Book Review: The Gaither Homecoming Bible

This was supposed to just be a book review. Plain and simple. But I guess it turned into a post with a few memories. I seem to be doing that a lot recently. I'm not sure why. Weird things trigger a waterfall of childhood memories. 

Three short Bible verses as the topic of Sunday's sermon. On comes a wave of memories of memorizing those verses in Awana, followed by memories of adventures with some of my first friends. Pictures in my head of painting nails, playing with dolls, building forts. Remembering how life used to seem frustrating.  So hard to my 8-year-old mind. But yet realizing, looking back, how perfect things really were. Wishing, really wishing, I could go back.

------

A discussion of games friends used to play with their siblings. Suddenly I'm transported back to our backyard in California. Running around like a hooligan with my brother. Playing with our new puppy. Turning our garage into a clubhouse. Forgotten times of grand imagination adventures in our yard.

------

There are more memories. And someday I'll take the time to tell you some fun stories of my childhood. You may laugh. You may roll your eyes. But for now, here's a few memories, leading up to a book review. I promise this background info really does lead into something. 

This short set of memories. Triggered by a Bible.

-------

When I was a kid, we had cable TV. We didn't watch a lot of TV. To be perfectly honest with you, the thing I remember watching most as a kid were the tapes where my parents recorded ALF back when it was on TV in the '80s. We watched those episodes over. and over. and over again. But we didn't watch much on TV (or if we did I certainly don't remember it!). Sure, there was Mr. Roger's Neighborhood at lunchtime, followed by Reading Rainbow, and if we were really lucky there would be an episode of Little House on the Prairie in the afternoon. But other than those "childhood staples," the only things I really remember watching on cable TV is The Grand Ole Opry, The Statler Brothers and The Gaither Homecoming Hour on Saturday nights. 

In addition to the shows on TV, my family also had several Gaither Homecoming videos, and we attended multiple Southern Gospel concerts when they were close to our Southern California home. In fact, my family was introduced to Southern Gospel music, and, soon thereafter,, the Gaithers, when a local Southern Gospel group came and sang at our church while on tour when I was probably about 7 years old. We bought one of their tapes, and shortly thereafter we went on a trip back south, and took our tape with us. Whenever I think of that trip I think of that CD and whenever I hear some of the songs off that CD I am instantly transported to our family adventure driving through Tennessee and North Carolina in the fall.

I essentially grew up with Vestal Goodman, Jake Hess and JD Sumner – and the rest of the Homecoming gang. And I thought it was so cool when we went to a concert at a local church where The Nelons were performing, because we watched them perform on one of our Gaither videos – and how cool to get to see some of those same people in person and hear them talking about other members of the Homecoming family! I’m also pretty sure that the first CD I ever bought was a Southern Gospel album (although I couldn’t tell you which one it was).

Of course, as I’ve grown my music selection has also grown and while I don’t listen to much from our Southern Gospel CD collection anymore, and I no longer check to see if any of the Homecoming friends just might be heading our way on tour, I jumped at the opportunity to review The Gaither Homecoming Bible.

The Gaither Homecoming Bible (NKJV) is a beautiful bible. With colorful illustrations on many of its pages, not to mention beautiful pages throughout with stories behind some of your favorite hymns and Gaither songs, it is a true treasure.

Many Homecoming favorites have shared thoughts that are sprinkled all throughout the Bible. The every-encouraging Gloria Gaither has also taken the time to put together some poems and devotions which are interspersed throughout the pages.

I think my favorite "extra" in the Bible are the stories of well-loved hymns, and favorite Gaither songs. You yourself will be inspired as you read about what brought about some classic songs. The songs and their stories are strategically placed throughout the Bible.

The Bible is a beautiful hardbound book with an absolutely beautiful dust jacket. Many of the pages are decorated with beautiful artwork. I was blown away with how beautifully the pages are decorated! There are also inspirational quotes sprinkled amongst the pages of the Bible, and for this girl who loves quotes, this is a great addition!

I will admit that as much as I like this Bible I am going to stick with my ESV MacArthur Study Bible as my primary Bible. However, I think The Gaither Homecoming Bible will be a great addition to my library and I will enjoy pouring through its pages looking at the beautiful pages and being encouraged by all the little "extras" tucked away in the pages of this Bible.

