Christy Read-Along: Chapters 26-39

Hello, once again, my friends!

It is time for another post in Amber at Seasons of Humility's Christy Read-Along.

As it has become my custom with these posts, I am combining two into one. I didn't post on the 1st because of the start of NaNoWriMo and I was working on my Coco (2017) review, then I didn't post on the 8th because of my Blog Costume Party, so I have some catching up to do now.

Check out Amber's post for chapters 26-32 HERE, and chapters 33-39 HERE.

SPOILER ALERT! I will be talking about the book Christy without any hesitations, so there are a ton of spoilers. Don't read this post unless you've read this book.

Christy - by Catherine Marshall: Chapters 26-39

Discussion format: your favorite quotes, general impressions, and three questions to answer for each week's reading (six questions for two weeks of discussion)

Favorite Quotes:

1.

'"It must have been like seeing through a peephole in his armor," I remarked, "seeing the man as he was meant to be."'

2.

'I might have felt unimportant pitted against the awesome might of the mountains. I did not. Rather, on that mountain top I found something important that I had never known before: an awareness of a vital connection between me and the Authority behind all this beauty.'

3.

"When your heart is ablaze with the love of God, when you love other people -- especially the rip-snorting sinners -- so much that you dare to tell them about Jesus with no apologies, then never fear, there will be results."

4.

'Perhaps it is just that even a small city provides artificial distraction which separates us from the roots of our life; even a few bricks and a little macadam are a shield between us and the wisdom that nature has to give.'

5.

'The sun sifting through moving branches would splinter the light into diamonds on the water tossing them back into my eyes with such magic that I would want to shout and dance, just for the joy of living -- and usually did. Fairlight understood. She always understood.'

General Impressions:

Chapters 26-32:

I know I talk about my favorite characters each time, and you are all probably tired of it, but they are my favorites and I have to keep you updated on why they are my favorites:

Miss Alice: She just has the best advice ever. No arguing about it. Something that she said that I found very relatable (I mean everything that she says is amazing, but one of my favorite bits) was:

"It's been the delight of my life to find God far more common sense and practical than any human I know. The only time I ever find my dealings with God less than clear cut is when I'm not being honest with Him. The fuzziness is always on my side, not His."

Whenever I set my mind to talk to God and open up my heart, I always feel such a sense of relief, but when I keep to myself then everything seems harder.

And something that another participant in the read-along, Julie, and I were talking about in the comments last time was mentioned by Miss Alice:

"So many people never pause long enough to make up their minds about basic issues of life and death. It's quite possible to go through your whole life, making the mechanical motions of living, adopting as your own sets of ideas you've picked up some place or other, and die--never having come to any conclusion for yourself as to what life is all about."

Opal: Can we talk about the fact that here are men standing around her cabin, waiting to kill her husband, and Opal has such a sweet heart that she feeds them because she doesn't want them to starve? She is so kind and thoughtful, definitely a new favorite through these chapters.

Fairlight: I absolutely loved reading about her and Christy's little adventures! The descriptions were gorgeous and so accurate, and her and Christy's friendship is so sweet, I love watching it grow.

Okay, now for parts that are not my favorite:
I was so sad when Tom was murdered! I just wanted to reach through the page and give everyone hugs. Especially Issak who was made to dig his grave. Ugh, is was just so sad! I liked Miss Alice's choice of the story of Lazarus and her thoughts on it. I hope that it gets some sense into them.
(Oh, and learning about Bird's-Eye's back story made me feel victorious because I knew that there is some good in him, and I can't wait to see it. I was so glad to hear that it wasn't him who killed Tom, but it makes me wonder who did...)

Um, this next part is probably controversial, but when David proposed to Christy then kissed her I threw my book (It landed on my bed and it was fine, just to let you all know). I know that this is something that happens in books a lot, and I even know several preachers who are married and have wonderful families, but...reading it is just weird to me. Being a Catholic I am raised with the tradition that all nuns and priests take a vow of celibacy, so my mind just can't comprehend it all. This is just me, I don't know anyone else who reacts to this like I do. I even had a feeling it was coming, because as soon as we met David I was like this:

Source

I mean come on, why can't they just be friends?

Moving on.

I will end on a high note, the last day of school celebration was so sweet (sorry, sweet is one of my favorite words. How many times have I said it in this post?)! I will miss reading about Christy teaching them, but I'm glad that they were all so happy.

"You'd be surprised how much children can teach us ossified adults, if we'd only stoop to listen."

Chapters 33-39:

Oh boy. Where to begin?

