Monday, November 23, 2015

The Healthy Mind Cookbook by Rebecca Katz with Mat Edelson

 I doubt I've ever been this excited about a cookbook before. The Healthy Mind Cookbook is everything I love about cooking. Using healthy ingredients, ingredients known for their healing properties, to make good meals. I love this concept. I believe that food should taste good and be good for you at the same time. This book is loaded with not only recipes full of healthy ingredients, but it tells you why the ingredients are healthy. The first section tells you what food does to your body, the second section is where you'll learn all about things such as tumeric, blueberries, rosemary, quinoa, pumpkin, and a host of other ingredients. This is fascinating and something every human should understand. By the time you get to the actual cooking part of the book you are ready to create healthy meals. 
Meals such as Cozy Lentil Soup, Kale with Delicata Squash, Curried Shrimp, Grilled Chicken with Za'atar, Sunshine Up Baked Eggs, desserts, and even Mexican Hot Chocolate (see, chocolate can be healthy!)
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to eat healthier but doesn't know where to begin. Excellent reading and excellent recipes.





This book provided for review by Blogging for Books

Friday, November 20, 2015

The Five Times I Met Myself by James L. Rubart

Wow. Wow. Wow. This. This is an example of why I read. I wish every book could be like this one. I started it in the morning and finished that same afternoon. Very easy to get into, not an overwhelming amount of characters, a fast moving storyline and a topic not overdone. This book was probably the best I've read this year.
Imagine being able to control your past through your dreams. What significance would a small change make in the overall scheme of your life? This topic is addressed through the fictional account told here and the result will blow your mind. 
I recommend this book highly. 
About the book: 
The Five Times I Met Myself
 (Thomas Nelson, November 2015)

What if you met your twenty-three-year-old self in a dream? What would you say?

Brock Matthews' once promising life is unraveling. His coffee company. His marriage.

So when he discovers his vivid dreams---where he encounters his younger self---might let him change his past mistakes, he jumps at the chance. The results are astonishing, but also disturbing.

Because getting what Brock wants most in the world will force him to give up the one thing he doesn't know how to let go . . . and his greatest fear is that it's already too late.
James L. Rubart is a professional marketer and speaker. He is the author of the best-selling novel Rooms as well as Book of DaysThe ChairSoul's GateMemory's Door, andSpirit Bridge. He lives with his wife and sons in the Pacific Northwest.
This book provided for review by Litfuse

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Waiting Here For You - An Advent Journey of Hope by Louie Giglio

 It comes the same time every year. Christmas. We have plenty of time to anticipate it, or in some cases...dread it. And, before we know it, it's gone as quickly as it came. What's it all for? Is there really hope for today in the story of a baby born so long ago? These questions and others are answered in the promises of Advent. Advent is simply a season of expectant waiting and preparation. Most often, the arrival of an event or a person is made all the more sweet by our anticipation. How could waiting and expectation change your Christmas season? 

Join pastor and author Louie Giglio on an Advent journey to discover that waiting is not wasting when you're waiting on the Lord. Take hold of the chance to uncover the vast hope offered through the journey of Advent. In these pages, you'll find peace and encouragement for your soul as anticipation leads towards celebration!

My thoughts:
This is a lovely month-long devotional that pushes the reader towards discovering why we celebrate Christmas. To take moments and reflect the true meaning of it all. To delve deeper yet stay focused. This is a small book packed full of encouragement. A prayer for each day accompanies the days passage. This book begins on November 26 and continues through the season. Nice book. Would make a great Thanksgiving gift for those struggling with the holiday rush.



This book was provided for review by BookLook

Monday, November 16, 2015

Lucky Peach by Peter Meehan



 Lucky Peach by Peter Meehan is 101 Easy Asian Recipes for any level of cooking expertise or lack thereof. There is a picture for every recipe and while some of them  look difficult, the main difficulty will be finding some of the more obscure ingredients. 
The soups and stews and the chicken chapters are the ones that appeal most to me. I love to cook soup all year round. The Rotisserie Chicken Ramen is simple and uses easy to find ingredients. The Massaman Curry is a favorite in our home. The chicken recipes look amazing. From Five-Spice Chicken to Lemongrass Chicken to Korean Grilled Chicken, your family will thank you with each attempt. 
This book is well executed and will have even the pickiest of eaters finding their way through Asian cuisine.





