Goodbye Mr. Chips

Goodbye Mr. Chips by James Hilton

This novel follows Mr. Chipping, an English schoolmaster at Brookfield Academy in 1870.  Nicknamed Mr. Chips by his students, he influences the people around him for over 50 years.

I noticed in reviews I came across that younger people hated this book (I could tell they were younger due to bad spelling and slang).  This is a story for a mature audience... Mr. Chips' life is not full of excitement and glamor, but that's the point.  He taught the people around him about dignity, courage, generosity, and thinking for yourself without rudeness.  I came away realizing that life is not wasted just because wealth and fame pass by.  It is wasted if no thought is given to others.  Great story.

Casino Royale

Casino Royale by Ian Fleming

The first of the Bond books.  James Bond is sent to bring down a Russian agent at Casino Royale.  Of course, nothing is as it appears.  There's no master villain determined to take over the world, but there's plenty of gambling, car chases, kidnapping, torture, and women.  I've never seen an entire Bond movie, and I'm hoping they improve over this beginning.  Bond is such a chauvinist that he's stupid.  I thought he was supposed to have a razor sharp mind, but in order to move the plot along, he's totally oblivious. Ugh