Books, Movies, and Chinese Food

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book! You never know when I might play a wild card on you! Today's Wild Card author is: Melody Carlson and the book: New York Debut (Carter House Girls) Zondervan (May 1, 2009) ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Over the years, Melody Carlson has worn many hats, from pre-school teacher to youth counselor to political activist to senior editor. But most of all, she loves to write! Currently she freelances from her home. In the past ten years, she has published more than a hundred books for children, teens, and adults, with sales totaling mo...

I'm giving away 5 brand new copies of today's book! Leave a comment with your email address so I can contact you if you win. I'll pick a name and announce the winners on Wednesday May 6 . US and Canada addresses only (No PO Boxes). Good luck! PLEASE LEAVE A WAY FO R ME TO CONTACT YOU!!!! ENTRIES WITHOUT CONTACT INFO WILL NOT BE ENTERED. Being modern and manly in today's world isn't always easy. Do you know how to tie a bow-tie, mix a martini, or make a potato gun? Do you know when to get married and how to break up, or the difference between a bock beer and a bitter? Do you know which urinal to choose or how to start a fire with a Coke can? The answers to every man's burning questions are within these pages, from the morning wet shave to the whiskey night-cap, from hunting deer with a .30-06 to wooing women like 007. At a time when the sexes are muddled and masculinity is marginalized, THE MAN'S BOOK unabashedly celebrates maleness. Organized by subject i...

I read this book in 3 hours! It's time to rejoin the SAHM email group and it looks like Rosalyn is back in charge but as a changed person! Instead of her former condescending self, a new women who is trying to be a better person is back. Joining her are the rest of the SAHM group including Dulcie, Zelia , Jocelyn, Paige, etc. New to the group are Iona and Hannah, both with personalities that take the group by surprise. This time the group faces issues such as grad school advisors that won't help, dealing with adoptive children who have emotional problems, being a working mom and having a stay at home husband and trying to find out what the perfect birthday party is. To top it off, the group decides they are going to meet for the first time at a get together. It's never a dull moment being a SAHM ! If you have been a loyal reader of this blog from the beginning, then you know what a HUGE fan I am of Meredith Efken's SAHM series. I was so excited when I heard th...

Returning to her Midwest roots, award-winning author Jane Kirkpatrick draws a page from her grandmother’s photo album to capture the interplay between shadow and light, temptation and faith that marks a woman’s pursuit of her dreams. She took exquisite photographs, but her heart was the true image exposed. Fifteen-year-old Jessie Ann Gaebele loves nothing more than capturing a gorgeous Minnesota landscape when the sunlight casts its most mesmerizing shadows. So when F.J. Bauer hires her in 1907 to assist in his studio and darkroom, her dreams for a career in photography appear to find root in reality. With the infamous hazards of the explosive powder used for lighting and the toxic darkroom chemicals, photography is considered a man’s profession. Yet Jessie shows remarkable talent in both the artistry and business of running a studio. She proves less skillful, however, at managing her growing attraction to the very married Mr. Bauer. This luminous coming-of-age tale deftly exposes the...

*Although the books I review on my blog are almost always Christian fiction, there will be a few spotlighted regular titles I will review from time to time.* Shortly before turning 50, TV cooking show personality Augusta “Gus” Simpson discovers that the network wants to boost her ratings by teaming her with a beautiful, young new co-host. But Gus isn ’t going without a fight—whether it’s off-set with her two demanding daughters, on-camera with the ambitious new diva herself, or after-hours with Oliver, the new culinary producer who’s raising Gus’s temperature beyond the comfort zone. Now, in pursuit of higher ratings and culinary delights, Gus might be able to rejuvenate more than just her career. I am a HUGE fan of the Food Network. It is one of the few channels on TV that I watch regularly. I'm not a gourmet chef or a foodie, but it's just so fun watching the shows on there and even better to learn about new foods and restaurants. I haven't read any of Kate Jacob's...

