Follow Friday

It's time for the weekly hop. If you wanna join the fun, visit Parajunkee's View for the link.

Q: What is your biggest pet peeve when it comes to books? Maybe you don’t like love triangles or thin plots? Tell us about it!

A. I hate it when the story has too many unnecessary characters well unless it's a book series. I remember reading one book with more than 10 characters on it and I was so irritated I kept on flipping the pages back and forth because I can't keep track most of the characters. 

I also do not like a book where there are long narrative paragraphs with very little dialogue.  I want more character dialogues than just the author narrating the story for the readers.     

Children's Book Review: The True Adventures of Tip the Catahoula-Leopard Cowdog by Barbara Gourley

The True Adventures of Tip the Catahoula-Leopard Cowdog


Author:  Barbara Gourley
Paperback: 28 pages
Publisher: AuthorHouse Publishing (August 9, 2011)
Amazon Link


Note: I received this book free from the publisher. The review posted below is based on my personal thoughts while reading the book.


Ratings:


★ ★ ★ ★


My thoughts:


I love to read children's book at night, a wonderful way to bond with my children (a boy - five and a girl - two). Since reading Tip's story to them, they keep asking me to get them dogs. Wish I could give in to their request but I think they're too young to have dogs. We just added two hamsters to our family hoping I could delay getting them dogs.


After reading this the first time to my kids, I can tell that they instantly loved the book as they had a lot of questions. I have read tons of children's books to them and I can tell if they didn't enjoy a certain book. If they sleep immediately without asking questions, that means they didn't like the story. The only problem I had with this book was that I think the illustrations are not enough for my kids, you know at their age, they're still into pictures. Other than that, the book's great to buy this Christmas.  


About the book:


My story about Tip attempts to convey to the readers about how the love of a dog can be so entertaining. Watching him provided a distraction from the seriousness of my husband's illness and sitting with him watching TV gave me the opportunity to spend time writing about Tip as he went about his merry way. I've never attempted to write a book, but when Tip came into my life it was as if I could read his thoughts. He was so hilarious. There were always new trials and tribulations to deal with as he was growing into a mature cowdog. This is Tip's life from my point of view, one crisis after another.


About the author:


I've been a Texan all my life, born and reared in Llano, Texas. My high school sweetheart, Gerald Ratliff and I were married for 46 years. We have two sons, Tim and Troy. My husband loved ranching. That was how I learned just a little bit about ranching. A friend gave my husband a pup, much to my chagrin, but he soon captured my heart with his funny antics that gave us something to laugh about. I now enjoy a very happy and peaceful life of retirement on a ranch near Blanco, Texas with my husband, Norm Gourley. Blanco is a small town of about 1500 residents just 50 miles north of San Antonio. The Blanco River meanders its way through the middle of town. Recently, the courthouse scenes from the movie remake of True Grit were filmed in the historical Blanco courthouse in the middle of the town square. During that week there was quite a lot of excitement in our sleepy little town as sitings of the movie stars were being reported and some local residents had small parts in the movie. It is my hope you will be entertained by my depiction of Tip, The Catahoula-Leopard cowdog as much as I was by his actions at a time when he brought joy into our lives.

Guest Author: Michael Byrd

A Caregiver’s Christmas Carol


For so many caregivers, our favorite Christmas traditions have been set aside. The holiday can seem like just another day of hardship and struggle as we press on with our toils. Like Bob Cratchit in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, we slave along each day to the thankless task master of Dementia Scrooge. No matter what we do, it seems never enough, and how dare we ask anything for ourselves? Cherished elements of our personal life are slowly consumed by Scrooge’s demands until even the Tiny Tim of hope faces death. 


We, like Ebenezer, are all presented with the same choice, though our circumstances may vary. We can plod on, closed to the joys of life as we let it slip by, or we can grasp life anew and enjoy the time we have remaining. Our struggle is to reclaim the hope and joy of Christmas, this, and every year, no matter what Dementia Scrooge may do. 

This Christmas, Go back with Christmas Past and have fun with it again. If our loved ones remember stringing popcorn as Christmas tree decorations, and they are still able to do it, then why not enjoy the time and memories together? What brought you joy as a child at Christmas? Why not try those now? Knowing that a loved one’s long term memory is far better than his or her short term memory, ask about their favorite Christmas traditions. This may be a surprising journey. Stories we’ve never heard will surface, and their joy will be contagious as we embrace much of their hidden past in new family traditions. 

Doing this will not only provide happy nostalgia for you as new pictures are taken, but it may make your loved one with dementia even more comfortable as older memories are often easier to grasp. What Christmas cookies did you each enjoy as a child? What were your favorite Bing Crosby tunes? Get a copy of Burl Ives’ “Holy Jolly Christmas,” and watch the memories return with your loved one. Don’t focus on doing many things; focus on doing a few things throughout each day that you truly enjoy. Because those with Alzheimer’s often live more comfortably in the past, embrace that rather than being irritated by it. You can both enjoy some times gone by.


This Christmas, hear the words of a healthy Tiny Tim: God bless us, every one.