Martha

Martha, written by Diana Wallis Taylor, tells the Bible story of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. Although their lives are intertwined as they are siblings, the main focus of this book is Martha and the responsibilities she has as the oldest sibling. Most people are familiar with Martha, the hard-working oldest sister who chastises her young sister, Mary, when she chooses to remain at Jesus’ side listening to his preaching rather than helping her sister prepare the meal. The book Martha looks at this story, along with Lazarus’ death and being brought back to life by Jesus, and the death and resurrection of Jesus.
I enjoyed reading this book, and I liked learning more about the sacrifices Martha made in raising her family. I liked how the book was written in a very understandable way, and I felt as if Martha and her community was a friend of mine. Although I knew of their lives, I never thought of them as everyday people, and this is how they were conveyed in the book. The book also showed the hope that although she was seen as too old for love, there is the right person out there for everyone and if you are patient and trusting in God to provide, you will see the plans He has for your life. I will definitely be recommending this book to others!
Available June 2011 from Revell.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Revell book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

The Inconvenient Marriage of Charlotte Beck

The Inconvenient Marriage of Charlotte Beck by Kathleen Y'Barbo looks at Charlotte Beck, and her goals of gaining a career in the 1880s. Although most women of her age are beginning to look for husbands, Charlotte yearns to attend college. Forging an unlikely agreement, Charlotte decides to marry Alex, an Englishman who she finds to be very frustrating, in return for him allowing her to attend college and him to obtain her family’s money to keep his family from falling into ruin.

This was a very cute book that was fairly predictable, but that’s what I look for in romantic, Christian fiction books. In addition to its predictability, I liked that Charlotte was a strong character that didn’t let the traditions of the time dictate what she did with her life. In that way, she sets a good example for the young girls who may decide to read this book.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Waterbrook Multnomah book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Double Take

I was so excited to read Double Take, and I couldn’t wait for my review copy to come in the mail. Within one day, I finished the book, and I enjoyed it extremely. The book tells the story of a rich, New York girl named Madison who feels like everyone in her life wants to tell her what to do. Her best friends wants her to spend spring break in Florida, her mother wants her to vacation in Italy, her father wants her to visit an Ivy League college he wants her to attend, while her boyfriends wants to spend a weekend alone with her in Nantucket. On the other hand, Anna is a young Amish girl being sent away to care for an aunt who is soon to have another child. The main reason for Anna’s parents wishing to have her visit her relatives is that she cannot seem to get over her boyfriend, Jacob leaving the Amish community. A chance encounter causes these two girls, who look remarkably alike, to switch places. As they learn about the lives of each others they, in turn, learn about the kind of person they want to be.

I really enjoyed this book. I have been looking at the book at various online sites over the past few weeks just waiting for the chance to buy the book. I really like topics dealing with switching places, and I think it might have something to do with my childhood desire to have a twin who I could switch places with so I didn’t have to sit through some boring class or do some chore around the house I didn’t want to have to do…it could also be from watching movies like The Parent Trap, which I loved!  I also liked that the book mentioned some areas I am familiar with, as I live in the Allentown area. I don’t know why, but I always seem to enjoy books that I feel like I personally know where the characters travelled. Also, although Madison was supposed to be someone who had everything she wanted in life, I liked that her character didn’t become a typical spoiled, rich girl. She seemed like someone I could have seen myself being friends with in High School. I think the same can be said of Anna; she was friendly and compassionate toward others. Overall, I loved this book and can’t wait to give it to my younger cousins to read.

Available June 2011 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Revell book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Summer!

So it's officially summer!!! I have a few vacations coming up, and I started running again today, so hopefully I can get more fit within the next few weeks :-) Have a great summer everyone!!

A Vision of Lucy

Lucy Fairbanks always seems to be surrounded by trouble; fires, robberies, stampedes, and an accidental shooting are just a few of the misadventures she finds herself involved in when she tries to capture events in the town through her photography in hopes of working for the local newspaper. Throughout A Vision of Lucy by Margaret Brownley, it is apparent that Lucy always has the best intentions in mind, but she can’t seem to overcome being accident-prone. As Lucy attempts to overcome some of the problems she was a part of creating in the town of Rocky Creek, she meets David Wolf and embarks on an opportunity to help him resolve a mystery from his past. Along the way, they find themselves falling in love with one another, even though his ancestry has caused him to be an outcast.

I really enjoyed this book, and I related to the character of Lucy, as it always seems that anything that can go wrong, will go wrong for me. She faces that same problem, but it is apparent through the book that she always has the best intentions. I also liked how the other townspeople were included in the book, and I found myself caring for the characters that live in the town of Rocky Creek.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Too Rich for A Bride

Too Rich for a Bride was written by Mona Hodgson and is the second book in The Sinclair Sisters of Cripple Creek Series. The book follows Ida Sinclair who decides to move closer to her sisters, Nell and Kat. Ida moves to Colorado in the hopes of becoming a successful businesswoman by working for Mollie O’Bryan. Her focus is singularly on business, not forging relationships with the men who seem to be focused upon her.

Although this was the first book in the series, I could easily read it as a stand-alone book and understand what was going on in the life of Ida. As someone who is very focused on my career, I liked learning how Ida dealt with this same issue in relationship to dealing with forging a romantic connection. I really enjoyed this book, and I cannot wait to read the other books in the series.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Waterbrook Multnomah book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

So I have been slacking lately in my blogging...the nice summer weather has kept me outside :-) Summer vacation at Creation is coming up soon :-) This is going to be my first year going and my first time ever camping so it will be a new, and hopefully fun, experience. I'm especially excited to see Francesca Battistelli (sorry if I spelled that wrong). I'll try to post some updates when I'm there or after I get back since I hear there's no cell service :-/ It should be a great experience and I am super excited to see all of the artists at the concert.

Praying for Your Future Husband

I could not wait for the opportunity to read Praying for Your Future Husband by Robin Jones Gunn and Tricia Goyer, and I was extremely excited when I received this book to review for WaterBrook Multnomah Publishers. The book looks at something most girls think about in their lives: who their future husband will be. Rather than what some typical dating books focus on, such as how to get a boyfriend, this book looks at how you can pray for your future husband. The chapters focused on 13 things you should pray for your future husband including: his heart, that he will be a good leader, trust, strength, intimacy, contentment, and understanding. The chapters were set up with personal stories, Bible verses, and discussion questions which made this an ideal book for a devotional or Bible Study.
I really enjoyed this book, and I will be giving it to my younger sister to read and recommending it to others. Even though I am in my mid-twenties, I found this book to be extremely relevant. I also liked the background and experiences both of the authors gave to the book, and also the experiences of those whose stories were contained in the book. I will definitely be keeping this book on my bookshelf for future reference.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the WaterBrook Multnamah Publishing Group book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

A Reluctant Queen

I was extremely excited when I had the opportunity to read A Reluctant Queen: The Love Story of Esther by Joan Wolf. Ever since first hearing her story as a young girl, I was impressed with her bravery and her fighting to save her people. This book lays out the story that most people know, but it does add some different aspects. Esther, although a Jew, becomes married to King Ahasuerus. When Haman, one of the Kings advisors, puts the life of the Jews in danger, Queen Esther goes against tradition and meets the King to save the other Jewish people.

I really loved this book, and I could not put it down throughout the reading. I liked the character of Esther and also her uncle Mordecai who raised her as his own daughter after the death of her parents. I liked learning about the time and seeing the difference between the people with a Jewish background and those from the Persian heritage. I will be recommending this book to others, as I really enjoyed the story and learning more about Esther.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255