Cindy Woodsmall writes an Amish love story… a story of heartbreak and restoration… written in a way that touched my heart as well. ~  Sheila

My Thoughts:

I read Cindy Woodsmall earlier this year when I had the opportunity to review Hope For Refuge.  Once again I find myself in an Amish setting as I relaxed into a book of a world so different than my own. Beth is a single woman in the Amish country who does not know where she fits.  She feels she is too old to sit with the young single girls, but does not fit with the married groups either.  She lives her days in a state of mourning a loss that has gone on too long, and her family is worried about her future.

In this book I was surprised at the reaction to Beth’s time of mourning being a concern t o those around her.   It seemed that the Amish had a strong feel for the importance of being married.  At first I was thinking that was the Amish way, but as I read more, I know it was more the family not wanting Beth to drown in her grief, and certainly to not live her life alone.  That I would think would be the case for any of us.

A book on grieving and loss hits home for me.  I felt Beth’s need to mourn in her own way in her own time.   I know first had that you can not put a time limit on grief and I think that is where I became sort of stuck in this book.  This book reminds me of forgiveness in yourself… and caused me to take pause, take a deep breath and read on.  When Jonah steps into the book, you are given a romantic interest for Beth and a connection of hearts.   A quick light Christian read with a pleasant flow.

Cindy Woodsmall is a veteran homeschool mom. As her children progressed in age, her desire to write grew stronger. After working through reservations whether this desire was something she should pursue, she began her writing journey. Her husband was her staunchest supporter as she aimed for what seemed impossible.

Her first novel released in 2006 to much acclaim and became a Christian Book Association best seller. Cindy was a 2007 ECPA Christian Book Award finalist, along with Karen Kingsbury, Angela Hunt, and Charles Martin.

I received this book for review from Liz Johnson Publicist
Multnomah Books, a division of Random House

Written with a witty pen that caused moments of out loud laughter and an occasional wipe of the eye, Jess Walters writes a book that takes the pain of financial destruction and twists it into a novel of a man pushed too far and trying to make his way back.  ~  Sheila

Meet Matt Prior. He’s about to lose his job, his wife, his house, maybe his mind. Unless . . .

Following Matt in his week long quest to save his marriage, his sanity, and his dreams, The Financial Lives of the Poets is a hysterical, heartfelt novel about how we can reach the edge of ruin—and how we can begin to make our way back.

In the winning and utterly original novels Citizen Vince and The Zero, Jess Walter (“a ridiculously talented writer”—New York Times) painted an America all his own: a land of real, flawed, and deeply human characters coping with the anxieties of their times. Now, in his warmest, funniest, and best novel yet, Walter offers a story as real as our own lives: a tale of overstretched accounts, misbegotten schemes, and domestic dreams deferred.

A few years ago, small-time finance journalist Matthew Prior quit his day job to gamble everything on a quixotic notion: a Web site devoted to financial journalism in the form of blank verse. When his big idea—and his wife’s eBay resale business— ends with a whimper (and a garage full of unwanted figurines), they borrow and borrow, whistling past the graveyard of their uncertain dreams. One morning Matt wakes up to find himself jobless, hobbled with debt, spying on his wife’s online flirtation, and six days away from losing his home. Is this really how things were supposed to end up for me, he wonders: staying up all night worried, driving to 7-Eleven in the middle of the night to get milk for his boys, and falling in with two local degenerates after they offer him a hit of high-grade marijuana?

Or, he thinks, could this be the solution to all my problems?

My Thoughts…

In all honesty, the title of this book, the cover too… this would have been a book that I more than likely would have passed on if I had seen it in the book store.  I am here now writing this review telling you not to do that!  When Matt Prior loses his job he finds himself wallowing in reruns of The Rockford Files and becoming more paranoid about his wife’s on line flirtations….  when Matt winds up with an opportunity to sell drugs to help out his financial woes, at this point only days away from losing his home and pulling his kids out of a private school… he jumps into a humorous look at what people will do at the breaking point.

