Sunday, May 12th, 2013
Dear birth mother on Mothers Day
A few years ago, I wrote several posts about our adoption story. (They start here.) So you’ve heard from me, and I hope you’ve realized our gratitude to God for bringing Talitha to us and us to Talitha.
What you might not have heard yet is Talitha’s own heart.
This morning, she got tired of waiting for me to finish sleeping late and slipped onto the bed beside me with a kiss and a perfectly chosen card, and even better, her own thoughtful note written inside.
Later this afternoon, she sat on the living room floor leaning against the sofa where her daddy was sitting. She was intent on something she was writing on her computer.
Only later, when I opened my own computer, did I realize what she’d done. I went straight up to her room to hug her and thank her.
I suspect that some of you are birth mothers whose children are in another family now. This has been a hard day for you. I pray you might receive Talitha’s words of love and thanks as if they had been written directly to you.
Dear Birth Mother,
I have no idea what you are doing right now or even where you are. But know, you are on my heart, especially today. Today I celebrate not just one mother, but two. Two mothers who have been there for me in different ways. One has nurtured and taken care of me since I was 2 months and the other is you. . . .
Saturday, May 11th, 2013
What I learned by being my Mother’s daughter
I suppose none of us ever grasps all that God works in our lives through our mothers. I believe that is true even when growing up is hard. I’m thankful that so much blessing has come from my mother in the midst of our normal family–in other words, we are all very imperfect.
And so on this Mothers Day, with thanks to God for Mother, I share this classic post with you again.
Months before the celebration of Mother and Daddy’s 40th wedding, my sister Pamela dreamed of a quilt to honor Daddy and Mother and to express thanks for the years God had given them together.
Pamela recruited squares from each of the sisters and sisters-in-law. . . . Then Pamela assembled, quilted, and stenciled the gift for Daddy and Mother.
As I look over the squares of this quilt, from oldest child to youngest of us 10 children of George and Pam Henry, I’m reminded of a few of the things I’ve learned by being my mother’s daughter. . . .
Read and/or listen to the rest of “What I Learned by Being My Mother’s Daughter”. You’ll also find photos of all the family quilt blocks, the illustrations for my thoughts.
Happy Mothers Day, dear Mother! I love you.
Monday, April 15th, 2013
Retired?
Our Bethlehem family blessed us last night with a grand recommissioning service and celebration marking the end of our 33 years as a pastor’s family and the beginning of our next chapter.
My words to our brothers and sisters there touched on the parallels between Bethlehem’s growth and our family’s.
In 1980, Bethlehem’s Sunday congregation fit well in the old Sanctuary, with elbow room to spare. That summer, we Pipers arrived as a family of 5—2 parents and 3 sons.
You who were part of Bethlehem then, I thank you for making this an easy place to become a pastor’s wife. I don’t recall any times when someone expected me to be or do some certain thing because that’s what a pastor’s wife does.
Instead, you offered me options for ministry and were willing to let me pray and talk it over with my husband and then tell you yes or no. You gave me freedom to be wife and mother and to be involved as I felt God leading me, both within the church and elsewhere. I hope that all of you now will bless Cara in the same way.
As Bethlehem grew to multiple services and built a new sanctuary, our family grew too. We added another son and a daughter and so we were a family of 7—2 parents and 5 children. The same year we adopted our youngest child, we also gained our first daughter-in-law—the beginning of the years of sending our sons one by one to their own homes with their brides. And Bethlehem was sending more of its sons and daughters to their new homes, all around the world to spread a passion for the supremacy of God through Jesus Christ.
When Talitha was a first grader, Bethlehem’s old sanctuary came down. That year while the new education building was going up, there was no Sunday school. So we used the Children Desiring God 1st grade curriculum at home—the ABC’s of God. Talitha still remembers rearranging the letters of one long word until she got incomprehensible—however much we learn about God and no matter how well we know him, there is always much more.
That education building completed the downtown campus as we see it now. And Bethlehem has multiplied from that one campus to three. Our family has multiplied too, from 5 of us at the beginning of our time at Bethlehem to 23 now—we 2 are rich with 21 sons and daughter, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren.
