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Book reviews for "U'Ren-Stubbings,_Hilda" sorted by average review score:

The Borrowed House
Published in Hardcover by Farrar Straus & Giroux (1975)
Author: Hilda Van Stockum
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A Semi-Intriguing Holocaust Story
This was another mediocre book about the holocaust. One thing that made it stand out however, was that is was largely narrated by a young German girl (living in Germany during WWII). About midway through the book, the young girl finds out that their housekeeper has been hiding Jews in their house. The girl gets to know the Jews, and by the end of the book begins to realize the cruelty that Jews are being subjected to.

Although this book was ok, it was not particularly gripping, page turning or especially unique. If your going to read a holocaust book, I would recommend Number the Stars by Lois Lowry, or The Devil's Arithmetic, by Jane Yolen as much better choices. Happy reading!

I still remember reading this book 20 years ago!
I remember reading this book in elementary school. This was one of my best friend's and my favorite books. We learned about history and people's lives during WWII. I am so happy it is back in print, so I can own a copy and share it with my children.

An Eye Opener
This is a wonderful book about debunking prejudice. It is a nicely told story about how a young girl comes to question, challenge and later renounce the prejudiced notions she had been exposed to. In some ways, I can't help thinking about Ann Frank. She, too, was German/Dutch. This is a lovely little story that will not be forgotten by those who read it. It's a treasure.


Elizabeth Gail and the Mystery at the Johnson Farm
Published in Paperback by Tyndale House Pub (1900)
Author: Hilda Stahl
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enjoyed the book when I was younger
I read the Elizabeth Gail books when I was 11 years old, and even though I'm 18, I still remember them fondly. They really opened up my eyes about what life could be like for a foster child. This book is good because it is realistic. It doesn't make anybody look like a saint and it shows that even Christians get mad at other people. I hope everyone enjoys the series as much as I did.

Loves the Series
I think that this book is a great book. It shows that you shouldn't always jump to conclusions. Also that not everyone's perfect. In fact no one is! It tells me what it must be like to have a mother who doesn't take care of you. It shows that even the most godly people can get mad or jealous. I've always loved these series. Even if this review isn't much help, you should at least try it.

The Elizabeth Gail books are a must read for all young girls
I have read several of Hilda Stahl's books. I bought them for my own girls when they were young; now I am buying them for my granddaughter. I cannot review this book without reviewing the series as a whole. Hilda's books are the most read books in our school library. Hilda Stahl was a gifted, talented woman whose writing has captivated thousands of children. I know this because Hilda and her family were good friends of ours when we lived in Michigan. We attended the same church, and our children attended school together. She will be missed. Diane Augustyniak, McHenry, Illinois.


The White Pines Chronicles
Published in Hardcover by Thomas Nelson (1996)
Author: Hilda Stahl
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Great depiction of civil war era, great plot, kept attention
THE COVENANT was an excellent book of one girl's struggle to find a place in a world spinning wildly out of her reach but to eventually find peace in Jesus. It felt like I was really in the Civil War era....

the chronicles
This trilogy is the one of the best peices of literature I have ever read in my life. it touched my heart as well as my soul and I find it extremely sad that it is no longer available. I hope against hope that it returns to print very soon. The three different stories are all very different but tie together in the most charming ways. I give this book a 10. no doubt, if you read this trilogy, you'll never forget it.

I think this is a great book I love it!
I like it becuse it is a love story and I love love stories and because fun to read and I think everyone should read it.


The Covenant (The White Pine Chronicles, Book 1)
Published in Paperback by Thomas Nelson (1991)
Author: Hilda Stahl
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totally surprising!!!!!
This book really surprised me because, quite frankly, I didn't expect it to be that good. I figured I'd just spend a day or two keeping my mind occupied,I didn't think that the book would be so good the I wouldn't be able to put it down. Stahl paints a colorful picture for her readers equipped with just enough detail to make her story interesting without it being over the top. If you ever find yourself with a full evening and nothing to do, pick up The Covenant and see how far you get before you angrily find that you are too exhausted to read another word.

childhood memories
I have been reading the Covenant since i was 10 years old. I absolutly love it. Each time i read it (and i have it memorized by now) it sends me through an emotional wirlwind. Between my neighboor and myself the book is now falling apart and my dad is searching for a place to rebind it! If you have some time on your hands, definitly pick up this book, i garentee you won't be able to put it down.


Siddhartha
Published in Library Binding by Bt Bound (1999)
Authors: Hermann Hesse and Hilda Rosner
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Like a falling leaf or a star?
A sad story .. so cold .. what a hard life! I am not interested in Buddhism but I like Hesse! He is so sensitive and realistic ..just like a painter taking his time to finish his portrait after studying every stroke and every color..

