Stress Less: Stop Stressing, Start Living
by Kate Hanley (Goodreads Author)
This book gives little tidbits of advice about reducing stress, living with kindness and compassion, and finding ways to alleviate tension. Most of the advice is commonplace, but presented in a fresh way that makes you think a little differently about it.
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Llewellyn’s Complete Book of Meditation: A Comprehensive Guide to Effective Techniques for Calming Your Mind and Spirit
by Shai Tubali (Goodreads Author)
I had to DNF this book because the philosophy of meditation did not at all line up with my personal beliefs. There were several ideas in this book that actually felt dark and scary to me, and that go against Christian teachings about meditation.
There was one practice that encouraged you to leave your personality behind when you meditate. “I am no longer my name or my person.” That seemed very strange and scary to me.
When I meditate, I am MORE myself in Christ, not less. I am MORE of a person how He created me to be, and my name is MORE who I am because I belong to Christ. I understand that author is trying to get you to shift your perspective, but it was not in the right direction.
Middle School – Safety Goggles Advised: Exploring the WEIRD Stuff from Gossip to Grades, Cliques to Crushes and Popularity to Peer Pressure
by Jessica Speer (Goodreads Author)
2 out of 5 stars
This book gives advice about how to navigate the difficulties of middle school. There are chapters about not judging others, bullying, friendships and cliques, trying to be popular, having a crush on someone, gossip, social media, and peer pressure.
My main problem with this book was that it didn’t really go into WHY young people should avoid bad decisions and toxic behaviors. It didn’t talk about honor or morality or modesty. It didn’t talk about honesty or virtue. It just says lots of nice things about being kind to others, but the whole philosophy is very casual and lackadaisical. It even says at one point that “There are no correct responses.” You can do whatever and make whatever choices and nothing is right or wrong. The entire attitude is very amoral and toxic.
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Tolkien: A Look Behind the Lord of the Rings
by Lin Carter
This book was written only a few years after Lord of the Rings was published. It is like a little historic peak into what people thought of Lord of the Rings in the beginning, before it was established as the colossal modern classic we know it as today. Before the modern genre of fantasy was really defined, the Lord of the Rings was difficult to classify. It was like the epic stories of the Greeks and Romans, and some people called it “super science fiction” or a “giant-sized fairy tale”.
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If I Had Lunch with C. S. Lewis: Exploring the Ideas of C. S. Lewis on the Meaning of Life
by Alister E. McGrath
4 out of 5 stars
The author postulates what subjects might arise if you had lunch with Lewis. Taking quotes from Lewis’ written works, we can guess what direction the conversation would take and generalize things that Lewis would probably say. However, this is not a book of imagined dialogue. It is a compilation of generalizations and paraphrases about what the author thinks Lewis would be likely to think and say on certain topics.
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I Begin with Spring: The Life and Seasons of Henry David Thoreau
by Julie Dunlap, Megan Elizabeth Baratta (Illustrations)
When Henry David Thoreau was a boy, he explored the forests and meadows and ponds surrounding his beloved home in Concord, Massachusetts. This book gives us a look into his writings, his life, and the nature that inspired him.
The illustrations are beautiful. Some of them are sketches and maps from Thoreau’s own notebooks. The sketches of birds, plants, and animals are all beautifully and delicately drawn.
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The Leadership of C.S. Lewis: Ten Traits to Encourage Change and Growth
by Crystal Hurd
What are the character traits that make a good leader? This book explores ten important attributes that are essential for any leadership role, and demonstrates how C. S. Lewis displayed those traits through his life and his writing. Here we analyze the details of why Lewis’s influence still continues to inspire countless Christians through his fiction and apologetic books.
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Marvelous Body
by Jane Wilsher, Andrés Lozano (Illustrator)
Using the “magic lens” you can explore the human body! There are sections all about bones, muscles, skin, eyes, and hair. You will learn about the nervous system, the digestive system, and your lungs and brain. Have you ever wondered how your brain interprets sounds through your ears, or how the tongue can taste different foods? Did you know your heart pumps your blood all the way around your body in about 60 seconds?
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Children of the World
by Nicola Edwards
All around the world, children in different countries have vastly different homes, languages, schools, games, and cuisine. This book explores amazing details about beautiful cultures across the globe, and how children live their everyday lives in such different ways. There are also chapters about food, kitchens, bedrooms, weather, pets, manners, celebrations, and superstitions.
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Ornamentation: A Question & Answer Manual
by Valery Lloyd-Watts, Carole L. Bigler, Willard A. Palmer
5 out of 5 stars
This book gives valuable information about how to interpret ornamentation markings such as trills, turns, and mordents in music. Each era of music had their own style of ornamentation with slight differences, so it can sometimes be difficult to determine exactly how the composer intended their ornaments to be played. This book clears away all that confusion, and gives precise instructions about how to play ornaments in music from all the eras.
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Luminous Libro 