. 

18.Have you ever wanted to change a character’s name? 
Not really, I think changing a characters name would be changing the character too much.  When a book is written the characters are named for specific reasons, to portray the nature of the character.

19.In your opinion, the most dastardly villain of all literature is... 
I really have no idea,there are some pretty dastardly villains out there....

20.Three favorite Non-fiction books? 

Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris
Kisses from Katie by Katie Davis
Before You Meet Prince Charming by Sarah Mally

21.Your duties met for the day, how would you choose to spend a carefree summer afternoon? 

If I feel productive I will get a snack and yummy drink and work on my blogs, or prepare to do so.  

And if I'm feeling entirely lazy, I'll find a cozy place to read or plug in my headphones and journal.

22.Create a verbal sketch of your dream hat - in such a way as will best portray your true character. 

A small bowler style hat with a bird-cage veil worn at an angle.  There would be a couple flowers for decoration.  And I can't decide if I would want it to be dark or light, probably one of each, one for spring and summer and the other for fall and winter. 

23.Share the most significant event(s) that have marked your life in the past year. 

Well, I have had a most eventful last year with moving to France and then Burkina.  Moving internationally is quite significant.  And leaving friends and family in the States.

24.Share the Bible passage(s) that have been most inspiring to you recently.
 Psalm 91

Do Hard Things

 

Do Hard Things

Alex & Brett Harris

rating: 10

 

Most people don't expect you to understand what we're going to tell you in this book.  And even if you understand, they don't expect you to care.  And even if you care, they don't expect you to do anything about it.  And even if you do something about it, they don't expect it to last.  We do.

 

 

Well, if you don't have a copy of Do Hard Things, go buy it or borrow it from a friend because it is an absolute must read!!  I had started to read it a couple of years ago but I really didn't find it interesting, then we moved and so the book went back to the library.  I have get to read it in my school this year and I couldn't put it down.  The Harris twins don't shy away from saying what needs to be said, even if it hurts.  And they are living out what they teach in their book.  They give examples of normal, teens just like us who are living every day for Christ where they are.  For me it is super encouraging to see that there are other homeschool, Christian, teenagers (like myself) out there that are willing, ready and able to make a change in our world.

 

 

Also a couple of years ago they did a Modesty Survey that was launched on their blog, The Rebolution.  I would really encourage you girls to go have a look at it, it is really insightful to see how modesty affects guys in their own words. 

100 Cupboards

100 Cupboards
N.D. Wilson
rating: 2

Twelve-year-old Henry York wakes up one night to find bits of plaster in his hair. Two knobs have broken through the wall above his bed and one of them is slowly turning . . .Henry scrapes the plaster off the wall and discovers cupboards of all different sizes and shapes. Through one he can hear the sound of falling rain. Through another he sees a glowing room–with a man pacing back and forth! Henry soon understands that these are not just cupboards, but portals to other worlds.

100 Cupboards has been on my reading list for a very long time and sadly I was really disappointed.  The overall idea was really cool but the whole book felt really dark and unsettling.  I actually didn't even finish it.  I got about half-way through and then I just stopped.  There was a real strong dark magic feel to it.

The part that I did enjoy about the first part of the book was the story and character development.  The author took a lot of time to develop the characters and really made you want to know what they go through.