Personal Reading
Hero Debut
by Angela Ruth Strong
Book 2 in the author's "Love Off Script" series (after Husband Auditions), though it could be read as a stand-alone. Gemma is a high school English teacher and aspiring screenplay writer who is always searching for and researching ideas for her screenplays. She signs up to take a Citizen's Safety Academy class from the Portland police and fire departments as part of her research. And because she has her eye on Karson, one of the policemen leading the class. Karson has anger issues and a wounded past and wants nothing to do Gemma, whom he considers trouble with a capital T. Told in first person, from a dual point of view (chapters alternate between Gemma and Karson), this book is just as good (if not better) than Husband Auditions. Laugh-out loud funny, great dialog, engaging characters who work through some hard stuff before heading toward their happy ending.
Fiancé Finale
by Angela Strong
Christmas Ella
by Angela Ruth Strong
Dana's Valley
by Janette Oke and Laurel Oke Logan
A realistic story of a Christian family walking through the "valley of the shadow of death" as their teenage daughter battles cancer. Told from the point of view of the younger sister. It's a tear-jerker and a faith-builder.
The Booklover's Library
by Madeline Martin
From the library description: In WWII England, widow Emma, when she's separated from her daughter, seeks solace in the friendships she forms at Boots' Booklover's Library, but when the Blitz intensifies, she fights to reunite with her daughter, learning to depend on her community and the power of literature to find hope in the darkest of times. I really enjoyed this well-told story with a bit of sweet romance in it. I didn't realize that England had laws (or at least conventions) at the time that did not allow widows with children to be employed. What a ridiculous rule! Who needs a job more?
The Last Bookshop in London
by Madeline Martin
This was a re-read for me from several years ago. I loved it just as much this time as the first time around. Here's my review from before:
A delightful story that kept me up too late several nights in a row. A young woman moves to London just before the Germans began bombing London in "The Blitz." A bookshop owner grudgingly employs her as an assistant (due to pressure from her landlady). Though she's never had time to read, she does have experience in organizing a store to make it more attractive to customers. She plunges into the monumental task of cleaning and organizing the dusty, cluttered bookshop. Along the way, one the shop's regular customers befriends her and encourages to start reading some of the wares of the shop. he explains his (and my) passion for reading in this wonderful quote: "Reading is.. It's going somewhere without ever taking a train or a ship, an unveiling of new, incredible worlds. It's living a life you weren't born into and a chance to see everything colored by someone else's perspective. It's learning without having to face consequences of failures, and how best to succeed. I think within all of us, there is a void, a gap wanting to be filled by something. For me, that something is books and all their proffered experiences." I highly recommend this book to older teens and adults, especially those who love books!
The Paris Dressmaker
by Kristy Cambron
Lowlands of Scotland Book 1: Thorn in My Heart
Lowlands of Scotland Book 2: Fair is the Rose
Lowlands of Scotland Book 3: Whence Came a Prince
Lowlands of Scotland Book 4: Grace in Thine Eyes
by Liz Curtis Higgs
A retelling of the Biblical story of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel set in the late 1700s in Scotland. It was a well-written saga, but a little bizarre to give the main character the same dreams, visions, and promises that God gave Jacob. And bizarre to have the multiple wives scenario in 1790 Scotland. Although there is talk of God and the Almighty, along with grace and mercy, there's little, if any, reference to Jesus Christ. If you're familiar with the biblical story, you can imagine that these books contain content for mature audiences only.
Biography/History
The Woman All Spies Fear
by Amy Butler Greenfield
A biography of Elizebeth Smith Friedman, who was a cryptanalyst (code breaker) during WWI, prohibition, WWII, and beyond. She labored in secrecy, in a time where women were often not credited with their accomplishments. I found the story very interesting and was pleased to learn that she and her husband supported each other in their work (both were code breakers).
