The Sweet Smell of Magnolias and Memories by Celeste Fletcher McHale, 2017

Click to view
on Goodreads 

Jacey met the man of her dreams a year ago—and hasn’t seen him since. Finally relocating him as the pastor at her best friend’s wedding was the very last thing she expected.

A year ago, Jacey was trapped on a rooftop during a flood with perfect strangers, including a family and a man named Colin. After two days there together, she had no doubt that Colin was the man of her dreams. When they were finally rescued he tucked his phone number into her pocket. But an accident with the rescue boat left her hospitalized with amnesia and PTSD . . . and his number nowhere to be found.

Now, Jacey has still only recovered bits and pieces of her memory from that time. She clearly remembers Colin—but not his last name or any other details that would help her locate him. She’s trying to immerse herself in the joy of her best friend’s wedding . . . when she looks up at the end of the aisle only to discover Colin there in the minister’s role. Shock is an understatement.

On one hand, she’s elated to see him again. And then reality sets in. She never intended to get married or have kids. And being a minister’s wife was definitely never on her list. Was Colin not the man she thought he was? Or has the amnesia changed her more than she realized?

With the typical wit and honesty Celeste Fletcher McHale is becoming known for, it’s time for Jacey to take a fresh look at her life. Could this string of unexpected events have been setting her up for something far better than what she had planned for herself?

(320 pages)

I alternated between loving this book and heavily rolling my eyes at it.

I think the basic scenario of a young couple who were brought together and then torn apart by a flood is a very interesting one, and McHale to a large part does it credit. She also, however, adds a lot more plot elements and devices which quickly stretch the story past any semblance of realism. There are too many coincidences, comical misunderstandings, and sudden life-changing decisions for my usual taste, but I was in just the right roll-with-it mood so I could appreciate the emotions of the story without getting buoyed down by logic.

And I did enjoy reading about Jacey and Georgia, quite a bit! Colin irritated me a bit more: he seemed kind of condescending, especially considering his philandering past, and he moved way too fast when Jacey was clearly still grappling with PTSD from the flood. The supporting characters were all well-drawn, though, and all of the main characters had interesting backstories that blended well together.

But seriously, let's go back and hit a couple of the things that have bothered me most since I finished the book. For one thing, the instalove is almost gag-worthy: Jacey and Colin both decide that they must be either in love or at least deeply attracted to each other after spending very little time together, all of which was under very horrific situations which would clearly have been affecting their judgment. They never really had a chance to get to know each other before jumping into things. Also, there are some coincidences that keep their plots entwined about halfway through the book that are just too far out there for me to swallow (though I can't go into them because of spoilers). There's also some mention of the foster care system, which I can't go into too much either, and–as a member of a foster family with quite a bit of experience with "the system"–I thought the representation was a little off. That could just be the result of varying practices across state lines, though, so I'm willing to give it the benefit of the doubt.

The Sweet Smell of Magnolias and Memories was a nice relaxing read, but it was also frustrating in parts. If you're looking for a light read to while away your days, then this is just the sort of forgettable read that could hit the spot.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

You'll Think of Me by Robin Lee Hatcher, 2017

Click to view
on Goodreads 

In a small town in Idaho’s idyllic wine country where the past looms large, can two people realize their individual dreams for the future … together?

Abandoned once too often, Brooklyn Myers never intended to return to Thunder Creek, Idaho. Her hometown holds too many memories of heartache and rejection. But when her estranged husband Chad Hallston dies and leaves his family home and acreage to her and their ten-year-old daughter Alycia, it's an opportunity to change their lives for the better—a chance Brooklyn can't pass up, for Alycia's sake if not her own.

Derek Johnson, Chad's best friend since boyhood, isn't keen on the return of Brooklyn Myers to Thunder Creek. He still blames her for leading his friend astray. And now she has ruined his chance to buy the neighboring ten acres which would have allowed him to expand his organic farm. To add insult to injury, Chad's dying request was that Derek become the father to Alycia that Chad never was. How can he keep that promise without also spending time with the girl’s mother?

Brought together by unexpected circumstances, Derek and Brooklyn must both confront challenges to their dreams and expectations. He must overcome long held misconceptions about Brooklyn while she must learn to trust someone other than herself. And if they can do it, they just might discover that God has something better in mind than either of them ever imagined.

