Review: RENTING LACY

Through a series of inexplicable events, some slow changes to my heart, and a decision or two, I’ve come into contact with someone at a local non-profit that seeks to serve and defend victims of Tucson Childhood Sex Trafficking. When I emailed Megan to ask her about the needs of Sold No More (previously Streetlight Tucson), I was planning on answering their phones, cleaning their floors, and really just starting with the lowest-level of skill required. In my experience with Ronald McDonald House and a few other organizations, that’s what they feel comfortable having new volunteers do. Then, if the volunteer sticks around and grows to love the organization, they find a better fit.

However, the needs Megan listed for me were much more involved, and she even listed a few that she thought would fit me well, since I’d included on my application that I am an English teacher. The most manageable need on her list seemed to be developing a book club curriculum. So, even though they hadn’t yet accepted me as a volunteer, I ordered the book Renting Lacy.

It’s a relatively short book (162 pages) written to be accessible and compelling, while also informative. It weaves together a narrative of true stories of Child Sex Trafficking, presenting the issue from multiple perspectives, including pimps and buyers.

I’ll refrain from attempting to describe what I’ve learned from Lacy, because words aren’t up to the task. However, I do recommend that you give a couple of hours of your life and read this book, regardless of your current thoughts and beliefs on the sex industry, it is a devastating piece of life, and worth your time and effort. Be warned, though, the tactful writing will not soften the blow of the shockingly mature content. Author Linda Smith may use the gentlest of words possible for this subject matter, but the tragedy and horror of such stories are inescapable.

 

Book Review: A Voice in the Wind by Francine Rivers

Cover via Amazon

Francine Rivers consistently exceeds my expectations… and, okay, I have pretty low expectations for her since I’m a snob and tend to believe Christian writers sacrifice God’s glory to the altar of preachy, thumping, contrived, sterile story lines that only help out the choir and turn the rest of us to Suzanne Collins for an engaging read.

That being said, I REALLY enjoyed A VOICE IN THE WIND. Throughout the book, I struggled to trust Rivers, wondering if REDEEMING LOVE wasn’t her single piece worth reading, but the ending of this book blew me away. There were a few moments prior to the ending that nudged me on, including a slave’s sacrificial act to rescue a horrible, self-involved, spoiled, depraved Roman girl, and it was completely worth it. I felt emotionally engaged with the characters and loved the historical aspects of the novel. It also didn’t hurt that I’ve been to Rome and seen the Coliseum for myself, and hold a deep affection for that era of world history.

My only criticism of the book is its pacing. It’s pretty slow. I suspect this is because Rivers subtly reveals each character through his or her interactions and experiences, which takes time. Also, the omniscient POV was a bit rough at first, but I came to love it towards the end, and I believe it sets a sturdy foundation for the next two books.

*I originally posted this review on Goodreads.

 

Sometimes We Need Reminding…

“Is is because we’re having so much fun at home that we’ve forgotten the world? Is it because we’re so rich and the rest of the world’s so poor and we just don’t care if they are? I’ve heard rumors; the world is starving, but we’re well fed. Is it true the world works hard and we play? Is that why we’re hated so much?”

(Ray Bradbury, Farenheit 451 p. 74)

 

The Inconsequential Ending

I’ve been thinking recently about the proper process for writing a book review. I wrote a review on Goodreads a few weeks back, and someone I don’t know responded with a bit of criticism because I hadn’t finished reading the book before reviewing it. I frequently review books without having finished them, and I actually believe it’s a good practice.

In the review in question, I mentioned that I hadn’t finished reading the book and didn’t intend to, and therefore, it may not have been a valid representation of the book as a whole. I believe that sort of feedback is more beneficial to prospective readers than reviews in which we struggle tirelessly through the bog of purple prose and nonredeemable characters. Often, if I push myself to finish a book I’m hating, I end up ranting all over the interwebs and to everyone I know about how horrible every aspect of the book is. On the other hand, if I tell readers that I didn’t finish because I didn’t like it, I’m usually more constructive in my criticisms because I don’t feel like I’ve wasted hours of my life reading sub-par work.

Also, I’m just not sure I believe endings are very important.

If, as a teacher, I lecture on how the writing process is at least equally as important to becoming a good writer as the product is, then I also have to believe that the journey is at least equally as important as the destination in other areas of study and life.

I’ve written before about how difficult vulnerability is for me because of the uncertainty of outcomes. And yet, I believe vulnerability is one of the noblest actions of the human experience. Similarly, if a book is worthwhile, the ending is of little importance. What matters is the characters, their desires, their tribulations, and the world they live in. While finishing well is important, a well-run race that ends in defeat doesn’t suddenly become a poorly-run race (unless we’re considering the spiritual realm of heaven and hell here… so don’t think of this too theologically or it won’t work), nor does an amazing story transform into a mediocre one because it ends badly.

Think of poor Frodo’s journey to Mordor.

What if he’d died? What if Sauron had won and covered Middle Earth in a second darkness? Does the rest of the story become a waste? Should Frodo have stayed in the Shire without even trying?

And think of Harry.

What if Voldemort had killed him? Would that mean that Lilly’s sacrifice was stupid? Would it mean that she should have let her son be murdered so that she could be “the woman who lived”?

Of course not.

We all agree that it’s more important to try. We all agree that certain journeys must be attempted, and the while the outcome matters, it doesn’t dictate the choices we make about setting out to destroy the Death Star.

Therefore, I often write book reviews before I know how stories end. For, if I’m unable to estimate the book’s value prior to the ending, it musn’t be a very worthwhile book, because the value of the journey is based entirely on its success or failure. The best journeys justify themselves, as do the best books. They don’t need perfect endings if the journey was worthwhile to begin with, and I’ve never read an excellent book in which the ending significantly altered my judgment of the book as a whole. Never.

 

The Ordinary Princess

Friend Ashly recommended a book to me on Christmas, and I want to quote it here for you. Of course this is a book for younger readers, but it’s pretty much the most adorable thing I’ve read in recent years. Every little girl should probably read it, because we’re all a bit more ordinary than the girls around us tend to be.

“… for though she was ordinary, she possessed health, wit, courage, charm and cheerfulness. But because she was not beautiful, no one ever seemed to notice these other qualities, which is so often the way of the world,” (M.M. Kaye 23).