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This page is not a complete list but rather a "work in progress," where I give my "book reports" as time allows. If you see (Review is waiting to be written), check back at a later date to see my description.
As you will see as you scroll down, I don't lean into many "beach reads." The majority of my attention is made up of books that focus on how to respond to life challenges from a Christian perspective. I hope these reports will be of help to those who are intrigued by the titles.
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Biographies tend to hold my interest longer than fiction, so that's the aisle I choose when visiting our public library. Some years ago we took a tour through the George W. Bush Presidential Library, which faces the campus of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. The library and museum were fascinating, so when I recently saw this book on the library shelf, I decided its pages could fill in more details about this past president and his family.
Respect, decorum, protocol, honesty, tact, accountability, and similar words seem to be fading fast from our American culture. It was good to read about a presidency that was holding onto those virtues.
Starting with Laura Bush's childhood and culminating with the beginning of her husband's second term in the White House, this book described a woman who was raised with good values, did her best in school and relationships, and used her education and sensitivities to encourage literacy in underprivileged children.
Not perfect but trying to make the best of things that did not go right, Laura Bush is a good example to women of how to use the opportunities life has given to help others. I enjoyed the glimpses into both the public and private aspects of life in the White House.
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Sometimes the events of life set us back so far that we struggle to remember who we are, where we are, and what we are supposed to be doing. Feelings go berserk and we feel at a complete loss what to do about it.I was browsing in Barnes and Noble when this book caught my eye. I thumbed through it and put it down. But after having moved away from it, I went back, read the Table of Contents again, and decided this might be something I needed to study.
Quoting the back cover, "When our circumstances unravel, how do we hold onto truth, to hope, to who we're meant to be?"
Hardships, as I have learned in recent years, can knock a person off balance, throwing us into odd directions away from what had only a short time before seemed so firm and secure.
Storms threatened our sense of peace. This author "gives language to the voices that dwell in the deepest chambers of our wounded souls." This book helped to steady my sense of who I am as a Christian, shed insights into what has happened to me, and articulated a more peaceful acceptance of who I am in the aftermath of some troubling circumstances and relationships.
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This book, from my husband's library shelves, is not a typical read for me. However, the time came when I wanted a better understanding of what goes on in war. Many veterans don't want to talk specifically about the grizzly aspects of their past, and understandably so.
On the other hand, like the benefits of journaling, they need to share such things in an effort to process what they have heard, seen, and felt themselves.
Walk in My Combat Boots is a collection of "brutally honest" stories by men and women veterans over the span of five chapters and 401 pages who have served in the United States military in wars during my lifetime (since mid-twentieth century). The description, "brutally honest," (taken from the book jacket) is a polite way of saying the language is often not what comes out of my mouth with descriptions of horrific life-altering injuries.
The chapters focus on how these people got into the service, the rigors of training, the active duty itself, and life after coming back home. While I chuckled from time to time, for the most part, the stories are not pretty. They are honest accounts we need to know to genuinely appreciate sacrifices that have been made for those of us who will probably never have to face war, or even physical violence against our body.
I read the book in a relatively short span of time (for me), reluctant to put it down. A quote in one of the last pages sums it up well, "...we're performing to the best of our abilities in the worst possible environments."
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TV FOX news personality, Shannon Bream has written several books. This one is the first of hers that I read, followed by the two reviews of more she has authored below this one.She is a lovely woman in a demanding line of work who holds to her Christian values very well. I was interested to see what she had to say.
Among my many scribbled margin notes is this on page 69: "Ruth (like Abraham) became a powerful symbol of the riches that await those who choose to step out in faith and who leave behind the comfortable in favor of the strange and spiritually challenging."
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This is one of two books authored by Shannon Bream that my husband gifted to me for my birthday in 2023. In its pages the reader sees examples of the positive and negative aspects of love stories in not only romances but also friendships and families. It's good to see real life illustrated in scripture, where dysfunction is often encountered but God speaks to us through those relationships.
