I am attempting to share mini-reviews quarterly this year, so I give you the second installment of 2024. The following bunch of books are mostly my springtime reads, since June was so crazy that we barely had time to breathe around here. There are a few fiction books scattered throughout, but my springtime reading mostly seems to consist of read-alouds with my kids or Christian non-fiction books. I have dipped a little into summer-style reads in this roundup, but just a little!
The Neighbor’s Secret by L. Alison Heller
This book was one of those suburban mom suspense novels, where a group of mom friends are hiding secrets from each other - I really like this genre for some reason. This one was a bit twisted in the end - one of the character's choices led to the villain's death, but she never faces consequences for it, and secrets from one character's life reveal similar choices that are never brought to justice. I don't like morally ambiguous endings, but overall this book was an interesting listen while I cleaned the house and folded laundry. I'd probably give it 3 stars, and I'm a little stingy with stars anyway. Content Notess: A minor in the story gets drunk; infidelity, etc., is part of the plot; various curse words scattered throughout (not too heavily) including the f-word.
Sound Worship: A Guide To Making Musical Choices In A Noisy World by Scott Aniol
This book was the most thorough and biblical book I've ever read at musical choices and how to honor God through our music. I especially loved the discussion about the definition and purpose of beauty. Highly recommend this short but profound read!
Bad Therapy by Abigail Shirer
I listened to this book on audio, and thought it was so insightful. Shirer talks about the iatrogenic effects of giving "preventative therapy" to people - specifically kids - who don't need it. Treating the well as if they are sick can often cause harm, and that's true of therapy as well. In addition to sharing so much research, Shirer shares common sense observations of how many young people today are being handicapped by unnecessary therapeutic approaches to parenting and other common, average problems. This book gave me a boost of confidence in how I am already parenting my kids - highly recommended for any parent to read. You will either be bolstered in your parenting confidence, or challenged (in a good way).
Mary Jones And Her Bible by Mary Ropes
I read this book to my kids, and I believe it is based on a true story of a girl in Switzerland who so loved God's word that she sacrificed much to obtain her own copy of the Bible. Her love for Scripture inspired the founding of a Bible society that brought God's word to even more people. Though sometimes the main character was presented as a little too perfect, my kids really liked her anyway, and I think this was a lovely book exhibiting a godly attitude toward God's word that resonated with my children.
The Great Alaskan Dinosaur Adventure by Buddy Davis
This book documents an adventure to Alaska to search for dinosaur fossils. It reads like a travel journal, but has alot of interesting information from a biblical worldview about Alaskan terrain, dinosaurs, and Noah's flood. I recommend it for a fun science read-aloud for homeschool!
Till We Have Faces by C. S. Lewis
This is Lewis's retelling of the myth of Psyche, which I highly recommend looking up before starting this book. His twist on it was really interesting because instead of both sisters hating Psyche, one of them, Orual, loves her - but she still guides Psyche into ruin, and in the end realizes her love for Psyche is a twisted thing. The interesting part of this book is how Orual's self-righteousness in bringing an accusation against the "gods" is slowly dismantled. It reminded me of how in order to be saved, we must all realize how our "righteousness" is really just filthy rags to God. In the end, Orual actually brings her accusations to the "gods" but they answer and humble her without saying a word. Really interesting book, and gave me a lot to think about - I feel like I don't fully understand Lewis's point, so I'll be doing a little more research on this story. I find I often have to read books or articles ABOUT Lewis's books to fully understand them.
Kill The Dragon, Get The Girl by Cheston Hervey
This book was recommended by Kirk Cameron as a family read aloud, and I thought we'd give it a try. We listened to the audio, and my kids really ended up enjoying it. However, I wish I had previewed it first since some of the scenes were unnecessarily scary and gory. My kids weren't negatively impacted that I can tell, but I probably wouldn't have let at least my younger kids listen to it if I had previewed it. I'm thinking particularly of a scene underground where monsters materialize out of ash floating in the air, and another scene where a trailer interior is covered with blood and dead bones - creepy. I found the story a bit confusing as some of it seemed to start allegorically (the "dragon" representing Satan), but then the kids actually end up interacting with the dragon and the dragon says things that indicate it IS supposed to be Satan in reality - but then the kids end up killing it, and that doesn't quite make biblical sense. I also didn't like how the kids just run off underground with a pretty weird stranger to kill a dragon - not really a wise choice in the real world. So it was a fun adventure story, but as an adult I thought the plot details ended up muddy, biblically-speaking, and the point of the book was unclear and confusing. My kids found it exciting and wanted to finish the story, so I'll give it 3 stars, but I wouldn't recommend it from an adult perspective.
These Silent Woods by Kimi Cunningham Grant
Cooper is living in the woods with his 8 year old daughter Finch. We don't know what brought them to this hidden way of living, but as the book progresses, their way of life is threatened and we learn more about Cooper's past. Finally, a crises emerges, and Cooper must decide between doing the right thing and keeping this life that he has built for himself and his daughter. A surprisingly sweet book that explores self-sacrifice in a really unexpected ending. I highly recommend it! Content Note: Some bad language here and there.
