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Actually got to hear Dawn speak at Wheaton for special services one year, so that's fun. There are four sections - four main categories of how Dawn sees the Sabbath: ceasing, resting, embracing, and feasting. Many people know that to keep the Sabbath means to not work, but there is a fullness in the day that Dawn describes. Sabbath is meant to be a gift .. to the individual, to the family, to the Church, to the world. When people can rest, be refreshed, and be reminded of what truly matters and who we are in relation to God .. the world is a better place for it. And we are better people. If lived well, Sabbath can affect not simply one day a week -- but the entire way one views time, relationships, and the way one measures value.

Dawn describes Sabbath as .. ceasing to be controlled by the expectations of the world; ceasing to live in the belief that we actually have control over our lives; ceasing the monotony of day to day existence. Whe calls Christians to rest as well .. not simply to take a nap on Sunday, but to rest as whole people -- physically, intellectually, emotionally, socially. The third section focuses on embracing, because when we say 'no' to something (aka ceasing to worry and to accomplishing) we must say 'yes' to something else: aka God's upside-down values; time and people instead of space and all that must be done; being who God has called us to be instead of who others or the world expect us to be. Finally, Dawn challenges the reader to feast on the blessings of God, that this day might really be special. It might be listening to beautiful music, going for a long walk in nature, eating particularly enjoyable food, or taking the time to really spend the day with friends and enjoy each other. Dawn find theological, Biblical reasons for all her main points. This book was a challenge to me. I want to keep the Sabbath .. not simply to have a day off, but to have a day to focus on God and who He is, to live out my belief that He is in control and not me, to have a focus on the celebration of Sabbath instead of just seeing it as another day in the week.

Title:	Keeping the Sabbath Wholly
Author:	Marva Dawn
Date published:	1989
Genre:	Spiritual, Nonfiction
Number of pages:	213
Notes:	borrowed from Diane

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How to write one's thoughts from a book that is almost 1500 pages? And a book that took one almost five months to read? This book is regarded as a classic, and I found that to be true. The stories of five main families are followed for a number of years, through two huge wars and major changes in Russia. In addition to these main threads (which are surprisingly consistent and relatively easy to follow), there are thoughts on the wars and why they happened, commentary about why certain people are leaders and why others do not lead but simply seek power. Tolstoy's philosophy and view of his own people, history, and God become clear in various statements and reflections throughout the work.

Tolstoy manages to include thoughts from just about every subject: geography, history, philosophy, relationships, religion, politics, government, marriage, happiness... quite amazing. (Although if you have 1400+ pages, I suppose it's a bit easier to wield such a wide brush.) And even more amazing is that all these various topics come together to form one coherent masterpiece. The first few hundred pages were confusing, because most of the important, reappearing characters (somewhere between 20 and 35) have at least a couple names. First and last names and nicknames and titles. Very confusing if you aren't yet used to it, and trying to figure out who is related to whom. The list of "chief families" was very helpful. The last 50 pages were also challenging to read, because they are all about philosophy of war - why it happens, what it means, who has power, what power is .. not quite what I expected at the end of this epic. An overall enjoyable book, worth the effort to read it and remember who is who. I think it's even possible that I'll read it again. someday .. in a few years... :)

