Catching Fire(The Second Book in the Hunger Games Series) by Suzanne Collins

The book "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins is a fast paced teen novel that will have you on the edge of your seat, curious as to what will happen next. I would strongly suggest that you read the first book in the series, "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins before reading this book. If you like fast paced science fiction stories with a little romance intertwined, then this is the book series for you. The author does a great job of really making you feel like you are there in the hunger games with the main characters. What is the Hunger Games?

"Twenty-four are forced to enter. Only the winner survives. In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. Each year, the districts are forced by the Capitol to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the Hunger Games, a brutal and terrifying fight to the death - televised for all of Panem to see.

Survival is second nature for sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who struggles to feed her mother and younger sister by secretly hunting and gathering beyond the fences of District 12. When Katniss steps in to take the place of her sister in the Hunger Games, she knows it may be her death sentence. If she is to survive, she must weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

WINNING WILL MAKE YOU FAMOUS. LOSING MEANS CERTAIN DEATH." - The Hunger Games(back of book)

The book, "Catching Fire" is the second book in the series. Personally, I think this book was amazing and should be read by any teenager who loves science fiction. Although the series does not have a Christian focus, I did not personally find anything that would be potentially offensive to Christian readers. I think both of these books were really interesting and engaging and I could not ask for anything better from this series. :) Personally I loved how creative the author was in creating this book series. Because this series is so unlike any other, she really had to create this world that was so different from anything we have ever imagined. And that right there, is why I think these books were so fast paced and engaging. If you have not read The Hunger Games, or Catching Fire, I would strongly suggest for you to do so. This series will not disappoint.


Have any of you read the first two books in the Hunger Games series? If so, what did you think of them?

Healing Hearts by Beth Wiseman

"Healing Hearts" by Beth Wiseman is a beautiful collection of three novellas all wrapped together in one beautiful book. Beth has such a unique storytelling ability that will capture you into each book and make you feel the pain and happiness of each of the characters. While each and every book is different, every one of them carry the themes of love, forgiveness, hope and learning to trust again. If you have ever liked and read Amish fiction, then I can guarentee you will love this book! Beth is one of the best Amish storytellers that I have seen in a long time. :) Here are the discriptions of each of the stories you will find within this book.

""A Choice to Forgive" Lydia has loved two men in her life. Daniel, who disappeared one Christmas Eve long ago, leaving only a note saying he wanted to live in the Englisch world. And Elam, Daniel's brother, to whom she had been happily married for 15 years. When Elam dies, Lydia gives up on ever loving again. But she is shocked when Daniel wants to return to the Order and her life."'

'"A Change of Heart" Leah is a writer in a community that does not encourage such fruitless endeavors. She lacks the skills necessary to be a good Amish fraa. Aaron knows these things about Leah, but his heart is captured by this spirited young woman."'

'"Healing Hearts" Levina Lapp and her husband Naaman are alone for the first time in 30 years. When Naaman left to visit cousins in Ohio, Levina wasn't expecting him to be gone a year. Now that he's back, will they be able to move beyond this estrangement and fall in love again?"'

Out of these three stories, and I loved each and every one of them, I found I was really able to personally identify with the last two stories. The first one, because I love to write. The second one, because I have people that I know I need to learn to forgive. I think that these books are written in such a way that they will be used to show you areas that you personally need to work on in your life. These books will bring you closer to God if you let them, and are overall just three great Amish fictional books that I recommend to any fiction reader! :)

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this e-book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

God's Love Letters to You: A 40 Day Devotional Experience by Dr. Larry Crabb

"God's Love Letters to You: A 40 Day Devotional Experience" is really an amazing book. A lot of times we really struggle to hear God's voice. Sometimes we just don't seem to hear from Him at all, and we don't know where to turn. When that happens, we should turn to Him, not away from Him. This book is really a great reminder of that. Every devotional is written like a letter, from God, directly to us. You are going to get more out of some devotionals then you do others, because it depends on what part of your life you are currently in at the moment. But I can tell you, if you read this book, you will get one really big message: God loves you!

The actual layout and look and feel of the book is really great as well! The front cover looks old fashioned, similar to an old letter or postcard of some kind. There is even a cool stamp on the cover, that makes it seem even more letter like. The book itself is tiny, but it continues so many amazing messages.

Every devotional contains these special parts:

• a selected Scripture reading
• a short devotional message(or letter from God)
• reflection questions
• a closing prayer

The actual devotional itself is written in a personal, letter like format that is sure to feel personal and in depth. God really speaks to you through these letters, because he allows you to get out of these letters what he wants you to. It really is a beautiful thing. Some devotions, or letters, will not speak to you at all in this point in your life, and others will make you cry.  But for me, this book has been an amazing experience to get closer with God, learn more about him and realize just how much he truly loves me.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Its Not About Me: Rescue From The Life We Thought Would Make Us Happy by Max Lucado

The book, "Its Not About Me" by Max Lucado is best explained as a wake up call. A much needed wake up call, at that. The world these days is so self centered. We seem to have this idea that unless we are getting all the glory, things are not going as planned. Often times, we decide life is going terrible if it is not revolving around us. But have you really stopped to think who life really is all about? It's not about us, its about God. This book provides the shocking revelation that explains that everything in life is all for one purpose: God's Glory, not ours.