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This is second of two books authored by Shannon Bream that my husband gifted to me for my birthday in 2023. Per my habit, I underline and make margin notes in nearly every book that belongs to me. On page 18 there is this point that mentors me when relationships get rocky: "...rest secure in the knowledge that God has the situation firmly in His hands."
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One of my closest book "friends" is this dog-eared copy of Roget's Thesaurus. In my efforts to be a more interesting writer, this book has helped me countless times to choose verbiage that is perhaps more accurate and certainly more entertaining than what I come up with purely on my own. This version, purchased in about 1985, has surely been updated many many times since then, but any good bookstore carries them.
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I picked up this book by Chip and Joanna Gaines at the lending library here in our retirement community. I like to read biographies so maybe I can learn from the successes and mistakes of others. It's a quick read with input from both Chip and Joanna, along with some family photographs. They are more daring (risk-takers) than me, but the reading was enjoyable.--------------------------------------
After my first husband's passing, I came across this book at Barnes and Noble. I knew immediately that I should read it, but I didn't want to. I made the purchase but then was a little slow in getting to the reading of it. It helped me and I'm glad for the wisdom (and courage) it gave to me.
"Courage is not the absence of fear;
it is moving forward in the presence of fear.
Courageous people do
what they believe in their hearts they should do,
no matter how they feel or
what kinds of doubts and
fearful thoughts fill their minds."
~ Joyce Meyer
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After completing this book, I have continued to refer to its helpful pages to reaffirm the most significant points. Over the course of twelve chapters, this book has validated things I already knew but more than that, it threw light on some scripture I have, until now, been applying incorrectly.
Per my usual habit, helpful sentences and phrases have been hi-lited and underlined. Scribbled notes have been added to the margins sometimes with stars and arrows and other indications to draw the eye quickly to messages most applicable to me.
The most help this book has done for me is to make alterations to some beliefs that have held me captive in a harsh mindset with no hope of relief. My misunderstandings have been addressed -- and what a relief to realize I'm not the only one who has suffered similar opinions.
Put another way, in this life not all problems, circumstances, and arguments get solved. As Jesus Christ said, "In this world you will have trouble." (John 16:33) This book gave examples of godly people in both the Old and New Testaments who could not reach a place of agreement and how they dealt with it.
Another Christian author has taught that we cannot always get resolution, but we may be able to get reconciliation. Even with that said, sometimes we have to just accept there will be no resolution and then determine what we need to do to cope with peace and civility.
The book is about boundaries. I'll let its pages explain what that is about. But one thing I realized is that while I must have boundaries for my own sanity and self-preservation, I must also respect the boundaries others have set up, even if I disagree.
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I was entranced with this book on the life of Corrie ten Boom. The movie of her story came out in the mid 1970's but I only recently read the book. It was hard to put down and full of lessons on good character in the worst of times. I sum it up this way:
ALL OF MY PROBLEMS ARE QUITE SMALL
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Our world is unsettled, angry, dangerous. We see behavior illustrating that on the news all the time as well as up close. This past week I completed a self-guided study of this book:
Written on a very practical level, the chapters were titled:
How to Be Wise in Relationships
Who's Pushing Your Buttons?
How to Resolve Conflict
Breaking Free From Abuse
Escaping the People-Pleaser Trap
Keeping the Crazy-Makers From Making You Crazy
Students should study this stuff in school and adults should review it occasionally. I gained a much better understanding of what is going on. My biggest take-aways can be summed up like this:
1) Hurt people hurt people.
2) Our behavior is the result from hurt we've experienced.
3) Hurt people need massive doses of kindness.
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This book was a purchase from the hospital gift shop when Gary was in surgery. It has been a balm to my soul repeatedly with 39 short chapters, each one divided into 5 sections with these headings:
What the Bible Says
More Thoughts About [the chapter topic]
More From God's Word
Remember This
A Timely Tip
Published by Choice Books with more titles regarding common life stressors, these pocket-sized paperbacks are helpful to read for scripture-based definitions, appropriate Bible verses, things to consider, and advice. As is the case with most of the books I read, my colored pencils underline the most potent of the helpful thoughts so I can flip through pages in review when I need encouragement.