Bethlehem’s building with its changes is a symbol that touches just the surface of how much our lives have been interwoven with you brothers and sisters for these 33 years.
I have a gift for you, Johnny. We know that the best gift a person can give often is one that person would also like to have. So this gift to you is to go over our fireplace so that we both can have before us reminders of our life here.
Dear friends, no one but God knows what a treasure your prayers for us have been all these years. Now I ask you to pray that we will be—as Mary Schmuland said to me a few weeks ago—“Retired? No—refired.”
Thursday, April 11th, 2013
Home Grown World Christians
I’ve been in Orlando for The Gospel Coalition 2013. I led a breakout session in the pre-conference, which had a missions focus.
My session was “My Missionary Call: Missed or Misunderstood?”
One of the resources I recommended is an article I wrote in 2002: Home Grown World Christians. Since then, our children have become adults, but the encouragements and ideas haven’t really aged.
I hope this will be helpful as you pray for and spend time with children you love, whether they are yours or part of your larger life circle.
What other suggestions would you add?
Wednesday, March 27th, 2013
God speaks your language
I’m so happy, I can hardly sit still. After my last post about free mp3 Bible downloads–in English–I discovered free mp3 audio downloads of the New Testament in more than 150 languages. There were many languages I hadn’t heard of. Since I was looking up their geography, I thought you might want to know too, so I included that information with each listing.
PDV Nouveau Testament Français Parole de Vie African Voices (dramatisé )- French Bible
Arabic New Testament – Kitab al Hayat Version (Dramatized) – Injil
Arabic New Testament – Van Dyck Version (Dramatized) – Injil
Guarayo del Nuevo Testamento – Bolivia (Dramatizadas) – Guarayo Bible
Lyele du Nouveau Testament – Burkina Faso (Dramatisé) – Lyele Bible
Moore du Nouveau Testament - Burkina Faso (Dramatisé) 1988 Version Protestante – Moore Bible
Bissa du Nouveau Testament - Burkina Faso/Ghana (dramatisé) – Bissa Bible
Bobo Madare le sud du Nouveau Testament – Burkina Faso/Mali (dramatisé) – Bobo Madare Southern Bible
Khmer Centrale du Nouveau Testament – Cambodia (Dramatisé) – Ancienne Version – Khmer Central Bible
Bafut du Nouveau Testament – Cameroon (Dramatisé) – Bafut Bible
Ghomala du Nouveau Testament – Cameroon (Dramatisé) – Ghomala Bible
Kwanja Du Nouveau Testament - Cameroon (Dramatisé) – Kwanja Bible
Douala du Nouveau Testament – Cameroon (dramatisé) – Douala Bible
Guiziga Sud Du Nouveau Testament – Cameroon (Dramatisé) – South Guiziga New Testament
Koonzime du Nouveau Testament – Cameroon (Dramatisé) – Koonzime Bible
Medumba du Nouveau Testament - Cameroon (dramatisé) – Medumba Bible
Mofa Du Nouveau Testament – Cameroon (Dramatisé) – Mofa Bible
Pidgin du Nouveau Testament – Cameroon (Dramatisé) – Pidgin Bible
Massana Nuevo Testamento – Cameroon/Chad (Dramatizadas) – Massana Bible
Toupouri du Nouveau Testament – Cameroon/Chad (Dramatisé) – Tupuri Bible
Bamoun du Nouveau Testament – Cameroon/Nigeria (non-dramatisé) – Bamun Bible
Mumuye New Testament – Cameroon/Nigeria (Dramatized)
