Books I Read: February 2018

Welcome to From My BookShelf for the month of February 2018.  From My BookShelf is a monthly feature where I share the books I read during the month and a short review of each book.  My prayer is that you will find some great reads from my list and in return that you’ll share some of your favorites with me 🙂. 

This month I concentrated on reading some books that had been sitting on my Kindle waiting for me to enjoy versus searching out new books.

I used to voraciously keep up with Kindle deal sites and as a result had amassed a large amount of books on my Kindle that I’ve purchased but not read.  I have since stopped that habit of buying all the Kindle deals and this month I decided to browse my Kindle when looking for my next read instead of searching online for something new.

Here is the result of those findings, the books I read in February 2018.  (One book is a new one, one of my favorite authors Kayla Aimee came out with a new book that I didn’t have the patience to wait to read).

I read a combination of fiction and non-fiction this month.  We’ll start with fiction.

Fiction

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I read Unmending the Veil by Lisa Heaton.  This was the first book I’ve read by this author and it will definitely not be the last.  Besides this book being  a page turner, it also inspired me to really want to read my Bible, frequently and deeply and to ruminate on what the Lord says and pour out my heart and wounds to Him .

This was a wonderful book on the Lord’s healing and redemptive work and allowing Him to become our all in all.

Unmending the Veil deals with several pretty heavy subjects (end of life, abuse, loss)  and is definitely not something I would consider a light read but it is definitely a worthwhile read.

My only hesitation in fully recommending it is that I wish there would have been more professional help and accountability in place for the story to resolve the way it did.  If you end up reading this one I’d love to hear your thoughts on that or if I’m in my social worker trained mind to much and overthinking it.

All in all I’m glad for the time spent reading this one and I look forward to reading another by Lisa Heaton in the future.

I read The Color of the Soul (The Penbrook Diaries Book 1) by Tracey Bateman.  This was my first book I’ve read by this author as well and definitely don’t think it will be my last.

This is the story of Andy, a black man who lives in the North who is hired by a 100 year old white plantation mistress in Georgia to write her memoirs.  Andy is unsure why he is chosen for the job but accepts it, leaving in the midst of his marriage being in shambles to travel back to the south where his early childhood was spent.

The story is told via the books present time (1948),  through diaries from the 1800s,  and through several different characters point of view.  The moving from one era to the next, and one character to the next is done seamlessly.

Issues surrounding race and the destruction of racism are front and center in this story as well the intricacies and depth of the human soul, pain and relationships and how all that shapes our thoughts, decisions and therefore our actions.

Highly recommend and would love to hear your thoughts if you read it!

I started Harvest of Rubies by Tessa Afshar at the end of February and thought I’d finish it in March but it was so good I had trouble putting it down and finished it in just a few days.  As a result you can probably surmise that I highly recommend it!

This is in the genre of Biblical Fiction so you will find some familiar names and customs from the Bible in the story.  The most prominent being King Axtertes and his renowned cupbearer Nehemiah.  The story actually centers around the main character Sarah who is Nehemiah’s cousin.

It tells of the journey of Sarah’s self worth being wrapped up in her work to her discovery of her value in the Lord with plenty of twists and turns along the way, including her being gifted a husband.

I got pretty attached to Sarah and her story so I’m glad it continues in Harvest of Gold which is most likely the next book I’ll be picking up.

Definitely very glad I opened this one up after it sitting collecting dust on my kindle for a few years.  Oops to that,  but to paraphrase Esther as was referenced in the book, I think I definitely dug this book out of my Kindle abyss for such a time as this.

Look forward to hearing if you get lost in this story as well!

Non-Fiction

I read Walking with God: How a Simple Daily Habit Can Change Your Life by James Wallace, another one that had been sitting in my Kindle untouched for several years but seems to have been pulled up for just a time as this.

I’ve recently begun walking for exercise the most regularly I think I’ve ever done it.  I have a plan for it and am actually following that plan.  I’ve kept up with it for three consecutive months and I am so hoping I keep it up for months and years to come.

One of the things I’ve been doing to keep myself motivated to make walking a priority is to occasionally do a google search and read up on the benefits of walking for exercise regularly.  Reading about the benefits keeps me motivated and making walking happen.

This is the first book I’ve read on the subject and I love that it was a combination of the benefits of walking consistently and how to focus on and grow one’s relationship with the Lord during the time spent walking.

The focus was more on the time with God portion and not so much the physical benefits that come with walking regularly and while I wished for a little more of the physical benefits I was okay with the emphasis of the book. I came away with some very good, easily implementable tips for what to do with my mind while walking.

I’ve been putting those tips into practice and it’s been good to have a plan not just for the physical aspect of my walks but for the mental aspect of them as well.

The author has a very upbeat motivating encouraging you-can-do-it tone which I really appreciated.

There’s a chapter on not being a sum zero, allowing misery and envy to rob us of relationships and being able to really celebrate others and ourselves that was really really good.  I actually went back and re-read that chapter and it’s left lingering thoughts and desire to put into practice what the author talked about.

All in all I highly recommend walking regularly for exercise and reading this book!

I read In Bloom: Trading Restless Insecurity for Abiding Confidence by Kayla Aimee and loved it.

This is the evolving story of her transformation from insecurity to living more confidently.  The book is story driven with lots of examples from her life of events that took place that fed her insecurities.  The stories were all very relate-able and left me feeling like I wasn’t alone in some of my own experiences.

I really enjoy Kayla Aimee as an author.  Her first book Anchored: Finding Hope in the Unexpected, the story of her daughter who was born a micro premie was phenomenal.  I recommend both Anchored and In  Bloom.

I do wish in In Bloom she had given a little more detail to the practical side of how she went about renewing her mind and replacing long held lies with the truth.

I was poking around on her Instagram account the other day and saw she offers printable scripture cards.  So that is a good place to start.

I just really like “I did practical steps of a,b, and c” and whenever this lie came up I combatted it like this.

But despite my wishing for more “how to” I highly recommend In Bloom.  It kept me coming back to read more and more and when done I wished I had more to read from her.

One line in particular, “Every moment of rejection creates a new space in which to be accepted.” from Chapter 13 has really stuck with me.

It’s become a mantra of sorts for me as I seek the types of friendships and community I desire and need.  Instead of wallowing in the hurt of  friendships that never became, I am free to look for friendships in new spaces, discovering when I take my eyes off the rejection, there are friendships waiting where I am willingly and freely accepted by people who, gasp, do actually want to spend time with me.

In Bloom was a very comforting read and I’d love to hear your thoughts if this is one you pick up!

The majority of my reading is done on my Kindle Paperwhite, which I love! Don’t have an ereader?  You can also download the Kindle Reading app for your PC, tablet, or phone here.  Any links to books in this post can be used to purchase a paperback or kindle edition.  And of course don’t forget to check with your local library to see if they have any of these books that interest you on hand.  Happy reading!