13. Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World

  

13. Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World: The Extraordinary True Story of Shackleton and the Endurance. Jennifer Armstrong. 1998. Random House. 144 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, nonfiction, history, biography, adventure, South Pole, survival]

Just imagine yourself in the most hostile place on earth. It's not the Sahara or the Gobi Desert. It's not the Arctic. The most hostile place on earth is the Antarctic, the location of the South Pole--what's the difference? The Arctic is mostly water--with ice on top, of course--and that ice is never more than a few feet thick. But under the South Pole lies a continent that supports glaciers up to two miles in depth. Almost the entire southern continent is covered by ice. The mammoth icecap presses down so heavily that it actually distorts the shape of the earth. The ice never melts; it clings to the bottom of the world, spawning winds, storms, and weather that affect the whole planet.

I have read Jennifer Armstrong's Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World five or six times now. (Most recently in 2022). The narrative is so strong and compelling, and, yes, even inspiring. It is definitely one of my favorite nonfiction books. And nonfiction isn't something I usually take the time to reread. It is rare for me to keep coming back again and again to a nonfiction book.

Originally published in 1998, Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World won the Orbis Pictus Award in 1999. The book follows "the extraordinary true story of Shackleton and the Endurance." If you are unfamiliar with this story, then you really SHOULD read this one. It is a great introduction to the subject. Chapter by chapter, the book follows Shackleton and his men on their journey to Antarctica. Almost from the start, there are indicators that their goal, their quest, will not be an easy one to achieve. After a series of mishaps--thanks to nature--it becomes a long fight to survive. 

 The story is simple and yet dramatic. I think the story would be gripping no matter who told it. But I do think that Jennifer Armstrong did a wonderful job in painting a very human picture of Shackleton and his crew. I think the ending was beautiful--very moving! This one is a book I think everyone should read. 

 

© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

12. Up, Up, Ever Up!

 

12. Up, Up, Ever Up! Junko Tabei: A Life in the Mountains. Anita Yasuda. Illustrated by Yuko Shimizu. 2024. 48 pages. [Source: Library] [nonfiction picture book, 3 stars]

First sentence: Junko's hill was her entire world. 

Premise/plot: Up, Up Ever Up! is a picture book biography of mountain climber and activist Junko Tabei. It recently earned a Caldecott Honor. 

My thoughts: I liked this one. I did. Books about mountain climbing aren't really "my thing" if you will. But I do try to keep up with the Newbery and Caldecott winners and honors. And I do enjoy a good nonfiction picture book biography. I think this one will appeal to readers who do like adventure-y outdoors sports. There are so many good-to-great nonfiction biographies that kids can read these days.

As for the rating. I have gone back and forth a dozen times between three stars and four stars. I have. This book was just made for a three and half star rating. (Which I don't do because GoodReads doesn't do).

 

© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

11. Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All

  

11. Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All. Chanel Miller. 2024. 160 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, Newbery Honor, mg realistic, family, friendship, light mystery]

First sentence: Magnolia Wu was almost ten. She was eager to turn ten, because the number 9 looked like a sprout coming out of the ground, small and easily stomped. Ten was a strong, two-digit number that looked like a sword and a shield that belonged to someone who was about to conquer the world.

Premise/plot: Magnolia Wu, whose parents own a laundromat, finds a new friend in this coming of age mystery that has Magnolia and friend (Iris) trekking all over New York City reuniting lost socks with their owners. 

My thoughts: Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All is a Newbery Honor book. I may not have picked this one up--necessarily--if it hadn't been brought to my attention last week during the awards announcements. It is solidly good middle grade fiction. I enjoyed the themes of friendship and family--being/becoming proud of who you are and where you come from. I enjoyed Magnolia opening herself up and 'blossoming' as she adventures across the city. On her quest to reunite socks with their owners--which I find requires a bit of suspension of disbelief--it has her becoming more confident.

