Evanlyn

Which character from the Ranger's Apprentice series are you?

Evanlyn Evanlyn is really Cassandra, the stubborn princess of Araluen. She is familiar with politics and military strategies, but not survival skills, until she gets her hands on a sling, then she provers herself to be a skillful fighter.

by

If you've never read the Ranger's Apprentice series this will mean nothing to you, but I think my two very favorite characters in Ranger's Apprentice are Horace and Evanlyn so I liked the test. *smile*

Well Bye,
®achel™

I can realat to that

"I cannot live without books." 

~Thomas Jefferson~ 

 

I've never really cared for Thomas Jefferson because he didn't like Patrick Henry and Patrick Henry is kind of my "Historical Hero" if there is such a thing (?).
But if he said this, well.... maybe he's an O.K. guy. I mean really, who can live without books? They are AMAZING!  

Well Bye, 

®achel™

Let them be your friends

“If you cannot read all your books, at any rate handle, or as it were, fondle them—peer into them, let them fall open where they will, read from the first sentence that arrests the eye, set them back on the shelves with your own hands, arrange them on your own plan so that you at least know where they are. Let them be your friends; let them be your acquaintances.”  

Winston Churchill

And when you can't do a blog post, at any rate steel something someone else said and post that instead. *Smile* 

Well Bye, 

 ®achel™

The Outsider

 Alexander Hamilton:The outsider

I really like American history so this was especially interesting to me but I think a lot of people would like it. (Or at least I like to think they would.) I’ve been trying to work out the whole Anti-federalist, Federalist, Democratic-Republican thing for a long time and this book really helped me. (If all that I just said made zero since than you might want to read this book.)
This was a simple but very well written book. I really enjoyed it.
This would be an excellent moment to tell my opinion of Mr. Hamilton but this is a book review not a political debate.

Jean Fritz is a really good author who has written many good biographies. She always makes you like the ‘hero’ of the book even if in another book you might not agree with what he did or might not like him.
Her description really well done and everything is really clear.
If you are going to be reading a book about the starting of American government this is a really good (and short which is always a good thing for me) book to read.
Or if you’re like me and just read history books for ‘fun’ than that is even better and you might to try this one out.

“The Outsider” is a short book but don’t scorn it because of it’s length, there is a lot of stuff in it that you probably don’t know.

Genres: Non-Fiction, United States history, United States Government, Biographies,

Copy right: 2010

Page count: 144 

B.T.W.
Jean Fritz also writes young children’s biographies that are really cute. “Then What Happened Paul Revere”, “Where was Patrick Henry on the Twenty Ninth of May”, Why don’t you get a Horse Sam Adams?”, and “Cant You Make Them Behave King George” are some great ones.

And as a little side note, Erin and I always thought that Alexander Hamilton was the best looking face on any of our money. He looks as if he were trying not to smile at something. Just so you know. 

Well Bye, 

®achel™

The Laughing Cavalier!

 

I LOVED this book!

The Laughing Cavalier by Baroness Orczy is the story of the ancestor of the Scarlet Pimpernel(Percy Blankly).
If that means nothing to you than don’t worry about it. The only thing I’m saying is that if you’ve read “The Scarlet Pimpernel” you were actually reading the third book in the Scarlet Pimpernel series not the first. 

The Laughing Cavalier is the first book in a series of fourteen books.

1. The Laughing Cavalier
2. The First Sir Percy
3. The Scarlet Pimpernel
4. Sir Percy Leads the Band
5. I Will Repay
6. The Elusive Pimpernel
7. Lord Tony's Wife
8. The Way of the Scarlet Pimpernel
9. Mam'zelle Guillotine
10. El dorado
11. Sir Percy Hits Back
12. The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel
13. A Child of the Revolution
14. Pimpernel and Rosemary

So far I’ve only read the first three.

But let me tell you about “The Laughing Cavalier”.

