Bloggees, I have just read the most wonderful book...well, one of the most wonderful books. Actually, I've been fortunate lately -- Seems everything I'm reading is these days is wonderful!
Let me start over -- by thanking my sister, Melissa, for her gift and recommendation for Advent -- Jan Karon's "Shepherds Abiding" (from her Mitford Series). Everything Missy said was true -- The book worked wonders toward setting the proper mood for the season of waiting. I tried to take a little bit of time every day to just sit and read about Father Tim and his efforts to refurbish an antique Nativity set that had at first seemed beyond repair. After just a few minutes spent getting into the story, I could feel all sense of hurry-hurry-hurry slip away as I imagined myself in Mitford, dealing with the cold and snow, the quirky personalities of its residents -- and most of all, the calming effect Father Tim has on everyone around him. Thanks Missy!
However, that's not the book I'm recommending here...
In these days after Christmas, as the after-the-party let down starts to seep in -- you might need a little something to keep your spirits up. May I recommend "The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog" by Dave Barry? It claims to be a work of fiction, but it reads just like a poignant (but hilarious) memoir of a Christmas remembered from the 1960's. The photographs throughout the short book -- I believe the entire thing could be read in about an hour -- only add to its feeling of authenticity. It made me laugh, it made me cry, and it made me want to keep making my husband stop what he was doing and listen to me read exerpts aloud. (Which made him want to read the book himself, which I consider a noteworthy accomplishment!)
Please read this book. It was written in 2006, and I don't know if it's out in paperback, or if you'll find it on bargain tables...I got my copy from the library, or I'd send it around to each and everyone of you! If you're anywhere near my age, you will be delighted at the number of things that will tweak your personal memory bank. But even if you're a generation or two younger, you won't be able to resist this family -- the kids, the parents, the pets -- especially the pets!
Happy reading -- I hope I'm not wrong about this, Bloggees!
1 comment:
Happy new year Mama Kate - I hope you have nice day, and always have inspire to write in your blog, I hope you always health and happy.
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