Book Reviews: Ever and Small Gods

Book Review:

I love Gail Carson Levine. Her books Ella Enchanted and Two Princesses of Bamarre are two of my very favorite books ever. (Don't judge Ella Enchanted by the movie either - they have almost nothing in common except the title and the name of the main character!) So when I heard she had another full length book out, I bought it right away. Ever  was one of the books I was saving for something special. I decided it was time to read it already, and I finished it this week.

At first, I thought Ever was set in the same world as Ella Enchanted and the next book Fairest, although the two are not closely related. But after just a few pages in, I realized that this was a stand alone title. The book is told from two different viewpoints, that of Kezi, a young girl living with her fond parents, interested in weaving and dancing, and Olus, a young god of wind and loneliness. Olus has been watching Kezi and her family and he has fallen in love. When a twist of fate condemns her to be a sacrifice to the god Admat. Olus and Kezi set off to find Admat and release Kezi from her fate.

This was not quite as good as Ella Enchanted, but it was extremely good. I read it all in a couple of days and I couldn't wait to finish. Both Kezi and Olus are well drawn, sympathetic characters and the story was an original one. If I had one problem it was that the ending chapters were not quite as good as the beginning, but I still loved it.

My next read was Small Gods by Terry Pratchett, which made an interesting contrast. The main character, Brutha, is a novice at a rather remote monastery devoted to the worship of the god Om. Brutha is minding his own business tending the garden when he finds a tortoise - a talking tortoise. In fact, the incarnation of the god Om. Om has been in a bit of a decline. Although the Inquisitors and Exquisitors are doing all kinds of things in his name and generally getting things completely wrong, Om himself finds things a bit quiet. It's time for a new prophet. Brutha doesn't think he's up to the job, but no one else is interested in the job. Soon a holy war is in motion and Brutha is on the run, complete with the talking tortoise also known as the god Om.

I always enjoy a Terry Pratchett book. This one was fun too, and despite the irreligious tone, it had me laughing out loud in parts. But I didn't enjoy it as much as some others, like Mort or Witches Abroad, maybe because my favorite characters only appeared briefly if at all. DEATH had some good lines, like always, but I missed the witches and Rincewind.

In summary, both books are good reads, if not must reads, and both are clean and appropriate for just about anyone. So far, I haven't read anything by these two authors that I didn't enjoy.

Recipe: Pickled Peaches

I bought a big box of peaches and I've been spending some time canning them lately. Randy and I love pickled peaches and everyone I tell about them comments on how unusual it sounds. So I thought I'd share the recipe.

Pickled Peaches

8 lbs. peaches, washed, peeled, halved, and pitted

6 c. sugar

4 sticks cinnamon

2 Tb. whole cloves

1" piece fresh ginger

1 quart white vinegar

Treat peaches with Fruit Fresh or similar product to prevent darkening. Dissolve sugar in vinegar in large sauce pot and heat to boiling. Boil 5 minutes. Add spices tied in a cheesecloth bag. Drop peach halves into boiling syrup and cook until they can be pierced by a fork, but not until mushy. Remove from heat and allow peaches to set in pickling liquid overnight to plump. (When liquid is cool, place in refrigerator) Bring liquid back to a boil. Pack peaches into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space. Remove air  bubbles. Adjust caps. Process 20-30 minutes in boiling water bath. Makes about 3 quarts or 6 pints.

If you are new to canning, here's the way I do it. I wash all my jars in the dishwasher, examine them for cracks, and then fill with very hot tap water until I want them later. Then I fill my canner with hot water and bring to a boil. Since this is so big, it takes a long time to boil. Then I get whatever I'm canning ready. While this is heating up, I get out my rings and my jar lids, my ladle, my canning tongs, and my canning funnel. Those should be clean also, and never reuse your jar lids. They will only seal once. 

Once all my stuff is ready (and yes, this takes up practically every burner on my stove and most of my counter space), I am all set. Grab your jar, pour out the hot water, and put your canning funnel inside. Use your ladle to fill up the jar. Have a towel ready to hold on to the jar because it will be much too hot to touch. Once your jar is full, put the lid and then ring on and tighten. Use the tongs to put your jar into the boiling water bath. Then grab the next jar. Keep going until every jar is full or until you run out of stuff to put in them. If you have one that is only half way full, either find a smaller jar or fill it up but don't bother to put it in the canner. It will not seal unless almost full. Just put a lid on the half full jar, let it cool, and go ahead and enjoy it now. 

After adding all your stuff to the boiling water bath, check to make sure all jars are covered by at least 1/2 inch of water. If not, add more water and return to a boil. Then boil or 'process' jars for at least 20 minutes. Here in Utah, you need to let things process a little longer because of the altitude. Once your time is up, remove your jars, using the canning tongs, and cover and let sit out of drafts until completely cool, sometimes overnight. Check all your jars to make sure they've sealed. You may hear them 'pop' when the seal sets. Check for seal by pushing the top of each jar. If it moves at all, it didn't seal and should be eaten or refrigerated right away. You could also freeze it and use within 3 months. If the seal is good, you can store it and use it when you're ready.

I hope this is useful! It sounds like a whole lot of work, and the first couple of times you try it, it is a lot of work. But once you've done it a few times, it gets easier and you don't have to check your directions every time. If you don't have all the supplies you need, ask around with family, neighbors, etc. Check yard sales and the clearance section at the end of summer. A resource you should absolutely have is the Ball Blue Book. It sells at Walmart and it has step by step directions for canning, complete with illustrations and recipes. It costs under $10 and it's worth every penny. Good luck and happy canning!

