Book Review - The Mark of the Lion Series

Francine Rivers. This woman can write! Not only can she write, but she make's you feel things as you read like no author I have read before. She stirs something inside of you. This is the author of the trilogy that I recently completed in audiobook form.

Our first story, A Voice in the Wind takes place thirty years after the death of Jesus. I purchased this series due to a friends recommendation but when I first started listening I almost stopped. How could anyone accurately depict this time? I thought. But Rivers does so with veritable brilliance! When this first novel was complete I read the New Testament with better clarity and appreciation for what the Apostles went through to bring the gospel to a world that was so diabolical and infiltrated with prejudice. We American's living in our comfortable homes with a life of freedom can never fully understand. Most of us do not realize when we hold the book in our hands the blood that was shed (other then our Savior's) to place it there. The forces against the gospel being spread where insurmountable, and yet it is the best known, most published and in the most languages then any other book in history!

But this entry is not about the Bible. The human struggle to do what is right in the face of death and evil is enveloped in the pages of this series. Hadassah in book one conveys the peace and love of Jesus Christ to a Roman family that worships the god's. Marcus in book two goes on a journey in search of this love and peace that eludes his logical mind. And Atretes in book three is filled with bitterness and rage but sees a light burning brightly in the widow Rispa. It draws him in and brings this strong undefeated former Gladiator to his knees.

There are elements in these books that are unsuitable for younger readers but necessary for the stories. Some readers may find these real-life issues uncomfortable to process but the heart of God's love is throughout.

I highly recommend The Mark of the Lion and I will continue to read other books by this author.

Disclaimer- I have no financial gain from reviewing these books. I love to read and I love to read the reviews of others who have a passion for novels. So I do the same.

Temporary Home

A few days ago I was driving and a song was playing on my iphone. Carrie Underwood's voice came through the speakers and 'Temporary Home' filled the van. It's a beautiful song about how we are just passing through this life on our way to our final destination. The last verses of the song sent a memory that flooded my thoughts and brought many tears to my eyes. The lyrics painted a picture of an elderly gentleman's last days on this earth, "old man, hospital bed; the room is filled with people he loves..." That same day I decided to write this mini tribute for my grandmother. This Godly, hard working, strong woman walked on this earth for almost eighty-eight years, and one of her last days here is forever in my remembrance...

Helen Ruth Olson lay on a hospital bed of Libertyville Manor. Her eyes were closed and her bed was reclined in a slightly upright position. Six people that loved her were gathered with heavy hearts and thoughts that this may be the end of a beautiful life. We held her hand, told her how much she meant to us with tear filled eyes. Did she know we were there? We did not know. Could she hear us? We spoke as if she could. We decided to sing classic hymns that she knew and loved. Was she listening? When we sang, 'How Great Thou Art' an amazing thing occurred. When the chorus came she sat up in her bed, her eyes looked toward the heavens. She weakly sang out the words, 'How Great Thou Art.' I truly believe she was beholding His glory and witnessing firsthand how great He truly was. That was the last time I heard my grandmothers voice. She left this place for a better one the next day.

Grandmother I love you and miss you! You are walking on streets of gold and singing, 'How Great Thou Art' in a choir, and beholding His face with your own eyes!

Give Me the Simple Life

Lyrics by: Harry Ruby & Rube Bloom

I don't believe in frettin' and grievin';

Why mess around with strife?

I never was cut out to step and strut out;

Give me the simple life.

Some find it pleasant dining on pheasant;

Those things roll off my knife.

Just serve me tomatoes and mashed potatoes;

Give me the simple life.

A cottage small is all I'm after,

Not one that's spacious and wide.

A house that rings with joy and laughter

And the ones you love inside.

Some like the high road, I like the low road,

Free from the care and strife.

Sounds corny and seedy, but yes, indeed-y;

Give me the simple life.

This song says it all. My home, my husband, my children... how could I ask for more?

Occasionally, when I go to check on my children before retiring for bed, I just stare at them. My heart fills with emotion and love unexplainable. What gifts from God!

