Where I share my love of books with reviews, features, giveaways and memes. Family and needlepoint are thrown in from time to time.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

White Sleeper by David R. Fett and Stephen Langford (Book Review)

Title: White Sleeper: A Novel
Author: David R. Fett and Stephen Langford
Publisher: Synergy Books

About the Book: When Arkansas experiences a wave of rare fatal diseases, the CDC sends disgraced doctor Dave Richards to investigate, and he knows this is the case that could save his career. When he teams up with FBI agent Paula Mushari, Richards thinks he may have found the person who can help him find the answers. But as they dig deeper, they begin to get a sinister glimpse into what they are dealing with-a vengeful sect, led by the son of a late white supremacist, intent on destroying a nation. As Richards fights to save his job, he and Mushari must race against the clock to prevent a plague of catastrophic proportions.


My thoughts:  I don't know what I was expecting when I started this book, but figured it would be one of those, oh - it's just okay - type reads.  But I was wrong!  White Sleeper grabbed me from the beginning and kept me interested the entire book.

First you have a young man(Ben Curran), who as a teenager saw his White Supremacist parents killed, living him with a heart for revenge. He nurtures this revenge for years, ready to unleash it on an unsuspecting public.  As luck would have it, he moves to New York City and discovers that his neighbors are a sleeping cell just waiting to strike.

With the help of this sleeper cell, he unleashes 3 different diseases on a small group of people to see which one will be the deadliest.  I thought this was a very real scenario as bioterrorism is a very real possibility. 

Dr. Dave Richards is sent to try to gather more information as these illnesses strike.  He was once a rising young doctor, but circumstances caused him to turn to alcohol and this is pretty much his last chance to try to redeem himself and his career.  He gets partnered with FBI agent Paula Mushari, and there seems to be some romantic interest there.

The story unfolds through both Ben Curran's and Dave Richard's viewpoints.  Although it jumps between the two, and jumps between different areas of the country, this does not detract from the book.  It actually keeps things moving along, which I feel would be the case if something like this would happen in the U.S.   The book ended with the possilibity of another one, and I would definitely read it!


~ I received a complimentary copy of this book from Phenix Publicity in exchange for my review.~

Learn more about the book at www.whitesleeper.com.


White Sleeper
Publisher/Publication Date: Synergy Books, April 2011
ISBN: 978-0-9845040-2-2
272 pages

Teaser Tuesday (Sept 20, 2011)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

  • Grab your current read
  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
  • Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
  • Then visit MizB and add your link!



She started to tell her mother that everything was fine, that she was worried for nothing, that Kevin was just a difficult man to understand but that he was good to them and all was well.  Except the words wouldn't come. (Darkness, My Old Friend, p123)

        This is such a good book!  Not even half way through and I highly recommend it!
      Darkness, My Old Friend: A Novel
      Publisher/Publication Date: Crown, Aug 2011
      ISBN: 978-0-307-46499-6
      360 pages


      Monday, September 19, 2011

      The Hidden Aspects of Writing - by Melissa Foster (Guest Post) w/Book Review of Megan's Way!

      The Hidden Aspects of Writing, by Melissa Foster

      I read a great quote on Twitter the other day, "Ninety percent of writing happens before it's funneled into the ten percent we actually see." Thank you, Rachel Patterson. This quote hit home with me, as I’m currently reworking a complete novel—a painful, yet oddly enjoyable, process.

      It never fails to surprise me how quickly books are read as compared to how long they take to write. I have two friends who read two novels each week. Two! I have to admit, I’m jealous of those friends. I picture them with an iced tea in one hand, novel (paperback) in the other, sitting in the sun, legs kicked up on a lounge chair—not a care in the world. Oh, I know that isn’t their real life, but that’s how I picture them. Gina and Paula will surely get a kick out of this, as one has several kidlets running around, and the other has a teenager to fill her days—and both have Kindles.

      Telling the story a.k.a. the first draft. A books journey, from conception to fruition, is a painstaking process. My first draft includes getting the story from my brain to the computer. It’s too long-winded, overly descriptive, and sometimes even out of sequence. The timing of the first draft depends on the novel I’m writing. COME BACK TO ME flowed very quickly, and the writing was far more succinct the first time around, than any of my other manuscripts, while MEGAN’S WAY came out completely out of sequence. This process can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months.