As for characters I'd like to remember: Natasha Rostov, who transforms from a young child into a beautiful woman, has a deep impact on numerous men, namely Prince Andrei and Pierre. She cares well for her family, has deep passions, sings beautifully, and is able to love others well when she turns her focus outward. Pierre Bezukhov, who is thrust into wealth unprepared early in life. This brings about many changes, and eventually sends him searching for the meaning in life. He and his wife have a rocky relationship, and he becomes a mason, seeking for truth. He eventually finds truth and hope when he becomes a prisoner of war and is forced to live with so little, after having everything he wanted. He discovers that man can choose to be happy in any circumstances and comes back a much wiser man. Princess Marya Bolkonskaya, who grows up with a father who can do nothing but criticize. She loves him and treats him well, in spite of his rudeness to her. She turns to God for solace, and even though she is physically plain, her eventual husband sees her as beautiful because inside she is deep and has known real suffering. Count Nikolai Rostov, brother to Natasha. He joins the army and spends much of his time fighting, and being with his men, and learning that the real power is not in those men who discuss decisions, but in those who actually act at the right moments. He grows up being able to do just about anything that he wants, but becomes much more responsible and able to think for himself instead of just following those around him. He even learns how to work the land, and at the end of the book works well with the peasants he is in charge of, being a good master who actually works with them and values them. Prince Andrei Bolkonskaya, who is raised with Princess Marya but doesn't have nearly the same experience. He knows he cannot please his father, and goes through various stages. He is in the army and gets shot, and when he returns wants nothing more than to spend his days on his land, making the place more beautiful and caring well for his peasants. Marries young, and has a child, but his wife dies in childbirth. He falls in love again, with natasha, but an unfortunate plan to elope by her (because of another man with evil intentions) stops their marriage. He goes to war again and is badly injured, and ends up being cared for by Natasha and his sister .. who grow to love each other through the experience together. This is one (of many) characters who dies, but he has the power to bring others together and to speak truth in a way that can be understood and believed.

Title:	War and Peace
Author:	Leo Tolstoy
Date published:	1869 (trans. 1968)
Genre:	Historical Fiction
Number of pages:	1455
Notes:	present from parents

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A fairly simple story with some good truth. The author becomes friends with a woman who is much older than her, named Nancy. They are both writers and find out that they both love road trips. Through travels together they become much closer, and Nancy often speaks into Mary's life. As with all good relationships, they both challenge and change one another over time. Nancy has had a pretty exciting life, and she loves getting to know people, and is able to relate with just about anybody .. little kids at church, college students, the mailman. Nancy teaches Mary three important truths over time: get your eyes off yourself, keep a positive attitude, pour your life into others. All very good things to learn .. and to keep being reminded of. A quick, positive read.

Title:	Over Salad & Hot Bread
Author:	Mary Jenson
Date published:	2006
Genre:	Nonfiction, Spiritual
Number of pages:	159
Notes:	gift from Church of the Resurrection

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Wangerin has a way with words, and it is enjoyable to read his stories. This book is a mixture of childhood and being a young pastor just out of seminary. Growing up in two different settings. Learning and making choices. He grew up as a pastor's kid – with lots of expectations and people watching him. From various friends and acquaintances, I know this can indeed be a recipe for disaster. Not necessarily .. but it creates its own set of interesting problems. Turns out that Wangerin does indeed end up as a pastor, though .. with his own small church in Indiana. In the inner city, with an interesting cast of characters – and plenty of learning and growing up to do.

The title comes from a woman who plays a prominent role in his growing up as a pastor. She loves God and is a pillar of strength in their community. In comes a new pastor with all his learning under his belt and expectations about how he will run the congregation and how important he will be .. and Miz Lil has quite a bit to teach him. But she doesn't force feed him truth or make him change .. she teaches him gently (although sometimes her comments are more like knife-thrusts than pats on the back) and continues to value and respect him in the process. How much we all need Miz Lil's in our lives .. elders who will speak the truth out to us, challenge our assumptions, and force us to mature and continue to learn that it is not ourselves who can cause change, but only our Faithful Father.

Title:	Miz Lil and the chronicles of grace
Author:	Walter Wangerin, Jr.
Date published:	1988
Genre:	autobiography
Number of pages:	192
Notes:	gift from t. davis

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Read in a few days and enjoyed Bryson's writing style. It is narrative, with him and his friend Katz walking the Appalachian Trail (parts of it, at least), but there is a nice mix of information as well. History about the areas they walk through and how the trail came into being, stories about things that have happened along the trail, facts about how the animal population has drastically changed in the last century, reflections and what it can mean to 'live without' and then to return to 'civilization.'