(320 pages)

First, let's just acknowledge that the premise of You'll Think of Me is slightly creepy. Brooklyn's husband dumped her penniless ten years ago when he found out she was pregnant, but he decided to track her down and leave her his family land to raise their daughter Alycia. He then proceeds to write to his childhood best friend Derek, whom he'd been promising to sell that same house and land to for years, and told him "yeah, I changed my mind. Also, I want you to be the father I never was to Alycia."

I'm sorry, but . . . what? It doesn't sound like Chad ever paid a penny of child support to Brooklyn in all this time–he owes her big-time! But instead of bequeathing her the money she really needs, he leaves her a dusty old fixer-upper and a bunch of land in a town she hates. Then he asks a friend of his to be Alycia's father, as though he has any parental claim to the girl (or any right to ask a stranger, without Brooklyn's consent, to take on such an intimate role with her daughter!). I feel like Derek never completely acknowledged how messed-up his old best friend's actions really were. Brooklyn does, which is good, but he just skirts around it and talks about "honoring Chad's last wishes" with Alycia.

Setting that aside, though, I did enjoy reading You'll Think of Me. Once in a while, it's nice to just read a fluffy romance book. This one reminded me of that old Sandra Bullock movie, Hope Floats, just with less questionable behavior and more religious lines. This is one of the first Christian romance books I read where I didn't feel like the portrayal of faith was so cheesy it was ridiculous, though, so that's good.

Basically, if you're looking for a fun, fluffy romance read then this fits the bill. It's nothing extraordinarily memorable, but it's entertaining and even meaningful and better than most of the books out there. Once you get past Chad's questionable role in Brooklyn's life, there's a lot of good to be discovered here–the characters are realistic and flawed, the situations are plausible enough, and the relationship that grows up between Derek and Brooklyn is sweet (though I never felt as emotionally invested in it as I'd have liked).

Have you read You'll Think of Me? If so, let us know what you thought of it in the comments section below!

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The Pug List by Alison Hodgson, 2016

Click to view
on Goodreads 

In the fire’s aftermath of insurance battles royal, rebuilding plans, parenting in the face of life’s hard questions and a scorching case of post-traumatic stress, now is absolutely theworst possible time to adopt a dog. But to Alison’s seven-year-old daughter, Eden, it’s the perfect time—and The Relentless Campaign begins.
Until one day Alison peeks inside Eden’s diary—dubbed “The Pug List”—and realizes in one fell swoop that her girl’s heart is on the line, and resistance is futile (“The pugs make me happy FOREVER.”).
Enter “Outrageous” Oliver, and the hilarity, healing, and irresistible hope that follows.

(208 pages)

My mom read this and thought it was boring. I can kind of see where she's coming from - the description of their search for a pug definitely could have been more compact - but I still disagree.

I mean, can you imagine how horrible it would be to have your house burn to the ground? You say "yeah, that would be horrible," but in the back of your head you think that it's a pretty small disaster in the grand scheme of things - at least no one in Hodgson's family died, right?

But think about it. Every CD you own, every book, every photo and purse and item of clothing and piece of furniture. All of it is gone, and you'll never get it back. Ever.

I'm going to go off to college next year. In many ways, as a homeschooler, I'll be at a disadvantage when it comes to adjusting to college life. In another very real way, however, I'll have an advantage. Why? Because I've moved house seven times in my short life. My identity, my home, isn't any one set of four walls, and I won't be one of those kids who go through the shock of moving for the very first time. No, I'll have my books and my quilt and my dresser knick-knacks and my Taylor Swift collage - and I'll be home. It takes very little to make me feel at home, because my physical sense of belonging is tied to objects instead of to a building.

All that to say, I can't imagine how horrible it would be to me if our house burned down. I would move into a different residence, of course - but then I wouldn't have my belongings to make me feel at home, and I would be miserable. That's why, while I was reading The Pug List, my heart constricted. I can't imagine the horror of losing every single thing I ever owned. I don't think I could take it as well as the Hodgons did; I'd become obsessed with replacing every single item I'd lost, and then I'd be tortured about the things I would never be able to get back, and I'd cry myself to sleep over all of the memories tied to the things lost in the fire. I'm not even joking, I would literally break down over just the thought of, say, that random keychain my grandfather gave me ten years ago which shows up underfoot every six months. I'd think about how I could never see that little heart keychain again, and I - well, I just wouldn't be able to handle it.

