My mom grew up seeing this movie at Christmastime and one year she found it on DVD and bout it for the family. Now my Christmas is not complete unless I watch it. I love the music, the actors, and the story.
Jim Hardy (Bing Crosby) plays a burnt out singer and moves to Connecticut to buy a country home and live a simple life.
It soon becomes too much for him and he turns it into a hotel, open only on holidays. (Sounds like my type of place).
Wannabe star Linda Mason starts to work for him and the two fall in love.
Unfortunately, Crosby’s old partner and womanizer, Ted Hanover (Fred Astaire), comes back into the picture and tries to break up the two. It involves a lot of zany romance and comical moments.
Most Romantic Moment: I Won’t Let You Get Away
**Spoiler Alert**
So Jim tried to outsmart Ted and be sure that Linda wouldn’t fall for his charms, but it backfires and Linda is angry with him, taking off with Ted to make a movie in Hollywood about the Inn.
Jim knows that Ted is quite the charmer and it won’t be long until he dances his way into her heart. It’s all over.
Until Mamie, Jim’s housekeeper, convinces tells him he shouldn’t give up. That’s the kick in the pants that Jim needs and he flies out to Hollywood to get his girl. Despite her having been hurt and currently engaged to Ted.
Even though chances are slim, Jim goes after his girl-determined for her to know and see how much he cares. And that he’s not letting her get away. And in the end her gets his girl, as that was all she wanted.
Trek the halls with Bones and Scotty Fa, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la! ”Tis the season to be Spock-y, Fa, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la!
So I know this is right in the middle of our 30 Day challenge, but I wanted to take time out to do one more Star Trek post.
This year I was hoping to do more as it was its anniversary year, but I just wasn’t able to.
Yes, I’m sorry. I hope you all had a very Star Trek-tastical year. I did:
And even though Star Trek didn’t really celebrate Christmas, I don’t care. I had a lot of fun coming up with that song. I wanted to add another line about Kirk and the Enterprise, but couldn’t come up with any more rhymes. 😦
But I want to wish you a very Merry Christmas!
And may the spirit live on through the next year:
So my goal was to post 25 Christmas carols leading up to Christmas, but things didn’t quite go as I planned.
First I actually added a few extra posts so we will have 28 Christmas Carols instead of 25.
Wow
And I haven’t been able to finish them all. I have eight posts still to do, so I most likely won’t have every song posted on here when it is published.
But don’t worry, I will continue to post them as I make them up. Just like I did in Horrorfest V.
So our final Christmas Carol, Deck the Halls. The earliest known version of this carol dates back to 1862 by Welsh John Thomas, while the music comes from the Welsh New Year’s carol Nos Galan from 1794. The English version most know today comes from Thomas Oliphant, a Scottish musician.
I chose the Bing Crosby version as you all know how much I love hearing him sing.
So I hope you enjoy you day, and the carols I choose this year!
Day 18) R is for Remake: Choose a Book that is a Retelling of a Classic
The Overnight Socialite by Bridie Clark
I was in the college campus bookstore because I needed to buy some scantrons and decided to look around as my friend’s birthday was coming up. She is really into being environmentally friendly, so I was looking at the recycled products when I spotted one of my favorite things: Clearance Books. You know how I feel about that.
I didn’t really see anything that I was interested in or would be a good gift for my friend. As I pushed the books around I spotted this one.
The first thing that intrigued me was the cover and how the hair is butterflies. I flipped the back over and read that it was a retelling of Pygmalion, the story most would recognize as its musical form My Fair Lady.
I thought it sounded interesting and was reduced to a good price, but I felt like I couldn’t buy it as I didn’t have the extra money for myself and was supposed to be shopping for my friend. So I left it behind.
I don’t need it.
Later I began thinking about it.
I just couldn’t get it off my mind so I ended up looking for it in the library.
But they didn’t have it!
But I was able to ILL (Inter Library Loan) it and I got it from another place.
I then read the story and quickly loved it, finding it hard to put down.
Now you know how I feel about remakes and sequels:
But this was nothing like that. I thought this book was absolutely amazingly written and was incredible in retelling the story.
Background:
So the original play Pygmalion takes place during Victorian Era England. Eliza Doolittle is a woman from the lower classes who sells flowers to survive. She comes upon an angry Professor Henry Higgins, an aristocrat, who is appalled at how her cockney butches the English language. He makes a bet with his friend Colonel Pickering that he could take Eliza, teach her how to talk eloquently, and she would be able to pass off as a wealthy woman. He never imagined that Eliza would take up his offer, but she does and Col. Pickering insists on them continuing the bet.
