I loved this book. Of course it wasn't one I was given to review, just one I borrowed from My sister in law, but this is one of the best Christian novels I have read lately. Debbie Fuller Thomas wrote about real people who I connected with and could relate to.
The storyline isn't exactly likely to happen, but it is a novel, an escape.
Marty Winslow loses her 13 year old daughter, Ginger, to a horriable genetic disease that nobody else in the family has ever had. That is when she discovers the awful truth that her daughter was switched at birth. To complicate matters even more, her real daughter, named Andrea has recently been orphaned and now lives with her aging grandparents in a Senior adult mobile home park.She fights for her in court. Andie comes to live with Marty and thats where the story gets really good.
The home that Andie had to move to was a trailer situated behind the run-down Blue Moon Drive-In the Family owns and runs. Andie has to settle into a family that is dealing with its own grief over the loss of thier sister as she is dealing with the death of her parents as well as the news that her entire past has been a lie. There are two new sisters, school, her distrust of God all that need to be worked out.
I like the way the book is written. One chapter is Marty speaking and the next will be Andie speaking, this helps you to see how both sides of the story affect two different generations.
A word of warning....Marty bakes to deal with her frustration and pain and the author goes into detail to tell you what she bakes, so you might feel the urge to concoct a few desserts as you read this book!
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Friday, July 16, 2010
Jack Daniel's Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook, by Lynne Tolley & Pat Mitchamore
I recently began reviewing books for Thomas Nelson Publishers. I signed on with them thinking the books would be Christian books, so I was surprised when my very first book to review was a cookbook entitled Jack Daniel's Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook by Lynne Tolley and Pat Mitchamore. I quickly saw that this book was much more than a cookbook, it was like a history lesson on life in Lynchburg, Tennessee.
Antidotes Like Hog Killing TIme In Tennessee, and tales of Miss Mary Bobo's Boarding House share the pages with recipes
like Pea-Pickled Salad and Supreme Cranberry Salad. In the vegetable category the Country Fried Corn, Wash Day Casserole and Zucchini Au Gratin caught my eye. How mouthwatering do Georgia Peach Muffins sound? I also was intrigued by the several pages of different breads they included. There is a step by step recipe on how to cook Possum and Sweet Taters. I will be passing on that one!
I was delightfully surprised by this cookbook. It is a slice of Southern living, much more than just a book with recipes. I was a little reluctant to be accepting of this cookbook, because I have never drank whiskey much less thought to cook with it. After reading it I have found it to be a delightful slice of life in the south. I love the recipes, will surely try some of them and feel like the authors have preserved a part of the sweet country life within these pages. This book will be sharing the shelf with my trusted favorites.
Antidotes Like Hog Killing TIme In Tennessee, and tales of Miss Mary Bobo's Boarding House share the pages with recipes
like Pea-Pickled Salad and Supreme Cranberry Salad. In the vegetable category the Country Fried Corn, Wash Day Casserole and Zucchini Au Gratin caught my eye. How mouthwatering do Georgia Peach Muffins sound? I also was intrigued by the several pages of different breads they included. There is a step by step recipe on how to cook Possum and Sweet Taters. I will be passing on that one!
I was delightfully surprised by this cookbook. It is a slice of Southern living, much more than just a book with recipes. I was a little reluctant to be accepting of this cookbook, because I have never drank whiskey much less thought to cook with it. After reading it I have found it to be a delightful slice of life in the south. I love the recipes, will surely try some of them and feel like the authors have preserved a part of the sweet country life within these pages. This book will be sharing the shelf with my trusted favorites.
How to Reach Your Full Potential for God by Charles F. Stanley
This book is subtitled Never Settle for Less than His Best. In the beginning this book reminded me of a book I had previously read about living a life filled with purpose, but this book proved to be filled with much deeper Biblical principals and was not nearly as new age, feel good as the purpose filled book. I would highly recommend this book for someone looking to live a life of purpose that God has planned for you.
This book is divided into twelve chapters and is just over two hundred pages and very easy to read and understand. I read the entire book with a pen in hand so I could underline the ideas that I wanted to remember. I think I underlined something on every page. Chapter Two is entitled Don't Settle for Less. Dr. Stanley says "He (God) wants us to embrace the life He has planned for us. This means we must live all our days to the utmost." What a challenging statement.
Having a clean heart, a clean mind, a healthy body are all addressed. He talks about right relationships, keeping a balanced schedule. I particularly enjoyed the section that talked about using the gifts God gives you to serve the body of Christ. It was in depth and insightful.
One of the features of this book that I enjoyed was found at the end of each chapter they included a profile of a person telling how the person is using their God given potential to serve God. These were encouraging,personal, and meaningful glimpses into real life.
Dr. Stanley is Senior Pastor of First Baptist CHurch in Atlanta, Georgia and has written many best selling books. This book was provided free to me from Thomas Nelson Publishers in turn for this review.
