Summer Break Reading/Re-Reading List

Note: Summer break, not summer the season. My summer starts when school ends and stops when school begins. So this is just a list to pull from throughout the break... I don't necessarily have to read them all. Some of these I really don't know too much about... I've just heard of them or I've seen the movie so if there are some on here you would dissuade me from feel free to comment and let me know. Also, feel free to recommend others in the comments section. I should have lots of time being out at my Grandparents to read and I hope to do just that.

Read

1. The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo
2. Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne
3. Mysterious Island by Jules Verne
4. The Forgotten Tales by JRR Tolkien
5. The Children of Húrin by JRR Tolkien
6. Series of books by Christopher Tolkien about the Lord of the Rings
7. Calvin's Institutes by John Calvin
8. Bondage of the Will by Martin Luther
9. Innocence of Father Brown and other Father Browns by G.K. Chesterton
10. Gods and Generals
11. Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens
12. Little Dorrit by Charle Dickens
13. Hard Times by Charles Dickens
14. Cyrano de Bergerac
15. The Black Arrow by Robert Louis Stevenson
16. The Last of the Mohicans
17. The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
18. The Four Feathers
19.  The Adventures of Richard Hannay by John Bucchan
20. The Princess Bride
21. The Warden by Anthony Trollope
22. Beau Geste
23. Adam Bede by George Elliot
24. Anything to do with Tolkien
25. Always Ready by Greg Bahnsen
26. Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper
27. Rebecca
28. Scottish Chiefs
29. The Bastable Children by E. Nesbit
30. The Mill on the Floss
31. The Thundering Head
32. Shaking the Nickel Bush by Ralph Moody
33. The Dry Divide by Ralph Moody
34. Horse of a Different Color By Ralph Moody
35. King Solomon's Mines by Henry Rider Haggard
36. Gone with the Wind
37. War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells
38. Goodbye Mr. Chips
39. The Diary of Anne Frank
40. How Green was My Valley
41. Guns of Navarrone
42. The Red and the Black by Stendhal
43. Barnaby Rudge by Charles Dickens
44. Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
45. North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
46. Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell
47. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
48. Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackery
49. The Importance of Being Ernest
50. Any Shakespeare
51. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
52. Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon
53. Mama's Bank Account by Kathryn Forbes
54. Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan
55. Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian
56. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain
57. Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev
58. The Virginians by Thackeray
59. The Ultimate Proof of Creation by Dr. Jason Lisle
60. Practicing the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence
61. The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer 
62. Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

Re-Read

1. The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien
2. The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien
3. The Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien
4. Chosen by God by R.C. Sproul
5. Eight Cousins by Louise May Alcott
6. Swiss Family Robinson
7. Killer Angels
8. Any books by G.A. Henty
9. Pushing the Antithesis by Greg Bahnsen
10. Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott
11. The Wind in the Willows
12. Little Britches by Ralph Moody
13. Man of the Family by Ralph Moody
14. The Fields of Home by Ralph Moody
15. The Home Ranch by Ralph Moody
16. Mary Emma and Company by Ralph Moody 
17. Heidi
18. Moonstone by Wilkie Collins

My list kind of just kept growing and looking at it now I am thinking this is DEFINITElY just a reference... not a "read all or fail miserably" kind of list. I'm imagining along the lines of "List for the next year".
If you haven't already, vote in the poll in the sidebar!

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

No Stress Finals Week

That's right.... I think I might be the least stressed (school wise that is) person coming up on finals week. I have zero finals... I'm being serious. One of my teachers offers the option to not take the final if you have missed no classes but one, another teacher doesn't give a final because she knows we'll be busy with others, then another teacher just has a final presentation (which I have already completed), and then my Pathophysiology teacher doesn't have a final, just a last test, which I could flunk and still get an A in the class.... don't worry though, I won't flunk it. :)
So I am honestly just sitting around, writing lame blog posts, playing games on my iPhone, and reading while everyone else if frantically studying, finishing up papers, ect. I have never been this unstressed out coming up on finals week. It's amazing. :)
However, I have had plenty of other things to stress out about. Things aren't going so smoothly at my Grandparents as I had hoped they would. It is improving daily, I think, but it is still very hard. My Grandma seems to be doing pretty well, but my Grandpa, who has Parkinson Disease, is always worried about everything so my sister and I are having to continually having to reassure him, re-explain things to him, ect. Please keep both of my Grandparents in your prayers as well as my sister, who is getting the brunt of this.
Thank you and God Bless!