Plot Synopsis:
In this version, we are in modern day Manhattan. Wyatt Hayes IV is from an old family stock, high in the community, and biological anthropologist with his doctoral degree from Harvard. He is bored with his life and stalled career, and disgusted with the way that these modern Manhattanites conduct themselves. More like the Kardashians, taking every bit of limelight they can, rather than being the Jackie Onassis.
He breaks up with his longtime girlfriend, Cornelia, as all she cares about is becoming a “brand” and working on her “career” as a socialite.
He heads over to his favorite bar to hang out with his friend Trip Peters, fellow Gothamite and complains that these women today, are just like the animals he’s studied.
Or them
Meanwhile, Lucy Jo Ellis is the daughter of a manicurist in Milwaukee. She came to New York in the hopes of becoming a fashion designer; but has barely been able to scrape by on her pay as an assistant seamstress for a designer. She believes she is given her dream when she is gifted an invitation at the designer’s fashion show, but that turns out to be a call for assisting in catering and does not go well.
Fired, and with zero options and no money; it looks like Lucy is headed back to Milwaukee.
Wyatt muses on this thought of society women like the animal kingdom, and as he drinks decides it is the perfect project for him…for a book! He could take any average woman and using his knowledge of the animal kingdom and New York socialites; he could change her into the top debutante.
A chance meeting with Lucy, as she is trying to make her way home, he bets he can turn her into the top socialite.
Lucy reacts like any normal girl would, and freaks out thinking that he is crazy or trying to pick her up. She takes off.
I’m getting out of here
However, with no possibilities coming her way and living on her last dollar she decides to take Wyatt up on his crazy experiment. Wyatt is eager for this to work as he has his book deal, which he has not told Lucy anything about (bad idea)
And Lucy believes that when she becomes a socialite she can use that to create bonds with the right people, finding a new designer to work with or possibly even start out on her own.
Will Wyatt be able to make due on his bet and turn her into a real lady?
Or will the whole plan flop?
Not good
Will Lucy be able to score her dream job?
Or will she become the laughingstock of the upper crust and be kicked out of New York City?
And run fast
How Does It Compare?:
I thought the characters were amazingly well done and I loved how the book was able to follow the map of the original story; but at the same time infuse it with their own style and create a new-old tale.
Some changes that the author, Clark, made , I felt enhanced the story. She added a girlfriend for Wyatt’s Professor Higgen’s character, being the catalyst for his bet. She is shallow, vain, and only cares about her image; being the foil for Lucy.
We also have a girlfriend for Trip (the Col. Pickering character), being Eloise. Eloise is a personal shopper/stylist ad gets recruited to assist in dress and makeup for Lucy. The two become fast friends and we become invested in her and her distress over Trip’s lack of commitment.
Clark also extends the characters of the Eynsford-Hill family; the mother, daughter Clara, and son Freddy (Max in the book). Mrs. Eynsford-Hill is a social climber; trying to overcome her family’s downfall by trying to marry her children up. Her daughter is closer to the mother while Freddy is ruled by both women in his life. In the play, they treat Eliza poorly when they see her as a peasant, Freddy later becoming one of her biggest admirers, falling in love with her. In a way they are seen as Eliza’s accomplishments; so well trained in being a lady they don’t even realize she is the same women from before.
In this book we spend a lot of time in their head and learn that Clara wishes to have wealth and fortune, but is willing to put that aside for love and true happiness. Freddy, Max in this book, isn’t interested in continuing “wall street business” but is more comfortable creating things and doing capentry. He has a lot more to him, and eventually strikes out on his own. He later becomes a love interest for Eloise, who is tired of Trip’s stalling.
I thought this was a fantastic read and highly recommend it.
Today’s Christmas carol is Silver Bells. It was written in 1950 and composed by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans. At first it was called Tinkle Bells, until Livingston pointed out the other meaning of tinkle.
There is a big conflict as to where the idea came from. Livingston was quoted saying the idea came from hearing the Salvation army bells, while Evans said it was a bell on their desk. Oh well, it doesn’t really matter as a great song came out of either source.
The song was orginally sung by Bob Hope and Marilyn Maxwell in The Lemon Drop Kid, but the first official release of the song was done Bing Crosby and Carol Richards.