Diogenes(the hero) lives on the streets of Haarlem, Holland. He lives for adventure and spends his time seeks it out.
On new year’s eve 1623 he finds the adventure of a life time while trying to help a desperately poor spanish woman and her father.
Diogenes helps the lady by paying, with the last of his money, for a place where she and her sickly father to stay.
His noble actions are witnessed by two men. One a outlaw and the other the son of wealthy man and the brother of a very sweet and troublesome lady.
These two man have a problem and they see the answer to their problem in this man with no real name but a kind heart.
The problem?
Well, these two man have a plan to kill the Prince of Orange and the second man’s (his name is Nicolaes Beresteyn) sister (the sweet lady), Gilda over heard the plan.
Nicolaes and his friend, Stoutenburg (who is in love with Gilda and is the true villain of the story) hirer Diogenes to kidnap Gilda.
Diogenes needs the money, and sees the adventure that could come from this, so he keeps his thoughts about how Nicolaes should be treating his sister to himself and takes the job.

And so Diogenes begins he lively adventure!

Genres: Adventure/Historical Fiction
Don’t let the ‘historical fiction’ scare you off. I have never been a very big fan of what people call “Historical Fiction” but this was a really good book. 

Copy right: 1914
Yes it is a rather old book and at times it’s a little heard to understand what is going on, especially if you’re not used to this style of writing, but it is funny and if you will just take your time and believe that it is a really good book you can learn to like the style.
It’s more of a challenge and everyone needs a challenge ever once in a while. Not to mention that it makes it more fun to finish!            

B.T.W.
The prologue is a little strange but don’t be scared off by it; nothing bad happens.

The First Sir Percy is also about Diogenes; it's the sequel and it is really good too. (I'll review it soon.)

One last thing:
Not everyone is going to like this book. 

Well Bye, 

®achel™

From 5 to 12

I was looking at 'The U.S. Constitution for Dummies' and found this. 

I got a laugh at it and thought you might too. 

Well Bye,
®achel™ 

I wanted to write and finish a book!

 "If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. 

Now put the foundations under them." 

~Henry David Thoreau~

I've been trying to finish a book for years. Any book; small, big, it really didn't matter just finish something! Starting is easy but finishing is much, much harder.
Last March Jess told me that she had found a company that publishes books and they were having a contest. It was free to enter and all you had to do was write a complete book. 
I hardly even listed to what she was talking about and when she was done I said 'yeah that sounded was cool, but I wasn't going to do it'.
The next week we went on vacation to a lake house. (The first week of April.) The day after we got back I started writing. I wrote non stop all through April and May. At night I fell asleep while typing words in my head and, I'm not kidding, while I walked my dog every thought I had was slowed down because I was mentally typing every letter of every word. (Fortunately I didn't do that while I was talking).
Anyway I kept at it and for the first time ever I finish! Thanks to a lot of willing family members who helped edit and edit and edit. I entered it in the contest in June. And I didn't win. I didn't come close!
But I had finished and that was the best thing I could have done.
Daddy bought a printed copy of my book for me because he is an awesome Dad! And the next week I started on another book. Erin walked in and asked me what I was doing; when I told her she looked surprised. "Again?"
I stared at her for a moment then asked her what she was doing.
"Playing the violin."
"Again?"
She understood what I was saying.


I love it when I'm in the middle of a good book and no matter what I'm doing, always, at the back of my mind is the thought of that book and I look forward to when I can go back and read a little more of it.
Writing is just like that for me. I always know, at the back of my mind, that I have a story waiting for my; and the best part is I get to decide exactly what happens next!


Well Bye,
®achel™
 

My 10 favorite books from 2012

 

1. The Last thing I remember by Andrew Klavan is AWESOME! It is the first book in 'The Homelanders' series. Charlie West wakes up strapped to a chair just in time to hear some guy give the order for his death. The Last thing Charlie remembers is an ordinary day with is friends as a 18 year old guy with a dream of joining the U.S. Air Force. He went to sleep in his won bead and woke up like this.
 

2. The Long Way Home by Andrew Klavan is the Second book in 'The Homelanders' series and is Epic! Charlie has the Police and a grope of Terrorists after him and he needs answers. Mainly what happened during the year of his life that he can't remember. So he heads home to three faithful friends, Beth Summers and and incredible Karate teacher. (This book is the funniest in the series!)