      Writing the book a.k.a. the second draft. Between writing the first draft and working through the second, I typically put my manuscript down for a week and work on something else. This break is necessary in order for me to see the words I’ve actually written on the pages rather than seeing the story I have in my head. I use the second draft to work through my story’s timing and sequence—making sure the timeline makes sense and the story is realistic. I look for depth of characters and presence of settings. Writing the book takes another few weeks, although it’s typically a much shorter process than telling the story, because the story is already there.

      Bulldozing the story a.k.a. serious editing. Happy with the direction of the story, the characters, and the plots and subplots, it’s time to move on to bulldozing. This is really a much bigger job than simple editing. This is the stage where I remove the fluff, making the story more succinct. This is also the most painful part of the process for me because it’s when I cut scenes, characters, and subplots. Sometimes I’ll write a scene that I fall in love with—it makes my heart sing and my confidence glow, but it simply doesn’t add anything to the story, and it must end up in the dreaded “save for later” file. Yes, I keep those favorite scenes—one never knows when they’ll come in handy. I’m still waiting to use Molly and Cole Tanner’s wedding scene in a novel.

      When I first began bulldozing, I was blown away. In the writing world, we count words—every manuscript is a certain number of words, and the acceptable number of words depends on the genre. When I began writing my first manuscript, THE KNOWING, later renamed CHASING AMANDA, I was told to write 300 pages, rather than a certain number of words. Being the novice that I was, I wrote 300 single-spaced pages—that’s 600 book pages. Way too long of a story for publication. Literally half of my story ended up on the cutting room floor. Bulldozing was an eye-opener for me, a painful one. Now, I’m much more aware of the “fluff” factor, and I try to avoid it at all costs. Bulldozing the story usually takes a few weeks, and involves going back and forth with my editor many times.

      Tweaking the story a.k.a. line editing. I love my editors. They see things in my story that I simply cannot see. They interpret my words in ways I have somehow missed, and sometimes, they even love pieces of what I’ve written. It is, however, a love-hate relationship. Their feedback is invaluable. There is no doubt that what I glean from their expertise is priceless, bringing my manuscript to a level I could not achieve without them—but they’re also the ones who point out my writing weaknesses, and that is not always fun. Sometimes we battle, and usually I lose, but they make me feel like it was my idea in the first place, so really, we both win. Line editing takes a long time. I go over each word and make sure it is conveying exactly what I want it to, and that is not as easy as it may sound. Chalk up another few weeks of work.

      Taking a book through writing, polishing, and multiple edits, is a process that takes me anywhere from nine months to two years. Every writer is different, some can write a book in seven weeks, while others take five, six, even ten years to complete their manuscript. When my reading friends rip through a novel every three and a half days, I’m overjoyed, but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that it also leaves me feeling a bit like someone has walked by the window of my newborn baby, smiled, perhaps even said something sweet, then simply walked away. I would want to ask them to come back, enjoy the baby for a bit longer, relish over her cuteness, and wallow in her beauty for a while. Maybe even carry the thought of her—solely the thought of her, without any other babies being introduced—for a few weeks.

      The glory of writing is knowing that you are putting your very best story out for readers to enjoy, regardless of how long it takes, or what’s left behind. Readers will devour good books. We have to write more, sometimes faster, to keep up with the demand, and despite the time involved, I love being part of that viscous cycle.

      Thank you for taking the time to read my books, and my article. If you’d like to chat about any of my books, or would like me to visit your book club, please drop me an email. Remember to sign up for my newsletter on my website to keep up to date on my events, next release (COME BACK TO ME, due November 2011), and details of the MEGAN’S WAY film adaptation.

      Melissa's Website
      Follow Melissa on  Facebook, Twitter, FB Fanpage
      Chat w/Melissa on The Women's Nest

      Thank you Melissa for that great article!  It will definitely make me think a little bit more when I finish a book (especially one I really like - like Megan's Way!) about the time and effort that goes in to writing it!

      Title: Megan's Way
      Author: Melissa Foster
      Publisher: Outskirts Press

      About the Book: When Megan Taylor, a single mother and artist, receives the shocking news that her cancer has returned, she'll be faced with the most difficult decision she's ever had to make. She'll endure an emotional journey, questioning her own moral and ethical values, and the decisions she'd made long ago. The love she has for her daughter, Olivia, and her closest friends, will be stretched and frayed.

      Meanwhile, fourteen-year-old Olivia's world is falling apart right before her eyes, and there's nothing she can do about it. She finds herself acting in ways she cannot even begin to understand. When her internal struggles turn to dangerous behavior, her life will hang in the balance.

