{Forget Me Not} A Book Review

One of the things that is so fun about getting into the independent-publishing world is that you get to have sneak-peeks at many lovely books yet to grace the world. In January, my friend Rachelle Rea "introduced" me to author/editor Amber Stokes and Amber, in her turn, introduced me to Forget Me Not: her brand new inspirational historical romance. Amber published her debut novel, Bleeding Hearts, last year but Forget Me Not is actually the prequel which means I jumped onto the Amber Stokes bandwagon at just about the right time! It is now available for purchase so make sure you snag a copy! I am honored to be participating in the blog tour for Forget Me Not for this new friend! That being said, let's get along with the actual details of this pretty book:

Prequel to Bleeding Heart
Old hurts, new betrayals, and a love that survives them all...

Summer 1885

A startling revelation sends Elizabeth Lawson escaping into a stormy night - and tosses her into the arms of a young mountain man with secrets of his own. When he offers to take her to the Nevada mining town where her long-lost brother lives, she accepts. Suspicions and uncertainties are pushed aside as she struggles to forge a future for herself by meeting her past.

David has been hiding from his painful memories for years. The solitude and wildness of the Rocky Mountains are challenge and comfort enough for him - until Elizabeth's arrival. Fueled by anger and a sense of obligation, he strives to take control of his new situation...only to find control slipping from his grasp with each new emotion Elizabeth evokes in him.

When their journey leads them on unexpected paths, can two lonely hearts find the strength to remember the good amid the heartbreak?Inspirational Historical Romance

What I Enjoyed About This Book:

Amber's setting is quite believable and well-researched. I'm not the hugest fan of western fiction but she drew me into Virginia City and kept me there with vivid descriptions. When I read her historical note at the back of the book and found she had actually been to her location, that explained much. Amber did a fabulous job portraying a precarious, immoral town that masquerades as something fabulous. I liked the men of the book and the fact that David in particular is such a gentleman. Even though he had me roiling mad at moments, there was still a humility about him I find precious. Plus, I fall hard for brown eyes. Besides David, I appreciated Joe and got rather fond of Myghal, the Cornish miner. In subsequent books we apparently get more time with both of them so that's something exciting to look forward to! 

Elizabeth is a peppy heroine that could easily have gotten sidelined with the reams of other high-spirited western fiction heroines except for the fact that she didn't. What I mean by this is that Amber Stokes managed to portray someone deeper than many characters of whom I've read. Yeah, she's headstrong and annoying in moments, but I found myself attributing this to the fact that Elizabeth truly is young and inexperienced...there is room and time for her to grow and for now her sweetness manages to win you past her flaws.

What I Didn't Enjoy About This Book:

I am admittedly not the biggest fan of love triangles and found myself frustrated for one character while at the same time dreamy-happy for the others. This is unavoidable in a love triangle and is thus only a quirk of my own personality. Amber played the triangle delicately and with a polished hand. Since this is a series, everything is not entirely resolved at the end and I can live with that, knowing the story goes on. :) 

The attraction begins at first sight in Forget Me Not and while this isn't my favorite manner of two people falling in love, it is undoubtedly honest (as I know from experience). I am, perhaps, idealistic and prefer people not taking into account physical appearance, but I think that's because I don't expect to win anyone myself by my ravishing beauty so I get a slight panicky feeling. ;)

All in All:

Forget-Me-Not is a beautiful story that takes delicate topics and weaves them into a web of forgiveness, mercy, and transformation. If you enjoy historical romance, you will definitely want to take a look at this brand new, precious story from Amber Stokes! 

Book Website: http://forgetmenotnovel.blogspot.com/

Series Blog: http://theheartsspringseries.blogspot.com/

About the Author (Bio picture attached to e-mail)

Amber Stokes has a Bachelor of Science degree in English and a passion for the written word - from blogging to writing poetry, short stories, and novels. After her brief time at college in Oregon, she is now back home among the redwoods of Northern California, living life one day at a time and pursuing her passion via freelance editing and self-publishing.

{This review is full of my honest thoughts and opinions. I was given a copy of Forget Me Not by the author to review under no circumstances but to give my honest opinion on the book.) 

Don't Waste Your Life

"You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body."

1 Corinthians 6:19

     I sit down to review Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper...