This book is divided into twelve chapters and is just over two hundred pages and very easy to read and understand. I read the entire book with a pen in hand so I could underline the ideas that I wanted to remember. I think I underlined something on every page. Chapter Two is entitled Don't Settle for Less. Dr. Stanley says "He (God) wants us to embrace the life He has planned for us. This means we must live all our days to the utmost." What a challenging statement.
Having a clean heart, a clean mind, a healthy body are all addressed. He talks about right relationships, keeping a balanced schedule. I particularly enjoyed the section that talked about using the gifts God gives you to serve the body of Christ. It was in depth and insightful.
One of the features of this book that I enjoyed was found at the end of each chapter they included a profile of a person telling how the person is using their God given potential to serve God. These were encouraging,personal, and meaningful glimpses into real life.
Dr. Stanley is Senior Pastor of First Baptist CHurch in Atlanta, Georgia and has written many best selling books. This book was provided free to me from Thomas Nelson Publishers in turn for this review.
The Liturgical Year-the spiraling adventure of the spiritual life by Joan Chillister
I was eagerly anticipating this book, the second from Thomas Nelson Publishers for Book Review by bloggers. I have a thirst for knowledge about the church and the liturgical year because I grew up in a baptist church and only recently began incorporating practices from the churches calendar into my life. I was somewhat disappointed with this book however.
It is written by Joan Chittister who is a nun, a member of the Benedictine sisters of Erie, Pennsylvania. She is also a lecturer and has authored many award winning books. I found this book to be very textbook like and didn't find many practical ways to put into practice the liturgy she writes about. I think that was what my heart was seeking.
Advent will be here very soon. I relish the idea of waiting for the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Chittister said " The real power of the liturgical year is its spiritual capacity to touch and plumb the depths of the human experience, to stir the human heart." I think the advent season is where this begins. The beauty of advent is that it is a season of JOY.
Most of us celebrate Christmas, without giving any thought to the church calendar or how it fits into it. I have been studying the names of God so I found this quote on page 83 to be especially meaningful " He is Wisdom, Adonnai, Flower of Jesse's Stem, Key of David, Radiant Dawn, God of All the Earth, Emmanuel-God with Us."
One chapter that I did learn from was Chapter 16- Asceticism. The vestments at church are not something I am familiar with. This was interesting. The idea of Lent and how you can grow spiritually is very intriguing and challenging.
This is a very easy & quick read. I wish it were a little more informative. But it has whetted my spiritual appetite to seek out more info, I guess that is a good thing.
It is written by Joan Chittister who is a nun, a member of the Benedictine sisters of Erie, Pennsylvania. She is also a lecturer and has authored many award winning books. I found this book to be very textbook like and didn't find many practical ways to put into practice the liturgy she writes about. I think that was what my heart was seeking.
Advent will be here very soon. I relish the idea of waiting for the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Chittister said " The real power of the liturgical year is its spiritual capacity to touch and plumb the depths of the human experience, to stir the human heart." I think the advent season is where this begins. The beauty of advent is that it is a season of JOY.
Most of us celebrate Christmas, without giving any thought to the church calendar or how it fits into it. I have been studying the names of God so I found this quote on page 83 to be especially meaningful " He is Wisdom, Adonnai, Flower of Jesse's Stem, Key of David, Radiant Dawn, God of All the Earth, Emmanuel-God with Us."
One chapter that I did learn from was Chapter 16- Asceticism. The vestments at church are not something I am familiar with. This was interesting. The idea of Lent and how you can grow spiritually is very intriguing and challenging.
This is a very easy & quick read. I wish it were a little more informative. But it has whetted my spiritual appetite to seek out more info, I guess that is a good thing.
The Gospel According to Lost by Chris Seay
I began this book with a preconceived notion that I might be offended by it. The Gospel, to me, is precious, as it is the news of my Lord Jesus Christ. I am a huge fan of the TV show Lost, however, and the fact that the author was someone I had heard of reassured me that the book probably would back up my own beliefs in the end. The book was a fairly easy one to read, not too deep in theology or even hard to follow if you are not a follower of Lost. It is under 200 pages and you have to read until page 89 before there is any mention of Scripture at all. After That Seay seems to compare the television show to the story of the Lost Son in Luke 15 more than a few times.
The book has a chapter dedicated to most of the main characters of the show. In the middle of the book there are color reproductions of artwork depicting the Losties as patron Saints done by Scott Erickson, a member of Seays church in Houston, Texas. I really didn't learn anything new about the show, nor about the Gospel from this book. It strikes me as being a ploy to sell books by playing into the most popular phenomenon on television right now, and oh, by the way, here is a bit about God too.
I don't think I would recommend this book to anyone, unless they just wanted to skim through it as a fan of the show. There are better places to discuss theories about the television series, namely the internet. There are also better books on the market that tell the story of Jesus Christ, namely the Holy Bible.
Lost is a fun diversion for me. This book was mostly just a waste of a few hours. I recieved this book as a part of the Thomas Nelson Bloggers Book Review Program. Checkout their website for info on how you might get free books too.
