Graciousness (A Spoonful of Sugar) When Mistakes Are Made

I was cleaning out some shelves this morning and found a few more books to list on Amazon and Ebay.  I regularly weed through our bookshelves-- we have them in just about every room of our home.   I found a book that I had intended to either PaperBack Swap or sell.  It's funny how just the sight of a book can bring back a memory.

The movie Julie and  Julia came out a couple of years ago.  I had not gotten around to seeing it after it had been out a few months.  This  book that was given to me on my birthday that year by two dear friends who really wanted me to see the movie.

I finally saw it, thoroughly LOVED it and  highly recommend it.  You'll laugh and cry, but mostly laugh.    I do NOT recommend the book however.  

I sat down one evening and picked up this thoughtful gift that my friends had given me.   I thought since I enjoyed the movie so much that I would probably enjoy the book even more.  I'm sure that's what they were thinking when they gave it to me.   It's usually that way with films. The books are almost always better.  Well, not in this case.  I got about 2 chapters into the book and it was WAY too inappropriate [language and situations mostly] for me to read and enjoy.  I was shocked and I knew that my friends would be also.   I didn't want to make them feel bad for having given me the book but I thought I'd better head them off before they gave it to someone else so I gently told them what was in it.  They were so sorry  and they were SO glad that I clued them in before they gave a copy to someone else who might not be as understanding.  We all had a good laugh over it and what might have occurred with similar subsequent gifts to others.

Morals of story:  

• Don't assume the movies  you enjoy are as good as the books OR vice versa.
• Always think the best of people when something doesn't seem quite right (I knew they would never have given me this book had they known what was in it.)
• Speak up when someone needs to know some information even though it may be awkward.
• Laughing and humor helps almost any situation.  :)

Look through some of the books on your bookshelves. Do any of them hold any special memories for you?  I may write more on this since I love reading--all different types of books.  I prefer mostly non-fiction but will read fiction if it's highly recommended.  How about you?