 

© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Century of Viewing, Month One, Thoughts and Lists

Century of Viewing Challenge

I was able to watch 70 things. (Things = movies, shorts, cartoons, television seasons, etc.) Thirty-one I rated four stars and above. It was relatively-relatively easy to determine five star ratings. These went above and beyond. The line between four and four and a half star ratings were BLURRY, BLURRED, EVER SHIFTING. I changed the rating on some of these half a dozen times. There were some three and a half star movies that I was almost tempted to raise as well. 

Two things became clear within the first two weeks of the challenge

1) I had seriously underestimated silent movies. Seriously I have spent all of my life ignoring silent movies and thinking that I wasn't missing out on much. I am going to be deep-diving down this particular rabbit hole.

2) I had fallen head over heels--truly, madly, deeply in love with Buster Keaton. 

Other observations

• I have watched three adaptations of the play Chicago.
• I have watched two adaptations of Three Men in a Boat.

My Five Star Movies

• Seven Chances (1925) (BUSTER KEATON)
• The General (1926) (BUSTER KEATON)
• Roxie Hart (1942)
• Harvey (1950)
• It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963)
• Ivanhoe (1982)
• Places in the Heart (1984)
• One Life (2023)

My Four and Half Star Movies AND my Four Star Movies

• Chicago (1927)
• Steamboat Bill, JR (1928) (BUSTER KEATON)
• The Death Kiss (1932)
• Lured (1947)
• Singin in the Rain (1952)
• High Time (1960)
• The Heroes of Telemark (1965)
• One Week (1920) (BUSTER KEATON)
• Our Hospitality (1923) (BUSTER KEATON)
  
• Sherlock JR (1924) (BUSTER KEATON)
• The Navigator (1924) (BUSTER KEATON)
• College (1927) (BUSTER KEATON)
• Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)
• My Dear Secretary (1948)
• Miss Grant Takes Richmond (1949)
• Woman's World (1954)
• A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966) (BUSTER KEATON)
• Follow Me Boys (1966)
• Capricorn One (1978)
• Soap Dish (1991)
  
• Black Beauty (1994)
• Moulin Rouge (2001)
• Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile (2022)
  

© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Week in Review #5

 

The fifth week of the year, I reviewed six books. 

What I read:

9. Lost in the Empire City. Avi. 2024. [October 29] 304 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, j fiction, mg fiction, j historical, mg historical, immigration/emigration]

Read this one if...

• You are looking to read a book IMPOSSIBLE TO PUT DOWN
• You are looking for a fast-paced, compelling, action-packed read
• You enjoy historical fiction; this one is set in the 1910s in New York City
• You enjoy immigrant stories

10. Three Men in a Boat. Jerome K. Jerome. 1889. 174 pages. [Source: Bought] [4 stars, adult classic, travel, humor]

Read this one if...

• You enjoy classics
• You enjoy classic travel stories
• You love rambling Victorians
• You enjoy humorous reads

 9. Chooch Helped. Andrea L. Rogers. Illustrated by Rebecca Lee Kunz. 2024. 48 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, siblings, family, picture book]

Read this one if...

• The Caldecott medal means a great deal to you and you want to keep up with all the winners
• You have a sibling
• You enjoy family stories
• You seek out books by Native Americans

10. A Mouse Family Christmas. Deborah Underwood. 2025. 40 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, picture book, holiday, Christmas]

Read this one if...

• You love fictional mice
• You enjoy holiday picture books
• You enjoy books that showcase kindness

8. Left Behind (Left Behind #1) Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. 1995. 470 pages. [Source: Library] [christian fiction, 2 stars, contemporary fiction]

Read this one if...
Well, there's bound to be a good reason or two to read it, right???

• If characters and dialogue and story matter less to you than a particular brand of end-times theology
• If you are curious about this at-one-time-mega-popular series and want to see if it's as bad as you've heard
• If you want to read the book before/after watching the movie(s)

9. People Pleaser: Breaking Free From the Burden of Imaginary Expectations. Jinger Duggar Vuolo. 2025. 224 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, christian nonfiction, christian living]

Read this one if...

