I am in here

The minute I laid eyes on this book I knew I would love it! I'd heard Elizabeth and Virginia's story on one of the special interest news stories a while back. So from the small amount I'd learned from that, I was eager to delve further into their story.
Its such a remarkable story, and sheds so much light on not only what its like for the caretakers/parents of autistic children, but also opens up a window to see the struggles and triumphs and heartaches of those who live within the prison of autism.  This is one of those books I read in one sitting, it was well written and interesting, and even more importantly it gave the reader a (small) understanding of the struggles faced because of autism. I found myself cheering along when Elizabeth had her triumphant moments, and mourning with her mother when she found herself in a setback. The book is incredibly inspiring, and I would highly (Very Highly) recommend it, especially to those who would work with any special needs people. This book opens your mind to so much that I didn't previously understand about this condition.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group".  

Valley of dreams (wild west wind ~ 1)

This was a fantastic book, very adventurous and suspenseful! I think my only complaint would be that I absolutely hated how it ended! I wanted to know so much more! (thankfully this is only book 1 and I'll have the chance to read more about these characters!!)
The main character is Cassie Lockwood, who has spent her life travelling with her family in a wild west show. She is an accomplished shooter who knows exactly what she's doing in the arena. However because of circumstances not of her own choosing she finds herself having to leave the show and make out on her own. With two unusual companions she strikes out to find the valley that her father had found and dreamed about developing. Along the way they have many adventures, some that were filled with blessings and others that were less that happy.
This was a great read. The characters were well written and while they had extraordinary circumstances/living situations they were still believable (which seems to be quite the challenge!) Like I mentioned I wished the book had gone on longer, it was so good I didn't want the story to stop!!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group".  

A Lasting Impression

 I
I absolutely loved this book, It was very well written and quite entertaining. There were a few moments of surprisingly funny scene's that cracked me up.
The main character was Claire Laurent, who is an aspiring artist, because of her family and their "careers" she was forced to play a part in creating fraudulent art. However as a talented artist Claire yearns for more than just copying. Seeing her chance she begins a new life in a new state and tries hard to hold onto the precarious balance she has in keeping others from finding out about her past.
I very much liked the main character, she was easy to identify with and quite likeable. There was nothing pretentious about her (which I find to sometimes be a problem especially in Christian fiction when the authors strive to emphasize the 'goodness' of the character) the character was naturally likeable.
I 100% recommend this book, it is well worth the read!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group".  

The Resolution for Men

"This book is an unapologetic call for men to live courageously for their faith and their families. it is designed to strategically challenge you to become the man God created you to be."
I gave this book a quick read through, and garnered a lot from it, but I'm even more excited to have my husband read through it. I think he'll get so much out of it, I'm not a man and I received so much for it, so I know he'll love it!
I assume the author will receive some flack for this book, it's very much a book about men stepping up and giving direction and leadership in the spiritual lives of their families. (and I 100% agree with the book) our world right now is so much about pushing aside gender "roles" and almost forcing our men to take a back seat while pushing the women to step into roles that some are just not comfortable with.
I strongly believe that right now many churches lack this balance of having masculine leadership in the church (and don't get me wrong, I don't have issues with female leaders or pastors). I  highly recommend this book!

"Book has been provided courtesy of David C Cook and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from B&H Publishing Group".  

The Resolution for Women

I loved the book "The Love Dare" so when I had the opportunity to read a book that was written (in partnership) with the creators of "The love dare" I jumped at the chance!
The book basically (and this is a very basic description!) focuses on resolving to become "Purposefully feminine, surprisingly satisfied, and faithfully His."
I especially loved the section on being "Purposefully feminine", I'm always a bit weary of books that try to let people know how women ought to behave or live, etc... I'm not the type of person who fits into stereotypes well. Thankfully, this book is absolutely the opposite of that. It isn't telling women what they ought not be doing, but instead is giving "permission" in a way for women to be uniquely themselves. The world seems so set on forcing women to lose their femininity, that if you embrace a traditional type of lifestyle, its almost frowned upon. So I love the fact that this book is opening up the discussions to get women talking about and thinking about who exactly they are in Christ.
I know I'll be sharing about this book with our women's group, and highly recommending it to any woman!

"Book has been provided courtesy of David C Cook and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from B&H Publishing Group".  