The book has a chapter dedicated to most of the main characters of the show. In the middle of the book there are color reproductions of artwork depicting the Losties as patron Saints done by Scott Erickson, a member of Seays church in Houston, Texas. I really didn't learn anything new about the show, nor about the Gospel from this book. It strikes me as being a ploy to sell books by playing into the most popular phenomenon on television right now, and oh, by the way, here is a bit about God too.
I don't think I would recommend this book to anyone, unless they just wanted to skim through it as a fan of the show. There are better places to discuss theories about the television series, namely the internet. There are also better books on the market that tell the story of Jesus Christ, namely the Holy Bible.
Lost is a fun diversion for me. This book was mostly just a waste of a few hours. I recieved this book as a part of the Thomas Nelson Bloggers Book Review Program. Checkout their website for info on how you might get free books too.
the voice of psalms
I read this book and am offering this review in exchange for recieving a free copy of the book. I am saying this up front this time because I would never purchase this book. There is not much about it that appeals to me. It is a retelling of the Psalms as never told before in the bold, new translation and format of The Voice. I am not impressed. I think the Psalms, just as the are happen to be some of the most beautiful poetry ever written. They are a mainstay in my daily worship. There is absolutely no need to replace a jot or a tittle of the Psalms in any effort to improve them as far as I am concerned.
I will, for sake of a book review, give you a few details here however. This is a nice paperback form which is conducive to carry around with you and read anywhere.It is just under 270 pages. Included are four different reading plans, for Lent, Advent, Worship and Seeking Help.
The pages of the book are beautiful, fading from teal to brown, but that might inhibit some people's vision a little.
I am sure there is a niche for this book. It is just not with me. As I said I recieved this book free in return for my review, you can get free books too, from the Thomas Nelson Blogging for Books Program.
I will, for sake of a book review, give you a few details here however. This is a nice paperback form which is conducive to carry around with you and read anywhere.It is just under 270 pages. Included are four different reading plans, for Lent, Advent, Worship and Seeking Help.
The pages of the book are beautiful, fading from teal to brown, but that might inhibit some people's vision a little.
I am sure there is a niche for this book. It is just not with me. As I said I recieved this book free in return for my review, you can get free books too, from the Thomas Nelson Blogging for Books Program.
Hand of Fate by Lis Wiehl
I enjoyed reading The Hand Of Fate, By Lis Wiehl. It was the first of her books I have read so I shall be looking for the first one to go back and read it now. This book is the second in her series of Triple Threat Novels, all published by Thomas Nelson Publishers who made this book available to me for free through a blogging for books program.
I was intrigued to read this book because I enjoy thriller/suspense type stories but this one is from a Christian publisher so I was expecting it to be less likely to be filled with things that I find offensive to my sensibilities. That held true for the most part, although there were a few topics that were addressed that I don't include in my own personal life, I am aware enough to know that as Christians we live in the real world and encounter real people with real problems. Overall this book was a good read and I was pleased because it wasn't filled with offensive talk or language.
The Story line draws you immediately, making the book hard to put down. Jim Fate is an obnoxious and controversial radio talk show host who gets murdered in his own studio. Three beautiful young women, reporter Cassidy Shaw, Federal Prosecutor Allison Pierce and an FBI Special Agent Nicole Hedges come together to try to solve the mystery of what has happened to Fate.
There are numerous twist and turns in this book. One of these young women knows more than the others about Fate. They all want to know how his Co-Host, the lovely Victoria Hanawa is involved, if in any way, as she had much to gain it seems by his death. The ladies also dealt with emotional abuse, prescription drug abuse,rape, illegal immigration, pregnancy, just your normal day in the life of a young crime fighting woman! I felt the story line brought too many issues into the story, as if they were trying to touch the heart of all women with one big wide brush, but not go deep enough on any of them. It wasn't necessary to the plot, nor do I think it will prove helpful in bringing in readers.
I was intrigued to read this book because I enjoy thriller/suspense type stories but this one is from a Christian publisher so I was expecting it to be less likely to be filled with things that I find offensive to my sensibilities. That held true for the most part, although there were a few topics that were addressed that I don't include in my own personal life, I am aware enough to know that as Christians we live in the real world and encounter real people with real problems. Overall this book was a good read and I was pleased because it wasn't filled with offensive talk or language.
The Story line draws you immediately, making the book hard to put down. Jim Fate is an obnoxious and controversial radio talk show host who gets murdered in his own studio. Three beautiful young women, reporter Cassidy Shaw, Federal Prosecutor Allison Pierce and an FBI Special Agent Nicole Hedges come together to try to solve the mystery of what has happened to Fate.
There are numerous twist and turns in this book. One of these young women knows more than the others about Fate. They all want to know how his Co-Host, the lovely Victoria Hanawa is involved, if in any way, as she had much to gain it seems by his death. The ladies also dealt with emotional abuse, prescription drug abuse,rape, illegal immigration, pregnancy, just your normal day in the life of a young crime fighting woman! I felt the story line brought too many issues into the story, as if they were trying to touch the heart of all women with one big wide brush, but not go deep enough on any of them. It wasn't necessary to the plot, nor do I think it will prove helpful in bringing in readers.
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