Miss Alice's story was really sad. Whenever someone betrays our deep trust in them it is heartbreaking. That man was horrible and I'm glad that we never saw him again. What really sticks out to me is how brave it was of Miss Alice to tell Christy the story. I know that when people think well of me I like to keep it that way, and the fact that she thought Christy thought of her too well shows how wonderful she is.

'In the light of Miss Alice's story, I understood that the reason we have to accept other people is simply because God receives us just the way we are.'

I think that Christy did a very good job with the Ladies of the University Club speech. Based on her interaction I with Mr. Smith, I wasn't sure what to expect, but I think that she did a really nice job. It's exciting that they will now be taking boarders.

I absolutely couldn't believe that Ruby Mae got married. What??? I mean, I know that it was normal back then, but she is just so young! I agree with Christy that she could have waited longer. The whole chapter was rather disturbing for me. Let's think of a good part, ah! It was fun to read about the dancing because I love to dance and explore different kinds.

'The American frontier had its dangers and its hard work but it also had a rare talent for making its own fun.'

David and Christy... yeah, I talked about them enough in the last few chapters. My feelings haven't changed.

The discussing of fears was so important! We all are afraid of things, and we have to face them at some point.

"After a while the love of God was more real to me than any ghost."

I was so sad when Fairlight died! It seems like my favorite character in any book always dies. It was painful to read about how terrified she was, I mean, wouldn't we all be?

Asking the question of "Why?" is very relatable to many people. And I absolutely loved that the end of this chapter (39) was focusing on the feeling of being loved by God. It was really beautiful.

Discussion Questions:

Chapters 26-32:

1. What turn of events shocked or surprised you most in this section?

Besides everything else that I mentioned, it must have been really scary when Christy, Miss Ida, and Ruby Mae were alone and the men were trying to break in! I would have been terrified. I admire that Miss Ida was able to remain calm.

2. What do you think drove Christy to climb a mountain? Have you ever been driven to do something out of the ordinary or especially challenging for you? What was the experience like?

Christy's experience on the mountain was so vivid for me! I have had the same feeling go through me. I always think that people who said that they don't believe in God must never have felt this, because once you do you know and never forget.

I am very stubborn and determined, so once I start something I push through until the end. One time I did want to climb a hill, and I did it, but it was pretty much straight up and down and my side hurt for the rest of the day because I was breathing so heavily. So yeah. I would definitely encourage trying new things, but don't hurt yourself!

3. What was your favorite part or performance from the school's last-day festivities?

Creed showing off Scalawag II was so cute! The way that he was so proud of himself was adorable. I also loved how their different words spelled OUR SCHOOL.

Chapters 33-39:

1. What do you think of the Folk School idea that Mrs. Browning shared with Christy? Do you feel like it would be beneficial to the people of the Cove?

All of the talk and debates about the Folk School idea are really interesting to me. I'm not sure if it will work in the Cove because of the personalities of the people there, but if they could figure out how to make it work it would be beneficial, I think!

2. Do you find nighttime and darkness bothersome or appealing? Have your feelings changed since childhood?

This is really funny that this is one of the discussion questions because I absolutely love night and darkness. When I was little I was afraid of someone being in the dark and going to scare me (a realistic fear when you have sisters), but since I was about ten I've loved the dark. There is something so mysterious and thrilling about it. I love to challenge myself by walking around my house at night and trying not to run into anything. This isn't a really good idea because I am naturally clumsy, but I fall when there is already light, no difference when there isn't.

My favorite thing is that it is so much easier to see the light when you are surrounded by darkness. A good metaphor for life, right?

3. What are some of the things you hope will happen or be resolved in the last chapters? (Or, if you've already read the book, has anything stood out to you differently so far while reading the book this time around?)

I'm interested to see how Dr. MacNeil's and Christy's friendship will grow. Oh, and maybe getting to see the children in school again? And there is always the hope that Ben Pentland will show up.


Thanks to Amber for hosting, and to all of you for reading! What do you think of this book and my thoughts?

MovieCritic

Movie Review: Pride & Prejudice & Zombies (2016)

Hello, everyone!

Okay, I know what you are all wondering,

"Why in the world did she watch Pride & Prejudice & Zombies?"

But hear me out.

Other years when I have announced my Blog Costume Party I knew what I was going to be.

This year I was absolutely stumped! My sister and I stayed up so late just throwing ideas out, trying to come up with literary characters to be. Finally we decided on Jane Austen characters, but in my house the rule for dressing up was always that we had to be magical or scary. For nostalgia's sake I wanted to keep the tradition up. Therefore, I said,

"Hey, there is something called Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, why don't we be Jane Austen characters as zombies?" 

