On My Bookshelf...

So people are always saying what they are reading, and upon thinking about what I have read and been reading this year, I realize that it is quite an eclectic selection of books.

Here are a few of them, in no particular order:

The Guinea Pig Diaries by AJ Jacobs

 

This was a pretty fun, easy read about the author who decides to do a series of life experiments on himself like living for a month being completely honest with everyone about everything, saying yes to everything his wife asks him to do for another month, outsourcing his life to India for another one and so on.  But what I found interesting, and what I found  made the book more credible, is that he actually does research and looks into himself and humanity in general throughout the experiments.  He is very witty and some of his insights are actually pretty interesting.  I just picked this one off the shelf because it had the words 'guinea pig' in the title and then when I saw what it was about, it pricked my interest.

The Sleep Lady's Good Night, Sleep Tight by Kim West


I picked this one up to try to help us figure out Gabriel's sleep issues.  While it didn't solve anything, there are some really good points in this book that helped me develop a sleep routine for him and also helped me to develop a sleep 'schedule' for Jesse.  Jesse is an excellent sleeper, but Kim West just put into words what we had been doing anyway, and she reminded me that it's OK to put Jesse down for a bona fide nap just a short 2 hours after he wakes up in the morning.  Her book is very well organized and is divided by age.

1-2-3 Magic for Christian Parents by Thomas W Phelan and Chris Webb



A friend gave me this book, again to address Gabriel's sleep issues.  But I found that it helped in dealing with Jo's breakdowns, too.  It is a very clearly defined discipline method that is gentle but firm and consistent.  It worked well for Jo, but not so much for Gabriel.  It says that you can start young with the 1-2-3 method, but Gabriel just didn't respond to it.  Maybe I will try again in a few months.

Peace Child by Don Richardson



I finally got my hands on this illusive book.  It is actually part of Elizabeth's curriculum, but after having such a hard time finding it, I figured I wanted to read it and find out what the fuss was all about.  I could totally write a whole post about this book.  It absolutely amazing.  Don Richardson is a missionary who goes with his wife to witness to a cannibalistic tribe in New Guinea.  As he is trying to reach these people who are so totally different than anything that we can even imagine, he sees how God has been laying the groundwork for His Word to be spread there.  The book is a bit graphic in its cannibalistic violence, but that description, I believe, is necessary so that the reader can truly understand what God has done in these tribes.  The part that shocked me the most was that this all took place within the last 70 years or so.  This was an incredible read, one that I would recommend for both the mission field significance as well as just the interest of the book itself.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green


So this is one that I really didn't have much interest in reading.  My friend lent it to my daughter to read, but I told her that she was not allowed to read it until she was caught up on her school reading, but then when a group of the girls went to the book festival last weekend in DC, they were all raving about John Green, so I figured I would read the book to see what all the fuss was about.  It was a good read.  I don't know.  I mean, it was good, but it didn't move me like Peace Child did.  But then, I guess this really wasn't that type of book.  It is about these teenagers who all have cancer, and it is about how they live (and die) and deal with it (living and dying).  I read the book in about 2 days, and I realized that while I was reading it, I was irritable and moody (so maybe it moved me more than I am admitting).  But I found it to be a little too raw for me right now.  With not knowing what if happening with Jo, and with my mind and imagination running wild with the possibilities, this book on cancer and children being terminally ill may not have been the best choice for me.  Or maybe it was.  I don't know.  It was a gripping book, one you don't want to put down, and it raises a lot of questions, at least it did for me.  Do the 'rules' change if you are terminally ill?  I don't know the answer to that one.

Ok, so that's a few of my recent reads.  I will put up more as I remember them and have time.  Sorry for the lousy reviews.  It's late and I'm not a very good review writer unlike her, who is incredible.  In fact, don't go there and read her reviews, because it will make mine look even worse.