"Blessed are the Peacemakers" by Mike Berenstain

“Blessed are the Peacemakers” by Mike Berenstain is another happy, satisfying story from Bear Country.

Not surprisingly, the antagonists in this tale are Too-Tall and his gang, who target cubs unlike them – especially Ferdy Factual and his friends. Surprisingly, Queenie McBear (of Too-Tall’s gang) and Ferdy earn the main roles in the school’s play of Romeo and Grizzliet . . . and love’s magic takes its toll. When the two stars profess their love on the balcony, Too-tall sheds his role and disrupts the play, and all bears start to push and yell – even Mamas and Papas. At the end, all bears learn a lesson, and the play and the story finish peacefully.

Opening this book after a 20-year hiatus from the Bear Family made me feel as though I was sitting on the couch again curled up next to my mom as she read. I remember also as a kid looking at the titles listed on the back of the books and wishing that I could read all of them, and I found myself doing the same with this book. This is the first book of Mike’s I’ve read, and while I was happy to infer that his books have religious undertones, I was concerned that they might be cheesy. But they weren’t. The peacemaker message was appropriate, concise, and direct, and I appreciated the intentional mention of the Bible. I want to read more of Mike’s books, and I definitely recommend this book to others.

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The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book through BookSneeze®. I was not required to write a positive review. 

Bathsheba Bathed in Grace

Carol Cook’s Bathsheba Bathed in Grace tells the stories of eight Bible women.  

Each chapter is about a different woman: The book tells the stories of Bathsheba, Sarah, Hagar, Rebekah, Leah, Rachel, Tamar, and Eve. Each woman has a story that reveals some darkness: deception, lack of faith, misunderstanding, etc., and Cook shows the reader how each woman came out on top because of their choice to seek and follow God.  

The first couple of stories were interesting, but after that they were predictable and not challenging and didn’t hold my attention. The characters all had the same voice, and the emotion portrayed through the writing style seemed forced and banal. There were a few times when a new idea was presented; Bathsheba’s entire story gave me a new perspective on her role in the affair, and I also hadn’t before related that Jacob deceived his father and then was deceived by Laban. Most of the time Cook’s stories paralleled the Bible stories, but there were times when her conclusions seemed a bit far-fetched.

While I believe that this book was written prayerfully, I do not recommend it to others.

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The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book through BookSneeze®. I was not required to write a positive review. 

The Jeremiah Project Part 1: The Scrapbook

A.J. Foltz’s The Jeremiah Project Part 1: The Scrapbook serves as a basic introduction to the book of Jeremiah.

Each chapter (the book covers Jeremiah 1-10) includes a Prelude, a Chapter Study, a Tag-A-Long, and a Scrapbook Page. The Preludes connect general life experiences to the content in the Chapter Study. The Chapter Studies walk readers through verses – a few at a time – and Foltz asks questions and provides commentary (history, context, etc.) to increase understanding. Answers to the questions are included at the back of the Chapter Study. The Tag-A-Long summarizes the chapter and introduces the next, and the Scrapbook introduces Jesus.

I’d been wanting to read Jeremiah for a while but felt intimidated by the content. When I saw this book, I thought it would provide a simple study and context to drive me into Jeremiah. The information provided in the Chapter Studies was intriguing and informative and propelled me to read the next and the next chapter. I didn’t find the other sections of the chapters to be interesting to me, as I was looking purely for a Bible study – not for stories, interpretations, or sermonettes. However, I can see how these sections could appeal to others. One frustration with the book is that the Bible verses that were often given as places for further study didn’t seem to be relevant to the material and topics they were supposed to be supplementing. I’m thankful that this study took me into Jeremiah, and once finished I continued beyond Chapter 10 and read to the end of Jeremiah.  

This book was helpful to me, but if the author wrote a sequel, I don’t think I would read it. So would I recommend it to others? Not highly, but for some reasons and to some people, yes.  

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The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book through BookSneeze®. I was not required to write a positive review. 

Redifing Leadership: Character-Driven Habits of Effective Leaders

Joseph M. Stowell’s Redefining Leadership: Character-Driven Habits of Effective Leaders offers a gentle and compelling reminder of the importance of leading as Christ led – humbly and modestly.

Immediately, Stowell establishes the difference between outcome-driven leaders and character-driven leaders – and he spends the rest of the book guiding his readers on how to become the latter. Who a leader is as a person is paramount; our results are an effect of our character. Stowell helps his readers to reexamine how they lead and who they are as they lead. He segues into the truth that a leader is ineffective unless he is a follower of God, and he concludes his book by delineating some of the beatitudes from which would-be “kingdom leaders” learn “core kingdom attitudes” (137).

