Book Review: April
Updated: Apr 27, 2019
Book Review: Short attention span reviews of the last two months of reading! I have had the attention span of a gnat lately, so the list is short - but good! (Also, how long is a gnat's attention span?)
Oh, but first! Register for my First Annual BookSmarts Party! Tickets are only $5 each and will include dessert and coffee. We'll have a couple special speakers, games and a book swap. Find more information here: BookSmarts Party
The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row by Anthony Ray Hinton. Hinton is put on death row for a crime he did not commit. He holds on to hope, even beginning a book club for other inmates. Eventually he is set free - this is his story. Riveting, saddening, frustrating and hopeful. (He was helped by Equal Justice Initiative, the organization Bryan Stephenson who wrote Just Mercy started.) Rating: 4 out of 5.
If You Only Knew: My Unlikely, Unavoidable Story of Becoming Free by Jamie Ivey. Jamie recounts her testimony and the ways she went off the path of following the Lord. Vulnerable and honest about her struggles and how she found her way back, the book is an encouraging read. Some parts are repetitive, and I felt it lacked a little bit of depth in the "okay, but how do we minister to or with someone who is struggling"... it was still a good read. Rating: 3 out of 5
It's Not Supposed to Be This Way: Finding Unexpected Strength When Disappointments Leave You Shattered by Lysa TerKeurst. Lysa bases her book on her own life story, which included her husband's affair and her breast cancer diagnosis. I felt the book was honest, and I felt deep empathy for Lysa and her family. Her biblical encouragement was good and I'd recommend this to you, or as a book you could give to someone experiencing disappointment in their lives. Rating: 4 out of 5.
Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers by Anne Lamott. Nope, don't love her theology, but oh, how Anne can write. She proposes the three prayers we should constantly be saying are help, thanks, wow. For a while, I tried praying that way at night: Finding one thing to say, thanks, God! One thing to ask for help on and one way I saw God in my day. Anne's writing is always beautiful, honest and makes me think. Rating: 4 out of 5.
Glass Houses by Louise Penny. Try Penny if you like mysteries. Good atmospheric stories set in the small town of Three Pines and "starring" Inspector Gamache. This latest installment deals with the opioid trade. Rating: 3 out of 5.
The Atomic City Girls by Janet Beard - Although this seems to be gaining momentum in the reading world, I did not enjoy this book. It covers the experiences of various people working on the Atom Bomb in a secretive town. The workers' lives intersect, and conflict and love interest ensues. Rating: 2 out of 5 Quick, shallow read.
That's it! See you next time!