I would say in today’s world of economic uncertainties this book is surely a timely fictitious story of riches to rags… to living with the knowledge that it is possible to take a deep breath and live within our means… even if our means isn’t what we had hoped and dreamed.  There are more important things than money, big homes, and two cars…. and Matt Prior takes the long way around to finding this out.

Jess Walter is the author of five novels, including The Zero, a finalist for the 2006 National Book Award and Citizen Vince, winner of the 2005 Edgar Allan Poe Award for best novel. He has been a finalist for the L.A. Times Book Prize and the PEN USA Literary Prize in both fiction and nonfiction. His books have been New York Times, Washington Post and NPR best books of the year and have been translated into twenty languages.

Jess Walter’s Website

I received this book for review as part of a TLC Book Tour

I would rate this book R for some strong language

An interesting look into the game of football and relationships ~  Sheila

Can learning about football be sexy? According to Football is for Lovers, when it comes to your love life, football can be better than oysters.

The good news is that Football is for Lovers makes the basics so . . . well, so basic that learning the game is easy as eating an ice cream cone. And just as much fun.

With anecdotes, illustrations, and a lot of laughs, Football is for Lovers not only makes it easy to understand the game, but also shows you how to put an end to the TV clicker wars, improve your relationship, and spice up your love life.

It just takes looking at the game of football a little bit differently.

Then again, since Football is for Lovers contains references to football great Jerry Rice in a pink tutu, images of paintings by French artist Jean Dubuffet, an alert about the dangers of speaking Northeastern Mandarin, an explanation of the value of M & M’s in a relationship, and a Burma Shave sign, to say it looks at football “a little bit differently” may be something of an understatement.

But if your football-obsessed partner has been making you a ‘football widow’ from August NFL pre-season through the February Super-Bowl, thus convincing you that you hate football, this little book may be just the ‘different look’ you need to discover that, after all, Football really is for Lovers!

My Thoughts….

Uhhhh…. well, hmmmm… Ok.  For those of you who read this blog on any normal basis would know that this book is way out in left field for me (no pun intended).  When it arrived in the mail I looked closely at the cover and had to question myself as to what I thought I was getting.  A book on football that was suppose to explain the game and in a humorous way was my response.  AND… in all honesty, that is what I did get… with just a bit more…

Football is For Lovers is a book about football – and it is also about how to draw your significant others attention back your way during the season that makes many of us women feel like we are on the outside looking in.  The book does cover information on the game itself that I did not know and that was helpful for the few games I have tried to watch and be excited about.

The more intimate parts of the book are actually minimal and I can see where this book would be a great gift for newly weds who are also sports fans.  This book is more about getting to know the game of Football and being able to enjoy it together.  Bob and Kaye share the how tos of football in a light and fun manner that even made sense to someone like me who knows very little about the game.

Bob Brooker and Kaye O’Dougherty have been adventuring together for a lot of years now. They first met at a recording studio on 42nd Street. Yes, that 42nd Street. They recorded a commercial for E.J. Korvette’s, who went out of business soon thereafter.

Bob is an old saloon singer who, as Bobby Brookes, recorded for Victor and Capital back in the day. Kaye has trouble carrying a tune in a bucket. Nevertheless, over the years, as Brooker and O’Dougherty, the two have collaborated on a variety of theater projects, performing, writing, directing, managing, and producing. In keeping with the changing times, they have even created a cyber alter-ego named eBobb.

Recently, Bob and Kaye both took long-overdue turns at being rather mature college kids. Kaye now holds a Bachelors Degree in the Humanities from St. Peter’s College in Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Bob was graduated magna cum laude from Montclair State University with a BA in Theater, and is a member of Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society.

What I Learned…

I actually learned quite a bit about the game of football.  On page 104 there is a great page of a little cartoon referee who shows what each of the penalty signs mean.  I even picked up on a few facts that the guys may not know such as the width of the field…

You can visit their website by going to FootballforLovers.com or their blog by clicking here.

I received my copy for review from Jaime from Pump Up Your Book Promotions

I would rate this book as PG13,  for references to sexual activity