3. The Truth of the Matter by Andrew Klavan is the third book in 'The Homelanders series. Charlie finds the man he needs to answer all his questions just before the man is killed. Charlie is surrounded by Terrorists and every time he tries to get away a memory flash knocks him out of things just long enough for hims to get deeper into trouble. This book is amazing and I loved every bit of it, especially the end, (the end is really sweet).

 

4. The Final Hour by Andrew Klavan is the fourth and last book in 'The Homelanders' series. Charlie is stuck in Abingdon State Prison. All he wants is to get out and stay out. His memory is finally back and he knows he has to get out and get to New York before... Well I cant tell you! You have to read it for yourself.

5. The Laughing Cavalier by Baroness Emmuska Orczy. If you like 'The Scarlet Pimpernel' you will like this book. Their are 14 books in the Scarlet Pimpernel series and this book is the first. (the Scarlet Pimpernel is the third but it was written first). The Laughing Cavalier is the prequel to the Scarlet Pimpernel and it (the Laughing Cavalier) is followed by it's sequel "The First Sir Percy" then you go on to The Scarlet Pimpernel.
The book is set in the Netherlands 1623-24. It is a little hard for me to summarize the plot so I'll just tell you a few things that I like about it. The Hero(the Laughing Cavalier) has grown up his whole life on the streets. He goes by the name of Diogenes and he has to buddies who are always with him and he is just always good.
He is asked one day to kidnap a young lady by her brother. He needs the money because he gave hims money to a poor lady and her father to help them out of the cold so he says he'll do it without asking any questions.
Then so much happens that I get to confused tell you about it all. Somewhere in their he gets attacked and hit in the head with a pair of ice skate. ( That really stood our for me). But it is a really good book that is and in the end he saves the girl that he kidnapped.

6. If We survive by Andrew Klavan. This book is really great! Four kids left their homes to go on a uneventful summer missions trip to central America and all goes well until a revolution breaks out in the country.
Will Peterson thought he had problems at home but that was nothing; now he has men shooting at him from every side and their only ally is a young veteran who has longs his faith in everything and everyone.
The last part of the book had my heart betting double time. I loved this book! 

7. Crazy Dangerous by Andrew Klavan is Crazy. Now I know that sounds corny but it is.
Sam Hopkins, at sixteen, is tired of being the P.K. (Preacher's Kid) so he decides to do something  different the only thing is that his want to always do right gets in the way and before long he gets wrapped up in a mess that no one will believe but he know to be true.
I'm not a big fan of mystery tip books. (Books that I don't know whats going on and what the hero has to do to stop it.) This book I was confused the whole time and couldn't figure out what was going on. But after it was all out in the open I really liked the book.

8. Erak's Ransom by John Flanagan is a fantasy and fantasy are not my favorites as far as category  goes, but I really like John Flanagan's books. The Rangers Apprentice series are really fun! This is the fifth book in the Rangers Apprentice series but it was written seventh so their is a 7 on the cover but you are supposed to read it before number 5 and 6.(Just so you know.) This book has Horace, Evanlyn, Gilan, Erak, Halt and of course Will so it is really sweet, funny, exciting books! John Flanagan is funny and his characters are so real I love every one of them.

9. Call of Duty by Steven Wilkins is a really really great biography of General Robert E. Lee. Everyone should read this book! (Although you'll like it more if your a southerner.)
The part where Stonewall Jackson died and the part where Lee surrendered to Grant were so sad. It is an amazing book and if you haven't read it you are missing out.

 10. Writing Fiction For Dummies by Randy Ingermanson and Peter Economy is the last book on this list but this was one good book! If you have ever wanted to write a fiction book you should read this book. I liked every pit of it. I took notes the whole time I was readying it and because of that fact it took me a really long time to finish; but it was worth it.
If you have never dreamed about writing your own book, well, then, first of all you are missing out, but I don't think you will like this book. Sorry.
If you have had that dream; read this book.