Courageous Living: Dare to take a stand

"We each have a choice: We can be average or exceptional. We can play at church, or we can be radical for Christ. We can base our lives on the worlds's standards of success, or we can dig in the Bible and ask God to show us where He wants us to live and who He wants us to be."
This basically sums up what this book is about, its about living courageously, not just settling for good enough. The book is full of stories of others who have lived courageously, who when given the opportunity to sit back and let life go by they instead took the initiative to live radically the way that Christ calls us to!
I absolutely love this book, it's so inspirational!! I love that the author (Michael Catt) gives us both examples from the Bible of courageous living, as well as modern day stories from real people. i think the book has a great balance of biblical backing, yet is a fascinating read as well!
I highly recommend this book! I think this one will be one of those life changing books, once you've read it you can't just go back to living just that average life!

"Book has been provided courtesy of David C Cook and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from B&H Publishing Group". 

The Names of God Bible

I am absolutely in love with this Bible, it has now replaced my regular Bible as the one I use for both my personal devotions and Church! I love that it uses the original names (From both Greek and Hebrew) and also gives the meaning of the names of God! I'm finding that I'm garnering so much more insight from my devotions simply because of them using the original distinct names of God in the different passages! I love seeing how the Bible passages open up a new level of understanding when we're seeing the original name of God used. It gives such depth to what we're reading! Plus I also love the "devotionals" (not necessarily your standard devotional, but more like a lesson on God's different names!)

For the past while now I've been on a big kick to learn the different names of God and where in Scripture they're originally used. I had a hard time finding good resources for this. So I was beyond happy to have reviewed this Bible, the language is clear and easy to understand. There are just so many great things about this Bible! I highly recommend it!

"Bible has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group".  

My Favorite Bible

This is an adorable Bible! First of all the illustrations are well done,  they're colorful and full of "action" it really keeps the kids attention! Also I really loved how clear this Bible is in explaining the Bible stories to children. Its in an easy to understand language, and presents the Word of God in a straightforward and simple way!
I think my favorite part though is at the very end of it. Where it out lines salvation to the reader. As someone who works within a children's ministry I think that the materials for explaining salvation in simple terms is horribly lacking. This book I think is not only going to be interesting for the small kids to read, but it's a valuable resource for those who are teaching as well!!
Highly Recommend!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group".  

Nearing Home: Life, Faith, and finishing well

I am such a huge fan of Billy Graham, he is one of the few evangelists who manage to stay on course once they begin to garner a large amount of the public's attention. In a time where many public evangelists are not living what they're preaching, its such an encouragement to see him remaining so faithful and faith-filled! I've read many of Billy Graham's books and immensely enjoyed them, so I had some pretty big expectations when I started this book! In his book "Nearing Home" Billy Graham seems to be using a more conversational tone, which  I really enjoyed. Reading this book was very much like sitting down seeking advice with a beloved friend! As a younger adult (can being in my 30's still be considered a younger adult? lol) I'm not in the dilemma that parts of the book speak about. However I found the advice still to be so insightful and tactful. He lovingly suggests ways to be respectful to those who are at the nearing home time of their lives, and he gives insights on how we can still help take care of them without taking over them.
I loved this book, its a message that I think our younger generations need to take to heart.
I highly recommend!!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

Journey to Christmas

 I have to confess, I'm a giant nerd, especially when it comes to anything that even resembles a documentary! This movie (to me) felt much more like a documentary than a Bible study, (which was one of the reasons I liked it so much!) I love Bible studies that are full of knowledge (by all means, I think we need the emotional/how to apply to our lives type Bible studies, and I do enjoy them every once in a while) where reading them or seeing them helps me to leave knowing more than when I started. I have to confess something else here too, I planned on reviewing it over a few days, but ended up watching the entire thing in one day. I loved it, the scenery was stunning, the quality of this film is fantastic!
This film takes us on the journey of five "modern day explorers" Who travel to the Holy land to learn more about Jesus' birth. One thing I very much loved about this Bible study is that it gives us so many different perspectives! I loved hearing what each of the five explorers thought or how they interpreted personally what they were seeing and learning.
It's a little too late in the year for me to share this with our ladies group this year, but I know what our Bible Study will be for next year! Fantastic!!