Scooby Doo and the Loch Ness Monster directed by Scott Jeralds

Scooby Doo and the Loch Ness Monster directed by Scott Jeralds is a fun adventure cartoon movie when Scooby and his human pals travel to Scotland to help Daphne's cousin Shannon Blake host the Highland Games on the shores of Loch Ness. While there, Scooby and Shaggy have a run in with the Loch Ness Monster, or so they think. Additionally, the gang has to navagate between the arguments of a man who believes the Loch Ness Monster is a myth, and a woman who is completely convinced that Nessie is real! What will happen as the kids work to find out what is really going on? Watch the movie and find out! The movie's primary audience is children, but all ages would find it enjoyable. The movie was published in 2004.

Bach's Fight for Freedom by David Devine

Bach's Fight for Freedom by David Devine and directed by Stuart Gillard is a story about a small section in the life of Johann Sebastian Bach when he was in his early 30s and working for Duke Willhelm. A young pre-teen protagonist named Frederick comes in contact with him when Fredrick is

assigned to be Mr. Bach's assistant. Though the two butt heads at first, they soon come to realize that they are kindred spirits. Each of them has dreams he wants to fulfill, but is stifled by the constricts of society, Duke Wilhelm's wishes, and family expectations. The most inspiring scene in the movie for me, was when "If there's something in this world that you are meant to do, then just go out and do it. People will only discourage you if you let them." I enjoyed the movie very much, and recommend it to fans of classical music, especially of J.S. Bach's work. But the story can be enjoyed by anyone who likes inspiring stories of friendship and overcome difficulty. It was first made in 1995.

Audiobook: Build Your House Upon a Rock by Hank Smith

I just finished listening to a very inspiring talk by Hank Smith that was recorded and put on an audiobook by Covenant Communications called Build Your House Upon a Rock by Hank Smith. The talk is directed at young people, ages 12-17, but as an adult I still found it inspiring and educational. Hank Smith talks about the parable from the Bible about a man who build his house upon a rock versus the man who built his house on sand. The house on the rock stayed firm when a storm came, and the house on the sand was washed away. Hank Smith joked about when he was little, he imagined the man with the house on the rock building it literally

upon a massive rock, having to use a ladder to climb up to it. But he later learned that translated from Hebrew and Greek, the word "rock" is synonymous with "foundation". He said back in ancient Israel, people built their houses on foundations just like we do, nowadays. And the story about the man building his house on a rock was just about a man building his house on a strong foundation that was able to withstand the storm. He compared the foundation of the house in the parable to a person's private life. He mentioned that when you look at a house, you don't really notice the foundation. The house that is visible he compared to a person's public life. He said that who you are in your private life, your foundation, may not be visible to others. But eventually, who you are in your private life shows up in your public life. If you have a poor foundation, the house, the public life, will eventually crumble for all to see. But if your private life is sound, strong, moral, etc. Then that will show in your public life. The way Hank Smith presented his talk was fun and friendly, yet very straightforward, honest, and inspiring. Build Your House Upon a Rock was first produced in 2016.

Rush Revere and the First Patriots by Rush Limbaugh

Rush Revere and the First Patriots is the second book of a five book series by Rush Limbaugh. In this book, the main protagonist Mr. Rush Revere and four students, Kam,

Tommy, Freedom, and Elizabeth, along with Mr. Revere's talking, time traveling horse Liberty of course, travel back in time to both England and New England just before the Revolutionary War. They participate in the Boston Tea Party, visit with Benjamin Franklin and other patriots, and even visit with King George III and find out a little about his thinking as well. Like the first book in the series, Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims, I thought that this was an entertaining and educational look into history, particularly the history of the United States. Rush Revere and the First Patriots was published in 2014.

Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims by Rush Limbaugh

Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims by Rush Limbaugh was a fun historical story that I feel children would enjoy. In the story, history teacher Mr. Rush Revere and his magical, talking, time traveling horse Liberty, bring history alive for his students at Manchester Middle School, especially Tommy and Freedom, two bright young students

who accompany him and Liberty to meet people like William and Dorothy Bradford, Miles Standish, Squanto, Samoset, and Masasoit. While the story did not ignore the fact that some of the pilgrims died that first winter (including Dorothy Bradford) the story doesn't dwell on it more than I felt was appropriate for a children's story. It was a fun and age appropriate look at one of the important parts in the history of the United States. Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims was published in 2013.

Mercy Watson to the Rescue by Kate DiCamillo

Mercy Watson to the Rescue by Kate DiCamillo is a fun story for children. When Mercy Watson, a lovable, corpulent piggie crawls into bed with her owners, Mr. and Mrs. Watson, her

weight is too much for the floor, which begins to crack, threatening to spill all its occupants into the first story of the house. But not to worry! Mercy goes to the rescue! Or does she? Follow Mercy Watson on her adventure to...get sugar cookies? Or was it alert the fire department? This story is a funny tale for small children to enjoy, and it brings a smile to the faces of grown ups reading the story to children! This story was first published in 2009.

Author J. Scott Savage

One of my favorite authors, and lucky for me, a good friend as well, is J. Scott Savage. As of the writing of this post, he is the author of 18 novels, including The Far World series, (Water Keep, Land Keep, Air Keep, and Fire Keep), the Mysteries of Cove series, (Fires of Invention, Gears of Revolution, Embers of Destruction) and The Lost Wonderland Diaries which has just begun. I love J. Scott Savage's books for the fun adventures they contain, the action that hardly lets up until the end, the surprising twists that happen, and the positive morals they teach kids (and adults) without being overly didactic.