It’s that time already! Here are our favorite recommendations from the last month of reading, watching, and listening. I hope you find something that speaks to you!
Books—Adults/teens
- The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate. (Historical Fiction) ★★★★★ After reading Before We Were Yours last month, several people suggested I read this book too. I am falling in love with Lisa Wingate’s style of writing. She is very real and raw, but in a very gracious way. She covers some really hard topics, but the stories leave so much hope and end well. This book is the no exception. There are two stories going on at the same time, so every other chapter jumps back and forth between the two time periods. I’m not typically a huge fan of these kinds of books, but she writes them in such a way that it almost becomes a mystery to figure out how the two stories are tied together. It’s hard to stop reading. In this book, the story in the past brings to life stories from the real “Lost Friends” advertisements that were published in newspapers in the years following the Civil War. Newly freed slaves were desperately searching for loved ones who had been sold off and spread throughout the country. The story follows three girls…enemies at first due to their births, but thrown into a gripping story together by fate and in the end, becoming friends. The story is riveting! Loved this quote, “My mama may have been stolen away from me young, but while she could, she spoke all good things into me. Things that lasted. It’s the words a mama says that last the longest of all.” The modern story had my heart too because it was about a teacher. And they just tie together in such a beautiful way. There was a bit of a surprise at the end that I was not expecting at all…didn’t really care for it. *Although descriptions are not given, it becomes apparent that a girl was raped. *Crap, crappy used once each, and the southern use of “lor’!” was mentioned several times.
- Consumed By Hate, Redeemed By Love by Thomas A. Tarrants. (Memoir/Autobiography) ★★★★ This. Was. Incredible. The author was an extreme radicalist…a for real white supremacist, working for the KKK in the 1960’s. He hated Jews, blacks and Communists. He was almost killed by the police while trying to bomb the home of a Jewish leader, sentenced for 30 years in prison, escaped, caught again. The Lord miraculously spared his life over and over again. And finally, as a wretched, defeated man in prison, he found Jesus! His life was radically changed! The subtitle says it well: “How a Violent Klansman Became a Champion of Racial Reconciliation.” *There were two instances of language (b words), one near the beginning of the book and one near the end. (Available on Hoopla.)
- Night by Elie Wiesel. (Memoir/Autobiography) ★★★★ I’m not sure how I feel about this book. It is very raw and extremely moving. Probably one of the clearest pictures of a Jew in a concentration camp that I’ve ever read. Elie puts words to the very real thoughts, feelings, fears and responses of one going through such ghastly hardships. There are so many intense emotions, so much pain. But then it just abruptly ended with the war. No hope, no happily ever after, no light at the end of the tunnel. And I believe that was on purpose…so the full reality of the horrors of it all would be impressed upon the reader. I was left with so many questions. What happened to him after he was finally released? Was his faith ever restored? Did he go back home? Did he ever connect with any of his family again after the war? It was a gripping, emotional read, but certainly gives no “closure” to the reader. Side note: I did notice that this is apparently a trilogy. There are two more books called “Dawn” and “Day.” *Not surprisingly, there were 6 instances of language….all “b words.”
- The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (Historical Fiction) ★★★★★ I have a confession to make. I started listening to this book with E, but it was so good, I read ahead and finished it without her. I remember seeing this title months ago, but was put off by the word “witch” in the title. But after reading several of Elizabeth George Speare’s books, she has become a favorite and trusted author, so I decided to look into this one a little more. There is not a single, blessed witch in the story! But the title makes complete sense once you have read the book. This storyline is fascinating…which is funny because it is slow moving and calm, but somehow it’s hard to put down! It takes place in the days of the Puritans…particularly around the time of the witch trials. It was a captivating look into the simple, but strict Puritan lifestyle and especially how they viewed outsiders. A long-lost, high-spirited relative enters the solemn little community, and from there, the world is turned up-side-down for both parties. Ultimately, it becomes a story of the fall out of wrongful prejudice and accusations. By the end, you’ll be rooting for high-spirited Kit (the main character) and hoping against hope that everything will work out in her favor. It’s a great read! There is a sweet love story (actually a couple different ones) that are part of the storyline. They are very clean and innocent and really added a charming dimension to the story. *The d word was used one time toward the end of the book. (E-book available on Hoopla.)
Books—Children
- Little Pilgrim’s Progress by Helen L. Taylor ★★★★★ (Allegory) Obviously, Pilgrim’s Progress is a classic. BUT, the Little Pilgrim’s Progress is extra special as it is rewritten specifically for children. Helen Taylor was careful to keep all of the main elements of the book present while bringing the archaic language down to a level that today’s children could easily understand. She also changed most of the main characters into children, rather than adults, so that the story would be more relatable to young people. We listened the the audiobook a year or two ago, and loved it, but I saw that an illustrated version of the book was revised and published in 2021. The revised book has kept the same language of Helen Taylor but turned all of the characters into animals! This is even more enjoyable for children, especially very young children, as the illustrations are just beautiful! All that to say, both versions of this book are excellent! The book covers both Christian’s story as well as Christiana’s. (Original version available on Hoopla.)