Day 9) I is for Island: Choose a book that takes place on an Island
Anne of Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables #1) by L. M. Montgomery
I’m not quite sure when I first read this book. I just recall that one day my mom gave me her copy and told me she thought I should read it as she was pretty sure I would like it.
I wasn’t sure if I would like it, but I decided to try it out. I started to read it and just couldn’t stop.
I just loved the character of Anne as it was like looking into a soul gazing mirror. We might not look a lot alike on the outside: she has red hair, I have brown; she is tall, I’m short; she has grey eyes, I have green; she’s from Edwardian Canada, and I’m an American girl of the 21st century. But the soul of our characters are exactly the same.
Anne has an overactive imagination, gets into all kinds of “scrapes” from not thinking it through, gets lost in imagining, has a fiery temper, wants to excel in school, has rivalry with another student, has to work hard for a scholarship to school, comes from an agricultural community; but through this all grows up to be a level-headed, still dreamy, young woman.
Seriously
I’ve read this book so many times, and went on to read the whole series. I liked the first three the best, but I just couldn’t enough of the story.
I also loved the character Gilbert Blythe.
I wish he was real because I would marry him in a heartbeat.
You all know how much I love the Austen men; Mr. Darcy, Mr. Tilney, Captain Wentworth, Mr. Knightley, Colonel Brandon, and such; but all of them, besides Captain Wentworth, come from money. My family is more like Gilbert’s; grew up in agricultural community, they couldn’t send me to college so I had to work and pay for it myself, just like Gilbert had to do. There is a better understanding and similarity in how we were raised that would form a better connection with him over any of the others.
Gilbert also knows how to work with Anne. When to give into her daydreams and imaginings,
and also when to help her come back into reality. Us imaginationaholics need that or else we will spend too much time in our heads.
One of my relationship goals is to find a boyfriend or husband who will be willing to dress up as Anne and Gilbert. I don’t know if that will ever be possible and if I do manage to find such a guy, I’m not sure anyone will even know who we are.
So I knew of course that my true literary self was Anne, but when I was a teenager one of my friends said to me one day.
“Hey Moreland, you remind me a lot of this character in a book I love. Have you ever read Anne of Green Gables? Because you are just like her.”
Boom! Proof that we are one and the same.
So the story is that two siblings, Matthew and Marilla Cutbert, past their prime, have decided that in order to continue running their farm, Green Gables, they need extra help. They decide to adopt an orphan boy, sending the message through the daughter of a friend. When Matthew goes to the station to pick him up, it turns out there was a serious miscommunication and they have a girl waiting.
Not good
Matthew takes her home, where Marilla is upset and determined to send her back. When she meets the woman who will take Anne instead, and sees how horrible she is, Marilla decides she will do her best to raise her.
Anne has had a hard life, her parents dying at a young age in poverty, then being shipped from family to family; mostly being used as a free baby-sitter than treated as a member of the family. She has spent a lot of her time alone or with children much younger than her, and has created habits that some, at that time, find strange. She has an extensive imagination, creates imaginary playmates, and when gets with people just talks and talks and talks.
I remember when I was in Wyoming, I was alone for a whole month, so then when I started hanging wit people that happiness of being with people made me run at the mouth.
Marilla has no idea how to raise children, let alone girls, let alone this girl; so at first she tries to stop this behavior, but eventually it grows on her. Anne gets into all kinds of troubles, making mistakes as she transition from unwanted, uneducated, accident prone girl; to a confident, loved, intelligent, and wonderful woman.
So I’m going to do this review a little different. I’m going to list through everything I liked, enjoyed, or stood out to me in the novel; instead of a page by page review.
A) Her Imagination
Her imagination is amzing. Not only does she dream of average things like games but creates all these back stories and tales for things she sees, people she meets, etc. And that it is so something I have done and still do. That’s the problem with having an overactive imagination, you can never turn it off. But the best thing of it is that the world is never boring.
I love the stories and descriptions she gives.
“It was pretty interesting to imagine things about them- to imagine that perhaps the girl who sat next to you was really the daughter of a belted earl, who had been stolen away from her parents in her infancy by a cruel nurse who died before she could confess.”
B) Appearances Can Be Deceiving
Anne was born with red hair and people have told her it was a pity, said it ugly, etc. Because she feels so ugly she believes that she is worthless and that she will never find someone to love her.
How funny when this book has had 50 million copies printed and been translated into 20 languages.
I think a LOT of us love her.