Despite all the hardships that Siddhartha go through, you always feel at ease, relaxed .. totally enjoying the story.. It is full of wisdom .. extreme measures .. but as Siddhartha said no one can feed you his/her experience you have to try and learn .. you can choose to be a falling leaf or a star?! searching and looking for answers .. we can make our own future .. depending on which path we choose .. but fate and luck are part of this future ..and Love conquers all!

Profound - but with one big shortcoming
I read this book in my junior year of college. I thought it was profound. It was one of my favorite books. I'm glad I re-read it now that I am 51-years-old. It is not one of my favorite books anymore.

Siddhartha is fine literature and deeply insightful. It traces the life of an intelligent, sensitive young man of Eastern (Buddhist?) spirituality; from his youthful studies with the masters, through a period of self-conscious asceticism and self-rejection, through a period of self-indulgence and sensuality, ultimately to self-knowledge and peace as he becomes a ferryman living humbly in a small hut beside a river which teaches him many of the ultimate truths of life.

Siddhartha has a shortcoming that I did not see when I was young but I see now. This book is always and only about the self. Even when he finds salvation - Siddhartha finds it in himself. The path towards salvation is only internal - coming from self-denial, self-examination, self-discipline, self, self, self... Where compassion, charity, humility, and love exist, they exist as by-products of self-knowledge.

There are a great many truths in Siddhartha. Young people who are seeking should read this book. Siddhartha looked into the river and saw that life does not change. I suggest that things do change - and they change as a result of what we do. Like the young Siddhartha, the young reader of this book should pause for a while, then grow and move on. There are bigger things outside the self. You will find that Robert Frost spoke more truly when he said "[you] have promises to keep."

All Is Connected
Siddhartha is that most unusual of all stories -- one that follows a character throughout most of his life . . . and describes that life in terms of a spiritual journey. For those who are ready to think about what their spiritual journey can be, Siddhartha will be a revelation. For those who are not yet looking for "enlightenment," the book will seem pecular, odd, and out-of-joint. That's because Hesse was presenting a mystery story, also, for each reader to solve for herself or himself. The mystery is simply to unravel the meaning of life.

As the son of a Brahmin, Siddhartha would naturally have enjoyed access to all of the finest lessons and things of life. Knowing of his natural superiority in many ways, he becomes disenchanted with teachers and his companions. In a burst of independence, he insists on being allowed to leave home to become a wandering Shramana (or Samana, depending on which translation you read). After three years or so, he tires of this as well. Near the end of that part of his life, Siddharta meets Gotama, the Buddha, and admires him greatly. But Siddharta continues to feel that teachers cannot convey the wisdom of what they know. Words are too fragile a vessel for that purpose. He sees a beautiful courtesan and asks her to teach him about love. Thus, Siddhartha begins his third quest for meaning by embracing the ordinary life that most people experience. Eventually, disgusted by this (and he does behave disgustingly), he tires of life. Then, he suddenly reconnects with the Universe, and decides to become a ferryman and learn from the river. In this fourth stage of his life, he comes to develop the wisdom to match the knowledge that direct experiences of the "good" and the "sensual" life have provided to him.

Few will find Siddhartha to be an attractive character until near the end of the book. Hesse is trying to portray his path towards balance and understanding by emphasizing Siddhartha's weaknesses and errors. But, these are mostly errors that all people fall into. Hesse wants us to see that we make too much of any given moment or event. The "all" in a timeless sense is what we should seek for.

There is a wonderful description of what a rock is near the end of the book that is well worth reading, even if you get nothing out of the rest of the story. The "mystery" of what Gotima experiences when he kisses Siddhartha's forehead will provide many interesting questions for each reader to consider.

I recommend that you both listen to this book on tape and read it. Hesse's approach to learning is for us to observe and feel. You will do more of that while listening than by simply reading. I was able to find an unabridged audio tape in our library for my listening. I encourage you to go with an unabridged tape as well. You will get more out of Siddhartha that way. I read the Hilda Rosner translation, and liked it very much.

After you finish listening to and reading the book, I suggest that you think about what you have not yet experienced that would help you get a better sense of life. If you have tried to be a secular person, you could try being a spiritual one. If you have focused on being a parent, you could focus on being a sibling. If you have focused on making money, you could pay attention to giving away your time. And so on. But in each case, give yourself more opportunities to experience and learn from nature. That is Hesse's real message here.

