Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims by Rush Limbaugh

Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims (c) 2013
by Rush Limbaugh

Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims is a fun book written by Rush Limbaugh for a middle grade to junior high audience, and is a great way to teach young kids about the history of America. I listened to the audio book of the story, read by the author, Rush Limbaugh, and he does a great job, The story follows the adventures of four main characters, Rush Revere, the title character, his talking horse Liberty, and two kids, Tommy and Freedom, who are from the middle school where Mr. Revere is teaching temporarily.

Liberty is no ordinary horse. He can talk, and he can time travel. He was born in the 1700s, and his backstory is given a little bit about how he and Mr. Revere came to be friends. A lightening bolt struck near him, propelling him into the 21st century. Confused, the horse wandered around for a while until he saw Mr. Revere. Mr. Revere had been dressed in a costume from the 18th century because he'd been promoting something for his company. I forget exactly what. But seeing someone dressed in clothes with which Liberty was familiar, the horse proceeded to follow Mr. Revere along. Realizing that a horse was following him, Mr. Revere began a dialogue with the animal in which he discovered that Liberty could talk. They also discovered, some time later, that Liberty could time travel to any period in American history that was involved in some way with the establishment of our current government. So he could travel to anywhere from recent history all the way back to the landing of the pilgrims.

In this particular story, the first of the series I believe, Mr. Revere, Liberty, and two young kids, a boy named Tommy and a girl named Freedom, travel back and interact with the first pilgrims and the Native People who saved them, including William and Dorothy Bradford, Samoset, Squanto, Miles Standish, and Massasoit. The difficulties the pilgrims faced, including the death of Dorothy Bradford is mentioned in the book; William Bradford speaks of his grief at losing his wife, but not to the degree that it brings the fun and light-hearted mood of the book down (the main characters, in their travels back and forth in time were not present at the deaths of Dorothy or the others who died during the Starving Time).

I really enjoyed listening to this book, and highly recommend it to adults and young people alike as a way to explore the early history of the United States.

Angels Can Laugh Too by Alberta Rothe Nelson

Angels Can Laugh Too is a sweet, uplifting story written by Alberta Rothe Nelson and published by Cedar Fort Publishing & Media. The story follows Randolph Rippenhoffer (also known as R squared) from just before his death through his adventures as a guardian angel. He helps various people through various trials, some of them are funny, and some of them are sad.

Angels Can Laugh Too (c) 2004
by Alberta Rothe Nelson

The saddest was a story of a boxcar full of Jewish orphans during WWII. It was interesting to watch R Squared's emotions as he tried to help the children. Imagining the emotions of a soul who has passed on was a sweet addition to the book. It makes me wonder who might be watching me, trying to help me through various blunders. I also liked the addition of the bad "angels" that R Squared had to deal with as he tried to help the man battling his alcohol addiction. The bad "angels" reminded me of C.S. Lewis's Screwtape Letters, and the devils in that, which were trying to tempt people in the wrong direction for their own insatiable hunger. I liked that even though R Squared didn't reach his goal with the man, that he didn't give up on him, and made plans to continue trying to help him.

I really enjoyed listening to this book and recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading inspiring, religious stories.

Samantha, An American Girl by Susan S. Adler, Maxine Rose Schur, and Valerie Tripp

Samantha, An American Girl (c) 1998

The American Girls collection is an inspiring series of stories about girls from different eras of American history. Samantha's story begins in the Edwardian period, specifically 1904, and follows Samantha through various adventures believable to the time period.

I listened to the Samantha Story Collection about Samantha, a little girl growing up at the beginning of the 20th century. The stories were written by Susan S. Alder, Maxine Rose Schur, and Valerie Tripp.

Samantha is a good example for young readers. She is a wealthy, yet compassionate girl who is not afraid to befriend anyone who needs and appreciates her help. She is extremely altruistic, going to great lengths to help her friend Nellie many times throughout the series. Yet she doesn't come across as a character who is fake, or too good to be true. She seems realistic and genuine, and her actions show the value of friendship and believing in one's own abilities.

Since the story happens around 1904 there are various themes that are addressed, which were realistic concerns of the time, particularly women's suffrage, and child labor in unsafe factories. These themes are addressed in a way that the target audience, children, can understand, and also that adults can appreciate.

I recommend the Samantha Story Collection to young elementary aged readers. Adults reading with children will appreciate the stories as well.

I have not read all the American Girl Series, but from what I have read, the books are well written, entertaining, and teach valuable morals to their readers.