• you struggle with people pleasing and boundaries
• you are looking for more Duggar content
• you are a fan of Jinger and Jeremy's vlog and podcast

What I watched (for my century of viewing challenge) Normally my cut-off time/date is Saturday midday. Anything I watch after typing up the blog post is included the next week. Since this is the end of the month, I am going to make a slight exception and have a cut-off date of January 31 midday. (My cut-off is noon 1/31).

1910s

• 1919 Feline Follies (Felix the Cat). This is the first Felix the Cat cartoon. He hadn't even been named Felix yet. In this one, he plays a tom cat catting around. It ends dark, super dark. I did not care for this one at all.

1940s

• 1949 Miss Grant Takes Richmond stars Lucille Ball and William Holden. She seems destined to fail as a secretary, however, she's chosen because of her lack of skills. Why? Well, yes, she's attractive enough. But mainly because they [the bad guys] think she'll never wise up to their illegal business. But looks can be deceiving and Miss Grant might just win the day after all. 

1950s

• 1959 Gidget stars Sandra Dee and James Darren! I've definitely seen this beach movie before. I adore Sandra Dee. The later Gidget movies--MOVIES, not television show--were never my cup of tea. This one was fun. Not great or fantastic, but fun. I think I've also read the book.

1960s

• 1960 Who Was That Lady? is a Dean Martin and Tony Curtis movie. Tony Curtis' character gets caught kissing a foreign exchange student by his wife. His best friend--a writer--starts spinning quite a web to deceive. Let's just say be careful WHO you impersonate.
• 1965 The Heroes of Telemark is war drama set during World War II in Norway; we follow several in the resistance. This one is quite dramatic. It stars Kirk Douglas. 
• 1966 Follow Me, Boys stars Fred MacMurray and Kurt Russell. This is one of those 'meaning of life' movies. Little things can make all the difference in the world. Such is the case with Lem (Fred MacMurray's character) who becomes a scout master in a small town.
  

1970s

• 1975 Three Men in a Boat is an adaptation of Jerome K. Jerome's novel. Tim Curry stars as "J." This adaptation is radically different from the comedy from 1956 which was all girls, girls, girls. This is a slower-paced more faithful adaptation of the classic. There are so many scenes that are practically lifted from the book. There were other places that did seemed like additions that were not in the book at all. (I read the book this week).
  

1980s

• 1982/1983 The Voyagers! is a time-travel television show. The characters travel through history via the omni--a gold device that looks like a watch. The theme that plays as they travel is epic. (Well, for the nostalgic sort anyway.) Each episode essentially stands alone. Viewers see the pair travel to two to three historical events as they repair history.
• 1984 Places in the Heart is a heart-crusher. It is brutal to your emotions, but, it's also beautiful. Can something be beautiful and ugly all at the same time???? I think it can. This one is set during the Depression and it's set in Texas as well. Sally Field's character is a widow with two young children who becomes reliant on a African-American man [a hobo] to help her save the family farm from the [evil] bank.

1990s

• 1994 Black Beauty is an adaptation from the novel. This one is SO WORTH IT. Beautiful narration, beautiful soundtrack. As much as I can recall, it is mostly faithful to the novel. I know some adaptations just have a black horse.

2000s

• 2002 Chicago is a movie that is not for me at all. If it wasn't an adaptation of a Broadway musical from the 1970s, then I'd say they were trying to out-do Moulin-Rouge. I liked very few things about it. I was mostly disgusted by all the costumes and choreography. Which leads me to think to myself, if it had starred Ewan McGregor would I have been more forgiving???? This one has two musical numbers that I almost like.

2020s

• 2022 Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile is delightful. It has some musical numbers in it. It is an adaptation of a picture book. I really loved almost everything about it.

© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews