Whatever is Lovely: A Coloring Book for Reflection and Worship

Whatever is Lovely is the most lovely coloring book I have ever seen.  I have wanted an adult coloring book since I first noticed the trend and starting spotting them in book and craft stores.  I've looked at many of them, but had not yet purchased one for myself.  So, when I had the opportunity to review this one from Blogging for Books in exchange for my honest review, I jumped at the chance. 

Many of the coloring books I looked at were nice, but I did want a Christian themed book, so that narrowed the field quite a bit.  Still even among the ones with a Christian theme, not all the pages contained Scripture or were Biblical.  Whatever is Lovely fits the bill of every thing I wished for and so much more!  It goes way beyond just coloring an illustrated Bible verse or a picture of a Bible store. It is really intended to be, as the subtitle reads, for reflection and worship.  I love that!

The introduction, titled Color Your Way to Peace, instructs the (reader? user? colorer?)...worshiper that this book was designed to be a way of "quieting our minds, spending time meditating on the words of the Lord, and entering into a time of quiet reflection  and worship.".  How cool is that?  Way, way better than what my first intention was when I first saw adult coloring books: something to do to relax or to keep my hands busy while watching TV. 

Each page of this gorgeous coloring book contains beautiful hand-drawn and lettered pictures to color with Scripture verses, quotes from Christian authors. teachers and pastors, or hymn writers. There is even a link included for a Whatever is Lovely Spotify playlist to further enhance your worship.I really can't say enough of how great I think this coloring book is.  Check it out, I'm sure you too will love it.

Tough As They Come by SSG Travis Mills

I loved Tough As They Come, the story of SSG Travis Mills. Travis "Big" Mills is one of only five soldiers who has survived a quadruple amputation from combat injuries. Tough As They Come is Travis' story, and it is a fascinating story indeed. 

Travis is one of the toughest most courageous soldiers I have ever been introduced to.  He was a Staff Sargent in the 82nd Airborne Division of the US Army and saw three tours of duty in Afghanistan. A natural leader, Travis inspired others of both higher and lower rank through his own work ethic, never quit attitude, and sense of humor.  He gave his all in everything and anything he did. I have deep admiration for this man and the way he served his country and I am grateful to have people like him defending my freedom every day.

Only days from his 25th birthday, SSG Travis Mills, led his men out on an ordinary patrol, not different from their patrols any other day of their duty tour.  Yet on this day, an exploding IED planted by Taliban fighters, would change Travis' life forever. This explosion led to Travis losing all of his limbs, numerous surgeries,  pain beyond agony, and hundreds of hours of rehab.  Yet, Travis triumphed.  He determined that he would learn again to sit up, to feed himself, to walk, and to drive.  He vowed to keep fighting, not on the battlefield, but in the hospital.  This time not for his country, for his men, but for himself and for his wife and daughter.

Tough As They Come is inspiring, heartwarming and funny.  I highly recommend it.  I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for my honest review.

Michael Symon's 5 in 5 for Every Season: 165 Quick Dinners, Sides, Holiday Dishes, and More

I received this book from Blogging for Books for free in exchange for my honest review. Michael Symon is one of the hosts of ABC's The Chew, a show I enjoy watching if I'm home during the day.  The show is a fun approach to cooking, so I thought this would be a great addition to my cookbook library.  Plus who wouldn't love the concept of 5 in 5?  5 in 5 is based on a speed cooking segment that Michael does on the show.  5 ingredients = a prepared dish in 5 minutes.  Sign me up!

Michael Symon's 5 in 5 for Every Season is a nice cookbook.  The size is good, not too large and not too small.  The cover is colorful and attracted me right away, it's also glossy which is nice for wiping away food spills. Michael has arranged the recipes according to season.  The first category is spring, it works through each season and ends with holidays.  He is a big proponent of using fresh produce that is seasonal.  The spring section, for example, includes lots of peas, asparagus, mushrooms and ramps.

The 5 in 5 concept is for fresh ingredients.  There are also pantry items and spices included in most recipes.  Michael gives a nice pantry list in the beginning of the book to help the cook.  It's a good list for almost any cook of items to have on hand to make meals with.  They are shelf stable products that will keep for a good while. Still, even with including those additional items, the ingredient lists for each recipe are short, which to me translates to easier.

