Love Starts with Elle by Rachel Hauck

I am so glad I "hung in" with this book. I found the first few chapters a little off-putting - the characters have cutesy names and the romantic lead was not appealing to me.

BUT this book has many levels and it is one of the BEST books I have read in terms of presenting a Christian message with subtlety. On the most basic level, it's a love story. It's also a story about two people and how their faith comes into play when a crisis hits. There's also a side story that highlights the importance of family and maintaining those relationships. (Another level is a story that the second romantic lead is writing, and imho it could've been left out - I found it an annoyance rather than adding anything to this book).

This book reminded me of the importance of prayer, real prayer that's not convenient or easy or all about me. It also inspired me to take another look at my dreams and aspirations in the context of whether I had outgrown them OR given up on them. Had I even asked God about them?

A happy, fun, yet thought-provoking read.

The Salt Garden by Cindy McCormick Martinusen

I really wanted to love this book. It has a LOT going for it.

Start with Sophia, a reclusive author, who spends her lonely days longing for visits from her dearest friend Ben. Then there's Claire, a college grad muddling through the early stages of her career, just to find that her path may be heading back to the hometown she so eagerly fled. Finally, there is a journal. A woman long dead and gone, who shares her personal struggles in the midst of trying times.

I love the trio of experiences and the way their stories intertwine.

But wait. We need to add more layers. There's a mystery about a shipwreck. And a saboteur on a bridge project. And Claire's old boyfriend who is having Christian debates with Sophia's Ben.

There's a lot going on in this book, yet it still works for the most part. I appreciated the crescendoing conclusion, and the budding romances that blossomed. Yet, I was left dissatisfied.

Perhaps disappointed is a better word. With all the richness this book depicts in terms of Christianity and finding your way to God, where was God in the crescendo? I was expecting some great revelation, some wave of insight, a testimony to God's faithfulness and grace.

It is there. . . . in a still small voice, but I really wanted it to be shouted from the rooftops.

It is a book worth reading, perhaps even pondering.

Quaker Summer by Lisa Samson

This was a second read of this book for me. It has parts that enthrall me and parts that frustrate me. I love the section about the Quaker sisters, but am saddened that they don't reappear in the last third of the book.

Yet it is a worthwhile read. It is a thoughtful book, that asks the difficult questions in the context of one woman's search for meaning amidst the "American Dream." Some of it is gritty, yet some of it is too easy. Heather has no financial limitations, so all it really takes for her to simplify her life is to make the decision. Yet isn't that true for all of us (even if there is no trust fund or doctor husband to support us?)

A good read for those who are struggling with finding the personal courage to follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit.

Leota's Garden by Francine Rivers

I am revisiting an old favorite. This is one of the first works of Christian fiction I discovered and I was hooked! This is a story of a lonely elderly woman who longs for reconciliation with her children who misunderstand the circumstances of their childhoods. . . . Or is it a story of a young woman who desperately wants to serve God in her own way without hurting her bitter controlling mother. . . .

Usually I don't like stories that are generational or flash between "main characters," but this is so well done. All the layers come together as you see each character grow closer to God. I love this passage:

"If she had learned one thing in her long life it was to put less stock in what the world was doing and more in getting right with the Lord. It took God to change a heart. A changed heart meant a changed life."

I guess what I love most about this book and that it shows that it all comes down to love. As each character chooses love, their lives change radically.

More thoughts on this. . . .
I love the concept towards the end that Annie has become married to God, that she has found true contentment and that she is not at all tempted by the two admiring men in her life. There is so little in Christian fiction that depicts that sort of situation. Not that I am against a good romance, but after a while it gets a little tedious for those of us who are single to see only "and they lived happily ever after' endings.

I would classify this book as a "life changer."

The Rhythm of Life by Matthew Kelly

CURRENT READ - Well, actually listen. I am listening to this book for a second time. There is so much in it. . . .

Have you ever felt like you just aren't getting it? That you have no idea WHY you exist? Matthew Kelly says he has a simple answer to that question. We exist to become the best version of who we are. Perhaps that is deceptively simple, because to master this we have to really know ourselves. . . .

I have started the dream journal as Matthew suggests, and am looking forward to insight. I will keep you posted!

Passion and Purity by Elisabeth Elliot

WAIT! Don't skip this recommendation. The title is off-putting and sounds like some preachy tome about abstinence. But it's actually a poignant memoir. An amazing TRUE love story on two levels. It's about Jim and Elisabeth, and it's about Elisabeth and her God.

I think this book is a great antidote to all those unrealistic running-through-the airport grand romance movies. I love how it took years for them to get together, and how sincere they were about their calling and serving God. How angry I get when Hollywood has the man or the woman giving up all their dreams for the greater dream of the relationship. This book shows that a real relationship, a real love, will never take you away from your true purpose.

This book is not just about romance, though. For me, the greatest lesson in the book was how to really turn over your life and your decisions to God. How refreshing to read about a woman who was able to have a higher purpose, serve others, and "get her man" in the end. So often, it seems like a woman has to choose one or the other.

"My heart was saying, Lord, take away this longing or give me that for which I long. The Lord was answering, I must teach you to long for something better. . . . God knew that giving me Jim when I wanted him would not provide the far more important training I needed for things to come. It was in that learning to eat the Living Bread, sufficient always for one day at a time, that I was taught and disciplined and prepared for later things."

Every Secret Thing by Ann Tatlock

Have you ever felt invisible in your life? that if you died today no one would care? This book touched my heartstrings in so many ways. This story of a lonely English teacher who is unsure about connecting with the world, and the confused girl who enters her life could have been sappy, but it isn't. Instead, it reminds us that we were put here to help one another, and even if we think what we do (or don't do) doesn't matter, we are wrong.

The book is at times lyrical, and is truly written for those who love literature. Here's a taste: "When I was a child, a Bible passage I heard in Sunday school always made me think of Delaware. It was the story in the Gospel of John where Phillip goes and finds Nathaniel to tell him they've found the Messiah, the one Moses and the prophets wrote about. This should be good news for a couple of Jewish fellows, right? But oddly enough, the man is Jesus of Nazareth, that haven for the Roman army, persecutors of the Jews. And so Nathaniel cries out, Can any good thing come out of Nazareth? Those words stuck with me until my impish mind tweaked the question, turning it around to become Can anything at all come out of Delaware?"