Yamba du Nouveau Testament - Cameroon/Nigeria (Dramatisé) – Yamba Bible
PDV Nouveau Testament Français Parole de Vie Voix Canadiennes (dramatisé) – French Bible
Buli New Testament - Central African Republic/ both Congos/Cameroon (Dramatized)
Moundang Du Nouveau Testament - Chad/Cameroon (Dramatisé) – Moundang Bible
Chinese Cantonese Bible (Dramatized) – Chinese Union Version
Chinese Mandarin Bible (Dramatized) – Revised Chinese Union Version Bible
Chinese Mandarin Bible (Dramatized) – Chinese Union Version
Iu Mien Bible – China/Laos/Vietnam/Thailand
Guambiano del Nuevo Testamento – Colombia Dramatizadas) – Guambiano Bible
Lahu Bible – China/Thailand/Myanmar/Laos
Guayabero en el Nuevo Testamento – Colombia (Dramatizadas) – Guayabero Bible
Inga en el Nuevo Testamento - Colombia (Dramatizadas) – Inga Bible
Huitoto Minica Del Nuevo Testamento – Colombia/Peru/Brazil (Dramatizadas) – Huitoto Minica Bible
Tshiluba du Nouveau Testament – Democratic Republic of Congo-Kinshasa (Dramatisé) – Tshiluba Bible
Amharic New Testament - Ethiopia (Non-Dramatized) 1988 Common Version
Borana New Testament – Ethiopia/ Kenya (Dramatized)
Guji New Testament – Ethiopia/Kenya (Dramatized)
Oromo West Central New Testament – Ethiopia/Kenya/Somalia (Dramatized)
Fiji-Hindi New Testament (Dramatized)
Fijian New Testament (Dramatized)
Suomalainen Uuden Testamentin (ei dramatisoitu) 1938 Versio – Finnish Bible
Georgian Bible – Republic of Georgia (Dramatized)
Bimoba New Testament – Ghana (Dramatized)
Kusaal New Testament – Ghana (Dramatized)
Birifor Southern New Testament -Ghana/Burkina Faso (Dramatized)
Adele New Testament - Ghana/Togo (Dramatized)
Dangme New Testament – Ghana (Dramatized)
Ga New Testament - Ghana (Dramatized)
Gikyode New Testament – Ghana (Dramatized)
Hanga New Testament -Ghana (Dramatized)
Sehwi New Testament – Ghana (Dramatized)
Vagla New Testament – Ghana (Dramatized)
Akan Fante New Testament – Ghana/ Ivory Coast (Dramatized)
Ewe New Testament – Ghana/Togo (Dramatized)
Achi de Cubulco del Nuevo Testamento – Guatemala (Dramatizadas) – Achi de Cubulco Bible
Ixil San Juan Cotzal del Nuevo Testamento – Guatemala (Dramatizadas) – Ixil San Juan Cotzal Bible
Cakchiquel Yepocapa del Nuevo Testamento - Guatemala (Dramatizadas) – Cakchiquel Yepocapa Bible
Mam del Norte del Nuevo Testamento - Guatemala (Dramatizadas) – Mam Northern Bible
Rabinal Achi en el Nuevo Testamento – Guatemala (Dramatizadas) – Achi Rabinal Bible
Kekchi del Nuevo Testamento – Guatemala/Belize (Dramatizadas) – Kekchi Bible
Crioulo Alta Guiné Novo Testamento (Dramatizada) – Crioulo Upper Guinea Bible
Bhojpuri Bible - India/Nepal (Dramatized)
Bahasa Indonesia Terjemahan Baru Perjanjian Baru (formal) Versi (didramatisir) – Indonesian Bible
Sunda Perjanjian Baru -Indonesia (Didramatisir) Versi Sunda Formal – Sundanese Bible
Txitxopi do Novo Testamento - Indonesia (Dramatizada) – Txitxopi Bible
Hebrew New Testament Modern Hebrew Version - Israel (Dramatized)
Baoulé Nouveau Testament - Ivory Coast (non-dramatisé) – Baoule Bible
Bete Daloa du Nouveau Testament - Ivory Coast (dramatisé) – Bete Daloa Bible
Ebrié Nouveau Testament – Ivory Coast (dramatisé) – Ebire Bible
Tagbana du Nouveau Testament - Ivory Coast/Mali/Burkina Faso/Ghana (Dramatisé) – Tagbana Bible