I have not yet prepared any of the recipes in the book, but have several marked to try.  My only complaint from my initial reading of the book is that I wish there was a color picture of each recipe.  There are a lot of attractive photos in the book, but not one of each dish. I received this book from Blogging for Books for free in exchange for my honest review.

2 A.M. at the Cat's Pajamas : A Novel by Marie-Helene Bertino

2 A.M. at the Cat's Pajamas wins two awards in my book: weirdest and worst read ever.  I find it impossible to believe that it was named one of NPR's Best Books of 2014.  Seriously?  I had to force myself to finish it and the only reason I did is that I committed to review it for Blogging for Books and felt I couldn't review it honestly without reading the whole awful thing. Thankfully received this book for free from them and didn't waste my own money buying it, although I'm sorry they wasted theirs sending it to me.

When I chose this book, I thought it would be a lovely way to start out the holiday season since it takes place on December 23, or as the author, Marie-Helene Bertino calls it, Christmas Eve Eve. Ha!  Lovely is a word I would never use to describe this book.  It is, in my opinion, awful.  The main character is a nine-year old girl names Madeleine, who speaks with a potty mouth, spouting swear words left and right.  If that sounds like your idea of a Christmas story, then perhaps you WILL enjoy the read.

The other characters were mostly depressing and depressed. They were all desperately seeking love or money or recognition or fame that mostly eluded them. There is one particular scene where one of the characters meets a woman in a strip club and moments later has a quickie with her in the club bathroom, which the reader is privileged to read about in great detail. Now, isn't that sweet?

The back cover of the book quotes it as being vivacious, charming and moving.  Sorry--I just don't see it.

A Moment of Weakness by Karen Kingsbury

I'm quite sure my opinion may not be popular, and obviously doesn't represent the masses of readers who love Karen Kingsbury books, but I just don't.  , so honest I will be. I have read many Karen Kingsbury books over the years, but had really decided they just aren't for me.  The only reason I decided to review this one is that I thought it was a brand new book, and that perhaps I should give the author another chance.  As it turns out, this is just a re-release of a book that she wrote years ago and I read it then. I believe I did like it back when I read it the first time, but I feel now that Christian fiction has come a long way. I've grown past books like this one.

So, here is my problem with A Moment of Weakness, as well as Karen Kingsbury's other books.  All of her characters, including the two main characters in this book (Tanner Eastman and Jade Conner), are always BEAUTIFUL. There are no ordinary looking people, and certainly no ugly people. No one is ever obese or even overweight, heaven forbid. Granted, they do have problems (in this case Tanner and Jade fall into the temptation of having sex before marriage--a very common problem), but their problems are never just ordinary problems.  An ordinary problem might be that Tanner and Jade fell into temptation and their families are not happy about it. Tanner and Jade are very embarrassed, but they swallow their pride and confess their sins. Some people don't want to forgive them, they'd rather take the high ground and keep pointing fingers.  Maybe Tanner and Jade feel forced to find a new church. Tanner and Jade get married and they do struggle.  Marriage is hard and it's even harder when you have a baby right away.  But, by the grace of God they manage to overcome.  They have a good marriage and a great family.  The end. 

In A Moment of Weakness, however, there is much much more melodrama. Jade becomes pregnant that one time they have sex, but when she discovers this, Tanner is off on an overseas mission trip.  Jade calls Tanner's mother to see if she knows how to get a hold of Tanner.  Mrs. Eastman guesses what the emergency might be and lies to Jade, telling her that Tanner doesn't really love her and that he has fathered many other children.  Of course, Jade believes all these lies, runs off and marries another man, and leaves the state (all in the 3 weeks that Tanner is gone) .  I won't give away the entire book, but trust me when I say that the rest of the story is just as melodramatic.

I like books where I can relate to the characters in some way.  I really can't relate to BEAUTIFUL people who don't even communicate with each other, they just draw all the wrong conclusions and run away.  This seems to be a very common theme among many Christian authors and I just plain don't like it. On the other hand, if you like BEAUTIFUL people and melodrama, then I'm sure you will love this book since it's full of both.   I received this book from Blogging for Books for free in exchange for my honest review.

Accidental Saints: Finding God in All the Wrong People by Nadia Bolz-Weber

Accidental Saints is shocking in many ways, just as it's intended to be.  The author, Nadia Bolz-Weber, is an unlikely, atypical pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (the more liberal branch of Lutheranism).  She is covered with tattoos and cynicism, enjoys making people squirm with her f-bombs, and spurns the right as much as they spurn her. Your typical radical, left-wing liberal, full of questions and doubts, yet astonishingly in love with Jesus.  And anyone who is love with my Savior is alright by me.