Well that's ten really good books I read in 2012. I loved them all and you might too.

Well Bye,

®achel™

The Homelanders!!!

 

  "Charlie West just woke up in someone else's nightmare."

These books are AWESOMELY AMAZING! 

The Homelanders by Andrew Kalavan

 THE LAST THING I REMEMBER

THE LONG WAY HOME 

THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER

THE FINAL HOUR

I still cant believe how much I liked these book. 

They are in first person with Charlie West, an eighteen year old all American boy, as the narrator. Andrew Klavan did an amazing job; the books really seem like they were written by a teenage boy.
I laughed so much while I was reading these books because all the goes through and he is still keeping the character of a teenager. I can see Charlie telling the story the whole time.

Erin, Jessica and I stood in the kitchen the other day while we were supposed to be cleaning and resisted lines form these books; laughed so hard my stomach hurt. And I'm smiling right now while I think about them. 

But in spite of the funny parts they are really intense. The best books are the ones that keep you up way to long at night when you are supposed to get up at six the next morning and the Homelanders  did that for me. My knees shake when I get really nerviness or excited and my knees shock a lot through the Homelanders series. 

If you don't like Action/Adventure, or you don't like eighteen year old boys, or you don't like books modern day books then don't read them. My tastes, more than likely, are different than yours so just because I like them doesn't mean you will.
Now that we have that out in the open I'll go back to parsing my favorite books.    

Book 1 The Last thing I remember is awesome! It is the first book in 'The Homelanders' series. Charlie West wakes up strapped to a chair just in time to hear some guy give the order for his death. The Last thing Charlie remembers is an ordinary day with is friends as a 18 year old guy with a dream of joining the U.S. Air Force. He went to sleep in his own bead and woke up like this.

Book 2 The Long Way Home is the Second book in 'The Homelanders' series and is Epic! Charlie has the Police and a grope of Terrorists after him and he needs answers. Mainly what happened during the year of his life that he can't remember. So he heads home to three faithful friends, Beth Summers and and incredible Karate teacher. (This book is the funniest in the series!)

Book 3 The Truth of the Matter is the third book in 'The Homelanders' series. Charlie finds the man he needs to answer all his questions just before the man is killed. Charlie is surrounded by Terrorists and every time he tries to get away a memory flash knocks him out of things just long enough for hims to get deeper into trouble. This book is amazing and I loved every bit of it, especially the end. (The end is really sweet.)

Book 4 The Final Hour is the fourth and last book in 'The Homelanders' series. Charlie is stuck in Abingdon State Prison. All he wants is to get out and stay out. His memory is finally back and he knows he has to get out and get to New York before... Well I cant tell you! You have to read it for yourself.


The Characters in these books are incredible. Beth Summers is really sweet and I understand why Charlie likes her. Mike is really cool and is always the good guy for everything. Josh, Rick and Miler are soooo funny that when ever I need a good laugh I read the parts with them. And of coarse Charlie is AWESOME!

Any way I think you are starting to get the picture that I really like these books! So I'll let you go now and read them.


Well Bye,
®achel™

 

Fiction/History

Day 343

"Some of the most agreeable moments of my life have been spent in reading works of imagination which have this advantage over history that the incidents of the former may be dressed in the most interesting form, while those of the latter must be confined to fact. They cannot therefore present virtue in the best and vice in the worst forms possible, as the former may."

~Thomas Jefferson~ 

Every child in America...

Day 324

"Every child in America should be acquainted with his own country. He should read books that furnish him with ideas that will be useful to him in life and practice. As soon as he opens his lips, he should rehearse the history of his own country." 

~Noah Webster~ 

 

 

 

It's own accord

"Some people seem to think that I began by asking myself how I could say something about Christianity to children; then fixed on the fairy tale as an instrument; then collected information about child-psychology and decided what age group I'd write for; then drew up a list of basic Christian truths and hammered out "allegories" to embody them. This is all pure moonshine. I couldn't write in that way at all. Everything began with images; a faun carrying an umbrella, a queen on a sledge, a magnificent lion. At first there wasn't anything Christian about them; that element pushed itself in of its own accord." 