     How on earth is one supposed to review a book that is both fathoms deep and extremely practical in a manner that won't make a hash of it all? I have never been much good at reviewing things because I am no good at logic or logical thought processes. But I know that God spoke to me through reading this book and I know it's a book that every single one of you (yes, even you friends who wandered over from the link on Facebook and don't really feel like reading a book review) NEEDS to read. Per my recent fascination with underlining favorite bits in books, each time I sat down with this book, I did so with pen in hand. I am so glad I did--there was scarcely a page I didn't mark up in some fashion.

    This book is just that good.

     He starts out with the quotation from 1 Corinthians above and immediately jumps in:

  "If you are a Christian, you are not your own. Christ has bought you at the prince of his own death. You now belong doubly to God: He made you, and he bought you.  That means your life is not your own. IT is God's. Therefore, the Bible says, 'Glorify God in your body.' God made you for this. He bought you for this. This is the meaning of your life."

     Wham.

     A page later: "It was becoming clearer and clearer that if I wanted to come to the end of my life and not say, 'I've wasted it!' then I would need to press all the way in, and all the way up, to the ultimate purpose of god and join him in it. If my life was to have a single, all-satisfying, unifying passion, it would have to be God's passion. And...God's passion was the display of his own glory and the delight of my heart."

 And this is only the beginning of one of the most revolutionary books I've ever read. Revolutionary not because John Piper is making up a new system of "How to Live a Full Life". Revolutionary because he simply digs into God's word and pulls out the thing that has been lying there forever: God's passion. And when you get a sense of that passion and what it means, your life will never be the same again. My life can never be the same again. I suppose the thrust of the book can be simplified in Piper's words on page 38:

"God calls us to pray and think and dream and plan and work not to be made much of , but to make much of him in every part of our lives."

    I'm finding it hard to put into words how much the message of this book excites me. I am gripped with a passion to not waste my life. I want to be the person who lives recklessly for Christ. A person who sees the cost, knows the cost, and delights in paying that price so she can bring glory to the One who rescued her soul from death.
       "Won't it hurt?" you might ask. Oh, I know it will sometimes. I might even die for living recklessly in pursuit of His glory. But here again, Piper addresses the fundamental misunderstanding that causes so many people to waste their precious, short lives:

"Death is a threat to the degree that it frustrates your main goals. Death is fearful to the degree that it threatens to rob you of what you treasure most....(when we treasure) Christ most, (our) goal (is) to magnify Christ. And (we see) death not as a frustration of that goal but as an occasion for its fulfillment." 

     When you are living for any other reason than to bring glory to God, death is terrifying. But isn't that quote beautiful? THIS is why Christians can be joyful in the face of any and every terror. THIS is the glorious mystery of Christ! Living is Christ. Dying is gain. In every situation we are more than conquerors through His mercy and grace.
     I wish I could get you to see the amazing thing this ultimate goal is: how the passion for it shines so brilliant a light over history, current events, and the world that all other voices are drowned. I really can't describe it...just read this book. It will change the most mundane task into a service of praise. It will cause you to risk all because you know the loss of each thing for Jesus' sake only serves to show the world how highly we value him. It will give you a passion for telling everyone else of the Glorious Lord, and a raging hunger to be more like him. I can't help but think of the words to "Let Your Kingdom Come":

"Your glorious cause, Oh God,

Engages our hearts

May Jesus Christ be known

wherever we are.

We ask not for ourselves

But for your renown.

The cross has saved us so we pray:

'Your kingdom come.'

Let your kingdom come

Let your will be done

So that everyone might know your name.

Let your song be heard

Everywhere on earth

Till your sovereign work on earth is done

Let your kingdom come!

Give us your strength, O God,

And courage to those who speak

Perform your wondrous deeds

Through those who are weak.

Lord, use us as you want,

Whatever the test.

By grace we'll preach your Gospel

Till our dying breath.

Read this book. It's going to change you into something different, I warn you. You'll never be able to view your life the same way. You'll never want to view it the same way. My heart is full and still while at the same time beating like a caged bird to be allowed to dart forth and set the minds of men ablaze to His glory. I can say little but this:
Oh, Jesus, let me live and fight and die in the pursuit of Your glory! This is all I want. This is the service I am giving my life to. Let everything I do be to this end. Because your love is better than life, my lips will praise you. Jesus, please, let me do this: let me live recklessly for Your name. Give me the courage and the tenacity, and use me as your image-bearer in the way your created me to live this precious, heart-beat life.
Piper rightly says "a life devoted to making much of Christ is costly." But it's a beautiful cost, and one I am going to fight for night and day, moment by moment, from now till His kingdom comes. Will you give Him your life--quite literally--so when the end has come you can look back and know it was a life well-spent?