I would recommend this Bible to any Gaither Homecoming fans as well as anyone looking for a beautiful Bible that will become a treasure.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson's BookSneeze program for the opportunity to review this book. I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review: Love Lifted Me (Sara Evans)

Max loves Jade, and Jade loves Max, but he’s going to have to prove himself to regain her trust. In Love Lifted Me, the third book in the “Songbird” series, Born to Fly artist Sara Evans tells the story of how Jade learns to forgive and trust again. For those of us who came into the series with this book, there was plenty of background information to explain why the characters felt the way they did towards life and towards each other.

Max and Jade learn to lean on each other and on the Lord when Max decides to take a job coaching football in Texas. Though others attempt to sabotage Max’s career, Jade and Max hold fast and persevere, realizing that this is where God wants them.

This book features a Reading Group Guide at the end with some discussion questions for those who want to perhaps read the book and discuss it with others….or just for the reader to ponder upon finishing the novel.

I enjoyed this book….in fact, I received the book and read it in its entirety in the same day (all 288 pages!)! I would like to read it again after reading the first two books in the series so I could get the true flow of the story. I had no idea that multi-platinum country recording artist Sara Evans could write, but she has written an enjoyable book  with delightfully endearing characters that you are sad to say goodbye to at the end of the story.

*I received this book as part of Thomas Nelson's Book Sneeze program in exchange for an honest review.*

This song is for a dear friend of mine who has been through a lor of unexpected changes in her life this year, and yet has used each of the experiences to grow and has definitely become "a little bit stronger" through the whole thing.

Book Review: An Amish Wedding (Long, Fuller & Wiseman)

Priscilla King, Naomi King and Rose Bender are three friends growing up together in the same Amish community. Through three novellas, An Amish Wedding follows their stories of finding love in their community.

 

A Perfect Secret by Kelly Long focuses on Rose’s story and how she fell in love with and truly learned to trust her fiancé-turned-husband, Luke, when she feels he is hiding things from her.

A Perfect Match by Kathleen Fuller is Naomi’s story and shares about how she has great plans to match up newcomer Zeke with her friend Margaret…will she find love in the process?

And lastly….

A Perfect Plan by Beth Wiseman shares the story of Priscilla, who has a perfect plan in place for her wedding and learns that not everything goes perfectly and according to plan. As her mind is flooded with doubt, she, too, learns how to truly trust and as she learns that God has the perfect plan.

I have enjoyed the collaborations between these three authors in the past, and this book was no exception. The three novellas intertwined perfectly, creating one larger story that kept my attention throughout. In fact, I was so engrossed in the story that I read the entire 354-page book in one day – practically in one sitting! If you enjoy Amish fiction, you will enjoy this book!

**I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. I received no compensation other than a free book.**

Book Review: The Wonder Of Your Love (Beth Wiseman)

I recently had the opportunity to read and review The Wonder Of Your Love  by Beth Wiseman.

Katie Ann Stoltzfus is forty years old, widowed, and raising her first child, baby Jonas, in the small Amish community of Caanan, Colorado. Although some of her family is in the area and she has friendly neighbors, she feels at times like she is all alone. She is not looking forward to spending the rest of her life as a single parent.

Meanwhile, Katie Ann’s nephew, David, is marrying his sweetheart, Emily, and Emily’s uncle Eli Detweiler is has come to Canaan for the wedding. After raising six children and losing his wife at a young age, Eli is ready for a long vacation! He is enjoying being done raising his children and is ready for time to himself!

When Katie Ann and Eli meet, it does not take long for them to realize that there is a mutual attraction. However, with Eli finished raising his children with no desire to raise more, and Katie Ann just starting out life as a parent, they know they need to tread lightly so that nobody’s heart is broken. Will love overcome the obstacles? Are Katie Ann & Eli’s plans for their lives in line with God’s plans for their lives?

I have enjoyed each of the books I have read by Beth Wiseman over the past few years. Her Daughters of the Promise series and its follow-up, the Land of Canaan series (of which this book is part), are enjoyable stories about interesting characters. Beth Wiseman does a great job of creating characters you will want to learn more about long after the story ends.

