Peony by Pearl S. Buck

I find myself discussing this book with others, even after all these years.

Buck is a masterful storyteller. The book is rather small -- no long, drawn-out story, but it communicates the story well, with a beautiful sort of grace.

I felt I understood the culture better, and the characters were very real to me. Their story was touching. The ending, which is the type which normally would leave me feeling dissatisfied, did not. It's not the perfectly happy, romantical type ending, which I normally like, but instead it shows that even when the fairy tale does NOT come true, life can be blessed and well worth living.

My children will read this one for sure.

Wings of Desire (1988) VHS ~ Bruno Ganz

I don't even know how to review this one, but I really feel I ought to make the attempt. This is the most incredibly spiritual, uplifting movie I have ever seen. After 10 years, it is still fresh in my mind.

The spiritual messages in this movie are told beautifully, in poetic form. The questions I had while watching this are of the magnitude of -- not "why am I here" but "why did I decide to come to be here". Not "why does God allow people to experience pain at times" but "why did I decide to experience life".

My review cannot possibly do justice to this movie. I have never experienced a more spiritual work of art in my entire life than watching this film.

It's utterly beautiful, and I would love more than anything to be able to tell Mr. Wenders, "Thank you. I got it." This movie is a gift to us, and I would encourage everybody to avail themselves of it!

No, David! (Caldecott Honor Book) by David Shannon

My mother in law sent this book to my husband (David) for his birthday. She said he mut have heard her say "No, David" a million times during his childhood and she thought the story was cute. My husband loved receiving this gift from her.

My own kids really enjoy this story, too. Even the older ones like to read it to their younger siblings.

The little boy in the story does all sorts of things he shouldn't do and gets into all sorts of trouble, but the ending is very sweet.