My Writing Corner

Looking for something to Read?

You can never have enough books! and I completely agree with this quote.

books

Reading is to me like dessert…mmm, mmm, mmm! Both are things you can only indulge in your spare time or on special occasions. And both are things you can never have enough of- wouldn’t you agree? 😉

So, if you’re on the lookout to expand your library- or be more adventurous and read books on topics that are new to you- like trying out a new dessert (such as salted caramel buttercream cake)…. then you’re reading the right post!

Okay, by now you’re probably more interested in having a piece of cake than in reading books, but stick with me- you can bake the cake later. I still have some great titles to share with you!

I’ve collected titles for adults and children alike…just because I enjoy kids books too. Don’t ask me why. It’s a weakness that I have.

Introducing….

Organic Body Care Recipes: 175 Homemade herbal Formulas for Glowing Skin and a Vibrant Self

I’m planning on buying this book! A naturalist blogger was recommending it on her weblog, and I decided to check it out from the library. It’s such a neat book! Really easy to read. Has interesting facts on sidebars, like “what’s contained in a square inch of skin” or useful tips and facts that add to the whole book. The author does a good job of explaining things in terms that are not overly technical, and taking you step-by-step and talking about your skin, hair, nails, then teaching you about herbs and plants you can use, the tools that you will need to make your own beauty products, and finally listing recipes galore with easy to use ingredients to make body care products!

Here are some delicious titles of her recipes:

Honey fruit-flavored lip balm

Cocoa Butter Creamy Lotion

Lemony Whip Cleansing Cream

I know, makes you want to eat those things.

The Naturally Clean Home: 101 Safe & Easy Herbal Formulas for Nontoxic Cleaners

You may not be interested to make your own cleaning products. I wasn’t either for a time- especially since I thought it would be very time consuming, and it would be “one more thing to do”. But this book has given me a new perspective on that. Here are some facts that the book lists:

“Ninety percent of all accidental poisonings occur in the home. According to the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons, more than seven million cases of poisonings are reported each year. That equates to 14,000 each day!… (p.2)

According to a five-year EPA study, the air in an average American home has chemical contamination levels 70 times greater than outdoor air. The EPA maintains that half of all illnesses occurring in the United States can be attributed to chemical contamination of indoor air. In fact, a 1985 EPA report states that household cleaners are three times more likely to cause cancer than outdoor air pollution.” (p. 2) 

Scary facts, huh? One more quote if you’re not convinced yet.

“The Consumer Product Safety Commission has determined that more than 150 chemicals found in ordinary household products are directly responsible for producing cancer, allergies, birth defects, and numerous psychological disorders.” (p. 3) 

 This book also has some easy-to-make and great recipes for producing safe cleaning products. It has neat instructions, and these things can even save you money- like making your own laundry detergent! I highly recommend it for reading!

Seal of God

This may look like a book that a guy would read. Well, now you know girls can enjoy reading stories like these too. *smile*
Chad Williams tells his life story, his journey into the U.S. Navy Seals, and how the Lord (miraculously) brought salvation into his life. Truly, it was only God’s hand that turned him around- I still can’t believe it happened- even after reading the story. It’s adventurous, interesting, and touching. I really, really appreciate that Williams had the integrity of writing his book for the glory of God, without adding the bad language common among soldiers, and used phrases to replace them in a few rare instances. There are so many authors out there who claim to be true Christians, and who mix curse words with Bible verses in the same book…, and I’m thinking ??? …it’s just shameful and revolting! I actually had bought a military book like that several years back, and when I saw the author had contaminated his book with thousands of curse words, and had the audacity to claim he was a believer and insert Bible verses at the beginning of chapters while he had foul words in the content- I simply threw it away.

But returning to our book. Seal of God is a book that shows how a true transformation worked out by God can radically change a person’s lifestyle. It’s a great book to give to non-believing friends or relatives too! Who knows how this book can influence them?

Adventures in the West: Stories for Young Readers

Don’t worry, just because it says “stories for young readers” doesn’t mean it’s actually for young readers.  These stories are collected from  The Youth’s Companion newspaper and St. Nicholas magazine circa 1820s. To me, the reading level of those short stories seemed to be for young adults. There are stories in this book which have nice lessons they teach, either about hard work, or generosity, or selfless giving and sacrifice. Two of the stories:  “A Life Like Maggy’s” and  “How the Parsonage Was Papered” brought tears to my eyes. And I was simply charmed by the cute and touching story in “Sister Anne & the Cowboy” or the somewhat amusing story of “Aunt Phroney’s Boy”. I don’t recommend all the stories in there, but you can pick and choose among which are good to read. They all have little introductions before the story, so it makes it easy to figure out what you will be reading.

The Courage of Sarah Noble

This is a short darling story of a young pioneer girl who went West with her father to prepare a place for the whole family. Most of you probably already know about it. It shows how the little girl overcame her fears along the journey and trusted her father until they could all be together again as a family. I could read books after books about the westward expansion! The courage those pioneers had is amazing. This book is a great read for the young ones in your family!

Chocolate by Hershey: A story about Milton S. Hershey

I really didn’t know the story behind the Hershey chocolate bar and company until I read this book. It’s quite impressive I must say! I was inspired by the determination and entrepreneurial spirit that the founder of Hershey exhibited.  One good lesson you can learn from this short booklet is to never give up- even when it seems you’ll never succeed if you know it’s meant to be (and of course as a Christian, if you know it’s God’s will)- then try, try again! And you never know how great the results will be!

Stay Tuned!

I have more book reviews coming up in later posts. So keep a lookout on my blog. (And I wouldn’t mind if you drop a note too *wink*).

Do you have any books you recently read that you can share with me?

 

3 thoughts on “Looking for something to Read?

  1. I love getting new book recommendations. And I have a love of young adult literature/children’s literature as well.

    One of my favorites (I just recently re-read it and was wowed all over again by what a great writer she is) is Sarah Plain and Tall, by Patricia MacLachlan.

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