Bennett's Book Nook
Liza Reyes 2A // The Summer My Life Began
alt_nation:
DOWN in the DUMPS:
Instead of caring about her family and her granddaughter's well being and their dreams, grandmother only cares for herself and keeping a clean reputation.
fab five's fav's:
"In front of us, the ocean stretched for eternity. Around us, reggae music floated through the air. In our drying clothes and still-damp hair, we ate junk food and talked." - This quote makes me think of the time I went to the Cayman Islands with my best friend. It reminds me of the many times we sneaked out of our hotel room at 3 am and we'd get junk food from the vending machines down the hall, then we'd make our way down to the beach to watch the sun rise.
"You need to e-mail, text, call, send smoke signals--whatever--and tell me everything you're doing" - This is how my best friend and I act when one of us leaves to go somewhere out of state, although we usually try travel together because we act like this when we are apart for a day. Like Em and Gwenny, we are just as close as they are.
“We drove under the beautiful archway of bright red flowers growing on thick green vines that I had seen on the Pepper House’s website. We circled around a stone fountain with four carved goats spouting water from their mouths. Cade stopped the van in front of a Mediterranean-style whitewashed stone house covered in more beautiful red flowers. He turned the key and silence filled the cab. “Here we are,” he said, flinging open his door and getting out of the van. I sat for a moment and smiled. Here I am.” - This is one of my favorite parts of the book, when she finally arrives at OBX to finally enjoy herself and soak up the sun for what she thinks is two months but later we find out that she stays longer.
"We picked up shells, laughed, and talked. Before I knew it, the sun was going down.." - This part reminds me of the first time I went on a date to the beach, we just walked on the sand and talked till it was dark out; it was a bit cheesy but it was nice.
"Free spirited, blond, skinny, full of personality, laid back, easy to get along with, and got great grades without opening a single book. I had every right to be jealous of her, but had never once been." - This quote perfectly describes my best friend, she is a wonderful, smart, and talented person, she is like my sister.
face to face:
- How did you feel when Elizabeth found out that Tilly was her birth mother? (question for grandmother) Reply: I knew she'd find out the truth when she got sent away, it was bound to happen sooner or later. I felt relieved and angry when I found out that Elizabeth Margaret knew because I didn't want her to have this life, I wanted her to be a lawyer, not some stupid chef where she won't make half the money she can as a lawyer.
- Do you think Elizabeth made the right career decision to become a chef rather than a lawyer? (question for uncle) Reply: I was a bit disappointed because I went through a lot of trouble to get her an internship at my law firm, but if that's what makes Elizabeth happy then it makes me happy.
- Are you disappointed that Elizabeth stayed in the Outer Banks and left you behind? (question for Gwenny) Reply: No of course not, Em has had a lot on her plate, she deserved to get away from here, she has worked her butt off to make straight A's, she needed a break.
- Do you have any regrets with all the hard decisions you've had to make over the summer? (question for Elizabeth/Em) Reply: No, not at all, it got me to where I am today. I got my family back and that's all that really matters to me.
- Do you miss living with your aunt and uncle? (question for Elizabeth/Em) Reply: I never liked living under all of their rules, I felt like a prisoner; but I do love them and miss them since they practically raised me, they will always be a big part of my life.
- What did you think about Elizabeth when you first met her? (question for Cade) Reply: When I first met Elizabeth I thought she was a beautiful, rich, stuck up, snobby girl, but now she means everything to me, she is the love of my life.
- Do you thing Elizabeth will be a professional chef? (question for domino) Reply: Of course she will, that girl is truly talented! She's shown me her cookbook and her ideas are so unique and wonderful, I believe she will make a great chef!
- How did you feel when Elizabeth found out you were her biological mother? (question for mom/Tilly) Reply: I felt like I didn't have to hide anymore, but I also felt heartbroken that she just now found out after years. I wanted her to know, I sent letters but my sister and my mother hid them from her since they didn't like the way I lived. Now everything is good, the whole family is back together, and everyone is talking to each other.
- How do you feel about having both of your families come together? (question for Elizabeth/Em) Reply: I feel so happy to have the whole family back together to share all the laughs and love with. I feel as if everything has fallen into place, this is where I belong. For the longest time I have felt so lost like I didn't belong, now I have a place to call home.
- What does the future hold for you? (question for Elizabeth/Em) Reply: Well I am going to study to become a chef in Italy in the fall, and settle down there for a while with Cade when he finishes his art work back home. I will visit my family for the holidays with Cade and stuff like that, but I am not really sure what else life is going to throw at me, who knows where I'll end up.
best seller/discount shelf:
"b" sides/import:
http://www.confessionsofabookaddict.com/2012/05/book-review-summer-my-life-began-by.html
Video: http://shannongreenland.com/my-books/books/
Setting: Bed & Breakfast in the Outer Banks (OBX), North Carolina.
book quotes:
- “Americans should never forget that the founders of this country, like all who have served her in uniform, were willing to die defending everything its flag represents. It's so easy to get lost in the controversies that divide us. But I believe, no matter what our race, religion, or beliefs may be, that Americans should be able to come together to keep our country rooted in what made it great: a land of opportunity, a place where people can make something of themselves, limited only by their imaginations and willingness to work hard; a country where we can all come together, whatever our differences, for the greater good; a country of hands up, not handouts, where we try to live by the meaning of the words "Love thy neighbor," and put as much effort into helping others as we do helping ourselves. By doing those things, we can continue to live up to the idea of "One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” -
- “Fear is a force that sharpens your senses. Being afraid is a state of paralysis in which you can’t do anything.” - Being afraid is something the eats at you, it gives you fear of doing of what is possible; nothing is really impossible unless you make it that way with your fear/fears.