So I guess you can see why I was so fascinated with watching the Hodgsons dealing with and moving past the fire. If the very thought of losing my stuff is so upsetting to me, how did they do it? How did they get through the trauma of watching their life disappear? That's the question that will lure readers in and keep them. It's certainly what hooked me, and I think I learned the answer: you push through because there's nothing else you can do. You have no choice but to roll with the punches.

I just hope I'll never have to roll with a punch as big as losing everything I own.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers program in exchange for an honest review.

NKJV, The Chronological Study Bible from Zondervan, 2016

Click to view
on Goodreads 

The Chronological Study Bible presents the text of the New King James Version in chronological order - the order in which the events actually happened - with notes, articles, and full-color graphics that connect the reader to the history and culture of Bible times. It is the only NKJV study Bible arranged in chronological order.
Features include:
The entire NKJV text with translators’ notes, arranged in chronological order, provides absorbing and effective Bible study
Full-color illustrations of places, artifacts, and cultural phenomena give the reader a dramatic, “you are there” experience
Fascinating articles connect the Bible text to world history and culture
Daily Life Notes explain how people lived in Bible times
Time Panels and Charts show the flow of Bible history
In-text and full-page color maps of the biblical world assist study

(1728 pages)

I've been fascinated by the idea of reading the Bible chronologically for . . . maybe two years now? One day the idea just popped into my head: it would be so cool to read the Bible in the order that it was actually written. I talked my brother into joining me on a "read the Bible in two years" challenge, with a document I'd printed off of the internet that listed daily readings in chronological order. But you know how it is - life happened, I got busy, and soon I fell so far behind I felt guilty even looking at the reading schedule. It's been so long since I worked on it that when I went to find the sheet to figure out where to start reading in this Bible, I couldn't even find it. I guess my only consolation is that my brother stopped remembering to do it before I did!

Anyway, when I saw that BookLook Bloggers had some chronological Bibles available for review, I immediately shifted my review schedule so I could clear up a credit on the site to request one when it came out. I even seriously considered requesting two Bibles, one in each of the colors, because I'md developing quite the Bible-collecting fetish and because maybe my brother would be motivated to start reading with me again if I gave him a cool new chronological Bible. I decided it would be wrong to take two Bibles when I only needed one to write this review (considering they're identical in all but the cover), so I just stuck with this one. And what a joy it is!

I mean, honestly, this Bible is everything I could have hoped for. It has a beautiful soft-bound faux leather cover in calm shades of brown (which are lighter than the ones in the picture, BTW), and a pretty light brown ribbon I can use to mark my place. Right there it's already leaps and bounds ahead aesthetically when compared to the two Bibles I've gotten the chance to review in the past - both of those were hard-bound, with no ribbons, and had frankly ugly covers. This is a dignified Bible that actually looks like people would use it in a Bible study, whereas the others looked like Bibles they'd hand out to church newcomers or something.

Once you actually crack the spine, there's a plethora of details that put the biblical events in a historical context. Rather than being divided into the traditional "books of the Bible," because it's a chronological Bible it's organized into nine epochs that literally cover every time period from creation to the end times. Each epoch begins with a page or two of explanations that describe what we know about the time periods covered by that epoch. Scattered throughout the text are further details and explanations in areas like art, beliefs, science, etc., as well as boxes that answer questions raised by the text. If you're looking for a particular verse or word, there's a large concordance and a passage index that can help you find whatever you're looking for; there are also plans for a one-year and a two-year reading plan (which I definitely think I'll give another go), and a few pages for writing notes if you're a note-writing sort of Bible reader (I am not).

Honestly, the only real trouble I have with this Bible is the translation itself. Now don't be me wrong, I haven't got anything against the NKJV. The trouble, though, is that the translators had to add a few words to the text to make many of the sentences actually make sense. And when they did, they didn't just say "this is a translation, so we had to add some words here or there to make it readable." No, they said "we'll add all these words, but we'll put them in italics so you know that they're not original." And that's fine for people who care about which words are original and which ones the translators added, but it does make for some choppy reading when every few lines I come across some really funky italics in the middle of some otherwise ordinary sentence about, like, heads of sheep or something. Because they're not "heads of sheep," they're "heads of sheep." I can get used to it, but I do wish that the italics weren't there.