      Megan's closest friends are caught in a tangled web of deceit. Each must figure out how, and if, they can expose their secrets, or forever be haunted by their pasts.



      My thoughts: If you like emotional books, then this is one you must read.  I cried through a major portion of it.  I could relate to Olivia, as I lost my father to cancer when I was 17.  There is so much that you don't understand when you are a teenager, and so much that adults think they must shelter you from.  I saw Megan, as well as Holly, wanting to shelter Olivia in any way they could, from the pain that they knew she would be going through.

      Megan and Olivia had such a close relationship and Megan struggled with the best way to leave her daughter behind.  One that would cause her the least pain. She also needed to decide how much of her past secrets Olivia would be able to handle. 

      The story unfolds with each character telling portions of it, so you get a well-rounded look at what is going on.  There is even a mystical aspect as Megan continues to be part of the story, even after she has passed.  It seems that everybody had been holding on to secrets, all to protect someone in their close knit circle of friends.  How or will these secrets be revealed is played out in the end of the book. 

      I really enjoyed reading this book and felt like I was one of Megan's circle of friends.  It was hard for me to put down once I started reading it, and as mentioned earlier, I cried through a great portion of it.  I found myself trying to read it when my family wasn't around so that I wouldn't have to hide my tears! (lol)  This book is being made in to a movie so you must read it before it comes out!

      ~I received a complimentary ebook from the author in exchange for my honest review.~

      Megan's Way
      Publisher/Publication Date: Outskirts Press, July 2009
      ISBN: 978-1432744427
      304 pages


      Sunday, September 18, 2011

      It's Monday! What are you reading? (Sept 19, 2011)




      What are you reading on Mondays is hosted by Sheila at One Person's Journey - You can hook up with the Mr. Linky there with your own post - but be sure and let me know what you are reading too! 

      New giveaway posted in the right sidebar - more coming this week!

      Currently Reading:
      Stray Dogs, Saints and Saviors by Alexander Russo
      Darkness, My Old Friend by Lisa Unger
      Never Been Bit by Lydia Dare

      Next Up:
      Good Graces by Lesley Kagen
      How Can You Not Laugh at a Time Like This by Carla Ulbrich

      Audio Book:
      Atonement by Ian McEwan

      E-Book:
      Aefle and Gisela by Libby Malin


      Bathroom Book:
      Whistling in the Dark by Lesley Kagen


      Reviewed Since Last Post:
      Megan's Way by Melissa Foster
      Grace for the Good Girl by Emily Freeman
      My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife by Sara Horn

      Waiting for Reviews:
       White Sleeper by David R. Fett and Stephen Langford
      The Place of Belonging by Jayne Pearson Faulkner
      The Blackberry Bush by David Housholder
      The Girl in the Green Raincoat by Laura Lippman
      Book Thief by Markus Zusak
      Airmail by Naomi Bulger
      Pie Town by Lynne Hinton
      Chasing the Red Car by Ellen Ruderman

      E-books waiting for review:
      Sudden Moves by Kelli Sue Landon
      This World We Live In (The Last Survivors, Book 3) by Susan Beth Pfeffer

      Children's Books waiting for review:
      Pearl's Wisdom by Auntie LuLu
      Bug Meets His Friend (Bug's Adventure Series) by K.M. Groshek
      Multiply on the Fly by Suzanne Slade
      Ten for Me by Barbara Mariconda
      Animalogy by Marianne Berkes
      Prairie Storms by Darcy Pattison

      READY - SET - READ!

      Saturday, September 17, 2011

      Grace for the Good Girl by Emily P. Freeman (Book Review)

      Title: Grace for the Good Girl
      Author: Emily P. Freeman
      Publisher: Revell

      About the book: You're strong. You're responsible. You're good. But. . .

      . . . as day fades to dusk, you begin to feel the familiar fog of anxiety, the weight and pressure of holding it together and of longing left unmet.  Good girls sometimes feel that the Christian life means doing hard work with a sweet disposition.  We tend to focus only on the things we can handle, our disciplined lives, and our unshakable good moods.

      But what would happen if we let grace pour out boundless acceptance into our wornout hearts and undo us?  If we dared to talk about the ways we hide, our longing to be known, and the fear in the knowing?

