Summer Reading List

Well, I took almost two weeks off from my facebook page and blog to de-clutter my time and help me to refocus and make a plan for this fall. I'm starting homeschooling with Kinsey, which is pretty simple at her age, just lots of reading and we play learning games and then I read to her some more.

As you can guess, all that reading has helped us to make fast friends with our new local library in Fort Mill, and I'm happy to say that I have been reading a lot too because of the social networking break. I've found it helps to pass the time on really hot days when it is way to hot to go outside to play/clean/do anything but sit under a vent.
Already I've put a pretty good dent in my summer reading list and added to it some.

What I've read so far:
    The Strong Willed Child by Dr. James Dobson
    The Centurion's Wife by Davis Bunn & Janette Oke
    The Prophet (from the Sons of Encouragement series) by Francine Rivers
    Unashamed, Unveiled, and Unspoken (the Lineage of Grace series) by Francine Rivers
    The Swan House by Elizabeth Musser
    Katrina's Wings by Patricia Hickman
    As High as the Heavens by Kathleen Morgan

Currently Reading (or have in possession to read):
    The Scribe (Sons of Encouragement series) by Francine Rivers
    Green (Circle series) Ted Dekker
    Entering the Presence of God by Derek Prince
 
Updated List of Remaining Titles:
    The Priest, The Warrior, The Prince (Sons of Encouragement series) by Francine Rivers
    Black, Red, and White (Circle series) by Ted Dekker
    Appointment in Jerusalem by Lydia and Derek Prince
   Quaker Summer by Lisa Samson
    Plain Perfect by Beth Wiseman
    The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven by Kevin Malarkey
    The Azusa Street Mission and Revival by Thomas Nelson
    The Floor of Heaven by Howard Blum

So there you have it. My summer reading list, updated and revised, and here are a few of my opinions on the books I've read so far. Right off the bat I'm going to say don't bother reading 'As High as the Heavens', it was a predictable as all get out. It was also a sappy romance type that even though it had a weak strand of Christian principles in it, was very lacking in spirituality and there were even romantic parts that I skipped over because I felt they were too details for any good Christian to read. That again, is just my opinion, but we women live a lot in our minds, so why feed our minds unrealistic fantasy that will only make us bitter with reality.
On to the next few - I love all the books by Francine Rivers in the series of Sons of Encouragement (5) and the Lineage of Grace (5). She takes Bible characters and builds a real life type story around them. The ones I've read so far were about Tamar, Bathsheba, Rahab, Amos, and Silas. So good, and very well written to teach about the culture of the times. Which leads me to another Bible character type book, the Centurion's Wife, which was based in Bible times. It was so cool to read about the times right after Jesus has died and to the time when He eventually ascended. My only grumble was that the story ended quite abruptly and there is no sequel, so I'm left with my mind trying to finish it because I don't feel as thought the writer did. I even checked at the end to make sure that none of the last few pages had been ripped out and missing, that is how abrupt I felt it was.
Now lastly, another few titles that I want to rave about, they were that good. Katrina's Wings and The Swan House are both stories based in the south, one during the 70's and one in the 60's. Both were coming of age type books, as two women find their identities while also discovering Christ in their respective cultures. The word pictures in Katrina's Wings was amazing, and The Swan House just made you ache with the main character. I like books where I can feel like I am a part of them because they are just that real.
So, if you like to read and want a few good books to check out, then I highly suggest these and a few others I've read in the past few years.
Some titles that I like to tell everyone about are: Perpetua by Amy Rachel Peterson, Winter is Past by Ruth Axtell Morren, and Prophet by Frank Peretti - also by Peretti, When Heaven Weeps, and The Martyr Song, and This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness.
All of those I would highly recommend, not all of Frank Peretti's books are scary.

Since summer is almost over, make a fall reading list. As the weather finally starts to get colder and colder (which can't seem to happen soon enough for me right now), it is always nice to curl up with a good book. Blessings.