Bryson decides to walk the trail, and hopes that someone will walk with him, but nobody replies. Shortly before he is planning to start the first long leg, an old friend calls him up and asks if he can still come. They outfit themselves with all the necessary (and a bit of unnecessary as well :) gear, and prepare to start. Neither of them are particularly prepared for what is to come, though. Katz enjoys donuts and pancakes and big meals .. and walking everyday, all day is very hard work that neither of them are prepared for. But they get used to it, and at least Bryson even enjoys the process. They see some beautiful places, and some not so beautiful places; they meet some particularly memorable characters along the way; become rather good at setting up camp and living on snickers & raisins; and come back to 'the real world' with new eyes. An enjoyable read from a humorous author.

Title:	A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail
Author:	Bill Bryson
Date published:	1998
Genre:	Nonfiction, Nature
Number of pages:	274
Notes:	borrowed from Diane

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In Gilly's lonely childhood, the occasional visits of her older cousin Geillis were moments of sunshine and magic. Now Gilly is grown up and on her own, and discovers that her cousin Geillis has died and left her country house, Thornyhold, to Gilly. As she moves in and begins to get settled and meet her neighbors, she discovers that the people considered her cousin to be a kind of wise woman or witch, that the first owner of Thornyhold had an interested in herbs and remedies, and that some of Gilly's new neighbors expect her to continue the tradition. She has suspicious run-ins with the neighbor who lives at the gate-house, who claims to be looking for a special recipe hidden somewhere in the house (but it turns out she is looking for an old spell). Gilly also meets a young boy named William and his father (a handsome, divorced writer). And as the pigeons slowly return to the empty pigeon roost in the attic of the house, Gilly begins to receive messages-- mysterious, but encouraging.

The attitude towards magic and witchcraft is interesting here and a little ambivalent; it seems that Stewart is presenting different kinds of magic, because Cousin Geillis is definitely gifted in some kind of supernatural ways-- not only with her herbs and remedies for William's ferrets, but she also has some kind of foresight or prescience that's never fully articulated. However, Agnes thinks of herself as a witch, and even tries to recruit Gilly into her little coven-- which is almost more of a club, and seems harmless. But we discover, with Gilly, what means Agnes will use to accomplish her goals; for the love potion she is trying to make, she needs the hairs of a dead or dying dog, so she forces her dim-witted son to keep a dog tied up and starving in order to get her ingredient. When Gilly discovers, she is shocked and rescues the dog, nursing him back to health; it's clear that her attitude mirrors that of her cousin, who cared for all animals and life.

Enjoyable, quick read with engaging characters, a delightfully annoying villain, and a perfectly appropriate happy ending.

Title:	Thornyhold
Author:	Mary Stewart
Date published:	1988
Genre:	Romance
Number of pages:	289
Notes:	repeat reading

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I met him in the street called Straight.

How can you not love an opening line like that? It catches my attention right away and communicates so much with so few words.

Christy Mansel is vacationing in Damascus and runs into her cousin Charles. They decide to drop in and visit on their eccentric Great Aunt Harriet, who has been living on her own in a crumbling, isolated old palace, much like the legendary Lady Hester Stanhope. Charles is detained by business, so while Christy is out on a driving tour she decides to stop by and see if they can visit later. She finds things much stranger than expected, and ends up staying the night in order to meet her aunt, who keeps strange hours. But in the morning, the river is in flood and Christy is stuck. Christy's description of Great Aunt Harriet and the whole situation strikes Charles as being "a bit off", so he does a bit of rock climbing and sneaks into the palace, and they do some exploring and investigating together. Of course, they find that things are not at all what they seem; someone has been taking advantage of this isolated spot to smuggle drugs, which is both very lucrative and very dangerous.

I was surprised to find that this book reminded me of Touch not the Cat-- cousins discovering they love each other, a climax where the lovers are stranded in the middle of an exotic location (in one instance, a hedge maze in the middle of a flood, in the other, an island in the Seraglio garden while the palace goes up in flames), and then of course there are dogs and images of dogs everywhere instead of cats.