---------Contest closed---------- I'm giving away 5 brand new copies of today's book! Leave a comment with your email address so I can contact you if you win. I'll pick a name and announce the winners on Saturday May 2 . US and Canada addresses only (No PO Boxes). Good luck! PLEASE LEAVE A WAY FO R ME TO CONTACT YOU!!!! ENTRIES WITHOUT CONTACT INFO WILL NOT BE ENTERED. How Not to Look Old the 15-week New York Times bestseller is now in paperback updated with over 150 new Brilliant Buys! Charla Krupp knows that aging sucks! So she's here to help. It's every woman's dream: looking hip, sexy, fresh, and pretty--whether you're in your 30's, 40's, 50's, or 60's. Now it's every woman's necessity: looking younger will help you hold onto your job and your partner--particularly when everyone around you seems half your age. It's about making the ultimate "to-do" list of LITTLE beauty and fashion changes that pay off BIG TIME. C...

My Friend Amy , who brought us Book Blogger Appreciation Week has a new carnival in the works, the Faith 'n Fiction Saturday . Each week she will post a blogging prompt, which participating bloggers will answer on their own blogs. Then they head back to the original post and sign Mister Linky! This way we can all come to know each other more closely. Today's Question Have you seen those books, Finding God in Lord of the Rings, or Harry Potter, or one that is on my shelf (oh yes it is) What Can be Found in LOST? These books often take popular stories that are not about God and find the spiritual elements in them. Well sometimes this happens to me. I'll be watching a movie or reading a book and it has nothing to do with Jesus, but all of the sudden all I can see is Jesus. Has this happened to you? Have you ever read a book that was NOT a Christian book but been able to see spiritual truth or analogies in it? Tell us about a book or if you can't think of a book, a movie ...

Congrats to the winners of Boneman's Daughters! (your emails have been sent, please respond within a week) Lacy Harley I Heart Book Gossip

Just Because “Everyone Believes It” Doesn’t Make It True People don’t set out to build their faith upon myths and spiritual urban legends. But somehow such falsehoods keep showing up in the way that many Christians think about life and God. These goofy ideas and beliefs are assumed by millions to be rock-solid truth . . . until life proves they’re not. The sad result is often a spiritual disaster—confusion, feelings of betrayal, a distrust of Scripture, loss of faith, anger toward both the church and God. But it doesn’t have to be so. In this delightfully personal and practical book, Ten Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe , respected Bible teacher Larry Osborne confronts ten widely held beliefs that are both dumb and dangerous. Beliefs like these: • Faith can fix anything • Christians shouldn’t judge • Forgiving means forgetting • Everything happens for a reason • A godly home guarantees good kids …and more. Larry Osborne is a teaching pastor at North Coast Church in Vista, Californ...

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Elisha's Bones (Bethany House March 1, 2009) by Don Hoesel ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Don Hoesel was born and raised in Buffalo, NY but calls Spring Hill, TN home. He is a Web site designer for a Medicare carrier in Nashville, TN. He has a BA in Mass Communication from Taylor University and has published short fiction in Relief Journal. He lives in Spring Hill with his wife and two children. Elisha's Bones is his first novel. ABOUT THE BOOK Every year, professor of antiquities Jack Hawthorne looks forward to the winter break as a time to hide away from his responsibilities. Even if just for a week or two. But this year, his plans are derailed when he's offered almost a blank check from a man chasing a rumor. Billionaire Gordon Reese thinks he knows where the bones of the prophet Elisha are--bones that in the Old Testament brought the dead back to life. The bones of the prophet once raised the dead to life... but they van...

Before the snake, the apple, and the Ten Commandments, God created a garden, placed humans in it, and told them to take care of it. “Spiritual environmentalism” did not start out as an oxymoron—it was an invitation. Yet today, many believe God’s original job description for humankind has been replaced by other worthier pursuits. So when did this simple instruction become so controversial? How does one sort through all the mixed messages? Is making the world a healthier place for the next generation really a responsibility—or even possible? Gardening Eden is a new understanding of how the spiritual dimensions of life can find expression and renewal through caring for our incredible planet. Empowering, simple, and never polemical, Michael Abbaté outlines the Bible’s clear spiritual benefits of caring for creation, exploring new motivations and inspired ideas, and revealing the power of our basic connection to all people and living things through the growing interest in spiritual environ...

Congrats to the winners of I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti! (your emails have been sent, please respond within a week!) JaniceH Andrea/purplg8r Estela lilbabypug Laura

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book! You never know when I might play a wild card on you! Today's Wild Card author is: Jenny B. Jones and the book: So Not Happening (The Charmed Life) Thomas Nelson (May 5, 2009) ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jenny B. Jones writes adult and YA Christian Fiction with equal parts wit, sass, and untamed hilarity. When she's not writing, she's living it up as a high school speech teacher in Arkansas. Visit the author's website . AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER: One year ago my mom got traded in for a newer model. And that’...

