We've Got Issues

Warner, Judith. We've Got Issues: Children and Parents in the Age of Medication. New York: Penguin Group, 2010.

I picked up this book thinking, "Wow, a book about how these crazy helicopter parents and frazzled teachers are over-medicating kids for things that should be normal, like the 7th grade boy who can't sit still and people think he needs Ritalin.  Great."  That's exactly what the author was expecting to write about as well - parents who choose to medicate their children instead of disciplining them or who medicate to create designer lives for children who absolutely must get into the best schools.  In essence, giving medication to kids who don't really need it. 

What she found, however, was a disconnect between reality and the hearsay that has propagated the idea that "all kids are on medication."  They aren't.  Warner discusses the idea that most kids actually aren't on medication, that more kids are on medication now than in the past because more diagnoses are available for children and more medications have been made safe for them, and she illustrates her points with stories of parents who have tried everything for their kids and are only medicating them as a last resort.  Not only that, but there are still scores of children who may need medication and aren't getting it, simply because their parents don't have the resources or the patience to fight against a system that assumes low-income children misbehave or receive low grades because they are just "bad."

This was an interesting book that forced me to look at this topic from a different viewpoint.  It also drove home the point that a few news headlines or stories on the internet can rapidly change public opinion, even if those stories don't represent the status quo.

This Book is Overdue!

Johnson, Marilyn. This Book is Overdue! How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All. New York: Harper Collins, 2010.

I was intrigued by the title and the subject matter of this book, but what really grabbed my attention was the cover.  A superhero librarian in a cape is blasting out of a pile of books.  I like books, I'm going to be studying library science in just a few months, and I've always wanted to wear a cape in public. 

The author of this book immersed herself into the world of librarians, specifically the changing technological world of librarians.  She explored the changing role of the librarian while telling all sorts of stories of meeting librarians in cyberspace on Second Life, reading librarians' blogs about things they find in the library, and spending time at some of the biggest and smallest libraries in the world.  I found this book to be fascinating, entertaining, instructive, and enjoyable.  I'd keep it for myself, but I checked it out of the library, and I'd rather not incur any late book fines.

In the Land of Believers

Welch, Gina. In the Land of Believers: An Outsider's Extraordinary Journey into the Heart of the Evangelical Church. New York: Metropolitan Books, 2010.

Gina Welch was curious about the evangelical church.  She wanted to know the truth behind the smiling faces, the protests against evolution, and the emphasis on being "born again."  In order to truly understand these concepts from an insider's perspective, Welch went undercover and joined a megachurch.  She went forward for salvation, was baptized in the church, went door-to-door soulwinning, and even joined a small group mission trip to Alaska.  Throughout her time in the church, Welch hid the fact that she was not truly a believer and that she was only there to get information.

It was fascinating to me to read about the church, a place I am quite familiar with, from the perspective of someone who has not grown up in it or embraced it.  I was intrigued by Welch's reactions to ideas such as worship music, group prayer, and witnessing.  It was very interesting to read about her journey and the love she learned to have for the people in the church, while still questioning the idea that a person can have a relationship with Jesus after simply praying a prayer on a street corner.  This was a very interesting read and definitely worth checking out of the library.

33 Men

Franklin, Jonathan. 33 Men: Inside the Miraculous Survival and Dramatic Rescue of the Chilean Miners. New York: Penguin Group, 2011.

I admit it: I don't pay much attention to world events.  After six years at a school where television was not allowed and six more years in a place where I could not afford television or internet in my home, I simply got used to living with my head in the sand.  But even I could not miss the news when the 33 miners were buried under tons of rock and then miraculously rescued ten weeks later.

Franklin was one of the few journalists allowed an inside look at the rescue operation and the goings-on with the miners, and he details much of their journey beneath and back out of the ground in this book.  It's definitely worth the trip to the library.

Blood Covenant

Harris, Lisa. Blood Covenant. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2011.

Ghost soldiers. Highly contagious diseases. War. Africa. These are all elements of a great story, and all are present in this novel by Lisa Harris.  A vast improvement over some of the other books I have attempted to read and review, I actually enjoyed Blood Covenant.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel for the purposes of review.