Ommmm


What Your Mother Never Told You About Sex
Published in Hardcover by Putnam Pub Group (11 April, 2002)
Author: Hilda, MD Hutcherson
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it's made life more passionate for sure
This book has improved my love life tremendously. I am so much happier after reading it as my sex life is actually enjoyable as to being just so-so prior to reading this book. It has helped me be more sensual and in touch with myself. My bf was not excited about reading it so I basically spoon fed him the info. He is so busy that he just doesn't have time to read it, but that doesn't mean he can't execute in bed if told what to do.

So go improve the quality of your life and buy this book!

A reference for life!
This book is a must read for women, and men who want to be well informed about women. I am a 32 y/o woman and learned all sorts of new fun and interesting information from this book about sex and my body. I have also highly recommended it to friends with daughters because I wish my Mom would have had this tool. There is a chapter dedicated to talking to girls about sex.

I look forward to additional books by Dr. Hutcherson.

This book is for men!!!
Anyone who assumes that this book is only for women is wrong!!! Most men--including myself--know precious little about women's bodies and the subtleties of giving them sexual pleasure. What I learned from Dr. Hutcherson's book is that like good parenting, good sex is not something that we are born knowing how to do; they both take require care, tenderness, listening, sharing, and a willingness to learn.

I would strongly urge women to give this book to their male sexual partners.


Gertrude
Published in Paperback by Noonday Press (1998)
Authors: Hermann Hesse and Hilda Rosner
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So Simple, but So Real...
It is one of Hesse's most human stories, where his simple and accessible style of writing describes how Kuhn's physical misfortune changed his life dramatically, how his life went through so many stages from being desperate up to the point where he was content with what he had, and worked so hard to make it work.

Kuhn's love and admiration Gertrude is everything he always wanted, Gertrude's character has been described beautifully, although I felt it should have been introduced at an earlier stage in the book. She did change Kuhn life, he saw hope and connection in her, she inspired him, and and he found a better reason to compose music so he can hear her sinning. Kuhn's life took a major turn when Mouth was introduced to Gertrude, and from then on things were never the same.

The kind of story that is applicable all the time, and makes you think again of what priorities are all about?

Elegant and Beautiful
This elegant and beautiful story is one of Hermann Hesse's very early novellas and is told in a simple, first-person narrator style.

It is the story of a man possessed by two passions: music and love. In the uncomplicated and lovely language that marks all of his works, Hesse describes with wonderful accuracy the heights and depths of romantic love and the bonds of true friendship. He falls a little short, in this book, at giving us a truly emotional look at the protagonist's passion for his music. It is in this area that the character of Kuhn, as well as that of Muoth, rings just a little false.

The pivotal character of Gertrude is beautifully drawn, but she is introduced far too late in the story for the reader to develop any sort of emotional bond with either her or her dilemma, a mistake Hesse did not repeat in his later works.

Readers who are familiar with the works of Hesse will recognize the early development of his themes of isolation and uniqueness in Gertrude in the character of Kuhn.

Like all of Hesse's works, this book is understated and restrained, yet full of emotion. The prose often feels as though there are undercurrents just about to break through the surface. Hesse, though, writes with his usual restraint and, although the book is one of obsession and tragedy, the author completely resists the temptation to let the story desolve into melodrama.

Gertrude is not Hesse's very best work, but it is certainly a lovely one and one that anyone interested in Hermann Hesse cannot afford to miss.

Hesse connects with the broken hearted....
Hesse tells the story of an emotional, soulful composer (Kuhn) seeking the woman that might end his loneliness and suffering. He finds that woman (Gertrude)only to find that love unrequited. Along the way he seeks solace in his friendships (Muoth) and his creation of an opera that is formulated from his heart. If you've ever loved someone so deeply and emotionally and then discovered by accident you were not loved the same way in return, you will identify with this book.


I Came a Stranger: The Story of a Hull-House Girl (Women in American History)
Published in Paperback by Univ of Illinois Pr (Pro Ref) (1991)
Authors: Hilda Satt Polacheck, Hilda Satt Polachek, Lynn Y. Weiner, and Dena J. Polacheck Epstein
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Excellent narrative
I bought this book along with a book about Jane Addams and Hull
House. Hilda writes an honest, extremely interesting, straight forward tale of her own life, and the part Jane Addams played in it. At times I felt as if I was there at Hull House with her, so clear was her portrait. I walked the streets of turn of the century Chicago with her, and shared her joys and sorrows. The only thing I wish the author had included was more about members of her family and their day to day life. But otherwise, a highly interesting portrait of a remarkable woman.

one of the best non-fiction I have read in a while
This is an excellent account of a young Jewish woman's life as she immigrates from Poland and grows up in Chicago. Jane Addams and Hull House play an integral part in making her who she was when she passed away. Inspiring and interesting, it is a quick read and a good book for a project on immigration or settlement homes in Chicago.

