Good Love Story

An Honest Love by Kathleen Fuller was given to me by Thomas Nelson Booksneeze Group as a complimentary issue to read and post a review.  The story starts out with us in Ohio where we have an Amish woman who was engaged to be married in three days finds out the man she had been engaged to for three years says he does not want to marry her. Not only was this just such a blow to her that she couldn't believe it her man ups and marries another woman from another district very soon after their separation.  But she knows her life must go on but to where?  Fate steps in and she and her Mother move to help out an uncle who had a bad fall and was to injured to take care of himself.  Anna has always wanted a business of her own so she and her Mother buy this little gift shop in the small town that gets a lot of tourists that are curious about the Amish and want to purchase handmade items.  Now Anna is certainly not looking for a male interest after her last problem but then she happens upon Lukas.  Suddenly her whole world becomes problem after problem and dream after dream.  This is such a simple look at love and a simple way of life that you wish you could just step right into the book and into their world.  This is a well written love story and you will not want to put it down when you start it.  I would recommend this to any of my friends, even teenage girls, definitely one you should pick up.  It is 296 pages and is easily finished in a day but you will find yourself wanting to go back and read it a couple of days later.

Why Do We Say Certain Things?

Why You Say It by Webb Garrison, the fascinating stories behind over 600 everyday words and phrases.  I rceived this complimentary copy from Thomas Nelson Booksneeze project to review for them.  This book is such a delight to read through that you will be amazed at how much you will find yourself actually laughing out loud.  In case you don't understand what it is really about let me explain it a little better. You will find yourself making statements that then you will stop and wonder, "Where did that phrase really come from?"  Basically it is about the evolution of words, like where did "Make ends meet" come from, or how about, "Loophole", "Face Off",  "Fall Guy."  Do you know where all these terms originated?  Until I picked this book up I can say that I hadn't a clue.  But as I said before there are over 600 everyday words and phrases that will be explained and the answers will surprise you.  Plus it talks about how some "older" words have changed into the now generation phrases.  So the next time we think the younger generation is talking in strange words, you might want to check out this book first.

Pretty On The Outside As Well As On The Inside

I received the girls application Study Bible from Tyndale Network to read and look over then write a review about it.  I can tell you this 1505 page Bible is like non other.  Now first off it is a grape color with a butterfly on the cover that wraps from the front around the spine and then onto the back, just gorgeous.  But is that why you buy this book, because it is pretty?  No, that is why you buy those shoes.  This Bible says it is for the girls from 11 years old and up, well let me tell you this.  The way this study Bible is written it really explains in more simple terms what is really going on.  It gives you examples in modern terms so we all can relate to what they are saying.  I guess what I'm saying is they have changed the wording around in the passages into more simple terms that I can understand much better.  There is no way you can get lost or confused, they have it very well organized.  Also it is broken down into sections like the lives of the Famous Women, good and bad, in the Bible. There are also actual survivor stories from girls that made it through situations that you might find yourself in some time, it tells you in what part of the Bible they found their strength and answers.  Actually, this entire book is such a delight to just open anywhere and start reading because it is explained so well you will automatically know where you are and be hooked on their style of explaining it.  I would recommend this to any young girl that is full of questions and needs some help finding the answers, or even to anyone like me, 60 years old and enjoys a great book......and still needs some answers.

Do You Ever Tell A Lie?

Lies The Government Told You by Judge Andrew P. Napolitano is 349 pages of extremely interesting facts that we don't know about...but we should.  I was given a complimentary copy by Thomas Nielson Booksneeze group to review for them.  The forward is written byCongressman Ron Paul and one of his favorite chapters in here deals with monetary policy.  You feel like you know what is going on and fully understand the reasoning behind some strange decisions.  But trust me, until you read this book you are not aware enough of all the facts and manipulations that goes on in our government.  They try to make us believe that what they do is for our own good, and they are only doing this to help the common person.  Then you find out the true meaning behind some of their ideas and you realize that it was right in front of you the whole time, but someone had put some dark shades over your eyes and you just could not see it.  Some of you may watch Judge Napolitano on his show "Freedom Watch" on the Fox network or perhaps you have seen him fill in as guest host for Glen Beck, he has also written 4 other books and they all are fantastic at opening your eyes and your ears.  He is considered an expert on our Constitition, and don't we need someone to back up the common people in that area?  I guess the bottom line is this book, as it says on the cover, is about Myth, Power, and Deception in American History, and he goes all the way back to George Washington.  So if you are into politics, history, government issues, or just your own freedoms, than this book is for you.  Think about when you finish reading it, pass it along to someone else, maybe there is hope for us yet if we learn the truth.

Want To Read About Strong Women?