      In Grace for the Good Girl, Emily Freeman invites you to release your tight hold on that familiar, try-hard life and lean your weight heavy into the love of Jesus.  With an open hand, a whimsical style, and a heart bent brave toward adventure, Emily encourages you to move from your own impossible expectations toward the God who has graciously, miraculously, and lovingly found you.


      My thoughts: I could - can - relate to the good girl that Emily Freeman is talking about in this book.  

      "Still, I like knowing the rules.  If the sign says Don't Touch, I don't touch.  If it says Keep Out, I stay away.  If the form is due on Friday, I'll turn it in on Thursday just in case. . . .And even though I admit to occasionally bringing candy into the movie theater, I am always worried that the ticket person will search my bags and throw me out for smuggling in a bottle of water and two Peppermint Patties." (Grace for the Good Girl, p68)
      This is very much me - but it would be a can of soda and Three Musketeers! I was the good girl in high school - good grades, didn't like confrontations, didn't smoke, didn't really drink. . . When my dad passed away the end of my junior year, I kept the mask on for weeks that everything was fine before I could even let myself breakdown and cry.  That mask of responsibility that I had to be strong for everybody else.  And then I went into my first marriage.

      "She also believed she was supposed to form her opinions around his.  She loved peas but wouldn't cook them because she knew he didn't like them.  She waited for Charlie to come home for dinner before she would eat.  Even if he called ahead to tell her to start without him, she refused and suffered through hunger headaches for the sake of being wifely." (Grace for the Good Girl, p90)
      This is pretty much how the first couple of years of my marriage went and when my husband would go out to sea, I would basically fall apart because I had no one to "be a wife" for, so I didn't know how to act.  After we got a divorce, I came to realize that many of my "favorites" were not really my favorites at all - but were my ex-husbands favorites.

      I often think know, who in their right mind thought that I was responsible enough to take care of three kids?  I am 45 years old and still don't feel like a grown up.  I listen to other women talk and feel like I am an inadequate teenager playing a game of dress up.  Do I show this?  Of course not.  I am still pretty good at wearing masks.  I know that taking off these masks is not something that is going to happen overnight. 

      "I understood at an early age about the first rescue.  Jesus came to save sinners.  He came for the lost, the broken, the hurt, and the lonely.  He came to heal sick people and to raise dead people and to die for the sins of everyone.

      Never once did I consider he also came to save me from myself.  I'm a good girl who has done good things and has good intentions for the world around me.  What harm could I do to myself?  But then I reconsider, and I think of the effort and the work.  And then the shame.  I think of the worry that keeps me up at night and the fear that perhaps I've not done enough.  I think of the way I compare myself and the pain that comes when I grasp for worth and security from my husband or my job or my children." (Grace for the Good Girl, p124)
      I can remember when I quit work when my son was born 7 years ago, how I didn't feel "needed" because I wasn't working a 40-50 hour a week corporate job.  I was feeling worthless, but didn't realize that I had staked so much of my worth on that job.  It took me a very long time to come to realize that my worth as a person did not diminish because I was a stay-at-home mom.  I still struggle with it from time to time.

      I don't want to say that there are "steps" that she outlines in the last part of the book, because accepting Christ and living in Him should not and does not follow a  checklist. I have yet to learn how to stop trying so hard to be good and do good in order to be good enough for Christ.  He has already paid the ultimate price, all we have to do is receive Him and remain in Him.  I need to learn to let go of trying to control everything and rest in the peace that ALL things are in Christ's hands and His control - then maybe I can take off all the masks once and for all. I am looking forward to rereading the last sections of this book to reaffirm what I know, but seem reluctant to embrace.


      Oh - there is a study guide at the back so that this book can be used as a small group study.

      ~I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my review from Revell.~


      “Available September 2011 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.”
      Grace for the Good Girl: Letting Go of the Try-Hard Life
      Publisher/Publication Date: Revell, Sept 2011
      ISBN: 978-0-8007-1984-5
      257 pages


      Thursday, September 15, 2011

      Dreamland by Alyson Noel - Giveaway!



      Dreamland (Riley Book 3)
      by Alyson Noel

      
      Riley’s finding that the afterlife can be a lonely place when all you do is focus on work. So she goes to the place where dreams happen, hoping to find a way to contact her sister, Ever. She meets the director, who tells her about the two ways to send dreams. As a Dream Jumper, a person can jump into a dreamer’s dream, share a message, and participate. As a Dreamweaver, an entire dream can be created in a studio and sent to the dreamer. But Dreamweaving was outlawed decades ago, and the studio was boarded up. Thinking it’s her only way to reach out to her sister, Riley goes in search of the old studio. There she finds a ghost boy, who’s been creating and sending nightmares to people for years. In order to stop him and reach out to Ever, Riley is going to have to confront and overcome her own fears.