- “Don’t let your thoughts run away with you, don’t start planning to bail out because you’re worried about the future and how much you can take. Don’t look ahead to the pain. Just get through the day,” - Just when you're about to give up, there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. It's better to try than to give up and not try at all.
- “In the military, if we don't know something, we say we don't know and proceed to shut up until we do. Some highly paid charlatans in the media think it's absolutely fine to take a wild guess at the truth and then tell a couple of million people it's cast-iron fact, just in case they might be right...I hope they're proud of themselves, because they nearly broke my mom's heart.... ” -
- “These men of the special forces have had other optinos in their lives, other paths, easier paths they could have taken. But they took the hardest path, that narrow causeway that is not for the sunshine patriot. They took the one for the supreme patriot, the one that may require them to lay down their lives for the United States of America. The one that is suitable only for those who want to serve their country so bad, nothing else matters. That's probably not fashionable in our celebrity-obsessed modern world. But special forces guys don't give a damn about that either.....They are of course aware of a higher calling, because they are sworn to defend this country and to fight its battles.” - One of my favorite quotes in this book, because people don't know the sacrifices that the military makes to protect their country and the one's they love.
- “...these are the problems of the modern U.S. combat soldier, the constant worry about overstepping the mark and an American media that delights in trying to knock us down. Which we have done nothing to deserve. Except, perhaps, love our country and everything it stands for.”
- "We train for war and fight to win."
“The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him. —G. K. CHESTERTON”
“And if the liberal media and political community cannot accept that sometimes the wrong people get killed in war, then I can only suggest they first grow up and then serve a short stint up in the Hindu Kush.”
“If the public insists it has the right to know, which I very much doubt, perhaps the people should go and face for themselves armed terrorists hell-bent on killing every single American they can.”
“Don’t let your thoughts run away with you, don’t start planning to bail out because you’re worried about the future and how much you can take. Don’t look ahead to the pain. Just get through the day,”
“God will give me justice.”
“I looked Mikey right in the eye, and I said, “We gotta let ’em go.” It was the stupidest, most southern-fried, lamebrained decision I ever made in my life. I must have been out of my mind. I had actually cast a vote which I knew could sign our death warrant. I’d turned into a fucking liberal, a half-assed, no-logic nitwit, all heart, no brain, and the judgment of a jackrabbit.”
“We train for war and fight to win. I stand ready to bring the full spectrum of combat power to bear in order to achieve my mission and the goals established by my country. The execution of my duties will be swift and violent when required, yet guided by the very principles I serve to defend.”
“Honor, Courage, Commitment, the motto of the United States Navy,”
“There’s nothing heroic about suicide bombers. They’re mostly just dumb, brainwashed kids, stoned out of their minds.”
“I’m trained in weapons, demolition, and unarmed combat. I’m a sniper, and I’m the platoon medic. But most of all, I’m an American.”
“Look at me, right now in my story. Helpless, tortured, shot, blown up, my best buddies all dead, and all because we were afraid of the liberals back home, afraid to do what was necessary to save our own lives. Afraid of American civilian lawyers. I have only one piece of advice for what it’s worth: if you don’t want to get into a war where things go wrong, where the wrong people sometimes get killed, where innocent people sometimes have to die, then stay the hell out of it in the first place.”
“And a short nod of respect is in order, because it’s harder to become a Navy SEAL than it is to get into Harvard Law School. Different, but harder.”
“One day I’m not gonna be here. Then it’s gonna be you two, by yourselves, and I want you to understand how rough and unfair this world is. I want you both prepared for whatever the hell might come your way.”
“It’s unbelievable what you can do when the threat to your own life is that bad.”
top ten list:
- “Americans should never forget that the founders of this country, like all who have served her in uniform, were willing to die defending everything its flag represents. It's so easy to get lost in the controversies that divide us. But I believe, no matter what our race, religion, or beliefs may be, that Americans should be able to come together to keep our country rooted in what made it great: a land of opportunity, a place where people can make something of themselves, limited only by their imaginations and willingness to work hard; a country where we can all come together, whatever our differences, for the greater good; a country of hands up, not handouts, where we try to live by the meaning of the words "Love thy neighbor," and put as much effort into helping others as we do helping ourselves. By doing those things, we can continue to live up to the idea of "One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
- “Fear is a force that sharpens your senses. Being afraid is a state of paralysis in which you can’t do anything.” - Being afraid is something the eats at you, it gives you fear of doing of what is possible; nothing is really impossible unless you make it that way with your fear/fears.
- “Don’t let your thoughts run away with you, don’t start planning to bail out because you’re worried about the future and how much you can take. Don’t look ahead to the pain. Just get through the day,” - Just when you're about to give up, there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. It's better to try than to give up and not try at all.
- “These men of the special forces have had other optinos in their lives, other paths, easier paths they could have taken. But they took the hardest path, that narrow causeway that is not for the sunshine patriot. They took the one for the supreme patriot, the one that may require them to lay down their lives for the United States of America. The one that is suitable only for those who want to serve their country so bad, nothing else matters. That's probably not fashionable in our celebrity-obsessed modern world. But special forces guys don't give a damn about that either.....They are of course aware of a higher calling, because they are sworn to defend this country and to fight its battles.” - One of my favorite quotes in this book, because people don't know the sacrifices that the military makes to protect their country and the one's they love.
- “In the military, if we don't know something, we say we don't know and proceed to shut up until we do. Some highly paid charlatans in the media think it's absolutely fine to take a wild guess at the truth and then tell a couple of million people it's cast-iron fact, just in case they might be right...I hope they're proud of themselves, because they nearly broke my mom's heart.... ”
thematically speaking:
best seller/discount shelf:
Navy Seal Team 10
Operation Red Wings (June 28, 2005) takes place East of Asadabad in the Hindu Kush of Afghanistan; 19 lives were lost.