I Can Only Imagine by Bard Millard (children's edition)

I Can Only Imagine by Bard Millard (children's edition) is a wonderful retelling of the song of the same title.  This book goes through the song sometimes with different words for children.  The story line lets the imagination of a child explore what they think heaven would be like.  Where would they live?  Would it be in a big house with big rooms?  Where would they play? What would they play like and would there be playground equipment?  Would they have chores at their house?  What would food be like in Heaven?  Would they have pets in heaven?  What about music in heaven?  Would they sing? And would God sing along?  What would it be like to be able to talk to God and ask questions?    What would it be like to live right along side of God?  What is God like?

This book doesn't really answer the questions just allows the child to think about what they think that heaven would be like.  Their questions are not so different than what a grown person would ask are they not?  What would Heaven be like?  What would we all like to ask God?  When we get to heaven there is so much to ask and all eternity to ask it in.  This book has beautiful pictures for the nonreader to enjoy as well as the delightful story to read.  Get this book and give it to any child for birthday or even for baby showers.  What a wonderful book for any child to listen to an adult to read them. 
I received this book from BookLook for this review.

I Can Only Imagine byBart Millard

I Can Only Imagine byBart Millard.  Oh my gosh I just cannot believe that Bart invited me into his life so completely and honestly.  Bart Millard just in case you don't know is the lead singer of Mercy Me.  His childhood was terrible.  His dad beat him. His mom left him at a very young age.  But this is what Bart did to escape that cruel life-- he went to school and church.  He took every opportunity to escape his home and be in church and do whatever that church had to offer.  His dad was a great athlete in his day and Bart tried to be like him but when his ankles were crushed in a football accident Bart found his gift.  God had given him a voice to sing songs up to heaven.  "I Can Only Imagine" is Bart's gift to his father after his death.  The movie evidently doesn't show it (I have never seen the movie) but Bart's dad was a good guy who after suffering a head injury became an awful guy then when he was given a death sentence of cancer Bart's dad turned to God and once again became a good guy.  Bart learned to love and appreciate his dad during this time.  This song which Bart wrote in 10 minutes is Bart's gift to his dad using the comment that his grandma made while leaving the gravesite.  Bart gave this gift to Amy Grant to sing so that it would become a great song but Amy in her love for Bart gave it back to him knowing that this song was his song and that this song would put Mercy Me at the top of the charts.

I would recommend this book for reading to anyone whether or not they have heard the song or not, though I cannot imagine not having heard this song.  This song topped the charts for Christian Music and then managed to crossover into many other venues of songs.  This book shows the courage that it takes to be Bart both as a child victim of horrible abuse as well as the hardworking man who wanted to sing songs up to heaven and make it in singing and then finally making his marriage be the success that it is today.  This book is a great Christian read, a great Bart Millard/Mercy Me read, a great social justice read.  I can't imagine anyone not reading this book and enjoying it even though I cried so much that my sinuses are surely cleared forever.
I received this book from BookLook for this review.   

The Heart's Appeal by Jennifer Delamere

The Heart's Appeal by Jennifer Delamere is the second in the London Beginnings series.  Ms Delamere has already drawn the reader into late 19th century London with her first book The Captain's Daughter which introduces the reader to the Bernay daughters.  This second book brings to the forefront the eldest daughter, Julia.  Julia wants so much to be accepted into the first medical school to open its doors to women.  She was raised in the orphanage just as her sisters had been but in the beginning she had a benefactress who had been paying her was through school but that had recently stopped.  Luckily she had saved back a little and could complete this session.  The next step was to pass the entrance exam and get into medical school.  She planned to trust her finances to God in prayer.  While on her way to attend a lecture she was in a train accident.  She was not badly injured but unfortunately Michael Stephenson was hurt badly and luckily from her nursing background she knew just what to do in order to save his life until his family could get him to the hospital.  After Michael, a rising barrister, was back to his sister's home to finish healing Julia decided to pay him a visit to make sure he was doing well.  Michael was still in a lot of pain but agreed to meet the penniless Julia in his sister's fine home.  Michael was thankful and Julia managed to convince him to tutor her in Latin to help her pass her test as a way to pay her back.  Julia knows that in order to achieve her goals of becoming a doctor and then going into the mission field in Africa she must not marry.  If she would marry, her husband would have the say so of what she could and could not do.     Michael already had plans to marry Laura, a woman that he didn't love but had money and respect of the those in the circles that Michael and his sister wanted to be back in.  While he and his sister were young his father had lost all standing in society.  Michael was on his way to being a well respected lawyer in a well respected firm.  His boss was close to being a judge leaving an opening for Michael to step into his shoes.  As Michael tutors Julia they begin to grow fond of each other.  What will happen?  Will Michael declare his love for Julia and take a chance on loosing out on the foothold he had managed to attain in society?  Will Julia give up on her dream to become a doctor in the mission field?