Anyway, if you have any questions about this Bible that I didn't answer feel free to leave them in the comments section below. And if you've ever tried to read the Bible chronologically, let me know how it went or if you have any tips!

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this Bible from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers program.

Unstuffed by Ruth Soukup, 2016

Click to view
on Goodreads 

STUFF. It's everywhere. Lurking in corners and closets, spilling onto counters and coffee tables, creating havoc everywhere we look. And it's not just the physical clutter that weighs us down. Oh no, it is the stress of overbooked schedules, and the weight of life that sometimes feels oppressive and totally out of whack.
New York Times bestselling author Ruth Soukup feels your pain--she has been there too. Through personal stories, Biblical truth, and practical action plans, she will inspire and empower each of us to finally declutter not just our home, but our mind and soul as well. Unstuffed is real, honest, and gets right down to the question we are all facing--how can we take back our lives from the stuff that is weighing us down?

(224 pages)

This book reminds me of another self-help guide I read lately, Gretchen Ruben's habit-formation guidebook Better Than Before. With all due respect to what was a pretty good book, I have to say that I like this one a lot more.

And it's not even that the tips are so much better (to be honest, there's actually a certain amount of overlap). No, the biggest draw with this book is that Soukup is just so relatable and nice that I feel like she actually knows what she's talking about. Ruben may have been a huge busy-body sticking her nose into other people's habits, but it was pretty clear she was also a rather self-righteous control freak. To be perfectly honest, there are days - many days - where I fit that description. I don't, however, really enjoy being inside the brain of someone else like that. With Soukup, however, I can see myself in a different way: I see the messy house, the everyday calamities of living with kids, the exasperation of all that junk everywhere.

I mean, I'm not even really the target audience for this book. I'm a seventeen-year-old high school student, not a mom with a house full of junk. My control freak tendencies, however, have driven me toward finding better ways to quell the stream of stuff that's always flowing around my room. Soukup's advice is basically "get rid of everything you haven't used in a while and/or don't care about." While I'm definitely not as ruthless as she is (I see memories where she sees opportunities to cut sludge), and I'm still very much in the "there's got to be a perfect way to organize all of this without throwing stuff away" phase, I can still appreciate her advice's value - though mostly for other people.

The second half of the book actually isn't really about unstuffing your house at all; it's about unstuffing your life. I really loved Soukup's advice in those chapters, even though I was initially caught off-guard by the switch. Her advice about making sure you get more sleep definitely affected me (I immediately downloaded Sleep Cycle, the app that she recommended, and I already love it!), and her admonition to make sure you're not overworking yourself really struck me in my current pre-AP-exam frenzy. In the past six months I've moved across the country, had wrist surgery, struggled with the College Board through the process of getting a computer accommodation, debated whether and then decided to get braces, and struggled through the process of making new friends after the move - not to mention keeping up with my four AP classes and, of course, studying for the exams (that are now in less than two weeks - eep!). Soukup's advice to pace yourself, to allow yourself room to breathe, is exactly what I needed to be reminded of right now. I have to recognize the fact that I'm under a lot of stress right now, and I need to make an effort to carve out space in my schedule to detox from it.

Which I'll definitely do . . . after my AP exams. Summer has never looked so inviting.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers program.

NIV Understand the Faith Bible from Zondervan, 2015

Merry Christmas! It's a complete coincidence that I'm posting a review of a Bible on Christmas - or is it? Who knows, maybe this is God's hand at work. Whatever the case, I hope you have a blessed holiday full of friends, family, presents, and fun. Tell me below what your favorite holiday tradition is!

The NIV Understand the Faith Study Bible provides a deep grounding in Scripture. You will appreciate the way this Bible keeps the joyful, astounding nature of the gospel always in view when addressing doctrine and the pressing questions about faith. Its content will help you understand what you believe and why while inspiring you to live for God.(1504 pages)

Yes, this is a Bible.

Like a real, honest-to-goodness Bible. The Holy book. What am I doing reviewing it? That is an excellent question, and one I'm honestly still asking myself. All I can say is that the BookLook Bloggers program, which I joined for its regular novels, also offers Bibles. And I was stressed out, because I'd just moved, and I had two credits to request whatever I wanted, and the next thing I knew a brand-new Bible was showing up on my doorstep.