"And they sang a new song, saying, 'Worthy are you (O Christ) to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.' " -Revelation 5:9-10

{From My Bookshelf}: A Severe Mercy by Sheldon Vanauken

"Oh, Rachel. A Severe Mercy again? Won't you ever stop harping on it?"

I beg leave, my friends, to trespass on your patience at least once more and give you a full review of this fascinating book. I suppose the best way to go about it would be the manner of the Spanish Inquisition likely simmering in your brains since I've talked about this book so much:

"What is it about?" I will reference the very helpful "back of the book" blurb to explain:

This celebrated story traces the idyllic marriage of Sheldon and Jean (Davy) Vanauken, their search for faith, their friendship with C.S. Lewis, and the tragedy of untimely death and love lost.

Right there. ^ That's it. This book is part biography, part romance, part philosophy, and part beauty. Mama had long told me I ought to read it, but the title kind of threw me off. Did I really want to read something called about a severe mercy? But from the opening chapter, written like a novel, this book captured something of my attention and held it all through.

"Who is it by?" Sheldon Vanauken...with many pop-ins and letters and quotes and wonderfulness from C.S. Lewis.

"Why did you like it?" Ye gods and little fishes! What was there not to like about it? I loved the romance and the image of the Shining Barrier--the fence around their love that Van and Davy had been so careful to put up. I loved the gentle breaking-down of the Shining Barrier as God penetrated it and turned them from Us to Us-and-God and, ultimately, God-and-us. I loved the nuances like the one above--the gentle philosophizing that is so impacting but so small and soft you would not notice it unless you were taking time to be still. Think about those three states of thought...so different just by a rearranging of words! Beautiful.

I loved the "Oxford years" and the image of cozy hearth and fireside, intelligent conversation, books loved and read, Christian fellowship in The Studio...England. Haha.

At intervals during the Oxford years, in the vacs, we went off on visits to friends or on longer exploring journeys. There were many one-day or two-day trips to London. There was a jolly Christmas in Yorkshire, full of family games and carolling in the misty streets, at the home of a college friend, Trevor. And a fort-night in Wild Wales with Bee and Peter, and Geraint part of the time, mainly climbing Cader Idris when it was fine, and reading John Buchan in the farmhouse when it was wet.

The people shared my love of a good book, witty, worthwhile conversation...naming every house they lived in. And of course, by the end, they were Christians and therefore we are bonded together in a special way.
I know this sounds strange, but sometimes I feel that I really don't know how to think. By that I mean I don't know how to think in the way other people think--in a way that lends itself to philosophy and conversation and the forming of the beautiful thoughts I love to read so well. At any rate, I suppose that is one of the purposes of reading much--you begin to recognize the path of such thoughts and to think them yourself. That is one of things I also loved about A Severe Mercy. It took quite a few elusive feelings I'd had about things and wove them into tangible words that I will now be able to point to and say "That! That is what I am talking about!"

"What did you learn from this book?" I learned how sadness is different from bitter grief and angry sorrow. I learned how obviously eternity is implanted in the hearts of men--I'd not seen it so clearly and undeniably before. I learned that it is possible to stay in love your whole life long and that quality time together is the glue cementing two people into one. I learned more about C.S. Lewis. I learned about Sheldon Vanauken. I learned that A Severe Mercy is a book I'll return to again and again. I learned a toast, ("If it's half as good as the half we've known, here's Hail! to the rest of the road.") and, to quote Lewise that "Christians NEVER say goodbye!" ;)

Get thee a copy as soon as possible! You will not regret the reading of it.

{From my Bookshelf:} The Help by Kathryn Stockett

"I listened, wide-eyed, stupid. Glowing by her voice in the dim light. If chocolate was a sound, it would have been Constantine's voice singing. If singing was a color, it would have been the color of that chocolate."

The Help. It's a book I'd heard a deal about, a movie trailer that intrigued me, and a subject I personally love: the life of colored maids in the 1960's. Perhaps it is the stories of Mama's housekeeper, Laura Bullock, that always put me directly in sympathy with this sect of people. 