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I received no compensation (other than a copy of the book) for my review.

Unsinkable (Abby Sunderland) Review

She Is Unsinkable!


I recently had the opportunity to read Unsinkable by Abby Sunderland, the 16-year-old girl who attempted to sail non-stop around the world alone and unassisted. When I first saw this book available for review, I was quite excited to get the opportunity to read it. Although I do not know Abby personally, we share a common thread in that we are both alumni of the same high school, and I know several people who are personal friends of hers. I followed Abby’s journey while she was on it, via her blog and various news sources.

And I obviously wasn’t the only person in my family eager to read the book…..as soon as it arrived, my dad started flipping through it, and I didn’t get it back until he had read the whole thing. And as soon as I got it back, my mom came and found it and read it….so I didn’t get to start reading it right away. But once I started it, I was in for an adventure.

With Abby’s trip came lots of criticism…criticism of her, criticism of her parents, and criticism of pretty much anything people could think to criticize. One thing I particularly liked about this book is that she addressed a lot of that media criticism and shared how things weren’t actually how the media portrayed it.

The book is told from the perspective of the narrator, Abby and those who rescued her. This allows the reader to truly get a variety of perspectives on Abby’s trip.

Through this book I learned about Abby’s strengths. I learned about her perseverance and how she did not want to stop, no matter what. Abby’s trip did not go as planned, by any means. She had to re-start her solo-round-nonstop attempt from Cabo San Lucas shortly after starting out from Marina del Rey. Then she had to make the very difficult decision to pull into Cape Town, Africa. Through the book I learned what a struggle this was for her. Abby felt like she was admitting defeat, but eventually she realized that it was for her safety that her team was advising her to stop and make some crucial adjustments to her boat.

Then there was the story of when Abby was trapped in the Indian Ocean and how she really was afraid that she would never be found and rescued. She knew the chances were extremely slim. But she refused to give up hope.

Although I had little criticisms of the book (for example, I think the writing style could’ve been better, but since Abby was only 16 or 17 at the time of the book’s writing I can’t complain too much!), overall it was a great story of Abby’s adventure sailing around the world. She really is unsinkable! If Abby gets the opportunity to try again to sail around the world, I hope she can make it all the way non-stop. :)

Thank you to Thomas Nelson Publisher’s BookSneeze program for providing me with this book in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review: The Inheritance of Beauty (Nicole Seitz)

I recently read "The Inheritance of Beauty" by Nicole Seitz. After I selected this book to review, I read some reviews that others have written and saw several reviews saying that this is a book you will not be able to put down. However, I will honestly admit that I had a hard time getting into this book. 

This book took place from the perspectives of about 4 different people: Maggie Black, her husband George, their childhood friend Joe Stackhouse, and the kind nurse, Annie. Maggie, George and Joe had known each other as children, and through different circumstances found themselves at the same retirement home in their later years. We mostly hear from Maggie and George. Maggie is now unable to talk, so her parts of the story are from her perspective as a child, with a few instances of what is going through her brain in her later years. George's perspective is mostly the present day, later years of his life, perspective. I think what I found hard to get into with this book is the fact that it jumps from person to person, their life as a young person to their life as an older person, etc.

As far as the storyline, we learn that Maggie grew up in the South Carolina lowcountry, spending her days with her beloved brother, Ash, and her best friend, George (who she later married). Life was easy. Life was carefree. Life was fun. Until one day when a stranger and his son rolled into town. Things seemed great as little Joe Stackhouse played with Maggie, Ash and George. But one day everything changed. Secrets were uncovered, and Maggie's innocent little world would never be the same.  Eighty years later, in a nursing home, Maggie and George are living a contented life. Life is good. Until one day with a large mysterious package arrives, and old wounds are opened and answers to secrets revealed.

While I cannot give this book as high of a recommendation as I would like, due to the fact that I had a hard time getting into it, I'm sure not everyone will have as hard of a time getting into the story as I did, and once you do get into the story, it is an interesting story to read.

*Thank you very much to Thomas Nelson/BookSneeze for providing me with a complimentary review copy of this book. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.*