But her insecurities based on her past history and what she sees in the mirror blind her to the amazing soul she has, like Dashti in The Book of a Thousand Days. If only she could see how wonderful she really is.
C) Naming and Renaming
Anne loves to name things. She names everything from plants, to trees, to objects, etc.
“What is the name of that geranium on the windowsill, please?’
‘That’s the apple-scented geranium.’
‘Oh, I don’t mean that sort of a name. I mean just a name you gave it yourself?…Oh, I like things to have handles even if they are only geraniums. It makes them seem more like people.”
I do that too. I’ve named all my electronics, for instance my printer is Eramus; to everyday objects I use a lot-like my kettle which is Geoffrey. It is fun and better than saying it.
And if Anne doesn’t like something, she changes the name.
“When I don’t like the name of a place or a person I always imagine a new one and always think of them so.”
I do that all the time. Remember Metropolis? Freder Frederson was a dumb name to me, so he became Alan instead.
Yes!
D) Matthew Has Never Stood Up to Marilla Before, This Being the Only Exception
Matthew is nice, so nice he never asserts himself, argues, or tries to get his way over another. Marilla wants to send Anne back to the orphanage, but Matthew speaks up. For the first time in his life, he has been contrary to Marilla.
“[Marilla] What good would she be to us?’
‘We might be some good to her.’ said Matthew suddenly and unexpectedly.”
Even though seeing the cruel woman who was going to take her made Marilla change her mind about getting rid of Anne; I believe that Matthew’s insistence helped give her a push in that direction as well.
E) Anne’s Optimism
Anne has been through so much in life. With people not wanting her, others using her; unhappiness and cynicism is something you would expect her to have, to be a prime part of her life. But does she? NO. She is completely optimistic, hopeful, and consistently sunny even in the grayest of situations. We should all try to strive to be a lot more like her. She makes the best of every situation and enjoys life.
F) I Speak Fluently in Book Quotes
Anne loves to read, although she hasn’t been able to do it as much as she would have liked. But she is constantly quoting from whatever she has read, having such things pop up randomly in conversations.
“Well that is another hope gone. My life is a perfect graveyard of buired hopes. That’s a sentence I read in a book once, and I say itover to comfort myself whenever I’m disappointed in anything.”
Now you might recall I’ve mentioned before that I like to speak in movie quotes, I do the same things with books I’ve read. Most people don’t know what I’m talking about, but it is still fun.
G) Compares Herself to Books/Book Heroines
What can I say? I do this constantly. I think I’ve done it a thousand times in the past, and am currently doing it right now.
I just can’t help it!
H) Bosom Friends
Finding a best friend is hard. But being without one is worse.
We all wish we can have a bosom friend, but not all are luckily enough to find one. And if we do find opne, it is hard to keep them.
But as Anne says, they are the most important and we need to honor them and try to keep those bonds strong!
And what a good friend Anne is, I hope I’m half as good a friend as she is.
“And I can give Diana half of them, can’t I? The other half will taste twice as sweet to me if I give some to her. It’s delightful to think I have something to give her.”
I) Gilbert Blythe
I have always had a thing for guys who were
And I realize, as I read this long before Pride & Prejudice, Gilbert Blythe is probably the reason why.
“[Gilbert Blythe] was a tall boy, with curly brown hair, roguish hazel eyes, and a mouth that twisted into a teasing smile.”
J) Anne Shirley’s Temper
How many of you have a temper? I know I do. When I was younger I didn’t control it very well and would blow up. Especially if it was something that really hurt me.
So Anne is the same way. Gilbert wants her attention, but Anne isn’t here, but in her imagination. So Gilbert does the only thing he can think of: he gets her attention by calling her carrots.
Anne becomes so enraged she smacks her slate over his head.
This was the scene in the book that made my friend think of me. She said that she could see me doing this…and this is the truth. I have done this more times than I care to admit to guys who acted like jerks to me when I was younger. Happily I use my words now, but this was definitely me.
K) Holding a Grudge
I used to hold grudges all the time and I still do a bit, but try not to. After Gilbert hurt her Anne resolves never to forgive him and starts up a rivalry in that she must beat him in everything.
L) Making Mistakes
Anne makes a ton of mistakes, but with every one she always turns them into a positive. And I try to do that all the time. I mean it is inevitable, we are going to mess up as we aren’t perfect. But there is always one thing to hold on to:
M) Matthew Goes Shopping, the Dad Mistake
One of the best parts of the book is when Matthew goes shopping for Anne’s dress. He gets so flustered that he ends up buying a rake and twenty pounds of sugar.
