The Warren & The World Vol 13, Issue 35

ByCarolyn Clare Givens

My cat is scared of cockroaches—he literally jumps and runs away most of the time. But last night, Lord Peter Wimsey’s ancient hunting instincts (long-dormant) awoke, and he cornered one. Lord Peter firmly believes all killing or removal of critters should be my jurisdiction. His responsibilities end at cornering. So he cornered it. 

Then it ran up a wall, and I had too lightweight a shoe to squish it properly, and I missed it on the second hit after it fell off the wall, and it ran under a door into the front closet, and now I must fumigate my whole house (kidding…I’ll find it again someday…).

Around the Web

When a Holding Pattern Is Your Homework Assignment

Laura Patterson reminds us that God works in the waiting.

  • Three years ago, I found myself in a holding pattern over the city of Nashville. Only minutes after the pilot instructed the cabin and crew to prepare for descent, the plan seemed to change. I realized over the next 30 minutes, with no announcement from the cockpit, that we were not landing after all. Instead, we were circling the Nashville airport in a racetrack pattern, suspended at 30,000 feet.
    For someone with anxious tendencies, combined with the fact that I was traveling alone, I began to feel unsettled. I focused on deep breathing and tried to distract myself. But I knew something was wrong—why weren’t we landing at our intended destination?
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Building a Bandersnatch

Happy 5th Anniversary to our friends at Bandersnatch Books! Annie Beth Donahue tells the origin story that has led to 25 titles (we’re reviewing their new release from Glenn McCarty, The Song of the Stone Tiger, next Wednesday!), a podcast, and many new friendships!

  • If you didn’t know, Bandersnatch Books was founded on September 19, 2020. And I assume you didn’t know, exactly. But I do know, exactly, because I have it engraved on a wooden cheese board. So do Carrie and Rachel.
    Since that time, we’ve published 25 absolute treasures, we’ve worked with over 25 authors and illustrators, not including ourselves, and we’ve been represented in over a dozen bookstores and conferences. All in our not-so-spare time.
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Books celebrating colors

The team at Read, Discuss, Do have a colorful booklist to celebrate fall!

  • It’s September, and for those of us in the northern hemisphere, that means fall is quickly approaching. It’s a time for back-to-school, cooling temperatures, and days growing shorter. It’s also a colorful time as autumn flowers bloom and the leaves on trees begin to change. 
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*The Peddler and the President by Ann D. Koffsky

Janie at Redeemed Reader points us to another chapter book.

  • Through the lens of a lifelong friendship, The Peddler and the President makes the fraught history of modern Israel accessible to chapter-book readers.
    Read more

Around the Warren

The Virtue of Unread Books

Scott James reminds us that bookshelves should be filled—not only with the books we’ve read.

  • My oldest son stood spellbound in front of shelves that must have seemed endlessly high and wide from his small vantage. The Study was a familiar room to him, one he often requisitioned for all manner of creative projects and mischief. The surrounding mass of books had been nothing more than background scenery. I’m not sure what triggered it, but today he took them all in spine by spine.
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Feeding Yourself When Life is Groundhog Day

Jessica Burke has a word of encouragement for those days that all feel the same.

  • “My life is Groundhog Day. Every day is exactly the same.” Her baby crawled around her feet as her toddler played close by. I remember those days when all my children were young, and it felt like all I could report about each day was feeding my children and changing their diapers. Nap time and bedtime needed to be routine, meaning we were tethered to the house every day at the same times. We went on a daily walk, but even that followed the same route at the same time every day. The days were often long, indeed, and the memory of one was blurred into the memory of many others. 
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A Time to Recalibrate

Zach Franzen reminds us to take the time to recalibrate when the world keeps throwing hard things our way. (and we get an update on the progress of Green Ember: Helmer in the Dragon Tomb!

  • Human beings don’t run on autopilot. We catch the vibrations of the world around us. These last few weeks have been pretty sad. We’ve seen evil acts and celebrations, and if you’re like me, you’re refocusing on fundamentals. The Christian pushback to fear should really have the character of courageous, loving prudence (2 Timothy 1:7). When the darkness of our day asserts itself, we can fight it in big ways and small. Maybe children’s books and illustrations, maybe games, mowing the lawn, celebrating your neighbor’s birthday, or simply speaking the truth in love. It’s a good time to recalibrate.
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Something to Do with Your Kids

Planning your fall and want some fun family activities? Here’s a fall bucket list to start your planning!

Something to Watch

You may have seen Michael McIntyre’s hilarious silent letter day bit, and wondered, why do we have all those silent letters? RobWords is here to tell you.

Thanks for reading. We’re on your side. 

–The Story Warren Team

Carolyn Clare Givens
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