- A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park (Historical Fiction) ★★★★★ Linda Sue Park is another author I’m really liking. I love books like this…where the main characters are great examples of people of integrity. Orphaned, poor and living under a bridge with a crippled old man in ancient Korea, Tree-ear offers to make right an accidental wrong. He begins his work for a master potter and, in doing that, his life will change forever. I was so touched by Tree-ear’s concern for others. Many times, he sets aside his own needs to help another. This is an excellent read! (Free e-book on Hoopla.)
- Prince Lander and the Dragon War by S. D. Smith (Fantasy/Fiction) ★★★★★ We have officially read ALL TEN of Sam’s books and it has been worth every minute. This is the last book in the “Tales of Old Natalia” Series. If you’ve read the main Green Ember Series, these books take place about 100 years before, and they fill in a lot of background knowledge…such as where the green ember necklace started, where the dragons came from, how the star sword got into the dragon pit, and more. Lots of “aha” and “ohhhhh” moments as we listened. It was perfect ending to the full story! There is tons of action and adventure like you typically get from Sam, but this one definitely had the most “fantasy” type of content….obviously lots and lots of dragons. *There is a part in this book where the dragon’s sorcerers perform “dark rites and rituals” specifically when they were changing a rabbit into a dragon. The sorceress makes a potion to give to the rabbit to drink and he changes into a dragon. Of course, it’s not made out to be ok, and eventually all of the dragons are defeated and the evil sorcerers destroyed. (Free on Hoopla.)
- Mandie and the Secret Tunnel by Lois Gladys Leppard (Christian Fiction/Mystery) ★★★★ I’ve been waiting for E to get old enough to be interested in these books. The main character, Mandie, is eleven years old. She has a fascinating family history that she was never told. As she struggles to find the meaning in her father’s death and a harsh, unloving mother, she uncovers a family story that will change her life forever. The author is a Christian, so there are many references to trusting God and praying to Him in difficult circumstances. *There was some cheesy boy likes girl stuff. At one point, Joe kisses Mandie on the cheek. (Free on Hoopla.)
- Mandie and the Cherokee Legend by Lois Gladys Leppard (Christian Fiction/Mystery) ★★★★ In this book, Mandie learns how to deal with prejudice and how to love your enemies. There is one primary nemesis throughout the story who hates whites and does everything he can to hurt Mandie and her friends. In the meantime they get lost in a cave, strike gold, and carefully guard the treasure against, they are not sure who. Overall, a good clean mystery great for it’s intended age group! (Free on Hoopla.)
Movies
- The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. We have watched the three of these movies over the last several months as we’ve read the books. They are overall good family-friendly movies if you’re fine with fantasy. There are some pretty scary parts for young children though. E covered her eyes a few times. They stay relatively close to the storyline, but there are some very obvious changes and additions that are not in the book. I feel like the first one is the closest to the book. The others they got a little creative with. Overall, they are well done, but I think we still like the books better. Be sure to check IMBD if you want more details for each movie. Rated PG.
- Mandie Movies—Mandie and the Secret Tunnel and Mandie and the Cherokee Treasure. One of our favorite things to do together is read the book and then watch the movie if there is one available. When I heard there were movies of the first two Mandie books we read earlier in the month, I made a note to be sure to watch these together. They very loosely follow the storylines of the books, but they do make a lot of changes. In the second movie, they completely change the storyline of the book. E was pretty disappointed with that one. The books are 100% better. But if you’re looking for a good, family friendly movie, these are great…as long as your kids don’t mind cheesy. Lol. They’re free Amazon Prime movies. That should tell you all you need to know about the cheesiness. Ha! Rated G!
Media
- Nature and Science 4 Kids Podcast. Every once in awhile someone will ask if we have a list of podcast recommendations for kids. And while we do have a nice long list, this one is our very favorite of all! Moosejaw Matt is hilarious and he keeps the episodes interesting by including great sound effects and music. It’s probably one of the best podcasts at keeping the kids interested and engaged. An added bonus is that it is science from a Christian worldview, so there is no need to worry about evolution. (Yay!) The episodes are usually around 10 minutes long.
- Sight and Sound Productions ON HOOPLA! So awesome! We have been catching several of the Sight and Sound productions the first Friday of each month with their First Friday Pay What You Want Special they’ve had going on. But my friend recently told me that Hoopla actually has four of their productions that you can borrow for FREE! They have Jonah, Moses, Noah, and Jesus! (Highly recommend these four, but my favorites are Moses and Jesus.)
If you missed past “recommendation roundups,” find Part 2 here and Part 3 here.