Jane Austen

Thomas Nelson now has a new series of biographies called Christian Encounters. These compact books tell of the experiences, trials and adventures of people from different ages and areas of the Church. I chose to read the story of Jane Austen.
The author, Peter Leithart, begins by telling of world events that were occurring during Austen's life then proceeds to tell of her family and the importance of faith in Jane's life. The author obviously did a lot of research for this book and relied upon Austen family letters and other sources to tell of Jane's personality and experiences.
Jenny, as she was called by her family, began writing early in life. She loved to write simply for the entertainment of her family. Her books were written at a young age and then edited and rewritten many times before she was published.
It was hard to keep up with all the family members and friends discussed. There are, however appendixes in the back listing Austen's family, friends and neighbors and the characters from her novels. The book felt dry and a bit boring, but as I continued to read I appreciated learning more about this literary celebrity.
Since this is my blog and not on a more public book review site, I will take the liberty of saying this to my niece: Amy, I think I know why you enjoy Jane Austen novels. It's because you are so much alike! She was a P.K. (preacher's kid) and had lots of brothers. (5, if I remember correctly) She was a member of the Anglican Church, had a great sense of humor, and faith was an integral part of her life. I could definitely picture the two of you sitting together empathizing over the antics of brothers, laughing and having a good time!

*Thank you to Thomas Nelson for supplying this book for review through the Book Sneeze program! All opinions expressed are my own.

Beguiled

Deeanne Gist's romance writing combined with J. Mark Bertrand's suspense writing blend together into a mildly interesting tale.
Rylee is a sweet, overly naive orphan trying to support her grandmother. She finds herself a suspect in a ring of burglaries. The Robin Hood like thief steals and turns the items over to charities telling them to sell the items and use the money. Rylee's clients are the victims, missing items that hold sentimental value. In steps Logan Woods, a resourceful, energetic reporter who fears dogs. Together, the two begin to investigate.
I did find the main character of Rylee being a rollerblading dog walker a bit bizarre, yet her walks through Charleston did give me a good picture of what the city is like. Honestly, I did have the mystery figured out fairly quickly and the book felt a bit predictable to me. All in all, it did keep me entertained and distracted as I waited during my husband's surgery. An easy read.

*Thank you to Bethany House for supplying this book free of charge as part of their book review program.

Not a Sparrow Falls

I recently received the book Not a Sparrow Falls by Linda Nichols from Bethany House to review. In the story, Mary learns 100 Bible verses as a little girl that she begins to cling to for hope. She unsuccessfully tries to keep her family together after her mother's death. Soon after her brother and sisters are taken, Mary finds herself in a life of crime because of one bad decision after another. She runs, trying to escape from danger and the life she desperately wants out of, and lands in the town of Alexandria, Virginia. Mary assumes her mother's identity for protection and finds peace in the sanctuary of an old church.

Alasdair MacPherson's job and family seem to be crumbling. As pastor of the church, he has many responsibilities and never seems to be able to keep the congregation or his 3 sisters happy. His three children pay the cost as they are neglected by their distracted father. Samantha, his oldest daughter lays her written prayer, "Help me, God", down in the church. Mary sees the prayer and becomes involved trying to help Samantha. Mary uses the verses she learned as a child to help the children and their father heal. She is reminded of God's love and forgiveness and tells Samantha "It's running from things that gives them strength." Can Mary keep her past hidden and be able to help the family, or should she take her own advice and quit running? This story of forgiveness and redemption is one I recommend. I completely enjoyed reading this book and loved the characters. I would give it 5 out of 5 stars. Thank you to Bethany House for allowing me to review the book. All opinions expressed are my own.

Never Say Never

"Home isn't a place, a structure you create from wood or bricks or mortar, building the walls high and strong, to keep out the storms of life. Home is in the things you carry with you, the treasures of the heart..... It is a dwelling place you share with the people who matter most, a refuge in which you are never alone. The Builder is always nearby, tearing down old walls and adding new rooms, repairing the damage of wind and weather, filling empty spaces with new gifts." What a great ending to a fun book!

