With Love from Japan, Eustacia

Since I have some time between reviews (can't seem to finish a book), I figured I can use this time to tell you about my new blog: With Love from Japan, Eustacia.

You see, when I found out about my scholarship, I wanted a way to record down what I was going to go through for 5 years (I'm quite unreliable when it comes to actual diaries, although I'm going to try). So, I thought that blogging might help. It's quite simple, I'm just going to chronicle what happens and anything I learnt along the way. There are currently two blog posts up, and they will be quite infrequent since I'm not there yet, but come April, they'll start getting more regular, and be like letters home (yup, this is another way I'm keeping in touch with my family)

Right now, the site is very simple, with just the "Home" page and a free ebook page. I'll be customising more as time goes by, but right now, it's super basic. I do wonder though, how fancy a blog should be. I'm old enough to remember when blogs were for those technologically inclined, and how my first "blog" was a piczo site! Now, I've realised that for someone who reads all the time, I've come quite far in terms of internet skills. And soon, I'll be going to one of the most wired countries in the world!

If you're interested in studying in Japan (especially if you're looking at the Monbukagakusho or MEXT undergraduate scholarship), you might like the posts I have now, since they're basically dealing with MEXT. I couldn't find much information on the undergraduate scholarship, so I hope that the blog posts help those who do. And if you're not interested, then I'll be really happy if you just keep my blog in mind for when you want to read about Japan. If you don't like Japan, then daijyoubu (it's ok), the blog won't make you happy, but thanks for reading my post anyways(:

Teaser Tuesday - Living Abroad in Japan

You might have heard that I've gotten a scholarship to Japan, and yesterday, handed in the Pledge, which makes it even more official. Which is why, I'm currently reading "Living Abroad in Japan" by Ruth Kanagy, one of the few books that talk about moving and living there. So, here's my teaser:

'When you poke your head through the agency door, the real estate agent may take one look and shoo you away wordlessly, or cross his or her forearms in the shape of an X and say something that means "Terrible sorry, but the landlord doesn't rent to gaijin (foreigners)." If this happens, nothing you say or do will make any difference. ' (page 122)

Oh dear, this makes Japan sound like a terrible place to leave in. Anyway, you can come back in a few days to see my review of the book(:

UPDATE: You can find the review here

See you next week!

A Life of Joy by Amy Clipston

Normally, I like reading books about the Amish. We don't have anyone/any community like that in Singapore, and I think it's interesting to read about my brothers and sisters in Christ. A Life of Joy was supposed to be like this - a sweet young girl choosing if she wants to be Amish. Instead, I found myself unaccountably annoyed with the protagonist.

Lindsay grew up 'English', a term that encompasses anyone that isn't Amish. But when her parents died, her sister (Jessica) and her was moved to Bird-in-Hand. Jessica couldn't take the Amish way of life and fled to college, but Lindsay loves it, although now with Baptism class coming up, she's starting to feel uncertain. And in order for her to compare, an opportunity arises for her to live with the 'English' a little while.

For some weird reason, I found Lindsay annoying and egoistical. She seems to be convinced that people won't be able to function without her. To quote:

Lindsay gestured toward Rebecca. "But you need me too. You're my family, my real, blood family."
"I'll be just fine if you want to go to Virginia" Rebecca said.
"What about the bakery? Elizabeth depends on me."

If you don't know, she's considering whether to go and help her Aunt Trisha, who broke her leg badly and has no one to help. If I were her, I'll go right away, because that's where I'm needed. But instead, she angst's over it.

Perhaps it's because I identify more with Jessica. She's very driven, especially with regards to college and she wants Lindsay to go to college to (something that won't happen if she joins the Amish). But of course, Lindsay resents this interference. I probably would, but as the older sister, I'm prone to be more like Jessica than Lindsay. What I wanted to see more of in the book was the interactions between Jessica and Jake. The implications of an 'English' girl falling in love with a Mennonite boy would be really interesting, although I don't like Jake that much.

The only other problem I have with the book is with regards to characterisation. Everyone is almost too nice, except, of course, the 'English' teenagers who are try to grope Lindsay and drink all the time. To clarify: these are only the non-Christian teenagers. What I would have liked was to see a little more complex characters, why can't there be nice non-Christians (I want to see more Vicki and Heather) and unpleasant Amish/Christians (more on Katie's mom!). Then, it would seem more like real life. Because we Christians are also flawed. Perhaps that's why Jessica is my favourite character - she's flawed yes, but also has good intentions.

All these negatives aside, the book is a good read. I kept reading on, hoping against hope that the ending wasn't what I thought it would be (it was), but I enjoyed reading it. I actually have a feeling that I would like to read more about Bird-In-Hand, so perhaps it was the choice of protagonist that prevented me from liking the book as much as I should have. If you're new to reading Amish stories, I would recommend reading Beverly Lewis's books first, before going on to read this.

Disclaimer: I got a free copy of this book from NetGalley. I was requested to write a review, but all opinions here are mine.

Budgeting Smarts by Sandy Donovan (ARC)

Since I'll be living overseas for my university (for the first time in my life! The living independently I mean), I figured that it'll be good to brush up on financial knowledge such as budgeting. I may (currently) be spending the least in the family, but my book purchases are starting to add up, and I heard that the cost of living in Japan is much higher than Singapore.

Budgeting Smarts is aimed at the teenager (my demographic) and covers the topics on why we should budget, banking, spending wisely and a brief overview of credit and debit cards. The book is actually really easy to read, with interesting real-life stories and easy to understand explanations. They show you how it's so easy to spend all your allowance in an instant, and to prepare a simple but adequeat budget, and of course, how to identify needs and wants.

All this being said, the book is very elementart, an introduction into the world of budgeting if you will. It's probably because I studied budgeting a little, so I expect terms like "variance" to pop up now and then, and these are terms probably not found much in personal finance. Plus, a lot of the information can be gleaned if you regularly read the personal finance blogs (thank you Zite!) or any book that tries to teach you how to live on less money (like Chick Living: Frugal and Fabulous and Savvy Chic - although I haven't read Savvy Chic yet).

But since the books I mentioned aren't really read by teens, because, well, it's kind of awkward to have around. I think that to some extent, being money-smart isn't looked upon very well. I'm the kind that always thinks twice before making purchases (except, perhaps, for books), and almost never impulse purchase and all that means that my mom and sis call me "miserly", and joke about how much cash I have (It's not that much, because I keep everything in the bank).

Which is why, I would think that if you want to introduce a teen or someone slightly older or younger to the concept of money-management and get them to be responsible with their money, this is a pretty good book. The graphics/layout should appeal to them, and the language is simple to understand. The content? After they read this, they'll probably be wondering why they didn't think of it before.

Disclaimer: I got this book free from NetGalley. I was asked to write a review in exchange, but all opinions here are mine.