Young Adult Fiction
The Starlore Legacy Books 1-6
by Chuck Black
This series re-tells the biblical story of God's chosen people -- in an intergalactic, science fictional setting. It is not as explicitly allegorical as the author's Kingdom series, but readers familiar with the narrative of the Bible will recognize some of the characters and plot points. There are also some hints of Star Wars and Star Trek (i.e. a loyal and lovable android, crack pilots, aerial battles in sky and space, among others). It contains more romance (but fairly clean) than that earlier series did. It also has a more believable scenario for the sacrifice and death of the savior than the Kingdom series. Recommended age: teens and above (due to violence level, romance level, and scientific terms). The author plans 6 more books in this series. Listen to an author interview on Episode 40 of Read Clean YA with CJ.
Middle Grade Novels
The Swallows' Flight
by Hilary McKay
A story of WWII, told from the perspectives of two boys from Germany who don't want to fight for Hitler, two girls from England (one who endures ridicule because of the birthmarks on her face and one who is very sickly), and a dog from England. It got a little confusing at times with all the different shifts in perspective and the dropping of hints that I didn't quite get, but I enjoyed the story. I would recommend it for ages 12 and up. You can read more reviews of it at Lives stitched together | WORLD and Special Report: Read Aloud Round Table | WORLD.
The Ship of Stolen Words
by Fran White
On the last day of school, Sam runs into some goblins who steal his over-used, but very much needed, words of "Sorry," and "apologize." His efforts to recover these words lead him and his friends on a fantastical adventure to another world as they learn the power of sincere and idle words. A little bit weird on my brain, but kind of fun.
Newbery Award Books
A Single Shard
by Linda Sue Park
An orphan Korean boy watches a master potter and longs to learn to be a potter himself one day. He works for the potter, chopping wood for the kiln and gathering clay. When the potter has an opportunity to showcase his work to earn a royal commission, the boy travels to the capital city with the precious pottery. However, robbers attack him along the way and shatter the pots. The boy salvages one single shard which is enough to convince the person responsible for issuing the royal commissions of its superior quality. A heartwarming story, worthy of the Newbery award.
2002 Newbery Winner
A Year Down Yonder
by Richard Peck
During the Great Depression, fifteen-year-old Mary Alice is sent to live with her feisty, larger-than-life grandmother in rural Illinois and comes to a better understanding of this fearsome woman. A good story, except for one chapter describing a woman who was posing nude for a painter.
2001 Newbery Winner
New Kid
by Jerry Craft
A graphic novel about a black boy who moves to a new school with mostly rich white kids. He struggles to adjust and make new friends, while teachers stereotype him or bend over backwards to not appear racist. It was an OK book, but didn't really grab me. I listened to the audiobook before I realized this was originally a graphic novel. The narrators did an admirable job adapting it from visual to audio format.
2020 Newbery Winner
Missing May
by Cynthia Rylant
Twelve-year-old Summer and her uncle Ob try to go on with life after Aunt May passes away. I got about halfway through before abandoning it when they started trying to find a way to communicate with the dead.
1993 Newbery Winner
The Midwife's Apprentice
by Karen Cushman
A nameless, homeless girl in medieval England wants only three things in life: a full belly, a contented heart, and a place in the world. The ending is good, but it was hard to get through all the name-calling and bullying before that. The description of birthing and midwifery may not be appropriate for younger readers.
1996 Newbery Winner
A Gathering of Days
by Joan Blos
The journal entries of a fictional teenage New England girl from 1830-1832, writing about daily events, her father's re-marriage, and the death of her best friend. It was decent, but not overly exciting.
1980 Newbery Winner
Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices
by Paul Fleischman
A short collection of poems about various insects. Kind of cute. The audiobook was well-done.
1989 Newbery Winner
Read-Aloud
On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness (The Wingfeather Saga Book 1)
by Andrew Peterson
See my earlier review of this book. We began this month to listen to the audiobook, primarily for the benefit of two of my children who had not yet read the book themselves. One of them couldn't wait to find out what happened when we stopped on one of the many cliffhangers. So he picked up the book, finished it, and began the next one. I've enjoyed listening to it, read by the author with all the right voices and pronunciations.
The Faithful Spy: Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Plot to Kill Hitler
by John Hendrix
I read this graphic novel last year. After attending a play about Bonhoeffer, I decided to listen to the audiobook version with my kids. See my earlier review here.
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