The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde, At The Sugar Factory Playhouse

I recently saw a delightful and well-done performance of a play I enjoy, The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde, performed by he cast of The Sugar Factory Playhouse.

The story follows two friends, Jack and Algernon, who fall in love with two young ladies who mistakenly believe that both of them are named Earnest, and proclaim to their sweethearts that they could only truly love a man named Earnest. The two friends then go through all sorts of hilarious attempts to hide their true names from the girls, leading to all sorts of mix-ups and deceptions that left me and the rest of the audience laughing all through the play. I loved the ending!

The Sugar Factory Playhouse is a charming, classical building that houses a great group of talented actors, and I highly recommend it!

Every couple of months The Sugar Factory Playhouse performs another play, and I look forward to going to more plays again in the future!

Rudyard Kipling, and His Poem, "If"

Rudyard Kipling's poem "If" is one of many works that I like by him. He is the author of The Jungle Book, Rikki Tikki Tavi, and Just So Stories as well as others. If is a poem of his that I like as well. 

If

by Rudyard Kipling

If you can keep your head when all about you   

    Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,   

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

    But make allowance for their doubting too;   

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

    Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,

Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,

    And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;   

    If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;   

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

    And treat those two impostors just the same;   

If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken

    Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,

    And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

    And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

    And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

    To serve your turn long after they are gone,   

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

    Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,   

    Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

    If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

    With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,   

Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,   

    And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

Old Man and the Sea, The; (c)1952 by Ernest Hemingway

The Old Man and the Sea is a short novel by Ernest Hemingway about Santiago, an aging fisherman and his experience on the ocean for a few days as he struggles to bring in a huge marlin.

Santiago has had bad luck, not bringing in any fish for more than two months. But he hopes his bad luck is about to change, and he goes out farther than he usually does, looking for fish to hook.

Once he hooks the marlin, his battle is just beginning. Will he succeed in breaking his streak of bad luck?

The story is told in Hemingway's usual straight forward way, and there are a few moments of crass language that parents would want to consider before letting their children read the book.  I recommend the book to fans of Hemingway, and to readers who enjoy stories of people battling the capricious whims of nature.

Spirit Animals Book 1: Wild Born by Brandon Mull

The Spirit Animal series by Brandon Mull follows the story of four children, Abeke, Rollan, Conor, and Meilin, who discover they have "Spirit Animals", which itself is not so unusual in their world,
Erdas, but they have very special ones. What makes these animals special, and why, all of a sudden, are these previously unimportant children so sought after? Their spirit animals are the four fallen, Great Beasts, who, long ago, had sacrificed their lives to stop the Devourer from taking over Erdas. Now, they're back, because so is the Devourer, and they want to help save Erdas again with the help of the four children.

Spirit Animals Book 1: Wild Born is the first in a three books series. I enjoyed the story, and recommend it to anyone, young and old, who enjoys a good fantasy adventure!

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is not for the faint of heart, or for those who prefer not to read books with cursing, particularly taking the Lord's name in vain, because that happens a lot in this book. Even so, Steinbeck paints a vivid picture of life during the Great Depression, in particular the lives of two men, George Milton and Lennie Small, two unlikely friends. George is small and quick, and intelligent, Lennie is big, slow, and has a learning disability. George has looked after Lennie for years, probably since Lennie's aunt died, and the two plan on getting a "little place" where Lennie can tend the rabbits. That's what Lennie looks forward to. But when tragedy strikes the pair, George has to make the most difficult decision of his life to spare his friend pain and agony. What is that decision? Read the book and find out. I recommend this book to people who don' t mind considerable cursing, but do enjoy stories of friendship, tough decisions, and inconvenient truths.