My sister thought that it sounded weird, but went with it even though neither of us had seen it.
It wasn't until after we had our costumes did I watch the movie.

I am now here to tell you my disclaimer:
If you do not like the idea of zombies or want to see anything with them, I totally respect that! I'd just mention that this movie is not for you. To me, the idea of zombies are okay in a fantasy setting.
Do I believe in winged horses, pegusai? No.
Do I like to read stories that include them? Yes.
Even famous authors like J. K. Rowling and J. R. R. Tolkien have had their own version of zombies in their fantasy worlds. When I think of zombies I think of this quote:

“Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.”

― Neil Gaiman

Just something to think about. Now I'll finally get on to the actual review.

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning.

Pride & Prejudice & Zombies (2016):

Based on: Pride & Prejudice - by Jane Austen, and Pride & Prejudice & Zombies - by Seth Grahame-Smith.
"Handsome is as handsome does."
In England the growing zombie population is getting worse. Having zombies in the country is rare, but just in case all of Mr. Bennet's daughters are trained in martial arts and weaponry to protect themselves if there is ever an attack. At a ball there are two new gentlemen, Mr. Bingley who is instantly attracted to Mr. Bennet's oldest daughter Jane, and Colonel Darcy who is a renowned zombie killer. When the attacks start happening more frequently there seems to be something deeper going on. Will everyone be able to put aside their dislike of each other to fight against this uprising?
"Keep your swords as sharp as your wits."

Genre: Horror, Romance, Fantasy.
Length: approx. 108 minutes.
Costumes: 7, there are a few that are a little low, and we see people in underclothing, but they are cool besides that. They did a good job of mixing regency style and a martial arts feel.
Script: 9, I don't recall any bad words. It is neat that they added lines that are references to other of Jane Austen's works.
"If adventures will not befall a young lady in her own village she must seek them abroad."
Crew:
Directed by: Burr Steers.
Written by: Burr Steers, Seth Grahame-Smith, and Jane Austen.
Starring:
Lily James as Elizabeth Bennet.

Sam Riley as Colonel Fitzwilliam Darcy.

Jack Huston as Mr. Wickham.

Bella Heathcote as Jane Bennet.

Douglas Booth as Mr. Bingley.

Lena Headey as Lady Catherine de Bourgh.

Ellie Bamber as Lydia Bennet.
Matt Smith as Parson Collins.

Charles Dance as Mr. Bennet.

Suki Waterhouse as Kitty Bennet.
Emma Greenwell as Caroline Bingley.
Millie Brady as Mary Bennet.
Sally Phillips as Mrs. Bennet.
Aisling Loftus as Charlotte Lucas.
Dolly Wells as Mrs. Featherstone.
Cinematography: 7.
Cinematography by: Remi Adefarasin.
Music: 7, I didn't notice it at all. Oops!
Music by: Fernando Velázquez.

Quotes: 8, "Of all the weapons in the world I now know love to be the most dangerous."
Content: 3. I was worried that there was going to be some suggestive things, but there was only some kissing. There is a lot of: violence, blood, killing, death, and fighting. I know from the photos I picked that it doesn't look like it has that, but it does. I personally am not really bothered by that because I have been watching movies with fighting for as long as I can remember, and when I was little I saw a documentary about make-up in movies and have always known that the blood is just fake, but I totally understand that other people don't like seeing these things (and it's not that watching movies like this is my favorite thing ever, I actually prefer it when there isn't as much violence, but I'm just used to it). All together my score for this would be about 5 or 6, so why is it lower? Well, I was just fine when this weird thing happened. I even wrote down "Okay, that just got weird." As I mentioned in my introduction, I am fine with the idea of zombies, but there was this scene with zombies in a church receiving communion, that wasn't communion, and then later relating the Bible with zombies. As a Catholic that was something that went too far. I was very confused about what was happening and rather uncomfortable. It wasn't necessary I thought, but it is there for a warning to any of you who are going to watch this.
"What's right to do cannot be done too soon."

Originality: 9, this had some really clever things! Remember how much I disliked the 2005 Pride & Prejudice because I love the 1995 version so much? With the 2005 I was frustrated with all of the differences in script, costumes, and the story. With this, I was totally fine with all of the changes they made! It isn't the exact same thing, it is a retelling, so it was a ton of fun to see one of my favorite stories in a different way. There is some debate about people thought that Elizabeth Bennet was boring until they added this element of her fighting skills. I never have found Lizzy to be boring in just her usual self, so I don't agree with that. I think that they did a good job with her character and adding the fighting except for the time that she was fighting Mr. Darcy, that was just weird.
"Is there some sort of trouble? Oh, I guess there is."
Good For: I would recommend it for anyone who is a fan of Pride & Prejudice just to be able to have a new look at it.
Age Range: I would say this is PG-13 for the violence, but even if you are older than that and if you are uncomfortable with any of the things that I mentioned then you could skip on this. You don't have to like this, how boring would life be if we all liked the same things?
"Laugh at me as much as you choose, but you shall not laugh me out of my opinion."
Overall Score: 7.