Mama's family loved Laura and Laura was always an integral part of their lives as children. I'll always remember the famous story of Grandmama coming home to find Laura dressed out in a helmet and jacket with a gun over her shoulder, doing drills with Uncle David who was only 5 or 6 at the time and had asked her to play army. And I'll never forget what Laura told Uncle David as a little boy:

"She's yo vanilla mama..." (nodding at Grandmama) "...but I's your choc'late mama."

Or what she would say when Mama was a little girl:

"Honey--you's fat, but you's purty!"

Bright in my imagination, too, is the family-legend of Laura's rooster. How it'd drown itself every rainstorm by looking up at the sky with his mouth open, and how Laura would shove it in the oven, heat it up till it started flapping around, and let it back outside again.

I had the honor of meeting Laura several times as a little girl. I remember being slightly intimidated by the warm pressure of her wrinkled, leathery hand and her intent gaze, but I do remember liking her a deal despite my fears.

All that to say, when a copy of Kathryn Stockett's The Help came into my hands and Sarah read it and told me I really needed to read it (High praise from Sarah!) I was ready. The general plot as described by the back of the book is as follows:

Aibileen Clark is a black maid in 1962 Jackson, Mississippi, raising her seventeenth white child. She's always taken orders quietly, but lately it leaves her with a bitterness she can no longer bite back. Her friend Minny Jackson has certainly never held her tongue, or held on to a job for very long, but now she's working for a newcomer with secrets that leave her speechless. And white socialite Skeeter Phelan has just returned from college with ambition and a degree but, to her mother's lament, no husband....Together, these seemingly different women join to work on a project that could forever alter their destinies and the life of a small town--to write, in secret, a tell-all book about what it's really like to work as a black maid in the white homes of the South...

What is there to say about this book except... Wow. I found myself laughing and crying alternately and sometimes simultaneously. As a writer I was astonished that this was Ms. Stockett's first novel. As a reader I connected deeply and intimately with the characters. As a white woman, I blushed over the treatment the black maids received and prayed that, had I grown up in that era, I would have been different than Hilly and Elizabeth and the other Jackson women.

This book is so full of emotion, so full of complex relationships, so full of truth and goodness and a realization of the common-ness of humanity that I found myself marveling that any author could boil it down and smash it between two covers.

"I don't know what to say to her. All I know is, I ain't saying it. And I know she ain't saying what she want a say either, and it's a strange thing happening here cause nobody saying nothing and we still managing to have us a conversation."

The characters are alive, the events poignant, the realizations touching and sharp-edged. I enjoyed the choice of "first-person, now narrative" for a fresh reading experience as well. I love the immediacy of it. The novel took me from looking at The Help as a historical-fiction and brought me winging back to 1960, and it flighting forward to 2012 and we met somewhere in the middle and had a heart-connection rare to find in today's helter-skelter thriller-fiction-craze. Kathryn Stockett tells it just like it was. She didn't assign all evil or all goodness to one side of the racial argument or the other. But she didn't sugar-coat anything. And I mean anything.

That's the only complaint I had about The Help. The author included quite a lot of language which--if it did help the ink-people come alive--presented lots of words in my mind that aren't usually there for good reason. One of the main characters is definitely not a Christian and speaks rather mockingly of it sometimes. There are two scenes I can think of that could have been toned down. One, I actually liked the raw, pithy emotion and horror of--the other I thought was a little graphic. That--along with the fact that the whole subject of the plot is a little weighty for younger readers--puts my recommendation for The Help at 18+. If you are 18 years of age or older and want a book that'll take your by the shoulders with warm, brown hands and shake you gently with strong, supple fingers that smell of dryer sheets and cake frosting, read this book. You'll never regret it. Never-ever.

*WARNING* In Chapter 24 there is a really creepy part that is described too graphically. Really, you'd not miss it if you skipped it. So read with caution or skip pages 360-365 entirely. :)

A teaser-taste for you:

"We go on in her room, where we like to set. I get up in the big chair and she get up on me and smile, bounce a little. 'Tell me bout the brown wrapping. And the present.' She so excited, she squirming. She has to jump off my lap, squirm a little to get it out. Then she crawl back up.That's her favorite story cause when I tell it, she get two presents. I take the brown wrapping from my Piggly Wiggly grocery bag and wrap up a little something, like a piece a candy, inside. Then I use the white paper from my Cole's Drug Store bag and wrap another one just like it. She take it real serious, the unwrapping, letting me tell the story bout how it ain't the color of the wrapping that count, it's what we is inside."