Eventually he gets the neighbor to make her the right dress. Such a dad thing to do; try to get his daughter a dress and fails.
One time when I was at school, my dress’ zipper broke so they called my parents, and my dad came right over. Except he didn’t bring one dress; he didn’t know what to do so he brought every dress in the closet.
Not good
N) Let’s Act Out a Story
Anne and her friends act out the story of the poem The Lady of Shalott by Alfred Lloyd Tennyson. They get a boat and put Anne in it, sending her down the river. She loses the oars and the boat springs a leak. Eventually she is stuck in the river.
Not good
And about to drown, but who should save her?
Gilbert.
I love this part. First, how sweet that he saves her life.
How sweet!
And secondly, I have never had this happen but I have tried to act stories out and had them fail.
O) Gilbert and Anne
After Gilbert saves Anne he tries to talk to her and get her forgiveness, and it is just the sweetest scene ever.
“I’m awfully sorry I made fun of your hair that time. I didn’t mean to vex you and I only meant it for a joke…I think your hair is awfully pretty now-honest I do. Let’s be friends.”
So sweet!
How sweet!
He’s crazy about her. If only she could see…
P) I Will Never Forgive You
Gilbert cutely asks for Anne’s forgiveness, bur Anne says no. She is holding onto the grudge and continues to do it for a long time. I have to admit that I was the same way. Me and Anne we have Mr. Darcy temperaments.
Q) Romance Sucks
So Anne decides that romance is over. After almost drowning, she’s done.
But Matthew warns her that not all romance isn’t bad.
“Don’t give up all your romance, Anne,’ he whispered, shyly, ‘a little of it is a good thing-not too much of course-but keep a little of it, Anne, keep a little of it.”
R) Anne starts softening
Anne starts softening about Gilbert,even though she doesn’t realize it.
“Gilbert looks awfully determined. I suppose he’s making up his mind, here and now, to win the medal. What a splendid chin he has!“
She looks at him, watching him a lot. She see’s him out with Ruby Gillis, and doesn’t like it.
She has tons of girlfriends, but thinks it would be nice to have a guy as a friend. And Gilbert is so smart, they could spend a lot of time together talking about all kinds of stuff. Watch her Gilbert, soon you will have your in. Just wait a bit longer.
S) Gilbert Gives Up His School for Anne
After Matthew dies, Anne decides to stall her scholarship to help Marilla with Green Gables as Matthew is gone and Marilla’s eyesight is horrible. Gilbert gets the Avonlea school, while Anne will have to travel out to White Sands. However, Gilbert goes to the board and has them switch schools so that Anne can stay there with Marilla.
The whole point of him not going to continue his education was because he needed to earn money to pay for it. So now he switches schools and will have to pay board, eating into the funds he has been trying to save.
How romantic!
And even though nothing turns out quite like she hopes, she’s lost those she cared for, built new friendships, teaching instead of being schooled; Anne can still find joy in life.
“God’s in his heaven, all’s right with the world…”
Wow
Just love it. If you haven’t read it, read it. If you have read it, read it again!
Today’s Christmas Carol is Good King Wenceslas. Good King Wenceslas is based on the historical Saint Wenceslaus I. The carol is telling the story about Wenceslaus and his page going out in the cold to deliver alms for the poor.
The song was written in 1853, with the lyrics by John Mason Neale and the music borrowed from the 13th century carol Tempus adest floridum.
I chose the version by Bing Crosby, as you all know how much I love him!
Day 6) F is for Free: Choose a book you got for Free
Princess Nevermore by Dian Curtis Regan
Do you remember the Scholastic book fairs they used to have at school? I loved it. There were bunch of books at the school and in the catalog. Even though we couldn’t spend a lot, my parents would always buy me at least one item. No matter how many books I already owned, I could always use more.
Well if you bought so many and did a certain amount in school you were able to get a free book! I was so excited and picked out a ton of different books I wanted to get.
But my mom pointed out that the free book had to be $4.50 or under. So we looked through the catalog and it turned out that there were only two books that were eligible.
Yeah, what a scam! Anyways, out of the two books Princess Nevermore, intrigued me. I read it and quickly loved it!
Now one of the reasons I choose this book to include in the 30 day challenge is that is seems to be one no one knows about which I think is a shame as it is a great book and needs more attention.