At times, Nadia made me angry.  I admit I was indeed bothered by her swearing.  I can totally understand that anyone, including myself, can let a curse word fly when upset, but her language is intentional.  I just see no need for it, and have always believed that an intelligent, educated person can find better words to express herself.

It also made me angry that she so often portrays anyone with conservative values as narrow-minded and stupid.  I would definitely rate myself as conservative in my views, yet I don't believe I am either narrow-minded or stupid. I was open-minded enough to read and review this book (I received it from Blogging for Books for free in exchange for my honest review).  Although she claims to be a liberal, she is not so liberal in her views of those who are not like her.  But, that is the point of the book.  Even the subtitle says it: Finding God in All the WRONG People.  Not finding God in surprising people or different people, but wrong people.That bothers me.

I did learn some good lessons from Nadia and I think you could too. I am certainly not proclaiming her as the next greatest pastor, but I am always blessed by reading of God's grace and this book does proclaim it.

The Rising: Murder, Heartbreak, and the Power of Human Resilience in an American Town by Ryan D'Agostino

I always enjoy reading biographies or memoirs and for years have been fascinated by crime stories.  The Rising is a great blend of both genres. It is the true story of the Petit family, an upper middle class family living in the suburbs of Connecticut. Bill Petit is a Yale grad and skilled physician. His wife, Jennifer, a beautiful pastor's daughter and pediatric nurse.  They had two daughters, Hayley, an popular athlete preparing for college, and Michaela, a sweet happy eleven-year old. They had it all until one night two men broke into their home and the unthinkable happened.  Everyone's worst nightmare: the men beat Bill within an inch of his life, assaulted Michaela, choked Jen to death, and murdered the girls by setting the house on fire.

This book tells the story of both Bill's and Jennifer's childhood, their dating and early marriage years, and then the time when they raised their children.  The reader really gets a feel for who this family is and what makes them tick.  Then the author tells the story of the horrific night when Bill's marriage, family and home were destroyed.  He then goes on to describe what life was like for Bill afterward.  The devastation, the deep loss, the agony--both physical and emotional.  Ryan D'Agostino does a wonderful job of answering the question: how does one survive a tragedy like that?

For me, one the most fascinating aspect of the book was the trials of the two men who committed the grisly crimes. It was very interesting to peek into the courtroom and into the minds of the attorneys and defendants. Thankfully justice prevailed.  But most of all love and grace prevailed. More than anything, The Rising is a story of the power of love and the resiliency of the human heart.  I received this book from Blogging for Books for free in exchange for my honest review.

Luther and Katharina: A Novel of Love and Rebellion by Jody Hedlund

Luther and Katharina is one of my favorite types of novels: historical fiction based on actual people. Luther is Martin Luther and Katharina his wife.  I thought I knew a fair amount about the reformation and about Lutheranism.  I grew up in a reformed church and worked in a Lutheran church for seven years.  To my surprise, there was much I didn't know (or forgot?). I learned many interesting and many horrifying things.  I was appalled at the abuses of the Catholic church and disgusted with people who called themselves Christians while raping, torturing, murdering others.  I guess there's nothing new under the sun!

This novel has it all.  Drama, suspense, romance, and history.  There is something to appeal to almost any reader. I think it's important to understand the history of Christianity better, to know what those who came before us went through to defend their faith and to practice it the way they believed they should.

Jody Hedlund is an excellent writer.  She did a great job of weaving together the historical facts of the time period with all those little fictional details that we as readers of history always wish we knew. She beautifully fleshes out the story of Katharina's escape from the convent where she lived since age five.  She also adds sweet and even humorous details to Luther and Katherina's romance. 

I enjoyed Luther and Katherina very much.  I would recommend it to any historical fiction fans.  The book I read was an Advance Reading Copy that I received from Blogging for Books for free in exchange for my honest review.

Legend by Eric Blehm

Eric Blehm hits it out of the park again with his latest book, Legend. When I read his best-selling book, Fearless, it was not at all my usual reading genre. I would normally not choose a military drama, but I was drawn to the biography aspect of it.  Navy Seal Team Six had been much in the news and I wanted to read about Adam Brown.  Surprise!  I loved the book.  Well, I am still not drawn to a military drama, but I am drawn to Eric Blehm's writing.  And NO surprise!  I loved the book.