In my opinion, this book is a must read for every Christian. Max writes in a simple way that easily captures your heart and mind. Instead of this book being frustrating and hard to read, it provides an easy to read book with a powerful message. I'll admit it, the first few chapters were difficult to read. Why? It was so hard to accept that everything going on in my life, and my existence in general was all for God's glory and not mine. I think as humans we all find it really hard to accept the simple fact that it really is not all about us. But the more and more you read into this book you realize the powerful message that you don't really want it to be all about you, because that would end in disaster. In reality, we really want Him to take control. Luckily, he is willing, we just need to hand him the reins of life. I loved how Max used relative examples to today and different things we struggle with in life. It gave powerful examples to this amazing book. I would give this book 5 stars for sure. This book is a must for your bookshelf!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

You Are Not Your Own: Living Loud for God by Jason Perry of Plus One

The book "You Are Not Your Own: Living Loud for God" is a really awesome book for teenagers to read. The book was written back in 2002 by Jason Perry. At the time he wrote it, he was in a popular Christian boy band called Plus One. You might be sitting here thinking, "Okay... so this book is out dated. Why would I want to read it?" Good question. And I have a good answer for you. :)

 When you first pick up the book, I'll admit, it really does look a little outdated. By quite a few years actually. But the messages that are inside this book actually go way beyond how many years are in between then and now. Have you ever felt like your spiritual life was dull and boring? Or maybe you just feel like the Christian who goes to church on Sundays and acts like everything is fine and you have an amazing relationship with God, only to be partying on the weekends. (Although I doubt any of you do, its an example.) If any of those things explain you, then you need to read this book. But even if those few examples don't strike you, you need to read the book anyway. Why? Because this book will change your life. In short, this book gives you an awesome guideline on how to give your spiritual walk a nice re-charge! When you finish reading this book you will feel excited and ready to go spread the word of Christ to other Christians. There is a place to contact Jason in the back of the book, but because Plus One is no longer together, the site is down and I would assume the email is as well. But if you read this book and want to share with me how this book made an impact on your life, feel free to comment below and let me know. It would be awesome to hear from you! You might be feeling like I have not talked enough about the contents of this book. The reason is simply because I want you to experience this book for yourself. This book goes on the must read list for sure! :)

The Waiting Place by Eileen Button

The Waiting Place by Eileen Button is the perfect book for anyone who feels like they are stuck in the waiting place. What is the waiting place, you might ask? As humans, we are always waiting for something. We wait to grow up, get out of line, graduate from high school, go to college, get married, have kids, and we even wait to die. We are always waiting for something in life and can sometimes feel like we are stuck in this place that we can't get out of. We always try as hard as we can to get out of the waiting place. But sometimes, we just have to learn to live through the waiting place and trust God.

I have always struggled with waiting for things. Sometimes I can even go so far as to not want to do anything else in live until that one thing I am waiting for, happens. This book really helped me to realize that when we are stuck in this waiting place in life, instead of just shutting down and not wanting to do anything else in life, we should stand up, trust God, and move through the waiting place with someone who will never let us go. If I had to rate this book on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest, I would rate this book a 4. The only reason why it would not get a 5 is because the author is an adult who is married and has kids. She goes back in time to her earlier years in the book, but you will get the most out of this book if you are married with kids. But no matter how old you are, you are bound to get something from this book. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who struggles with waiting in life.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Paperdoll by Natalie Lloyd

The book Paperdoll by Natalie Lloyd is an amazing book for digging deeper with Christ. Have you ever gone to the mall and see the posters everywhere that scream, "If you get these pants, or that dress, you'll get this guy!"? Or maybe you sit down to watch Tv and all you can see is the really hot models that are trying to sell weight loss pills. Everywhere around us the world is trying to suck us in and cause us to be like them. We want the best clothing brands or the neatest hair style. Sometimes we want the guy. We think that if this guy falls in love with us, life will be perfect. In reality, we all want Jesus.

Personally, this book has really allowed me to grow in my walk with Christ. Natalie writes in such a way that is really easy to relate to and is a lot of fun. The way the book is written, it is easy to imagine sitting there with Natalie in a coffee shop and talking like good friends. There were many times while reading this book, that I would start a chapter and watch as God stopped me. It was as if God was letting me know that I was not quite ready to read that chapter yet. In so many ways this book brought me closer to Christ, cause me to see where my real beauty lies, genuinely love other people, and see what happens when an ordinary girl meets an extraordinary God.

In conclusion, I would strongly recommend this book to every teenage girl out there. It will stretch you, grow you, and cause you to get closer to God. But most of all it will teach you so much. You will maybe cry, laugh and sing for joy as you read through the beautiful pages of this book. But one thing I can assure you of, you will learn where your true beauty lies. Have fun reading!

Beyond All Measure - Dorthy Love

The book, "Beyond All Measure" by Dorthy Love has been an amazing read. You quickly learn to love Ada, who has been beaten up by life itself. She must learn to put her faith and trust in God as she moves to another state after suffering a broken engagement. There she has to deal with a difficult woman whom she has been instructed to take care of, her handsome son, and others through the town who are unsure of her presence. Over time she has to decide if she is going to put her faith and trust in God, or never find true happiness because of all of her fears.

Personally, I loved this novel. It was sweet and romantic and I loved watching how Ada learned to love and trust despite how many times she had been hurt in her past. Instead of turning bitter to the people who she had been hurt be, she eventually learns to forgive and move on with her life and her future. What really made me fall in love with this book the most was the fact that she did not allow her past experiences stop her from having a future. This book allowed me to enjoy a beautiful romance novel while also challenging my faith. It challenged me to forgive people of my past and look to my future. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good fiction read! You won't be disappointed!

I received this eBook for free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.