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

Book Questionnaire

I saw a questionnaire on a couple different blogs (Kelli's and Suzanne's). It was about books so obviously I had to fill it out.

Sorry about the skeletons and my skull collection in the background...
They are always getting in the way of my pictures. 

1. Do you snack while you read? Not habitually. Every once and a while I will.
2. What is your favorite drink while reading? Probably tea... though I don't normally drink anything while I'm reading because I'm afraid of spilling my beverage on my book.
3. Do you tend to mark your books while you read, or does the idea of writing in books horrify you? This depends on the book I'm reading. Fiction books, never. Non-fiction sometimes. Of course I always mark up my textbooks. 
4. How do you keep your place while reading a book? A bookmark. I have a ton that I have made, were given to me, or were freebies so I never am at a shortage.
5. Are you the type of person who tends to read to the end of the chapter, or can you stop anywhere? I used to only be able to stop reading when I was to the end of the chapter but now I am more flexible, though I would still rather wait until the end of the chapter.
6. Are you the type of person to throw a book across the room or onto the floor if the author irritates you? No! Absolutely no! If there is one thing I learned from my parents, it was that books were never to be dropped, thrown, or stepped on. I did learn other things from them too... like how to read, what to read.... but I digress.
7. If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you look it up right away? I don't normally come across an unfamiliar word. If I don't know one though, I can usually figure it out from the context of the sentence/paragraph.
8. What are you currently reading? Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne.
9. What is the last book you bought? I don't buy a lot of books as my family already has so many. However, recently I have begun to build my own collection. The last bunch of books I got are from a library book sale I went to with a friend. I got several cookbooks, some Agatha Christie novels, The Chosen by Chaim Potok, some Shakespeare, and a lot of other books. 
10. Do you have a favorite time/place to read? I read when I have time... or sometimes when I don't have time but just feel like it. My favorite place to read is without a doubt my bed. I'm such a slug. But I also don't mind reading on a couch, or comfy chair.
11. Do you prefer series books or stand alones? I enjoy series a lot because you stick with the characters for a longer time and see a lot more development. However, my favorite book is a stand alone so I really just think it depends.
12. Is there specific book you find yourself recommending over and over? Any Jane Austen... especially Pride and Prejudice, The Lord of the Rings, any Dickens. Just classics in general.
13. How do you organize your books? I had them all alphabetized on one shelf of my bookshelf but after the last buying of books I had to expand that. I still have the one shelf alphabetized but now some of my nicer looking books are part of the decorative side of my bookshelf now.

Comment with a link to your blog post with answers or if you don't have a blog just leave your answers in the comments section! :)

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

Monthly Resolutions- May 2013

Finals are creeping on me. :(

Study REALLY Hard!!!

Finals and final projects are closing in on me and I need to study hard and finish strong.

Get all A's!!!

I have worked hard all semester and I think that I should get all A's. Hopefully!

Read or Re-Read at least 5 books

I think that hopefully I can do better about this as I'll be finishing up school and have more time to read. I was definitely picking up on my reading at the end of last month so hopefully that will carry on over to this month. I grabbed a bunch of Jules Verne books when I was at home last that I hope to read and I'll see what else I can get done.

Exercise in some form at least three times a week

Whether it's walking, biking, or whatever I do. Just three times a week... but hopefully more.

Stick to my diet

Stick to it! Of course I'll have a couple days where I'll indulge in something delicious (not to say eating healthily isn't delicious) but overall I need to stick to my veggies, fruits, and GREEK YOGURT!!! Love that stuff. I'm also a little addicted to jicima. 

Lose 4 Pounds

Again, a pound a week. I got my first complement on my having lost weight from a non-immediate family member the other day! :) Made me happy. 