Legend tells the story of Roy Benavidez, a Mexican American, raised in Texas by his migrant working family.  The Benavidez family had first come to the US in the 1800s and fought for independence from Mexico as Texans and Americans. Roy's father liked to tell his children stories about the war then and about family members who fought the Nazis in WWII. He also shared stories from his days as a cowboy.  The moral of many of his stories was "If someone needs help, you help them."  Another family member, Roy's uncle, often told him, "No matter what you do, always try to be your very best."  These two men and their advice to young Roy, shaped him to be a hard-working man of excellence.  Whatever he did, he gave it his all.

Those very characteristics are what set Roy up to be a hero and a legend during the Vietnam War.  Roy was a Green Beret, part of a special forces team with the 240th Assault Helicopter Company.  When a distress call went out from a jungle in Cambodia, Roy volunteered to help.  What happened in that small jungle clearing would become legend among those serving in the Special Operations community. Roy rose above and beyond every expectation of his father and uncle.  He gave his very best to help his severely wounded brothers-in-arms, refusing to leave until every survivor was aboard a helicopter bound for safety.

You'll enjoy this exciting true story and will be riveted to its pages to find out what happens next. Even if, like me, you don't usually go for military books, you'll be inspired by the life of Roy Benavidez. Blogging for Books provided this book to me for free in exchange for my honest review.

The Little Bookshop: A Novel by Nina George

I feel as though I should gush over how marvelous this book was, a true literary delight, enchanting, profound, etc.  However, all I can think to say is this is one of the strangest books I have ever read.  Every character was weird, there was not one person I could relate to.  There is not one character like any person I have ever met in real life.

Perhaps if you were a literature, English, French or women's studies major in college, you may enjoy The Little Paris Bookshop, but I did not.  Now, I love books and I love reading, and I am an intelligent, educated person, but the only reason I finished this book is that I received it from Blogging for Books in exchange for my honest review.  I felt obligated to read the whole thing in order to so. 

The Little Paris Bookshop touts itself as an adventure, and with that I can agree.  The main character travels through France on a barge, stopping at many quaint towns and villages along the way.  That aspect of the book I did enjoy, but it was not enough to redeem it in my mind. 

I chose this book to review because, as I said, I love books, so the premise of a book about a floating bookstore on the Seine River really sounded fascinating.  However, I cannot recommend it-especially for the high price of a hardcover.

I'm Happy for You (Sort Of...Not Really) by Kay Wills Wyma

I'm happy for me (sort of...not really) that I read this book.  I struggled with it, and had to force myself to finish it. This book reminded me of those crime drama shows on TV.  They have a story to tell that is good, but it's really only a story that should be a half hour long and instead they stretch it out to be an hour or two long.  I start out attentive, but lose interest half way through.

I'm Happy for You (Sort Of...Not Really) is subtitled Finding Contentment in a Culture of Comparison. I felt that the author, Kay Wills Wyma, spent a LOT of time telling us how discontented we are and how much we compare ourselves to others, but not nearly as much time telling us what to do about it.  I'm pretty sure that anyone who purchases the book already knows they are discontent.  I believe they would be looking for solutions and I don't think Ms. Wyma really delivers.  Mostly she seems to preach the evils of Facebook, Pinterest and other social media, so I guess the solution would be to turn those off. 

This book is billed as "Christian living", but I found it to be very light on Scripture and very heavy on psychobabble. It is well-written and uses a lot of illustrations from real people, but I wish it relied way more on God's Word and way less on psychologists and doctors and other authors.

Blogging for Books provided this book to me for free in exchange for my honest review.

Let's Pretend We're Normal: Adventures in Rediscovering How to Be a Family by Tricia Lott Williford

Because I read Tricia Lott Williford's first book, And Life Comes Back, I was very interested in reading her second book, Let's Pretend We're Normal.  The first book told the story of her sudden and unexpected plunge into widowhood and the daunting task she faced of raising two preschoolers alone.  This new book is a sequel to that first roller coaster year.  Although certainly still missing her husband daily, she is now able to function more normally, or at least to pretend to be more normal. 