This book provided for review by Blogging For Books

Countdown to Christmas by Theresa Seidlitz

 This Countdown to Christmas book by Theresa Seidlitz is the neatest idea. It's a twenty-four day journey through the Bible from Adam and Eve to the birth of Jesus. What a great way to gather your children together and remember why we celebrate. 
The stories included are:
Adam and Eve
Noah and the Ark
The Tower of Babel
Sarah and Abraham
Rebekah and Isaac
Jacob and Esau
Jacob's Ladder
Joseph and His Coat of Many Colors
Joseph Interprets Dreams
Baby Moses
Moses and the Red Sea
Moses and the Ten Commandments
Rahab
Gideon's Army
Ruth and Naomi
Samuel's Dream
King Saul
David and Goliath
David and Saul
King Solomon
Elijah and the False Prophets
Jeremiah and the New Covenant
Daniel
Jesus

There are two Christmas carols to sing together, one at the beginning and one at the end and there are punch-out ornaments to use for each story. I treasured things like this when my children were little and I think that your family will treasure this book.






Published by Canter Press, you can purchase a copy here.
This book was provided for review by PRBytheBook

Friday, November 6, 2015

The Word of Promise New Testament Audio Bible NKJV

 The Word of Promise New Testament Audio Bible (NKJV) on CD is something I've always desired to have. The Bible on CD so I could listen to  it in the car. I took this on a recent road trip and was not at all impressed with the Gospels. The background noise is distracting, the music is cheesy, and the voices are not at all what I would like to listen to. Jesus didn't sound like Jesus. Jesus sounded wimpy. I couldn't bear to listen to it very long. I switched discs and listened to Romans instead. This was better, a little, because it was just the Bible being read, though there wasn't much passion behind it. The background noise (papers rustling, pen writing, birds singing) was annoying. I was hoping for so much more than this was.
This was provided for review by BookLook

Thursday, November 5, 2015

On This Foundation by Lynn Austin

On This Foundation, by Lynn Austin, is the third in The Restoration Chronicles series. As with the first two, the author brings alive a section of the Old Testament sometimes overlooked. This book was a little hard for me to get into this go-round, but I think it's more me and where I am during this reading than the author's efforts. 
These are being released about a year apart from each other and I wish I'd waited to read them all together instead of so far apart. I find it easier to stick with a series like this when I can read them back to back. The story stays fresh in my mind and I remember who the characters are from book to book. 
From the back cover:
When news reaches him that Jerusalem's wall is shattered and its gates burned with fire, a distraught Nehemiah seeks God's guidance in fasting and prayer. Granted an unexpected leave from his duty as cupbearer to the Persian king Artaxerxes, Nehemiah sets out for Jerusalem to rebuild the city wall--never anticipating all the dangers that await him on his arrival.
The leaders of the surrounding nations become his fierce enemies, plotting to assassinate him and stop the wall's reconstruction forever. A drought, meanwhile, has left the country impoverished, with many families resorting to selling their children as bondservants just to keep from starving.
Capturing the rebuilding of the wall through the eyes of a number of characters, On This Foundation is the powerful conclusion to The Restoration Chronicles. The exploration of faith in the midst of oppression offers hope that, in spite of appearances, the gracious hand of God is upon those who believe.

This book was provided for review by Bethany House

Wednesday, November 4, 2015

Casey's Bright Red Christmas by Holly Dufek

 Christmas books have always had a special place in my heart. I kept Christmas books separate from the other books my children had and brought them out only at this time of year. They'd sit in a big basket and we would choose from it to read each night. Reading to children is so very important. Casey's Bright Red Christmas is ready to be added to your holiday traditions. This book is darling. Vibrant pictures and a story that will warm your heart. The characters will make your little ones smile and the story will protect their innocence. A sweet story parents can trust.
 Love this page where it asks for the child's favorite cookie!


 The baking mess while making cookies was my favorite part of the story.

This book provided for review by PR By the Book

Sunday, November 1, 2015

The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning (Anniversary Edition)

Brennan Manning changed many people when he published The Ragamuffin Gospel. Ragamuffin became a common word, used most noticeably by Rich Mullins. 
This Special Anniversary Edition of The Ragamuffin Gospel introduces the unique glimpse of grace to a new generation of believers.
A different perspective from what we've come to know from faith writers, this book tackles real life and brings it to the cross.
It's hard to read this and not walk away changed.

This book provided for review by Blogging for Books.