Not quite sure which order these were read in now, but at least I am documenting them.
The Dressmaker of Khair Khana
by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon
An interesting biography of an Afghani girl whose fire cannot be squelched under the Taliban regime. She opens a tailoring shop from her house (in a society where it is illegal for girls to work) with the help of her sisters. She carefully markets her garments (all the while avoiding Taliban enforcers), and continues to grow this business. Her dream is to provide employment for other girls too so that their families can survive in households minus the male provider. This dream becomes a reality as she even opens a sewing school. Her bravery under this regime has earned her some moderate notoriety, and she has even spoken in important political circles in the states. I found the look into her life eye-opening. I again thank the Lord for our daily freedoms we take so for granted.
Insanewiches
by Adrian Fiorino
A fun cookbook with lots of fun ideas for crazy looking sandwiches. I checked this out of the library first. I enjoyed it so much, I purchased a cheap copy on Amazon. It will be fun to make for themed parties or just for crazy kid meals.
Break-Out! - The Japanese POW Break-Out at Cowra, 1944
by Hugh V. Clarke
I got the kindle version of this book for free at some point. It is the (rather short) history of the largest breakout of prisoner of war camp that took place in Australia. It was a fascinating look at the Japanese mentality. (which my parents tell me is quite accurate) This was written by a prisoner of war to the Japanese but in collaboration with the Japanese so you get to view both perspectives.
Your Child's Profession of Faith
by Dennis Gundersen
This was recommended by BSF on their biannual book list. I read this short book very quickly. It was written by a pastor as he counsels parents to assess more thoroughly whether their child's profession of faith is genuine or not. I think that taken with a grain of salt, his principles were sound and all Biblical. His premise is not that young children cannot accept the Lord at an early age, but that they cannot show the real proof in spiritual fruit over an extended period of time. He fears that parents may just accept the profession or even worse, coach the child into the profession without a genuine work in the child's heart. I think most of the thoughts were ones that I already knew, and M and I have intentionally applied, but it was still worth the read.
Scouting the Divine
by Margaret Feinberg
This book came recommended to me by a friend (without her even being aware of it, I believe). The premise sounded very interesting so I requested this through interlibrary loan. The author writes this book after deciding to spend some time with and interviewing a few occupations that the Bible addresses. This way, she gains a greater depth of understanding for the Biblical passages that address each occupation/subject. She interviews a shepherdess, farmer, beekeeper, and vintner. Having sat under some good Christian teaching in my life, some of the ideas were not new to me, but there was still enough new information to prove very valuable, and many ideas did improve my understanding of Scripture. Definitely a recommendation!
Always the Baker, Never the Bride
by Sandra D. Bricker
This was another free kindle acquisition months ago. It is just one book in a series (that stands alone fine too). I rarely read fiction and almost stopped early on as it was a bit modern for my tastes. But it was well written and drew me in because I kept expecting the big twist in the storyline along the way. I must admit, it was a bit disappointing because it never came. It tells the story of a slightly chubby girl who has all sorts of doubts about herself and her fiance. The issues are all resolved one way or another but in a very trite and rather unexciting manner. This is supposed to be Christian fiction but the gospel was not presented clearly and the "Christian" characters were far less than mature spiritually. Overall, ok if you have extra time but not my favorite.
A Love Story..How God Pursued Me and Found Me..An Impossibly True Story
by Samantha Ryan Chandler
This too was a free kindle acquisition. I love biographies and even more Christian ones. I was looking forward to reading this. However, this would not be a recommendation. The author has lived through some difficult circumstances. She was abused by her mom growing up and then married several times. The majority of the book focuses on one of her marriages and the difficult results of it all. I kept waiting for the redemption. She probably is a moderately mature believer (and does use Scripture throughout), but she has one major stumbling block--unforgiveness. It is not until 76% of the book that she even starts to declare that she has forgiven her husband for his inappropriate behavior. Instead she calls him Darth Vader etc... for that first 3/4. Even after declaring forgiveness, there still seems to be a bit of a root of bitterness. It is only at the very end that you learn she wrote this book as a journal for herself (rather than really for others). I suspect that she felt she had dealt with the bitterness, but it appears to still be a struggle as seen through her words in most of the book. Not too enjoyable or uplifting. But it does remind us that spiritual warfare is going on daily.
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