Let Me Hold You Longer

This beautiful book by Karen Kingsbury is just what I needed to read tonight. Both of my dear children are out of the house right now: one is on a double date; the other is at work. But very soon they'll both be home with their best girl-friend, D, for a sleep-over. I jokingly call D, my third daughter. When my three very dear young ladies return tonight, I want to be sure to share this extra-special book with them. Check it out. Then curl up and read "Let Me Hold You Longer" with the little person(s) you most like to hold.

God bless you!

Our Judeo-Christian Nation

Medieval Technical Support

I knew there had to be someone who helped them out -- back then -- when they encountered informational technical difficulties, I just didn't know their IT support was so responsive, thorough and friendly as ours is today. ☺

Margaret Sanger and the Birth Control Movement in America

While I’m no author, I would think a really good biography¹—one that does justice to the life of its subject—would be one of the hardest of books to write. If such is the case, then a biography about someone who’s devoted his or her life to a controversial cause, such as Margaret Sanger did with birth control must be the toughest nut to crack. In Woman of Valor: Margaret Sanger and the Birth Control Movement in America, Ellen Chesler undertook a difficult task and executed it well. She managed to walk the camera of her author’s eye all the way around the complex character of the poor Irish-American girl baptized Catholic who grew up to hate that same church so much she threatened to leave the country if John F. Kennedy were elected President, nevertheless a hallow threat from a dying old woman. While Chesler’s portrayal is no doubt sympathic, it is not unduly so; she is willing to look at the world from Sanger’s perspective—who would trust a biographer unwilling to do at least that much—yet she also feels no compunction about pointing out Sanger’s character flaws, contradictions, and many detractors.

As a biographer, Chesler covers the main events of Sanger’s life from birth to death without going into tabloid details, a point which I appreciated very much. Perhaps this could be ascribed as an effort to improve the image of her subject; I prefer to believe it is an indication of the author’s tact, class and integrity. Regardless of what one thinks of another person’s politics or religious views, it still isn’t necessary to drag up endless details of dead affairs. Sanger was no saint, which goes without saying; more than that isn’t relevant.

In fact, it often seemed this biography was as much about the history of birth control in America as it was the story of a woman’s life. Before Sanger took on ‘the cause’ which came to be associated with her name almost as Freud’s is with Psychoanalysis, ‘The Comstock Law of 1873 made it a crime to sell or distribute materials that could be used for contraception’.

‘Birth control’ or ‘family planning’, as it later came to be called much to Sanger’s horror² is an incredibly complex topic. I read this book to gain a greater understanding of the history behind it. Taken in conjunction with abortion, it is probably the most multi-faceted issue facing our country today—and the least understood. Besides the obvious male—female aspect, there are also the following polar perspectives: married—single; law—justice; wealthy—poor; truth—lie; society—individual; freedom—responsibility; young—old; life—death; government—taxpayer; government—citizen; government—family; religious believer—non-believer; God—human. These are not in any particular order, nor is the list complete. In various ways throughout the book, Chesler shows how Sanger encountered and dealt with the factional partisan nature of her chosen vocation.

While not comprehensive by any means, I do recommend this biography as an introduction to the person and the topic. It does not include any of Sanger’s writings, yet I do believe anyone just reading what the crusader wrote without knowing the background context of her life would do themselves as much a disservice as they would Sanger; she was often battling specific individuals, groups, political parties and governments. Whether or not you agree with her position—and I obviously don’t—it becomes all the more critical in a situation such as this, not to come into the middle of a conversation you don’t understand. I have already forgotten more than I ever dreamed I didn’t know about the history of the birth control movement in our country early last century—and I finished the book just a few weeks ago. Anyone reading this review in a few months, or more, shouldn't bother to ask me any questions of detail. The book is chock full of facts and figures, whereas my head is sieve for that type of information.

But if you want to learn about Margaret Sanger and her role in the birth control cause, read Chesler’s book and . . . don’t stop there!

That concludes my 'official' review of this book which I was planning to post today, the Feast of Pentecost, birthday of the Church and conclusion of the Easter Season. It seemed auspicious to remind those who profess to believe in the One, True God that our work here on earth is far from over. However, as I have just learned of this morning's murder of George Tiller, late-term abortionist, it also seems especially telling that issues Sanger battled all her life are as relevant today as they ever were...and just as controversial.


¹ This book is at least three times as thick as The Margaret Sanger Story: and the Fight for Birth Control so I thought I'd just skim this, but after reading the Introduction, I came to believe this was the more accurate of the two available biographies. In her Introduction, Chesler lists, compares and contrasts all of the biographies written about Sanger, including two autobiographies from the 30s. Although writing for a series called "Woman of Valor" Chesler does not seem bound to paint some idealized picture of Sanger; she is willing to show her subject's strengths and weaknesses. Interestingly, Margaret doesn't always compare favorably, even with her lesser known siblings. However, I believe this biography still falls far short of Margaret Sanger's Eugenic Legacy which I hope to read very soon.

² If I understood her correctly, M.S. envisioned the movement in the hands of idealistic and strong-minded women (such as herself) dedicating their lives to teaching other women how to control their fertility. In the 1950’s when the leadership passed into the hands of men who reorganized and renamed the Birth Control Federation of America, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Margaret saw this as a failure of nerve, a step backward. In fact it was a savvy political decision based on the times made by those who were actually trying to help her ‘cause’.


