“A Time for Courage” by: Kathryn Lasky

Recommended Age: 12+

217 pages

Description: As the fight for women's suffrage heats up, Kathleen"Kat" Bowen gets to participate as her mother and her sister, and many others close to her organize and act to win the right to vote.


January 19, 1917
The picket line has been going on for over a week! And people said they would not last a day and the weather still has not broken. What's more is news of the picket is spreading and more and more women are coming from other parts of the district and some from as far away as
Maryland and Virginia. President Wilson felt so sorry for them in the cold that he invited them in for coffee but they refused. They said they would only come in to talk about a federal amendment for the women's right to vote. No coffee! This made me think of Sojourner Truth's words about men who help lift women into carriages and over mud puddles--that of course is the easy part, just like giving them coffee. Giving them the vote is the hard part.


My Rating: 3/5

This book was okay. It was not my favorite, but it did bring up some thought provoking topics.


I liked the contrasting of women’s suffrage to the Great War (WWI) as far as importance. Which should women be supporting? 


Side note: this book mentioned trick-or-treating on October 31, however, this “custom” and term was not practiced or used until the 1920s and wasn’t fully popularized until the ‘50s.


Things to be aware of in “A Time for Courage”


Language:

(-1 star) So much of this was unnecessary!

  • 12 forms of “stupid” or “stupidity”
  • 4 forms of “dumb” or “dumbest” (1 “dumb … as a horse’s behind”)
  • 2 forms of “Oh Lord” or “Lordy” (which appear to be said as expressions and not in relation to anything religious)
  • 1 direct use of God’s name in vain
  • 3 “idiot” (one of which is on a sign, not spoken)
  • 1 “gosh”
  • 1 “dang”
  • Mild name calling (including “numskulls”)
  • A couple instances of “darned”


Violence:

  • Characters are kicked, hit/punched, dragged and nearly shot
  • Suicide is mentioned


Romantic Content:

  • Conversations surrounding divorce are had.
  • A mention of running away at 14 with a man who “drank himself to death”


Additional Notes:

  • “Dat’s about the only thing he’s great at. Aside from gettin’ children on your poor aunt.” (Speaking about the character’s uncle)
  • Multiple characters lie to their parents (“no one is getting hurt by our lie”) (-1 star)
  • Character are said to hate other characters multiple times.
  • One character states that another character’s brain is “deficient”
  • “A negro lady” is mentioned.
  • Kidnapping is mentioned
  • A character is supposedly drugged
  • A character’s death goes nearly unnoticed in the quest to discover who will receive the inheritance.
  • Themes of racial segregation 
  • A teenage girl mentions “certain physical changes” that are “too embarrassing to ask [her] father.”

Links to the book:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“Mistress Pat” by: Lucy Maud Montgomery

Age: 10+   Description: When she was twenty, nearly everyone thought Patricia Gardiner ought to be having beaus--except of course, Pat herself. For Pat, Silver Bush was both home and heaven. All she could ever ask of life was bound in the magic of the lovely old house on Prince Edward Island, "where good things never change." And now there was more than ever to do, what with planning for the Christmas family reunion, entertaining a countess, playing matchmaker, and preparing for the arrival of the new hired man. Yet as those she loved so dearly started to move away, Pat began to question the wisdom of her choice of Silver Bush over romance. Was it possible to be lonely at Silver Bush?   My Rating: 3/5 Phew! Okay, this book was definitely a ride - good at times and infuriating at others. Here are my thoughts: I’ll start by saying I love the late-night sister chats between Pat and Cuddles/Rae! Having a close relationship with my own sisters, those conversations are som...
Read more

"The Marriage Builder: A Blueprint for Couples and Counselors" by: Dr. Larry Crabb

Age: 17+ Description: Bestselling author Larry Crabb cuts to the heart of the biblical view of marriage: the "one-flesh" relationship. He argues convincingly that the deepest needs of human personality--security and significance--ultimately cannot be satisfied by a marriage partner. We need to turn to the Lord, rather than our spouse, to satisfy our needs. This frees both partners for "soul oneness," a commitment to minister to our spouse's needs rather than manipulating them to meet our own needs. With "soul oneness" comes renewed "body oneness," where couples enjoy sexual pleasure as an expression and outgrowth of a personal relationship. The Marriage Builder also identifies three building blocks essential to constructing marriage: the grace of God, true marriage commitment, and acceptance of one's mate. Discussion questions are included to aid couples who want to dig into it and apply the principles to their own lives and...
Read more

"Mere Sexuality" by: Todd Wilson

 Age: 17+ Description: What do Christians believe about human sexuality? In Mere Sexuality , author and pastor Todd Wilson presents the historic Christian consensus about human sexuality, the Great Tradition of the church for centuries as taught in each of its major expressions - Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant. Wilson highlights the stunning shift of opinion on issues of sexuality in the evangelical church and why this break with the historic church is problematic for the future of Christianity. Along the way he provides ordinary believers with an introduction to the historic Christian vision of sexuality, yet does so in conversation with some of the twenty-first century's leading challenges to this vision. In a culture that is deeply confused about human sexuality, Wilson believes it is time for evangelicals to retrieve the historic Christian tradition and biblical teaching on the question of sexuality. Mere Sexuality seeks to guide readers back to the beauty and...
Read more