Life and children can be challenging. But it is also beautiful and rewarding. I try and make this my focus.

A Mother's Love

By: Christine Jackson

The moment life begins love is born;

It soothes the hopes of the forlorn.

Her words a balm for hurt and pain;

Her own needs forgo to beloved's gain.

Whispered words calm, and sooth, balm, and move.

Created to love, to heal, to stand, to feel.

Mirroring the Father's love discovered;

Imparting anew to be uncovered;

By the small ones entrusted in her care.

She envelopes their lives in fervent prayer.

Book Review - Fairest

This story has many similarities to the tale of Snow White.

Gail Carson Levine wrote this heartwarming tale of a maiden named Aza. Aza was abandoned as a baby and left at The Featherbed Inn where she is taken in by the family who owns and runs the Inn. They adopt her, love her, and raise her as their own daughter.

Aza has the loveliest and most enchanting singing voice, which in the musical kingdom of Ayortha is very admired. The kingdom holds regular "Sings" where villagers compose songs, gather, and spend the time singing their songs in turn. They also spend a great deal of their time singing as they go about their day to day activities.

Aza has one obstacle which is constantly on her mind. She is not beautiful, she is not even pretty. In fact, many people stare at her because of her odd looking appearance. Her greatest dream is to be beautiful.

Aza visits the castle where she meets the bewitchingly beautiful queen, and is made her lady in waiting, she encounters a prince who likes her for who she is, and finds a magic mirror where she beholds an image of her beautified self.

Does Aza get her wish? Is it really what she wants?

Aza is imprisoned, escapes, goes on a journey, and discovers there is a lot more to true happiness then outward appearances.

This is an enjoyable tale of love, jealousy, confidence, mercy, and doing the right thing. To me it was well worth the read.

Artist Rob Gonsalves

I made a post a few days ago about a picture book I enjoyed, Imagine a Day. Well it turns out there are three books by this author and illustrator. Imagine a Night and Imagine a Place.

Rob Gonsalves was born in Toronto, Canada. Some refer to his paintings as"Magic Realism" and some call it "Surrealistic".

Whatever you want to call it Gonsalves obviously shows a sense of magic in each of his works. Right now he has 64 paintings and is working on more. This is one exhibit I would love to attend!

These illustrations fascinate me so I thought I would post a few of my favorites. My local library only has the one book but I look forward to reading the rest.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

Chopping Down the Christmas Tree

Today we donned our winter coats, and tromped through woods filled with evergreens in search of the perfect Christmas tree. This is our second year for this adventurous new tradition.

Deeper and deeper we trudged. To short, to bare, to yellow, to Charlie Brown. Finally we found it. My husband took the cover off the hand saw and freed the spruce from its captivity.

One of my favorite parts of Christmas are traditions. Cutting down your own tree, drinking egg nog and listening to Christmas music while you fill the tree with color. Singing Christmas carols while you drive around the neighborhood filling your eyes with red, green, yellow, blue, and orange lights. Sipping a cup of homemade hot cocoa while you sit by a warm fire and gaze at the tree and decorations. And who can forget watching the classics? White Christmas, It's a Wonderful Life, or Charlie Brown's Christmas. Don't you just love tradition?

Anyone have a favorite Christmas tradition?

Book Review - Imagine a Day

I've never had a favorite picture book. There were many I enjoyed, but none have stood out in my mind as much as this 2005 Governor General's Literary Award for Illustrations book. Written by Sarah L. Thomson and illustrated by Rob Gonsalves.

This book comes alive as you turn the pages. The fifteen illustrations by Gonsalves capture you and the words compel and lift you off to a wondrous place where only the imagination can live.

My whole family read the book and we each picked our favorite page. None was the same. Mine was the last.

imagine a day...

... when a book swings open

on silent hinges,

and a place you've never seen before

welcomes you home.

Imagine . . . today

I wish I could have put some of these illustrations up for you to see for yourself. You will just have to use your own imagination. But this book is worth checking out at your local library, or if you have children ages 6-10 buying for yourself. I know I will.