Becoming A Titus 2 Woman by Martha Peace
This book is an encouragement for Christian women to follow the mandate in Titus 2 for the older women to teach the younger women to love their husbands and children, be discreet, chaste, homemakers, and submissive to their own husbands. Alot of those topics are not easy to address with modern women, but Peace gives sound biblical advice in this book. I especially loved her encouragement, if you are a younger woman, to start preparing yourself now to take on the role of an older woman someday. I already wrote down so many of the verses she shared in order to work on memorizing them, and I will be reading this book again!
Let The Little Children Come by Scott Aniol
This is a book I've been working on for a while, and after setting it aside for several months, I finally picked it up again in April. Aniol makes an argument for keeping children in the church service with their parents, and viewing children as an important part of the church body. I appreciated reading this argument from a credobaptist, since I think alot of the people who advocate keeping children with their parents for the service are often pedobaptists (which I'm not). Aniol gives biblical encouragement and practical advice, as well as a wealth of resources for establishing family worship during the week. I found it highly encouraging as someone who already keeps my children in the church service and tries (along with my husband) to make sure we do "Bible time" during the week. If you have ever felt weird about the "children's church" model that is so common in churches these days, I highly recommend this book for a paradigm shift!
Strange Lyre: The Pentecostalization Of Evangelical Worship by David de Bruyn
The author gives the historical context for our modern style of "worship" in church - which for many people, just means the emotional high produced by the music. This book presents the case that our modern style of worship services does not follow historical or biblical precedent, but was radically altered after the Pentecostal movement in the early 1900s. Many more traditional churches have adopted Pentecostal worship practices even while claiming to reject Pentecostal theology. Unfortunately, content often follows form, and many churches are led into weakened doctrine because they first compromised on music. If you've ever thought that the "worship wars" don't matter, this book will probably cure you of that. Very well done, a short read that packs a punch, and I'd recommend it.
Evangellyfish by Douglas Wilson
This was a satirical novel, critiquing problems within the modern church. I found it entertaining, and also a little painful to read. I guarantee you've met some of the characters in this book in your local church. Even though the ending was realistic in a not-very-encouraging way, Wilson still includes notes of hope in the end. I'd recommend it as thought-provoking, well done Christian satire! Content Note: The entire plot revolves around a megachurch pastor’s infidelity, and other character’s moral failings in this area are discussed as well, so keep that in mind.
The Only Survivors by Megan Miranda
I generally like Megan Miranda's suspense novels - there is a decent amount of cursing, but other than that they are enjoyable page-turners. In this one, a group of teenagers survive a horrific crash on a class trip, and vow to meet every year at a North Carolina beach house on the anniversary - even though most of them would rather not. Secrets start to come to light, and one of their number starts to figure out what truly happened that night so long ago - it's not all as it seemed. This one was an especially engrossing book for me and kept me guessing until the very end! Content Notes:Some fornication and drug use is referred to, moderate amount of cursing.
The Last To Vanish by Megan Miranda
Abigail works at an inn near the Appalachian trail - which is also one of the last locations where several missing hikers have been seen over the years. The entire town has gained infamy from the disappearances, and the locals may know more than they let on - including Abigail. This was a really interesting read, and the ending once again surprised me. Miranda's novels often have a morally ambiguous ending, which I don't appreciate. The ending of this one was less twisted than some of her novels, and I enjoyed it overall! Content Notes: Some fornication is referred to, some cursing.
Jane Of Lantern Hill by L. M. Montgomery
I've enjoyed working through some of Montgomery's lesser-known works through the years. This one was a slower read, but the ending was lovely, and I quite enjoyed it. Jane starts out as an odd, closed-off girl, living with her mother under the thumb of her bitter grandmother. That is, until one day a letter from her long-lost father shows up, insisting that Jane spend the summer with him on Prince Edward Island. They purchase a home on Lantern Hill, and Jane flourishes as she takes on the role of homemaker for their little cottage. This is a very homey book, and will probably make you want to bake some pies. I'd recommend it. Content Notes: I've noticed as I've read more of Montgomery's books that she'll make casual references to witchcraft, usually in context of teasing or in a descriptive phrase from some eccentric character - witchcraft is never in the story, but I think it's something for Christian parents to be aware of.
A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck
I decided to try to read some Newberry Winners this summer, and this was the winner from the year 2000. This book is set during the Great Depression - Mary Alice (16 years old) is sent to live with her grandmother in Illinois while her parents find a better living situation. Her grandmother is an eccentric, somewhat terrifying woman to Mary Alice, but over the course of the year she comes to see what a big heart her grandmother has. I quite enjoyed the character development in this book, and the ending was very heartwarming. Grandma isn't always honest, but her intentions are good. Content Notes: There is some dishonesty and stealing in different parts of the book - Grandma's morals aren't to be copied, but her concern for others is a better attribute you could point kids to. There is one chapter where an artist convinces one of the local women to pose nude for him in Grandma's attic, unbeknownst to her, and the woman is caught and ends up streaking back to her house - I guess it's a funny scene, but may not be a mental picture you want your kids to have.
Theologians You Should Know by Michael Reeves
I received this book as part of Crossway’s blogger program, and it was excellent! Extended review is coming soon!
I tend to enjoy reading suspense in the summer, so I’m sure my next bunch of books will be full of suspense recommendations!
What genre do you enjoy reading most in the summer?
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