Then Sings My Soul Special Edition By Robert Morgan

Due to some changes in my life, I had been putting off to review the latest book I got from BookSneeze.com for a few months already.  This is a compilation of 150 Christmas, Easter and all-time favorite hymns, recounting on how the author was led to write these wonderful seasonal hymns.

I have a mixed feeling reading through this book.  I think I am expecting the book contains amusing and touching anecdotes about the creation of those hymns.  However, what I found is the contains are too factual for my liking.  It has the feeling of reading a history book.  Although, it is good that the book provide great source of facts regarding the hymns, I would only treat it as a reference book.  It would be hard for me to write through it again the second time.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Really Woolly Bible Stories By DaySpring

I have been waiting anxiously for this book and finally it came! Hooray!!! When I saw this book available for review, I immediately request for it without a second thought, as I fall in love with the cute cover right away.  The other reason is, I had been trying quite sometimes now, to find suitable Bible stories-related books for Iggy.  Therefore, I would not want to miss the chance to get this Really Woolly Bible Stories By DaySpring from BookSneeze.com

So here we go.  Following is the description from BookSneeze.com :

Favorite Bible stories presented with the beloved Really Woolly art style help little children discover that God is faithful and true and that Jesus, The Good Shepherd, loves them.

This case-bound padded board book from the Really Woolly® brand by DaySpring® makes it easy to share important stories from God’s Word with little children, while teaching them about God’s shepherd-like love for them. Bible stories include Creation, Noah, Abraham, Moses, the Ten Commandments, Joseph, Samson, Daniel, David and Goliath, Jonah, Jesus’ Birth, Jesus Loves the Little Children, Jesus Feeds 5,000, Jesus the Good Smaraitan, Jesus Walks on Water, Jesus’ Death & Resurrection, The Great Commission. Little ones will love the charming Really Woolly® illustrations.

Illustrations by Julie Sawyer Phillips. Stories retold by Bonnie Rickner Jensen.

Product details:

• Format:  Padded Board Book
• Trim Size:  5.30 in x 7.10 in x 1 in
• Page Count:  36 pages

It is a soft-padded board book and color of the book is soft purplish.  In fact, the color is so soft that at first I thought it is white in color.  Each Bible stories in the book are presented in two-page spread, where on one side, the stories are told in poem form with little Really Woolly characters doing something related to the stories together and on the other sides  is the cartoon-style illustrations.

I am really happy with this book as Iggy loves it.  He usually follows me around the house when I am doing some chores.  On the day when we first get the book, he brought the book to the kitchen where I was at, occupied with preparing his food, and settled himself down on the kitchen floor, flipping through the book.

I try to cultivate the love to read in Iggy.  Whenever I can, I would try to get him sitting on my lap with me holding a book in front of him and read to him.  He usually gets impatient with me and tried to flip through the book without waiting for me to point out the pictures in the pages.  The first time when I tried to read Really Woolly Bible Stories to him, he is his old self.  Getting impatient and tried to flip through the book as he likes.  However, as the stories in the poem format are real short I was able to picked up a few keywords and pointed out something in the pictures.  The next time, when I tried to read the stories to him, he actually exhibits more patience and able to let me pointed out more stuffs to him.  By the third time, he is actually looked for the Really Woolly characters and pointed them out to me.  Whoa! That's a real improvement for Iggy!

If I not mistaken this book is appropriate for children age 4 - 8.  Iggy is actually way too young to fully understand the book.  However, I would not worry too much about that.  At this age, all I want to teach Iggy is to love and appreciate books.  It does not matter if he does not understands even a word from the book.  As long as he loves the book, I am happy with it.

There are a few features of the book that I truly loves.  For one, it is the size and weight of the book.  The size is just right for toddler like Iggy and it is also light enough for him to carry around easily.   Secondly, under the cartoon-style illustrations, there are scripture reference that tells you where to find the story in the Bible.  Lastly, the book closes with poem-format prayer for children, that shows the Really Woolly characters tucked in for the night.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Outlive Your Life by Max Lucado

This is my first Max Lucado's book (Lucado's children book previously does not count :)).  And I am proud to say that, this is one of a few spiritual growth books that I cannot wait to finish it as soon as I started to read a few pages of the book!

"We are created by a great God to do great works. He invites us to outlive our lives, not just in heaven, but here on earth."  Made to make a difference, that is the theme of this book.  With each chapter, Lucado is showing his readers how to outlive our life by referring to the book of Acts, learning from the early churches.

I like the way this book is written in an easy and conversational tone.  While it is written in layman terms without the fancy theological jargons, it is also very thought-provoking and motivating.  I also appreciate the effort to include the Question and Discussion session for each chapter, to further encourage the reader to think deeply what he or she can do to make a difference.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the 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 :“Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

One Hand, Two Hands By Max Lucado

Finally my second book from BookSneeze had arrived.   The author of this book is Max Lucado and it is illustrated by Gaby Hansen.  This is a charming children book with cheery and colorful illustrations, which teaches children many ways of using their hand in their daily activities to express their helpfulness, kindness and loving nature.

I am really excited to receive this book, as I ordered it specifically for Iggy.  Although he is too young to appreciate the book, he shows excitement upon seeing the new book and he also enjoys flipping through the book.  I, personally, like the illustrations.  It is cheery and colorful and most of all its gives a warm and happy feeling to the reader.

However, I prefer the book without its book jacket.  For Iggy, the book jacket actually gets in the way when he try to flip open the book.  I think it is only a matter of time before he accidentally tear it in his attempts to flip the book open.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the 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 :“Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Permission to Speak Freely By Anne Jackson

The gift of going second, that's is what Anne Jackson's precious gift to the reader.  By sharing her own addictions and brokenness, she ultimately open the door to topics which previously kept in the dark in the Christian communities.  Issues which are taboo before, now are more readily to be openly discuss.   This in turn contribute to more people being freed and reconnected with God.

I have a mixed feeling about this book when I first started reading it.  As part of the title says "Essays and Art on Fear, Confession, and Grace", I am consciously looking for compilation of articles shared by different people.  However, what I found is Anne's personal sharing throughout the book, mixed with different type of medias, such as sketches, photographs, postcards, poems which double as illustrations for the book.

Once, I got pass my earlier assumption, I began to enjoy the book.  I also appreciate Anne's effort for not turning this book into a typical self-help book, as if all the problems in our life can be categorized into particular category and can be solved by Step 1, Step 2, Step 3 ... etc.  Life is much much more complicated than that.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the 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 :“Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”