Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild

Another book club read from awhile ago. A story about three orphans growing up in a home without any money. They go to a ballet school and look forward to turning 12 so they can get jobs and earn money.

I was excited to read this classic, especially since it's famously referenced in one of my favorite movies (You've Got Mail), but I was a little disappointed. It was kind of a boring book. I kept waiting for something interesting to happen, but the story cycled through the different jobs the girls were able to get and how they could cope with limited funds.

3 stars

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

We read this for book club last fall and it was very interesting. It's about an orphan boy in 12th century Korea who wants to become a potter. He becomes an apprentice to the village's most prominent potter and works very hard. Eventually he is given the very important task of transporting an exquisite work of art to the king who commissioned the work. The journey is difficult, there are bandits, and both Tree-Ear and his master are depending on this commission.

A very interesting and easy read. It was fascinating to learn about the process of making pottery in the 12th century.

4 stars

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

I read this one forever ago--last fall--and didn't write about it then so this post will be short.

I liked the idea of this book but hated the ending. Though, I spoke with my friend who recommended it and she liked the ending because it was more realistic, which I understand. But I'm a lover of idealistic endings, so this one wasn't exactly my cup of cocoa, but that doesn't mean other people won't like it!

3 stars

Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust by Immaculee Ilibagiza

I don't post on this blog much anymore. I've started a new one where I choose books from affiliated reading lists (giving me a chance for a small income!) and it keeps me busy. But I had to post here today because I just finished an absolutely incredible book that I need to share.

My book club chose "Left to Tell" for our book this month. I was hesitant to read it because it's one woman's experience surviving the Rwandan genocide. I saw the movie Hotel Rwanda about 10 years ago and it remains one of the most terrifying movies I've ever seen. What happened in Rwanda was horrifying. Seeing it played out on the big screen was difficult (albeit important) to watch. I was worried this book would be a similarly difficult experience. Now that I've finished, I am so grateful I read it. "Left to Tell" is the single most inspiring thing I've read in years--possibly forever.

The real bathroom where 8 women hid for 91
days during the Rwandan genocide.

Immaculee is one of four children growing up in a small village in western Rwanda. When the genocide begins, she hides in a tiny bathroom of a local minister for 91 days along with 7 other women. This bathroom was so, so small. From the photo included in the book, it looks to be narrower than my kitchen table and a similar length. Aside from her oldest brother--who was attending graduate school out of the country when the genocide began--Immaculee was the only member of her family to survive the slaughter.

This book deals with horrific events, but the story is more centered on her spiritual development. Sitting silently in a bathroom for 3 months left lots of time for meditation and prayer. Immaculee shares how God gave her strength, answered her prayers, and eventually showed her how to forgive the killers who murdered her family. It is an intensely spiritual and inspirational story, not to mention written in a way that is gripping from page one until the very end.

If you are nervous about the heavy subject matter, I understand. I felt that way too. But this is a book that everyone--and I mean everyone--should read. It is inspiring; it strengthened my own personal faith in God, and helped open my eyes to the conditions some people must live in. It put into perspective the problems our country faces right now. Suddenly bathroom laws seem completely insignificant when compared to a government that was actively encouraging neighbors to massacre one another.

Go read this book. You'll be inspired and changed and want to make the world a better place.

5 stars