recommended reading

I finished a YA (young adult) novel today that was a pretty interesting read: Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer. The premise is that an asteroid crashed into the moon, knocking it closer to earth and messing up life as they knew it. Possible? Maybe. What happens next is massive tsunamis wipe out New York, Miami, San Francisco. Electricity goes on the fritz. Cell phones quit working. Gas climbs to $8/gallon over night. Massive runs on stores. Volcanos start erupting covering the sky with ash. etc. etc.

The book is written as a diary of a 16 year old girl who suddenly is thrust into survival mode because everything is going wrong with the world. Because of some quick thinking by her mom, they have lots of food in storage and a managable rationing plan for their family of 4. But they still face flu epidemics, looters, no electricity, death on all sides,

The ideas got me thinking about what it would take to survive if something weird were to happen. Being prepared obviously makes a huge difference when faced with shortages of everything and shipping is no longer a viable option.

The books is 337 pages but easy reading.

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Along these lines of survival is another book that this one ties in with: Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank. I read this in high school and it had a huge impact on me. It's about a massive worldwide nuclear war that destroys most of America but there is a little pocket of survivors in Central Florida (yes, that's one reason I read it as a high schooler in Orlando). The book addresses organizing new government, facing iodine deficiencies, being creative and brave and yet leaving yourself open to the possibilities of hope in the future.

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Change of topic-- another book I really like is Common Sense by Glenn Beck. It's a pretty quick read but a disturbing/frustrating read, as well. Glenn brings up points that highlight a lack of common sense in Washington. What I really like about it is that he quotes from George Washington and other founding fathers to emphasize points he makes and he bring up his religious beliefs (he is LDS) as points of fact.

"Our Founding Fathers understood that our rights and liberties are gifts from God. They also understood that WE are an intuitive people. If all of that is true, then it only makes sense that He would alert us to our impending loss. And now He is-- shame on us for ignoring Him for so long" (p. 9)