This honest, humorous book is filled with beautiful examples of God's grace.  Tricia and her sons sometimes stumble, yet they manage to get back up to fight on.  They battle to be a balanced, emotionally healthy family, despite the fact that they will always grieve the loss of the husband and dad. Some days they manage well, others are filled with tears and tantrums. Yet through it all, they love well, forgive quickly and laugh often.

Tricia is a gifted writer, giving us glimpses of her family life--abnormal though it may be. This book about the Williford family is a true story of hope after despair.  It is also the bigger picture of the God's faithfulness and the way he redeems all things.  I was blessed by reading it and I think you will be too.

Blogging for Books provided this book to me for free in exchange for my honest review.

Hiding in the Light by Rifqa Bary

Hiding in the Light is the memoir of Rifqa Bary, a Sri Lankan girl from a strict Muslim family. She, her parents and older brother moved to the United States in 2000 when she was eight years old. At first they lived in New York City, but three years  later moved to Columbus, Ohio.  It was at school in Ohio that Rifqa was befriended by a Christian girl named Angela who invited her to church. That invitation, to a Wednesday night church service, was what changed everything for Rifqa.
Rifqa's childhood was one that most American's can't quite imagine.  Born Muslim, she was required by age three to eat only certain foods and to memorize prayers during Ramadan.  At age seven, Rifqa fasted all day during the holy month and began memorizing the Qur'an. As a young student of the Qur'an she had no idea what she was saying when she recited from the holy book, only that they she was expected to say it perfectly. Any contact with non-Muslims was forbidden and a girl was taught early that her place was in the home.  Education for girls was unimportant and she held no authority or status.
Two traumatic events marked Rifqa's life: the first was when she was six years old and her brother angrily hit her with a metal toy, permanently blinding her in one eye.  Rifqa's vision loss caused her parents to disdain her, her value greatly diminished to them.  They began treating her with contempt and their hearts grew cold toward her. The second was when she was seven or eight years and she was sexually molested by an uncle. When Rifqa told her mother, despite threats from the uncle, she blamed Rifqa for shaming the family.
Thus began a cycle of abuse, both physical and mental.  Rifqa's parents beat her frequently and often without reason.  She was completely miserable and began cutting herself in an attempt to relieve her pain. Without friends or the love of her own family, the invitation from Angela was an unexpected lifeline.  Knowing she was risking much, Rifqa said yes.

That first "yes" led to Rifqa saying yes to an altar call at church, yes to surrendering her heart and life to Jesus, yes to a secret baptism, yes to a double life.  But that double life was doomed to failure.  Eventually Rifqa's parents found out that she had become a Christian.  She knew she was in grave danger she fled her home; forsaking her family and her heritage, with only the clothes on her back. 

I won't give away any more of the story, but it an exciting one. Exciting the way that Jesus wooed this sweet girl to himself from the time of her earliest memories. Exciting how God continually placed people in Rifqa's life just when she needed them. Exciting courtroom drama. Exciting healings, explained only by miracles. Rifqa's faith is inspiring, her story powerful.

Blogging for Books provided this book to me for free in exchange for my honest review.

The Mapmaker's Children by Sarah McCoy

I liked this book very much!  I had not read anything by Sarah McCoy previously, but will now be checking out her other work.  The Mapmaker's Children was a fascinating read.  I loved the way Sarah wove together the stories of two women, one living in 2014 and the other in 1859. 

The story set in 2014 is that of a woman named Eden, living in New Charleston, West Virginia.  Eden has been struggling with infertility and it has wreaked havoc on her marriage to Jack.  They have only recently moved to New Charleston and Eden is both lonely and depressed. To her own surprise, her spirits are gradually lifted by a friendship with her 11-year old next neighbor, Cleo, and a growing love for a puppy that Jack brings home as unwanted surprise.

The story set in 1859 is that of a woman named Sarah, living in North Alba, New York.  Sarah is the daughter of famous abolitionist John Brown.  She is even a part of his work in the Underground Railroad, using her artistic talents to make maps for escaped slaves to follow north to freedom. Her world is turned upside down when her father is executed for treason and murder after the raid at Harper's Ferry.

There are many twists and turns to both women's story and Ms. McCoy skillfully brings together clues to how the two are connected in a way that kept me wanting more at the end of each chapter. There are elements to The Mapmaker's Children that will please any reader: history, contemporary fiction, romance, suspense and more.

Crown Publishers provided this book to me for free in exchange for my honest review.