Today Ted Dekker was featured on Center Street's Blog Talk Radio program where he was interviewed. You could call in and ask him questions....and I did!!! http://www.blogtalkradio.com/stations/HachetteBookGroup/centerstreet/2009/04/20/Live-Interview-w-Ted-Dekker-author-of-BoneMans-Daughters You can hear me here, I'm about 5 minutes in and then I'm the last question, it's about an hour long interview. You can also hear Janna from Cornhusker Academy and Kathy from Bermuda Onion's Weblog as well. I'm really geeked!!!!!!!!! I sound a little bit overexcited but I was really nervous because I love Ted's books!!! How awesome is that! Don't forget to enter the contest to win one of three copies of Boneman's Daughters from my blog.

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Reluctant Cowgirl Barbour Publishing (April 2009) by Christine Lynxwiler ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Chrisitine lives with her husband and two precious daughters in the foothills of the beautiful Ozark Mountains in her home state of Arkansas. Her greatest earthly joy is her family and, aside from doing God’s will, spending time with them is her top priority. She recently took a break from writing romance to pen a Christmas story with a twist. Her Mom Lit novella, My True Love Gave to Me , is part of a 2 in 1 anthology from Barbour entitled All Jingled Out . It’s also included in Simply Christmas , a 4 in 1 Barbour anthology. One of my holiday highlights was seeing Simply Christmas at Sam’s Club a few weeks before Christmas. She has written two other novellas, both romance, which are included in Barbour anthologies, City Dreams , and Prairie County Fair and a serial for the Heartsong Presents book club newsletter – The Carousel Horse...

One of the original winners of the Miracle Girls set did not respond to my numerous emails so I redrew a new winner. Please remember you have a week to send me your info to claim your prize. I always send out an email when I announce the winners, if you see you have won and have not received an email, either leave a comment stating this or use the contact form in the Contact Me section to let me know. Congrats to the new winner of the Miracle Girls series! (your email has been sent, please send a response within a week!) Sandee61

DONE!!! 1. Which hour was most daunting for you? 3-4am 2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? anything that's funny or scary will keep you awake 3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? can't think of any, thought it was great 4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? using tweet grid really helped to keep track of everyone 5. How many books did you read? 19 6. What were the names of the books you read? See Below 7. Which book did you enjoy most? Play It Again SAHM 8. Which did you enjoy least? Vendetta 9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? N/A 10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time? YES!!! Reader again, tons of fun. Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker,Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Cla...

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. Well this is it!!!! I have stayed up for 24 hour reading!!! Title of book(s) reading since last update: From the Ashes, Secrets of My Hollywood Life On Location by Jen Calonita, Cradle of Secrets by Lisa Mondello Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta, Stealing Home, A Promise to Believe in, Take One, Murder at Eagle Summit, A Love to Last Forever, Bayou Justice, Play It Again SAHM, A Silent Terror Number of books read since you started: 19 Pages read since last update: 279 Cradle of Secrets: 65 A Silent Terror: 46 From the Ashes: 86 Secrets of My Hollywood Life On Set: 82 Running total of pages read since you started: 4752 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 50 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 1090 minutes

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. Yes, I'm still up. Don't ask how. Title of book(s) reading since last update: A Silent Terror, From the Ashes Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta, Stealing Home, A Promise to Believe in, Take One, Murder at Eagle Summit, A Love to Last Forever, Bayou Justice, Play It Again SAHM Number of books read since you started: 17 Pages read since last update: 227 Play It Again SAHM: 169 A Silent Terror: 33 From the Ashes: 25 Running total of pages read since you started: 4473 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 50 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 1040 minutes

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. Is the sun out yet? Title of book(s) reading since last update: A Silent Terror, Play It Again SAHM, From the Ashes Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta, Stealing Home, A Promise to Believe in, Take One, Murder at Eagle Summit, A Love to Last Forever, Bayou Justice Number of books read since you started: 17 Pages read since last update: 174 Play It Again SAHM: 174 A Silent Terror: 0 From the Ashes: 0 Running total of pages read since you started: 4246 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 50 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 990 minutes