~C.S. Lewis~  

 

 

 

This was just something I found while reading a book called 'finding God in the land of Narnia' and liked it. 

 

Well Bye, 

®achel™

The way I read a book!

   Erin says I procrastinate about reading. I love reading but for some reason I never can seem to just sit down and do it. 

I start by reading the back cover. 

Then the inside cover. 

I read about the author and the titles of every chapter if it has titles and I get very upset if it does not. 

   Then I go so far as to look at the year it was copy righted. 

What categories it is filed under. 

Who the publisher is. 

Then I read the dedication (I really don't like it when the author doesn't tell you who the person is. Like- "To Amanda" or "For you Rusty". I like it when they say something- "To Josh my amazing and patient husband" of "For Luke my sweet son who has never liked to read." 

   Anyway... 

Then I might go so far as to go down to Jessica's room and ask her if she could just tell me what happens. (I don't handle suspense very well.) 

But of course Jess want tell me. 

And with that I read the first wards of the book.

 And with most books from that moment, until I read the last words, I can't put it down."         

Well Bye,

 ®achel™

 

A Great Birthday!

Erin and I had a wonderful birthday!
We had some friends over and here are some fun pictures.

One of our very favorite birthday guests. Isn't she cute?

Ryan and his friend are always fun, it wouldn't have been a party with out them.

And we don't know who this is "she" just showed up for the food.

We got lots of help with blowing out the candles, and whoever took the picture did a really good job of getting us all at just the right moment.

One of my presents from Mommy and Daddy. I got the pens I LOVE!

And the book I really wanted!

Well bye,
®achel™

✯ George Washington's Rules ✯

Yesterday I was reading George Washington's "Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation." and here are some that I liked.
(I did not do all of them but they are all very good and if you haven't read them you really should so many of them still apply in like today!)
Also so many of them we no longer think of as important, like number 10 (that I do all the time).
Well hope you like them and here are the rest if you care to read.

2 When in company, put not your hands to any part of the body not usually discovered.

6 Sleep not when others speak; sit not when others stand; speak not when you should hold your peace; walk not on when others stop.

7 Put not off your clothes in the presence of others, nor go out your chamber half dressed.

10 When you sit down, keep your feet firm and even; without putting one on the other or crossing them.

38 In visiting the sick, do not presently play the physician if you be not knowing therein.

40 Strive not with your superior in argument, but always submit your argument to others with modesty.

53 Run not in the streets, neither go too slowly, nor with mouth open; go not shaking of arms, nor upon the toes, nor in a dancing [damaged manuscript].

65 Speak not injurious words neither in jest nor earnest; scoff at none although they give occasion.

73 Think before you speak; pronounce not imperfectly, nor bring out your words too hastily, but orderly and distinctly.

74 When another speaks, be attentive yourself; and disturb not the audience. If any hesitate in his words, help him not nor prompt him without desired; interrupt him not, nor answer him till his speech has ended.

82 Undertake not what you cannot perform but be careful to keep your promise.

89 Speak not evil of the absent, for it is unjust.

91 Make no show of taking great delight in your the table; neither find great delight in your victuals; feed not with greediness; eat your bread with a knife; lean not on the table; neither find fault with what you eat.

100 Cleanse not your teeth with the tablecloth, napkin, fork, or knife; but if others do it, let it be done without a peep to them.

109 Let your recreations be manful not sinful.


Well bye,
®achel™

Day 3: A favorite book.

Well there are so many good books out there that I just can't pick my favorite. All most every time I read a knew book I say after I've finished "Well that was just the best book ever" You can see how a person that thinks all books are the "best book ever" could have a hard time picking a favorite. But I must say as far as standing the test of time goes, I think that the best were...

1#All the Chronicles of Narnia
2#Anne of Green Gables

But there are many, many more that I like soooo much too.

So, I think that sums that up.

Well bye

®achel™