      Giveaway time!  Please fill out the form to enter.  Thanks to Tara and Zeitghost Media I have one copy to giveaway to one of my followers. Giveaway is open to US/Canada only and will end on Sept 24, 2011 as midnight CST. Please follow through GFC to enter.  Additional entries are available.


      Meet Lesley Kagen! Author of Good Graces

      Please welcome Lesley Kagen to Books and Needlepoint.  I am currently reading her book Whistling in the Dark and have Good Graces (sequel) primed and ready to go when it is finished.  Whistling in the Dark is really good and I am glad that I picked it up to read before Good Graces!   Now let's meet Lesley Kagen!

      1. You first became an author at 57 - what made you decide you wanted to be an author?

      Lesley: I've always written--poems, short stories, journals, outraged letters--but It wasn't until my kids grew up a little that I found the time to sit down and take a stab at crafting a novel.


      2. Do you do any special research for your books?

      Lesley: Since I write what I like to call "near" historical novels, occasionally I'll need to check dates. My long-term memory is good. I can't remember half the time where I parked my car, but I can remember all the lyrics to "Kookie, Kookie, Lend me Your Comb".


      3. How important do you believe setting is to a story?

      Lesley: Setting is the air that I breathe, the feel of the grass beneath my bare feet. I need to feel deeply attached to a place in order to write about it.


      4. Where do you get the inspiration for your novels?

      Lesley: Mostly from deeply felt issues that I want to explore further in my writing.


      5. Do you follow an outline when you write or do you just "let it flow?"

      Lesley: Outline? Ha. If only I was that organized. I'm more a sit your bum down in the chair and let it rip kinda gal.


      6. If you had to summarize your life with a book title - what would that title be?

      Lesley: I think GOOD GRACES covers it. Like most of us I've had my share of tough times, but I feel incredibly blessed. I have a wonderful family, a lovely place to live, food on my table, dogs and horse, and work that I'm passionate about.


      7. What is currently on your nightstand?

      Lesley: Stacks and stacks of books. I just finished THE END OF EVERYTHING by Megan Abbott, which knocked my socks off. Last night I started, Felix Francis's GAMBLE. I'm a diverse readers. Love both character and plot driven stories. I have favorite series I've been reading for decades.


      8. Out of your characters/books - do you have a favorite?

      Lesley: I love all my characters, even the bad guys. Sally and Troo O'Malley from WHISTLING IN THE DARK and GOOD GRACES are especially dear to me, but I also have a deep affection for my protagonist, Gibby McGraw, in LAND OF A HUNDRED WONDERS. And I adore Shenny's gumption in TOMORROW RIVER.


      9. Is there an author or a book that has influenced either your life or your writing?

      Lesley: There are so many wonderful writers whose work I admire. So many genres. From Carolyn Keene to Amy Bloom. My admiration is vast and runs the gamut.


      10. Is there anything else that you would like my readers to know?

      Lesley: Just that I'm deeply appreciative for their support, their kind emails, their book club invitations. Writing is my passion, but such solitary work. When I hear from readers who love my stories when they let me know that I've connected with them...it means the world to me.













      Lesley will be making some appearances in the near future:  (I have a brother-in-law who lives in Cedarburg and am wondering if I can't get my husband to take me to one of the Cedarburg/Grafton appearances!)

      September 17th, 11AM-1PM
      Creekside Books
      Cedarburg, WI

      September 18th, 1:30-3:30PM
      Creekside Books
      Cedarburg, WI

      September 23rd
      Midwest Booksellers Association Show
      Minneapolis, MN

      September 27th, 5:30PM
      Reader's Loft
      Green Bay, WI

      September 29th, 7PM
      The Kiel Library
      Kiel, WI

      October 1st, 2-4PM
      Read Between the Lynes
      Signing and Reading
      Woodstock, IL

      October 4th, 7PM
      Grafton Library
      Grafton, WI

      October 14th
      Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Trade Show
      Lesley will speak and sign at the Author's Feast on Friday
      Dearborn, MI

      October 19th, 11AM-7PM
      Bookclub luncheon
      Woodstock, IL

      October 20th-23rd
      Wisconsin Book Festival
      October 20th: 5:30-6:30PM
      A Room of One's Own with Nina Revoyr

      My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife by Sara Horn (Book Review)

      Title: My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife
      Author: Sara Horn
      Publisher: Harvest House Publishers


      About the book: Me? A Proverbs 31 wife? Yeah, right.

