Posted January 21, 2015 in Faith, Reading, Review / 0 Comments
A Book of Uncommon Prayer by
Brian Doyle Publisher: Ave Maria Press (2014)
eARC (128 pages)
Via: NetGalley Rating: Reading Challenges: 2015 Alphabet Soup,
Read 2015 Synopsis
Acclaimed, award-winning essayist and novelist Brian Doyle—whose writing, in the words of Mary Oliver, is “a gift to us all”—presents one hundred new prayers that evoke his deep Catholic belief in the mystery and miracle of the ordinary (and the whimsical) in human life.
In Brian Doyle’s newest work, A Book of Uncommon Prayer: 100 Celebrations of the Miracle & Muddle of the Ordinary, his readers will find a series of prayers unlike any of the beautiful, formal, orthodox prayers of the Catholic tradition or the warm, extemporized prayers heard from pulpits and dinner tables. Doyle’s often-dazzling, always-poignant prayers include eye-opening hymns to shoes and faith and family. In Doyle’s words, “the world is crammed with miracles, so crammed and tumultuous that if we stop, see, savor, we are agog,” and the pages of his newest book give voice and body to this credo. By focusing on experiences that may seem the most unprayerful (one prayer is titled “Prayer on Seeing Yet Another Egregious Parade of Muddy Paw Prints on the Floor”), he gives permission to discover the joys and treasures in what he often calls the muddle of everyday life.
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Tagged as 5 star, Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge, Catholic, Catholic Book, NetGalley, Read 2015, You Read How Many Books Challenge
Posted January 16, 2015 in Reading, Review / 2 Comments
The Web by
Megan Chance Series: The Fianna Trilogy #2 Publisher: Skyscape (2015)
eARC (384 pages)
Via: NetGalley Rating: Reading Challenges: 2015 Alphabet Soup,
2015 Mythology,
Read 2015 Synopsis
The Fianna, legendary Irish warriors, have been magically called from their undying sleep to aid Ireland in its rebellion against Britain. But the Fianna have awakened in New York alongside their bitter enemies, the Fomori. A prophecy demands that a Druid priestess—a veleda—must choose between these two sides. Grace is this veleda.
But being the veleda means she must sacrifice her power—and her life—to her choice. On one side are her fiancé, Patrick Devlin, and the Fomori. On the other are the Fianna—and the warrior Diarmid Ua Duibhne, with whom Grace shares an undeniable connection. Patrick has promised to find a way to save her life. In three months, at the ancient ritual, Diarmid must wield the knife that kills her.
Grace doesn’t know whom to trust. As dark forces converge on the city, she struggles to discover the truth about her power. Can she change her own destiny? Can she escape the shadows of the past and reach for a future she could never have imagined?
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Tagged as 5 star, Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge, Mythology Reading Challenge, NetGalley, Read 2015, You Read How Many Books Challenge
Posted January 15, 2015 in Faith, Reading, Review / 0 Comments
Loved as I Am by
Miriam James Heidland Publisher: Ave Maria Press (2014)
eARC (128 pages)
Via: NetGalley Rating: Reading Challenges: Read 2015 Synopsis
When Sr. Miriam James Heidland’s life as a successful college athlete proved unfulfilling, she went searching for something deeper and ended up falling in love with Jesus. By charting her own journey toward wholeness, Heidland invites young Catholics to pursue their own relationship with Jesus.
Although originally full of athletic ambition and goals for a career in sports news, Heidland was transformed in a very slow but deep way during her undergraduate years, moving from party girl to bride of Christ. In Loved as I Am: An Invitation to Conversion, Healing, and Freedom through Jesus, Heidland helps readers learn from her experience of seeking love in the wrong places and instead finding it in Christ. She shares her struggles—learning she was adopted, battling alcoholism, and healing from childhood sexual abuse—as signs of hope that anyone who desires to know Christ can find him and be loved intimately by him in return. By bringing readers into Heidland’s healing process, Loved as I Am provides a gentle and subtle template for finding peace and freedom in Jesus.
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Tagged as 5 star, Catholic, Catholic Book, NetGalley, Read 2015, You Read How Many Books Challenge
Posted January 12, 2015 in Reading, Review / 0 Comments
The One by
Kiera Cass Series: The Selection #3 Publisher: HarperTeen (2014)
Audiobook {7 hours and 25 minutes} (323 pages)
Rating: Also by this author: The Elite,
The Heir,
The Selection Stores: The Prince & The Guard Also in this series: The Elite,
The Heir,
The Selection Stores: The Prince & The Guard Reading Challenges: 2015 Alphabet Soup,
Read 2015 Synopsis
When she was chosen to compete in the Selection, America never dreamed she would find herself anywhere close to the crown—or to Prince Maxon's heart. But as the end of the competition approaches, and the threats outside the palace walls grow more vicious, America realizes just how much she stands to lose—and how hard she'll have to fight for the future she wants.
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Tagged as 4 star, Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge, Read 2015, You Read How Many Books Challenge
Posted January 8, 2015 in Reading, Review / 6 Comments
The Lightning Thief by
Rick Riordan Series: Percy Jackson and the Olympians #1 Publisher: Disney Hyperion (2005)
eBook (377 pages)
Via: Library Rating: Also by this author: The Sea of Monsters,
The Titan's Curse,
The Sword of Summer Also in this series: The Sea of Monsters,
The Titan's Curse,
The Battle of the Labyrinth Reading Challenges: 2015 Alphabet Soup,
2015 Mythology,
2015 What's In A Name?,
Read 2015 Synopsis
Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can't seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse-Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster and tried to kill him. When Percy's mom finds out, she knows it's time that he knew the truth about where he came from, and that he go to the one place he'll be safe. She sends Percy to Camp Half-Blood, a summer camp for demigods (on Long Island), where he learns that the father he never knew is Poseidon, God of the Sea. Soon a mystery unfolds and together with his friends -- one a satyr and the other the demigod daughter of Athena -- Percy sets out on a quest across the United States to reach the gates of the Underworld (located in a recording studio in Hollywood) and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods.
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Tagged as 4 star, Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge, Library, Mythology Reading Challenge, Read 2015, What's In a Name Reading Challenge, You Read How Many Books Challenge