This is a book that I will keep in my professional library and reference often. While the depth of many leadership books that claim to be “Christian” are scrawled Bible verses as chapter subtitles, this book is nearly scripture-based – and at any rate, Biblical principles drive this book’s focus. I will reference this book because it is clear that Stowell seeks the Word and his tips are inspired from it. One of the main ideas that I gleaned from this book is that Jesus was a “countercultural, counterintuitive leader” (89). Our world teaches that leaders need to be confident and results-oriented, but Jesus was humble, modest, reliant, and meek. Stowell titles Chapter 6 “Where Have All The Shepherds Gone” and makes me want to focus on being a shepherd-leader (87).

I recommend this book to others. It is an unpretentious and gracious guide to leading as a follower of The Leader.

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The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book through BookSneeze®. I was not required to write a positive review.

The Nesting Place by Myquillyn Smith

Myquillyn Smith’s The Nesting Place is a crisp, creative, and entertaining read.

Within the pages of Smith’s book readers are challenged to be at one with their space – with their home – whether the building their home currently resides in is a shoddy rental, an unshapely apartment, an empty mansion.

Smith invites her readers to take risks. Paint walls. Even in rentals. Put nail holes in the walls. Broken is beautiful. Stop worrying about the opinions of people who don’t live in the house. Make it a functional, beautiful house for the people who live there. Smith advises her readers on whose opinions to listen to, where to find decorating treasures, and what risks are worth taking.

The comfortable, honest tone of this book makes it easy to engage with. Through sharing her own mistakes and lessons, Smith inspires her readers to take chances with decorating and to embrace and take charge of our spaces. I left her book thinking “yes, I can!” The photos that Smith included of her home added substance to her suggestions. What came across in Smith’s writing is that more than a decorator, she is a homemaker. She has a desire to create beautiful, functional spaces for her family – and she has a desire for other women to do the same. I would read this book again for its soft advice and pleasant reminders about the importance of imperfect beauty.

I recommend this book to others.  

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The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book through BookSneeze®. I was not required to write a positive review.

The Happiest Life by Hugh Hewitt

If read from the perspective given in the introduction – that this book is a gift to the author’s children – it is tolerable. It reads as an autobiography and displays anything but humility from the author.  

As promised on the cover of his book, Hewitt addresses seven gifts and seven givers. Each gift and giver is given its own chapter. Much of the book is consumed with stories and examples from Hewitt’s experiences with guests on his radio show. Hewitt has interviewed many colorful people, and this is clearly evident in his book.

Simply reading the list of what the seven gifts are and who the seven givers are would have been enough for me. They served as solid reminders. However, I found the chapters themselves to be vapid. Hewitt talked at length about his numerous interviews, and I found the prose to be pretentious. The word “wonderful” was used to abundance, and overall I think the book lacked substance, and as mentioned before, humility. Hewitt’s advice about the seven gifts and seven givers almost seemed unattainable for someone who hadn’t had his experiences – but of course they are not. Not that this is a requirement, but the only Biblical mention seemed forced and trite – Bible verses appeared after the title of each chapter.

I do not recommend this book to others.

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The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book through BookSneeze®. I was not required to write a positive review.

The People Factor by Van Moody

Van Moody’s The People Factor is everything the cover suggests it is – efficient, honest, and interesting.

Moody addresses the many types of relationships that people have and confidently but strategically and carefully teaches why some relationships hold us back and others propel us. While giving Biblical and personal examples of relationships good and bad, Moody shows his readers what they are losing by being in toxic relationships and how they can be more effective by changing, ending, or beginning relationships.

On the cover of this book is the statement “How building great relationships and ending bad ones unlocks your God-given purpose.” Often books lure readers with spiritual references and promises and fail to deliver thoughtful, meaningful Biblical study and relativity. Moody, however, delivers. While teaching his Laws of Relationships, Moody delves into Biblical relationships as models for his readers. He does not simply give a passing reference – he searches their lives and stories for relevance for what he teaches. His laws are Biblical and logical. It was satisfying to read a book whose principles for living are authentically grounded in the Word. Reading this book often felt like a Bible study.

I recommend this book to others. Moody’s chapters are intelligent and easily digestible.

http://booksneeze.com/blogger/resources/9781400203048

The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book through BookSneeze®. I was not required to write a positive review.