Princess Quinnella, Quinn for short, lives in Mandria, a magical world that exists under our feet! Once they lived in the world of men, but had to relocate as magic with humankind wasn’t working out.
See ya!
The only place to view our world from Mandria is in the wizard Melikar’s chambers. There he has a magic pool that gives the Mandrians a view into our world, but we cannot see into their’s.
Quinn has grown up dreaming and wishing to visit the other world. She and Melikar’s assistant, Cam, have conspired on how to get there.
Quinn feels as if time is running out as she will soon be sixteen: a woman, betrothed, and focusing on ruling her kingdom.
One day she is visiting Melikar when out of nowhere Cam comes crashing into her, his magic ring transporting him there instead of where he was desiring to go. Melikar tells Cam to check the magic book and see what is wrong with it.
Cam goes and gets an idea, he decides that now is the time to send them to outer Earth. He shoots Quinn a look, and she quickly catches on and distracts Melikar until it is too late.
“Anger, fear, love, and mirth.
Send Quinn and Cam to outer earth.”
The pool’s water comes down and surrounds Quinn dragging her up and over to the other side.
Not good
And just Quinn!
As you can guess Melikar is furious! Not only was Quinn sent into the other world, but there is no way to bring her back until she choose to return, a clause that Quinn has no clue off.
Not good
Yes, Cam was foolish and acted too quickly or else he would have realized that it was a bad idea.
In order to bring the princess back, she has to go back to the pool, wish with all her heart to return, and turn in the pool, stirring it. And the catch, the spell can only be done once and is strong only for a quarter moon, that’s seven days. If she misses her window, she will never be able to return.
The first thing they must do is buy some time, drugging the royal family so that they will sleep through most of time that Quinn is away.
Yes, like in Sleeping Beauty
Quinn find herself in the real world and is unsure what to do next. She always planned for her to be with Cam and them being able to visit the world, but return whenever they desired.
Then a girl comes across her path, one she sees daily coming to the pool and wishing for beauty. A boy calls out her name, Sarah, and she calls him Adam. Adam tells her they need to leave now as Mondo has declared it is time to go.
Quinn decides to follow them as they make her curious and she has no idea what else she can do.
She follows them onto a giant dragon creature, a bus, and is questioned by Sarah and her brother is surprised when Mondo recognizes that she is from Mandria and gives the sign of the Lorik, a symbol to seal an oath and mark of friendship in this case. Mondo takes Quinn with them to their apartment.
Quinn shares the history of who she is with Adam being surprised and completely taken with her; and Sara slightly jealous at her beauty and the attention Quinn is receiving.
The next day they head off to school, Quinn fascinated and lost and confused. At first Sarah is helpful and kind to her, but then when her long time crush shows interest in Quinn and continues to ignore Sarah.
Not good
Quinn and Adam grow closer as he not only teaches her about the world, but they begin to fall for each other.
However, while young love blooms; Mondo is not pleased with it. Quinn can’t understand why he would be so upset over it.
As for Quinn she finds herself wondering about Adam. He isn’t royal, but she could abdicate her throne for her cousin and live in the human world, them visiting back and forth.
It could work, like The Little Mermaid
Back in Mandria, Cam and Melikar have to take another into their confidence. Ameka, Quinn’s tutor comes to Melikar’s place and discovers Quinn’s disappearance. They grow worried as Quinn not only seems to not want to leave that world, but Melikar can sense danger coming as Quinn has the magic ring.
Not good
Quinn found the magic ring stuck on her dress and promised not to use it, unless absolutely necessary. Unfortunately, she used it to get pizza, zap Zach, and get apples for lunch. However, Zach senses that there is something weird about her and gets Sarah, who only wants to impress him, to ‘fess up about her cousin.
Halloween approaches and Adam asks her to the dance. Quinn is thrilled to go with him, but then Zach enters and the testosterone goes flying as he tries to bully them into letting him take Quinn. They decide to “duel”, Quinn choosing jousting.
Them’s fighting words!
As there are no horses in the city for the teens to access, Adam’s friend Roger develops a “modern day” jousting. Adam does well, but Zach cheats and wins Quinn as his date. Zach isn’t interested in Quinn, but wants her secrets of magic.
This is bad.
The day of the dance, Quinn tries to speak to a hurt Adam, but he manages to elude her at every turn. That night as she prepares for the ball, Mondo decides it is time to tell his story.