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| link to purchase |
This book is special to me because the author is one of my neighbors! Mary Ellen writes a column in a monthly local magazine and now has her first novel in print.
It's a fun story the reader can enjoy when wanting to vacate from reality with a comfortable chair, chocolate within easy reach, and a snuggy blanket tucked over the feet.
In addition to a mystery love tale set in an Italian-American culture, I was intrigued with clever descriptive phrases that challenge me to use more imagination in my writing:
"I swear they must pass these bingo seats down in their wills"
"I think his teeth are over there..."
"...doughnuts were at the top of your own personal food pyramid"
(and much more!)
When you just need to put your world on "pause," hide yourself in-between the pages of this book.
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When my late husband was in the hospital and things were looking dark, my BFF sent this to me. One of her brothers had recently died from a long illness, and as it turned out, her own mother passed just a few days after the death of my husband.
To quote a book review by the well-known neurosurgeon, Dr. Ben Carson, "...this ... book offers an alternative to anti anxiety medications...."
The wisdom and tender care of the shepherd for his sheep is explained with each phrase in the 23rd Psalm. I sensed that care for me as I thought of myself as a lost, bewildered, naive lamb.
The last few pages teach that the 23rd Psalm is one of the most powerful writings in existence, so powerful that it can change your life when read five times a day every day for a week.
For myself, as a result of reading this book, when I am most troubled and can't sleep, I picture myself held close in the arms of My Shepherd, Jesus, allowing Him to confront my battles. This has worked for me.
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A long-time friend to some of my prayer buddies, Chaplain (Colonel) Andy Meverden penned the memories of his Afghanistan military service in 2002-2003. He was assigned to the Army National Guard Special Forces battalion-- The Green Berets, while serving as senior pastor at his church in Denver. The weekly updates to his home church make up this book.
Here are some of the chapter titles: (just some of them)
The Ballad of the Green Beret
Ordered or Volunteered?
Teaming Up to Serve Soldiers and Civilians
Chaplains Drive, Assistants Shoot
Rebuilding An Army on the Golden Rule
Wrong Helicopter Right Destination
Making Things Right
.... and so much more. The book gives an inside look into the realities of serving both God and country and how to get along with strange customs and ways of thinking.
Both my husband and I read this from cover to cover. It was well worth our time and among other things, gave me a better appreciation for what our military face so far from home and all that is familiar (and predictable).
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My first husband and I borrowed this book out from our public library the summer of 2016 but then bought our own copy so we could freely mark the pages with our notes. We felt this was like an encyclopedia of research and well-thought out information about a topic that occupies the mind of everyone at some point in life, a good reference.
Little did we know that in just a few short years, one of the two of us would be ushered into this incredible eternal place with the remaining one scrambling to review the information.
At times the paragraphs are long and verge on getting a little too 'cerebral' for me, but the chapter headings kept me in the pages until the very end.
The Part II section of the book addresses questions such as:
What will our lives be like?
What will our relationships be like?
What about animals?
What will we do in heaven?
(and much more)
A conclusion I've made as a result of this book is that those who have gone there before us still love us who remain. However, they are not worried about us but are fully occupied with the wonder of our incredibly wonderful God and anticipate with joy when we can join them.
Another conclusion I've reached is that no matter how tough things are for us here, now, it is all temporary and cannot compare to the joy God has prepared for our eternity with Him.
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My copy of this very old book, which belonged to my father, was in its 65th printing, so this is a classic. All of my life I admired how my father could handle himself well with people, both one-on-one and as a public speaker. Some of Daddy's instruction formed me into who I am today, and some of it did not. Now in my latter years, I see how I could have served myself better with putting more of his counsel into practice.
Pithy wisdom fills the pages and although Mr. Carnegie does not specifically mention Biblical scripture as his source, clearly the principles he teaches are just that. Six Parts make up the 234 pages:
- Fundamental Techniques in Handling People
- Six Ways to Make People Like You
- Twelve Ways to Win People To Your Way of Thinking
- Nine Ways to Change People Without Giving Offense or Arousing Resentment
- Letters That Produced Miraculous Results
- Seven Rules For Making Your Home Life Happier
Reading the pages today, it comes across as "old school," but that's not a bad thing!
