My column for June

June column

First I want to report that the Farm Girl Fest at Cave Spring School north east of Sarcoxie was really a lot of fun. It got a little hot in my long prairie dress but at least we had our shade. Ended up having to put my flip flops on so that at least my feet weren't hot. There were some great vendors prestent. I set up with 7 other Fiber Folks and I think people enjoyed watching us spin wool into yarn and weave rugs. They had good food and entertainment. Looking forward to perhaps doing the show at Red Oak in the fall. For now I have plans to go to Butler for their Summer Festival on June 8^th and 9^th. It is a living history farm so they encourage us to dress in our “old” cloths and do demonstrations of our art, plus we get to sell our products. My sister and I will take in this event together.

For this month I read a variety of books. Actually I read more than I can report on but will report of the three that I liked the best.

Milkweed

by

Jerry Spinelli

Milkweed is a book written for young adults and would be very good to use to teach about the Holocaust.

A young boy in Warsaw in 1939 survives by stealing what food he can, but he knows nothing about his background. All he is called is Stopthief. He thinks he might be a Jew or maybe a Gypsy. He is befriended by a band of Jewish boys and they give him the name of Misha. When he sees people being marched in the streets he thinks it is a parade and he is excited and wants to join in. He sees the Nazi soldiers and admires their shinny boots and marching, so he thinks he wants to be a Nazi. He does not comprehend what is happening. Eventually he is marched into a camp along with a young Jewish girl and her family. Because he is so small he is able to squeeze thru a hole and continue to steal food to help the family survive. This is a very good story for young adults to read and be able to see the events of the Holocaust thru the innocence of the eyes of a child. The ending of the book was unexpected but was heart warming at the same time.

In Search of Eden

by Linda Nichols

Miranda comes from a difficult childhood with an unfeeling mother who forces her to give her baby up for adoption with out even knowing if it was a boy or girl when she was 16. She was told that the baby went to a safe place. Later as an adult of 27, when her mother dies she finds a clue hidden in a desk, a picture of a baby with the name of a town. She sets out to this town in Virginia to try to find her child that she knows nothing about. The local sheriff takes notice of her and is suspicious of her from the start. It is fairly easy for the reader to put the pieces together that the sheriff's niece is her lost daughter but Miranda doesn't find out till the end. Miranda searches out the connection of why her daughter was sent to this small town and finds her own sad family history that helps her to understand her mother. I really enjoyed this book and will look for anything written by this author.

                                                     The Guardian

by

Nicholas Spark

What could be better than a Nicholas Sparks book with romance and a faithful dog. I am never disappointed with any of Sparks books. This one starts out sad as you know this young woman looses her husband, but he has left her two things, a promise to watch over her and a puppy, a great Dane of all things. Four years later Julie has a dilemma of two suitors. The dog becomes very possessive and the book takes a twist into the thriller type mystery that makes you want to hit Julie on the head and say “Listen to your dog”! A very good read.