Reservations for Two: A Novel of Fresh Flavors and New Horizons by Hillary Manton Lodge

Reservations for Two is the second book in the series Two Blue Doors by Hillary Manton Lodge.  I also read and reviewed the first book in the series, A Table by the Window, and thoroughly enjoyed it, but I liked this book even more.  It was a delightful read and I can hardly wait for the third book to be released in May.

The thing that made this book so much fun was the letters interspersed throughout the book.  The main character, Juliette, discovers a treasure trove of letters to and from her grandmother, and learns bits and piece of family history that she never knew.  She gets to know her grandmother as a young woman, wife and mother, not just as the elderly lady that she grew up with.

But there is so much more going on in this novel than the letters.  Juliette is opening a restaurant in Portland with her brother and takes a trip to Europe to find suppliers.  While there she visits family in both Italy and France.  It is in Italy that she finds the letters, and it is there that her romance with her boyfriend, Neil deepens. 

However, when Juliette arrives back home she finds that their relationship is difficult to maintain long distance.  Neil is a doctor in Memphis and phone calls, emails and occasional visits are just not enough. Juliette is also dealing with the stress of starting a new business and her mother's cancer.  I won't spoil it for you, reader.  You'll have to read the book yourself to find out what happens to Juliette and Neil, and how Portland receives the new restaurant, Two Blue Doors (hence the series name).  I promise you'll love reading all about it for yourself! Blogging for Books provided this book to me for free in exchange for my honest review.

The Pharaoh's Daughter by Mesu Andrews

Mesu Andrews, author of The Pharaoh’s Daughter, warns in her Note to Reader that “The names and themes of this book are complex” and she is right.  They are in fact so complex that even by the end of the book, I was still having a hard time keeping them straight.  It was not just the names of people that were complex, but the titles of people (mother, father, aunt), as well as the names of objects.  Ms. Andrews does include a genealogy and map of Egypt, but I would have very much appreciated a glossary as well.  The confusion of who was who and what was what actually took away from the enjoyment of the story for me.

That being said, however, the story was very good.  Of course the original story, straight from the pages of Scripture—the story of Moses and the Pharaoh’s daughter who rescued him from the Nile River is exciting all by itself.  The record of Moses’ birth and childhood is contained in the Bible in Exodus 2:1-10, with the history of what was happening in Egypt in that time recorded in Exodus chapter 1.  These 32 verses are the basis of the entire book, The Pharaoh’s Daughter.  

Ms. Andrews took the story a step further and (obviously) did much historical research to flesh the story out.  She includes many details about the culture and traditions of the day, the historical figures, their dress, work and food.  All her research and details really made the story and its characters come alive!  That’s what I love about historical Christian fiction that is based on actual Bible characters, it makes them very real to me.  Mesu Andrews did a wonderful job of that—making Moses and his adopted mother, the Pharaoh’s daughter come alive, not to mention their other family members and the rulers of day.  

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review.

Pure Food: Eat Clean with Seasonal, Plant Based Recipes by Veronica Bosgraaf

Pure Food: Eat Clean with Seasonal, Plant Based Recipes by Veronica Bosgraaf is a great way to start incorporating more whole foods into your diet.  I have been trying to use much less processed food in my cooking and to eat more fruits and vegetables so this book seemed like it might be a good addition to my kitchen.  I read the book cover to cover and it was actually a very enjoyable and interesting read.

The author, Veronica Bosgraaf, is the founder of Pure Bar, an all natural snack bar.  She and her family live in Michigan and she bases her recipes on the midwest growing season. The book begins in January and works through each month of the year, providing recipes that are appropriate for each month and season.  The winter months are full of warm, comfort food; spring gives recipes using lots of herbs, greens and new vegetables; summer contains light recipes full of fruit and ideas for grilling out; autumn utilizes pumpkin, squashes and apples--all the bounty of the harvest.  Since I too live in Michigan, I know many of the towns she refers to in her book, which made it extra fun to follow along.

All in all, Pure Food contains many delicious sounding dishes for anyone who wants to eat and live healthier.  After reading the recipes, I can't wait to begin trying some of them for myself.  I won't be going vegan or even vegetarian, and I don't need to eat gluten free, but if you have any of those dietary restrictions, you'll find many great recipes here.  Or if, like myself, you just want to reduce processed foods and eat more whole foods, you too will find many great recipes here.
If this book had more colored photos of the recipes, I would have given it 5 stars, but it's still a good addition to my cookbook repertoire. 

