Tuesday, July 28, 2020

Book Review: Encountering God’s Heart For You



Encountering God's Heart for You
365 Devotions from Genesis through Revelation
by Diane Stortz


 Bethany House 

Bethany House Publishers
 Christian 
Pub Date 03 Sep 2019


I am reviewing a copy of Encountering God’s Heart For You 365 Devotions from Genesis through Revelation:





From the very beginning God’s Word, the Bible invites us to know our Creator.  This devotional reminds that we need to rest in Jesus during times of struggle.  We are reminded too of the importance of choosing life.





The Bible was put together for us and he wants us to know him and understand him better.  There are times though that we get lost in the details and miss the big picture.  The Bible is much more than a book of wisdom, instructions and history.  It is the story of God’s incredible love of God.



Encountering God’s Heart For You takes you on a daily journey through the scripture in a year.  And in doing so it helps you to grow closer to God, as you discover his love and companion.  This devotional doesn’t carry every verse, or every chapter of the Bible but it does help you understand what the Bible is all about.


I give Encountering God’s Heart For You five out of five stars!



Happy Reading!

Sunday, July 26, 2020

Book Review:Secrets of the Happy Soul

Secrets of the Happy Soul
Experience the Deep Delight You Were Made For
by Katie Orr
 Bethany House 
Bethany House Publishers
 Christian 
Pub Date 31 Mar 2020


I am reviewing a copy of Secrets of the Happy Soul through Bethany House Publishers and Netgalley:




How is it that some people seem constantly happy?  How is it They rise above the circumstances and distractions of life and remain consistently happy?  Even in tough times they remain happy, they have a sense of peace about them even in Chaos.




This book reminds us that the Happy Soul is Focussed on God.  We are reminded too that when We focus on God it brings the unclaimed benefits of the Bible.  We are reminded too that the Happy Soul is resolved to follow God’s way.  The important work of reading the Bible for yourself is highlighted as well. 



Secrets of the Happy Soul reminds us too that the Happy Soul is attached to God’s word.  We are reminded too that The Happy Soul is dependent on God’s Provision.  It is pointed out too that the happy soul is fruitful, as well as resilient.   It is pointed out too that the Happy Soul is confident in who she is.  And it is pointed out too that the Happy Soul knows who she is because they are confident in who they are through Jesus.


Finally we are reminded that the Happy Soul is one that is surrendered to her King.  The importance of taking refuge in the relationship we have with our King is also highlighted.


Secrets of the Happy Soul invites us to a deeper, more fruitful relationship with God, and his word.  As we are walked through the book of Psalms, it shows us how the world ‘s happiness is nothing compared to what the Lord has in store for us on a daily basis.  Katie Orr reminds us of the importance of drawing closer to him.


I give Secrets of The Happy Soul, five out of five stars..


Happy Reading!

Friday, July 24, 2020

Book Review: Red Comet : The Short Life and Blazing Art of Sylvia Plath




Red Comet
The Short Life and Blazing Art of Sylvia Plath
by Heather Clark


 Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group 
Knopf
 Biographies & Memoirs 
Pub Date 06 Oct 2020



I am reviewing a copy of Red Comet: The Short Life and Blazing Art of Sylvia Plath through Knopf and Netgalley:


If you are looking for a feel good read, this is not that, but if you are looking for a comprehensive biography on a brilliant but broken woman, Sylvia Plath this is a book I would definitely recommend.  


Using never before accessed material including unpublished letters, Manuscripts, court and police records as well as new interviews, Heather Clark brings to life Sylvia Plath, the daughter of Wellesley, Massachusetts, who from a very young age had poetic ambitions.  She was an accomplished writer of stories and poems before she became a star English Student, while attending Smith College in the 1950’s.  


Sylvia Plath was born  October 27 1932 at Robinson Memorial Hospital in Boston’s South End.  



By eleven Sylvia Plath had received her 100th book.  In eight grade Sylvia was elected president of her homeroom as well as secretary of her English Class.




In January 1946  Sylvia received a special gift from her Grandfather, a fountain pen with her name inscribed in gold.  She put her pen to good use that year.  But five months after she received the gift it was stolen, an event that left Sylvia so distraught, two months after it was stolen her Mom replaced it with an exact duplicate.








In September of 1951 Sylvia Plath wrote a story dealing with Anti Semitism called The Perfect Set Up based on the time she spent with the Mayos.  


On Saturday June.27.1953 when Aurelia and Grammy Schober met Sylvia at the Route 128 station they were shocked to see her looking hollowed and blurry eyed, wearing borrowed clothes.  Plath’s month in New York left her reeling and disoriented and she was unable to put up a front.



