First Date

First Date by Melody Carlson
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Two weeks into her junior year & Devon Fremont felt dangerously bored.

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I've read some of Melody Carlson's other books & really enjoyed her writing so was excited when I got the change to get this new Young Adult book & review it.

Its the story of girlfriends who get together to form a group & try to break a rule some of the guys are sticking to - to not date. Devon is behind this "Dating Games" & gets her friends to join in as a club.

Devon, Emma, Cassidy, Abby & Bryn are all different, coming from different backgrounds. Christian homes, divorced parents, different races, different values. And while some of the friendships start out on shaky ground, they learn a bit more about each other & they try to 'help' each other out with getting the guy they want to go to the dance with.

After teaching many lessons myself on dating to youth groups, I was anxious to see how this book would go. I'm also a fan of some young adult books & find they can be just as entertaining for adults to read.

This one? I have to say, it seemed very juvenile for an adult. Some of the characters got on my nerves & I just wanted to sit some of them down & have a talk with them as I do in our youth ministry.

Do I think a young lady would enjoy reading this book? Probably. Its full of friendship drama, boy drama, all the things young ladies are going through.

And while I do appreciate the story of the friendships getting stronger, I wish they would have taken the idea of dating & put it on the back burner... but no, its set up for the next book - Blind Dates in the Dating Games.

In my opinion, I'll pass..

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The Women of Christmas

The Women of Christmas: Experience the Season Afresh with Elizabeth, Mary, and Anna by Liz Curtis Higgs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"Long before silver bells jingled, Christmas lights twinkled, & horse-drawn sleighs went dashing through the snow, God reached down from heaven with the best gift of all"
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God works in a funny way. It was just my turn to teach in Youth Ministry on our Christmas series & it kicked off on Elizabeth & Zechariah, so it was the day after I gave the lesson & picked this book up & joined right back in with my friend Elizabeth, getting to know her more & look at the details of her & Zechariah as they prepared for their son John.

& then we move into the heart of the book, the story of Mary... the news she got, the decision to say yes to God, through her pregnancy, what it must have been like for Joseph... all the way through the birth of Jesus & the events after he was born in Bethlehem.

Finally, we get to meet Anna & learn more about this prophetess who looks upon Jesus after being a widow for so long.

All together, its a beautiful Christmas story told by one of my favorite Women of Faith - Liz Curtis Higgs. Something about her just strikes my heart. I just want to hear her tell the stories in person. She's so enchanting with her voice.... & I could hear it in this book.

One of the features she does is use so many versions of the Bible to explain one verse so thoroughly. I love that. Insight that I would never have on my own.

I read this book in less then 24 hours - its a quick read... so I really do recommend it, especially right now as we head into the Christmas season.
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Amen and amen.

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Sea of Tranquility

The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I hate my left hand.

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This is not a book I think I would normally pick. But a fellow blogger was talking about it & recommended it so I thought I'd step out of my book-comfort-zone & check it out. I'm so glad I did.

This is the story of two teenagers who have had rough plates of life handed to them.
Nastya, the girl who had died & came back... but came back broken. She had a life ahead of her as a piano player but how, she's the girl who doesn't speak to anyone & is a mystery to the whole school... & even her family.
Josh Bennett, a guy who has lost everyone in his family. He is no stranger to death & how much it can take away from you.
These are two outcasts... & they prefer it that way... but they are drawn to each other.

The relationship these two have is so much deeper then a normal teenage relationship, with the life experiences they both have. The things they want to not remember or share but is a part of them.

I loved every character in this book. Finding out what happened to "Nastya" & the horrible event that caused her death, both physically... & mentally. Seeing the person Josh Bennett is when he is on his own & has to take care of himself & clinging to memories of his lost family. Drew, the friend to both of them, who is cocky & the guy everyone loves, but the person only his close friends truly know. The relationship between Drew & Nastya just warmed my heart.

I never want to give too much away in reviews because I want everyone else to be surprised as I was... I just know I loved this book. Loved the characters. Love the story. I was actually sad to let them go on the last page.

I will say, this book contains a LOT of language... I'm not usually a fan of that at all. It deals with real teenage relationships. It deals with abuse. It deals with serious topics. Its a heavy book... wrapped up in a sweetness that you don't expect. It makes you root for these two people.

I'm glad I took the hint to try something new... I have new characters in my mind that have touched me.

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And I tell him, "Your garage"

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Galloway's Book on Running

Galloway's Book on Running by Jeff Galloway
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I've heard a lot about Jeff Galloway - mostly from people that go to all the incredible runDisney races. He speaks at these events. I know him because he is a big believer in the Run/Walk interval method. How it can keep you feeling strong, & actually improving time if you let your body 'rest' a bit while running.

