Guilt Be Gone!

Guilt Be Gone!  Every mom has that overbearing guilt of doing "it all".  Tricia Goyer's book "Balanced: Finding Center as a Work at Home Mom" tells all moms that there just ain't no such thang.  Goyer not only reassures the reader that she can't do it all, but that there is a way to do as much as you can well and that's really all you can do.  She gives personal advice from experience and lets the reader know how to keep from reliving the same experience.  She gives areas to focus on, tips to get organized, and how to prioritize. 
My husband and I have seven children with all but three out of the house.  And one of those is a senior.  I so wish I had read this book way back when.  It seems that I have figured a lot of this out already.  It still does good to read about other women going through the same experience and to see how they did it. It gives reassurance that I am not alone.  Good Book!  I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review from Litfuse Publicity and the author.

summer kisses review

"Summer Kisses" by Melinda Curtis is a not too hot/not too cold romance given to me in exchange for an honest review by The Sweet Team Read and Review.  This novel involves Becca, a nurse's aid specializing in assisting the elderly while dying; and Flynn, a rich man who likes to handy man on the side whose grandfather has recently had a stroke.  Flynn's grandfather hires Becca, who has a bit of a past, and of course she meets and falls for Flynn. 
Though this is a romance novel, so therefore a bit predictable; it is still a pretty good read.  The romance isn't over the top, it is just right.  A bit enticing, yet low key.  The story follows Edwin, the grandfather, as he tries to save his town from becoming obsolete.  Which gives them all a goal of sorts.  I liked this story.  It would make a good vacation read.  Not too involving, you can easily do other things while reading, yet sweet and romantic. 

wildwood creek review

I just loved this book.  "Wildwood Creek" by Lisa Wingate is the fourth book in the "Moses Lake" series.  However, as with the other books in the series that I have read, you do not need to have read the others or to have read them in order to understand this one.  In Wildwood, the story follows two women.  One is Allie, who is working as a production assistant and then actress for a histormentory about the former town of Wildwood, Texas during present day.  The other woman is Bonnie rose, an Irish teacher with a past who is employed by the owner of Wildwood, Mr. Delevan, to teach in 1861.  Wildwood according to Delevan means that he not only owns the town, but also everyone in it.  The novel goes back and forth between the two women showing that legend is not always truth.
This is a well written book.  The characters are great; I loved the story line.  Wingate goes into the details that are put into reenacting the Wildwood town and trying to solve the mysteries that are still alive there.  The only problem I had was the book was it was a little lengthy.  It was an easy read, but a long one.  I love it.  Give it 4.5 stars.  I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review from Bethany House Publishers.

mirror mirror on the wall

"Mirror, Mirror, Am I Beautiful?" by Shelley Hitz is a self-help book of sorts aimed at the teenage/college age woman who is coming in to her own.  Hitz targets a different area of a woman's life in each chapter with topics related to not only physical appearance and beauty within, but also self-awareness, sexual health, spiritual beauty, modesty, and more. 
Though I am nowhere near a teenage or college age woman, I have a teen daughter and I do recall that time well.  This book is well written and Hitz seems to be in touch with her "teen self" within. Though her topics range seemed to be all over the place, they are all important and I have no idea what she could have cut out.  Maybe the chapter on homosexual-ness?  That didn't seem to have a whole lot to do with anything.  But other than that, I think this book would be of value to a young woman looking to present herself with dignity to the world.   I received this book from the author through the www.bodyandsoulpublishing.com website.

innovation review

Innovation’s Dirty Little Secret by Larry Osborne is a short book on how to succeed in organizations while really trying.  Larry sounds like he has a deep friendship with hard work and is not above doing it again.  He also is not above listening to others who might usually not be listened to in deciding what an individual organization should do.  The most important thing that I got from the reading of his book was that before starting to work one must figure out what your vision is and from that make a mission statement.  This statement must be short, concrete, and easy to remember and then repeated often so that all in the company are not only aware of the mission of the organization but can recite it if asked without reading it.  Everyone working in the organization should be working toward this same vision if the organization is to be a success.  Larry looks at the people who are what he calls serial innovators and recognize the difference in when these successful innovators take a risk on creativity as well as rely on stability as opposed to the ones who while thinking outside the box and taking risks seem to be constantly failing as businessmen and women.  He points out how to encourage new ideas and changes that grow your organization without running your business into the ground paying for new concepts that don’t work.  He gives tips on trying new ideas before jumping in and putting the company at risk financially. 

Larry is a senior pastor at a magachurch in California but states that running a church has many similarities with running a business especially when the church is as big as North Coast Church is.  Though he has been successful in taking his much smaller church through its growing pains to becoming a megachurch he is quick to acknowledge his failures and states that any leader must be transparent and honest with their successes as well as shortcomings.  He points out that one needs to develop a small core group to bounce ideas off of which is not the same as your board group. 

This book is a must read for anyone planning on opening a new business.  It will help to avoid many of the pitfalls which any new business will have.  It will not guarantee success but it will help to avoid some of the biggest problems.

I received this book in a giveaway from Brave Reviews. (submitted by CB)

Slaugh review

"Slaugh" by Darrell Case was supplied to me in audio form by the author.  This is the 3rd book of Case's that I have reviewed and though he received 5 stars on amazon by all of the reviewers, I must say that I disagree.  Normally, Case's work is brilliant, this one is not on my list of favs.  It starts out at a five star level with Max, a little boy who is abused by his mother and snubbed by society.  You know the kid.  The weird kid that everyone picks on, who smells, who seems to just be asking for it.  That's Max.  This hole left by his mother is eventually filled with demons.  Demons who lead him to brutally kill little boys, photograph them, and leave them to be found by the media.  Called the Ghost, Max the serial killer, goes into hiding as a minister in a small town and immediately starts killing.  That's where the novel takes a turn.  Max is the dumbest serial killer of all time.  In real life he would have been caught waaaay before he ever made it to kid number 14.  He wasn't scary so much as he was annoying.  I didn't like this book.  I would give it 2.5 stars.  That being said, everyone who has read this book loves it.  A lot!  So maybe it's just me.  Maybe I'm weird.  Give it a shot.  See what you think.

every waking moment review

"Every Waking Moment" by Chris Fabry is a novel that takes place in a nursing home and centers around Treha, a mentally impaired housekeeping worker, and Devin, a documentary film maker, who meet and work together to tell the stories of the people who live at the nursing home.  The story opens with Miriam, the administrator, retiring and being replaced by Ms. Millstone, a cranky, control freak who sucks the life out of the nursing home.  Treha has physical impairments as well as social, however, she seems to have the key to unlock the minds of those patients that are trapped in their minds. 
This is an incredibly well written book.  Fabry brings the characters to life on an intimate level.  The plot flows smoothly from one level to the next as the documentary takes shape.  The chapters flow from the nursing home, to the documentary, to Devin's struggles with making the film.  I give it an A.  I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review from Tyndale Publishing.