In Never Say Never, Lisa Wingate tells the story of Kai Miller and her attempt to put down roots after living a childhood moving from place to place. Kai ends up in the small town of Daily, Texas after escaping from a hurricane near her home and discovers the never before experienced welcome of a small town. She met and saved Donetta Bradford during a risky evacuation during the storm and an unlikely friendship begins to develop. Donetta, having had a similar childhood, is able to aid Kai in ways she could not have imagined. The story is told from the perspective of both Kai and Donetta which makes small town Texas come alive. If you are looking for a lighthearted, entertaining book, then Never Say Never is a great choice! You can read an excerpt from the book here.

*Thank you to Bethany House for providing the book free of charge for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Hidden Flame by Davis Bunn & Janette Oke

The Hidden Flame takes you back in time to the early church. You can feel the heat of the day and the cobblestones under your feet as you walk through the streets of Jerusalem with Abagail. She is a quiet, unassuming, gentle lady who has two suitors vying for her hand in marriage. The history of the early church comes alive. You feel Abagail's joy and pain as she experiences celebration and hardships during the growth of the early church and the beginning of persecution of the followers of The Way. I love the way Bunn & Oke show the traditions and daily lives of the Jews using both fictional and Biblical characters.

This narrative explores the lives of the early believers in ways I'd never thought of. Who were the families of Ananias and Sapphira? Were they angry at God and Peter for the death of the couple? What about Stephen's family? Were they proud of his sacrifice or confused by what God had asked of him? As the authors explore these questions in this fictional story, they present many truths and make the characters come alive.

The Hidden Flame is the second in the Acts of Faith series. I haven't read the first book The Centurion's Wife but do plan to pick it up soon. However, it is not necessary to read the first in the series to be able to follow the story in this book. It was a book that was hard for me to put down. I'll be looking forward to reading more in this series!

*Thank you to Bethany House for providing this book for me to review. All opinions expressed are mine.

Psalm 138:8

"The Lord will accomplish what concerns me: Your lovingkindness and mercy, O Lord, endures forever:

Do not forsake the works of Your hands."

~Psalm 138:8

Sense and Sensibility Insight Edition

Having never even glanced at a Jane Austen novel, I was afraid that reading this book would not be fun. Yet I found myself caught up in the story of two sisters, one levelheaded(sometimes hiding her emotions) and the other very dramatic. This is a tale of sisters who struggle to learn what love is truly about and of their unending loyalty to each other.

What made the book interesting to me were the notes added by the editors. They included Historical and cultural details, information on Jane Austen's life, references to Sense & Sensibility in films, an unscientific ranking of the novel's most frustrating characters and themes of faith drawn from the novel or Austen's life. I actually caught myself laughing out loud as I read some of the side notes. The comments helped lighten the tone of the book and made it painless and even fun to read. If I were homeschooling my daughter, I would definately use The Insight Edition! If you are a die-hard Jane Austen fan or a novice like me, this edition will show you why Sense and Sensibility is considered a classic.

*Bethany House supplied this book free of charge as part of their book review program. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Silent Governess by Julie Klassen

When Olivia fled from her home in fear, the last thing she wanted was to know Lord Bradley’s secret. After all, she had enough troubles of her own. Yet the knowledge she acquired from her unintentional eavesdropping afforded her the job of the silent governess. She had found a refuge from her troubles until she could discover what had happened the night she ran. Had she killed her own father?

As I began reading this book, I failed to read the back cover. When I did read it, I was not shocked to discover that the author, Julie Klassen, is a fan of “all things Jane”. You can definitely see the influence of Jane Austen in her writing. I enjoyed her style of writing, the story is well written and very entertaining. Her characters are richly developed and leave you wanting to know them even better. Olivia learns that the event of intentionally losing a bet as a child was not what truly estranged her from her father and Lord Edward Bradley discovers the truth of his birth. Klassen cleverly shows her readers the power of living in truth.