Absolutely resplendent
When Hilda Satt Polacheck first approached publishers with her memoirs, a shief of loosely bound, handwritten papers in the 1950s, she received in answer a resounding "NO." She went back home, plowing her way though her life story again, making revisions, checking dates, & in general shoring up her work. Yet, when she again approached publishers with the work, she was again refused. Curious, she found the courage to ask one of these publishers why. "There is no interest in the life of an obscure woman," she was told. Hilda believed him, & went to her grave in the late 1960s without trying to find another publisher. And though her memoirs were indeed eventually compiled by her granddaughter & published post mortem, the loss of Hilda's own deft hand on the final product is inestimable. These are the words of Hilda Satt Polacheck, yes, but one wonders would this already gorgeous work would have been had Polacheck herself been able to see it through to the end.

An immensely gifted storyteller, Polacheck's strong, intelligent voice makes I CAME A STRANGER a riotous romp through the Progressive Era, studded throughout with celebrity cameos from all the major figures of the age. From Jane Adams, Polacheck's own personal mentor, to Emma Goldman, Dr. Alice Hamilton & too many others to mention, there are hardly any figures of import in the socialist movement of that time whom do not appear at least once in this amazing memoir. A story which is at once mundane & extraordinary, she mingles her matter-of-fact descriptions of immigrant life in a less than magnificent Chicago with unbelievable, yet true tales which illustrate the greatness, and great energy of the times in which she lived. Her life spanned a great many significant historical events, & Polacheck weighs in on ALL of them, offering her opinions with great candor & wit flavored by her own life experiences.

Hilda Satt Polacheck emigrated from Poland, fleeing the terrible Pogroms which forced her family to drop their affluent lifestyle & become faceless, nameless Jewish immigrants in 1890s Chicago, she becomes fully a product of the Jane Adams aesthetic, & through close association with the woman herself, and Hull House, comes to exemplify all the good that came of Adams' dream. It is also the only such accounting of the inner workings of a settlement house from an immigrant herself, & as such offers an inestimable glimpse behind the scenes, through the untutored eyes of one who experienced it from the inside.


Sapphire's Grave
Published in Paperback by Broadway Books (2003)
Author: Hilda Gurley Highgate
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Almost...but not quite
Let me begin by saying Hilda Gurley-Highgate is a phenomenal writer. Her prose in SAPPHIRE'S GRAVE puts one in the mind of Toni Morrison's BELOVED. Like Dr. Morrison, Hilda Gurley-Highgate becomes a lyrical poet when she turns a phrase. In some ways, that strength seems to also be the weekness in the book. I desperately wanted to gain further insight into the many generations of strong black women that were introduced in this novel, but the overuse of lyricism and the abrupt end to the storylines, hendered this process. Again, I believe Hilda Gurley-Highgate is perhaps one of the most prolific writers to come out recently, and I have no doubt that as she continues with her craft she will soon become a writer who will be studied by generations of scholars.

Outstanding!
Sapphire's Grave is a moving and poignant debut novel by Hilda Gurley-Highgate. The author transcends two centuries to reveal the foundation of a family: an African captive called Sapphire because of her beautiful blue-black skin tone. Her physical statue and dauntless attitude commands a semblance of respect from everyone, including her enslavers. Sapphire remains strong, defiant, and unbroken despite the horrors of the Middle Passage, systematic rape, physical beatings, and back-breaking slave labor. So daring is she that immediately following a brutal act of sexual abuse at the hands of her owner who promises to do the same to her infant daughter when she is of age, Sapphire kills her daughter rather than allow the child to suffer the same fate she herself has endured.

At death, Sapphire is hastily buried in a shallow grave, but her tormented soul cannot rest. In spirit form, she approaches each of her female descendents and evokes memories and visions for them to discover, awaken, and use their inherent inner strength to love themselves, gain self-respect, and obtain inner peace to survive in a cruel and difficult world. For the next two hundred years, Sapphire touches the bewitched Sister, the prostitute Vyda Rose, the lovelorn Jewel, the artistic Clovey, and truth-telling, outspoken, shameless Rae'ven who embodies Sapphire's spirit completely and thus allows Sapphire to return to the grave satisfied and fulfilled.

The author writes in a thoughtful, lyrical prose which educes a myriad of emotions and reader empathy for the characters. Gurley-Highgate offers the reader an introspective look inside the lives and minds of the lead characters and their lovers. She clearly illustrates how Sapphire's spirit changes, fortifies, and empowers her daughters regardless of their station in life. There is a valuable lesson in this book for all women regardless of race and/or socio-economic class.

