When Crickets Cry

by Charles Martin

Did I mention I love audiobooks? About four years ago I was listening to a talk given by Elder Groberg, the one who served a mission in Tonga, in which excerpts from the movie, The Other Side of Heaven, were used to illustrate some of his talking points. I had previously seen the movie so listening to the dialogue and sound effects created a cinema type effect and I watched the movie in my mind's eye. It was around the tail end of the craze over the Twilight Saga books that I decided to give it a go in audiobook format and I've been hooked ever since. For some reason, reading a physical book with 300+ pages is still daunting to me, but listening to a 20+ hour audiobook is right up my alley.

My first audiobook was Twilight and the rest of the saga soon followed. I dabbled in YA fiction, Adventure, Romance, Self Improvement, Finance, Classical Literature and the like, but my favorite genre to date is Christian Fiction. I don't much appreciate adaptations from the Bible, but maybe I just haven't come across one that I like. I do love contemporary and historical Christian fiction, especially sprinkled with romance. 

I finished When Crickets Cry today. Here's the test of whether or not an author or narrator is appreciated:  How long did it take before you looked for another one of their works? It took me about six hours, but I was working part of that time. There was just enough back story for each character to get me invested. I've noticed that Oasis Audio mostly produces clean, Christian audiobooks and after having more misses lately in the choosing of audiobooks, I decided to play it safe with an OA book. Enter the crying crickets...

Read this book in a place you're comfortable crying, sobbing, waving your arms, covering eyes, laughing out loud; read this book in the privacy of your bedroom. The ending confused me at first, but I believe it was meant to surprise and prick you, to make you think. This book is about service, determination, loyalty, love and forgiveness. I would give it a 4.2 out of 5 Audible stars.

If I could go back and read this all over again for the first time, I would do it one sitting. Picking it up again (being on the waiting list for three or four weeks will do that to you) was slow at first, because it took me a little while before I remembered one of the minor characters. All in all, I wish I hadn't read it so I could read it again for the first time.

I've come across some of my favorite quotes while listening to audiobooks. Here are a few:

"No one's free, and those who think they are just haven't thought about it long enough." Ada in The Hope of Refuge by Cindy Woodsmall

"Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known god." Cory ten Boom

"Either your faith in God is absolute or it's worthless." Song of Redemption by Lynn Austin

"Things can be cleaned and replaced. Great moments cannot afford to be lost." Cindy Woodsmall

"Blood isn't love." Cassandra Clare

"A woman without her history is a fool." Lani Wendt Young

"Fuzzy caterpillars change; snakes don't." Kara in The Harvest of Grace Cindy Woodsmall

This one is from a NUMB3RS episode, but it's still funny:

David to Colby S04E13

"You, my friend, are a prisoner of high standards and low social skills."

What he said.

I had a dream...

My older sister had a baby and I was finally a legitimate [not that I would ever be called an illegitimate] aunt! It was a good dream and I woke up with a brief, happy memory of it. Brief. Less than one hour later the first sentence of this blog is the only morsel I retain. Efforts to recall more lead to nowhere and I'm pretty much resigned to the short piece that I have. Pretty much. Haha, does that bug?

I used to be a fanatic about taking notes. I made sure to download COLOR NOTE on my phone because it's awesome and helps me organize the epiphanies, funny episodes, lists, etc. of which I need to keep track. I have fallen out of this habit and the result is great ideas lost to the abyss of my forgetfulness. 

Exhibit "B"

On my way from Job 1 to Job 2, I thought of a great topic for today's blog but I didn't write it down and after racking my brain I still can't remember it. In the words of  Professor Dumbledore, "It does not do to dwell on dreams, but yet to live. Remember that." I'll take comfort in that statement and move on.

I love audiobooks and today I finished Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. This second attempt was way more enjoyable than my first and I'm actually excited to start the Chamber of Secrets. The narrator Jim Dale is amazing and he does a remarkable job with Hagrid's voice in particular. The one drawback is my feigned Kiwi accent is becoming more British after listening to him for over 8 hours. I would love to listen to a book read by a Kiwi!

Here are some quick photos from the movie. [I like pictures on the blog. Pinterest and media in general have wired me for visual stimulization.]

 I really like the contrast in size between Harry and Hagrid.

One of my favorite scenes:  Not Slytherin.

Donuts Rina.