"Promises to Keep: Diane's Story" by Dean Hughes

If you have read the Hearts of the Children and Children of the Promise series' by Dean Hughes and you don't know that this final book is out then go get it now! Readers just wanted to know one thing at the end of the fifth volume of Children of the Promise: What happens to Diane? Well... I'm not going to tell you!

Predictable. Enjoyable. Satisfying.

I got it in the mail yesterday in the morning and by 8:00 PM had it all finished. Did my kids suffer? Yes. But now I can return to normalcy.

"Last of the Mohicans" 1970's Era BBC movie

So I said I was going to give this a try and a try I did. For about 15 minutes. Bad lighting, poor acting, straying from the plot, etc. Classic 70's soap opera-style filming. Enough said.

"The Last of the Mohicans" by James Fenimore Cooper

If thou art desirest to read this prodigious zenith of 18th Century American literature, then thou mightest need to acquire a voluminous dictionary to assist thine desire to understand the vaunting and antediluvian language found therein, as it appears that the most excellent author, James Fenimore Cooper, possessed a vocabulary of, well, lets just say it's um, better than mine...

I'm not going to outline the plot in detail. If you want that, then click here. I wish I had taken my own advice and clicked there first just to get a good look at the cast of characters. It took me about 75 pages to realize that Duncan and Heyward were one and the same (i.e. Duncan Heyward). Many of the Indian tribe names and descriptions left me confused. Several passages jumped right into the middle of action-packed material so quickly that I had to re-read several paragraphs and some chapters to know what was going on. It really is a wonder that I finished this book - I feel like a master of perseverance!

So I will just say that I have mixed feelings about this book. Exciting it is. Easy to understand it is not. Most of the story is very thrilling because there is always a chase - bad guys looking for good guys and vice versa. Kidnapping, murder, massacres, disguises, love, betrayal, etc. The story is chalk full of movie-worthy material and I fully understand why the Daniel Day Lewis version made about 12 years ago is rated R. I am going to try and get my hands on a PG 13 version that I saw a few years ago (by the time I read the book I did not remember a darn thing about the movie). The BBC also made a miniseries in the 1970's that I am going to order from Netflix. I understand that this latter version is very true to the book and well done, but the entire cast, including Indians, are British actors. I'll give it a try.

In the end, I give it three *** stars - there would have been more stars if it was easier to follow the story. I can now boast that I have read the very manly The Last of the Mohicans book. Can you?

Sunday Afternoon Ideas for Kids

I am one of those mean moms that don't let their children do activities during sacrament meeting but I have found that our Sunday afternoons have been wasted away in front of the T.V. and I have been looking for some solutions to help my children enjoy the Sabbath.

I got these great activity books full of puzzles, word searches and games that help teach the scriptures and gospel principles. The Junior edition is still a bit too difficult for my four-year-old son but my eight-year-old daughter and I had a great time doing some of the puzzles together the last couple of Sundays. These are definitely a keeper.


*Both available at Deseret Book
The Big Book of Sacrament Time Activities: Junior Edition by Jenna Mitchell
The Big Book of Sacrament Time Activities: Senior Edition by Jenna Mitchell

"Journey of the Heart" by W. Dave Free

This story is categorized as LDS Young Adult Fiction. Not my usual kind of read but I am always willing to try something new. And besides, it is never too late for me to start building a library of clean books for my kids to read when they hit those teenage years.

The story centers around Jake, an average 18-year-old boy, who is making some of those "coming of age" decisions. In this instance, it has to do with deciding to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After sharing with his parents that he has decided not to serve a mission he suffers an accident while skiing with his friend Tyler. When he gains consciousness he finds himself in Iowa city in 1856 with a group of Latter-day Saints who are getting ready to cross the plains by handcart.

Jake makes friends with Annie, a young, single sister in the handcart company, who often reminds him of some of his lousy outlooks on life and the gospel. He is asked to serve in a few different capacities such as a tent president, a blacksmith, a carpenter to help fix broken handcarts, and he also helps weigh and record the items that the saints are allowed to carry.

I found this book a valuable help in understanding the plight of the pioneers who were willing to leave all of their possessions and, in some cases, their family members behind so they could join the other saints in the Salt Lake Valley. I will admit that I found the plot to be very predictable and I had a hard time believing the whole time travel thing, but I am willing to give this book three *** stars because it was well written and fun to read - as a teenager I would have definitely given it four or five stars. There are a few editing snafus but it is in it's first printing (it just came out this year) and so that is generally expected.

I highly recommend this book to LDS teenagers and their parents that want to learn more about the handcart experiences of the pioneers.

* Available at Deseret Book