Japan Bible (Non-Dramatized) – New Interconfessional Version
Gikuyu New Testament – Kenya (Dramatized)
Ruhaya New Testament – Kenya/Tanzania (Umetiwa Chumvi) – Ruhaya Bible
Digo New Testament – Kenya/Tanzania (Non-Dramatized)
Kikamba New Testament – Kenya/Tanzania (Dramatized)
Kalenjin New Testament – Kenya/Tanzania/Uganda (Non-Dramatized)
Maasai New Testament – Kenya/Tanzania (Dramatized) Biblia Sinyati Version
Luo New Testament - Kenya/Uganda/ Tanzania/Ethiopia/South Sudan (Dramatized)
Latvian Bible (Non-Dramatized)
Bassa New Testament - Liberia/Sierra Leone(Dramatized)
Bassa New Testament - Liberia/Sierra Leone(Dramatized)
Malgache du Nouveau Testament -Madagascar (Non-Dramatisée) Version Protestante – Malagasy Bible
Chiyao New Testament – Malawi (Dramatized)
Chitumbuka New Testament - Malawi/Zambia/Tanzania (Dramatized)
Chichewa New Testament – Malawi/Zambia/Mozambique/Zimbabwe (Non-Dramatized) 1997 Buku Loyera
Tamasheq du Nouveau Testament – Mali (Non-Dramatisée) – Tamasheq Bible
Bambara du Nouveau Testament - Mali/Burkino Faso/Senegal (dramatisé) – Bambara Bible
Chinanteco de Palantla del Nuevo Testamento – Mexico (No Dramatizada) – Chinanteco de Palantla
Huave de San Mateo del Mar del Nuevo Testamento – Mexico (Dramatizadas)
Mixe del Istmo en el Nuevo Testamento – Mexico (No Dramatizada) – Mixe del Istmo Bible
Purépecha Del Nuevo Testamento – Mexico (Dramatizadas) – Purepecha Bible
Tzeltal Bachajón del Nuevo Testamento – Mexico (Dramatizadas) – Tzeltal Bachajon Bible
Tzeltal de Oxchuc en el Nuevo Testamento - Mexico (Dramatizadas) – Tzeltal Oxchuc Bible
O’othham New Testament – Mexico/Arizona (Non-Dramatized)
Xitshwa do Novo Testamento – Mozambique (Dramatizada) – Xitshwa Bible
Navajo New Testament (Non-Dramatized)
Zarma du Nouveau Testament – Niger (Dramatisé) – Zarma Bible
Limbu New Testament – Nepal/Bhutan/India (Dramatized)
Hausa New Testament – Niger/Nigeria/Ghana/Benin/Cameroon/Ivory Coast/Sudan (Dramatized)
Kanuri Central New Testament – Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon (Dramatized)
Bura New Testament - Nigeria (Dramatized)
Ebira New Testament - Nigeria (Dramatized)
Edo New Testament – Nigeria (Dramatized)
Efik New Testament - Nigeria (Dramatized)
Gokana New Testament -Nigeria (Dramatized)
Igala New Testament - Nigeria (Dramatized)
Igbo New Testament - Nigeria (Dramatized) Union Version
Igede New Testament – Nigeria (Dramatized)
Itsekiri New Testament – Nigeria (Dramatized)
Jju New Testament – Nigeria (Dramatized)
Kalabari New Testament – Nigeria (Dramatized)
Mada New Testament – Nigeria (Dramatized)
Margi New Testament -Nigeria (Dramatized)
Urhobo New Testament - Nigeria (Dramatized)
Yoruba New Testament - Nigeria/Benin/Togo (Dramatized) 1960 Version
Mambila du Nouveau Testament – Nigeria/Cameroon (Dramatisé) – Mambila Bible
Urdu New Testament (Dramatized) for Pakistan
Ese Ejja del Nuevo Testamento – Papua New Guinea (Dramatizadas) – Ese Ejja Bible
Tok Pisin New Testament - Papua New Guinea (Dramatized)
Chamacoco del Nuevo Testamento - Paraguay (Dramatizada) – Chamacoco Bible
Guaraní de Paraguay en el Nuevo Testamento (Dramatizadas) – Guarani Paraguayan Bible
Nivaclé del Nuevo Testamento – Paraguay/Argentina (Dramatizadas) – Nivacle Bible
Quechua Ayacucho del Nuevo Testamento – Peru (Dramatizadas) – Quechua Ayacucho Bible