My new list of blessings

Since a lot of my posts have been a little negative lately, here is my list of things I am thankful for right now.

1. My new glasses. (I will add a picture soon.) Although my goofy cat already chewed on the ear piece. Cats!

2. My car is fixed! And I have my tags and paid my ticket - only $30, so not bad at all.

3. Along with that, I'm really happy with my new mechanics, Steve's Intermountain Services in Provo. They did a great job and are very fast.

4. My dad. My car repairs were way over $1000 and he insisted on paying for them, since we had several other major bills and expenses at the time. It sure feels nice to have my dad to take care of me sometimes.

5. My friends. I have been feeling sorry for myself lately and extra grumpy and stressed, and I have had so many thoughtful, sweet comments on here and on the phone and in person. I am feeling much better about things.

Those are my top blessings right now. Of course, I am also thankful for my kids and for Randy. They are great. Even with all we've been going through, it's still good to have each other.

Health Update (also called "Why I am Not Happy"

I am back from the neurosurgeon. 

Good news: I still have a brain.

Bad news: I guess, really, all the rest was bad news. Or at least, not the news I wanted. 

I didn't even get to actually see the neurosurgeon, just his assistant. But the assistant took a history from me and went over my papers I brought in and looked at my MRI films. He did an exam too.

And his conclusion (which he talked with the expert on, and I guess they agree) is that there's no reason to do surgery at this time. The chiari is probably causing these headaches, but the other nerve pain, the sciatica, the muscle weakness, the memory problems, are not related at all. 

They want me to go back for another MRI, this time of my neck and back. And they want me to see a neurologist. So I made an appointment for - of course - Next Month, and a follow up with the expert (maybe I'll even see him in person!) for November. And they're going to schedule another MRI for me. And this time, they prescribed a Valium. Because I wouldn't do it without one. 

I'm just not sure how I feel at this point. I was really hoping that the dr. would say that surgery would definitely help with at least some of my symptoms and go ahead and schedule it. I know brain surgery (and this is really surgery of the skull, not the brain) is risky and the recovery is long and can be slow, but at least I would have an answer and something I could do. Carrie did so well with her surgery that I guess I was expecting to hear the same thing for me. 

I would get a second opinion, but this is the best neurosurgeon in the state. And if he doesn't think surgery is the answer, then maybe he's right and I'm going to have to do something else. I just have no idea what.

I am in serious need of hugs. I have been feeling a little sorry for myself and unhappy about things for my family. We are all in need of friends right now. Then Deanne called this morning and Melanie came by and I am so grateful. I really needed that.

So I've decided I'm just going forward with my life, instead of waiting and trying to guess what the doctor will say. I'm going to read all those books I had saved for when I was recovering from surgery, and I'm going to plan on working this Christmas. We're going to pray hard and decide about moving or fixing up the house. And I'm just going to keep going. 

Contest Winners!

WINNER!

Sorry about the delay, but we have the winners at last! The winner of the Library Thing membership is LoopyLoo100. And I added a second prize of a batch of Caramel Corn. This one is going to Maleen, for her comment on my Cooking Blog. Congrats to the winners! I will be in touch with you both soon.

Running behind!

I am so busy with car trouble that I am running behind. I will draw the contest winner tonight.

School update

We're about 3 weeks in to school, and a few minor problems already. Will really likes his teacher. He's had a bit of trouble with bullying, but I think we have it all sorted out. He's busy with soccer - I'll post some pictures soon - and he's enjoying that, but having trouble making new friends as all his old friends are going to other schools now.

Sarah is having a great year so far, at least as far as her grades go. She is pretty happy with her classes and has good friends to sit with at lunch every day. She is loving her foods class and drawing and painting.

Ellen is settling in to this new routine. She has a few classes at school and rest are at home and she has another teacher checking her progress once a week. So mostly, she's working on her own. For now, that seems to be fine. She's already finished 1984 for her English class and is working on her other course work.

And I am getting the hang of all the various things I have to keep up with. I finally figured out that I need to keep a pocket calendar handy and write it all down or there's no way I would remember what I'm supposed to be doing that day.

My big appointment with the neurosurgeon is September 16 and I'm hoping for good things. Right now I'm not even sure I'm having surgery, but it looks that way, and I will post more when I know more. I'll be so glad to finally talk to the doctor! This waiting has been really hard.

Randy is working hard and keeping busy with the Scouts. We've both had some car repairs to worry about, but I hope that will be done soon.

So that's what's going on at the Bohn household. Nothing really exciting, but maybe that's a good thing!

Prayers for my Neighbor

You know how things seem to go in cycles -- right now, my neighborhood is going through the surgery cycle. It seems like everyone is having surgery, from knee surgery, foot surgery, gall bladder, Carrie's brain surgery, my own coming brain surgery, and today, my wonderful neighbor is having surgery for uterine cancer. Keri found out after a sudden scare and emergency visit to the hospital that she has cancer and today is undergoing surgery to clean it all out. So today, my thoughts and prayers are with her. I'm praying that the surgeons will do a great job in finding and removing everything suspicious and get all those abnormal cells out of there. I'm praying that Keri will recover quickly, get her strength back, and get back to her regular busy life. I'm praying for Steve and the kids and all their family that they will be comforted and strengthened at this time. And I'm praying for me and all her friends that we can be there for her whenever and whatever she needs. Most of you who read my blog also know Keri and I'm sure you'll be praying for her too, but even if you don't know her, it would be much appreciated if you could send her some happy thoughts or prayers or hugs or whatever way you can show a little support for her. She has a great attitude and has been working hard on getting healthy for the past year, and I am sure this will make a difference in her recovery.

Hugs, Keri! I love you!