I loved this book.  It has an accurate background in the law and medical field of what could and couldn't take place in society.  It also opens the readers eyes to what it means to be truly poor--not just the inability to have the latest fashions but to be truly hungry.  It shows how the rich still cannot be accepted into proper society because it wasn't old enough money therefore shutting the door to certain careers.  To be well thought of required more than just money but also must be above reproach in every aspect of their life--as in the mentally ill could not be well thought of.  I would recommend this book for reading for anyone interested in historical romance novels.
I received this book from BethanyHouse for this review.

Words from the Heart by Kathleen Fuller

Words from the Heart by Kathleen Fuller is the next installment of the Amish Letters series by this author.  Ivy Yoder and Noah Schlabach have both been hurt in love.  Never are very excited to start  a new love match.  Cevilla Schlabach, Noah's aging and never married aunt needs help sorting through her dead step-mothers belongings.  Noah is an auctioneer and Ivy is her close neighbor.  Cevilla hires Ivy to help Noah sort in her attic.  It is slow going as they go through boxes filled with crocheted items but when they find an occasional box of clocks or watches or jewelry their interest peaks.  Ivy and Noah enjoy each other's company but both insist that they are just friends even though Ivy finds herself drawn toward Noah's good looks and kindness.  She knows that Noah is serious about the friendship thing.  Then they find the love letters from the 1950's from a CJ to Bunny written while CJ is fighting in Korea in a war.  They begin reading these letters aloud to each other and yearn to solve the mystery of just who these star crossed lovers are.  They know that Cevilla's step-mother is English (not Amish) but who is this Bunny and why does Cevilla have all these letters?

I loved reading this book and enjoy reading everything this author writes.  It is easy for the reader to get involved is the character's life.  It is more interesting if you have read the first 2 books of the series but just so that you know the main character's friends but not necessary since this book centers on Ivy and Noah.  Read this book if you love Amish love stories, if you love Christian love stories or if you just want to read a good story.
I received this book from BookLook for this review.

The Rescue by Jim Cymbalta

The Rescue by Jim Cymbalta is a little book of 7 personal stories of 7 different people sharing their story of Jesus stepping in and turning their life from one of despair to one of hope.  These people all were at the end of their rope.  Lawrence had made is as a college athletic star and flight instructor but he was already into that downward spiral.  To the world it appeared he had it all, all that money could buy that is.  But on his back he carried that knowledge that no one had loved him for just being him--including his mother and father.  No matter how much he achieved there was no one in the stands cheering for him just for being him.  There was no one who loved him until he discovered that Jesus was there all along.  Jesus was there when a homeless Lawrence lay beneath the window on a dirty mattress listening to the pastor talk on someone else's TV telling Lawrence that Jesus loved him and not only that but He had died for him.  That night Lawrence went from the unloved often beaten little boy to an important person who was loved by Jesus.  And that is just the first story read this little book clear through until you get to the little girl who grew up raped over and over by her uncle and later after a childhood of feeling unloved finally found the love of Jesus.  Jesus who could wipe away the tears and understand what little Toni was feeling when at 15 years old she birthed her first baby-- 9 pound little Ruben.  Jesus helped her see that she was worth the love of her husband and her 3 children and clean up her act and become the wife and mother that only Jesus and her loving husband believed her to be.