Quechua de Lambayeque en el Nuevo Testamento – Peru (Dramatizadas) – Quechua Lambayeque Bible
Ashaninca del Nuevo Testamento - Peru/Brazil (Dramatizadas) – Ashaninca Bible
Bora en el Nuevo Testamento – Peru/Colombia (dramatizadas) – Bora Bible
Cebuano New Testament – Philippines (Dramatized) Revised Popular Version
Hiligaynon New Testament -Philippines (Dramatized) Hiligaynon Popular Version
Koronadal Blaan New Testament – Philippines (Dramatized)
Manobo Western Bukidnon New Testament – Philippines (Dramatized)
Polsko Nowy Testament (Non-Udramatyzowana) Wersja Millennium - Polish Bible
Português Novo Testamento Tradução Interconfessional (dramatizada) – Portuguese Bible
Russian Bible (Dramatized) – Russian Asian Version
Russian Bible (Dramatized) – Holy Synod Version
Tatar Bible – Russia (Dramatized)
Saint Lucian Creole New Testament (Dramatized)
Krio New Testament – Sierra Leone (Dramatized) Good News for All Men
Themne New Testament – Sierra Leone (Dramatized)
IsiXhosa Nuwe Testament – South Africa (Gedramatiseerde) Hersiene Unie Weergawe – Isixhosa Bible
IsiZulu Nuwe Testament – South Africa (Gedramatiseer) – Isizulu Bible
Jur Modo New Testament – South Sudan (Dramatized)
Español Nuevo Testamento Nueva Versión Internacional (dramatizadas) - Spanish Bible
Samami Hindi Nieuwe Testament -Suriname (Dramatized)
Chigogo New Testament (Tanzania) Umetiwa Chumvi)
Kimashami New Testament - Tanzania (Umetiwa Chumvi) – Kimashami Bible
Thai Bible (Dramatized) – Thai Standard Version
Bassar Ntcham du Nouveau Testament - Togo/Ghana (Dramatisé) – Bassar Ntcham Bible
Moba Nouveau Testament – Togo/Ghana (Dramatisé) – Moba Bible
Kabiyè du Nouveau Testament - Togo/Benin/Ghana (Dramatisé) – Kabiye Bible
Karimojong New Testament – Uganda (Dramatized)
Luganda New Testament – Uganda (Dramatized)
Acholi New Testament - Uganda/South Sudan (Dramatized)
Wayuu en el Nuevo Testamento – Venezuela/Colombia (Dramatizadas) – Wayuu Bible
Vietnamese Bible (Dramatized) – Vietnamese Old Version
Cymraeg Testament Newydd Da Newyddion Beibl (ddramateiddio) - Welsh Bible
Chitonga New Testament – Zambia (Dramatized)
Lamba New Testament – Zambia (Dramatized)
Kaonde New Testament - Zambia/Congo-Kinshasa (Dramatized)
Lozi New Testament – Zambia/Zimbabwe/Botswana/Namibia (Dramatized)
Shona New Testament - Zimbabwe/Zambia (Non-Dramatized) Union Version
Kalanga New Testament - Zimbabwe/Botswana (Dramatized)
Didn’t find the language you were looking for? Did you notice that almost all these downloads are from Faith Comes by Hearing (Facebook)? I was astounded by what I found there: Faith Comes By Hearing offers audio Bible in 712 languages, reaching more than 5.7 billion people in more than 187 countries. And they’re working to make more available in other languages.
I went to the Select Language dropdown menu at their Free Audio Bibles page to see if I could find a couple of languages I’m interested in. I found:
- Kachin, the Burmese language into which Ola Hanson translated the Bible in the years around the turn of the 20th Century. Ola and Minnie were sent out in 1890 by !st Swedish Baptist Church (our church’s name until the mid-1940s). In the last decade, a strong connection has grown between Bethlehem Baptist and the Kachin church.