Cut down on electronics time

Computer AND iPhone.

Make a Summer Bucket List

I don't know exactly what it will involve yet but probably will have to do with reading and writing. :)

Write at least 3 more blog posts this month

I was planning on upping it to five but since I don't have internet at my Grandparents I decided not to.

Changing it up a little this month but mostly sticking to the tried and true goals!
In case you missed it in my April report card, my Grandma was able to come home a little less than a week ago and my sister and I moved with them to help out. Also, I got an iPhone.... an iPhone 5 to be specific!
Linking up with Kelli at She Learns as She Goes.

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

Report Card- April 2013

The end of April and almost upon finals. :( Big news! My Grandma was able to come home last Friday! My sister and I have moved in with my grandparents are helping them out. So far it is going great!
Also, some more big news... I got an iPhone!!!!! It's amazing. Just saying. :)
So here is how my month went.

Study!!!- A

I think that I did well on this. I have had a successful month for grades in my various classes and I believe that is a reflection of my studying. 

Read or Re-Read at least 5 books- D

I re-read Northanger Abbey, finished The Silmarillion, and read Far From the Madding Crowd. So only three books. Epic, epic fail. 

Exercise in some form at least three times a week-A

Easily achieved. I still am not fond of exercising but I am getting more used to it.

Stick to my diet-A

As I mentioned in my mid-month progress report after I gave blood it kind of messed me up and I had to eat more. Besides that though I have been really good. I have really gotten into lettuce salads and greek yogurt. I am always trying out new things though so if you have any suggestions about delicious healthy foods let me know! I recently got some hummus and carrots.... which was super good! I also tried some jicima, which is not to everybody's taste but I enjoyed a lot.

Lose 4 Pounds-A

At my mid-month progress report I was worried this wasn't going to happen, but it did! Four pounds gone for good!

Cut down on Computer Time-A

I actually did quite well on this. For me keeping to it was doing little things like when I was at school even though I had my charge cord with me not recharging my computer once it ran out of battery. And other times I just forgot my charge cord... and not on purpose either. Also, I now spend tons of time on my iPhone instead of my computer. That worked really well. 

Write at least three more blog posts this month- A

Easily achieved! I need to up it for next month. I wrote this post that included a recipe for "Healthy" Brownies, this post that was a review of the 1980 version of Pride and Prejudice, this post that just told a little about my life, this post about The Lizzy Bennett Diaries, this post about the 2008 version of Sense and Sensibility, and this post on the 2007 version of Persuasion. So all in all five posts!

Bonus!

I knocked an item off of my Bucket List! I gave blood! 

So all in all a really good month except my book reading. :(

Linking up with Kelli at She Learns as She Goes.

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

Movie Review- Persuasion (2007)

Another review for a Jane Austen novel movie adaptation I watched recently.
To begin with, this movie was pretty decent but I still prefer the 1995 version. The casting was pretty good. I liked the Anne Elliot, once I got used to her. Her sister Mary I thought was played well... she was really annoying. However, I thought she was too pretty... Mary is suppose to be the plainer of the three sisters. I actually think I might like the Captain Wentworth in this version better. I just thought he was handsomer and so I could better understand while all of the girls fell for him. I honestly thought that the story was told just about as well as in the 1995 version.
But now my major complaint with the movie. I really disliked the end... it is super rushed and the movie has Anne running all over Bath wrapping things up. Completely uncharacteristic of her and of the time period and I think completely unnecessary. My two minor complaints are that her friend Miss Smith isn't lame in this movie and that a line that Anne thinks in the book she speaks in this movie... and it was to her father and it was kind of disrespectful... which is why she didn't say it in the book.
Besides that, I think this is an okay version and I was pleasantly pleased.

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

Movie Review: Sense and Sensibility (2008)

There will be some spoilers in this review, fair warning. 

I grew up watching the 1995 version of Sense and Sensibility with Emma Thompson and have always loved it. Later on, when I was older, I read the book, and liked it too. Recently I heard about this film version and since we had it at the library I thought why not? So here are my thoughts.

