Book Review: "Courageous" by Randy Alcorn

I recently received the book "Courageous: Honor Begins at Home" by Randy Alcorn from Tyndale Publishers as part of their book review program. The opinions below are my honest opinion of the book.
This book is a novelization based on the movie and screenplay by Alex Kendrick and Stephen Kendrick. I was so excited to get this book to review as I am also excited to go see the movie. "Courageous" tells the story of four law enforcement officers who fight hard to protect their community. They are all four fathers and they quickly realize that they are doing a good job and not a great job as fathers. They give their best as law enforcers but are struggling to give their best to fatherhood. They soon discover that they are missing the mark that God wants them to live up to. As their children are drifting farther from them, tragedy strikes them all and leaves the men questioning everything. They come together through this hard time and make a Resolution to be the Fathers that God wants them to be. This is a great challenging story to call Fathers to stand up and be courageous in leading their families in God's Will. I would highly recommend this book and again, I can't wait to see the movie!!

Book Review: "Night Night Blessings" by Amy Parker

I recently received a complimentary copy of the book "Night Night Blessings" by Amy Parker from Tommy Nelson Publishers as part of the Booksneeze book review team. The opinions below are my honest opinion of the book.

"Night Night Blessings" is an adorable, story to read to your children before bedtime. It is about a little girl who is thanking God for all the things she is thankful for during the day. She gives thanks for high stacks of pancakes, her pets, her favorite toys, and family time. It is written in rhyme with adorable illustrations to accompany each page. I love that this story is teaching children to be thankful to God for all the little blessings in their lives. At the end she recognizes that God is so big He is watching from above. This is a great reminder for my children who are sometimes afraid to go to bed that God is above watching them always. I love this book and so do my children. I think we read it 3 times when we first received it!!

Book Review: "Gabby God's Little Angel" by Sheila Walsh

I recently received a complimentary copy of the book "Gabby God's Little Angel: Sent to show God's Love" by Sheila Walsh from Tommy Nelson Publishing as part of the Booksneeze book review team. The opinions listed below are my honest opinion of the book.

In this adorable children's book by Sheila Walsh, Gabby is one of God's little Angels in training to be a guardian angel for a special child. Gabby's first assignment is little Sophie who is an adventurous girl who seems to need lots of attention from Gabby. Sophie needs lots of protection and Gabby at first feels overwhelmed for the job. Raffles, the senior angel, reminds Gabby that the Lord chose her for the job of watching over Sophie. As Sophie is horseback riding she almost gets into an accident but Gabby steps in and protects her. Later that night, Sophie tells her mom that she almost felt someone protecting her. Her mother reminds her that God loves her so much He sends His angels to watch over us. This is a wonderful story to show children that God loves them and He is always watching over us and protecting us. This is the first book in a new series by Sheila Walsh who is also the author of the "God's Little Princess" Series. I loved all of those books and I look forward to more from this series.

Book Review: "Another Dawn" by Kathryn Cushman

I recently received a copy of the book "Another Dawn" by Kathryn Cushman from Bethany House Publishers as part of their book review team. The opinions below are my honest opinion of the book.
In this wonderful story, Grace Graham lives in California with her son, Dylan. She has run from everything and everyone in her life any time things start to get complicated. After the death of her mother, she even left her family including her sister, Jana, and her father whom she blames for the death of her mother. She has also left friendships and romantic relationships in the past anytime things get tough. Now Jana is asking her to come home to Shoal Creek, Tennessee to help care for their father and give her one more chance. She does return but we see that it may not have been for all the right reasons. When costly decisions that occurred in her past come to haunt her in Tennessee it puts her son and the other children in town at risk. This is a story of having the strength to stand and stay strong and face "Another Dawn" even when things in life are tough and complicated. A wonderfully written and challenging story that I would recommend to anyone.

Book Review: "Courting Miss Amsel" by Kim Vogel Sawyer

I recently received a complimentary copy of the book "Courting Miss Amsel" by Kim Vogel Sawyer from Bethany House Publishers as part of their book review team. The opinions listed below are my honest opinion.

"Courting Miss Amsel" is the story of a courageous young teacher who comes to teach at Walnut Hill. Edythe Amsel is a very independent woman and very headstrong in her beliefs. She shakes the little town of Walnut Hill with what they think are her crazy and uncommon teaching methods. Joel Townsend is raising his nephews since their parents' death and he is quite excited to hear that the new teacher is a woman. He feels the boys need a woman's influence in their life. Throughout time he begins to fall for this beautiful, young teacher; however, when she takes her students to hear a lady speak on the women's suffrage amendment, he wonders if he can trust her with his heart. This is a wonderful story on trust, standing up for what you believe in, and courage. I have read Kim Vogel Sawyer's books in the past and I love them all. This one is no exception and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a great story to read.

Book Review: "Fresh-Brewed Life" by Nicole Johnson

I recently received a complimentary copy of the book "Fresh-Brewed Life: A stirring invitation to wake up your soul" by Nicole Johnson from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of the Booksneeze book review team.

This book by Nicole Johnson was first published ten years ago and over 100,000 women have read it to help learn how to waken their souls. "Fresh-Brewed Life" is a wonderful book on how to wake up to a richer more meaningful life by drawing us into a closer relationship with God. She asks such questions as, "Are your responsibilities and commitments robbing your life of joy?" and " Are you sleepwalking through your days?" In this revised and expanded edition, there are many more journal ideas and extra chapters. I love how she states that "like lingering over a cup of coffee" the process of waking up our souls is to be savored. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone looking to live your life awake with joy instead of asleep in our daily tasks.

Book Review: "Don't Check Your Brains at the Door" by Josh McDowell and Bob Hostetler

I recently received a complimentary copy of the book "Don't Check Your Brains at the Door" by Josh McDowell and Bob Hostetler from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of the Booksneeze book review program. The opinions listed below are my honest opinion of the book.

In this wonderful book from Josh McDowell and Bob Hostetler, they write about how you can know what you believe about your faith and also to know why it is true. It is written mainly for teens in today's society; however, I enjoyed this book in reminding myself why I believe certain things. The authors take an approach of exposing certain myths that teens may believe or hear about their faith. They back up how the myths are not true with Scriptures from God's Word. They use humor as well to relate to today's teens which is wonderful. I also love that at the end of the chapters it causes you to dig deeper by looking up Scriptures to look farther into the lesson they have taught. I mainly requested this book to review because we are the teen leaders at our church and I thought it would be a good resource to have. I am also going to keep it for when my children are older and have questions about their faith or when their peers may challenge their faith.