Jane Austen (Christian Encounters Series)

I was so pleased to find this book about Jane Austen, especially since I am currently in the middle of directing Pride & Prejudice at our local community theatre. It is a look into the life of Jane (“Jenny”) Austen, who wrote her three most popular works before she turned twenty-four, and died at the early age of forty-one. It is a quick read, at only 153 pages, and I would recommend it as easy for anyone over the age of twelve. Jane's Christianity is looked at along with all the other factors in her life, such as her family and her social standing in society, giving a balanced picture of the influences to her works.

My favorite parts of the book were when the author used humor to shed light on Jane's life. He also used many of Jane's own words to show who she was. I carried this book in my purse for a week, it's the perfect size, and read it during my brief free moments. I absolutely fell in love with Jane Austen while reading this book and I have a line of friends waiting to get their hands on it. Many books come into my house and then slide out again after we are finished with them, but this one I plan on keeping on my bookshelf!

Other books in the series cover famous Christians such as Isaac Newton, J.R.R. Tolkien and Winston Churchill.

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Chronological Guide to the Bible

Chronological Guide to the Bible is one of those titles that speaks for itself!  The guide walks the reader through the 9 Epochs of History, placing the Scriptures in chronological order, rather than canonical.  It contains an easy-to-follow checklist from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21, so the reader can walk through the Bible at their own pace.

As a former Seminary Student, I have a plethora of study Bibles, all shapes and sizes, and the thing I like most about this is that it works with any translation.  My best Study Bibles have most of the same content, however, I would love to use this book as part of a Bible Study, where everyone could use the same book, regardless of their personal translation preference.  I also liked that the Contributors include a variety of denominations.

I loved the timelines and maps found in the various sections.  It's a very visually-appealing book, B10 (the 10 year old son) wanted to thumb through it and read it.  He's asked if we can use the book as part of his homeschooling curriculum.  I'm always excited when my kids want to read more!

Overall, I would say that if you have an excellent Study Bible, you could likely print out a "chronological Scripture list" and skip this.  But, if you are working with a group, or want a Bible Study material, this is a good book to keep everyone on the same page.

~Lone Butterfly  )i(


I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Daddy/Daughter Time

Hubby has really enjoyed reading more to GO as she is slowly becoming interested in what we are reading to her.

I've even started getting her books from the library!

Can't wait for her to love reading as much as the rest of our family.

~Lone Butterfly )i(

Reading Out Loud

One of the standard things I see in most homeschooling philosophies is that parents should read aloud to their children.

Some preach the unreasonable (at least in my home) timeline of 2-3 hours of reading per day. Others simply advise parents to choose good, solid books that their children will enjoy hearing. Then there are still others who claim that parents should only read Scripture, and only allow their children to read Scripture.

I love reading - it's one of my favorite pastimes. B10 has been an independent reader for almost a year, but we still enjoy reading books together. One of our favorite times was when we read The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe before the movie came out.

My intention was to do the same for The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, but I cannot find my complete Chronicles collection anywhere! I'm sure it's just lost in the midst of boxes, so I'm not overly concerned. Whilst searching for the book, I came across a stack of children's books from the 40's and 50's.

They are part of a series on Young American Heroes. Focusing on the childhood of Famous Americans. I began the book about Paul Revere and finished it just last night.

It's not outstanding writing, by any means. It's written for 8-10 years old children to be able to read by themselves. However, I enjoyed having both CW and B10 curled up beside me on the sofa, and Hubby sat most nights with our cat on his lap in the side chair. Late yesterday night, as I read the final chapter (which ends with Longfellow's famous poem), I choked up a bit.

Especially when B10 announced that he would always be a Patriot - and he was glad we voted for our Presidents, and didn't serve Kings.

The books aren't easy to find, but they aren't overly difficult either. My Daddy (Granddaddy, JR) has about 10-15 of them in paperback, (reprints). The orange hardback covers are first editions. The illustrations are beautiful to me, simple silhouette drawings that encourage the use of imagination.

I think we will read Jane Adams: Little Lame Girl next, beginning tonight.

What books do you read with your children?

~Lone Butterfly )i(

Eragon and Eldest

So, part of me feels like if I'm going to make an effort to read books this year, then I should be writing some sort of book report afterwards. Like back in school where you would answer questions (or perhaps I should find my extra shoeboxes and make a diorama).

The two books I just finished reading are Eragon and Eldest, the first two books in the Inheritance Trilogy by Christopher Paolini. The story of the author is almost as fascinating as the books. He was a homeschooled kid who graduated from High School at 15 and began writing. He's currently only 23 years old, and finishing up the final book in the trilogy. (We also share the same birthday - WOOHOO for November babies!)

I enjoyed Eragon and Eldest because they embraced the fantasy world I enjoy, especially dragons. I found it interesting on another level, because you can almost see the religious issues that Christopher is dealing with in real life shown in the religious issues that Eragon (and the dwarves and the elves) deal with.

On a scale of one to ten, I give these two books an eight - and I would feel comfortable reading them aloud to B10. It has no "bad" language, very little "sex" (it's mostly immature feelings of love and how they are communicated between the characters), but does involve much death. This doesn't bother me, as the death and bloodshed are not graphic, and the characters deal with it (usually painfully). It's not glossed over. I can appreciate the author asking the reader to deal with the emotional turmoil along with Eragon and his cousin. Overall a great read.

Links to the official websites of the books: Eragon and Eldest