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Literary Blog Award

Thanks to my friend, Harvee Lau over at Book Bird Dog, for yet another cool blogging award! This one is for something which seems to really fit in line with the okie-booklady mission, i.e., reading! ☺ ☺ ☺

The Literary Blogger Award acknowledges bloggers who energize and inspire reading by going the extra mile! These amazing bloggers make reading fun, and enhance the delight of reading! I'm passing on the award to:

Suzanne at Come to See
Michael at Reach Paradise
Enbrethiliel at Sancta Sanctis
Marie at Naru Hodo
Pete at The Food Which Endures
Ladystorm at Mystery, Suspense, and God, Oh My!
Marianne at Saint Benedict Academy

Thanks to all of you for being such great blogging friends!

God bless you and yours,

Innocent Traitor

Lady Jane Grey, the grand niece of Henry VIII, and queen of England for just over a week in 1553 is the subject of Innocent Traitor, Alison Weir’s first work of historical fiction. With over ten works of history to her credit, Weir is one of my favorite British Renaissance and Reformation historians mostly because she presents the Catholic and Protestant theological differences of the era in an impartial manner without resorting to inflammatory or stereotypical rhetoric.

Innocent Traitor is a very ‘good read’. It presents the story of the young Jane’s life from the perspectives of those closest to her, through the major, known events of her all too short life. The few historical ‘facts’ I’ve checked out all did—as if I had any doubt. I really knew they would, mostly I was just curious on one or two points. If Innocent Traitor has any weakness, it would be in the beginning where it seemed/sounded like all the characters spoke with the same voice. I didn’t notice this as much later on in the story, so I don’t know if I got to know the different characters, if I just became so engrossed in the story I stopped paying attention or if in fact the characterizations did get better. In the beginning, it especially bothered me that Jane sounded like an adult at three and five.

That criticism aside it’s a very absorbing read. Why anyone would have wanted to be a monarch back in those days is beyond me. And yet so many did—and paid the ultimate price for their ambition. Poor Jane only wanted a quiet life with her books and look what she got?! After the Reformation equivalent to a Dickensian childhood, she became the pawn of her parents and the Duke of Northumberland, was given in marriage to an abusive husband, maneuvered into a crown she didn’t want, lost it, abandoned by everyone, thrown into prison and finally—thanks to her father’s second treachery against the Crown—Jane received the verdict of treason and was executed.

There were some speculative additions to fill in parts of history which remain unknown, and yet Weir's choices are still probable. Recommended.

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Pied Piper of Atheism

If you want to understand why your children (grandchildren or any young people you really care about) should not be reading His Dark Materials, read Pete Vere and Sandra Miesel's book, Pied Piper of Atheism. It consists of two essays which give a brief back ground of Philip Pullman, the author/creator of the series; summarize the series and critique its many pitfalls for young readers.

For starters, there's Pullman himself, as volatile as an Oklahoma firestorm, and just as likely to change directions. Numerous examples are given of his conflicting statements, retractions, inconsistencies and contradictory claims; they are too numerous and unbelievable to begin to list or go into here, so I’ll just mention one. He accuses C. S. ‘Lewis – who he hates with a vengeance – “of a sadomasochistic relish for violence”. Yet his own novels offer gore far more graphic than anything in Narnia. Pullman sees no reason to shield young readers from…murder, suicide, mutilation, torture, euthanasia, and cannibalism. Iorek the polar bear eats his fallen rival’s heart and his best friend Lee’s corpse.’ (page 88) Both essays offer enough other disturbing examples of excessive savagery from the Dark Materials Trilogy to make Narnia seem as tranquil as a sleeping baby by comparison.

As for Pullman’s irrational hatred of Lewis -- and J. R. R. Tolkien -- 'So deep is Pullman's aversion to Lewis that he marked the hundredth anniversary of Lewis’ birth in 1998 by viciously denouncing the man and his work in Britain’s premier leftist newspaper, the Guardian. … His hottest wrath is directed at the Narnia series, “one of the most ugly and poisonous things I’ve ever read”.’

Speaking about his contemporary competition, Pullman is quite thrilled by the heavy artillery Christian critics have trained on J. K. Rowling. This amused him. “Harry Potter’s been taking all the flak”, he told the Sydney Morning Herald in 2003. “Meanwhile, I’ve been flying under the radar, saying things that are far more subversive than anything poor old Harry has said. My books are about killing God.” (page 89)

Miesel's essay does an excellent job explaining the difference between the so-called magic in the Harry Potter series which is really natural, inborn ability, not Gnostic “secret wisdom” as it is the Pullman series. Rowling’s spells invoke no gods or demons, and consists of an alternate form of technology. Pullman’s Arctic witches are pagan, sexually permissive and embody modern Wiccan divination. Neopagan ceremonies, child sacrifice, adultery, church trashing and moral relativism are the stuff of the alternate world Pullman has created. Even the so-called god he claims to have killed is a tired old man and certainly not the One True God at all, for all the author’s wasted imaginative efforts and talent.

If the violence, atheism and occultism isn’t enough to concern you, then be assured there’s also plenty of ambivalent sexuality, both overt and covert to fill any child’s mind with confusion. Every person in Pullman’s world possesses what is known as an external daemon—part soul, part conscience, part personality—which assumes the form of an animal. In all but a few cases, the daemon is of the opposite sex, a point which Pullman draws attention to and uses to create/raise gender identity questions totally inappropriate for young readers.

Parents are most strongly urged to boycott this series. For further information, do read Pied Piper of Athiesm. There is a very small amount of overlap in the two essays but they are in no way redundant. This book is quick read and comes most highly recommended!

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