Bonus thoughts:
I had fun watching this! Of course the 1995 Pride & Prejudice will always be my favorite, but this was fun to see. All of the actors were really well cast and the story kept me interested. The ending felt a little rushed, while I knew what was happening, if they had just added a few minutes to explain things I think it could have been smoother.
This was fun to watch once, and I'll probably show it to my sister sometime, but then after that I might not watch it again.


For the blog party:

"You are as unfeeling as the undead."

This is always my favorite part of my blog party, talking about the costumes! So my sister and I decided to be Elizabeth and Jane Bennet as zombies. That isn't what it is in the movie, but it's what we thought, so we are now calling ourselves as Jane Austen characters as a zombie and a ghost (she backed out on me at the last second, can you believe it?).

These costumes came together thanks to my sister who had these awesome dresses from a thrift store.

I was going for a zombie look so I had a falling apart look and rubber flies pinned all over me (I know it sounds gross, but it looked really cool). My make up was just really dark around my eyes and a pale face. I also have an awesome pair of boots which you sadly can't really see in the photo.
My sister decided to go for more of a ghost look. "Making it look like I had come out of the attic" were her exact words. She has a shawl that up close looks like a spider web (another thrift store find!), a cameo necklace that I had, and she has rubber spiders pinned to her. For her make up I threw flour at her, which was really fun. Heehee. (Also, we both kind of look like ghosts in the picture because I blurred our faces a little too much).

I have the picture here for you to compare to Elizabeth and Jane in this movie, but as I said, when we came up with the costumes we were a little confused.


To check out what Kara and Anna had for their costumes for this blog party, click HERE.

Thank you so much for reading! Have you seen this movie? What are your thoughts on it? Oh, and how do my sister and I look?

MovieCritic

Start of My Blog Costume Party 2019!

Hello, my fellow literature fans!

Today is an exciting day! It is the start of my Blog Costume Party for 2019! I am so excited to see all of the costumes that everyone comes up with to celebrate our favorite fictional characters!

It isn't too late to join. If you are confused about the rules, click HERE for my announcement post. And of course, feel free to ask me questions, too!
To participate post either today, the 7th, or on the 8th or 9th.Then please link your post in the comments below so I can put it in this post. My post will be on Saturday.

If you are unsure of what to do, or if you just want to see more of this, here are the links to my sisters and my costumes from previous years:

Ursula, the sea witch (The Little Mermaid)

The Queen of Hearts (Alice in Wonderland)

Cruella de Vil (101 Dalmatians)

Captain Hook (Peter Pan)

The Dread Pirate Roberts (The Princess Bride)

A skeleton (Pirates of the Caribbean or Halloweentown)

Jadis, the white witch (The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Waredrobe)

Wonder Woman (Wonder Woman)

Shrek and Princess Fiona (Shrek)

I won't be putting the pictures of everyone here because you have to check out the posts to see for yourself, but I am putting a picture of the book or movie that their from to get you interested.

And now, the entries for this year:

The amazing Kara Lynn kicks things off with showing two costumes that she had this year! She matches with her sister as Thing 1 and Thing 2, then she it the perfect Tonks. Check it out HERE.

Then Anna joins looking exactly like Rey! The force is strong with her. Take a look HERE.

My sister and I take on Elizabeth and Jane Bennet as zombies. My explaination is HERE.

...You're next!

Thanks for reading and participating!

MovieCritic

Movie Review: Coco (2017)

¡Hola amigos!

¡Ayer fue el Día de los Muertos! Yesterday was the day of the dead! Also called all souls day (also celebrated is all saints day), this is a day were we remember those who have gone before us and celebrate their lives. As you all probably know, this is a very big day in Mexican culture. In the spirit of this, I am reviewing a movie that is amazing and the perfect film to watch this month!

I was going to review this yesterday, but my sisters and I wanted to watch this yesterday so we did and I forgot that because you get really emotional while watching this, you need time to think about it (yes, I have seen this several times before but always forget this).

I know this sounds like a really weird movie if you haven't seen it before, but stick with me until the end.

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning.