In her book The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath goes into the horrors of her earlier psychiatric treatment.



Before meeting Ted Hughes, Sylvia Plath knew his poetry.   


In the Summer and much of the fall of 1958 Sylvia Plath was once again battling crippling depression.  


By Mid December of 1960 Sylvia Plath knew she was pregnant, and would give birth to her daughter, Frieda Rebecca Hughes was born on April.01.1960.  

She would become pregnant again, but have a miscarriage, but on January..17 1962 she would give birth to her Son Nicholas Hughes, her son’s life would come to a tragic end in 2009.  


On October 27. 1962 Sylvia Plath turned thirty, she wrote two poems on her birthday, poems that spoke of her state of mind.  That same year it became evident that her marriage with Ted Hughes was not going to be a lasting one.  


In Mid January of 1963, The Bell Jar was published,  an event that should have been a cause of celebration was a Hollow victory 


On February 11.1963 while one year Nicholas Hughes and two and a half year old Frieda slept upstairs,  Plath had taped the doorframe in which the children slept and then placed towels around the kitchen door, making sure the Toxic fumes did not get into the Children’s room before she committed suicide using toxic gas.



Many looked at Sylvia Plath as a tortured soul, a depressive, but she saw herself as passionate, in her writings and her relationships.  But I’m this book Heather Clark is determined not to act as if every act from Plath’s Childhood on was a Harbinger of her tragic fate.   In this book Clark shows a culture in transition from the Holocaust to the atom bomb.  She paints a picture of a woman who was in very many ways ahead of her time,  in voicing her opinions, something she was not afraid to do from a young age.


In Red Comet  Clark’s tireless and compassionate research of Sylvia Plath’s legacy brings us closer than ever to Sylvia Plath, the visionary artist, who made a way for Women poets throughout the world.


If you are looking for a powerful, comprehensive biography on Sylvia Plath I highly recommend Red Comet.    


Five out of five stars !

Happy Reading

Monday, July 20, 2020

Book Review: Stand All the Way Up




Stand All the Way Up
Stories of Staying In It When You Want to Burn It All Down
by Sophie Hudson


 B&H Publishing Group (B&H Books, Holman Bibles, B&H Español, and B&H Kids) 
B&H Books
 Christian  |  Religion & Spirituality 
Pub Date 16 Jun 2020 




I am reviewing a copy of Stand All the Way Up though B&H Publishing/B&H Books and Netgalley:




There are things we struggle with everyday for some it’s weight, or other self esteem issues.  There are times we live in low places, Sophie Hudson knows this well and in Stand All the Way Up with both humor and heart.  






We are reminded that there is nothing like the loss of someone we love to help you reevaluate the way you are living.  








Does facing the hard stuff, the stuff that keeps  you up at night make you simply want to make it all go away?  Is it possible to just ignore it, or even better burn it all down?





Stand All the Way Up, is a collection of stories, that are humorous, full of Sass as well as Spiritual insight, stories that reveal our God teaches us to stand up for ones self, as well as to stand up for our loved ones, to stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves and to stand up for the Kingdom.






I give Stand All the Way Up five out of five stars!



Happy Reading!

Sunday, July 19, 2020

Book Review: The Real Coco Chanel



The Real Coco Chanel
by Rose Sgueglia


 Pen & Sword 
White Owl
 Biographies & Memoirs  |  Nonfiction (Adult) 
Pub Date 30 Jun 2020




I am reviewing a copy of The Real Coco Chanel through Pen & Sword/ White Owl and Netgalley:



Coco Chanel lived the life as a romantic heroine.  Fueled in part by the romantic literature of the nineteenth century, a life that was partly fiction and partly fact.



Coco Chanel did not only help redefine fashion, but also changed the views of what it meant to be a woman.


It was Coco Chanel who turned the little black dress into a fashion statement at a time when black was meant for mourning.  She was also one of the first women to wear pants.  



Coco Chanel was the fashion designer that was admired by everyone.  A business woman whose fortune was impossible to track.  Coco Chanel was also a performer, she was the lover of many high profile intellectuals, and she was believed to be a Nazi Spy by some.



Her life was extraordinarily affected by history (World War 2, the Nazi Movement). And it was affected by symbolism and literature.



This biography tells of how Coco Chanel overcame a troubled and poor past, to become one of the most recognized names in Fashion.



I give The Real Coco Chanel five out of five stars.


Happy  Reading!



