Books I Read This Spring - Part 1

 This spring has been quite a good reading season for me.  I've read 15+ books, and I've quite enjoyed almost all of them!  I'm going to attempt to catch up in a two-part series over the next couple weeks - these are my Spring Reads, round one.

A Strange Habit Of Mind by Andrew Klaven - This was the second book in Klavan's series about a professor named Winter as he investigates the death of a former student and finds himself caught up in exposing the secrets of a dangerous billionaire.  I really am enjoying this series, but this particular book had an adult scene that was a little too explicit for me personally (though pretty mild compared to other books I've had to quit on).  I'll probably read the next book in the series, but I'll be a little cautious in recommending it because of that.

Counterfeit Kingdom by Holly Piveck - This is a book about the New Apostolic Reformation - it gives the history of the movement, and a thorough look at their false doctrines with biblical refutation and warnings.  Highly recommend if you've ever wondered what is exactly wrong with Bethel-type churches or found yourself hurt by this troubling branch of the Charismatic Movement.

100 Cupboards by N. D. Wilson - This story is a middle grade fantasy.  Henry goes to visit his cousins, and finds himself in an attic room with a wall of mysterious cupboards.  Soon he and his cousin Henrietta discover that each cupboard leads into a different world - and they accidentally unleash an evil witch in the process.  Really imaginative and interesting tale, but I probably would save this for the older end of the middle grade age range because the peril and evil of the villain was pretty palpable.  The narrator on the audio version is also amazing.

Honey For A Child's Heart by Gladys Hunt - I listened to this all in one day that included alot of driving and cleaning - I thought she had some wonderful thoughts on sharing books with children and making it a meaningful part of family life.  Listening to it was the way to go for me - I don't think I would have finished it in a physical format.  However, I do have the ebook version so I can consult her book lists as well!

The Cure For Unjust Anger by John Downame - This is a book by a Puritan author about righteous and unrighteous anger, how to tell the difference, different causes of unjust anger, and how to overcome them.  I think this is one of the most helpful books I've read on anger.  Instead of suggestions of controlling the environment or eliminating "triggers", this book goes right to the heart of unjust anger and offers biblical encouragement to fix our eyes on Christ.  Very good.

The Excellent Wife by Martha Peace - This was a highly practical and helpful book on how to be a better wife by submitting in a biblical way.  Submission is a touchy subject for alot of women, and many might find some of Martha Peace's suggestions offensive, but she backs everything up with Scripture which makes her advice hard to ignore.  I think this book has already had a positive impact on my marriage, and I'm sure I'll be reading it again.

The Scapegoat by Daphne Du Maurier - I started this on vacation last fall, and just realized I never finished it - in the middle of a personal identity crisis, the main character happens to run into a man who looks exactly like him - and before we know it, the rogue has knocked him out and switched places with him.  As the protagonist takes Jean Pierre's place in his privileged life, he soon discovers that the mysterious stranger has problems much worse than his own.  The ending was not exactly happy, but you get the feeling everyone's going to be okay, and I quite enjoyed it.  This is the third of Du Maurier's novels that I've read, and she is masterful at painting that gothic atmosphere in her books.

Skeletons On The Zahara by Dean King    - This is the story of men  in the 19th century who were shipwrecked off the coast of Africa, and found themselves enslaved and trekking across the desert with a group of nomads, before finally being sold back to an associate and therefore rescued.  This story was fascinating, and it's amazing how much the men suffered without dying - extreme thirst and starvation while traveling across the Sahara desert.  It was also interesting to read about how the nomadic tribes survived in such a harsh environment. I thought the last quarter of the book became a little bit slow and hard to follow as the men were split up, encountered and sold to different groups, etc, but I'd recommend it if you are interested in harrowing survival and travel stories.

I think that it enough books for one post!  Most of these I read in February and March, so I'll get to my recent reads in the next post. There are quite a few more books to share, so stay tuned!