This book should be on everyone's must read book.  It will make you so feel so good to know that God is on your side through all your troubles and if you just pray He will listen.  Even if you can't say the words He will hear you and love you.  He is that light shining into your dark interior. 
I received this book from Handlebar for this review. 

Eating From the Ground Up by Alana Chernila

Eating From the Ground Up by Alana Chernila is basically a vegetable cookbook not necessarily for vegetarians.  That may not sound like the makings for a wonderful cookbook but it is.  This is a cookbook for the person wanting to know what to do with all those wonderful vegetable that they suddenly have access to either from their own garden, from the farmer's market or just the family grocery store.  In the spring there is so much to chose from but how do you cook it?  Is it good?  How hard is it to cook?  This book answers all those questions and more.  This cookbook tells some of the simple ways to cook a vegetable, such as did you know that the best way to eat a beet is to roast it in the oven?  Did you know how to cook a beet at all?  Did you know that beets come any other way than from a can?  How about butternut squash? Do you know how delicious that it is?  Do you know how to cook it?  If you have too many how to store it?  How does the taste differ from a summer squash?  What can you do with the leftovers?  Do you have the guts to deep fry your own vegetables?  Do you know how much better it is to eat your own vegetables than that frozen bag of already breaded okra?  Did you know that you can eat the flowers of some of the vegetables and they are delicious? 

We all want to eat more healthy.  We all want to eat more vegetables.  We just don't know how to do it.  This cookbook takes all that insecurity and trades it in for knowledge.  This book could be enjoyably read just for the information but I think that the best thing about this cookbook is it gives the reader simple vegetable recipes for cooking simple healthy meals that don't take all day or much planning.  When you have made this cookbook's vegetable recipe you will know what the vegetable tastes like and you will love it.  I enjoyed the reading of this cookbook and wish that those who think they don't like vegetables would use it to learn to correctly cook (and not overcook) vegetables and I think that they too would love them and eat them.
I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

The Woman's Study Bilble-Thomas Nelson

The Woman's Study Bilble-Thomas Nelson- NIV translation.
This Bible meets all of my needs unless I am wanting to research something and want multiple versions.  This Bible uses the NIV translation and that is a fine translation for most scripture reading that I want to do.  In addition this Bible tells many of the cultural norms of the times especially as they pertain to women.  This edition tells many of the punishments meted out to women and sometimes to men if they concern that particular scripture.  All of this explanation is included close to the actual text so you don't have to find it in the back or look it up in a separate concordance.  Each book of the Bible is begun with the telling of who the original audience and setting for the book was, what the purpose was and literary characteristics were, the overall theme of the book and an outline of the book.  most of the books also tell who the author is and the dating of the writing of the book.  Throughout the books there are telling of the plans of God in the making of the law and reasoning of God's working with His people even though they were not following His plans.  There are graphs and lists which help the reader to keep track of the happenings as she reads along.  In the back of the Bible is the usual Index and Concordance and an extremely small map section but as I previously mentioned much of this is contained close to the reading so I didn't really use it much.  One of the things I enjoyed the most was there were family organizations or family trees contained close to the readings of each.  Sometimes as the reader is reading it is difficult to keep families straight and this is very helpful to me--especially when I want to backtrack in my reading from New Testament and find out how that connection is made in the Old Testament or how the families connect to Jesus. 

This Bible as I stated earlier easily meets my needs but I did want to mention that it may not meet the needs of more liberal readers.  There is mentioned in the separate readings about for instance marriage being one man and one woman.  This is a conservative Bible with conservative concordance and extra readings so this version may not be for those readers.  This Bible easily meets my needs and I am currently using it for my Read Through the Bible.
This was provided for me from BookLook for this review.