- Ngiemboon, the Cameroonian language whose Bible translation was begun by my brother-in-law in the 1970s. I was there in 2007 at the dedication of the Ngiemboon New Testament (video of music & dancing during the ceremonies). Of all the speakers during the long celebration, Steve was the only one who actually spoke in Ngiemboon. The pleasure of the people when he spoke is a testimony to the fact that nothing speaks to people like their own language, no matter how well they can speak the official language–French in that area of Cameroon.
Having always had the Bible in my own language, it’s hard to imagine what a gift that has been. But the Ngiemboon New Testament celebration gave me new eyes. After hours of French-language speeches, suddenly their own language flows into their ears. Drowsy eyes open wide and hearts open. You can watch the first couple of minutes of Steve’s address to see it in their faces.
If a foreigner’s speech does that, imagine what impact there is in reading and hearing God’s word in your own language.
It’s taken most of 2 days for me to put this list together. It’s given me great pleasure and it’s my Easter gift to you.
Would you give me a gift in return? Have you found your own heart language here or at Faith Comes by Hearing? Or what’s spoken where you live or work? Or a language that someone you know is learning or speaking where they work? In other words, have you found here a language in which you have a special interest? Your gift to me would be your comment at this post. It could be as simple as naming the language or if there’s more to tell, I would be blessed to read it.
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Tuesday, March 26th, 2013
Free mp3 of complete Bible
Faith Comes by Hearing: What a perfect name for audio albums of the Bible.
I know people who listen to the Bible when reading isn’t holding them anymore. I know people who listen while they read along. I know people who listen because they can’t see or physically can’t turn pages. I know people who listen while they drive.
Right now the Old Testament and New Testament are offered free in several versions.
English Standard Version is what we use at home and church, so I noticed that one in particular.
Some of you will be drawn by the beauty and familiarity of the words in King James Version.
All of these are dramatized, which means different voices speak for different characters of the Bible, but the words are the same words you read in your Bible. This style may not be everyone’s preference, but you might be surprised–and it doesn’t cost anything to try.
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If you decide to purchase an item here, I do appreciate it if you link through from this site or from the sidebar at my travel blog. That way, I receive a small commission, which costs you nothing extra. I recommend only items that I think will be of interest to my readers and that I probably have used personally or wish I did.
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Friday, March 22nd, 2013
Advice from Louisa May’s uncle
This advice from a father to his son away at university in the late 1800s is a worthy challenge to us all.
I hear indirectly that you’ve been called on to deliver an address or lecture or speech of some sort. Let us know all about it. The more thoughts you express, the more you will have, and there is no exercise of the mind that is so quickening and strengthening to all our mental faculties as carefully ranging and clearly expressing our thoughts on any subject worth thinking about.
I hope you, too, will take pains to acquire an excellent locution. Do learn to read well and speak well. Accustom yourself to speak extempore in common
conversation. Cultivate the habit of saying exactly what you mean to say, of using clear and appropriate language, and of finishing your sentences. A slovenly, slipshod style in conversation will be very likely to insinuate itself into one’s extempore speeches.
Samuel Joseph May, brother of Abigail May Alcott.
Taken from Marmee & Louisa: The Untold Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Mother, by Eve LaPlante
I’d say this boils down to:
- Say what you mean;
- Mean what you say;
- Say it so it can be understood;
- Say it well (complete sentences and all).
Have you received or given any similar or very different advice?
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If you decide to purchase an item here, I do appreciate it if you link through from this site or from the sidebar at my travel blog. That way, I receive a small commission, which costs you nothing extra. I recommend only items that I think will be of interest to my readers and that I probably have used personally or wish I did.
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Saturday, March 16th, 2013
Brushing up on the classics
Pop quiz!
Who was Theseus? How did the Aegean Sea get its name?
If you can’t remember, perhaps our 8-year-old grandson can remind you.