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. Took another 40 min break, well worth it. Ate some pizza, drank the last of my diet coke, watched some TV. Still hanging in there! Title of book(s) reading since last update: A Silent Terror, Play It Again SAHM by Meredith Efken, From the Ashes by Sharon Mignerey Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta, Stealing Home, A Promise to Believe in, Take One, Murder at Eagle Summit, A Love to Last Forever, Bayou Justice Number of books read since you started: 17 Pages read since last update: 88 Play It Again SAHM: 36 A Silent Terror: 21 From the Ashes: 31 Running total of pages read since you started: 4072 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 20 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 940 minutes

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. Holy crap, I made it to 3am!!!! Title of book(s) reading since last update: A Silent Terror Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta, Stealing Home, A Promise to Believe in, Take One, Murder at Eagle Summit, A Love to Last Forever, Bayou Justice Number of books read since you started: 15 Pages read since last update: 212 Bayou Justice: 68 A Silent Terror: 30 A Love to Last Forever: 114 Running total of pages read since you started: 3984 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 50 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 920 minutes

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. Starting to get hard to stay up, I can feel myself getting tired. Will keep reading though! Title of book(s) reading since last update: A Love to Last Forever, Bayou Justice, A Silent Terror by Lynette Eason Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta, Stealing Home, A Promise to Believe in, Take One, Murder at Eagle Summit Number of books read since you started: 15 Pages read since last update: 190 Bayou Justice: 71 A Silent Terror: 66 A Love to Last Forever: 53 Running total of pages read since you started: 3772 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 50 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 870 minutes

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. Title of book(s) reading since last update: A Love to Last Forever, Bayou Justice by Robin Caroll Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta, Stealing Home, A Promise to Believe in, Take One, Murder at Eagle Summit Number of books read since you started: 14 Pages read since last update: 286 Bayou Justice: 99 Murder at Eagle Summit: 90 A Love to Last Forever: 97 Running total of pages read since you started: 3582 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 50 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 820 minutes

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. Title of book(s) reading since last update: Murder at Eagle Summit, A Love to Last Forever by Tracie Peterson Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta, Stealing Home, A Promise to Believe in, Take One Number of books read since you started: 13 Pages read since last update: 177 Take One: 76 Murder at Eagle Summit: 51 A Love to Last Forever: 50 Running total of pages read since you started: 3296 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 50 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 770 minutes

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. Title of book(s) reading since last update: Take One, Murder at Eagle Summit by Virginia Smith Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta, Stealing Home, A Promise to Believe in Number of books read since you started: 12 Pages read since last update: 238 Take One: 63 Murder at Eagle Summit: 60 A Promise to Believe In: 115 Running total of pages read since you started: 3119 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 50 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 720 minutes

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. In case anyone has been wondering, I've been reading 3 books at a time, alternating after reading 2-4 chapters in each book. Also favorite books so far: Secrets of My Hollywood Life and Comfort Food. I also took a 40 minute break, to walk around and shower. Feel much better and refreshed! Title of book(s) reading since last update: Take One, A Promise to Believe in Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta, Stealing Home Number of books read since you started: 11 Pages read since last update: 114 Take One: 28 Stealing Home: 37 A Promise to Believe In: 49 Running total of pages read since you started: 2881 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 20 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 670 minutes

I think I shall stop every hour at the :50 mark to write up this post and do the mini challenges. Title of book(s) reading since last update: Stealing Home, Take One, A Promise to Believe in Title of finished books: Yuletide Stalker, Comfort Food, Secrets of My Hollywood Life, Daniel's Den, Viva Vermont, A Claim of Her Own, The Face, Vendetta Number of books read since you started: 11 Pages read since last update: 233 Take One: 78 Stealing Home: 69 A Promise to Believe In: 86 Running total of pages read since you started: 2767 Amount of time spent reading since last update: 50 minutes Running total of time spent reading since you started: 650 minutes

Mid-Event Survey: 1. What are you reading right now? A Promise to Believe in by Tracie Peterson and Take One by Karen Kingsbury 2. How many books have you read so far? Finished 9, currently reading 2 3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon? Honestly, not sure. I'm pretty much just grabbing anything from my TBR Pile 4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day? Not really, well I guess I could be doing homework... 5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those? Nope, have no kids and dinner was brought to me :-) 6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far? I can't believe how many books I'm actually reading. 7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? None that I know of, having a great time so far. 8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next...