So touching and well written that this book has earned a place on my best reads list. Bravo, Ms. Gurley-Highgate! A job well done...I cannot wait until the next release.

Reviewed by Phyllis
APOOO BookClub, Nubian Circle Book Club

It's in their blood
Sapphire's grave was shallow. Years after her demise, she comes back to visit Sister, her posterity, in the form of visions and feverish hallucinations. Reliving the torturous vignettes of Sapphire's life, Sister's own persona changes dramatically - from a passive wife to a strong daughter. The story continues with the daughters of Sapphire, spanning time frame of over 100 years. Never tiring, instead, hypnotizing, this journey through time is finely crafted through Gurley-Highgate's depiction of daughters and lovers. Almost melodious, her prose sings to the reader of the inheritance Sapphire leaves for her progeny.

Sapphire's Grave was a book that buried me deep. I was entranced by the immortal legacy of a slave woman who passed gifts and burdens to her daughters, foreordaining them to her unrest.

Reviewed by CandaceK


Agnes Grey (Clarendon Edition of the Novels of the Brontes)
Published in Hardcover by Clarendon Pr (1988)
Authors: Anne Bronte, Hilda Marsden, and Robert Inglesfield
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I like it!
If you have read Emily or Charlotte Bronte's books before, you will find this book a lot easier. Both the language usage and the plot weren't completed as the aforesaid Bronte sisters. This is a story about the struggle of a governess called Agnes and how she found her own future in the end. If you are interested in Victorian Literature, I will then say that this is one of the must read, because it gives you a glimpse of how educated women's life during that time was like. Consider that Anne Bronte herself had been a governess too, it just made this story even truer.

Simple, Unpretentious and Down-to-Earth
After reading "Wuthering Heights" (by Emily), "Jane Eyre" (by Charlotte), and "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall" (by Anne), I found myself slightly disappointed by the lack of passion and romanticism in Anne Bronte's "Agnes Grey". This novel truly is simple, unpretentious, and down-to-earth--and, therefore, far too easy to underestimate and undervalue.

The title character is the younger daughter of a poor family, who seeks employment as a governess in order to help her parents make ends meet. This noble act of maturity on her part earns her nothing but disillusion, humiliation and hardship in the hands of the tyrannical children and over-indulgent parents of Wellwood House (Note the intriguing initials W.H., which stand for Wuthering Heights and Wildfell Hall in other Bronte books) and, later, Horton Lodge. For several chapters, Anne Bronte does not do much but--dare I say it?--complain about the lot of the Victorian governess. Though her portraits of the children and their parents were obviously drawn from reality, which certainly won sympathy from me, I wanted to tell her to "Get on with the story" many times.

The plot does pick up after the artful and exasperating Rosalie Murray has her "coming out" ball. Thoughtless rather than tyrannical, Rosalie has the most well-drawn character of all of Agnes' charges, which makes her such a great foil for Agnes. Rosalie delights in thinking that she could have any man she wishes and enjoys nothing more than toying with men's hearts. When she finds out that Agnes might be in love with the curate, Edward Weston, she makes every attempt to make Mr. Weston fall in love with _her_, thinking that it would be a grand joke to make Agnes miserable. Yet it is impossible to hate her, somehow. She steals every scene she is in; half the story is truly hers.

I am happy to say that both Rosalie and Agnes get what they deserve, which is, fittingly, what each explicitly asked and worked for. (Read that any way you wish--or better yet, read the book.) "Agnes Grey" has left me believing that we truly do sow what we reap and receive what we ask for.

Agnes Grey- simple but magnificent
Agnes Grey is probably the simplest Bronte novel, but in my opinion the best, because it is a sincere story. It is always looked upon as inferior to "Jane Eyre" and "Wuthering Heights", but if reviewed as a story of a governess in the Victorian Era, it is suddenly far more interesting. "Wuthering Heights" and "Jane Eyre do not give a realistic view of the times the Brontes lived in, but "Agnes Grey" does and she does not spare us the details.

I myself believe that Anne was in love with William Weightman, her fathers curate and seeing that she lets het own heroine Agnes win Mr. Weston, makes me feel that she tries to show us her dream, if she could have had it. It is simple, but happy. And that is exactly what this book is about. It is not to say that love is a never ending passion and all hardships end when one finds THE ONE, but simply to state that joy and wisdom can be found in a happy union.

And now, after I have read it many times, I still cry when Agnes tells Mr. Weston that she loves him. That one word "Yes" says it all.


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