Finding Ultra

Finding Ultra: Rejecting Middle Age, Becoming One of the World's Fittest Men, and Discovering Myself by Rich Roll
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is my kind of book.
Love to hear of an inspiring story - & this was. A man who had a hard start in life battling alcohol & then found sobriety... & then let the fun of aging get to him. Rich Roll realized he was missing out on life when at 40 yrs old, he couldnt get up a flight of stairs without feeling like he was going to have a heart attack. He was determined to make changes.... & changes he made. The story of his journey to an ultraman & to a feat that no one had ever tried before - doing 5 Ironman routes in less then a week. Having seen an Ironman competition in person & seeing the strain on people's face & hearing of the soreness & recover after ONE - I cant image 5 back to back to back.

I also appreciated this book because Rich talks so much about nutrition & how a plant based diet changed his life. It got his health back inline - it boosted his endurance & athletic abilities. There's useful information here - especially in the appendix where he explains why he eats like he does. I actually learned something myself. I have a hard time with anemia & since I've cut out meat, he talks about iron as a vegan. He warned that drinking tea with dinner can cause iron to NOT be absorbed by 50-60% ... I drink tea all day long. HOLY SMOKES! I had no idea. I really did learn things ...

& was inspired.

I loved that his wife asked him after a bike accident & Rich was lucky he didnt break his neck - she asked him a question about his life & if he died that day, would he be happy with the direction of his life & what he accomplished. Rich's answer is what I want to say in my life to that same question.

If you're interested in running, athetics, a turn your life around story, nutrition, you'll enjoy this book.

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Heroes & Monsters

Heroes and Monsters: An Honest Look at the Struggle within All of Us by Josh Riebock
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had such a love/hate relationship with this book. More love then hate... DEFINITELY more love. This book is just a man's story - starting from childhood until the end of his life... & its written in a different way. And while some parts felt drug out & not to make much sense (the hate part) - other parts were so amazingly written, that one sentence would make me stop & think for 10 minutes. I think I wrote down more quotes from this book then any I've read in awhile...

We start off the book with a little boy that meets a talking Scarecrow... Jack.. & we see how Jack stays with this little boy through life...

It really surprised me when we found out who Jack is...

Its little things like that that just make me enjoy the book

I will say as well - the last chapter? I cried my eyes out... a wonderful way to end the book. That alone pushed it well over the edge of loving the book..

Loved that God is such an important "character" in this book... didnt expect this book to inpsire me to look at my relationships so deeply - especially my relationship with God.
Thumbs up Mr. Riebock

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Nickels

Nickels by Karen Baney
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I appreciated the story being Christian based... how someone can change from their past & show that their lives are changed.

I really loved the character of Kyle. Know a lot of women would want to have him in real life. & while Niki had horrible tragedies in her life, I was glad to see her find some happiness.

I did enjoy the book, but will say, it seemed way too long for me. Sort of dragging the story out & had parts that I felt like I just kept reading over & over. (water games in the pool - kissing the forehead) maybe it was just because it felt so long that I noticed these same sentiments over & over repeatedly.

I did appreciate the Christian love story... that Kyle & his sister were 'normal' Christians - not over the top, crazy, 'preachy' people - but loved Nickles through the years - leading her to Christ...

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Sun Zebra

The Sun Zebra by Rolando Garcia
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Short stories written by a father about his life & 'adventures' with his daughter. There are just a few stories, but you'll wish there were more. Each story was so well written - making me laugh & tear up in the same story. Cute stories of Nell & deep lessons for the adults to learn ...


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See Through

See Through by Catherine Kirby
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I started reading it, thinking it was a good idea. What would it be like to be invisible..

but it was just weird

Take out the "English/British" terms, I couldnt understand it. A family that allowed the mom to the oldest daughter to 'hang out' with them, but not tell the now teenager daughter its her mom? And then a phantom pregnancy - & then the invisible stuff because you have a 'colour' as the last name?

I couldnt take anymore.

Made it to the 5th chapter & just said "I give up"

It may have had a fantastic ending that wrapped it all up - but I couldnt get there.

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Erasing Hell

Erasing Hell: What God Said about Eternity, and the Things We've Made Up by Francis Chan
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

While I am a Christian & do believe in Hell, I wanted to see Francis Chan take on it.
And while I agreed with the scripture he gave & explanations of it, I was really taken back by the chapter that talked about what do Christians do now. Particuarly about the verse where Jesus says, "I never knew you"... the way he said that the greedy, the teachers, of the Word will be going to Hell. It made no mention of Christ's blood covering our sins... it just stresed the point of BELIEVERS going to Hell... which I do not agree with. I think those going to Hell are not true believers... what is Christ Blood for then? ...
In the end, this book didnt tell me anything more then I already knew, but I felt, wanted to scare people into being a 'perfect' person, which we know we cant be...

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Chasing Rainbows

Source: goodreads.com via Rebecca on Pinterest

Chasing Rainbows

Kathleen Long

What's that saying about the devil you know? For Bernie, it's the devil she never expected that changes everything.

Her father's sudden death leaves a gaping void in her life and is one in a series of events that rock her world. Her husband leaves for another woman, and her best friend announces an unplanned pregnancy at the age of forty-one. Bernie's behavior goes from acting out to out-of-hand, and she finds herself in trouble at home, out of work and banned from the mall after a confrontation at the cosmetic counter.

When her mother discovers her father's book of cryptograms, Bernie realizes his encoded lessons in living might be exactly what she needs to survive. From dealing with her family's grief and bonding with her best friend's thirteen-year-old daughter, to dieting, dating and mindless almost-sex with the landscaper, Bernie discovers what her father always knew.

In life, you either choose to sing a rainbow, or you don't.

For Bernie, the singing is about to begin.

___________________________

I got this book for free on Kindle & the reviews were kinda sketchy... some didnt like it, some did, but nothing overwhelming.

I still gave it a try & so glad I did.

I really enjoyed this book.  Even in the sadness of the circumstances for our character, Bernie.  Her husband cheated on her... their baby died after a few days of birth... she lost her dad & the family was struggling with life after his passing.  Some dark stuff.

But this book was FUNNY

Maybe not so funny to others, but so much that Bernie said & did, I can totally see me reacting the same way... I think that's why I loved it.  I could totally be Bernie.

From her 'freak out' moments in the mall, to her funny reactions to her friend, to her befriending her best friends teenage daughter & being there for her... yep, I could be her.

But loved how Bernie found herself through the book... with the help of her friends & family, & even her little dog :)  Finding herself with the help of her dad who left behind these messages for her to figure out. 

I think the end was predictable, (as most storeis are) - but I enjoyed getting to the end of the story. 

My Rating:  4 skeins
(This book does contain some language)