True Women by Janice Woods Windle is a 451 page novel that James Michener called a "miracle".  It is a story about the early days when Texas was a Republic before being admitted into the Union.  Even the Governor of Texas promises it will "capture your imagination and your heart."   It is like the book Roots in the fact that it takes you through the lives of this family from 1831-1946.  Now my favorite time frame is from 1800 forward, so this book really fits right in my area.  But what has captured me on it really is all the description of how they lived and how they felt.  Whenever I read something like this I find myself right there in the room with them, and I want to feel and understand them.  This author has me doing that.  The story is told from the perspective of a five year old little girl named Euphemia Texas Ashby, you go through all the good times and all the bad times with her.  You are traveling with her to escape the Mexican Army and there are only women and children to make the trek because the men have all gone with Sam Houston to fight against Santa Anna.  This is a very important time in Texas history and if you love history of any type this book will fascinate you also.

A Chilling True Story

Buried Alive by Roy Hallums is a 248 page book that will keep your attention glued to it from the moment you start reading. Mr. Hallums is a retired Naval commander that was working as a civilian food contractor in Baghdad where he provided food for our Army. He was taken by terrorists that did seek ransom, and meanwhile during his 311 days held there he was forced to endure inhumane treatment and horrible living conditions. He was taken hostage in 2004 and rescued in 2005. I was very interested in this account as my husband is former military and my son is presently serving, my curiosity grew as I continued reading. Although I must admit I did not care for the description we were given of his family here in the states, I'm sure there are others that would disagree with me, but I was just not interested in the entries into his daughter's journal.

I think this would be a very good book for anyone in our country to read so maybe they would understand a little more about what is really going on over there. Can you imagine being kept in a room that is underground, a hood over your head, there is no one to talk to and you have no reason to believe you will be rescued? I think most of us would not be able to handle this very well but Mr. Hallums responds as if he is no hero for surviving, he just did whatever had to be done each day and there was no way he was giving up.

It is difficult to say that I enjoyed reading this book about someones pain and suffering....but I did. It really made me stop and think about what we are asking others to do and could we do the same if we were in their shoes. This is a must read for some truth seeking scary events, and I assure you that once you start it you won't be able to put it down. I read this whole book in one day, and will probably read it again after I take some time to think about it.

This complimentary copy was given to me by Booksneeze to review for them.

What Can You Do In 24 Hours?

24-Hour Crochet Projects by Rita Weiss is 128 pages of 23 projects that can each be made in 24 hours or less. Now who could ask for more than that? Granted the odds of us being able to sit down and finish the project all at once are probably not good, the fact still remains that these are quick to make items. They range from baby onesies to ladies sweaters, so we run the full range of ideas in here. They have included excellent photographs and from different angles, the instructions are written out very clearly and not in itsy bitsy print either. Another tip that caught my eye was the fact that they give you the approximate time it took them to make it. So if you are looking for something pretty but you've only got 3 partial days you can work on it, this would come in handy because all you'd have to do is check the time frame to make your decision on what to choose. Now if you'll excuse me I have an extra 45 minutes and a project waiting on me.

Am I A Pennypincher???

This book is one of those that you can just pick up, open it to any page and start reading. Yes it has categories but it is just as interesting to start reading anywhere in it. It is 393 pages full of recycling and redoing and reusing everything you can possibly think of. You know some people think that recycling is a new subject and we should all get behind this idea. Well, if you grew up in a house with siblings you already know what recycling is about. Those shorts, that skirt, those shoes, everything was passed from one child to another until there was no more wear left in them. Then we had garage sales or yard sales pop up, suddenly it is fashionable to wear jeans full of holes. You know when I was in school my Mother would have had a fit if anybody would have seen me in pants like that. But things have changed and we must change with them. Some changes are good like recycling and some .....maybe not so good. I am one of those that thinks if the jeans have holes in them cut them off for shorts, or make a tote bag out of them. But then I am tote bag nuts so what can I say. So I will end this post by saying that if you get the chance to pick up any of the Tightwad Gazette books, you really should. It is just chock full of letters and notes about any topic you could possibly think of that might make your little world easier to handle. Take care and go clean out your closet. That dress could be cut up and a couple of cute pillows made from the fabric, add some colorful buttons and.....

New Hopes, New Fears

A Century Turns by William J. Bennett is my latest book from Booksneeze to review for them. This book asks the question where is America going in the time from 1988 to 2008. Do you know? It puts things in their correct perspective about how the world really is doing politically, as well as on the home front. What new ideas have become the everyday items. Like computers, they have become the normal way of life. Then we discuss the wars and what they will lead to or what will they destroy. We saw the fall of the Berlin Wall all the way to the election of our present President. This book really opens your eyes and your memory and gets you to remembering what it was like before these things happened or maybe you weren't interested in what was going on and now you are. This is a great book but it is also a great history lesson, this is a thinking book not a book that is a piece of entertainment fluff. What you decide about our world will depend on what you grasp from reading this. I promise it will be one interesting ride.

365 Items

Gifts to Make: 365 Beautifully Easy Ideas by Better Homes and Gardens is 216 pages of really good ideas of things for gifts. Needless to say there are 365 ideas in here but, it also makes you think about other ways that this same project could be changed just a little bit to make it into something else. It is a nice hardback book and has great photos showing you what your item "should" look like and how to get it there. This would be a great Valentine's gift for a dear friend or even for yourself. After all, you have 365 items and you are a few days behind so don't wait much longer. Enjoy