Coco (2017):

"Being part of this family means being here for this family."
A boy named Miguel wants to play music, but his family hates it and has banned it. To join a talent show to prove himself, Miguel steals a guitar from the late famous musician Ernesto de la Cruz. Because he stole from the dead on a day when we give to the dead, he can see all of the dead now, and none of the living can see him. His family who has already past on take him to the land of the dead were they find that he needs their blessing to go back to the land of the living. The only condition is that he has to promise not to play anymore music. Miguel runs away and is joined by Hector as they search through the land of the dead for someone who will give him a blessing without conditions. Will Miguel get back to the land of the living before sunrise, or will he turn into a skeleton?
"This isn't fair! This is my life, you already had yours!"

Genres: Adventure, Family, Fantasy, Animated.
Length: approx. 105 minutes.
Costumes: 8, it is an animated movie, so there aren't too many extreme costumes. I do like the outfits that they picked for each character because it suits their personality. There is one instance where we see a skeleton wearing no clothing.
Script: 10. I am taking Spanish lessons and there are a few Spanish words which are fun that I know (but they were pretty much in context so even if you didn't you would understand). And while I was taking my notes I started writing them in Spanish!
"I thought it was one of those things adults make up to tell kids, like, vitamins."

Crew:
Directed by: Lee Unkrich.
Written by: Adrian Molina, Matthew Aldrich, Lee Unkrich, & Jason Katz.
Starring the voices of:
Anthony Gonzalez as Miguel.

Gael García Bernal as Héctor.

Benjamin Bratt as Ernesto de la Cruz. (Antonio Sol singing voice, except for "Remember Me")

Alanna Ubach as Mamá Imelda.

Renée Victor as Abuelita.
Ana Ofelia Murguía as Mamá Coco.

Edward James Olmos as Chicharrón.
Alfonso Arau as Papá Julio.
Selene Luna as Tía Rosita.
Dyana Ortellí as Tía Victoria.
Herbert Sigüenza as Tíos Oscar and Felipe.
Jaime Camil as Papá.
Sofía Espinosa as Mamá.
Natalia Cordova-Buckley as Frida Kahlo.
A really neat thing about this movie is that it is the first film with a nine-figure budget (a cost of $175 million) to feature an all-Latino principal cast!

Animation: 10, you know me, I'm biased against digital animation, but this is so breathtaking! The colors are fantastic and the way the drew everything is amazing!
Music: 10! It is so beautiful! Of course everyone is always talking about "Remember Me" (for good reason), but there are so many great songs in here, like, "Un Poco Loco" and "Proud Corazón", and even "Everyone Knows Juanita" are so amazing!
Music by: Michael Giacchino (score). Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez, Germaine Franco, Michael Giacchino, Adrian Molina, Holger Beier, Pat Beier, & Camilo Lara (song lyrics).

Notes: There are so many Easter eggs in here! This was actually one of the first movies since I knew about Easter eggs where I spotted one without knowing that it was already there.
Quotes: 10! “Our memories, they have to be passed down by those who knew us in life – in the stories they tell about us.”
Oscars won: 2: Best Animated Feature, & Best Original Song ("Remember Me").
Content: 10, there is one or two gross things, and a suggestive body part. It deals with the themes of death and life and they do it in such a beautiful way.

Originality: 10! I love that they made a movie all about El Día de los Muertos! Some people say it is too close to The Book of Life (2013), and while there are some similarities, both have their own unique storyline.
Good For: everyone everywhere, people who have lost family members, anyone who loves music.
Age Range: All ages! This movie is so perfect for the whole family, whatever age you, I am sure that you will like it. You might say, "But it's just a kids movie!" I assure you, it isn't.

Overall Score: 10!
Bonus thoughts:

"That's such a sweet sentiment...at such a bad time!"
When my sisters and I first saw the trailer for this, my sister said, "That looks so good!" and I thought, "Um, no way." I didn't like the idea of all the skeletons and things. Months later my younger sister got it from the library and convinced my older sister and me to watch it.
Let me tell you, I was absolutely blown away. This movie is GORGEOUS.

The themes of life and death are wonderful, and it shows the importance for music and family. Every time I watch this movie I am sobbing because the message is so beautiful! This is in my top 20 favorite movies of all time.
A quick note, I don't believe that this is what happens when we die. I believe in one Heaven, and one God. But, I love the idea of the land of the dead because I love the focus on remembering the people who have gone before us and celebrating their lives. This is fantasy, right?
I will never stop recommending it to everyone. If you haven't seen it, please go watch it now! Even if you have doubts, go! You won't regret it.


Talk to me! Have any of you seen this? I would love to squeal about how wonderful it is with you! Thanks for reading!

MovieCritic