{From My Bookshelf}: With Every Letter- Sarah Sundin

With Every Letter

 (Book One in Wings of the Nightingale Series)

By Sarah Sundin

If you've stuck around this blog for any length of time you'll have come up with the quite accurate idea that I'm a romantic. I don't need anyone to teach me how to dream, how to propose (or help him propose) or how to make a match. I count it one among many "severe-ish mercies" in my lifetime that I have gone through my girlhood years knowing next-to-no eligible young men. Honestly, I didn't need the distraction. Which is why, as a general rule, I stay away from romance novels. It isn't that I think they are bad, or harmful. (though some might fit the bill) It's just that my poor little fluffy mind doesn't need help imagining or longing for that All -Elusive Someday. On occasion, even an over-abundance of BBC films can throw me into a slight state of discontentment that I'd do better to avoid.
But when I won Sarah Sundin's latest book, With Every Letter, in a giveaway, I knew I had to take a whack at it. First of all, it was free. Second, it had a beautiful cover. Third, it was set in WWII. Fourth, I could tell she'd done her research. Fifth, it had to do with a romance conducted through letter-writing. I was hooked. When the book came in the mail I ambled over to the picnic table we've somehow neglected to remove from the roadside the past several winters, and started to read. Once started, there was no going back. This gal is good.

"Before I start this letter, I must be clear that I'm searching for friendship, not romance. I don't want to mislead you or toy with your affections. I do apologize if you hoped for a romantic letter from a perky beauty..."

Thus runs Lt. Mellie Blake's first letter to her anonymous correspondent. Gotta love her frankness! This is what tipped me off to the fact that this book would be different than a lot of romance novels. It was going to actually be pure.
With Every Letter follows the young, insecure, but compassionate and loving Lt. Philomela (Mellie) Blake--a young flight nurse in WWII. But because I'm never that great at synopsisises...synopsi? Whatever. Since I'm not that great at those, I'll give you the blurb on the back of the book. It's enough to grab anyone's interest!

        Lt. Mellie Blake is looking forward to beginning her training as a flight nurse. She is not looking forward to writing a letter to a man she's never met--even if it is anonymous and part of a moral-building program. Lt. Tom MacGilliver, an officer stationed in North Africa, welcomes the idea of an anonymous correspondence--he's been trying to escape his infamous name for years.
        As their letters crisscross the Atlantic, Tom and Mellie develop a unique friendship despite not knowing the other's true identity. When both are transferred to Algeria, the two are poised to meet face-to-face for the first time. Will they overcome their fears and reveal who they are, or will their future be held hostage by their pasts?

Isn't that interesting? I thought so. This book did not disappoint me in any way, shape, or form. In fact, I ended up falling way harder for the characters than I thought I would. Here, therefore, is a list of my favorite things and my thoughts about With Every Letter...

1. Lt. Mellie Blake: Perhaps I identified with Mellie because of her heart for Christ and loving spirit, but I will also admit that Mellie's insecurities and doubts sometimes about whether a man could think her attractive enough to see her and only her sound an awful lot like some of my doubts and fears when I take my eyes off Christ. The way the Lord {and Sarah Sundin. haha!} bring Mellie through this is beautiful and humbling. I also appreciated the fact that she is definitely not looking for romance. Actually, she resists officially meeting Tom to the point of exasperation for me--sitting back here knowing Tom loved her and how...AHHH!

2. The setting: WWII is a great enough setting...but Sarah Sundin set the book in North Africa, Algeria, and the lower Mediterranean which was just really neat. I mean, who has read a book set in those places? Not me. Plus, Lt. Blake is one of only 500 flight nurse to serve the US during WWII! Really neat.

3. Sarah's research: As an author, I know it's tough to do your research thoroughly--and she has done it. By George, she's done it! You feel like you're in Algeria during the 1940's. Seriously!

4. How Mrs. Sundin portrays Christianity: there comes a point in the life of your book when you've got to determine how your relationship with Christ and your world-view will come out in the story. Some books/authors turn preachy and unrealistic with that OSS (Obligatory Salvation Scene) we all cringe over. Others omit all mentions of religion and Christianity. But both Mellie and Tom and Christians and their personal relationships with Christ are a huge part of the story, which I really liked.