*Thank you to Bethany House for supplying this book free of charge as part of their book review program. I received no monetary compensation for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Lent = Spring!

As Ben and I sat at McDonald's today, I happened to remember that it was Ash Wednesday. So, I started to explain what little I knew about Ash Wednesday and Lent to Benjamin. Basically I explained that those who practice lent put ash on their foreheads as a sign of repentance and compared it to Mordecai's fast in the book of Esther and how he covered himself in ashes to show his grief. Then explained that the people give up something for 40 days to help them remember Jesus' sacrifice of dying on the cross so that they would be ready for Easter morning.
Benjamin's immediate response was, "Can I do that?" I asked what he would give up and he started a long list of electronics - T.V., games, computer....and I said "Wait! You don't want to make it too hard, forty days is a long time!" What was I thinking??? I'm not sure why my first impulse was to discourage him. After all, sacrifice is part of the lesson, right? Right? What exactly is Lent anyway???

Soon after that, Ben ran off to play on the playground. I began wondering how in the world we are going to practice Lent since I know little to nothing about it?!? Then Amy W. called. "Oh!", I thought with relief, "someone who knows about lent and can help me!" When we talked, she handed the phone to Jay and he graciously explained Lent to this Baptist girl. (All mistakes are my own, not Jay's! So, correct me if I get this wrong.) Lent literally means Spring. Oh! I get it (maybe...). Spring, renewal, reconciliation. A time of listening to that still, small voice. Jay called it a time of re-examining, the focus being not on what you give up but upon learning about Christ's ministry and death on the cross. Like Advent is preparing for the celebration of Christ's birth, Lent is preparing for the celebration of His resurrection Whew! I can do this!

At Jay's suggestion we started today by reading in Matthew 4 about the temptation of Jesus. First thing Benjamin noticed was that Jesus fasted for 40 days too! (okay, not sure I get the count of 40 days - it's actually 46, I think, but we don't count Sundays?? Where is Jay when you need him?? LOL) We talked about how important it is to know scripture so that when we're tempted we can respond like Jesus did. We also discussed that if Satan would tempt Jesus, he will tempt us too. I'm always amazed at what Ben picks up on as we study the Bible together. So, as we give up what Ben calls electronics, together we'll be spending that time learning. It may be tough. I will only be using the computer to do the book reviews I need to do to keep that commitment or for research that I need for school. (Ben also approved me blogging about Lent. ha!) No T.V. - Ben assured me that the Olympics weren't that big of a deal. I can't wait to see what Ben and God teach me in the next 40 days!

Sewing 101

Each time Ben sees me sewing he begs me to teach him. So, when I saw a paper card sewn online, I decided it would be a good Valentine's Day project and beginners sewing lesson too.

I couldn't help but think of Tim the Tool man Taylor and his cry "more power!" on the old sitcom Home Improvement. Ben loved switching back and forth between a zigzag and straight stitch as well as changing the stitch length. Many times. On the same card.

At one point he forgot to lift the sewing machine foot off the material and I told him to "lift the foot" I didn't realize he was - lifting HIS foot. Oops. My fault. We had to stop and go over the names of the machine parts.

He was actually very careful and good with the machine. I, on the other hand, discovered that it was MUCH easier to watch from behind a camera. It kept me from taking over or correcting every mistake and from being so uptight about those little fingers being so close to that fast moving, sharp needle.

Here's a sampling of the cards. I've really got to learn to take better pictures.


These were a little too girly for his taste, but were some of my favorite. He was very particular about which fabric to use for each person.

This transformer card is a good example of his use of the different stitches and lengths. He really loved moving those knobs and back stitching!

He very excitedly told me "I love sewing! What if I got to do this for my job? That would be fun!" So, I had to look it up. A male seamstress is actually called a sartor, seamster, or tailor. So, there you have it. My little sartor. Happy Valentine's Day!