I think I’ve now officially read all the “new to homeschooling” material that I need to read. In fact, I think this book was one book too many. It was a good book, focusing less on logistics and detailed advice, and more on dealing with emotions and common issues that come up when deciding to homeschool and throughout the first year. From that stand point, it was reasonably inspirational – lots about trusting yourself and your child, remembering that it takes a while to get into the swing of things. That sort of thing, which is definitely worthwhile information, although I think I’m mostly past needing that sort of pep talk (although who knows how I’ll feel a month from now). :D

I did get a couple of good tips here, but most of the information was, for me, a repeat of things I’ve read in other books. Still, for someone just getting started, I wouldn’t dissuade you from reading this book. In my case, though, I’d already read enough similar material to make this one a bit redundant. 8/10

Another classic film that I’d never seen before. I decided to get this one from the library, since my son and I have become very interested in the history of the “Titanic.” I really enjoyed this film, especially after having read a few books about the subject, including some survivor testimony – it was great to be able to identify several of the characters from things I’ve read (particularly the Strauss couple, Colonel Archibald Gracie, Miss Evans, and the baker who survived so long in the water because he was extremely drunk).

As with any retelling of this story, parts of it were difficult to watch – so tragic! It was interesting to see the “spin” that the creators of the film (presumably following Walter Lord, who wrote the book) took with some of the historical figures. The blame was shifted away from both Captain Smith and Murdoch, I thought, and Lightoller was given a somewhat bigger role than he had in reality (understandable for a couple of reasons; firstly, he was the highest ranking officer to survive, so his own testimony is one of the things upon this film was based; also, since he was turned into the “star” of the film, it was natural to make him a bit of a composite; the director admits to having attributed to Lightoller some actions which were really done by other crew members. Not a big deal to me, though). It was also interesting to see the treatment of the crew of the “Californian,” who were pretty much made out to be incompetant, negligent idiots. To me, that’s the single most intriguing mystery in the whole Titanic saga – just what WAS going on with the “Californian?” I would love to find out that there is some reasonble explanation, but so far, I can’t seem to come up with one in my mind. Certainly “Hey, look – that ship is sending up flares. I wonder why? Probably just nothing,” isn’t a particularly satisfactory scenario.

For the time this film was made (1950s), I thought the effects were well done, and in some ways I thought this film had more authenticity than Cameron’s 1997 epic. Certainly, “A Night to Remember” was less contrivedly dramatic – no fictional love story, and no booming musical score manipulating our emotions. This was a quieter, slower-paced film, and very effective; also interesting to see parts of the saga which weren’t included in “Titanic” (the issue of the “Californian,” for example).

I’m glad we watched this; I’m interested to read Lord’s book now, as well. 9/10

I found this book at the library today, and I’m so glad that I did! It is a wonderful introduction into human evolution, describing the lifestyles of hominids from Australopithecus forward, ending with early civilization in Mesopotamia. It also describes tools and tool-making from the Stone, Bronze and Iron ages. Great illustrations, too. It fit in perfectly with our current history study, and it was at the perfect level for my son right now. 9/10.

Another book read in conjunction with our early people’s study. This one is written in verse, about a young cave boy who isn’t well-liked by his tribe, and gets “accidentally” abandoned. He manages to survive by speeding through several thousand years of evolution all by himself – he builds a wall around his cave entrance, domesticates a mammoth, and learns to grow his own food. And, of course, in the end his tribe returns and he manages to become a hero and save the day. It’s a cute enough book, but I didn’t find either the poetry nor the artwork to be charming enough for me to love it, and my son wasn’t particularly excited by it, either. 7/10

This is a lovely book about a Stone Age boy who domesticates a wolf. (Actually, it’s more the wolf domesticating the boy; the wolf seems the smarter of the two, really). The artwork is typical Jan Brett – gorgeous, with charming little details and embellishments throughout. We’re reading this book in conjunction with our current history study (early humans), and my son really enjoyed it; we read it once together, and he’s read it to himself several times since. 9/10

My son chose this one at the video store, because it stars Will Ferrell (C loved “Talledega Nights). I usually enjoy Ferrell’s films, too, but this one was a bit of a disappointment. It wasn’t bad, but it just wasn’t up to his usual standards. I thought it moved very slowly at times, and the comedic timing was just off in places, IMO. Having said that, it’s only fair to note that there were a few laugh-out-loud moments, which is always good. I just think the movie, overall, could have been funnier. It was a fine concept, with a good cast, but somehow, it just never clicked together for me like really good comedy should. 6/10

My son and I finished this book this morning; it took us about an hour to read through the whole thing. It is a beautifully-illustrated book for children about the Titanic. It tells the overall story of the sinking, and also follows several passengers from start to finish (all real people; some of them survived while others didn’t). All that was fine, but nothing that can’t be found in numerous other books. What makes this one special are the illustrations. It’s a large-format hardcover book, so the illustrations of the ship are large (two-page spreads) and very detailed, with cutaways to show interior sections of the ship. This book gives the best visual representation of the ship that I’ve seen yet. A lovely book. 10/10.

I’ve never read this book, and had very little idea about the story other than a few random ideas. When I saw this film at the library, I decided to check it out, as a shortcut to reading the book. (Bad, I know, but it takes less time to watch a film). And I’ve found that often these classic films do stick fairly closely to the original story. I don’t know how much that was the case here, but I really enjoyed this film. The romance pulled me in more than I’d expected it to, and the ending was satisfying (if a bit rushed, at least the way it was done in the film). A good story. I might just read the book after all. :)

This is such a great film – I really enjoyed it when I was a teenager, and it’s SO much fun to watch it now with my son. He LOVES it, and he’s learning the music (we’ve been singing duets together – Eleanor Rigby and Nowhere Man, mostly).

Another thing that I’m noticing is just how far ahead of their times the Beatles were in some ways. “All You Need Is Love” is still so completely relevant today, and all their little comments like, “It all in the mind” . . . really fits in with my own lifestyle now, and my worldview. I’m not sure I really “got” all that when I was younger. The Beatles rock. :D

My son and I read this at the library today, since we’ve just began a new history book, and it started out with a discussion of archaeology. This book gave a lovely introduction to what archaeologists do, and what happens on a dig site (and afterwards, back in the lab). It was a great introduction to the subject for someone my son’s age (seven). 10/10