5. The romance: You were waiting for that, weren't you? ;) Unlike many stories, I felt like Mellie and Tom's romance was realistic, beautiful, and pure. They begin with a mutual desire for only friendship and therefore their relationship is built upon encouraging one another in the Lord, learning the heart of the other...discussing important things...all of that. Then you get the romantic tension building. Tom's struggle (which I can't discuss at length here, not wanting to spoil the plot for you) with physical attraction toward an "acquaintance" is portrayed so honorably I wanted to cheer. Without being inappropriate {which a lesser author would default to}, Sarah let us know that Tom felt attraction toward this one woman (not lust, mind you.), and described and played out his struggle for honor in so great a way that you like this guy a lot. A whole lot. Ahem. So much that you kinda-sorta-wish-he-was-real-and-not-confined-to-the-page.

And the last scene? Great Snakes. I didn't see such an "AWWWW!" moment coming and it totally made my day when I read it. That, darling, is how I want to be loved. That is the kind of man I want to marry. That is what love is supposed to look like. *sniff*

In conclusion: Not having read any other "Christian historical romances" and not knowing how much actual history they put in amongst the kissing, I am sticking my neck out and saying Sarah Sundin has it down pat for the perfect formula of romance and actual historical plot. I found myself enjoying this book an actually thinking that my brother might enjoy it--Tom's side of the story is strongly supported and written so the book is an even split between guy and girl. Because of the fact that this is a romance and the author does deal with their increasing physical attraction toward one another (though in a very mild, gentle, innocent way) and because of high danger/action/emotional tension in the rest of the plot, I would recommend With Every Letter for ages 18+, though mature, younger readers would enjoy it as well. I say 18+ merely because it's my personal opinion that younger girls don't need to be focusing on romance just yet. ;)

But trust me. You'll love it. I know you will.This is how historical romance ought to be written!

Movie Review: "Much Ado About Nothing" :)

When I watch a movie and then spend all night dreaming about it (not to mention all morning) I know it has captured me heart and soul. Kenneth Branagh's version of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing was such a movie for me. At first I panicked, thinking I would never be able to understand the Elizabethan English the characters used, (It is strictly Shakespeare's play. No modernizing, thank you. :) but by the end of the first scene it was clear the stellar actors of the cast would take care of me. They understood what they were saying and were so phenomenal in their performances they made you understand. The key to deciphering Shakespeare? Don't listen too hard.
The plot is a delightful mash of two love stories: one sweet and simple, the other fiery and sarcastic. Meet Hero and Claudio:

Played by the winsome Kate Beckinsale and Robert Sean Leonard.

And Beatrice and Benedick! :)

Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branagh

The latter couple were my absolute favorite--their witticisms and banter were hilarious and brilliant. 

Benedick overhearing talk of Beatrice's "love" for him

I don't want to spoil the plot for you--I'll only say it contains a good prince, a jealous brother, lots of hilarity, and a couple of nuts who will have you dying of laughter.

Dogberry & company

 The friendships will have you smiling...

the lovers will make you sigh happily....

.

.....the treason will have you wanting to strangle Mr. Good-lookin' Prince-Man...

Don John--the villain!

There is abundant wit and cleverness throughout. I loved the music and dancing and costumes and setting. This movie was amazing. :) It's a sweet, lovely, happy-ending but lots of danger movie. I went to bed smiling like a loon and dreamed all night in Shakespearean English....I was so brilliant and had sharp, sparkling, witty repartees with everyone...too bad I can't remember a stitch of it this morning. :D

There are, however, a couple things I must warn you about.

Cons:

• After the very first picnic-montage, the entire cast and crew take it into their heads to bathe before the Prince arrives....they do so...and there are back-shots of everyone in the process. We were forewarned so we fast-forwarded and were none the worse for it.
• There is a false scandal against Hero that would suggest she was unfaithful to Claudio resulting in a grand kerfuffle...apparently they show a bit more of that "scandal" than is comfortable. We were forewarned about this so we skipped it, and again didn't miss anything of the plot.
• At the masquerade you see a fellow "tickling" a lady but he goes a bit farther. Fast-forward for about five or ten seconds and you'll be just fine. [Random Elizabethan obscenities, anyone? :P]
• Shakespeare's English and ours is much different. He liberally uses words we would not use now (such as Ass, Bastard, etc.) but in the context they are not as offensive. Back then they weren't bad words and in keeping with his original works, they didn't bother me.