      Sara Horn always admired the Proverbs 31 wife. . . from afar.  But when she became a busy writer and mom, that image began to look like an impossible ideal.

      Or was it?

      With humility and humor, Sara set out to immerse herself in all things domestic just to see if the Proverbs 31 woman could exist in the twenty-first century.  But when her family's situation changes and she must return to a full-time job, she's forced to look at the Proverbs 31 woman from a whole new viewpoint.  Through cooking experiments, Cub Scout campouts, failed attempts at knitting, and other household challegnes, she discovers:


      • a new way to define being a godly woman, wife and mom
      • how investing in family and faith brings surprising (and happy!) results
      • how mistakes are opportunities for growth . . . and laughter


      Join Sara as she offers you full access into her one-year domestic experiment to see if this biblical model can be embraced by a modern woman -- even one who can't sew.


      My thoughts: I think I was expecting a "how-to" guide when I started reading this book.  You know - how to be a good wife, how to be a good mom, how to be a good Christian.  This is not what this book is about - and was I glad. 

      Sara writes with humor as she uses the wife described in Proverbs 31 (or Martha 31 - as she calls her) to try to set an example for her.  She aspires to be like Martha 31 as a wife, mom, businesswoman and in her relationship with God.  Things don't always work out as she hoped and a lot of times the situation she finds herself in with her family are somewhat out of her control.

      With her husband leaving on a deployment, a house to sell, a new job to start, and a little boy to take care of, she wonders how Martha 31 did it all.  I don't know that I had ever really thought about trying to aspire to all the qualities of the women in Proverbs 31: 10-31.  It starts out with - A good wife who can find?  Sounds to me like the woman who can fulfill all of these qualities are rare.  Does this mean that we should forget about trying to be like her?  I don't think so, I just don't think we should beat ourselves up if we can't do it all.  But most important to remember from these verses is - A woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.  If you can remember that one, then He can help you with the others.

      There is a 10-Day Challenge in the back of the book that looks interesting.  I am not sure that I could do it in 10 consecutive days, but I might give it a whirl.  I am definitely going to try out some of the recipes that she shares in the back!

      Visit my post for First Wild Card Tour to learn more and read the first chapter!

      My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife
      Publisher/Publication Date: Harvest House Publishers, Sept 2011
      ISBN: 978-0-7369-3941-6
      204 pages

      Tuesday, September 13, 2011

      First Wild Card Tour: My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife by Sara Horn

      It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

      You never know when I might play a wild card on you!

      Today's Wild Card author is:


      and the book:

      Harvest House Publishers (September 1, 2011)
      ***Special thanks to Karri | Marketing Assistant | Harvest House Publishers for sending me a review copy.***

      ABOUT THE AUTHOR:




      Sara Horn is a wife and mom, a writer, author and founder of Wives of Faith, a military wives ministry. She’s a sought-after media guest and writer of numerous articles and books including GOD Strong and the Gold Medallion nominee A Greater Freedom cowritten with bestselling author Oliver North. She’s devoted to her husband who serves in the U.S. Navy Reserves, crazy about her son, and passionate about her ministry to women. Please visit

      Visit the author's website.

      SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:




      Sara Horn, a busy writer and mother, deemed the Proverbs 31 wife to be an impossible ideal. Or is it? This surprising, heartfelt personal account of Sara’s one-year experiment reveals how even a domestically-challenged woman can embrace God’s purpose and encourages readers to pursue God’s amazing plan for their lives.







      Product Details:

      List Price: $12.99
      Paperback: 208 pages
      Publisher: Harvest House Publishers (September 1, 2011)
      Language: English
      ISBN-10: 0736939415
      ISBN-13: 978-0736939416

      AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

      Oh Be Careful What You Preach



      Yesterday was Sunday.

      Our pastor started a new sermon series on the family. We missed the first sermon last week, but we were there yesterday for the second. The first week was “Dads Matter More than Anything.” This week’s was titled “Moms Matter Just as Much.”

      Good to know.

      As the pastor got started, I pulled out my Bible and my notebook, all ready to take notes. But then he said something that made my stomach churn. My hands instinctively made fists. My eyebrows furrowed.

