New Releases - Christmas 2011

Dear Readers,

Happy Halloween, 54 shopping days until Christmas.  YIKES!!!  I am not ready for that and I am not ready for November.  Less than 2 months to Christmas.  Let the rioting begin. 

Ok just kidding about the rioting, but the holidays are just around the corner and I haven't started yet.  Good grief.  Maybe I will just give everyone on my list a book and call it good.  Of course the books would all be used as I would have to read them first.

I wanted to let you all know about the new Christmas fiction for this year.  Many beloved authors are back with a Christmas book and there are some new authors wading into the waters of the Christmas novellas.  You have many titles to choose from to read and then share to pass on the Christmas spirit.

Happy Holidays er umm.  I mean Reading.

Blame it on the Misltetoe - Joyce Magnin
Christmas Memories at Grace Chapel Inn - Tales from Grace Chapel Inn series.
Log Cabin Christmas - Various authors
Naomi's Gift - Amy Clipston
A Lancaster County Christmas - Suzanne Woods Fisher
Remebering Christmas - Dan Walsh
The Christmas Shoppe - Melody Carlson
A Marriage Carol - Chris Fabry/Gary Chapman
The Christmas Singing - Cindy Woodsmall
The Snow Angel - Glenn Beck
Christmas in Sugarcreek - Shelly Shephard Gray
On Christmas Eve - Thomas Kincade/Katherine Spencer

Alton Gansky & Grant Jeffrey

Dear Readers,

I am not a big fan of 'end times' books & I did go into this book knowing who Grant Jeffrey is and what he studies and writes about.  But since I love Alton Gansky I decided to read this book anyways. I am glad of that and for the most part I liked this book, but it is also what I expected.

What if Israel had plans to rebuild the temple?  What kind of response would that ignite around the world?  What if the only thing holding them back is that they don't have any of the temple artifacts? 

This is idea behind The Scroll by Grant Jeffrey and Alton Gansky. 

 

Dr. David Chambers has walked away from the career that made him who he was.  In fact it was a career that he loved until he lost his faith in God.  So who or what can draw him back into biblical archeology?

Only one person, David's mentor, Abram Ben-Judah and only if he was offering something very very big.   When David and Abram meet, David is sure he knows what he will say to Abram about his offer, that is until Abram explains that they believe that they have found the 'map' to the temple artifacts.  Is David interested in helping Israel recover their lost treasures? 

So begins this archeology book. It has some very good parts.  Parts that are fast paced, parts that taught me something about the history of the treasures of the temple, and parts that taught me about different prophecies in the Bible.  All which make for a good read.  The only problem I really had with the book was the last few chapters and the Epilogue.  They feel like they were just stuck on the end for no real reason.  They didn't fit with the rest of the story at all.  To me it feels like Grant wanted to make sure we knew about the prophecies in the Bible about the rebuilding of the temple. Which is actually too bad, because until that point this is a pretty good book.

Happy Reading.

Lynn Austin

Dear Readers,

Lynn Austin is one of my go-to authors.  When I need just a good story I love picking her books up and reading them.  The only problem is I have read all her books now and have to wait for a new one to come out.  Wonderland Creek by Lynn just released and it was so nice to be able to read it. 

Set towards the end of the depression, it focuses on a need that was created by one of the programs Roosevelt started.  He started funding for libraries all over the country in communties that hadn't had them before.  The problem was, there wasn't enough funding for more books.  Alice hears about the need for books in Kentucky and decides to do a book drive and then bring the books herself.

 

It all sounds like a great idea except Alice is just a bit obsessed with books and reading.  It is the only thing that is important to her.  More important than her family, more important than her boyfriend and more important than her friends (I was a bit shocked when she got a book out at a funeral and started reading).  So when she loses her job and boyfriend all in one day she decides to head to Kentucky univited to deliver the books she had collected.

This starts an adventure that Alice was not expecting. She is asked to do things she has never done before.  She learns to cook over a woodburning stove, she survives without electricty, she learns to ride a horse and she learns that reading is not the only thing that is important in the world. 

I really liked this book for several reasons.  It was a good read and I learned about a part of the country that I have visited several times and find just beautiful.  The book is also set in a time period that, in Kentucky, isn't written about much.  It was a difficult place to live anyways and the depression made it even harder.  To learn about the people of that area and what they did to survive, but also help each other, is amazing. 

Now when I read books like this I know God knew what he was doing setting me in this time in history.  I really like running water, indoor bathrooms and electricity.  Cars are great and being able to just get any book I want is awesome.  So there was nowhere in this book I said, "Boy do I wish I lived there/then."  But it was good to read about it.