The "Gabriel" hounds of the title are a pair of china dogs that Charles admired and nicknamed, which Harriet promised to him (he was always her favorite nephew). As it turns out, this is another variation of the hellhounds of Arawn, like those in Diana Wynne Jones' Dogsbody [read in 2006 by Lark, 2007 by Sapphire]. Harriet also has a pair of Salukis, and missing in action is her beloved terrier Samson, whom Christy and Charles think is dead until they fail to find a grave for him with Harriet's other dogs. And actually, cats figure into the story too, because Christy has an unnatural loathing and fear of cats, and her encounter with one during her interview with Lady Harriet provides Charles with another clue to what is really going on.

A completely entertaining, engaging book. Plenty of danger and adventure, and, of course, love, since Christy and Charles figure out what their family has apparently expected for years (and what the reader probably expects from the first line of the book) figure out that they belong together.

Title:	The Gabriel Hounds
Author:	Mary Stewart
Date published:	1967
Genre:	Romance/Mystery/Adventure ?
Number of pages:	244
Notes:	repeat reading

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The first time I read this book I had an insight into what makes McKillip's writing so powerful for me. I've been wanting to reread it for a while, and then after Ash Wednesday was reminded of it again because of the image and the insight that stuck with me. The book starts with a young child surviving a fire that destroys his family and entire house by hiding in a marble fireplace. McKillip describes this child who has turned to ash in the fireplace and then is shaped and sculpted back into human form when he is discovered by an uncle, and because her books take place where real magic happens, it takes a long time before you know whether the child was literally turned to ash by the flames, or if it is more figurative description of the trauma experienced by a child who watched his family burn. This is masterful, and it works perfectly because the child himself doesn't remember who he is and runs from the flames in his memory for a long time, even refusing to play the harp because it burns in his hands, until he is eventually he faces his memories and returns to face the man who destroyed his family, the Basilisk of the title. Like some other McKillip books stories, this story is full of the power of music, both beautiful and deadly.

The orphaned child is taken to the school of the bards, far north of the city and the provinces on a rocky island near the hinterlands, where there is wild magic and strange musical instruments, and where the first Bard learned his power. As a child he is called Rook for his dark eyes, and then later he goes by the name his uncle gave him-- Caladrius, for a bird whose song portends death. Rook's family was destroyed in a war between the four great houses of the city of Berylon. Each family has a totem figure; the ruthless man who crushed the other houses and seized power is Arioso Pellior, known as the Basilisk both for the symbol of his house but also for his strange and deadly powers.

Caladrius eventually goes to the Hinterlands to discover the flames in his memory he has feared and avoided since childhood, and once he comes to grips with his past he decides to return to Berylon for his revenge. Much of the story ties in with music-- there is a music school, with collected instruments from the north, including some with strange and dangerous powers. There are some beautiful, amazing moments... Caladrius and his son Hollis both playing on the deadly fire-bone pipe to try to kill the Basilisk (and they succeed in summoning some kind of deadly white basilisk that makes Pellior very ill), but as a blind and insightful old woman observes, they fail because they were each playing out of love for the other-- not for revenge but each to protect the other. Then, once Caladrius is revealed as the heir to Tormalyne house and they are being hunted through the city, he plays another set of pipes to travel somewhere safe-- they are transformed and travel as sound itself to the Hinterlands and back, although my prosaic description doesn't do justice to McKillip's beautiful evocation of this.

Also fascinating is Luna Pellior, daughter of the Basilisk-- not his firstborn, but heir in power and magic. She is enigmatic and dangerous, with green eyes that might be those of a mesmerizing serpent. Until the end of the story reveals her motivation and depth, I understood her very little; she orchestrates things perfectly for an appropriate justice-- the raven blinds the aging basilisk in some mysterious way that even the main participants don't fully understand-- and finally brings peace and harmony back to the city of Berylon.

This book is worth reading again.

Title:	Song for the Basilisk
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	1998
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	306
Notes:	second reading

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