I also discovered there is another one like it by the same team. Imagine a Night. Can't wait to check that one out as well.

Fifteen Years of Bliss

Today, my husband Larry and I celebrate fifteen years of marriage.

Fifteen years ago on this day, my beloved and I stood on a stage of a chapel in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. We committed to love each other and be there for each other for the rest of our lives.

We both took those vows very seriously. Because of that, our marriage remains strong in spite of storms and trials.

When I stood before my husband, our pastor, and a room filled with witnesses, I knew our marriage would last. No matter what came our way, we would love each other through it, and work it out together. Because that's what marriage means. Yes it can be tough, but commitment doesn't mean staying together because you still FEEL the oowwee, goowwee, feelings of love. I am committed to this man, until our lives on earth are done.

So this is to the wonderful man I married. Who can still make me laugh, who can still surprise me with flowers for no reason, and who I cherish watching be a father to our children. And I know he loves me too.

I love you Larry! Happy Anniversary!

Fan Fiction

I have recently (last night) been familiarized with the term fan fiction. (Thank you Beth) I was very puzzled as to why author's choose to do this.

To me, Jane Austen was an incredible authoress ahead of her time. Living in the seventeen and eighteen hundreds, going where no women had gone before.

Pride and Prejudice is probable my favorite novel. However, if a sequel was written, I don't think I would read it. (Maybe someone already has)

The same with this newly published sequel of Sense and Sensibility. Why?

I mean no offense to those who have done this, I just don't understand it. If you are a writer, God gave you the wonderful gift of creativity and you are an original work made by his hand. It is hard for me to understand copies of someone else's genius. You have your own genius in there somewhere.

I'm sure there are many who disagree with me and that's fine. We all have our own unique views, that's what keeps life interesting.

Here is a blurb from the continuation of Sense and Sensibility:

A lost love returns, rekindling forgotten passions… In Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, when Marianne Dashwood marries Colonel Brandon, she puts her heartbreak over dashing scoundrel John Willoughby in the past. Three years later, Willoughby's return throws Marianne into a tizzy of painful memories and exquisite feelings of uncertainty. Willoughby is as charming, as roguish, and as much in love with her as ever. And the timing couldn't be worse—with Colonel Brandon away and Willoughby determined to win her back, will Marianne find the strength to save her marriage, or will the temptation of a previous love be too powerful to resist?

Austen would never have written a novel like this.

I give it one praise, I love the cover.

The Art of Storytelling

Everyone loves a good story. A dashing young prince carries a beautiful young maiden off to a far away land. A sea fairing captain's ship is taken over and pillaged by a band of pirates. A brave knight slays a fierce dragon and saves a terrorized village from coming undone.

A good story has the power to transform us to another time and place. To an imaginary world, where good overcomes evil, and evil pays a high price for his misdeeds.

A suppose this is what fuels my passion for writing. Attempting to tell a story in a new and captivating way that has yet to be told. To enrapture a reader as well as plant a seed of striving at all cost to do what is just and honorable no matter what insurmountable barrier blocks his path.

As I spend hours at my computer punching keys and creating a new world and new character's that have never before been introduced into the hearts of man. I am continually enraptured by the experience. I do not feel as though I am just writing yet another novel that might be read then set aside and forgotten. It is my passion to instill into the hearts of young readers a desire for the written word. For the reader to see their hero do the right thing, and find the courage within. To conquer their fear and defeat the darkness that looms before them. Threatening that all hope is lost and evil shall prevail against good.

I know it's been done before, again and again, and it will continue to be done by writers far more gifted then I. But we all have a voice.

There is someone out there each of us can reach where others may fail. Whether it's writing a novel, singing a song that will move an audience to tears, or simple living a life of integrity before a lost and fallen world.

No man knows exactly what the future holds, but each man holds his future in his hands. What we do with it is up to us. A gift of free choice and free will that no man can take away is ours. What path we take is entirely up to us.