Happy Reading

New Releases

Dear Readers,

We are experiencing some yucky fall weather here in Michigan.  It is raining, windy and cold.  Now it is not middle of the winter cold, but considering little over a week ago it was 80 out this is cold.  All I ever want to do in this type of weather is stay home under the covers or if I do venture out it would be no farther than the couch in the living room by the fireplace with a great big quilt and a hot cup of tea.  My boss here at the store never agrees with it other than to say she would be coming over also.  I think she misses the point. 

No matter what kind of weather you are having there are a couple of titles this week really interest me.  Brian Davis and his daughter Amanda were in our store this past Friday.  They both write the Spec fiction genre.


The Tehran Initiative - Joel Rosenberg
Love's Surprise - Karen Ball
The Scent of Water - Elizabeth Goudge
The Third Starlighter - Bryan Davis
Lost Melody - Lori Copeland/Virginia Smith
Lonestar Angel - Colleen Coble

Susan Meissner

Dear Readers,

What if the walls of your house could talk?  Would they remember only the tragedies that happen there?  Would they only remember the happy events?  Or would they tell of a wonderful tapestry of both that make up our histories. 

A Sound among the Trees by Susan Meissner takes on that storyline.  Holly Oak is a home that has lots of tragedy but also lots of happiness.  Adelaide, the matriarch of the family, is sure the house is holding a gruge on her family because it was not allowed to do what houses do best, which is to offer safety and comfort from the storms outside its walls, namely the Civil War. 

 

Marielle is a new bride brought to the house by her husband, who was made a widower by tragic events.  She knows it will be a difficult adjustment for her and the family, but she doesn't expect to meet with resistance from the house.

Now you need to know that this is not a creepy book.  It is not a horror story like Amityville horror, but it is the story of how the past can sometime not let you go so you become stuck in that rut. 

Holly Oak is set in Virginia near Fredricksburg.  Some of the storyline takes place during the Civil War times and tells the tale of a house and its family caught between two armies and trusted by neither.  It is also the story of love and forgivesness.  It is the story of people trying to do what they think is right and true as the time and circumstances dictate. 

Happy Reading

Bryan and Amanda Davis

Dear Readers,

I am not sure where the time has gone, but I lost a week in there somewhere.  Maybe it was the 80 degree weather we were having in Oct. or maybe it is that I don't really want it to be the end of Oct. already, but I had this post ready to go for next week, oops. 

Brian Davis has long been a favorite author at my house.  My son and youngest daughter have both read his books and enjoyed them.  Brian's Dragons in our Midst series was read as fast as the books hit the shelves and both kids were looking for the next one.

When he started writing books for older teens and adults my daughter was glad to continue reading him.  I personally have not read all of his books, but the ones I have read I have enjoyed.  They are interesting and are written with a certain intrigue to them that keeps the readers completely involved.  

I love supporting youth and teen authors who have a wonderful Christian message woven into a good story.  So when I heard that Bryan with his daughter Amanda was coming to visit here at the store I was very excited.  I encourage you to come see them and get to know them a bit.  I meet Bryan years ago at our Holland store and I was stuck at how passionate he was to writing good fiction for teens.  One of his daughters was along and I believe it was Amanda, but I am not 100% positive, and she was in charge of his website at the time.  It really was and obviously still is a family affair for him and his writing.

Come meet Bryan and Amanda here tonight at 7:00p.m. and listen to them both share about their writing experience. 

Happy Reading

New Releases Oct. 10-15

Dear Readers,

This weekend was a year end time for me.  Each year for the past 5 or so years I have lead workshops to a group of church librarians from around the midwest.  It is loads and loads of fun.  I am getting to know many of them that I only get to see once a year, but that is what makes is so fun. 

What makes it a year end for me is what I speak on.  I do reviews on all the books I have read in the past year.  Every year I start my list for next year the day I get back.  It helps me see what I am reading and if I am trending to one certian genre and then I can make sure I read from other genres.  It also helps me to know if I am reading or not reading enough new authors.  So really this has been a great thing for me.  It also makes me laugh because of the number of books I read a year is very very evident. 

This year I brought a list of 61 books.  I never get through them all, but it does make me realize how many books I read a year.  This does not include books that I have read but haven't released yet, ones I didn't like or I don't think would be good for most church libriaries.  It is stil amazing to me how many I do read and I just don't feel like I am a fast reader.  I don't read until 3 in the morning any more - to old, I need my sleep. LOL - but I still seem to find the time to read.  I guess it really is like breathing to me.

Happy Reading

Valley of Dreams - Lauraine Snelling
A Lasting Impression - Tamara Alexander