      The biblical passage he was speaking from was Proverbs 31.

      Of course, I muttered to myself, turning to the passage I revere and fear at the same time.

      The Proverbs 31 wife and I don’t get along very well. I don’t appreciate how bad she makes me look. I don’t like the guilt I feel when I see her. If she is the standard all Christian wives should work toward, then I’m in serious trouble. If she’s the equivalent of Miss America, then I’m a whole lot more like Lucille Ball. I have a lot of explaining to do for why I’m not more like Miss America. And I’m not really sure I can.

      The pastor started making his points:

      An Excellent Wife Is a Rare Find (v. 10).
      An Excellent Wife Can Be Trusted in Every Way (vv. 11-12).
      An Excellent Wife Is Concerned for Others (v. 20).
      An Excellent Wife Is Strong and Stable (v. 25).
      And so it went.

      I stopped taking notes at “An Excellent Wife Is a Tireless Worker.”

      My husband glanced over at me when he heard my notebook snap shut. He knows that’s never a good sign. Neither was the steam coming out of my ears and the laser stare in my eyes. He started looking for the exits, just in case.

      I don’t like it when men tell women what will make us excellent. I don’t consider myself a feminist at all, but I just don’t think men can possibly understand the woman any more than we can understand the man. That’s why Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus was written. Eve may have been formed from the man’s rib, but she definitely had a mind of her own. And maybe, just maybe, if Adam had taken more time to understand her, the whole scene with the apple and the garden might have gone a lot better. Just sayin’.

      Part of my struggle with the treatment of the fairer sex comes from the attitudes I’ve witnessed through the church denomination I’ve partly grown up and worked in. I agree with a lot that my denomination stands for. But when it comes to the treatment and attitudes about the service of women in the church, it often leaves me with the same feeling I get when I hear fingernails scratch down a chalkboard.

      What I don’t understand is why there’s this 21-verse list of what the perfect wife is and not at least a Top 10 of what makes a perfect husband. I raised this question once on Facebook, and a guy I know who is deep into seminary classes pointed out that Ephesians 5:25-28 is an all-encompassing directive for husbands. See what you think:

      Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.

      Really? That’s great. Husbands are told to love their wives as they love themselves, and wives are given a laundry list of ways to show our love (just in case we might get confused and think the husband, as part of his love, might also “get up while it’s still dark and provide food” for his family). Husbands—you show love. Wives—get to cookin’.

      Back to my stewing. I sat, listening to our pastor as he continued to speak on all the things that make an excellent wife, from the example of the Proverbs 31 superwoman:

      A wife of noble character who can find?
      She is worth far more than rubies.

      Her husband has full confidence in her
      and lacks nothing of value.

      She brings him good, not harm,
      all the days of her life.

      She selects wool and flax
      and works with eager hands.

      She is like the merchant ships,
      bringing her food from afar.

      She gets up while it is still night;
      she provides food for her family
      and portions for her female servants.

      She considers a field and buys it;
      out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.

      She sets about her work vigorously;
      her arms are strong for her tasks.

      She sees that her trading is profitable,
      and her lamp does not go out at night.

      In her hand she holds the distaff
      and grasps the spindle with her fingers.

      She opens her arms to the poor
      and extends her hands to the needy.

      When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
      for all of them are clothed in scarlet.

      She makes coverings for her bed;
      she is clothed in fine linen and purple.

      Her husband is respected at the city gate,
      where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.

      She makes linen garments and sells them,
      and supplies the merchants with sashes.

      She is clothed with strength and dignity;
      she can laugh at the days to come.

      She speaks with wisdom,
      and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

      She watches over the affairs of her household
      and does not eat the bread of idleness.

      Her children arise and call her blessed;
      her husband also, and he praises her:

      “Many women do noble things,
      but you surpass them all.”

      Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
      but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

      Honor her for all that her hands have done,
      and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.
      (Proverbs 31:10-31)

      I kept reading this passage, over and over, the successes of this great wifely role model taunting me more than encouraging me, my very being wilting and shrinking as I sat there, no comparison to this giant of an example. I was waiting, for what, I didn’t know. Waiting for something—a bright glimmer, anything that my pastor might say to give all the wives sitting in the audience, or maybe just me, some hope. He didn’t let me down. His last point was the same point I have made in the past: The Proverbs 31 woman’s most important task is to fear the Lord (v. 30).

