The Fifth Annual Literary Heroine Blog Party Tag Questions

 It is that time of the year again! Kellie of Accordion to Kellie is hosting the Fifth Annual Literary Heroine Blog Party and I am finally showing my face again to participate in the questionnaire. I do apologize for the lack of posts. Hopefully I can remedy this unseemly habit and reinstate my one post a week goal in March. But, without further ado, the questionnaire:

1. Introduce yourself! Divulge your life's vision, likes, dislikes, aspirations, or something completely random!
 I am a homeschool graduate, aspiring novelist, and Christian. I enjoy good films, excellent books, and fantastic food.

2. What, to you, forms the essence of a true heroine?
 Ultimately, a true heroine is a woman or girl willing to sacrifice her desires in order to put others before herself. She finds the courage to take a stand for her beliefs, even if it means making the uncomfortable choice. She is strong, yet vulnerable. 

3. Share (up to) four heroines of literature that you most admire and relate to.
 1) Anne Shirley Blythe of the Anne of Green Gables series by L.M. Montgomery.
 2) Liesel Meminger of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
 3) Jo March of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women.
 4) Abileen of The Help by Kathryn Stockett. 

4. Five of your favorite historical novels?

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 1) The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

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 2) To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

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 3) The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare

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 4) Ben-Hur by Lew Wallace

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 5) The Help by Kathryn Stockett 

5. Out of those five books who is your favorite major character and why?
 Oh, that is a tough one! I am not exactly sure if I could name one as my ultimate favorite over the others, so I will select one of my favorites to showcase. Anyway, I will choose- drum roll please- Abileen from The Help. I really admire Abileen’s patience and courage. She makes a hard choice that endangers herself when she agrees to let Skeeter interview her about her life as a maid to white families in Jackson, Mississippi. 

6. Out of those five books who is your favorite secondary character and why?
 Hans Hubermann from The Book Thief. After watching the film adaption and reading the novel, I really came to admire and appreciate Hans’s sometimes foolish insistence on doing what he believes is right. I plan on doing a post dedicated to Hans Hubermann and some of the reasons why he is such a good character in the near future.

7. If you were to plan out your dream vacation, where would you travel to - and what would you plan to do there?
 I would travel to Europe. Bike through Ireland, explore London and the English countryside, and then visit the castles and historical landmarks of Scotland. I would like to explore Norway, and travel through the rest of continental Europe. I think I might top the whole trip off by visiting Kenya. :) What can I say, I have always wanted to visit the Serengeti. 

8. What is your favorite time period and culture to read about?
 It would the time period running from roughly about 1900 to the early 1960s.

9. You have been invited to perform at the local charity concert. Singing, comedy, recitation, tap dancing… what is your act comprised of?
 It will be a singing duet with my sister. We will perform our duet arrangements of several Judy Garland classics.

10. If you were to attend a party where each guest was to portray a heroine of literature, who would you select to represent?
 Hmmm, I think Jo March would come the most naturally because we are quite similar. But then again, it would be quite likely that someone else would choose to portray her since she is such a well known heroine. With that in mind, I think it might be rather fun to go as Callie Harper from Rachel Heffington’s Fly Away Home. :)

11. Favorite author(s)?
 Agatha Christie, Charles Dickens, Douglas Bond, G.A. Henty, Elisabeth Grace Foley, C.S. Lewis, and I have also greatly enjoyed the few works I have read by Rosemary Sutcliff.

12. In which century were most of the books you read written?
 Looking over the books I read last year, they were mainly from the 20th century. I have always read a large amount of books from the 19th century, and have more recently been exposing myself to more modern authors (e.g. The Book Thief, The Zion Covenant Series by Brock and Bodie Thoene, etc.).

13. In your opinion, the ultimate hero in all literature is…
 This is a complicated question. I would vote for Mr. Knightley (aka Alex Knightley from Emma Approved), but technically I haven’t even read Emma. That all said, I am going to vote for Atticus Finch of To Kill a Mockingbird. There are few fictional heroes who I admire as much as I do Atticus Finch. He is a man willing to do the hard thing because he knows it is the right thing to do.

14. In your opinion, the most dastardly villain of all literature is...
 Currently, I have to cast my vote for the Dragon Priests in The Peleg Chronicles series by Matthew Christian Harding. They really freaked me out.

15. Describe your ideal dwelling place.
 A nice flat or townhouse in Boston, MA or a house overlooking the ocean either on the west coast, Maine, or Charleston, SC.

16. Sum up your fashion style in a short sentence.
 Eclectic, a bit preppy, a bit bohemian, and always include a leather jacket, high heels, or combat boots.

17. Three favorite Non-fiction books?
 War and Grace by Don Stephens, City Notebook by McCandlish Phillips, and How Should We Then Live by Francis Schaeffer

18. Your duties met for the day, how would you choose to spend a carefree summer afternoon?
 Stretch out on a blanket in the back yard to read or go hiking and birdwatching at a park with trails.

19. Create a verbal sketch of your dream hat - in such a way as will best portray your true character.
 I mostly wear berets or a summery fedora-esque hat I own, but I have always wanted to own a cowgirl hat. In a lightish tan color, not to large in size or brim but something a bit like Dale Evans usually sported in her films with Roy Rogers. It would have a thin, dark leather strap knotted to hold it under the chin, but which always twinned itself as the hatband.

20. Share the most significant event(s) that have marked your life in the past year.
 My graduation from high school.

21. Share the Bible passage(s) that have been most inspiring to you recently.
 James 5:13-18: "13Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. 14Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. 17Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit." (ESV)

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Be sure to go check out other participants' answers to the questionnaire via the link up at Kellie's blog and enter her giveaway to win a custom made tulle skirt from Kellie Falconer Design!