Reading Delights

Two more fantastic books! I have been on a kick lately of reading bios of famous women - I've read books about:

Joan of Arc (I think you all know who this is...)
Elizabeth and Mary Tudor (Elizabeth I and Bloody Mary)
Jane Addams (founded Hull House in Chicago to help poor people get on their feet and also to help single women find something useful to do with their time!)
Florence Nightingale (you better know who this is too!)

And now I read one on Louisa May Alcott, the author of a favorite novel of mine, Little Women.

Invincible Louisa: the story of the author of Little Women
Cornelia Meigs

Wow. So many amazing women who did so much in the world, despite set backs and the very limited roles that women could fill. We, as women, have so much more freedom and opportunity, but I sure don't feel like I use it very well sometimes. Particularly when I read about some of these great women. But, it definitely always gives me a desire to do more good.

So, read this bio - it is BEAUTIFUL and inspiring and so well-written. No wonder she was able to write such a stirring novel that still affects women of all ages today.

The other book I just finished and it really surprised me with its power!

Elijah of Buxton

by Christopher Paul Curtis

I've read Bud, Not Buddy by the author before and was very impressed with it. And this one was really fantastic as well! I love the way he writes exactly the way the people spoke then. This is about Elijah, the first black boy born free in the town of Buxton, Canada. The main portion of the book is just mostly about the silly things he does and that happen to him, it seems kind of silly, but actually does relate to what he will learn later on - it seemed like a lighter, happy story mostly. Then, things happen that give Elijah a very clear idea of what his parents and so many others in the town had to endure before escaping to freedom in Canada (kinda felt weird to have them calling Canada "the land of the free" - but it was truer than calling the U.S. the land of the free at that time!) It was really stirring at the end, seeing through his eyes all he has because he was born free - his family's heritage becomes a reality. Beautiful and heart-wrenching!