Alpha- Movie Review

Alpha, (c) 2018 by Albert Hughes

Keda is a young teenager who lives 20,000 years ago, going on a hunt with his father and the other men of his tribe. But when he's tossed over a cliff by a buffalo, his father and the others think he's died, and go home without him. Later, he regains consciousness, gets himself to safety, and gives himself first aid. As he's trying to make his way home, he's attacked by a wolf pack, and as he's climbing a tree to get away, one grabs his leg, and he stabs it with a knife, then gets up into the tree. The other wolves give up on catching him, and leave. But the wounded wolf isn't able to go. Unable to bring himself to kill the wounded wolf, Keda takes care of it. Over time, the two become friends, and the wolf, whom he names Alpha, continues his journey with him.

I enjoyed the movie, and thought it well made. There was a twist at the end that I did not expect, but it made sense, and I liked it.

It was directed by Albert Hughes, and produced by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. It was put out on DVD in 2018.

The movie is PG-13 because of scenes related to hunting animals. There is no swearing in the movie. I think that dog lovers would enjoy this movie.

Janitors by Tyler Whitesides

Janitors (2011) by Tyler Whitesides

Janitors by Tyler Whitesides is a fun story for middle grade readers about the adventures of a couple of kids, Spencer and Daisy, who discover the secret world of the janitors at their school.

It turns out that Marv Bills and Walter Jameson do more than mop floors. They're fighting toxites, little creatures invisible to most people unless they've been exposed to magical glop, that want to sap the smarts out of kids. Marv and Walter's problem though, is that while they want to help the kids, the BEM, Bureau of Educational Maintenance, has withdrawn support for them, as if the BEM actually wants kids to get stupid. Not knowing why the BEM has withdrawn support, Marv, Walter, and a handful of other "rebel janitors" continue to use glopified equipment, struggling to fight back the toxites on their own. But when the BEM start coming after them, the kids want to step in and help.

What will happen when the BEM start coming after the kids?

The book is a bit long for its target audience, but I think it would be an enjoyable read for most upper elementary aged readers.

Pillage by Obert Skye

Pillage by Obert Skye is a novel written for middle schoolers and high schoolers, and which older elementary aged readers would enjoy as well.

Pillage (c) 2009 by Obert Skye

Beck Phillips goes to live in the quaint town of Kingsplot with his estranged uncle when his mother dies. There, he begins to uncover dark family secrets, and discovers a strange ability to get plants to do what he wants. Not only that, but when he goes exploring in places where he's been specifically told not to go (Beck has a thing about disobeying authority) he discovers another talent that he didn't know he had, but that is a bit more dangerous than being able to control plants. Of course it involves dragons.

Without giving away spoilers, the book is not one that dragon lovers would enjoy because of certain events in the book that were painful to witness. But it is well-written for its target audience, and young people would enjoy it.

For myself, I had a hard time liking Beck after the first scene. He wants to get out of a few days of school, and tries to do this by releasing a hive of bees into the school. Did he not consider that some students might be so allergic to bee stings that his doing so could be fatal to them? It might be realistic for a fifteen year old not to consider such consequences, but that fifteen year old isn't any more likable to me because of the lack of understanding such consequences. He knew enough to know it would cause difficulty and disruption, even pain to others, and that's enough to make him an unlikable character to me.

However, to the target audience, the opening scene could be very funny and enjoyable, and many readers would even be able to relate to Beck. After all, what high schooler or middle schooler wouldn't want to get out of school for a few days?

Like many books for young people, the adults in the book tend to be bumbling idiots, harsh bullies, neglectful, dismissive, or crazy. Something that usually turns me away from such books. But it wouldn't bother the target audience. After all, using such tropes leaves the way open for the young protagonists to step in and save the day. Which is what young audiences like.

The main conflict of the story seemed to take longer than it ought to develop, which might try the patience of its target audience, but there was enough action along the way to keep teens interested. There are twists and turns that I didn't anticipate, and that young readers would find delightfully frightening. These twists and turns are what helped me overlook the things I didn't like, and kept me interested in the story despite not being a member of the target audience.

The end leaves it obvious that a sequel is coming, yet wraps up the present conflict in a satisfying way. 

Beowulf by ???

Beowulf

Beowulf, written possibly around 700 A.D., is the story of the title character, Beowulf. He is a hero from the land of the Geats who hears rumors of a terrifying monster wreaking havoc in Denmark at the castle Heorot, ruled by Hrothgar. Feeling an obligation to help, Beowulf sets off for the land of the Danes.

From there, the audience follows Beowulf through three main battles in the story. Beowulf's battle with Grendel, his battle with Grendel's Mother, and his battle with a dragon at the end. The story was originally written in Old English, and there are multiple translations into modern English.

I see Beowulf as a Christian allegory of the age old battle of good against evil. There are references to Christianity throughout, woven through with old Pagan beliefs that would have held over from before the coming of Christianity to Europe. I personally enjoy the story, and recommend it to people who enjoy mythology, and stories of heroes who fight against difficult odds despite the danger and pain to themselves.