Pros:  

• This movie showcases Shakespeare at his best. The acting was Brilliant. That is all I can say. Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branagh were Beatrice and Benedick. That's all there is to it. 
• Purity is highly, highly prized. Pretty much, this is what the plot swirls around. Purity before marriage.
• The family in the movie have ultra-close relationships. I love it.
• The scenery and music were gorgeous, as well as the simple, yet lovely costumes

This movie, since I've given you fair warning and told you where to fast-foward, is now one of my favorites. I can recommend it heartily with those cautions in mind. :)  I love it to death, and I plan on watching it again very very soon! :)

In closing, here are a few (so hard to choose!) favorite quotes from Much Ado About Nothing:

Claudio, speaking of Hero: "Can the world buy such a jewel?"

Benedick: "Yea, and a case to put it into!"

Dogberry: "Thou wilt be condemned into everlasting redemption for this!"

Don Pedro: "Officers, what offense have these men done?"

Dogberry: "Marry, sir, they have committed false report; moreover they have spoken untruths; secondarily they are slanderers; sixth and lastly; they have belied a lady; thirdly, they have verified unjust things; and, to conclude, they are lying knaves.

Don Pedro: "What is your offense, masters? This learned constable is too cunning to be understood."

Bwahahaha!

"I see our hands have betrayed our hearts!"

                   

                              "Trust God, love me, and mend...." *heart breaks* :)

Movie Review: Roman Holiday

 For Christmas my parents gave my sisters and I Audrey Hepburn's very first movie: Roman Holiday.
Thanks to my dear friend Abigail, we saw the movie earlier this year and loved it to death, so I was very excited to see that it was ours to own now! :)
The plot of the movie is as follows:

The Princess Ann (Audrey Hepburn) is tired of the political poses and duties required of her position in life. A whirlwind tour of Europe has brought her to Rome where her schedule is jam-packed with dull duties and debts to Society. After an especially hard burst of hysterics, the royal physician gives her a sedative, but before it takes effect, the Princess sneaks out of her mansion and into the streets of Rome among the common people. There, her sedative medicine finally begins to work and she falls asleep on a city bench. Later she is picked up by Joe Bradley, (Gregory Peck) a dashing, young, American journalist, who can't bear to leave her sleeping alone on a park bench. He thinks she is intoxicated, and so takes her back to his apartment to let her sleep it off on the couch, hoping to be able to return her to wherever she belongs in the morning. But while Ann is sleeping, Joe Bradley goes to work and discovers that the girl he has left sleeping in his apartment is the Princess! He hurries back to the apartment, determined to follow her all day learning the "Secret Mind of a Princess", without ever letting on that he knows who she is. The plan works. Bradley takes Ann on a Roman Holiday. They have adventures, see the sights, go dancing, cause a major traffic problem, and end up with a dunking in a river. They make a holiday of it and have a grand time. But the days is waning. Their true identities will have to come out soon, and it is all the harder because they have fallen in love.....

:) A fabulous movie, in my mind! Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck had real chemistry in this movie. They were the Princess Ann and Joe Bradley. The smiles are real, the laughter is real, the tears are real. You will not soon find a sweeter, funnier, or more adorable little movie.

Pros: This movie is clean. I can't recall a single bad word, or anything else questionable. They don't turn Ann's night at Joe Bradley's into anything scandalous, as a modern movie-maker might do. Bradley treats Ann with gentlemanliness seldom seen nowadays on the silver screen. The romance is sweet and innocent, and absolutely adorable.

The costumes are so wonderfully vintage.

 

Hahaha! I love this scene, when he's trying to figure out if she's the princess or not! :)

 

The adorable trio: Irving, Anya (Ann) and Joe...

 

The hilarious "Mouth Of Truth" scene whose premise has been pirated and copied into SO many movies, including National Treasure 2... :) 

 

Can you think of anything more hilarious than buzzing around Rome on a vintage motor-scooter? :D 

 

"Soooooo happy!" :)

Awwww....

I'm warning you, it's a bit of a tear-jerker at the end....especially when you keep thinking...."Surely she'll look back....she has to look back..." :D

But it is a dear, dear movie all the same and I urge you to watch it! :)

Cons: Very few. The only ones I can think of is that if you are prone to sleeping on park benches, it suggests that being taken to a stranger's apartment will end up perfectly safe and happy. ;) There is short gambling scene, as well as mentions of champagne, wine, etc. Princess Ann tries a cigarette but can't smoke it... :)

Plot Strength: **** (nothing super intricate, just sweet and happy)
Character Strength: ***** + (5+ stars!)
Overall Rating: ***** (5 stars!)