I was actually hoping for some more info on that, while there was a few pages dedicated to the issue. But still gave 4 stars because it is packaged FULL of info. How to start running, the different ways to train, training plans for 5k, 10k & half marathon - even plans for your goal time. I especially loved the details of what to wear for every 10 degree different in weather. I always get confused about that. There was even a chapter for women runners & running after 40. Ouch.. me... but good to know I'm not alone in getting slower. Doesn't mean I can't stay strong & healthy. Maybe just not as speedy. Heck, I've never been speedy so no big loss :)

If you are wanting to run & need some info to get started, this would be a great book. If you are a runner already, this has a lot of info you already know... but its always good to review.

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The Fault in our Stars

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"Late in the winter of my 17th year, my mother decided I was depressed, presumably because I rarely left the house, spent quite a lot of time in bed, read the same book over & over, ate infrequently & devoted quite a bit of my abundant free time to thinking about death"

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Hazel Grace. 16 years old & living with thyroid cancer that had gone to her lungs. We meet Hazel as she's going to a Support Group in the "Literal Heart of Jesus". She sits next to her friend Isaac with cancer in his eyes. Before long, Isaac bring his friend, Augustus to the support group. Augustus had Osteosarcoma & had lost a leg with his cancer.

You'd think its a depressing book, which it does have its moments where it tugs at your heart, but you see how it is to live young with cancer. How families that love you live with it.

Augustus & Hazel develop a relationship even though Hazel doesn't want to be a "grenade" to Augustus by destroying everything around her when she leaves. Gus has other thoughts on that idea.

Hazel has one book she reads over & over again because she can relate to the young girl who has cancer in the story. The way the books ends, Hazel wants to know more. Once she has Augustus read the book, & he too becomes enthralled in it, they just want to know more about the characters after the story ends...

A "Cancer Perk" is to have a wish fulfilled. Hazel, already using hers on a Disney trip, is shocked when Gus uses his to go on a trip across the ocean to meet the author. Not the trip you would expect... horrible & sweet all in one.... people not being who you'd expect, things happening that make you remember young love, & news that is revealed that will break your heart...

I loved Augustus so much... the way he thought & said things. The way he felt about Hazel. The way he would say, "Hazel Grace". The way he told her he loved her. He was the perfect love for our main character.

I loved the side characters - the parents of Hazel & Augustus. Isaac, who ends up having another round with cancer & the devastating way he has to handle it. Even the author that Hazel has longed her life to meet.

We know how this book is going to end, but you don't really know... all I can say is your heart gets a little torn because you love these characters... but you learn a little bit about life, & how to look at it. How life continues on.

In the end, I felt like Hazel... I want to know more at the end... how the characters carry on... what does the next year look like for them all?...the signs of a good book.

My favorite line of the book: "What a slut time is. She screws everybody"

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I do, Augustus. I do.

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Fearless

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear by Max Lucado
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"You would have liked my brother"
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I love Max Lucado... I also love any book on the study of Fear in the Bible. Why? Because I'm a fearful person. Anxiety gets the best of me at all times. Worry? That's my best friend.

So I try to flood myself with books on scripture & fear. "What Women Fear" is another one of my favorites I just finished reading not too long ago.

When I saw this on sale in Amazon for my Kindle, I jumped on it... pretty much like the cover of the book.

I'm never disappointed with Max Lucado's writing, his illustrations, the way he brings Scripture to life.

I'm just thankful for the highlight feature on my Kindle... If I had the book in hand, I'm sure it would be glowing yellow.

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"Amen William. And Amen.

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First Phone Call from heaven

The First Phone Call from Heaven: A Novel by Mitch Albom

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


On the day the world received its first phone call from heaven, Tess Rafferty was unwrapping a box of tea.
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I was very lucky to get this book to review it before it is released.

I'm a fan of Mitch Albom's books anyways, & this one did not disappoint.

People are getting phone calls from heaven - some from family members that have passed away. Children, sisters. Even an employee is getting a phone call from someone he had to fire. Are the phone calls real? The world wants to know when wind comes that the phone calls are happening. Is this the proof everyone needs to see that Heaven is real?

We follow the people who are receiving the phone calls & also a man, Sully, as he comes back to the town of Coldwater Michigan to try & get his life back in order.

I don't want to give anything away... I just know I loved the book.
Its sort of a mystery novel, but also just a touching novel.
I actually logged quite a few quotes from the book on Goodreads because it was just so well written in areas.

I also love the little points that are made about the telephone & Alexander Graham Bell & his wife. It was put in so subtly but made the book have an extra touch of something special.

So the record goes, Mitch Albom still ranks for me....

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We call out; we answered. It has been that way from the beginning of belief & it continues to this very moment where, late at night, in a small town called Coldwater, a seven year old boy hears a noise, opens his eyes, lifts a blue toy to his ear & smiles, proving heaven is always & forever around us & no soul remembered is ever really gone.



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