Stranger At Home Review

There is something about reading books written from times gone by.  The use of words seem to be thought provoking and able to flow in a lyrical way.  I commented in a blog post 10 years ago about the eloquence of language a hundred or more years ago.  When I saw that one of the categories was reading a book that was over a hundred years old, I knew exactly what collection I would go to.  Lamplighter has taken books from times past and edited them to show the character of God and Biblical truths.  They are definitely books that I want my children to pick up and read.

Stranger At Home by Mrs. Sherwood is a story of Elvira who was allowed to live with her indulgent grandparents for 6 of her childhood years.  After their death, she returns home where her adjustment to the rules and boundaries set by her parents is more than rough.  Having reached the breaking point, her father declares that the family will provide for her basic needs but not give any more instruction or correction making Elvira essentially a stranger in her own home and teaching her and the reader a lesson on discipline and correction.

2 other stories are included in this book.  The Coveted Bonnet, author unknown, follows Virginia Clark as she learns that the consequences of disobedience and covetousness can sometimes be deadly.  The Cords of Sin by Charlotte Tucker is more geared toward parents to remind them of their duties as parents to teach them diligently and to show what consequences there can be when that duty is put to the side.

If you are looking for books with Biblical truth, morals and strong character, I recommend any of the Lamplighter series.

White Rose, Black Forest Review

I have always been intrigued by World War II.  It probably began when I was introduced to Carrie Ten Boom's book, The Hiding Place, as a child.   In high school and college, I would visit the library and check out book after book with true stories of those who had endured the Holocaust and war saddened by what they went through but yet marveling at the times that God allowed miracles to take place and lives be saved.  When I saw this book, White Rose, Black Forest by Eoin Dempsey, come up on my Amazon Kindle First Reads, I grabbed it as not only was it set in a favorite time period but it also was written in 2018 fulfilling another of the challenge books.  While I am not a big fan of electronic books, it came in handy as I read it while on a recent trip to Ireland.

Franka Gerber, a German girl who is all alone due to the deaths of the rest of her family, finds an unconscious but hurt Luftwaffe airman in the wintry forest near her family's summer cottage.  Having medical training, she chooses to try and save him even though she loathes everything that his uniform stands for.  Soon it appears he is not who he claims to be so the journey begins to figure out his true identity before the Gestapos finds them.

This book was so enthralling that there were times I would look up from reading and think I was sitting in the middle of WWII.  The characters came to life and I couldn't stop reading until I learned their fate.  If you are a history buff, I highly recommend this page turner!

Respectable Sins Review

I'm a little behind on posting book reviews due to a crazy few months but I have been reading.  I pulled Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate by Jerry Bridges because it had been quite a few years since I had read it.  The ladies in our church had done it as a Bible study probably about 10 years ago and I remember it being very convicting and thought provoking. Since one of the challenge books was about Christian living, I thought I would see what areas of my life could use some attention. Let's just say I still have a long way to go.

Jerry starts off with an overall look at sin starting off with how we, as the Church, have looked the other way and allowed so many to slide by without being dealt with. He also takes a chapter to give direction on how to deal with sins.  Then we delve into 14 different sins from Ungodliness to Worldliness and how they can abide in us without sometimes being noticed.  I know I couldn't read through them without being convicted in just about every single one.  Jerry has a down to earth, let me be transparent way of writing so you don't feel alone in your struggle with these sins.  He wraps up the book by encouraging the reader to be humble, pray through the areas, seek input from others and lastly, remember that God is forgiving to those who humbly seek it.

I highly recommend this book as one to help you along your journey to be more like Christ!