Monday, March 11th, 2013
Time travel via photos
I get a kick out of then-and-now photos–getting a glimpse into the past and discovering how different things are now, or how much the same. When I was in China this time last year, I had my eyes open for scenes that were what Esther Nelson would have recognized when she was there 1924-1951.
If you like these two pictures, hop over to Tell Me When To Pack to see more of Esther’s and my shots of China’s children then and now.
While you’re there, why don’t you go ahead and subscribe so you don’t miss other then-and-now topics I’ll be posting.
Wednesday, February 6th, 2013
Black History: Talitha’s DVD recommendations
(Originally posted 2 years ago, and worth mentioning again.)
These DVDs are recommended by our daughter Talitha off the top of her head. She wants to make clear that there are other really good movies too.
I agree with her in recommending these.
As with all movies, it would be wise for parents to preview before watching with their children, especially considering the tension, language, and frightening experiences that are part of stories from this swath of our history.
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Glory Road — Story of “the groundbreaking achievement of Don Haskins, who coached the 1965-66 team from Texas Western University to the NCAA championship, using the first-ever all-black lineup in the championship game and forever changing the rules of college basketball. Texas Western’s underdog season is followed from anxious start to glorious finish. . . . This typically wholesome Disney film doesn’t flinch from the harsh realities of racial tension (including player beatings and vandalized motel rooms) that Texas Western’s black players had to struggle against as their victories began to draw national attention” (Amazon.com review).
Selma, Lord, Selma — It’s 1965, segregation is still the order of the day in the South, Martin Luther King Jr. is leading voter-registration drives, and an Alabama schoolgirl gets caught up in the civil rights movement. . . .Being forced to guess the number of jellybeans in a jar in order to vote and being gassed and beaten for marching are just some of the indignities Sheyann and her friends endure. Parents should know that two prominent characters are murdered. . . . Appropriate for kids 7 and up with adult guidance” (Amazon.com review). Based on the memoir of the same title by Sheyann Webb.
And the Children Shall Lead — “In 1964 segregation is a reality in Catesville, Mississippi, but 12-year-old Rachel doesn’t notice it because she has many white friends. When a group of civil rights activists comes to town, the tension between black and white citizens grows. It’s now up to Rachel and her friends to persuade the adults to overcome the racial barriers that divide them” (Amazon.com review)
The Great Debaters — “Inspired by real events, The Great Debaters reveals one of the seeds of the Civil Rights Movement in its story of Melvin B. Tolson and his champion 1935 debate club from the all-African-American Wiley College in Texas. . . . The film is also about the state of race relations in America at the height of the Great Depression. With lynchings of black men and women a common form of entertainment and black subjugation for many rural whites, the idea of talented and highly intelligent African-American young people learning to think on their feet during debates would seem almost a hopeless endeavor” (Amazon.com review).
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If you decide to purchase an item here, I do appreciate it if you link through from this site or from the sidebar at my travel blog. That way, I receive a small commission, which costs you nothing extra. I recommend only items that I think will be of interest to my readers and that I probably have used personally or wish I did.
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Tuesday, February 5th, 2013
Black History: Children’s books
For Martin Luther King Day last month, Jill Swanson made the following list of relevant books she’s reviewed at Orange Marmalade, her blog that’s devoted to children’s literature–what a great resource! You can use the search box there at her website to find her posts about any of these you’re interested in.