It's a hardback, and it kind of look like the sort of Bible you'd find in a church pew or at youth group or something. When you take the red dust jacket off, underneath it's solid black, very traditional (and slightly boring compared to my last two Bibles, which were both pink). When I was flipping through it I found an article I wanted to save, but I couldn't because there was no ribbon. So on the whole I'm really not a huge fan of the physical aspects of the Bible - it's much too ugly and not quite functional enough for my tastes. I'm sure there are people who would like this hard binding and the black cover, though - it's just a matter of taste.

As for the internal stuff, the font is a good size, nice and big so it's very comfortable to read. I have a pocket Bible that my grandparents gave me when I got baptized that I love to pieces, but I practically need a magnifying glass to read a passage. No sight enhancements needed for this Bible! That does mean it's pretty chunky, though - about 1500 pages. Definitely not for the faint of heart, or the weak of wrists - I've had to be very careful not to accidentally pick it up with my bad hand.

The supplementary material, the "study" part of the "study Bible," is actually really awesome. In my previous Bibles I've struggled with the supplementary material because it was so distracting that it tore my attention away from reading the Bible itself (and because sometimes the neatly-packaged answers they offered to some questions were a little too convenient and touchy-feely for my tastes). With this Bible, though, the focus is mainly just on the text itself and then scattered every bunch of pages is a block of text, which falls into one of these categories: Doctrine 101, Everyday Faith, Culture Connections, Living Parables, and Up For Debate. I love that they delineate between truly essential beliefs (such as the fact that Jesus is our Redeemer), and ones that are openly debated between different denominations (such as evolution and predestination), putting issues from the latter category into boxes marked "Up For Debate."

On the whole, this is not a very attractive or portable Bible, so I'm not sure I'll really be taking it with me places. It is, however, very good as what it was made to be: a study Bible. I'm excited to start using it in my personal Bible reading, and to continue exploring the wealth of materials scattered throughout the text!

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this Bible through the BookLook Bloggers program.

The Looney Experiment by Luke Reynolds, 2015

Click to view
on Goodreads 

Atticus Hobart couldn't feel lower. He s in love with a girl who doesn't know he exists, he is the class bully's personal punching bag, and to top it all off, his dad has just left the family. Into this drama steps Mr. Looney, a 77-year-old substitute English teacher with uncanny insight and a most unconventional approach to teaching. But Atticus soon discovers there's more to Mr. Looney's methods than he'd first thought. And as Atticus begins to unlock the truths within his own name, he finds that his hyper-imagination can help him forge his own voice, and maybe just maybe discover that the power to face his problems was inside him all along.

(208 pages)

Hmm. This one looked a lot better in the description.

I mean, it looks good, doesn't it? The synopsis makes it look like a sort of mix between Dork Diaries (or whatever it's called - Diary of a Teenaged something, maybe? I don't read them, in case you couldn't tell) and the Terupt books (which I have read - and loved!). I always like a good coming-of-age story, and books about kids with crazy-but-super-effective teachers are kind of my secret addiction. So I snapped The Looney Experiment up when I saw it available for review - and now I'm wishing I hadn't.

Because for one thing, they swear too much. And fart too much. I get that Atticus and his classmates aren't little kids, but it's still a little excessive that they have to be using the A word all the time. And I can forgive some of the farting because Atticus' little brother is pretty young, but I still don't really enjoy reading about it. There's only so much family bonding over flatulence that I can stomach, okay?

And in a way The Looney Experiment is meaningful - after all, Atticus learns some very valuable lessons from Mr. Looney! - but it also felt pretty fake. I mean, we're basically told (and not shown) that Mr. Looney is this awesome teacher, but all he really does is really nutty antics that shock his students into thinking he could be someone cool. To be perfectly honest, I would probably have behaved more like Danny than like Atticus when they all made a conga line and danced around the classroom.

As for the girl - yikes! I feel bad, because I know that kitschy middle-school romances are part and parcel with reading MG these days, but I just couldn't really handle it. They're, like, twelve. I don't care if she's nice, she's still six years from reaching majority! When I was that age, I wasn't even thinking about romance, let alone crushing on guys or wanting to go out with them. Reading about Atticus' clumsy attachment to Audrey is cute in a way, but the whole thing just isn't handled well enough to keep me invested. I know it's possible for me to enjoy MG romances (just look at the Willow Falls books by Wendy Mass, or The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt - links go to my reviews), but there was nothing doing this time.

