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Monday, May 7, 2012

Off the Shelf - April

Our favorite reads in April.

Picture Books

 
A Seed is Sleepy - Dianna Hutts Aston
Another favorite author of nature books for young children.

Everybody Cooks Rice - Norah Dooley
We've enjoyed all the books in this series sharing the joys of eating in different cultures. Prepare to want to try some of the recipes in the back of the book.

The Boy Who Drew Birds - Jacqueline Davies
Lovely picture book about John James Audubon. Another beautiful book for children that is less story but contains some of Audubon's own paintings is Into the Woods by Robert Burleigh
 
Chapter Books

Eric in the Land of Insects - Godfried Bomans
My children loved this story of a boy who shrunk the size of an insect and explores an ant colony, and earthworm tunnel and much more. 

The Jungle Book - Rudyard Kipling
It may tell you something about the hours spent in the van this month when I say that the next three books were all listened to in audio books downloaded from Books Should Be Free. An excellent way to listen to old classics.

Belgium Twins - Lucy Finch Perkins
I love Perkin's Twin books but they are hard to find. This one is based on a true story from World War 1 in Belgium.

 Heidi - Johanna Spyri
Who doesn't fall in love with the little Swiss girl and Alm Uncle?

Adult Books

Rumors of Water -L. L. Barkat
An short book combining thoughts on writing, inspiring creativity, and motherhood. I bought this one for a friend but had to inhale it before I wrapped it up!

Silent Tears - Jan Bratt
An American whose husband was sent to China for business volunteered in a Chinese orphanage and her life was changed. This book is based on her journals and rambles but I still enjoyed it. If it is possible to enjoy reading stories that break your heart.



Evidence Not Seen - Darlene Deibler Rose
What's with the sad books this month? Back when I was a teen (that makes me sound old!) I heard a recording of Darlene Deibler Rose's testimony of her imprisonment in a Japanese prison camp during World War 2. The story was gripping. I've never forgotten the miraculous ways God provided for Darlene. Once, as she waited for her execution in solitary confinement on death row, she prayed for a banana and God gave her 92 bananas, plus saved her life.

I always wanted to read Darlene's book some day and on a whim, ordered Evidence Not Seen from Amazon last month. By the time I finished reading of Darlene's experience as a pioneer missionary in the jungles of New Guinea, her arrest by the Japanese, the death of her husband, and the miraculous protection of God, the book was splashed with tears. Though Darlene saw terrors I don't want to imagine, the overall message of the book is one of hope. God's promise that He will never leave or forsake His children was true in Darlene's life repeatedly.

I could write pages to tell you about what I learned about answered prayer,  knowing the will of God, grief, and faith in an all-knowing God. But go have your own faith strengthened - read Evidence Not Seen yourself.

Have you ever read a book that impacted your life in a life changing way?

 And remember Tuesday is the last day for the discount on Simply Organized.

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6 comments:

  1. I love the books, Everybody Cooks Rice and Everybody Bakes Bread. I used to use them for our unit on communities and Japan when I taught second grade. I would love to read Evidence Not Seen.

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  2. Hi Gina - there have been a number of books that have really affected the way I think of things. I am going to do a post soon about them but one was by a lady called Christina Noble 'Bridge Across my Sorrow'. She had a terribly difficult life but her strength of character and faith enables her not just to survive but to make a difference to hundreds of street children in Vietnam. It is well worth reading but it harrowing in parts. xxx

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  3. Gina,

    I read Evidence Not Seen last spring. I do believe that this is the best book I have ever read (aside from Scripture). The story is so compelling, but it's not just that. The story is so beautifully written; her word choice creates such pictures in the mind that you feel as though you are right there in the moment with the author. I, too, cried through much of the book. I was greatly challenged in my own prayer life.

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  4. Evidence Not Seen is my favorite missionary story! I read it last year and this year the ladies from our Fellowship will be reading it. I'm saving my post about the book until then. My favorite point in the book was how Darlene Deibler Rose thought she was called to be a missionary to the tribes people but wound up being a missionary in the POW camp.

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  5. Evidence Not Seen is one of the best books I've ever read. I first heard Darlene's story in a play that was put on at my college. Later my mother-in-law gave me the book, and I've read it a couple of times. I shared it with a friend who loved it, too. I think it is time for me to re-read it soon!

    Also, I don't know if this would be useful to you or not, but this site has a list of free childrens' ebooks for Kindle and a bunch of the Twin books are listed: http://www.walkingbytheway.com/blog/?p=715545 Even if you don't have a Kindle you may be able to download and read them on your computer--not sure, but it may be worth a try. I believe Amazon has a free thing you can download to read Kindle books on a computer. Anyway, just thought I would mention it. :)

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  6. Hi Gina - I have nominated you for the Sunshine Award. Please do not feel obliged to accept it but if you would like pop over to my blog for details. Lily. xxx

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