Book Review: Plain Wisdom

I received the book Plain Wisdom by Cindy Woodsmall and Miriam Flaud. I LOVED THIS BOOK!!! Cindy is the author of the Amish themed novels such as the Sisters of the Quilt series and the Ada's House series. Miriam is an Old Order Amish woman. This book is the story of how these two women met and shared their lives. It is an insight to the Amish world. Cindy goes and spends time with Miriam and through those visits, she experiences of the culture first hand. Miriam also shares her culture and her perspective on many topics.

The book is broken down into chapters, but each chapter is very short. It includes scripture, and a section by Cindy and a section by Miriam. This can be used as a daily reading for encouragement, or just read it straight through. I found the book insightful, moving, and funny. The book even includes some Amish recipes!

Moms will definitely be able to relate to the two authors! A great mother's day gift idea!

This book makes me want to be Amish!!! :o)

Book Review: Beyond Talent

I received the book Beyond Talent by John Maxwell from Thomas Nelson Publishing. I absolutely loved the book! Maxwell is a very to the point writer and has great stories as examples! The book is focuses on what is need to succeed beyond just having talent. He discusses the importance of faith, passion, initiative, focus, preparation, practice and many more! Each chapter covers one of the topics. It discusses what these things can do to improve your talent and the chapters also cover how to use those topics to improve your talent.

My favorite aspect of the book is the application questions at the end of each chapter. It really helps you understand yourself better, focus you to determine what needs to be done to proceed, and how to apply what you just read into your own life to become the successful person you can become!

This is a very encouraging book for anyone who has thought about career changes, life changes, and more. I recommend this book for all students. Whether they are looking for a job, or deciding on a major, making this tough decisions early on can really influence their success in a future career.

Maxwell is a great writer and keep your interested throughout the book. This would be a great gift for high school and college graduates.

Book Review: The Canary List

I received The Canary List by  Sigmund Brouwer for review from Water Book Multnomah Publishing. A warning to the reader, this book is very dark. Characters are involved in devil worshiping and sacrificing. Accusations of inappropriate behavior between teacher/student are made, and the plot also involves conspiracies involving the Vatican.

Jaimie is a 12 year old girl who goes to her teacher’s house seeking a “safe” place for the night. This starts the whirlwind of events that causes her teacher, Crockett, to be accused of inappropriate relations with the student. Having spent some time in jail, being beat up, and then finding out his lawyer to get him out on bail was completely paid for, he seeks to figure out why someone is trying so hard to stop him from protecting her.

This is definitely a very good book, but as warned previously, it is very dark. This book is definitely for an adult audience. Even though the book is dark, Brouwer is a great writer and will keep you on the edge of your seat.