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In 2016 my first husband and I made a couple of long road trips, one to the Pacific Northwest and another to Florida. While browsing the shelves of a bookstore in Spokane, Washington, I came across this book by the very imaginative and creative cookbook author, Susan Branch. She had written this book to describe her response to a failed, childless marriage and how she made a new life by transplanting herself from California to Martha's Vineyard. The pages are handwritten and illustrated, which in itself presented an interesting challenge in finding a publisher.
She describes the pathos of human rejection and discovering what to do with the rest of her life as she buys an old house to refurbish, cooks, illustrates with water colors, and dotes on her cats. A thoroughly entrancing book, I read it entirely aloud (368 pages!) to my husband as he drove us from the Northwest back to Colorado.
I guess you could call this a "beach read," something I don't do often, but this one really kept my attention.
Her many cookbooks, by the way, are favorites on my shelves, just fun to flip through due to the extensive artwork.
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I have lost count how many books authored by Joyce Meyer that I have read, but they have all been in the last 3 1/2 years. My favorites are the devotional books. I completed a year in this one last month.
Her devotional readings are limited to one page, most of the time, and are so very practical for everyday life. Much of it could be labeled as common sense but she takes it deeper, bringing up aspects I have overlooked.
For a quick devotional book, I prefer something that begins with a Bible verse (or a very short passage) and then an explanation. For the sake of time when a brief message is all I can do at the moment, I like for the verse to be actually printed on the page, so I don't need to look it up in a Bible or on my phone. This book is good for that, and as you can see, I bought the large print edition, which is such a comfort to aging eyes.
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| sample page with Bible verse printed out |
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one-of-a-kind;
not available for purchase |
While I have no aspirations to be an author of books to sell, I do lay claim as a self-published author of blogs. In addition to that, I have created my own books (usually a 3-ring binder) for personal use for much of my adult life, as well as some scrapbook photo albums.
Some of you may be "authors," too, but you never thought of yourself in that way!!
This 3-ring binder holds recipes we have enjoyed since combining our two households into one. It is solely for my personal use but I share this photo to perhaps inspire others who want their favorite recipes collected in one place.
This "book" has recipes printed from my computer, ideas torn out of magazines, hand-written recipes with notes, and embellishments with colored pencils and stickers -- a scrapbook of kitchen helps -- this sits on our counter for quick reference at any time. All pages are tucked inside clear plastic page protectors from the office supply store.
------------------------------------------- I enjoy self-help books although I am careful to avoid anything that smacks of new-age or contrary to biblical teachings. When life gets kinda crazy, sometimes I need to be reminded of basic actions (even common sense) I can take to unwind.
This book has practical suggestions the reader can implement as circumstances require.
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Discerning the Voice of God, How to Recognize When God is Speaking is both informative and very practical. A quote that really struck a chord with me was this: "God's goal in your life is to move you from a mental knowledge of Him to an experiential one." Serious things lead me to wonder just what it is He wants me to know about Himself.Ms. Shirer gives many examples of how God speaks to us, some that the reader may (or may not) have experienced before reading the book. Her stories can serve to confirm what the reader already suspected (or maybe was just wondering about) as well as to give tips on how to be listening for God's communication.
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This is a book I gifted to myself while I was Christmas shopping in 2023. I have been steadily working through it several times a week. The puzzles are arranged from easy to hard. I'm well into "hard" now and yes, the hard ones are hard (my opinion).
However, I love that I can easily pick this up and put it down in the middle of a puzzle and at the same time be assured I am helping my brain to stay a little more on track.
Sudoku books like this are found at just about any magazine stand, as well as wherever books are sold.
I went onto YouTube to get practical instruction how to do this, which was very helpful. In just a couple of minutes I was working puzzles and getting a lot of satisfaction out of it.
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