He was a nobleman and used to visit with Melikar, just like Quinn. He would look at the wishing pool and see a girl come everyday. He feel head over heels for her and asked Melikar to send him over. He promised to remain there for a few hours and bring her back.
Sadly, she never came so Mondo went in search for her as he couldn’t go back without her. He found her, but she wouldn’t leave so he remained above. The two married and had a son.
Yes, but that’s not the whole story. When Mondo arrived the year was 1830. One year in Mandria was three years on Earth. Mondo was happy with Hannah, even though she aged more rapidly than him. But he was only thirty-four when she died at the age of seventy. And while they had love there were a lot of issues with it. They had to move around A LOT, pretend to be mother and son; grandmother and son, etc. By the time he lost her, and his son as he left him with anger over his lack of aging; he thought about going back but it was too late with all the modern convinces to head back to the Middle Ages.
So now Quinn has a choice to make. Should she stay in our world or return home? Risk the lack of aging for her love?
And with Zach’s intentions, what will happen to her? Will she even be able to make that choice?
I’m not revealing the end as I thought it was too good. I loved this story and how the characters were and the ending. An ending I thought was better than Age of Adalind and all those other films that have a similar premise.
It is hard to find a copy of it, but try your local library. It is definitely worth a read.
So today’s carol I thought about how Quinn’s not sure if she will make it home, and settled on I’ll Be Home for Christmas.
I’ll Be Home for Christmas was written about and for the soilders serving overseas and wishing to be home with their loved ones. The song is supposed to be from the view of a soldier, asking them to get things ready, even though he isn’t sure he’ll be back.
It was written in 1943 by Kim Gannon and Walter Kent. No one would record it, as they thought it was too sad, until Gannon sang it to Bing Crosby who loved it. Bing Crosby was the first to record it, but it went on to be recorded by numerous singers.
Now I remember first hearing it be sung by a woman, not a man, and went with Karen Carpenter’s version.
But there is another book(s) that I used to read over and over, Sherlock Holmes short stories.
As I have mentioned before, I grew up reading the Great Illustrated Classics series and that introduced me to the character Sherlock Holmes. After I read one children’s’ collection, I read every short story there was about him written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
I even read stories based on him, like the Sherlock Holmes Solo Mysteries, (which was like Choose Your Own Adventure), and I was a giant fan of Basil of Baker Street.
So yeah, I was obsessed.
I thought Sherlock Holmes was so cool and wanted to be like him.
The only thing I didn’t read were the Sherlock Holmes novels, I guess because my library didn’t have those available in children’s form. I actually didn’t read those until I was an adult.
Oh well.
I remember one day we were traveling somewhere and were listening to Sherlock Holmes on tape; and I was the only one in the car who had read the ones being read before hearing them on cassette. It was weird as a child to think I knew something my parents didn’t.
So there are a lot of stories to choose from and of course I don’t have the time to talk bout them all. In fact out of all the stories I remember the most, they are from The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, so I choose that collection over any other.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
So I will only pick three stories: A Scandal in Bohemia, The Man With the Twisted Lip, and The Adventure of the Copper Beeches.
***Spoilers***
A Scandal in Bohemia
So many have probably read this story, seen the Sherlock version (which I hated), or heard of it.
I know this
A Bohemian Prince comes to Sherlock, first in disguise but of course Sherlock sees through that, to ask for his help. He is to be married, but before the engagement had sent letters and a photograph with the beautiful Irene Adler. He has tried to get it back through begging, payment, bribery, theft, etc; but nothing has netted it.
Sherlock does some reconnaissance on her and ends up being the witness at her wedding!
This strange turn of events doesn’t prepare Sherlock for how things will turn out for him.
Sherlock continues on his plan, dressing up as a minister and having Watson create a fuss about fire in order to determine the secret hiding place of the photo. He sees it as she goes to protect it; and thinks the case is finished, preparing to return the next morning before she leaves.
On the way home he is greeted by a young boy, one he does not know but that isn’t very odd, after all he is a known figure. People are always addressing him.
The next day the three men set out to retrieve the painting, and find Irene gone.
She left a note explaining that she thought there was something suspicious about the “minister”, dressed up as a boy to research him, and figured out the plan of Sherlock Holmes. Instead of allowing him to do his plan, she bests him by leaving that night instead of the next day.
Not good
She leaves the picture behind, as married she no longer needs it; forever going down in history as the one who bested the greatest detective, and becoming the woman. The only one that ever beat him.