My general overall opinion of this movie is that it is decent. It is in three 50 minute episodes but despite being a good bit longer than the 1995 version, I don't think the storytelling is nearly as good. There were some scenes that were included in this version that were not included in the 1995 version, namely when the meet Mrs. Ferras, Mr. Willoughby taking Marianne to see Allemand (which is only mentioned in the book) and Mr. Willoughby coming and explaining himself when Marianne is sick. Also they included Anne Steele in this version, who is not included in the 1995 version.

I thought the casting was well done. I really loved the Elinor, who was acted by Hattie Morahan. I think she did a very excellent job. Colonel Brandon was another character I really enjoyed. It took me a while to get used to him but then he really grew on me. The rest of the casting was alright. Something that surprised me was the casting of Mr. Weasly from Harry Potter as Sir John Middleton. However, he did do a good job, though I couldn't get the Mr. Weasly image out of my mind. The Willoughby I felt could have been done better... he seemed to look (and sometimes act) as if he could have a dark secret... but according to the book he is supposed to be so friendly and have such wonderful manners that one could never suspect ill of him. Also I thought the Marianne was a little too toned down.

A few things I disliked about this version besides them not telling the story as well are as follows:

1. There was a scene with Willoughby and Marianne kissing, which I do not think would have happened. 
2. In the scene were Elinor tells Edward about the living that Colonel Brandon has offered him after everyone knows about Edward and Lucy's engagement, Edward makes somewhat of an apology then about how he treated Elinor, which I don't think was right for him to talk about considering his engagement. Also, Elinor tells him that he didn't act at all badly, which I disagree with and in the book she thinks he did act wrongly in not removing himself from Norland on realizing he loved her.
3. Marianne being engaged to Colonel Brandon so quickly after she gets better... though I do think they showed the romance fairly well, though almost too much romance. Also, they have Marianne be engaged to Colonel Brandon before Elinor and Edward are engaged... which is NOT true to the book.
4. I thought the cottage looked too reduced for them to be living in. Yes it is supposed to be a cottage, but in the book you get the impression that it is still nice. 
5. The lines didn't seem to be taken from the book as much as they should have been. I am not asking for them to quote the book word for word, but there were very few lines that were from the book.
6. I think it was a little over romanticized.... maybe actually, though I hate to say this, oversexualized. See my last point for one of the main reasons I think it is oversexualized.
7. Above point in mind, I don't think they developed the romance between Willoughby and Marianne enough. 
8. This is a WARNING. The first scene is a sex scene between Willoughby and Eliza (Colonel Brandon's ward). It is not explicit... but I went ahead and fast forwarded through it. 

All in all, I did think it was an okay version and I would watch it again. The Elinor was, I repeat, great, and that alone makes me want to watch it again sometime. Have you seen it? What are you thoughts on it?

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

Mid-Month Progress Report- April 2013

Well halfway through April already... and I almost typed in March there... shows how far behind I am.

Study!!!

I am doing pretty well on this. After my upset last month after not studying on Spring Break I dove into my next unit of Pathophysiology with a renewed effort and pulled out of my most recent test really well... better than I have every have done before actually. :)

Read or Re-read at least 5 books

Let this be warning to me, little triumphs can get to my head. That said, despite my reaching my 5 book goal last month, I will need to do some serious reading to accomplish it this month. Not a book has been read yet! I did read some more in the Silmarillion.... most namely the story of Beren and Luthien, which is REALLY good. I thought all of those years that my brother was just geeking out over nothing... I was wrong. I also started re-reading Northanger Abbey last evening. 

Exercise in some form at least 3 times a week

Most absolutely.

Stick to my diet

I am doing well on this. I have had one splurge day so far... but as always I surrounded it in salads. After I gave blood last week I also had to eat a lot more to renew my energy/nutrients. I honestly almost passed out because at first I passed up the juice and cookies so I ended up having to eat them anyways. However, I figured that between passing out and eating a little more "bad for me stuff" than normal, I chose the better of the two options. 