Friday, July 17, 2020

Book Review: Mayhem


Mayhem
A Novel
by Estelle Laure


 St. Martin's Press 
Wednesday Books
 Teens & YA 
Pub Date 14 Jul 2020 



I am reviewing a copy of Mayhem through St Martin’s Press and Netgalley:




*Due to subject matter I would not recommend this book to those under 14 years of age due to the subject matters it deals with...




The year is 1987 and it’s not all Madonna and Cherry lip gloss.  Mayhem has always known that there was something not right about her Mom, Roxy.  It may be Roxy’s constant physical pain, or maybe it’s Mayhem’s pull to the water.  No matter what it is she knows that they are different.






After Mayhem’s Stepfather finally goes to far, Roxy and Mayhem flee to the Coastal beach town of Santa Monica, California , the place that holds the answers to the question of who her Mother is as well as the mysteries about her own self.  It is there she meets the kids who live with her aunt, it opens the door to the female lineage in her family, the magic Mayhem is about to experience and that will change her life for the better.



But after getting caught up p in the search for the man who has been kidnapping girls from the beach, her life takes another dangerous turn, she is forced to face the price  of  vigilante justice.  She finds herself having to ask if revenge is worth the cost.



I give Mayhem three out of five stars!



Happy Reading!

Book Review: God and the Pandemic




God and the Pandemic
A Christian Reflection on the Coronavirus and Its Aftermath
by N. T. Wright


 Zondervan Reflective 
Zondervan
 Christian 
Pub Date 19 Jun 2020


I am reviewing a copy of God and the Pandemic through Zondervan Reflective/Zondervan and Netgalley:



What are we, (Christians) supposed to think about the Coronavirus?  But not only what are we supposed to think about the Coronavirus but how can we help others in the midst of a global pandemic?




How is a Christian supposed to respond?  What are we supposed to believe with so many conspiracy theories going around?  



Some people are certain that this Pandemic is a sign of the end, that it’s all predicted in the Book of Revelation.




There are some that disagree that it’s a sign of the end, but they believe that this is a call to repent.  



Others join in on condemnation.  Blaming China, or others.



I found God in the Pandemic to be a powerful and thought provoking little book.


Five out of five stars. 

Book Review: When Life Gives You Mangos


When Life Gives You Mangos
by Kereen Getten
 Random House Children's 
Delacorte Books for Young Readers
 Children's Fiction  |  Middle Grade 
Pub Date 15 Sep 2020


I am reviewing a copy of When Life Gives You Mangos, through Random House Children’s/Delacorte Books For Young Readers and Netgalley:





Clara is twelve years old, she lives on an Island visitors call exotic. Clara doesn’t think there is anything exotic about it though.  She loves to eat ripe Mangos off the ground,  she loves  to run outside in the rain with her Father during the rainy season.   And she likes to go to her secret hide out with Gaynah even though Gaynah does not act like her best friend anymore.






The only thing about Clara that is not ordinary is that something happened to her memory that made her forget everything that happened last summer after a hurricane hit.   There are times that things come back in drips like a faucet that hasn’t been turned off fully.   There are times too that her Mama fills in the blanks, but she knows the memories aren’t hers, and it makes her feel like she’s different from everyone.



This summer is going to be different for Clara though.  There is a new girl in the village who isn’t like the other visitors.  The girl is about to make big waves on the island, giving Clara an unforgettable summer.


I found When Life Gives You Mangos to be a phenomenal debut novel, one that would be great for Middle Graders, or anyone who loves to read children’s books really.  I’ll definitely be looking to read  future novels from this author.



Five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

Book Review: These Nameless Things






These Nameless Things
by Shawn Smucker

 Revell 
 Christian 
Pub Date 30 Jun 2020


I am reviewing a copy of These Nameless Things through Revell and Netgalley:






   Before opening his door to find a wounded woman who had escaped her tormentors in the mountain, his life had become quiet.  He had mostly become friends with the eight other people, in the almost abandoned town.  They had peaceful evenings around the campfire and had made vague plans to leave the ominous mountain behind someday.




The woman’s arrival changes everything.  He wants to know who this woman is and how she knows about his brother who is still being held captive on the mountain?   With her arrival long forgotten memories are starting to come to the surface but Dan can not understand why.  And he does not understand why he is compelled to keep this woman’s presence in his house a secret, but he feels the need to do so.



This book by visionary Author Shawn Smucker gives us an unsettling but gripping story that draws you in from the first page to the last.




I give These Nameless Things five out of five stars!




Happy Reading!