On the bookshelf in July
I took the month of June off from reading to get settled into my new house & it was much needed! I dove back into my reading challenge with The Rescue by Nicholas Sparks. I’ll be totally honest, I used to LOVE Nicholas Sparks books when I was in middle school & high school, but as I’ve gotten older & have been exposed to more “life”, his books seem kind of surface level to me. Also if I’m being honest, I call myself a realist, but I’m probably just trying to sugarcoat the fact that I’m a pessimist lol. So probably this, & the fact that I’m * still * single at twenty-five means I think Nicholas Sparks books are just totally unrealistic. They’re also super hallmark-y, very predictable & always end the same way — everyone in love. I had a really hard time getting into this one & I honestly had to force myself to read it. It wasn’t until the last twenty percent of the book where it actually got good. The book follows Denise Holton, single mom of Kyle (who has trouble with speaking & language) when she gets into a terrible car accident & volunteer firefighter Taylor McAden comes to their rescue. Hence the title of the book. If you’ve ever read a Nicholas Sparks book before, I’m sure you’ve already started to piece together how this book turns out. ;) I know it seems a little harsh, but I just didn’t feel like this book had much depth & I also didn’t love the characters, so I gave this book two out of five stars. My sister (a Nicholas Sparks super fan) will shun me when she reads this review!
OMG my mom sent my sister my review & look at the text I got from her LOL I called it!
The second book I read was Last Christmas in Paris: A Novel of World War I by Hazel Gaynor & Heather Webb. Don’t let the title fool you, the book isn’t hardly at all about Christmas, but the title has such sweet sentiment after finishing it. The book is pretty much all letters back & forth between two friends — Evie & Tom. Tom is a British soldier who has just been called to war. Evie stays at home & wrestles with what her role should be during this time. This book was EXACTLY what I needed to read after The Rescue. This book had so much depth, I can’t even begin to describe it. I literally feel so calm & have a warm & fuzzy feeling in my heart after finishing it — it was that moving!!! Two of my uncles were in the Air Force & have retired, so I know that war & soldiers & fighting for our country has a very tender place in my heart. I was about a fourth of the way in & my mom & I were talking about what I’d read so far (she & my dad had read it before me) & I said to her “war just makes me so sad & this book is just really laying it all out there. It’s breaking my heart.” & little did I even know what was comin’. I finished this book in four days & can’t recommend it enough. You guys know I’m pretty stingy when I give out my book ratings, so you know this one was dang good & deserving when I happily give it five out of five stars.
The third book I read was Under the Magnolias by T.I. Lowe. My mom read this book before me & really hyped it up. If I’m being totally honest, I really struggled to get through it until the last fourth-ish of the book. This book has A TON of characters & the majority of them have nicknames so I kept getting really confused about who / what I was reading about. I kept having to go back & read parts of previous chapters to help me remember! However, the storyline & depth of this book were right up my alley. It tells the story of mental illness & healing & how family / community can sometimes be the best thing for us. I don’t want to give anything away, so I’ll leave it at that! I ended up giving this book four out of five stars.
The fourth book I read was Cilka’s Journey (The Tattooist of Auschwitz #2) by Heather Morris. I read the Tattooist of Auschwitz awhile ago & this book tells the courageous story of a character that was introduced. As a school counselor, I’ve heard a lot of really difficult things over the years, but nothing compares to the tales I read of Auschwitz. Just thinking about what took place brings tears to my eyes! Typically when I read stories like these, they make me feel so incredibly sad that human beings could do those things to one another. & while this book definitely had me feeling that way at times (so much so that I had to set my kindle down on the plane ride home from vacation), I also had a different feeling stirring inside of me. I’m an absolute sucker for a story of resilience & Cilka embodies that word completely. I actually think this book was perfect for me to read before going back to school because just like in books, I have a deep love for my resilient students as well. I have been feeling anxious about going back to school, but Cilka’s courage was a fabulous reminder that I, too, love helping people. For as much depth as was in this book, I felt that the ending was quite abrupt & I wished there was more closure. However, I’m sure that is the case for the majority of stories that remain trapped from Auschwitz. I gave this book four out of five stars.
While this book was challenging to read at times, I truly believe that diving into these stories helps to honor those that never got to tell theirs.
Have you ever read the whole Bible? I’ve always wanted to & I’ve tried a few times but it’s hard. It’s just so hard to understand! I had heard several people talk about the Bible Recap: A One-Year Guide to Reading & Understanding the Entire Bible & wanted to give it a try. Tara-Leigh Cobble walks you through reading the Bible chronologically in one year & she has a podcast that goes along with it. While that all sounds great, I knew that truly reading it every single day was not attainable for me. Yes, I feel guilty saying that. After all, He has done for me, I should be able to spend that much time each day reading His word. However, I know myself & I know I wouldn’t & I also know that getting behind would stress me out & then I’d want to give up completely. Then she wrote a book & I knew this was the answer! I just read it when I can! I try to make it a priority but if it doesn’t happen that day, it’s okay. It’s not the end of the world. Her summary of what you read is absolutely amazing. I cannot believe how much I’ve learned already!! It’s designed to be read in a year, however if it takes me two, that’s okay! Because reading the entire Bible in two years is better than not at all. If I’m honest, I’ll probably start over once I finish because it’s that good & I’m sure I’ll learn something new each time, because He’s where the joy is!
Add me on the Goodreads app to follow along with my book choices in real time by clicking here. Don’t forget to go to the home page & sign up for emails so you never miss a post!! Also, you can click here to go to my book review page in case you’re interested in checking out some other great reads. If you’ve had a favorite read that you’d recommend, leave it below in the comments & I’ll be sure to check it out!
PS – this post contained affiliate links… thank you so much for reading & supporting our blog!
