Summary of the Readathon

What I read during the readathon, from 7:00 a.m. on Saturday to 7:00 a.m. on Sunday:

1. 
   Wood, Wire, Wings: Emma Lilian Todd Invents an Airplane ~ by Kirsten Larson, illustrated by Tracy Subisak, 2020, picture book, 48 pages, 10/10 — Emma Lilian Todd, a self-taught inventor, was born on June 10, 1865 in Washington, D.C.  This nonfiction biography explores both the failures and successes she had as she tackled one of the greatest challenges of the early 1900s:  designing an airplane.  Lilian's mind was always soaring — she loved to solve problems.  As a child, she took apart and reassembled clocks to figure out how they worked.  As an adult, typing up patents at the U.S. Patent Office, Lilian built the inventions in her mind, including many designs for flying machines.  However, they all seemed too impractical.  Lilian knew she could design one that worked.  She took inspiration from both nature and her many failures, driving herself to perfect the design that would eventually successfully fly.  Illustrator Tracy Subisak's art brings to life author Kirsten W. Larson's story of this little-known but important engineer.
2. 
   I Will Be Fierce! ~ by Bea Birdsong, illustrated by Nidhi Chanani, 2019, children's, 40 pages, 10/10 — This story about a girl's courage, kindness, and confidence demonstrates that all of us can be fierce, make friends, take on the monsters that stand in the way, and be the hero of our own stories.  Here's a good 4-minute YouTube video that I found of the whole book being read for "future titans."
3. No!  I Don't Want to Join a Book Club: Diary of a Sixtieth Year ~ by Virginia Ironside, 2006, fiction (England), 231 pages, DNF — I read 12 pages before marking it DNF (did not finish) and tossing it aside.  What a grumpy old lady!  Sheesh!  I adopted this book after Donna died, but I've decided she never read it either. 
4. 
   If God Is Love, Don't Be a Jerk: Finding a Faith That Makes Us Better Humans ~ by John Pavlovitz, 2021, social issues, 233 pages — I fell asleep while reading this, but Clawdia woke me up at 3:30 a.m. for food.  My favorite line so far was on page 81:  "You deserved hell . . . just for being born?"  That chapter is entitled "Oh, Hell No!"  I did not finish reading this book before the readathon ended.  In case you are interested, here's the link to John Pavlovitz's blog Stuff That Needs to Be Said.
5. Unbelievable: Why Neither Ancient Creeds Nor the Reformation Can Produce a Living Faith Today ~ by John Shelby Spong, 2018, theology, 10/10 — I re-read the section of this book that I'll be discussing with the Seekers Class in half an hour.

Today's Takeaway

I like what one Amazon reviewer (who gave the book 5 stars) said about the alliteration in Wood, Wire, Wings:  "Larson’s skillful use of alliteration — baffled yet buoyed, constructed each contraption, filed and fiddled, tweaking and tinkering — will elevate this biography to the top of the read-aloud list at school and home.  The repetition of the phrase 'buoyed by the challenge' will inspire children to persevere in spite of setbacks."  It's amazing that 69 reviewers of 70 on Amazon gave the book 5 stars, and that single person gave it 4 stars and high praise in words.

Deb Nance at Readerbuzz hosts the Sunday Salon, where we talk

about our lives, our books, and what we have been reading.