A Bookish Sarah

encouragement & bookish things

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Sarah
Welcome, friend! Relax & rest awhile, if you please. I'm an ordinary girl, a follower of Christ, mama to Gabriel, Heidi, & Aidan; and wife to Evan. Here in this little space of the online world, I share all manner of bookish things, including full content reviews, writerly snippets, encouragement for everyday life, and a whole collection of names & their meanings.

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Encouragement

Upcoming Reviews!

UPDATE -- New book added below!

I am so behind in my list of books to review!  ARGH! 

*le sigh*  So, I have decided to post a list of reviews for you, dear readers, to look forward to.  Hopefully, this will serve two purposes:  To check these off my list; and to motivate me to actually make the effort to post them!  I am such a terrible procrastinator!  

By the way, can you believe we are nearly in the days of mid-November??  This year has flown by so fast!  

Anyway, here is a list of books (in no particular order) I plan to review starting now through December.  Don't forget to come back and visit if interested!

Walking With Frodo
A devotional journey through the Lord of the Rings.
Sarah Arthur

[description from Goodreads]
Tolkien's Lord of the Rings epic tale has long captivated readers with its parallels to biblical truth.  And now, "Walking with Frodo" looks at the biblical themes found in the classic Lord of the Rings trilogy.  The 18 devotions pair vices and virtues (deception vs. honesty, light vs. darkness, good vs. evil) displayed by characters in The Lord of the Rings and bring to light what the Bible has to say.  A must-have for longtime and new series fans.




Heartless
Tales of Goldstone Wood #1
Anne Elisabeth Stengl

The Dragon King Seeks His Princess—
Who Dares to Stop Him?

Princess Una of Parumvir has come of age and will soon marry. She dreams of a charming prince, but when her first suitor arrives, he's not what she'd hoped. Prince Aethelbald of mysterious Farthestshore has travelled a great distance to prove his love--and also to bring hushed warnings of danger. A dragon is rumored to be on the hunt and blazing a path of terror. 

Una, smitten instead with a more dashing prince, refuses Aethelbald's offer--and ignores his cautions with dire consequences. Soon the Dragon King himself is in Parumvir and Una, in giving her heart away unwisely, finds herself in his sights. Only those courageous enough to risk everything have a hope of fighting off this advancing evil.

A Tale of Goldstone Wood (the first book)
Timeless Fantasy That Will Keep You Spellbound.

Veiled Rose
Tales of Goldstone Wood #2
Anne Elisabeth Stengl

Rose Red trusts no one with her secret. She hides in the forest, her face veiled in rags, shunning the company of all save her old father and her nanny goat. Her life is bleak and lonely. 
Until she meets a privileged young man sent to spend his summer in the mountains. Leo, a lonely lad, befriends Rose Red, and together they begin hunting for the Mountain Monster which, rumor says, stalks these lands. 
But the hunt which began as a game holds greater risk than Leo supposes. Rose Red can scarcely guess at the consequences should he insist on continuing his search. Dare she trust him with her secret? Or tell him what dwells at the top of the mountain in the cave only she can find? 
Above all, when Leo asks Rose Red to leave the mountain and follow him to the low country, dare she agree and risk the wrath of a Monster that is all too real?

Moonblood
Tales of Goldstone Wood #3
Anne Elisabeth Stengl

Desperate to regain the trust of his kingdom, Prince Lionheart reluctantly banishes his faithful servant and only friend, Rose Red. Now she is lost in the hidden realm of Arpiar, held captive by her evil goblin father, King Vahe. Vowing to redeem himself, Lionheart plunges into the mysterious Goldstone Wood, seeking Rose Red. In strange other worlds, Lionheart must face a lyrical yet lethal tiger, a fallen unicorn, and a goblin horde on his quest to rescue the girl he betrayed. With the Night of Moonblood fast approaching, when King Vahe seeks to wake the Dragon's sleeping children, Lionheart must discover whether or not his heart contains courage before it's too late for Rose Red...and all those he loves.