FICTION:
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson – Betty Bao Lord
Jackie & Me — Dan Gutman
The Lions of Little Rock — Kristin Levine
One Crazy Summer — Rita Williams-Garcia
NON-FICTION:
Belle, The Last Mule at Gee’s Bend: A Civil Rights Story — Calvin Alexander Ramsey and Bettye Stroud, illus. by John Holyfield
Child of the Civil Rights Movement — Paula Young Shelton, illus. by Raul Colón
Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave — Laban Carrick Hill, illus. by Bryan Collier
Delivering Justice: W.W. Law and the Fight for Civil Rights — James Haskins, illus. by Benny Andrews
Frederick Douglass (Picture Book Biography) — David A. Adler
I Have a Dream (Book & CD) — Martin Luther King, Jr., illus. by Kadir Nelson
Ida B. Wells: Let the Truth Be Told— Walter Dean Myers, illus. by Bonnie Christensen
I’ve Seen the Promised Land: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. — Walter Dean Myers, illus. by Leonard Jenkins
Marching For Freedom: Walk Together Children and Don’t You Grow Weary— Elizabeth Partridge
Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom (Caldecott Honor Book) — Carole Boston Weatherford, illus. by Kadir NelsonA Nat
A Nation’s Hope: The Story of Boxing Legend Joe Louis — Matt de le Peña, illus. by Kadir Nelson
Our Children Can Soar: A Celebration of Rosa, Barack, and the Pioneers of Change — Michelle Cook, illus. by various artists
Rosa — Nikki Giovanni, illus. by Bryan Collier
Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down (Jane Addams Honor Book (Awards)) — Andrea Davis Pinkney, illus. by Brian Pinkney
Through My Eyes — Ruby Bridges
Unspoken: A Story From the Underground Railroad— written and illustrated by Henry Cole
The Voice That Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights — Russell Freedman
When Marian Sang:The True Recital of Marian Anderson — Pam Munoz Ryan, illus. by Brian Selznick
POETRY:
The Negro Speaks of Rivers — Langston Hughes, illus. by E.B. Lewis
Thank you, Jill!
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Sunday, February 3rd, 2013
Black History: Nightingale wasn’t the only pioneer out there
Quick! If I say, “Crimea . . . Bosporus . . . lantern . . . nurse,” who do you think of? Most of the western world would answer, “Florence Nightingale,” the pioneer nursing reformer.
Several years ago, Talitha and I turned our backs on Westminster Abbey and the Tower of Big Ben and hiked across the Westminster Bridge toward St. Thomas’ Hospital, looking for the Florence Nightingale Museum, which we finally found hidden away on a side street. St. Thomas’ was where Miss Nightingale worked for change when she returned to London from Turkey at the end of the Crimean War. (I’ve reviewed the museum at my travel blog, Tell Me When to Pack.)
As always, the last stop and climax for Talitha was the gift shop. As always, she persuaded me to buy something for her–”Just one thing? Please?”
Mary Seacole, by Albert Charles Challen
National Portrait Gallery, London
The one thing was a book on whose cover was the picture of a black woman: Wonderful Adventures of Mrs. Seacole in Many Lands, her autobiography (available in several paperback editions and free for Kindle).
I’d never heard of Mary Seacole, who traveled from her Jamaica home to London to volunteer as a nurse for the Crimea. She was rejected, and so went to the Crimea at her own expense to labor for the war wounded and ill.
It seems common to think of Seacole and Nightingale as rivals, but as one writer says:
The manner of their service was drastically different. Even before she went to the Crimea, Nightingale knew that surmounting the bureaucratic problems of the army’s medical services and establishing a female nursing group which authorities and medical men
alike could respect was going to be more
important than any individual patient care she might do. Nightingale gained her reputation by the organization of nursing services during the Crimean War. . . .Mrs. Seacole’s strength seemed to be more in hands-on activities such as direct patient care. She was an entrepreneur who was able to use her skills as a merchant to finance her medical and nursing practice. It is probably true that Mrs. Seacole had more practical experience, especially with tropical diseases. However, both administrative and hands-on care are necessary for the effective delivery of health care. Both women made a great contribution to the history of nursing in their own way and, hopefully, there is room for both of them. . . .
Mary Grant Seacole rose about the barriers of racial prejudice and demonstrated determinism, compassion, and caring and is a fitting role model for both blacks and non-blacks. There is much to admire in both of these women who had different roles in nursing but the same goal. Although forgotten for many years, Mrs. Seacole has been rediscovered.
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If you decide to purchase an item here, I do appreciate it if you link through from this site or from the sidebar at my travel blog. That way, I receive a small commission, which costs you nothing extra. I recommend only items that I think will be of interest to my readers and that I probably have used personally or wish I did.
__________
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