A Jane Austen Devotional

Author: Steffany Woolsey

Genre: Devotional, Jane Austen (yup, she’s become a genre…)

Series: Apparently there is a series of devotionals based out of classics, but I would guess they’re all by different authors.

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 9

Type: Non-fiction (based on fiction?! I mean, JA is but the Bible isn’t so…)

Number of pages: 212 (hardcover)

Publisher and price: Thomas Nelson, $15.99

My overall opinion: What a lovely book – and many thanks to Kara for offering me a copy when she was pruning her bookshelves! I did/have/will most heartily enjoy it. There are probably over 100 individual devotionals, each just one spread of pages. Usually one page is a few paragraphs from a Jane Austen book (one of her primary six) – the other side has a few more paragraphs about what life lesson can be gained from the JA excerpt, neatly incorporating Biblical truths and the characters from the JA story. Titles/topics include (among many more): Seeking God’s Counsel, Esteeming Others, Coddling Covetousness, Flirting with Sin, Developing into a Godly Woman, A Changed Man, Obsessing, Silliness, etc. Delightful, right? There are verses backing up each devotional. A must-read for any Jane Austen fan!

Litfuse Blog Tour: Fear, Faith, and a Fistful of Chocolate

Author: Debora M. Coty

Genre: Devotional

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 7.5

Type: Non-fiction

Number of pages: 214

Publisher and price: Barbour, $9.99

My overall opinion: This cute little book is a humorous and inspirational read, crafted to help women face and conquer their fears with God at their side. It’s aimed more at “women” so to speak, as opposed to girls in their teens and twenties. FFFC has a few statistics (what would YOU guess the top three fears among women are? Read the book to find out…), lots of stories (and I mean lots), and a lovely plethora of Bible verses – many of them great for memorizing. It’s full of practical, solid, and good advice, with a fine dose of laughable lines and stories pulling it together. Each chapter (maybe 30 or so?) includes some thoughtful questions at the end, either for doing by yourself or with a group. Fears confronted include everything from losing dear ones to getting older, and lots. Overall, I didn’t give it a real high rating because after all, it is aimed at women older than me. I also went into it expecting Liz Curtis Higgs’ type of humor, which has always made me laugh aloud, and this just wasn’t as funny for me. However, I would none-the-less recommend it for others! Oh, also, for those you who just ADORE girly things...the pages are all pink with white polka dots! Not hard to read it, it's a fairly light (but noticeable) pink. :)

**Litfuse Publicity Group supplied me with this book in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to post a positive review, nor was I paid in any way other than the book.**

Celebrate the release of Fear, Faith and a Fistful of Chocolate with Debora Coty by entering her Kindle Fire Giveaway and RSVPing to the March 7th Author Chat Party on Facebook!

One "sweet" winner will receive:

• A Kindle Fire
• A Debora Coty Library (Fear, Faith and a Fistful of Chocolate, More Beauty, Less Beast, Too Blessed To Be Stressed, and Everyday Hope)
• Chocolate (Every good thing begins with chocolate!)

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends 3/6/13. Winner will be announced at Debora's "Fear, Faith and a Fistful of Chocolate" Facebook Party on 3/7. Debora will be hosting an evening of chat, fun trivia, laughter, and encouragement - bring your friends! She'll also be giving away some GREAT prizes: gift certificates, books, and a book club prize pack! (Ten copies of the book for your small group or book club and a live chat with Debora via Skype.)

So grab your copy of Fear, Faith and a Fistful of Chocolate and join Debora and friends on the evening of March 7th for an evening of fun. (If you haven't read the book, don't let that stop you from coming!)

Don't miss a moment of the fun, RSVP today. Tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 7th!