Lose 4 pounds

I lost two pretty quickly at the beginning of this month but now I am struggling to drop any lower. However, I still have half of the month. Just two more to go. 

Cut down on computer time

I have been making more of a conscious effort to do this and it has helped a lot. Most of the time I just get on my computer to listen to music while I study (which I know isn't the most productive form of studying) and then I get distracted by the internet, ect.  So I just think it would be in my best interest to get an iPod so my computer won't distract me... right? Nope, I'm not convincing myself.

Write at least three more blog posts this month

Already completed and I even have a whole bunch more lined up all having to do in some form or another with Jane Austen. Let's just say I'm a little in the Jane Austen mood right now.

So that's my progress! Hope y'all have a great rest of March... I mean April. 

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

The Lizzy Bennet Diaries

Starting about Spring Break, I began watching a YouTube series of a modern day interpretation of Pride and Prejudice called The Lizzy Bennett Diaries. I finally finished it the other day... all one hundred episodes. I have a lot of thoughts on these so here they are.
First off, I thought the writers executed the story really well. It was really clever how they brought the story about it modern times, though granted I didn't always like how they did that.
Secondly, the acting, I thought, was really good. Every character was played incredibly well. I would say they are just like I imagined them in the book, but still they are slightly different, being modernized. Mr. Collins, I felt, was done especially well. Mary and Kitty Bennett were done differently; Mary was their cousin and only appeared in one episode and Kitty was her cat. Lydia was one of my personal favorite slight changes that they made. Yes she was still awful, but there was a redemptive side to the story with her as well, which I appreciated. However, Lydia did contribute more of the inappropriate content, which I will mention later.
One of my more major disappointments with this was that it didn't portray the close father-daughter relationship that Lizzy and her father had. However, with it focusing more on the relationships between the sisters, it might not have worked well into the story. Still though, that's one of my favorite parts of Pride and Prejudice.
Part way through the series, Lydia starts making her own videos too, which I only watched about half of them as they were needed to understand the story. Gigi (Georgiana Darcy) also had some videos too, which went along with the story. I didn't watch hers but just picked up what happened in them form the comments section.
This series is definitely PG-13. It deals with more mature themes and there are things that are said, mainly by Lydia, that just aren't appropriate for younger children. There is also bad language every once and awhile. I don't want to give away exactly how it ends but I was slightly unsure about how I liked it. You would have to see it to understand. There are some morality issues I take with it also. I suppose for those of you who watch TV shows like Psych, I would say it has along those morality issues and language issues. However, nothing bad is shown. Also, one of the minor characters is gay but that isn't a major part of the story and you could almost miss it being mentioned. I almost forgot to mention it actually.
I did like it, but I did have a fair number of problems with it. So I recommend it cautiously. If you have seen it I would really like to hear your thoughts on it as I am still developing mine.

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

Life is Looking Up

Life has been fairly stressful this semester, with my Grandma having her stroke, difficult classes, trying to lose weight, and just life in general. However, it has been looking up recently.

First off, I got a really good grade on my last Pathophysiology test, which made me so happy I almost cried... my tutor did. Studying pays off.

After giving blood.

Then I got to cross one of the items off my Bucket List... I gave blood. That was actually a really big deal for me, as I am afraid of needles. However, I promised my tutor last semester in a moment of weakness that when the Red Cross came to Butler for its next blood drive I would. So I did and actually it wasn't too bad. I looked away whenever they poked me and everything went smoothly. Afterwards I didn't have any juice or cookies... just a sloppy joe and then I ended up feeling really faint so then the nurse made me have juice and cookies. So my diet wasn't the best that day but I think all things considered, eating a little unhealthily that one day was probably better than passing out.

My Grandma had surgery to unclog her carotid artery and that went well too. Hopefully she will be able to move back home within the next three weeks. She has made incredible progress though still cannot talk. Prayers appreciated there.

All in all life has definitely been looking up. Also, I was able to check out The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and Wreck it Ralph from the library so I'll get to re-watch the first and finally getting to watch the second this weekend. Look for a review of Wreck it Ralph in the near future and until then.... God Bless!

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.