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review.

A Fifty-Year Silence by Miranda Richmond Mouillot

I am encountering my own silence--I'm not sure what to say about A Fifty-Year Silence: Love, War and a Ruined House in France.  From the description of the book, I was excited to read it. I very much enjoy memoirs and am very interested in Jewish history and the Holocaust.  This book however fell far short of my expectations. 

The book is authored by Miranda Richmond Mouillot and tells the story of her grandparents, who escaped France during its Nazi invasion in World War II.  For her entire life, her grandparents were divorced and each would not speak of the other.  Miranda attempts to piece together their tale, desiring to find out what happened to make them hate each other and wondering if they were ever in love at all. She decides that perhaps this house is the key to the missing pieces of their lives.  Miranda goes to France to take up residence in the house and to research her family history. The only truly interesting parts of the book take place there in France: her grandfather's decline of dementia and Miranda's own love story when she meets a local Frenchman.

Even as I type this, the premise is good, but the book itself is just strange.  The characters were very odd and hard to love.  I really couldn't relate to them at all. If this book had been a library book, I would never have finished it.  I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review.

The Paleo Chef cookbook by Pete Evans

I was very interested to receive The Paleo Chef cookbook.  Not that I had intentions of switching to a Paleo diet, but I am trying to cook much healthier and am always on the look for recipes that use fresh and nutritious ingredients.  Pete Evans, the chef and author of The Paleo Chef appears to be trendy and hip, and from the foreward and introduction to the book, it is obvious that he is extremely passionate about cooking and Paleo. He makes it clear that, to him, Paleo is more than a diet--it's a way of life.

Indeed, you would need to be dedicated to making it a way of life if you were to decide to go Paleo.  No convenience foods, or takeout allowed.  You would also need to have a huge grocery budget and to live in a large city where such items as duck fat, young green coconuts and fresh purple basil are available.  I live in the suburbs of a medium sized city and I can tell you I have never seen any of those items at any grocery store.  I'm sure they would all be stocked at a store like Trader Joe's or Whole Foods but I would have to travel three hours to shop there and that won't be happening anytime soon.

If indeed you can afford the exotic, organic foods the recipes call for and if you can find them in a store within driving distance of your home, the cookbook is lovely.  There are beautiful color photographs for almost every recipe (which I very much enjoyed looking at).  Indeed, the cookbook is a feast for the eyes.  Chef Evans also includes a personal introduction to each recipe, telling the cook/reader about the recipe, how he uses it at home, what to serve with the dish, etc.  There are over 200 recipes in the book, plus some basic recipes in the back for sauces, condiments, etc., so all in all it is a good buy if you do plan to try Paleo.

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review.

My Battle Against Hitler: Faith, Truth and Defiance in the Shadow of the Third Reich by Dietrich Von Hildebrand

I was interested in reading My Battle Against Hitler: Faith, Truth and Defiance in the Shadow of the Third Reich because I am interested in history, especially of World War II history.  I very much enjoy autobiographies and memoirs and as a Christian, am inspired about stories of faith.  It looked to me like this book would really fit the bill.  I could not have been more wrong.  I seldom find a book that I really DON'T like, but this was one of them.  It was one of the most boring books I've ever read.  Honestly, if I had not agreed to review it, I wouldn't have read more than the first chapter. 

My Battle Against Hitler is the memoir of Dietrich Von Hildebrand, a German philosphy professor in the 1920s and 1930s.  He is also an extremely devout Catholic.  Unless you are also an extremely devout Catholic, you may not be able to relate to this book.  Although deeply opposed to any prejudice against Jews by the Nazis, he himself is prejudiced against any Christian who is not Catholic. I'm sure the word "Catholic" was used hundreds of times in this book, and it is in large part a record of what was happening in the Catholic church during that time period. 

Mostly the book records his conversations and journal writings against the Nazi regime.  I'm not saying that I don't agree with his anti-Nazi viewpoint, because I certainly do. But unless you are a scholar, I don't think there would be much in this book to hold your interest. The only division in the book are years and each chapter just goes on and on recounting meetings, lectures, symposiums and dinner parties that Von Hildebrand attended.

Thank goodness I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review.  I would have been beyond upset if I had paid for it.