      My breathing relaxed a little. This, after all, was something I understood. Of course, I want to be a better wife and homemaker. I want to be a better woman in general. But my greatest desire is to be closer to God as his daughter. I want that close, incredible relationship with him.

      I haven’t always done well with this. If God and I were going for a walk in the park, I’d be the kid running out in front, barely able to wait for him. Patience is not my strength. Waiting on God is hard.

      I began to prayerfully think over the pounding of my heart, the churning of my stomach, and my fingers digging into my thighs. OK, so why am I so mad? Am I mad at the Proverbs 31 wife? Am I upset with the pastor? Am I angry at myself? I mean, I argued with myself. Wouldn’t it be great if you COULD be like the Proverbs 31 wife—if you were praying and reading the Bible and really staying in touch with God every day? Couldn’t God help you do it all?

      He could if he wanted to, I’m sure. I’m just not convinced he wants me to be able to do it all. I’m not even convinced that the Proverbs 31 wife was real. I mean, I grew up being told King Solomon wrote the book of Proverbs, and he wasn’t exactly a role model when it came to women. He liked having as many wives as he could, and in fact it was his infatuation for the opposite sex that got him into trouble toward the end of his reign.

      What if this woman we’ve all idolized and tried to emulate is just a concoction from King Solomon and a group of his royal cronies who sat around one day, drinking beers, and decided to have an impromptu brainstorming session on what makes the perfect wife? And some servant of his wrote all of these ideas down on a big Post-it note and it eventually made its way into Proverbs with all the other wise things Solomon wrote? In fact, my Bible notes that verses 10-31, the Proverbs 31-wife passage, is actually an acrostic. Each verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. See? I told you it was a drinking game.1

      Or if this woman really did exist, then maybe she was like the Martha Stewart of her day, and I’m sure the majority of the women living in that time didn’t like her and didn’t appreciate her. And while they watched her television shows and read her magazine, Housekeeping in the Holy Land, behind closed doors, they lived in fear and guilt that one day their husbands would come home and say, “Why can’t you be more like the Proverbs 31 wife?”

      But then I got a crazy idea. Why can’t I be more like the Proverbs 31 wife? What would it be like to try and actually follow the example of this woman so many hold in such esteem?

      I definitely had some things to think about.

      Monday, September 12, 2011

      Winners!

      Amazed Dog

      Yep - I have winners!

      Winner of Summer in the South by Cathy Holton - Donna/HappyBooker!

      Winner of Hades by Alexandra Adornetto - Jennelle S/sablelexi


      Congratulations ladies!

      

      It's Monday! What are you reading? (Sept 12, 2011)




      What are you reading on Mondays is hosted by Sheila at One Person's Journey - You can hook up with the Mr. Linky there with your own post - but be sure and let me know what you are reading too! 

      New giveaway posted in the right sidebar - more coming this week!

      Currently Reading:
      Stray Dogs, Saints and Saviors by Alexander Russo
      Grace for the Good Girl by Emily Freeman

      Next Up:
      Darkness My Old Friend by Lisa Unger
      Good Graces by Lesley Kagen
      How Can You Not Laugh at a Time Like This by Carla Ulbrich

      Audio Book:
      Atonement by Ian McEwan

      E-Book:
      Aefle and Gisela by Libby Malin


      Bathroom Book:
      Whistling in the Dark by Lesley Kagen



      Reviewed Since Last Post:
      52 Things Kids Need From a Mom
      That Day in September



      Waiting for Reviews:
       White Sleeper by David R. Fett and Stephen Langford
      The Place of Belonging by Jayne Pearson Faulkner
      The Blackberry Bush by David Housholder
      The Girl in the Green Raincoat by Laura Lippman
      Book Thief by Markus Zusak
      Airmail by Naomi Bulger
      Pie Town by Lynne Hinton
      Chasing the Red Car by Ellen Ruderman

      E-books waiting for review:
      Sudden Moves by Kelli Sue Landon
      This World We Live In (The Last Survivors, Book 3) by Susan Beth Pfeffer

      Children's Books waiting for review:
      Pearl's Wisdom by Auntie LuLu
      Bug Meets His Friend (Bug's Adventure Series) by K.M. Groshek
      Multiply on the Fly by Suzanne Slade
      Ten for Me by Barbara Mariconda
      Animalogy by Marianne Berkes
      Prairie Storms by Darcy Pattison

      READY - SET - READ!

      LinkWithin

      Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...