Need to Read #31: A Hobbit Devotional

 

Title: A Hobbit Devotional

Author: Ed Strauss

Book blurb: If you enjoy J. R. R. Tolkien—even if you’re new to his classic stories—you’ll love A Hobbit Devotional featuring 60 humorous, challenging, and encouraging devotionals. Soon to be a major motion picture, The Hobbit has fascinated readers for more than 70 years. Now, this tale of humble folk who overcome fear, discouragement, and despair through steadfastness, courage, and hope forms the basis of a brand-new devotional book. Each reading sketches a scene from The Hobbit, relates it to a contemporary life situation you might experience yourself, and brings in the teaching of a relevant Bible story or verse.

Quick endorsement: I had high hopes when I asked for this book, and they were not disappointed. Some devotional books based on literature are far too preachy, and come across as boring. But some? Are perfect. This is one of those. Perfect for those of you who are avid Hobbit fans, it incorporates the story and the application seamlessly in an interesting manner. I definitely recommend it.

Link to review: http://austenitis.blogspot.com/2012/10/a-hobbit-devotional.html

Tyndale Blog Tour: Walking with Frodo

Author: Sarah Arthur

Genre: Devotional

Series: Sarah has also written Walking with Frodo but it’s not a series.

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 8

Type: Non-fiction

Number of pages: 194

My overall opinion: I think I liked Ed Strauss’ Hobbit Devotional better, but this one was also an excellent read and very enjoyable. Each chapter will take you 5-15 minutes to read (depending on how fast of a reader you are), and includes a bit of Hobbit story in (naturally) chronological order. After the story part, it goes on to an application, some questions to consider, and five or more Bible passages related to the topic. There are a total of 22 chapters. The questions are amazing (they WILL leave you thinking!). Chapter titles include (among others) Plans Go Astray, Help Un-Looked For, Stick to the Path, True Identity, and Where Your Treasure Is. The book is full of excellent writing, and I would certainly recommend it for Hobbit fans!

**Tyndale sent me this book for free as part of the blog tour that I signed up for. I was not required to review it positively. All opinions are my own.**

Praying for Your Future Husband

Author: Robin Jones Gunn, Tricia Goyer

Genre: Devotional

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 8.5

Type: Non-fiction

Number of pages: 207

My overall opinion: It was a book that convicted me to pray for him! There was a poem in this book by Ruth Bell Graham that I really liked, and I want to include it here.

Dear God

Dear God, I prayed, all unafraid

(as we're inclined to do)

I do not need a handsome man

But let him be like You;

I do not need one big and strong

Nor yet so very tall,

Nor need he be some genius

Or wealthy, Lord, at all;

But let his head be high, dear God,

And let his eye be clear,

His shoulders straight, whate'er his state,

Whate'er his earthly sphere;

And let his face have character,

A ruggedness of soul,

And let his whole life show, dear God,

A singleness of goal;

Then when he comes (as he will come)

With quiet eyes aglow,

I'll understand that he's the man

I prayed for long ago.

Isn't that amazing? She wrote that before she'd even met her future husband, Billy Graham.

Really Bad Girls of the Bible



Author: Liz Curtis Higgs

Genre: Devotional

Series: It's a follow-up to "Bad Girls of the Bible."

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 9.5

Type: Non-fiction

Number of pages: 400 some (large print)

Time period: Bible times

Main characters: Many

Exciting events: Again, many.

My overall opinion: I loved this devotional book! I highly recommend it for all women. I should note that the bad girls in the Bible were bad. So the stories do have some mature stuff in them, BUT it's handled wonderfully. :)

Bad Girls of the Bible

Author: Liz Curits Higgs

Genre: Devotional

Series: There are more Bad Girls of the Bible books, and this was the first one.

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 9.5

Type: Ummm...it's got some fiction, some non-fiction

Number of pages: 441 (but it's large print)

Main characters: Jezebel, Sapphira, other bad Bible women

My overall opinion: It was an absolutely amazing book and I really enjoyed it. I highly recommend it to all young women! What Liz did was first, tell a modern re-telling of the Biblical women's story. Set in modern times, slightly more modernized actions and surroundings, but often with similar names. It was quite easy to recognize which story it was. Then Liz would go through the Bible passage concerning the woman verse by verse, explaining each in an entertaining manner. I really want y'all to read it, then tell me what you thought!