The Man With the Twisted Lip
A wife is worried about her missing husband and calls upon Sherlock Holmes to help her. One day her husband was at work and she was walking down the street running an errand when she just happened to look up at a building and sees her husband!
What’s going on?
He’s in a room above an opium den! And he is so scared!
She rushes up there as quick as she can but no husband, only a disgusting, deformed, dirty man.
What
She calls the police and as they investigate they discover his clothes in the river, blood in the room, but no body. They believe him to have killed her husband but they can’t figure out what happened to the body. For now he sits in a jail cell, with nothing being able to get him to talk or bath.
Sherlock is puzzled and looks into the history of the man, but there is little to be found. All he can find out is that he moved there and makes good money to care for his family.
Hmmm….
Sherlock believes the husband has been killed, but then a letter turns up in his handwriting with his signet ring. Sherlock is stuck…
Until he goes to the bathroom and solves the case by looking at a bar of soap.
He goes to the jail where they are holding the man and force him to clean up, revealing that he is the husband.
It turned out that he used to be a reporter and went undercover to write a story about beggars. He was a great actor and did so well at doing nothing, he ended up making more money that way than being the reporter.
He continued this lifestyle, hoping to never be found out and was surprised to find his wife; reacting quickly and not thinking of his actions. Sherlock makes him stop the begging as it is against the law, and another case solved.
I’m on FIRE!
Ever since I read that story every time I see people beg, this story comes back to me. He made more money begging than working? It just shocked me and makes me wonder if people today are like that guy in the story.
The Adventures of the Copper Beeches
Violet Hunter goes to Sherlock Holmes for advice about whether or not she should take a position as a governess They are willing to pay her £120, but she has to get her hair cut short. It seems odd as her previous position only paid £48.
Nothing else seems amiss so Violet takes the job, Sherlock telling her to telegram him if they need anything.
After a fortnight (14 days), Sherlock gets a telegram. Things have gotten weirder since she started working at the house. They have her sit in the window wearing an electric blue dress and have her back to the window. After doing this for a while she hides a mirror in her handkerchief and sees a man staring up at her through the window.
The child she is supposed to care for is a psychopath
There is a mastiff that is always hungry and let out at night, keeping Violet from being able to leave in the evening.
She also comes upon a drawer with her her hair in it!
AAAAAAAAHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But it turns out to not be her hair but someone elses.
What?
And then there is the mysterious wing that they can’t go in.
Never a good sign.
One day she sneaks in and she a shadow…
It freaks her out so she hurriedly leaves and gets away as soon as she can to post the telegram.
Sherlock arrives with Watson in tow and the two investigate. It appears that the family has been hiding someone away. As Sherlock studies everything, he comes to the conclusion that the family’s daughter is the one they are hiding. They chose Violet because she could pass for the daughter and used her to get rid of the daughter’s fiancé.
They look in the room, but the daughter is missing. The father, Mr. Rucastle, gets angry at them and sets the dog out after him. The dog has been starved more than usual and kills Mr. Rucastle.
Afterwards, they find the daughter, Alice, and her fiancé. It turns out that when Alice came of age she came into money from her mother’s will. The father was trying to get the money, but when the daughter wouldn’t give it she became sick with brain fever.
As thought earlier, he hired Violet to pretend to be Alice and get rid of him. After this experience all go their separate ways, with Violet later becoming a principal of a girls’ school.
I liked this one because it was really creepy. The child is horrid, and the rest so mysterious.
So those are just three out of the many wonderful Sherlock Holmes stories. If you haven’t read them, you should get started immediately. They are sure to wow you at every turn. And if you have read them already, they are always worth another read; no matter how many times you do it!
It was first published in 1883, and has stayed a popular carol since. Many attributed it to Martin Luther as being the writer, but that was discredited a long time ago. We don’t know who read it, but I’m sure Arthur Coan Doyle heard it so I thought it would be the perfect pairing with this book.
I love this song, as like the book reviewed, it was a big part of my childhood. It was probably the first Christmas Carol I ever learned and is one I sing every year.
The artist I choose was Bing Crosby, I just can’t get enough of him.
Today we are doing something different. Since I didn’t finish today’s post, I am doing a Christmas Carol instead.
Today’s Christmas Carol has two different names, but most people don’t recognize them by it. It is known as The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You) or The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire). This song was written in 1945 by Bob Wells and Mel Tomé as they were trying to stay cool on a hot summer day.
It is one of the best Christmas Carols, my absolute favorite singer being Bing Crosby.