I just don't know. I don't know who I would give this to, or why, or when. It's got some great themes and messages, don't get me wrong, but there are so many other books out there that cover all of this same material in a more tasteful way (or at least in a way that's more to my taste). If it looks good to you, go for it - maybe it's more your cup of tea than it is mine. But I won't be recommending The Looney Project in the future, and I'm donating my copy to the local book swap.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book through the BookLook Bloggers program in exchange for an honest review.

You Can't Sit With Us by Nancy Rue, 2014

Synopsis (from Goodreads):
According to the Ambassadors 4 Kids Club, one out of every four students is bullied-and 85% of these situations never receive intervention. Parents, students, and teachers alike have amped up discussions on how to solve the bullying problem for a networked generation of kids.
Written by bestselling author, Nancy Rue, each book in the Mean Girl Makeover trilogy focuses on a different character's point of view: the bully, the victim, and the bystander. The books, based on Scripture, show solid biblical solutions to the bullying problem set in a story for tween girls.
You Can't Sit With Us tells the story of Ginger Hollingberry, a new sixth grader at Gold Country Middle School. Ginger has been the brunt of teasing and taunting from the queen bee of GCMS. Kylie Steppe, and her so-called Wolf Pack. Kylie and the Pack favor a new and especially hurtful medium of taunting: social networking. What follows is a candid look into the growing world of cruel cyberbullying, showing kids that bullying doesn't always end at school-it can now follow you even into your home and torture 24 hours a day.
(224 pages)

I'm still buzzing from this. I joined the BookLook Bloggers program over the winter holiday, and requested this from the available titles. They sent it in the mail and it came the other day. I can't describe the feelings rushing through my mind as I pulled my new book out of its box. I got a real, actual book (for free!) in real life, just because of my blog. It was like a reward for all the work I've put into this blog, and that was amazing.

Okay, now for the book itself. Apart from being a symbol of my moving up in the blogging world, what did I think of You Can't Sit Here? Well, it was okay. The options were kind of mediocre when I picked it, so I just went with this one on the basis of its pretty cover (blue is my favorite color!) and its message about bullying. I figured that even if it was really bad, at least it was aiming to be good! 

The thing about this book is that it is, above all else, an anti-bullying book. The plot, the characters, the dialogue - everything revolves around bullying. Learning to cope when you're being bullied, self-esteem exercises to do when the bully puts you down, ways to discourage the bully from focusing on you. If I were being bullied at school, I would love this book with all its messages about self-worth and practical tips for coping and turning to adult help. As it is, I'm the biggest bully on the playground - otherwise known as the oldest kid in a homeschool family.

Apart from its important message, the book is pretty mediocre. The characters are practically caricatures (the shy, insecure girl being bullied by the pure evil bully and her personality-less wannabes, the clueless parent, the empathetic anti-bullying counselor, etc.), and the basic plot concepts pretty unrealistic. Ginger is terrified that the rumors about her mother's fatal car accident will reach home, where her father will then curl into a miserable ball at the thought of her mother's death and forget to take care of her, and her grandmother will take custody of Ginger and her brother. There is also a school Code that was established in the first book of the series (It's called So Not Okay, and I haven't read it). The teachers are so incredibly sensitive to bullying that if someone even snaps at a classmate, they have to go to anti-bullying counseling during lunch. I get the idea of this, and it's really nice to see teachers so worried about stopping bullying. But seriously? There's such a thing as too sensitive!

Ginger alternates between being "smarter than people think" and make really stupid assumptions, like her belief that her grandmother will take custody away from her father if he so much as hears the nasty rumors going around about her mother's death. I alternately loved her (especially when she was working on her Lord of the Rings project with her new friend Colin), and hated her (mainly when she was acting so idiotically). She's an okay character for this sort of message-driven book, but if she were in a character-driven novel I'd be pretty unimpressed.

I don't think I'd ever have picked this up unless it was in the BookLook program. I enjoyed reading it, and I definitely enjoyed receiving it, but I don't think it's anything special. If you're hunting for a good, biblically-based book about dealing with bullies, then this should be right up your alley. Otherwise, you're probably fine skipping this one.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.