The Real Lincoln
A New Look at Abraham Lincoln, His Agenda, and an Unnecessary War.
Thomas J. DiLorenzo

Most Americans consider Abraham Lincoln to be the greatest president in history. His legend as the Great Emancipator has grown to mythic proportions as hundreds of books, a national holiday, and a monument in Washington, D.C., extol his heroism and martyrdom. But what if most everything you knew about Lincoln were false? What if, instead of an American hero who sought to free the slaves, Lincoln were in fact a calculating politician who waged the bloodiest war in american history in order to build an empire that rivaled Great Britain's? In The Real Lincoln, author Thomas J. DiLorenzo uncovers a side of Lincoln not told in many history books and overshadowed by the immense Lincoln legend. 
Through extensive research and meticulous documentation, DiLorenzo portrays the sixteenth president as a man who devoted his political career to revolutionizing the American form of government from one that was very limited in scope and highly decentralized—as the Founding Fathers intended—to a highly centralized, activist state. Standing in his way, however, was the South, with its independent states, its resistance to the national government, and its reliance on unfettered free trade. To accomplish his goals, Lincoln subverted the Constitution, trampled states' rights, and launched a devastating Civil War, whose wounds haunt us still. According to this provacative book, 600,000 American soldiers did not die for the honorable cause of ending slavery but for the dubious agenda of sacrificing the independence of the states to the supremacy of the federal government, which has been tightening its vise grip on our republic to this very day.
You will discover a side of Lincoln that you were probably never taught in school—a side that calls into question the very myths that surround him and helps explain the true origins of a bloody, and perhaps, unnecessary war. 

not a fan.
Becoming a completely committed follower of Jesus.
Kyle Idleman

Are you a follower of Jesus?  Don't answer too quickly.  In fact, you may want to read this book before you answer at all.  Consider it a 'Define the Relationship' conversation to determine exactly where you stand.  You may indeed be a passionate, fully devoted follower of Jesus.  Or, you may be just a fan who admires Jesus but isn't ready to let him cramp your style.  Then again, maybe you're not into Jesus, period.  In any case, don't take the question---Are you a follower of Jesus?---lightly.  Some people don't know what they've said yes to and other people don't realize what they've said no to, says Pastor Kyle Idleman.  But Jesus is ready to clearly define the relationship he wants with his followers.  Not a Fan calls you to consider the demands and rewards of being a true disciple.  With frankness sprinkled with humor, Idleman invites you to live the way Jesus lived, love the way he loved, pray the way he prayed, and never give up living for the One who gave his all for you.

Aquifer
Jonathan Friesen

Only he can bring what they need to survive...

In 2250, water is scarce, and those who control it control everything. And they’ll do anything to maintain their power – deceiving, dividing families, banning love... even killing those who oppose them.

But above all, they seek to control knowledge and communication – ensuring the truth that will bring their downfall will never be known. But one person verges on discovering it all.

Sixteen-year-old Luca becomes the Deliverer, the only one allowed to contact the people called ‘Water Rats,’ who mine the essential water deep underground and bring it to the ‘Toppers’ who desperately need it above. 

But when he meets a Water Rat who captures his heart and leads him to secrets – secrets about a vast conspiracy, and about himself – the net around him tightens. Luca and those around him must uncover and share the truth needed to overthrow tyranny – even as they fight for their lives.

UPDATE -- New book added! (to original post)
The Shadow Things 
Jennifer Freitag

[Goodreads]
The Legions have left the province of Britain and the Western Roman Empire has dissolved into chaos. With the world plunged into darkness, paganism and superstition are as rampant as ever. In the Down country of southern Britain, young Indi has grown up knowing nothing more than his gods of horses and thunder; so when a man from across the sea comes preaching a single God slain on a cross, Indi must choose between his gods or the one Godand face the consequences of his decision.








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Come back soon!

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Comments

  1. So am I! Thanks for commenting, Claire!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Interested in hearing what you think of these Sarah. Some I've heard of and others I haven't but they all look good. Missy

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you, Mrs. Parris! Glad to hear! =] Yes, I'm excited to share these with everyone!

    ReplyDelete

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To each is given a bag of tools,
A shapeless mass, and a book of rules,
And each must make, ere life is flown,
A stumbling block or a stepping stone.
-Anonymous-

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